-50- The start of the battle of wits

If Cú Chulainn, as Caster, is a hero known in famous legends even to children, then Archer is truly an obscure nobody.

At least, until the year 2018, even if Archer were to reveal his true name to the world, no one would be able to find his name in past myths and legends.

The reason is simple: Archer is not an Heroic Spirit from the past but from the future.

"In truth, the concept of the Throne of Heroes has no notion of time."

Regardless of the past, present, or future, as long as someone possesses the qualities to be a "hero," they will be recorded in the Throne and become a Heroic Spirit.

Thus, in this era, it is only natural that no one recognizes Archer.

Therefore, if one must refer to Archer by his true name, then calling him the "Nameless" is a more substantial description.

The unknown hero from the future.

That is perhaps the best way to describe Archer.

"For me, as long as I have the means to accomplish the mission, names don't matter."

With this thought in mind, the Archer-class Servant stands tall, gazing into the distance.

They are in a deep mountain that resembles a devouring beast.

Their location is a temple nestled within the mountain.

Archer stands atop the temple, using their skill "Clairvoyance" to look several kilometers away.

Approaching from that direction are the anticipated enemies.

There is a girl dressed in an aristocratic attire, seemingly impatient.

There is a lecherous sage, holding a wooden staff with an obnoxious expression on his face.

There is an Pesudo-Servent with an extraordinary creature perched on their shoulder, holding a shield.

There is a delicate-looking young man with eyes flashing an unexpected brilliance.

The four-person group is rushing towards this place.

"As expected, they've come."

Archer's tone is filled with an unsurprised meaning.

Since Berserker has been defeated, Archer has been waiting here.

"Now that the other Servants have been defeated, it was only a matter of time before they came to us."

Thus, rather than launching an attack, it is better to wait for the enemy to come here.

In any case, as long as the enemy approaches, Archer, who occupies the high ground and can monitor several kilometers around, has the advantage.

For this reason, Archer specifically destroyed the underground passages around the mountain, preventing Rozen and the others from approaching from underground like they did last time.

"This time..."

As Archer gripped the bow, red mana surged and formed a black iron bow, firmly held in his hand.

......

The moment Archer grasped the bow, among Mash's group approaching the deep mountain, two Servants immediately reacted.

"Enemy detected!"

Mash stiffened her face and raised her shield.

"If Archer is launching the first attack, then our plan is working."

Caster, known as the magus, smiled disdainfully and tightened his grip on the wooden staff.

"The opponent is an Archer-class, so it couldn't be helped."

Olga Marie, who seemed prepared to be targeted, sighed.

"In that case..."

Rozen, as if reinvigorating himself, reached out and snatched Fou from Mash's shoulder, tossing her towards Olga Marie.

Rozen then looked towards the direction of the deep mountain with a playful smile.

"Let's stick to the plan and neutralize Archer's sniping!"

Rozen's words caused everyone around to laugh.

Following that, the surrounding magical power began to surge.

......

"What...?"

Archer, who was about to take a shot, suddenly narrowed his eyes.

In his field of "Clairvoyance," the actions of Mash's group approaching from the distance suddenly changed.

"This is a secret technique! Watch carefully!"

Caster shouted and raised the wooden staff. After a rotation, he struck the ground heavily.

Accompanied by the sound of "clang," a shimmering rune appeared on the ground where the staff struck.

It was the runic alphabet, capable of replacing incantations and magic circles. Carving it allows magic to be activated, originating from the mysteries of northern Europe.

Caster almost completed writing the runic alphabet without spending any time, activating the magic.

In the next moment, the ground struck by the staff suddenly surged, and thick roots emerged.

As a practitioner of "Rune Magic," Cu Chulainn was often referred to as the Forest Sage during his time as a mage. Although "Rune Magic" had various applications, such as "Rune of Resisting Magic," "Clairvoyance," and even elevating one specific attribute to its highest level, Caster could accomplish them all with flexible use of different runic alphabets. However, they couldn't be used simultaneously due to the nature of these abilities, and combined with his personality, Caster leaned towards proactive offense.

Now, Caster showed his aggressive side, making thick roots sprout from the ground and extend like bridges toward the deep mountain. Rozen's group sat at the front of these roots and approached the deep mountain at an astonishing speed as the roots extended.

In the blink of an eye, the distance of nearly a kilometer was eliminated by the opponent's unexpected approach.

"You won't succeed...!"

Seeing the enemy rapidly closing in, denying him any opportunity, Archer clicked his tongue and unhesitatingly aimed the arrow on the bowstring.

However, since Rozen had decided to attack in this manner, he naturally wouldn't give Archer the chance to snipe them.

Even though the underground passage was unusable, Rozen had sent his familiars quietly.

Now was the time for these familiars to play their role.

"Bang!"

Just as Archer's arrow was about to break through the air, the ground around the temple also exploded.

Out from the underground, massive magical ants emerged.

"———!"

Archer's expression changed as the magical ants started to move.

Each of them turned into a makeshift cannon, not rushing towards Archer but carrying huge rocks. With strength comparable to that of higher-level familiars, they launched the boulders one after another.

As a result, an overwhelming hail of rocks rained down on Archer.

"Playing some useless tricks!"

Archer leaped into the air, evading the incoming stone projectiles, and rotated his body, preparing to kick one of the rocks away.

Yet, this Archer failed to notice.

On the backside of the rock he kicked, a delicate rune suddenly lit up.

By the time Archer sensed the magic, it was already too late.

"Boom!"

An explosion resounded.

The rock with the engraved rune burst like a bomb, turning into a rolling wave of heat that enveloped Archer.