The setting sun had sunk into the distant mountains, and the orange-red afterglow enveloped the entire Weiyuan River.
The evening breeze carried the river's moisture across the embankment, billowing the hem of the wise king's brilliant black-gold robes, as well as lifting the blond hair hanging before the tyrant's flash.
Two kings of the same origin and soul, but from different times, stood face to face on the embankment. There was no tense confrontation, only an equal dialogue.
"So it has truly become a singularity? It seems Gaia has finally realized something is wrong. Moreover, such a future is absolutely unacceptable to their planetary suppression. Conquest and enslavement of planets or something like that—it's still too overbearing."
As he spoke, he seemed to see the grand scene of humanity's Iron Curtain covering half the galaxy in that future. He suddenly threw his head back and burst into thunderous laughter. The wild, untamed laughter traveled far and wide on the river wind.
The wise king's expression flickered, but he always remained calm. A sharp light flashed in his burgundy eyes, precisely capturing the key words in his speech:
"Conquest and enslavement? It seems what is happening in this world is far more exaggerated than I imagined."
"Of course. The future of this world is so beautiful. It is a romance unique to humanity. I simply want to see it become an unchanging reality."
Hearing such recklessly arrogant words, the wise king frowned. The aura around him instantly condensed, and his tone was serious as ice:
"You know better than anyone that once a world is characterized as a singularity, human reason will deem it an incorrect trajectory of development. The future will be impossible altogether, and in the end, it will be completely pruned and eliminated along with the beings and future of the entire world."
But the words "human reason" and "singularity" seemed like some great joke. The tyrant was stunned for a moment, then exploded into unprincipled laughter, holding his stomach.
He laughed so hard he doubled over, his whole body leaning forward. The arrogant laughter echoed again and again across the empty shore, crashing against the cold piers and floating along the river into the distance, startling the night birds in the puddles on the shore. The wise king was full of astonishment and confusion.
"What qualifications do they have to determine good and evil?! If it doesn't meet your expectations, do you want to completely block the future of the human race? But when there is an opportunity to transcend their thinking and break free from their shackles, isn't that a bad thing for the soul of this planet and the so-called guarantee of humanity?!"
"What the hell are you talking about?" The wise king increasingly felt that something was wrong with him. His brows furrowed, and his tone was incredibly serious.
"I said—" The tyrant took a step forward and spread his arms, as if wanting to embrace all of Fuyuki and the entire galaxy, with the authoritative voice of the oldest king looking down upon heaven and earth.
"Whether it's prohibitions or human reasoning, they are not worthy of determining the future of this world!"
"Because the people of this world are destined to surpass them! Step by step, step by step, step by step, step by step, trampling on all the shackles and fetters, conquering the stars, bathing the galaxy, controlling the universe, and reaching the pinnacle of the one and only!"
---
As is well known, the Holy Grail War is fought in secret. Therefore, when the battle between Heroic Spirit Locke and Heracles began, everyone was drawn to it and fled accordingly.
When Locke had crushed eleven of Heracles' lives in a row in several completely different heroic forms, and only one last chance for resurrection remained for the Twelve Labors, Ilya's world completely collapsed.
She could no longer watch Berserker, who had protected her like family, disperse and return to Valhalla. Breaking through the air left over from the fierce battle, she charged like a madwoman, using her frail body as a Master to block Heracles' massive form, bursting through the night streets with a cry:
"Stop!"
At that moment—the crow of mourning, Sharokyn.
His exclusive resin-black power armor blended into the night, and the muzzle of his sniper rifle, coated with a venomous needle, was pressed against Heracles' forehead at that moment.
He glanced at Ilya, who had burst in through the periphery of his visor's vision. The crimson gleam in his visor did not waver. He completely ignored her roar, closing the fingertips of his battle armor, still calmly and slowly pressing the trigger.
For him, the mission was to shoot the guy before him. Nothing else mattered.
At that moment, Ilya didn't care either.
Like a young beast risking its life, she threw herself onto the giant hand covered in power armor like a madwoman, wrapping her frail, seemingly breakable body tightly around the finger on the trigger.
Although her two hands could not fully encircle the thick armored finger, she used all her magic and strength, desperately pressing down on the finger and trigger to prevent the finger from pulling the trigger enough to end it all. Hot tears uncontrollably splashed onto the broken asphalt.
This highly contrasting scene immediately drew disapproval from the people eating popcorn and watching the battle (who had been forcibly dragged there by the schoolgirl Mash). They said, and Shirou Emiya was beside them:
"Stop!"
"Stop!"
Sharokyn released the finger on the trigger. The cold visor of his power armor swept over Ilya, who was holding his finger in her hands and trembling with tears. His voice was like the cold of a frozen winter, without a ripple:
"Rejoice, mortals. The mercy of the Lord of Humanity has fallen upon you as well. Witchcraft, and you with the beast behind you, are no longer the targets of my mission."
The moment the words fell, his figure became translucent, like black mist carried away by the wind. In a gust of light and shadow, he had already been replaced by the original Space Marine in the lava-colored power armor of the Salamanders Chapter. The Seiko prosthetic on his left arm, glowing with a cold metallic light, was particularly eye-catching in the night.
Sakan deliberately lightened all his movements and slowly crouched down, as if afraid of disturbing the frightened young beast.
Looking at Ilya, who was wary of him with tear-streaked, red-rimmed eyes, his deep voice came through the speaker, full of apology and gentleness:
"I am very sorry. The Dark Raven Guardians to whom Master Sharokyn belongs have always behaved so coldly, but this is by no means their intention."
"All of us fight for the great Emperor and for the protection of all humanity."
"The Emperor? What a bold title. But I don't seem to have any impression of it. What about you?"
Fujimaru Ritsuka, who looked somewhat heartless, approached like this, as if asking Shirou Emiya and the others, but in reality, he was hinting at the doctor and Leonardo da Vinci, who were still in Chaldea.
"Who are you?!"
After being provoked by the outsider, everyone finally realized that this was a state of war. Heracles, who had nearly recovered, pushed Ilya aside, and Artoria also raised her holy sword again, pointing it at Sakan.
In the center of Sakan, who was crouched on one knee, Ilya, Heracles, and Shirou's group across the street formed a tense yet strangely stable triangular standoff.
At that moment, an anxious voice came from the communicator at Fujimaru Ritsuka's ear:
"Ritsuka! The situation has completely spiraled out of control! We can't get any information on the spiritual response of the other party! Even if we conduct a full fuzzy search of their speech now, there are no corresponding records of heroic spirits, myths and legends, or historical figures!"
"And we have asked all the Servants remaining in Chaldea, and none of them recognize their origin! Be careful. The other party is most likely not from an era we know."
After Fujimaru Ritsuka had undergone the baptism of life and death in several singularities, Fujimaru Ritsuka was no longer the original novice Master. The relaxed smile on his face instantly vanished without a trace, and his cynical expression was completely replaced by solemnity. He understood that the current situation was beyond common sense and required caution.
If the other party was an alien existence, that would be a big problem.
And Locke, incarnated as Sakan, had already seen all of this.
His gaze swept over Ritsuka's side. He subconsciously raised his shield to protect Matthew, his Master, and immediately understood who the other person was, but he didn't know which version of the Beast of Humanity it was.
If there were four Evil Beasts in the archive, he should be careful.
However, they had prepared a full set of plans for Chaldean intervention in advance and were not panicked at all.
Therefore, he slowly rose, and his deep voice came through his power armor, so smooth it was not half hostile:
"Don't be nervous. We can sit down and talk this over, friend of our lord, poor son, and..."
When the crimson fire in Sakan's visor fully focused on Fujimaru Ritsuka, the aura of spiritual energy around him drastically changed, as if another, more majestic will had instantly seized this body. The entire aura and posture of the man in an instant changed to a completely different life.
Varro Tigurius: "¥&*&@"
A language not belonging to humans came from the mouth of the strongest psyker and chief analyst of the Ultramarines Chapter.
Everyone present instantly felt their hair stand on end, a terrifying tightness in their hearts deep within their bone marrow. In these vague sounds, it seemed that if they were fully heard, even their very existence would be completely erased. There was an absolute truth that could not be violated.
A language that did not belong to humans—or a language deliberately rendered unintelligible—came from the mouth of the strongest psyker and chief analyst of the Ultramarines Chapter. Everyone subconsciously felt a creeping horror, as if these words were an absolute truth that would erase them once heard.
At the same time, far before the observation deck of the Chaldea command room, Sherlock Holmes, the leader of the Chaldea intelligence team, completely ignored the endless thoughts of Mordias beside him.
A premonition too strong to ignore slowly crawled down his back. This mysterious life before him might become his greatest test in this world.