Asuka raised her greatshield and charged at the knights, knocking aside everyone in her path. She swung her lance at Arthur.
A metallic clash rang out!
Arthur raised his sword to block. Feeling the heavy impact of the lance, his expression changed slightly. He poured battle aura into his sword and pushed the lance away with a shout before swinging back.
"I'll assist you."
Realizing that Arthur and Percival alone wouldn't be able to retrieve the Grail without his help, Merlin raised his staff. The rainwater on the ground surged upward, forming a massive water prison that trapped both Cyan and Asuka. In a place filled with water after the thunderstorm, this kind of magic was extremely difficult to defend against.
The water inside the prison was thick, more like oil than water. Their bodies were restrained, making movement extremely difficult. Various negative effects appeared on them as ribbon-like streams of water covered their mouths and noses. It wouldn't be long before they lost consciousness from lack of air.
Of course, this only applied to Asuka. For Cyan, the water didn't prevent her from breathing.
Think of something fast!
Asuka looked at Cyan, conveying her thoughts through her eyes. If Cyan couldn't do anything, she would try to break the water prison with brute force.
Cyan was already thinking. She gave Asuka a look in return, unsure if she understood.
"Hand over the Grail. I don't want to do this, so don't force my hand."
Percival walked up to the water prison and pointed his axe at Cyan's right arm — the one holding the Grail. His meaning was clear: either hand it over, or he would cut off her arm to take it.
Suddenly, Nishi slid across the ground toward Merlin and kicked at his legs, trying to disrupt the magic keeping Cyan and Asuka trapped.
Bang!
A pale blue flame-formed magic shield blocked Nishi's attack.
Merlin glanced at Nishi. The pale blue flames formed into a beast and lunged at her.
This magic shield is annoying…
Nishi pushed off the ground with both hands and dodged the flaming beast.
Extreme Speed!
A faint blue light glowed around Nishi's body. She took out Musk's short blade and charged toward Percival, prioritizing Cyan's safety.
Jet-black hair strands emerged from the ground and wrapped around the knights' legs, climbing upward to bind their bodies. Kayako slowly rose from the rainwater on the ground, her hair gradually tightening.
"Evil spirit! Don't even think about harming the knights!"
Merlin's gaze sharpened when he saw Kayako. He hadn't expected this ghost to be able to restrain so many knights at once. He waved his staff, and a ball of flame transformed into an eagle that let out a long cry before diving toward Kayako.
Demon Flame!
150 Spirit!
A scorching deep purple demonic flame erupted!
The violent explosion of demonic flame evaporated the water prison Merlin had created using rainwater!
Cyan and Asuka regained their freedom.
Cough cough cough!
Asuka coughed. Being able to breathe fresh air again felt incredibly good. That suffocating sensation reminded her of the first time she had entered the entry plug and come into contact with LCL fluid.
Gripping her lance tightly, Asuka swung her shield at Arthur.
Cyan's Spirit had been greatly consumed in an instant, and her face had turned noticeably paler.
The tremendous force startled Percival, who had walked up to the water prison intending to cut off Cyan's arm and take the Golden Grail. He raised his axe in front of himself and took several steps back.
The scattered demonic flames gathered around Cyan's left fist. She threw a punch, and the flames shot out, smashing the flaming eagle that was diving toward Kayako!
After destroying the eagle, the remaining flames formed into fireballs that orbited around Kayako like wingmen.
Seeing that Cyan and Asuka had escaped, Nishi launched an attack on Merlin.
Her short blade struck the magic shield, but it didn't even shake. Nishi frowned and swung her blade rapidly, trying to break through it.
I need more speed and power!
Become a Demon!
A Prajna Mask appeared on Nishi's face. Black ghostly aura poured out from the mask's mouth and wrapped around her body!
Under the effects of the Become a Demon skill, her Strength reached 25 and her Agility reached 32!
With her speed further increased, Nishi's attacks also grew stronger. Her short blade left ripples across the surface of the magic shield with every strike.
A pinkish mist appeared, ignoring the magic shield entirely and dealing continuous damage to Merlin.
What is this?!
Merlin felt discomfort and pain wherever the pinkish mist touched him.
Ripple Dash!
Golden lightning wrapped around her legs as Cyan appeared in front of Percival. She leapt up and drove her knee into his chin while smashing the back of his head with the Golden Grail gripped in both hands!
You want to steal the Grail?!
Crack!
The sound of bones breaking rang out. Percival spat out a mouthful of blood and collapsed limply to the ground. Even with Merlin's magical protection, he couldn't withstand Cyan's targeted attack to his head.
It was fortunate that Cyan had no intention of killing him. Otherwise, this bald old man's head wouldn't have just fractured — it would have exploded like a watermelon.
Cyan grabbed Percival by the strap of his shoulder armor, lifted him up, and threw him toward Arthur. She then ate three fruit plates and drank two cups of wine. As her Spirit recovered, her complexion improved significantly.
Arthur saw Percival flying toward him and quickly reached out to catch him. Asuka had no intention of showing any knightly courtesy. She took the opportunity to activate her EVA power. The silhouette of Unit-02 appeared as she used all her strength to swing her lance.
A powerful gust of wind kicked up the rainwater on the ground. Arthur and Percival were sent flying, and the magic Merlin had cast on them was shattered by the impact.
The two of them tumbled across the ground like rolling gourds.
[EVA Power (Special Active)] The entry plug once penetrated too deeply into the EVA core, allowing Asuka to use a portion of Unit-02's power with her human body. Activating it continuously consumes HP, Stamina, and Spirit.
The knights, bound by the gradually tightening hair, lost the strength to struggle. One by one, they lowered their heads and fell unconscious. Kayako retracted her hair and curiously poked the eerie deep purple demonic flame with her finger. She wasn't harmed in the slightest.
Since Kayako had been summoned by Asama Ai, she was considered Cyan's teammate. Teammates could not harm each other. Therefore, even if she played with the demonic flame or ate it, it wouldn't damage her.
"This ends here, Merlin."
Cyan walked up to Merlin and smashed the burning Golden Grail against his magic shield, shattering the one that had been on the verge of breaking under Nishi's attacks. She grabbed Merlin by the collar and said coldly, "The Grail is our spoils of war. If you come to steal it again, we won't let you off."
With that, she released Merlin's collar and turned to leave. Nishi and Asuka followed behind her.
Kayako played with the demonic flame in her hand.
Fifteen seconds passed. The flame extinguished in her palm. Kayako looked slightly disappointed before sinking into the water on the ground and disappearing.
Merlin watched Cyan's group leave with clenched fists, his face filled with rage. He had never expected this operation to fail so completely. He looked at the unconscious Arthur and Percival, then raised his staff to heal the knights' injuries before turning into smoke and vanishing.
I need a stronger helper. The Grail absolutely cannot be allowed to leave with the outsiders!
Nighttime, Avalon Lake.
Specks of light, like fireflies in midsummer, floated up from the lake and hovered in the air. Light footsteps sounded from within the lake. A cold, beautiful face with golden curly hair appeared, wearing an exceptionally gorgeous long dress illuminated by countless glowing particles.
"Well, if it isn't Merlin. What brings you here instead of hovering around Arthur? Or did your plan run into some trouble?"
Merlin looked at the cold fairy emerging from the lake and spoke seriously, "Vivian, I need your help."
"Merlin, don't think our friendship allows you to ask for my help without limits." Vivian's expression turned cold. Her deep blue eyes, cold as the deep sea, stared at him icily.
"Vivian, the Grail you created was stolen by the outsiders. Are you just going to let them take it away?" Merlin smiled, his wrinkled face showing a hint of amusement as he took a step back. "I don't particularly mind. If the Grail is gone, I can just make another one. But I have no idea where that Grail blessed by the Lady of the Lake will end up once the outsiders take it."
Late at night, Cyan sat in front of a campfire, hugging her demon blade with her eyes closed as she kept watch.
Suddenly, an overwhelming drowsiness washed over her, and she fell into a deep sleep.
The sound of bubbles popping rang in her ears. Cyan found herself in a strange place. Above her was a flow of water that let light through, and she could see the moon changing shape with the water's movement. It felt like she was inside water. There was furniture around her — a small round table with a book on it and a cup of steaming hot tea.
Where is this? Am I dreaming?
No… That sudden drowsiness just now was suspicious. Was it an enemy?
Realizing this, Cyan became alert. She sensed someone approaching from behind. She took a step back and swung her elbow backward, hearing a seductive cry of pain. She turned around and grabbed the person by the neck.
"What do you intend to do to an elegant lady?"
Vivian looked at Cyan with interest. It was the first time she had seen someone this beautiful and pretty…
A boy? Hmm?
Vivian realized she had misjudged the gender of the person in front of her. Ignoring the hand around her neck, she reached out and touched Cyan's chest.
"So small…"
"What is your goal?"
Cyan swatted Vivian's hand away and took a step back.
The other party's series of actions confused her. She couldn't understand what Vivian was trying to do, and she didn't sense any malice from her.
"I've come to take back the Grail I created."
"Merlin… sent you, a magician?"
Cyan's gaze turned cold. "I'm not handing over the Grail. Do you want to fight?"
"Is that so? If you don't hand it over, you won't be able to leave this place."
Vivian's expression turned cold as she vanished. Everything around Cyan turned into nothingness.
She's trying to trap me here?
Cyan looked around. Her expression didn't change at all, which greatly disappointed Vivian, who had wanted to see her panic.
Just what is this person's background?
She can stay this calm even when trapped in a dream world.
Vivian observed Cyan. She was curious whether Cyan had a way to break her magic and escape.
This is my dream. To leave, all I need to do is wake up.
Cyan sat down on the ground and began thinking about how to wake herself from the dream.