Just as Shirou was wondering how absurd the little cat's Originium Arts actually were, Amiya's voice came through the communicator:
"Rosmontis will have difficulty acting again in the short term. For now, we can only ask Blaze to engage the enemy. I will support you from the side."
"Leave it to me! I am in great shape right now!"
As she spoke, Blaze swung the chainsaw in her hand to the side. It was clearly visible that the weapon extended by another section and began roaring to life.
"...?"
A question mark appeared in Shirou's head upon hearing Blaze's words.
Well... when it came to Terrans, perhaps it was better for him not to interfere.
"Do not try to fight them head-on. If you really cannot handle them, just retreat. I already injured one of them earlier. I am a little worried they might decide to drag everyone down with them."
The current situation was still completely under control. Especially since he had managed to wound the more experienced Emperor Blade amid the chaos, the overall situation could be described as extremely favorable.
Of course, that was only favorable compared to how things had been before. In truth, their circumstances were still rather dangerous.
Because the most dangerous thing remained what was inside the Emperor Blades.
Even they themselves feared whatever resided within their bodies. The moment the Emperor Blade Shirou had injured was wounded, he had immediately reached out to cover the damaged section of his armor.
It had only lasted an instant, but Shirou saw it clearly.
He had also seen the black substance that emerged. Just looking at it made him want to stay far away from it. In his personal ranking of things he hated, it earned a position just one tier below the mud of the Holy Grail.
Incidentally, one tier above the mud of the Holy Grail was Gilgamesh.
It was difficult to imagine what it would look like if that thing escaped from an Emperor Blade's body. If possible, Shirou sincerely hoped those Emperor Blades would recognize the situation and withdraw.
Unfortunately, their loyalty to Ursus was not something that would falter because of a few injuries.
"Hsss... hsss..."
As the smoke dispersed, three Emperor Blades stood before Shirou, looking somewhat battered.
Unlike before, when they had stood shoulder to shoulder, the three were now spread apart. Dust and scratches covered their bodies.
The suppressive fire from the twin guns had been ferocious. Had there not been so much dust providing cover, the marks on their bodies might not have been scratches but bullet holes.
Shirou did not particularly care about that. The purpose of the suppressive fire had mainly been to drain their stamina.
Judging from how disheveled they looked, his objective had been achieved.
Spinning the gunblades in his hands, blue magical energy flashed across them, transforming the twin firearms into a pair of swords.
Unlike Shirou, who still appeared completely at ease, the three Emperor Blades were not doing nearly as well.
The enemy had merely dropped a heavy object from above. Under normal circumstances, even a giant block of steel could have been shattered through a combination of their weapons and energy projectiles.
But that enormous sword-like monstrosity was clearly not something they could destroy with the weapons in their hands. If they were struck by it, there was a high probability they would immediately lose their combat capability.
They might even become the first Emperor Blades in history to be crushed to death by a falling object.
Setting aside the fact that such an end would permanently nail them to a pillar of shame, there was another issue.
Their target, Shirou had people behind him providing strategies and guidance. They had already fallen into this trap. Attempting to carry out a decapitation strike with only a handful of Emperor Blades was proving extraordinarily difficult.
Not to mention that additional support personnel were assisting Shirou from behind, tying down the other Emperor Blades and the Black Snake's forces, further restricting their options.
If this continued, the situation would become increasingly unfavorable for them. After all, two enemy combatants had not even entered the battlefield yet.
As for the Black Snake's scheme...
The veteran Emperor Blade believed its chances of success were slim. They could not place their hopes on it.
Having reached a decision, the seasoned Emperor Blade determined what needed to be done next—
"Hsss... Full force!"
With a single command from the veteran leader, the three Emperor Blades charged from three different directions.
"The left one? The right one? Or the one in the center giving orders?"
Seeing the Emperor Blades move, Blaze lowered her stance and hefted her chainsaw. A deafening roar suddenly filled the air.
However, she did not rush in recklessly. Instead, she waited for Amiya's instructions.
If it had only been her and Shirou, she could have chosen any target she wanted. But now she had to consider the battlefield commander's intentions.
"Blaze, keep the one on the left occupied. Rosmontis and I are closer to him. I will provide support when appropriate."
As though responding to Amiya's words, a black beam of Arts shot out from Blaze's left side toward the Emperor Blade.
The beam was extremely fast, but the Emperor Blade's reaction speed was no slower. He immediately raised his blade and blocked the attack.
The moment the black beam struck the weapon, it scattered apart. Besides slowing the Emperor Blade's advance, it also obscured his vision.
When the Arts dissipated, the Emperor Blade had already prepared himself to meet the incoming chainsaw assault.
What he did not expect was that the first thing to greet him was an unknown red substance.
Before he could react, the red liquid began to glow faintly.
Then it transformed into flames and wrapped itself around his body.
"Tch, the quality of that armor is seriously good."
Although Amiya's Arts only restrained the enemy for a few short seconds, Blaze had seized the opportunity to launch a surprise attack first.
Unfortunately... it did not seem to have achieved much.
That armor's defensive capabilities were impressive.
Forget injuring the enemy, she could not even tell whether the flames had actually burned him.
After all, the man was already pitch-black from head to toe. There was no way to tell.
Flames, chainsaws, pitch-black Arts spheres and beams, along with mysterious chunks of metal interfering from all directions, under the assault of all these things, the Emperor Blade found himself forced onto the defensive and had no choice but to devote all his strength to protecting himself.
On the other side, Shirou was facing two Emperor Blades.
He was handling them effortlessly, but neither was he struggling.
The two Emperor Blades coordinated flawlessly. The more experienced one took the lead while the other provided support, and together their offensive pressure was tremendous.
"Trace on"
The repeated exchanges and blocks had forced Shirou to project Kanshou and Bakuya several times over to keep up.
Especially the veteran Emperor Blade. Perhaps because of his injuries, Shirou could clearly feel that the energy spheres he was producing were stronger than before.
That was also the main reason why the Kanshou and Bakuya in Shirou's hands were being replaced so frequently.
"Hsss... troublesome."
The second Emperor Blade coordinated his attacks with the veteran, forcing Shirou to abandon his twin blades on multiple occasions.
Yet somehow, Shirou never seemed to run out of weapons.
Conventional combat logic simply did not work against him.
When facing a skilled opponent, one standard tactic was to deprive them of control over their weapon.
Whether by knocking it away or forcing them into a block and creating an opening for an ally to exploit.
But none of those tactics worked on Shirou.
Scattered around the battlefield were nearly fifteen pairs of black-and-white swords.
Now, not only did they have to watch the twin blades in Shirou's hands, they also had to stay alert in case any of the swords lying around suddenly exploded.
If Shirou merely possessed a large number of weapons, they would not have found him so troublesome.
The problem was that his combat skills were excellent as well.
Whether attacking or defending, he was highly competent.
He might not have reached the highest level they recognized, but he made up for it with adaptability and versatility.
"I already said it. Go all out."
After yet another failed attack, the veteran Emperor Blade stopped deliberately covering the damaged section of armor on his arm.
He allowed whatever was inside to spread outward freely.
"...Understood."
The younger Emperor Blade originally wanted to say something.
But then he thought about how many Emperor Blades and Ursus soldiers had been mobilized for this operation, only for everything to end in failure.
Even Reunion, which had originally been intended to become the blade with which Ursus would declare war upon the world, had escaped both their expectations and the Black Snake's plans.
Instead, it had become a blade pointed back at them.
If they returned empty-handed after all this, then everything they had done would amount to nothing more than a joke.
At the very least, they had to eliminate an enemy who could one day become a major threat to Ursus.
Even if it cost them their lives.
Even if it meant contaminating this land.
The younger Emperor Blade began gathering the power within his body, waiting for the right moment.
"...I have a bad feeling about this."
After destroying what felt like countless energy spheres and Arts attacks, Shirou suddenly noticed the pace of the two Emperor Blades slowing.
He did not believe for a second that they were slowing down because they were tired.
There had to be a trick behind it.
The old him probably would not have thought so deeply about it.
But ever since confronting the Black Snake, he had become somewhat suspicious by nature.
Whenever something happened, he found himself instinctively considering the worst-case scenario.
...Just like Archer.
The thought sent a shiver down his spine, and he quickly pushed it out of his mind.
Even so, with that concern in mind, he warned Amiya through the communicator and slowed his own attacks as well.
His magical energy reserves were still fairly abundant.
His stamina, however, was draining.
Cutting apart incoming Arts with swords required both concentration and effort. Combined with the need to fend off attacks from multiple opponents simultaneously, even with reinforcement magecraft enhancing his body, Shirou could clearly feel his stamina dropping.
So the enemy slowing down was actually beneficial to him.
At the very least, it gave him a chance to catch his breath.
Originally, magical energy had been the limiting factor before his stamina ran out.
Now the situation had completely reversed, leaving Shirou unsure whether to laugh or cry.
Still, while he was taking a breather, his mind never stopped working.
He continued analyzing what these people intended to do next.
The overwhelming malice surrounding him prevented him from using that particular ability to determine whether other enemies were nearby.
Fortunately, Scout and his squad were handling reconnaissance, so that was not a major concern.
As for the possibility of traps having been laid in advance...
That seemed unlikely as well.
The area had already been thoroughly scouted before being selected as the battlefield, so that possibility could largely be ruled out.
That left only one conclusion.
The two men in front of him seemed to be preparing something big.
An even larger energy sphere?
More black swords and spears?
Or perhaps...
The Nation?
Although Shirou had already warned Doctor to prepare for the impact of the Nation, he did not believe the Emperor Blades were very likely to use that technique on Ursus soil.
After all, land contaminated by it required an extremely long time to recover.
Until that recovery was complete, it would remain nothing more than a barren wasteland of death.
However, it now seemed that these people were willing to sacrifice this entire sector if it meant eliminating him.
With that thought, Shirou tightened his grip on his sword and subtly drew his hand inward, brushing against the Archer Class Card hidden beneath his coat.
A small amount of magical energy flowed into it. The moment something went wrong, the Mystic Code would manifest immediately.
The reason he had not used it from the beginning was simple.
Having used it once before, Shirou felt that his current self was too easily influenced by the card's effects, so he had always treated it as his final trump card.
He had even considered using it against the Black Snake.
In the end, after determining that the situation remained manageable, he abandoned the idea.
But now...
Faced with the unknown threat, even if the Mystic Code did not provide much protection, it was still better than trying to withstand it with his own body.
Being cautious was the safest option.
As for Blaze, it was time for her to withdraw.
She already appeared to be carrying numerous injuries, and now blood was dripping from her body with every step she took.
Not only that, the blood was actually smoking.
When it came to fighting, she was even more reckless than Shirou himself.
Whether judged by the severity of her injuries or by any other standard, Blaze should have left the battlefield and sought treatment from the medical operators long ago.
Otherwise, they might have to activate the pacemaker implanted in her body.
"Trace on—"
Having settled on his next course of action, Shirou activated Projection Magecraft once again.
This time, he was not projecting Kanshou and Bakuya.
Nor was he projecting gunblades.
Instead, he projected several massive greatswords roughly as tall as a person.
Driven by magical energy, the greatswords charged toward the Emperor Blade currently being held back by Blaze and the others.
"I can still hold on a little longer... Fine! Fine! I get it! I am retreating!"
The moment she saw the greatswords temporarily pinning down the Emperor Blade, Blaze immediately understood Shirou's intentions.
He was telling them to withdraw.
There was no place for lengthy conversations in the middle of combat.
Combined with Shirou's projection abilities, this method of communication suited him perfectly.
Blaze originally believed she could continue fighting for a while longer.
But Amiya immediately shut down that idea and even instructed Rosmontis to drag her away.
At that point, retreating was no longer optional.
Before the little feline managed to pull her away, Blaze made sure not to waste the blood flowing from her arms.
She scattered it across the surrounding area and detonated it, kicking up a massive cloud of dust and smoke that concealed her retreat route.
"Rosmontis and I will continue supporting you, Shirou! Focus on the fight!"
After Blaze successfully withdrew from the battlefield, Amiya spoke through the communicator.
"Make sure you stay far away."
Using Kanshou and Bakuya in a cross-guard, Shirou blocked an Emperor Blade's blade and then yanked it toward the left, forcibly throwing off the enemy's position.
He immediately turned and delivered a powerful kick to the Emperor Blade who had broken free from Blaze's restraints and the projected greatswords, sending him flying backward.
"The one with the injured arm... leave him to me."
Rosmontis was not limited to using only her tactical equipment.
The projected greatswords could serve as substitutes.
Alternating between throwing tactical equipment and projected greatswords, she forced her opponent steadily backward.
But everyone knew this situation was only temporary.
Originium Arts were never meant to be used continuously.
The more they were used, the greater the burden on the caster.
This was especially true for someone like Rosmontis, whose Arts were exceptionally powerful.
Not to mention that her Arts had been artificially implanted.
That only increased the burden she carried.
"And even now you still think you can turn this around? People who refuse to let go are really annoying, you know."
With no allies nearby to worry about, Shirou switched to gunblades and unleashed a barrage of magically enhanced bullets while conserving as much stamina as possible.
Once he realized the Emperor Blades were likely preparing a desperate final use of the thing in them, there was no longer any reason for restraint.
If he failed to drive them back, they would detonate it.
If he accidentally shattered their armor, then they would detonate.
Since he was going to get caught in the blast either way, Shirou simply chose the option that at least gave him a chance to force the Emperor Blades into retreat.
After all, people always compromise, did they not?
When an even worse option appeared, the previously terrible choice suddenly became much more acceptable.
At first, he had wanted nothing to do with them.
Then he simply hoped whatever was inside them would not contaminate the land or harm his allies.
Now, he had completely accepted the possibility of getting hit head-on by it.
The fact that this entire shift in mindset had happened within only a few days gave Shirou an even worse headache.
Although he no longer had so many reservations, he still wanted nothing to do with that thing if he could avoid it.
One look was enough to tell it was bad news.
Even if someone wrapped it up and gave it to him as a gift, he would refuse it.
"Hsss... merely the empty taunts of a desperate man."
The three Emperor Blades paid no attention whatsoever to Shirou's verbal provocation.
After all, there was no point conversing with the dead.
"But it worked, did it not? Look at that, you got distracted."
Shirou responded with another round of mockery, accompanied by a fresh assault of projected Noble Phantasms.
With magical energy flowing freely into countless projected bullets and weapons, the three Emperor Blades were now covered in wounds.
From time to time, black, unidentified substances seeped out from various parts of their bodies.
At the same time, more and more black snowflakes began falling throughout the sector.
The overwhelming majority of them were concentrated around the three Emperor Blades.
There were some black snowflakes drifting around Shirou as well, but the shockwaves generated by his projected Noble Phantasms continuously blew them away.
As the number of black snowflakes increased, Shirou began to feel that the aura and condition of the three Emperor Blades were becoming increasingly... strange.
"Amiya! Tell everyone else to retreat! You all need to withdraw too!"
An intense sense of foreboding surged through him, prompting Shirou to immediately issue a retreat order to Amiya.
Although he did not fully understand what state these people were in, it was safer to get everyone away from the area.
As for himself?
Shirou knew perfectly well that he was not getting away.
Even without this fishing operation, these people would have come looking for him sooner or later. Rather than waiting passively, he had chosen to take the initiative, which was why this operation had been organized in the first place.
He was the one they had marked.
As long as he remained alive, he would always be their primary target.
There was absolutely no way he could escape.
Unless someone else stayed behind to buy him time.
But that would be no different from sending those people to their deaths, so that option had never even entered his considerations.
The support he had already received had greatly reduced the pressure on him.
Now that it was clear these Emperor Blades and Ursus soldiers intended to fight to the bitter end, Shirou naturally had no intention of letting others share the danger with him.
"...Understood. Shirou, be careful."
Upon hearing his command, Amiya hesitated briefly before finally agreeing.
Like Shirou, she did not want him facing such danger alone.
But she also had to think about everyone else.
There was no perfect solution that could satisfy both sides.
All she could do now was trust that Shirou could handle this himself.
"Do not worry. Just wait for the good news—!"
Halfway through the sentence, Shirou suddenly cut himself off.
He no longer had time to pay attention to the people on the other end of the communicator.
Instead, he immediately poured a massive amount of magical energy into the Class Card, causing the Mystic Code to manifest.
He did that because he had seen an Emperor Blade lurking within the shadows beside him.
Under normal circumstances, Shirou should have noticed him long ago.
But concealed by the overwhelming malice and the black snowflakes, the Emperor Blade had remained completely hidden.
There were five Emperor Blades in total.
Three stood before him.
The remaining two were being delayed by Rhodes Island's elite operators far away from this battlefield.
Yet this Emperor Blade...
He showed no signs of injury whatsoever.
It was obvious he had been hiding there the entire time.
Had Shirou's conversation with Amiya not caused the man to worry that Shirou might escape, prompting him to make his move early, the ambush might truly have succeeded.
No.
Strictly speaking, it had succeeded anyway.
The moment the hidden Emperor Blade attacked, the other three attacked simultaneously.
"Rho Aias!"
The instant the chant was completed, the translucent pale-purple Noble Phantasm resembling a flower appeared before Shirou.
It immediately intercepted the attack of those unknown black substances.
The black matter did not disperse upon impact.
Instead, it dissolved into clouds of dark mist that began spreading outward in every direction.
"These bastards... they are serious about this!"
Although he had never seen it personally, Shirou could roughly guess what it was.
The "Evil" that even figures like Yith and Wei Yenwu, and everyone else who knew of the Emperor Blades' existence considered troublesome.
Protected by Rho Aias, Shirou had avoided being struck directly by it.
However, if things continued like this, it was only a matter of time before the spreading black mist reached him.
Moreover, the density of this mist was clearly different from what he had previously learned.
It was darker and deeper as though it could swallow a person whole at any moment.
Much like these people, much like Ursus itself.
A place that devoured people without leaving even their bones behind.
"At the very least... I cannot let this thing spread toward Amiya."
After a moment of thought, Shirou quickly grasped the speed at which the thing spread.
As long as Rho Aias continued resisting it, the black mist required time to advance.
But once the Noble Phantasm disappeared, the attack would erupt directly from the point where it had struck the shield, instantly consuming the entire sector.
Therefore, Shirou's objective became clear.
He had to ensure that the Nation's expansion did not extend too far beyond his own position.
Behind him stood Amiya, Penguin Logistics, Rhodes Island's operators, and beyond them, the entire camp.
He had no idea how far the Nation's range could extend.
But with several Emperor Blades unleashing it simultaneously, both its strength and area of effect would undoubtedly exceed anything he had anticipated.
Originally, he had planned to interrupt them the moment they attempted to activate the Nation.
He had never expected another Emperor Blade to be lying in wait and catch him off guard like this.
Plans really could not keep up with changing circumstances.
Rapidly adjusting his mindset, Shirou maintained Rho Aias with one hand while activating Projection Magecraft with the other.
"Trace on"
Behind him, magical energy gradually assembled into the form of a Noble Phantasm nearly as large as the Ig-Alima.
The Horizon of Dawn that Purifies the Seas
Also known as the Sul-sagana.
If the Ig-Alima's original form could effortlessly split apart countless mountains, then the Sul-sagana released flames like a furnace capable of burning away everything in existence.
Put simply, it unleashed a massive torrent of fire that consumed everything directly before it.
Under normal circumstances, Shirou would never use this ability.
The magical energy cost was disproportionate to the damage it inflicted.
He would much rather spend that energy projecting Broken Phantasms.
But in this situation, it was perfect.
Besides serving as a physical barrier against the Nation's advance, perhaps the flames themselves could form a second line of defense and slow its spread.
Would it work?
He had no idea.
But it was still better than doing nothing at all.
Sul-sagana, wreathed in flames, lay horizontally behind Shirou, forming a towering wall that blocked both his retreat and the advancing black mist.
At this point, Shirou had no choice but to dismiss the Noble Phantasm in his hand and allow the Nation to spread freely.
There was little point in forcing himself to maintain it.
During the time it had taken him to project the Sul-sagana, the black mist had already surrounded him.
Although only a small amount had reached him, it was enough to make him feel distinctly uncomfortable.
It felt as though...
The movements of his body had begun to lag behind.
His mind and consciousness could not react in time, causing him to inadvertently cut off the flow of magical energy sustaining the Noble Phantasm.
This had no effect on the already-formed Ig-Alima, Sul-sagana, or the other projected blade-type Noble Phantasms.
However, once deprived of magical energy, Rho Aias quickly vanished.
And as the amount of black mist around him increased, the symptoms only grew worse.
"..."
He could clearly see the Nation swallowing him whole.
Every instinct and warning in his mind screamed at him to flee this area immediately.
Yet his body felt unbelievably heavy.
This differed somewhat from Shirou's understanding of the Nation.
It was not as overtly destructive as he had expected.
Perhaps the Mystic Code's defenses were providing some degree of protection.
But that only allowed him to remain barely capable of movement.
If he wanted to do anything substantial to break out of his current predicament, it was practically impossible.
Moreover, with his body and mind falling out of sync, dizziness began to overwhelm him.
A powerful drowsiness crept into his consciousness.
Forcing himself to stay awake, he struggled to control his body, watching it move at an agonizingly slow pace.
In this state, Shirou could barely perceive the passage of time.
Had only a few moments passed outside?
Or had it already been a long while?
Had Amiya and Texas managed to retreat safely...?
Even standing at death's doorstep, the first people Shirou thought about were still others.
Holding on to that thought, his consciousness gradually began to fade.