Buzz—!
A horrifying magical radiance instantly burst from the hair of the terrifying giant deity.
A purplish-red light overtook everything in sight. Reflexively, both Master and Servant shut their eyes.
BOOM—!!
A series of deafening explosions followed, each one so loud it made the ears ring in agony. The scorching airwaves and devastating shock force instantly turned the area into a living hell.
The lingering dust in the air was blown away, replaced by a suffocatingly hot current and the scent of molten metal and sulfur, like a volcanic forge.
"Cough, cough... what is this...?"
Shielding Rin Tohsaka and Shirou Emiya behind her, Saber looked up at the familiar white light barrier in front of her, a flash of disbelief and emotion flickering in her eyes.
Nostalgia, confusion, and sorrow surged through her heart.
"Mashu!" Fujimaru Ritsuka called out.
"Senpai...!"
At the very front of the group, Mash stood firm, raising her cross-shaped shield high. The pure protective field she deployed was barely holding back the seemingly infinite torrent of magical energy.
Countless brilliant beams of light rained down. Sparks exploded where they clashed against her shield.
Thick, heavy magic blasts converged into colossal pillars of light connecting heaven and earth. Compared to Selene's massive demonic body, Mash's slender frame looked incredibly tiny and helpless.
Rin and Shirou could only stare, stunned. The sight was beyond anything they could have imagined.
Though exceptional among their peers, they had never seen devastation on such a scale. Selene's terrifying, murderous presence made their hair stand on end. The fear of death surged violently within them.
"Haaaah!"
Mash gritted her teeth. Her lavender hair whipped wildly in the air. Under the crushing weight of the magical bombardment, the reinforced ground beneath her shattered, and her body was pushed steadily back.
Crack crack—
The pure white barrier had begun to fracture. Her purple armor groaned under the strain. Every cell in her body was screaming from the force, like it was being torn apart. Feeling her numb limbs, Mash instantly understood.
With her current strength, even at full power, she was still too far from matching this chaotic evil god.
But—"Even so—!"
Gripping her shield tightly, Mash raised it high and shouted, "I will not accept death! Evil god!!"
"I stand where disaster dwells—our home, where all wounds and hatred may be healed—"
A surge of deep blue magical light gathered in her hands. A divine glow burst from the fortress emblem on her cross-shaped shield.
"Reveal yourself—our distant, ideal city—(Lord Camelot)!!!"
In the next instant, holy light spanning hundreds of meters radiated from Mash's shield. It was a city of radiant fantasy and hope.
Its pure white walls shimmered, as if carved from a single block of marble. It was like a celestial city of the elves—sacred and untainted.
Staring at this radiant city, Saber murmured in a trance, her voice tinged with pain, "Camelot...."
The White Citadel—Camelot, the city of knightly glory. It was once the place where heroes across the world aspired to serve, yearning to be among the Knights of the Round Table.
It was the dream she once fought for. The kingdom she once gave everything to protect.
And also, the shattered dream she had long buried.
"Evil god, the one who should fall—is you!!!"
BOOM—!
In response to the girl's cry, the wall of the White Citadel transformed into a massive, nearly indestructible shield. Not only did it stabilize the crumbling protective field, but under Mash's command, it directly rammed toward the chaos god who had been dishing out relentless magical fire.
"Interesting. Quite the bold words, little girl."
"So your defense against evil is your trump card, is it?"
Mash's Noble Phantasm: Lord Camelot, the Distant Utopia, was a supreme defensive artifact forged from the Round Table itself, the heart of the White Citadel of Camelot, where the Knights of the Round once sat.
Its strength is said to correlate directly with the user's willpower—so long as the user does not yield, it cannot be broken.
It's an especially rare type of Noble Phantasm—Anti-Evil—and is rated a never-before-seen B+++.
Against Selene, who possessed a composite Spirit Origin, both Beast and Anti-Hero, Mash's defensive buffs were fully effective.
"Then let's go head-to-head and see—what's stronger: your shield or my spear."
"Imaginary Realm: Fission."
Tilting her head slightly, Selene's smile faded. Within her crimson pupils, the faint trace of a golden cross-ring pattern emerged. The dark red markings between her scales began to violently react.
From the tip of her thousand-meter-long serpent tail, magical energy began to accumulate, glowing brighter in the dim sky.
It was like a ribbon of red light unfurling—starting from the tiniest scale at the tip of her tail, the glow traveled rapidly up her massive length, from tail to waist, illuminating scale after scale.
A low, oppressive hum echoed in the atmosphere.
The sheer density of magical particles spread into the air, making every breath feel heavy and suffocating.
RUMBLE!
Selene gently tapped the ground with her tail. Despite the lightness of the motion, her colossal weight sent tremors through the land, shaking the terrain like an earthquake.
Buzz buzz buzz~
As the crimson energy reached her back, three pairs of enormous wings burst open, blotting out the sky. The wild gales stirred by their motion lit each feather with a stream of magic, causing the wings to glow.
"Block this, if you can!"
Even though Selene believed she was calm, her slightly raised voice—coming from a god-body of such immense size—roared like thunder, shaking the very sky.
At her scale, every motion was like a giant stomping through a city of LEGO bricks. Every movement caused devastating ripples.
Torrents of magical energy turned into crimson-black spears, launching skyward as blazing pillars. They rained down like a meteor shower, lighting up the sky in purplish red.
In the next moment, countless spears of light slammed into the White Citadel-shaped shield.
BOOM BOOM BOOM—!!
Selene's massive surge of magic thundered against the shield protecting the battlefield.
Crashhhh—
It looked like a cascade of blinding meteors falling from the heavens—an overwhelming tide of light and fire pouring down like a waterfall from the stars.
Crack! Crack! Crack!
Even the residual heat from the spears scorched the earth, instantly turning it into molten lava. Then, even the flowing lava was vaporized by the blast wave.
In moments, the White Citadel, spanning hundreds of meters, was nearly obliterated by the storm of celestial energy. Only a 20-meter radius around Mash remained intact—and even that was visibly shrinking.
Explosive sparks even leapt into the Mion River, forming fireballs that radiated outward, obliterating all nearby terrain in a blaze of heat.
The Mion River Bridge, which had survived disaster after disaster, was not so lucky this time. Struck by a stray crimson beam, it was sheared clean in half. Molten metal dripped into the river below with a harsh sizzle.
BOOM BOOM BOOM—!
"What do we do?! What do we do?! Where the hell is Archer? Did he run away?! We're gonna die, we're gonna die, we're gonna—aaaaah!"
Rin Tohsaka tugged her twin tails in frustration as she stared at the hellish bombardment around her. The very idea of using a Command Spell to summon Archer vanished from her mind.
Forget it. That skinny little guy would just be cannon fodder if she pulled him here now.
Just then, a familiar voice echoed in her mind. "Rin, you're not badmouthing me again, are you?"
"Archer! This is not the time to joke! Why are you calling me? Changing Masters now? Trying to beg me not to summon you into certain death?!"
"Yare yare~ So scary, Rin. But at this point, there's only one way to get you all out of this alive...."
"Spit it out."
...
Elsewhere, the residents of Fuyuki's mountain town—those who weren't blind, at least—had already awakened to the abnormal events unfolding near Homurahara Academy, from the rumbling earth and explosions to the power outages and broken water lines.
BOOM!
BOOM BOOM!
BOOM BOOM BOOM!
It began with what sounded like the footsteps of a titan, followed by the roaring blasts of heavy bombardment.
Numbness, weakness—these were common reactions among ordinary people when faced with even a glimpse of the real world hidden behind the veil. It was fear in its purest form.
A creature over a hundred meters tall and more than a thousand meters long was simply beyond comprehension, even for humans of the early 21st century (PS: the Fifth Holy Grail War is set in 2004). Against such a calamity, the only response was panic and flight. There was no other option.
As they fled, the people of the mountain town couldn't believe their misfortune—they'd only meant to spectate, and now it was happening in their own backyard.
For years, the residents of old Fuyuki City, on the other side of the Mion River, had counted themselves lucky. The disasters, explosions, murders—they always happened in Shinto, across the water.
But now? Their turn had come—and with a vengeance.
"Each one of those charged magic blasts has the force of an A-Rank Noble Phantasm. Ritsuka, be extremely careful!"
From the communicator, Da Vinci and Dr. Roman's panicked, urgent voices rang out.
Not that Ritsuka needed the reminder. He could already tell—if even one of those blasts hit him directly, he'd be gone.
In times of crisis, you have to stay calm.
Deep breath. The teachings of Leonidas, the Guardian of the Absolute Demonic Front, resurfaced in Ritsuka's heart. He clenched his jaw and opened his eyes with resolve.
"Mash!"
With a burst of speed, Ritsuka jumped forward, placing his hand on Mash's back to transfer magical energy, bracing her back with his other hand.
"Senpai, you can't! Get away! My Noble Phantasm can't hold much longer!" Mash cried desperately.
"Looks like my spear is sharper after all. Your resolve isn't strong enough. Your defense is faltering. You're not drawing out the true power of that treasure."
Selene's triumphant, taunting voice rang out as she sought to crush the girl's spirit.
"Ah, the human behind you must be your beloved... I see. Because of him, you're afraid. You don't want to die. You don't want to lose him. You want to stay by his side—so you lack the courage to stake your life."
"Ngh..."
Having her fear laid bare—by their greatest enemy, no less—left Mash shaken. Her amethyst eyes filled with sorrow. It was true. She didn't want to leave Ritsuka. That fear weakened her, keeping her Noble Phantasm from reaching its full potential.
Gripping the shield with her, Ritsuka said firmly, "It's alright, Mash. Even if we die—we'll die together...."
"Now is not the time to talk about dying!"
At that moment, Rin Tohsaka stepped forward, her emotions steadied. She forced herself to meet Selene's gaze and called out, "Hey, you who claim to be a benevolent god—are you a woman of your word?"
Shirou Emiya, ever observant, noticed something unusual—both remaining Command Seals on Rin's right arm had vanished.
"Speak your mind. Of course I keep my word," Selene replied.
Selene was intrigued. She was curious to see what this usually scatterbrained noble lady might pull off.
"Then it's settled. You're a benevolent god, right? That means you wouldn't go around slaughtering innocent civilians for no reason."
"Naturally. There's no fun in killing regular humans. The real pleasure lies in manipulating magi and playing with their little wishes."
"Excellent. Shirou, Ritsuka—let's get out of here," Rin said with a confident nod.
"Huh?!"
Not just Selene—Shirou and Fujimaru were equally baffled.
Leave?
"Of course!" Rin crossed her arms, brimming with confidence. "Archer!"
Inwardly, she was screaming—Archer, don't mess this up! If this fails, it won't just be embarrassing—it'll be fatal!
"Hmm?" Selene seemed to sense something. She turned her head. "A Reality Marble?"
"Heh! You didn't think we'd let this slide, did you?"
In an instant, Selene's Mystic Eyes of Petrification activated, twin rainbows flashing in her irises. "Turn to stone—"
"ROOOAR—!"
Just as Selene aimed at Archer's hiding spot, Berserker—silent until now—let out a furious bellow, leapt into action, and hurled himself into the trajectory of her Mystic Eye's magic.
The blast was thrown off course, but Berserker's body cracked all over. A moment later, he turned to stone and shattered upon the ground.
"Berserker!"
Holding Illya tightly, Shirou Emiya cried out. He had seen it—before Berserker handed Illya over and turned to go, he'd mouthed the words: "Protect her."
Then, both the crumbling remains of Berserker and Selene's enormous body vanished from sight.
"It worked!!"
"Fujimaru! I don't know who you really are, but right now we need to stay alive!" Rin said, brushing off the need for explanation. "Saber, get us out of here!"
"Archer can't hold her off for long!"
...
CRACK—!
The blurry mirage shattered like snowflakes. The Reality Marble dissolved. Selene reappeared in the same place—but Rin and the others were already gone.
"Your Majesty, you let them escape on purpose, didn't you?"
After a pause, Durandal, standing on Selene's shoulder, spoke with a knowing look. Selene's faint smile was all the confirmation she needed.
"Was it that obvious?"
"Not really. I just know Your Majesty too well. Archer's Reality Marble might delay you for a while, but if you truly wished to kill them, it would've taken just a little more effort. Archer wouldn't have even had time to finish chanting his Noble Phantasm."
"Your Majesty's aloof pride—the kind that lets you indulge mortals and toy with their final efforts without striking or dodging—is perfectly in line with what they imagine a god would be."
Selene chuckled. "So my impromptu debut was pretty convincing, then."
"Why let them go?"
Lifting Durandal gently into her palm, Selene smiled brightly. "Bianka, those four Masters—they look like nothing more than average, insignificant magi, don't they?"
"...Yes," Durandal nodded slowly at the implication.
Rin Tohsaka, Ritsuka Fujimaru, and Illyasviel aside—Durandal wasn't familiar with them and barely knew them. The only one she had even a sliver of a connection to was Shirou Emiya, who had shown her around Homurahara Academy for half a day. To Durandal, he was just an overly kind, broadly defined "good person."
Potential warrior? Maybe. That's all.
With the intel she had, Durandal couldn't quite understand Selene's reasoning. There was clearly a gap in their knowledge.
"You can't judge mortals by their appearances... I know it sounds ridiculous, but how do you know none of them will become heroes—or vessels for divine descent?"
"Them? Heroes? Gods? In the short term?"
Durandal blinked in confusion. Her big blue eyes radiated complete bewilderment.
I'm not a strategist, Your Majesty—please don't tease me.
"Haha, reality is absurd like that. Just keep applying the right amount of pressure. Next time we meet...."
Selene paused, laughing as she spread her wings slightly. "That half-baked magus might already be a capable warrior. That clumsy girl? She's got surprisingly high compatibility with multiple divine spirits. And the last Master of Chaldea—he'll show us the true meaning of a Servant-scale human wave tactic."
Absurd indeed. Ironically, among the current Masters, Illyasviel—who had the highest magical qualifications and arguably the most potential—was actually the weakest. (PS: Not counting spin-off titles like Magical Girl☆Illya)
"I gave them just enough pressure, a small push. I gave them the chance to regroup, to rally allies. Whether they seize it... no, they must seize it."
"Because if they don't... heh. The Demon King Goetia's temple will merge with this world, and all of human history will be incinerated."
"No matter how crushing the pressure, they have to endure. If they don't, they die. Everything they sacrificed and struggled for will be in vain. Humanity's history in this universe will be reduced to ash."
"Uh..." The flood of unfamiliar names and concepts left Durandal's face blank, like a confused goose.
"To them, I am the greatest enemy before they reach the so-called King of Magic, Solomon... or at least, that's how it needs to look."
Lev treated Selene as an ally—an essential helper to prevent Chaldea from interfering with his dream of restoring the Age of Gods.
But Selene knew better. If she died, Lev wouldn't shed a single tear. He might even curse her and try to salvage what he could from her corpse.
To Lev, Selene was just a backup plan for bringing about the return of divine mysteries—an alternative route in case Solomon's revival failed. If both succeeded, even better: the revival of mystery from Solomon's resurrection and the surge of magical energy from foreign gods would overlap—double the chaos.
If she failed? No big deal. She's supposed to be all-powerful, right?
Lev calculated that even if Chaldea managed to hold her off, they'd pay a heavy price. With Selene's triple-layered Spirit Origin—Gorgon, Tiamat, and her own; embodying God-King, Anti-Hero, and Beast (Human Evil)—defeating her would cost Chaldea dearly.
Whoever made it to the throne room of Solomon, the King of Time, would be severely weakened. How would they possibly win then?
Lev: Hahaha... this plan is perfect! Invincible!
But Selene thought: You're using me? I'm using you right back.
Rigging a match? Easy.
She would fight Chaldea, yes—and make it look like she was going all out. Big battles. Lots of flash and fury. Total chaos. But secretly? She'd hold back. She'd leave behind a few aces. She'd even quietly help them behind the scenes.
When it came to awakening the potential of those beloved by the world—the true Children of the Era—Selene was a master.
Including—but not limited to—hurting those they love, destroying the things they hold dear, trampling their ideals, acting with blatant disregard for life, simply existing as a threat to humanity's survival, and potentially even triggering human extinction.
Once those traits are revealed, Selene didn't believe for a second that the so-called heroes of justice wouldn't snap—unleashing their hidden potential, their power skyrocketing, quickly reaching the point of tearing apart Servants and then—eventually—Goetia himself.
Well... tearing Goetia apart by hand might be a stretch. In Selene's calculations, that would still probably require a certain doctor in Chaldea's command center to finally rise from his seat after witnessing the light of humanity—and choose to say goodbye with his own life.
Hearing all this, Durandal looked up at the enormous, incomparably beautiful and alluring face of Selene. After suppressing a swirl of emotions, she finally asked, "So what you're saying, Your Majesty... is that you're the forerunner? The king's herald?"
"Ah, the forerunner of kings."
Selene couldn't help but laugh softly at the phrase. Fitting, really. Lev treated Selene as the 'forerunner' for King Solomon—and Selene, in turn, treated Chaldea as her own 'forerunner.'
She nodded gently and said with a quiet smile, "But the question is... who is truly the forerunner to the throne?"
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