Decisive Battle, Rider's Exit

A tsunami surged in the form of towering waves.

Rider's face instantly turned deathly pale. More precisely, his expression had completely changed from the moment the sky split apart.

"Rider!!" Waver screamed in terror.

The King of Conquerors yanked the reins sharply, driving the Divine Bull Chariot into the air in an instant.

At that moment, he had no time to worry about all his comrades.

The massive waves rolled in with crushing force, leaving chaos in their wake.

Whether legendary heroes or ordinary soldiers, once swept into them, there was no difference. They were quickly carried away by the current, crushed by the pressure of the water, and gradually vanished from the Reality Marble.

The world-ending flood swept across the entire world like a demon.

In the blink of an eye, the once boundless desert had become a vast ocean.

Yet it was far from over. In the darkness, the second sun in the sky fell rapidly like a meteor.

Aboard the chariot, Rider witnessed the sight, and his heart sank. He completely abandoned any hope of survival. He looked at Waver beside him, gently patted his shoulder, then dismissed the Reality Marble with a thought.

That meteor-like sun howled past them. Rider could still clearly sense the immense power contained within it—terrifying might enough to destroy the entire world.

Boom!!!!

It was as though the world had been ruthlessly torn apart by a giant hand, collapsing in an instant.

The scene abruptly changed, returning them to the beach.

The vast waters that had poured out after the Reality Marble shattered flowed into the real sea as well.

Amid the raging waves, a black warhorse broke through the water, galloped onto the beach, and slowly came to a stop.

Rider dismounted and gently laid the unconscious Waver on the ground.

The chariot had already been destroyed while resisting the enemy's Noble Phantasm. Now, Rider had only this warhorse left.

"Rider, you lost this war."

Shiki descended from the sky, and the Black Knight appeared beside him, Demon Sword in hand, guarding him.

"Hahahaha, truly magnificent! Young Master, I accept this defeat completely."

After settling Waver down, Rider strode toward Shiki.

He stared at the boy whose eyes still bore traces of blood, raised his thumb, and said, "I have no complaints about losing to a Master like you."

Controlling such enormous magical power was itself an extraordinary feat. To unleash an attack of such power as well—if he still refused to accept it, that would be arrogance.

"However, young man, it is absolutely impossible for you to make me stop moving forward."

That was right. Even if he accepted the result completely, Iskandar, the King of Conquerors, would never stop pursuing his dreams.

Upon hearing the Black Knight's translation, Shiki understood.

That was the King of Conquerors' attitude. He could admire others and give them the respect they deserved, but making him submit was neither possible nor realistic.

"Since that's the case, then send him on his way, Sir Lancelot."

"As you command, Master."

On Rider's side, when he saw the Black Knight draw the Demon Sword, he first laughed twice. Then his expression turned serious as he asked, "Before we begin, I wish to ask the loyal and valiant knight Lancelot: will my Master be safe?"

The Black Knight glanced at Waver behind Rider and nodded solemnly as well.

"Rest assured, King of Conquerors. My Master is not someone who kills indiscriminately. I swear upon a knight's honor that your Master will come to no harm."

For some people, a knight's honor was an exceedingly solemn oath.

Rider nodded in approval. "Then I am relieved. Lancelot, come!"

He drew the sword at his waist. The massive King of Conquerors charged at the Black Knight like a maddened beast.

In response, the Black Knight displayed all his strength and raced toward Rider.

Die!!!

With one slash, Rider's figure vanished from the beach.

His dream, his obsession, had once again come to a halt on the shore.

Such an outcome was hardly surprising. As a Rider-class Heroic Spirit, the King of Conquerors' martial skill could only be considered decent, unless he changed classes.

"Master. I promised Rider that I would ensure his Master's safety."

"No problem, Sir Lancelot. You can decide that."

"My deepest thanks, Master."

There was truly no benefit in killing Waver, a novice Magus who had only just begun his journey. Besides, Shiki was never a homicidal maniac.

Killing was wrong. Taking another person's life was an extremely terrifying act.

He could kill, but he had to bear responsibility for it. He could never allow his conscience to be harmed. Otherwise, his humanity would gradually fade away, and he would eventually become either a madman or a murderous demon.

Deep down, he could never abandon the moral boundary he held fast to.

After settling the unconscious Waver, Shiki and the Black Knight arrived at the Emiya Residence and appeared before Saber.

Saber sat upright in a chair, leaning on her holy sword. When she saw the two of them arrive, she revealed a faint smile.

"Just as I thought, you would be the ones to stand before me in the end."

"King of Knights..."

The Black Knight's voice carried a trace of barely restrained excitement.

Soon, he would be able to fulfill his wish. For that wish, he had even been willing to become a Berserker.

Had he not encountered a new Master, perhaps he would have... Forget it. None of that mattered now. It was all in the past.

After briefly meeting Saber's gaze, Shiki turned his attention to the main house. He could sense that there were other people inside.

Saber directly gave Shiki the answer. "Kiritsugu Emiya and Kirei Kotomine have arrived. Those two seem to be planning to join forces. What do you think, Shiki? Do you feel pressured?"

"Hehe, King of Knights, you really do love to joke."

They were merely two Magi. He had never feared them to begin with, and now that Avalon protected him, how could he possibly feel afraid?

Saber nodded, showing that she understood.

She then looked at the Black Knight, battle burning in her eyes. "Lancelot, I will wait for you."

"King of Knights, thank you."

The Black Knight had just gone through a major battle, and his strength had not fully recovered. By a knight's code of honor, challenging an opponent under such circumstances would be unfair.

Therefore, Saber was willing to wait until the Black Knight recovered before facing him in battle.

But the location would not be here. There were too many people around, and once the battle began, innocents could easily be harmed. That ran contrary to the spirit of chivalry.

Seeing one waiting and the other recovering, Shiki suddenly found himself bored.

He opened the door and entered the house. Kiritsugu Emiya and Kirei Kotomine stood against the walls on either side like statues, silent and motionless.

"Gentlemen, aren't you going to talk?"

The only response he received was endless silence.

"Fine. If you don't want to talk, then forget it."

At this point, there truly was nothing left to say.

The final two Heroic Spirits—regardless of who won or lost—meant that the Holy Grail War was about to come to an end.

This was the final battle, for both the Heroic Spirits and their Masters.

Oh, no. Shiki did not consider this his final battle.

After defeating Kiritsugu and Kirei, he still had to face that disgusting guy—the little black guy who had spoken on his behalf without his consent.

He still had to deal with that nuisance. Only then would it count as the true final battle.

Then he still had to accompany the Saintess to the "Root." If she went alone, she might never return.

Sigh. He had only awakened a few days ago, yet he still had to run himself ragged.