Fate: How About a New Savior?

Saber was clad in full armor, with only her head exposed, making her a small and difficult target for Archer's short sword. The difference in their physiques was stark—Saber was a full two or three heads shorter—yet she drove Archer back again and again, even seeming to overpower him.

Despite wielding a longsword that was only about half her height, Saber's attacks only grew more intense, showing no sign of fatigue.

"Oh come on! What's wrong? Is that all you've got, Archer?"

Caught up in the heat of battle, Saber even had the energy to mock him.

With her words, she leapt high into the air, raising her sword with both hands and bringing it down at a speed too fast for the eye to follow. Archer grunted as he struggled to block the blow.

But then, something worse happened.

The weapon in his hand—possibly a Noble Phantasm—couldn't withstand the strike. The blade shattered at the center, breaking apart like fragile glass.

"Die."

Saber's tone turned cold, brimming with lethal intent. It was as if her strength knew no bounds. Even after her strike had reached its lowest point, she still found the power to drive upward. Her longsword was set to cut through Archer from the hip to the shoulder in a single slash.

Crack—

But instead of the sound of flesh being cleaved, there was only the clamor of metal colliding.

The force sent Archer stumbling back several meters. His feet dug twin gouges into the lawn as he braced against the impact.

"So you're dual-wielding," Saber muttered, resting her sword on her shoulder with one hand, her brow furrowing.

No wonder his swordplay had seemed off—he'd deliberately hidden a second weapon, hoping to catch her off guard.

But in the end, all it did was help him survive.

What struck Saber as even stranger was how the black short sword that had just broken was now back in Archer's hand. In the other, he held a white short sword clearly meant to form a matching pair.

"Thinking of backing down?" Archer stood there as if he hadn't even warmed up, his dual blades at the ready.

"As if!"

A crimson flash lit up the scene, and in the next moment, Saber was already on him.

Her longsword clashed repeatedly with Archer's twin blades.

Now that she'd realized the fragility of Archer's weapons, Saber attacked with even greater ferocity.

As expected, Archer's swords couldn't withstand her barrage. They shattered like porcelain, knocked away with ease.

But that was the problem—no matter how many times Saber destroyed them, identical blades instantly reappeared in Archer's hands.

There was no opening, no chance to exploit a moment of weakness. The battle between the two Servants continued like a relentless tide.

From halfway up the slope, Rin could barely follow the flurry of exchanges.

She was undeniably spellbound.

Rin wanted to help with her Magecraft, but she feared it might not only be useless—it could actually drag Archer down.

A Magus could never match a Servant—Rin had been taught that truth since she was a child.

"Listen carefully, Rin. There are beings of immense power in the world of Magecraft, but we are not among them. So never even think of taking on a Servant one-on-one."

Watching the battle unfold, Rin was once again convinced that everything her father, Tokiomi, had said was absolutely right.

"Aren't you going to do anything, Sister?"

Sakura's voice called out from the top of the slope, and Rin snapped her head around.

Unlike Rin, who had been captivated by the battle, Sakura had produced a staff—or rather, a wand—from somewhere.

It was a high-grade Mystic Code. Rin could tell at a glance. The gemstone set into the top of the simple wooden shaft shimmered with extraordinary power.

Magi often used Mystic Codes to amplify their spells. Tokiomi, for instance, had a staff embedded with a ruby that greatly enhanced his flame-based Magecraft.

He had originally intended to pass that wand down to Rin, but she'd asked him to keep it to protect himself.

"Then, I won't hold back," Sakura said, raising the wand slightly and softly transmitting her thoughts to Saber, "Fall back, Saber."

Sensing the mana, Saber deftly avoided Archer's strike and stepped back a few paces.

Before Archer could reset his stance, a barrage of icicles rained down from above. Though they didn't cause real damage, they still posed a significant nuisance.

His combat instincts, honed through experience, kicked in instantly—he dodged Saber's next strike just in time, breaking through the frozen ground with brute force.

"Ice Magecraft? No way! Isn't your attribute 'Imaginary'? How can you use large-scale elemental Magecraft?" Rin shouted in disbelief.

Sakura smiled proudly and held up her wand. "This is a Mystic Code Father made for me. As long as I channel mana into it, I can use any elemental Magecraft—except for the basic four. It was my birthday present last year."

"What? You can cast Magecraft outside your own attribute just by having mana? That's totally unfair!"

"Then let's switch to fire. Saber, coordinate with my attack."

Sakura ignored Rin's reaction, intent on backing up her Servant.

Unlike Rin, who was facing a Servant for the first time, Sakura had studied Magecraft under Morgan from an early age, and just last summer, she'd even begun simulating Holy Grail Wars alongside their parents.

She might not be able to match a Servant in direct combat, but she was more than capable of reading the battlefield and supporting her Servant's offense without hesitation.

"Not that easy!" Rin shot back.

A black magical bullet flew at Sakura, colliding with the fire arrow she'd loosed. The impact canceled both out midair.

Rin stood with her left arm extended, fingers tight together, and her right hand bracing her left elbow—forming a makeshift Magecraft cannon.

"I remember your Magic Crest is engraved on your left arm. You can cast spells without chanting, can't you?" Sakura said, holding her wand in both hands with a pout. "Isn't that a little unfair?"

"…You're getting better at being infuriating, Sakura." Rin wore a big smile, but she was close to boiling over. "You've turned into a proper little devil."

It was fine that her younger sister had a better life and even surpassed her in skill.

But that personality—there was something subtle about it, a mischievous edge. Like a miniature demon.

She remembered when they used to play at the Shiomi house a few years back—Sakura had been way cuter back then.

Now she was starting to resemble Caren.

"I'm only repeating what you've said before. It's all true, so what's so annoying about it?"

Sakura tilted her head and blinked sweetly.

"Ugh! That's it! Don't blame me if you end up crying later!"

Fuming, Rin shouted and fired a lead-ball-sized Gandr from her palm.

...

(100 Chapters Ahead)

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