"Tohsaka!"
Irisviel nearly shattered her teeth from grinding them. Seeing them attempt to withdraw, she immediately used another Command Spell.
The Command Spell's order was to unleash Guinevere's First Noble Phantasm!
The Replica Holy Sword, brimming with Mana, was retracted. In its place appeared the Holy Sword granted by her Class.
[Sword of Destined Judgment], an A++ Rank Anti-Fortress Noble Phantasm. When unleashed, it could radiate a brilliance no less dazzling than the standard release of the [Sword of Promised Victory].
Raising the sword high, the Mana from the Command Spell was barely enough to activate it. As a torrent of crimson Mana erupted, it shattered countless pursuing swords and hundreds of Noble Phantasm shields before finally forcing the King of Heroes to evade.
It forced Tokiomi Tohsaka to realize he had made a foolish mistake.
Conflicted and tormented, but facing Irisviel's unhesitating use of her third Command Spell, he knew he had to consider a countermeasure.
"King of Heroes..."
Just as Tohsaka was about to replenish the King of Heroes' Mana, he saw Irisviel raise her other hand. Two Command Spells remained on it.
Instantly, Tohsaka recalled his farewell to Kayneth. Kayneth had indeed mentioned giving his remaining two Command Spells to the Einzbern faction.
"King of Heroes, retreat with Rin and me!"
With a severe disadvantage in Command Spells, relying on them to replenish Mana for battle would guarantee their defeat.
So, even knowing this would thoroughly offend the King of Heroes, he had no choice.
As long as I survive, Tohsaka thought, I'll still have a chance.
He still possessed the leftover Command Spells from previous Holy Grail Wars, held by his ally in the Holy Church, Kirei Kotomine.
As Tohsaka issued the order with his final Command Spell, the King of Heroes, however unwilling, could only turn Vimana around and flee at unprecedented speed.
Tohsaka knew, and the King of Heroes knew as well, that the appearance of him restoring Mana with some fruit was a deception.
For some unknown reason, all Mana-restoring items in his treasury were unusable. The wine he had just drunk could only be converted into Mana after digestion, and the efficiency was extremely low, restoring a negligible amount.
Mongrel Counter Force. Mongrel Holy Grail War.
Forced into retreat, the King of Heroes was utterly furious. His gaze on Tohsaka was dangerously sharp.
"King, I implore you to endure. You still require my contract."
Having already shown immense disrespect, Tohsaka had no choice but to utter more insolent words to prevent the King of Heroes from killing him on the spot.
He planned to settle Rin back home and then immediately head to the Holy Church to seek more Command Spells.
But to his surprise, the King of Heroes' expression grew calm. He turned his back to Tohsaka, gazed into the distance, and spoke:
"Tohsaka, give me all intelligence on Guinevere. The Clock Tower's version."
Only now did the King of Heroes deign to learn about his opponent. His earlier seriousness had merely been his commitment to fighting earnestly in actual combat.
-
Meanwhile, with the King of Heroes' faction retreating, Irisviel had seemingly wasted a Command Spell.
"No, it wasn't a waste," Kiritsugu Emiya murmured, his gaze still fixed on the King of Conquerors and Waver. He could only sigh. This was precisely why he had said from the beginning that he and the King of Knights were incompatible.
"The first Command Spell allowed you to withstand EA. The second allowed you to unleash the Holy Sword and confirm the King of Heroes' weakness. The third forced them to flee and compelled Tokiomi Tohsaka to use his final Command Spell as well."
"This battle was a victory for you and Irisviel."
Kiritsugu Emiya took a drag from his cigarette and exhaled slowly, his gaze falling upon Maiya Hisau. A woman who once weighed over a hundred pounds now barely tipped the scales at fifty. The Executors had unleashed their full arsenal of anti-heretic techniques on her.
Yet Maiya could still move. She was still alive. Her spirit hadn't shattered, and her eyes could still occasionally focus on Kiritsugu.
As long as she wasn't dead, her soul intact, and her mind unbroken, Guinevere could heal such physical wounds.
"Kiritsugu, step aside," Guinevere said. "The mana from that last Command Spell went completely unused. It's perfect for healing her."
Kiritsugu stared in a daze, unable to believe that someone so grievously injured could still be saved.
But reality unfolded before him. As Guinevere activated her Falsification, Maiya Hisau was restored to a flawless body. This body, however, was a fabrication—vulnerable to anti-magic attacks. True recovery would require time, the recognition of others, and for the falsehood to become truth.
Regardless, Maiya Hisau was finally free from pain. A peaceful expression settled on her face.
As the agony vanished, her blurred vision cleared, focusing on Kiritsugu. She held no blame for his earlier decision to abandon her. After he embraced her, silent tears streaming down his face, she mustered her strength, leaned up, and gently kissed his lips. Then, she drifted into a deep sleep.
At this moment, Kiritsugu Emiya's tears were tears of joy. He had endured more than enough suffering in his life, and he had braced himself for another round of silent weeping, followed by a mad scream at the cruel heavens, just like long, long ago: "What the fuck kind of joke is this?!"
"Kiritsugu..."
"Irisviel, I'm sorry. I shouldn't have lost control like this in front of you."
"No, I understand your feelings for Maiya. I don't mind you crying for her. I just wanted to say... our guests are still watching."
The King of Conquerors and Waver were still present. Since the main battle had taken place in the sky and within Ionioi Hetairoi, the leftover food and wine on the Round Table in the courtyard remained untouched.
Thus, the King of Conquerors could still use Kiritsugu's tears to season his wine. He had finally figured it out: Kiritsugu Emiya must not have a Servant contract. Otherwise, he would have surely commanded his Servant to attack him by now.
"King of Knights, I thank you for your magnanimity. I retract my earlier boasts. But you have seen my army. How does it compare to the Knights of Camelot?"
The King of Conquerors no longer believed he could single-handedly defeat the King of Knights, Guinevere, and all the Knights of Camelot. Yet, he refused to concede, still fiercely proud of his men.
"They are all fine heroes, but compared to the Knights of Camelot, they still fall short."
"Back then, Camelot swept across Europe with just over two thousand cavalry. Yet you, with an army of tens of thousands, still failed to reach the sea you longed to see!"
Guinevere had descended from the sky and delivered this blunt retort to the King of Conquerors. Hearing it, he found himself speechless, able only to take a sheepish swig of wine before muttering, "I would have been honored to witness these Knights you boast of."
With the wine finished, Guinevere fell into thought, wondering if she could actually make that happen.
"King of Conquerors, wait a moment."
Having just been replenished with Mana from a Command Spell, Guinevere's Second Noble Phantasm was still usable even after saving Maiya. She once again used her Falsification ability to examine her own Class.
She wanted to see which Classes she was compatible with and if any of them would allow her to manifest her Knight Order from her lifetime.
Saber Class: Compatible. Noble Phantasm: only the Holy Sword.
Lancer Class: Incompatible.
Archer Class: Incompatible.
Assassin Class: Incompatible. Guinevere didn't use spears or projectiles, and she despised assassination.
Rider Class: Here, Guinevere found what she was looking for.
Beyond that, Guinevere also possessed an aptitude for the Berserker Class. That Class's most important Noble Phantasm was the [Holy Grail].
Even more surprisingly, Guinevere had a facet of the Ruler Class. This stemmed from the sublimation of her deeds in Britain—her Purification Plan and the judgment and execution by burning of numerous Church officials.
In the courtyard, Guinevere's aura shifted rapidly. When she finally reverted to her Caster Class, she smiled at the King of Conquerors and said:
"Tomorrow, at this same time, let us fight to the death. Bring the remnants of your army against the Knights of Camelot you're so curious about.
"At that time, Lia and I will both stand within the ranks of Camelot's Knight Order."
Thanks to Guinevere's shield, the King of Conquerors' army had not been completely annihilated. Perhaps he could still deploy a smaller version of [Ionioi Hetairoi]. Moreover, Waver still had all three Command Spells on the back of his hand, making a rapid Mana replenishment entirely possible.
Thus, upon receiving Guinevere's challenge, the King of Conquerors laughed heartily. He extended his hand and clasped it with the King of Knights and Guinevere, sealing their vow.