"This... this isn't what we agreed upon!"
The opponent fighting Tiamat, a nameless Servant, wore an expression of utter disbelief as he stared at her 5,000 Attack Power.
"All the previous opponents never used their full strength! Am I being hated? Being hated by a maternal young girl...?"
In truth, Tiamat only had her true form and the Primordial Sea on the field, using roughly thirty percent of her full power. However, even this fraction of her power was an insurmountable mountain for most people, even Servants.
"I'm sorry, Mommy senses children who need help more urgently, so I can't linger here for long."
Tiamat glanced toward Mount Enzou. "How about this? I'll leave one of my children here. Its Card has a connection to mine, but its strength is much lower. You can keep trying!"
"So, my apologies. Entering the Battle Phase! Tiamat's direct attack!"
With 5,000 Attack Power, she sent the bystander flying.
Next, Tiamat unleashed a small portion of the Primordial Sea. She reached into the swirling depths and pulled out a Lahmu.
Tiamat could mass-produce these creatures instantly. She patted the Lahmu's head.
"Just keep them entertained for a while."
With that, Tiamat mounted a Magical Beast that had just emerged from the Primordial Sea and galloped toward Mount Enzou.
Jiang You had initially planned to ride his Flying Dragon to Mount Enzou, but with so many companions, and the Flying Dragon's limited capacity of two or three riders, they were forced to find alternative transportation.
Having borrowed a car from Illya, Jiang You drove Rin Tohsaka, Bazett, Illya, and several Servants toward Mount Enzou. Illya even offered to drive, as the car was originally hers and she possessed a driver's license—though Jiang You couldn't fathom how someone of her stature had passed the driving test. Ultimately, Jiang You took the driver's seat; otherwise, the residents of Fuyuki might have witnessed a driverless car cruising down the road.
Driving wasn't without its perks. Along the way, Jiang You spotted numerous duels in progress, each surrounded by onlookers. Fuyuki's "Duel City" project was progressing smoothly. He even spotted a Lahmu, fresh from victory, gnawing on its opponent's head, though the duel's protective barrier prevented any real harm.
"Hmm, a Lahmu?"
Jiang You glanced at it casually, paying little attention. With Tiamat around, such occurrences were hardly surprising. Mount Enzou remained his priority.
When Jiang You arrived at the Holy Grail's location, a certain orange-haired Hero of Justice was already there, waving enthusiastically.
"Emiya-kun?"
Jiang You waved back, then posed a soul-searching question: "Shouldn't you be in class right now? Why are you skipping again? Are you sure your studies aren't suffering?"
"Ha ha ha... I've already been called in for questioning."
In reality, although much had happened in the interim, for Shirou Emiya, less than two months had passed since the Holy Grail War. Life in Fuyuki had undergone a complete upheaval. During this time, he was also moonlighting as a Hero of Justice, dealing with villains who sought to realize their vile desires through duels. How could he possibly focus on his studies?
"Besides, weren't you already organizing the Second Duel Tournament? The school has essentially started summer vacation early."
Jiang You finally realized the full extent of the Duel's impact on the city—it was even influencing the values of Fuyuki's citizens. Moreover, the interval between the two Duel Tournaments seemed rather short; typically, such events were held about a year apart, or even four years in some cases.
But who can blame me when this game's downtime is so long? And it syncs with real-world time! Who has the patience for that? The game designers must have too much free time!
"So you came to Mount Enzou to save the world? You're pretty quick on your feet. I thought the Emiya household was quite a distance from here."
As expected of the protagonist, Jiang You thought. He always shows up at the crucial moment.
"Well, it's not quite like that," Shirou Emiya said, scratching his head sheepishly. Saving the world still felt like too distant a goal for him.
"Actually, I came here to check on Issei-kun, the Student Council President. The Holy Grail seems to be acting strangely lately, causing him to have trouble sleeping. I wanted to offer my concern."
Truly the central air conditioner of the school, Jiang You couldn't help but marvel at Shirou Emiya's selfless nature, even to his male classmates. He's such a pushover.
"Since you're already here, let's go inside together. According to Rin Tohsaka's intel, the visitors here are likely from a parallel world—the winning side of the Holy Grail War from that timeline. A battle is almost certain to erupt, so prepare yourself."
"Holy Grail War?!"
Shirou Emiya was startled. As an actual participant in the Holy Grail War—though only a peripheral one—he was well aware of its true nature. Even someone as ridiculously powerful as Gilgamesh couldn't secure ultimate victory, so whoever emerged triumphant must be unimaginably strong. After all, their victor was someone capable of forcibly rewriting the very rules of the world. "But why would they come to our world?"
"Who knows?"
Jiang You couldn't immediately guess the newcomers' identities. Perhaps their victor had already unified their world and now sought to conquer parallel universes.
Rin Tohsaka seemed to have considered this possibility as well. Her expression grew grave as she silently drew out her Jewels.
"Damn it! I don't have any weapons prepared!" Shirou instinctively scrambled for a weapon to defend himself at the sight of Rin's movements.
"Don't worry," Jiang You waved dismissively. "Have you forgotten the situation in Fuyuki right now? Even if the pigeons themselves descended, they'd have to play two rounds of cards before leaving."
"As long as we're alive, that's all that matters. We might as well take this opportunity to adjust our Decks."
The group nodded, opting against adjusting their Decks. Commercially available Cards held little value for them and would only dilute their strategies. Bazett glanced at her Deck, suddenly realizing Cu Chulainn was still in her Deck. She immediately regretted not staying in Fuyuki longer.
Jiang You led the group deeper into the Great Hole beneath Mount Enzou, where a sea of "corpses" lay scattered across the ground. These weren't actual corpses, but Duelists (Maguses) temporarily incapacitated after losing their Duels.
"This looks serious," Shirou Emiya said grimly. He recognized several of the fallen Duelists as formidable Maguses he had faced before. Given how recently the magical power surge had occurred, their rapid defeat indicated a formidable enemy.
Soon, footsteps echoed from the depths of the cavern. A figure with massive, demonic horns slowly emerged from the darkness.