"Beast?" Romulus swept through at high speed, effortlessly reducing the monsters in his path back to their original forms. Unimpeded, he arrived at the vast cavern within Mount Enzou. Gazing at the massive aberration within, he instinctively called out its Class.
"No… no, not quite a Beast. It should be something even more terrifying." Romulus's expression grew grim. As someone specifically designed to counter Beasts, he could sense that this so-called Beast's Saint Graph was mixed with other presences, making it an extremely dangerous entity.
"As expected of a Grand Servant, truly professional," Beast praised Romulus's keen perception. "But the reason you were summoned isn't to deal with a Beast, is it?"
"You even know that?" Romulus's frown deepened. Ever since he manifested, the directive to "protect Caster" had been imprinted into his Saint Graph, ranking even higher in priority than dealing with a Beast. If this entity knew about that, it must have some connection to Jiang You.
However, as a Grand Servant, Romulus also bore the responsibility of banishing Beasts back to the Reverse Side of the World.
"It makes no difference. A battle between us is inevitable. Behold the radiance of Rome!"
"Hold on, don't be so hasty. While I have borrowed a Beast's Saint Graph, my true purpose is to ensure the survival of this planet and even the entire universe." Beast attempted to persuade Romulus. "Caster is currently experiencing a beautiful dream, and we are merely living inside it. However, he perceives his dream-self as a mortal. Eventually, as time passes, he will realize that he does not age. He will inevitably recognize that he is dreaming."
Romulus listened patiently. He, too, wanted to understand why something was using a Beast's Saint Graph in reality. Beast's explanation quickly reminded him of a familiar myth.
"'Brahma's Dream'…? So, Caster's true Saint Graph is that of Brahma?"
Brahma was a deity of the highest order. If he had manifested as a Servant, he would undoubtedly possess a Noble Phantasm tied to the exaltation of the "Brahma's Dream" legend. However, the idea that this form could influence the continuity of the universe seemed implausible—even the original deity could not do such a thing.
"Bingo! You're close, but still wrong." Beast's tail wagged rapidly in delight. "You can think of the Brahma in that myth as just another part of Caster's dream. This universe is indeed real, but we cannot let Caster deny its reality. If he does, everything will truly become a dream. He will want to 'wake up'—and then, we will all cease to exist."
Romulus did not fully trust Beast's words. The entity seemed to treat everything as a game, and some aspects of its explanation were simply too far beyond conventional understanding.
Beast spread its arms. "So, he must be trapped in eternal slumber—falling asleep again within his dream! I shall grant Caster the grandest BAD END! He must reset the timeline and remain forever in his dream!"
"So that's why you turned all of Fuyuki into hell?" Romulus had already gathered some information through his Command Seals linked to Kayneth. He needed to eliminate Beast here as quickly as possible—if it were allowed to grow unchecked, not only Fuyuki but all of human society would suffer.
"That's right! After all, his wish is to turn everyone into soul crystals. See how obedient I am? I've already collected quite a few~" Beast's tail swayed joyfully.
Romulus, now clad in the golden armor of Quirinus, prepared to strike. The "Beast" had not yet fully matured—this was the perfect time to act.
Noble Phantasm: "Per Aspera Ad Astra!"
Light seemed to be swallowed as rapid, spear-like punches bombarded Beast's body within mere milliseconds. Each strike delivered enough damage to outright destroy a second-rate Servant.
As the radiance returned, several clone Servants acting as guards had been annihilated in an instant. Only Beast remained, completely unscathed.
Beast casually patted off nonexistent dust, smiling. "Grand Lancer, your combat prowess is indeed formidable. I even went out of my way to minimize the Non-Human Survival Zone's influence to weaken you as much as possible. Yet, even so, I still can't reduce your strength to a level I can handle directly. But unfortunately for you, I have a contingency plan."
Romulus attempted to activate his Noble Phantasm, "Per Aspera Ad Astra", but no matter how hard he tried, he found himself unable to launch an attack against Beast. The sensation was eerily familiar.
"That's right! It's Caster's Noble Phantasm!" Beast laughed, accepting Romulus's challenge. "I am part of him, possessing the closest origin to his own. I am the only one capable of defeating him! Likewise, I share some of his Noble Phantasm's mechanics. Now, let's duel—Duel!"
Romulus LP: 4000□□ LP: 4000
"So, since you can't win in a direct confrontation, you intend to use Caster's Noble Phantasm to defeat me instead." Romulus understood that a Servant's deck reflected their own strength. As Rome's first king, he possessed the courage to face any challenge head-on. "Very well… Rome stands here."
"Then, I'll take the first turn!" Beast seized the initiative. "Let's see… First, let's thank Mr. Goldie for his generous sponsorship. I activate 'The First Heroic Epic', sending my entire hand to the Graveyard and sending an equal number of Equip Spells from my Deck to the Graveyard. I then draw two cards and add one Gilgamesh to my hand."
"Dumping this many cards into the Graveyard at once—I love it! And since we're helping, let's go all the way! Thank you again, Mr. Goldie. I banish three Equip Spells from my Graveyard—come forth, King of Heroes!"
Gilgamesh was summoned. Again.
He glared at Romulus, his expression filled with unmistakable annoyance.
"King of Rome, why are you only now fulfilling your duties?" Gilgamesh rolled his eyes. Aside from himself, there were now four different versions of him that had appeared on the battlefield. He felt like a public bus—anyone could take a ride. It was unbearable.
"Upon my manifestation in this world, I indeed received no information about needing to subdue the Beast," Romulus admitted. He was equally puzzled about how something could use the Beast's spiritual foundation to appear.