That protagonist is trash; I could do better!

A crimson flower bloomed on Caster Cú Chulainn's chest, and he collapsed to the ground, his gaze filled with astonishment.

Hall sheathed his swords and took a deep breath: "Remove."

Release the inherent time control.

Hall's face flushed. The time acceleration had a tremendous impact on his heart and magic circuits. It took him a while to recover. He shook his head and said, "With such severe side effects, it's best to use it less often in the future."

Hall glanced at Caster Cú Chulainn on the ground: "If you're not dead yet, hurry up and leave. You have the inherent skill [Regroup], so you won't lose your fighting ability so easily."

"Haha, have we been exposed? You should say we've narrowly escaped death."

Caster Cú Chulainn struggled to his feet, looking down at his blood-stained chest. The injury appeared severe, but in reality, it hadn't damaged his core at all. "You really know me well, but is it really okay to let me go so easily? To be honest, it hurts my pride. At least try to negotiate a little."

Caster Cú Chulainn practically declared, "I am the Son of Light of Ireland, don't I have any pride?"

Hall chuckled: "Why so much trouble? Saber only asked me to maintain this world. I won't interfere with the rest. If you guys start it, that's a different story. Also, if you meet anyone from Chaldea, please give them my regards."

"Chaldea? What's that? Are there other living people in this world?"

You'll find out later.

"Alright, the loser should just leave the stage." Seeing that Hall didn't want to say anything more, Caster Cú Chulainn shook his head self-deprecatingly and disappeared in spirit form.

The English words for "time-controlled speed adjustment" are all sensitive words, so I had to change them.

Chapter 288 Waiting and Holding Hope

Black Saber returned to the Great Hollow and noticed the traces of magic remaining in the air, but was not surprised: "So Caster really was here."

The Greater Grail System is the heart of this city; its destruction would signal the end of the Holy Grail War.

Caster Cú Chulainn's goal was to end this twisted Holy Grail War. He lacked the ability to confront Black Saber head-on and had been lying in wait for an opportunity.

There was no need for Saber to explain this; Hall understood perfectly well. He asked, "What did you find over there?"

“Rider, Lancer, and Assassin have been eliminated.” Black Saber nodded, planting the corrupted holy sword into the ground. Ink-black mud gushed from the earth, and three pitch-black figures emerged.

Rider Darius.

His skin doesn't look as dark as in the game; at least he no longer looks like an African chieftain.

Lancer Medusa

There are no obvious changes compared to the Rider class. The Mystic Eyes, which were originally Noble Phantasms, have lost their effectiveness. He holds a long hook spear, and his expression is indifferent and cold. When mixed with the curse, he is even more like a legendary monster.

Assassin's Cursed Wrist Hassan

He possesses Hassan's features, wearing a black bodysuit and a skull mask. His right hand is wrapped in bandages, from which one can faintly sense a powerful curse emanating.

The Servants, each unlike their original selves, have been corrupted by the black mud, and their attributes have been reversed.

They are not true Servants, but rather shadow Servants—downgraded versions of Servants created by the black mud. Their strength is comparable to that of the original Servant, but they cannot unleash the true name of their Noble Phantasm.

Hall also created similar downgraded Servants because the Greater Grail could not provide the magical power required to summon normal Servants.

"Go, find the remaining Servants in this city."

Hassan nodded: "Understood."

The remaining two Shadow Servants did not answer, and silently carried out Black Saber's orders after leaving.

Hall smiled knowingly and said, "Killing all the Servants will end this Holy Grail War."

"Yes, this era will be completely destroyed at that time."

"Destroying this era should not be your goal."

"On the contrary, I am maintaining this era and waiting. I believe you, Master, already know the answer."

If it's about the burning of humanity, Hall certainly knows that, but the even deeper secrets hidden in Singularity F are still unknown for the time being.

"That's hard to say." Hall smiled, squatted down and constructed a ritual circle, connecting with the Greater Grail system, feeling the familiar curse flowing into his body.

The evil of this world is the natural enemy of its followers.

This era is exceptionally unstable, and it wouldn't be surprising if it disappeared at any time. There are two core elements that maintain this era: one is Black Saber, and the other is the nail that holds this world in place—the Fuyuki City Greater Grail System.

For unknown reasons, an inextinguishable fire has broken out in Fuyuki City, affecting the Greater Grail system in Fuyuki City.

Black Saber summoned Howl precisely to stabilize this nail that holds the world together; it wasn't a difficult task, at least not for Howl.

The only strange thing is the direction this world is heading. In the FGO world, the Holy Grail War in Fuyuki City in 04 should be the first Holy Grail War.

The servant changes because the data is replaced.

Why was the Greater Grail system corrupted?

The only thing Hall could think of was the work of the Demon Pillar Lef, who corrupted the Greater Grail system to make it Singularity F.

In the days that followed, while Hall was maintaining the Greater Grail system, Black Saber destroyed Berserker Heracles, the most powerful Servant in the Fifth Holy Grail War in Fuyuki City.

Under normal circumstances, Saber might not necessarily be a match for this Hercules from Greek mythology.

As the saying goes, corruption makes one three times stronger. Black Saber, who has obtained the Holy Grail to fuel her magic, possesses endless magical power and can unleash her Noble Phantasm's true name and use the Excalibur countless times.

Conversely, top-tier Servants like Berserker Hercules have extremely high magical energy requirements, especially since he is a Berserker-class Servant. After losing his Master, his strength will decrease by at least 30%.

With this addition and subtraction, Black Saber easily killed Berserker Hercules, and the resummoned Shadow Servant Berserker Hercules, having received powerful mana from Black Saber, became much stronger.

However, after Berserker Hercules was summoned again, he did not obey Black Saber's orders. He returned to the castle located on the outskirts of Fuyuki City and stood on the snowfield, seemingly waiting for something.

······

"Archer and Caster joined forces to eliminate Rider."

Several days later, Hassan of Cursed Arm brought this information back to the Great Hollow.

Black Saber said calmly, "It doesn't matter. Continue to fulfill your responsibilities and let yourselves decide what to do."

"Yes," Curse Wrist bowed and replied, his body disappearing into the darkness.

The Holy Grail War has only two Servants left, provided by Hall, to ensure that the Greater Grail System will not be activated.

On the high platform, Hall smiled meaningfully: "It just so happens to be Archer and Caster. Although they are not as strong as Berserker, they are still first-class Servants, and they are more troublesome. After all, one is a Servant of the Counter Force, and the other is the Child of Light from Ireland."

Black Saber's calm tone carried an undeniable authority: "Even if they join forces, I am confident that I will not lose."

"No, it's about not losing before they arrive."

······

In the ruins of Fuyuki City, two figures, one in blue and one in red, sat on opposite sides, the atmosphere subtle and heavy.

Archer pondered for a moment and said, "If it's really as you say, then by joining forces to destroy the Greater Grail system located underground, we can end this Grail War."

"That's right. It's no longer the Holy Grail that can grant wishes. It's just a corrupted curse. The reason why the Riders or Sabers we encounter are in that state is because they are corrupted by the black mud. The black mud is essentially human desires, similar to the existence of Servants, and it naturally restrains us."

Archer sighed, "It just so happens to be underground. If it were on the surface, I could have found a way to snipe it from a distance and destroy it."

“I advise you to give up the idea of ​​destroying the Greater Grail,” Caster Cú Chulainn said lazily.

Archer raised an eyebrow. He knew that Caster Cú Chulainn was not the type to give up easily, and there must be a reason for him to say that. "I don't mind hearing why you said that."

“Haven’t you already seen it?” Caster Cú Chulainn asked, lying on a large concrete slab with his hands behind his head.

Archer frowned: "You've seen her? You mean Saber? Although she is powerful, she is not without flaws. Her infinite magic power is not omnipotent, and it takes some time to unleash the true name of her Noble Phantasm. If we join forces to launch a surprise attack, it should be enough to take her down."

"Not Saber, but a much more troublesome one. Have you forgotten the magician who attacked us a few days ago?"

"..."

Archer's eyes narrowed, and he said slowly, "I remember he wasn't a Servant."

"He is Saber's current Master, an incredible monster, so incredible that calling him an anomaly wouldn't be an exaggeration. I once infiltrated the Greater Grail system and encountered him. The good news is that he won't interfere with the Holy Grail War; he'll only stop anyone who tries to attack the Greater Grail system. The bad news is that guy has overwhelming power."

Archer nodded in deep agreement: "I agree, I've experienced it firsthand, but he's a human magician, he can always find a flaw."

"There might be some flaw, just like you said, but I'm sure we'll be killed before we find it, Archer. You know my background, don't you?"

"He can use the original runes, is skilled in spear fighting, and his martial arts skills were not diminished even when he was summoned as a Caster-class Servant. I know that the only Servant who meets the criteria is the Child of Light from Ireland."

“Exactly. That magician can also use primordial runes. Although I don’t want to admit it, his rune mastery is no less than mine. On the front lines, my role is limited.”

"The only strategy we can adopt is to defeat them one by one."

Caster Cú Chulainn laughed heartily: "Haha, don't worry too much, things will always turn around if we wait."

"why."

"No reason, just a beast's instinct."

“We really can’t work together.” Archer shook his head.

"Haha."

Chapter 289 Director! Don't stop!

"Huff...huff...ha...what...what exactly happened?!"

The white-haired girl ran through the burning street, panting heavily, her strength clearly exhausted. She now regretted not training her physical strength or learning martial arts.

Behind the girl, a group of skeletons wielding weapons followed closely, their jaws clapping together and chuckling, seemingly mocking that their prey was wasting its time trying to escape.

More and more skeletons are joining the hunt for their prey.

No matter where the girl fled, or how many she destroyed with her cursed bullets, the number of skeletons only increased.

"Ahhhh!"

The white-haired girl, running, screamed in despair, her beautiful and delicate face filled with hopelessness.

"Professor Rafe...where are you?"

"help me!"

Why must I suffer like this!

“I am the head of the Animusfia family! The director of Chaldea! Olga Marie Asmirette Animusfia.”

Olga Marie's eyes were filled with tears as she extended her right hand in the shape of a pistol, her fingers unfurling a golden magic circle.

Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!

The magic circle fired spell bullets, eliminating the skeleton soldiers blocking its path.