"Don't run! Assassin! Stop and let me slash you a few times!"
On the plains, Semiramis was continuously using displacement magecraft to lead her master on a frantic escape.
"She's still chasing us! That damned traitor Saber is still chasing us!" Semiramis shouted, somewhat breaking down.
Although thanks to her master, the magical energy consumed by her short-range displacement magecraft was perfectly sufficient, the Saber behind her, who wasn't slow and was relentlessly pursuing, truly made her fly into a rage.
If it weren't for the Hanging Gardens being ruined, she would definitely have made that Saber behind her taste the feeling of being double-teamed by her poison and the Divine Fish!
Unaware that in the original work she would later be defeated in a single-handed crusade by that very Saber, Semiramis made excuses for herself.
"Assassin, ignore her. Don't let her provoke you; focus on the road." Amakusa Shirou Tokisada watched ahead with a cold expression and spoke to remind his Servant, "Our only goal is to find Lancer and Rider and sign new contracts. At that time, we can still make a comeback!"
"I know! Shirou!" Semiramis bit her lip unwillingly. "I know, but that bastard's humiliation of me is truly unbearable!"
She was a Queen!
The legendary Queen who reigned over the Assyrian Empire!
The oldest poisoner!
When had she ever suffered such a grievance!
But she also knew very well that without the Hanging Gardens, she had been completely neutralized, and even escaping had become difficult.
In terms of frontal combat capability, she had now become the bottom-tier of this Holy Grail War.
Only the already-exited Shakespeare could be slightly more useless than her.
"Damn it, I will make you pay for this humiliation sooner or later! Saber!" Semiramis accelerated the flow of magical energy, desperately trying to reduce the cooldown time of her short-range teleportation magecraft.
Sounds!
The sounds of Servants locked in fierce battle had already reached her ears; it shouldn't be long before she could see her allies!
Semiramis felt she had caught a glimpse of the dawn of a counterattack, and a smile spread across her face.
But when she saw the Servants from both sides locked in combat, the smile on her face instantly froze.
Red Faction Rider, Achilles.
In truth, whether she encountered Rider or Lancer, Semiramis would have been satisfied; after all, both were powerful allies to rely on.
But the Black Faction Servant fighting against Achilles made her heart sink.
Black Faction Archer, Chiron.
At this stage, he was the only class among both the Black and Red Factions whose basic attacks were ranged.
And he was a hero from the Age of Gods with incredibly precise marksmanship.
Appearing before him with her master was practically handing their heads to the enemy on a silver platter!
"Chiron... Our luck is a bit poor." Even Amakusa Shirou Tokisada, whose heart had turned to ash, felt his dead heart start to beat faster upon seeing him.
"Heh, heh, heh, our luck hasn't been good ever since we encountered the Ruler Faction." Semiramis lowered her head, feeling somewhat dejected.
"Father?" Achilles performed a backflip, leaping out of the combat circle with Chiron. He frowned as he looked at Amakusa Shirou Tokisada. "What's this? After betraying my master, you appear before me again. Don't tell me you're thinking of trying to contract me again?"
"As you say." Amakusa Shirou Tokisada forced himself to look at Achilles. "Will you join me?"
"I refuse!" Achilles replied without hesitation. "You have absolutely no credibility left with me!"
Saying this, Achilles adopted an attitude toward Amakusa Shirou Tokisada and Semiramis that clearly meant, 'If you don't leave now, I'll kill you first.'
Although he had previously considered re-contracting with Amakusa Shirou Tokisada, that thought had completely dissipated during his recent battle with Chiron.
This was a 'master-disciple battle,' and chatting while fighting was standard procedure.
Chiron had grasped his disciple's mindset, easily erasing his desire to continue participating in the Holy Grail War, sowing discord in his already fragile trust in Amakusa Shirou Tokisada, and motivating him to give his all to finish this final battle.
This was also the reason why Chiron had no time to inform his own master about the sudden changes on the Red Faction master's side.
After all, there was an opportunity to take out a high-combat-power enemy!
"Let's go!" Amakusa Shirou Tokisada gritted his teeth and grabbed Semiramis's arm.
The next moment, their figures flickered and appeared ten meters away.
"Teacher, we..." Achilles was just about to regain his stance to continue fighting his teacher when he was interrupted by the suddenly approaching Saber.
"Hey, you two over there, did you see the Dark-skinned Father and the black-robed poisonous woman run off in that direction?" Mordred rudely interrupted the master-disciple exchange, asking with an 'I'm looking for trouble' tone.
"...That way. Get lost quickly, and don't disturb my battle with my teacher!" Achilles raised his spear, pointing the tip toward the direction where Amakusa Shirou Tokisada and his Servant had left. His face, turned away from Mordred, had darkened completely.
The atmosphere had been broken; he was now too embarrassed to continue saying things that would make his teacher's blood boil.
"Tch." Mordred rolled her eyes and left.
Hunting down the Dark-skinned Father and the black-robed poisonous woman was more important; better to ignore this Lancer who didn't have many minutes left anyway.
"Come, Achilles, let me see your resolve!" Chiron's expression remained as calm as ever.
But it was precisely this calmness that Achilles was most familiar with.
Because, when he was receiving instruction from Chiron, he had never seen him display any expression other than calmness.
So... "Teacher! I will definitely make you lose your composure in front of me!"
Well, Achilles's purpose had unwittingly deviated completely from his original intent.
"Still chasing! Still chasing! That damn Saber!" Semiramis glanced back in frustration at Saber, who had caught up once again, gaining a new understanding of her persistence. "Shirou, let's just stop and fight!"
"No." Amakusa Shirou Tokisada responded with a gloomy expression. "Without preparation, we are no match for Saber."
Although he still held a trump card, it was not meant to be used against Saber at this moment.
He hadn't even found a trace of the greater grail yet!
"Damn it! Damn it!" Semiramis's face gradually twisted.
Follow the flames, and one would surely find Karna.
Relying on this belief, Amakusa Shirou Tokisada finally saw that figure.
At this moment, his divine spear had already pierced through Siegfried's chest.
The heart, the spirit core, and the back.
Siegfried's three most vital spots had all been pierced; his defeat was set in stone, and there would be no chance for a comeback.
"Saber, this battle with you has been the most enjoyable one since I joined this Holy Grail War." Karna looked at Siegfried with a cold expression, speaking his true feelings.
"Me too." There was a hint of brilliance in Siegfried's eyes... well, perhaps it was just the spirit particles flying about as he departed covering his pupils.
Finally, there was no need to fight Kriemhild to the death anymore.
Siegfried departed with satisfaction.
"Lancer, we have not completely failed yet. Let's re-contract!" Supported by Semiramis, Amakusa Shirou Tokisada arrived before Karna.
"Damn Dark-skinned Father! Die!" Behind them was the ear-splitting roar of Mordred.
"I understand." The Hero of Charity glanced at the approaching Red Faction Saber, nodded at Amakusa Shirou Tokisada, and extended his hand.
The contract was signed successfully!
The previous sense of decadence in Karna instantly dissipated.
Abundant magical energy once again filled his body, which had been near exhaustion.
Although his base stats had slipped compared to before, his Noble Phantasm...
"I am now confident that I can fight King Arthur to the death."
Clang! The divine spear and the kings sword clashed!
Mordred's attack was blocked by Karna and she was easily knocked back, flying through the air.
"You bastard..." Beneath her helmet, Mordred's complexion was somewhat pale.
The recoil from that strike just now was not pleasant.
At the same time, she gained some understanding of Karna's strength.
She was no match for him.
This point was already obvious.
But she, Mordred, loved nothing more than fighting an enemy she couldn't beat to the death!
Nothing could make her bow her head or bend her knees! Except for the Father King!
"I'm taking your head!" Mordred charged forward valiantly.
Then, she was knocked back again.
Moreover, her armor had developed cracks under the opponent's strikes.
After several attacks and being knocked back, Mordred's armor had become tattered, and even her helmet had been sliced off.
"Tch, you bastard, you're really ridiculously strong." Mordred spat out the filthy blood in her mouth, then dismissed the remaining tattered armor on her body, and magical energy began to flood her entire being.
In the distance, Shishigou Kairi, who was resting because he hadn't caught up, also sensed Mordred's state. After realizing Mordred's perilous situation in a short time, he did not hesitate to use a command spell to strengthen Mordred.
"Heh, what a master who knows how to read the situation." Cold sweat trickled down Mordred's forehead, her eyes locked onto Karna. "Try this attack of mine!"
"Full release! Clarent Blood Arthur—!"
"O Sun, Become Armor (Kavacha and Kundala)—"
The twisted, ominous black-red beam of light was blocked by the sun. Karna, who was behind the sun, and Amakusa Shirou Tokisada and Semiramis behind him, did not suffer the slightest injury.
"Heh, this joke isn't very funny." Seeing that her Noble Phantasm hadn't achieved even an inch of success, a twisted, wry smile appeared on Mordred's face.
It seemed her battle was likely to end here.
It was a bit regrettable; she had wanted to stay a while longer by the side of this Father King who had become a bit more human.
Mordred narrowed her eyes, sizing up Karna.
Although her thoughts had become a bit more pessimistic, as long as she wasn't dead, she, Mordred, would absolutely not give up even a shred of hope.
"Saber, child of King Arthur." Karna looked at Mordred with a cold expression. "Before battling King Arthur, crossing blades with you first is also a good choice."
"Huh? You think you, a guy like you, can fight my Father King? What a joke!" Although she knew that perhaps only her Father King could decide the outcome against this'shamate' in front of her, Mordred had always been the most stubborn person from head to toe.
Oh, that's not right, there was also that poisonous woman who wanted to snatch her Father King away!
If that person went all out, she might have a chance to sneak-attack and kill the Lancer in front of them.
Magical energy welled up again.
Shishigou Kairi's expression began to turn ugly.
"Just what kind of ridiculous opponent did Saber encounter? To be forced to activate her Noble Phantasm twice in such a short time?"
However, little sister, we're still relying on a powerful ally, so don't just think about fighting to the death whenever something happens; otherwise, what's the point of having a powerful ally?
"By command spell, Saber, come to my side immediately!"
If you can't beat them, then we'll execute a tactical retreat!
The environment around her suddenly changed, and the face of the middle-aged master she had just left behind appeared before her eyes. Only then did Mordred breathe a sigh of relief and lower the kings sword she had been holding high.
"The timing was perfect. Well done, master." As a knight with negative chivalry, Mordred had no resistance to the idea of running away.
"Is that Assassin so difficult to deal with?" Shishigou Kairi asked, looking at Mordred with confusion.
"Pah! What's that poisonous woman worth? She's just a piece of trash I could kill with one sword strike." Mordred spat and replied, "It's Lancer. He re-contracted with that Dark-skinned Father."
"That guy's martial arts, as well as his defensive Noble Phantasm, are ridiculously tough. I hit him with a Noble Phantasm, and it didn't even break his defense. If he were just a little more serious, I wouldn't be able to beat him at all." Mordred twitched the corner of her mouth as she explained. "I'm afraid only Father King could face him head-on."
"Then let's go to the Yggdmillennia Clan's castle and rendezvous with them first." Shishigou Kairi reminded her, "And while we're at it, let's tell them about the situation on the Red Faction side."
"Waaaah—!"
A certain Berserker, whose blood was already boiling, happened to run past the two of them, along with several magic dolls following her in the attack.
"...That was the Black Faction's Berserker, right?" Shishigou Kairi looked at Frankenstein's retreating figure and scratched his head. "Come to think of it, the homunculus have disappeared from the battlefield since just a while ago. What are they plotting on the Black Faction side?"
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