Chapter 127: The wielder of the holy sword of the planet and Lady Avalon
[Oh shit, it really is Human Evil.]
[Seven Evils of Humanity? Like Seven Deadly Sins, Meliodas, Escanor?]
[Plot twist! Who would've thought Nero-chan is a Beast!]
[Someone named Sessyoin Kiara, who didn't want to reveal their identity, dropped a like.]
Compared to a small portion of the audience, the majority looked as clueless as cows in hats.
[Isn't this supposed to be the Holy Grail War? What class is the enemy Servant anyway?]
[Human Evil? What the hell is that? Anyone know? Wiki-san?]
[Beast—Evils of Humanity. Beasts are great calamities rejected by human history, and there are a total of seven Beasts.]
[They're born from human civilization, growing stronger alongside humanity's development, but from within society they destroy civilization, like cancer cells.]
[Naruhodo, I don't get it at all... But it sounds hella bad!]
...
At this moment, Ethan felt his head spinning a little.
After all, this was just Rome, only the second chapter of FGO, with the Human Order Foundation Value at merely B+.
How could a Beast possibly appear here?
Up until now, he'd thought maybe it was just the shadow of a Beast being reflected on Nero — a human.
Just kill off those Phantasmal Species and head home, and the Singularity Roma would be repaired.
But the moment Dr. Romani confirmed the opponent was a Beast, Ethan finally gave up his last shred of hope.
The enemy was really a Beast.
With the Saint Graph of a regular Servant, there was basically zero chance of fighting back.
Only Servants with a Grand-class Saint Graph could stand on equal footing.
But up till now, he hadn't seen even a single Grand Servant.
Did the Counter Force call in sick today? Is Ayala sleeping in?
If no helping hand shows up now, this is definitely going to be a full wipe!!!
But thinking about it, the Counter Force hasn't really done much to help him from the beginning anyway.
Ethan clenched his fists tightly, his mind finally starting to spiral.
Is it really meaningful to resist? Could he even wait for a Grand Servant to arrive?
Facing a Beast without a Grand Servant is basically a death sentence.
If that's the case… then what the hell is his side supposed to do?
Damn it…
Why does shit like this have to happen to me…
"Senpai!!!"
Suddenly, Mash grabbed both of his hands.
"Mash…???"
Ethan snapped back to reality immediately.
"Senpai, are you okay?"
Mash looked at him with deep concern in her eyes.
Ethan's forehead was soaked in sweat before he even realized it.
"No… I just…"
"Don't worry, Senpai. No matter what happens, I will protect you!"
Mash's eyes were filled with unwavering determination.
It seemed that to Mash, no matter how powerful the enemy in front of them might be…
The first thing she always wanted to do was protect Ethan's safety.
"Phew..."
Ethan took a deep breath, trying to calm himself.
"Thank you, Mash."
"N-No problem."
Seeing Ethan staring straight at her, Mash's cheeks suddenly turned red, and she fidgeted, unsure what to do.
"Fou!!"
Fou suddenly popped up, patting Ethan's face with its tiny paw.
"What the hell are you doing, you little furball! You looking to throw hands?!"
"Fou… Fou!!!"
"Alright, I'm pretty much rested up too!"
Mordred stood up, hoisting Clarent back onto her shoulder.
"Just took down two Phantasmal Species in a row. Only seven more to go—let's keep it rolling!"
"In military strategy, there's no such thing as a 100% guaranteed win—which also means there's no such thing as a guaranteed loss. Even the tiniest chance can become the light of victory."
Waver said seriously, holding his feather fan.
"Speaking of which, both Kongming and I have been through countless battlefields. Turning fate on its head is second nature to us."
Sima Yi smiled calmly.
"Honestly, a situation that never changes is what's rare. Until the final moment, no one knows who will be the last one laughing."
"Hahahaha!!! When you meet a strong enemy, you should be excited! 'Cause only bastards this strong are worth crushing beneath me!!!"
The voice of Iskandar rang out, full of heroic vigor.
"Come now, boy… no, my Master, what do you want to do next?"
"Hey, don't go deciding to give up on your own."
Jeanne Alter shot him a scornful look.
"They're just a few puny Phantasmal Species! Watch as I burn them all to ash! Until then, you better keep your damn eyes open and watch until the very end!!!"
Seeing everyone's attitude, Ethan gradually calmed down.
"Thank you, everyone. For now, our main objective is to hold off the enemy. Give me a little time, and I'll figure something out."
"Then let me go ahead and take the lead. Everyone else, prioritize protecting the Master."
"Rider!!!"
Waver called out to Iskandar.
"The opponent is seriously strong. There's no need to get reckless—though with your mobility, you should be fine, right?"
"Hmph! Didn't think I'd see the day a brat like you worries about me. Don't worry! No matter when, I am always the Conqueror King!!"
Iskandar gripped Bucephalus's reins tightly and spurred his horse forward, charging straight at the seven Phantasmal Species.
"Bucephalus! Show them your fastest speed!!"
"Chiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii————————!!!"
Watching Iskandar charge in first, Ethan's mind tensed up again with focused thought.
He couldn't directly summon a Grand Servant, but even without one—and even without the aid of the Counter Force—in this battle against a Beast, it didn't mean he had no chance of victory.
Because that Servant still existed!
"System, check my points!!!"
Ethan shouted in his mind.
[Host's current livestream points total: 230,000 (includes 100,000 converted from gifts).]
[Approximately 230 pulls available.]
[200 more pulls needed for the next guaranteed summon.]
[Reminder: Currently unable to connect to leyline to draw magical energy, normal gacha mode temporarily unavailable.]
[Advanced Tickets can still be used, but the probability of summoning a Servant is extremely low.]
Just as expected, the land beneath them was soaked in blood—perhaps the entire Roman Empire of this era had already been drowned in a great flood. The leyline was practically unreachable.
Using points to strengthen a Saint Graph would be useless—only that method could break the current deadlock.
Without hesitation, Ethan screamed in his heart:
"Convert all my points into Advanced Tickets and Gacha!!!"
[Confirm: In current state, leyline connection is unavailable. Probability of summoning a Servant is nearly zero.]
[Still proceed with converting all points into Advanced Tickets and start gacha?]
The mechanical voice of the system echoed again in his head.
"Confirm!"
[Confirmed. Converting all 230,000 points into Advanced Tickets.]
[Beep beep —— Conversion successful!]
[Using 23 Advanced Tickets to perform gacha.]
A faint silver glow began gathering atop the Chariot of Gordius Wheel.
"BOOOOM————————!!!"
A ball of light shot from the mouth of one of the Phantasmal Species straight toward the Gordius Wheel.
"BANG————————!!!"
Mash expanded her shield, blocking the attack.
But immediately after came an even fiercer barrage!!!
"Moo————————!!!"
The Thunder Divine Bulls dodged most of the incoming strikes, but a few still landed on the chariot.
Mash pushed herself to block the enemy's assault, though the previous wave had already drained nearly all her strength.
"Until Senpai figures out a plan… I absolutely won't let anyone interrupt him!!!"
With such resolve, Mash risked everything to hold the line.
The faint silver light was so fragile it threatened to vanish at the slightest disturbance. The chariot shook violently as it raced forward, making it even harder for the silver glow to gather.
Once, twice, three times...
Each time the light began to converge, it was shattered—dispersed instantly.
"This is just ridiculous already!!!"
Mordred swung Clarent with full force, slashing directly at a charging Phantasmal Species!
"CLAAAANG————————!!!"
Its armored scales were so tough that even Clarent, with its power unleashed, barely left a scratch.
"ROOOAAAR————————!!!"
A snake-shaped Phantasmal Species with barbed tentacle-like fangs lunged forward, mouth wide open.
"ZUUUUM ZUUUUM ZUUUUM——————!!!"
The Bagua Mirror appeared midair, firing beams of light to drive back the enemy.
"Hmph, did you really think I couldn't fight?"
Waver continued swinging his feather fan, attacking the Phantasmal Species on the opposite flank.
The silver light in Ethan's hand was still trying to gather, bit by bit.
But violent tremors kept breaking it apart the moment it began to stabilize.
Ten times, eleven times, twelve...
"Mercury Maid, go!"
Sima Yi gave the order without hesitation.
"Understood, Sima Yi-sama."
Trimmau transformed its arms into massive hammers, slamming them into the Phantasmal Species trying to approach!
"Shashasha————————!!!"
One Phantasmal Species with a cross-shaped head charged in at terrifying speed.
"Explode!!!"
Black flames burst from the longsword in Jeanne Alter's hand.
"I don't care if you're Human Evil or Human Love, if you stand in his way—you'll all burn to ash!!!"
"BOOM, BOOM, BOOM——————!!!"
A series of explosions erupted across the creature's body. It recoiled, shaking its head violently.
Fifteen, sixteen, seventeen...
The silver light dimmed, slipping through Ethan's fingers like grains of sand.
Could it be... there really was no hope left?
Ethan looked around at everyone still fighting.
They believed in him. They believed he would find a way.
How could he give up now?
Ethan suddenly clenched the final strand of silver light in his hand.
"If you are truly the one who's crossed countless worlds to defeat the Beast—then answer my summons. Come to me… the wielder of the planet's holy sword!!!"
At that very moment, the silver light in his hand burst forth with brilliant intensity!!!
The radiant glow was so strong it even drew Nero's attention from midair in the distance.
Then, a figure materialized beside Ethan.
"Saber—Arthur Pendragon. Answering the summons to pursue the omen of calamity!"
Right after that, Artoria caught sight of Nero in the distance.
"So I've finally found you… Beast VI of this world!!!"
Before anyone could even react, the final silver light in Ethan's hand erupted again—transforming into golden brilliance!!!
And another Servant appeared beside him.
"…So this is what being summoned feels like? Ahem, well, it's a little sudden, but I am—"
The moment she saw Arthur Pendragon, her expression shifted dramatically.
"Ahem... I am Lady Avalon. Just an insignificant magus of flower, nothing more."
Wait, Double SSR?!
Ethan had only expected to summon Proto-Saber. After all, Proto-Saber was known to chase down Beast VI across countless worlds—wherever a Beast appeared, he would inevitably respond to the call.
But why did female Merlin show up too?
And judging by her expression… she didn't seem to realize that Proto-Saber was here as well?
"Lady… Avalon???"
Arthur looked at the female Merlin with a deeply confused gaze.
"What… what's with that look? You're kinda scaring me, Saber??"
Merlin feigned ignorance, pretending she didn't know Arthur.
"That's not Merlin. I've met Merlin before—he's evil."
Mordred immediately chimed in.
"See? This kind knight just confirmed I'm not Merlin! Thank you, noble, nameless knight~!"
"Oh! I don't know who you are, but if you can fight, you're absolutely welcome!!!"
Mordred already seemed to have a good impression of the female Merlin from their first meeting.
Though when it came to Saber, Mordred looked like she wanted to ask something… but ended up keeping quiet.
"…Well, we'll leave that for later. I've got some things I'd like to say to you privately. But first, we need to take care of this situation."
Arthur turned to face Nero, who stood amidst the seven monstrous beasts.
"Um, not to change the subject," Merlin interrupted, looking around, "but… don't you think it's a little crowded in here?"
They were all packed tightly onto the tiny command chariot—eight people trying to stay balanced.
The chariot was already cramped from the beginning, but now it was practically overflowing with no room left to stand.
"Sorry… the ground's been turned into a sea of blood by the enemy. This chariot is the only foothold we have to stay in the fight."
"You don't need to apologize."
Merlin replied gently to Ethan.
"Anyone who can stand and fight against the Beasts… even just dare to try, is worthy of praise. So, here's a little support from me since I've arrived."
She then raised her staff.
"Hey yo!!!"
Pure white petals scattered through the air, immediately filling the surrounding space.
She then stepped off the chariot—onto the petals, standing effortlessly midair as if it were solid ground.
"Alright, now everyone should have more room to move, right?"
Seeing Merlin standing so easily in the air, Mordred tried stepping off too—and sure enough, she stood on the petals as if it were solid earth.
"Oh! That's way better. Awesome! Now let's see if I can slash these bastards into pieces!!!"
Thanks to Merlin's support, everyone was finally freed from the cramped battlefield.
"Well then—let's begin the battle against this big Beast!"
Merlin said cheerfully, like she wasn't facing literal world-ending danger.