He no longer held back, nor did he play with those manipulative words. He slowly closed his eyes, and the boiling dark magic around him suddenly collapsed inward, as if forming an all-consuming black hole within his body. Even the clamorous humming of weapons from the eternal night treasury instantly fell silent.
This ultimate "stillness" brought forth a pressure more terrifying than any previous violent energy.
For the first time, something beyond her comprehension was clearly reflected in the Saint of Winter's hollow eyes. It wasn't a matter of strength, but... a difference in essence.
Kanjuro suddenly opened his eyes!
The depths of his eyes were no longer human pupils, but had transformed into two rotating, miniature-universe-like dark whirlpools, where stars seemed to be born and die, civilizations rose and fell, ultimately returning to eternal silence.
"eternal night treasury—Final Deployment:" His voice seemed to come from the Void before the ages, carrying the indifference of judging the end of all things,
"The Moment of All Running Dry."
There was no earth-shattering boom, no explosion of dazzling light.
Only the wail of "existence" itself.
Centered on Kanjuro, an absolute "Nothingness" began to spread silently. It was neither darkness nor Void, but a more complete "Nothingness" than the Void—a Domain where even "concept" itself was forcibly erased!
The first things to touch this "Nothingness" were the daggers thrust out by the Hassans from the shadows, and their proud Art of Concealment. The moment the daggers touched "Nothingness," their concepts of "sharpness" and "lethality" vanished along with them, as if they had never been forged. The Hassans' figures were forcibly "dragged" out of the shadows, and then, in silent horror, the traces of their existence—saint graphs, consciousness, Obsession—dissipated piece by piece, like handwriting erased by an eraser, leaving not a speck of dust behind.
Next was the flood of the Gate of Babylon surging like a tidal wave. Those original Noble Phantasms, shining with the glory of history and legend—whether they were indestructible shields or divine spears that could tear apart mountains and rivers—vanished one after another like bubbles in the sun upon touching the Domain of "The Moment of All Running Dry." The "legends," "achievements," and "characteristics" they contained were forcibly negated, returning to basic magic particles, and then the existence of the particles themselves was completely erased. Gilgamesh watched helplessly as his endless treasury attack vanished into thin air, his arrogant and furious expression replaced, for the first time, by disbelief and astonishment.
"This is impossi..."
His words abruptly stopped.
Because that "Nothingness" had already spread before him. He tried to use enkidu to tear space and escape, but even the concept of "space" lost meaning before "The Moment of All Running Dry." His glorious saint graph, hailed as the oldest king of heroes, along with his extreme pride, offered no decent resistance against that absolute "Nothingness," and was completely annihilated like a sand sculpture scattered by the wind. Only the final, unwilling hum of enkidu served as the last proof of his existence.
Almost simultaneously, Iskandar's desperate charge, driving the gordius wheel, also crashed into the Domain of "Nothingness." The galloping iron cavalry, the magnificent military might, the dream of conquest—everything froze instantly, then peeled away and dissipated like a faded fresco. Iskandar's mighty figure, in his final moment, seemed to want to roar, but couldn't even produce a sound, and was utterly returned to "Nothingness" along with his chariot and the phantom of his legion.
Diarmuid's thrusting twin spears instantly turned into Nothingness upon touching that Domain. The chivalry he upheld, his loyalty and regret toward his liege, were meaningless before this law that negated everything. With a complicated expression tinged with relief, his saint graph quietly dissipated.
The massive monstrous creature summoned by Gilles de Rais turned into Nothingness before it could even wail. He himself tried to use his Grimoire to resist, but the human skin Grimoire, along with the countless blasphemous knowledge recorded within it, quickly shriveled and vanished like paper thrown into a fire. His final gaze toward Jeanne d'Arc was no longer filled with hatred, but a kind of blank emptiness, and he immediately followed the fate of the others.
instant kill!
A true, undeniable, concept-level instant kill!
All the Corrupted Servants summoned and forcibly reinforced by the Saint of Winter could not last even a second under the silent spread of "The Moment of All Running Dry," and were completely erased from the battlefield as if they had never existed!
The previously noisy, chaotic battlefield, filled with killing intent and roars, instantly fell into dead silence. Only the Holy Grail Pillar of Light continued to shine, along with the slowly expanding, all-consuming "Nothingness."
Jeanne d'Arc knelt on the ground, leaning on her Holy Banner, breathing heavily, her violet eyes filled with shock at the unimaginable scene before her. Although she followed Kanjuro and knew his unfathomable depth, she had never seen him wield such... absolute power.
High above, on the perfectly refined doll-like face of Justeaze, the Saint of Winter, a clear, uncontrollable fluctuation appeared for the first time. Her hollow eyes flickered violently, as if the "Root" will she embodied was frantically calculating incomprehensible data.
Fear.
A sense of fear, stemming from the instinct of existence and the complete subversion of cognition, coiled around the "heart" of this Root Incarnation like a cold viper for the first time. She could not comprehend how an "individual" could possess authority akin to a "Rule Writer," a power that directly negated "existence" itself! This had already exceeded the scope the Holy Grail could handle, exceeding her definition of "threat"!
She looked at the "Nothingness" still slowly expanding below, and at Kanjuro, standing alone in the center of the "Nothingness," his black robe fluttering, his eyes indifferent like a deity (or rather, a Demon God). For the first time, she spoke with a voice carrying a slight, almost imperceptible tremor:
"What... what exactly are you...?"
Kanjuro slowly raised his head, looking at the Saint of Winter in the sky, who was exhibiting the emotion of "fear" for the first time, and a cold, nihilistic curve appeared at the corner of his mouth.
"I am your end."
His voice was not loud, yet it sounded like the final death knell ringing between the Saint of Winter and this crumbling world. Kanjuro's words, announcing the end, pierced the Saint of Winter's final mental defense like an ice pick. She looked at "The Moment of All Running Dry" still silently expanding and annihilating everything below, sensing the terrifying presence emanating from Kanjuro, which had already surpassed her comprehension, even exceeding the scope of the Holy Grail and the Root. The coldness and indifference she had maintained finally completely shattered.
"No... you can't..." Her voice lost its grand resonance, becoming sharp and trembling, like a frightened young girl. The Holy Light around her fluctuated violently, and the phantom of the Holy Grail behind her began to flicker, as if it might collapse at any moment. "If you insist on this, I... I will sever the connection with the Holy Grail! I will let the accumulated Evil of this World run completely rampant and sweep across the entire world! At that time, it won't just be the people of Fuyuki City who die!"
This was her final, desperate threat, attempting to use the survival of billions of lives as a bargaining chip.
Hearing this, Kanjuro looked as if he had heard an extremely funny joke. The cold, nihilistic curve on his face widened, turning into a malicious, almost joyful, mocking smile.
"Oh? You threaten me with the death of more ants?" He took a light step, instantly crossing the distance of space, appearing in the air parallel to the Saint of Winter, gazing closely at her stunning face, which was pale with fear. "Do you think... I care?"
His gaze was like a scalpel, precisely peeling away all her pretense, reaching the most core emptiness. 0
The Saint of Winter trembled under his intense gaze, and the will of the Root seemed to fall into confusion and stagnation before this absolute "anomaly." She looked at the unconcealed indifference in Kanjuro's eyes toward life and even the world itself, finally realizing that morality, responsibility, and mass slaughter... these concepts were lighter than a feather to him.
"Then... what exactly do you want?" she asked, almost sobbing, giving up all her superiority, leaving only the most primal fear of annihilation.
Kanjuro reached out, not to attack, but to use his fingertip to very lightly lift her smooth, cold chin, forcing her to meet his gaze. His eyes deepened; what churned within was no longer destruction, but a... more primal, more possessive dark desire.
"Satisfy me?" He chuckled softly, his voice carrying a sticky, unpleasant ambiguity. "You, a vessel existing relying on the Holy Grail, a... virgin who doesn't even understand what desire is, what can you offer to satisfy me?"
He bit out the word "virgin" with particular clarity, full of blasphemy and degradation.
The Saint of Winter's pupils contracted sharply, and the color instantly drained from her face; even fear was overshadowed by an intense sense of humiliation. As a symbol of sanctity and a conduit to the Root, her very existence was stripped of mortal desires, maintaining absolute "purity." To be exposed by Kanjuro in such a crude and direct manner was tantamount to degrading her most essential existence into the dust.
"You... you..." Her lips trembled, but she couldn't form coherent words. The will of the Root also seemed unable to process this illogical humiliation and negotiation based purely on the desires of lower beings.
"It seems you truly don't understand." Kanjuro's finger exerted slight pressure, almost leaving a mark on her cold jaw. He leaned close to her ear, whispering like a demon in a voice only they could hear, "A man's Pleasure is sometimes very simple. Especially... conquering a 'Saintess' like you, who claims to be noble and untainted, but is actually hollow and boring."
His words were like the dirtiest mire, splattering onto her pure white and flawless spiritual body.
"Think about it, Justeaze," he called her true name, his voice filled with temptation and coercion. "Will you choose to face complete annihilation and return to Nothingness, along with your ridiculous 'purity' and the Holy Grail? Or... will you abandon your pitiful persistence and try to use this 'vessel' of yours to please me, in exchange for a... perhaps different future?"
He let go, stepping back half a pace, watching her leisurely, as if admiring a piece of porcelain about to be shattered and then glued back together.
"Use your 'Existence' itself to satisfy my 'Pleasure.' This is your only... and final bargaining chip."
The Saint of Winter stood frozen, the Holy Grail's radiance flickering violently around her, reflecting the interwoven fear, humiliation, confusion, and a trace of... the most primitive greed for "Existence" itself that had been forcibly awakened on her face. Kanjuro had not only defeated her power but had also used the most despicable means to shatter the foundation and pride upon which her existence relied.
To be destroyed proudly as a holy vessel, or to continue existing shamefully as a toy to please the demon?
The will of the Root clashed fiercely within her. Finally, the cold "purity" that had been maintained for hundreds of years developed its first clear crack in the face of absolute power and naked desire.
Slowly, and with extreme difficulty, she closed her eyes, her long eyelashes trembling like the wings of a dying butterfly.
A crystal clear "tear," composed not of water but of the purest Magical Energy and humiliation, slid from the corner of her eye, evaporating and dissipating in the Holy Light.
The silent compromise was more glaring than any plea.
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