Chapter 218: Diarmuid's Revenge
Following Hikigaya Hachiman's command, Karna immediately charged at Caster without a word.
"Ugh, damn it!"
Gilles de Rais glared at the charging Karna, his face twisted with hatred.
But he knew very well that the monsters he had summoned were no match for this newly appearing Servant.
Grabbing a child still parasitized by the monster factor but not fully matured, he hurled it at Karna while simultaneously summoning more monsters with his magical tome to impede Karna's advance.
Muttering incantations, the mana in the air bent toward him.
"Hachiman-san, what are you doing here?"
Although grateful for Karna's timely assistance, Artoria remained on high alert at Hachiman and his group appearing at the Einzbern Castle during such a critical moment.
"Actually, I came to discuss matters with Irisviel," Hachiman replied. "But it seems I came at the wrong time…"
Glancing toward the castle through his familiar, Hachiman noticed a man in a black coat being cornered by Kayneth.
Although he was surprised that Irisviel was absent from the castle, he kindly warned Artoria that the castle was under attack.
"!!!"
Hearing that the castle was being attacked, Artoria was shocked. She had been fighting for so long, and Kiritsugu hadn't called her back.
"Thank you very much for the information…"
Grateful, she quickly rushed back.
"So now there are only four of us left here…"
Watching Artoria leave, Hachiman turned his gaze to Gilles, struggling under Karna's assault.
"Karna, finish him off!"
"Yes!"
At Hachiman's command, flames erupted along Karna's spear, and a powerful aura surged from him, visibly draining the mana from Hachiman's body.
"Damn you! Just wait!"
A fear of impending death suddenly gripped Gilles.
With Artoria gone, Gilles gave no further thought and immediately ordered his Master, Ryunosuke Uryu, to recall him.
"Gone?"
Hachiman, whose mana had nearly been drained by Karna, stared in confusion at the spot where Caster had vanished.
He couldn't understand how the opponent had escaped. Karna had already locked onto him!
"This must be the effect of the Command Seal…"
Karna gradually withdrew his aura, sheathing his weapon and returning to Hachiman's side, pointing at the Command Seal on Hachiman's hand as he speculated.
"So, if a Servant can't win, they get three chances to escape?"
Hachiman groaned at Karna's conjecture. Fuyuki City wasn't huge, but it wasn't small either. If Caster kept hiding, he truly wouldn't have a way to deal with it.
"Wait a minute…"
Rubbing his forehead in frustration, Hachiman froze for a moment.
Why was he thinking like a magus to solve this problem?
He still had the system!
He could scan the entire city, select areas with high mana concentration, and eliminate them one by one. Problem solved.
.
.
.
"Cunning little worm, let's see where you run this time!"
Kayneth had successfully cornered Kiritsugu, who held a strangely designed pistol for a final resistance. Kayneth sneered and commanded Volumen Hydrargyrum to attack.
"Bang!"
"Clang!"
"What?!"
The Origin Bullet, imbued with hope, effortlessly penetrated Volumen Hydrargyrum's defense, heading toward a shocked Kayneth.
Mid-flight, a black figure suddenly appeared between them, deflecting the bullet with a spear.
"Berserker…"
Kiritsugu's face turned grim as he saw the Servant before him.
The next moment, a familiar hand holding a pistol swung up in front of him, and he felt intense pain in his right arm.
"Ugh…"
Clutching the wound, Kiritsugu stopped the bleeding with mana and staggered backward.
"Careless…"
A bitter smile crossed his face. He had assumed that, given Kayneth's pride, his Servant wouldn't appear alongside him—but he had miscalculated.
"Berserker?"
Kayneth, too, was shocked to see Diarmuid appear and save Kiritsugu.
He had already sent Diarmuid to deal with Caster—why was he here?
"…"
Diarmuid, surrounded by dark aura, nodded to Kayneth's call, then turned back to Kiritsugu with a malicious grin.
His golden short spears pierced Kiritsugu's body, carefully leaving engraved symbols of insult and curse on his flesh—marks unique to Ireland.
After the imprint, Diarmuid plunged his crimson spear into Kiritsugu's legs, leaving two gaping black holes in his view.
Completely unprepared for such cruelty, Kayneth quickly averted his gaze, unwilling to watch Kiritsugu's suffering.
Seeing Kiritsugu's face twisted in pain, Diarmuid felt a surge of satisfaction.
Having vented his wrath, he raised the Gáe Buidhe again, preparing to pierce the man who had crawled out of hell with hatred.
But a flash of white light and a gust of wind carrying anger and urgency came from the side.
Thanks to Hachiman's warning, Artoria finally arrived in time.
"Master…"
Seeing Kiritsugu's empty right arm, Artoria froze momentarily. Then she hurriedly supported him, preparing to break through with him.
"Take my arm with you!"
Despite sweat beading his forehead from the pain, Kiritsugu insisted on bringing his right arm, etched with the Command Seal, during their retreat.
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