Fall Apart

"So, what's the plan, My Lord~"

Floating atop a large sake gourd, Shuten moved over to Artorius and half-jokingly, half-seriously said, "Do you want me to help? I'm not asking for much, just a little chat with you~"

"..."

Artorius didn't respond to her question. He remained calm and silent. The same was true for Mash and Scathach on the other side.

'They're starting to fall apart.'

From the sidelines, Caren watched the whole scene with cold eyes.

'But that's no surprise. Whether it's Gilgamesh or Iskandar, they're both proud kings and can't be tamed. On the other hand, Scathach, Galahad, and even Shuten-douji have all joined His Majesty's forces, submitting instinctively to his authority and leaning toward him. Still, even if you combine the three of them, they probably can't match the might of Iskandar or Gilgamesh.'

"Your Majesty, what are you thinking about?" Caren, who had failed another night ambush on Artorius last night, asked and looked curiously at him.

"Your Majesty, should we take any action on those two Servants?"

Observing the disrespectful behavior of those two women towards the Emperor, Rudolf's expression turned exceedingly grim. He couldn't help but inquire with a hint of impatience.

"Follow them, without being detected."

To Rudolf's astonishment, Artorius actually gave him an order.

"Your Majesty..."

"You might not be able to spot the unseen enemies, but they might come to you willingly." Artorius calmly stated.

"..."

Listening to the Dragon Emperor, Rudolf opened his mouth and wanted to say something, but in the end, nothing came out. He simply bowed and withdrew, his expression remaining thoughtful.

===

The strategy of the Empire's Servant Alliance had undergone a change.

Apart from Mash, who remained in the hotel's training grounds receiving Artorius's education of love day and night, the other four Servants—Lancer, Archer, Rider, and Berserker—have all been dispatched to scout the world for intelligence.

Naturally, there were also the Imperial Assassins trailing behind them.

Though in terms of reputation, Assassins-class Servants carried the weight of this profession, the Imperial Assassins can unabashedly declare to them—"Old-timers, you've become outdated!"

After undergoing the Empire's rigorous training, modification, armed equipment, and strengthening, each Imperial Assassin was a humanoid weapon.

For someone such as Emiya Kiritsugu, an Imperial Assassin could take on around twenty of him without catching a breath.

Even the Servants couldn't detect these Imperial Assassins, whose presence was concealed to a degree comparable to an A-ranked 'Presence Concealment' of an Assassin-class Servant.

As a result, the Imperial Assassins have been providing very intriguing intelligence.

Some information made one doubt, others cast a dark shadow over one's face, and then there was the 'interesting information' that made one want to question these Servants.

One day, two days, three days—the situation had not improved at all.

In fact, it got worse.

===

"Everything has gone as I expected. It seems your mockery from before was completely off the mark, Kirei."

Still in the same place, the secret hideout of the vampires, Kirei's Master was in a cheerful mood. He couldn't help it, because 'everything had turned out just as he predicted.'

"That arrogant and conceited dragon is finally facing the consequences, huh? Hahaha! Hahahaha!"

Just thinking about it this way, the haze and gloom that had been suppressed by Artorius for fifteen hundred years vanished. In their place surged uncontrollable joy and a nearly frenzied interest.

Some Servants on the Empire's side accepted his proposal.

They were willing to engage in a splendid and dazzling rebellion!

Although there were some hiccups along the way. Although those Servants hesitated at first. But in the end, things have gone just as he thought!

"Most of them are probably spies." Despite being lectured by his Master, Kirei's face remained calm. "I'm afraid some of them are feigning belief in your plan."

"Of course—but as long as the two most important Servants are willing to cooperate, the other two are just extra."

"Besides, we won't take the lead. Let them tear each other apart first. It will reduce our losses and prove their sincerity in working with us."

"Suit yourself."

Seeing his overly confident Master, Kirei refrained from saying anything extra. He was certain that even if he did speak reason, his Master wouldn't listen.

So be it.

As a Servant, all he needed to do was keep fighting, keep killing, and continue to revel in it.

It didn't matter who ultimately got destroyed.

Whether it was the Dragon Emperor. Or his current Master, the self-proclaimed King of the Dead Apostles named Trhvmn Ortenrosse.

'If they can both perish, that would be ideal.' Kirei exudes more malice with delight. At the same time, as if capturing this malice, his surroundings—his companions—respond with equally malicious and fierce laughter.

"Hurry up, I can't wait any longer."

"Let's ignite this city with the flames of revenge!"

"Dragon Emperor Artorius Pendragon! Only this man, only this man, only this man! He must die, he must die, he must die!"

'Whether it's one or two, it's like they've all gone totally crazy, with nothing but chaos filling their minds...'

Watching the foolish Servants around him, Kirei thought to himself, 'Rather than calling them a bunch of Evil Heroic Spirits, it's more like a gang of lunatics... But then again, I don't really have the right to say that, because I'm one of these lunatics too.'

Amidst the maniacal laughter, black clouds shroud the sky, isolating Tokyo and other parts of the real world, turning the entire city into an isolated island. The Empire's formidable, unparalleled, almost infinite power can't be fully mobilized at this moment.

In Tokyo, a megacity inhabited by over thirty million people, the forces of evil and chaos, momentarily overwhelm justice and order.

"It doesn't matter."

"Nothing matters anymore!"

"If we can't kill the Evil Dragon Emperor here, then everything we've done is meaningless!"

"So, let's dance to our heart's content! Destroy, kill, plunder! Spread fear to every corner of the city, because we no longer need to hide!"

Amidst joyful and mad laughter, the vampires, the rogue mages, and all the forces opposing the Empire spring into action.

Trhvmn Ortenrosse, known as the White Wing Lord and the King of the Dead Apostle, one of the last few remaining Ancestors among the Twenty-seven Dead Apostle Ancestors, unleashed all the chaos and evil he had amassed over the years.

All the chaos and evil surge towards the Dragon Emperor.