FATE: Target of Grand Master

Instantly, the magic contained within the gem erupted, unleashing a variety of magical attacks.

Even with the enhancements Medea had applied beforehand, the effects of the enhancements on Kuzuki Souichirou gradually weakened as time went on and the battle progressed. Under Rin's unexpected gem magic attack, Kuzuki suffered his first injury.

His usual dark green suit was ripped to shreds, and a piece of his glasses on the bridge of his nose was also broken.

Looking down at the bloodstains on his arm from his instinctive defensive action, Kuzuki Souichirou took off his glasses and put them in his pocket. Then, he clenched his fists and assumed an attacking stance.

"That was a beautiful strike. Well then, I can't hold back anymore."

With a burst of power from his hind legs, Kuzuki's speed increased even further, and in the blink of an eye, he reduced the distance between himself and Rin Tohsaka to one meter.

With his uncanny arm techniques and powerful punches, Kuzuki instantly suppressed Rin Tohsaka, who was using Bajiquan for defense.

Oh no, Kuzuki's fist technique is too strange; I have no chance to unleash my magic.

Rin Tohsaka's struggle to keep up was exactly the effect that Souichirou Kuzuki wanted to see.

Having witnessed Rin's powerful magical attack, Kuzuki Souichirou wouldn't give her a second chance to unleash it.

Bang bang bang!

Rin Tohsaka's expression grew increasingly grim. The man in front of her was like a ruthless punching machine, showing no signs of fatigue, while Rin felt her body protesting with pain every time her fists collided with his.

No, if this continues, I'll be killed by them.

This was the only conclusion Rin could reach.

"it's over."

Forcefully deflecting Rin's defensive stance, Kuzuki Souichirou seized Rin's opening and struck her in the stomach, knocking her to the ground.

Blood seeped from her mouth. Rin tried to get up, but the blow she had just received left her body unable to follow her brain's commands for the time being.

"Tohsaka!"

Emiya Shirou, who had been unable to intervene, now had red eyes, clearly furious to the extreme.

Does this mean that not only can he not save Sakura, but Rin will also die in front of him?

Do not!

I absolutely will not allow this to happen!

"Projection, begin!"

Emiya Shirou threw away the steel pipe in his hand, opened his arms, and two swords, one black and one white, appeared in his hands.

"Kudzuki!"

Emiya Shirou brandished Gan Jiang and Mo Xie and charged towards Kuzuki Souichirou.

Kuzuki Souichirou grabbed with both hands, firmly holding the black and white swords between his thumb and forefinger.

Then, with a snap, the black and white swords broke apart.

"Projection, begin!"

To Kuzuki Souichirou's surprise, Emiya Shirou did not retreat, but instead projected two new twin swords and slashed at Kuzuki again.

This time, Kuzuki chose to grab Shirou Emiya's wrists and try to break his hands. Unexpectedly, Shirou Emiya did not struggle. Instead, he rushed towards Kuzuki and slammed his head into Kuzuki's face.

Kuzuki, whose nose was bleeding from Shirou Emiya's headbutt, didn't back down. He grabbed Shirou's wrists with both hands, causing his twin swords to fall to the ground. Then, he kicked Shirou in the chest, finally separating the two.

"Projection, begin!"

Before he could even wipe away the blood from his nose, Shirou Emiya projected Gan Jiang and Mo Xie again, attacking Kuzuki.

And so, Kuzuki kept defeating Shirou, but Shirou would always project new twin swords, and as the number of projections increased, Kuzuki felt that Shirou's twin sword wielding techniques were becoming more and more impressive.

Instead of launching a direct attack, Kuzuki engaged in a tug-of-war with Emiya Shirou.

At this moment, Xia Yan was still standing beside Medea and Sakura, his attention highly focused. He was not only observing the situation in the three battles, but also paying attention to the surrounding environment.

For some reason, he always felt uneasy, as if his plan was starting to go astray with Shirou and Rin's involvement.

Turning to look at Medea and Sakura, the lightning-shaped dagger had already touched Sakura's skin. If they could just hold on a little longer, they would succeed.

Just then, Xia Yan suddenly felt a slight whooshing sound in the air. Without turning his head, he built an earthen wall behind him.

After the earthen wall was built, Xia Yan turned around and saw two short black blades that almost pierced through the wall.

Sure enough, the chaotic battle here could not be ignored by Hassan of Cursed Arm.

Xia Yan already had extensive experience in preventing sneak attacks. Before starting today's plan, Xia Yan asked Medea to set up a spell to enhance sensitivity within Ryudou Temple, with the aim of preventing sneak attacks by Assassin.

"Um?"

Cursed Arm Hassan tilted his head in confusion, unable to understand how Xia Yan, who was just a human, could sense the black blade he had thrown in advance.

Logically speaking, Hassan, as an assassin, should have followed the principle of retreating immediately if the attack failed. However, the current stalemate in the other three battles presents a golden opportunity.

His master, Matou Ryouken, ordered him to take Sakura back, but when he arrived near Ryudouji Temple, he found Caster, Rider, and Lancer there, and they seemed to be performing some kind of ritual on Sakura.

Hassan the Cursed Arm, who had been lying in wait, originally had no intention of making a move, but the appearance of Shirou and Rin and their respective Servants made Hassan the Cursed Arm feel that there was an opportunity to fish in troubled waters.

Just now, when only Xia Yan was left as a human beside Caster and Sakura, Hassan of the Cursed Arm finally made his move.

Unfortunately, Xia Yan still took precautions, which made Zhou Wan wonder if this was Xia Yan's first time participating in the Holy Grail War, and why he was so cautious.

What surprised Hassan even more was that Xia Yan, who had defended against his sneak attack, did not panic at all. Instead, he took the initiative to release a fire magic spell at him.

The flames have some power, but such an attack does not pose much of a threat to Servants.

After easily dodging Xia Yan's attack, Hassan with the Cursed Arm charged at Xia Yan. Just as the black short blade was about to pierce Xia Yan, he suddenly felt that the other party's body became illusory.

Xia Yan's figure appeared two meters away, which was the result of Xia Yan releasing a space-attribute displacement magic.

He immediately exerted force with his cursed wrist and stabbed at Xia Yan again. He didn't believe that he, the dignified assassin Hassan, couldn't even kill a human.

Unfortunately, he missed again, as Xia Yan used his displacement magic once more.

After this happened four or five times, Zhou Wan finally realized that Xia Yan never wanted to fight him. His only goal from beginning to end was to stall!

They're stalling for time, dragging it out until Caster completes the ceremony.

After understanding Xia Yan's purpose, Cursed Arm Hassan decisively chose to abandon the pursuit and turned to run towards Medea and Sakura.

Just as the black short blade of the Cursed Arm was about to pierce Medea, Xia Yan actually blocked Medea with speed comparable to a Servant, and grabbed the Cursed Arm Hassan at the cost of sacrificing his left hand.

Hassan the Cursed Arm was shocked once again, because he found that he could not pull out the black dagger that was stuck in the palm of the human in front of him.

"Aren't you curious why I possess speed and strength comparable to a Servant?"

Taking advantage of the moment when Cursed Arm Hassan was surprised, Xia Yan punched him, but the second punch missed after Cursed Arm gave up the black short blade that was being held.

Cursed Arm Hassan took two steps back and then stood still, noticing something amiss with Xia Yan.

"You've been enhanced by magic."

"That's right. It seems assassins aren't entirely brainless after all."

Xia Yan did not let go of any means to buy time.

Before the plan began, Xia Yan recalled that Medea had strengthened Ge Mu to the point that he could fight Artoria to a standstill, so he had Medea take precautions this time as well.

Of course, there can't be only one insurance policy. Since Kuzuki Souichirou can be strengthened, he certainly can too.

Indeed, through the enhancements of Medea's Age of Gods magic, Xia Yan also gained speed and power approaching that of a Servant.

However, compared to Kuzuki, who is Medea's Master, Xia Yan's enhancement effects and durations are shorter. In addition, Medea is focused on breaking the connection between Sakura and the Black Grail and cannot continuously enhance, so Xia Yan is extremely cautious when using enhancement.

Cursed Arm was unaware of Xia Yan's situation. Seeing that his actions were repeatedly thwarted, he simply decided to use his treasure to finish off Xia Yan directly.

He raised his rod-shaped right hand high, and as the black straps loosened, magic rapidly gathered, causing his right hand to emit an ominous red glow.

Damn! They actually used a Noble Phantasm on a human like me! They think so highly of me!