Agreement

"Guhahaha, this king's head is quite precious. It would be a loss to trade it with you."

Iskandar laughed heartily, showing no sign of annoyance at Cu Chulainn's impudent remark.

Once the conqueror of the world, Iskandar naturally possessed a broad mind comparable to his vast territories. Especially in the presence of a heroic figure he admired, he always displayed great patience.

"Is it just you, Berserker? What about Archer?" Artoria asked in a cold tone.

"Heh, who knows? Maybe that trash is lurking in some unknown sewer, licking his wounds like a wounded dog. Or perhaps he's hiding in the shadows, planning to pop out at the last moment to snatch the rewards as he takes us all out." Cu Chulainn said with a casual smile, exuding a wild and sinister aura.

"Isn't he your ally?" Artoria raised an eyebrow.

"Ally? Don't make me laugh. Do you think that guy looks like someone capable of being an ally? If it weren't for my Master's command, I would have pierced him dead long ago. I didn't like him from the first moment we met." Cu Chulainn scoffed disdainfully.

"Then, why don't you consider getting a new Master? There's a better choice right here, isn't there?" Artoria pointed towards Irisviel, who was holding Sakura.

"???" Irisviel tilted her head, confused.

Cu Chulainn glanced at Irisviel, then glanced back at Artoria with a smile that was neither friendly nor hostile.

"Are you admitting she's not your true Master?"

"Stop fooling around, Berserker. You knew about this already, didn't you?" Artoria said with an unchanged tone.

"Heh!" Cu Chulainn grinned ferociously, putting his crimson spear over his shoulder. "Trying to sow discord between me and my Master, Saber? With such a crude attempt at deception, you don't really think it's going to work, yeah?"

Artoria shook her head regretfully in her mind. She thought the wild Berserker would be an easy target for manipulation, but he turned out to be smarter than she had imagined. She really couldn't understand why someone like him became a Berserker.

"Be happy then. I'm just making a suggestion." Artoria said lightly, turning her head to the dense black fog before her. "The urgent matter now is to find a way to deal with this thing in front of us."

"Guhahaha! I also have that intention!" Iskandar laughed heartily. "Let me go in and see what's really inside."

He swung the reins, and his two divine bulls roared with thunder flashing beneath their hooves. Like a heavy tank, they charged straight into the black fog.

"Wait! Rider, I haven't gotten off yet!" Waver yelled in fear.

The group stood quietly outside, watching the chariot leap continuously in the black fog. Occasionally, demonic and piercing shrieks echoed, and grotesque tentacles twisted and stirred within.

After about ten minutes, Iskandar with his chariot burst out of the fog.

Behind him, more than a dozen thick elephant-leg-sized monstrous tentacles followed, like greedy wild dogs, eagerly reaching out for him.

"Damn disgusting..."

Cu Chulainn smirked, throwing his crimson spear like a meteor, cutting through the air and severing the tentacles.

Sensing the threat, the remaining tentacles quickly retracted, while the severed ones wriggled on the ground like worms, struggling for a while before finally going still.

"This level of vitality…" Irisviel furrowed her brow.

"Phew~ That was close. Almost got caught by those things. Thanks, Berserker." Iskandar landed on the ground, grinning broadly at Cu Chulainn.

Waver, lay at the edge of the chariot, looking absolutely listless with a pale face. In the brief ten minutes, he had experienced a dual test of both body and mind. He swore he would never go through such an experience of being chased by grotesque monsters on a speeding chariot again!

"How was it, Rider? Any findings?" Arkhan asked while crossing his hands in the chest.

"The condition inside is strange. The fog seems to have a magical energy absorption effect. The longer you stay, the faster it drains your magical energy." Iskandar's expression hinted at some concern; this situation was indeed tricky even for him.

'Magical energy absorption, because of Matou attribute, right?' Arkhan thought while wearing a thoughtful expression.

The Matou family's element was water, with the attribute of absorption, meant to bind something to one's self. Zouken's longevity was sustained by this factor.

Artoria and Cu Chulainn both wore grim expressions. The restrictions in this environment were too severe for them as Servants. If they took too long and depleted their magical energy, death would be the only outcome.

Just as everyone contemplated how to avoid being affected, the dense black fog suddenly surged, expanding outward at a visible speed.

Seeing this sudden occurrence, Arkhan furrowed his brow slightly, then bit his finger.

He wrote a deep green runic symbol in the air, a symbol that seemed to encompass all the truths of the world. It quickly suppressed the black fog from all directions and halted its further expansion.

"Primordial rune!?" Waver couldn't help but exclaim in shock.

It was top-tier rune magecraft, thought to have long been lost. It was unimaginable for them to reappear in this situation.

'Why is this top-tier magecraft being cast by Lancer? Are you a damn Lancer or Caster?!' Waver couldn't help but complain inwardly.

Like Kayneth before, Waver's worldview also suffered a crushing blow. Fortunately, he wasn't the only one impacted. Almost everyone present was stunned by Arkhan's unexpectedly high-level stunt. The fact that a Lancer could perform such top-tier magecraft akin to a Caster was truly unbelievable.

How many more tricks was this man hiding?

"That old hag did teach you quite a bit, huh?" Cu Chulainn raised an eyebrow as he watched the primordial rune written by Arkhan.

"Well, as expected of you, Lancer. I'm really starting to want to recruit you under my command no matter what." Iskandar stroked his thick beard, with a wide grin on his face.

"You're no different, though. Clearly a Rider, yet you can pull off something like Reality Marble."

Arkhan chuckled, turning to the dense fog that imprisoned them, but soon frowned.

"But my magecraft won't last long, at most two hours. We need to destroy Caster's Noble Phantasm before then."

"Guhahaha! No time to hesitate then!"

Iskandar laughed heartily, unsheathing Spatha, the sword at his waist.

"We, summoned by the Holy Grail, gather here as Heroic Spirits. Despite being enemies, we share convictions that must be upheld. This abomination, forbidden by the world, will not be allowed to continue its pollution. In the name of Iskandar, I swear to cut it down!"

"Rider..." Waver stared at Iskandar's imposing figure in awe. Iskandar's resounding words echoed deeply in his ears, but something deep within him seemed to shatter.

"I don't mind since opportunities to slaughter freely like this are rare..." Cu Chulainn grinned maniacally, his tongue gliding over his sharp teeth. Savage killing intent flickered in his crimson eyes.

"With a monster like this around, the Holy Grail War can't go on. I can't tolerate such a thing." Artoria said indifferently while crossing her arms.

"Monsters like this shouldn't continue to exist in this world." Arkhan said calmly, his eyes flashing with a hint of coldness. In the first place, his purpose in coming to this world was to save it; he couldn't just turn a blind eye to this disaster.

"It seems everyone has reached an agreement then!" Iskandar nodded contentedly. "Get ready. In ten minutes, we launch our attacks together. Let's be clear; this might be our only chance, so show all your cards. There's no point in hiding anything now."

Everyone agreed and nodded.