Chapter Twenty-Three: Omniscience and Omnipotence

My name is Alaya.
I almost thought Gilgamesh was a transmigrator.

191:01:34

"Saber, lay down your sword and become my queen."

Early in the morning, high above the main gate of the Einzbern Castle, Gilgamesh stood upon his magnificent flying vessel made of gold and emeralds. His tall, golden silhouette loomed over them, his voice majestic and unquestionable. What should have been a request sounded entirely like a decree; perhaps, in his eyes, the act of asking itself was a supreme grace.

Sha Nagba Imuru, the Star of Omniscience and Omnipotence. The power of this Noble Phantasm allows its master to perceive all things. It reveals not only a Servant's true name, abilities, and Noble Phantasms, but also their strategies, the truth behind any event, and all their possible futures.

If one were to seriously study and utilize the information gained through it, combined with Gilgamesh's superior strength, ending this tedious Holy Grail War in a single night would be trivial.

Yes, tedious. This Holy Grail was a mere imitation crafted by three mages, and it had already been thoroughly corrupted. Watching a group of oblivious mages rush toward their own self-destruction, the King of Heroes felt no interest in even playing along.

If anything, his current Master, Tokiomi Tohsaka, was quite sensible. After witnessing the majesty of the King of Kings, he had abandoned his petty schemes and focused on being a loyal subject. Otherwise, Gilgamesh would not have minded guiding his disciple—who was currently lost—toward his true desire.

"My King, since you have achieved victory, would you deign to open the path to the Root for your loyal subject before returning to the Throne of Heroes?" This was what Tokiomi would say in the future where he attained victory, and the version of himself who heard this plea would easily grant it.

Indeed, the Star of Omniscience and Omnipotence could see all possible futures, not just predict a few isolated events. But the consequence of using it was that the outcome of every action was known before it was taken—it was profoundly boring.

To deal with this, the King of Kings had always chosen to decide the outcome of the war at the moment of his manifestation, then seal the Noble Phantasm away. If his true self on the Throne of Heroes desired a different ending, he should have acted sooner.

To drench himself in the "All the World's Evils"—the manifestation of petty human will—and gain a physical body; this was the objective Gilgamesh had set for this Holy Grail War. As for the fates of others, he would decide whether to nudge them at critical moments based entirely on his mood.

That was how it was supposed to be. But while out, Gilgamesh had inadvertently witnessed Saber slaying an Assassin.

No, that wasn't it. Even with Tokiomi having an extra disciple and the mad dog originally belonging to the Matou family being summoned, those were mere trifles. Why had that cold girl-king, bound by the layers of her own chivalry, become this delicate, lily-like creature?

He had been looking forward to their encounter at the seaside warehouse; he had even prepared his entrance lines. But now, it seemed something had gone awry.

In his surprise, Gilgamesh unsealed the Star of Omniscience and Omnipotence, only to find it entirely unusable. It stubbornly simulated countless futures from other worlds where the Holy Grail War was taking place, but none of those futures matched his current situation.

This was—truly interesting!

The King of Kings nearly burst into laughter.

A Servant who had never appeared before, and a future he could not grasp. Compared to his true self, who could only sit on the Throne of Heroes flipping through books of memory with known outcomes, this incarnation—no, this King, this experience of Gilgamesh would be unique!

Once this war ended, he would challenge his true self on the Throne and take his place!

But before that, he had to claim this equally intriguing Saber for himself.

He looked down at the gates of the Einzbern Castle.

***

Irisviel was slightly surprised to encounter an enemy outside the castle and quickly pushed Lin Hao’s wheelchair back inside.

Saber Lily stepped forward, and the erupting magical energy stirred a golden vortex of wind around her petite body. In the next instant, she was clad in gorgeous, dress-like armor with white fabric and black trim.

"A vehicle of this caliber... are you a Rider?" Saber raised her golden sword toward the golden ship in the sky.

"Rider? To mistake this King for that uncouth fellow is a grave sin that must be punished." The golden-haired, red-eyed Servant in the sky did not move, but golden ripples opened behind him, and a bolt of gold shot down like lightning.

Saber, who had been guarding against an attack, stepped forward and slashed at the golden light. With a screeching sound of friction, a silver-white sword with ornate patterns was knocked far into the forest, causing a violent explosion upon impact that felled dozens of trees.

"He attacks by projecting Noble Phantasms... could he be an Archer?" Irisviel asked, perplexed.

"Such a valiant battle stance—though still a bit green, it is indeed worthy of my collection." The armored Servant did not seem angered or discouraged by his weapon being swatted away; his flippant tone sounded even more satisfied. "Now, what is your answer to my previous proposal?"

"Were you just proposing marriage?" Saber tilted her head. "I am currently in the midst of training to become a worthy King; I have no plans to consider personal matters for the time being. Therefore, I decline."

"Is that really the point?" Lin Hao muttered.

"Refusal denied." The space behind him rippled again. This time, the attacks were a giant axe and a halberd, both gleaming with gold.

"Hah!" Saber slashed downward, knocking the heavy axe to the ground, then pivoted to deflect the halberd. After repelling the two Noble Phantasms, she still appeared composed, her shimmering eyes fixed on the Servant's next move.

"As for kingly training, you may learn from me." Contradicting his gentle tone, the space around the golden Servant rippled like water. Threateningly, the tips of thirty-two Noble Phantasms emerged, all aimed at Saber. "In heaven and on earth, I alone am the only hero truly worthy of being called King."

"This is impossible..." Irisviel spoke her astonishment aloud, and Lin Hao beside her watched the spectacle in the sky with equal shock.

"Don't worry, Xiao Hao," Irisviel leaned down, whispering in a voice the two on the battlefield couldn't hear. "If Archer's only method of attack is throwing Noble Phantasms, Saber won't lose to him."

This girl from Country C had likely crammed a lot of knowledge about the Holy Grail War, but she clearly didn't understand the importance of a Noble Phantasm's true name. This invading Servant might be able to perform such attacks because he possessed many famous weapons in legend, but he certainly couldn't release their true names.

In other words, he was merely throwing them for their inherent sharpness and durability. Such straightforward attacks posed no threat to Saber, who possessed the "Instinct" skill. Even if the number of weapons increased to a point Saber couldn't handle, the moment she concluded that, she would release her own Noble Phantasm's true name and destroy both the Archer and his nameless arsenal.

"...Mm." The girl in the wheelchair looked steadily at Irisviel, as if thinking of something, then nodded and continued to watch the battle.

*Heh,* Irisviel smiled inwardly. She clearly saw Lin Hao’s left hand tightly gripping her right wrist, and on the back of her right hand was the strange Command Spell composed of four interlocking rings. She was probably planning to summon Caster to help if the situation turned dire, even though she hadn't been keen on calling that Servant before. What a good girl.

"Merlin said that the path of a King is one to be realized by oneself, not by walking in another's footsteps." Saber thought for a moment before shaking her head. This clearly displeased the Servant on the golden vessel, and all thirty-two Noble Phantasms fired at once.

Facing the terrifying rain of weapons, Lily did not retreat but advanced. Her silver boots cracked the earth as she leaped high toward the golden ship, swinging her sword upward to meet them. The first two sword-type phantasms were swatted away, and then her golden blade erupted with light, the physical-like radiance knocking three more incoming weapons aside.

Saber broke through the encirclement before the phantasms could converge and leaped above the rain of steel. However, if she let these weapons fall, Irisviel and Lin Hao, who were not far away, would likely be caught in the blast.

*Hum—* The sword in Saber’s hand suddenly emitted a dazzling glow, its length extending to more than twice its blade. Surging magical energy poured out. Unable to gain leverage in the air, Saber spun her body and swung her sword with great force, the massive golden arc of light blowing all the falling phantasms off their trajectories.

Deafening explosions erupted the next instant. The trees around the battlefield were completely obliterated; many fallen trunks turned to ash before they could even burn. While the Einzbern Castle remained intact, its defensive barrier was revealed by the direct impact of the Noble Phantasms, flickering like water and nearly vanishing.

"Irisviel!" After landing, Saber kept her sword pointed at the golden Servant, who defied all logic, having no time to check on her.

"We're fine, Xiao Hao was just a little startled." Irisviel patted the shoulder of Lin Hao, who was gaping. "Please, fight freely. The castle's barrier can withstand a few more attacks."

"Oh?" The golden-armored Servant on the ship looked over with cold, red eyes. "So it is these boring ideals and vows that bind you? I shall clear them away for you. From now on, you need only obey me and live under my protection."

"I won't let you do that!" Lily’s golden sword began to shine brilliantly.

"As a first step," the suspected Archer raised a hand, "I shall destroy this eyesore of a castle."

Golden ripples began to emerge—not just a few, a dozen, or even dozens. The golden vortexes covered the sky, numbering in the hundreds, even thousands. An equal number of golden Noble Phantasms poked their gleaming tips out. Before they even attacked, the terrifying killing intent and surging magical energy shattered the Einzbern defense barrier. Irisviel groaned and fell forward, and Lin Hao hurriedly turned her wheelchair to catch her.

Irisviel, temporarily immobilized because the defensive barrier connected to her magic circuits had been broken, fell into Lin Hao's arms. She watched as the girl scrambled clumsily to activate a defensive barrier, then reached out her right hand without hesitation. Irisviel wanted to stop her but was powerless to do so.

"By the command of the Command Spell—" "Victory—"

Hearing both voices sound at once, Irisviel gave a bitter smile. This was exactly why she wanted to stop Lin Hao. As long as Saber released the true name of her Noble Phantasm, an Archer who only threw weapons could never be a match for her; wasting a Command Spell to force-summon Caster was not worth it.

"Caster, come immediately—"

"—to the Golden Sword!"

Fortunately, Saber Lily was faster.

A golden light, infinitely more brilliant than when Saber had used her magical energy to reinforce her blade, erupted from her weapon. In that instant, the world seemed to lose its color. This roaring torrent of light split into two, then four, eight, sixteen, thirty-two, sixty-four—

Ultimately, it turned into a dense beam of light far exceeding the number of ripples in the void, destroying all the ripples and the Noble Phantasms along with them. The shockwave then struck the golden flying vessel. The massive craft lasted only two or three seconds before it collapsed like a sandcastle before the tide, fading away into nothingness.

"Heh," Irisviel, having regained some strength, pushed down the hand that Lin Hao was still holding up in a daze. "Saber is the strongest class in the Holy Grail War. In a one-on-one, no one can possibly defeat her."

"Even if you say that, you shouldn't just use that so casually." Lin Hao glanced at the girl knight walking toward them.

"He fled in spirit form." Saber Lily helped Irisviel up and said, "I apologize, I used my Noble Phantasm without permission, and it consumed a great deal of magical energy."

"It's fine." Irisviel, having steadied herself, moved her arms. "I need to reset the Einzbern barrier. I'll tell Kiritsugu that I won't be joining him for now—thank you for looking after me, Xiao Hao."

"You two are so powerful, I was just being redundant..." The girl puffed out her cheeks and turned her head away.

"Heh, someone's shy." "I am not!"