This guy… does he really lose his temper that easily?
All they had done was send out a decoy unit, and the enemy had already revealed his nuclear weapon.
Leon truly had nothing more to say.
He clicked his tongue inwardly and silently observed three seconds of mourning for the brave Matou Kariya.
Then, while switching to one-handed sword swings to deflect the incoming barrage from the Gate of Babylon, he raised his other hand and pressed down on Artoria's attempt to reveal herself.
"Why?"
Artoria's eyes were filled with confusion.
At this point, the situation had clearly reached its most critical moment. The enemy didn't look like someone planning to leave anyone alive.
"It's not time yet."
Leon smiled and shook his head.
Amid the golden storm of destruction, his tall back appeared remarkably reassuring to both Irisviel and Artoria.
"Trust me. As long as I'm here, no one will harm either of you."
"Leon…"
Irisviel clasped her hands over her chest anxiously. After sensing his determination, she turned to Artoria decisively.
"Al, we should trust Leon."
"…I understand."
Artoria forced herself to suppress the urge to draw her sword.
It wasn't that she doubted him.
She simply didn't want to see Leon fighting alone.
She wanted to stand beside him.
She wanted to face everything together.
At that moment—
If they hadn't known beforehand that Leon's identity as King Arthur was merely a disguise, both Irisviel and even Artoria herself might have mistaken him for the true King Arthur.
The King Arthur recorded in history.
The ideal king she had always imagined herself to be.
"Leave it to me. You can leave everything to me."
Leon waved at the two women behind him with a confident smile.
Then he began raising the stakes on his side.
Mana Burst!
Golden magical flames erupted around Leon's body.
The sheer volume of magical energy condensed into something almost tangible, blocking most of the incoming Noble Phantasms from the Gate of Babylon.
Then—
Leon gripped the Holy Sword with both hands and held it before him.
His expression turned solemn and resolute.
"Release the Thirteen Seals!"
"Round Table Judgment — begin!"
The moment these words were spoken—
The Holy Sword burst forth with a brilliance never seen before.
"Leon, you… could it be?!"
Artoria asked in astonishment.
Leon didn't turn around.
"Yes. It's exactly that 'could it be.'"
"Al… I'm going in."
"Are you sure?"
"…Yes."
A flicker of memories—and sorrow—passed through Artoria's emerald eyes.
But in the next instant, it transformed into excitement and determination.
"Go, Leon!"
Hearing this—
Leon smiled faintly.
And began the Judgment.
A voice resembling that of a fairy, eerily similar to Artoria's own voice, responded.
"This battle is one fought for survival."
[Approved — Kay]
"This battle is fought against one stronger than oneself."
[Approved — Bedivere]
"This battle does not betray the path of humanity."
[Approved — Gareth]
"This battle is not against the spirits of the world."
[Approved — Lancelot]
"This battle is one of noble honor."
[Approved — Gawain]
"This battle is one where brave warriors fight together."
[Approved — Tristan]
Thirteen Seals — Six Released!
"The gathered breath of the stars… the shining torrent of starlight…"
"Receive it!"
"EX—"
"Oioioi… you've got to be kidding me!"
One was the primordial sword that split heaven and earth.
The other was the supreme holy sword that protects the world.
With both weapons nearing partial full release, Iskandar—who was currently caught between their colliding magical pressures—felt extremely… or rather ninety percent awkward.
He suddenly felt like a completely unnecessary presence.
"Rider… let's run! "
"These two are insane!"
"With magical energy like this, they might actually destroy the world! If there's a tomorrow, the Clock Tower will definitely issue a Sealing Designation!"
"What nonsense!"
While struggling to hold his ground, Iskandar slapped Waver heavily on the shoulder.
"I am the King of Conquerors! How could I possibly flee from battle?!"
"…Eh?!"
Waver tilted his head in despair.
He could practically see his deceased grandmother beckoning him again.
But then Iskandar continued:
"Retreat!"
"Listen carefully—this is not running away. This is a tactical withdrawal, understand?"
"Yes yes yes!"
"Tactical withdrawal! Tactical withdrawal!"
Feeling his imaginary grandmother drifting farther away again, Waver nodded frantically like a stapler.
Iskandar grabbed him tightly with one arm and raised his short sword high.
"Hold tight, Master!"
"Right!"
BOOM—
Amid the violent surge of magical energy, a bolt of blue lightning descended from the sky.
It struck Iskandar and Waver—but caused them no harm.
Instead—
When the lightning faded, both of them vanished with it.
From the outside, the effect looked somewhat similar to Leon's Bifrost teleportation ability.
An excellent escape technique.
The retreat of Iskandar and Waver went completely unnoticed by the two main combatants.
At that moment—
Leon and Gilgamesh had eyes only for each other.
Seeing Leon release six of Excalibur's seals in succession, a crimson glow flashed in Gilgamesh's eyes, resonating with the red spiral of Ea.
"I knew I wasn't mistaken!"
"Swordsman of the Holy Sword… you are—"
Suddenly—
Gilgamesh's excited smile froze.
"Tokiomi. What did you just say? Repeat it."
A trace of anger appeared in the King of Heroes' eyes.
The crimson magical energy gathered on Ea—which he had just been about to swing—suddenly dispersed.
This unexpected development left observers such as Kiritsugu Emiya and Assassin completely baffled.
Two and a half minutes earlier—
Inside the Tohsaka residence.
While communicating with Kirei Kotomine, Tohsaka Tokiomi frowned deeply.
Gilgamesh's reckless behavior was pushing the entire situation toward a direction that was becoming increasingly uncontrollable.
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