Facing Kiritsugu, who was using his staff like a mace, Amakusa, whose Noble Phantasms were useless, experienced for the first time the crushing pressure of a stat advantage.
Kiritsugu's staff indeed hadn't reached the level of a Noble Phantasm, but the high-output magical power made it ridiculously hard. Amakusa felt that if this continued, his own tachi would probably break first.
"The power of the Soul Crystal is indeed terrifying." Kiritsugu's extensive combat experience was in no way inferior to Amakusa's. Amakusa, who only had one hand left, struggled to hold on, relying on a Skill similar to Revelation. However, at this moment, Amakusa instead became more determined in his thoughts, "If even a small piece like this can give you power comparable to a servant, then it would be no harder for all of humanity to come together and trigger the miracle of salvation."
Although Amakusa ignored the efforts of a certain Age of Gods Magus.
Kiritsugu also didn't bother to deal with this self-talking guy anymore. He pulled a submachine gun from under his skirt. As for why it was under the skirt, the item storage space was located at this position. Someone had requested Medea to design it this way, although Medea also felt it was very undignified.
This gun was specially made to complement the Magical Girl form. The bullets used a special material that could be enchanted, allowing its power to be increased by injecting magical power. Although the conversion rate was worrying, this weakness became insignificant under the almost infinite Magic Supply of the Soul Crystal.
Bullets poured out, forcing Amakusa to defend with Black Keys. But these were no ordinary bullets. After blocking just a few, the Black Keys would be destroyed. Amakusa did not have enough Black Keys to defend through the entire magazine.
Amakusa looked at the other servants around him, all of whom were bogged down in fierce battles. Even his own servant, Semiramis, had lost over half her combat effectiveness because she couldn't activate the Hanging Gardens. Furthermore, Bamyum was immune to the poisons she excelled in. No one would be able to come to his aid in the short term.
"To think I'd be forced into this position by a Mage Killer." Amakusa knew that if this continued, he would be the one to lose, and he could no longer hold back. "I was supposed to use this move as a trump card to seize victory, but now I can only use it on you... Like Jacob's Ladder, grant my dream the light..."
Kiritsugu knew the opponent was about to use a Noble Phantasm. He immediately emptied his magazine, but Amakusa was ready. The Black Keys, imbued with the Baptism Sacrament, spun rapidly and deflected all of Kiritsugu's bullets, forcing him to dodge. Though it only lasted a moment, for Amakusa, it was enough.
"Twin Arm Connection, pierce the world. Twin Arm: Big Crunch!"
By connecting his arms to the Leyline, he used excess magical power to overload the Magic Circuit in his arms. He simulated the material of a pseudo black hole, creating an annihilating Noble Phantasm that absorbed all surrounding existence. The surge of magical power from the EX Rank Noble Phantasm made everyone present stare in awe.
There was no escape. Kiritsugu knew instantly that he couldn't get out of the attack's range. In that case, he had to tank it head-on.
Kiritsugu poured all the magical power from the Jewel into his magical costume. In an instant, the pink skirt continuously lengthened, transforming from its previously light state into a pleated skirt. The bow on his chest bloomed like a flower. The ribbons behind him, lifted by the magical power, became as ethereal as a dream under the flood of massive magical power, resembling a pair of giant wings.
Magical Girl Mystic Code: Final Battle Version
Anyway, that's basically the deal. The special move Medea designed for the mass-produced Jewels allows them to output nearly double the magical power they can typically handle, pushing the Technique's limits for a supercharged effect. Visually, the outfit becomes more ornate as magical power accumulates, doubling both its defensive capabilities and magical output. The catch? The Technique can only sustain this state for a maximum of two minutes. After that, the overload causes the Technique on the Jewels to fail completely, resulting in the clothes disintegrating—the classic "costume burst."
Kiritsugu, who held the tactical advantage, had hoped to avoid using this move. But to survive the coming attack, he was forced to adopt this form as his Defensive Position.
Kiritsugu erected his Defensive Magic. Then, a stream of magical power, black and abyssal like a singularity of annihilation, utterly engulfed him.
An EX Rank Noble Phantasm was no joke. The barrier Kiritsugu had constructed was torn to shreds in an instant. Simultaneously, his elegant long gown was ripped into countless fragments, transforming into ownerless magical power that scattered into the air.
The truth was, even with an almost infinite Magic Supply, Medea couldn't simply create a Mystic Code capable of withstanding an EX Rank Anti-Army Noble Phantasm. After all, magical output has its limits—a threshold that even Medea couldn't overcome.
But after all, this was a collaborative creation by Jiang You and Medea. How could Jiang You let his client die so easily? After all, the intended target audience for this "product" was young, beautiful maidens.
As the spell completely unraveled, their ultimate trump card was activated: a Duel Invitation.
When the jewel lost its effect due to overload, a hidden Duel Invitation would be activated, converting the attack into a duel request.
"Sorry, but for the salvation of humanity, this sacrifice is necessary," Amakusa said, staring at the massive black vortex unleashed by his Noble Phantasm. He knew Kiritsugu was doomed. It was just a pity that others had witnessed this last-resort tactic, meaning it could no longer be used as a decisive winning move.
His answer came in the form of an Origin Bullet infused with a massive amount of magical power. A huge cavity exploded in Amakusa's chest. He had been too careless to dodge entirely, barely managing to spare his heart.
This Origin Bullet, designed to target Magic Circuit, would have had little effect on a Servant—perhaps performing only slightly better than an ordinary bullet. However, Kiritsugu had made modifications, infusing it with a small amount of Soul Crystal. Upon impact, the magical power within would detonate like explosives, creating an effect similar to a makeshift version of Black Archer's Noble Phantasm. The resulting surge of chaotic magical power would instantly rupture any organ capable of channeling it, and Servants were the perfect targets for such an attack.
"On the contrary, for the sake of humanity's salvation, you are the one who must step off the stage." Emerging from the slowly fading vortex of magical power, Kiritsugu appeared completely restored to his original, unadorned state. Holding his Encore Pistol, he unhurriedly reloaded another Origin Bullet.
"You won this round." Amakusa never imagined that his pride, his special Noble Phantasm, couldn't even kill a modern magus. He glanced at Jiang You, who was calmly watching the spectacle, and finally understood where the magical jewel comparable to a Noble Phantasm on Kiritsugu's body had come from. This Servant can summon Servants from various eras. It's only natural for him to have a Magus from the Age of Gods as his logistics support.
But precisely because of this, the salvation of the world is a truly great feat. "However, I haven't lost! Salvation will not end here! Semiramis!"
Amakusa shouted his Servant's name.