C517

"Ow... that hurts..."

Achilles groaned as he got to his feet.

Shirou's attack with that black arm and the massive sword Ig-Alima had certainly packed a punch.

It hadn't taken him out completely, but he could still feel the residual pain from that hit.

"Rider!" Atalanta shouted.

"I'm fine, sis!"

Achilles shouted back, standing up and focusing his gaze on Shirou.

But as Achilles steadied himself, a whirlwind of sixty-four gleaming blades came rushing at him.

His reflexes kicked in, and he reached for his shield, ready to block the blade wave. However, an icy feeling suddenly crept up his spine, and without thinking, he raised his right leg.

With a 'whoosh,' the deathly scythe blade, seemingly capable of slicing through space itself, came dangerously close to grazing Achilles' right heel.

Achilles swallowed hard, realizing just how close he'd come to disaster. Had he not acted on that gut feeling, that blade would've hit his one known vulnerability – the infamous Achilles' heel.

It was pretty obvious now that those sixty-four swords were just a diversion, while the real threat was the sly, sinister scythe attack!

As those sixty-four swords came flying at him, he quickly raised his shield for protection. And, of course, he made sure to watch out for his precious heel.

Suddenly, a black hand burst from the ground, seizing Achilles' right leg. Almost immediately, another scythe lunged at him.

Achilles reacted swiftly, angling his heel and making a rapid twirling motion. His shield spun, creating a vibrant green barrier around him. The centrifugal force not only released his leg from the black hand but also repelled the barrage of swords and the sinister scythe.

Shirou retracted his scythe and sighed, "Sure enough, if the first attempt doesn't work, the second surely won't."

As Achilles deflected each of the sixty-four swords, he looked at him with a serious expression, asking, "How did you know..."

Before he could finish, Shirou abruptly clenched his fist.

— "Broken Phantasm"!

The swords surrounding Achilles detonated in a succession of fiery explosions.

"Boom! Boom!"

Smoke and debris clouded the area as Achilles was consumed by the blast.

"You're supposed to be a king, aren't you? Isn't this method a bit too underhanded?" Atalanta gritted her teeth as she accused.

"Thanks for the compliment, Huntress. Your annoyance is a testament to my skill as an Assassin." He responded with a smile.

With a casual flick of his wrist, Shirou projected a colossal bow, the [Nine Lives: One Hundred Arrow Strikes (Fake)], summoned from his [Unlimited Blade Works] and a replica of one from Gilgamesh's collection.

Atalanta's eyes widened. "Is that Heracles' weapon?" she gasped.

"Hmm? It seems Heracles used something similar to take down the Hydra." He replied with a faint smile.

Suddenly, from the ground behind him, two towering black arms emerged. They reached out and drew the Nine Lives, loading an enormous arrow that could easily be mistaken for a pillar. Without hesitation, the arrow was aimed straight at Atalanta and released.

"BOOM—"

The arrow soared with a force that echoed like a sonic boom.

Unfortunately, this version of Nine Lives was only a visual duplicate; it lacked the powerful auto-guided nine laser Anti-Phantasmal Beast capability of the original.

In spite of her wounded right leg, Atalanta narrowly evaded the arrow.

With a thunderous explosion, the arrow lit up the night sky in the distance.

As she was about to steady herself, the ground around her erupted with countless black hands, each wielding weapons ranging from bayonets to knives and daggers, all aggressively lunging at her.

With swift motions, she used her longbow as a melee weapon, parrying the relentless attacks. But just as she attempted to break free from the encirclement, a particularly slender black hand shot up, seizing her ankle and slamming her fiercely to the ground.

A sharp cry of pain escaped her lips as she collided with the earth.

Just as Shirou raised the scythe and was about to take her life, Achilles suddenly burst out from the smoke.

Without missing a beat, Shirou glanced at him and drew Nine Lives again, launching another gargantuan arrow straight at him.

Achilles clenched his jaw and, in a bold move, raised his shield to face the incoming projectile head-on.

Time seemed to freeze as Nine Lives collided with the shield.

Then, in the next moment—

"BOOM—!!!"

A deafening explosion resounded through the entire area, rattling the surroundings with its force and lifting the nearby ground by a full three feet, resembling a tidal wave.

Achilles clenched his jaw, using sheer will and power to parry the arrow from Nine Lives. Not wasting a moment, he barreled straight for him.

Shirou was taken by surprise, and as a result, his attack on Atalanta slowed for half a second. She narrowly escaped death, with only a few strands of her green hair being cut by the scythe.

"Aaaahhh—!!!"

In a blur, Achilles activated his Comet Dash, barreling toward him with shield in tow.

Reacting quickly, Shirou dismissed the Nine Lives. In its place, he summoned two black arms, each brandishing a massive Ig-Alima. Both swords, each stretching over sixty meters, were swung fiercely at the oncoming Achilles.

Gritting his teeth, Achilles faced the two gigantic swords head-on, and as he continued charging, a spear began to manifest in his hand.

"Here it comes!"

While observing the scene through a familiar, Kotomine shouted.

Not only him, but even Atalanta, who was on the battlefield, showed a glint in her eyes.

Achilles had an ace up his sleeve - the Noble Phantasm called [Diatrekhōn Astēr Lonkhē: Spear-tip of the Star Traversing the Skies]. This Noble Phantasm had the power to create a space where all other Noble Phantasms and skills became void, allowing for a pure melee duel. This space existed in isolation, disconnected from the world and time, and would not dissipate until one of the combatants was defeated.

That was the Red Faction's ace in the hole against Shirou!

However—

"Oh, so that's your plan?"

Shirou chuckled, and suddenly, a surge of black mud welled up behind him. In the blink of an eye, the roaring mud morphed into ten magical jet propulsors.

With a deafening boom, he was blasted into the sky

Looking down at the two on the ground, Shirou smiled, "Sorry, I can fly."

At that moment, everyone's jaws dropped. Kotomine, who had been glued to the scene, Semiramis, the battered Atalanta, and Achilles, who was about to unleash his Noble Phantasm, were all stunned in disbelief!

...

Deep within the forest...

Kotomine stared at the scene within the crystal ball, the corner of his eye twitching uncontrollably.

"How... How can this be?" he whispered.

The strength of Eternal King was beyond imagination.

That scythe that seemed to defy reality, those eerie black limbs, the massive bow, hands that just popped out of the ground, and a whole collection of oddly-shaped swords. It was... overwhelming.

There were just too many Noble Phantasms!

Is this really the incomplete form of Eternal King?

Semiramis crossed her arms and remarked, "I did mention that we should've waited until my Hanging Gardens were ready. Look at what rushing has brought us."

He forced a thin smile.

If only Achilles had unleashed his Noble Phantasm, things might have gone their way. However, the tables had turned. Eternal King was now floating high above, beyond everyone's reach, claiming the ultimate high ground. Additionally, due to Astolfo's Noble Phantasm, Achilles' chariot could not be used for a while.

So both Atalanta and Achilles were stuck on the ground, unable to even graze the soaring Eternal King.

The king was on top, literally and figuratively!

But the most important question was...

"How did Eternal King know to target Rider's right heel? Did he already know about Achilles?" The thought knotted his brow.

Back on the battlefield...

Shirou swapped his magical propulsors for a pair of wings, a change that could save a significant amount of mana.

Hovering above, he couldn't help but smile as he looked down at Achilles and Atalanta on the ground. He then swung his death scythe, sending a wicked spatial strike toward Atalanta.

He didn't bother with Achilles, knowing the guy was too fast. Unless he aimed for that specific weak spot on his right heel, it was a lost cause.

Atalanta's right leg had been previously injured in a surprise attack by Shirou, making her movements sluggish and evasive maneuvers difficult.

However, she was, after all, the legendary female huntress from Greek mythology. After adjusting to the pain, she quickly evaded the attack of the scythe.

"I have a question, Eternal King," Achilles shouted, craning his neck to look at him.

He was way down below, a whole kilometer away, but he believed Assassin could hear him loud and clear.

"Oh? What's your question?" Shirou replied, genuinely curious.

Achilles' expression became serious. "The first time you went for my right heel, it might have seemed like a random strike. But the second time, you aimed for the same spot... It's almost as if you knew who I am! No, you do know, don't you?"

Shirou just nodded. "Yeah, I do. Rider of Red, Achilles."

Achilles' eyes turned into thin slits. "I thought as much."

"Not only that, I also know you, Archer of Red, Atalanta." Shirou smiled at her.

In response, she gave him an expression like a cat whose tail had been stepped on.

"You also know about my Noble Phantasm, right?" Achilles questioned.

Shirou smiled, "Yes. I know all about them."

"So that's how it is, I see... It makes sense..." Achilles turned his head and pointed at Jeanne on the castle wall, saying with frustration, "Ruler, you are so underhanded! You actually revealed my True Name and Noble Phantasm to the Black faction!"

Atalanta's eyes widened as she put two and two together.

Indeed, having one's true name and Noble Phantasm exposed by someone you've never even met seems like the result of someone exploiting a special privilege!

And who had that kind of privilege in this war?

Without a doubt, it was the Ruler!

Atalanta glared at Jeanne and said, "Ruler, I never thought you would be this kind of person! We initially disagreed with the plan to hunt you down, but now it seems we should have gone after you right from the beginning. You have no moral integrity!'"

Jeanne: "???"

She looked completely baffled, blinking and pointing at herself, "Wh-what... What did I do?"

She hadn't done anything wrong!

Why was she suddenly being viewed with hostility?

Atalanta questioned, "Didn't you tell the Black faction our true name and Noble Phantasm? Why are you playing innocent?"

"It's a misunderstanding! A huge misunderstanding!" Jeanne replied with a troubled expression. "I have never done such a thing! Please don't falsely accuse me. I'm just an observer!"

Atalanta gestured angrily towards Assassin. "Then explain this! How does he know our true name and Noble Phantasm?"

"I—I don't know! It really has nothing to do with me!" Jeanne looked distressed. She then gazed up at him in the sky and pleaded, "Assassin, please clarify this for me!"

"Clear up what exactly?" He replied, a look of confusion on his face. He casually put his scythe aside and sat cross-legged in the sky, watching the drama below. Then, he added fuel to the fire, saying, "Wasn't it you who told me that the Rider of Red is actually Achilles and the Archer of Red is Atalanta? You also told me about their Noble Phantasms and abilities. I remember everything very clearly."

Jeanne was dumbfounded.

"You've gone too far, Ruler!" Atalanta snapped, her voice dripping with anger.

Jeanne: "..."

"I didn't betray anyone!" Jeanne's voice trembled, her blue eyes shining with unshed tears. "Assassin, please! Enough with this cruel jest. Tell them the truth!"

Being cornered and falsely accused was all too familiar for Jeanne. Memories from her past rushed back—her trial, the condemning stares, and the unrelenting persecution by the likes of Pierre Cauchon and François de Préaulx.

"My apologies, I took the joke too far."

Shirou's face softened, and he smiled apologetically, then looked at Achilles and Atalanta, pointing to his own eyes. He laughed and said, "Nothing can hide from these eyes, whether it's true names or Noble Phantasms. Since you're coming after me, you should be aware of this."

Achilles and Atalanta were not happy about it. Atalanta couldn't fly, and Achilles had lost his chariot thanks to Astolfo. So, they were both stuck on the ground while Shirou hovered above, holding the high ground, making them feel pretty much powerless.

The battlefield went eerily quiet for a moment.

The only break in the silence was Astolfo, darting and weaving in the sky atop his griffin, trying his best to dodge the barrage of arrows.

"Help me, help meeeeeee—!!!"

Astolfo's almost tearful voice echoed in the sky.