Nothing says based on a light novel like three mortal enemies who are trying to kill each other having a leisurely garden party as they discuss philosophy over a barrel of wine. Only a light novel would have such a long conversation in the middle of a war. But don’t worry. This episode is nor completely a roundtable think tank on what it means to be a king. Rider unveils his greatest trump card and it is quite a doosey. Also the first Servant falls in the Holy Grail war and it is oddly enough not Caster who lives to commit atrocities another day. In the end there was a huge heaping of  Saber this episode so I was a happy camper even if she was rather emotionally tormented the whole time.

After Kayneth‘s assault is seems that Einzbern castle has another invader. But this invader has come for conversation and not murder. Rider gathers the three Kings of the war to discuss why they think themselves worthy of the Grail. The larger than life King of Conquerors, the penitent King of Knights, and the haughty King of Rapists Heores meet over some vino. Each gives their reasons for needing the omnipotent power of a true wish and how it ties into their philosophy of leadership. But an unexpected party crasher cuts the debate short as Rider shows the best way to deal with an army of assassins.

Rider storms in the front door on his chariot and Saber naturally assumes that she will have to thrown down with Rider. But when she arrives downstairs she find Rider still in his civvies with a cask of wine. It seems that Iskander has not given up on his wish to end the Holy Grail War with as little bloodshed as possible. And so they head off the garden to talk with everyone BUT Rider still greatly uneasy. You can tell that Waver and Irisviel are innately aware of how vulnerable they are compared to their super-powered servants even when there is no violence going down.

Iskander proves himself a Bro for all ages and cracks open the only size portion of human wine fit for a Heroic Spirit. Saber then proceeds to show him that she can drink like one of the boys. Since she used to have to spend most of her free time with the Knights of the Round Table in her days as King Arthur she surely developed a legendary tolerance. Rider wishes to discuss what it means to be a King worthy of the Holy Grail. He proposes that if one of them can clearly prove that they are the most worthy then the others will perhaps bow down and let the victor claim his prize. But that means that one more King must be in attendance. So enters Gilgamesh.

If Waver and Irisviel were worried before then they are terrified now that the Golden King has come to chat. Rider and Saber have both proven themselves as honorable souls but Gilgamesh is the kind to kill you as quickly as most people would squash a bug. But Gil seems willing to play along to see what the other two have to say. While they might be pretender kings in his eyes they are at least interesting frauds. Plus it surely beats sitting on his hands waiting for Tokiomi to finally let him make a move. But the thing he will not stand for is Rider’s barrel of Two Buck Chuck. He then shows that he can pull more than just weapons from the Gate of Babylon. He also has treasures like the finest spirits in the world as well. Apparently this also means that when Gilgamesh was drinking all of Tokiomi expensive alcohol he was doing it more to stick it to his boring Master because he has a near infinite supply of nectar quality drinks at his disposal.

According to Gilgamesh he is not in the Holy Grail war because he needs the Grail as much as he does not want anyone else to have it besides himself. If all the best things in the world are his then obviously the Grail should be his as well. All these other fools are thieves who will be punished for their arrogance. Gilgamesh’s philosophy is simple. He does not rule because he is the smartest, the strongest, or the boldest. He rules because that is simply the way of the world. The sun rises in the east, gravity makes all objects fall at 9.8 m/s², everyone and everything eventually dies, and Gilgamesh is always the pinnacle. That is just how things are. Since his rule is innate then everything he does is innately correct. He simply cannot see himself as being wrong.

Past that point Gilgamesh lets the other two talk to amuse him. We learn that Rider’s goal is simple. He wishes to live again after the Holy Grail War. He is not just content to win this battle. If he wins he wishes to live again in the modern world. Saber sees this as selfish. Rider agrees but in his opinion that is what makes a king great. A king must be selfish to be a true king. In return for the populace serving to the whims of their absolute ruler they reap the benefits of a champion who will do everything to make their nation great. Rider sees a proper state as a symbiotic relationship but with one that clearly and absolutely has him at the top.

Saber on the other hand see the king as a servant of the people. While she has the position it is a heavy burden. The king has the most power but also the most responsibility. The king asks for countless sacrifices from the people but in return must make their life a life of sacrifice as well. We see the burden on her in Fate/Stay Night as well her wish to have another been chosen by Caliburn. But Rider calls her on her story. While she had noble ideals her valiant self-sacrifice meant that there was none of herself in her rule. You can see that this idea shakes her to her core. In fact it goes to explain much of her reaction to Shiro and his fanatical devotion to saving everyone at the expense of himself. She sees Shiro making the same mistakes she did and is angry that he is just as blind to the costs.

In the middle of the discussion of the qualification of a king comes a major disruption. Beforehand the Assassins came in smalls cells and mostly observed their fellow Servants. Tokiomi saw his chance with two servants apparently unprepared and Gilgamesh at the ready. He has Kirei attack with all the remaining Assassins. So it seems the heroes are outgunned even with Gilgamesh remaining a neutral party. What Tokiomi did not know is that Rider has an army of his own. He summons his greatest Nobel Phantasm a reality marble called Ionioi Hetairoi. He summons all the soldiers under him as Alexander the Great. Each member of his army acting as a minor Heroic Spirit in their own right. So while the Assassins are a small battalion of killers Rider’s army is a full field army that is an order of magnitude larger. They quickly make mince meat of the Assassins without even breaking a sweat.

Am I the only one who thought it was obvious that Rider was inspired by Raoh from Fist of the North Star? They are both ultra powerful physical warriors who are like giant upright bears made of muscles upon muscles. They both have legions of crack warriors in a world of endless desert. They both live life without regret and believe in the rule of the strong. And the both have demonic black horses that are just as fearsome as they are. I half expected Rider to whip out some Hokuto Shinken in this battle.

Two notes about Rider’s amazing Nobel Phantasm. The first is the long black-haired man seen above in the Ionioi Hetairoi. Eva_sama noted that he looks like Lord El-Melloi II. Lord El-Melloi II is the name that Waver goes under during the time of Fate/Hollow Ataraxia so it might actually be Lord El-Melloi II. Since Servants and Nobel Phantasm exist outside of the flow of time it is possible for his army to have soldiers from ANY TIME. Even followers from the future. Remember that Archer from Fate/Stay Night is actually from an unspecified time in the future so why can’t Rider’s soldiers come from the future as well. The last note is maybe Rider’s Nobel Phantasm shows he is not as greedy as he might first appear. I think that he wants to live again because that also means that his army can live again too. As he said in his speech to Saber sometimes the greed of the King can lead to the benefit for the people. This is the clearest example of that.

With the first Servant officially killed the drinking party has ended. Rider notes that he is disappointed in Saber and no longer see her as a King. He mentions her waking from her dream which is extremely profound in relation to her ending in the Fate scenario. Gilgamesh on the other hand only seems to be intrigued by her relentless philosophy and states that he has his eye on her as another wonderful treasure he wishes to own. The episode then ends with an interesting bit of foreshadowing as Saber mentions a certain knight who left the round table.

I don’t know what other people thought by I loved the conversation between Rider and Saber in this episode. It gives an amazing amount of insight into the pain that Saber carries in her chest. It shows how she lived a selfless life and continually regretted her decisions. As someone who lives with an unusual amount of needless regret it showcases why I have have an affinity for her. With that out-of-the-way there is only one episode left for this season. I had originally thought the season would end with the showdown with Caster but I am now wondering if they will save that battle for the beginning of the second season. Either way I can’t wait to see how they cap of this amazing cour.