As everyone got off the vehicle, the "Bowman" gave a slight bow before vanishing from sight once again. However, no one had the spare energy to worry about him right now.
A massive surge of energy was converging—a colossal force so dense it felt as if it could flip all of Fuyuki City on its head in an instant. Curiously, when Lancer and Cu Chulaynn had come to scout the area last time, such an enormous amount of magical energy hadn't been present.
'The Holy Grail system is fully operational... no, it might already be nearing its conclusion.'
Without wasting words, Lancer and Cu exchanged a look and drew their staves simultaneously. But right at that moment—
"Caster, and you unknown magus, have you still not given up?"
Accompanied by a cold inquiry, a figure appeared within a halo of light.
Clad in pitch-black armor and a battle skirt, the holy sword that once represented hope had been dyed completely black. That iconic ahoge was nowhere to be seen. Her cold, ruthless voice felt like it could freeze one's very soul, yet strangely, Lancer sensed only coldness from the voice, rather than any overt malice.
However, Lancer attention was focused more on the "Greater Grail" behind her.
Special Quest: Irregular Servant Summons ③
Quest Requirement: Seize the Greater Grail
Quest Reward: Heroic Spirit Essence (Class of your choice) x1
There was no doubt about it—if Lancer wanted to summon Leone, he had to take the Greater Grail. He had no other choice from the very beginning. Therefore—
"Don't waste your breath on meaningless talk. The fact that we're standing here represents our choice."
"How unfortunate..."
Though her voice remained devoid of emotional fluctuation, the group felt as if they could hear the underlying sentiment within it. Then, her tone turned utterly frigid.
"To throw away a life so hard-won... what a waste."
As her words fell, she leapt down from the heights. Mash, who had been standing beside Lancer and Cu, didn't hesitate to charge forward, leading with her shield.
Lancer had already informed them of Saber true identity and "spoiled" some of her abilities. Mash knew that as a newly-turned "Demi-Servant" who couldn't even use her Noble Phantasm, she had no hope of stopping the opponent alone. But that wasn't a reason for her to back down.
BANG!!
Under the massive force of the impact, the ground beneath her feet shattered completely, forcing her down to one knee.
"Mash!!"
This wasn't the first time Fujimaru Ritsuka had seen Mash fight, but it was the first time she'd seen her looking so overwhelmed. The enemy hadn't even truly started trying, yet Mash was already at her limit. But then—
"Earthen Barrier!!"
A yellowish glow enveloped Mash. She suddenly felt as if something was propping her up from within. The hands gripping her shield stopped trembling. And that was just the beginning.
"Wings of Wind!!"
The gale wrapping around her made her body feel significantly lighter. Because she was currently being suppressed, she didn't know exactly how much she'd been buffed, but it was clear her Agility-related stats had been boosted.
Lancer only had these two support spells at his disposal, but backed by sufficient EP, he displayed firepower that wasn't inferior to Cu in the slightest.
True, he wasn't a "qualified" magus, but as a turret, he was at least passable.
「Earth Spear」
「Wind Domain」
「Shadow Spear」
The high-level Orbal Arts Lancer could drive poured toward Saber position as if Mana cost didn't exist. Even with her Rank B Magic Resistance, she was momentarily frantic. Yet, she remained incredibly calm.
Over the past day or so, she had gathered plenty of intel on Lancer and Cu by utilizing the other Servants. Among that info, Lancer mana capacity was a glaring weakness. No matter how you looked at it, these strange spells didn't seem cheap; Lancer shouldn't have enough mana to sustain this...
Sure enough, just as her "Invisible Air" was on the verge of collapsing, Lancer dense magical bombardment suddenly stuttered to a halt.
But in that instant—
Click~
The strange sound of metal interlocking rang out sharply in the silent underground. Saber eyes widened. Lancer was holding a strange device that looked like a pocket watch; he flicked an empty tube out with his thumb and jammed another tube filled with a strange liquid into its place.
It was then that her eyes met Lancer. He flashed a "brilliant" smile.
Saber immediately got a very bad feeling.
As expected, once that tube was pushed in, the Orbal Arts came flooding back.
Indeed, as a mage, Lancer was a total amateur. However, his "Mana" stat on his status screen had two ratings: C and EX. C represented his normal mana capacity, but EX meant that as long as he had points to exchange for "EP Charge," he could use Orbal Arts forever.
Lancer had hidden several tricks up his sleeve specifically for Saber, and this was one of them!
Earthen Barrier provided Mash with enough defense, Wings of Wind allowed her to barely keep up with Saber movements, and he himself acted as a turret, pouring out every Orbal Art he had. Of course, the price was his "points" dropping at a visible rate. He didn't care; to him, the purpose of points was to buy supplies. As for the "local specialties" of each world, he could only buy them once anyway. For some reason, he couldn't buy anything in the previous world—it was listed as "Sealed"—so his point reserves were still quite substantial.
Under their joint assault, Saber "Invisible Air" began to waver. Realizing it wouldn't hold much longer, she decisively went for a "Hail Mary."
The "Invisible Air" surrounding her body suddenly contracted. At the same time, the magical energy supplied by the black mud within her surged toward the fallen holy sword in her hand.
"Strike Air!!!"
A violent gale swept toward Lancer and Mash. But just then—
Artoria suddenly felt the ground beneath her shake. Mash leapt backward—a suspicious move—but before she could react, the ground beneath Saber shattered, and a massive flaming hand reached up from the earth...