"Hiroshima! Nagasaki!"
"Bzzzt..."
The officer at Japan's command headquarters shouted anxiously into the communications channel, but the only response he received was a burst of distorted static.
At the same time, more fighter jets were scrambling from Japan Air Self-Defense Force air bases.
The fallen squadrons, Hiroshima and Nagasaki, had merely been the advance reconnaissance force.
"Damn it!"
"Can somebody tell me what the hell is happening out there?!"
Bang!
The officer slammed his fist onto the desk.
The live feed on the monitor showed the grotesque silhouette of a colossal beast concealed within a sea of dark violet mist. Enormous tentacles repeatedly shot into the sky before plunging back down elsewhere. As though dissatisfied with the swamp's rate of expansion, they had begun actively hunting the civilians around it.
"If this were a kaiju movie, we'd definitely be the cannon fodder—the extras who exist just to show how awesome the 'Giant of Light' is when he finally appears."
"That's not even remotely funny..."
The two pilots joked over the shared radio frequency in an attempt to ease the tension. The officer at headquarters had just opened his mouth to reprimand them—
When their joke became reality.
"AAAAAAAHHHHH!!"
"M-Monster—!!"
The terrified screams lasted less than two seconds before the command center fell into an eerie silence.
On the screen, endlessly extending tentacles swatted entire formations of fighter jets from the sky as effortlessly as someone brushing aside mosquitoes.
The overwhelming spectacle looked less like reality and more like a cinematic cutscene from a video game.
"..."
Silence.
The silence of the grave.
...
At the disaster zone—
Iskandar, the King of Conquerors, and his army continued their relentless assault.
Having shaken off the monkeys clinging to him, Gilgamesh, the King of Heroes, sat upon the throne of Vimana, looking down upon the scene below—a pitiful tableau of ants trying to topple a towering tree.
"What an utterly unsightly spectacle."
"Even if they are mere mongrels, each of them was once a renowned hero in life. Yet now, even working together, they cannot deal with such a hideous creature."
"Pathetic."
"Don't you agree, Kirei?"
"Indeed."
Kirei Kotomine nodded calmly.
He was standing atop a skyscraper far from Caster's location, his indifferent gaze fixed on the chaos unfolding below.
Unlike Gilgamesh, Kirei wasn't watching the battle itself.
His attention was on the city—and the civilians being swallowed alive by the ever-expanding sea of dark violet mire.
Despite the unprecedented catastrophe, thrill-seekers still rushed toward the disaster zone to livestream, take photos, and watch the spectacle.
One after another, they were devoured by the Giant Sea Demon's tentacles.
"How foolish..."
For perhaps the first time, Kirei truly appreciated the astonishing diversity of humanity.
A question involuntarily surfaced in his mind.
How has a species like this managed to survive until today?
"But... this can't continue."
Watching the destruction spread, Kirei frowned slightly.
What he sought in this Holy Grail War was something—or someone—capable of filling the emptiness within his soul.
If Caster, this unruly interloper, simply overturned the entire board...
Then there would be nothing left for him to enjoy.
The monster has to be destroyed before Fuyuki City falls completely.
As that thought crossed his mind, Kirei spoke to Gilgamesh through their magical communication link.
"King of Heroes... are we simply going to watch?"
"Hahaha, Kirei."
Gilgamesh chuckled.
"There's no need to rush."
"Do you truly believe that beast can continue growing without limit?"
"Probably not."
Kirei understood the situation well.
"The Clock Tower won't ignore something like this forever. But the Greater Grail is anchored to Fuyuki City's leyline system. I'm afraid..."
"Heh."
"If something this trivial required me to intervene personally..."
"Then I truly overestimated that man."
As he spoke, Gilgamesh's crimson eyes settled upon Leon.
A proud smile curved across his lips.
"I'm rather curious."
"What exactly is he planning?"
"...Saber."
Following Gilgamesh's gaze, Kirei raised his binoculars toward Leon's position.
The instant Leon and the others came into view—
Leon seemed to notice something.
After escorting Irisviel, Artoria, and Aoi Tohsaka to a relatively safe location, he suddenly leaped into the sea of dark violet corruption.
Whoosh—
With Excalibur – Sword of Promised Victory in hand, Leon unleashed two sweeping slashes.
Golden sword pressure crossed through the mire, carving out a massive cross-shaped vacuum over ten meters long.
Two shipping containers that had been tumbling beneath the surface were instantly exposed.
With a flick of his sword, Leon launched one of them skyward.
Its kinetic energy transformed into graceful upward momentum.
The container flew in a perfect arc—without spinning or wobbling—and landed precisely on the rooftop of the building where Irisviel and the others had taken shelter.
Then—
Leon hoisted the second shipping container onto one shoulder.
Before the corrupted mire could flood back and close the opening, he bent his knees and exploded upward.
Launching after the container—
He arrived almost simultaneously with the first.
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