Fate in Bleach: Unlimited Blade Works!-Chapter 464: Victory

If not for the few lingering bloodstains on Ailin's captain's haori, one might have thought he hadn't taken any damage at all.

Descending slowly, Ailin landed on the fractured piece of earth opposite the King of Heroes, Gilgamesh.

"Archer," Ailin stated simply, "you have lost this battle."

"Heh... mongrel..."

Despite his significant injuries, Gilgamesh, the King of Heroes, remained haughty. "This time, you were indeed the superior one. But had this king not underestimated you from the beginning, allowing you to seize this king's Ea, you would have had no chance of victory! Moreover, this defeat was not because this king's Enkidu lost to Ea, but because this king, as the wielder of the Noble Phantasm, was a step below you. Had he wielded it himself, you would undoubtedly have been the one to fall!"

More than his own victory or defeat against Ailin, what surprised Ailin was Gilgamesh's greater concern for the outcome between Enkidu and Ea. However, upon reflection, understanding dawned in Ailin's mind.

In Gilgamesh's heart, the Chains of Heaven, Enkidu, were still his dearest friend. Before becoming friends, they had fought with all their might, gaining a deep understanding of each other. Ultimately, Enkidu had even defied the will of the gods, choosing to stand beside Gilgamesh, using his own body to protect the King of Heroes even after death.

"Indeed," Ailin conceded. "My victory this time had little to do with the Noble Phantasms we wielded." Releasing his grip, Ailin tossed Ea into the air. It flipped several times before landing at Gilgamesh's feet.

"So, shall we go again? This time, you wield Ea, and I shall wield Enkidu."

Having witnessed the true power of the Chains of Heaven, Ailin greatly coveted this Noble Phantasm capable of transcending its own rank. In the Shinigami world, Ailin had created chains based on Kazeshini, capable of absorbing powerful spiritual pressure. However, that version of Enkidu primarily focused on binding, especially after incorporating Kazeshini's Bankai ability, "Kazeshini Kōsen," which ensured inescapable capture once bound. The Enkidu of the Type-Moon world, however, embodied "piercing." Its maximum output could rival Ea.

Yet, Enkidu was not a "sword." Despite Gilgamesh using it extensively within Ailin's Unlimited Blade Works, the Reality Marble showed no reaction to it. Thus, unless Ailin snatched Enkidu from Gilgamesh's grasp and used "Synchronization" to analyze it, just as he had done with Ea, replicating the Type-Moon world's "Chains of Heaven" was impossible.

"Berserker, do you truly believe I would entrust my greatest friend into your hands?" Gilgamesh scoffed. "You underestimate this king far too much. However, seeing as you returned my treasure, this king shall pardon your capital crime of theft. Your sentence is reduced to the loss of an arm!"

With a wave of Gilgamesh's hand, Ea on the ground dissolved into spiritual particles and returned to his treasury. Then, under his control, chains once again lashed out towards Ailin.

As Gilgamesh had declared at the Feast of Kings, his treasures were reserved only for his subjects. Others who coveted his possessions would inevitably face his punishment. This was Gilgamesh's law, his kingly way.

"King of Heroes, have you perhaps forgotten something crucial?" Ailin countered. "When my strength far surpasses yours, your 'kingly way' and 'laws' hold no sway over me. The very reason I dared return Ea to you is because it poses no threat to me, whether in your hands or not. Or perhaps… I possess a Noble Phantasm that rivals, or even surpasses, Ea!"

Facing the incoming Chains of Heaven, Ailin gestured. Blackish-red spiritual pressure coalesced into a Zanpakutō in his grasp.

"Enum… The genesis which separated Heaven and Earth…"

"Bankai—Sword of Rupture!"

BOOM!

Immense spiritual pressure erupted from Ailin. The Zanpakutō in his hand instantly transformed into an exact replica of Ea. As they were still in combat, Ailin hadn't yet fine-tuned this replicated Ea with his own mastery of spatial manipulation. However, the Ea Ailin had just forged possessed abilities fundamentally identical to the original.

"Enuma Elish!"

BOOM!

***

Thump... thump...

In a basement somewhere in Fuyuki City, Kiritsugu Emiya, holding Irisviel's hands, suddenly realized they had lost all warmth. No, it wasn't just the lack of warmth; Kiritsugu couldn't even feel Irisviel's pulse.

"Iri..."

Artoria, noticing the change from nearby, rushed to Irisviel's side. Irisviel's eyes were now completely closed. Even with Artoria's powerful senses, she couldn't detect any sign of breathing.

"This is..."

"Ah, another Servant has fallen." Kiritsugu's voice was low. "And the soul of this fallen Servant is incredibly powerful. It has directly caused Irisviel to completely lose her 'human' characteristics. Just one step remains before she fully transforms into the Holy Grail."

"Kiritsugu..."

"I entrust this to you, Saber."

The twenty-plus Command Spells on Kiritsugu Emiya's arm began to glow crimson.

"Yes, rest assured, Kiritsugu. I am prepared."

"Then… Saber, by the authority of twenty-six Command Spells, go forth and bring me victory! Lastly, by the authority of one Command Spell, I transport Saber to the location of the remaining Servant!"

BOOM!

As the crimson Command Spells on Kiritsugu's arm blazed intensely, a powerful aura of magical energy erupted around Artoria. Then, under the effect of the Command Spell, Artoria's figure vanished instantly from the basement.

"Iri..."

As the Command Spells took effect, the patterns on Kiritsugu Emiya's arm began to fade, one by one. Finally, only the two remaining strokes on the back of his hand remained. Staying by Irisviel's side, Kiritsugu tightly gripped her hand. "Soon, Iri..."

This was Kiritsugu Emiya's final gambit in this Holy Grail War. Other participants only knew that killing the other six Servants would make them the victor, granting them the wish-fulfilling Grail. They didn't know the Greater Grail's descent required the Lesser Grail as a vessel. And this generation's Lesser Grail was Kiritsugu's wife, the Einzbern homunculus, Irisviel.

Earlier, realizing Artoria's strength wasn't sufficient to guarantee victory, Kiritsugu had already formulated this plan. Killing Risei Kotomine and obtaining over twenty Command Spells was an unexpected boon. However, Artoria had admitted that even with such enhancement, she wasn't entirely confident of defeating Berserker.

Therefore, Kiritsugu ultimately abandoned the path of direct victory and chose a more devious route. He hid Irisviel, the vessel for the Greater Grail's descent, in a basement no one could find, then sent Artoria out to fight the final Servant.

This way, regardless of who won the battle, once Irisviel transformed into the Grail, Kiritsugu would be the first one able to make a wish. He was essentially hijacking the fruits of victory from the other magi.

To achieve his ideal of "world peace," Kiritsugu Emiya had already forsaken everything else. Whether the means of obtaining the Grail were despicable was no longer within his consideration.

***

A pity I couldn't analyze Gilgamesh's Chains of Heaven...

After dispelling Unlimited Blade Works, Ailin shook his head, slightly unsatisfied. His battle with Gilgamesh, the King of Heroes, had yielded significant gains. Besides copying the sword-type Noble Phantasms from Gilgamesh's treasury, Ea had also been fully analyzed and replicated. Currently, Ea was likely Ailin's strongest offensive Noble Phantasm, its rank, like Avalon's, reaching EX.

Next up is Artoria.

Emerging from the Reality Marble, Ailin stood atop the church roof. Bathed in moonlight, he spotted Kirei Kotomine in the courtyard below. Blackish-red spatial ripples appeared around Ailin. A Zanpakutō transformed into a bolt of blackish-red lightning, streaking towards Kirei on the ground.

In this Holy Grail War, Ailin harbored killing intent towards only two Masters. The first was naturally Caster Gilles de Rais's Master, Ryūnosuke Uryū. The second was Kirei Kotomine. Both were true "evil." Determining who was worse was difficult, but both deserved death.

However, Ailin's killing blow failed to eliminate Kirei Kotomine.

CLANG!

Artoria, appearing suddenly within the church grounds, casually swung her sword, deflecting the Zanpakutō aimed at Kirei.

"Berserker, since you have already defeated Archer, there's no need to attack Archer's Master, is there? Or is it that your capacity as Berserker is so small that you fear revenge from a mere human?"

With Artoria's intervention, Kirei Kotomine immediately fled. With even Archer dead, Kirei didn't believe he could defeat the Berserker who had killed him. Escaping with his life was paramount now. Thankfully Saber had appeared; otherwise, Kirei doubted he could have dodged that last attack.

Seeing the aura of magical energy flaring around Artoria, significantly stronger than even Lancer Diarmuid's boosted state, Ailin knew she must have received Command Spell enhancements – and a considerable number at that. In a flash, Ailin deduced that Kiritsugu Emiya must have killed Risei Kotomine and seized the Command Spells from his body.

"Heh..." Ailin chuckled softly. "Saber, often, misguided kindness can lead to greater harm for more people. By saving that man from my hand today, you will inevitably share in the sins he commits hereafter."

Ailin's words made Artoria frown slightly. She understood the meaning behind Berserker's words, but she didn't understand why he was so certain that man was evil.

"Berserker, if I must discern the good or evil of those I save, then I am no longer the King of Knights!" Artoria's conviction remained unshaken by Ailin's words. As she said, she was King Arthur of Britain. If even saving a life required judging good and evil, then all the honor of knighthood would be nothing but a joke.

"Unfold your Reality Marble, Berserker!"

Holding the Sword of Promised Victory before her chest with both hands, Artoria addressed Ailin. Empowered by over twenty Command Spells, Artoria felt terrifyingly strong. But precisely because of this, she dared not unleash her full power here. Otherwise, the entire city of Fuyuki might be destroyed in their battle.

Therefore, even knowing she would be at a disadvantage within Ailin's Reality Marble, Artoria resolutely decided to fight Berserker there. This way, she could fully exert her current strength without worrying about devastating the real world. A Reality Marble, being a mental landscape distinct from reality, suffered damage that had no impact on the actual world.

"My apologies, Saber," Ailin replied, shaking his head. "If possible, I too would wish to unfold my Reality Marble to fight you. Unfortunately, my Reality Marble was damaged by Archer's Noble Phantasm in our previous battle. It requires at least a day to recover. Even if I wanted to deploy it now, it's impossible."

"How can that be?" Artoria's pupils constricted.

Without Berserker's Reality Marble, given their current strengths, a battle between them would likely annihilate Fuyuki City. And tonight, to ensure victory, Kiritsugu had already used over twenty Command Spells. If she waited a night, tomorrow's Artoria would inevitably be weaker than the Command Spell-enhanced Artoria of the present. Kiritsugu wouldn't have enough Command Spells left to significantly boost her again.

This night was Kiritsugu Emiya and Artoria's best, perhaps only, chance to seize the Grail.