"Really~ Coming to find me just to save one Saber. How foolish~"
"Haha... Still, thanks for coming to help."
"You know we're enemies, right? Even if you helped me, once this is over, we'll be enemies again."
Illya clicks her tongue, reminding me we're enemies. After dealing with Caster, the remaining ones are Assassin, Saber, Berserker, and me. Assassin would probably leave on his own if Caster is gone... but I'd still like to face him.
Artoria's growth is remarkable, but defeating her wouldn't be too difficult. Berserker is the trickiest, but it would be strange if we couldn't beat him after he's died so many times to Gilgamesh. The victory was practically predetermined. But... why does something feel so unsettling?
For some reason, looking at Illya gives me a faint, nostalgic feeling in a corner of my heart. I felt that with Medea too. What was that about?
Well, it probably isn't important. For now, let's focus on saving Artoria.
As it grew dark, we headed to the church. The entrance was protected by a bounded field, but...
*Crash!!!*
"He broke the bounded field... with his fist..."
"Archer is so brutish..."
"That's the Ulster way!"
Rin and Illya were dumbfounded, but this is the Ulster-style solution! We went inside and opened the church door, and there was Artoria.
Artoria, tied up exactly as shown in the provocative video Medea sent earlier. Medea and Kuzuki revealed themselves, and a large number of dragon tooth warriors filled the church.
"Let's go!"
Rin transformed and fired magical energy bullets, while Illya attacked the dragon tooth warriors with magical swords made from her hair. Shirou reinforced a pipe and took them down one by one, as Berserker and I charged.
Thud!
"■■■!!!"
"Tch...!"
Kuzuki attacked me head-on, while Medea's magecraft pressed down on Berserker. So this is their plan, it makes sense. Medea targets Berserker who lacks Magic Resistance, and Kuzuki, with combat ability, blocks me. A perfectly matched opposition.
"However, I won't be holding back."
The assassination technique of Pressure Point Strikes. So what? What does that matter?
I foresaw the future and, with my Eye of the Mind, parried all his techniques. A body strengthened to its limits by Medea's magecraft. In his current state, he is a warrior strong enough to fight an Ulster warrior on equal or greater footing. A warrior capable of fighting a Servant head-on. And if Caster dies, he will have no more reason to live. That's why... since we must defeat her, he must ultimately die too. That is the kinder path.
The sorrow and pain of losing a loved one is a suffering that makes you want to give up on life. It's the greatest mercy I can offer.
If he intends to move faster than me through reinforcement, I will simply get serious.
Thwack!!!!
Kuzuki, hit by my serious punch. Even protected by Medea's magecraft, he couldn't be shielded from its destructive power.
"Sōichirō-sama!"
His ribs shattered, and Kuzuki was sent flying, crashing into a wall and collapsing. I killed him with one blow, the minimum mercy.
"Ah, Sōichirō-sama! No, no..."
"..."
All that remained was Medea. Killing her would end it. I know sending both of them off is the best way. That's why... I must kill her, but my hand won't muster the strength.
"....."
Medea, holding Kuzuki's corpse and weeping bitterly. Berserker walked toward her. As the wife of a comrade, a fellow adventurer, he intended to send her off without pain himself.
"... Why can't I be happy? Heracles..."
"....."
Berserker answered with a look as if to say it was the fate of Greece. His stone sword cleanly severed her neck. He must not feel at ease either. No, everyone here must feel the same. At the very least, we couldn't make our Masters commit murder, so it had to be done by our hands.
"It's over..."
Only we remain... We'll have to fight eventually, but that's for another time.
The Holy Grail's descent is imminent. First, I should rescue Artoria.
"Are you alright, Artoria?"
"Fe, Fergus..."
Really, Medea's taste is something... I don't know why she had to tie her up with her buttocks fully exposed. Just like the original. Her taste is certainly firm.
"With Caster, your Master, gone, maintaining your manifestation will be difficult. Please make a contract with Shirou again quickly."
"Yes... Thank you, Fergus."
I undo her restraints, and Artoria gets up holding my hand... But for someone who was bound and... trained, she seems perfectly fine. Her magical energy is stable, her stamina is...
Huh?
Wham...!!!!
"Guh...!? A, Artoria..."
What, this strength... When did she become this strong...
"I'm sorry. Please rest for a while."
I've been had... Was it Caster's Command Spell...? No, that's not it... What in the world...
There, my consciousness fades.
"Se, Saber...!? What are you doing all of a sudden!?"
Shirou is shocked seeing Artoria suddenly strike Fergus's solar plexus, knocking him out. Originally it might be different, but Fergus, weaker than in life and caught off guard, was knocked unconscious by Saber's blow.
Saber reacts indifferently to Shirou, as if she has no interest.
"To be honest, Shirou. I no longer need you."
Saber quickly knocks out Shirou with a chop to the neck. She walks toward Rin.
"What are you thinking...?"
Rin takes out a card, ready to fight anytime as the magical girl Ruby. But then, she touches the unconscious Shirou... and a brilliant scabbard appears from him.
"As I thought... Thanks to Fergus, my senses improved, so I could feel it. Avalon... I wondered what Kiritsugu used to summon me, it was Avalon. If he had given this to me, victory ten years ago would have been certain. Don't you think? Illyasviel."
"As I thought, you remembered me?"
"I'll give Shirou to you. Family matters should be resolved within the family. I don't really care either way."
"Betrayal comes easy to you? Saber."
"Betrayal... Kiritsugu betrayed me first."
"I see. So you're also a victim of Kiritsugu... Fine. Rin and Archer are not my business. Handle it yourselves."
Illya and Berserker leave, taking the unconscious Shirou. Now only Saber and Rin remain. Saber, having retrieved Avalon, has a presence incomparable to before.
"Rin... I envy you. Because you have a close relationship with Fergus. That card, that wand, they were all given by Fergus, weren't they?"
"Well, this originally belonged to my family..."
"Anyway, you've come this far thanks to Fergus, haven't you?"
Swish!
"!?"
Saber, who charged like a rocket, surpassing Rin's reaction speed in an instant, grabs her by the neck and lifts her up. Saber slightly cracks both her wrists, making her drop the card. She also snatches Ruby and throws it far away.
[Rin-san~!]
"Stay still. Killing you would be easy. Still, I'll give you a chance. Break your contract with Fergus. And, make a contract with me?"
"What's your scheme..."
"Do I really have to say it?"
Stab...!
Saber stabs the Lancer card with her holy sword, destroying it. Then she glares at her and speaks.
"Fergus has Independent Action, so as long as he doesn't fight, he has no problem even without a Master. But, even with Avalon and a magical energy core, I need a Master as an anchor. That's why I need you. To send Berserker back, I had to give up Shirou, and you, having broken your contract with Fergus, would suffice, so I chose you."
"Were you always this kind of person...?"
"Who knows... Perhaps, you all made me this way. I have no interest in the Holy Grail anymore. What it is... I heard from Caster? Don't worry. I'll destroy the Grail for you. Such a thing cannot be left as a hero. Still, I should achieve my own goal too, shouldn't I?"
"You've started to see Fergus as a man...? That fool, I told him not to stay around for too long..."
"Aren't you the same?"
"I think I kept my reason and didn't cross the line...? Are you serious? Do you think Archer would like that?"
"I'll try. He doesn't look at me that way, so I have no choice. Will you do it? Or not. I'll guarantee your safety. If you leave Fergus and me alone, I'll set you free as much as you want. Command Spells don't work on me, so don't even think about any tricks."
"... Fine. This is something Archer, not me, should handle. Was it a foregone conclusion from the moment he had skills like 'Mystic Eyes of Charming Youth'..."
Rin resigned herself, broke her contract with Fergus, and made a contract with Saber. Saber then releases her. Embracing Fergus, who is still slumped over unconscious, she carries him and leaves the church. Her destination is the Emiya residence. She headed for the now-empty Emiya residence.
Rin watched the two figures moving away and sighed.
[What will you do? Will you leave them like that, Rin-san?]
"What else can I do? Even if we fought, it wouldn't be easy. And I have no confidence in meddling in relationship problems."
[Because Rin-san is a pure maiden~]
"Do you want to die!?"
And so, Saber arrived at the Emiya residence with Fergus. Fergus was still unconscious. Saber began to take off his clothes. She knows. She had heard many stories from Merlin. She had heard that Fergus has a tendency to unconditionally take responsibility in relationships with women. That's why he's known as one of the cleanest characters in mythology when it comes to women.
Saber looked at his lower half and was surprised to see, contrary to his slender, boyish appearance, something rough like a beast's. And then, she took off her own clothes as well...
"Ugh, ugh..."
Time passed, and Fergus opened his eyes. Fergus wakes up feeling a strange sensation. He soon realizes he's naked.
"Eh, eeeeh!?"
Moreover, he sees dense white magical energy around him and meets the eyes of the completely naked Saber lying next to him.
"Did you sleep well? Fergus."
"A, Artoria...? Wh, what is this..."
"Really, even while unconscious, it moved. A man's instincts are incredible...♡"
"Yo, you don't mean..."
"You'll take responsibility, won't you...?"
"Responsibility... No, what do you mean!?"
"You're not going to refuse, are you...!?"
"...."
Fergus felt it. He had taken in the wrong disciple... Though it was an unwanted reverse situation, Fergus, who prides himself on being a responsible man unlike Cú Chulainn or Lancelot, had no choice but to speak.
"I'll take... responsibility."
He had gained an unwanted new wife. He had been properly had by the succubus's apprentice.