At the same time, on the far side of the Antarctic ice field—
Kirei Kotomine and his three companions had already seen through Shiomi and Morgan's intent to regroup with the surviving Chaldea members. They kept intercepting them, refusing to give them the chance to use magecraft to retreat.
No one could bring the battle to an end quickly.
The enemy, however, had the time to gradually push Shiomi and Morgan further away from the Border's path.
"Did you hear that, Master of Proper Human History?" Koyanskaya tossed aside the small radio in her hand. "Your history has ended. It's not too late to come with us."
Kirschtaria's speech had been deliberately broadcast by Koyanskaya for Shiomi to hear.
"Go with you? And why should I trust you?" Shiomi deflected the twin blades of Nameless and countered with a sharp kick that knocked aside Kirei's punch.
"The survivors of Chaldea have already begun Imaginary Numbers Submersion. You've been abandoned," Kirei explained with a slow, almost mocking smile. "Kirschtaria made it perfectly clear—there are only six Crypters, yet seven seeds exist."
Limbo gave a low hum. "I don't know how you slipped free of your path, but you, who were chosen by the 'Alien God,' were the first to break free of the coffin."
"You're saying… I was meant to be a Crypter too?" Shiomi's heart sank.
He remembered how, when he first escaped from Imaginary Numbers Space, BB had mentioned there were other 'competitors.'
So it wasn't the King of Magecraft in the Temple of Time, nor the still-slumbering Tiamat—it was the so-called Alien God.
"The order was to capture you. But it never said how. If we have to beat you into the ground and drag you back in pieces, so be it." Koyanskaya's smile was cruel.
Shiomi's refusal was immediate. "You want me to side with you? To destroy the world together? Forget it! What you're asking is nothing less than denying every effort, every sacrifice that I and everyone else have made up until now!"
"As expected of Chaldea's pillar," Kirei said, unfazed. "The man who defied the Lord's will, endured divine punishment, and still stood up again. You may reject betraying Proper Human History, but what about the witch at your side?"
Morgan, who had silently fought alongside Shiomi against the four, remained quiet. Back-to-back, she faced them with him.
"So now you try to provoke Morgan instead, to drive a wedge into our marriage?" Shiomi let out a proud laugh. "I've long known Morgan doesn't belong to our history. I don't know the details, but I know it's her burden—and it has nothing to do with schemers like you."
He had known it for a long time. That was why he had always kept the proper distance from that secret. He understood all too well that prying into it too soon would only end in bitter loss—losing her entirely.
"That's exactly what you'd say," Morgan replied, pressing her back lightly against his, her voice carrying both helplessness and quiet joy. "I knew you would."
"So, you want me to surrender to them?" Shiomi asked lightly, his gaze never leaving the enemy ahead. "If that's truly what you wish, I'll lay down my weapon."
Morgan let out a low laugh. "Don't be absurd. My husband bows to no one—not even so-called gods."
"Such high standards," Shiomi teased. "Then I suppose the answer is obvious."
Kirei held a Black Key in hand, its long, slender blade glinting cold in the snow.
"In the end, it comes to this. Very well. Everyone—strike. Don't hold back. This man won't die so easily. As for the witch, she's only intruding into this history in the form of a Servant. Kill her, and she'll simply return to her rightful place. So—"
With that, he hurled the Black Key.
It was fast, precise, aimed straight at Shiomi's throat. But because it was too precise, Shiomi read his intent easily and knocked it aside.
The throw was only a feint. A dozen grenades rained down like hail.
Shiomi grabbed Morgan, pulling her with him as they rolled down the snowy slope, landing on their feet below.
"Grenades laced with explosive magecraft," Shiomi muttered, watching as the blast sheared away the mountaintop. "Pretty up-to-date."
Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh—
Arrows cut through the smoke.
"Hrunting."
Once released, this Noble Phantasm would pursue its target relentlessly until it struck. The only way to stop it was to completely destroy each arrow.
Another explosion erupted.
Nameless's detonation tactics once again drove the two further back.
"We don't have much time. We need to find a way out of Antarctica."
Morgan looked toward the mass of soldiers gathering at the foot of the mountain.
The bird-masked soldiers were closing in from all sides. Under the combined assault of Kirei and his group—switching between blades, firearms, and Yin-Yang magecraft—Shiomi and Morgan were soon forced down the slope and into a tightening encirclement.
It wouldn't be long before the four bizarrely powerful Servants and the countless soldiers drained them of their last drop of mana. Morgan would be killed and forced to retreat, and Shiomi, left powerless, would be captured—turned into the seventh Crypter who betrayed Proper Human History.
"What do you think will happen to us?"
Shiomi summoned trees bursting through the ice to block the incoming gunfire, giving them both a moment to counter with magecraft.
"…I'm sorry. I don't know," Morgan said suddenly, her voice tinged with regret. "But I won't betray you."
"Don't say something I've always known."
Shiomi slammed his spear into the ground. A blizzard spread outward in the Antarctic cold, instantly freezing the soldiers nearest to them. But the effect weakened with distance. To capture tens of thousands like this was nothing more than wishful thinking.
"At least give me enough time to set up magecraft on that scale," Shiomi muttered coldly, casting a glance toward Kirei and the others.
The four had been observing quietly, watching them weather this battle of attrition with calm amusement.
Just as Shiomi was weighing whether to risk a breakthrough at the weakest point of the formation, a voice rang out.
"Ready? Time to retreat."
"BB?" Shiomi recognized it instantly.
"…I knew it," Morgan said, her face softening into a smile of relief.
And then, just like that, the two who had been fighting so fiercely vanished, leaving only the bewildered soldiers glancing about for their lost prey.
"Oh my, now this is…" Kirei let out a detached smile. "So they had a means of escape after all. Seems I underestimated them."
Koyanskaya scowled.
"They slipped away over there, and now here too. In the end, we achieved nothing, Mr. Rasputin."
"We're done here," Nameless said flatly, turning to leave.
"I too have pressing matters. I'll take my leave."
"Already calling it a day, Mr. Nameless? And you as well, Mr. Limbo?"
Koyanskaya gave her parting words before walking off.
Only Kirei lingered where the two had vanished, quietly surveying the empty encirclement.