How long had it been since he experienced such a frantic battle?
Even though it had only been a few days since the end of the first path, fully assimilating the descent of the Heroic Spirit Lamorak had impacted Souya's memories and sensations.
For instance, facing Penthesilea's frenzied attacks after her Noble Phantasm fully deployed, Souya's body and mind were tense to the absolute limit. Yet, he couldn't help but recall his memories from Britain.
Despite that, Souya had to admit that even during the turbulent era when the Age of Gods ended, he had never experienced a battle quite like this.
Perfect violence. Absolute madness.
After releasing her Noble Phantasm, "Outrage Amazon," Penthesilea's already berserk attacks became even more brutal.
She abandoned her morning stars, finding them too cumbersome for close-quarters combat, and resorted to attacking Souya with her gauntlets, a short sword, and even her teeth and nails.
This savage, primal assault was something Souya, who lived during the peak of chivalry, had never faced.
Even Vortigern, after transforming into the White Dragon, lacked this sheer level of madness in his attacks.
"Seriously, what exactly did I do to make you hate me this much?!"
Souya manifested a wall of water to deflect Penthesilea's claw strike. He swept his lance fiercely at her shoulder while shouting his complaint.
"Orpheus! Orpheus! Orpheus!"
Penthesilea merely roared the name repeatedly, swinging her blade at him.
The snow-white edge of the blade radiated the crimson aura of the God of War, Ares.
Noticing this, Souya's draconic eyes flashed. Moving with his spear, he narrowly evaded the strike.
While Souya dared not use his C+ rank Queen's Fortress to block her divine attacks, Penthesilea showed no such restraint against him. She did not dodge or evade, allowing the Holy Lance to carve bloody gashes across her pale skin.
To an observer, Penthesilea's tactic of trading blows might seem foolish against Souya, who possessed diverse martial skills and the ultimate techniques of water. But only Souya felt the true, suffocating pressure.
Watching the wounds he inflicted instantly stop bleeding and scab over, while Penthesilea's aura surged even higher, Souya smiled bitterly.
Spartacus might be gone, but his successor is right here. She's treating me like a punching bag!
Souya was utterly speechless at his Greek counterpart. Just what kind of despicable acts had he committed to force a perfectly fine Penthesilea to develop a skill akin to "Howl of the Injured Beast"?
Complaints aside, the battle had to continue.
Clang! Clang!
With another violent clash, Souya finally managed to briefly repel Penthesilea's assault, halting her momentum using the physical enhancements of his draconic core and the remnants of the Age of Gods.
He quickly leaped backward, maintaining a safe distance from Penthesilea, whose eyes still burned crimson.
"Phew... what a troublesome opponent."
Leaning against a tree, Souya kept Rhongomyniad raised defensively, muttering to himself.
"Judging by her complete inability to communicate and those clearly enhanced parameters, her Mad Enhancement is definitely EX rank."
Watching Penthesilea, who seemed to be recovering from the recoil of her Noble Phantasm rather than pressing the attack immediately, Souya analyzed the situation.
Souya knew too little about this version of Penthesilea, who differed significantly from the original story. Had it not been for the versatility and adaptability of his water techniques, he would have suffered a severe loss early on and been critically injured by those morning stars imbued with Ares's divine power.
As for now... while it was troublesome, there were still plenty of ways to handle it.
Just as Souya pondered his strategy, a melodic voice suddenly spoke from above him.
"Well, now you see how troublesome and psychotic that madwoman is, don't you?"
"Atalante?"
Souya was stunned. He looked up to see the green-haired Hunter standing calmly on a branch.
"Why are you here? Did you finish your fight with the enemy Assassin?" Souya asked.
"Of course. Defeating a third-rate Servant like her is hardly impossible," Atalante shrugged.
"Unfortunately, while her combat skills are lacking, she is excellent at running away. I couldn't land the killing blow and she escaped. Also..."
Atalante paused, shifting her gaze to Penthesilea, who had also noticed her arrival.
"I didn't just deal with my enemy. After driving Assassin away, I scouted the battlefield. Aside from that idiot Rider getting suppressed for some reason, we are doing quite well. So, how do you plan to handle this madwoman?"
"I wish it were that simple," Souya smiled wryly, following her gaze to Penthesilea.
To his surprise, Penthesilea spoke first this time.
Her gaze darted between Souya and Atalante with a strange intensity before she spoke coldly.
"Heh. Consorting with Atalante just like before, yet you still refuse to admit your identity, Orpheus?"
Souya froze, but before he could respond, Atalante cut in.
"Is there a problem with that? Penthesilea, even though you chased this man across all of Greece in life, you of all people should know the nature of our relationship. It is a recognized fact throughout Greece."
Atalante paused slightly. As if provoking her, or perhaps clarifying something to a certain someone, she added:
"Furthermore, even now, countless years later, I am still the one who found him first."
"You wretch!"
Hearing this, the fury in Penthesilea's eyes finally boiled over, igniting once more.
Souya listened in silence, then looked up at Atalante.
The Hunter clearly felt his gaze, but she said nothing. She simply crossed her arms, looking as if she had stated an obvious truth.
It seems we definitely have a history, Souya thought. He offered a wry smile and turned his attention back to the enraged Penthesilea.
"To be precise, that is the future you. The current you is not the one I know."
Hearing Souya's words, Atalante chuckled. She didn't explain further, simply urging him.
"This is hardly the time or place to discuss such things. Finish this quickly, Souya."
Souya understood her implication and nodded seriously.
"I understand."
Souya did not hesitate any longer. He fully ignited the power of Lamorak within him.
The next moment, drawing upon his extraordinary Magic Circuits, mana surged from his body, manifesting as countless streams of water across his skin. In an instant, the water blasted Penthesilea away from him.
Under her furious glare, Souya slowly raised his lance.
"I do not know what I did to you in the future, or what I owe you. But right now, we are enemies in a Holy Grail War. It is time to end this."
"Orpheus! Die!"
Penthesilea merely roared. Swinging her claws, she lunged at him with the maddened ferocity of her Noble Phantasm.
This time, Souya did not use the water defensively. Instead, he channeled it, along with the momentum he had gathered earlier, into a raging river of magical energy concentrated entirely on the blade of his Holy Lance.
"Sleep within this strike, Queen of the Amazons. This is my respect for you as a mighty warrior. The ultimate meaning of flowing water."
With Souya's declaration, an azure radiance spread from him. Facing Penthesilea's lunging strike, Souya swung Rhongomyniad.
The Noble Phantasm "Spiritual Currents Take Myriad Forms," combined with the accumulated ultimate meaning of water, the King's Nemesis, and the Anti-Unit special attack, culminated in a flawless strike: Perfect Flowing Water Rock-Smashing.
In a flash of rushing water, under Atalante's watchful eyes, Souya's figure crossed paths with Penthesilea.
What followed was a spray of blood raining from the sky, and the Amazon Queen slowly collapsing to the ground.
In that moment, the tide of the battle shifted instantly, tipping the scales of victory toward the Red Faction.