Danmachi: The Multiverse Portal

New week guys, let's push!!

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Word of Tsubaki Kuruoka spread quickly to every Master in Snowfield except for Jester Karture.

Father Hansa Cervantes got the same news through the Church's communication network.

"Father, what are we supposed to do now?" The four girls assigned to him looked at their superior.

This was one of the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse... If Pale Rider fully appeared, the consequences could go far beyond the Holy Grail War. In the right situation, the ritual might even bring down the forces of Heaven.

"Nothing." Hansa raised both hands in surrender.

"The army over there isn't worried about the world ending. They're still following the rules of the Holy Grail War. They're treating the girl, but they haven't taken her Servant or stopped her from coming back once she wakes up."

Hansa knew better than most how dangerous Pale Rider was.

"This kind of appearance follows a ritual. When an innocent lamb is sacrificed, the conditions are met and the end of the world begins..." His face grew serious.

"...That would be the kind of event the Church calls the Lord's descent."

Pale Rider had chosen Tsubaki. If she died, the myth could come true—the Four Horsemen would appear, and then Heaven itself would wipe out everything left.

False Rider had picked its Master carefully. Tsubaki was just ten, and an innocent child was exactly the kind of lamb Heaven would protect.

Who would risk interfering without knowing what her death could cause?

"What has the Church said?" Hansa asked, turning toward one of the girls.

"Are they sending anyone to take over?"

"Um… no." All four shook their heads. "We haven't received any instructions. They haven't even answered our messages."

"They're scared, then." Hansa dropped the subject.

The Church had good reason to be afraid. The army in Snowfield was strong enough to take over a whole country, and its soldiers came from another world with powers no modern group could handle. Who would want to provoke them?

The Burial Agency was not coming either. Even if its members tried to enter Snowfield, the Goddesses with August could kill them before they did anything.

No one wanted to get involved in a problem with no clear end.

"We'll leave this alone for now." Hansa decided not to put more pressure on his subordinates. He understood the Church's situation.

Half of the country had fallen to another army overnight, and no one wanted to fight a foreign force that could appear and vanish at will. Those soldiers arrived without warning, took what they needed, and did not care if the world's institutions approved.

If the Church provoked them, the conflict could pull the whole world into war, and no one knew what other threats might come out of the chaos.

More importantly, August's group said they came because the World called them, with a mission to handle dangers to Human Order. The Church could not ignore that claim when even the planet seemed to accept their presence.

Now one of the Four Horsemen had appeared as well.

Somehow, Snowfield now had another way for the world to end.

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Within the False Archer faction, Tiné Chelc presented Gilgamesh with the latest report.

"My King, how should we respond?"

Tiné never thought the Holy Grail War would bring out something like Pale Rider. One question kept running through her mind.

Was the world about to end?

"Hmph. So that's what it was." Gilgamesh understood as soon as he read the report.

During his fight with Enkidu, he had felt a presence linked to death itself. If that was one of the Four Horsemen, it made sense that its power could threaten his only friend.

"Pay it no mind. If those outsiders are willing to handle the matter, leave it to them." Gilgamesh set the report aside. "This king can see that their army is composed of decent men."

He had never used Sha Naqba Imuru fully on August's soldiers, but he did not need his Noble Phantasm to judge their character. They acted differently from normal armies—their power had not made them cruel, and strict discipline kept them in check.

Men like them would be called true paladins.

They were willing to care for a sick child. They also told every faction about Tsubaki's identity and condition instead of hiding it.

Gilgamesh had no problem leaving Pale Rider to them.

"What matters is that they stand by what they say. They entered the Holy Grail War openly and haven't bothered hiding from their enemies since."

He laughed loudly.

"THEY HAVE EARNED A MEASURE OF THIS KING'S RESPECT!" Gilgamesh turned toward his Master. "Tiné, prepare a gift for them. This king permits you to deliver his praise."

"Yes, my King—"

Tiné knew what that order meant. Gilgamesh saw no betrayal in the otherworld army, and he trusted them enough to send his own Master into their territory with a gift.

That was the strongest guarantee of safety the King of Heroes ever gave.

Elsewhere, Enkidu received the same information and quickly understood Gilgamesh's decision.

"I never expected something like this to happen." Lancer turned toward the Silver Wolf Chimera. "Master, would you like to visit the other Master?"

The Silver Wolf let out a soft whine, then nodded. It could tell the humans in Snowfield were not hostile, and if Enkidu thought it was safe to approach, the Chimera had no reason to refuse.

Some factions intended to visit the hospital openly.

Others planned to watch from a distance.

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Faldeus Dioland looked at the report in disbelief.

"..." He had helped set up the Holy Grail War in Snowfield, but even he never thought the ritual would bring out one of the Four Horsemen.

"What the hell did the Kuruokas do? They were supposed to become Masters themselves. How did their daughter end up becoming one instead?"

Even worse, Tsubaki had not summoned a normal Heroic Spirit. She had called forth an omen of the apocalypse.

What were her parents trying to do...

"Where are Mr. and Mrs. Kuruoka now?" Faldeus asked his secretary.

"They haven't left their home," she answered after checking the latest surveillance reports. "Our analysts believe False Rider may already have them under its control."

"I see."

That meant questioning the couple would not help. If Pale Rider had taken control of them, they could not give any reliable answers.

Faldeus never thought their summoning would bring something that could end the world. The absurdity might have been funny if the problem was not his to solve. Now he had to figure out how to contain the situation and, more importantly, who would take responsibility.

Another possibility entered his mind.

"Lady Francesca, was this part of your scheme too?"

Faldeus knew not to ignore the immortal troublemaker's possible involvement. Francesca might have set up Pale Rider's summoning as part of her plan, and if so, this disaster was no accident.

The real question was who would be bold enough to take responsibility for the problem she caused.

—•——•——•——•——•——•—

Francesca Prelati lay on her bed, eating snacks and listening to Faldeus. When she heard the new accusation, she looked at her Servant, François Prelati, with a hurt expression.

"Do you think this has anything to do with us?"

"Of course not." François sounded almost exasperated. "If we knew how to summon one of the Four Horsemen, we would've done it ages ago. I never thought the Kuruokas had something like this up their sleeve."

Neither version of Prelati knew who was behind it. If they had arranged for Pale Rider to be summoned, they would have taken credit right away.

Unfortunately, they hadn't.

"The problem is that our allies are probably blaming us anyway," Francesca sighed.

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