"...It is unmistakable; a Bounded Field has been erected. It is a variety of soul-devouring array, designed to harvest magical energy by offering everyone within the perimeter as sacrifices."
Upon receiving the report that a Bounded Field had been cast over the academy, Illya took Medea and me to investigate the site.
We stood atop a rooftop overlooking the school grounds. Medea, gazing down at the academy, spoke with a tightened expression.
I nodded slowly in agreement.
"...Indeed. If it were to be fully triggered, the students would..."
"They would wither away until death claimed them," Medea finished. "And even their corpses would be liquefied into prana."
"Yes. They lack even the most rudimentary Magic Resistance to attempt a struggle. So... what is our course, Master?"
"Hmm... for now, let us simply observe!"
"...Beg pardon?"
Surprised by the unexpected command, Medea and I both turned to look at Illya.
"I have a feeling it will be resolved even without our interference. Look there."
Illya pointed toward the academy's roof. Following her finger, I saw Shirou Emiya and Rin Tohsaka already present.
"It seems Big Brother and Tohsaka have noticed as well. There is no need for us to step in unnecessarily, is there? If the field actually activated, that would be one thing... but I doubt it will happen today, and since it hasn't—"
The earth groaned.
A sudden, heavy vibration cut Illya's words short. The ground trembled as if the very foundations of the city were failing.
Though the sudden anomaly startled us, we realized its significance in an instant.
"...Has the field activated?"
A crimson barrier surged, enveloping the academy. Though the scenery appeared to return to normal once the veil was fully set, the residue of the spell's activation was palpable in the air.
"...It has begun. The Bounded Field is live."
"...So it would seem..."
Illya spoke with an air of frustration, eventually shaking her head as if resigned to the inevitable.
"Shirou is in there... Honestly, I have no choice! Sigh... Berserker, Caster. We are entering the field."
"Understood, Master."
"As you command... Let us make haste and seize the culprit."
***
"Oho! Excellent! This is exactly how a Servant should perform! Hahahaha!"
"....."
Shinji Matou, the Master of Rider, cheered as he looked up at the sky, which had been stained a sickly crimson by the currents of magical energy.
Behind him stood Rider, silent and motionless. Shinji cast a glance back at her and smirked.
"And this is how an exceptional Master should operate... Perhaps I should pay a visit to Emiya later and see how withered he looks?"
"...Mm."
Rider frowned slightly at his words, but the expression was fleeting. Sensing a sudden presence, she gripped her weapon and turned her gaze toward the door.
Noticing her sudden change in demeanor, Shinji spoke with a voice full of confusion.
"Rider, what's the matter—"
The classroom door shattered under a colossal impact, the wood and metal sent flying until they were embedded in the far wall.
Shinji stared blankly at the ruined door for a moment before the gravity of the situation hit him. He whipped his head toward the entrance in terror.
There, I stood, clad in my black armor.
"...So, this is where you were hiding."
I scowled, looking past them at the central runic keystone situated before Rider and Shinji.
Illya had informed me that the center of the Bounded Field was on the first floor. I had come to dismantle it, but I hadn't expected to find the culprits themselves waiting here.
As I stepped into the classroom, Shinji screamed in utter shock.
"...How... You! How are you still able to move?!"
"...A foolish question. Did you truly believe a field designed to harvest mere civilians would have any effect on a Servant?"
I looked down at Shinji with pure disdain. He flinched visibly under my gaze.
The rhythmic clatter of my plate armor echoed as I began to walk toward him. Seeing this, Shinji scrambled backward, one frantic step at a time.
"H-hey. Stay back... I told you to stay back!"
Clink. Clink.
I ignored his whimpering and continued my approach. Stricken with terror, Shinji fled toward his Servant.
"R-Rider!!"
"...."
Steel sang as I drew my blade. Rider lunged at me, wielding the same iron stakes she had used before.
"...Previously, I treated our bout as a mere skirmish and fought with a light heart."
There was a sharp crack, followed by a sickening thud.
"—Gugh!"
Rider's stake, aimed true at my heart, managed to pierce the outer layer of my armor, but it shattered against my skin without drawing a single drop of blood.
Taking advantage of the opening, I drove my sword through Rider's spiritual core. As she coughed up blood and let out a pained cry, I leaned in and spoke softly into her ear.
"...This time, I shall grant you a swift end."
"...Saku—"
With a clean sweep of my blade, I severed Rider's head. As my sword exited her core, a fountain of blood erupted, drenching the surroundings as her head hit the floor.
I watched as Rider's remains dissolved into fragments of pink magical energy and scattered into the air. Confirming that the crimson light had vanished from the sky, I turned my attention toward the Master.
"Hi—Hiiieee!! S-Stay back! Don't come any closer—Gack!"
Shinji tried to recoil as he realized my gaze was fixed on him, but I moved with a speed he couldn't follow, seizing him by the throat and hoisting him into the air.
As he flailed and clawed desperately at my hand, I growled with a voice full of suppressed rage.
"—Silence. Do you have any inkling of how many innocent civilians nearly perished because of your filth...?"
Because of this creature's Bounded Field, every soul in this academy was moments away from a slow, agonizing death that would leave not even a corpse behind.
And most of them were students—children who had yet to reach adulthood. Fury boiled within me, and my grip tightened instinctively.
"Guh... khark... hhk..."
As the pressure on his windpipe increased, Shinji's desperate sounds grew faint. It wouldn't matter if I simply ended him here.
I exerted more force. The sounds of his struggle were fading into nothing. Ignoring his pathetic state, I prepared to snap his neck and send him to the same oblivion as his Servant.
At least, I intended to. But then, a voice rang out from behind me.
I heard the familiar clink of armor.
"—Elius...?"
The sound of my name being called from the doorway made me turn.
There, standing at the entrance, was the blonde female knight, staring at me in disbelief. I uttered her name in a low breath.
"—Artoria."