[132] The Radiance of the Holy Sword
"I see, so you've chosen this course of action." Karna said to Altera, "Will your Master agree?"
"I... haven't connected with him; he doesn't know what's happening here." Altera replied.
"Hehehe, isn't that even better, Lancer? Let us join forces to kill Saber once more, a collaboration between the Matou and Tohsaka families. What do you say?"
"Please excuse me, but even facing Saber and Berserker simultaneously is not a problem for me." Karna said, swinging his spear.
"Me neither, handling just two Heroic Spirits is manageable." Altera said, raising her sword.
Berserker roared without saying anything, but it was clear that he was prepared to face the two opponents in front of him.
That's what Heroic Spirits were like...
All three Servants had confidence in their abilities.
Even facing two others simultaneously wouldn't lead to their defeat.
For a moment, some of the people in the crowd fleeing around them stopped.
While most continued to run, a few individuals paused, attracted by the radiance of these Heroic Spirits and forgetting the environment they were in. They forgot about death—
In the next moment, the three Heroic Spirits collided.
This time, it wasn't Saber and Lancer teaming up against Berserker but a chaotic melee between the three Servants.
The battle continued to escalate.
It was expanding to a point where even Matou Zouken's face was becoming somewhat grim...
Not for any other reason.
It was because of the Greater Grail—
If things continued this way, it might destroy the Greater Grail underground!
But... stopping was impossible. Even if he had Berserker halt, the other two Servants wouldn't.
And now... someone had escaped from Ryuudou Temple.
"Hehehe, forget it. This is my final Holy Grail War anyway, no need to clean up after the Mage Association. Let them handle it themselves. Berserker, change the course of the battle."
Matou Zouken issued his command.
In the next moment, the black Berserker leaped high into the air and charged towards a different location.
...
"Finally arrived—"
At the base of Ryuudou Temple's mountain.
Watching the crowd rushing down from the mountain, he furrowed his brows slightly. "This... has it already been discovered? Well, I'm interested to see how this unfolds... but for now, there's something more important... I'll face Lancer and Saber in battle, and Berserker should be my opponent this time. I haven't truly fought him yet, so this will be an opportunity to test his strength and see if it sparks any inspiration."
He looked for a place with fewer people and avoided the main entrance, passing through the trees.
He had already decided on the role he would take on this time...
Boom! Boom!
At that moment, a different sound came from the sky.
"Rider—?"
...
"It seems like quite a few Servants have gathered here," Archer EMIYA stood at a distance, observing the battle at Ryuudou Temple. "So, what's next... Berserker should be reaching his limit soon, right?"
He had died three times at his own hands and once each at Lancer's and Saber's hands.
That made it five times in total.
As a precaution, it would be better to provide some long-range support, right?
Hmm...
"Let's kill Berserker one more time and then retreat," he said. He noticed Rider driving a chariot towards them but didn't pay much attention.
He continued with his actions.
A bow appeared in one hand—
A golden radiance shone in the other.
"Haaah—" EMIYA's forehead was covered in fine beads of sweat, and his magical energy consumption was substantial.
He was doing something that would have caused his own spiritual core to collapse in the past—projecting Excalibur!
The holy sword used by King Arthur.
Typically, projecting this sword would result in the collapse of his spiritual core.
But now, it was different—
He was in Fuyuki City.
His hometown in life, now the place where his legend was preserved!
The boost from being a native Heroic Spirit, that's probably the situation.
So, his reality marble could last longer, and projection became much simpler.
What used to be a projection that would lead to his spiritual core crumbling, like now, was achievable with his full effort!
Although his spiritual core would still collapse afterward, it was something that could be salvaged...
Sizzle, sizzle, sizzle—
The golden holy sword appeared in his hand.
It shimmered with occasional sparks of electricity.
EMIYA rested the sword on his bow—
The original sword began to twist, deform, and slowly transform into an arrow—
"EX—CALIBUR!"
Whoosh—
The golden arrow shot through the air, targeting the black Berserker leaping high in the sky!
Boom—
"What's this?" Kazuya, who was rushing towards the mountain, used his hand to shield himself. "T-This is indeed a powerful force... What is it? An attack from afar... Archer? But then, who... Could it be EMIYA? Interesting... It seems like it's him, only he would use Broken Phantasm so recklessly!"
"Phew." On the other side, EMIYA let out a breath as he watched Berserker being blown apart by the explosion caused by the Holy Sword. Even Saber and Lancer, who were at a distance from Berserker, were affected by the shockwaves. "Master, my work here is done."
"Is that so... What's the situation?"
"Well, Berserker has died six times now, and he's lost more than half of his life. But I've also reached my limit. However..."
"However?" Kiritsugu asked.
"Perhaps we no longer need to think about how to destroy the Greater Grail. In that last attack, it might have already been destroyed or not, it's all just speculation, of course."
"I see... I understand," Kiritsugu nodded. "Come back for now; we'll make further assessments later."
"Understood." EMIYA said, glancing at the distant aftermath of the explosion. His spiritual core began to crumble... but it was smaller than he had expected.
He hadn't anticipated that the local hero boost would be this significant. "Master, how about using a Command Spell to rescue me?"
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