Shirou, who returned from the Fairy Kingdom

That's probably the only regret...

If there is a next time, I will definitely—

"?"

The girl smelled the familiar scent of earth mixed with death, as well as the distinctive smell of disinfectant, characteristic of a magician.

Mordred opened his eyes and found himself lying in the tomb that served as his family's base, with a middle-aged man in sunglasses next to him.

"Did you... use a Command Seal?"

Mordred got up and asked in surprise, to which the latter nodded.

"what!"

Mordred collapsed to the ground, speechless.

He had already decided where he was going to die... but after all that, he didn't actually die.

I'm so frustrated.

The girl rolled on the ground, throwing a tantrum.

"Master!"

Mordred reached out, his gaze fixed on the bulging pockets of Lion's Robbery's coat.

"I'm in a bad mood right now, give me one."

She had been curious for a long time about what magic those foul-smelling cigarettes possessed that could make hundreds of millions of people flock to them.

Lion Jie Li protected the cigarette and resolutely refused the girl's offer.

"No."

"Huh? Why!"

"That 'Black' Swordsman guy instructed me that if Mordred asks you for cigarettes—don't give them to her under any circumstances."

"How could this happen?! Aa ...

Mordred clutched his head and rolled around on the ground.

……

……

The two adjudicators' resistance did not last long.

Amakusa Shiro Tokisada never stopped training during those sixty years.

Because he touched the Holy Grail during the previous ceremony and was subjected to physical harm, he was given a renewed opportunity to grow.

The monotonous training day after day brought his swordsmanship and magic skills to a second-rate level.

In addition, there are enhancement spells from both the "Red" sorcerer Shakespeare and the "Red" assassin Semiramis—

Aside from lacking a powerful Noble Phantasm, Amakusa Shirou should currently be considered to be of first-class or even above average quality.

On the other hand, Jeanne d'Arc, as the Arbiter, is a top-tier Servant even without using the cheat skill "Divine Judgment".

There are many Servants who can suppress her in melee combat, such as Karna and Siegfried.

However, there are almost no Servants who can completely defeat her; in terms of defense alone, she is exceptionally strong.

However, this only applies to one-on-one situations.

It's now two against eight.

Even the saint who saved the country and created miracles has now been easily defeated.

Goodbye, Miss Ruler. It was actually quite pleasant living with you.

Sajō Aika reached out her hand towards Jeanne d'Arc, who was being held captive on the ground by the black Heroic Spirits and unable to move.

An ominous shadow spread from beneath Aegean's feet, enveloping Joan of Arc.

The shadow climbed onto her body.

“Ugh…!!”

Joan of Arc looked pained, and a chilling sizzling sound came from where the shadow touched her skin.

that's it--

The adjudicator of this Holy Grail War, along with her remaining 27 Command Seals, became part of Root Girl's collection...

"Bang!!"

The garden floor suddenly shattered into scattered rubble.

"Varied……"

Emerging from underground were the three-headed chariots of the "Red" cavalry, along with the "Black" swordsmen and "Red" archers who were being pursued by them.

The scene became chaotic due to the sudden intrusion.

Joan of Arc seized the opportunity to break free from the black-clad Heroic Spirits' restraints.

As she burned away the shadows that clung to her with her "baptismal chant," she ran wildly toward Sajou Aika.

I don't know what happened, but thank you!

This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. As long as we can subdue Ayaka Sajou, there is still hope.

Jeanne could sense that although Aika Sajou possessed incredible magical talent, her physical body was extremely weak and no different from that of an ordinary person.

She infused her fingers with the powerful shock spell, mimicking the form of the Holy Shroud, and extended it toward Aigo.

This is a blow that magic cannot withstand.

However, just a moment before his fingertips were about to touch the girl's forehead—

"Ruler, what are you going to do to Aige?"

Shirou stepped in front of Jeanne and grasped her wrist.

"Artorias! You... let me go! Do you know what you're doing?!"

"I am protecting my Master."

"This is not the time to talk about this!"

Jeanne gritted her teeth. Shirou's power, which she could usually easily suppress, was now terrifyingly strong.

“S...Saber…”

Sajou Aika stared wide-eyed at the red-haired boy's retreating figure in disbelief.

The girl's cheeks quickly warmed up and turned bright red.

"Stop! Artorius! Aige, she..."

"I'll find out what's going on later. Please stop hurting her for now."

For Shirou, no matter what, protecting his Master is his primary mission as a Servant.

No, perhaps it's not that simple.

He had certainly noticed Aigo's unusual behavior long ago, including the girl's lack of human morality.

Shirou poured a lot of effort into her, hoping that the girl could walk the right path in life.

Shirou believes that Aika has reformed under his guidance, so protecting Aika will be his top priority no matter what.

"Artoria! Please stop protecting Miss Aige, she's plotting something terrible!"

"Are you sure Aika is doing something wrong?"

"Well……"

It's probably impossible to say for sure.

What Ayaka Sajō is doing so far is simply collecting Heroic Spirits, collecting souls beyond the prescribed limits—

As for what to do with this power that was enough to destroy the world, Joan of Arc truly had no idea.

But one thing is certain.

Joan of Arc felt an unprecedented sense of crisis from Ayaka Sajou.

It was something that Amakusa Shiro could never compare to, something that made Jeanne d'Arc tremble with fear.

If we leave Ayaka Sajou unattended—

“…“Revelation.”” Joan of Arc murmured a single word.

Shirou frowned: "What?"

Joan of Arc bit her lip: "It was the 'Revelation' that told me Miss Ai-ka is doing something bad."

Upon hearing Joan of Arc's words, Shirou also looked puzzled.

He knew that Joan of Arc's "revelation" was a skill that was similar to his own "intuition" but not quite the same.

"Intuition" is the sixth one related to combat, while "Revelation" applies to all matters related to achieving a goal, such as choosing the most suitable path on a journey.

Shirou turned to his Master, who was standing not far behind him: "Aika, are you planning to do something bad?"

"…………!"

Aigo froze instantly, looking like a little girl caught by an adult after breaking a vase.

Then she pursed her lips and gently shook her head.

"No...no...I didn't mean to do anything wrong..."

"Aige said she didn't."

Without hesitation, Shirou said, "Ruler, it seems your 'Apocalypse' is mistaken. She is not doing anything bad."

Don't take it too seriously; everyone makes mistakes... even "gods" are no exception.

"!"

Shirou's flippant and blasphemous remarks made Jeanne's eyes widen.

Her heart was racing, her expression was panicked, her mind was blank, and she even felt like her worldview was collapsing.

My respected, worshipped, and beloved Savior...

To say such disrespectful things to protect a little girl who was planning to do evil...

"Calm down, Ruler."

Shirou noticed Jeanne's unusual behavior.

"I'm very calm! Why did you trust her so much!"

The saintess's eyes were filled with rage.

On the other side, Ayaka Sajou covered her mouth and shed tears.

All her activities so far have been carried out secretly, without Shirou's knowledge.

Because she was afraid of being discovered by him, because she was afraid of letting him know, Aika was extra careful.

However, she only realized now that she had misunderstood a premise:

—Saber unconditionally trusts Aika Sajou.

This person is indeed my prince, my destined one...

Sajou Aika began to ponder whether her actions so far had been correct.

Perhaps I should tell him about "that future" that I see, instead of keeping it from him... that would be the right thing to do?

After figuring it out, Sajou Aika took a deep breath.

“Saber, I…”

"………………Sizzle."

Blood splattered, staining the emerald green dress red.

The girl looked down in confusion and saw an unfamiliar dark green short sword piercing through her chest.

The short sword, exuding an evil aura, slashed through the skin, corroded the flesh, and pierced the heart, drawing out a large amount of the girl's blood.