[165] The Premiere of Fate/Zero Chapter Two! (7)

Chapter 165: The Premiere of Fate/Zero Chapter Two! (7)

In the movie, the balance of battle was gradually breaking.

Although Gilgamesh initially enjoyed the aerial chase with Berserker, after several rounds of trading Noble Phantasms and missiles, he grew bored of the repetitive dogfight.

Meanwhile, the battle between Tohsaka Tokiomi and Matou Kariya was reaching its conclusion. Tokiomi had barely made any aggressive moves, yet Kariya was already on the verge of death. Simply activating his magic circuits caused Kariya's capillaries to burst, blood spraying everywhere, leaving him in a state of unconsciousness. Finally, Tokiomi set Kariya ablaze with a single fire spell, sending his scorched body tumbling into an alley.

On the frontlines, Iskander activated his Reality Marble to stop Caster's advance, pulling the gigantic sea monster into his world. This successfully delayed the creature's invasion of the city.

...

On the coast, Saber, Lancer, and Rider were discussing how to deal with the monstrous sea beast.

At that moment, the communicator on Irisviel's person buzzed.

"Is Rider's Master there? I need to speak with you."

Hearing Kiritsugu's voice, Waver was momentarily startled before responding quickly.

"Who—who are you?"

"That's not important. Let me ask you, when Rider dismisses his Reality Marble, can he control where things inside it fall?"

"Well, there's a limit to the range—probably within a hundred meters or so, but it's possible."

"Alright. In a bit, I'll fire a signal flare. When you see it, release Caster directly beneath the flare. Can you do that?"

"No problem… I think… probably."

Waver's uncertain reply made Kiritsugu on the other end of the communicator sound noticeably impatient.

"There's one more thing. Pass a message to Lancer: Tell him that Saber's left hand holds an anti-fortress Noble Phantasm."

"Huh?"

Waver, utterly confused, looked perplexed by the statement.

Diarmuid noticed Waver's expression and asked, "What's wrong?"

"The other side asked me to relay a message to you. They said Saber's left hand holds an anti-fortress Noble Phantasm."

"What?"

Hearing this, Diarmuid was stunned.

"Is that true, Saber?" he asked.

"Yes," Saber confirmed with a nod.

Seeing Diarmuid's hesitation, a slightly flustered Artoria quickly spoke up:

"Lancer, the weight of my sword is the weight of my honor. The wound you gave me in our duel is a mark of honor, not a shackle."

"Lancer, I cannot forgive that Caster. He takes pride in despair, finds joy in spreading terror. Before I became a knight, I swore I would never let evil run rampant!"

"Lancer, you..."

"Is it Saber or Lancer who must win now? No! Neither! The one that must prevail is the chivalry we both uphold. Isn't that right, Artoria?"

With those words, Diarmuid decisively broke his cursed yellow spear in half, instantly lifting the curse from Artoria's left hand.

Everyone present was stunned, as were the audience members, who sat in awe.

...

"Diarmuid's sense of honor is unreal—so straightforward!"

"This kind of knightly spirit is actually pretty cool!"

"But as a participant in the Holy Grail War, this doesn't benefit Lancer's team at all."

"Kenneth's probably losing his mind over this."

"At least now we'll finally see Saber's true Noble Phantasm!"

The theater erupted into discussion. Everyone was eager to find out what Artoria's legendary anti-fortress Noble Phantasm was.

In this world, a fortress is a very real thing, and everyone understood how difficult it is to breach one. With magical barriers in place, even a fifth-tier grand spell might not be enough to break through a well-defended fortress.

Artoria's Noble Phantasm, said to be an anti-fortress weapon, would likely surpass all expectations.

Even the mages were anticipating how she would destroy that colossal sea monster. Based on their calculations, it would take at least a sixth-tier forbidden spell to eliminate such a terrifying creature in one blow. At the very least, it would require a quasi-sixth-tier super magic.

The idea of such destructive power had everyone wondering not only how Artoria would unleash it in the movie, but how the film itself would even depict such a monumental feat.

After all, the Durin film crew didn't have the assistance of an Archmage.

Durin himself is merely a grand mage; how could he possibly film scenes of this magnitude?

"I think Senior Durin is probably going to half-ass this, right? After all, casting a forbidden spell is difficult enough, and we're talking about a movie here, not real life."

"Yeah, I mean, I have no idea how he even managed to create that giant sea monster. Releasing a forbidden spell on top of that? That's a bit much."

"Maybe it'll be something like a holy light spell? Those tend to look flashy even if their power isn't overwhelming. It'd make for a good cinematic effect."

"Could be. Either way, I'm more focused on the story. How is Artoria, a knight, supposed to pull off an attack powerful enough to take down a sea monster this big? Does she have a Reality Marble like the King of Conquerors?"

"Who knows? The Noble Phantasms in Fate/Zero are confusing enough as it is. Caster summoning a sea monster that massive was a huge surprise, and those two flying in the sky are over the top. Not to mention the King of Conquerors' Ionian Hetairoi. At this point, even if Saber blasted that sea monster with a light beam and destroyed it in one shot, I wouldn't even bat an eye."

"Guess we'll just have to wait and see how the movie plays out."

…

Soon enough, as everyone's anticipation grew, Artoria—now freed from the curse on her right hand—finally showed her true power.

As the Invisible Air dissipated, the golden sword revealed itself amid the roaring winds.

To everyone's astonishment, Artoria, gripping her radiant sword, dashed across the surface of the ocean.

But just at that moment, Berserker, who had been chasing Gilgamesh, suddenly flew into a frenzy and charged straight at Artoria.

"Raaaahhhh!!"

With a roar filled with hatred, Berserker launched an all-out assault on Artoria.

Outraged by this, Gilgamesh, feeling insulted, moved to intercept Berserker but was shot down by one of Berserker's missiles.

Seeing this, Diarmuid immediately shouted:

"Let me handle him!"

In an instant, Diarmuid used his Spirit Form to appear on the steel wings of the fighter jet. With the tip of his Gáe Dearg, he struck the twisted form of the jet.

The Crimson Rose of Exorcism, capable of severing magical energy flow, flashed, and Berserker was sent plummeting from the aircraft.

Even as Berserker fell, he still tried to attack Artoria, but then a barrage of Noble Phantasms rained down from afar. Gilgamesh unleashed a relentless assault, finally knocking Berserker out of the fight.

"Now then, Saber, show me. Let me witness the brilliance of your worth as a Heroic Spirit," Gilgamesh said, standing proudly atop the Fuyuki Bridge, a wicked grin spreading across his face.

Upon seeing this, Artoria remained cold and indifferent.

She knew very well that the final battle had arrived.

Not long after, Kiritsugu Emiya, sitting in a lifeboat, fired a flare into the sky.

Waver, noticing this, immediately shouted orders to the soldiers of the King of Conquerors:

"That's the spot! Right below!"

In an instant, as Ionian Hetairoi dissipated, the colossal sea monster that had loomed like a mirage over the night sky materialized into its full, ominous form, falling into the water with a tremendous splash.

Seeing this, Artoria channeled all her strength into her arms, gripping the hilt of her golden sword tightly and raising it high above her head.

Countless beams of light began to converge, forming a brilliant, radiant stream.

Bathed in this fierce, pure light, everyone was left speechless.

Standing atop the water, Artoria wielded her golden sword and shouted:

"Excalibur!!!"

An astonishing beam of light surged forth, tearing through the ocean like a devastating force of nature. The sheer energy created whirlpools that engulfed both the sea monster and the night itself.

Deep within the sea monster, Gilles de Rais gazed in awe at the brilliant light. He was frozen in place, his body and soul overwhelmed by its dazzling brilliance.

That vivid memory pulled him back to a distant past.

He had once been a knight. On that fateful day, at the moment he first saw the young maiden standing in the church, he had witnessed a similar light.

"Yes... yes! It's that very light!"

Tears streamed down Gilles' face, and in that instant, he was overcome with a profound sense of loss.

"I... what have I..."

Before he could finish his regretful words, the white light consumed both him and the giant sea monster, carrying them into another world.

…

"That was insane!"

"What the heck did I just see?!"

"That sword strike—did it just split the sea?!"

"Caster's probably shell-shocked!"

"Saber was incredible!"

"…"

The breathtaking scene in the movie instantly electrified the entire audience.

Whether it was the sheer spectacle of Artoria's overwhelming Noble Phantasm or Gilles de Rais' poignant memories in his final moments, the audience was left deeply shaken.

No one had expected that, after all this time, the Holy Grail War could deliver such a mind-blowing twist that would stun everyone to their core.

It could be said that, for this movie alone, witnessing Excalibur's radiant destruction of the monstrous god made the entire ticket price worth it!

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