My obsession with role-playing seems to have distorted the world's aesthetic.

To shoot a man, shoot his horse first; to capture a thief, capture his king first. Fafner had already made his judgment regarding the current situation.

Leave those two Heroic Spirits to Jeanne to hold off, and go deal with the enemy's support characters and ranged attackers first.

In Fafnir's eyes, Fujimaru Ritsuka was somewhat similar to the opposing team's doctor, while the position of director was somewhat similar to that of an archer.

The director was slightly startled as she watched Fafnir rushing towards her. She had just finished casting a spell and was unable to concentrate. However, at that moment, a figure suddenly blocked her way.

——!

Fafnir let out a roar, and Siegfried, who had arrived just in time to rescue her, increased the force of his attack upon hearing this angry roar.

"Sorry I'm a little late."

As he spoke, he swung his greatsword wildly at Fafnir. While Fafnir was being held back by Siegfried, the battle on the other side was also nearing its end.

"Mash, to the left!"

At that moment, Fujimaru Ritsuka's voice rang out, and upon hearing it, Mash immediately raised her shield to block the left side.

Sure enough, Jeanne Alter's attack arrived swiftly in the next second.

Having blocked the attack, Mash immediately attempted to counterattack. In battles between Heroic Spirits, it's crucial to seize an opening and deliver a devastating blow to one's enemy.

The key to all of this lies in the word "flaw," which is why we haven't seen any part of Mash's battle with Jeanne Alter.

Alter Jeanne was waiting for the right moment to launch a fierce attack on the opponent. When a true Heroic Spirit goes all out, Fujimaru Ritsuka's current dynamic vision is simply unable to detect or see it.

Heroic Spirits are essentially beings that transcend humanity. It is very difficult for humans to fight against them and achieve victory. Most people would find it difficult to even watch the steps leading up to their own death, let alone do so.

After blocking Jeanne Alter's attack, Mash immediately used her shield to block it, while at the same time, Jeanne d'Arc to Jeanne Alter's right also picked up the battle flag and launched an attack on her other self.

Hearing the sound behind her, Jeanne Alter, relying on the powerful physical abilities granted by the Holy Grail, slightly shifted her body to the side to dodge, and then forcefully struck Jeanne's weapon.

Seeing that the weapon hadn't been destroyed, Jeanne Alter frowned slightly. This was quite different from what she had imagined. She had thought she could take this opportunity to make her other self lose its weapon and then press her advantage.

However, that's alright. Since we can't get the opponent to drop their weapon in the first instant, we can force them to drop it by continuing our offensive.

With this in mind, Jeanne Alter's movements became noticeably faster, and the two battle flags clashed rapidly against each other.

As the sounds of collision continued to ring out, their speed had exceeded the limits of what the naked eye could see. Jeanne d'Arc, facing the Holy Grail-blessed Black Jeanne, was the first to be unable to withstand the pressure and began to pant.

Just as she was catching her breath and regaining her strength, her weapon was knocked out of her hand, clearly indicating that Joan of Arc, in her normal state, was slightly at a disadvantage in this battle.

At the exact same moment, Mash arrived behind Jeanne Alter, raising her shield to smash it into Jeanne Alter's back. Jeanne Alter, who was just a moment away, turned around and kicked her.

it hurts!

Jeanne Alter almost lost her composure after suddenly kicking the shield. Ahhhhh, what on earth is that shield bearer's weapon made of?

This level of hardness... my foot, my foot is going to break!

Ahem, I can't show anything unusual. I am Joan of Arc, the Dragon Witch. I absolutely cannot show any inappropriate emotions in a situation that could damage my dignity.

At that moment, Mash, realizing that Jeanne Alter was no match for her, rushed to the side and grabbed Jeanne. Then, holding her shield, she accidentally stepped into the carriage.

"How boring. Compared to me, your strength seems a bit lacking."

Looking at Jeanne d'Arc and Mash in front of her, Jeanne d'Arc Alter, who was preparing to put on a show to the end, shook her head after a long sigh. Her first reaction to the strength of the two in front of her was disappointment.

It seems like a satisfying battle is out of the question, but the other version of myself seems stronger than I imagined. Is it because of the different class?

At this moment, Jeanne Alter suddenly recalled her battle with Jeanne d'Arc earlier, and realized that Jeanne's strength seemed to be somewhat different from her initial assessment.

She originally thought that the other version of herself was not much stronger than her self when she wasn't connected to the Holy Grail, but after fighting her, Jeanne Alter found that the situation was not as she had imagined.

It seems like another version of myself... is slightly stronger than the version of myself without the Holy Grail, well, just a tiny bit.

Chapter 688: All of Chaldea is counting on me to embarrass them.

The outcome is clear: the dragon's agonizing cries prove he is severely wounded. With the decision to first assist Siegfried's director, this hero, celebrated in the Nibelungenlied, is about to achieve victory once again.

On the ground battlefield, Jeanne Alter's expression was rather grim; she was naturally astute enough to understand the obvious situation.

I'm still in a relatively comfortable position right now, but if Fafnir fails, and the enemy adds a Heroic Spirit and a magician who exploits weaknesses, then things might change.

Not one to underestimate her opponent, she blocked the senses of her other self and waved her flag to activate the power of the Dragon Witch. At this moment, the nearby wyverns were rushing to the battlefield.

"Unleash my fury on that white-haired guy!"

Commanding the dragons to launch an attack on Siegfried, Jeanne Alter could only hope that the dragons she had summoned would put in some effort.

Unfortunately, reality was not as rosy as imagined; the expected scene of the enemy being torn apart by the dragons did not occur.

The wyverns, far inferior to Fafnir, were like lambs to the slaughter, waiting for the battle to begin and then die—or perhaps it shouldn't be called a battle.

Before the dragon slayers, who possess the inherent skills of those who kill dragons, these dragons, whose battles are a nightmare for ordinary people, are facing a judgment, a massacre.

"The battle situation is too unfavorable for my dragon flock. My dragon flock has suffered heavy losses, and I need to regroup my dragon flock!"

Faced with this situation, Jeanne Alter knew that the enemy had the upper hand. As she spoke, she waved her flag and activated her unique skill, Dragon Witch, summoning a continuous stream of wyverns.

Unfortunately, the regrouped dragons were merely a backdrop to Siegfried's dragon-slaying exploits. These mindless, low-level dragons, under the control of the Dragon Witch, charged towards Siegfried without hesitation.

At that moment, Siegfried, who had already slaughtered dozens of wyverns and was covered in blood, seemed more like a true villain.

Oh no...

Faced with this reality, Jeanne Alter pursed her lips, feeling a surge of resentment. Damn it, she was so close...

Seemingly feeling resentful about the gap, Frostmourne, which Xia Qing had previously given her, responded to the call and rushed to the battlefield.

"This is......"

As the demonic sword Black Jeanne flew towards him, he was slightly taken aback. After casually grasping the sword floating beside him, a piece of information entered his mind.

Frostmourne is not a conceptual weapon, but a purely magical sword forged on Type-Moon's own soil.

This ordinary alloy sword is enhanced with multiple magical effects, such as increased hardness and sharpness, as well as an extremely violent one, which together make up this magic sword.

A concept is essentially a living being's thoughts, beliefs, or ideas about something. When a magician develops a magic trick, their thoughts about the trick also make the trick one of the important cornerstones for building a magic concept.

After condensing the concept of magic on a fragmented Earth within a timeline, Xia Qing acquired the numerous magic tricks developed and used by magicians that were inherent in this concept.

The Shazam Power, currently in its unfinished, undetermined state, contains the vast majority of magic techniques used in human history, making it an invaluable treasure that would excite any magician.

Many of these magic tricks could also enhance Xia Qing's ability to utilize his own power, but due to the sheer number of tricks, he estimated that he wouldn't be able to consume all this vast knowledge in a short period of time.

At this moment, Jeanne Alter, holding the magic sword and guided by the instructions that suddenly appeared in her mind, slammed the sword into the ground. In that instant, the extremely violent magic engraved on the sword was activated.

The instant the spell was activated, Jeanne Alter instinctively applied all the magic's effects to her alternate self, causing Jeanne to collapse unconscious.

After Jeanne d'Arc fainted, the magic effect began to intensify, and the magic power of the Director, Mash, and Fujimaru Ritsuka began to rapidly dissipate. Guided by Solomon's wisdom, the Director immediately understood the key.

"Be careful! That corrupted Jeanne is draining our life force. Magic is the power that life force is converted into through magic circuits. Once our magic is drained, it will be our life force that suffers!"

Just as she finished speaking, she suddenly felt a continuous flow of magic power coming from the Shazam power connected to her soul.

The amount of magic transmitted was so great that it even overwhelmed the amount that was flowing away. Meanwhile, Fujimaru Ritsuka, who heard the director's words, was somewhat stunned.

Huh? Have my magic and life force been drained? I don't feel anything.

"You are connected to my life. The mere life-drawing is a joke in front of me. I am the Israeli King of Fighters, Solomon, the strongest fist in history. I almost didn't even notice this loss."

Solomon's voice echoed in her mind, and upon hearing this, Fujimaru Ritsuka nodded.

Oh, so it was King Solomon who helped him block the life drain.

"Senior, Director, you two go quickly! I...I'll cover your retreat!"

At this moment, Mashu's face was deathly pale, and she spoke weakly, clearly indicating that the draining of her magic power had brought her to the point where she was almost unable to fight.

At this moment, Mashu stood firm with her own willpower, her eyes filled with determination.

Senior, Director, I will not lose, I will not give up.

Because behind me... is Chaldea!

For the sake of my seniors and the director, I absolutely cannot lose.

I am a follower, so I still have the strength to fight. I guess the senior and the director are completely too weak to fight now... right?

Worried about her two companions, Mashu looked up and saw a hint of confusion in her eyes when she saw the scene in front of her.

What's going on here?

The scene before her was beyond her expectations; Fujimaru Ritsuka and Olga Marie were standing there perfectly fine as if nothing had happened.

Why did it turn out like this?!

I had imagined myself helping my weak and helpless seniors and the director escape the battlefield, but the scene I'm seeing now is completely different from what I imagined.

Looking around and seeing Siegfried outside the affected area, she understood: So... I was the only one who was injured?

Oh, right, and there's also Jeanne d'Arc.

Wait a minute, that doesn't make sense either. The one who caused all this is the corrupted Jeanne d'Arc.

At that moment, she suddenly remembered the grand magic show performed by the director of Fuyuki City, and the scene where her senior had fought the wyvern without any chance to fight back.

At this moment, Mash realized that she was now the weakest member of Chaldea.

So I can't fall here, because the whole of Chaldea is counting on me to embarrass them!

Chapter 689: What's with your tears? Can your tears save humanity?

Mashu, trying to find joy in her suffering, grew increasingly weak, and was slightly taken aback when she saw the director, Fujimaru Ritsuka, and Jeanne Alter, who appeared to be completely unharmed.

The treacherous Chaldea!

Unexpectedly, the two who seemed the least threatening actually possessed such terrifying magical power. The fact that they've stood this long is undoubtedly a testament to their strength compared to their other self and the shield-wielding Servant.

These two are no match for each other; catching the other version of myself today is already a great achievement.

"Chaldea members, you are indeed worthy of my respect. As a sign of respect, I will fight you with all my might and then deliver a defeat to you. Now, you should recover your strength and quietly await your death."

"Fafner, let's go!"

Despite losing the fight, Jeanne Alter declared that they would fight again another day before summoning the evil dragon to prepare to leave.

Those who were still able to move naturally wouldn't just stand by and watch as Siegfried instantly became weak and lost his magic power the moment he stepped into the area covered by Frostmourne's Life Drain.

Although Fujimaru Ritsuka merged with the Israeli King of Fighters, her own weakness meant that she could only fight Wyvern at best, and was completely unable to contend with Fafnir and Jeanne Alter.

As for the director, because his magic circuit injuries had not yet recovered, he forcibly attempted to create multiple magic circuits, and as a result, during the construction process, he accidentally caused his magic power to collapse and he fainted.