How come the Ace of Cups isn't considered the Holy Grail?

When the surface of the Persian Gulf was gradually stained with a dark red, muddy-water-like substance, the observers stationed there were naturally the first to discover it.

"what is that?"

"Could this be the moment of destruction that the King spoke of?"

"We can't wait any longer, we must contact Uruk immediately!"

On the observation tower where only four people were stationed, an old man looked at the rolling red sea that surged in from where the water met the sky. Knowing that the situation was urgent, he immediately went to contact Uruk.

However, as soon as the man heading to Uruk turned around, he saw a black monster with no eyes or ears, only a mouth that filled the entire face vertically, and limbs that were like sharp spikes.

“＆*%^$@＃!*＆%……”

"what!"

Sudden——

The man covered his face with his arms in fear, but after waiting for a long time, he still didn't see the spike piercing his chest. He opened one eye and saw the black monster that had been split in two.

In the sky, the [Savior Star Dragon] spread its wings and hovered in front of the observatory. Under the sunlight that was not yet covered by dark clouds, its translucent glass body shone brilliantly, as if it were sacred.

He murmured to himself.

"Gods above..."

Chapter 102 Merlin? (No interest)

"Sheba 02, 06, and 09 are broken!"

Inside the Chaldea control room, alarm lights flashed crimson, and several near-future observation lenses surrounding the miniature Earth environment model Chaldea ceased operation.

As a special lens created to observe Chaldea, Sheba, though unable to see the details of the future, could discern the extent to which a civilization in a particular region had developed.

Regardless of the outcome, good or bad, these observations can serve as evidence to support the conclusion that humanity will still be alive and well a hundred years from now.

There aren't many reasons why this device might break.

"It's a spacetime vibration! Romani!"

Da Vinci, standing next to Dr. Roman, stared wide-eyed at the various data displayed on the screen.

"A spatial rupture is occurring throughout the entire Mesopotamian world!"

"Doctor! Doctor! Look at this!"

A wave of waves has risen again.

While Roman and Leonardo da Vinci were still worrying about the spatial fracture, the Chaldea staff in front of them transmitted another set of real-time data to them.

On a map marking the Persian Gulf, red dots are rapidly sweeping across the sea and spreading towards the land.

"What, what is this?!"

Realizing something was clearly wrong, Roman hurriedly contacted Fujimaru Ritsuka in the Seventh Singularity.

"Fujimaru! A large amount of unidentified magical energy has been detected in the Persian Gulf!"

"The magical power of each individual is far greater than that of any magical beast you have ever encountered! Their numbers are about to exceed one hundred million! And they are still multiplying!"

"One hundred million?!"

Fujimaru Ritsuka, who was sitting in the back of the D-wheel of the ferry and heading towards Uruk at full speed, exclaimed in surprise, startled by the number.

Is there any mistake?

How long has it been since they defeated the Gorgon?

Why are the numbers of these unidentified creatures increasing so rapidly?

"Not only that, a considerable number of unidentified creatures have crawled out of the sea and onto land, numbering at least tens of thousands! They are spreading out and heading towards Uruk and the surrounding cities!"

After Dr. Roman finished speaking, Leonardo da Vinci added his own conjectured conclusion.

"Although they are moving at different speeds, at the current rate, the first batch will arrive in just a few hours!"

"How could that be! If that's the case, wouldn't people in other cities be in great danger?!"

Yuwa turned his head and saw a hint of anxiety on Fujimaru Ritsuka's face, so he spoke up to comfort her.

"Don't worry, Master, there's no one left in the cities around Uruk."

"The people of Eridu were taken to Uruk by Quetzalcoatl some time ago, and the citizens of Kusa are still recuperating under the tower after their resurrection."

"As for the people stationed at the Persian Gulf observation station, I also sent [Savior Star Dragon] to take them to Uruk!"

Even the survivors of Nippur were escorted to Uruk a few days ago, so it can be said that Uruk is practically the only remaining human population in all of Mesopotamia.

Having gone to such lengths, if there are still any scattered people living in some remote corners of the world, then there's not much that Youdu can do.

He couldn't possibly turn the entire land of Mesopotamia upside down to see if there were any other people there, and then bring them back to Uruk, could he?

This is a bit outrageous...

However, after hearing his words, Fujimaru Ritsuka realized what he meant and calmed down considerably.

The ferry's D-wheel was very fast, and it took less than half an hour to travel from the North Wall back to Uruk.

At this time, Uruk had not yet been attacked by the unknown creature. After rescuing the people from the observation post, [Savior Star Dragon] turned back into a card due to its own effect. Yuuto glanced at the soldiers who were setting up defenses at the city gate and rushed directly towards the God Tower.

The group got off at the entrance of the Divine Tower, and before they even went inside, they could already hear a lot of noise coming from inside.

"Defense measures are being set up at the south gate, and it is expected that all work will be completed before the unknown monsters invade..."

"Residents near the city gate and surrounding areas have been notified to evacuate, and they are currently heading north of Uruk City..."

"King Gilgamesh, the people at the Persian Gulf observation station say they were saved by a dragon-like god..."

"..."

Inside the tower, people who came to report stood in rows, reporting the situation to Gilgamesh one after another.

They didn't force anyone to follow a certain order or sequence; they mostly decided the order based on the importance and urgency of the matters they needed to report.

They chattered and talked at once, creating a noisy and chaotic atmosphere, yet there was a sense of order amidst the chaos.

This was different from usual; the casual reporting style was clearly approved by Gilgamesh. After all, Uruk was about to face a catastrophe, and there was no need to dwell on those trivial rules.

Upon seeing Yudo and the others enter, Gilgamesh no longer waited. He stood up and declared the destruction of Uruk in an unquestionable tone.

"You don't need to perish with Uruk! If you want to survive, go to the North Wall! If you want to fight, become the cornerstone of Uruk here!"

Gilgamesh's gaze swept across the faces of the crowd, announcing that the final deadline was before dusk, and instructing them to convey his words to the other citizens of Uruk.

After saying this, he waved for everyone to say their final goodbyes to their families and friends, and then sat back down.

These words were indeed despairing. Fujimaru Ritsuka saw that after Gilgamesh finished speaking, almost everyone in the Tower of Gods walked out with their heads hanging low.

Only Gilgamesh, Siduri, and Ishtar, with her arms crossed, remained there waiting for them.

"Welcome back, Lord Fujimaru. Congratulations on your successful defeat of the Gorgon..."

Seeing that Gilgamesh had no intention of speaking, Siduri took the initiative to greet everyone. Then she noticed that a certain white-haired nightmare was missing from the group.

"Excuse me, did Lord Merlin not return with you?"

Upon hearing this, Fujimaru Ritsuka's eyes darkened slightly.

"Merlin, he..."

"Merlin is on his way on horseback—oops, I misspoke, cough, I meant it will take him a while to get here from Avalon, we don't need to wait for him."

Fujimaru Ritsuka: "???"

"Merlin...is he not dead?"

"That nightmare won't die so easily."

Gilgamesh, sitting on the throne, spoke without any surprise. Even when he heard Fujimaru Ritsuka say that Merlin was dead, his scarlet eyes did not waver in the slightest.

Yes, Dr. Roman in the Chaldea control room was the same; even upon hearing the news of Merlin's death, his calm heart remained undisturbed.

Merlin? (No interest)

Chapter 103 Human Evil

"Human beings are evil... Merlin must have said that, right?"

Faced with Gilgamesh's question as he sat on the throne, Fujimaru Ritsuka scratched his face awkwardly and turned his gaze to Yuuto beside him.

"Uh... to be precise, these weren't Merlin's words, but rather Yuuto's words on his behalf."

Gilgamesh:"……"

?

As Fujimaru Ritsuka explained, Gilgamesh understood her meaning, but he still didn't get it.

Why does Youdu insist on adding a relay step to such a simple matter that can be accomplished with just a few words?

Why not just let Merlin finish speaking...?

Furthermore, it's one thing for Merlin and him, as Grand Caster candidates, to know about human evil and the Beast, but how come this guy knows so much about it too?

Could he also be a Grand Master candidate of some class?

Archer? Or Rider? In any case, it shouldn't be Caster, otherwise they should know...

Gilgamesh pondered, recalling the cheers he had felt from the planet earlier that day, and his heart gradually leaned towards Rider's side.

It was only at this moment that Fujimaru Ritsuka suddenly realized that she didn't seem to know what the "human evil" that Merlin and Yuwatari were talking about was.

Hmm... Although she could have asked Yudo after leaving the Tower of Gods, she felt it was unnecessary to go through all that trouble, so she directly asked Gilgamesh.

"Um...King Gilgamesh, may I ask what evil is in humanity?"

"What? You didn't know?"

Gilgamesh glanced at Yuudou with some surprise.

He was genuinely surprised.

Merlin left the scene, so it's understandable that he didn't say anything. But since Yuwatari knew about the evil things that humans do, why didn't he explain these things to Fujimaru Ritsuka?

Yu Du met his gaze and shrugged.

Just kidding, they boarded the D-wheel right when Merlin started his marathon and sped all the way to Uruk.

While riding the D-Wheel in the sky, every time he opened his mouth, a large gust of cool air would enter his stomach, so he didn't have time to explain these things to Fujimaru Ritsuka...

However, now that they have arrived at the Divine Tower, it is indeed time to give Fujimaru Ritsuka a lesson.

"Ahem, Master, let me explain this."

Yuuto cleared his throat twice to draw Fujimaru Ritsuka's attention and began to tell her about the evil he knew about humanity.

First, it needs to be made clear that Beast is a form of human evil, but human evil is not simply Beast.

The Beast Tiamat that Fujimaru Ritsuka and her friends are about to face are beings known as human evil, and are rejected by humans, or rather, primates.

Their appearance would cause the collapse of human history, triggering various disasters that are harmful to humanity and ultimately lead to its destruction.

However, they cannot be eradicated from human society. As long as human society exists and human reason continues, human evil will appear again and again.

It is a kind of existence that originates from within the human body, much like cancer that gnaws at the body from the inside.

When human civilization prospers to a certain extent, evil will inevitably arise. Only by overcoming this catastrophe can civilization continue and move towards the next stage.

Conversely, it will be destroyed, so human evil is also an evil that must be defeated by humankind.

They will grow as humanity grows; the stronger human reason becomes, the stronger human evil will become.

However, the evil of humanity does not refer to the evil of destroying humanity, because its essence is the "human love" that was originally born with the purpose of protecting humanity.

"Wait a minute!" Hearing this, Fujimaru Ritsuka finally couldn't help but raise her hand to interrupt Yuwatari's explanation, asking with a puzzled look, "The essence of [human evil] is [human love]? How can cuteness become evil?"

"Because this love is distorted."

Yu Du gave her an example to illustrate this.

"Simply put, although they all love humans in essence, the way they love and what kind of humans they love are all decided by themselves."

"They believe that existing humans have incurable flaws, so they want to destroy all current humans and recreate perfect humans..."

"Because they feel betrayed by humanity, they want to destroy all of humanity and create new children..."

"There are also those who love humanity, but believe that only they are human."

Finally, after roughly explaining the journey of human evil, a brief summary was given regarding Beast.