IBHJ Chapter 854

Shirou stood his ground, staring at the fully-armed Gilgamesh across the debris field, ignoring the fragments of Tokyo Tower raining down around them.

Gilgamesh swung Enki, his vicious sword winds pulverizing any debris that dared to obstruct his view of Shirou.

Gilgamesh gazed at him and asked, "You still have some Noble Phantasms left, don't you, Master?"

Shirou nodded.

"You dare hide them from this king? Hmph. Are you underestimating me?" Gilgamesh asked, a hint of displeasure in his voice.

"No," he shook his head. "They're just sealed for now. Using them recklessly would only increase my chances of losing."

--A lie!

But Gilgamesh seemed satisfied with the answer.

Shirou frowned slightly. "Actually, there's a lot I still don't understand."

"The real question is whether you truly don't understand, or simply refuse to acknowledge the truth." Gilgamesh slowly raised his hand, pointing at him. "Your soul has been cleansed. What you desperately cling to are the remnants of the past, the echoes of a self that no longer exists."

Shirou's eyes widened. "So you do know!"

"Did I not tell you? I was your very first Servant, so of course I know these things," Gilgamesh nodded.

Shirou gripped his mud spear tightly. "Tell me! I want to know the truth. I want to know why I got dragged into this mess. I want to know why there's a vortex-like void in the depths of my soul, just like the vortex in the sky!"

He pointed at the swirling Dark Vortex in the sky. "I want to know my story!"

The world reset's existence had been confirmed by Skadi. Shirou understood that he had been reset countless times. He also realized why he felt so close to the Fujimaru couple, as if they had always been his parents. It was because the time he had transmigrated into this world predated the age of six!

He had simply forgotten himself through countless resets.

He wanted to know, to understand, what his original self had gone through to become entangled in this chaos spanning time and space.

Before, he had no direction to search in. But now, having met this self-proclaimed first Servant, he felt a flicker of hope.

"Tell me, what happened to me!?" he demanded, eyes locked on Gilgamesh.

Gilgamesh looked at Shirou, who was bathed in a faint, silver light but appeared deeply troubled. After a moment of contemplation, he sighed. "It seems you've truly suffered greatly to come this far, Master."

Gilgamesh felt remorse. He had sworn by his kingship to protect his Master, yet he was the first to fall in the war, reduced to this state.

But that was not the point. The point was that his Master had been forced onto such a maddening, arduous path - for the proud Gilgamesh, this was an unforgivable stain!

"Very well. Listen closely, Master." Gilgamesh raised his hand, pointing towards the swirling black vortex above. "Your true enemy is the vortex itself, and the Beast it has summoned!"

"The vortex...and its Beast?" Shirou's eyes followed Gilgamesh's gesture to the sky.

The pitch-black vortex crackled with lightning, swirling counterclockwise as if to swallow all light and clouds.

Crack—!

A sharp pain ripped through his soul. Shirou doubled over, clutching his chest, beads of sweat rolling down his face.

"Master, what's wrong?"

As Gilgamesh moved towards him, a massive black lightning bolt, like a demonic sword, sliced through the air and slammed into the ground where he had been standing, leaving a gaping crater.

Gilgamesh jumped back just in time. He looked up, a frown creasing his brow. The vortex above seemed to pulse with life, growing larger and spinning faster, black thunderbolts flickering within.

The air crackled with an ominous, apocalyptic energy.

"It was slain, but the remnants of its power still linger?" Gilgamesh's eyes narrowed as he turned to Shirou. "Wait... could it be reacting to that other vortex Master has?"

Aah—!

Shirou cried out, clutching his chest in pain. Sweat poured down his face. Deep within his soul, the invisible vortex seemed to echo the Dark Vortex above, spinning faster as terrifying thunderbolts erupted, unleashing immense power.

Meanwhile, in the abandoned garden, Ayaka collapsed, drenched in cold sweat, gasping for air.

"Ayaka!"

"Master!"

Altera and Saber stopped their battle, rushing to her side.

Altera glared at Saber, the star-shaped patterns on her body flickering ominously. "What did you do to Master?" she growled.

"It wasn't me." Saber's eyes were fixed on the Dark Vortex, his face grim. "That vortex is doing something to Ayaka!"

In the dark temple, panic erupted.

"President!"

"President!"

Goetia watched in horror as the President collapsed, unconscious.

Just moments ago, the President had been intently listening to his report. Then, without warning, the President slumped off the throne, unconscious.

"President, President, wake up! President, wake up!" Goetia shook the President's body urgently. But there was no response.

Staring at President's limp form, Goetia's brow furrowed. "Could this be Saver's doing?" he muttered, his hands clenching into fists.

...

Meanwhile, Shirou was in agony. It felt like a thousand needles were piercing his soul. Sweat dripped down his face as he clutched his chest.

The invisible vortex within him spun faster and faster, goaded by the Dark Vortex, its power growing exponentially. Then, from its core, a blinding light poured forth, illuminating his very soul before radiating outward.

"What's happening?"

Everyone gasped as the faint silver glow around Shirou intensified, until he shone like a sun, banishing all darkness.

"I can't...hold it back anymore—!" Shirou gritted his teeth, reaching his breaking point.

With a final groan, he lost control. A terrifying incandescent light erupted from his body, threatening to consume everything around him. In response, the Dark Vortex unleashed an abyssal darkness.

The two forces clashed like ancient enemies, spliting the world in two.

Sizzle sizzle!

The intense light from below and the deep darkness from above clashed violently. As entropy surged and receded, their intertwining light and darkness reached a crescendo, unleashing a chaotic magnetic storm that knocked everyone off their feet.

The world spun as they were engulfed by the infinite storm. A wave of dizziness washed over them, and then their surroundings transformed completely.

Shirou felt the pain in his soul ease slightly. He opened his eyes, astonished to find himself floating above the city, Artoria and the others suspended in mid-air beside him.

"Your Majesty, what's going on—?" Artoria looked utterly bewildered.

Shirou was just as confused, but he knew this had to be the result of the clash between the vortex within him and the Dark Vortex above.

"Look! The Black Grail!" Nero pointed towards the sky.

He followed her gaze to see an inverted Black Grail perched atop Tokyo Tower, as an endless stream of black mud devoured the land below.

Fires raged across the city, filling the air with choking black smoke and the acrid stench of burning.

Shirou's eyes narrowed as he looked past the Black Grail to the Dark Vortex hanging ominously above.

From the swirling darkness of the vortex, hundreds of dragon heads emerged, each unleashing devastating blasts of dragon's breath on the earth below.

"Your Majesty, that...that is—!" Artoria's young face was filled with shock as she stretched out a hand, pointing towards the inferno below.

Shirou followed her gaze to two figures caught in the raging fires on the ground.

A man and a woman.

The woman had long, flowing dark hair. Her pleated school uniform was torn and tattered as she lay crumpled on the ground.

The man stood before her, his red hair short and tousled. His once-white shirt was now blackened with ash and grime.

Drip, drip. Blood dripped from the dagger in his hand as he spoke to the woman.

Then the man raised his head, revealing his face.

Shirou's eyes widened in surprise.

The man looked exactly like him.

It was him!