That protagonist is trash; I could do better!

The man's hearty, joyful laughter echoed in the sky.

Hahahaha~

"Don't you little fry get out of my way!"

The chariot rolled through the castle's passageway, and all the androids on the road were instantly incinerated the moment their bodies came into contact with the blue light.

"I never imagined there would be such interesting Servants in this world! Charlemagne's Twelve Warriors! But that's not enough. I am Agarius, a hero of the Trojan War. I possess the absolute top speed in all the myths and legends of the world. Can you keep up with my speed?" Agarius drove his chariot, looked back at Astolfo who was following closely behind, and loudly provoked him, displaying the bravery of a hero from the Trojan War in Greek mythology.

Behind him, Astolfo, riding his eagle, gave chase, his expression excited. "Speed? I don't need that at all. Watch closely, Hippogriff!" (a phantom horse not found in this world)

The eagle let out a sharp cry, and suddenly its figure became blurry, appearing as if by teleportation directly above Agarius.

"What!?" Agarius was caught off guard.

The Eagle, a magical beast born from the union of a griffin and a mare, possesses the upper body of a griffin and the lower body of a horse—a mythical creature impossible in reality. While inferior in rank to divine beasts, its charge attack delivers a crushing blow comparable to an A-rank physical attack, and it reaches speeds exceeding 400 kilometers per hour.

The true power of the hawk is not its powerful dash ability. Just as its Noble Phantasm is named "The Phantom Horse That Does Not Exist in This World," there is no definite answer as to whether it truly exists. Based on this concept, its existence can be blurred, allowing it to detach from this dimension and ascend to the other side of the world inhabited by gods and phantom beasts.

During this time, even attacks from Noble Phantasms of the Ea level could not harm the Eagle in the slightest.

Doesn't the Eagle's ability feel very familiar?

Indeed, the Holy Sword Sheath [The Ideal Land Far From the World] has a similar function; one leads to the other side of the world, and the other to the fairy land.

"watch out!"

Astolfo suddenly appeared, his face full of smugness. The fangs at the corners of his mouth made him look a bit playful. Without hesitation, he gripped the several-meter-long dragon spear and thrust it at Agarius, the tip of the spear flashing with an eerie light.

Clang!

"too slow!"

Faced with the sudden attack, Agarius reacted instantly, raising his spear and drawing a blue arc. The spear blade was even faster, knocking away the dragon spear and aiming at Astolfo's neck.

Swish!

There was no real feedback at the moment of the stab.

“Interesting.” Agarius laughed heartily, his eyes constantly scanning the surrounding space for any unusual movements.

As expected, the eagle transformed into a golden light and flashed to the other side, repeating the previous thrust. However, no matter how many times Astolfo flashed and how many times he ambushed, the result was always the same: every time he thrust out his dragon spear, he would be attacked by Agarius even earlier.

The rules governing them as followers are too different.

As the eagle teleported once more, and the dragon spear and the long spear clashed, Agarius's expression suddenly changed drastically.

"what!"

This time, it wasn't just Rider from the Black Faction who teleported to his side, but also an old man from the East. His presence was so subtle that Agarius didn't react immediately.

What surprised him even more was that the old man's speed was in no way inferior to his own, meaning that when the best opportunity was missed, he couldn't even do the most basic dodge.

Assassin Li Shuwen, a gaunt old man, leaped from the body of the eagle. The dragon spear and the long spear collided, sparks flying, reflecting the old man's ferocious smile. He suddenly stepped into the air, his energy circulating throughout his body, magically strengthening his body and spreading to the surrounding space to form a domain belonging to Li Shuwen.

"No second strike—swallowing away all!"

Driven by the force of the air, the warhorse felt a chilling terror, neighed loudly, and leaped into the air, causing the chariot to come to an abrupt halt.

Swallowing air is merely the prelude to a decisive battle.

Li Shuwen's eyes flashed with a sharp light, and his fierce aura, like an indestructible iron spear, was all concentrated in his right fist, which he then swung out horizontally.

What Agarius saw, felt, and feared was the old man's horizontally swung fist—no exaggerated power, no strong visual effect, just an ordinary fist.

In his field of vision, the fist was magnified infinitely, filling his entire field of vision.

There was nowhere to hide, nowhere to conceal, as if the sky were about to collapse.

Having received the immortal blessing of his mother, the sea goddess Thetis, Achilles sensed the approach of death and felt an indescribable horror.

boom!

Without any fancy lighting effects, a simple punch sent Agarius and his car flying, crashing into the castle below like a meteor and sliding dozens of meters across the ground to the forest behind the castle.

"Hooray! Did we take him down?" Astolfo cheered excitedly from the eagle.

Li Shuwen landed lightly on the back of the eagle, stood upright like a pine tree with his hands behind his back, shook his head and chuckled, "It seems that I can no longer use the name 'Unrivaled' from now on. There are actually two people in this world who can survive a punch from me head-on."

Below the castle, Agarius lifted the chariot and found that his beloved horse, which had not withstood the frontal attack, was dead. He himself was in no better shape; his chest armor was shattered, revealing a wound the size of a bowl, and blood was spilling out. A strange energy invaded his body and surged towards his spiritual core, devouring his body.

"Haha."

"It's been so long since I've felt this kind of... excruciating pain, and the thrill of facing death. That's what makes it a battle! O Olympian gods, thank you for giving me this battle!"

Agarius wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth, his smile growing wider. That old man, who clearly lacked divinity yet managed to break through the defenses of his Noble Phantasm, was undoubtedly an unparalleled hero of some era.

Only battles like this can get his blood pumping!

In the blink of an eye, the chaos within Agarius's body subsided considerably, and the invading energy was completely neutralized by the power of his Noble Phantasm.

Andreias Amarantos (The Unfading Flower of the Brave)

Grade: B

Type: Self-targeting Noble Phantasm

The rest of the body, except for the heels, is blessed with immortality by the sea goddess Thetis, and cannot be harmed unless one possesses a certain degree of divinity.

Li Shuwen naturally did not possess any divine qualities; all he possessed was martial arts that had reached its pinnacle.

Besides the strength of the Noble Phantasm, what was able to injure Agarius was the different magical base. Simply put, it's like using a Western magical base to restrict Eastern martial arts.

Chapter 202 Sereneka's Personal Desire

On a spire of the castle, a young female magician looked solemnly at the image projected by her familiar.

In a two-on-one situation, they barely managed to gain the upper hand, and their own trump cards were basically exposed. On the other hand, the red side's Rider didn't even use his Noble Phantasm.

The female magician looked up at the sky, where the enormous aerial fortress blocked out the moonlight. No one knew what kind of attack this aerial magic fortress would launch next.

Although the castle also has a counterattack barrier, the difference in their scale is simply too great.

The female magician's expression shifted slightly as she heard the voice of Danik, the patriarch of the Yggdmillennia clan.

"Serenika, come to the main hall."

"Master, we are currently fighting the enemy's Rider. The red team's Rider is the great hero Agaleus from Greek mythology. We cannot be careless in the slightest."

"It doesn't matter, just get to the main hall as soon as possible."

"······Understood."

After a short wait, Sereneke, the magician of the Yggdmillennia family and Master of Astolfo, entered the main hall. She paused when she saw the silver-haired priest and Semiramis, her wariness and hostility undisguised. She looked at Danic on the throne and cautiously asked, "Master, what is going on?"

Darnic placed his hands on the gems on his cane and said calmly, "He is the Master of the Red Faction and his Servant, the Assassin."

Sereneka said unhappily, "This is obvious at a glance. What I want to know is why the Red Team's Master and Servant are standing here as if nothing is wrong."

With his signature gentle smile on his face, Kotomine Shiro said, "I come with good intentions, and my purpose is not to be an enemy of the Yggdmillennia clan."

Sereneka chuckled, her tone dripping with sarcasm: "Kindness? Do you think anyone here would laugh at such a joke?"

"presumptuous!"

Assyrian Empress Semiramis's face instantly turned cold. A black iron chain extended from her gown, pointing towards Serenekay, like a viper eyeing its prey. A powerful offensive magic spell was brewing within the magic circle around her head.

Sereneka's expression changed slightly as a sense of impending death enveloped her. She knew that if she pushed any further, she would be torn to pieces.

"Then, Master, what do you want to do by summoning me here? Is it to deal with those two? I am not so presumptuous as to fight against Servants."

Danic said calmly, "My request is a thousand times simpler than you think. Sereneka, use a Command Spell to remove Rider from the field."

Indeed, using a Command Seal is just a matter of a single sentence.

"..."

The atmosphere froze abruptly. Serenekay exclaimed incredulously, "I'm sorry, I didn't hear what you said clearly, Master, or perhaps I misunderstood you."

Danic shook his head: "From now on, the Red Team will cooperate with the Black Team. For this, we will have to make many sacrifices, including Servants. My meaning is very clear: use your Command Seals to order Rider to commit suicide and withdraw from this Holy Grail War."

“But Rider is my servant!” Serenekee demanded angrily.

"So what? It's all for the revival of Yggdmillennia, no matter what the sacrifice."

Sereneka's face was cold as she glanced at Kotomine Shirou and sneered, "Don't joke around, Master. You trust the Red Faction that much? They're from the Mage's Association! They're our enemies! If we let the Black Faction's Servants leave the field, we'll become meat on a chopping block! We'll be at their mercy!"

“Serenecae, I know very well who he is, and we have no choice. It has been confirmed that the king who went to subdue the Bull of Heaven was killed by the enemy Servant. You can understand me, right?”

The king has left the stage!

The news came like a bolt from the blue. Sereneke was caught off guard and didn't react for a moment. The King of Heroes was the Black Faction's trump card. Once he was defeated, it would basically mean that the Black Faction had no hope of winning. But could someone who was known as a Servant killer lose?

Assyrian Empress Semiramis yawned elegantly: "Enough with the nonsense. You might as well just leave it to me."

"Why Rider?"

“There’s no reason why,” Darnick replied calmly. In fact, this was a carefully considered consequence. The absence of Rider would not affect the course of this Holy Grail War. Assassin and Lancer would each have their uses, and they could be used to counter any unforeseen circumstances where Tsuchisaku Shiro Tokisada did not intend to abide by the agreement.

Sereneka gripped the whip tightly, muttering, "He is mine! He is mine! He is mine! No one can take him away from me!"

Her voice grew louder and louder, until it was a desperate scream. From the very beginning, she had been obsessed with her servant, Astolfo.

“You actually value your personal desires more than your family, Sereneka. Yggdrasilia doesn’t need a magician like you who has no self-awareness.” Danic sighed, looking at Sereneka, and stepped down from his throne, picking up his cane and pointing it at her body.

Danic, who is suspicious by nature and ruthless in his desire to obtain the Holy Grail, secretly implanted control magic into the bloodlines of the members of the Yggdmillennia clan when he created the clan. In critical moments, he can activate this magic to control the consciousness of the Yggdmillennia clan members.

"Forehead···"

Serenekae paused, her expression gradually becoming blank, her eyes dimming. She slowly raised her right hand and whispered, "In the name of the Command Seal, Rider..."

The moment the command left her lips, Sereneka swallowed it down, blood flowing from her mouth. Her expression was frantic as she briefly regained control of her body by biting her tongue to stimulate her pain receptors.

Before Danic could react, she crawled on the ground with difficulty, her face contorted in pain, and muttered, "By Command Spell, Rider, run!"

"Add a second Command Spell, Rider, live on."

"A third Command Seal is hereby granted. Rider, obtain the Holy Grail!"

When Danic saw three bright red magical flowers blooming on Sereneka's arm, he roared in fury, "What have you done!"

boom!

The cane struck the floor, generating a spell bullet that struck Serenekay in the head.

A few seconds later, Serenika fell silent.