"Get on. I'll explain everything while we're on the move."
Iskandar summoned the Gordius Wheel, hoisted Waver up with one hand, then turned to Leon and the others with an inviting grin.
Seeing this, Leon nodded toward Irisviel and Artoria.
Among all the participants in this Holy Grail War, the King and his "queen"—Iskandar and Waver—were practically the only people Leon could genuinely trust.
"But..."
After helping Irisviel aboard the chariot, Leon turned to Aoi Tohsaka.
She instinctively took half a step back.
She didn't want to leave.
"Tokiomi's body is still here... And this is my home..."
"My home..."
"If I leave... where else can Rin and I possibly go?"
"M... Mama?"
Ever since witnessing Tohsaka Tokiomi 's death, Kirei Kotomine's betrayal, and the assassination attempt by Hundred-Faced Hassan, Aoi's mental state had steadily begun to unravel.
She broke down into sobs.
The heartbreaking cries woke the sleeping Rin Tohsaka.
"Leon..."
Irisviel clasped her hands before her chest and gently shook her head.
"...I know."
Leon walked over to Aoi, cupped her tear-streaked face, and spoke softly.
"Until the Holy Grail War is over, nowhere is truly safe."
"You and Rin have to stay with us."
After Tokiomi's death—a development that had occurred a little earlier than expected, though fortunately without changing the overall situation—Leon had completely lost any trust in the pair of pleasure-seeking schemers.
At this point...
There was no telling what those two might do.
Anything done openly...
Gilgamesh would handle personally.
Anything requiring secrecy...
Kirei Kotomine would gladly take care of.
When two monsters who lived for amusement joined forces...
Reason ceased to matter.
"But..."
"Mama... Daddy..."
Aoi shook her head violently.
Her once elegant hair became completely disheveled.
Her eyes lost focus.
Dark circles spread beneath them.
She looked utterly broken.
Even little Rin, still cradled in her arms, began crying uncontrollably without understanding why.
Seeing this—
Leon wrapped both mother and daughter tightly in his embrace.
He gently pressed Aoi's head against his chest.
Caught between Aoi's soft embrace and Leon's hard armor, little Rin found herself serving as an accidental cushion.
"It's alright."
"I'll protect both of you."
"Believe me."
"If you have nowhere left to go..."
"You'll still have me."
...And Sakura.
"...Mm."
Little by little...
Aoi finally calmed down.
Her breathing steadied.
In a voice barely above a whisper, she quietly answered,
"...Okay."
"You promise!"
Still sniffling, Rin stretched out her little finger from the tiny gap between her mother's chest and Leon's breastplate.
She hooked it toward him.
"You promise."
Smiling, Leon dismissed the armor covering his right hand.
He hooked his little finger with hers.
"I promise."
"Pinky promise!"
"No breaking it for a hundred years!"
"If you lie, you're a big meanie!"
Showing off her tiny fangs, Rin shouted at him in her childish voice.
In her excitement, she accidentally grabbed Aoi's chest, causing her mother to let out a soft, embarrassed yelp.
"Yes, yes."
"So..."
"May I escort my young lady..."
"And this beautiful lady..."
"...to the carriage?"
Leon reformed the armor around his right hand before bowing slightly like a gentleman inviting someone to dance, extending his hand toward the mother and daughter.
The playful wink he added immediately made both of them blush bright red.
Aoi timidly rested her delicate hand across Leon's fingers.
Meanwhile, the quick-witted Rin grabbed onto Leon's thumb with both of her tiny hands...
As though she were holding onto her future.
"Ah—"
Leon gave a gentle pull.
Half willingly and half helplessly, the two fell into his embrace.
He naturally wrapped an arm around Aoi's waist, then leapt gracefully onto the Gordius Wheel while carrying both mother and daughter.
"Rider!"
"Oh!"
Flashing a broad grin, Iskandar cracked the reins.
His beloved steed, Bucephalus, reared into the air with a mighty neigh before galloping across the sky toward the distant "sun."
"R-Rider..."
"What... what do we do now?"
Waver stared at the approaching tidal wave, trembling as he hid behind Iskandar.
"No need to worry."
"Since Caster is the one responsible for all of this..."
"Then we simply defeat him."
"Wasn't that our plan from the very beginning?"
"Hahahahaha!"
Even after witnessing Leon and Gilgamesh unleash their greatest powers against one another, Iskandar remained completely unfazed.
He laughed heartily while patting Waver on the shoulder.
"Saber."
"You expended an enormous amount of mana fighting Archer just now."
"How about leaving Caster to me?"
"After all, defeating him means earning Command Seals as our reward."
"That's something we can't ignore if we intend to win the Holy Grail War."
Iskandar made no attempt whatsoever to hide his practical motives.
Under Waver's speechless gaze, he laid everything out honestly.
"No."
Resting his hand upon Excalibur – Sword of Promised Victory, Leon smiled and shook his head.
"With such a formidable enemy before us, how could I simply stand by and watch?"
"The Command Seals don't interest me."
"But Caster..."
"...is an enemy everyone has a duty to destroy."
"Haha, fair enough."
"Then let's see which of us lands the final blow."
"Let that decide the victor of this campaign."
"But since you've agreed to fight..."
"Don't go slacking off halfway through."
"Of course."
Leon nodded.
Just then, Irisviel spoke with obvious concern.
"That monster originally depended entirely on Caster's mana to exist."
"But now..."
"It's begun feeding."
"It's practically become self-sustaining."
"It will continue growing without limit."
"I see."
"No wonder it keeps getting bigger."
"If we leave it alone..."
"It really could become a disaster capable of devouring the entire world."
Iskandar finally understood.
After dropping Leon and the others onto the rooftop of a nearby twenty-story apartment building close to the advancing tidal wave, he immediately drove off with Waver to begin his own assault.
"Saber!"
"I'll have my army drag that thing outside Fuyuki City."
"If you've got another trick up your sleeve..."
"Don't keep it hidden."
"I won't."
With that, Iskandar rode toward the battlefield.
Raising the Sword of Cypriot, he roared,
"My warriors!"
"Until we reach the edge of the world—the great sea of Oceanus—"
"Never look back!"
"CHARGE!!"
"OOOOOOOOHHHHHH!!"
Tens of thousands of soldiers suddenly appeared throughout the streets of Fuyuki City.
Thanks to the additional mana supplied by Kayneth Archibald El-Melloi and Sola-Ui Nuada-Re Sophia-Ri, Iskandar could afford to expend magical energy on such an extravagant scale.
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!
A volley of spears filled the sky.
Without even needing to aim, countless lances accurately struck the colossal mountain of flesh that continued devouring everything in its path.
As time passed...
The Sea Demon, with Caster at its core, had expanded until its enormous body could be seen from virtually anywhere within Fuyuki City.
"Jeanne!!!"
"Jeanne!!!"
"Jeanne!!!"
Its body had become so massive that its consciousness seemed to have dispersed.
Only one instinct remained.
It continued screaming Jeanne d'Arc's name over and over.
The instant it sensed Artoria's arrival—
Its colossal form immediately surged toward Leon's apartment building, driving an enormous wall of water ahead of it.
Although its movements appeared slow...
Its thousand-meter-tall body allowed it to advance with astonishing speed, like a supercar with its accelerator welded to the floor.
An overwhelming pressure bore down upon Leon and the others.
Wherever the Sea Demon passed...
Everything became polluted by violet-black mire.
The corruption spread relentlessly, consuming its surroundings and expanding like an unstoppable avalanche.
At this rate...
Fuyuki City would be completely swallowed within two and a half hours.
"You shall advance no farther!"
"You monster!"
"My soldiers!"
Iskandar raised the Sword of Cypriot high overhead.
The Servants of Ionioi Hetairoi immediately understood his command.
They put away their throwing weapons and instead took up the heavy ropes traditionally used to halt charging cavalry.
Countless thick cables—each nearly as wide as Waver's arm—were skillfully looped around the Sea Demon's massive tentacles.
"Pull!"
"PULL!!"
Even Iskandar personally hurled a massive lasso.
It circled through the air before wrapping tightly around the Sea Demon's enormous body.
Leading from the front, he strained alongside his soldiers, dragging the monstrosity back toward the coastline and away from the city.
With the combined strength of tens of thousands of Heroic Spirits...
The Sea Demon's advance finally stopped.
Then...
It slowly began moving backward.
The sheer might of the Ionioi Hetairoi was forcing the colossal monster away through brute force alone.
It was a magnificent spectacle.
Anyone who witnessed it would feel their blood race.
Even Leon couldn't help feeling fired up.
For a brief moment...
It felt as though he and his friends were simply teaming up to defeat a raid boss together.
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