To become a king and a magician

Sajou Rei could tell that she must have been defeated by Akuta Hinako's suicidal attack, since Akuta Hinako now had several large holes in her body, and you could even see the other side of the scene through the holes.

"What a reckless fighting style, Miss Akuta Hinako."

Picking up the clothes that were somehow lucky enough to be intact from the ground, Sajou Rei handed them to Akuta Hinako: "Even though you won't die, won't doing this all the time leave any hidden health problems for your body?"

"We'll just blow up this body and rebuild a new one."

Hinako Akuta said nonchalantly, taking her clothes and putting them back on before looking in the direction Black Saber had flown away: "This singularity should be over now. I blasted through her heart and chest, and her spirit core is shattered—what's next?"

"That depends on what the master thinks. I came early only to deal with Fujimaru Ritsuka's situation."

Sajou Rei knelt down beside Fujimaru Ritsuka, who was lying on the ground: "The curse is quite severe... Miss Akuta Hinako, didn't Master tell you not to use that move when other people are present?"

"I was just thinking of finishing her off in one go, and with Mashu around, who would have thought she would still get caught up in it?"

"I'm so sorry, I failed to protect you, senior..."

Mashu lowered her head with considerable self-reproach. She hadn't been of any use in the battle just now, nor had she protected Fujimaru Ritsuka, who should have been protected. It was normal for her to feel guilty and remorseful now.

“Mash, you don’t need to feel guilty.” Sajou Rei patted her head. “If anyone’s really at fault, it’s Akuta Hinako. Using such a self-destructive move without considering the consequences is unacceptable. What will happen to a woman like you who doesn’t think about the consequences after you get married?”

"Ugh—! Ken, everything'll be alright! That person will... Waaah..."

That person will surely accept her as she is—that's what Hinako wanted to say, but the thought that the person might get into unnecessary trouble because of her willfulness made her feel uneasy.

"I...I understand! I'll be even more restrained from now on! I'll apologize to the newcomer when she wakes up!"

“You should apologize sincerely. Also, Mashu, move aside, I'm here to lift the curse on Fujimaru.”

"Yes!"

Mashu quickly stood up and moved to the side, afraid that her presence might hinder Sajou Rei's next treatment.

With her hands placed on Fujimaru Ritsuka's head, Sajou Rei's palms glowed with a faint azure light. Drops of light fell on Fujimaru Ritsuka like raindrops, and as the light rain fell, the blood-red mist that had been entwining Fujimaru Ritsuka visibly faded away, and the pain on her face also dissipated considerably.

"The blessing of the water spirit?" Hinako Akuta watched this scene. "At this rate, let alone purification, she probably won't be able to get sick or be cursed in the future, right? Is this what that guy wanted?"

"No, I just think it would be better this way. After all, Fujimaru is one of our only two Masters. If something happens to her, we might encounter unexpected troubles and difficulties in the future—you could say it's planning ahead."

"That's quite a luxurious help."

Hinako Akuta pouted.

The healing process didn't take long, only about ten seconds, before Sajou Rei withdrew her hands. Soon after, Fujimaru Ritsuka, who had been unconscious, seemed to wake up from a dream and slowly opened her eyes.

"Um... what am I doing...?"

"senior!"

Upon seeing Fujimaru Ritsuka wake up, Mashu rushed over and hugged her tightly, exclaiming, "That's wonderful! Senpai, you're awake!"

"Eh? Mashu? Why did you suddenly hug me?" Fujimaru Ritsuka was momentarily at a loss. "Akuta-senpai, Rei-san, what happened to me just now? I just felt a rush of heat to my head, and then..."

"It's nothing. You were just affected by Miss Jie's attack. I've already healed you."

Were they affected?

Fujimaru Ritsuka carefully recalled what had just happened, then quickly looked at Akuta Hinako: "Right! Akuta-senpai, are you alright?! I remember you just self-destructed! Wait... why is Akuta-senpai still here? If Akuta-senpai self-destructed, then that means the current Akuta-senpai is a ghost?!"

"You're the ghost! I'm not dead yet! How could a self-destruction kill me?" Hinako Akuta glared at her, annoyed. "I'm not going to go into the details right now. Just know that I'm immortal."

"Moreover, the newcomers are fine now—Satiao, when is your partner coming over?"

"I think it should be soon—"

Buzz ————————————————!

A sudden tremor abruptly interrupted Sajou Rei's words, and along with the tremor, a magical pressure even more terrifying than the appearance of Black Saber just now suddenly descended upon the Great Void!

Hinako Akuta and Mashu froze instantly, not to mention Ritsuka Fujimaru. The pressure from Black Saber only made people feel sluggish, but the pressure that was descending at this moment had truly frozen the three of them completely in place.

As if she were wearing shackles weighing a thousand pounds, even though she had lived through many years and seen all sorts of bizarre things, Hinako Akuta couldn't help but tremble at the heavy pressure pressing down on her.

Sajou Rei was the only one who was unaffected, but even though she was unaffected, she was actually quite surprised.

[Be careful, another version of myself, this level of magic... is the same level as the one we once tried to awaken.]

Sajou Aika reminded herself in her mind, but without her saying it, Sajou Rei already knew this fact.

Looking up at the huge platform, I noticed that a figure had appeared there where there had been nothing before.

"Who are you....."

With all her might, Mash managed to lift her head slightly under the immense pressure of the magic, and strained to look at the figure.

"Who are you?"

"Our enemy."

The person who answered her was not the figure, but Sajou Rei standing beside her.

"Although it's too early, Mashu, Fujimaru, and Miss Akuta, you must remember that the enemy we are going to defeat is the one who caused this incident."

Gazing at that figure, Sajou Rei uttered his name—

"The Magic King, Solomon."

19. The Golden Flash of Chaldea

Solomon the Magician.

The third king of ancient Israel, a wise king endowed by God with the Ten Commandments of omniscience and omnipotence.

Ten years ago, during the Holy Grail War, he was summoned by Marisbury as a Caster-class Servant and participated in the war.

At the end of that Holy Grail War, Rei Sajou fought him head-on alongside Torama Natsukawa.

Looking at King Solomon on the platform, who looked much the same as he had ten years ago, except that his face had become much more ferocious and terrifying, Sajou Rei stepped forward and stood in front of the three of them: "What an unexpected reunion, King Solomon. I didn't expect you to appear here."

"As the final demon king, you've appeared way too early."

Upon hearing Sajou Rei's words, King Solomon looked down at the four people below, glancing at Akuta Hinako and the other two before fixing his gaze on Sajou Rei.

He recognized her; Professor Rafe—the Demon Pillar Flauros—had mentioned her when reporting to him.

Sajou Rei, a staff member within Chaldea, claims to be Natsukawa Torato's personal maid and lover.

"You know my identity. Although I came to this singularity at Floros's repeated requests, I thought it was just making a fuss over nothing, but..."

Private maid?

spouse?

King Solomon wanted to laugh out loud, he wished he could laugh out loud. His demon was so blind that he couldn't even see that this woman was completely exposed. How stupid!

"【There is a huge threat within this singularity that could destroy us. Please come and eliminate it!】—that's what Floros reported to me. Even though the objectives are different, if it were you, I should indeed come here in person. You could say it was a twist of fate."

"A magician connected to the [Root]".

"I never expected to encounter such an exceptional case like you, a rare occurrence that has never happened in countless years."

King Solomon's words sent shockwaves through Hinako Akuta and Mashu's hearts in an instant.

Are the sand-striped clothes connected to the root cause?

If it weren't for the immense pressure of magic that rendered them almost speechless, the two of them would surely have already spoken up and questioned what exactly this connection to the Root was all about, and whether it was true or false.

"As expected of the King of Magic, you saw through me at a glance." Sajou Rei said with a smile, "In that case, are you still sure you want to exclude me here? Who knows, in the end you might be the one I eliminate."

"Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha!"

King Solomon suddenly burst into wild laughter!

"Eliminate?! What a joke! Ridiculous! Foolish! Is bluffing all you can do right now? Do you really think I can't see through you? Your so-called connection to the root has actually been severed once!"

"No, it should be said that it was severed. Even though it has recovered considerably, it is impossible to reconnect completely. If you were perfect, I might consider it, but you are merely a flawed product..."

"—Shouldn't four points be enough?"

King Solomon made a rather abrupt and inexplicable remark at the end, and almost immediately, Mash and the others understood the meaning behind it.

"Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!"

Behind King Solomon, accompanied by four deafening roars, four pillars burst forth from the ground below! Like wildly growing trees, they extended in an instant to the large, hollow dome, easily piercing and shattering it as well!

They were four pitch-black cylinders, which at first glance looked like the tails of some kind of mythical beast. The surface of the cylinders was surrounded by a ring of huge scarlet eyes, emitting a red light that made people's hearts race.

Demon Pillar.

It was not the demon god that Natsukawa Torato and Sajou Rei had seen ten years ago in their respective legendary forms, but rather its most primal form: a simple lump of flesh, a pure individual brimming with demonic energy.

The four demonic pillars shattered the hollow dome, allowing the burning sky outside to re-enter the four people's view.

Unable to resist.

Invincible.

Just looking at the four towering demonic pillars before her, Mashu couldn't even muster the thought of raising her shield. Their presence was simply too overwhelming, giving her a sense of utter helplessness, like a mayfly trying to shake a tree.

"This is... the Magic King. Are we about to face... an enemy?"

How could such an enemy possibly be defeated?

Seeing Mashu trembling violently, Rei Sajou placed her hand on her shoulder: "Don't be afraid, Mashu, I'm here."

“Miss Zero... No, even if it's Miss Zero, she couldn't possibly be a match for King Solomon. His magical power level is simply—”

"Really? But I already defeated him once with my master ten years ago."

Mashu, who had been interrupted, was taken aback when she heard what Sajou Rei said.

Were they defeated?

Did they defeat King Solomon once ten years ago?

Are Miss Lingyi with her brother?

"However, although we're saying we'll defeat it together, I'm actually just assisting from the sidelines. The main battles are all handled by Master. Strictly speaking, Master defeated it all by himself. So you don't need to be too afraid. No matter what happens, Master and I will be there for you."

"But......"

"Besides, King Solomon, I know why you're here—it's out of fear, isn't it?"

Sajou Rei smiled at King Solomon: "You yourself may not be afraid, but the Demon Pillars under your command are. Flauros, having worked with his master for many years, deeply understands his master's power, so he conveyed his fear to you."

"You came to this singularity to eliminate your master, a potential threat, from the very beginning. That's quite a cautious approach. Are you really that afraid?"