[T/N: Sorry guys, Caught a real bad cold, Hope this scheduled chapter reaches you without problems. There probably won't be any more chapters this coming week. However don't worry, your PS aren't wasted, I will remember one extra mass update. So including the next week, I owe you about 9 chapters.
Stay healthy and Enjoy!]
Suppressing the surge of battle-lust boiling inside him, Darnic strode deeper into the forest. Before long, the dense trees that obstructed his vision gave way, revealing the sight of a grand and imposing castle.
Darnic had long heard of the Einzbern family's wealth and long-standing prestige. But even with such knowledge, he had never imagined they would lavish such extravagance to construct a castle of this scale in a land far from their homeland.
"The heart of the barrier lies within that castle. If all goes according to plan, we might even claim it as a base of operations moving forward."
His sharp eyes swept over the structure, already calculating how best to seize it for himself.
Though he remained wary, Darnic allowed a hint of relaxation to creep in.
Lancer was by his side, a supreme Heroic Spirit capable of standing against the King of Heroes himself. With such a Servant, ambushes held little fear for him.
All they needed was to strike swiftly, crush their opposition before they could mount a defense.
"Master, have you thought this through?"
Lancer's calm voice held none of the optimism Darnic felt. His jade eyes, tranquil yet piercing, turned toward his Master.
"With the cover of the forest, we can bypass the outer barrier unnoticed. But a core workshop like this? Remaining undetected is all but impossible. The moment we strike, those inside will sense us. If you wish to prevent them from invoking Command Spells, the most effective method would be for me to rush in and eliminate the Master immediately."
"That would be a waste," Darnic replied evenly, his tone devoid of doubt. "In this state, I rely entirely on this talisman. But that power I gain from it is merely borrowed, passive sacrifices sustaining me like a rootless weed drifting on the water. Each time I endure, the obsession and memories that make up my soul must consume other souls to replenish themselves."
"What I require isn't mana alone, but the very essence that stabilizes my existence. Only those who have stepped upon the path of Magecraft can provide a fitting supplement."
"And so… what do you intend to do?"
Enkidu's serene smile never faltered. His long, lustrous hair shimmered in the moonlight, swaying gently with his movements, a sight of inhuman beauty.
"…Hmph."
For the briefest moment, Darnic's thoughts wandered at that ethereal grace. But he shook it off with a curt snort.
"Magic, of course."
He had yet to receive an official ranking from the Association, but with the whispered revelations from his possession by the Holy Lord and the might of the Sheep Talisman, Darnic's current craft placed him among the highest tier of modern magi.
"Abandoning my physical shell brings its advantages. By fusing my soul to this talisman, I can weave a spell through soulcraft, resonating with the Sheep Talisman to draw forth its authority."
"An unbroken spell…" Lancer murmured.
"That much suffices. Without the proper wards, their souls will reel from the shock, leaving mind and body sundered, disoriented, defenseless."
"A terrifying artifact indeed. One that toys with the soul itself."
Enkidu tilted his head slightly, amused, the faintest note of curiosity coloring his words.
Darnic spared his Servant no reply. Loyalty though absolute, he knew it was not to him as an individual, but to the collective consciousness he represented.
No matter. Obedience was all that mattered.
He brought his palms together, pressing them lightly against the soul-disc embedded in his chest. Mana flowed from his fingertips as his lips began to shape the incantation.
A light beyond description erupted in the next breath, rippling outward like a tidal wave, an assault that battered the soul itself. To an ordinary man, the slightest touch of that brilliance would consign them to eternal coma.
Yet when the radiance reached the inner gates of the castle, it vanished without a trace, snuffed out as if it had fallen into an endless sea.
In its place came a true cry of agony.
"AAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!"
Darnic's howl tore through the night, hoarse and raw. The magic circuits across his body convulsed violently, arcs of blinding azure lightning coiling around him as white smoke billowed skyward.
Had it been mere physical trauma, Darnic could have retained control. Such had been the case even when struck by the Origin Bullet. His mode of existence was akin to piloting a colossal machine, so long as the cockpit endured keeping the pilot safe, all else could be repaired.
But this, this was different.
From his magic circuits burst turquoise lightning like blooming flowers, each petal unfurling into writhing tendrils. They lashed out like living things, spearing toward the soul-disc on his chest, shattering every fragment of his consciousness in a single merciless instant.
A backlash of the soul. The contract 's judgment.
A grim reminder, and the price of transgression against the other party
"Lan…cer…!!"
He could not even shape the full command before oblivion swallowed him whole.
The heavy gates creaked open from within.
"…What's with all the noise? Feels like someone's been screaming in my ear while I was trying to sleep."
Roland emerged, rubbing his temple with an air of mild irritation, his gaze falling upon the unconscious Darnic, then gazing towards the Servant who stood before him with a curious expression.
"Where did you come from, are you.....a god? Even though the shock just now wasn't directed at me, I could still sense the threat. Even a normal Servant would become immobile"
"Simply because their souls are far too fragile," Roland replied ignoring answering lancer's question, his voice calm yet carrying weight. "I won't trouble myself asking why you're here. It's irrelevant now. The alliance lies in ruins our relationship returns to what it should be."
His eyes gleamed as they fixed on Lancer. "You don't seem fond of your Master. Care to switch sides?"
"No." Lancer's gaze flicked briefly to Darnic's prone form before softening. "If this is their decision, I will remain their shield."
"Is that so? Even knowing that at this range, you can't hope to protect them?"
Roland's lips curled into a predatory grin as he strode forward.
"Because I am a weapon," came the quiet answer. "Without orders, I have but one path."
When joined to the collective will Yggdmillennia, Enkidu entertained many thoughts. But when he stood as Darnic's blade, he cast them aside, embracing obedience with tranquil resolve.
He had died once. He had gained a heart. Yet that warmth was reserved for nature, for peers, for friends. In all else, he remained an unyielding tool of battle.
And in that simplicity lay his strength.
Roland drew closer. Enkidu's serene smile did not waver.
"Unknown God… I suppose I'll have to get serious."
He did not summon the Noble Phantasm slumbering in the earth, It would endanger the Master. Nor did he flee, Roland's presence, vast and alien, rendered flight meaningless.
But fear? There was none.
For Enkidu was a weapon forged to bind gods. Even before divinity itself, he would not falter.
"—KAAAAAAALLAALAAAAANNNGGH!!!"
Chains erupted from the void.
From soil and sky, from branch and trunk, and even from Enkidu's own flesh, phantasmal links surged forth in a storm of steel, clashing with a metallic chorus as they streaked toward Roland like bolts of judgment.
From his throat to his wrists, from waist to ankles, every limb, every joint, ensnared tight.
The holier the god, the more helpless before these chains.
Such was the law etched into their essence.
Yet tonight, that law was shattered.
"…The Chains of Heavens aren't that tough!"
The words caught in Enkidu's throat, drowned by the roar of laughter that split the night.
"MUDA MUDA MUDA!!!"
Roland bellowed with savage smirk, muscles coiling like steel cables as raw force detonated from his frame. The divine restraints snapped like brittle twigs, fragmenting into motes of spirit light that scattered and died.
And then
Flames surged like a wrathful tide, devouring the very air. The world blazed red as the inferno carved a scar across the night, and hurled Enkidu earthward with cataclysmic force!