69novels Page 78
Page 78
His crimson eyes, which looked down upon all living beings, slowly swept over everyone present.
He saw the saintess locked in fierce combat with Kirei Kotomine, he saw the stubborn-looking orange-haired boy, he saw the red-clad magician watching the spectacle with amusement… Miao…
In the end, his gaze was firmly fixed on the black-haired, golden-eyed man who seemed to be watching a drama that had nothing to do with him from beginning to end, the only one he couldn't "understand".
"—A monstrous fellow who can amuse even this king."
Gilgamesh's lips curled into a cruel yet pleasurable smile.
"It seems that your final opponent is you."
143 The Judgment of God
Gilgamesh's declaration of war, filled with absolute majesty and finality, stirred up towering ripples in the deathly silent church courtyard like a boulder thrown into a lake.
His crimson eyes, which looked down upon all living beings, were fixed on the black-haired, golden-eyed man who seemed to be watching a drama that had nothing to do with him from beginning to end.
"--very good."
The oldest king laughed, but that laugh no longer carried any pleasure or amusement; it was filled only with the purest, coldest, absolute killing intent that was about to crush everything in its path!
He no longer held back, nor did he test anyone further.
He would use his supreme, absolute power as "King" to respond to this bastard before him, that foolish arrogance that dared to offend his majesty!
"—Then let your remains serve as the final curtain call for this farce!"
He raised his right hand high!
"—Gate of Bylon!!!"
Buzz—buzz—buzz—buzz—buzz—! ! ! ! ! !
This time, it's not hundreds or thousands of golden ripples!
Instead, tens of thousands!
Dense, honeycomb-like spatial ripples, centered on Gilgamesh, spread across the entire night sky of Fuyuki City! They obscured the moonlight, replaced the stars, and dyed the whole world with an ominous golden hue filled with the aura of death and destruction!
From the depths of each ripple, what emerges is no longer the ordinary, C-rank or B-rank Noble Phantasms.
Instead, they are the ultimate weapons of great heroes, each one possessing a formidable reputation in myths and legends, truly of A-grade or higher!
A demonic sword capable of cleaving mountains!
A divine spear capable of piercing even gods!
A battle axe that can freeze time and space!
A staff capable of triggering natural disaster 047!
Thousands upon thousands of top-tier Noble Phantasms, enough to drive any nation or magician organization mad and enough to be considered national treasures, at this moment, like the cheapest arrows, all revealed their deadly sharpness capable of destroying everything!
"—Enkdu! Tie up that Knight King and Mad Dog over there!"
Gilgamesh didn't even bother with the two "minions" still fighting in the courtyard. Several golden chains shot out from the void, binding and imprisoning Artoria and Cú Chulainn, who were still locked in fierce combat, in place!
Then, he slowly lowered the hand that symbolized "destruction".
"—Go."
"Crush all the disrespect before my eyes!"
Whoosh whoosh whoosh whoosh whoosh whoosh—! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! !
In that instant, the whole world seemed to fall silent.
Thousands upon thousands of Noble Phantasms of A rank or higher, like a golden, destructive rain, transformed into an unstoppable torrent of death made of light and steel, indiscriminately covering the entire Fuyuki Church!
The chat group was completely silent.
[March 7th]: ... (speechless)
[Butterfly Dance]: ...This...this is beyond the scope of what human power can contend with...
[Queen of Ice]: ...Is this the true power of the oldest king...? It is truly terrifying and absolutely powerful.
[Nightmare]: Ara ara~ It seems the game is about to end.
Faced with this terrifying attack, which was like divine punishment and could wipe the entire Fuyuki City off the map in an instant, everyone in the courtyard felt a suffocating sense of "death" from the depths of their souls!
"Everyone! Get behind me!"
Joan of Arc let out a desperate cry! She planted the holy banner in her hand hard into the ground, pouring all her faith and magic into it!
"—My Lord is here (mnost Etnelle)!"
A golden, sacred protective barrier suddenly unfolded! It attempted to shield everyone behind it!
"—RhoAas, the Sevenfold Ring of Blazing Heaven!"
Arch and Shirou Emiya, this "father and son (?)" from different timelines, achieved an unprecedented and perfect synchronization at this moment! The two simultaneously unleashed projection magic, and two fantasy shields composed of seven layers of petals, symbolizing absolute protection, were stacked on top of each other, blocking the front of the barrier!
"—StrkeAr, the Wind King's Hammer!"
Artoria, bound by the Chains of Heaven, also unleashed the magic of her holy sword! A devastating shockwave, composed of high-density wind pressure, erupted from her blade and collided violently with the torrent of Noble Phantasms that filled the sky!
Everyone gave it their all!
However, faced with Gilgamesh's irrational and absolute material suppression, all their defenses appeared so pale and so fragile.
It was just a fleeting moment of contact!
The storm of "Wind King's Hammer" was easily torn apart!
Immediately afterwards, the seemingly indestructible "Sevenfold Heavenly Ring" composed of fourteen layers of petals also emitted a tooth-grinding wail under the continuous, tsunami-like bombardment of the treasure. One layer, two layers, three layers... quickly cracked and shattered!
In the end, even Joan of Arc's divine protective barrier, which came from the Lord, shook violently and flickered under this catastrophic attack, as if it would collapse completely at any moment!
"--it's over."
Above the heavens, Gilgamesh looked down at the group of "misfits" struggling futilely like candles in the wind before his power, and a cruel yet satisfied smile appeared on his face.
However, just when he thought everything was settled—
The man with the dark skin and golden eyes, who had seemed to be watching a show from beginning to end, finally moved.
He slowly stepped out from behind the shattering protective barrier into the deadly domain of death, composed of thousands upon thousands of top-tier magical artifacts.
He did not build any defenses, nor did he use any magic.
He simply raised one hand slowly amidst the torrent of magical artifacts that filled the sky like a golden rainstorm.
Then, in a calm tone, as if commanding his own unruly collection to return to its place, he softly issued his only instruction.
Jiulin (six)? Siliu] Qi Er Xia "—I command, all treasures, return to your treasury."
In that instant, the whole world seemed to have been muted.
Those thousands upon thousands of legendary treasures, carrying supreme divine power and about to utterly destroy everything, actually froze in mid-air in an instant, just like the most loyal soldiers who had received the highest command!
Then, something even more unbelievable happened!
Like swallows returning to their nests, they all turned around and transformed into streaks of golden light, flying back into the sky and into the golden ripples!
Subsequently, the countless golden ripples, like stars, were forcibly shut down by an irresistible and absolute force of law!
The world fell silent once again.
"!!! ...
Above the heavens, Gilgamesh's handsome face, always filled with arrogance and composure, froze completely at this moment.
His crimson eyes, which once looked down upon all living beings, shrank to their limit due to extreme shock and disbelief!
His treasure trove! His unique "King's Treasury," containing all the original texts in the world! It was actually... actually forcibly shut down by some unknown scoundrel with a nonsensical "command"?!
This is no longer a "provocation".
This is the most thorough and fundamental blasphemy against him, the most ancient king, against his supreme status and power as the "owner"!
"—Miscellaneous!!!!!!!!!"
An unprecedented and terrifying rage, enough to make the entire planet tremble, erupted from Gilgamesh!
In a frenzy, he forcibly retrieved a strangely shaped "key" from the deepest part of his treasure vault, which could no longer be opened normally. The key was made up of three cylindrical sections and seemed to have been formed from the chaos at the beginning of the universe.
—Ea!
"—Let me show you, you lowly ant!"
"What is the creation of heaven and earth? What is the primordial star?"
He raised the sword Ea high in his hand, and the three cylinders began to rotate wildly in opposite directions at different speeds!
"—The heavens and earth parted, the star of creation (EnumaElsh)!!!"
boom--!!!!!!!!!!!!!
A terrifying vortex of red and black energy, powerful enough to cleave the world, distort spacetime, and recreate "Genesis," erupted from the tip of the sword! It devoured Gu Chuan below with unstoppable force!
Faced with this true "Anti-World Treasure," capable of returning everything to "nothingness," Gu Chuan's golden eyes finally shone with the brilliant light of a "god."
He stared directly at the terrifying energy storm that had distorted all laws, and in an unquestionable tone, as if stating the ultimate truth of the universe, he softly uttered a single word.
"--end."
In that instant, the entire world, all sounds, all light, all energy, seemed to be gripped by an invisible hand, its throat squeezed tightly.
That devastating storm, capable of cleaving the world, actually vanished just moments before it was about to form, like a poor-quality illusion whose power supply had been cut off.
Gu Chuan then turned his eyes, which were gleaming with divine light, toward the most ancient king in the sky, who was now completely petrified.
"—You are not the king of this world."
"Ashes to ashes, dust to dust."
He directly issued the final, irrefutable command to Gilgamesh himself, to the "spiritual core" that forms the foundation of the Heroic Spirit's existence.
—Stop, stop operating.
"...This king...actually..."
The most ancient king, in utter rage and disbelief, saw his magnificent golden armor begin to crumble inch by inch. His body transformed into countless golden specks of spiritual light, like sand sculptures scattered by the wind, utterly and irrevocably exiting the stage.
144A new dawn in Fuyuki City
As the oldest king uttered his final, unwilling whisper, and as his magnificent golden armor transformed into countless points of light, vanishing completely into the night sky, the entire world seemed to be silenced.
The suffocating, terrifying pressure that had hung over Fuyuki City all night long dissipated.
The cool moonlight, once again, gently bathed the wounded church courtyard.
The war is over.
Cú Chulainn, bound by the Chains of Heaven, showed no fear whatsoever upon witnessing Gilgamesh's mythical and overwhelming defeat. Instead, a smug, triumphant smile appeared on his face.
The demonic spear in his hand transformed into spiritual particles and slowly dissipated.
He looked at Artoria not far away and said in a respectful tone, "Sab, what a wonderful battle... one that I never dared to dream of."
"Although failing to determine a victor from you is the greatest regret of my life, witnessing the final scene of this divine judgment makes my journey worthwhile, Cú Chulainn's!"
As he spoke, he gave Artoria a standard, warrior's salute. Then, his agile figure, bathed in moonlight, transformed into countless blue spiritual particles, gracefully returning to the Throne of Heroes.
Inside the church, the battle between the "holy" and the "demon" had come to an end.
Kirei Kotomine collapsed onto the cold ground, his face, which was always filled with pleasure and contortion, now showing an unprecedented calm.
Joan of Arc did not kill him.
She simply and gently covered him with the holy banner, which was printed with dragon patterns and symbolized the glory of the Lord.
Bathed in that sacred light, Kirei Kotomine's empty soul, twisted by his innate "defect" throughout his life, felt for the first time the emotion called "peace." His lifelong search for the answer to "pleasure" seemed to find its final, and most ironic, conclusion at that moment.
He slowly closed his eyes and found eternal peace.
With the departure of the last two enemies, the Fifth Holy Grail War, filled with unpredictability and chaos, has finally come to an official end.
hum-
A gigantic golden cup, composed of pure, immense, and unbelievable magic, slowly appeared before everyone.
It is the Holy Grail.