Even a Servant with lower parameters could triumph over a stronger opponent if they possessed a powerful Noble Phantasm. Berserker, however, was unable to call upon his Noble Phantasm's true name, and thus couldn't unleash its full power. Could he still win this Holy Grail War?
Kariya glanced down at Sakura and his expression hardened. "Berserker, if I use a Command Spell, will you be able to unleash your Noble Phantasm?"
"Uncertain, but likely," Berserker wrote on the floor with a beam of blackish-red energy.
Kariya felt a wave of relief wash over him. While Berserker's response wasn't a guarantee, it was enough. If a single Command Spell didn't work, he would use two. If two weren't enough, he would use all three. Previously, unaware of Berserker's sanity, Kariya had intended to reserve a Command Spell or two to prevent him from running amok and harming Sakura. However, their conversation had revealed Berserker posed no such threat.
A glint of murderous intent flashed in Kariya's eyes. He had grown up with Aoi. To say he didn't harbor any affection for her would be a lie. However, knowing the Matou family's dark secrets, he had wanted to protect her from Zouken's gruesome plan. He hadn't wanted her to become a breeding vessel.
Ironically, while he had succeeded in saving Aoi from that fate, Tokiomi Tohsaka, the man who had seemingly obtained everything Kariya had ever desired, had sent Aoi's daughter to the Matou, condemning her to the same unimaginable torment.
Kariya could accept defeat in this war, but Tokiomi Tohsaka had to die. The man was also a Master in this Grail War, wasn't he? A cold resolve hardened within Kariya.
"Berserker, I need you to take me somewhere. To kill someone."
Ailin knew Kariya's intended destination. There were only two possibilities. The first was the Matou mansion. If so, his target would undoubtedly be Zouken. The second was the Tohsaka residence. In that case, Kariya wanted him to eliminate Tokiomi.
Neither target was ideal. Killing Zouken would only trigger his possession of Sakura through the Crest Worm embedded in her heart, or worse, force Sakura to conceive a child whose body Zouken could then inhabit.
As for Tokiomi Tohsaka… only Gilgamesh was a threat to Ailin in this war. Without Avalon, Artoria posed little challenge. Iskandar, despite his Reality Marble, would fare no better against Ailin's King's Treasury than he had against Gilgamesh's Gate of Babylon. The remaining Servants, Gilles de Rais, Hassan-i Sabbah, and even the somewhat capable Diarmuid Ua Duibhne, were mere distractions.
Despite knowing this, Ailin didn't voice his objections. He sensed Kariya's killing intent. "Understood," he wrote, then grabbed Kariya by the back of his shirt and launched into the air, hovering hundreds of meters above Fuyuki City, the entire landscape spread out before them.
"Berserker, you can fly?" Kariya asked, startled. He hadn't seen "Flight" listed among Berserker's skills.
Servants capable of flight were rare. Rider-class Servants could summon mounts, and some possessed legendary beasts capable of flight.
"Merely an application of magical energy," Ailin wrote, manipulating his blackish-red spiritual pressure to form burning words in the air. "Which direction?"
Kariya, snapping out of his surprise, pointed towards a mansion in the city center. "There, Berserker."
Ailin easily identified the mansion. It was the location of the earlier battle he had sensed. Gilgamesh, having already revealed his Noble Phantasm, was no longer on the mansion's roof. Ailin could still see the remnants of the fight in the garden below.
"There's a middle-aged mage in that mansion. I want you to kill him."
"Understood."
WHOOSH!
Knowing that the Tohsaka residence was likely being monitored not only by magi using familiars, but also by Maiya Hisau, armed with a sniper rifle, and Kiritsugu Emiya, Ailin didn't take Kariya directly to the mansion. He deposited him in a relatively safe location.
"Wait here. I'll eliminate the mage," Ailin wrote, then flew towards the Tohsaka residence.
"Mongrel! Disturbing the King's slumber is a capital offense!" Gilgamesh's voice boomed as Ailin triggered Tokiomi's warning barrier.
A faint golden glow materialized on the mansion's roof, coalescing into a young man with spiky blond hair and golden armor. He had his arms crossed and his crimson eyes was filled with impatience.
He had been tasked with eliminating any would-be thieves attempting to steal his treasures. He had hoped to use this opportunity to display his power, to show the other Servants the vast gulf between them. However, it seemed these insignificant mongrels lacked any sense of self-preservation.
Buzz! Buzz! Buzz!
Golden spatial ripples appeared around Gilgamesh. Swords, spears, axes, hammers, maces… a plethora of treasures, each radiating a powerful aura, emerged with their points aimed at Ailin.
Swish! Swish!
In an instant, dozens of Noble Phantasms, trailing golden light, blasted down towards Ailin.
"Berserker!"
Kariya, watching from the balcony of a nearby building, paled. He had made a mistake. In his eagerness to kill Tokiomi, he'd forgotten to ask Berserker where he had sensed the earlier battle.
Could this be the Servant Berserker had warned him about, the one he might not be able to defeat without his own Noble Phantasm? Had Kariya known this was Tokiomi's Servant, he wouldn't have sent Berserker now.
But now that they were here… there was no turning back. Kariya raised his right hand. The three Command Spells on the back of his hand glowed crimson. "Berserker, I command you…" He activated the first Command Spell. But before he could issue his order, a breathtaking sight unfolded before him.
Blackish-red spatial ripples shimmered behind Ailin. The tips of countless Zanpakutō emerged. With a wave of his hand, the Zanpakutō transformed into blackish-red lightning bolts that shot towards Gilgamesh's incoming treasures.
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
Golden light clashed against blackish-red lightning. While Gilgamesh's treasures shattered Ailin's Zanpakutō, they were quickly overwhelmed by the sheer number of incoming blades. One after another, the treasures were struck and their golden light extinguished, revealing their true forms as they plummeted to the earth.
Compared to genuine Noble Phantasms, the ordinary Zanpakutō within Ailin's King's Treasury were weaker. Even with the Royal Seal's amplification, it took two or three Zanpakutō to destroy a single Noble Phantasm.
"Mongrel!"
Seeing Ailin's ability that was very similar to his, Gilgamesh shouted loudly. The golden ripples behind him expanded, revealing hundreds of treasures radiating powerful auras.
Ailin responded in kind by summoning a similar number of blackish-red ripples. Unlike Gilgamesh's diverse arsenal, however, Ailin's ripples revealed only the uniform, unsealed forms of Asauchi, the basic Zanpakutō.
Seeing this, Gilgamesh's rage subsided slightly. Initially, he'd suspected his treasury had been plundered, or that someone had stolen the key to his Gate of Babylon. However, the uniformity of the blades suggested this Servant's ability, while similar in appearance, was fundamentally different. Gilgamesh accessed his treasury through its key. This Servant seemed to be manipulating space directly, as if his very power was space itself.
Despite this realization, Gilgamesh couldn't tolerate the blatant imitation of his ability. It was an insult, a sacrilege. Without hesitation, he unleashed hundreds of treasures; golden light began streaking towards Ailin.
Ailin responded instantly, hundreds of Zanpakutō transformed into blackish-red lightning bolts that shot towards Gilgamesh.
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
Blackish-red lightning clashed against golden light, the continuous explosions reverberated through the night. Zanpakutō and Noble Phantasms alike fell from the sky, embedding themselves in the earth.
Those observing the Tohsaka residence, whether through familiars, from the bridge, or with modern instruments like telescopes and surveillance equipment, were stunned into silence.
A Servant's greatest weapon was their Noble Phantasm. A single Servant typically possessed only one or two. Yet, the golden-armored Servant was unleashing a torrent of Noble Phantasms.
And while the other Servant's weapons lacked the aura of Noble Phantasms, their ability to withstand the golden barrage suggested comparable power. Keen observers even noticed that some of these seemingly ordinary blades were capable of destroying Noble Phantasms. This indicated a hierarchy among the blades.
If the difference was merely one of material, it wouldn't be so concerning. However, if these weapons also possessed abilities akin to Noble Phantasms… that would be a different matter entirely. It would mean both Servants wielded multiple Noble Phantasms, a testament to their immense power.
"Mongrel!"
Unable to overwhelm Ailin with his Gate of Babylon alone, Gilgamesh roared in frustration. A crimson spear materialized beside him. He grasped it firmly.
"Oh? Getting serious now?" Ailin thought, recognizing Gilgamesh's intent.
Unable to secure victory with their respective King's Treasuries, Gilgamesh was about to unleash a Noble Phantasm. As the King who collected the prototypes of all Noble Phantasms, Gilgamesh also possessed the Noble Phantasm, Sha Naqba Imuru (The Omniscient Omnipotent Star).
Sha Naqba Imuru was the crystallized form of Gilgamesh's spirit, granting him the ability to instantly discern an opponent's true name, Noble Phantasm, and other hidden attributes. This allowed him to call upon the true names of the Noble Phantasms within his treasury, unleashing their full power.
This ability far surpassed Ailin's "Synchronization." Ailin's Synchronization allowed him to merge his spirit with a weapon, accessing its history, including its previous wielder's combat experience.
Ailin envied Gilgamesh's Sha Naqba Imuru. Had he possessed such an ability in the Soul Society, he wouldn't have needed to painstakingly draw each Zanpakutō within Unlimited Blade Works, synchronize with it, and learn its name and abilities. With Sha Naqba Imuru, a single glance would reveal the true names and powers of all Zanpakutō. He could have reached his full potential within the Soul Society in mere seconds, wielding the combined power of all past, present, and future Zanpakutō.
"However, this plays into my hands."
He extended his hand. A blackish-red spatial ripple appeared. A Zanpakutō materialized. Unable to speak due to Mad Enhancement, he couldn't unleash Bankai. Thus, his options for countering Gilgamesh were limited…