Era of Heroic Spirits: I Was Exposed by Alaya

Bzzzt—

Golden swirls emerged one after another behind Gilgamesh.

From each vortex, a Noble Phantasm materialized—spanning all of human history, every myth and legend, every weapon ever forged by mankind.

[Gate of Babylon] had truly opened in reality, brimming with the power to annihilate everything.

Merlin could clearly see it.

This utterly eclipsed the [Unlimited Blade Works], possessing enough terrifying might to effortlessly obliterate Fuyuki City.

One was a Servant, the other the Heroic Spirit's true form—there was simply no comparison!

"Are you the backup Romani called in?"

Merlin stared at him in shock.

Only that shut-in doctor would be so hell-bent on turning him into [Magi☆Mari]!

How could that disgusting otaku, fooled by a virtual idol, possibly convince the King of Heroes to intervene?

"Romani? Never heard of him!"

Gilgamesh fully unleashed countless Noble Phantasms, sealing off every possible escape route.

This guy was the Child of Nightmares, capable of traversing dreams.

If not for his true body descending, even Gilgamesh wouldn't have been able to track him down in the Tower of the End.

My dearest friend, you should be grateful for the grand gift I've prepared for you!

"Not Romani? Then… were you hired by Nameless?!"

Merlin grew even more bewildered.

Aside from that disgusting otaku doctor, Nameless was the only other possibility.

The two of them had always been at odds.

But—you got your arm chopped off by Nameless in [Unlimited Blade Works], then got your heart ripped out and blown to smithereens!

Alaya exposed everything, letting the entire world witness your humiliating defeat.

You hurt me, then just walked away with a smile?!

"Heh. A mere nightmare skulking in the shadows—since when do I need your permission to act?" Gilgamesh's crimson eyes glared coldly at him.

This guy had been way too cocky.

First, stirring up chaos in [The Perfect King], and now trying to mess with Nameless.

If I don't destroy you, it'd be a waste of all the effort you've put into causing trouble!

"King of Heroes, please stop! I've shed blood for humanity! I've served King Arthur! You can't do this to me!" Merlin gulped.

This guy was dead serious!

He deeply regretted why he had insisted on meeting him in person.

In terms of combat power, he was just a support—good for healing and mana recovery, but utterly useless in a fight.

Yet—

The King of Heroes seemed unshakable, shaking a bottle of gender-swapping potion with a wicked grin.

"DON'T COME ANY CLOSER!!!"

Merlin instantly adopted the same expression as [Bù Jīngyún].

Gilgamesh wants to take my Gil?!

The famously handsome and elegant Magus of Flower suddenly felt like his Gil might not survive this encounter.

If he really became [Magi☆Mari], and that bastard Nameless found out—

That guy would absolutely grab a megaphone and broadcast it to the whole world—public execution!

He might even force him, with a sadistic grin, to feed cake to that disgusting otaku doctor!

God, just thinking about it made him tremble uncontrollably. He couldn't accept this!

In this dire moment—

Merlin, still unwilling to give up, asked, "King of Heroes, aren't you even a little angry after watching Unlimited Blade Works?"

"Why should I watch a video?"

Gilgamesh looked at him as if he were an idiot.

"!!!"

Merlin nearly couldn't hold back from cursing out loud.

Damn golden bastard, you didn't even watch the exposé video at all!

￥...￥%...＆%*

Suppressing his rage, Merlin forced a gentle smile and said, "King of Heroes, Unlimited Blade Works tells the story of you and Nameless. Why not watch it first before deciding whether to deal with me?"

Damn it, you got your arm chopped off by him, and yet you're still thinking of helping him against me!

You really deserve to be publicly executed a few more times!

"Oh, my story with Nameless?"

Gilgamesh was slightly surprised.

The previous video, The Oldest King, had already covered his history with Nameless. What else could there be that he didn't know?

Well, since he'd already sealed off all escape routes, he might as well take a quick look.

Gilgamesh retrieved the latest model tablet from his Gate of Babylon and began watching Alaya's new video—

Unlimited Blade Works.

The opening showed an adorable little girl in white stockings playing a game.

Nothing unusual so far.

But the barrage comments were another story—

-[Rewatching the King of Heroes' execution!]

-[Nameless is OP! Chop off more of the King of Heroes' arms!]

-[Friendly reminder: I only stan the Wise King. The King of Heroes in this video is a complete stranger!]

-[The time has come. Behold, the tyrant in the sky, as you are shattered!]

...

"Hah, what the hell?"

Gilgamesh was baffled.

In The Oldest King, countless comments had praised him endlessly, turning countless viewers into fans.

It had also granted him a massive boost in legend, significantly increasing his power.

But now, everyone seemed to be cursing him.

What exactly did I miss?

Merlin smirked and quietly reminded him, "King of Heroes, skip to 3 minutes and 12 seconds!"

"Hmph! Let's see who dares to execute me!"

Gilgamesh snorted coldly.

He fast-forwarded the video.

Moments later, he finally saw his own appearance.

On the screen, a golden figure identical to him looked down at two battle maids and declared, "In that case, wither like flowers!"

With a ruthless strike, he annihilated both maids.

"This hardly seems noteworthy."

Gilgamesh frowned slightly.

War is war—you kill or be killed. Where's the room for mercy?

Soon after, the main character, Illya, appeared, summoning Heracles to fight him.

The King of Heroes in the video summoned the Gate of Babylon and effortlessly crushed him.

"As expected of me. Even in another timeline, I remain undefeated!"

Gilgamesh grew even more puzzled.

Sure, his video counterpart was a bit edgy, but why was he being universally hated?

Then, he saw "himself" defeat the Berserker—only for a young boy to step forward.

It was none other than a youthful Nameless!

Merlin smiled. "Now the real show begins."

"Oh, young Nameless?"

Gilgamesh's crimson eyes fixed on the screen.

The two engaged in an intense battle.

The video version of him was unbearably arrogant, spouting "mongrel" left and right, reminding him of his younger days.

Back when he first met Nameless, it had been the same... until Nameless changed him into the Wise King.

Then,

In the video, a massive black hole hovered in the sky, with endless black mud pouring down relentlessly.

"This king shall bring calamity upon the entire world. Let us see how many remain after eliminating the useless trash. Isn't that amusing?" The King grinned cruelly.

The barrage of comments instantly exploded with condemnation.

"..."

Gilgamesh frowned slightly upon seeing this.

This was exactly the kind of thing he would have done during his edgy phase!

Back then, before meeting Nameless, he had genuinely wanted to purge the worthless and reshape all of Uruk into a perfect city.

But after encountering Nameless, he began choosing to accept everyone, becoming a wise king who guided his people toward the future.

So many embarrassing memories!

"Next up is your fight with Nameless."

Merlin stifled a laugh.

Tch, Nameless, you're absolutely doomed!

When the King of Heroes sees you killing him with your own hands, he'll definitely come after you!

Let's keep watching.

In the video, the King drew out Ea and unleashed its most terrifying strike.

Yet, Nameless of the future chose to shield young Emiya from Ea's blow, passing on everything to his younger self before dissipating into light.

"That damn nameless fool, pulling this stunt again!"

Gilgamesh wanted to curse him.

Back when they had joined forces to fight against the gods, that guy had also sacrificed himself, fully unleashing Ea's power.

He had thought the other was dead, drowning in grief, yet forced to suppress his sorrow and lead his people toward the future.

Claiming to have seen through fate and accepted his destined death, part of his sorrow had still stemmed from losing two dear friends.

Only after Alaya released the exposé video did he realize—that bastard had been faking it the whole time!

He hadn't died at all!

But watching this Unlimited Blade Works video also made Gilgamesh understand why the nameless hero went out of his way to antagonize him every time they met.

Hell, even he couldn't stand his own chuunibyou phase!

Oh, right—his younger self despised "Chuuni-Gil" even more!

Continuing with the video...

Young Emiya deployed Unlimited Blade Works, effortlessly thrashing Chuuni-Gil.

Seeing this, Gilgamesh grew increasingly exasperated. "That damn friend of mine was right—I merely collected Noble Phantasms without truly mastering any of them!"

Indeed, he had only sought to hoard every treasure in the world, never bothering to master them individually.

Faced with the nameless cheat, there was no way he could win in a one-on-one fight.

The boy roared, "Break for me!"

Chuuni-Gil's arm, the one holding Ea, was severed on the spot!

Gilgamesh's disdain deepened at the sight.

Even with Sha Naqba Imuru, an auto-activated ability that saw through all things—

Even with Ea, which he refused to use outright—

He had abandoned his two greatest advantages, choosing instead to clash head-on with his opponent's strongest suit!

Who else could lose but him?

In stark contrast—

That bastard nameless hero, carrying Avalon within him, had borrowed Excalibur from King Arthur and cut him down in one strike.

He had scripted everything in advance, just waiting for Gilgamesh to walk right into the trap!

It was downright painful to watch!

"King of Heroes, shall we discuss cooperation now?" Merlin asked eagerly.

After witnessing his own death at the nameless hero's hands, would he still choose to help him?

Not even if his dignity depended on it!

"Cooperation?"

Gilgamesh glared coldly at him.

Though the version of him in the video was an insufferable chuunibyou, he couldn't deny that it was him.

In other words—

This was his darkest history, laid bare for public execution!

The whole world had seen the video, costing him countless followers!

Yet Gilgamesh bore no hatred toward Nameless. If even he despised his chuunibyou phase, how could he blame the other?

This was all Alaya's fault!

That bastard had already exposed part of his dark history in The Oldest King—why dig up more?

A mere child of nightmares, did you really think I'd turn against Nameless after watching this? Do you even dream?

After a moment's consideration, Gilgamesh nodded. "Very well."

"Pleasure doing business! I'll take my leave now!"

Merlin's face bloomed into a radiant smile.

Testing the waters, he began to retreat—only to find that Gilgamesh made no move to stop him.

This was in the bag!

Nameless fool, let's see how you wriggle out of this one!

Once he was gone...

Gilgamesh revealed a delighted smile: "Nameless, you deceived me back then, and now with this dark history exposed, this king shall repay you properly!"

"After enjoying your little show, this king will help you capture Merlin for you to deal with as you please."

He placed his right hand on his chest, gripping tightly as if grasping the future.

Whether it was watching the heartwarming drama of fatherly love or turning Merlin into Mari—

This king wanted it all!

Next.

Gilgamesh took out a Noble Phantasm to disguise himself as an ordinary person and began walking the streets.

Thus, the enthusiastic citizen Mr. Gold was born!

Achoo~

Souma, who was walking through the campus, couldn't help but sneeze.

Who's talking about me again?

But it was just a passing thought.

Ever since Alaya went on a crazy exposure spree, countless people had been searching for his whereabouts.

Souma had no choice but to conceal his presence even more thoroughly, afraid someone might track him down.

If he were discovered, it would undoubtedly ruin his peaceful retirement days.

After fighting for countless years, he'd rather die than continue!

Isn't lazing around like a salted fish the best?

After waiting a while.

The two little lolis finally returned.

He quickly went up to them: "How did it go, Illya?"

Earlier, Tamamo-no-Mae had called Illya over to ask about the videos.

This made Souma and Roya a bit worried, so they followed to check.

"Mhm, it's fine now. The Academy Director was very kind." Illya smiled sweetly.

"Glad to hear it."

Souma sighed in relief.

That fox spirit's true form was incredibly powerful—even his full mythological state would struggle against her.

"Next, we'll be welcoming three Servants. Please join me for the rehearsals," Illya said.

"Rehearsals, huh..."

Souma found it incredibly troublesome.

Trouble just kept piling up—the "surprises" from these old friends of his were truly something.

He had been desperately avoiding Servants, yet these people insisted on dragging him right to them.

Haven't I treated you all well? Why must you screw me over like this?

Well, whatever. I'll have to avoid Goldie no matter what, so that leaves King Arthur and Mordred.

That golden bastard's dark history got exposed, putting him through a brutal public execution.

Plus, back then, he sacrificed himself with that sword strike severing the connection between gods and humans, thoroughly tricking the guy.

Old grudges and new grievances piled up.

Goldie was definitely hunting for him everywhere!

Speaking of which, it's been a day since the video dropped, and he still hasn't shown up. Could he have already sneaked into Fuyuki City?

Knowing Gilgamesh, that bastard absolutely would!

No, no—probably not.

This isn't the chuuni Gilgamesh, but the wise King Gilgamesh.

A powerful Servant sneaking into Dragon Country would be no different from declaring war!

The King Gilgamesh wouldn't do something like that.

Overthinking it, overthinking it.

Once Goldie arrives in two days, wherever he goes, I'll stay far away.

Let's see how you find me then!

Souma silently steeled his resolve—he had to keep his distance.

Otherwise, with that guy's [Sha Naqba Imuru], his disguise would be seen through instantly!

"Hmph, you two going to rehearsals together... I'm so jealous!"

Roya stared at them with a face full of lemons.

She really wanted to meet the Servants up close!

Souma reached out and patted her head. "Go home by yourself. I'll make something delicious for you tonight."

"Hmph!"

Roya pouted, her envy and resentment growing.

Why not pick me?!

After watching the two leave, she stomped her feet in place before wandering off aimlessly.

Since there was still plenty of time, she thought she'd check if there were any new Heroic Spirit merchandise available—perfect timing since she'd just secretly saved up some pocket money.

As she walked down the street, someone suddenly called out to her, "Excuse me, are you a student here?"

"What is it?"

Roya gave the stranger a puzzled look.

Dressed in a sharp suit and strikingly handsome, was this guy trying to hit on her?

"Hello, I just arrived in Fuyuki City and wanted to visit Fuyuki Magecraft Academy. Would you mind showing me around?"

The man smiled warmly, his expression bright and friendly. "You can call me Mr. Gold."

***

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