Miracle Summoner

Clang...

The golden urn rested silently in the hand of the Hero King seated upon the throne, its surface glowing with a faint luster.

Gilgamesh held it as though it were a wine goblet, toying with it as he gazed at Rozen with an inscrutable expression.

Under that gaze, Rozen narrowed his eyes, fixing his stare upon the Holy Grail.

Mash, Anna, and Merlin did the same—the radiance of the Holy Grail drew all eyes, and none looked away.

The staff in Chaldea erupted with joy.

"So the Holy Grail really is in Gilgamesh's hands?"

"It's almost too easy!"

"Thinking about it, it's no surprise that the Holy Grail would end up with the King of Heroes."

Olga Marie, Da Vinci, and Roman all showed renewed spirits.

As the oldest king of humanity, Gilgamesh had once declared all treasures of this era to be his property by sheer force of will.

Among those treasures were not only items humanity desired but also anything Gilgamesh deemed "worthy" of being called treasure.

For example:

Noble Phantasms imbued with mystery.

Grimoires that carried wisdom.

Elixirs capable of saving the dying.

And tools and weapons crafted by human hands.

In other words, what Gilgamesh collected were the prototypes of all human inventions, the treasures and wonders of this age.

He gathered all of this era's technologies and mysteries. Rather than mere riches, his treasury was more accurately described as a repository of the origin of human wisdom.

Because all civilizations that followed were built upon the foundation of this era, the most ancient in human history, Gilgamesh—by collecting everything valuable from this time—essentially held the prototypes of all treasures and knowledge born in the ages to come.

Because of this, the treasures Gilgamesh had amassed were revered as proof of human brilliance and intellect, stored in the Vault of Babylon.

That vault held all the mysteries of the present world and the prototypes of all future mysteries. Only Gilgamesh could open it, using the key known as the Bab-ilu—a power he wielded freely, retrieving treasures at will.

The key itself was hailed as the Key of the King's Law, and Gilgamesh was praised as one with omniscience and omnipotence in this world. Anything of value to humanity could be found in the Vault of Babylon by opening the Key of the King's Law.

The countless weapons and tools within the vault were part of Gilgamesh's arsenal. The golden ripple he opened was the door to that vault, and anything emerging from it was part of his treasure hoard. He could even unleash the mana and power stored within these items, launching them with immense destructive force.

This method of combat was exactly the same as that used by Kingu and Enkidu.

The only difference was their source: Gilgamesh fought using the weapons in his treasury, while Kingu and Enkidu drew weapons from nature and the earth. Their methods were the same, only their origins differed.

Or perhaps, this combat style had originally been developed by Gilgamesh and Enkidu together, as lifelong comrades.

If so, then it made perfect sense that Kingu's fighting style mirrored Gilgamesh's exactly.

Of course, as a wise king who had returned and resolved to restore his lineage as a Magus, Gilgamesh had sealed away most of the armaments in his treasury, only retrieving staves and Mystic Codes to perform mysteries.

But since these staves and Mystic Codes retained great sorcery from the Age of Gods—and required little to no mana from their user—they could still be used by Gilgamesh, whose mana was nearly depleted due to being summoned as a Heroic Spirit, but currently recovering. Even now, by unleashing them, he could exhibit terrifying combat strength.

Under these circumstances, Gilgamesh could retrieve any treasure from the Babylonian Vault at will.

Among those treasures was the Holy Grail, the so-called omnipotent wish-granting cauldron of magic.

Because all treasures of the world belonged solely to Gilgamesh, the Holy Grail that appeared in this era would naturally become one of his collection items.

And yet, Rozen frowned deeply and remained silent.

Noticing this, Gilgamesh gave a sly smile.

"What's wrong, Magician of the Observatory? Do you have something to say?"

He spoke with a tone as though testing something, as though gauging Rozen's worth.

Mash and the others all turned to Rozen as well.

Now that the Holy Grail had appeared, how they would retrieve it depended entirely on Rozen's actions.

Given his abilities and Gilgamesh's recognition of him, surely he had a plan—right?

That was what everyone thought.

However, they were destined to be disappointed—perhaps even shocked.

Because—

"That Holy Grail… isn't the one that the Mage King Solomon personally sent into this era, is it?"

Rozen suddenly said.

"""Huh?"""

Everyone froze on the spot.

"Oh?" Gilgamesh, however, seemed pleased, smiling approvingly. "You saw through it at a glance?"

"Yes," Rozen replied coolly. "I've already recovered nearly ten Holy Grails. Six of them were artificial constructs made by the Mage King Solomon to destabilize time. The rest were naturally occurring holy relics from different eras. Though their effects and power are similar, there's still a discernible difference between an artifact and a relic."

With the power of Wise Eye and Mind's Eye, Rozen could sense that subtle difference.

Therefore, he could say with certainty—

"The Holy Grail in your hand, King, is one born of this era's mysteries. It is not the one Solomon personally delivered to disrupt this age and create this Singularity."

He spoke with complete conviction.

"This…"

Even Mash was speechless. Everyone else seemed at a loss as well.

Only Gilgamesh let out a snort of cold laughter.

"Precisely. This Holy Grail entered my treasury long before the Singularity ever appeared—before humanity was incinerated. It is not the same as the one you seek. Even if I generously gifted it to you, it would do nothing to restore this age. Humanity wouldn't be saved. And let's not forget the threat of the Three Goddess Alliance. Unless they are defeated, humanity in this age cannot survive. History will still collapse. It would be meaningless."

With that, Gilgamesh casually tossed the golden urn into the air, letting it be swallowed by the golden ripple and vanish.

Then he continued, as though still testing Rozen.

"Now that you know all this, what do you plan to do?"

Clearly, Gilgamesh was curious about Rozen's next move.

And Rozen answered without hesitation.

"If we can't restore this era without recovering the Holy Grail, then searching for the real one must be our top priority."

Rozen lifted his eyes to meet Gilgamesh's.

"Uruk still has some time before the frontlines collapse. We must use that time to locate the Holy Grail."

In other words, they needed to divide their responsibilities.

Gilgamesh would protect the battlefront.

Rozen would search for the Holy Grail, then join forces with Uruk to dismantle the Three Goddess Alliance.

Only then could this era be repaired—and humanity, saved.