"Watch out!"
As she shouted a warning, Nono grabbed Emiya—who still held his bow and sword, with his sword box strapped to his back—and yanked him backward, just in time to pull him away from the crumbling edge of the road.
Below them was the sea, reeking of blood and the stench of the white whale. Several tentacle-like limbs, resembling those of an octopus, were coiled around the bridge's support pillars. Partially visible beneath the water, they were so thick that just a glance made it obvious they were larger than the pillars themselves.
To the unknown sea monster extending those tentacles, this sea bridge seemed more like a giant toy left here by some forgotten master. The way it shook the structure was disturbingly playful.
Boom!
Behind them, the road cracked further under the shifting weight of the bridge. A narrow fissure raced across from the far side toward them in a near-straight line. Debris burst from the widening crack, and the scent of the sea surged forth like the jagged maw of some oceanic beast.
"This is bad! It's not safe here either!" Emiya and Nono held tightly onto each other, unwilling to let go as they fought to stay balanced. With the bridge swaying so violently, Emiya couldn't even nock an arrow.
They both understood how precious solid footing was now. But there was no way forward toward the shore—only the way back along the elevated bridge.
"Jump!"
With the road shaking so wildly, they couldn't treat it like stable ground anymore. It was better to see it as a springboard.
Understanding each other perfectly, both of them simultaneously enhanced their leg strength as they leapt, smashing down on the asphalt, which caused the bridge to tilt even more steeply. As the weakened support columns gave way, the ground beneath them collapsed.
They soared several meters into the air, and the piece of road ahead—already separated from this segment—jutted up high, forcing them to land with great effort.
But the sea monster wasn't done. Its tentacles reached up again, continuing to shake the man-made structure. Emiya couldn't help but think how efficient these massive phantasmal species were at demolition—they'd be perfect for a demolition crew.
Yet no sooner had that thought crossed his mind than another massive rumble sounded from beneath. The very pillar below them was struck hard, shifting sideways, and the road groaned as deep cracks spidered out from both edges like shattered glass…
Something was wrong.
Emiya frowned. At the rate the sea monster had been attacking, this kind of sudden destruction seemed too rapid.
Had they just happened to land on one of those shoddy construction zones built with cut corners?
"Jump!"
Another section was about to collapse. As they sprinted forward, Emiya once again shouted to Nono. Using his intuition, he calculated that they could still leap across the next broken stretch in time…
Boom!
Suddenly, the road ahead jolted violently upward.
Damn it!
In less than a second, the segment of road in front of them rose high above their jumping height. Unlike Maai—who had built-in launch equipment—Emiya didn't have any such aid. If the jump missed, both he and Nono would plunge into the sea.
With lightning speed, he drew the half-bladed Duanlongtai, but its shortened length wasn't enough to reach the rising edge of the road.
Projection!
In that moment, Emiya switched gears. From the broken end of Duanlongtai, a new blade rapidly extended. He used the sword's wide surface and the suddenly lengthened blade to wedge the weapon horizontally into the rising road's edge just in time.
Good. Made it.
Emiya exhaled lightly. Now all he had to do was use the embedded sword to hoist both himself and Nono onto the elevated platform…
Boom!
Another massive jolt. The pillar beneath shifted again, leaving no time to breathe. The road tilted sharply to the side. Crap—they were being dragged with the road, sliding toward the sea!
Frantically scanning the surroundings, Emiya heard Nono gasp beside him: "Another sea monster… what is that?!"
He looked down.
A terrifying whirlpool had formed near a broken bridge pillar. Debris tumbled into the sea, splashing wildly before being sucked into the depths by the swirling current.
The sea monster responsible for this was the same one that had been breaking the bridge—it had never shown its true body, always hiding beneath the surface. But Emiya suspected it was some kind of giant squid or octopus. The most infamous phantasmal species like that would be the "Kraken" of Norse mythology.
But the one currently crashing into the pillars…
This one was different.
It had multiple massive snake-like heads. Mottled scales covered its massive body. The size of its serpentine form was on par with the Kraken's tentacles—in other words, it was just as enormous.
Emiya studied it carefully.
It had nine heads. A nine-headed serpent, just like the Hydra of Greek mythology. And the Hydra was infamous for one more thing: its deadly venom.
As the road tilted downward, the broken section of the pillar was revealed. A yellow-green viscous fluid oozed from it—hydra venom—corroding the exposed materials with sizzling steam and thin wisps of toxic smoke.
"It really is a Hydra!"
Emiya confirmed it. The Hydra and the Kraken were both part of the phantasmal species category. Mythological beings like these existed in more than just stories. Even Lion King Lio from Fate/Apocrypha had obtained a Hydra larva from the Clock Tower once.
"Hiss—!"
The Hydra's giant snake mouths opened wide, long tongues flickering out. Its fangs shimmered with translucent poison, dripping venom in anticipation.
Its massive, copper-lantern-sized eyes flicked around, catching sight of the two prey falling mid-air. The tongues twisted in excitement, and its multiple heads surged through the water toward them in a hunting frenzy.
Emiya's hand moved.
Though he and Nono were still falling, he had one crucial anchor point: the full-length Duanlongtai embedded in the asphalt road's edge.
"What do we do now?!" Nono clung tightly to his other arm, shouting over the wind as she flailed to find some foothold, maybe trying to climb the collapsing segment.
"Don't move! Just hold onto me—I'll figure it out!"
Emiya pulled with one arm and withdrew Duanlongtai. Magic surged into the blade, unleashing a resonant dragon's roar. Elemental energy coalesced into a spiraling dragon form, vivid and lifelike.
He swung the blade downward, extending his arm. Below them, the Hydra surged up from the sea, its jaws open and venom dripping.
Watch closely, Hydra—this is a sword technique you've never seen. A strike from the sky!
The energy continued to build. The dragon formed by Duanlongtai's elements spiraled tighter around the blade, growing stronger. Emiya made no attempt to slow their fall from dozens of meters in the air.
Beside him, Nono clung to his arm. The freezing wind made her face tense up, but her eyes gleamed with excitement. She already had an idea of what Emiya was about to do.
Whoosh—
The elemental force grew more intense. The wind around the sword became a high-pitched gale, slicing through the air as the power gathered.
Finally, the Hydra realized something was wrong. This prey wasn't ordinary—it was a hunter disguised as a helpless target.
High-level hunters often appear as prey.
Maybe one of the Hydra's nine brains had that thought—or perhaps it took nine conflicting internal arguments to reach a decision.
Whatever the case, it finally began to turn.
Its snake heads twisted frantically, and the massive body tried to dive back under the sea.
But it was too late.
The Hydra didn't know one key thing about Duanlongtai—its attacks weren't close-range, but projectile!
Even as its heads ducked beneath the surface, Emiya released a mid-range strike—an explosive surge of built-up sword energy. The dragon's roar rang out.
A roaring dragon spiraled downward with sword energy!
Before the sword even landed, the accompanying windstorm blasted a massive crater in the ocean, exposing the Hydra's thick body.
The initial sword energy tore through its scales. Then the dragon-shaped blast hit—elemental claws and fangs ripping the wounds wider and deeper.
Finally, the dragon's azure flames ignited, far more terrifying than the Hydra's venom.
Its thick flesh and esophagus burned with searing heat. Even its potent regeneration failed under the intense flames. The newly growing flesh withered instantly into ash.
One by one, its massive heads—severed at their burning necks—fell into the dark, lightless depths.
(End of Chapter)
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