She was planning to use her Noble Phantasm here!
This was within the city. Although the population density of this residential district wasn't as high as the city center, unleashing that Corrupted Holy Sword here could still destroy the entire neighbourhood!
If that Noble Phantasm was released, the magi of Fuyuki City would suffer massive casualties!
Even though those magi had morals worse than beasts, at this stage, Fuyuki City still couldn't function without them.
More importantly, if she released her Noble Phantasm, then Roy and Rin would definitely die!
"We can't let her do it!"
Okita panicked and, without thinking, charged at the corrupted Saber.
But Saber's corrupted form surged with magical energy, forming a tangible storm of mana that instantly blew Okita away, preventing her from getting even remotely close.
"Damn it!"
Okita gritted her teeth helplessly.
Corrupted Saber was no longer conserving the mana of the Lesser Grail—she was determined to leave no one alive. This was the same move she had used to shake Okita off before.
She couldn't be stopped now.
With no other options, Okita turned and rushed toward Roy.
At this point, all she could do was try to escape with her Master.
"Roy, go by yourself!"
Rin let out a deep sigh, her expression one of calm resignation.
She had resolved to die here.
'Master, just for now, I can use Earth Release to get you all out. What will you choose?'
Taigong Wang's voice echoed in Roy's mind.
As long as he acted, escape was possible.
But once he used his escape technique, he would be dangerously close to exposing his true identity.
Taigong Wang wanted to teleport Roy and the others away, but remembering Roy's earlier instructions, he decided to let Roy choose.
Was it more important to survive here?
Or to die and entrust his wishes to Taigong Wang?
"Do not use it!"
"Even if Miss Tohsaka is with you?"
"This…"
Roy's will was firm—stubborn, even.
If he could realize his ideals, dying here would be meaningful.
But Rin didn't need to die with him—there was no reason for her to become a sacrifice.
Thinking that, a hint of hesitation flashed in Roy's eyes.
"Vortigern, Hammer of the Vile King, reverse the rising sun—"
Corrupted Saber raised the massive, dark sword high above her head.
"—Swallow the light, Excalibur Morgan!"
A jet-black aurora roared forth.
The torrent of light destroyed everything in its path, surging toward Roy and Rin.
The searing heat within that beam—just brushing against it would reduce any living body to ash.
Rin instinctively closed her eyes, unwilling but prepared for death.
Okita's face turned solemn as she stood in front of Roy. As a Servant, she would die before her Master.
But at that moment, disguised as Huang Feihu, Taigong Wang—seemingly having waited long enough—abandoned the corrupted Berserker and in the blink of an eye appeared before the three of them.
With a wave of his hand, a magic array inscribed with ancient runes unfolded before the four.
The array radiated a vast, ancient power—like a reef standing firm amid crashing waves, barely withstanding the torrent of light.
'Phew, I spent quite a bit of time crafting this array. Aren't I clever?'
Taigong Wang's calm, wise voice remained steady even in the face of Saber's Noble Phantasm.
'But my mana doesn't compare to the Lesser Grail she's using, so if we're going to escape, we need to decide before my mana runs out—so, Master, do you want to change your answer?'
He could teleport them away.
Corrupted Saber would likely chase them again.
Worse, she might head straight for the Greater Grail to claim it for herself—or unleash havoc on all of Fuyuki, slaughtering its two hundred thousand residents.
But before that happened, there would still be time to act.
Or… they could all die here, leaving only Taigong Wang to survive and carry Roy's legacy.
Outside the magic array, the black aurora howled relentlessly, like a crocodile baring its fangs, ready to crush everything.
Corrupted Saber didn't hold back, feeding the Lesser Grail's mana into her sword without restraint, making the black light even more destructive.
The ancient Eastern magic array barely held under the relentless flood of light.
"A long-overdue return, and it happens in this kind of situation, huh?"
Through the roar of the light, a figure quietly approached.
Tall and slender, the woman's curvy figure was wrapped in a plain T-shirt and pants. Her blood-red hair whipped fiercely in the storm.
"!"
Corrupted Saber suddenly sensed an overwhelming sense of danger and turned her head sharply, eyes locking onto the red-haired figure.
The woman raised her hand, gathering magical light in her palm.
In an instant, a pure and simple magical artillery technique layered itself fourfold.
BOOM——!!
A dominant beam of light burst forth, like a laser tearing through all resistance.
Corrupted Saber immediately gave up her bombardment, flipping and leaping far backward.
BZZZZZZT——
The red-haired woman waved her hand again.
In a flash, more than a dozen magical artillery formations appeared in parallel, all stacked to their limits. Half the sky was suddenly filled with intricate geometric patterns.
"Arthur!"
Corrupted Berserker charged at Corrupted Saber like a rabid dog.
Saber's face turned cold, and with one sharp kick, she sent him flying.
At the same moment, the red-haired woman lightly flicked her fingers, and over a dozen forbidden-level magic blasts launched simultaneously.
Saber instinctively sensed danger, crouched low like a panther, and swiftly dodged between the incoming blasts, retreating rapidly.
"Uaaaa!!"
On the other side, Berserker slumped dazedly on the ground, unable to understand why his king had kicked him.
Suddenly, the light from the magic blasts intensified. Two of them turned at right angles mid-flight, and Berserker—caught off guard—was engulfed directly.
His armour and form dissolved like spring snow in the rain.
In just one strike…
Berserker was gone.
"To think you could layer simple magical blasts to forbidden levels of destructive power… and this endless mana…"
Saber stared at where Berserker had vanished, expressionless, fully focused on the red-haired woman.
"Unlike me borrowing mana from the Lesser Grail, you're using your own mana—mine is vast, but yours is truly infinite… Are you a modern Magician?"
"Correct. I'm borrowing my mana from different timelines of myself. That makes my power fundamentally different from yours."
The red-haired woman casually flipped her hair behind her ear, a provocative smile playing on her lips.
"If you want to keep fighting, how about you wait ten years—or maybe a hundred—and let that version of me fight you instead?"
"The Magician of the End?"
Saber muttered under her breath.
Just from those few words, she'd already deduced the woman's True Magic.
But she hadn't given up. Coldly, she said:
"According to the rules, someone of your level shouldn't be interfering in this world's affairs, right?"
***
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