"Hmm? Kirei, are you not satisfied with the play I arranged?"
"Of course not, King of Heroes," Kirei Kotomine shook his head. "But if Tokiomi Tohsaka teams up with Kariya Matou, wouldn't that be..."
"How dare they?!"
A flash of anger crossed Gilgamesh's face. "With me here, why would I need to collaborate with such lowly rats?"
"Do you think the same, Kirei?"
Kirei glanced down at the two ragged figures helping each other out of the church, a knowing look in his eyes.
"King of Heroes, it's just that god..."
"Don't worry about that. I'll deal with her myself!"
Kirei silently extended his arm, revealing significant dark red and strange markings coiled around it.
"Then, esteemed ancient king, if my master disrespects your honor, would you select a loyal follower instead?"
Gilgamesh's lips curled upward. "Are you hoping that idiot Tokiomi doesn't know his place?"
"Hasn't he always acted that way?"
"Hmph!" Gilgamesh's form began to dissolve into golden light. "This boring farce is over. If you want to replace that fool Tokiomi, you should act quickly!"
His voice faded away, and Kirei's eyes flickered. Deep in thought, he looked again at the Command Seals on his hand.
It seemed unbelievable that Tokiomi Tohsaka would ally with Kariya Matou, but who knew what was happening in their heads?
Yet, Tokiomi hadn't informed Gilgamesh as if he was wary of something.
Aoi Tohsaka left Fuyuki City heartbroken, and Sakura returned to the quiet villa.
The little girl's eyes often sparkled with a strange light, frequently asking the Red Queen odd questions!
The Red Queen felt it was necessary to correct Sakura's thinking!
This was a long and arduous task, so poor Sakura now had to attend magic lessons and an extra class on ideological education!
...
At a secret location, the naive Kariya Matou told Tokiomi Tohsaka everything.
Having recovered his magical energy, Tokiomi once again donned a formal suit. His injuries were mostly healed, and he paced back and forth with a grim expression.
Though Kariya's words couldn't be fully trusted, Tokiomi tended to believe his childhood friend more.
From what Kariya said, his disciple Kirei Kotomine was quite suspicious!
And as for the King of Heroes...
What a headache!
"Thud~"
Tokiomi stopped, turning to Kariya again. "Kirei really hasn't left Fuyuki?"
The white-haired youth, cloaked and leaning on a lounge chair, seemed to find relief from his pain this way.
"I helped him capture that woman from the Einzbern family last night. Though I can't confirm his intentions, he and Archer are definitely in cahoots!"
Tokiomi's face grew even darker. He looked at the Command Seals on his hand; there were only two left.
He had to save one for the final command for the King of Heroes to commit suicide.
But now... what should he do?
Fighting other Masters and Servants was exhausting, and now the most significant threat came from within his ranks!
The thought of the unexplained sense of danger made Tokiomi shiver.
Indeed, when interests are at stake, even master and disciple can become enemies!
Such is the way of magi!
Tokiomi gazed at Kariya, his expression softening. Only someone untainted by the struggles of magi could maintain such a mindset.
...
Regardless of the schemes in Archer's camp, Iskander, the King of Conquerors, had already been challenged by the King of Heroes.
Waver Velvet knew the ferocity of that king, using up three Command Seals in a row!
The two kings decided to fight on the large bridge.
The night wind blew continuously, and Gilgamesh took out the same liquor as last time, the two of them sitting on the ground.
Meanwhile, while teaching Sakura ideology, the Red Queen suddenly received a message from "Nightmare"!
Her tiny body transformed into a whirlwind, arriving at Kurumi's side!
"Master! Gilgamesh is going to fight the King of Conquerors!"
"Hmm?" Kurumi opened her eyes slightly, the Red Queen splitting into countless illusions before her.
"Let me... sleep a bit more~."
Floating above the bed, the Red Queen twitched her eye. This was a big deal! If they missed it, not only would it lower their evaluation score, but they would also lose the perfect opportunity to ambush Gilgamesh!
The Red Queen squeezed into the blanket, reaching Kurumi's delicate left ear.
"Master! The King of Conquerors is going to fight Gilgamesh!"
Kurumi finally opened her eyes, blood vessels crawling from the edges of her eyes inward but disappearing in an instant.
She slipped her tiny feet into bunny slippers, a single strand of hair sticking up from her bangs!
"Where are they?"
"On the bridge where they fought the sea monster last time."
Kurumi nodded, spiritual power surging, her black dress enveloping her delicate body again.
Her lazy demeanor transformed!
Yet, the exhaustion deep in her eyes did not escape the Red Queen's notice.
She casually patted Sakura's little head, and the two vanished.
Sakura blinked her big eyes, silently praying for Kurumi's safe return. She then called the little white doll to connect to the network, researching according to the Red Queen's "ideological" teachings.
When Kurumi and the Red Queen piloted "Nightmare" to the bridge, the two kings had finished their drinks and were ready to fight at any moment.
Suddenly, a surge of magical energy enveloped half the bridge! The space expanded rapidly, then disappeared!
"Tsk tsk tsk, Master, how long do you think 'Ionioi Hetairoi' can last?"
Kurumi yawned, listless, "The shorter, the better. After teaching Gilgamesh a lesson, I need to get back to sleep."
"Well~" The Red Queen sighed. "Can't you postpone your research? That advanced magic pattern from [Gamma] is incredibly draining! This isn't Marvel!"
Kurumi shook her head lightly, forcing herself to stay awake.
"When Gilgamesh uses Ea to break 'Ionioi Hetairoi,' you observe closely. Try to lure out his 'Chains of Heaven.'"
Kurumi paused. "If we fail, we'll kill the King of Conquerors first!"
Inside 'Ionioi Hetairoi,' the warriors charging with the King of Conquerors were awe-inspiring.
On the other side of the vast desert stood a single man in golden armor.
Holding a strange golden key, his eyes calmly watched the charging King of Conquerors.
"In the face of absolute power, numbers are a joke!"
"Click~"
The strange golden key turned as if unlocking a space!
With a spatial ripple, a red crystalline substance quickly climbed into the air!
As the spatial ripple vanished, Gilgamesh held an unusually shaped "long sword" in his hand.