"That's enough. I am the one and only Gilgamesh—any other is nothing but a fraud."
Gilgamesh's brows twitched violently, his irritation overflowing without the slightest attempt at restraint.
Then he raised his hand and waved it.
Weapons emerged from the golden ripples behind him and were fired indiscriminately.
Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!
Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!
Without hesitation, Arthur responded just as naturally.
His own Gate of Babylon opened, multiple golden ripples forming around him.
His weapons fired, perfectly intercepting every projectile launched by Gilgamesh.
Metal clashed against metal as explosions echoed throughout the area.
The impact of their exchange was devastating.
Within a 250-meter radius, everything was reduced to rubble.
Even so, two areas remained untouched.
The lamppost where Gilgamesh stood—and the spot where Arthur, Artoria, and Irisviel were.
As if both had, consciously or not, defined a battlefield between them.
Iskandar didn't attempt to block the attacks.
With a firm pull on the reins, his divine chariot shot forward, weaving through the rain of weapons with astonishing precision.
He ascended into the sky at high speed, escaping the first wave with mastery.
The second came immediately after—denser and far more aggressive.
Even so, he passed through it, paying only the small price of having a corner of his red cloak torn.
"What a terrifying number of Noble Phantasms!"
Even amidst the chaos, Iskandar found the time to comment, clearly impressed.
Waver, clinging to the chariot as if his life depended on it—and it did—was on the verge of collapse.
"I'm going to die… I'm definitely going to die…"
His eyes were wide.
For a moment, he swore he saw his late great-grandmother waving at him.
But fortunately, it was just a hallucination… or maybe not.
---
"Thank you, Arthur."
Irisviel leaned slightly closer, carefully examining him for any sign of injury.
Finding none, she let out a sigh of relief.
Artoria also exhaled.
For a brief moment, she had nearly revealed herself to protect them—but Arthur had acted first.
Shielding them both from Archer's Noble Phantasm with his own, as if it were the most natural thing in the world.
'You haven't changed at all…'
"We need to have a proper conversation once this is over," Artoria said.
Arthur simply rotated his wrist slightly, dissipating the last golden ripples around him.
"I'll answer all your questions when we get back," he replied.
As Gilgamesh, Arthur, and Iskandar stood in a tense stalemate, Kiritsugu's calm voice echoed in Arthur's ear through the communicator.
{"It seems Saber's Master was watching everything and is now planning to retreat. Maiya and I are keeping an eye on Assassin."}
"I see… Iri, call Berserker."
Arthur spoke without even turning his head, his full attention still on the battlefield.
"Understood."
Irisviel nodded softly and immediately extended her hand toward her own shadow.
For a moment, the darkness at her feet stirred—and a female figure slowly emerged from within it.
She had long white hair and wore light armor along with a Hannya mask, its demonic grin contrasting with the absolute silence of her presence.
In her hands, she held a massive two-handed sword.
"Berserker?"
Iskandar frowned.
"Boy, how strong is he?"
He tapped Waver's head as he asked, analyzing the newcomer with great interest.
"I don't know… There's no way to tell."
Waver shook his head quickly.
Iskandar clicked his tongue—but then his pupils contracted.
Below, still standing atop the shattered lamppost, Gilgamesh pulled something from his treasury.
"Who gave you permission to stand above me?"
His voice echoed with disdain.
"Get down here!"
Instead of targeting the Berserker who had just entered the battle, Gilgamesh—already completely fed up—aimed directly at Iskandar.
The sword in his hand began to spin.
A crimson spiral opened, and then a massive wave of energy was unleashed toward him.
Seeing this, Iskandar had no choice.
He grabbed Waver immediately and leaped off the chariot.
In the next instant, it was completely obliterated.
Reduced to dust by a single attack.
The two sacred bulls died before they could even unleash their full power.
Bang!
Iskandar landed heavily on the ground, still holding Waver in his arms.
But in the blink of an eye, he summoned another chariot.
Smaller and less imposing than the previous one.
But still clearly no ordinary vehicle.
This was merely a practical measure.
Iskandar needed maximum mobility—and Waver needed to survive.
"Rider… you can put me down now."
Waver spoke, completely pale.
"Ah, sorry."
Iskandar set him down and scratched his head with a carefree smile, as if nothing particularly serious had happened.
Nearby, when Arthur saw that Gilgamesh had actually drawn Ea, his expression finally grew more serious.
After all, no one there understood the true power of Ea better than he—and Gilgamesh himself.
"This situation is getting pretty bad…"
Iskandar commented, watching the crimson energy gathering around the weapon.
Elsewhere—
Tokiomi Tohsaka, monitoring everything remotely, reached the exact same conclusion.
Gilgamesh's greatest trump card had been revealed far too early.
Even someone as confident as Tokiomi was surprised.
But then—something unexpected happened.
Berserker charged directly at Gilgamesh.
Gilgamesh smiled.
A smile filled with contempt.
The mere act of witnessing Ea's power was already an honor far beyond what that mad dog deserved.
Gilgamesh raised his hand slightly—and dozens, no, hundreds of golden ripples appeared behind him.
The Gate of Babylon opened fully.
Countless Noble Phantasms were fired.
The golden rain wasn't aimed solely at Berserker.
It also fell upon Arthur, Iskandar, and anyone else present.
Gilgamesh could understand why the Lancer who claimed to be him and Iskandar could partially or fully withstand the Gate of Babylon.
But this… made no sense.
What was wrong with that out-of-control dog down there?
All he could see was Berserker intercepting every weapon fired at them—one after another—with ease.
Each Noble Phantasm was deflected as if she knew the exact timing and angle of every attack.
Ea in Gilgamesh's hand began to vibrate restlessly.
The crimson spiral expanded further, and an overwhelming amount of energy gathered at its core.
Gilgamesh's patience finally snapped after being repeatedly insulted by this group.
The attack that had destroyed Iskandar's chariot earlier had been nothing more than a casual gesture.
Now it would be different.
Now he would be serious.
"It's time for this farce to end…"
Gilgamesh raised Ea above his head.
"Ea—this place has become a stage worthy of you."
"I feel a bit embarrassed admitting this… but I really was like that back then. Everything annoyed me," Arthur muttered under his breath with a faint sigh.
"Should I act now?" Artoria asked.
"No. I'll handle this myself," Arthur replied without hesitation.
"Why?" Confusion filled her eyes.
"Because I need someone to protect Iri while I deal with my younger, more irresponsible self." He looked at her. "Trust me."
"Arthur…"
Irisviel placed a hand over her chest, clearly uneasy. Still, sensing his unwavering resolve, she took a deep breath and said firmly:
"Artie, let's trust him."
"Alright," Artoria replied—though not without resistance.
Her fingers twitched, almost instinctively summoning Rhongomyniad—but she stopped.
She didn't want to stay behind him.
Didn't want to simply watch again.
She wanted to fight beside him—wanted to share that burden.
That had been her duty since that fateful day.
Even so, she chose to step back this time.
"Step back, Artie and Iri. Things are about to get chaotic."
Above Arthur, a golden ripple opened.
From within it, a sword identical to Gilgamesh's emerged.
Its form didn't match what would normally be called a sword.
It was something older than that concept.
Something that existed before the very idea of a "blade."
Though it had a hilt and guard, and the length of a longsword, its "blade" was not a blade.
It was a cylindrical pillar—without edge or tip.
Three segments formed its structure, slowly rotating in opposite directions.
Engraved with crimson characters, the rings spun—one clockwise, the others counterclockwise.
The greatest and most reliable treasure of them both.
Ea: The Sword of Rupture.
"Two can play this game, Goldie," Arthur said as he raised Ea above his head.
On the other side, Gilgamesh watched him, his scarlet eyes fixed on the weapon.
"I didn't want to believe it, but… this war just became far more interesting."
A satisfied smile spread across his face as he finally accepted the words of the man claiming to be himself.
No one else should be capable of possessing both the Chains of Heaven and the Sword of Rupture.
---
"Oioioi~ These two are insane!"
Even Iskandar, who rarely lost his composure, couldn't help but comment.
"Rider! Let's get out of here! Those two are going to destroy everything!"
Waver practically shouted, clinging to him in desperation.
"Are you kidding me?!"
Iskandar replied, smacking his shoulder.
"How could I, the King of Conquerors, simply run away from this?!"
Then he grinned.
"Listen carefully. This isn't a retreat."
He pulled the reins.
"It's just a tactical withdrawal, understand?"
"Yes! A tactical withdrawal!"
Waver nodded frantically, with not a shred of dignity left.
"Hold on tight, Master!"
Boom—
A bolt of blue lightning descended from the sky, enveloping them—and both vanished as if they had never been there.
---
Iskandar's retreat went unnoticed by Arthur and Gilgamesh.
Both were completely focused on each other.
At that exact moment, Gilgamesh's smile froze.
"Tokiomi… do you really believe you can order me to retreat in the middle of my banquet?"
His expression changed instantly.
The crimson energy forming around Ea dissipated.
"Are you mocking me?"
The anger in his eyes flared suddenly.
...
Two and a half minutes earlier—
At the Tohsaka residence—
Tokiomi Tohsaka, communicating with Kirei Kotomine, frowned deeply.
Gilgamesh's reckless behavior…
Was gradually slipping completely out of control.
---
(End of Chapter)
While I was browsing for information about the arc, I ended up discovering that both Gilles de Rais Caster and Zouken Matou have a rather large fanbase.
Now I can't complain anymore about the famous misinformed fanboys of our beloved Gil.