To become a king and a magician

"Huh? What is this... wait, what are you sending?"

Pressing the last Enter key, Natsukawa Tora laughed, "The effective way to defeat the Demon Pillars—I can't help you fight for me, but I can provide a strategy guide, right?"

"You..."

Roman couldn't help but give a helpless wry smile: "Please, stop being so jumpy, it's not good for your heart."

"Aren't you the one who's making a fuss? What does it have to do with me?"

--------------------------------

Meanwhile, singularities.

"Bang, bang, bang, bang, bang!"

As the crimson eyes on the Demon God Pillar trembled, terrifying bombardments relentlessly ravaged the ground, and the dense black mist, like an avalanche, frantically crushed everything around it.

The demon pillar named Floros is like a cannon with unlimited ammunition, endlessly unleashing destructive firepower.

Under such firepower, there could be no living thing left, Floros was quite certain of this.

but--

"Bang------!"

Like a cannonball being fired, Jeanne's figure suddenly burst out from the smoke and dust stirred up by the bombardment, and closely following behind Jeanne, Mash, Aozaki Aoko, and Akuta Hinako, who were holding Fujimaru Ritsuka, also rushed out one after another!

They're all unharmed?!

Under such carpet bombing, there weren't even a single injured person, let alone any casualties!

"The banner of the saint?"

Seeing the increasingly damaged holy banner in Joan of Arc's hand, Floros immediately understood.

"It's just a way to prolong your lives. Even if it's that holy banner, how long can it protect you?"

Countless scarlet eyes turned towards Joan of Arc and the others! As those eyes began to flash, a strong sense of crisis surged into everyone's hearts.

"Lady Jeanne, please catch Master!"

Without any hesitation, Mashu accelerated past Jeanne, forcefully tossing Fujimaru Ritsuka to her before immediately conjuring a shield—

"Boom—!"

A deafening roar and explosion suddenly erupted in mid-air, and a strange and powerful purple flame bloomed like a volcanic eruption. The violent impact blasted Mashu, who was at the forefront, away!

Just as Mashu flew away, a sword blade almost simultaneously chased after Hinako Akuta's hand, flew automatically into Mashu's hand, and then carried her back!

"Senior Akuta?! This is—"

"In China, it's called the Taoist art of telekinesis! If you, the meat shield, are gone, it'll be a real problem. Please, stand firm next time!"

Yes! Thank you very much!

(Even without self-destructing, Akuta-senpai is quite reliable!)

As Fujimaru Ritsuka was being carried on Jeanne's shoulder, she subconsciously thought to herself, "Why am I being carried like this?" Although it was to prevent her from falling behind, she felt incredibly cold under her skirt in this position!

"Beep beep beep!"

Just then, a notification sound came from the bracelet. Fujimaru Ritsuka barely raised her hand to open it: "Eh? It's from the club president? How to defeat the Demon Pillar from beginner to... Waa ...

The sudden rise into the air followed by a rapid fall caused Fujimaru Ritsuka to gasp in surprise!

"I'm so sorry, Ms. Fujimaru, the situation was urgent just now—did Mr. Natsukawa send anything?"

"Ugh... I'm dizzy... It's been sent..."

"Let me see!"

Following behind, Aozaki Aoko grabbed Fujimaru Ritsuka's wrist and looked at the information displayed on the bracelet: "[In conclusion, the Demon Pillar is neither a Servant nor a Mythical Species, and therefore cannot be human. However, its entire body is formed from magical energy, which is quite similar to that of a Servant. Therefore, the methods used to deal with Servants can be applied in general.]"

"【However, considering that the Demon God Pillar doesn't have a spirit core, the most effective method is to attack its entire body and completely destroy it with a wide-range attack. Let Aoko handle the specifics; she's particularly good at it.】—What a load of rubbish!"

A magic cannon shot was thrown out, its effect neutralizing the incoming explosion in mid-air. Braving the intense blast, Aozaki Aoko sighed heavily, "They really dumped all the work on me, even though I did come to help..."

"Could I ask you for a favor, Miss Aoko?"

Together with Jeanne, Mashu withstood the explosion from the eyes once more. Taking advantage of the gap, she turned back and asked, "Among us, Aoko has the greatest firepower. She just destroyed Fafnir's magic. Could you use it again?"

"Yes, no problem, but it will take some preparation time."

"We'll try to get it for you, just don't mess it up."

As she spoke, Hinako swung her sword, slicing through the incoming purple flames. The burning flames split in two, scattering towards both sides of the crowd.

"We have as many ways to buy you time as we need. All you have to do is blast it away with one blow. Human rocket launcher."

"I really don't like this title..."

With a helpless sigh, Aozaki Aoko stopped in her tracks, took a deep breath, and the huge magic circle beneath her feet unfolded once more. Layer upon layer of magic spells, like nesting dolls, appeared on her arms once more.

(Is it coming? The strike that destroyed the evil dragon?)

Seeing this, Floros's eyes immediately turned to Aozaki Aoko. Before revealing himself, he had been observing her from the shadows, and he was naturally aware of Aozaki Aoko's attack that had destroyed Fafnir.

Given my current physical condition, if I were to endure it, there is a possibility that I would be completely annihilated.

(Interrupting before that is sufficient.)

"Buzz—!"

A crimson flash shone in countless eyes. Even if it was blocked, it didn't matter; all that was needed was to interrupt the casting of the spell.

But, right at this moment—

"boom----------!"

Crimson Lotus's karmic fire suddenly ignited on the surface of the Demon God Pillar!

56. Jeanne Alter's bomb!

Rewind to a few minutes earlier.

Opening her eyes again from the darkness, and looking at the environment around her that resembled the inside of something, Jeanne Alter seemed somewhat disappointed, and also somewhat displeased, and pouted.

"What... I'm still alive? What a disappointment."

About a quarter of her body was destroyed, from her left chest to her left foot. Although she was still filled with anger and hatred at that time, when she was swallowed by the light of the Holy Grail, Jeanne Alter was certain that she would disappear forever.

She is not a true Servant, but a counterfeit created by Gilles de Rais through a wish granted by the Holy Grail. She has no right to exist in this world.

"Speaking of which, where is this place? It's a disgusting and nauseating place, it stinks."

"The interior of the Demon God Pillar."

Another voice came from not far away. Jeanne Alter looked in the direction of the voice and saw that Atalanta was in a similar situation, with her hands and feet suspended and her whole body embedded in the flesh.

Looking at the awakened Jeanne Alter, Atalanta said as if mockingly, "You're awake, my Master."

"Archer, you're still alive? You're really lucky—what are Demon Pillars?"

“That’s true. You’re not a proper Servant; you can only trigger a miracle once with the Holy Grail. Besides, you were unconscious just now, so it’s normal that you’re unaware of the current situation.” Atalanta sighed slightly. “The Demon Pillar is the true form of the man who attacked you just now. Just think of the current situation as us being absorbed by him.”

absorb?

Jeanne Alter frowned: "Are you planning to treat us as food? What a joke! There's a limit to how much you can talk to yourself. You suddenly appeared and interrupted my revenge, then suddenly killed Gilles and me, and now you're planning to absorb me—you're a bastard who's more willful and reckless than any god!"

"But the reason you're still alive is precisely because you've been absorbed, isn't it?"

Atalanta said.

"Your spirit core was just shattered. You were already an imposter, and it's quite incredible that you even exist. With your spirit core shattered, it wouldn't be surprising if you disappeared on the spot. Yet you're still alive. How does it feel to have your body filled with chunks of flesh?"

Do you want to die?

After staring intently for a while, Jeanne d'Arc Alter spoke coldly, and the Crimson Flame immediately ignited around her. However, the flame only burned for a moment before extinguishing. The feeling of exhaustion that kept coming from her body made Jeanne d'Arc Alter's face turn pale.

Atalanta advised, "Give up. You can't do anything right now. You can only wait here to be destroyed and return to the Throne of Heroes, just like me... No, you can't even return to the Throne of Heroes."

For Servants, death does not mean permanent disappearance. After all, they are just a clone separated from the main body located on the Throne of Heroes. The main body is outside the world, so even if they are destroyed, there is still a possibility of being summoned again.

But Jeanne Alter is different. She is a counterfeit created through the Holy Grail. She is both a Servant and the original. If she is completely destroyed, then she is truly gone, and there is no possibility of her reappearing.

"Are you here to argue with me? And what's with your attitude? You're imprisoned and instead of trying to escape, you just accept your fate. Is that what you call a hero? That's hilarious."

“There’s just no reason,” Atalanta said. “Although you are my Master and have cast a berserk spell on me, I have never been interested in helping you destroy France. This summoning has been absolutely terrible for me. If I could, I would love to return to the Throne of Heroes as soon as possible.”

Compared to this experience, the one that the mage described must have experienced a pretty good Holy Grail War, right?

Atalanta recalled Aozaki Aoko's reaction when they first met—a reaction of seeing an old friend, and also of surprise at why she was there.

Judging from the looks of it, he must have spent some time with the version of himself that was summoned during another Holy Grail War, and they probably got along quite well.

"I really want to know what I went through back then."

With these thoughts in mind, Atalanta closed her eyes, as if she had completely given up resisting, and quietly waited to be completely absorbed.

Seeing her like this, Jeanne Alter gritted her teeth and lowered her head helplessly. Just as Atalanta had said, she was now completely powerless and could only let herself be absorbed and then disappear from this world.

(What a terrible birth, even the way I died was so pathetic...)

"The most effective method is to attack its entire body and completely eliminate it with a wide-range attack in one go!"

Suddenly, such a sound faintly entered Jeanne d'Arc's mind, or rather, her ears.

Suddenly opening her eyes wide, Jeanne Alter quickly scanned her surroundings.

There was no one there except Atalanta, who was lying there dead. She was all alone.

That sound is...

(Was it those guys outside? I... no, I should say this bastard who absorbed me overheard it?)

Because Jeanne Alter is currently inside Floros's body and is gradually being absorbed and assimilated by him, they share a certain degree of sensation. She can hear the same sounds as Floros.

Can a wide-range attack really eliminate this bastard who ruined everything for her?

"Ha...hahaha...bastard...even at the very end, I still got to hear this garbage information...is this a blessing from the gods? Or is it divine mercy...?"

"But it's alright..."

The crimson lotus flames that had been extinguished in an instant reignited fiercely.

Sensing the changes in the space, Atalanta opened her eyes: "What do you want? You should know your current state... wait? What are you doing—"