To become a king and a magician

Karna felt as if he were fighting alongside a pair of kindred spirits.

He felt no dissatisfaction; on the contrary, he thought it was for the best. It was the honor of every warrior to fight against a powerful opponent. Even though his body had been corrupted by the Demon Eye and he had little time left, he would fight with all his might!

Just like Natsukawa Tora, who fought him with all his might!

It doesn't matter what the initial purpose of this battle was. Even if it was orchestrated, both of them should thank the one who instigated it—thank him for allowing them to fight this guy in front of them.

and--

"Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!"

Explosion, roar, collapse, shatter.

Wherever the two went, everything turned to dust without exception.

The divine spear and the simulated holy sword tore through space countless times. Each time the spear and sword roared, it triggered an impact that swept around. The ground had been baptized time and time again, from the initial upheaval and flying debris to the subsequent shattering and disintegration. The more the sword light and spear gleamed in the air, the more intense the damage to the earth became!

This is a battle that does not allow any fourth party to intervene. Anyone who dares to enter or even get close will be terrified by the aftershocks alone.

—That's amazing.

Everyone watching thought the same thing, and some even had the idea that this battle should never stop.

This mythical battle should continue forever; ending it in any way would be too abrupt, and "ending" it now would be a complete failure.

However, this is impossible.

The endless roaring explosions finally reached a point where they needed to stop temporarily. The two who had been fighting with superhuman speed and strength stood on opposite sides. Around them, the prayer hall where Amakusa Shiro and Gray had fought earlier had now been reduced to a vast expanse of scorched earth, along with the surrounding area for hundreds of meters.

Looking further out, you can see the gap created by the two men's fatal blow, and a ruined road connecting the two areas, seemingly ravaged by artillery fire.

Karna's spear was cracked, and his body was covered with numerous wounds.

Without his golden armor, he was no longer invincible.

Before the power of the True Ancestor, no weapon, however sturdy, will remain unscathed.

"It's been more than a minute."

Natsukawa Tora, whose clothes were tattered but who was unharmed, said this.

“I’m starting to doubt whether this Demon Eye has any effect at all. In my eyes, you have long been corrupted to the point that you have no part of yourself left, but you still retain your self-awareness and your power that has not been weakened in the slightest.”

In terms of classification, Karna is undoubtedly no longer a Servant, but an existence that has been corrupted into an evil spirit from the inside out. Logically speaking, his spirit and will have long since disappeared.

But he hasn't changed at all.

"If I cannot even maintain my own will and allow my spirit to degenerate, then I am unworthy of being called a hero."

Even though he was covered in wounds, Karna still had a satisfied smile on his face.

"It was an incredibly exhilarating battle, one I never experienced in life, and I never imagined I could have it after death. I want to thank you, Natsukawa Torato, thank you for fighting me."

"I...no, we also want to express our gratitude to you."

In Karna's eyes, a knight clad in silver armor suddenly appeared behind Natsukawa Torato, nodding to him in greeting.

(So ​​that's how it is. You're not fighting alone, are you? You're one with a Heroic Spirit... There are such special beings.)

From this perspective, even if they were to lose this battle, they would have no regrets.

but--

“I have not yet fallen. I have a duty to carry out the orders given to me by my Master until the very last moment.”

Karna raised his divine spear.

Kill Natsukawa Torato. This was the order Karna received from his Master. Even though it wasn't his true Master's order, but rather Amakusa Shiro's, Karna would remain loyal to the very end.

"Zheng—!"

The brilliant starlight shone on Xia Chuanhu's chest.

Magic weaves a silver armor, and the holy sword of salvation appears amidst the raging winds.

While the Tsukihime mode is indeed superior in terms of power, Natsukawa Torato now prefers to use Arthur's power—as long as Arthur takes the initiative to attack, he will respond to his wishes regardless of the circumstances.

"Come on, Karna, it's the final round—Servant, Saber, True Name, Arthur Pendragon, go into battle!"

"The King of Knights of Great Britain? Very well. The King of Knights and those who inherit his glory, for this one and only battle in the Holy Grail War, I have no regrets—Servant, Lancer, True Name, Karna. Please enlighten me."

The intense heat of the sun burns on Karna's spear—it's a Noble Phantasm.

Now that Karna no longer has the God-Slaying Spear, he only has one Noble Phantasm left that he can use. The fact that he uses the Noble Phantasm at this time means that this attack is the last attack that Karna can unleash with his strongest power!

(Arthur, go!)

"Zheng—!"

Holy sword, unleash!

"【Brahma, curse my body (BrahmastraKundala)!"

"Excalibur!"

81. Holy Lance, Anchors Pulled

"Is this where I'm inferior to him?"

In the realm of consciousness, Natsukawa Tora, who had once again transformed into Arthur and was fighting alongside her prince, hugged her own legs. The initial surprise and joy that Sajou Aika felt for the prince's appearance had long since faded, leaving only confusion and doubt in her heart.

She didn't understand why the prince could get along so well with her. She was clearly stronger as a magician and more powerful as a Master, so why couldn't she achieve the ending she had with the prince?

Is it because I can't understand the prince?

No, that's impossible.

Sajō Aika knew the prince's thoughts and his dreams, so she always acted to help him achieve them and always had him in her heart. During the Holy Grail War, she never caused the prince any trouble, nor did she have any unpleasant encounters with him.

Their relationship should be perfect.

On the other hand, Natsukawa Tora needs the prince's protection at all times. Without the prince, he can't do anything and will be dissatisfied with the prince's behavior, even arguing with him.

What makes such a man worthy of the prince's devotion? What makes him worthy of the prince's life?

Sajou Aika doesn't understand.

The princess did not understand the source of her omniscience and omnipotence.

"It's just trust."

Ayaka Sajou saw the figure of Merry before her eyes.

Leaning on her staff, Meryl smiled as she looked at Ayaka Sajou: "What brought Tiger and Arthur to this point in their relationship is their trust in each other, or rather, their bond."

"Bonds? Trust? Prince and I have those too—"

“No, you don’t.” Meryl shook her head. “The way you interact doesn’t allow for a relationship of trust.”

How to establish a trust relationship?

For Mary, the most direct way is to go through life-and-death situations together and form a community of shared destiny. And coincidentally, Natsukawa Tora and Arthur are in this category.

Natsukawa Torara met Arthur when he had nothing. At first, he relied on him and depended on his protection. Later, he gained the Mystic Eyes, stepped out of Arthur's protection, and fought as a Master. Finally, he stood shoulder to shoulder with Arthur, facing a common enemy together.

He accomplished in just a few days what might have taken a lifetime to achieve.

For Arthur, and for a knight, the trust and support of his master is undoubtedly the strongest pillar. From the very beginning, Natsukawa Tora gave him his complete trust, believing that he could protect him, supporting him in doing what he wanted to do, and in the end, sacrificing his life as his comrade-in-arms.

Therefore, to thank his Master who trusted him so much, to thank his Master who fought alongside him to the very end, and to thank his Master who sacrificed himself for him, Arthur made the decision to dedicate himself to him.

This is a relationship that can only be formed between comrades who fight and live together.

As for the situation of Ayaka Sajou and Arthur—

“You didn’t treat Arthur as an equal to yourself. From the moment you fell in love with him, it was impossible for you to have the relationship you longed for.” Meryl laughed and delivered another blow to Sajou Aika’s psyche. “That’s the difference between you and Tora, and the only thing you’re not as good at as him.”

"You who are all-knowing and all-powerful, there is only this one thing you don't understand at all."

Sajo Aika fell silent.

The only thing she, an omniscient and omnipotent being, didn't understand. She was clearly omniscient and omnipotent, so how could there be anything she didn't understand? That shouldn't be possible.

(No... I'm not... omniscient and omnipotent anymore.)

She had already admitted that when she couldn't understand why the prince treated the vixen that way, and when she couldn't understand why she lost to the vixen, she was no longer omniscient and omnipotent.

——————————————————————————————

The real world.

The clash between Noble Phantasms did not last long.

Ultimately, after unleashing the God-Slaying Spear and fighting Natsukawa Torato with all his might for so long, Karna had little strength left. His last remaining obsession was to use his Noble Phantasm to decide the outcome.

No, it should be said that the reason he has been able to fight until now is because he still has this obsession.

He believes that one must use all one's strength against a worthy opponent.

And after using all his strength to unleash his final Noble Phantasm—

"I lost."

Amidst the ruins, Karna, whose body began to dissipate into specks of light, spoke calmly, a faint smile of satisfaction playing on his lips.

He has no regrets.

He carried out his Master's orders to the very last moment, and fought with all his might against a worthy opponent.

Karna had never felt such a pleasant feeling in his lifetime.

"You are very strong, Karna."

Standing not far away, supporting himself with the Holy Sword, with one arm hanging limply at his sides, Natsukawa Tiger forced a smile—using Tsukihime wouldn't have been like this, but he had no regrets about switching to Arthur's Armor, and even considered his injuries an honor.

"It was my good fortune to fight you, Karna. If I had the chance, I would love to fight you again."

“Thank you for your praise. I share the same sentiment, heir to the Knight King.” Karna smiled. “However, if I could fight alongside you…”

That would be an even more delightful situation.

With this thought in mind, Karnatje vanished completely from the spot.

Red Lancer, leaving the stage.

"Well......"