Shirou, who returned from the Fairy Kingdom

However, when Tokiomi Tohsaka looked at the King of Heroes with schadenfreude, he found that, just like the night the sea monster was destroyed, he was not angry at all, but instead had an unusually calm expression.

"You bastard, you should be ready to die by now."

As Gilgamesh uttered those words calmly, ripples began to appear in the space behind him.

Countless magically powerful artifacts emerged and were launched swiftly in the same instant.

The barrage of firepower was not only directed at the arrogant red-haired boy, but also at Saber and Irisviel standing nearby.

When the Hero King stepped on the ant, he certainly didn't consider the life or death of the innocent ant beside him.

Saber quickly donned her magical armor, gripped her invisible holy sword tightly, and prepared herself for potential injury while protecting her Master behind her.

Faced with the rain of Noble Phantasms falling on him, Shirou did not strike a pose like Saber, nor did he even project the Reversal Holy Sword or the Chaos Blades.

"If I said you weren't ready, would you stop? I don't think so."

As he said this, the space behind Shirou twisted, forming ripples of a deep blue lake.

Countless white chalk swords of various shapes emerged from behind the boy, filling the entire space.

The next instant, the swords behind Shirou rained down on the "Gate of Babylon" thrown by the King of Heroes.

"boom------!!!"

The heat and light of the explosion instantly illuminated the surroundings, and the impact of the magic created a violent vortex that then vanished in an instant.

"……oh?"

Rider pinched his chin, a look of surprise on his face. It seems that Archer isn't the only one who possesses multiple Noble Phantasms.

Not only Iskandar, but all the magicians and Servants who witnessed this scene were so shocked that they were speechless.

Every sword fired by the red-haired boy was a genuine Noble Phantasm.

This can be seen from the scattered fragments of the King of Heroes's Noble Phantasm.

"Shirou, why are you..."

Saber looked incredulous: So you don't just have the Excalibur Morgan?

And why...?

Artoria felt a special sense of familiarity with the swords that Shirou had just thrown.

Gilgamesh's golden ripples exude his absolute majesty as the King of Heroes, while the lake ripples summoned by Shirou give people a completely different feeling.

Artoria even had the illusion that she had returned to the era before her death.

While my heart was surging with excitement, I also felt a little lonely.

On the other side, Gilgamesh narrowed his pupils slightly.

Oh, I see... that's how it is.

Because of the change in appearance and the weakening of his aura, it wasn't immediately noticeable...

It's you, Faker.

The King of Heroes' expression hardened.

When he unleashed his Noble Phantasm, he was thinking of "the execution of the criminal who offended the king."

But now, his mindset has changed.

The king's mindset shifted from "execution" to "playing along."

"You dare to show off your limited skills in front of me with such a childish body? Are you trying to conserve your strength?"

"Interesting...you foolish bastard, let me see just how far you can struggle in this body!"

Accompanied by the golden archer's impassioned words, a golden ripple far exceeding previous ones obscured everyone's vision, and more than a hundred weapons were densely arranged in the night sky.

Then, these collections of heroes, carrying an aura that seemed to shatter the earth, fell upon Shirou's head once more.

Faced with the overwhelming rain of sharp blades, the eight-year-old red-haired boy appeared so frail and vulnerable.

However, he didn't even make a defensive move; he simply raised an arm, spread his fingers, and whispered the name of the Noble Phantasm.

"——————"Lake of the Holy Sword (Vivian Pool Dozmary)."

And so everyone saw once again, under the starlight, a vast ripple of magical energy, like the surface of a lake, appearing in the void behind the red-haired boy.

This is one of the aftereffects of Shirou using the "Dead Count Shapeshifter"—

The spirit origin of Lady Avalon flowed into his body, changing the nature of his existence.

In short, Shirou Amamiya can now use the ability "True Name Release," which is only available to Servants.

The Noble Phantasm that Shirou has now unleashed is one of the few great magic spells he learned during his time in the Fairy Kingdom.

The legendary Lake Nymph (Vivian) who bestowed the holy sword upon the king and then retrieved it.

Using that lake as a catalyst, a grand magic spell resembling a holy sword was created and spread.

Transforming the Lake of Hope into a factory for mass-producing weapons was the most powerful secret technique created by the fairies of Paradise during the later stages of their journey to save the world.

however……

……

……

"Huh!? You learned it!?"

Ash, the fairy with golden hair and the savior of the paradise, looked on with a questioning expression.

Shirou nodded blankly: "Hmm, although I don't know the principle behind it, I think I've learned it."

"Woo..."

Seeing the fairy in the paradise looking troubled, Shirou quickly apologized, "I'm sorry... is this not a good idea?"

"I'm sorry, Morgan, for all the time and effort you poured into creating this magic trick, which I just casually stole."

Morgan was displeased to hear him say that: "Stealing... isn't that a rather harsh way to put it?"

This is inherently Shirou's magic, how can it be considered theft?

Thanks to Shirou's power, my work is so easy—

If Shirou is the thief, then I am Shirou's accomplice; we both bear the same sin.

If Shirou is ever to suffer divine retribution, I will not let you be the only one punished.

Shirou: "Morgan..."

For some reason, the blonde girl suddenly blushed.

"Waaah! Don't, don't look at me like that, like a puppy... What if I try to attack you again..."

"what?"

"N-nothing! But speaking of which, it's really incredible... How did you learn that?"

Savior Ash frowned slightly, puzzled, and asked, "Has Shirou already mastered the technology to project the same weapon in batches at the same time?"

"Do not."

Shirou shook his head and then explained, "What I projected was not the Holy Sword of the Lake, but the lake that can produce the Holy Sword."

—What he projected was not countless holy swords of the lake, but the lake itself that endlessly produced holy swords.

This is one of the few non-sword Noble Phantasms that Shirou can project.

"So that's what happened."

The fairy of the paradise smiled and murmured, "If that's the case, I'm a little happy...hehe."

It's only natural that Shirou was able to learn it.

After all, that lake was a landscape that existed in both of their hearts.

"Lake of the Holy Sword" is not just Shirou's mental world... but a Noble Phantasm that is sublimated from his bond with Morgan.

……

……

With a deafening roar, countless holy swords of the lake flew toward the treasure of the King of Heroes.

"Hahahaha! Overestimating yourself!"

Gilgamesh's arrogant laughter echoed through the park late at night.

He had already realized that although Shirou's Noble Phantasm looked very similar to "Gate of Babylon," there were actually differences between the two.

It's not a difference in "quantity," but a difference in "quality."

All the swords, spears, and halberds that Gilgamesh threw were original Noble Phantasms from mythology and legend. Even without the blessing of heroic inheritance, the average level of the Noble Phantasms was still very high.

In contrast, while Shirou's mass-produced holy swords were also quite good, they were ultimately inferior to the "Gate of Babylon".

Before his death, the King of Heroes had repeatedly played a game called "Firepower Showdown" with his friends, and he knew very well what a lack of "quality" meant.

After this barrage of Noble Phantasms, the red-haired brat will be blasted to pieces, and before he dies, he will regret not having used his full strength when facing the King of Heroes.

However, what happened next once again shattered the King of Heroes' expectations.

Although the mass-produced holy sword that Shirou shot out was of an average quality one or two levels lower than the "Golden Gate of Babylon," it was not easily destroyed. Instead, it resulted in a situation where both sides perished.

The reason for this situation is actually a third factor that Gilgamesh overlooked, besides "quantity" and "quality"—

"speed".

Shirou's projection magic is a technique that uses himself as a medium to "read" and "project" weapons stored in his mental world.

Having traversed countless battlefields, Shirou's skill has reached a level of perfection, achieving unimaginable precision, speed, and proficiency.

However, the "Lake of the Holy Sword" is different.

When unleashing this Noble Phantasm, Shirou even skipped the necessary step of "reading the weapon".

That's right, because the only thing that needs projection is the lake that keeps producing holy swords.

Because the lake produces only the Holy Sword, the production speed is unprecedented.

Shirou's "Lake of the Holy Sword" is significantly faster than "Gate of Babylon" in terms of reload speed, firing rate, and flight speed. Although its firepower is far inferior, it can still knock down Gilgamesh's Noble Phantasms before they can be launched or before they reach their maximum speed.

Because of Shirou's faster throwing speed, "Gate of Babylon" became a flashy decoration that was useless except for its sharpness and sturdiness, and could not play the role of a Noble Phantasm.

This is why Shirou was able to fight Gilgamesh to a draw.

For an enemy you can't beat no matter what, just drag them down to your own level.

"..."

The details on the battlefield could not escape the eyes of the King of Heroes. He quickly discovered Shirou's trickery and took corresponding countermeasures.

The Golden King, who was the only one who mattered, responded by increasing the dosage!

At the summons of the indomitable King of Heroes, hundreds and thousands of Noble Phantasms appeared.

Irisviel was speechless.

Although she knew that Gilgamesh possessed an almost limitless array of weapons, she was still utterly shocked when a thousand Noble Phantasms were actually placed before her.

Tokiomi Tohsaka was speechless.

Why is Shirou Amamiya able to contend with the King of Heroes' Noble Phantasm? Isn't he the representative of the Matou family's Masters?

A hint of anticipation flickered in the Hero King's crimson eyes as he shouted:

"This is your reward for performing so well in front of me, so accept it with gratitude, you fake (Faker)!"

A torrential rain of gold fell down.

In some ways, the "Lake of the Holy Sword" and the "Gate of Babylon" do have similarities.

Q: Why is the King of Heroes the strongest cheating Servant?

Is it because of the endless supply of Noble Phantasms? Is it because of eyes that can see into the future?

Or is it the supreme treasure stored in the deepest part of the treasure vault, the only one in this world whose firepower surpasses even the holy sword of the planet?

None of them are right.

The true strength of the King of Heroes lies in his almost non-existent mana consumption.