A Villain's Journey Begins in the Type-Moon World

However, Aozaki Touko could sense the magical surge emanating from the castle; it was safe to say that a fierce battle was raging outside. After all, she was currently engaged in the precise work of designing the human body, and could not afford the slightest mistake.

"This guy is really audacious, bringing the battlefield back home. I don't know if it's overconfidence or what. Oh well, since he assured me it wouldn't affect my side, there's nothing more to say. He's a True Ancestor after all; he's not going to be defeated so easily."

Aozaki Touko ignored all of that; she only wanted to complete the mission properly and hoped that the True Ancestor would stop thinking about her. Although the mysteries of the True Ancestor's body did indeed intrigue Aozaki Touko, she knew she had to be alive to study them.

Although it is difficult to kill him at present, who can guarantee that the True Ancestor has some unknown means to break his puppet way?

Fortunately, as far as the current situation is concerned, not only am I useful to that humanoid monster, but the other party also seems to have no ill will towards me from the beginning to the end, and the two of them are getting along more as partners.

"I wonder how those little ones are doing. But they probably can't detect what's going on in the castle." Aozaki Touko ignored these thoughts and continued working diligently.

……

Meanwhile, at the source of the magical burst that Aozaki Touko had just sensed, the ground was riddled with cracks. Inside the room, the expressions on the faces of Emiya Kiritsugu and the others were rather grim. Gilgamesh, unusually, had put away his usual contemptuous smile and, looking at the charred marks on the shoulder armor, began to seriously examine his current opponent.

"What's wrong? Hero King, where did your arrogance go? Or did you finally realize the difference in power after seeing my father take action?" A mocking voice suddenly rang out, and Mordred slung the silver-white royal sword over his shoulder, looking smug.

"Mordred, are you standing in front of me because you want to get hit by a beam of light?" However, a cold voice rang out behind Mordred. The moment Mordred heard the voice, she couldn't help but shiver. Then, she bowed her head apologetically, stepped back, and said, "I...I'm sorry, Father."

At that moment, a person clad in black armor stepped out, holding a holy sword that had been corrupted. Her appearance was exactly the same as Artoria's, and it was clear that her true identity was none other than the last character Wang Chong had drawn—Artoria [Alter].

Artoria (Alter), with her cold and stern face, pointed her sword at Gilgamesh and said, "What's wrong? King of Heroes, even you, who always thinks so highly of yourself, have a moment of weakness?"

"Saber... no, is she now appearing in the Rider class? Hehehe, a reversal... That Faker really does like these fake things of yours." Gilgamesh immediately recognized Altria's specialized class. However, Altria's Noble Phantasm was still her holy sword, so it could be said that her class itself had little to do with her.

Moreover, despite being a lower-fourth-class servant, Artoria's stats are higher than those of the genuine Saber-class Artoria. It was precisely this high stat that allowed Gilgamesh to dodge the devastating magic release attack with a wave of energy that caught him off guard.

"So what if it's a fake? My Master taught me a saying: there's no such thing as a fake necessarily being inferior to the real thing." Artoria [Alter] raised the Dark Holy Sword in her hand again, with a slightly provocative smile, and said, "King of Heroes, let me see if the real items in your treasury can beat the 'fake' in my hand."

"How dare you!" Gilgamesh's eyes snapped open, and instantly the golden gates of the Gate of Babylon appeared behind him.

However, before Gilgamesh could make a move, Artoria (Alter) had already taken a step, and then a black motorcycle materialized and appeared beneath Artoria (Alter).

Then, with a roar, Artoria [Alter] sped toward Gilgamesh.

"Riding?" Gilgamesh unleashed his Noble Phantasm, bombarding Artoria (Alter). Unfortunately, the speed and maneuverability of Artoria's motorcycle were simply too good, and Gilgamesh's Noble Phantasm firing rate couldn't keep up with the speed of Artoria's mount.

While Gilgamesh was facing off against Artoria (Alter), Mordred also chose her opponent: the Heroic Spirit Kiritsugu Emiya. Even though Kiritsugu knew he was no match for Mordred, he could only accelerate and fight her head-on, hoping that Gilgamesh would defeat Artoria (Alter) and then help him out.

"What's wrong? The real thing isn't even as fast as my 'fake' mount?" Altria scoffed, galloping across the field like a monkey. Even though the ground was cratered by the Noble Phantasms, Altria performed acrobatics on her motorcycle as if it were flat ground.

"Is this so-called King of Knights just putting on a monkey show like a monkey?" Gilgamesh said coldly.

"Heh, King of Heroes, haven't you always refused to acknowledge me as a king? What? Now you're trying to pull this stunt on me?" Artoria [Alter] made a beautiful drift and came to a quick stop, speaking directly to Gilgamesh.

"And who exactly is the monkey, King Gigi?" Artoria chuckled and said.

"King Gigi!?" Gilgamesh didn't know who King Gigi was, but he knew the words coming from the other party were probably not pleasant, and might even be related to monkeys. Gilgamesh thought he had been angry enough today and wouldn't be angry anymore, but unexpectedly, he broke down yet again. In his rage, he completely focused his attention on Artoria [Alter], and the gates of the Gate of Babylon were opened even wider.

"I'd like to see how you can hide when my Noble Phantasm covers the entire area!" Gilgamesh roared.

However, in the face of Gilgamesh's posture, Artoria [Alter] smiled and said, "Gilgamesh... so you're the one who got played. Go lie down in the ruins and calm your head."

"Hmm?" Seeing Artoria's (Alter) triumphant smile, Gilgamesh sensed something was wrong. Then, he felt a strong surge of magical energy coming towards his back.

"Watch out! It's Mordred on the other side!" At that moment, the Heroic Spirit Emiya, who was supposed to be fighting Mordred, shouted a warning.

"Clarent—Blood—Arthur (rebellion against my magnificent father)!!" A voice rang out, and Mordred's Noble Phantasm had already been unleashed. The moment the voice rang out, the beam of light was about to touch Gilgamesh's back.

"Varied--!"

"boom!!!"

Before Gilgamesh could even utter a cry of alarm, a violent explosion rang out. Mordred's Noble Phantasm struck Gilgamesh directly, and then the beam of light continued unabated, blasting straight into the wall.

All of this was because, not long ago, Mordred had easily repelled the Heroic Spirit Emiya Kiritsugu, relying on her superior stats and extensive combat experience. Then, Mordred assumed a pose as if unleashing her Noble Phantasm, facing Emiya Kiritsugu. Sensing danger, Emiya Kiritsugu disregarded his physical exhaustion and activated his Speed ​​Mode, attempting to evade Mordred's attack.

Unexpectedly, Mordred wasn't after him at all. She instantly changed direction and struck Gilgamesh, who had been distracted. Gilgamesh was ultimately blasted into the wall, his fate unknown.

Meanwhile, Artoria (Alter) wasn't just standing there dumbfounded. She rode her motorcycle directly towards Kiritsugu Emiya and the others, seemingly intending to eliminate Kiritsugu Emiya and win the Holy Grail War.

The sudden and shocking turn of events caught everyone off guard. After all, who could have imagined that the Knight King, who valued honor above all else, would resort to underhanded tactics after the reversal of fortune, and even go so far as to kill his Master and end the match?

"Not good!" Upon seeing this, the Heroic Spirit Emiya Kiritsugu immediately flashed in front of Emiya Kiritsugu to block him. If Emiya Kiritsugu were to die and Gilgamesh were to be lost as a trump card, there would truly be no chance to kill Wang Chong.

"You think you can stop me?" Artoria [Alter] sneered, unleashing the magic of her holy sword and slashing out a wave of blades at her opponent, determined to cut her in two.

Chapter 273 The Sword of Ea

Faced with Artoria (Alter)'s attack, the Heroic Spirit Kiritsugu Emiya focused intently, using his Noble Phantasm to counter the incoming wave of blades. Unfortunately, however, Kiritsugu Emiya's direct combat abilities were simply too poor, both personally and as an assassin.

Even though he was in a state of acceleration and managed to attack the oncoming sword waves with keen awareness, his strength was simply no match for them. The bullets were easily shattered by the sword waves, and his attempt to block with his dagger was also directly shattered. In the end, the Heroic Spirit Kiritsugu was still hit and sent flying, his blood splattering all over the ground.

Seeing that the obstacle in her way had been dealt with, Artoria [Alter] immediately sped towards her final target. Seeing this, Kiritsugu Emiya also activated his Magic Crest, accelerating. Unfortunately, his negligible speed only prolonged the time it took for Artoria [Alter] to kill him.

"Emiya Kiritsugu, I have wanted to attack you for a long time! Even though I know that everything is a trick, that was your own choice. People like you should go to hell!" After saying that, Altria raised the holy sword high, with a hint of personal grudge, and slashed directly at Emiya Kiritsugu.

Kiritsugu Emiya already knew that the Knight King before him was not the Knight King he knew, but for some reason, it was as if the other party had a resentment locked onto him. Even though he could kill him with a single sword strike, he was determined to blast him into dust. He began to unleash his magic power, using a cannon to kill a mosquito with the momentum of annihilating him.

However, it seemed that fate was still on Kiritsugu Emiya's side. Just as Artoria [Alter] was about to swing her holy sword, several Noble Phantasms suddenly shot towards Artoria [Alter].

Artoria [Alter] immediately turned her sword, unleashing a high-energy magical wave as she slashed at the Noble Phantasms. The intense bombardment, accompanied by the aftershocks of energy, washed over Artoria's golden hair. Artoria [Alter] stared intently in the direction from which the Noble Phantasms had come, and saw a figure emerge from the billowing smoke created by Mordred's Noble Phantasms.

"Saber, though weak and naive, was not without her charm, making me want to completely destroy and appreciate that scene. But you now... hehehe, I have to admit that the methods and skills you used to successfully injure me to this extent are worthy of my serious attention, but ultimately you are quite boring. In fact, you are just as detestable as Faker."

From within the smoke, Gilgamesh slowly emerged, looking utterly disheveled. His upper armor was torn, and blood streamed from his head, staining half his face red. Having directly taken Mordred's Noble Phantasm, how could he possibly emerge unscathed? Even though Gilgamesh's armor was formidable, it wasn't the golden armor of some minor deity. Hence his disheveled state.

Artoria (Alter) narrowed her eyes, noticing that Gilgamesh hadn't come out empty-handed. He was holding a dark red, rod-like object, indicating that Gilgamesh intended to use that crucial weapon this time.

Semiramis, who had been observing the battle in the central core area, also obviously noticed this. Without saying a word, she immediately began to construct the space teleportation magic formula and the stagnation magic formula hidden in the room.

Semiramis knew that once the opponent used that anti-world Noble Phantasm—Ea—the entire space would be destroyed. At that time, the space would be disrupted, and her space magic would no longer be effective, making it impossible to teleport Mordred and Artoria [Alter].

Furthermore, just in case, the situation here was immediately reported to Wang Chong. If anything seemed amiss, Wang Chong could immediately activate his time-stop power and rush towards Mordred and Altria to rescue them.

Upon seeing Gilgamesh draw the Noble Phantasm that Wang Chong had warned them to be wary of, Artoria (Alter) and Mordred both ran towards the ceiling above. Gilgamesh merely sneered and said, "You think you can dodge my Noble Phantasm with your mobility?"

"Looking up at the power of Ea, let this be the end! You counterfeits who should not exist!" Gilgamesh activated Ea. Severely injured, he had no choice but to take this seriously and use his strongest Noble Phantasm to destroy his opponent.

Even so, Gilgamesh did not unleash the full power of Ea. Perhaps this was the last stubbornness in Gilgamesh's remaining pride.

Even without its full power unleashed, Ea's power began to destroy everything around it; space shattered, and sand and stones were instantly annihilated by the swirling winds. Meanwhile, watching all this from a distance, Kiritsugu Emiya sensed the stench of death emanating from the Noble Phantasm Gilgamesh had drawn.

Without a doubt, it is the strongest Noble Phantasm capable of destroying everything: an EX-rank Anti-World Noble Phantasm.

However, the moment Gilgamesh activated his Noble Phantasm, the magical energy in the entire space suddenly stagnated, and Gilgamesh's Noble Phantasm was also affected in that instant; the gale did not continue to extend and destroy the space. At that moment, a flash of white light appeared on Artoria [Alter] and Mordred, and then they disappeared from Gilgamesh's sight.

"Damn insects, I will utterly destroy you!" Gilgamesh, enraged that his intended victim had escaped his grasp once again, unleashed his fury upon the ceiling above. The powerful gale easily tore the ceiling apart, destroying everything in its path, leaving a gaping hole.

In the end, Gilgamesh stopped using his Noble Phantasm, since using the power of Ea to smash rocks was a very shameful thing for him.

"Gilgamesh actually possesses a Noble Phantasm of this caliber? If so... why have I wasted so much time?"

After seeing Ea's performance, Kiritsugu Emiya cursed inwardly. If he had known that Gilgamesh had a Noble Phantasm of this caliber, why was he afraid of Wang Chong and the others before? He could have just used the power of the Command Seals to strengthen Gilgamesh and let him use this Noble Phantasm to destroy everything.

However, Kiritsugu Emiya quickly dismissed this idea. The range of the World-Extreme Noble Phantasm was simply too vast, and Irisviel was also present at the time. It's not that Kiritsugu Emiya was particularly sentimental; in the original story, he was willing to kill his wife and daughter to prove his path and save all of humanity. Moreover, Irisviel had already severed ties with Kiritsugu Emiya.

An anti-dimensional Noble Phantasm could destroy everything within its range, and he worried that Irisviel's body would also be annihilated, preventing the Lesser Grail from ever reappearing. If that happened, wouldn't everything he had done be meaningless? Wouldn't all the killing he had committed be nothing more than killing itself?

Even though he had placed a sword sheath inside Irisviel's body, Kiritsugu Emiya worried that the sheath wouldn't be able to withstand everything. Therefore, he had to be extremely careful when using the Anti-World Noble Phantasm, making sure it didn't affect Irisviel. He would have to wait until the Lesser Grail had fully appeared before he could use it.

“But… Gilgamesh’s Noble Phantasm undoubtedly brings me the possibility of victory. And as I was right, the King of Heroes, Gilgamesh, will be the most crucial Servant for me to completely win this Holy Grail War,” Kiritsugu Emiya thought.

Chapter 274 Undercurrents

"Drink!" A loud shout rang out. After Wang Chong dispatched the demonic beast before him with a single sword strike, he wiped the blood splattered on his face and asked:

"Which room are we in now?"

“This is the seventh one. Our breakthrough speed is already quite fast. Even with those strange rule restrictions, we have done our best to break through,” Artoria said, wiping away the splattered blood.

"Are you sure you don't need help, King of Knights, King of Ruin?" Iskandar shouted from a short distance away.

“Conqueror King, you have just gone through a great battle and urgently need to recover. If we all attack together, I'm afraid everyone's magic will be exhausted sooner or later. Just focus on healing your injuries, and your time will come.” Wang Chong turned his head and said.

"The Ruined King is certainly being quite polite... What's wrong, kid? Still worried about the odds of winning?" Iskandar chuckled, turning to his Master Waver and asking.

Weber's face was somewhat gloomy, and he kept glancing towards Kenneth. It seemed that Kenneth's death had a significant impact on Weber.

"No... I just feel that if I hadn't done that... or if I hadn't insisted on participating in the Holy Grail War, would Professor Kenneth not have... Ouch!"

Before Weber could finish speaking, Iskandar flicked him on the forehead in his signature style.

“Don’t overthink it, kid. This isn’t your fault. Your teacher’s current situation is entirely his own fault,” Iskandar said.

“But… if it were Rider, he should be able to persuade the teacher. If that’s the case…” Waver said.

"Who knows about such things?" Iskandar shook his head, neither confirming nor denying.

"People often blame their mistakes on a single wrong choice, but they don't realize that behind every occasional mistake lies an unchangeable inevitability." Just then, a voice broke the two's discussion. The person who came was Wang Chong, who had overheard their conversation.

“Not every Master is like Waver, able to get along so harmoniously with their Servant. You must have seen Kiritsugu Emiya, right? Do you think Iskandar could persuade someone with that kind of will?” Wang Chong said.

"..." Weber remained silent for a moment, understanding Wang Chong's meaning. Everyone's fate is tied to their actions and personality; Kenneth had only himself to blame for this outcome.

"The Ruined King is right, kid. If everyone thought like you, life would be too tiring. Hahahaha..." Iskandar let out a hearty laugh, then stood up and looked at Wang Chong, saying:

"Alright, don't worry about us. We've rested enough. Let's hurry to the next location."

Wang Chong nodded, called Irisviel and Joan of Arc, and hurried toward the exit.

As they ascended the passage, everyone felt that it seemed unusually long this time. Wang Chong remarked, "I have a feeling that we may have just passed the last obstacle."

"Really? That fast?" Weber asked curiously.

“Yes, I feel the same way. We’ve both left the dungeon once before. The passage leading out of the dungeon was also much longer than the passages connecting the other rooms,” Artoria explained.

"Huh? Saber, you've already gone out once, so why are you back in the dungeon now?" Waver asked curiously.

Upon hearing this, Artoria was stunned and didn't know how to respond for a moment, a blush creeping onto her face.

Not only Artoria, but even Irisviel and Jeanne d'Arc, upon hearing Waver's question, couldn't help but think of everything that had happened in that room filled with black mist.

Weber had no idea what was going on, or why everyone had suddenly fallen silent when he asked such a common question.

Fortunately, Wang Chong quickly smoothed things over, saying, "As you probably know, Mrs. Irisviel's daughter is very likely in this fortress as well. That's why we've been searching for her daughter in every room since we came out."

"After that, we did find a clue about the lady's daughter in a certain room, but then we fell into a trap in that room, which caused us to return to the underground palace after we came out... You know what happened after that."

Wang Chong skipped over the specifics of the trap in one of the rooms and gave a general explanation of the process. The three women all breathed a sigh of relief, and Weber got the answer he wanted.

"I think I see light," Iskandar suddenly said, pointing ahead.

"It looks like we've reached the exit, let's hurry!" Wang Chong said, and took the lead towards the light. The others quickly followed.

Finally, the group successfully escaped the underground palace. Seeing the moon and stars in the sky, everyone breathed a sigh of relief. It seemed they no longer had to worry about how long they would be wandering around in the underground palace.

"Everyone, our target is the central core area. We must eliminate Semiramis," Wang Chong said, turning to the group.

Everyone nodded. Even though Irisviel was still worried about her daughter, the current situation was not optimistic, so they could only prioritize eliminating their opponents. However, after everyone had moved forward, Artoria had only taken a few steps when she suddenly seemed to sense something and looked back in a certain direction.

"What's wrong? Knight King?" Wang Chong asked when he saw that Altria did not catch up.

"No, I just felt a strong sense of being watched, like someone was staring at us from that direction," Artoria said, turning her head.

After glancing in the direction Artoria had just indicated, Wang Chong, finding nothing amiss, said, "Perhaps you're just too tired and are imagining things. At least from my perspective, there's nothing unusual."

"Perhaps... I've delayed everyone. Let's hurry to Semiramis's location." The situation was urgent, and although Artoria had her doubts, she could only prioritize the present. So she immediately followed Wang Chong and headed towards the core area of ​​the Hanging Gardens with the others.

However, after Artoria and the others left, a figure emerged from a window of a tall building in the direction Artoria had just been looking. The figure was none other than the Heroic Spirit Kiritsugu.

"It seems they're all heading towards the central area of ​​Semiramis. It's very likely that Wang Chong is preparing to wipe them all out in one fell swoop. After all, our appearance has disrupted his plans. He's even hastily revealed his trump card—another Knight King—to eliminate us."

"Unfortunately, he failed against the Hero King's powerful Noble Phantasm. He had no choice but to deal with the other opponents first before attacking us," said the Heroic Spirit Kiritsugu, analyzing the current situation.

"So, how about we make our move now? Or wait until they've all entered that central area and then wipe them all out?" Heroic Spirit Kiritsugu asked, looking at Emiya Kiritsugu sitting inside.

As for why Kiritsugu Emiya and the others are now out in the outside world, even before Wang Chong and his group left, it's not surprising. Firstly, this was intentionally orchestrated by Wang Chong. Secondly, just a short while ago, Gilgamesh used Ea to blast a large hole in the tunnel. Therefore, Kiritsugu Emiya and the others naturally wouldn't bother trying to navigate the labyrinth; instead, they simply crawled out through the hole Gilgamesh had created.

After climbing out, Gilgamesh left on his own, and no one knew what he was doing. Meanwhile, Kiritsugu Emiya, Maiya Hisau, and the Heroic Spirit Kiritsugu went to a location where they could observe the entire situation and monitor whether anyone else would leave the underground palace, especially hoping to find any trace of Wang Chong and his group.

After waiting for a while, they got what they wanted: Wang Chong and the others emerged right under their noses. Judging from their destination, they were heading straight for the city's central area, the location of Semiramis.

Upon hearing Kiritsugu's question, Kiritsugu Emiya did not respond directly; instead, he frowned and could not make a decision.

"What? Could it be that you still have feelings for that woman and can't bear to hurt her?" Kiritsugu said coldly.

"No, right now, I'm simply pursuing my ideals and willing to give everything for them. It's just that Irisviel is the Lesser Grail; her life or death is relatively easy to manage, but her body must not be harmed. If I could, I wouldn't want to wait another 60 years to participate in a completely new Holy Grail War," Kiritsugu Emiya said solemnly.

"An omnipotent wish-granting machine? Hmph... I'm just reminding you, don't let go of even your only chance of victory at the last moment, that would be the biggest joke of all." After a cold laugh, the Heroic Spirit Kiritsugu went to the window and continued to observe.

"The right to use Gilgamesh is yours; how you use it is up to you. However, I can tell you one thing: I have seen more information than you have. Gilgamesh hadn't even unleashed the full power of this World-Extinguishing Noble Phantasm yet. If it were unleashed at its full potential, it could destroy the entire Hanging Gardens without a problem. As for how to use it, that's up to you."

The words left behind by the Heroic Spirit Kiritsugu cast a shadow over Kiritsugu Emiya's face.