"I, S, K, A, A, A, A, N, D, A, A, A, A, R…"

  Darius III roared, his form once again shifting into something resembling an alp. The undead war elephaed from beh him, their decayed forms shaking the earth as the undead army surged forward, rising from the ground like an uing tide.

  "Charge!!!"

  The armies of both sides took their positions without hesitation. Iskandar, the King of querors, led his cavalry with a thunderous roar, his chariot cutting a path through the battlefield. Tens of thousands of mounted warriors surged forward, a torrential force aimed straight at the heart of the Undead Legion.

  The momentum was with Iskandar. As the cavalry charged, he activated his Noble Phantasm, The surge of magical energy bolstered his troops, and the Undead Legion was swiftly scattered, uo withstand the ferocity of the charge.

  But Iskandar's forces weren't here to entahemselves with the undead. Their objective was clear: decapitation. Their primary target was the War Elephants of Death, the massive creatures serving as the erstone of Darius III's army.

  Having learned from yesterday's losses, the strategy today was focused and precise.

  "Kill!!!"

  Darius III was no fonizing their strategy, he mounted one of the enormous war elephants, his golden axes gleaming in the moonlight. The colossal beast under him trumpeted as he charged forward to meet Iskandar's forces head-on.

  The queror's army shifted tactistantly. Employing a roaming assault, they swarmed the war elephants, weaving in and out of the beasts' range while hurling spears and shooting arrows with calcuted precision.

  "Moo!!!"

  From the fnk, the Divine Bull, Iskandar's steadfast panio out a ferocious bellow and barreled into one of the war elephants. Its sheer strength sent the undead monstrosity reeling, its enormous frame staggering sideways before it colpsed to the ground.

  Darius III was visibly startled. His mind raced: How has the Bull grown this powerful?

  The answer y in an item Iskandar had acquired earlier. At Kayh's suggestion, he had equipped himself with the Fantasy Seed, a magical artifact Kayh had previously obtained but found no use for. This enha granted a Rider-css Servant a 15% boost to their Noble Phantasm's power, and an additional 25% if the Servant possessed a mount.

  A quarter increase in strength was a game-ger, allowing Iskandar's forces to domihe battlefield.

  But Darius III wasn't without his own trump cards.

  "Oooouuuuugh!!!"

  With a guttural roar, Darius III anded his Undead Legion to unleash its hidden potential. The scattered undead soldiers suddenly grew frenzied, breaking past Iskandar's cavalry te with the war elephants.

  Before the eyes of the battlefield's onlookers, the War Elephants of Death transformed. The amalgamation of undead soldiers and war elephants created an enormous monstrosity, a huimes rger than before.

  This was the true form of Darius III's Noble Phantasm, "Athanatohousand".

  Uhe fragmented appearance of the undead army, the Noble Phantasm uhem into ohe now-massive War Elephant of Death loomed over the battlefield, its grotesque form t above Iskandar's army.

  From a safe vantage point, Chihiro watg the battle closely couldn't help but pare the se to Ivaerrible, the Lostbelt King of Russia, who famously rode a mammoth fused with his own body.

  The key difference, Chihiro noted, was that Darius III was trolling his War Elephant of Death, rather than merging with it. This distin presented a critical weakness.

  "Kill!!!"

  Darius III, standing atop the massive beast, gave his orders. Each step of the colossal war elephant crushed dozens of Iskandar's soldiers underfoot, the sheer scale of the monster making it seem invincible.

  Iskandar's forces, valiant as they were, found their attacks iive against the gargantuan foe.

  "It seems that the only one who deal with this is you," Waver ented nervously from the sidelines.

  Beside him, El-Melloi II looked grim. "My Uurning Formation has been pletely destroyed, and I o longer support the battlefield in this state."

  "Ah, o worry," Iskandar replied with his usual fidence. "Victory will be ours soon enough!"

  "Moo!!!"

  With a thundering charge, the Divine Bull made its move, rushing towards the War Elephant of Death and causing a signifit distra. Its nimbleness gave it an edge against the enormous but slow-movi, which struggled to match the bull's speed.

  In mere moments, Iskandar leapt from his chariot onto the back of the War Elephant of Death.

  "I, S, K, A, A, A, A, N, D, A, A, A, A, A, R…"

  Darius III bellowed his battle cry as he rushed forward, brandishing his twin golden axes.

  "e, King of Persia!" Iskandar shouted in response, drawing his bde to meet his oppo head-on.

  The two cshed in a ferocious duel atop the enormous creature. Below them, the Divine Bull tis assault, keeping the War Elephant of Death distracted and off bance.

  The battle was an awe-inspiring sight, a reminder of the brutal yet heroic warfare of aimes. Despite knowing the seemingly insurmountable odds, Iskandar's soldiers tiheir charge, inspired by their king's fearless example.

  Even as the chariot was destroyed, the Bull fearlessly collided with the War Elephant, sacrifig itself to buy preoments for its master.

  The tension in the air alpable. Observers from both sides watched in sileheir breaths held as the duel raged on.

  Finally, after what seemed like ay, the oute was decided.

  "Phew… King of Persia, I win again this time."

  Standing atop the now-fallen War Elephant of Death, Iskandar grihrough blood-streaked lips. His body was covered in wounds, and his left arm dangled, severed at the elbow.

  Darius III, equally battered, had lost one of his horns and was on the brink of colpse.

  Despite his overwhelming strength as a Berserker, Darius III had fallen victim to Iskandar's superior tactics. By feinting and then striking the oints of his foe, Iskandar had mao nd a critical blow that severed Darius III's spiritual foundation.

  Though it cost him his arm, Iskandar's decisive strike secured his victory.

  "I, S, K, D, A, R…"

  As the st remnants of his power faded, Darius III stretched out a hand towards Iskandar. But his time had run out. The massive War Elephant of Death disied into golden light, along with its master.

  The moment Darius III vanished, Iskandar fell from the air. The Divine Bull, though battered and weakened, caught him and safely returned him to the ground.

  "Victory! Victory! Victory!"

  The soldiers of Iskandar's army erupted into cheers, surrounding their king in celebration.

  "Yes, we've won!" Iskandar shouted, his booming voice filled with joy, utterly uned about his injuries.

  "I didn't expect the King of querors to triumph in the end…" Tokiomi remarked, his voice tinged with awe as he observed the se from afar.

  Darius III could have worn down Iskandar's forces with his undead army. Yet he chose io ehe King of querors in single bat. Perhaps, to Darius III, vieant nothing if it didn't e by his own hands. Tokiomi reflected

  "Rider, you…"

  The battle over, Waver hurried over to Iskandar's side. Seeing his Servant's bloodied and broken form, Waver struggled to find the words.

  "Hahaha! What's with that face?" Iskandar said, ughing as he cpped Waver on the shoulder with his bloody hand.

  "You bastard…" Waver muttered, exasperated as he noticed the bloody handprint now staining his clothes.

  "King of querors," The First Emperor, who had been silently the battle as usual, stepped forward and interjected.

  "Sihe battle is over, why don't you lower your Reality Marble?"

  "Hahaha! As expected of you," Iskandar said, raising his sword triumphantly. "You've seen through my iions already."

  With the battlefield calm, Iskandar turoward a new challehe First Emperor.

  "Now it's our turn to decide the victor," Iskandar decred boldly, raising his sword high. His voice echoed across the battlefield.

  "You, Ying Zheng—are you willing to accept this king's challenge?"

  The First Emperor, Ying Zheng, regarded Iskandar with a calm expression. There was no surprise in his eyes; it was evident he had anticipated this moment.

  Waver, oher hand, was far less posed. "What are you saying?!" he excimed, panig his voice. "You're already in this state, a you still want to tinue?!"

  "My journey of quest will not stop just because of this," Iskandar replied resolutely, his words carrying a weight of unshakable determination.

  Ying Zheng's lips curved into a faint smile. "Very well, King Iskandar. Your fearlessness impresses me. I accept your challenge."

  With a simple gesture, Ying Zheng produced a small vial, a healing potion he had obtained from one of the treasure chests. "Take this. You'll to be a proper oppo."

  Iskandar caught the vial mid-air, studying it for a moment befhing. "You'd so readily heal your enemy?"

  Without hesitation, he uncorked the potion and drank it in one gulp. Instantly, the wounds on his body began to heal, flesh and skin knitting together rapidly. The bloodstains on his body remained as evidence of the ferocity of his earlier battle, but the injuries themselves were gone.

  Seeing this, El-Melloi II hurried to locate Iskandar's severed arm and brought it over. With quick thinking, they reattached it before the potion's effects faded entirely. In mere moments, Iskandar stood as if he had never been wouhough his blood-streaked armor bore testament to the trials he had endured.

  "e, Ying Zheng!" Iskandar called out as he mounted Bucephalus. With his chariot destroyed, his trusted steed would carry him to this battle.

  As Iskandar finished speaking, a rumbling sound filled the air. From beh the battlefield, majestic walls began to rise, their sheer scale and grandeur leaving onlookers in awe.

  These were no ordinary fortifications, they were the Great Wall, stretg endlessly in all dires, its t preseestament to the First Emperor's ambition and legacy.

  "The Great Wall!" Tokiomi excimed from a distance, instantly reizing the iic structure.

  "So this is your Noble Phantasm," Iskandar muttered, his eyes gleaming with excitement.

  "The Great Wall will never fall," Ying Zheng decred as the treasure fully materialized. Along its length, rows of soldiers appeared, their armlinting uhe moonlight. These were the warriors who once defehe Great Wall during their lives, now summoned as part of the Emperor's Noble Phantasm.

  "King of querors," Ying Zheng called out from atop a massive bea tower, his voice firm. "e If you think you break through the first line of defense of this Great Qin!"

  Iskandar ughed heartily at the challenge. "A wall, no matter how grand, ot halt my quest!"

  ***

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