FATE: Target of Grand Master

Unwilling to put any more pressure on Cú Chulainn Alter, Katniss quickly raised her round shield to protect herself.

Just like Cú Chulainn ALTER's previous experience, this time Katniss was dragged a longer distance on the ground.

Katniss only managed to stop herself when she hit the edge of the arena. However, the Blazing Spear was not a single-point explosion, but an area-of-effect bombardment.

boom!

Like a missile exploding, a corner of the arena was engulfed in flames, and the thick smoke even blew into the storm of Artoria Alter (Lancer) in the distance.

Cú Chulainn Alter felt the pressure on his body ease considerably, and he actually grabbed Katniss's silver spear and examined it closely.

As the smoke and dust gradually dissipated, Katniss's figure became clearer.

She stood up from a protective half-squatting position, her skin black and red from the high temperature burns, her hair disheveled from the explosion, and the injuries all over her body could only be described as a bloody mess.

However, several strands of blue magic flowed through Katniss's body, healing some of her injuries wherever they touched.

That's right, it's restoration, not repair.

This is Katniss's inherent skill - Poseidon's Favor A, which not only grants Katniss a normal damage reduction effect but also grants her the Perseverance state once.

"Damn it! That really hurts!"

Looking at the round shield in her hand, now cracked with multiple fissures, Katniss acknowledged Cú Chulainn Alter's strength.

If her opponent were weaker than Katniss, she would probably have followed Hu Xia's instructions and held back a little. However, Cu Chulainn Alter's strength was no less than Katniss's, and Katniss was only thinking about getting revenge. Although she remembered Hu Xia's instructions, she would only consider them after she had successfully retaliated against her opponent.

With her magic output rapidly increasing, Katniss rushed towards Cú Chulainn Alter's location without even recalling her silver spear.

As she ran, Katniss's magic transformed into a "bird with golden wings" that was said to have appeared when she died. The excess magic turned into burning flames that covered the golden wings, and she flew towards the enemy with the momentum befitting an anti-military Noble Phantasm.

"Noble Phantasm! Fly, my golden wings!"

Having just unleashed his Noble Phantasm, Cú Chulainn Alter was in a state of slight mana depletion, leaving him with no choice but to withstand Katniss's Noble Phantasm.

He fully materialized the exoskeleton of the Red Sea monster Curruid, covering his entire body as armor.

boom!

Another explosion followed, bringing flames and black smoke once again. Katniss picked up the silver spear that Cú Chulainn Alter had thrown aside, jumped out of the smoke-filled area, and stared intently at the direction of the smoke while panting heavily.

"Ouch! Ouch! Your Noble Phantasm is just as impressive."

Cú Chulainn Alter's voice came from within the smoke before it dissipated. After the smoke completely cleared, Katniss saw that Cú Chulainn Alter's black armor was badly damaged, and there were several hideous wounds beneath the broken armor.

Undoubtedly, Katniss's Noble Phantasm also dealt fatal damage to Cú Chulainn Alter, successfully triggering Cú Chulainn Alter's Battle Continuation.

Although both of them looked rather disheveled, after this back and forth, their situations were actually even.

The final duel in the arena was much milder compared to the other two.

Nero, wielding the "Primordial Flame," clashed with Zenobius, who held a sword.

In terms of swordsmanship alone, Nero's swordsmanship, which he acquired through imperial privilege, was superior to Zenobi's. However, Queen Palmyra used a wider variety of weapons than Nero.

Besides the one-handed sword in his right hand, Zenobi also held a black and red spear in his left hand, and two overly futuristic floating crossbows floated on his shoulders.

During the battle, Zenobia not only fought with his sword but also occasionally threw out his spear to distract Nero, while the two floating crossbows constantly harassed Nero, preventing him from concentrating on dealing with Zenobia.

Frustrated, Nero unleashed two fiery sword beams at the floating crossbow, only to have Zenobi skillfully dodge them.

"As expected of the queen of the Palmyra Empire, who once caused great trouble for Yu Weilai's Rome."

Nero created some distance and stopped rushing to attack.

"Emperor of Rome, please don't judge me like that. Even though your era is two hundred years earlier than mine, I still have no goodwill towards Rome or towards you. If it weren't for Hu Xia's request that I not kill you, you might already have your spirit foundation destroyed and returned to the Throne of Heroes."

Zenobia's eyes were cold, as if she wanted to unleash the humiliation and resentment she had suffered in her life on Nero, a Roman emperor from a different era.

"I don't understand why your Master would ask you to hold back. Don't forget that this battle was ultimately for the sake of both of us."

At this point, Nero's expression became very serious.

As Servants who were also summoned in this trial, Nero and Zenobi are the pair among the six Servants on both sides who should give their all.

According to the rules, only one of the two can leave with their Master, while the other can only accept returning to the Throne of Heroes. Since losing a personal duel also results in disappearance, and losing an overall duel also results in disappearance, why not give it your all in the personal duel? Even if the final result is still not ideal, at least you tried your best.

This is the decision Nero made after Xia Yan specifically sought out Nero this morning to give him a pep talk before the battle began.

On the other hand, Zenobia only received Husha's instruction not to kill Nero, showing a fundamental difference in the attitudes of the two Masters towards this battle.

As for why he asked Zenobia to hold back, Hu Xia didn't say it explicitly, but considering Hu Xia's conversation with Artoria Altera (Lancer) after returning yesterday, Zenobia was 90% sure that Hu Xia wanted to suppress Xia Yan in this decisive match and then recruit him again.

In other words, Zenobia was a bargaining chip that Hu Xia considered useful for winning over Xia Yan, but which was then discarded.

Although Zenobia had no complaints about becoming a Servant and then dying and returning to the Throne of Heroes, he still couldn't help but feel a little angry when he thought about it.

I can die, or even be discarded as a tool, but I never want to lose to the Roman emperor again.

Zenobia's magic began to rise, and she made a decision: she would obey Husha's demands, but before that, she would ruthlessly and thoroughly defeat the Roman emperor before her.

Sensing Zenobi's murderous intent, Nero also raised the "Primordial Flame" and assumed a fighting stance.

"Let me see if your determination to defeat me is stronger, or if my fate with the performer is stronger."