To become a king and a magician

The construction of the barrier paused for a moment.

"—The Sword of Victory (calibur)!!"

Starlight poured out!

The holy sword shines brightly in the sky!

Countless barriers were shattered with overwhelming force! The light that saved the world instantly obscured everything else!

The Holy Grail, the Holy City, the Sixth Beast, the Princess... everything was submerged in the light of the Holy Sword.

140. The Holy Sword of the End and the Fall of the Moon

Failed.

Slumped to the ground, utterly exhausted and unable to muster any strength, Xia Chuanhu gazed up at the scene before him, his mind filled with these thoughts.

The Holy Grail, having lost nearly 90% of its volume, still floated in the air. The sixth beast's half-body lay on the ground, covered in blood, its body appearing translucent as if it might dissipate at any moment. [Sajō Aika] also leaned weakly against the sixth beast.

Both sides suffered heavy losses – that's one way to put it, but simply suffering heavy losses isn't enough; they must be completely defeated.

"If you hadn't set your sights on the Holy Capital, this would have been your victory, Lord Natsukawa."

As her body rapidly recovered, [Sajō Aika] smiled.

"Although I also experienced some interference, compared to you, it was still within my acceptable range."

The reason why Natsukawa Torama was defeated even after releasing the Holy Sword was because he did not make [Sajō Aika] his primary target. It was not that Natsukawa Torama did not want to, but the situation forced him to target the Holy City, otherwise his body would have given out first.

After the Holy City was defeated and fell, the remaining part was barely manageable for [Sajyou Ayaka] and the Sixth Beast combined.

"That being said, the outcome was already predetermined; my plan was doomed to fail from the very beginning."

Looking up at the dome pierced by the aftershocks of the holy sword, [Sajō Aika] gazed at the illusory darkness at the end.

The Holy Sword did not kill her, but it temporarily injured her to the point of immobility and shattered the barrier separating the two sides. Even if she recovers quickly, there are still two people on the other side who can deliver the final blow while she recovers.

Arcueid.

Aozaki Aoko.

She is now powerless against those two people.

"Sajyou Aika, did you... know from the beginning that this would happen?" Natsukawa Torara asked, frowning, as he struggled to maintain his dissipating Servant form. "When you started planning all this, did you know things would turn out this way?"

"Ok, I know."

【Sajō Aika】 nodded.

“After you came into this world, the Root recorded your existence. Naturally, in order to ensure the success of the plan, I checked the singularities that might lead to failure once again.”

The plan, which was certain to succeed in the first simulation, failed in the second simulation; it was a failure no matter what.

"It could be said that my failure today is precisely because of your arrival."

"Then why...did you still continue? Knowing you would be stopped, why did you still...?"

"Of course it's for Ayaka. Even if it's the most likely future that's already set in stone, I'll change it for Ayaka's sake." [Sajō Aika] laughed. "You would probably want to do it too, even if you know you'll fail in the end, you'd still try to change it."

Xia Chuanhu nodded, then sighed and turned to look at the three people who were rushing over behind him.

(The rest is up to you, Arcueid, Aoko)

The temporary servant form completely turned into specks of light and dissipated in the air.

Watching Natsukawa Torami leave, [Sajō Aika] helped the Sixth Beast to its feet again.

(I lied about one thing, Lord Natsukawa. I did not foresee everything, which ultimately led to my failure to completely block the strange object in the spiritual vein that was the Holy Sword... That was the only exception where I was unaware of its existence.)

(Although my negligence and lack of attention played a part, it was also the key to my defeat, the crucial move you made.)

"elder sister!"

Arriving in front of [Sajō Ayaka], Sajō Ayaka looked at the scene before her, which seemed like a post-apocalyptic world, and couldn't help but bite her lip.

"You've come, Ayaka. It's really embarrassing for my younger sister to see me like this."

"Junior...where is Tora?!"

Not finding her junior, Aozaki Aoko tensed up immediately. Could it be that he had been caught in the impact just now...?

“He’s alright. It’s just that his body was a temporary Servant body, and his Spirit Origin shattered and dissipated. The consciousness connected to that body should have returned to its original body by now.” [Sajō Aika] said, looking at Arcueid. “Failure, failure… Although I knew this outcome five years ago and tried to nip any unstable factors in the bud, it still ended up like this.”

"Sister, please stop. A happy future... I don't want that right now. More than a world where only I am happy, I want you back..."

“I know, Ayaka.”

【Satiao Aika】 smiled: "I know what you're thinking. If you don't listen to me, I won't listen to you either... Hehe, we really are sisters here."

"However, I don't like giving up halfway. Even if failure is inevitable, I will not give up before the last moment."

This is something I learned from another version of you, Ayaka.

A sacred light shone behind [Sajō Aika], like two rows of ceremonial guards, and beams of light rose into the sky, accompanied by the sound of swords being drawn.

"The Holy Sword... Speaking of which, I really have a connection with this existence. My other self fell in love with the Holy Sword Wielder, was assassinated by the Holy Sword Lock, and was defeated by the Holy Sword several times. Now, I have been defeated by the Holy Sword Wielder in the same way... It's really a relationship that's hard to laugh about."

"Sister, what are you doing? Stop! Don't continue!"

"So, let's consider this revenge. Let me use the Holy Sword's light one last time, even if it's just a temporary simulation..."

Without looking at her younger sister, [Sajō Aika] decided to use a salute to exit the stage.

As Arcueid watched the beams of light, like holy swords, illuminate the sky. He pulled Ayaka Sajou behind him, stretched out his hands, and tore open a rift in the sky, pulling out a crimson full moon.

"Pseudo-Noble Phantasm unfolds, true name released—Holy Sword, unsheathed."

"The moon sets."

The Moon of Destruction descended from the sky, and the light of the Holy Sword soared into the heavens.

The impact of the collision between stars swept across the new world in an instant, burying a girl's eight-year-long wish with the greatest force.

This is neither a victory for justice nor a victory for evil.

She's just a foolish older sister who spoils her younger sister too much, trying to bring her happiness on her own, but ultimately failing to overcome reality and fate.

(I'm sorry, Ayaka.)

141. Newborn Sisters

Several days later.

Inside a coffee shop in Tokyo.

"Yes, that's right. We didn't find anything. That should be fine for the report. Thank you for your help. That's all for now. I'll contact you again if anything comes up."

After reporting the situation in Tokyo to the church headquarters on the other side of the world by phone, Hiel put down his phone, picked up his coffee and took a sip: "Phew, at least we got through that."

"Are you alright now, senior?"

Across from Hiel, Ayaka Sajo asked somewhat uneasily.

A few days ago, that incredibly special period for her came to an end. The world rebirth triggered by her sister ended without serious incident with the help of those few people. And with the help of that magician, the part of the world that had been affected by the world rebirth was all thrown into the distant future.

Although she had no concept of "extremely distant", since Ms. Aozaki Aoko said that she wouldn't have to worry about it even in ten lifetimes, Ayaka Sajou felt relieved.

Of course, while it didn't have a major impact on the real world, that only applies to the surface society. Some people in the magic world did notice the strange events that occurred in Tokyo, so the association sent some people to investigate, as did the church.

And the result was just as Hierle had said.

“Well, it’s alright now, at least for now,” Hiel said. “Of course, the church and the association are still suspicious of what happened in Tokyo. It’ll probably be lively for a while longer, until they can’t find anything and they leave—actually, they can’t find anything at all by searching like this.”

The battle between Natsukawa Torato and his group and [Sajō Aika] took place in the New World, which is another world different from the real world, much like the difference between the Digital World and the real world. To find out what happened in the New World, one would naturally have to go there, but the New World had already disappeared several days ago.

With the Holy Sword, Moonfall, the Fifth Magic, the severely damaged Holy Grail (the core of the spell), and the disappearance of [Sajyou Aika] (the caster), the New World had already vanished along with the cessation of world rebirth. No matter how much the Association and the Church investigated, it was all in vain.

"Speaking of which, what are your plans for the future, Ayaka?"

"Hiel asked."

"If the church and association keep sending people, you won't have it as easy as before. In addition, with the disappearance of the barrier that prevented magic from being used in Tokyo, there will be more and more foreign magicians here. After I leave, will you be able to handle it?"

Yes, leave.

Chiel is a doll-like existence created by Ayaka Sajou, and also Gaia of the vanished New World. She should have disappeared along with the New World, but she still exists in the world now, which is just a dying miracle caused by Aoko Aozaki and Arcueid.

[Because of a job change, he had to be transferred to another region]—this was the official reason given by Hierle for leaving Tokyo.

Looking down at the coffee cup in front of her, Ayaka Sajo remained silent for a long time before shaking her head: "I think I probably can't handle it. It's a bit too early for a third-rate magician like me to deal with those big shots."

"then you......"

“So, I’m going to leave Tokyo,” Ayaka Sajou said. “Natsukawa seems to know a very talented magician in England who can recommend me to the Clock Tower. I plan to study at the Clock Tower after graduating from high school. After I’ve achieved some success as a magician there, I’ll come back to Tokyo.”

Shall we go to the clock tower?

Hiel frowned. "High school graduation, that's two years from now... Is that alright? Tokyo is yours..."

"I have to leave eventually. My sister has protected me for eight years; it's time for me to leave my hometown and go out into the world. Besides..."

"And? And what?"

"N-nothing!" Ayaka Sajou blushed slightly and took a sip of her coffee.

He had helped her so much, and it was thanks to him that she learned so much about her sister. Ayaka Sajou felt she had a duty to repay him. She couldn't do anything for him now, but who knew what she might be able to in the future.

"Ring ring—"

An alarm clock rang out from Ayaka Sajou's pocket.

Taking out her phone and turning off the alarm, Ayaka Sajou glanced at the time, then hurriedly finished her coffee, grabbed her bag, and stood up: "It's already this late—I'm sorry, senpai, I have to go now, something urgent is coming up and I'm going to be late!"

"Huh? Urgent? Isn't today Saturday?"

"But today is the day Natsukawa and the others leave Tokyo!"

The voice of Ayaka Sajou, who had gone far away, returned.

Hiel paused for a moment, then helplessly shrugged: "This 'urgent matter'... sigh, you promised to take care of someone for me, Mr. Natsukawa, you seem to be cutting corners a bit."

"However, with you here, I don't need to worry about Ayaka."

Looking at the sky outside the window, Hiel smiled, closed his eyes, and disappeared into specks of light from his seat.