Type-Moon, the Path of a Magician

"I leave this to you, Lancer. Make quick work of it."

"I give orders under the command seal to strengthen your power. There is no need to hold back. Fight to your heart's content!"

"As you command, my lord!"

……

……

Sea of ​​fire, hell, resentment...

There was no sense of heat in the pitch-black flames, only coldness. The sound of the burning flames seemed to come from the cries of vengeful spirits in hell.

click-

The Lake Sword condensed in his hand has turned into spirit particles and dissipated, and his body is also covered with cracks in the constant fighting.

The Cave King's left hand had already grabbed his neck, hanging him in the sea of ​​fire, and a hint of disgust appeared in his golden eyes.

"It's been so long, are you going to continue to look like this?"

"Whether it's the magic of the nightmare or Berserker's spirit state, they are just child's tricks." His voice was a little angry. "Do you know that you are playing with fire in this state?"

The Earl let go of his hand and let Xia Yuan lie on the ground. In the next moment, the magic power on his body began to dissipate, and the characteristics of Lancelot that were originally attached to the spirit also gradually dissipated.

However, Xia Yuan did not answer directly. Instead, he turned over. There was no anger or unwillingness on his face. Instead, he smiled and teased.

"As expected, compared to that easily shaken Knight King, the Earl is impeccable. A half-assed person like me who relies on shortcuts to achieve quick success is still far behind..."

As the loser, Xia Yuan lay on the ground, looking up at the gray sky above his head, and easily accepted the result.

Compared to the Knight King Altria who was still lost in the past, the Cave King, a true avenger, could be truly invulnerable. Even if his opponent was his former Master, he would not hesitate in the battle, and everything he did was in line with his will.

"If my opponent is the Earl, a half-witted person like me will never win..."

"Humph."

Faced with Xia Yuan's extremely lazy, or even aggressive, temperament, the Cave King responded with a disdainful snort, grabbed his collar, and spoke sternly.

"The Heroic Spirit Incarnation, the state of possession, uses Lancelot's Servant body as a medium and yourself as a container, using magic to merge your body and the Servant into one. In this way, you will have most of the abilities of the "Knight of the Lake" Lancelot, including knowledge, skills, treasures and even memories. But..."

The Earl's eyes showed a stern look, "Have you ever thought about it? How long can your body, which has just become a half-baked magician, endure the transformation into a heroic spirit? Do you know the consequences?"

"Once, twice, more, it's actually not necessary anymore, isn't it..." Xia Yuan smiled slightly, looked at the Cave King with a smile in his eyes, and replied.

"Fortunately, Lancelot, the person involved, also chose this result in order to repay my kindness. And as a Berserker, he lacks some emotions, so the impact on me is still within an acceptable range... although there are still limitations of the human body. However, with the help of Merlin's strengthening magic, even I can be strengthened to a level that can fight a Servant in a short period of time."

"But, it's still not enough... I was beaten like this. Even though I knew I would lose... I still feel unwilling to accept it..."

Upon hearing this, the Earl on the other side fell silent. Looking at Xia Yuan who was lying on the ground, he asked, "Why don't you try to use the Command Spell? The Master-Servant Contract between you and me should still be there. Using the Command Spell to execute me is the best option."

"Haha, that's not necessary at all. These three-stroke command spells are not necessary at all..."

Xia Yuan looked up at the sky with a very open-minded look, and lay flat on the ground with his arms spread out in a very relaxed posture.

“This is the bond between us.”

Then he turned to the Count.

"How many times has this happened to you?"

count:"………"

"what are you saying?"

"I'm asking you, how many times has this been the Holy Grail War? How many times have we gotten along and fought side by side, or killed each other? Count, tell me what the outcomes of all those Holy Grail Wars were? With your amnesia correction, you should remember everything, right? Don't hide it from me, okay? I can sense it."

"..."

The Count fell silent: "... the eighty-third time."

"So this is ah."

Xia Yuan smiled with relief when he heard this.

"Sure enough, this isn't the first time you've stayed by my side."

"This explains why you were able to take advantage of opportunities so many times. You were even able to predict some events and changes almost in advance."

"You have already guessed it..." The Count looked at him calmly.

"Yeah, I guess I can guess it, but is there really no way to stop it? Is it me or the Holy Grail that caused it?"

"I don't know. Or maybe a little bit of both."

The Cave King shook his head and replied, "I killed you in the beginning.

But the Holy Grail War did not proceed and complete according to the normal procedures. "

"Your desire for life before you died, as the soul of a Foreginer, had an incredible impact on the Holy Grail. You purified the Holy Grail, which should have been contaminated by the evil of this world, and engraved your wish on it."

"With the rise of the Greater Holy Grail, everything that happened during this period was reset. The Holy Grail fulfilled the desire for life. You did survive, and time went back to before the war."

"Later, I thought of many ways to kill you and prevent you from affecting the Holy Grail, but found that it was all in vain. As long as you die, the Holy Grail will inevitably be affected, engraving your wish to reset the timeline. So afterwards, I gave up the purpose of killing you, or rather, temporarily gave up this purpose. Before finding a way to solve this problem, I chose to stay by your side to find a solution and temporarily become your Servant. And then there was no more..."

"I see...it turns out I've died so many times..."

Upon hearing the result, Xia Yuan did not yell or scream, and there was not even a ripple in his heart. He just calmly asked the last question.

"Now, have you found a way?"

The Earl sighed softly and nodded slightly: "I have found it. I have found a way after so many resets."

"That Ruler is obsessed with the Holy Grail, or the absurd wish of saving all mankind. With just a little guidance, he will give up his interest in you. Now his soul has replaced you and entered the Holy Grail Center in advance. In other words, I am the only one left among the pursuers sent by the Suppression Force. No one will bother me anymore."

"I see. That's why you plan to continue the contract with me and tell me not to use the Command Spells and try my best to stay alive, right, Count?" A smile flashed in the young man's eyes.

"As Merlin said, I am a Foreigner. Even though I am weak, my status is far higher than that of a Servant. Once my soul enters the Holy Grail, it will cover the souls of all the Servants and affect the Holy Grail again, engraving my wish not to die, and then reset it again. So you have to choose..."

"Your guess is correct. I did choose another way to solve the problem." As he spoke, a flame rose from the count's fingertips and he lit his last cigarette.

"If it was at the beginning, facing a foreigner like you with whom I had no connection, I would certainly kill you without hesitation. But... it's no longer possible now."

Countless times of getting along and fighting side by side have made the two of them understand each other's minds and become each other's accomplices, and they are no longer able to kill each other.

"What about the mission assigned by the Suppression Force? The Earl should still complete it."

"Hehe, whoever wants to do that kind of thing can do it." The count sneered and stretched out his hand in front of Xia Yuan.

"Okay, now that the troublesome guys are gone, let me be the last ray of hope..."

"Should I hold your hand?"

"That's right, hold my hand, and I will give you my body and the power of A.venger."

"how about you?"

"Me?" The Earl smiled. "It doesn't matter what. All they can do is lock me up deep in the Throne of Heroes. I'm used to this kind of thing. Besides, this trip is long enough, and the time I've spent with you is not a loss."

"I am just a ghost who died a long time ago. I have no future, but you are not. You should live better and live with my hope."

"I can't stay with you any longer. It's up to you to decide whether to escape or continue to participate in the Holy Grail War. I hope we will never meet again in this ridiculous cycle. The next time I see you, I hope it will be in the distant future."

"Also, Master, I am really satisfied with the time I spent with you..."

"Wait, wait a moment, Count."

Xia Yuan wanted to stop him, but he still didn't stop.

"My accomplice, you can use my power to fight as much as you want from now on."

The Earl stretched out his hand and pressed his left hand on the three-stroke Command Seal on the back of his hand. The red Command Seal began to respond to the Earl's magic power, emitting a dazzling red light, and then his figure gradually dissipated and merged into Xia Yuan's body.

"Take it, this power is yours now."

If the integration into the spiritual base is successful, everything of the Cave King will be completely bestowed upon Xia Yuan.

Memories, treasures, and abilities will all be integrated with Xia Yuan, realizing the so-called one mind and one body.

But... this wasn't the fusion he wanted.

The Earl activated the Command Seal and gave himself an order.

"In the name of the Command Spell, I restrain the Servant, Cave King, from letting his consciousness affect the Master."

"Give orders in the name of the Command Seal to restrain the Rock King, and use your spirit base to disperse the remaining willpower of Berserker."

Under the coercive force of the Command Spell, the power began to dissipate, and the Earl's spiritual foundation began to flow into Xia Yuan's body and merge with it.

Xia Yuan closed his eyes. He could clearly feel that due to the fusion of Berserker's spiritual base, the remaining will of Lancelot was also defeated in the fusion of the Earl. At this moment, he only felt that his brain became much clearer again.

The Earl had completely eliminated the influence that Lancelot had on him.

“With one last Command Spell, the Cave King will…”

"Wait a moment, Count." Xia Yuan held his hand and said, "Please let me give the last order."

"……whatever."

"Thank you, Count."

He nodded slowly, and then began to use the last stroke of the Command Spell on the back of his hand.

"I will issue the order with the last Command Seal, Cave King. No, Earl, please establish a bond with me again. We will meet again next time."

As the order was given, the last stroke of the command seal on the back of the hand quickly dissipated, and an invisible connection ran through the two.

See you again...

"Huh, you...are you aware of what you just wasted?"

"Nothing is wasted. This is a guarantee for our next meeting."

“Kryptonhahahahaha——!! You actually used your last precious Command Seal to establish a bond with a vengeful ghost like me? This Command Seal is the adapter I was going to use to transfer my Noble Phantasm to you.”

"But since this is your choice, I hope you won't regret it. When we meet again, all you have to do is wait and look forward to it. My accomplice..."

"Well, I am also looking forward to our meeting again. The Count is also my accomplice."

"Troublesome little devil..."

The Earl's body turned into spirit particles and completely dissipated. The will of Lancelot and the Cave King that remained in the spirit base disappeared, and then the power of the Cave King began to manifest in him.

Black flames began to sweep around him, the dark sea of ​​fire churned, and finally gathered in his palms and even his soul.

The dark clouds over Fuyuki City dispersed, and the drizzle in the sky gradually stopped.

Xia Yuan stared at the drifting spirit particles and stretched out his hand towards the future.

"Count, no matter who you are, what your purpose is, or what happened between us, I am willing to believe you now."

"I will no longer try to be brave and say I will fight alone. From now on, I will use the power that belongs to us to fight."

"Thank you, Count."

Wait and hope.

Chapter 51: Blessing in Flames

Clang, clang——!!

The swords and spears clashed with each other with constant sounds, creating large amounts of sparks. The two golden figures had been fighting for hundreds of rounds without anyone noticing.

The entrance to the stadium.

Finn wielded a water spear that was as gorgeous as a staff and continued to attack Altria in front of him.

But as King Arthur, Altria was not to be outdone. Green gale gathered on the sword, and her skillful sword moves steadily blocked Finn's fierce attack like a tide.

"King Arthur, you have no reason to fight anymore... I can no longer see any fighting spirit in your eyes."

When the gun and the sword collided, the feelings of both were conveyed to each other.

"No need for nonsense, Lancer," Altria simply swung her sword to meet the enemy.

"If you want to fight, then fight. If you don't want to fight, then leave. I am just fulfilling my duties as a Servant now."

"Ugh……"

Finn sighed, "Isn't it just the force of the Command Spell, but also the choice you made? In that case, I understand."

"I really envy you, Saber. Although I don't know what happened, you can make up for the regrets in your life in this way. This is exactly what we hope for as Servants..."

Finn raised his hand to concentrate his magic power, and water began to gather around him. The trickles turned into sharp water blades that cut towards Altria.

"First of all, as a warrior, I want to congratulate you, but I also have the same wish. My master is still waiting for me to rush to his side, so I have to clear all obstacles for him!!"

"King Arthur, I will not show any mercy this time."