And he was right. The reason the castle hadn't been torn down was the tenacity—and the surprise bug—of Camelot's shield, which shared its durability with the will and heart of its bearer. A trap weapon.
"Denial: it doesn't matter. If my chains can't break it, my spear will..."
Materializing her spear, the chains wrapped around the castle reappeared in her hand and fused with the weapon. Kazamachi lowered her stance, dropped her center of gravity, and readied herself like a javelin thrower.
The wind around her compressed, and then she hurled the spear with all her strength.
"The Tsuofuel!!"
"It's too strong!..."
Mash gritted her teeth as she bore the full weight of the winds, veins bulging on her forehead...
"Hang on, Mash!..."
Ritsuka and Da Vinci rushed over. Fortunately for them, Mash's Noble Phantasm had a wide range and shielded them in time...
"We can't keep this up. We'll lose."
Mash understood her situation all too well—and the way Kazamachi was attacking the castle.
"Da Vinci-chan, is there anything I can do?"
Ritsuka couldn't stand by, and as an innate genius, Da Vinci was his best option...
"I'm sorry, Fujimaru-kun, but I'm a Caster. I can't catch that Servant. She's too fast—this is pure attribute suppression..."
"Even you..."
Ritsuka's resolve sank, and the group fell silent. Faced with attribute suppression, despair was only natural...
"There might be a way out..."
Scratching the back of his neck with difficulty, Achilles spoke.
"Rider-san..."
"I still have two Noble Phantasms left..."
This was his last chance as well. All his Noble Phantasms were exhausted—his chariot destroyed, the shield hanging in the sky, his immortality useless against Kazamachi's authority as God. That left two Noble Phantasms, one of which was useless unless his Master used a Command Spell. There was no way to restore them otherwise.
"Then we have to use it!"
"But there's a problem..."
Staring bitterly at the spear in his hand, Achilles explained to the distressed group.
Dromeus Komētēs was a Noble Phantasm that boosted Achilles' speed to near-instantaneous levels. In theory, it might allow him to catch up to Kazamachi—or maybe not. She had Agility 'EX', after all. Still, closing the distance would already be a gain.
However, by combining it with his other Noble Phantasm, Achilles could turn the tables.
Diatrekhōn Astēr Lonkhē—the spear Achilles received from his father Peleus, who had previously obtained it from Chiron as a wedding gift.
That spear created a dueling field.
A fair battlefield between two opponents, where there were no gods, no external aid, no elements—only chance. An arena isolated from the surrounding environment and time, which would not be released until one combatant was defeated. In terms of magical theory, it was essentially the same as Aestus Domus Aurea.
A separate dimension outside of time, comparable to a reality sphere. When the internal duel ended, only a single second would have passed from an external perspective.
By its nature, this Noble Phantasm also affected Achilles. He would fight on equal footing with his opponent—same stats, no weapons, no immortality. A truly fair fight.
Because of this Noble Phantasm, the Priest had been confident he could defeat Solomon. Without his 72 Demon Pillars, his rings of power, and his castle of time, Solomon was nothing before a warrior like Achilles.
That was precisely why it was perfect for Kazamachi. Without her weapons and attribute advantages, Achilles trusted himself to win in a barehanded fight.
After all, the previous twins had no martial arts training, and it was a fact that Kazamachi didn't either. It was a guaranteed path to victory—but...
Because of the nature of this Noble Phantasm and the curse of the Amazoness Queen, it couldn't be used on someone weaker than Achilles—or on a woman.
Kazamachi was far stronger than him, so that condition was met. But she was a woman...
That made it useless.
Unless...
"A woman activates the Noble Phantasm...."
With Achilles' explanation, Da Vinci immediately spotted a loophole.
If Achilles couldn't activate the Noble Phantasm himself, then someone else could—and send Achilles to fight within the arena.
"It can't be done. Whoever activates the Noble Phantasm is the one who fights."
It was a good plan, but Achilles rejected it immediately. It wasn't that he didn't trust Da Vinci or Mash—he simply didn't believe either of them could defeat Kazamachi in a fair fight...
"That's only under normal circumstances. If we configure the rules beforehand, there's no problem..."
Diatrekhōn Astēr Lonkhē was rule-based. If the rules could be modified before activation, then there was no issue...
"..."
Achilles said nothing. He froze when he realized it, staring at Da Vinci as cold sweat ran down his back. In such a short time, she had found yet another efficient way to use his Noble Phantasm. What a terrifying woman...
Diatrekhōn Astēr Lonkhē was an arena field where both sides agreed to the duel—but altering the rules before activation was essentially cheating.
That would force Kazamachi into a compulsory battle...
"That's not ethical. I won't do it."
"In this Singularity, for humanity's survival, cheating doesn't matter."
Ignoring Achilles' reproach, Da Vinci elegantly brushed back her hair...
Creakkkk
"Senpai! This is my limit!..."
At that moment, the castle shook violently under the wind. Cracks spread across Camelot's walls. Mash clenched her teeth, but it was useless against the spear...
"Rider-san, there's no time! This is the only way!"
"Ahhhhh!!"
Crushed by the group's pressure, Achilles roared in anger—just as the barrier finally gave way to the spear...
"Boast: as expected. No defense can withstand my wind..."
With the castle collapsing, Kazamachi placed both hands on her hips in satisfaction.
BOOM
But at that very moment, as the castle fell, a shadow shot toward her at high speed...
"Oh?"
Kazamachi was briefly surprised by its speed, but she adjusted her stance and dodged swiftly.
A small crater formed where she had been standing. The shadow didn't stop—it turned and charged again.
"Confusion: Demi-Servant?"
The figure became clear, and a massive shield slammed toward her. Kazamachi quickly used her Pendulum to knock the attacker away—but it twisted and evaded with speed, astonishing her once more...
She knew the Demi-Servant was the weakest in the group aside from the Master. Dodging one of her attacks should have been impossible...
Unfortunately, the Demi-Servant didn't give her time to think and attacked again. Kazamachi frowned and dodged the shield—
Bam, bam, bam...
Like an insect fixated on its prey, the Demi-Servant refused to let up, continuing the assault and kicking up a curtain of dust...
"Anger: it can't be helped. I didn't want to hit you this much, but you're very annoying."
Frowning, Kazamachi materialized her spear again. Her plan had been to strike the Demi-Servant just enough to knock her out and take her away easily—but she had changed her mind. She needed to hit this troublesome child hard...
Bam
She stopped dodging. With spear in hand, she clashed head-on with the shield. The force dragged the massive shield backward...
Bam, bam
Kazamachi pressed the attack, thrusting with her spear. The shield was driven farther and farther back until one strike finally broke through, sending it tumbling away. The winner was obvious...
"Confusion: was the Demi-Servant this strong?"
Kazamachi frowned. She remembered the Demi-Servant lacking that much raw strength. In fact, even in her separated form, Kazamachi had still held the advantage.
"Eh?"
Just as she decided to deliver the finishing blow, a spear slammed into the ground beside her.
She turned her head, eyes widening in shock. There stood the Demi-Servant—and at the same time, the one wielding the shield revealed himself as well...
"Diatrekhōn Astēr Lonkhē!"
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