Shirou and Amelia stood side by side, breathing heavily as they watched in disbelief. Daito's body, which had just fallen, was once again rising.
"…Even that didn't kill him," Amelia whispered, her voice shaking. Fear crept into her eyes.
Before either of them could move, the tendrils lashed out again—faster and more vicious than ever.
"Get down!" Shirou shouted, grabbing Amelia and rolling to the side as the tendrils tore through the space they'd just occupied. The air cracked from the pressure.
Shirou stood up, panting. His arms trembled. "He's getting more reckless… faster, yes, but sloppier," he muttered.
Amelia knelt on the ground beside him, dazed. "Shirou… we can't win. Not like this. His attacks are faster than before. Stronger."
A tendril came again. Shirou swung his sword, flames bursting out. "Ashbringer—Inferno Surge!"
The vortex of fire met the tendril head-on. This time, it didn't disperse like before. Instead, it left behind a faint burn on the writhing black mass.
Shirou's eyes narrowed. "It hurt him."
He looked at Amelia and smiled slightly through his exhaustion. "Hey. Didn't I promise we'd walk out of here together? That I'd get you to meet the Violet Reaper?" He paused, his smile turning teasing. "And that you still owe me free food from your café?"
Amelia blinked, her breath hitching. Shirou's voice—so calm, so sure—made something flicker in her chest.
He stepped forward again, standing protectively in front of her as another tendril lashed toward them.
"Ashbringer—Phoenix Burst!"
Flames erupted again in a wide arc, blinding and wild, crashing toward Daito. He raised his tendrils and swiped through the flames, dispersing the wave. When the smoke cleared, Shirou stood alone before him. Behind, Amelia remained on her knees.
Daito smirked. "Trying to protect her again? Your little tricks won't work twice."
The tendrils shot forward. Shirou didn't move.
Instead, he ran straight at Daito.
Each step closer, Shirou could see it—Daito's movements were off. His aim was shaky. The flow of mana from his body was unstable.
"He's scared."
The first tendril whipped forward. Shirou twisted his body and dodged cleanly.
The second—ducked under.
The third came from the side. He slid beneath it.
And then Shirou saw it.
In Daito's eyes—not arrogance, not laughter, not bloodlust. Fear.
Real fear.Fear of death.
"His attacks are full of openings."
The fourth tendril came, and Shirou leapt over it.
The final one was aimed from the side. Shirou didn't even flinch.
At the last moment, it weakened.
"Now!"
"Ashbringer—Flame Edge!"
Crimson flames surged along the blade as Shirou drove the sword forward, plunging it through Daito's chest and into his heart.
Shirou locked eyes with him. "This one's for Elliot."
Daito gasped, tendrils flailing. "No… I can't… die…"
One by one, the tendrils lost their strength, falling lifeless to the ground.
Shirou retracted the blade and, with a swift step forward, swung it once more.
The edge passed clean through Daito's neck.
His head rolled to the side, and his body collapsed with a dull thud.
Silence.
"…Is it over?" Amelia asked, her voice barely audible.
A system prompt appeared before Shirou.
[You have defeated Daito.]
He lowered his sword, shoulders relaxing. "Yeah… It's over."
[You have levelled up.]
Shirou glanced back at Amelia. She was sitting beside what remained of Elliot's body. Her expression was blank, her hands trembling.
He didn't say anything. He wanted to give her the space she needed.
Another prompt appeared.
[Skill Extraction Activated.]
"Oh right," he thought.
[Selecting Skill…]
[Skill Acquired – Passive Immortality (5/5)]
Shirou froze.
"Wait… what?"
[Passive Immortality – User can revive from death. All injuries and stats are restored upon reviving. Remaining uses: 5/5]
"That's what it was?" he muttered, eyes narrowing as he stared at Daito's corpse. "So it was a skill… Five lives? Then that means… he already used two before we fought?"
Shirou didn't have time to reflect on it.
He looked at the magical beast inside the transparent sphere. Its body had turned faint, almost see-through.
"…I still have things to do."
He approached the sphere and swung his sword. Flames swept across the floor, destroying the magic circles and enchantments binding the beast.
Then, with one clean strike, the glass shattered.
The creature stepped out—a magnificent blue beast resembling a tiger, its glowing body shifting like mist. It stared directly at Shirou.
"You can go now," Shirou said gently.
The beast tilted its head. "You are… different."
Shirou paused. "What do you mean?"
"You can hear me?"
Shirou blinked. "Yes, is that supposed to be a problem?"
The beast stared in surprise. "Up until now, no human has ever been able to understand us."
"…Must be my Omnilingual skill," Shirou thought. "Anyway, what did you mean by different?"
"Your mana," the beast said. "It flows through you naturally. Smooth. Even while fighting, it never wavered. That sword—it's not a tool. It's a part of you. And you can speak to us."
Shirou gave a sheepish laugh. "I actually don't remember much about my past…"
The beast glanced away, its body flickering.
"You look… transparent. Are you alright?"
"That device drained almost half of my mana. I can regenerate it… But it'll take at least half a decade."
"Still, that's not bad," Shirou said.
"I won't be staying here, though. This world… It's destined to be doomed anyway. It's already a lost cause."
"…What do you mean?" Shirou asked, but the beast didn't answer.
Instead, it leapt straight toward him—vanishing into his body like a breath of wind.
[External Mana Source Detected.]
Shirou's eyes widened. "What the—?!"
[Scanning… Pure Mana Detected.]
[Integrating with User Mana Core…]
Shirou staggered slightly as he felt the mana spread inside him—clean, weightless, pure.
[Integration Successful.]
[+60 Mana Points]
[+350 EXP]
[You have levelled up.]
[New Skill Acquired – Mana Detection.]
"…So the system thinks I defeated it?" Shirou muttered. "But there was no skill extraction this time. Guess since it merged with me, it was different."
He opened his status window and focused on the new skill.
[Mana Detection – Detect and differentiate mana signatures efficiently within 500 meters.]
"Ok, that's useful, but still that beast… it entered me. Why? And what did it mean by 'the world is a lost cause'?" Shirou thought.
A voice broke his thoughts. "Shirou."
He turned. Amelia was standing. Her voice was quiet, her face pale.
"Let's leave."
"…What about Elliot?"
"This involves Crimson Eclipse. Official investigators will come. Until then, we… can't do anything."
She turned and began walking slowly toward the tunnel they had come through.
Shirou looked at her, at the bloodied cloth tied around her stomach, her staggered steps. Then he looked at Elliot's body one last time and followed.
They walked together, side by side. Neither spoke.
Along the way, Shirou activated Mana Detection. Immediately, his senses expanded. He could feel every signature nearby—each one distinct, like a fingerprint. He sensed Amelia beside him. Above, the guards. All slightly different.
"I don't sense any threats"
They stopped beneath the hole and nodded to each other before leaping up, emerging back inside the mansion.
Lucus stood there waiting, eyes wide in relief. "You're back. That means… the man is—"
He stopped.
Shirou turned and met his gaze. Lucus froze, suddenly pale.
Shirou said nothing and walked past him.
He and Amelia exited the mansion. The wind outside was cool. The battlefield was still, quiet.
"Where to now?" Amelia asked softly.
Shirou turned. "We patch ourselves up. Then we—"
He stopped.
Amelia did too.
They both stared ahead.
A man stood in the field. Blue hair fluttered in the breeze. On his hand was the same red triangle symbol Daito had.
Shirou's fingers tightened around Ashbringer.
"I didn't sense him… even with Mana Detection. Means he just got here."
He glanced at the circular device in his palm.
"I take it Daito failed. Not surprising. He was always too full of himself just because he had five lives. Didn't learn a damn thing even after losing two last time."
His thumb flicked across the surface. "The magical beast's signal is gone too."
Shirou and Amelia instantly dropped into battle stances—
—but the moment the man released his mana, everything changed.
A tidal wave of pressure crashed down on them, so dense and overwhelming that it felt like the air itself had turned solid.
Shirou gritted his teeth. Amelia clung to his hand like a lifeline.
Her voice was barely a whisper.
"He's… on a whole different level…"
Shirou felt her trembling. Her hand was cold, her grip desperate.
Still, he managed a shaky smile."Hey… we've faced worse. I promised you—we'll walk out of this, together—"
He didn't get to finish.
A sudden, sharp arc of blue light cut through the air.
It passed just inches from Shirou's face, slicing the air clean—and something warm splattered across his cheek.
Blood.
But… not his.
He froze.
His eyes didn't even have time to register what happened—only his ears did.
Thump.
Something hit the ground. Rolled once.
Then again.
His heart sank.
No…
Amelia's hand—her warmth—her grip on his fingers—was suddenly gone.
Shirou couldn't bring himself to look.
His breath caught in his throat. The world around him seemed to muffle, the sounds fading into a low, haunting hum.
But then, the silence was broken by the soft collapse of her body hitting the dirt beside him.
Time stopped.
Shirou's eyes—slowly, unwillingly—turned.
Amelia lay there. Still. Unmoving.
A pool of crimson began to spread beneath her.
He choked back a breath. His legs refused to move. His hands trembled.
He couldn't even scream.
His grip on Ashbringer faltered. His vision blurred.
No.
Not like this.
The man raised his hand again—cold, expressionless.
Another arc of water roared forward, aimed straight at Shirou's neck.
He raised Ashbringer just in time, but the blast sent him flying through the mansion, out the back wall. He rolled to the ground, coughing blood.
The man approached, calm and smiling.
"You blocked it. Not bad."
Shirou gritted his teeth and stood.
" Name's Shirou," he said. "Remember it. Because I'll be the one to cut off your head."
The man laughed. "You can barely stand. You'll die like her. But fine—I'll make it grander."
Water spread around his feet. A massive snake of liquid formed, rising.
But before the man could strike, space twisted between them. The snake collided with the distortion and broke apart.
The man's eyes narrowed.
In Shirou's hand was a glowing blue key.
A blue portal opened between them closed just as fast.
Then Shirou vanished along with the portal.
The man stared at the spot and smiled. "Interesting… Shirou, was it? I'll be looking forward to our next meeting. Just don't disappoint me."