Chapter 290: Shoot Down the Aerial Garden
With the chanting of the former "Black" Caster Avicebron's Noble Phantasm—
Buzz—!
Gurgle gurgle~!
In the gardens outside Fortress of Millennia's outer walls, a lake, reflecting a cool glow in the moonlight, began to bubble furiously with a low hum.
In perfect synchronization with Avicebron, who was releasing his Noble Phantasm from the throne room of the "Red" Assassin Semiramis's Aerial Garden, it seemed as if no distance separated them.
A nearly solidified tide of mana spread outward, and the lake water surged over the embankment, flooding the quaint European-style pavilion. The entire lake quivered with the activation of the golem.
Watching his creation finally brought to life on the screen, Avicebron could no longer contain his calm demeanor.
Spreading his arms wide, his voice trembled with barely restrained excitement.
"—Royal Crown: Light of Wisdom (Golem Kether Malchut)!"
Crash—!
The golem's stone body broke through the lake's surface with an overwhelming force, shattering everything around it.
The golem's entire form was a dark gray, humanoid in shape, with intact limbs, torso, and head. Behind it, a massive, glowing green halo was embedded.
Though made only of the simplest natural materials—wood, stone, earth—its majestic presence seemed to embody the grandeur of nature itself, drawing admiration from all who saw it.
Roar—!!
The golem opened its abyss-like human mouth and let out a roar that shook the heavens.
Boom!
In the radiance of the cannon exchange between Selene and Semiramis, the towering form of the Golem Royal Crown, modeled after "the original human (Adam)," finally appeared before the eyes of every remaining Master and Servant of both the "Red" and "Black" factions.
One glance was enough to understand that this creation was unlike any golem before it.
Although its size was nowhere near Selene's Primus Imperator's imposing 500 meters, it was still steadily growing, moment by moment.
In just a few breaths after activation, the giant seemed to swell again. Its upper half was now larger than the lake itself, breaking the embankments as it rose from the water.
Soon, this ever-expanding giant began to move, raising a massive leg—crafted from wood, stone, and soil, yet strangely sculpted with full, muscular contours—and stepped onto dry land with awe-inspiring momentum.
Thud!
Curiously, though the giant's footsteps thundered like rolling thunder, they left the ground untouched.
In fact, it was the opposite: as the golem moved, the earth beneath it thrived with life.
With each slow step, a "miracle" took place wherever it passed!
The ground below seemed to "sing" in celebration of the golem's arrival, bursting with vegetation. Trees in contact with the giant bloomed instantly, bearing fruit that quickly ripened and fell, only to grow more trees. As the golem moved, the vegetation around it grew denser and more abundant.
And that wasn't all.
Though a barrier had been laid to keep animals away, birds and beasts began to emerge from nowhere.
Drawn like moths to a flame, animals of all kinds flocked to the giant, gathering unhesitatingly in droves.
The moment they touched it, every last drop of their blood was absorbed and converted into pure energy, feeding into the golem.
With each creature absorbed, the Golem Royal Crown rapidly grew in size, visibly swelling with the naked eye.
Soon, the golem's head was level with Fortress of Millennia's uppermost tower.
"Ah… this is Eden," Caster Avicebron murmured in a trance, lowering his hands.
On screen, at the Primeval Giant's feet, the surrounding scenery thrived. Even from afar, Avicebron could almost smell the sweet, honey-like scent, so wonderful that merely breathing it in filled him with joy.
But soon, an intense flash of light shook Avicebron from his reverie.
Gazing at the giant on the screen, he shook his head and said gravely, "But at a mere seventy meters, it's still far from enough. Just one shot from the Black Rider's mech would destroy it utterly."
Turning to Amakusa Shirou Tokisada, who was still mending his wounds, Avicebron spoke again.
"Master, I need you to use your remaining two Command Seals to strengthen the Crown: Wisdom of Light. Time is too short, and the Black Rider won't give it a chance to develop."
"Heh…" Nearby, Semiramis let out a mocking laugh. "So, does the former Caster of the Black faction plan to betray us again?"
"No, I only want to see my creation advance further, to ensure it won't be strangled in its infancy. The Yggdmillennia family refused me the opportunity to fulfill my wish—that is why I defected."
With a Servant as powerful as Selene, Darnic had lost interest in Avicebron's Golem Royal Crown, leaving the incomplete Primeval Giant dormant as a trump card within the castle and forbidding its activation for now.
This, however, conflicted with Avicebron's own will. He did not merely want the Giant completed; he longed to see it truly activated and cleansing the world.
"Make no mistake—I joined your side not because I believe you can win." In an even tone, Avicebron replied, disregarding Semiramis's taunts.
"You…"
"For this wish, I will use any means necessary, no matter how disgraceful or unethical. Even if it costs me my life."
Ignoring Semiramis's ridicule entirely, Avicebron turned his unflinching gaze on Amakusa with his uncovered eye, exposed from beneath his broken mask. "Master, what will you decide?"
After reconnecting the bone in his severed arm, Amakusa Shirou looked up with a gentle expression. "...Very well, I agree."
"Thank you. Then, Master, I must complete my final mission in this Holy Grail War." Nodding slightly in gratitude, Avicebron vanished.
"...Master, do you really trust him?" Semiramis asked, casting a sidelong glance, her face pale.
"Yes, because we have no other choice now."
Amakusa reattached his left arm using the amplification from the Aerial Garden, then spoke in a deep voice, "By my Command Seal, I order you, Caster Avicebron—double command, strengthen your Noble Phantasm: Royal Crown - the Light of Wisdom!"
After completing the commands, Amakusa shook his newly attached arm. "Assassin, how much longer can you hold out?"
"I don't know! That Black Rider bastard is hunting me like prey, toying with me!"
The moment Semiramis finished speaking—
Boom—!
Zzzzz~
The throne room shook violently, and half the magic screens displaying the battlefield blinked out.
Fire whirled, dyeing the sky a splendid red. Light surged! Light roared!
Thoom!
Thousands of meters away, the enormous beam from the mech's head overwhelmed the combined city-level mana cannon formed by the six stone monoliths. With a roar of air currents, the immense crimson beam swept across the Aerial Garden.
Crack, crack, crack—!
The defensive barrier formed by the remaining five monoliths shattered in less than two seconds, as the hexagonal, sky-blue shield disintegrated.
Rumble—!!!
The entire Aerial Garden quaked violently. The floating islands surrounding it ignited in flames from the intense light and heat, while countless buildings disintegrated into dust.
Even the formation of eleven monoliths, known as the 'Tiamtum Umu,' lost three of its stone pillars in the blast.
"Hmph, sacrificing pawns to protect the main piece?"
Within the Primus Imperator's core, Selene raised an eyebrow, commenting with interest.
Wanting to preserve Semiramis's spirit core for later extraction, Selene had aimed her attacks not at the throne room in the center but at the eleven monoliths floating around the garden.
However, Semiramis had reacted decisively, activating the garden's defensive formations and using the floating islands around the Aerial Garden as a temporary buffer.
Then, she abandoned two monoliths, preserving the other nine and protecting the central structure of the Aerial Garden.
"But now you only have nine. Let's see how many more times you can block me."
Seeing the Aerial Garden reduced to its barren central structure, blackened with fire, with the beautiful garden long gone, Selene felt a slight satisfaction from this release of destructive energy.
"Bombardment mode, activate."
As for why she didn't use purge mode—aside from it being unnecessary, there was a critical factor: a lack of mana! She had to conserve. Mana wasn't something to be wasted lightly.
In purge mode, with all cannons firing, not only did the destructive power skyrocket, but the mana consumption increased exponentially as well.
After all, in this mode, even the weakest blast could create a crater several kilometers wide, and that's not even accounting for the devastation of the shockwave, a true manifestation of an anti-nation-level Noble Phantasm.
It wasn't just a matter of whether the Yggdmillennia family could sustain Selene's mana drain at such a level—the sheer destructive power alone would be too much.
Think about it—could the Counter Force ignore such devastation?
Click-click-click!
Responding to Selene's synchronized will, the mech began its movement.
Raising its mountain-like right arm, the central cannon in the palm opened, as did dozens of smaller cannons on the wrist's heavy metal bracer.
And it didn't end there. On the forearm and upper arm protruding from the cloak, countless smaller cannons unfolded in a single file, arranged in a grid of small square cells.
"Let's see you block this!"
Buzz—!
Buzz buzz—!!
Buzz buzz buzz—!!!
Just on the mech's right arm alone, thousands of cannons of varying sizes activated.
In an instant, the entire right arm of the mech lit up. Concentrated mana surged out of the various cannon muzzles, the dense mana torrent tearing through the atmosphere.
"Fall!"
Like an auto-lock, the thousands of red beams fired from the arm streaked across the sky, raining down from all directions on the now-ravaged Aerial Garden.
Boom—!
At this level, the Aerial Garden's defenses could no longer hold. Even if Semiramis combined the remaining nine monoliths and activated them at maximum output, the sheer number of incoming beams was far beyond her defensive limit.
Crack—!
In the blink of an eye, dozens of beams broke through the monoliths' defensive formation, igniting brilliant explosions on the Aerial Garden.
"Your Majesty, it's Caster Avicebron! He sacrificed himself! The Golem Royal Crown is completely out of control and will instinctively attempt to turn the entire world into a paradise!"
Before Selene could savor her handiwork, Darnic's panicked voice again echoed in her mind, explaining the situation at breakneck speed.
"The Primeval Giant's initial form should only be fifteen meters, Darnic. With Saber Siegfried, Archer Chiron, and Lancer Vlad back in the castle, their combined strength should be enough…"
"Fine, I understand." As Selene controlled the Primus Imperato to turn, she quickly grasped the situation.
Though several kilometers away, the giant's figure was still unmistakably visible as it continued to grow.
Already, the Golem Royal Crown's head was towering above the highest point of Fortress of Millennia, and it was clear the other Servants wouldn't be able to handle it.
Not to mention they were fighting right at their doorstep, forced to split their attention between protecting the castle and their Masters.
Leaving the already destroyed Aerial Garden behind, Selene shifted her cannon's aim.
Buzz—!
...
Some time ago, within Fortress of Millennia.
As the giant approached, the castle—an unnatural structure, with floors, ceilings, and walls alike—began to rumble and quake.
Watching the approaching, ever-expanding golem, Darnic's expression darkened.
"When did Caster activate the Golem Royal Crown? Its growth rate is unbelievable."
Nearby, Fiore kicked off from her wheelchair, activating the connecting arms of her Bronzlink Manipulator magic prosthetic and hovering beside Darnic, quietly addressing her Servant.
"Archer, can you shoot him down?"
"I can." From the rooftop, Chiron opened his golden longbow, aiming steadily at Avicebron perched on the giant's shoulder, his expression grim.
"Caster, I don't know why you chose to betray us, but a traitor is a traitor!"
Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone