"ORRRRRRAAAAAA—!"
In the boundless desert, tens of thousands of Heroic Spirits launched a desperate charge toward the ancient demigod standing not far away. Sand and stones flew, and a screen of yellow dust swept across heaven and earth.
Faced with the thunderous roar of the Ionian Hetairoi, Gilgamesh's expression didn't change in the slightest. His crimson eyes stared directly at the army closing in on him by the second, the depths of his pupils shimmering with a faint light.
A golden ripple appeared behind him, but it didn't reveal a weapon; instead, it produced a golden bottle inlaid with precious gems.
"Nothing more than a rabble of mongrels. Today, I shall show you the true meaning of the King's Treasure."
Gilgamesh swiftly downed the elixir within the bottle and let out a cold snort. Immediately, hundreds of golden ripples suddenly manifested in the void behind his back.
While Tokiomi was a decent Master, his prana supply was a mere drop in the bucket for the extremely mana-intensive Gate of Babylon. To unleash his full power, Gilgamesh did not hesitate to draw upon the magical elixirs in his vault to replenish his reserves.
As his words fell, an array of bizarre and varied Noble Phantasms shot forth, instantly kicking up a storm of desert sand. In an instant, a net-like barrage of treasures crashed down upon the advancing army.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
Explosions of prana and howling winds followed one after another, as if the incoming treasures weren't mere weapons, but miniature meteors carrying terrifying destructive force.
Despite the carnage, Iskandar's army consisted of battle-hardened veterans. Even as they suffered massive casualties and their formations were disrupted, they quickly adjusted, maintaining their fierce momentum—and even growing more valiant—as they surged toward Gilgamesh.
Suddenly, Kamitani Yuu's figure appeared in mid-air. Holding his vermillion spear, he flew toward the King of Heroes like an arrow released from a bow. Unlike the floating effect provided by ordinary magecraft, this was true flight. A distance of dozens of meters was closed in a matter of heartbeats.
"Arrogance!"
Seeing Yuu within arm's reach, a look of savage fury crossed Gilgamesh's face, clearly displeased by the youth's attempt to close the distance.
Hum—
Dozens, even hundreds, of vault doors swung open in the void aimed directly at Yuu's position. A torrential rain of Noble Phantasms poured out, threatening to transfix and obliterate him in the next second.
But bolstered by the Primordial Runes, Yuu's strength and speed had reached a new level. A powerful aura radiated from his body. In the blink of an eye, he whirled his spear, easily parrying the incoming projectiles. However, due to the sheer volume of the attack, the distance between the two was once again forced apart as he focused on defense.
"Hahahaha—how interesting!"
Gilgamesh watched the thousands of approaching Servants and couldn't help but let out a manic laugh. "If you wish to defeat this King, then give it your all!"
He lifted his chin, looking at Yuu with a rare, serious expression. "Otherwise, this place shall be your graveyard!"
Accompanying his roar, terrifying prana surged within Gilgamesh's body. Countless golden points of light spread across the blue sky—without even counting, it was obvious the number had far exceeded a thousand.
"Boy, I might need to trouble you to use a Command Spell."
Seeing this, Iskandar, charging in his chariot, saw his face darken. He spoke to Waver while maintaining his momentum. "My prana alone cannot sustain the Reality Marble and the manifestation of this army of tens of thousands. If my army suffers too many casualties at once, this mental world will collapse from the lack of mana supply."
"I understand."
Looking at the sky filled with golden ripples, Waver swallowed hard, his face pale. Without hesitation, he raised his hand marked with the Command Spells and spoke with a trembling voice.
"Rider... by the power of this Command Spell, I order you: bring me the victory of this battle!"
A crimson Command Spell vanished from the back of his hand. In the next instant, the presence of the King of Conquerors and his vast army surged to an even greater height.
"Hahahaha! Rest easy, boy!"
Iskandar laughed heartily at Waver's absolute trust, but his eyes turned razor-sharp, like a lion lying in wait. "I am Iskandar, the King of Conquerors! No matter how dangerous the foe, the only fate awaiting them is to be conquered and trampled by me!"
The domineering declaration caused Iskandar's cloak to billow without wind. Waver nodded heavily, his trembling body gradually steadying as he drew courage from his King.
On the other side, Yuu looked up at the light-filled sky, his expression shifting. He didn't know why, but Gilgamesh had not underestimated them as expected; instead, he was participating in this war with a rare, serious attitude. Something unexpected must have happened, but there was no time for speculation.
On the battlefield, hesitation meant defeat.
Yuu pushed his Magic Circuits and Primordial Runes to their limits, and his figure vanished from his spot. The Ionian Hetairoi could only last so long; within this limited time, there was only one way to break the deadlock: a decapitation strike against Gilgamesh. Only then could they eliminate their strongest enemy from the war.
Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh!
Having accumulated enough prana, gleaming treasures emerged from the golden ripples, firing in successive waves toward the distant enemies. Faced with this overwhelming offensive, the army on the ground changed formations with perfect unspoken coordination, bracing themselves in a defensive stance.
Fionn and Arthur, meanwhile, charged forward as if fearless of death, using their exquisite martial skills to deflect the treasures around them.
"Boy, hold on tight!"
Thunder roared and hooves drummed. Iskandar shook the reins, driving the divine bulls to tread upon the very sky.
"Rider, go for it!"
Feeling his blood boil, Waver forgot his fear. He pointed at Gilgamesh and shouted at the top of his lungs.
From different positions but at the exact same moment, the four of them charged toward Gilgamesh at the center of the Reality Marble.