Lu Mingfei, become the King of Elden!

Chapter 64 Meeting adjourned!

Lu Mingfei gasped sharply, as if he had finally broken free from the embrace of the abyss and opened his eyes abruptly, like a drowning person.

"Grass!"

A hoarse curse, filled with endless frustration, burst from his mouth.

His blurry vision gradually focused, and beside him were two shimmering, solidifying figures that he had just summoned.

This time, no one immediately got up and rushed to the battlefield.

The three of them slumped down at the edge of the warm glow of the blessing point, as if they had collapsed from exhaustion. Even the usually boisterous Subaru just rolled his dead fish eyes and stared up at the damp and dark stone chamber ceiling.

Shirou Emiya leaned against the cold stone wall, slowly raising his hand. The visor of the Knight of Caria was removed, revealing a face etched with exhaustion. His fingertips unconsciously pressed against his temples, which throbbed with pain from countless deaths.

With his signature deadpan gaze mixed with a helpless expression of "dying again," Natsuki Subaru mechanically moved his limbs, his bones making a slight cracking sound.

Lu Mingfei simply lay down, his heavy armor as a lost knight clattering onto the stone bricks.

He lifted his mask, staring blankly upwards, feeling as if his soul had been shattered and hastily stitched back together by Grek's axe.

A brief silence filled the small stone chamber.

After a long while, Lu Mingfei seemed to remember something, turned his head, and laboriously shifted his gaze to his two equally pale-faced friends beside him. His throat was a little dry.
“…I said,” he paused, his gaze sweeping over Shirou Emiya and Subaru Natsuki with a complicated expression, “…why did you help me?”

Lu Mingfei's voice was low, filled with deep confusion and a hint of barely perceptible apology.

"You—I mean, you could have left. Dying once...it's really painful. We didn't sign a contract, so there's no reason we have to help, right? Because of this mess I'm in, you've died with me time and time again..."

Emiya Shirou snapped out of his reverie and turned to Lu Mingfei. The golden light illuminated his short, reddish hair and gentle eyes, which held a resilience beyond his years.

Instead of directly answering Lu Mingfei's question, he used a narrative tone, as if stating an objective fact about a border area:
“Lord Lu,” he said, “since the War of Shattering began and the Golden Family crumbled, the challengers against the demigods have never ceased on this land. But so far…”

Emiya Shirou raised his voice slightly, looking directly at Lu Mingfei:
"No one, without the blessing of a Great Rune, has been able to defeat any demigod who controls a fragment of the magic ring in a one-on-one fight. Not even once."

“Greek, even though he is called the ‘weakest,’ he does indeed possess a part of the Great Rune. That power belongs to the gods. For a mortal to challenge a god is inherently an act of insubordination. Whether the challenger is one person or a group, ultimately someone needs to step forward and take the lead.”

Emiya Shirou's gaze was calm and composed; he offered no lecture, but simply explained the rules of a cruel game:

"We are just doing what we mortals should do. To act justly, to do what is right. We are, and so are you."

"what!"

A soft laugh came from the side, breaking the heavy atmosphere.

Subaru Natsuki sat up, glanced at Lu Mingfei with his lifeless eyes that had regained some energy, and said in a slightly teasing tone:

"Hey, Lu Jun, why are you thinking so much! You've died so many times already, you can't just give up, can you?"

He patted his chest:

"We were dragged to this border region by that devilish old man, we had no choice! We're all in the same boat!"

Subaru Natsuki casually picked up the heavy greatsword of the hunting gods beside him and slammed it onto the ground:
“Since we’re already here, we’re comrades-in-arms, right? You help me, I help you, we stick together for warmth, you know? Now I’m helping you beat up that bastard Grik, so if we encounter any huge trouble in real life in the future, we can just call on you, the ‘Second Seat of the Storm Knights,’ for help, right?” Shirou Emiya nodded slightly, tacitly agreeing with Subaru Natsuki’s statement. They had been through too much, and had long since developed a more resilient character and a more mature way of doing things than their peers.

They spoke lightly yet realistically.

But Lu Mingfei knew that this guy with dead fish eyes, although sometimes reckless and a bit dim-witted, was actually upright and kind, with a carefree personality.

Needless to say, Shirou Emiya is someone who could be a mother figure.

Lu Mingfei opened his mouth, but in the end he only let out a long breath, closed his eyes, and stopped dwelling on "why." The words "thank you" stuck in his throat and he didn't say them.

They have formed a bond of shared destiny.

"Alright, I'm tired of this..." Subaru Natsuki yawned widely. "How many times is this?"

"Fifty-one times."

Emiya Shirou lowered his hand from his forehead, his voice coming through his mask, sounding somewhat weary.

The three fell into a brief silence again, the faint light from the Blessing Point casting dappled shadows on their faces.

Already numb.

So let's summarize.

Lu Mingfei rubbed his temples, feeling his head throb.
"First, my outfit is a super taunting set for Grick, instantly drawing his aggro to the maximum, locking him in completely. Second, in this berserk state, Grick will unexpectedly engage that damn dragon head beforehand! He'll immediately enter the second phase! His aggression, speed, strength... everything will drastically increase! There's absolutely no time to react. Third..."

He looked at Subaru Natsuki and Shirou Emiya:
"With the Great Rune, he's like a mobile fountain of infinite mana and health! You can't outlast him."

“We can’t treat him like the ‘weakest demigod’ we used to be,” Shirou Emiya said. “Otherwise, no matter how many times he dies, it will all be in vain.”

We need to adjust our strategy and tactics.

“That’s right.” Subaru Natsuki nodded. “Since he ‘loves’ Lu Xun so deeply, let’s take advantage of that. Lu Xun, you’re still a tank, but your evasion ability is insufficient, so you need to withstand more damage. Do you know how to use a shield?”
Use your Storm Arts and greatsword to control him, keeping him in a controllable area, and expose Grik's back to Shirou.

"no problem."

Lu Mingfei nodded:
"Before donning the Storm Knight armor, I always fought with a sword and shield. But..."

He frowned slightly:
"I haven't mastered the Storm Knights' shield combat techniques. I might need to... go back and ask my old man for guidance."

Emiya Shirou added:
"I'll try to disrupt the dragon's charge from a distance using Kalia magic, and attack the limb joints on his back with all my might. Those are his weak points, and I might be able to break his extra limb attacks. Once he reconnects to the dragon's head ahead of time, I'll immediately charge up 'Great Kalia' or a stronger spell and try to forcefully interrupt his breath attack."

“Subaru-kun,” he said, looking at Subaru Natsuki, “you are in charge of delivering the fatal blow. Your black flames have a special effect against divine beings. Seize the opportunity to attack Subaru-kun, or I will interrupt the dragon head’s successful stun and weaken him.”

Subaru grinned and patted his chest:

"Don't worry, this is my specialty."

.

(End of this chapter)