Fate: How About a New Savior?

Primeval Battery.

The world's oldest battery was unearthed in the Karahan Tepe Ruins, on the outskirts of the Middle East. It's widely believed that its creator didn't truly understand its principles—perhaps it was made by chance, merely as a gilding tool.

Yet this same structure was passed down through generations of Magus, developing along a path utterly separate from science.

When one of the Magus Families studying the Primeval Battery fell into decline, Galliasta bought both the battery and its legacy with money. Specializing in ore magecraft and price magecraft, Galliasta found the Primeval Battery exceptionally convenient. With it, they mastered natural phenomena once seen as divine power and heavenly thunder across the world, ushering in a golden age for their family.

They even adapted the technique to manipulate the weather.

"Gush Out."

As Atrum spoke, electricity surged into the form of a giant hand and lunged at Shiomi faster than the blink of an eye.

Fighting lightning with lightning, Shiomi countered with the same element. A bolt of blue lightning tore through the rain, intercepting the golden hand. Two powerful magecrafts, both brimming with mana, collided—only a stronger mystery can overwhelm another. The clashing bolts exploded into a mana-charged shockwave, scattering raindrops into a spiraling vortex before fading together into the downpour.

"That's impressive," Atrum muttered through clenched teeth.

Shiomi brushed the raindrops from his bangs.

"I should be the one saying that."

The spell fueled by the Primeval Battery had performed better than expected, powerful enough to cancel out ordinary magecraft.

"If that's all your precious Primeval Battery can do, you're dead."

Shiomi lowered his hand and stared at Atrum with cold indifference.

The calm tone struck as a sharp provocation, bruising Atrum's pride. No one had ever dared speak to him that way. Born into privilege, no one—not his parents, siblings, or clansmen—had ever shown such blatant disrespect to the Galliasta family.

His eyes widened in fury. Burning with rage, he conjured mana several times stronger than before, activating his Magic Crest and pouring it into the Primeval Battery's spell. The magecraft Galliasta had acquired converted that mana with perfect efficiency into thunder in the shape of a dragon.

Everyone there saw it: a massive dragon baring its fangs, giving Shiomi no room to retreat, ready to tear him apart. Shiomi saw it too—and the smug curl of Atrum's lips.

How capable Atrum was as a Magus was hard to say. But this ruthless, practiced spellcasting spoke of hard-earned combat experience.

Guess I'll take this a bit more seriously, Shiomi thought.

Normally, he would only use Grand Magecraft in a fight against a Servant.

"Thunder Reign."

With those brief words, lightning tore across the sky, illuminating the storm-darkened lake as if it were midday.

In that instant, Atrum realized—he had gravely underestimated his opponent. He'd missed so much. From breaking the cooperative magecraft of multiple Magus to altering the weather instantly and slipping control from his army's grasp—all of it had been the work of one man: Tenkei Shiomi.

And most of all… not a single word of chant.

That was a feat only possible in a time long before the Common Era—when the Age of Gods still thrived and humanity lived entwined with magecraft. In other words, from the beginning, Tenkei Shiomi had been using Age of Gods Magecraft.

It was irrational. Impossible.

Atrum might boast to his maids and subordinates that the magecraft he used in the assault on Iselma Forest rivaled Medea, the Witch of Colchis.

But he knew better than anyone—this was on a whole other level. Not even a short chant spell could bridge that kind of power gap, let alone something that rivaled a military airstrike.

Precisely because he was a skilled Magus, he could recognize the danger instantly.

But…it was already too late.

Blue lightning swallowed Atrum's spell with ease, absorbed it, and surged into the forest. The cries that followed were drowned by the roar of Grand Magecraft.

Then came the explosion.

The torrential rain was slashed away by a violent gust, only returning to the earth a few seconds later.

"Ugh... maybe I went a little overboard."

Shiomi looked at Atrum—his body charred black and torn, barely clinging to life as he leaned against a broken tree, struggling to breathe.

Each breath made Atrum feel death creeping ever closer.

The slow crunch of footsteps through the muddy grass sounded, to him, like the Grim Reaper drawing near.

He stared at Shiomi, terrified and confused, unable to comprehend how such a monster could exist in this world.

He used to think the previous Lord, El-Melloi, had died in Fuyuki just because he took things too lightly. Now, Atrum realized he had misunderstood the cause and effect entirely.

"I know about the Primeval Battery. It's definitely ancient," Shiomi crouched in front of Atrum. "But the Rune Magecraft I use is older than anything you've ever known. When it comes to mystery, you were already outmatched."

"Even so, getting results like this from just one Rune... isn't that a bit much?"

At that moment, Touko Aozaki's voice came from behind.

"Primordial Runes are miracles of that caliber—you know that better than anyone."

Shiomi stood up, ignoring the near-corpse that Atrum had become, and turned to face Touko.

"Did Lady Inorai send you to tell me not to kill him? You're a little late. At this point, not even the Clock Tower's best Magus could save him."

Even if he could be saved, the near-total destruction of his Magic Circuits and Magic Crest spelled the end of Atrum's career as a Magus.

Touko slowly removed her glasses and looked at Shiomi with a bright, cheerful expression.

"Fighting someone like him wasn't much, was it?"

"There's no reason for me to fight you." Shiomi frowned. He had never considered Touko an enemy—and she had never treated him as one either.

"I don't want to fight you either, but I don't have a choice," Touko said. "For the same reason you don't."

That nameless girl...

Shiomi clicked his tongue in frustration. He had no idea what sort of 'deal' Touko had made with her.

"As fellow Rune Magicians, let's call this a friendly match."

Touko, rarely seen like this, seemed eager for a fight.

"Seriously... this world is always soaked in blood. Even you're taking a swing at me now?"

As the words left his mouth, glowing Rune characters lit up in the air around them...

...

(90 Chapters Ahead)

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