A Dimensional Journey Begins with the Dragon Clan

Chapter 1252 1245. Witch

"...Really? Are you practicing magic again?"

With a whoosh, the blonde girl — Saber sighed softly.

It is good to have such enthusiasm, but if you don’t rest well when you need to, your body will not be able to hold on.

Just as she was about to tell him to be more careful next time, she realized her mistake.

"————————"

She couldn't help but gasp.

The abnormality was not emitted from Shirou's room.

Under the moonlight.

There was a thin line that flickered in the darkness like her hair.

The only line was released from outside the house towards Shirou's room.

A thin line that can't even be detected by the barrier of the house.

If the enemy who manipulates this thin line deserves praise, then Saber, who can still sense it even in her sleep, is also truly outstanding.

"————————"

There is no time to think.

The girl's appearance instantly changed into that of a knight, and she immediately leaped out.

Running in the deserted town.

Saber stepped heavily on the ground without any confusion.

I already know where I'm going.

All you have to do is follow this line and search for the life breath of Master Emiya Shirou.

All she had to do was get there as quickly as possible.

Even if there is an enemy camp ahead, or a deadly place full of traps like a tiger's mouth, I am not afraid.

She swore to protect the Master.

So even if I have to go through fire and water, I will not refuse.

"————————"

There, is a mountain polluted by a huge amount of magic power.

The dead spirits in the sky circled like crows,

The gathered magic, the remaining stripped spirit, the bare mountain swallows up all visitors.

If there is a place of death in the world, this place is undoubtedly the best example.

"————————"

However, she stepped in without hesitation.

If this place is hell, then I must rescue my Master even more.

Running on the rock steps.

There were no unexpected obstacles at all.

The mountain gate has come into view, with only a short distance left. All he needs to do is step on the stone steps with his magical feet to reach the mountain gate.

"————————"

But her attack stopped right there.

No—she was stopped by that "enemy".

The steps leading to the mountain gate.

There was a servant standing there.

His name is Sasaki Kojiro.

The assassin among the servants, his weapon is a long sword - the clothesline, and he is the guardian of Ryudo Temple.

"————————"

At this point, Saber, who had cast the Wind King Barrier, was already somewhat panicked.

Her master was just opposite the mountain gate.

But there are too many unknowns about the Servant in front of him.

State your name without hiding anything.

There was no posture, but the cold hostility was almost transparent.

"————————"

This kind of transcendental desirelessness makes it impossible to grasp its strength.

Servants can see the level of their opponents.

Assassin was not a particularly good servant and should be easy to deal with. However, her intuition told her the opposite.

The winner is decided by sword——If you simply fight with swords, you can't win.

"————You have nothing to do here. Get out of here, assassin."

Saber suppressed the uneasiness that came from nowhere and stared at Assassin.

…There was only one stone step left before the two sides came into close combat.

  Down or up?

No matter which direction you take even one step, you will be attacked by the opponent's fatal sword skill at that moment.

"Didn't you hear me? I told you to stand down, assassin."

Final Q&A.

The swordsman with the long sword replied cheerfully.

“——Is that so? Do you want to go through this door, Saber?”

“————————“

Stupid question, those holy green eyes that seemed to pierce through Assassin seemed to say so.

Maybe they think this is the best.

The long sword swung up as if to draw an arc in the night sky.

"Then break through me. If you don't hurry up, your master will die."

A laughter like a cool breeze.

“Assassin——————!”

Saber stepped onto the stone steps without waiting for the other party’s response.

At the same time, the long sword that was swung down was deflected by her invisible sword.

———Sparks of swords and knives were flying from the windy mountain top.

The ongoing attack and defense were evenly matched.

However, it was not beneficial for her.

"hateful----"

She was a little anxious.

The enemy that must be defeated immediately is a very strong enemy that is difficult to defeat.

"Shirou, hold on a little longer——!"

I gritted my teeth and prayed desperately in my heart.

At this time, this unnecessary thing was harming her body.

———The winner has not yet been decided.

The road leading to the mountain gate is really too far.

  ···········

————Caster stretched out his white fingers.

"hateful---…………!"

Although Emiya Shirou wanted to resist, his body was completely unable to move.

The feeling in my hands and feet has been taken away, and it won’t be long before my hands and feet themselves are taken away.

"Goodbye little boy. If you have anything to regret, then regret becoming a Master with only this much power."

The body was unable to move at all, and faced the fingertips of death. "Oooooh!"

He forced his eyelids open, which were almost unable to open, and glared at Caster.

"Oh. That's a good kid. I don't hate such efforts."

Caster laughed at my full-force resistance and touched the Command Seals with his fingers.

"ah--------"

...Even the consciousness of freedom began to become numb.

...as he began to distance himself from his thoughts.

A clanging sound.

From the mountain gate behind, the sound of swords clashing could be heard—

"------!"

What a miracle that is.

Dozens of sounds piercing the sky, and countless arrows about to pierce the ground before our eyes.

Caster stepped back quickly, his black robes spinning like a top.

"Varied----"

There were arrows stuck at Caster's feet.

There were thirteen arrows shot from the sky, that is, from above the mountain gate.

Those were probably all fired at once, and if there was just one more, it would have undoubtedly pierced Caster's chest.

The owner of the arrow was standing at the mountain gate.

The knight in the scarlet coat landed on the ground with his bare hands.

"Humph. I thought you were dead a long time ago, but I didn't expect you to be so tenacious."

That man——Archer stood in front of me as if to stop Caster, and said such words.

"Why are you..."

"Nothing, I'm just passing by, don't worry about it... By the way, how are you? I think I should have cut the caster's wires just now."

“Eh——”

After hearing what he said, Emiya Shirou checked his hand.

...moved.

The limbs that were originally completely unable to move regained their freedom during the attack and defense just now.

“It has moved. Caster’s curse has been removed, but—”

"That's all. I want to say that you can do whatever you want from now on, but if you don't want to be killed by that guy, just stay where you are for now. If you move around randomly..."

"Damn it, it's Archer...!? Hey, what the hell is Assassin doing...!?"

"Look, you're going to be taught a lesson just as you've seen. Women's so-called passion should be restrained in the end... Really, it seems I have to be a little rough."

“——Alright. Don’t be so angry, Caster. If you want to find Assasin, he’s confronting Saber right now. I don’t know who that samurai is, but if he can hold Saber back, he must be a great swordsman. We should praise him anyway, right?”

Even though he was facing off against the enemy, Archer was not nervous at all.

Perhaps it was because he noticed this that Caster regained his composure.

"————Hmph, stop talking nonsense. How can you be called a hero if you can't even stop me? That man doesn't have the strength to be called a swordsman."

"Oh. From your tone, it seems that Assasin is your partner. Your Master is indeed cooperating. Otherwise, it is impossible to explain this situation. There are actually two Servants in the same place."

Caster remained silent, just observing Archer.

Although Caster's expression could not be seen hidden in his robe, he looked shaken.

"——Archer, is what you just said true...!? Saber came here and is fighting with the Servant Assasin, and Assasin and Caster's Masters are cooperating with each other...!?"

"Yes. Assassin is guarding outside the gate, and Caster is lurking inside. The cooperation between the two is obvious. Cooperation between masters is not uncommon. Aren't you teaming up with Rin now?"

"what."

That's true.

———Then, this Ryuudou Temple has two masters...!?

"Huh————Ahahahahahahaha! I thought you were going to say something, but you really can talk nonsense, Archer!"

"Oh? What's wrong? Isn't it right? ...It's a headache. I was very sure that you two were partners."

"Yes, your estimate is totally wrong. You said partners? I was working with that dog? And that man who was just my pawn?"

Caster laughed and laughed.

That kind of laughter, which was really inappropriate at the right time, blew away the tense atmosphere in the room.

And at this time.

Even from behind, one could see Archer clench his teeth.

"————————"

Something unprecedented has emerged.

Not Caster's hostility, nor the vortex of magic covering the yard.

What emerges here is the naked hostility displayed by Archer.

"Yes, your hunch is correct Archer. My Master has not teamed up with anyone, and the same goes for Assassin's Master. No, to be honest, that dog doesn't have a Master at all."

"What?"

  Assasin has no Master...?

what on earth is it.

A Servant cannot exist without a Master.

  If there is no source of magic power, won’t it disappear?

"——Caster. You broke the rules."

"How is that possible? I didn't break any rules. It's the magus who summoned the Servants, right? In that case, is there anything wrong with me, a magus, summoning Servants?"

The witch in black robe sneered.

"————————"

...that is to say.

  Is the Assassin at the mountain gate the "Heroic Spirit" summoned by Caster?!

"...A Servant who controls Servants. I see. No wonder he's a fictional hero. Assassin wasn't summoned by a proper Master, so something that isn't an "assassin" came out... That doesn't matter. No matter what kind of Heroic Spirit it is, if it's an enemy, just defeat it. But, this is your own unauthorized action, isn't it, Caster?"

"Hmm...!... Tell me why you came to this conclusion, Archer."

"Nothing, just a hunch. The Master is a magician. And when this magician uses a magician who is better than himself as a familiar, it can't be a normal master-servant relationship. It is natural for a magician to be wary of a magician who is better than himself... If I were your Master, I would never give you, a witch, freedom. How could I allow you to summon a Servant who is not the Master himself, but your subordinate?"

"...Oh. I didn't expect you to be so smart, Archer. Well, for your wisdom, I can ignore your rude words just now."

Although he was laughing, Caster kept his eyes fixed on Archer.

…All that exists between the two is hostility.

The distance between them is about seven meters.

If Archer had charged forward like he had seen at the school that night, Caster would have been cut down before he could finish chanting the spell—

"I understand. Saber, Lancer, and Rider all have strong resistance to magic. Their resistance to magic is incomparable to the resistance to magic of the man next to them. No magic can work on them. Therefore, as a magician, you cannot fight them head-on."

"In that case, it's only natural to adopt such a strategy. Breaking the rules, calling out Assassin as your Servant. Occupying this land, collecting the souls of the people in the city. Not fighting yourself, relying on the 'Eyes' placed in the town to grasp the battle situation. Having come this far, you must have imprisoned your Master, right? Just like this foolish Master here, he has long been a puppet controlled by you."

Archer sneered wordlessly.

Seeing this scene, Emiya Shirou felt a chill down his spine from the bottom of his heart.

Gathering magic power not only from the people in the city.

That guy treated his Master just like he did to him just now, using him as a "tool"——

“————————“

...Caster is very dangerous.

The most dangerous enemy in a melee is someone who is not a pure threat like Berserker, but someone who can make the situation worse without even showing his face.

"Yes, you are right, Archer. But it would be wrong to say that I cannot defeat you. It would be easy for me to win the Holy Grail War. Everything I did was just for considerations for the future. I didn't use any strategy because I was afraid of you."

"——Ha. You mean, it's easy to defeat us Servants? You're just a witch who can only run away. You're really good at bragging."

"I've told you before. I'm stronger than anyone here. I don't know how Berserker and Saber are, but I won't even get scratched if you're Archer."

(End of this chapter)