Why bother with the Holy Grail War? Let's play cards!

Shinji Matou LP2500→LP350

Cu Chulainn returned to his own field.

"You look terrible! Crying and wailing in battle, what kind of sight is that! I told you not to underestimate Heroic Spirits! [Fergus]'s effect allows you to declare three attacks when there are no other Servants on your side of the field that have attacked!" As a Celtic hero known for his ferocity, Cú Chulainn was extremely disgusted by Shinji Matou's appearance.

"If you're a man, grit your teeth! Fergus, attack Zouken Matou!" Fergus's spiral sword pierced through another person.

Since Zouken Matou was in defensive mode, Shinji Matou was not hurt.

"Well done! Fergus, proceed with the third..." Cú Chulainn realized something was wrong; this attack seemed to be having some problems.

The effect of the Marking Bug is that it will gain control of the opponent's servant by attacking and destroying it. If [Warrior's Boiling] is thrown to the other side, Fergus will destroy it after the attack. Although the attack is a bit low, it will not be given to the opponent's powerful servant.

"I've wanted to say this for a while now." Shinji Matou finally recovered. He was indeed afraid of the pain, but he wanted to win even more. He wasn't going to give up either the bet or the number one spot. So he couldn't afford to lose in terms of momentum. "You clearly made the best choice by casting the opposite side, and you're saying I'm unlucky? It's you who's unlucky!"

"What nonsense are you spouting!" Cú Chulainn wasn't going to admit his luck was bad; he certainly couldn't be worse off than this seaweed-haired guy. "You can only deal the most damage if you throw it head-on! Look at your life points, which are like a candle flickering in the wind! I'll take care of you in no time!"

"Cú Chulainn, what are you hesitating for? Just swing this sword and you'll win! Hesitating like this isn't like you!" Fergus urged Cú Chulainn to attack.

“No…you don’t know that if this thing is destroyed, it will pull you onto his field as well.” Cú Chulainn looked at Fergus’s 3400 attack power, a number even Scáthach struggled to surpass, but ignoring it was unacceptable. “Anyway, you can’t attack, [Bazett]…”

“Cú Chulainn!” Fergus’s voice was filled with anger as he flatly refused. “How could you let your Master, a lady, deal with something like that!”

"So you're a brainless guy when it comes to women! This is..."

Bazett reluctantly stepped between the two, stopping their argument. "You two, stop arguing. I'm not some weak woman. I've dealt with all sorts of eccentric magicians; this is nothing. Cú Chulainn, let me handle this!"

After hearing what Bazett said, Fergus couldn't say anything else and turned his head to the side.

Bazette kicked the Marking Bug high into the air, then delivered a powerful punch that shattered it accurately, sending its juices splattering all over her.

So Shinji Matou gained control of Bazette.

"It's truly a shame to be against your own Master. Matou Shinji's tactics not only torture the opponent in the duel, but also constantly attack the opponent's mind. How despicable!"

“Then I’ll play two face-down cards in my back row and end my turn.” Cú Chulainn glared angrily at Shinji Matou, this way of turning his comrade against him without any reason reminded him of a certain guy.

Shinji Matou was about to draw a card when he found that Cu Chulainn had jumped from the main station area to the battle area without permission.

"???!!!!" No way, can cheating be this blatant? Shinji Matou was dumbfounded.

[Cú Chulainn] Attack Power 2500

"【Cú Chulainn】's effect: This card can return to the battlefield the turn after it is sent to the Graveyard." Seeing Shinji Matou's surprised expression, Cú Chulainn was quite satisfied. "Don't be too afraid. Although I have Battle Continuation, I am not immortal. After leaving the field again, I will be banished."

"Seriously, that startled me." Actually, Shinji Matou had tried walking directly into the battle area earlier, but failed. "My turn, draw a card!"

"It's useless for your Master to stay on my field. I can't activate her effects. In that case, I will activate the effect of [Matou Zouken] in the graveyard and release [Bazett]! Special Summon him from the graveyard!"

Bazette transformed into a stream of light and returned to the deck, and the insects that flew out of the light were now forming human forms.

"Don't even think about it!" In Cu Chulainn's mind, Zouken Matou was the only ace Servant in Shinji Matou's deck. A slight increase in defense was enough to stop his attacks, and with the added effect of releasing other cards to destroy them, he was indeed a troublesome opponent. "I activate the effect of [Reverse Light Sword] to negate the effect of [Zouken Matou]!"

The Noble Phantasm that reverses cause and effect cuts off all the flying insects, and Matou Zouken's attempt to masquerade fails.

"How about that, kid? You've really lost out this time, haven't you?" Cu Chulainn couldn't help but feel smug after effectively eliminating two Servants at once. I felt the scales of victory were tipping in his favor. "This Noble Phantasm can be used again next turn. What can you do with only 350 LP left, kid?"

"It's indeed a difficult Noble Phantasm to handle, but you seem to have forgotten one thing, right? My [Bug Magic Workshop] has the effect of pulling a bug for one turn. So, I will summon [Marking Bug] again!"

[Marked Insect] Attack Power 500

The abominable bug that can take away control of servants appears again.

"Therefore, as long as [Fergus] is on the field, he will always have the opportunity to be used by me. Using powerful cards against me will come with great risks!"

"Now, let's enter the battle phase. [Marking Bug] attacks [Fergus]!"

The spiral sword easily blew up the engraved worm, but under the influence of the rules, Fergus was still controlled and became hostile to Cu Chulainn again.

"Now, it's my turn to launch three attacks. Cú Chulainn, can you take it?"

Chapter 108 Dog Bro, you'd better not touch the coin-operated card.

"First, the first strike!" Fergus, his eyes vacant, charged towards Cú Chulainn with heavy steps. His swirling greatsword hurtled towards Cú Chulainn.

Cu Chulainn tried to block it with his magic spear, but the difference of nearly 1000 attack points could not be overcome by martial arts (in fact, even 1 more point would not work), and the giant sword hit his chest.

Cuchulainn LP4000→LP3100

"He's still on the field..." Shinji Matou was surprised to see Cú Chulainn still on the field after the attack.

"My own effect grants me immunity to one instance of battle/effect disruption each turn!" Cú Chulainn explained, grinning.

"That makes no difference, Fergus, keep attacking!"

Another powerful blow, and Cu Chulainn was attacked again. This time he had no help from the arrow avoidance protection and was sent directly into the exclusion zone.

Cuchulainn LP3100→LP2200

"Then, this will be the final blow!" With Cu Chulainn's remaining LP unable to withstand the damage of the final blow, Shinji Maki declared victory.

"Not so easy! I open the Continuous Trap Card [Four-Branch Shallows]! Effect ① During the enemy's Battle Phase, when the opponent has a Servant on the field and we have no Servant on the field, pay 1000 Life Points to Special Summon 1 [Red Branch Knights] Servant in Attack Position from the Deck. Servants summoned by this effect cannot activate their effects this turn. Effect ② While this card is face-up, only one Servant from either team can declare an attack during the Battle Phase!"

The great taboo of one-on-one duels inherited by the Knights of the Red Branch, to which the legendary Irish hero Cu Chulainn belonged, began here, and four runes representing different effects enveloped the entire battle area.

"I still want to summon [Cuchulainn]!"

Cu Chulainn returned to the field again, and his deck naturally contained three full cards belonging to him.

Cuchulainn LP2200→LP1200

[Cú Chulainn] Attack Power 2500

"Because it's a card from another chapter, the effect that prevents destruction has taken effect again, so your attack is null and void!" Cú Chulainn successfully withstood Fergus's third attack.

"Even so, you still have to take the damage!" Even if it's just lowering Cú Chulainn's health, Shinji wouldn't let this opportunity pass. Fergus's attack once again took away another 900 health points from Cú Chulainn.

Cuchulainn LP1700→LP300

"Finally, I cover a card in the backfield to end my turn."

"To push me to this point, Seaweed Head, your strength is not bad either. I'm starting to acknowledge you a little." Cú Chulainn praised him, looking at his health bar, which was even more dangerous than Matou Shinji's.

Shinji Matou was very pleased with the praise from the Heroic Spirit. Servant Duels were also a part of the mystery for those magicians. If he could win the competition, it would also prove that he was also a genius in the mystery. This made him puff out his chest and say, "Of course, I have top-notch talents in all aspects, don't I?"

“No…you’re truly utterly hopeless when it comes to magic.” Cú Chulainn had diligently studied rune magic with Scáthach in the Land of Shadows, and he too possessed the potential to manifest as a Caster, so he immediately recognized Shinji Matou’s blocked magic circuits. “What’s with that expression? A person only needs to have a few outstanding qualities. It’s impossible for me to become a king and guide others. Anyway, it’s my turn, draw a card!”

Shinji Matou didn't listen at all. Being recognized in the field of magic was his obsession.

The moment Cu Chulainn pulled the card, a vast magical force formed into undead spirits that lingered around it, wailing and circling. The aura of death made everyone's heartbeats pause, and everyone knew that this was a powerful card.

"Looks like I've embarrassed myself so much that even my master knows." Cú Chulainn rubbed his nose somewhat awkwardly. Now that things had come to this, he truly needed Scáthach's power to break through the strengthened Fergus. "Then I'll trouble you. I'll activate [Shadow Kingdom]. When this card is activated, you can banish all cards from your Graveyard and Special Summon the Queen of the Shadow Kingdom, [Scáthach], from your Deck! Come, Master, show everyone your god-slaying prowess!"

The black castle on the desolate rock ridge appeared again, and with two guns that turned into red meteors, Scathach in a black veil appeared on the duel field again.

Scáthach - Attack Power 3250

“Cú Chulainn, has the fighting of this era become mere entertainment for people to watch?” Scáthach frowned; she didn’t like this approach. Fighting should be about mutual slaughter, even duels were fine, but she was very unhappy with the way duels had become entertainment.

“Master, this was Caster’s doing. Magic still needs to maintain its ‘mystery.’ As you can see, it’s just that he went too far, and now the city is used to the existence of magic,” Cú Chulainn explained to Scáthach.

"...Alright, let's deal with the current situation first. To be forced into this situation by an ordinary person who isn't even a magician, Cú Chulainn, you're being far too lazy!" Scáthach looked at Cú Chulainn's remaining 300 LP points with great dissatisfaction.

"I understand. With your help, Master, I will definitely win. Just watch!"

"Victory? Scáthach's attack power is lower than Fergus's now. How are you going to break through?" Shinji Matou questioned Cú Chulainn's declaration of victory.

Cú Chulainn turned to Shinji Matou: "Listen carefully! Scáthach cannot be destroyed by battle. She cannot be targeted by effects. And she can destroy one Servant on the field once per turn. So, Master, kill Fergus here, with the Lance that Pierces Death!"

Scathach had already flashed to Fergus's side and was about to kill him in the next second.

"In that case, I activate the Quick-Play Spell Card [Insect Magic Recreation]. This is the insect magic my grandfather used to escape. Its effect is: Tribute one Servant on the field, and Special Summon up to [Crested Insect] and [Winged Blade Insect] from the Deck or Graveyard whose combined Level equals the Tributed Servant's Level."

"The cards in the graveyard are no longer usable!" Cú Chulainn reminded the Shadow Kingdom of the graveyard's sealing effect.

"It's alright, I still have one [Crest Insect] and two [Winged Blade Insect] in my deck! I'll summon one of each to the field!" Fergus detached to avoid Scáthach's destructive effect and then transformed into two insects in defense position.

[Marked Insect] Defense 500

[Winged Blade Insect] Defense 1000

"What a troublesome bug! In that case, I'll attack the [Crest Bug]!" This is the last Crest Bug. Although Scáthach won't be the target of the effect, the Crest Bugs don't need to target, so only Cú Chulainn can launch the attack. Moreover, this is the last [Crest Bug], and with the Shadow Country's sealing effect, it won't be affected anymore.

Cu Chulainn was once again controlled and brought to Shinji Matou's field.

"Your turn, seaweed-headed brat!" Cú Chulainn ended his turn.

"My turn, draw!" Shinji Matou revealed his hand. "Actually, this is my true trump card. I will Normal Summon [Cursed Hassan]!"

【Curse of Hassan】Assassin 2-star, Attack Power 1500

Summoned this way for the first time, Zhu Wan looked around without saying a word. She was so tightly wrapped that he couldn't tell what expression lay beneath the mask.

"Cursed Hassan has the ability to break through Scáthach's defenses! When Cursed Hassan attacks, he is not affected by trap effects until the damage calculation phase. Cursed Hassan also has an effect, Self-Modification: Destroy one Servant on your field and gain half of its ATK. This effect can be activated consecutively!"

"Don't even think about it!" Cú Chulainn knew he could be destroyed twice, so he increased his attack power by 2500 points, reaching a terrifying 4000. "I activate the effect of [Reverse Light Sword], nullifying and destroying its effect!"

"That's exactly what I wanted!" Shinji Matou was incredibly excited; he'd been waiting for this for ages! "I'm switching [Winged Blade Insect] to attack position, entering battle phase now!"

[Winged Blade Insect] Attack Power 1000

"You've lost, Cú Chulainn! I may not be able to handle Scáthach, but I can handle you! [Winged Blade Insect] launches a direct attack on you!"

"There's still a chance! I'll activate the effect of [Warrior's Boiling] and flip a coin. If it lands heads—"

Cu Chulainn didn't have time to say his lines because the coin landed on tails, and not only could he not block the attack, he also lost half of his health.

Cuchulainn LP300→LP150

Then the winged blade insect attacked him directly.

Cuchulainn LP150→LP0

[The winner is——Matou Shinji! ]