How come the Ace of Cups isn't considered the Holy Grail?

"clang!"

Under the cover of night, Xinyuxia's fist collided with Brunhilde's spear, producing a crisp sound like metal striking metal.

The sound carried far in the quiet atmosphere. If someone happened to be passing by, they might be attracted by the sound and come to see what had happened.

The shaft of the spear in Brunhilde's hand was very long, and when it stood upright, it was definitely taller than a person. However, compared to the ridiculously large metal block at the spearhead, which resembled a broadsword, it inevitably seemed a bit too slender.

The spearhead's blade resembled a large shield; if other Servants who primarily relied on close combat were to fight her, they would immediately estimate that the spear weighed well over one hundred kilograms.

This is a weight that defies the laws of physics, even for a large spear, including the shaft, made entirely of steel.

Such a heavy spear was not a weapon that an ordinary person could use, but in Brunhilde's hands it seemed to have no weight, and she swung it like an ordinary spear.

A tremendous force came from the point where the fist made contact with the spearhead. The huge impact made Brunhilde, who was strong enough to wield the large and heavy spear in her hand and even twirl it, stagger back a few steps along with the spear.

A look of surprise flashed across her face, which then turned into admiration.

"Does one possess such immense power solely through physical strength?"

If this were in her time, she would probably have been chosen by her father and become one of the heroic spirits led into Valhalla by her sisters.

Unaware of the situation, Brunhilde made the same mistake as Cú Chulainn in the Fifth Holy Grail War, both of them mistaking Neos for a Servant summoned by Yuuto.

Is this some kind of strange fate between Lancer-class Servants?

That makes sense, considering that a child who looks to be only about 10 years old summoned a Servant to participate in the Holy Grail War, and that her Servant could summon a familiar that was even more powerful than the other Servants.

It's definitely easier to believe that a young man summoned a Servant that was more powerful than the others.

Two figures, barely visible to the naked eye, collided repeatedly across the sizable construction site. Brunhilde used the weight of her weapon to counter Neosword's fists while trying to guess Neosword's 'class'.

'To be this powerful without using weapons, while it's possible they're hiding their strength, is unlikely, so we can rule out Saber and Caster for now.'

"As for Archer, she encountered her yesterday and had a brief exchange of blows, so she knows what he looks like and can be ruled out as well..."

'Assassin might be a possibility, but Rider or Berserker are more likely...'

Brunhilde was sent out by her Master Nigel Seward to test each Servant in order to find the strongest one who was most likely to win the Holy Grail War.

Once found, she will drink the love potion prepared for her by her Master in front of the other person.

It was made by her Master, who was skilled at manipulating people's hearts, and it was a elixir that would transform all the emotions in one's heart into love for the person seen when taking it.

Under the influence of this elixir, as long as Brunhilde harbors even the slightest affection for the target, regardless of the source of that affection—whether it's finding the other person pleasing to the eye or perceiving their gentle nature—she will be able to achieve her goals.

The elixir will amplify even the slightest bit of goodwill and transform it all into love.

Because Brunhilde's Noble Phantasm is a silver spear that becomes heavier and larger the stronger her love for the other person is.

Although she disliked the practice of treating her emotions as objects to be manipulated at will, her inherently quiet and selfless nature meant that she would not easily disobey her Master's orders.

She originally thought she would drink this elixir in front of a first-rank Servant, that is, a Saber-class Servant, but now...

Completely overwhelmed by the relentless attacks of the New Universe Warrior, Brunhilde could only defend herself by relying on the weight of her spear and her own excellent agility and stamina. She watched the silent New Universe Warrior, who was only throwing punches.

It seems that this Servant is the strongest in this Holy Grail War?

Even though she hadn't personally fought a Sword Spirit yet, Brunhilde, who was well aware of her own strength, didn't think she would be as completely overwhelmed as she was now when facing a Sword Spirit...

So...would you like some?

Feeling the presence of the small bottle she was carrying, Brunhilde hesitated.

As mentioned earlier, she doesn't like this practice of treating her feelings like objects to be manipulated.

If she had been given more time, she might have chosen to accept it under the influence of her own personality. But who would have thought that just three days after being summoned, she would encounter a Servant who met the criteria and whom she considered to be the strongest Servant in this Holy Grail War?

This elixir, which should have been consumed after testing all the Servants before deciding in front of whom, is it to be drunk here, right now, before even having fought the Sword Spirit?

Her emotions urged her to drink the elixir, while her reason kept stopping her.

"clang!"

Another heavy blow!

But this time, Brunhilde, who was distracted, was sent flying far away by the punch, the huge spearhead in her hand carving a sizable furrow in the ground.

"Boom——!"

At the same time, another explosion rang out from the building next door, and Arashna's wounded figure flew backward through the air, spraying blood.

He was truly grateful that the building hadn't reached the point of having its walls laid yet, otherwise he would have had to endure another injury from crashing through the wall...

"Archer!"

Elsa screamed in disbelief.

She couldn't believe that Arash had been beaten so badly in such a short time. Even now, Yuwatari, who was fighting two against one, hadn't made a move yet, only summoning two familiars to fight them...

How can a familiar summoned by a Servant be more powerful than other Servants?

Is the difference between Servants really that big?

Chapter 193 Yu-Gi-Oh! players are all gentle, except for some...

Is the difference between Servants really that big?

Arash now wants to ask that question too.

"Cough cough cough... Ah, Master, I'm sorry to have worried you..."

After coughing up some blood while lying on the ground, Arash wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth, got up, squatted down, and looked up at the dark magician standing at the edge of the building, wary of the other party's next pursuit.

God knows what he went through in that short period of time.

Teleportation without warning, illusions indistinguishable from reality, a continuous barrage of magic bullets, swift black lightning, and blades falling like rain...

If it weren't for the [Robust: EX] skill that reduces damage taken from attacks, plus his A-level clairvoyance which grants him a slight future vision, he probably would have already perished in that building.

Those knives came out faster than his arrows; with a single wave of his hand, a whole swarm was wiped out...

Was he really fighting against the familiar summoned by Yuwatari?

Could it be that Yuuto's class isn't actually Caster, but Rider or something?

Then, the one who actually fought him was the real Caster. They had secretly formed an alliance, and Caster pretended to be a familiar to make him lower his guard.

However, Arash also knew that this kind of thing would not actually happen.

Servants can sense each other as long as they are within a certain distance.

To deceive a Servant's senses, it's impossible unless you rely on a unique skill, magic, or Noble Phantasm with an effect similar to concealing one's presence.

Seeing that the dark magician had no intention of continuing the pursuit, Arash stood up, first thanking Yuudou with a somewhat strange expression, and then looking in the direction where Brunhilde was.

Arash, who had briefly fought with Brunhilde the day before, had already sensed her presence when Brunhilde appeared before his Master. However, he was unable to leave to protect Erza because his battle with the dark magician was not yet over.

He was prepared to be summoned by Elsa with a Command Spell, but unexpectedly, his Master was protected by Yuwatari instead.

This resulted in him being beaten to the point of vomiting blood by the dark magician summoned by Yudo, while simultaneously thanking the magician.

What a strange experience...

Brunhilde also saw Arash at this moment, as well as the dark magician who had teleported next to Yudu.

'Archer and...is that Caster?'

Looking at the three Servants who appeared before her, Brunhilde connected them with the others who were being protected behind her.

Elsa just called out Arash's class, so it's not hard to see that she is Arash's Master. And the Dark Magician is protecting Yuwatari. Brunhilde thinks that, theoretically, he should be Yuwatari's Servant.

However, Yudo had just ordered the New Universe Knights to attack her, which made Brunhilde unsure of what to do...

Could it be that Caster's Master and this white Servant's Master have formed an alliance, which is why they came to protect him?

possible.

But seeing how they were all now pointing their fingers at her, Brunhilde felt she should leave.

Her Master's original instruction to her was to test each Servant. Now that she had already fought this white Servant of unknown class for more than ten rounds, she had already achieved her goal.

Moreover, if they don't leave now, they might be forced to leave the scene by working together.

Since Caster was able to beat Archer to this state, she must be very strong. If the three of them joined forces, she might not be able to withstand them.

She can't drink her medicine anymore; in the time it takes her to drink it, the other side could have already attacked her in the face...

"I'm sorry, but I'm about to leave..."

With her eyebrows lowered, a gentle expression that seemed to convey pity or vulnerability, Brunhilde tucked her arms under her shawl and spoke to Yudu and the others.

At the same time, her body began to disintegrate into fragments of light from bottom to top, which then fluttered away in the night wind.

She was preparing to retreat by becoming a spirit.

As Yuto watched her openly materialize into a spirit right before his eyes, he recalled Neo-Universe and the Black Magician, and then unfolded the Duel Disk on his arm again.

"Hmph! You want to leave? Did you even ask for my opinion?"

The wave emanating from her body dispelled all the surrounding magic, abruptly interrupting Brunhilde's spiritual transformation process in a brutal manner. She stared blankly at her body, which had been restored to its original state.

Are magicians now capable of forcibly interrupting a Servant's spirit transformation?

Arash felt slightly uncomfortable as his surroundings suddenly became a forbidden zone of magic, and he moved his body a little.

Although he cannot unleash his Noble Phantasm as freely as other Servants, and has not yet witnessed the Noble Phantasms of other Servants since the beginning of the Holy Grail War, he is certain that the current situation is caused by Yuwatari's Noble Phantasm.

Directly dispelling the surrounding magic... isn't that a bit too much of a commotion for a unique skill?

However, he was still very curious about what Yuwatari had done in the past to possess such a Noble Phantasm that was so out of place with the Caster class.

After all, as a magician, one naturally needs to draw magic power from the source of magic when using magic. However, this Noble Phantasm directly dissipates all the source of magic power in the surrounding area. Wouldn't this create a completely unfavorable battlefield for oneself?

How many magic tricks can one perform using only their own limited magical power?

A flood of information rushed into the minds of the people present, and they were all stunned as they encountered the Noble Phantasm of the Wanderer for the first time.

Having already undergone an information overload once, Misaya Reirōkan was not chosen as a target this time, so she didn't have to experience the feeling of being indoctrinated with knowledge again. She was rather curious about how Elsa and the others would react after sorting out the extra information in their minds.

“So that’s how it is. I misjudged you…” After spending some time with her eyes closed to sort out all the information, Brunhilde reopened her amethyst-like eyes.

She tried to contact Nigel, her Master, but there was no response whatsoever.

"I didn't expect you to be a Servant instead of a Master... Are those two familiars you summoned?"

Having witnessed the scene where the Black Magician and the Neo-Universe were taken back by Yudo, and with the additional information that had just entered her mind, Brunhilde understood everything.

She also learned that she wouldn't be able to leave before the duel ended...

"But... deciding the outcome of a battle based on a game? Is it because you don't want to hurt others? You really are a kind person..."

Brunhilde lowered her eyes, and the spear in her hand transformed into a ribbon of light that wrapped around her arm, turning into a duel disk shaped like a twisted heart.

"I understand... In that case, so be it..."

You Du originally wanted to explain that he was just looking for people to play cards with and that he hadn't really thought that much about it.

But upon seeing her raise the Duel Disk on her arm, he silently swallowed his words and shouted at the same time as her:

"DUEL!" ×2

【Yoto LP: 4000】

Brunhilde LP: 4000

Chapter 194 Bonds aside...

"Ugh... My head feels so dizzy... I just drank some alcohol, but it feels like I have a hangover..."

After the information flooded into her brain, Elsa covered her head and shook it from side to side, trying to suppress the nausea that comes with suddenly receiving a large amount of information while drunk.

Ah... no, she couldn't take it anymore. In this state, let alone sorting out the information, she was already using all her strength to hold back from vomiting on the spot...

She looked up at Arash, who had been drinking with her but showed no symptoms like hers.

"Archer, how are you feeling? Do you understand what's going on?"

"Hmm, I think I understand now. It seems we're currently under the influence of Caster's Noble Phantasm..."

Arash, seeing Elsa's expression that clearly showed her distress, tried to explain the information he had received to her in simple terms.

"Wow... Really? A card game can replace a battle to decide the winner?"

Elsa's voice sounded somewhat incredulous.

Because she always felt that the effect of this Noble Phantasm seemed a bit... too childish?

Isn't this a bit different from the kind of bloody Holy Grail War she imagined?