Saber's group was in a rather disadvantageous situation.
The curse from Lancer's spear left the swordsman barely able to use one hand properly. On top of that, the sudden appearance of Gudako caused the situation to change dramatically in an instant.
A Servant who handled two Servants alone, matching a Servant who wielded hundreds of Noble Phantasms, and another Servant who instantly removed the Berserker pair. Moreover, she had shown the power of Holy Sword Creation, which negated the very reason for Saber's existence.
They had summoned the King of Knights, wielder of the strongest holy sword Excalibur, but now she couldn't even properly use her True Name Release due to her hand, while the opponent could spam holy swords like crazy.
For Kiritsugu Emiya, it was a maddening situation. Especially... the part where she mentioned his daughter, of all people, bothered him the most.
"There's no means of contacting Einzbern right now. Other than sending a messenger..."
"Einzbern doesn't use electronic devices much, you see. Illya... will be safe, right?"
"The opponent may have just gathered information like I did. It's not certain yet."
While discussing, Kiritsugu worried about Illya's safety, but also wondered if they could even win the Holy Grail War. At the very least, Gudako herself didn't seem strong, so he would target the Master. Currently, that seemed the only path.
"I want to speak with them."
"Saber?"
"That face and the holy sword... And, I felt fairy-like magical energy. They are people I don't know, but they are surely related to me. That man called that Caster 'Artoria.' And his reaction suggested he knew my identity. There's definitely something. And, if they wanted to kill me, they would have done so already. I want to try talking, Kiritsugu."
"That's foolish. At that time, other Servants could have intervened, so they might not have. If they're that strong, they would become targets for other Servants too. We don't know all the other Servants' Noble Phantasms yet, so they might have been cautious."
"But as it stands, we have no chance of winning. At the very least, we need to gather information."
"I oppose that. And, don't get swayed by personal emotions here. This is a war, you should know that well, King of Knights."
"Kiritsugu...!"
For Saber, she couldn't help but be concerned about their very existence. However, Kiritsugu judged that currently they had no chance of winning, and making contact with someone who seemed thoroughly informed was a dangerous gamble, so he opposed it.
Saber was frustrated, but Kiritsugu was also equally frustrated by Saber's stubbornness. There couldn't be a worse Master-Servant relationship than this.
"Hmm? Something seems to be coming near the castle."
At that moment, Saber's intuition activated, sensing something, and Irisviel looked outside through her crystal ball...
Cracklecrackle...!
"!? The crystal ball..."
And the moment she discovered something, the crystal ball froze over and shattered.
"Could it be, a Servant...? But there can't be more classes than this..."
"That just now, I saw it briefly but it definitely wasn't Caster... What's going on?"
While Saber and Irisviel were bewildered, Kiritsugu and Maiya moved quickly to respond, and Saber also headed outside where the enemy might be. But then...
Cracklecracklecrackle!!!!
"!? T-the castle...!?"
The moment she headed to the first floor, Saber witnessed the castle gradually beginning to freeze and was shocked. She quickly arrived at the first floor...
"..... Huh?"
And she, who had experienced countless battles, momentarily panicked and froze.
And Kiritsugu, who was trying to snipe from afar with a scope, also panicked.
"Ara~ You came faster than expected? Thanks for saving me the trouble of finding you."
"... Illyasviel?"
Illya.
It was Illyasviel von Einzbern, the daughter of Kiritsugu Emiya and Irisviel von Einzbern.
Saber sensed it through intuition, and Kiritsugu felt it because she was his flesh and blood - that this was the real person, not a fake.
"Why are you...?"
"What should I say to someone who's about to die soon?"
Cracklecracklecrackle...!!!
And the moment she grinned, the surrounding space began to freeze. Not just the castle, but Illya froze the surrounding atmosphere, the very air, transforming it into tremendous cold.
Saber found it difficult to even breathe from the cold that chilled her to the bone, beyond mere intense cold.
"Kuh...!?"
Kiritsugu also quickly moved to evade and observe the situation. This wasn't something a gas mask could counter.
"Ara ara~ Running away? Again...? How mean. There's a limit to being incompetent."
Illya stretched her hand toward the retreating Kiritsugu, and then a massive cold shot from her hand like an air cannon. Saber quickly used the wind barrier summoned around her holy sword to disperse the cold. But...
"Hoo... Hoo..."
No matter how much Magic Resistance prevented her body from freezing, the air was another matter. Air colder than being in a snowy field. It was to the point her lungs felt like they would freeze.
"Cold? Saber. This is the cold of the Pohjola snowfield from the Age of Gods before your time, feared even by gods. A power that freezes everything, creating a world of silent stillness. It's the temperature of a world where living beings cannot survive unless they are strong enough to match it."
"Illyasviel... You, just what...?"
"Me...? Saber... I hate you too. If you had properly fulfilled your role as a Servant, Mother would have..."
Illya glared at Saber, then roughly swung her hand through the air, causing pillars of ice to shoot up from the frozen ice floor. Sharp, pointed, and hard ice surged upward. Saber quickly used Mana Burst, swinging her holy sword to break them, followed by cold gathering in the air forming into ice spears flying toward her.
"Haaaaaat!!!"
Bangbangbangbang!!!
Saber used all her strength to negate Illya's attacks. Illya watched and scoffed.
"How far can you negate with Magic Resistance? To begin with, this isn't magecraft. Even Magic Resistance has its limits?"
"Illyasviel!"
She rushed to subdue her, but...
"Blow her away, Shiro."
Bam!!!!
"Kuh...!?"
At Illya's call, a polar bear appeared with a blizzard and swung its front paw, sending Saber flying. A monstrous strength comparable to being hit by Gawain at noon.
The hunting dog of Sitonai, a spirit transformed into a bear by two other goddesses and a witch. A hunting bear corresponding to an EX-rank Noble Phantasm, its power boasted monstrous strength rivaling great heroes.
"Just what are you..."
"You're annoying... Sleep for a while. {Pohjola Fimbul}(Freeze, Heavenly Powers)"
Cracklecracklecracklecrackle!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Then, simultaneously with her True Name Release, the Einzbern castle and the forest froze completely in an instant.
An A-rank Anti-Country Noble Phantasm. The power of the witch Louhi who ruled the divine-era region of Pohjola. Day and night disappear from the sky, and the entire land becomes a silent world without movement.
It was the power of a witch who hid the sun and moon in a cave, feared even by gods. A truly vicious Noble Phantasm capable of turning an entire island into an ice island. The power of an ice witch who freely controlled cold and freezing.
Before an A-rank Anti-Country Noble Phantasm, even Saber couldn't withstand it and froze. Though not frozen to her core, Saber was instantly frozen and knocked unconscious. The polar bear Shiro watched over her, and Illya walked inside.
Passing by the similarly frozen Maiya, Illya searched for the two people not frozen under her control.
And Illya found Kiritsugu slumped in the corridor. His legs were frozen, and all his weapons were frozen too, leaving him unable to move.
"Finally found you~ The game of tag, is it over? Kiritsugu."
"... Illya, just what..."
"Thanks to you? Kiritsugu. If not for you, this wouldn't have happened. You brought this all upon yourself."
Slowly, slowly expressing her hatred toward Kiritsugu, Illya walked closer.
"What should I do? Ah, that would be good. First, break your limbs one by one... then pull out that heart and show it to you. Don't worry, I'm familiar with primordial runes now and can handle them well. You won't die immediately just because your heart is pulled out. So, let's check together, Kiritsugu. Whether the heart of an ally of justice is beautiful, or how it looks..."
Slowly stretching out her hand, Illya approached. Then, a voice came from behind her.
"Illya!"
"... Mother."
Irisviel, who was in the meeting room, ran over and called out to Illya. Illya looked at her with a faint smile.
"... You know, I like you, Mother. But... I hate Mother who loves Kiritsugu."
"Illya.... What in the world happened to you."
"Many things happened. Yeah... many things happened. But I still like you, Mother. And I still hate Kiritsugu."
"You hate Kiritsugu... Why? You were playing with Kiritsugu not long ago..."
"Ah... that happened too. Until Kiritsugu shot me. Until he let you die."
"Huh...? What, what are you saying, Illya...?"
"... It's okay. I won't let you die. No matter what else, I promise you that much... Lucky you, Kiritsugu. At least in front of Mother, I don't want to kill you. What a shame~"
Grinning, Illya passed by Irisviel.
"Bye bye~ Mother. See you later."
"Illya..."
Illya smiled and slid away on the ice as if skating, then jumped down to the first floor.
"Let's go back, Shiro."
Then she slowly released the castle's freeze, briefly glared at Saber, and left the castle with Shiro.
"Hmm... As expected, weaker than Chaldea's Saber. Is that the normal level? Maybe it's a difference in experience? No, there's also the Master's enhancement. If it were Chaldea's Saber, she would have negated it sufficiently~"
Passing through the forest, Illya returned to base using a water mirror hidden deep within the forest.
"I'm back~"
"Welcome back. What about the heartthrob?"
"Sadly a failure~ I'll try next time. But, are you having a late-night snack?"
"Artoria said she wanted to eat, you see."
"Pork cutlet bowl at night? You'll get scolded by Archer, you know?"
"He's not here, so no problem...!"
"I see. Then give me one too~"
Illya returned to the motel Gudako had secured as lodging and spent a pleasant time eating late-night snacks with the group.