Watching the two leave, Asuka did not relax.
He took a deep breath.
The hidden danger underground was being handled.
Now, all that remained was the massive trouble in the sky.
"Alright, you two."
Asuka turned around, looking at Artoria and Gilgamesh standing on opposite sides of the plaza.
"It's time we get down to business."
On the left, the King of Knights, Artoria, gripped the Sword of Promised Victory tightly with both hands, the golden radiance of the stars continuously gathering on the blade.
Though her silver armor was shattered, that awe-inspiring kingly aura was more dazzling than ever.
On the right, the King of Heroes, Gilgamesh, sneered at the horizon, the Gate of Babylon behind him completely retracted.
The spinning Ea in his hand formed a miniature red storm around him.
It was the roaring power of world creation.
And in the middle stood Asuka, holding his long odachi, his entire body wreathed in hellfire.
"Hmph, if you ask me, there's no need to consider the lives of humans... just obliterate them all."
Gilgamesh looked displeased, his crimson eyes shining with the light of vengeance.
"If you can't keep up with my pace, I'll blast you to dust along with that broken cup!"
"Stop talking big, Goldie."
Asuka unceremoniously added fuel to the fire, "Who was the one whose brain was almost eaten by a bug just now?"
Veins bulged on Gilgamesh's forehead, and the wind pressure from Ea instantly doubled.
"You two, look."
Artoria sternly interrupted their bickering, her gaze fixed solemnly on the sky.
The massive cavern had now expanded to its limit and completely burst open.
Seeing that it could no longer trick anyone into helping, Heaven's Feel simply poured down its black mud like a waterfall, threatening to submerge the entirety of Ryuudou Temple and even the mountain itself.
And in the deepest depths of that cavern, something seemed to be gestating, trying to squeeze its way into this world.
It was the true form of Angra Mainyu, the materialization of All the World's Evils through the Third Magic.
"That thing... is coming out."
Artoria raised her holy sword high, a golden pillar of light piercing straight into the clouds.
"Let's settle this in one strike!"
"Just what I intended!"
Asuka lowered his center of gravity, his wolf claw supporting the blade while his right hand tightly gripped the odachi, assuming an iaido stance.
The Spiritual Pressure within him boiled like magma. The flaming wolf head behind him howled at the sky, its form expanding once more into the phantom of a giant flaming wolf tens of meters tall.
"Then let heaven and earth witness my great deed!"
Gilgamesh raised Ea high, its three cylindrical blades spinning madly as red lightning tore through space.
"Enuma—"
"Ex—"
"Avici—"
Three voices rang out at the exact same moment.
Three terrifying powers, enough to shake the world, erupted in the same instant!
Meanwhile, in the Great Cavern beneath Ryuudou Temple.
This was a massive magus workshop converted from a natural karst cave.
The surrounding rock walls were carved with densely packed Magic Circuits, pulsating like blood vessels and emitting a faint red glow.
In the center of the cavern sat a massive altar.
Upon the altar was no sacred artifact, but a writhing, multiplying swarm of black worms.
That was Zouken Matou's true form.
He did not maintain his human form as he had on the surface. Instead, he completely unleashed himself, transforming into an ocean of worms that tightly enveloped the core formula of the Greater Grail system.
"Don't even think... don't even think you'll succeed!!"
The overlapping shrieks of countless worms echoed throughout the cavern.
"This is my lifelong wish! This is my stairway to the Root! No one will destroy it!!"
"How truly ugly, Zouken."
Tokiomi Tohsaka stood at the entrance of the cavern, his eyes filled with disgust as he looked at the nauseating swarm of worms.
The ruby cane in his hand glowed brilliantly, and several high-purity rubies began to orbit around him.
"To think that the magus who once fought for a noble ideal has fallen to such a state... I truly cannot bear to watch you continue to rot like this."
"Besides, you experienced that nightmare as well. Don't you realize? The current Holy Grail is..."
"I don't care what it is!" Zouken shrieked. "As long as I reach that world! As long as I reach that place, it doesn't matter what happens to this world!"
Tokiomi let out a long sigh.
"...Then allow me to send you off with the Tohsaka Family's Jewel Magecraft!"
"Flames, purify all!"
Boom!
Dozens of scorching pillars of fire erupted from the jewels, lunging at the swarm on the altar like fire dragons.
"A petty trick!"
A black torrent separated from the swarm, crashing head-on into the flames.
Sizzle—!
The fire scorched countless worms, emitting waves of a foul, burning stench.
If Kariya Matou were here, he would undoubtedly be suppressed by this move until he couldn't breathe, suffering a hasty defeat.
But the one using magecraft now was an old ghost with centuries of accumulation.
The sheer number of worms was too great. Advancing wave upon wave, they forcefully extinguished the flames with their corpses.
"Die! You Tohsaka brat!"
More worms transformed into black arrows, shooting toward Tokiomi in an overwhelming barrage.
"Let the water and sky... oops, my bad, wrong line. Haaah!!"
A furious shout came from behind Tokiomi.
Splash—!!
A pitch-black figure whistled past Tokiomi's head, crashing viciously into the swarm of worms.
He rapidly twirled the spear in his hands, forging an impenetrable defense in front of Tokiomi.
Swish, swish, swish!!
The massive impact swept countless worms into it. The high-speed rotation of the spear acted like a giant meat grinder, instantly shredding the bugs into paste.
"What?!" Zouken's shriek carried a trace of unease.
Kaien Shiba, wielding the borrowed spear and wreathed in blue Reiryoku, stood confidently in the front.
"Hey! You don't look like a decent guy. Are you a Hollow too?"
"Damn Servant! How dare you betray the Matou Family!!"
Furious beyond belief, Zouken summoned another massive swarm of worms to howl forward.
Kaien swung the spear, kicking up splashes of Spiritual Pressure.
"Hit 'em with some high-level Kido! Old man!"
"...Alright!"
Tokiomi's spirits lifted, and he immediately changed his tactics.
With a Servant's support, he, as a magus, no longer needed to rush to deal with the swarm and could begin preparing a large-scale magic circle.
The spear traced sharp arcs in Kaien's hands. The waves of Spiritual Pressure kicked up by the spearhead continuously tore through the black tide of worms, causing them to explode instantly upon impact, scattering shredded bug corpses all over the ground.
Occasionally, a few worms slipped through the net and tried to sneak-attack Tokiomi from behind, but they were blocked by the defensive magecraft released by the jewels floating beside him.
In a short time, they had truly achieved an absolute defense.
"Old monster! Is this all your bugs can do?!"
Kaien shouted loudly, red light erupting from his hand. "Hado #31・Shakkaho!"
A scorching fireball blasted out, crashing into the swarm and blowing apart countless Crest Worms.
Zouken Matou's venomous shriek echoed from the depths of the insect sea. "You traitor! How dare you help an outsider destroy my foundation?!"
The swarm suddenly contracted, transforming into a thick, black giant python that lunged at Kaien, carrying a pungent, acidic stench.