Because Illya's presence gradually stabilized, and she didn't call out to him as usual, Shirou thought everything was fine between them.
He was simply hurrying on his way at a not-too-fast, not-too-slow pace, even thinking of bringing them something to eat.
It wasn't until that earth-shaking explosion occurred that he realized something was wrong at Einzbern Castle.
No time to think about the cause. The imperial armor instantly attached to his body, forcing out a high-speed burst fueled by magical energy.
'Not enough! Not enough! Still not fast enough!'
Shirou prayed in his heart that they would be safe.
'System-san, I'm counting on you!'
If his running wasn't professional enough, then summon a substitute.
[Hosting Running.]
Whoosh!
The moment he approached the trees, they were swept up by the storm and ground into fragments.
The system used the most suitable magical energy to produce the fastest speed.
Possessing absolute rationality, Shirou reverted from his initial panic back to his usual calm demeanor.
'Things shouldn't have reached the worst outcome yet.'
'After all, Illya's presence is still stable, and there are no issues with her magical energy.'
So…
"Caster!", He ran straight into C-Mom (Medea), who was carrying Illya and dragging Bazett.
"Berserker!", Medea stared at Shirou, too shocked to say a word, "You are…"
Shirou's anxious heart was eased by half. The other half was, "Where are Sella and Liz?"
Medea paused only for a moment before saying, "Run with me, Berserker! That Servant isn't someone either of us can…"
BOOM!
Before she finished speaking, Shirou flew out like a cannonball. The only thing left in Medea's ear was, "Take care of Illya."
"Wait… Ber… ser… ker," Medea tried to stop Shirou.
She knew that following him was meaningless. This was just sending him to his death.
The newly-awakened Bazett turned her head with difficulty. She could already feel Cu Chulainn's exit.
"Caster, go back."
"Why should I listen to you? Tomboy?", Medea said coldly.
But ever since seeing Shirou, she had remained motionless. She didn't know why. Clearly, for any Servant, there was no chance of winning against that Archer. And yet, there was an inexplicable sense of reassurance.
"Tom…", Pale-faced Bazett twitched her lips. No time to argue over such a big issue; instead, she said, "I have a trump card that can deal with that guy. As long as Berserker can force him to use his Noble Phantasm!"
Medea remained silent, 'The trump card against the King of Heroes?'
"You don't trust Berserker?"
She knew that if Shirou faced the Servant who killed Cu Chulainn alone, he would end up like her doggo friend.
But if she added her own Noble Phantasm, there would at least be a sliver of hope.
Seeing Medea still hesitating, Bazett gritted her teeth and said, "Caster, if you don't want to go, then just put me down and take your Master and run!"
She wasn't planning to escape, but to avenge Cu Chulainn. This wasn't about emotion. Berserker's Noble Phantasm and combat skills would pose a significant challenge to the King of Heroes.
"Tch!", Medea bit her lip, annoyed, "Don't make it sound like all I do is run."
Bazett said nothing, communicating with her eyes, 'I only saw you running. Very soon again, too.'
"Tch!", Medea clicked her tongue again. After thinking it over, she woke Illya.
'Anyway, Berserker is still alive.'
Barely thirty seconds after meeting Medea, Shirou rushed through the forest and arrived at Einzbern Castle. What used to be… now could only be called ruins.
Amid the enormous ruins, the appearances of Sella and Liz were reflected in his eyes.
He didn't even know what to say. He only felt that something in his mind had suddenly snapped, and his rationality burned away in an instant.
Only one thought remained in his heart: TEAR GILGAMESH TO PIECES.
Before that—
"Analyze creation concept, hypothesize basic structure, duplicate construction material…", A glance at the Noble Phantasms emerging from the golden portal, and the projection steps completed in an instant. Identical to the real thing, not even a counterfeit, an exact copy appeared.
Before the portal had completely launched the Noble Phantasm, he projected it.
But the action wasn't over yet.
A two-meter-long crimson demonic spear appeared. He drew the bow, and Shirou roared, "GILGAMESH!"
"What?", Gilgamesh's descending hand suddenly stopped an inch before completion, his gaze surprised as he turned around.
Crimson eyes narrowed. No time to wonder why Shirou wasn't dead.
Open gate. Instant Noble Phantasm transfer. Floating Noble Phantasm. Defensive Noble Phantasm, all deployed at the fastest speed.
"Damn it!", It was simply too late.
Faced with this exquisite archery, an unprepared Gilgamesh's expression changed dramatically. He raised the sword in his hand to block. Just one pause was enough. And that pause caused him to lose his dominant hand.
But, he still managed to dodge into the sky.
"A curse, huh? That loyal dog's curse, tch!", Gilgamesh's furious gaze was cast toward Shirou, who ignored him.
'This hand is useless now.'
"Mere fakes!"
As a king from the age of gods, he could naturally see that Shirou's projections were all imitations of others' weapons.
"Liz!", Shirou didn't move; he let the system operate.
With projected bandages, supplemented with magic, and his high proficiency with Einzbern alchemy, he stopped Liz's bleeding in time.
Next was Sella, she was in worse shape than Liz. A long-handled weapon had pierced her abdomen. If she weren't a homunculus, she would be dead already.
"You bastard, you almost got the young lady killed," Sella forced a smile and said, "When I wake up, how should I make it up to the young lady?"
She stretched out her hand, wanting to touch Shirou's armored face.
System Shirou remained cold and unresponsive. The System's task was to treat both of them as quickly as possible to remove the risk to their lives, everything else was irrelevant.
"Berserker, it's fine," Liz closed her eyes peacefully. Not dead, just body functions temporarily suspended. After adjustment, she would be as good as new.
"…Berserker," Medea also arrived. She threw Bazett to the ground and continued holding Illya.
The just-awakened Illya saw Sella and Liz in their miserable state, her delicate face full of disbelief. The joy of seeing Shirou safe was overwhelmed by anger.
"Berserker!", She reached out. Shirou brought Liz and Sella before them.
"Illya, Caster, please," He said nothing else and turned around.
"Mm, Berserker is the strongest!", Illya nodded firmly, asking Medea to put her down, then raised her hand to touch Shirou herself.
"Don't worry about me, it's okay to kill him," She didn't want Shirou to be unable to fight at full strength like last time because of her.
"I understand," Shirou answered coldly.
At this moment, Gilgamesh had already used a healing Noble Phantasm to repair his ruined arm.
"Berserker," Bazett, who had been discarded like trash by Medea, found her sword of reversal among the ruins and said with difficulty, "As long as we force that guy to use his trump card, we can absolutely win."
Shirou didn't even look at her and fully handed control to the system, willing to pay any price to kill Gilgamesh.
At this time, Gilgamesh still didn't realize the seriousness of the situation. He sat on Vimana, looking down at Shirou with contempt, "Well, mongrel? This king has given you plenty of time."
System Shirou said nothing.
Killing intent rose steadily.
Gilgamesh sensed the change and withdrew his contemptuous gaze, instantly turning serious.
"I see, so this is your true nature?", In an instant, without holding back, he brought out the firepower he had used to defeat Cu Chulainn for the final time.
He said violently, "The true madness of a Berserker, is when they are most calm?"
"Then let this king give you the greatest trial!"
Vimana was withdrawn. Aside from Ea and Enkidu(Chains of Heaven), Gilgamesh held nothing back.
Even if the projections were fakes, they made him feel genuinely threatened.
The Noble Phantasms fell. Truly deadly rain droplets struck like a battlefield-wide attack that didn't distinguish friend or foe.
Merciless, aimed at destroying everything.
Naturally, the overwhelming residual force made it impossible for any outsider to approach.
The intense shockwaves finally made Rin, on her way to school, sense something was wrong. She turned around and said seriously, "Sakura, that direction."
"Mm," Sakura nodded, worry visible on her gentle face, "There's no mistake, that's the direction senpai just left."
"So it is," Rin made a swift decision, "Archer, we're going."
"At this point in time, we may not make it in time," Red A, in spirit form, communicated with Rin.
"Cut the chatter. We'll know after we get there," Rin couldn't care less. She told Sakura, "Sakura, sorry, you'll have to go to school alone."
"No," Sakura shook her head, "I'll take Rider and go too."
"Huh?", Rin was momentarily stunned, 'Is this really my non-combatant little sister?'
Sakura smiled, "It's okay, onee-san. I'll stay out of the way and let Rider handle everything."
"In that case…", Rin was about to agree when a figure ahead caused her to react like a cat meeting a mouse.
"Hey hey hey! I don't recall you ever taking this route to school!", Rin pulled out a gemstone from her pocket.
"Onee-san," Sakura still hadn't realized the current situation. But her instinct as a magus told her: the petite girl in front of them, refined and precise, was terrifying.
"How rude, Rin," Sajyou Manaka smiled, "I specifically came to see you."
"Should I thank you?", Rin replied coldly and openly flipped open her phone.
She bet Manaka wouldn't stop her. There was no time to worry about plans, Berserker needed to get here now.
Ring~ Ring~...
The phone rang for a long time, but no one picked up.
"Damn it, of course," She angrily threw the phone on the ground and demanded, "You're behind this, aren't you?"
"Of course not," Sajyou Manaka, hands behind her back, happily and politely said, "I'd be the happiest if Berserker wasn't dead. But,"
She tilted her head and smiled slightly, "I made Saber mad earlier, so I have to grant her wish quickly."
"So you plan to fight here?", Rin surveyed the surroundings.
This was a residential area. If a battle broke out here during the day, the consequences would be unimaginable.
"No choice," Sajyou Manaka seemed troubled, tapping her lips, "Saber is about to ignore me. As her Master, I'm a little anxious."
"You…", Rin scattered her gems into the sky, forming a barrier, "What kind of attitude is that?"
'Completely treating human lives like nothing!'
'Good, she didn't stop it,' Seeing the barrier take effect, Rin felt a bit calmer. At least she could reduce casualties somewhat.
"Onee-san," Sakura took a deep breath and said, "I'll temporarily use hypnosis to make the residents leave. I'll leave this place to you."
"Can you do that?", Rin asked, surprised.
"Don't worry," Sakura smiled gently, "I'm not completely useless. As for Rider, I'll let you use her for now."
"That's a big help."
Archer couldn't recall his true name, so his power level was uncertain. With Rider, their odds improved significantly.
They might even be able to assist Berserker. As an ally, Rin was undoubtedly reliable, she was still thinking about Shirou's side of things.
And in a way, she wanted to help but got blocked by the boss.
This counted as dropping the ball at a critical moment. Especially since they had plans to fight Sajyou Manaka.
Artoria, watching this, could no longer remain silent or indifferent.
Letting the two split up was Manaka's plan all along. From the beginning, she never thought she could defeat two Servants.
So her target had always been the Master, her role was to stall.
A perfect plan. The battlefield was carefully chosen. Even with a high chance of victory, she couldn't feel happy at all.
'Just to win… is sacrificing uninvolved lives so casually okay?'
'Does she not believe that my sword could bring her victory?'
At that moment, Artoria finally realized clearly: Her Master, the girl she believed to be as beautiful and pure as a flower, was, at her core, something else entirely.
'But, there is still a chance.'
Artoria believed Manaka merely had a blurry sense of right and wrong. So: "Manaka."
Artoria grabbed her hand and looked into her eyes with her emerald gaze. Her expression was so sincere.
'There's still time, I must guide her!'
'As her knight, as a king, guide this lost girl back to the right path!'
"Is something wrong, Saber?", Faced with two Servants and the talented Rin, Manaka's attitude was almost dismissive.
Her eyes contained only Saber. Being called, her hand being held, she smiled too softly.
"Please don't do this," Artoria declared like an oath, "I'll win for you. I'll definitely obtain the Holy Grail. So please,at least don't fight here!"
"Why?" Manaka looked at her with clear blue eyes. Blonde, cute, dignified, and mysteriously charismatic, Artoria was just that lovable.
Her voice was also so sweet and pleasant. Even the warmth of her touch was intoxicating.
"Everyone makes mistakes. And you're smart,"
"Mm," Quietly obedient and just listening.
"So, even without choosing the wrong path, you can still obtain the Grail and victory," What Artoria referred to as "wrong" was Manaka's ruthless approach. She believed the girl would understand, and choose to…
"That's right."
'That innocent voice. Just like that, Manaka, just…', Artoria smiled with joy.
"For Saber's sake, as long as it's for you, I'll do anything except abandon Berserker," She smiled, too beautiful to be human, like an angel.
'But why… does my heart hurt so much?', Artoria's joy turned to bitterness. She didn't take it in at all. An unexplained anxiety.
'She gave a direct answer, but why does her reply feel so unsettling?'
Artoria quickened her words, more firmly declaring, "We mustn't kill… no, killing is wrong, Manaka!"
Some people might have to die, but she had to make this girl understand the value of life.
The girl's eyes were bright. Her smile beautiful. Her every gesture wonderful.
Yet Artoria's heart felt pierced by a battlefield's spear, torn by a dragon's claws. This feeling hadn't even appeared during her battle with Vortigern.
"Why say that, Saber?", Purely confused, purely innocent.
"I've already decided to give you the Holy Grail."
"To help you save Britain," She counted with slender white fingers, " To grant your wish."
Amid millions of flowers, she was the most beautiful, the most captivating bloom. That delicate figure—
"For your sake, I'll do anything. Anything at all."
"All of it, only for you!"
Smiling like a blooming flower, the girl crushed Artoria's heart completely.
She was left speechless.
═❀═❀═❀═❀═❀═❀═
patreon.com/AmbitiousTranslator
🥳Joining Patreon keeps me motivated and eager to work diligently, so please consider joining.🥰 You can access upto 20 advance chapter through Patreon.
https://discord.gg/bYAfGyp98y