Fate: How About a New Savior?

For warriors of the Land of Shadows, taking on ten foes is unremarkable, and facing a hundred is merely the beginning. A true warrior from the Land of Shadows must be capable of standing alone against thousands.

Though Shiomi often grumbled about his master's harsh training, he never once allowed himself to slack off. He aspired to be the best disciple, the one his master favored most. With that determination, Shiomi achieved his goal.

Blocking his path were the seventy-two Demon Gods under Solomon's command. Due to the constraints of the Holy Grail War system, Solomon could summon only four at a time without depleting his strength. Each Demon God possessed power on par with a standard Servant. Yet, even they couldn't halt Shiomi's advance.

The Demon Gods were repeatedly defeated and summoned anew, leaving no room for respite.

As Shiomi withdrew his crimson spear from the heart of a Demon God resembling a massive lion, he glanced at the King of Magecraft, who was being held at bay by Morgan's magecraft. That man merely raised his hand—without a moment's hesitation or lament for the fallen Demon God, the next one appeared on the battlefield.

Shiomi surmised that these Demon Gods weren't truly dying; rather, they were temporarily unable to respond to their king's summons and manifest in this Holy Grail War. But that detail was inconsequential.

The Holy Grail War had reached its final stage—there would be no next time, no subsequent battle.

What was certain was that, including the initial four, Shiomi had already vanquished sixteen Demon Gods, each with distinct forms and abilities.

A hexagram formed overhead—a spell cast by a male Demon God with three heads: a snake's, a man's, and a cat's.

With a single glance, Shiomi discerned that the spell aimed to restrain his movements. Twisting his crimson spear, he tapped its butt against the ground, causing fine ice shards to rise and form a white cylinder encasing him.

The hexagram descended, shattering the icy pillar, yet Shiomi was nowhere to be seen.

The Demon God's cat head lifted, emitting a piercing screech. The snake head opened its mouth wide, its tongue flicking out with a raspy hiss. The man's face contorted in agony.

A crimson spear had pierced the Demon God's heart.

Shiomi stood behind him, thrusting the spear forward without hesitation.

The hellish serpent beneath the Demon God writhed violently, attempting to throw Shiomi off. But the Demon God's body had lost all resistance; its limbs hung limp. As Shiomi withdrew his spear, the body slumped from the serpent's head, dissolving into black mist that dispersed with the wind.

With its master gone, the infernal serpent vanished as well.

The remaining Demon Gods finally slowed their assault.

As the highest-ranking familiars summoned by the King of Magecraft, each Demon God possessed intelligence comparable to humans.

Shiomi descended slowly to the ground, his body bearing the scars of battle with the King of Magecraft.

Yet, the Demon Gods couldn't determine whether he was at his limit.

Moreover, there remained a witch capable of matching the King of Magecraft in magical combat.

"Oh?"

Shiomi sensed a subtle shift.

Although the King of Magecraft glanced in their direction, he made no move to summon more Demon Gods. Likely due to Morgan's continued assault, his mana had been largely depleted, leaving him unable to maintain the summoning.

With that in mind, Shiomi decided to take a gamble.

He raised his hand and hurled three stones toward the remaining three Demon Gods. Just as they realized the stones were inscribed with Runes and began to react, Shiomi moved.

The Demon Gods' perception of his speed was suddenly thrown off. In a flash, Shiomi seemed to split into four, weaving left and right.

"Dark Funeral Gait."

A movement technique from the Land of Shadows, passed down through Scáthach.

In the blink of an eye, Shiomi appeared in front of, to the left of, and behind each of the three Demon Gods. Then, he struck all at once, launching them to the same point before they could react.

"Disappear—Pinning God Killer Thorns!"

With a quiet declaration, Shiomi hurled his crimson spear. Mid-flight, the spear split and extended, transforming into blood-red thorns that entwined and restrained all three Demon Gods, locking them in place.

A heartbeat later, the thorns tightened violently, shredding the Demon Gods into pieces before vanishing.

As the restored spear returned to his hand, Shiomi spun and swept it behind him without hesitation, cleaving through the compressed mana blast fired by the King of Magecraft.

"Two against one… this situation's starting to work against me."

Though his words sounded resigned, the King of Magecraft showed no sign of backing down. He slowly spread his arms.

"Then let us unleash our Noble Phantasms."

The surrounding air thickened, heavy with mana gathering from all directions. Fuyuki, with its superior leylines, offered a richer Greater Source than most places.

"Then this side will—"

Morgan quickly deduced that Solomon was about to activate a large-scale Noble Phantasm—one capable of targeting individuals, armies, or even entire cities.

Mana no weaker than Solomon's surged into Morgan's hands. Shiomi quietly began preparing Primordial Runes for protection.

Even conservatively speaking, the clash of their Noble Phantasms would reduce this entire area to scorched wasteland—Fuyuki Church included.

Solomon remained cautious to the very end, keeping his defenses up even during the brief window before activation. Even if Shiomi attempted interference during that moment, it would prove useless.

The tension was about to explode—

But then, a voice cut through the moment.

"Both sides, that's enough."

Marisbury emerged slowly from around the corner at the far end of the road.

On any other occasion, such a gesture would never be enough to halt Shiomi or Morgan—it might even provoke Shiomi to attack.

That is, if this Magus had come empty-handed.

He walked toward them slowly, as if cradling a mere prop—except it was the unconscious Sakura he held in his arms.

"All Servants other than Caster have already withdrawn. If the two of you insist on continuing this battle—which now holds no meaning for you—then I can't guarantee this child's safety."

Though Marisbury's tone was mild, the cold calculation of a Magus was clear in his eyes.

He had seen through the Holy Grail War's greatest threat from the start. And with no hesitation, he had chosen the most effective method to eliminate it.

"Marisbury…"

Shiomi pointed his spear at Marisbury, seething with rage.

But Marisbury met his fury with unwavering calm. He clearly had no intention of justifying himself, nor did he believe his choices had been wrong.