Chapter 769: The Calamitous Lahmus, The Beginning of the Final Battle!
As it turned out, setting aside his occasionally abrasive personality, Sakatsuki was an exceptionally competent partner—one might even call him perfect.
In the blink of an eye, Fujimaru found himself transported to the southern shore of the Persian Gulf, with a carefully inscribed magical array concealing his presence and form.
Where was Sakatsuki?
The young man glanced around just in time to witness Sakatsuki—disguised as a black-robed figure—exploiting the information gap to pin the Baal Lahmus beneath his feet.
And the golden Holy Grail that had somehow appeared in his grasp.
"Here you go!" Sensing Fujimaru's gaze, Sakatsuki smirked and tossed the priceless artifact toward him. Without hesitation, Fujimaru dispelled the concealment array and stepped forward to catch the Holy Grail, slotting it into the modified Round Table Shield.
"We've got it, Sakatsuki! Let's retreat with the goddesses—"
Before he could finish, Fujimaru saw the black-robed youth flash a ferocious grin, his hands gripping empty air as a sword wreathed in sinister energy materialized instantly, unleashing countless streaks of azure light.
"Evil dragon, fall upon the world as twilight descends. Balmung—Phantasmal Greatsword, Heavenly Demon's Descent!"
As the incantation rang out, a pillar of cerulean magic erupted skyward, casting an eerie twilight glow across the heavens. For a fleeting moment, the silhouette of a demonic dragon seemed to soar through the void, its cold shadow descending upon the mortal realm.
The hour of twilight had arrived!
For Sakatsuki, the notion of fleeing in disgrace was never an option. Even if they were to leave, it would only be after pummeling every last enemy and striding away triumphantly, singing songs of victory!
"But if this is all you've got, it's downright disappointing." Watching the Baal Lahmus writhe in agony within the beam, Sakatsuki twisted his left hand, summoning another greatsword wreathed in wildfire as dangerous radiance gathered. "Was 'I' really this pathetic back then?"
Before the Baal Lahmus could retort, the young man raised the Sword of the End and thrust forward.
"Boom!"
The flaming blade clashed against chitinous limbs. What seemed like an ordinary exchange erupted into a hundred-meter-tall wave of fire, the shockwave forcing Sakatsuki back a step. His eyebrows arched as he observed the sneering Baal Lahmus. "I see. So you were planning to finish me in one strike too."
Had anyone else tried blocking their attack, even a top-tier Servant clad in dragon-scale armor or golden plates would have been grievously wounded.
Yet here they stood evenly matched—proof that while Sakatsuki had been holding back, the Baal Lahmus had likewise feigned weakness, waiting for the perfect killing blow.
"Mother was right," the monsters growled. "You were bound to betray us."
"You mean the mother I beat half to death?" Sakatsuki provoked coolly.
The blasphemous words ignited the Baal Lahmus' fury. Their carapace-like wings flared, shattering the dragon-slaying sword's light beams. "Mind your tongue, vermin. The day will come when I rip it out and crush it beneath my heel!"
"So foolish! Let me give you some good news!" The other one soared into the sky, looking down at the betrayer from above. "Mother's injuries were completely healed yesterday! Right now, she's amassing forces to annihilate Uruk—just as you planned!"
"What... did you say?!" Sakatsuki's pupils constricted sharply as he instinctively shook his head. "No, impossible. The Reverse Spiritrons aren't something this world can overcome. Even if Mother... even if Tiamat wanted to break free, it would require tremendous sacrifice. She would never do that! Such wounds can only be mended with time. She should still be injured before the final battle!"
The forbidden power of the Annihilating Titan Sefar was not something that could be easily dispelled. Otherwise, how could Sefar have invaded Earth as the vanguard of the White Titan? How could the gods of antiquity have been slaughtered without resistance?
Even the Primordial Mother Goddess was not exempt from this rule!
No, no—unless...
"Um, excuse me." The sun goddess, supported by Fujimaru, weakly raised her hand. "My Sun Stone was stolen."
These words acted like a key, unlocking the barrier of Sakatsuki's incomprehension.
The Sun Stone—the Aztec calendar that revealed all of the world's past and present—could draw out a portion of Quetzalcoatl's divine authority as a goddess. It was a peerless divine medium that could only exist in the Age of Gods.
If Tiamat had absorbed this power and recklessly squandered it on healing her wounds...
"Not just that—there was also the blood sacrifice! The blood sacrifice of all of Eridu!" Baal Lahmu's words struck like a hammer, crushing the hearts of everyone present—especially the sun goddess.
"Blood sacrifice... Eridu?!" Fujimaru froze. He remembered visiting that city. Though there had been unpleasantness, the people of Eridu had stubbornly clung to life, refusing to give up hope in their own way.
But now, those vibrant lives had vanished like mayflies.
"Baal Lahmu, you bastards!" Quetzalcoatl's teeth nearly drew blood as she mustered her remaining strength and charged into the sky. Her fist clashed with Baal Lahmu's, yet even in the midst of their struggle, she could feel her divinity rapidly draining away.
Faith—the faith of her people was being slaughtered en masse by the monsters!
"Ha! And we have this guy to thank for the idea!" Baal Lahmu pointed at Sakatsuki, laughing mockingly. "In all of Mesopotamia, Eridu was the one place that could be utterly destroyed without anyone knowing!"
"The jungle isn't just a natural barrier—it's also the perfect cover for unrestrained slaughter! By now, Mother's army must have crushed the last brick of the Sun Temple!"
The moment he finished speaking, Quetzalcoatl let out a pained grunt. Her divinity plummeted like a bursting dam, cracks spiderwebbing across her porcelain-like face. The next instant, Baal Lahmu slammed her away with brutal force, followed by a black spear aimed straight at her divine core!
"Sun Goddess!" A voice shouted as a figure cut into the battlefield. Despite wielding a heavy shield, their speed was like a meteor, intercepting the strike at the last possible moment and blocking Baal Lahmu's thrust!
When the impact sent Fujimaru and Quetzalcoatl flying backward, serpentine hair coiled around them, bringing both back to the ground. Gorgon clutched her injured shoulder, panting heavily, while Quetzalcoatl, after catching her breath briefly, ignored her wounds and struggled to glare at Baal Lahmu:
"Where did you get an army?!"
"I have the same question." Sakatsuki's robes fluttered as the crimson spear beneath his black cloak struck like lightning, only to leave a shallow scratch on Baal Lahmu's hide before shattering. "The jungle's barrier blocks most demonic beasts. Without the hordes, how could you massacre an entire city?"
"Heh..." Baal Lahmu grinned—not just him, but his sibling also halted their assault, tilting their heads back to unleash a revolting, earsplitting cackle. "Hah, hahahaha!"
Laced within their laughter was venomous mockery.
"Sakatsuki! Why don't you turn around and take a look?!"
"What?" Sakatsuki turned—and the sight before him made his eyes widen sharply, his teeth clenching. "Damn it... It's already come to this...?"
Fujimaru and the others followed his gaze, only to freeze in place, disbelief and despair gradually filling their eyes.
In the distance, a black cloud blotted out the sky. Despite the absence of wind, it surged toward the Persian Gulf at terrifying speed.
Blood-red rain fell from the cloud, mingled with unrecognizable limbs, shattered bones, and even brain matter.
And so, realization dawned upon them, slow and dreadful.
That thing—was no mere black cloud!
It was an endless, calamitous tide... of Lahmu!
"Fujimaru!" Sakatsuki's voice cut through the suffocating tension. "No time to waste—use it now!"
With a body reforged by the Primordial Sea, Sakatsuki naturally had no fear of being swarmed by Lahmu. But Fujimaru and the goddesses were different.
Even Lahmu weaker than Baal Lahmu could be considered mass-produced versions of Enkidu, each rivaling the strength of a first-rate—or even top-tier—Servant. And worse—their numbers were beyond counting!
As the black cloud drew closer, Fujimaru could clearly see their obsidian hides, razor-sharp claws, gaping maws large enough to swallow a head whole, rows of jagged white teeth, and the fetid, drooling tongues that lolled out.
They had no eyes, yet their malevolent consciousness was palpable. Even after devouring an entire city's worth of lives, their hunger remained unsated. All they craved was slaughter—slaughter, slaughter, slaughter—twisted, ravenous madness that sought to butcher every living thing in sight and wring ecstasy from the carnage!
"Stay sharp, Fujimaru!" Sakatsuki's voice boomed like thunder, snapping Fujimaru out of his daze. "These are creatures you've never faced before—not one or two, but an endless horde. If your sanity breaks, you won't even stand a chance to fight!"
"Got it!"
True to his experience as a battle-hardened Master, Fujimaru took a deep breath and swiftly shook off his panic. With a decisive slap to his card holder, moonlight rose, illuminating the black-haired boy as the legendary king atop the Throne of Heaven gazed down with imperious disdain.
[SET (Install)]
[MoonCancer·King of the Lunar Spirit]
"Sakatsuki..." Fujimaru clutched the miraculous card, pressing it to his forehead as he murmured under his breath.
"Lend me your strength—please!"
And thus, the myriad phenomena of creation converged!
[SET (Load)]
[Saber·Artoria (Alter)]
[Saber·Mordred]
[Shielder·Data Lost]
[Berserker·Frankenstein]!
"Noble Phantasms [Excalibur Morgan], [Nameless Snowflake Shield], [Cigarette Lion Helmet]—release complete!"
"Amplification of mechanical armor complete!"
"Third Magic activation complete! Pseudo-Holy Grail operational!"
Once was unfamiliar, twice was routine. Though Gorgon and Quetzalcoatl watched Fujimaru's escalating power with incomprehensible shock, the staff in the control room had already begun rapid operations to help him adapt to the surging energy.
[Ready——Fight!!!]
"Sakatsuki!" The boy clad in mechanical armor and a gilded lion helmet raised his head, shouting the name of the strongest among them. "I'm ready!"
"Then let's go!"
Dark shadows flowed, rose, and outlined the silhouette of the black-robed young man. In his left hand, he wielded the 'Flames of the End,' while his right gripped 'Balmung.' Two savage forces writhed and roared, yet neither could escape the grasp of those hands. Even as his golden vertical pupils gleamed as if on the verge of shattering, his face still bore a smile that seemed to say, "Is this all?"
"You handle the Lahmu horde. I'll take on the two Baal Lahmu."
"Got it!"
Fujimaru took a deep breath and was the first to unleash the dark holy sword in his hand: "Iron Hammer of the Wicked King, reverse the dawn's light, devour all radiance—Excalibur Morgan!"
In response, Sakatsuki's clear voice rang out: "Awaken from the golden dream, break free from the cradle—let the crimson tide adorn the final act!"
The hue of twilight spread from his right hand, staining the young man's body. A sinister dragon emerged from the azure mist, revealing only a glimpse of its scales and claws, only to be split down the center by a single stroke from above. An invading tide of flames erupted as the Beast of Calamity sneered, its tail lashing against the bloody tide, dividing the battlefield into two starkly distinct realms!
"O seven-headed dragon, become my wings and soar! I shall strike you down—Fantasy Great Sword: Heavenly Demon's Fall / Crimson Rose Tide!"
A spiraling, resplendent pillar of light erupted from right to left, while a black wave surged like a tsunami from left to right. Heaven and earth stood stunned, leaving only the two men roaring as their tri-colored beams of destruction swept across everything in sight!
The Lahmu howled, attempting to charge against the torrent of light. Fujimaru gritted his teeth, channeling the Third Magic's endurance entirely into mana output, causing the insatiable Red Dragon to unleash a triumphant roar. The radiance of mana expanded, dyeing half the sky crimson!
Meanwhile, the Baal Lahmu writhed in excruciating pain. Realizing this EX-ranked attack could truly kill them, the monsters swiftly folded their wings, curling up in silence as they endured the baptism of scorching light—vowing to repay this suffering in full one day.
But would Sakatsuki give them that chance?
"Let's move, Fujimaru!" Even while sustaining immense mana consumption, Sakatsuki still had the strength to stomp the ground, forcibly tearing open a spatial rift. "This isn't the place to linger. Take Gorgon and Quetzalcoatl—we're retreating!"
The light of reversal gradually dimmed. Fujimaru pulled Quetzalcoatl up and sent her into the rift, then turned back: "Miss Gorgon, give me your hand—"
The serpentine hair lashed out wildly, striking Fujimaru square in the chest in his moment of shock, sending him flying backward with a spray of blood!
"What?!" Sakatsuki swiftly pulled Fujimaru back, unable to help but glance at Gorgon—only to find her clutching her shoulder, her eyes reflecting the same disbelief!
As if realizing something, Gorgon swung her serpent tail, tossing the unconscious Kingu from the corner into Fujimaru's arms. Before the serpentine hair could strike again, she swung her arm, pushing both Fujimaru and Sakatsuki into the rift.
"Miss Gorgon!!!" Fujimaru shouted the goddess's name. Just before the rift sealed completely, he caught sight of her serene, relieved smile.
"This is fine." The Beast Goddess silently told him—
"This is fine."