You are very strong, but my painting style is better than yours!

“I didn’t mean that,” Ritsuka scratched her cheek, looking slightly embarrassed. “I just wanted to invite you and your Master to join us in fixing this singularity.”

“Sure,” Iori readily agreed, but before Ritsuka could even smile, he immediately added, “But I won’t be traveling with you.”

"Oh, why?"

Mashu ran over and asked curiously, "Mr. Berserker, do you have any concerns?"

"Yes, I don't mind helping you if necessary, but it's more important to me to help my Master win."

Moreover, you are heroes who save humanity. For a 'hero,' a journey without difficulty is not an adventure; a story that goes smoothly is just boring.

"Hmm..." Ritsuka thought hard for a long time, "Does this mean... you don't want us to complete the mission too easily, and you want to make it more difficult for us, so you won't be traveling with us?"

"You could say the same thing."

"That's so malicious!"

Ritsuka complained, "I'm a delicate young girl in my prime. I even choose the easy difficulty when playing games. Can you please stop overestimating me?"

"I'm truly sorry... As compensation, there's an even more suitable Servant waiting for you than I am."

Iori pointed at Jeanne: "The Ruler should be able to sense the location of Red Saber. Her real name is 'Mordred,' and I believe you should know her... As long as you explain the situation, she and her Master should choose to join forces with you."

"Is it Mo?" Ritsuka immediately perked up. "No problem, we can just treat her to a nice meal!"

"Your strategy is quite skillful~" Iori chuckled, because Mordred, or rather the entire ahoge (cowlick) group, could use this method to increase their affection.

“With Mash, Jeanne, and Mordred working together, you can boldly explore this singularity. As for me… I still have things to do.”

"Thank you... It's a strange feeling. Although it's our first time meeting, it feels like I've known you for a long time, there's an inexplicable sense of familiarity."

Ritsuka looked directly at Iori with her clear, untroubled eyes and smiled frankly, "You must be hiding some secret, maybe even related to me... But it doesn't matter, because I trust my intuition. The moment I saw you, I knew you were trustworthy."

Iori did not respond, but smiled faintly and used Shunpo to leave the place, leaving only a lingering echo.

"Good luck, Fujimaru Ritsuka..."

-

"Is she the one you've been waiting for?"

Sera watched the entire interaction between Iori, Ritsuka, and the others through her familiar. Her weak body couldn't withstand such a long and exhausting time, but she still persevered until Iori returned and asked the question.

She was startled as soon as she said it, because her tone sounded a bit strange, like she was having a tantrum.

Sera quickly regained her composure and then asked in a calm tone, "What does 'Chaldea's Master' mean?"

She knew that Iori hadn't taken any action against the red and black factions during this time, except for "farming" in the wild, mainly because she was waiting for an opportunity.

Sera had always thought she was waiting for the Greater Grail to be officially activated, but it turned out to be for a specific person...

Of course, who Iori is waiting for has nothing to do with Sera, but as her Master, isn't it only natural for her to try to understand the Servant's inner thoughts?

So, after Iori finished introducing the background of Chaldea and the "Human Order Burning", Sera turned a deaf ear to that important information - whatever Demon King Goetia is, get out of the way!

“Okay, I understand.” Sera nodded, then asked, “So what’s your relationship with that girl? This isn’t your first meeting, is it?”

"..."

Seeing Iori's amused gaze, Sera instantly realized that she had been too hasty.

"Ahem... I'm just wondering, you're a Servant summoned by the Holy Grail, so why do you know so much about Chaldea? If you're from a parallel world... then, what did you and Fujimaru Ritsuka go through?"

Iori tried hard to control the corners of her mouth, but she couldn't help but let them curl upwards, making Sera even more embarrassed and annoyed.

"puff--"

"you!"

Sera narrowed her eyes, looking somewhat reckless, determined to get to the bottom of what had happened today.

"I am your Master... Don't forget those three Command Seals!"

"Using Command Seals for something like this? As expected of the 'Starting Three,' they've maintained a consistent style in this regard."

After a soft laugh, Iori said gently, "You've changed, Sera."

“…Hmm?” The silver-haired girl was taken aback.

"This is the first time I've seen you act so irrationally. The old Sera von Einzbern would never have wasted such an important resource as Command Seals on trivial matters like understanding a Servant's mind."

But don't worry, it's not a bad thing. Besides... you look handsome when you're angry.

Am I... angry?

Sera opened her eyes slightly, her vision blurred for a moment, and then she clutched her chest as if she had difficulty breathing.

Pain... not exactly. This feeling was something she had never experienced before. It was a mix of happiness and a faint sadness, like black coffee without sugar.

"why?"

"Why are there so many whys? You like what you like, and you hate what you hate. Anger, joy, sadness, grief... Humans cannot control themselves. Absolute rationality does not exist. It is precisely because we are swayed by unpredictable emotions that we make one irrational choice after another, creating an infinitely possible future."

Iori thought for a moment: "In short, this is what they call 'heart'."

"Heart?"

Sera fell silent, pressed her hand to her chest, closed her eyes, and silently felt her irregular and noisy heartbeat.

After a long while, he finally smiled with satisfaction.

"...This is a bit too extravagant for an artificial human."

"No, quite the opposite, it's not expensive at all."

You perceive luxury as something you've never possessed, but in reality, you might just not have realized it yet.

Iori seemed quite pleased: "We should celebrate."

Sera gave a helpless look, as if she couldn't do anything about Iori, and then changed the subject: "But you still haven't explained your relationship with that Chaldea Master."

"...Just friends."

Iori composed herself and said cautiously, "I have indeed seen her in other timelines. Now that she has come to this 'singularity,' our pressure is much less. She will take care of Amakusa and Medea, these two troublesome beings, for us."

Even if it's not that simple, she will at least stir up this stagnant water and break the current deadlock... and we don't need to do anything, we just need to quietly wait for the final battle."

"Oh, you trust her that much?" Sera was still a little uneasy. "She only brought a strange shield bearer with her. Does she really have that ability?"

"Want to make a bet?"

Iori smiled calmly: "Whoever loses has to unconditionally obey one of the other's orders, how about that?"

"Um... okay."

Sera nodded, thinking that since she had three Command Seals, she could retaliate even if she lost, and it wouldn't matter if Iori deliberately made things difficult for her.

And... depending on the situation, she might even be willing to carry out that order.

“Then it’s a deal!” Iori’s smile was full of confidence, which made Sera feel uneasy.

Two days later, Sera continued to observe the situation in various parts of Tulifas through her familiars, with the movements of Fujimaru Ritsuka and her group being a key focus.

It was during this process that Sera gradually realized how naive she had been:

Iori is right, Fujimaru Ritsuka can indeed break the current deadlock—she's too fast!

After parting ways with Iori, Ritsuka, guided by Jeanne d'Arc, found Red Saber the next day. The two had a minor conflict for no apparent reason, but miraculously made up after a fight.

This group of people kept fighting monsters in the wilderness and the city, and during the process they encountered Achilles, Chiron, Artoria, Karna and so on. The frequency of their encounters with Servants made people wonder if these great heroes had planned to come in a row.

Furthermore, almost every Servant would fight with someone from Chaldea, testing each other's skills before stopping, and their relationship would quickly become harmonious. If they weren't all bound by Command Seals, they might have ended up signing a contract with Ritsuka instead.

The unusual movements of the Servants alerted Medea and Amakusa, who secretly contacted the Chaldea people. Then, whether they realized something or were stimulated, they accelerated their actions and were about to start the final battle!

From the moment Chaldea appeared until the eve of the great battle, it only took three or four days, not even counting the time wasted grinding monsters...

Gudako, she's so fast!

Chapter 145: The World Betrayed Us (4K)

"Finally finished! This is my long-missed palace—the Hanging Gardens of Babylon!"

Behind the Crimson Assassin Semiramis lies a magnificent and beautiful palace complex, with giant divine fish statues in the eight directions around it, majestic and full of power. The Empress reveals a bewitching smile in the glow of the setting sun.

"How is it, Master?"

"Indeed!" Amakusa exclaimed, then asked, "Has it reached the highest level?"

"Of course," the Assyrian Empress said with no small amount of pride. "Although my garden can theoretically be upgraded infinitely, it is, after all, in the mortal world rather than the age of gods, and there is no endless ether to utilize... Even so, it can still be classified as an Anti-World Noble Phantasm. In that case, the Black Faction's Servants will be terrified!"

She certainly has the right to say that, because the [Vagrant Garden in the Sky] is a special Noble Phantasm that takes the concept of "territory" to its extreme, and can be said to be a combination of a mobile territory and an armed fortress.

Its formidable firepower and scale go without saying, but its "mysterious" antiquity alone carries the weight of thousands of years, making it a truly invincible entity.

In terms of magical skills, Semiramis was actually inferior to Circe and Medea (the two Greek witches were priests and disciples of Hecate, the Black Moon, who was also a goddess of magic and mystery, the kind of goddess whom even Zeus had to respect).

However, after completing "The Garden," she will receive a stat boost comparable to Vlad III's. As long as she remains within the Garden, she can completely control the concept of "poison," achieving omnipotence in a single area.

In addition, she can even use her Noble Phantasm to cast spells that control magical domains!

Putting aside her own enhancements, the Sky Garden itself is also an extremely powerful war fortress, with both its attack and defense capabilities reaching an incredible level.

While both are "battlegrounds," Vlad III's Spiked Fortress is incomparable—it is actually an anti-military Noble Phantasm that summons piercing punishment, but it can be solidified on one's own territory to form a "battleground."

Asterius's "Eternal Labyrinth" is also far inferior.

Logically speaking, if an EX-rank Anti-World Noble Phantasm like Garden were summoned during the Holy Grail War, the game would be over immediately!

This is why Amakusa insisted on completing the Hanging Gardens. It would not only allow him to win the war, but also enable him to travel the world with the Greater Grail, helping him fulfill his wish to "save all mankind".

Unfortunately, Amakusa's connection with the Holy Grail was rather shallow... This time it won't be that simple.

Although Medea and Circe do not have this type of Noble Phantasm on their data panels, unlike Semiramis who is a "half-baked" Noble Phantasm user, they are true [Casters] who can create their own temples without the concept of Noble Phantasms.

This was practically basic skill for the priests of the Greek pantheon.

With the Greater Grail as their super magical core and the labyrinth and World Tree Castle as excellent platforms, the two witches have built a magic workshop that has long been elevated to a "Great Temple," a rare breed even in the Age of Gods, and are completely unafraid of Semiramis's anti-world Noble Phantasm.

Of course, given the circumstances, Amakusa's chances of winning would be even lower without the garden... He has a resilient character and will not be swayed by setbacks.

He won't give up on himself; he'll just go all out!

-

"Hey, hey, hey, what is this?!"

Looking at the distant scene projected by Medea, even the heroes of epic tales were speechless.

It was an exaggerated city that defied the laws of physics, making one question its reality, floating in the sky like a sky city that only appears in fantasy works.

"They actually flew right over here..."

"This is the Noble Phantasm of the Red Master's direct Servant: Assassin Semiramis."

While everyone was in shock, Circe explained as if she had expected it: "It is called the Hanging Gardens of Vanity. Although it is called a 'garden', it actually has all the elements to wage war. It can be said to be a mobile armed fortress."

“That’s right,” Vlad III said, having a deep impression of the Grail. “We must protect the Great Grail. If it’s taken away, it will be extremely difficult to get it back.”

"How could it possibly be taken away?"

Circe glanced at Vlad III speechlessly. She didn't know what Black Lancer meant by that, but she said confidently, "Who do you take me for? Since you know about Semiramis's Noble Phantasm, you must have been prepared!"

"The spiritual barrier built upon the spiritual veins, the Spiked Fortress that turns terror into reality, and the Great Labyrinth with the strongest guards—even the legendary Hanging Gardens cannot break through my meticulously arranged triple defenses!"

Medea declared proudly, "With ample resources, I am capable of anything!"

Indeed, many Servants, including Circe, agreed. They had come to fully understand just how extraordinary Medea's magical skills were during this time.

If it could be quantified, then the fighting power of a modern magician would be Satan, a normal-level Caster would be Master Roshi, and Medea would be directly on par with Piccolo II—they're not even in the same league!

Just then, a familiar wandering in the vast wilderness sent a warning: although the Hanging Gardens were still some distance away, the enemy had already eagerly arrived.

"Ladies and gentlemen, prepare to welcome our guests."

Medea said casually, "Although I suggested you stay in the castle and fight from your home ground... Ah, have you already left?"

In the blink of an eye, apart from the androids and magicians serving as attendants, the heroes were nowhere to be seen in the hall.

Just as Medea thought, when the enemy comes to provoke them, the warriors cannot accept hiding inside and relying on magicians to protect themselves; they must take the initiative to attack.

Chiron and Artoria both have a destined duel with their nemesis (friends and family), and they are the fastest to act, leaving the castle immediately.

Vlad III, meanwhile, ascended to the highest point, gazing up at the distant Hanging Gardens, his heart pounding with excitement as he anticipated a grand siege.

In terms of the level of his Noble Phantasm, he is at a disadvantage, but he has been fighting against enemies far stronger than himself since his life. When resisting the invaders, the Grand Duke of Wallachia will once again demonstrate the power of the "Shield of Christ"!