After Tōsaka Tokiomi was killed by Medusa, the King of Heroes did not immediately fade from the battlefield. Thanks to his class skill Independent Action, the prana within his body was still sufficient to sustain his manifestation for the time being.
However, when he looked toward the distance—at Ren Kuroda, whose surging demonic energy shot skyward like a pillar, and at Saber beside him, her presence likewise swelling to a dazzling, overwhelming brilliance—an unmistakable look of frustration crept across his face.
Hercules' vitality had been terrifyingly deep, but even he ultimately failed to endure the relentless bombardment of Gilgamesh's Noble Phantasms. Despite his absurd skills and overpowered parameters, he became one of the Heroic Spirits to fall amid the chaotic battle at Ryūdō Temple.
As half of the Servants were eliminated, enormous quantities of prana poured into Illyasviel, the Lesser Grail. Her body visibly weakened at a shocking pace, and by the time Hercules finally disappeared, she no longer even had the strength to cry out.
Gilgamesh glanced once more at Ren Kuroda radiating monstrous energy in the distance, then at Medusa astride her Phantasmal Pegasus, and finally at Saber, whose brilliance was dazzling even to his eyes. In the end, he turned Vimana and departed.
In a battle dragged out to the bitter end, victory would inevitably belong to him—but Tōsaka Tokiomi's incompetence had ruined everything. To be killed instantly like that… utterly disgraceful.
Without a Master to provide prana, even the King of Heroes risked annihilating himself through his own excesses if he continued fighting these remaining opponents. That, more than anything else, was why he chose to withdraw.
Make no mistake—this was not cowardice. It was simply the King of the Oldest choosing to grant the survivors a fleeting chance to cling to life.
With the man who had dragged her into hell finally dead, Sakura's descent into darkness became even more pronounced.
Although events had diverged greatly from her original plans, the truth was that nearly half of the Servants and Masters had already exited the war.
The troublesome Hercules had been eliminated by Gilgamesh's hand. Gilgamesh himself had withdrawn, and if he failed to find a new Master soon, his end was likely inevitable as well.
As for Masters without Servants—there were only a few left. Both incarnations of Kotomine Kirei had already been killed by Ren Kuroda. Matō Kariya, his hair now completely white, likely had only days left to live holed up in the Matō household.
Kiritsugu Emiya had likewise lost his Servant after Mordred was taken from him, and with Illya's sudden collapse, the so-called man of justice no longer seemed focused on the Holy Grail War at all.
Now, standing in opposition at Ryūdō Temple, there were only two figures left—Ren Kuroda and Saber.
Even Medea and the others had been sent away, dismissed by Ren as nothing more than hindrances.
The Nichirin Blade collided with the Sword of Promised Victory at close range, producing a sharp, crystalline clang that echoed through the air.
With Rin Tōsaka as her Master, Saber had once again returned to her peak—reborn as the so-called "All-A King."
But just as Medea had said earlier, before the demonized Ren Kuroda, even all-A parameters were nothing worth boasting about.
Without her skill Instinct, Saber wouldn't even be able to keep up with Ren's movements.
Whether it was agility, strength, endurance, or pure martial skill, Ren completely outclassed her.
And reality reflected exactly that. Even at her peak, Saber was still utterly suppressed before Ren—not helpless like before, but unmistakably overwhelmed.
Each clash of their weapons sent terrifying force surging through Excalibur, so powerful that her grip nearly failed every single time.
And beyond sheer strength, Ren's speed was simply absurd.
With Instinct, Saber possessed the ability to predict incoming attacks in advance. Even while weakened before, she had used that skill to see through Assassin Sasaki Kojirō's Noble Phantasm.
Kojirō had honed his swordsmanship to the absolute extreme, creating the secret technique Tsubame Gaeshi, a strike that reached the level of a Noble Phantasm in its own right.
Yet even that had been pierced by Saber's Instinct.
That alone said everything about how broken the skill truly was.
And yet, even with Instinct and even at her peak, Saber found herself restrained at every turn against Ren.
Instinct allowed her to foresee his attack trajectories—but every casual strike from Ren had already reached the level of Tsubame Gaeshi. Even if she predicted it, her body simply couldn't respond in time.
They were supposedly "fighting," but the word barely applied. Saber was already struggling just to defend herself, let alone mount a counterattack.
"What is going on with this Assassin…? Saber's parameters should already rival Hercules' now!
And she even has the EX-rank Noble Phantasm Avalon—so why is she still being suppressed like this?!
And what is with Assassin's parameters anyway—why are they all '???'?!
Is this guy a monster?!"
Watching Saber being forced back again and again from a distance, Rin Tōsaka couldn't help but vent aloud as she examined Ren Kuroda's status through her Master privileges.
What she didn't know was that Ren himself felt just as stifled.
Due to his demonic transformation, Ren's prana and physical abilities far surpassed Saber's. Even with her exceptional Instinct allowing her to avoid fatal blows, the passage of time inevitably left her riddled with injuries.
Under normal circumstances, enough accumulated damage would eventually force Saber to withdraw.
But the problem was Avalon.
The EX-rank Noble Phantasm was simply too absurd. With Avalon in hand, Saber was practically equipped with regeneration.
When its true name was released, Avalon granted complete immunity to physical and magical damage—and could even reflect attacks outright.
Because of that, Ren had refrained from using any large-scale, high-damage techniques from the very beginning. One misstep, and he'd be eating his own attack at double strength.
Yet relying solely on swordsmanship to suppress her posed its own problem. Even without true name release, Avalon possessed the ridiculous ability to rapidly heal its bearer's wounds.
So Ren found himself trapped in an infuriating dilemma—use his ultimate techniques and risk lethal reflection, or keep grinding her down and hope she fell before time ran out.
"Ren, you're being far too indecisive. Just use Fūrin Kazan.
Trying to defeat a Saber with Instinct through pure blade combat is nearly impossible.
Even if she activates Avalon, it's fine—I can lend you more power.
With Half-Demonization combined with my blade spirit's strength, even a doubled reflection is something we can block.
Besides, Avalon is an EX-rank Noble Phantasm. The prana required to activate it must be enormous.
No matter how talented her Master is, continuous use is impossible."
Seeing Ren unable to finish Saber for so long, the blade spirit within the Nichirin Blade—Shin'yū—finally spoke up, unable to hold back any longer.
"…Blade spirit plus Half-Demonization. That's my strongest state right now.
I was holding back, but I don't have that luxury anymore.
A Saber with Avalon is, in some ways, even more troublesome than Gilgamesh."
Ren's clawed right hand tightened around the hilt.
A sudden gale erupted, whipping his crimson hair behind him as the wind roared to life. Across from him, Saber instinctively raised her guard, tension surging through her entire body.
"So you're finally getting serious?
Will it be those aggressive flames… or that lightning that strikes too fast to hear?"
From the very start, Saber had never lowered her guard against Ren.
Whether it was his battle against Lancelot, or his clash with Caster at sea, she had witnessed it all.
She knew this Assassin possessed not only inhuman parameters, but martial skill that transcended humanity itself.
As a fellow warrior, she deeply respected Ren's swordsmanship—so much so that she would willingly admit defeat in that regard.
But she had her own reason she could not lose.
She sought the Holy Grail to save the kingdom that had fallen because of her.
To rely on Noble Phantasms to defeat Assassin felt, in some ways, like a betrayal of her knightly code—almost dishonorable.
But she had no choice.
She knew better than anyone that in both skill and raw power, she was no match for him.
If Avalon had not been reclaimed, she wouldn't even be qualified to face him.
And yet, because Avalon had returned to her, Saber believed that victory was within reach.
Just as Avalon had been restored, so too would she reclaim the Grail—and return her kingdom to its most glorious era.
Avalon's power was absurd, but its prana consumption was equally staggering. That was why Saber had avoided using it recklessly until now.
She endured being suppressed without retreating because she was waiting.
Waiting for a single chance to turn the tide.
Avalon was her Noble Phantasm—its true capabilities were something Assassin could not fully know.
If he unleashed one of those overwhelming techniques—the same ones that had defeated Sir Lancelot—then Avalon's doubled reflection would surely cripple him, if not end the battle outright.
But no matter how long she waited, Ren never used Mana Burst, never unleashed those devastating sword techniques—only relentless, ordinary slashes.
Gradually, Saber began to wonder if he simply didn't consider her worthy of his true power.
Until now.
Until the wind rose.
Until the prana around Ren erupted like a storm.
Only then did Saber's expression sharpen into absolute focus.
She had been waiting for this moment.