Charging straight into the Burgundian knights, Tsutsumi's fist erupted with flaming purple energy. He drove it into one knight's chest, the blow amplified by raw emotion. The impact launched the man backward, crashing into his allies like a bowling ball scattering pins.
The Joker Gaia Memory thrived on emotions. The stronger the user's feelings, the stronger its power became, much like Hazard Level in Kamen Rider Build. Rage, determination, fear, or love, all of it turned into fuel.
Bodies flew with every strike. Knights tried to swarm him, relying on numbers to overwhelm, but Tsutsumi's power only grew sharper.
Form Ride: W! Fang! Joker!
Half his body shifted to white, edged with jagged armor. Blades jutted out from his elbows, shoulders, and knees. A fang-like sword sprouted from his wrist. His fists and kicks, once bone-shattering, now carved through steel like paper. Even his fingers had become claws, shredding shields and armor apart.
"Don't let that demon get close! Archers, fire!" one knight roared, just before half of his body was hurled into his comrades.
A storm of arrows rained down.
Form Ride: W! Fang! Metal!
The black half of his body shimmered into silver. A Metal Shaft appeared in his hands, the fang blade reshaping it into a scythe. Spinning it in wide arcs, he cleaved through the incoming arrows, sparks scattering in the night sky.
The knights' discipline shattered. Fear spread like wildfire.
"Retreat! It's a devil!" they screamed, abandoning the fight as panic consumed them.
The battlefield fell silent, save for Jeanne's ragged breathing. She lay on the ground, clutching her injured leg.
Tsutsumi dismissed his armor, stepping toward her. His crimson gaze softened as he knelt. "Are you alright?"
Her eyes widened, snapping out of her daze. "I… I am fine," she whispered, though her voice trembled.
Without a word, Tsutsumi gripped the arrow lodged in her leg and yanked it free. Jeanne bit her lip to keep from crying out. He tore the sleeve from his shirt, wrapping the fabric carefully around the wound.
"W-What was that?" she asked, hesitant, her tone wavering between awe and fear.
"Think of it like those tales," Tsutsumi said simply, tightening the makeshift bandage. "A hero standing alone against an army."
She looked down, flustered. "T-Thanks…"
Tsutsumi smiled faintly, then bent down and lifted her onto his back. Jeanne stiffened, her chest pressed against him, before finally resting her chin lightly on his shoulder. Step by step, he carried her back toward the French camp.
Today's battle had no clear victor. The only reason the enemy had scattered was because of a "passing-through Rider."
On the way, they ran into Gilles, who had rushed back against orders, hoping to support her. His eyes widened when he saw them.
"Tsutsumi… you actually saved our Holy Savior!?" Gilles shouted, and the other knights echoed his disbelief, staring at Jeanne riding on his back.
The knight celebrated, but Tsutsumi's eyes widened. He spun left, Rider Book already in blade mode, steel clashing against a red assassin's dagger. Sparks scattered, and the assassin pulled back, vanishing into a blur. The French knights shouted in alarm, an intruder in red had nearly claimed one of their own.
"Who are you?" Tsutsumi demanded, his instincts prickling. Something about this hooded figure was wrong. He carried the same presence as the Assassin from the Holy Grail War, hidden, silent, and only detectable seconds before the strike.
The assassin gave no reply, slipping back into the air itself. He reappeared behind Tsutsumi, blade poised. But the Rider had already tilted his arm, pointing his finger backward to the assassin's face. The red hooded figure recoiled in surprise, forced to step away.
Tsutsumi turned back to face the assassin before speaking in Japanese. "I can only count to 5, so you have 3 seconds to tell me who you are and what your purpose here is?"
Red Assassin: "..."
The Red Assassin didn't know whether the other party was serious or was just messing with him, but still, he didn't let his guard down and quickly refocused.
Seeing the slight stiffness in the Assassin, Tsutsumi has realized that the other figure must be from Japan, since he clearly understands what he just said. If he didn't understand, the assassin would look confused, not stiffen up.
Before the silence could break, thunder rolled overhead, hoofbeats, wings cutting through the air. A woman with flowing violet hair streaked down from the sky, black dress trailing behind her, riding a white pegasus.
Distracted, Tsutsumi only caught the flicker of motion too late. The Red Assassin charged, pulling a handgun this time, muzzle flashing just centimeters from his head.
Tsutsumi tilted, the bullet scraping past his cheek. His kick snapped forward in return.
"Time Alter: Triple Accel!"
The assassin blurred away, dodging. His gun snapped back up, chamber clicking. Aiming at his target, before pulling the trigger.
Form Ride: Faiz Axel!
Start Up!
Tsutsumi avoided the shot once more before driving his knees into the assassin's face. The force was so fast that the red assassin didn't have time to react, and even before he could steady himself from the attack, another kick hit his head, sending him rolling back on the ground.
Using the remaining second he has left in Start Up, Tsutsumi quickly scanned the surroundings, seeing multiple abnormal things.
First is the red assassin who knows modern Japanese, the woman riding a pegasus, a large, muscular man with silver white hair holding a long sword, a blue-haired woman dressed in a magical robe holding a staff, an old woman holding twin red spears, a young girl holding a massive black shield and an orange haired girl, dressed in black and white modern clothing.
Time Out!
Tsutsumi straightened, gaze sharp. He turned to the French knights. "Run. They're here for me."
The hesitation was brief, Jeanne's worry lingering, but Gilles pulled her back. They couldn't even track the assassin's movement. Staying would only get them killed and hinder their alley.
"Stay safe," Jeanne whispered as she withdrew.
Tsutsumi faced the newcomers alone.
"So," he spread his arms, mocking them, "talk first, or fight first?"
The girl with the black shield blinked, cautious. "Uh… mister, who are you?"
"Just a passing-through Rider," Tsutsumi replied, voice dry. "Remember that."
The orange-haired girl stepped forward, shielded by the servants around her. "Why? Why interfere with this timeline and create a Singularity? Why change history?"
"Doing what exactly?" His eyes flicked to the glowing runes forming around him.
"Saving Jeanne," she said quickly. "Her death is tragic, but it is an important part of history. If you erase it, history itself could collapse!"
"I just don't like the story," Tsutsumi said plainly. "So I'll rewrite it."
He couldn't just tell them that he saved her by accident; no one, not even himself, would believe him.
"Go! Attack with full force!" The crimson tattoo on the back of her right hand glowed brightly.
The red assassin and the old woman charged at him from both sides. The swordman also charged forward, while behind them, magic circles appeared, hovering mid-air, all aiming directly toward him before firing magic missiles.
"Henshin."
Final Kamen Ride: Wizard! Infinity!
A crystalized phantom dragon flew into his body, dazzling light blinding every eye. The clothes on Tsutsumi's body shifted into Wizard Infinity Style clothing.
After transforming into Infinity Style, his sensitivity toward magic has increased, and with a single glance, he has figured out that the seven people before him, only two carried the body of a human, while the rest were spiritual phantom-like beings, bound to the human world through a magical contract with the orange-haired girl.
Tsutsumi dashed past the Assassin, diamond dust scattering in his wake. A deep cut tore across the assassin's gut, the force throwing him back like a ragdoll.
Axcalibur gleamed, its strike severing the magical tether between servant and master.
"EMIYA!!" the orange-haired girl screamed, the sudden rupture burning through her link.
"Stay back… Master!" EMIYA forced out through gritted teeth, his body already fragmenting into light. With what strength remained, he left his master, Fujimaru Ritsuka, one last warning. "He is… too… dangerous."
Lancer and Saber, already mid-charge, realized the threat too late. Their momentum carried them straight into Tsutsumi's range.
Crimson spears lunged forward. A sword slash, heavy with draconic energy, carved down.
But Tsutsumi slipped past. His kick hammered Saber into Lancer's path. The spears tore through flesh, and Saber's blade cut his own ally in the chaos.
Before they could recover, Axcalibur swung again, its crystalline edge cutting clean through the magic bond that anchored them. Both Servants flickered, forms unraveling into sparks of fading light.
"We have to retreat!" Fujimaru's voice broke in panic. The opponent before them wasn't just strong, his magic was refined, condensed, and sharpened beyond anything magecraft could hope to mimic. Pure magic, sparkling like diamonds, far surpassing even Heroic Spirits.
He didn't need endurance battles. He didn't need to wait them out. With a single cut, he could erase contracts, stripping Servants from this world in an instant.
"Rider, take Master and Mash, now! I'll hold him off!" Caster shouted, weaving spell after spell, unleashing a storm of magical blasts.
Pegasus wings thundered overhead as Rider swept in, lifting Fujimaru and Mash away from the battlefield.
Tsutsumi walked straight through the barrage. The blasts broke across him like rain against glass, scattering harmlessly off the radiant armor of Wizard Infinity.
The most absolute magical defense in his arsenal, simple spells meant nothing to it, and Caster simply doesn't have the time to charge up her more powerful spell.
"Get out of my way."
His voice was cold, final. One swing of Axcalibur cut Caster down, her form dissolving in a burst of light.
Tsutsumi narrowed toward the runaway group before deciding to ignore them and head back to the French camp.
...
Upon reaching the camp, Tsutsumi quickly noticed Jeanne was nowhere to be found. The knights looked shaken, their faces filled with unease.
After asking around, he learned the truth. Jeanne's secret, that she was a woman, had been leaked. The capital erupted in scandal, and now she had been dragged to Rouen, the military stronghold of Henry VI of England, placed on trial for heresy.
Hearing this, Tsutsumi immediately thought back to that orange-haired girl. His lips curled in annoyance, exhaling through his teeth.
With nothing more to say, he went straight to Rouen. It didn't take long for him to track down the tower where she was being held.
The wall exploded into rubble as Tsutsumi forced his way inside.
There she was. Jeanne, chained, her knight's armor stripped away, replaced by a plain white dress.
"Yo. Nice place they stuck you in," he said casually, drawing a faint smile from the blonde girl.
"Tsutsumi." She stood as best she could, chains clinking at her wrists.
"Wanna leave this place with me?" he asked, grinning.
It didn't take long for word to spread. Jeanne d'Arc had escaped, and she wasn't alone, her rescuer had stormed the capital itself.
Carrying her bridal-style through the night, Tsutsumi eventually came face-to-face with the familiar group of magi. This time, they weren't alone. More servants stood at their side, and with them, a boy with black hair, walking calmly beside the orange-haired girl and the purple-haired shielder.
"This needs to stop!" the girl shouted, her voice fierce, her servants bracing in front of her once again. "You're destroying human history!"
"There's no point reasoning with him, sis." The boy stepped forward, his gaze locked on Tsutsumi.
Tsutsumi gently placed Jeanne down, letting her hide behind him. If they wanted history to remain as written, Jeanne wasn't their target. He was.
"Da Vinci gave us the information. I've already pieced together who you really are." The boy's cold blue eyes narrowed. "This is all your fault. You should leave this world… Decade."
The name froze Tsutsumi in place for a split second. His true identity, spoken aloud. But he stayed calm, his guard rising higher than ever.
"Who are you?" he asked evenly.
The boy pull out a device, answering in the same flat tone.
"I am Fujimaru Kazuma."
"Kazuma!?" Tsutsumi muttered, a name he had heard before.
Kazuma's expression didn't waver. He slid a card into the device and raised it to his waist.
"Also known as…" His voice hardened. "…Kamen Rider Blade."
"Henshin."
TURN UP!
A massive golden card shot out, slamming into Tsutsumi and hurling him back. The card spun mid-air, returning to Kazuma as light engulfed his body.
When it cleared, he stood clad in gleaming armor, Blade King Form, his eyes as cold as the steel he carried.