Emiya Shirou doesn't want to work overtime

Shirou Emiya, clad in armor resembling that of a wild beast, also appeared, gripping his reverse blade tightly. Without any hesitation, he slammed his right foot into the ground.

"Snapped!"

The ground, and the already shattered deck, could no longer withstand the impact and exploded instantly.

The figure, accompanied by a strong gust of wind, instantly transformed into a silver phantom and sped towards Drake's location.

“Bang bang bang bang bang!!!”

As if he had struck something, Shirou Emiya felt a sudden obstruction appear in front of the blade he was swinging.

The speed at which he swung the reverse blade in his hand also decreased due to something that suddenly appeared.

"clang!"

Just as the blade was about to touch Drake's neck, it produced a crisp, metallic clang.

Amidst the bursting sparks, Drake was pushed back once more, but quickly regained his footing. He tightened his grip on the ground, and several cannon barrels hovered behind him, fixedly aimed at Shirou Emiya in front of him.

Standing beside her on the deck was Shinji Matou, who was frantically typing on a keyboard in the air, sweat pouring down his forehead as his brain raced at high speed.

It's likely that the resistance just now was created by Shinji Matou; otherwise, Drake wouldn't have been able to react in such a short time.

"Dual pistols, dual swords, archery, you really know a lot!"

As Drake finished speaking, the cannon behind her roared once more, unleashing a golden beam that shot towards Shirou Emiya.

Faced with the incredibly powerful cannon fire, Shirou Emiya instantly transformed into a black shadow with a thunderous sound, shifting his body and dodging to the side.

Although such artillery fire cannot destroy the demon's possession, nor will it cause serious damage to him, being hit by such fire would instantly knock Shirou Emiya away, depriving him of the opportunity for close combat.

Shirou Emiya is not bad at ranged combat, but since his opponent is weak in melee combat, Shirou Emiya will naturally choose a more advantageous way of fighting.

When facing an opponent who is not good at ranged combat, Shirou Emiya will choose to attack from a distance. However, when facing an opponent who is not good at melee combat, Shirou Emiya will not choose to defeat the opponent from a distance just because he is good at archery.

Then, after dodging the barrage of artillery fire, Shirou Emiya quickly regained his footing. The black and white reverse blades in his hands transformed into a streak of sword light, like a shooting star, and swung towards Drake.

"clang!"

The sound of metal striking metal, like the ringing of bells, transformed into a wave of sound that echoed in all directions.

Drake, who had already realized what was happening, wouldn't give Shirou Emiya such a good opportunity. Without hesitation, Drake used the two flintlock pistols in his hands as melee weapons to block Shirou Emiya's swinging twin swords.

The fierce kick, creating a gust of wind, also struck Shirou Emiya in the abdomen at that moment.

"Snapped--!"

"boom--!"

The sounds of shattering and impact erupted at the same moment.

Shirou Emiya, clad in demonic possession, was sent flying backward and crashed into the ghostly pole behind him.

"3"

At the very moment they parted, Mooncell's warning came to mind.

After Mooncell, their battle had already gone through three rounds, and if they continued fighting, they would receive extremely severe punishment.

Emiya Shirou slowly stood up from the ground.

The powerful kick that created a gust of wind did not cause any damage to Shirou Emiya; the impact was almost entirely absorbed by the demon's possession.

Generally speaking, unless the strength reaches a certain level, it is difficult to harm Shirou Emiya, who is possessed by evil spirits.

"finished?"

Shinji Matou seemed to breathe a sigh of relief, kneeling on the ground. Despite not having done any exercise, he was panting heavily, and sweat was dripping from his forehead.

He was doing his best to assist Drake.

"Tch! This isn't satisfying at all—!"

With a helpless tone, Drake looked at the twin pistols that had shattered at the crucial moment without any special techniques, having simply caught Shirou Emiya's slash. His face was full of displeasure.

After all, she was in a completely passive position in this battle. If she hadn't only been able to fight for three rounds, she would be at a huge disadvantage right now.

As a Rider, her greatest strength lies in the Golden Hind beneath her feet.

Choosing to fight Shirou Emiya is a complete abandonment of what one is best at.

Shirou Emiya didn't linger long; he quickly jumped off the Golden Deer and left the area.

Although Drake intended to lure him out first, he was indeed the one who started the fight.

Moreover, at this point, he had no reason to stay here any longer.

The second key has been obtained.

He has also destroyed the documents that Shinji Matou had hidden.

The battle to probe Drake's strength has also ended.

Shirou Emiya's first priority is to return to the library, look at the books that Shinji Matou has hidden, and obtain more information about Drake.

The day of the decisive battle is not far away. This battle should be their last before the final showdown.

Emiya Shirou needs to prepare in the final stretch of time.

"Huh? Why can we only fight for three rounds? These short battles always end before we even get into them—"

Drake was extremely dissatisfied and criticized Mooncell's combat system.

The Golden Deer, which was hovering in the air, gradually disappeared.

She quickly caught Shinji Matou as he fell.

"Master, you did very well. If you hadn't discovered his figure, I probably would have been eliminated because of this!"

Drake ruffled Shinji Matou's hair, praising him with a hearty laugh.

"Mind your own business! You woman whose mind is only filled with muscles and alcohol, this is just what a good Master should do."

"If you're going to leave so easily, wouldn't that prove my abilities are lacking? I don't want you to leave so easily. You know, as a genius, my goal is to win the Holy Grail and become the champion!!!"

Chapter 554 Sakura's Handmade Bento

The next day, Shirou Emiya woke up early in the classroom-like room.

Even in this world of computers, Shirou Emiya still has no intention of stopping his training.

Whether it's his immature swordsmanship or some skills he hasn't mastered yet, even if it's not just about physical training, Shirou Emiya still has a lot to do.

Moreover, there is not much time left for Shirou Emiya to prepare.

Tomorrow will be the day of the decisive battle.

The battle known as the Holy Grail War will truly begin tomorrow.

Half of the magicians participating in the Holy Grail War will lose their lives in the first round of battle.

"If only I could save them—!"

With this thought in mind, Shirou Emiya stood on the rooftop and looked down.

This school, from any perspective, is so similar to his own Homurahara Academy that he feels as if he has truly returned to his own school.

"Squeak—!"

The rooftop door was slowly pushed open at that moment, and in Shirou Emiya's view, Rin Tohsaka, with an air of matter-of-fact, fiddled with her hair and walked toward him.

"So you really were here!"

"Is there something you need? Tohsaka, you should be preparing for tomorrow's decisive battle, right?"

In this Holy Grail War, not all magicians fought on the same day. It just so happened that Rin Tohsaka, like Shirou Emiya, had her opponent determined on the very first day of the main tournament.

For example, Leo's final battle date was only determined a few days after the main tournament began.

"I have already investigated the true names of the opponent's Servants and their weaknesses. Moreover, as a mage, I am extremely skilled. I can almost say with my hand on my chest that victory in this battle is already assured!"

Rin Tohsaka patted her chest, answering with extreme confidence.

To be precise, Rin Tohsaka had already investigated these matters thoroughly a few days prior and had formulated a battle plan against her opponent. It can be humbly and conservatively estimated that her battle was almost foolproof.

"But you, you don't even have a Servant yet, and you want to participate in the final battle—"

Rin Tohsaka's mood suddenly plummeted; she couldn't think of any way Shirou Emiya could survive this Holy Grail War.

Even though Shirou Emiya, as a magician, possesses the power to survive in the arena, he still cannot truly confront a Servant head-on.

"Don't worry about me, I will fight with all my might!"

Seeing Rin Tohsaka looking somewhat downcast, Shirou Emiya offered words of comfort, even though he had the upper hand in the previous two battles.

However, Shirou Emiya also knew that the two battles had been far too brief, and neither he nor Drake had used their full strength.

Moreover, Servants also possess what is known as Noble Phantasms.

He doesn't even have a Servant, so if he's not careful, he could very well be defeated.

"Who! Who's worried about you? We're enemies!"

Upon hearing Shirou Emiya's calm voice, Rin Tohsaka immediately became anxious, and her speech suddenly became somewhat hesitant.

"It's just that Shinji Matou, as the game champion, is bound to be a bit tricky for me, but if it were you, I could easily defeat you, which is why I hope you win this battle!!!"

"Yes, I'm only talking to you like this so that I can obtain the Holy Grail more easily. After all, we are not enemies in this battle—and only in this one battle!"

Seeing Rin Tohsaka's somewhat flustered appearance, Shirou Emiya didn't say much. He was quite used to talking to Rin Tohsaka like this.

Compared to Rin Tohsaka's haughty attitude when they first met, Shirou Emiya prefers and is more accustomed to talking to her like this.

“Knock knock knock!!!”

The knocking sound came from the doorway as Rin Tohsaka and Shirou Emiya were talking.

She was a woman with long, purple hair that reached past her knees, a red ribbon tied to the left side of her head, and wearing a white coat. She was also the advanced AI in the infirmary who managed the health of the Masters—Sakura Matou.

"Excuse me, sorry to bother you!"

Sakura put her hands behind her back and spoke softly to Shirou Emiya and Rin Tohsaka in front of her.