Shirou, who returned from the Fairy Kingdom

Perhaps because the cavalryman was pulling him, it was much easier than running normally; but since his body was too weak, their escape progressed slowly and made little progress.

Although he brushed past other androids in the castle corridors several times, not one of them called out to him. Instead, they watched him leave with sad eyes and without saying a word.

"Haa...haa...haa...!"

The two, panting heavily, finally escaped from the city of Mirenia.

However, this does not mean that artificial life forms have gained freedom.

Instead, they were met with treacherous terrain and countless magical traps all around them.

"...I'm telling you, from now on you absolutely cannot let go."

"Hmm, but what should we do next?"

"That's easy! Just call out my beloved horse! Let's ride it and escape!"

Having been indoctrinated with knowledge of the Holy Grail War, the artificial life form knows Rider's Noble Phantasm.

Astolfo rode the eagle or the famous horse Lebeken, creating many adventure legends. The most famous of these is the mythical horse that does not exist in this world—the Eagle.

The griffin is a magical creature born from the union of a griffin and a mare—predator and prey.

With the upper body of an eagle and the lower body of a horse, born from two different creatures, it should be an impossible existence.

If you ride this, you can indeed escape the territory of the Thousand World Tree very quickly.

According to legend, Astolfo even rode it to the moon.

but--

"That's your treasure, isn't it?"

The android said uneasily, "If I use it without permission, I'll really be considered a traitor and I'll be killed...!"

"Hmm? It's okay! We're already doomed anyway! Hehehe!"

Astolfo said with a nonchalant grin.

Then, he summoned a fantastical monster and rode it with the android.

If you simply summon a hawk and ride it, it won't actually consume much magic power, so you should be able to fool your Master.

The problem lies in the situation of liberating the true name and unleashing its true power.

Such mana consumption is comparable to that of an A-rank Noble Phantasm. Moreover, in terms of specifications, it is not completely depleted after a single release, but rather mana will be continuously consumed as long as one continues to ride the eagle, resulting in a very poor energy conversion rate.

After hesitating for a while, Astolfo decided not to release the true name of his Noble Phantasm, but simply to use his beloved horse as a means of transportation.

The homunculus must be brought to a safe area before the Master discovers it.

"...Okay, let's go!"

Rider affectionately patted the eagle's neck.

The monster responded with a sharp, bird-like cry, then powerfully flapped its wings and took flight—magic particles scattered from its wings flashed by like countless fireflies in the fierce wind.

Astolfo and the nameless android flew over the forest near Tulipas.

Just when they all thought they could finally relax—

The eagle cried out in anguish and flapped its wings violently, but it was too late.

A destructive light suddenly shot into the sky from the earth.

The aftershocks of Shirou and Siegfried's Noble Phantasm duel turned into a tornado, engulfing them.

……

……

The light faded from the forest.

When everything was over, the one still standing was Shirou.

In the duel between the holy sword and the demonic sword, Excalibur emerged victorious by a narrow margin.

Although Siegfried possessed the dual advantages of "Anti-Dragon Special Attack" and "Command Seals," he was still overwhelmed.

First and foremost, Excalibur is naturally the strongest Star Sword.

Secondly, compared to the Twilight Demon Sword, which sweeps and annihilates everything around it, the Star Holy Sword destroys all matter in a straight line in front of it.

At this distance, Excalibur has a better advantage.

On the other hand, Shirou also has the best host, and his performance as a holy sword launcher is also stronger.

The "Heart of Albion" buried in his chest is the heart of the Grand Dragon, surpassing even the orthodox King Arthur, and even the world's strongest dragon slayer cannot match it.

"Truly tenacious..."

Shirou clicked his tongue in amazement.

This was the first time he had encountered an enemy who hadn't been vaporized by Excalibur.

The "Black" swordsman knelt on one knee, half of his armor having been stripped off during the battle.

Even so, Siegfried did not evaporate in the torrent of light like the enemies who had suffered under Excalibur in the past.

The Demon Sword offset 90% of the Holy Sword's damage, while the remaining 10% was mostly neutralized by the "Evil Dragon Blood Armor".

Just as Shirou was contemplating whether to retreat or take advantage of Saber's weakened state to eliminate him—

"Why...!"

Not far away—from the wasteland ravaged by the aftershocks of the battle of the treasures came the sound of a girl crying.

Shirou and Siegfried both looked in the direction of the sound.

There, is the pink-haired girl (?) that Shirou met not long ago tonight, the "Black" Rider Astolfo.

He was seen holding a boy who looked to be about ten years old and crying loudly.

"Why! Why! We finally escaped from that hellhole!"

I thought I was finally free, why did this have to happen?!

Astolfo broke down in tears, glaring angrily at Shirou and Siegfried.

"It's all your fault! You killed this child!"

Seeing this, "Black" Saber probably understood what was going on.

The artificial life form boy held in Rider's arms was coughing up fresh blood and on the verge of death, likely having been caught in the shockwaves of the Holy Sword and the Demon Sword.

Given his already flawed life, he probably had no way to survive.

"……Feel sorry."

Siegfried bit his lip and lowered his head in remorse.

"What's the use of apologizing! Why did this have to happen... What did he do wrong? He was just desperately trying to survive!"

We may only be Servants, but... to have even our will to survive disrespected...!

Shirou coldly faced Rider's accusations.

To be honest, he didn't think he had done anything wrong at all.

Such an accident was unpredictable.

If we have to find someone to blame, it should be Rider, who only thinks about helping the androids and acts without considering the consequences.

Shirou walked toward Astolfo and the homunculus.

"Stay out of the way."

He said this to Rider, who was holding the boy tightly.

Upon hearing this, Astolfo hugged the artificial life form even tighter, his face filled with fear as he looked at Shirou with tears in his eyes.

"What do you want to do? I won't let you touch a single hair on his head!"

"If you want to kill him, kill me first!!"

Shirou ignored the emotionally distraught Astolfo and reached out to the dying homunculus.

Rider resisted fiercely, trying to push Shirou's arm away.

"Hey, kid. Answer if you're conscious."

Shirou asked before Astolfo could scream.

Do you—want to live?

"Huh? What are you talking about?"

"Quiet down, Rider. I'm talking to this brat now."

Upon hearing the noise, the artificial life form regained consciousness slightly, its eyelids weakly opening a crack.

The pupils peeking out from the gap were as red as blood, yet almost devoid of life.

Even though he was on the verge of death, he used his last ounce of will to speak and convey his heartfelt wish.

"...I want to live, I don't want to...die..."

Shirou nodded expressionlessly.

"I understand."

After Shirou and Siegfried unleashed their Noble Phantasms, Ruler Jeanne d'Arc rushed to the scene immediately.

Great!

Because they were worried about the rampaging Berserker, they completely ignored the fact that there were two humanoid nuclear bombs on the other side who were actually more threatening!

Jeanne d'Arc was able to sense through her privilege that "Black" Saber had entered a weakened state, while Shirou had only consumed a large amount of magical energy.

In other words, it was a victory for Altoris.

Unexpectedly, not only the son of the sun god, but even the strongest hero of Germany couldn't defeat him!

Keeper, who exactly are you...?

With an uneasy expression, Jeanne quickly crossed the forest and soon arrived at the place where she had parted ways with Shirou.

Then, she saw a sight that was hard to comprehend.

Not just her, but everyone else present—

The "black" swordsmen and cavalry also wore expressions of bewildered incomprehension.

"you……!"

Shirou's chest was radiating light.

Something is being taken out from there.

It exudes a dreamlike aura, seemingly existing outside the human world, a noble and mysterious quality that transcends all else.

Only Jeanne d'Arc, being a Ruler, could immediately understand what that Noble Phantasm was.

The symbol of the Nameless King, and also the only catalyst that can summon the strongest and final Heroic Spirit.

"Avalon".

Shirou took the scabbard out of his own body and placed it into the android without hesitation.

In an instant, the golden sheath dissolved into warm light, and the wounds covering the white-haired boy's body began to heal themselves.

"They actually went to such lengths for a completely unrelated android...!"

Joan of Arc covered her mouth in disbelief, gazing intently at the red-haired boy enveloped in light.

In that instant, the Saint of Orléans seemed to see the figure of the savior—

---------

~~~jpg

Volume 5, Chapter 205: "The Saint and the Savior"

When Joan of Arc was young, the Burgundians from the surrounding area would often come to harass the village under various pretexts.

The French royal family was in chaos at the time. King Charles VI suffered from severe mental illness, and his two relatives, the Duke of Burgundy and the Duke of Orléans, were vying for power.