MMMS 71

Artoria stood frozen, confusion flickering across her face. A powerful sense of déjà vu washed over the King of Knights. She'd seen something like this before, something that reminded her strongly of Avalon. Yet this was different somehow.

Avalon protected its wielder from harm, but what she'd just observed seemed to target the enemy's Noble Phantasms instead. Wait, that wasn't right either. Her eyes grew wide as realization struck. The target hadn't been the weapons themselves, but Archer's very act of launching them.

"This could be called a miracle..." She trailed off, shaking her head. No, this surpassed even miracles.

While Artoria and Irisviel remained lost in their shock, Morgan watched Ryuuto in silence. Unlike the others, she understood his true nature. What they'd witnessed was a mystery that transcended the Five Great Magics, capable of treating events that had already occurred as if they'd never happened at all. The proper term was [Potnia Theron], though one might simply call it [Cancel] or [Ctrl+Z].

Ryuuto had used this exclusive skill to erase the existence of every single Noble Phantasm the golden Archer had unleashed.

But Morgan's thoughts had already moved beyond the spectacle. Her real concern centered on how he'd managed such a feat. Had that thing already manifested? She frowned slightly. No, that couldn't be right. Had he somehow limited this authority to operate solely within the Holy Grail War?

To exercise [Potnia Theron] on Earth would normally require enduring both mental and physical scrutiny from the world itself. A fully manifested Beast might disregard the Counter Force, but Ryuuto was still just a pupa. If he attempted to use such authority freely, his body would collapse the moment he activated it.

However...

If he restricted the skill's execution to the confines of the Holy Grail War, affecting only the seven participating Servants, he could minimize the world's scrutiny to an extraordinary degree.

Morgan scoffed under her breath. ‘Clever. Cunning. And so very Ryuuto.’

A faint blush rose to her cheeks before she realized it. It wasn’t just his monstrous potential that caught her attention. It was this—his knack for weaving around impossible constraints and turning even partial authority into an overwhelming edge.

After the full-force barrage of Noble Phantasms failed to leave a single scratch, Gilgamesh's expression shifted. In the basement of the Tohsaka residence, Tokiomi braced himself, expecting his Servant's legendary temper to explode. Instead, genuine astonishment spread across Archer's face.

The King of Heroes studied Ryuuto with unsettling calm. At first glance, it seemed like simple surprise at finding a worthy opponent. But Lancer, Caster, and Rider, who watched the confrontation closely, caught something deeper in Archer's expression. An emotion that seemed utterly foreign to the supremely arrogant golden king flickered in his eyes.

Those crimson irises reflected surprise, but also threads of confusion and dawning recognition. Everything about him, from his bearing that rivaled the vastness of stars to his gleaming golden armor, seemed to pause for a moment.

"I didn't expect to find something like this in this small place..." Gilgamesh's lips curved into a sneer. "Perhaps this era isn't completely boring after all."

In the next moment, a sword materialized in his hand. Its shape defied conventional description, twisted in ways that hurt to look at directly.

The sword was called Ea, though that was just a nickname Gilgamesh had given it for convenience. The weapon had no true name, and honestly, calling it a sword was generous at best.

The King of Heroes pulled out the sword without a second thought. Before this moment, Gilgamesh had only ever drawn this weapon as a sign of respect for warriors he deemed worthy. But today was different, completely different.

He wasn't doing this for entertainment or convenience. He wasn't acknowledging some heroic feat. No, Gilgamesh knew with absolute certainty that he'd lose if he didn't use this sword. Any hesitation now would mean defeat.

Ea's crimson spiral blade started spinning faster and faster. The strange twisting form seemed to reshape reality itself, living up to its reputation as a weapon of creation.

The King of Heroes thrust his arm high into the air as hurricanes screamed around him. Ea kept accelerating, kept devouring more magical energy, hungry for power.

For the first time ever, Gilgamesh had found an opponent worthy of Ea. Heat surged through his chest as excitement took hold.

His voice boomed across the battlefield. "Yes, Ea! Destroy everything! Finally, an enemy deserving of your true power!"

Everyone just stood there, staring at the swirling void above Gilgamesh's sword. The air itself twisted and screamed. Reality was coming apart at the seams.

What kind of Noble Phantasm could do something like this? The answer hit them all at once: An Anti-World Noble Phantasm, Rank EX.

As the world crumbled around them, the observers finally understood just how terrifying the King of Heroes' weapon really was. And they had to wonder, who was this youth standing there with that carefree smile, making the arrogant golden king go all out like this?

Nobody could make sense of it. Heroes and magi alike forgot to breathe, forgot to blink, just waiting to see how this insane battle would end.

Light and space tore apart. Gilgamesh's grip tightened on the sword hilt as Ea roared like a living beast. He brought it down toward the youth without a moment's doubt.

"Watch carefully!" His voice thundered across the battlefield. "This is... Enuma Elish!"

Just as the supreme sword began to tear reality itself apart, Ryuuto moved. He leaned in and stepped with inhuman speed, striking out at Gilgamesh. But he wasn't aiming for the king's body. Instead, his blade swept toward the golden king's elbow.

A flash of golden light cut through the chaos.

Gilgamesh's wrist went flying, still clutching the roaring Ea.

The air went dead silent. Time seemed to stop. The King of Heroes' passionate expression froze on his face.

His severed arm and the divine sword hit the ground with a wet thud, blood spreading across the earth. The collapsing sky, the crumbling earth, everything within Einzbern Castle snapped back to normal as the Noble Phantasm's power died before it could fully manifest.

"!?"

The world-destroying attack stopped cold before it could fully unleash, leaving everyone feeling both relieved and strangely disappointed.

Cutting off Gilgamesh's arm while he swung Ea down, that clearly came from Ryuuto's speed and cunning. But what nobody could figure out was how the Noble Phantasm, already in the middle of activating, just died? Once a Noble Phantasm starts releasing, chopping off someone's arm shouldn't stop it.

Looking for answers, everyone turned their attention to the Noble Phantasm in Ryuuto's hand, the one that had somehow severed both the King of Heroes' arm and Ea's activation.

It looked like nothing special. Just an ordinary short blade.

Ryuuto gave the blade a casual flick, sending blood droplets flying. "Nice sword you’ve got there, but the guy holding it was far too weak."

He twirled [Erosion] between his fingers like it was a toy. "Come back after training for another thousand years. Then maybe we'll have a real fight."