"I feel nauseous..."
Just when I thought we had finally escaped the monster swarm, Archer's sniping began again.
This time, Caster reacted faster, so I wasn't hit, but it was a chilling experience nonetheless.
I frowned at the sharp, stinging sensations radiating throughout my body. Caster had done his best to heal me, but since the wound had been fatal, a complete recovery was impossible.
I was moving, but it was a temporary fix, like being held together by glue. If I took another impact, I would fall apart even more easily than before.
Furthermore, the remaining enemies were Saber and Archer—formidable opponents. Honestly, the difficulty level was higher than Benkei, Medusa, or the monster swarms we had fought so far.
No matter how limited Archer was, unable to deploy his Reality Marble, his technical skills alone made him incredibly dangerous.
As for Saber... well, words weren't even necessary. The current Saber was likely even stronger than she was in life.
The Holy Grail is a total cheat.
"At least it's a consolation that we don't have to deal with Berserker yet."
"Well, don't you worry. Archer isn't someone to be underestimated, but as a Shadow Servant, our chances of winning are higher. Plus, we have a Master on our side, so it'll be an easy win. The problem is that even if his reason is eroded, he is fundamentally... cold? Ruthless? Anyway, it's best to assume that the decoy strategy we used against Rider won't work on him."
He was being diplomatic, but it sounded like he was saying Medusa was dumber than Archer—the Heroic Spirit Emiya.
Was it just my imagination? ...In any case, Archer, huh? I had a similar impression. I felt like decoys or hostage situations wouldn't be very effective against him.
If that was the case, the only option was a frontal breakthrough with me acting as support.
Even if he was summoned as a Caster, this was Cu Chulainn, a warrior at heart. He wouldn't be unilaterally pushed back in a fair fight.
"Anyway, as soon as Chaldea is ready, I'll receive the items and then Archer... Whoa!?"
I suddenly yanked Caster back.
Clang!! He used his staff to parry something flying toward us.
Boom!! The deflected projectile dug deep into the ground.
...A snipe? Was it Archer again? That felt less like a shot and more like an assassination attempt.
He had prioritized me. He judged that Caster wouldn't die from something like that and decided to kill me first. The reason for the assassination-style sniping was likely simple.
If I died, great. If I didn't, it served as pressure to ensure I couldn't rest easy.
His goal was clearly to exhaust me and slow down my recovery. And honestly... it was working perfectly.
My heart felt like it was going to explode.
"At this rate, our kid is going to die of a heart attack before we even catch Archer."
"I admit it."
"You're actually admitting it?"
No, I mean—come on!
My heart really feels like it's about to burst right now. My body is shaking just thinking about how that thing would have pierced my head if Caster hadn't parried it.
Wait, considering the power of those arrows, it wouldn't just pierce; it would literally blow my head apart, wouldn't it?
Ugh, just imagining it makes me want to vomit. I already feel like I'm dying from nausea.
It was true that I had to endure, but staying like this would take a toll on my stamina and my glass mental state.
[Grrrrr...]
"Again!? They really never get tired of this!"
"First, let's move again... Tsk!!"
Twang!! Caster quickly parried another arrow. That crazy bastard was shooting the moment my attention wavered, as if he had been waiting for it.
I used to think 'Clairvoyance (lol),' but that ability is actually insane.
And the power required to send a shot this far was no joke either. His Strength was D (lol), but that was only by Servant standards; to a human, he was a total superhuman.
Whish, whish, whish!! This time, Archer's arrows were flying in simultaneously with a monster attack.
"That lunatic!! He's definitely doing this on purpose! What a lovely personality!!"
"Hahahaha!! I agree!! Run!! It's a bit much even for me to fight while protecting you from monsters and arrows at the same time!"
"Ah, dammit!!"
I forced my aching legs to move and ran. Caster followed, clearing out the monsters as he ran alongside me.
Beep, beep! The communicator rang.
The timing is absolutely incredible!! I quickly pressed the button. It wasn't the Director; it was the Doctor.
I didn't know if he was calling because the Director couldn't face me after our argument, or if she was trying to calm her fractured mental state, but that wasn't important right now.
[Are you okay!? Are you in combat right now!? Any Servant signatures nearby...]
"Probably not!! That crazy Archer is sniping from a distance!! Plus, the monsters in Fuyuki are joining in, so it's total chaos!! Wait a bit!! I'll call back once we've cleared this up!!"
Thwack!! I kicked a skeleton-like thing away and kept running. Fortunately, the monsters weren't that strong.
They weren't easy to kill, but I could at least clear them out of my path. Anyway, I ran. The phrase 'running for my life' had never felt more literal.
The sound of explosions behind me kept triggering my sensitive nerves, but I ignored it and ran. My breathing was so ragged I felt like I was going to die.
As less oxygen reached my brain, my thoughts became hasty and shallow.
My legs throbbed, my arms throbbed, my abdomen throbbed, my chest throbbed—pain was literally ruling my entire body.
I felt like I was going to vomit, and the feeling that blood would be mixed in wasn't just a hunch; it was probably the truth.
"Haa... haa... Did they stop?"
"We lost the monsters, and Archer's sniping has stopped. But it's best not to let our guard down. Given Archer's position, we won't be out of his range unless we leave Fuyuki entirely."
"If we don't hurry, my stamina and mental strength will give out before your mana does, Caster."
I pressed the communication button again. This time, it was the Director, not the Doctor.
Had she calmed down in the meantime?
The Director looked at me with a strange expression. She didn't look angry, nor did she look like she was sulking. It wasn't the face she made when she was scolding me.
What should I say to that dejected face? As long as she was the Director, she was the one who had to decide Chaldea's future policy.
It would be troublesome if she became this weak already.
...Wait, what am I thinking when my own heart is about to burst?
Just because the road ahead is long doesn't mean the present isn't difficult.
[I'm sending the items now. Wait a moment.]
Her voice sounded drained of energy. Should I have kept my mouth shut? But if I hadn't said anything, the Director might have confronted Lev directly.
If that happened, her mental state—already on the verge of breaking from various burdens—might have literally shattered.
By pointing out the possibility now, I could soften the impact. Even if she already knew subconsciously, hearing it directly makes her acknowledge it.
That makes a significant difference.
"Oh, it's here! My Mystic Code!"
"Hmm? What's this? A glove? But there's only one?"
"The old man who took me in didn't have any descendants to call heirs, and his family's history as magi was short. So, he was a magus who didn't act like one. You could call him an eccentric—an eccentric who loved experiments. This is what we made together while I was studying under him. We got the hint by chance while watching a movie."
"Hoh, what kind of magecraft is it?"
"Something like this."
Zip! Something flew rapidly from my index finger and attached itself to a rock on the ground.
I pulled it, dragging the rock toward me, and caught it with my other hand.
Caster hummed and approached, fiddling with the masterpiece Mystic Code the old man and I had created.
"It's adhesive and has decent flexibility. It seems more suited for grabbing or capturing than for attacking. Is this thread?"
"Yeah! It's thread! Its strength changes depending on the mana applied. These are 'Soft Threads,' but if I make them 'Hard Threads,' they become as tough as wire. Honestly, since most Servants have Magic Resistance, it won't be very effective against them, but it's better than nothing! Combined with my Transmutation Magecraft, I guarantee there's no better ability for buying time!"
As I spoke proudly, the Doctor suddenly cut in from across the screen.
[That's plagiarism.]
[Oh, I thought of that too.]
"Plagiarism!? Life is a constant series of imitations! The old man and I just imitated it well! I mean, sure, the movie I saw was that certain Spider-Man movie! But it's absolutely not plagiarism; it's inspiration! Those are clearly different! I even remember reading in a book somewhere that if you plagiarize enough, it becomes creation!"
Actually, the reason we made it wasn't for efficiency, honor, or money.
There was only one reason... because it looked cool!
Both the old man and I had that boyish sensibility, so as soon as we saw it, we were like, 'Whoa, that's insane. Let's do it right now.'
It took several years to make, the amount of thread that could be produced at once was limited, and after making it, we realized it was more specialized for assassinations or setting traps.
This was the very reason I had managed to survive that chase with the pro-wrestling woman at the Clock Tower.
Anyway, the old man and I spent years on this. Honestly, the Clock Tower didn't evaluate it properly; only Professor II was interested and liked it.
Thanks to that, I was able to enter the Clock Tower, though.
[No, it's not 'plagiarizing many things,' it's just plagiarizing one thing.]
"Shut up! What the old man and I did wasn't plagiarism, it was creation! We actually made it work in reality, so it's creation! It's definitely creation! And so what if it's plagiarism!? So what if it's a fake!? Where is the guarantee in this world that a fake can't beat the real thing!?"
[So you do feel guilty.]
"I do not! I don't feel guilty at all!"
Ugh, stop talking!
Honestly, it's not like I didn't think 'Isn't this plagiarism?' after making it, but...
No! It's not! Anyway, it's not!
My Mystic Code is special!
It can support the weight of up to two people, and the Hard Threads can be strengthened to the point of wire, so I can even set traps!
Of course, I've never used it in actual combat!
I practiced with the Soft Threads a lot to kill time back home, so I'm pretty good with them, but I rarely used the Hard Threads.
[So, what's the name of that Mystic Code?]
"Spider Hand."
[You weren't even trying to hide it!!]
"No, this isn't an excuse. My old man said the difference between plagiarism and parody is the difference between 'Uh, this?' and 'Ah, this!' He said if you're just blatant about it, if you act like 'This is exactly what it looks like!', then it's not plagiarism!"
[Honestly, that mindset of yours—throwing dignity away in a way that's so unlike a magus—must have come from the person who raised you.]
"That's a bit of a low blow against my upbringing."
[No! I didn't mean it like that!]
If you're not careful, you'll become a piece of trash in an instant!
I looked at the Mystic Code.
Not long after we finished it, the old man passed away. Nothing special happened.
From the moment he took me in, he was someone who wouldn't have been surprising if he died the next day.
He was a second-rate magus, and from what I saw, he felt more like a scientist than a magus.
Regardless, I owe him for raising me, and I think he was a good person.
This Spider Hand, made with such a person, might not be the strongest Mystic Code, but it certainly isn't the worst.
"Hoh, it's crude but made with care. Not bad. A weapon isn't decided by what it is, but by who holds it. Even if our kid here was holding a legendary holy sword, I'm confident I could beat him with chopsticks."
"I admit it."
"You're actually admitting it?"
You need mana to fire beams from a holy sword anyway.
With my mana, I wouldn't even be able to fire it; I'd probably just die of mana depletion. Besides, I've never held a sword in my life, so there's no way I could use one.
I engaged the lock on the glove to secure it in place.
With this, I can use Transmutation Magecraft with one hand and interfere with threads with the other.
Unless the opponent is truly Servant-level, it'll be helpful.
Even if the opponent is Heroic Spirit Emiya, who has the effect of protagonist correction, he isn't the protagonist here, and he's been significantly weakened by becoming a Shadow Servant.
I can do this. It's not impossible.
I used first-aid supplies, including bandages, to tightly bind and forcibly stabilize my wounds.
It was just emergency treatment, but it was better than nothing. Having finished my preparations, I turned my gaze toward the Director, who was still looking at me hesitantly.
[Um...]
"Well, I'm off to seize victory, so you can go to bed early today."
[What!? Why can't you ever read the room!?]
"Haha, young lady. Do you really think a guy like this can't read the room? It's the opposite, the opposite. He's the type who reads the room and then says nonsense on purpose."
"Don't push down on my head. What if I get even shorter than I already am?"
"A man's value isn't determined by his height."
"In the modern era, height accounts for a large part of it. Appearance is the most important, and personality is the least."
"It really is a boring era."
Caster sighed and walked forward. Now, it was time to take down Archer.
Once we defeat Saber after that, this Singularity will somehow be over.
The next Singularity... Thinking about how I have to deal with over seven Singularities and countless incidents, including event stories, already makes my stomach feel bad.
...Well, my stomach was already in bad shape from the wounds. I grabbed the communicator and spoke to the Director.
"Sorry for speaking without any consideration."
I cut the connection before she could say anything. The Director's feelings weren't something that could be fixed in a day or two.
Therefore, the best thing I could do now was to finish this job well. They say I'll return if I die, but I don't know if that's an absolute rule.
Above all, I hate dying. The pain of death is beyond imagination. It possesses a power of mental destruction that goes beyond trauma.
So, I wanted to clear this without dying if possible.
Fujimaru Ritsuka, who had even less talent than me, passed this on his first try. Where is the guarantee that I can't do the same?
I've already died twice, but setting that aside, I will absolutely not die from now on.
...Because I hate dying.
"Now then... shall we go catch the boss's gatekeeper?"
"Hahahaha!! That's a good way to put it! He certainly is the most suitable gatekeeper for Saber!"
**
It's quiet. It's so quiet it's making me anxious.
Why isn't he sniping? The red Archer I know, the one who bets everything on his back, wouldn't miss an opportunity like this. He's not the warrior type who waits just because the enemy is coming.
Rather, he was the type to fire relentlessly in this situation.
Caster must have felt the strangeness too, as he was alert, scanning the surroundings with a frown.
He was clearly ready to parry an arrow even if it suddenly flew at my neck. I didn't know if there were other Shadow Servants left, but Archer was the only one remaining.
Saber wasn't moving from the Greater Grail, and the remaining one, Berserker, showed no intention of leaving his spot either.
If that was the case, he had to do something on his own, so what on earth was he planning?
The stairs of the shrine... I suppose this is Ryudou Temple. It was already a mess. I wanted to see it in a proper state if I had the chance.
That aside, there are a lot of stairs.
With my current body, climbing them was quite a task.
I briefly gripped the Rune I received from Caster, mustered my courage and grit, and continued to climb. I walked at a moderate pace, neither too fast nor too slow.
As we walked, Caster suddenly stopped me with his hand.
"Wait, kid."
I stepped back and stood on guard. Whish!! An arrow flew past. It missed? I was confused. What was that?
Was it a distraction? From what? Was he planning a sudden ambush?
It was at that moment.
BOOM!!! A deafening explosion rang out.
It was so loud I instinctively covered my ears. Along with the explosion came a vibration. It was a tremor like an earthquake.
What? What on earth is happening? As I looked up, I let out a gasp.
Archer's goal wasn't to retire Caster.
It was my death. In that case, he didn't necessarily need to use weapons imbued with Mystery.
Modern weapons would suffice, as long as they resulted in death.
That's why Archer chose this.
He chose a means to kill me as efficiently as possible, to consume my stamina, and to burn through my mental strength.
"Hold on tight!!"
He had used something like a bomb to trigger a landslide above us. A massive amount of earth and rock slid down like a giant slide.
And it was growing in size as it came.
Thud!! Caster grabbed me and leaped upward just in time. If he had been even a moment later, I would have been swept away.
He might have even anticipated this situation.
Whish, whish!! Something flew at us from both sides simultaneously. It was impossible for me to defend against or evade a Servant's attack with my Mystic Code.
No, wait. It wasn't just two sides.
He was targeting us from everywhere.
"I really do hate that Archer...!!"
"I agree!! I've never even seen him, but I already hate the Archer here!"
Zip!! I extended a thread and anchored it to the summit. Caster seemed to understand immediately and grabbed the thread.
This was a thread made of magecraft—in other words, I could make it disappear if I wanted to.
Zzzzt!! The thread shortened in an instant, pulling Caster and me upward together.
Rising above the summit, Caster and I were able to spot Archer standing on the roof of the shrine. This time, I wasn't just a decoy; I was support.
I immediately let go of Caster and landed on the ground.
Tingle. As soon as I landed, I felt a sharp pain in the foot Archer had pierced earlier, but it wasn't unbearable.
"Hmm."
As soon as I landed, a sword materialized in the air and flew toward me. I rolled to the side to dodge it.
Hey! Just because you're a Heroic Spirit, don't look down on me! My physical abilities aren't so low that I can't dodge an attack I can see coming plain as day!
Just as I thought that, I saw Archer flash a mean smile. And as Archer's sword hit the ground, light began to flicker.
Uh, I think I've seen this light before.
And quite recently, too... This, could it be!
BOOM!! The light soon erupted into a massive explosion with a roar.
"Gah!" I quickly placed my hand on the ground and used Transmutation Magecraft to raise the earth, but the explosion hit me before I could finish.
The burns on my upper body were incredibly hot. I felt like I was going to lose it from the pain.
Damn, I should have taken more painkillers if I knew this was going to happen.
"Kid! You're still alive, right!?"
"F-For now..."
Clang! Clang! Clang!!
On the roof of the shrine, Archer and Caster clashed.
It might sound strange to say this, but I wondered if this was really how an archer and a magus were supposed to fight.
They were both using weapons for close-quarters combat. Is that really the correct way to do it?
Zip! Another sword created in mid-air flew toward me. I couldn't be a burden to Caster. I placed my hand on the ground again and raised a wall of earth to block the sword.
And this time, the earth I had raised began to glow.
This guy, could he be...!!
I immediately leaped away and used my thread to anchor myself to a wall, moving back rapidly.
BOOM!!! Another explosion occurred, and unable to withstand the blast and the backward momentum, I slammed into a wall.
Crack. An intense pain shot through my waist.
At the very least, it must be cracked, right?
"Haa, haa..." I writhed in pain, struggling to breathe.
"There's no need for me to defeat you, Caster. Once I deal with that fragile glass ornament of a child, who looks like he'll break just by being held, the job is done."
"You really are a fellow who seems to have no hero's pride. Are you not confident you can beat me in a fair fight?"
"I simply choose the means to win. The easier means, that is. Bombs that explode on contact are planted all over the grounds of this shrine. Conveniently, a bomb is also planted right where your Master is lying. All I need to do is plant my sword there, and the game is over."
Hoh, hoh... Is that so?
I placed my hand on the ground and quietly chanted. I could feel the earth.
Vrrr... Centered on my hand, I could sense the state of the surrounding ground. In the first place, you can't use Transmutation Magecraft if you can't grasp the state of the material.
It's just like how the Projection Magecraft that Archer uses requires knowing the structure of the object to be projected.
In other words, if there are bombs in the ground, I can find out where they are if I set my mind to it.
I lifted my bloodied face and watched Archer and Caster fighting.
Caster didn't seem to be able to fight properly yet because he was worried about me. If a chance, even a small one, was created, Caster would finish Archer in an instant.
And I would be the one to create that chance.
Slide. Something made of black iron popped out of the ground. I grabbed it as if stroking it gently.
Having completely dismissed me as 'out of the fight,' Archer wasn't paying much attention to me.
In the first place, fighting Caster, who was out of his league in terms of specs, while in a Shadow Servant state must be quite a struggle for him.
But that's why I had explained the plan to Caster.
I told him that when that damn Archer thought he had seized victory, I would definitely create a crack of an opening, and he should dive into it.
I tied a bomb to the end of a thread and threw it toward Archer as if swinging it.
Zip!! The bomb flew toward Archer. But Archer didn't even glance at it, detonating it in mid-air with a sword from the void.
"No matter how restricted this body is, something like this is..."
"Yeah, you'd parry it."
"Hmm?"
Only then did Archer look at me. I spat out blood while keeping both arms on the ground.
My mana... is running out. Symptoms of mana depletion were setting in. A strange sensation, a mix of pain and dehydration, washed over me.
My vision was blurry, but I didn't take my eyes off Archer.
Among the skills Archer possessed, there was definitely 'Mind's Eye.' If he used that, he would quickly notice and parry a surprise attack from someone like me, who didn't even know how to hide my presence.
No matter what I prepared, Archer would respond to it. Because he must have seen all my power with that damn Clairvoyance. In that case, I just had to attack with 'something I didn't prepare.'
The only thing I could do was make things go slightly awry.
"Caster!!"
"Oh!!"
"What are you planning to do? With that battered body, what could you possibly..."
BOOM!!! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!!!
You seem to have underestimated my Transmutation Magecraft too much.
If I can alter the shape of what I touch, that means I can also alter something as vast as the ground remotely.
The mana consumption increases exponentially with distance. But the fact that it was possible remained. I used that to move the bombs in the ground under the shrine and gave them a slight shock.
Then the shrine would collapse, and Archer would momentarily be exposed.
I breathed heavily.
My fingertips were starting to change. It felt as if my skin was rotting. The mana deficiency was draining my life force.
Blood was leaking from every possible place on my face. I had to minimize Caster's burden with my own sacrifice.
Someone like Archer isn't even the starting line. Only after defeating you and standing before the King of Knights will I finally reach the starting line.
I can't let my strongest force get exhausted by a mere tutorial monster!!
'Please just die!!!'
Archer stumbled for a moment but seemed to regain his composure immediately. But because he didn't know, he was momentarily flustered.
And because Caster knew, he wasn't flustered.
That difference was massive, so Caster would reach him before Archer could do anything. Caster aimed his staff in mid-air.
Archer clicked his tongue and used a sword in the air to push himself away as if stabbing himself. What? I was so dumbfounded I couldn't even speak.
It was a suicidal method, but the impact allowed him to move away.
BOOM!! As the bomb exploded, Archer moved even further away.
A bomb without Mystery had almost no effect on Archer, a Servant. Furthermore, the smoke from the explosion could somewhat obscure his vision.
"If you thought you could stop me with just that, you've underestimated me too much, Archer."
Whoosh. Caster pierced through the smoke and appeared above Archer.
Then, gripping his staff as if it were a spear, he drove it straight through him.
Wait, you're a Caster! You're a Caster!? Why do you like close-quarters combat so much!? Archer, whose heart—likely his Spiritual Core—had been pierced, smiled while coughing up blood.
He's smiling...? Archer's body began to fade. While grabbing Caster's staff, Archer spoke.
"It's you who underestimated me. ...You've come too far, Caster."
"What?"
Twang!! A strange sound came from behind. A black object came flying in.
Crash!! Crash!! It smashed through walls and charged straight at me. I couldn't identify what it was.
Just something black... Ah, I could tell what that thing charging like a runaway train was. It wasn't a missile or anything like that; it was a person.
It had a form too bizarre to be called human.
A half-god, half-human hero. A tragic hero who had gone berserk by being summoned as a Berserker. Yet, the greatest hero who still possessed a shred of humanity... that hero was charging at me with his weapon in hand.
"■■■■■───! ■■■■■■■■■■■───!"
Heracles. He was a Great Hero.
A beast-like roar filled with fighting spirit pierced my ears. I felt the illusion of time slowing down.
He swings his weapon. He just swings it.
His reason was already eroded because he was a Berserker, and by becoming a Shadow Servant, his reason had vanished even further.
No emotion, reason, heart, or soul remained; only violence in the name of power was left in that place.
The word 'berserk' might not even be enough. I just watched it happen.
In the slow-moving time, my body wouldn't move. Even if my body had been normal, I wondered if I could have dodged it.
I, who was already physically inferior, had been ambushed. It would have been more strange if I had dodged it.
My body trembled from mana depletion, and the physical pain made me even more sluggish.
...Ah, I'm going to die. I was certain of it. The look on Caster's face for a split second was one of desperation.
He even dropped his staff and was lunging toward me.
But before that, Heracles's attack reached me so quickly I didn't even have time to feel regret.
'I'm dead.'
Crunch!!! My entire upper body was blown away.
Without being able to make a single move to resist, I died right then and there.
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