DanMachi: The Epic of the Heroic Spirits of Emiya Shirou

The bloodline of the Ainsworth family is a sacrifice he repeatedly peels away from himself, a cycle of rebirth.

No matter how much they fight, Ainsworth's successor will one day be replaced by "Darius Ainsworth".

Darius's own displacement magic has come close to the concept of magic, and he can even freely replace sight, sound, and form, making it impossible for enemies to touch his true existence.

However—no matter how close you get, it's still not magic.

As long as it's still magic, it can't escape that person's sight.

Solomon, the Magic King.

No matter how hard Darius tried to manipulate displacement magic, or how he moved around in space, he could not escape the "eyes" of the Magic King, Solomon.

"boom!!!"

The air was torn apart by the jab, and Solomon's fist, like a falling divine thunderbolt, carried terrifying force and struck Darius's chin directly.

Darius's head snapped back, and he was sent flying like a rag doll.

Solomon did not hesitate to step forward and catch up, and before Darius could react, he punched him squarely in the abdomen.

The force of the punch exploded out like a shockwave, and Darius's body was bent violently like a folded piece of paper, his whole body arching.

Solomon concentrated all his strength in his right fist, used his legs to propel himself forward like a cheetah, and slammed his fist into Darius's face.

Then came a fierce barrage of attacks, slamming into various parts of Darius's body.

Ora Ora Ora Ora Ora Ora Ora Ora —

Each punch was as fast as a meteor and as heavy as thunder, tearing the air apart with violent sonic booms. The dull thud of bones breaking and the booming sound of magic exploding intertwined, like the tolling of the doomsday bell.

Solomon's ancestor Jacob once fought God and defeated angels, and he passed down a fighting technique called "God's Fist".

Solomon, the King of Magic, not only inherited this skill but also honed it to perfection.

At this moment, the rings on his ten fingers shone with dazzling light. The "Ten Rings," originally used to drive magic, had become the most ferocious brass knuckles in his hands.

Compared to his superb boxing skills, Solomon, as a candidate for Grand Magician, often mispronounced incantations and failed to cast spells due to his excessive worry.

"boom--!!"

The air tore apart, and the final, powerful punch slammed into Darius's chest.

Solomon clenched his fists, using the Ten Commandments as brass knuckles, and delivered a series of punches that shattered all the magical circuits within Darius's body.

Darius's body jolted violently, his blood-red magic circuits flashed wildly, and then he was completely torn apart in the next second.

"How could this be... I, I..."

Darius stared in disbelief at his broken hands.

His magic began to spiral out of control, his body gradually twisted, and the magic released from the broken, twisted magic circuits transformed into black thorn bushes that frantically tore at his body.

The black thorns twisted wildly, like an abyss that devoured everything, completely annihilating Darius's figure.

Finally, from within that dark vortex, a young figure fell out, as if banished from a thorny cage, crashing heavily to the ground.

Julian Ainsworth, the current head of the Ainsworth family whose soul was replaced by Darius.

Now, he has finally been freed from that endless cycle of reincarnation.

"Wow, is this the strength of a Grand Caster candidate? I feel... something's a little off." The young Gilgamesh, who was watching from the airship, commented.

It's not that he's not strong, but using boxing instead of magic to defeat his opponent just feels a bit off.

"However, I was also a Grand Caster candidate, but I can't chant magic spells."

The standard for Grand Caster is the highest level of "Clairvoyance".

As long as this standard is met, one can become a Grand Caster even if they cannot chant magic.

Theoretically speaking, Shirou Emiya, who only knows projection magic, also qualifies as a candidate for Grand Caster.

However, some top-tier magicians from the Age of Gods, such as Medea and Morgan, lacked the adaptability to Grand Magic.

Seeing Darius's miserable state, Miyu Emiya's expression was somewhat blank: "Is it... over already?"

Ainsworth, who once drove Miyu to despair, proved utterly powerless before Caster Solomon.

"It's not over yet," Achilles said, standing guard beside the girl. "The boss has a second phase."

"However, to be honest, the second stage, the Giant King, shouldn't be too difficult, right?" Achilles thought to himself.

The combat power deployed here is simply outrageous.

It can only be said that he really spoiled his younger sister too much, not wanting her to suffer even the slightest hardship...

Achilles looked up at the "hole" in the sky that kept spewing out black mud.

The "hole" had already been opened before Miyu and the others arrived. Now, the entire area around Ainsworth Castle is completely covered in black mud.

The pitch-black liquid churned and surged, like a writhing sea of ​​filth, from which enormous black giants were born.

They are massive and headless, neither the frost giants of Norse mythology nor the Titans of Greek mythology. They are a race of giants unlike any other on the planet, based on an unknown mythology.

These giants are an invasion from another world.

Of all the giants, the most majestic one is slowly rising.

Its body was far larger than other black giants, towering into the clouds, with black mud constantly churning on its body.

Darius Ainsworth's magic and soul permeated it, becoming one with it.

The Giant King has arrived in the world.

Achilles, with his spear in one hand, glanced at the headless giants born from the black mud, and at the very center, at the giant king who seemed to tear the sky apart.

He exclaimed, "How ugly!"

Standing on the other side, Ruler Morgan (Alfia) appeared even more indifferent and detached: "The 'hole' is now fully open; he can be sent to his death."

A deep voice came from behind Emiya Miyu.

"—The evening bell has already rung."

Killing Darius Ainsworth has never been a difficult task for Heroic Spirits like Solomon and the Old Man of the Mountain.

The real question is how to save this world, whose great source has dried up and is approaching its end.

Even these powerful heroic spirits couldn't do anything about it.

This land has lost the foundation for the continuation of human reason. Even if they possess Grand-level combat power, they cannot create a Great Source out of thin air.

Even if they defeat Ainsworth, the world will still inevitably come to an end in the near future.

Faced with this unchangeable fate, Darius Ainsworth chose to open Pandora's Box, using the World Hole within to reach the world that had not yet been destroyed.

He abandoned all humanity except himself and went to the other side of the world. Even if this world was destroyed, the history of humanity born here would become a seed, which Darius would take to the new world to continue.

This is Darius Ainsworth's "Human Relief" plan.

Solomon's view was "self-deception," while Gilgamesh's assessment was: "Only that arrogance can rival that of the gods."

The sea of ​​black mud was still churning, and the headless giant roared as it charged toward the group.

"You bastard, get out of my way."

The Gate of Treasures unfolded in the air, like a golden constellation in the sky. In an instant, countless peerless weapons poured down like a torrential rain, tearing the black giant's body into countless fragments.

Another figure walks in the darkness.

The swordsman in black passed through the churning black mud, and a deep bell rang out.

[Evening Bell], Level: EX

The evening bells that announce the approach of a funeral, ringing when death has arrived.

This swordsman does not choose his opponents to kill based on his own will. When his opponent becomes a dead person who has "lost his time to die," he grants him salvation on behalf of God.

As Alphia said, Darius no longer had any reason to exist after opening the hole in the world.

“Listen. The evening bell points to your name. The feather heralds death, the time for beheading.”

The black sword light ripped through the void, gracefully passing by the figure of the Giant King.

【Azrael (the Angel of Death)】

In an instant, the world fell silent.

The sound of the churning black mud stopped, the air seemed to freeze, and time lost its meaning in that instant.

Thus, Darius Ainsworth's story came to an end.

The surging of black mud gradually subsided, and the entire battlefield fell into a brief silence.

Apart from Ruler Morgan, golden particles of light slowly appeared on the bodies of the other Heroic Spirits.

Their mission, or rather the Holy Grail War, is over.

"Goodbye, young lady." Achilles waved his hand. "Although we didn't spend much time together, it was quite pleasant."

See you again sometime!

Golden particles of light spread out from beneath his feet, and his figure gradually became transparent, as if the light merged into the heavens and earth.

The old man of the mountain and Solomon, who were standing to the side, simply nodded slightly without saying much.

Not far away, Gilgamesh snorted coldly, turned his head away arrogantly, and didn't say anything to say goodbye.

Meanwhile, the two Servants still fighting off the remaining giants in the distance, Rider Iskandar the Conqueror and Berserker Gorgon, gradually turned into golden light.

These Servants all returned to the Throne of Heroes.

Alphia slowly raised her head and gazed at the "World Hole" floating in the sky.

The black mud has stopped churning, but the fissure has not closed.

Emiya Miyu also looked up at the sky, her pupils trembling slightly. An indescribable tension and anticipation mingled in her chest, causing her to hold her breath.

Then she saw—

Two familiar figures slowly descended from that void-like rift.

"Brother, there's also..."

Meiyou's heart suddenly raced.

Countless images flashed wildly through her mind; those forgotten past events, memories erased by the world, returned in an instant.

"Ilya—!!"

Tears streamed uncontrollably from her eyes, and the girl's body suddenly lurched forward as she staggered toward them.

Her steps were somewhat unsteady, and even her consciousness was somewhat blurred by tears; only the intense emotions in her chest propelled her forward.

“Ilya…brother…”

Miyu rushed towards them without thinking, her eyes fixed on the two familiar figures, oblivious to everything else.

She was greeted by a warm embrace.

Emiya Shirou opened his arms and hugged Miyu tightly.

"Thank you for your hard work, Miyu."

The next moment, Ilya hugged them from the side.

"It's so good to see you again..."

·

This world, on the verge of its end, was saved.

Rewind six thousand years to the primordial era when Ilya opened Pandora's Box.

At that moment, the replacement of the world was complete.

For the past six thousand years, the world's great source has not been depleted, but rather has remained unactivated.

The end of the future was moved to the inner side, while the intact world naturally became the reality of human history.

Therefore, even though Darius did not die and managed to pass through the "hole of the world," the world he ultimately arrived at would not be the new world he had dreamed of, but rather the world that had long been abandoned and utterly destroyed.

His unwavering commitment to "human salvation" was destined from the very beginning to become the most utter joke.

After learning the truth from Illya, Miyu couldn't help but shake her head.

Darius Ainsworth's actions—going south when he was aiming north and trying to catch fish by climbing a tree—are truly lamentable, hateful, and tragic.