Or, you guys find another savior

"Is that Kiritsugu? Kiritsugu, are you outside?"

Irisviel's voice came through the wall.

"Iris, you're safe inside, no need to worry."

Knowing that the other party had prepared sufficient contingencies, Kiritsugu abandoned his hostage plan.

At this moment, he saw a line of text appear on the wall, then gradually disappear.

"The innocent may pass."

"..."

He hadn't expected such a barrier to be set up, and Kiritsugu felt a surge of angry mockery.

He didn't know that this was not an ordinary barrier at all, but one of the four major categories of magecraft that Morgan excelled at - 'Mirror,' 'Coffin,' 'Garden,' and 'Tower' - specifically 'Garden.'

It was called the 'Garden of the Innocent,' the same type of magecraft that imprisoned Merlin, the Mage of Flowers.

However, Kiritsugu Emiya didn't have time to investigate the details. Irisviel's voice could be clearly heard through the wall, so when she suddenly let out a hurried gasp, Kiritsugu could also hear it.

"What's wrong, Iris!"

"There's a new intruder, coming from another route towards the castle," Irisviel quickly informed Kiritsugu.

Kiritsugu couldn't help but give a wry smile. "This place is really full of guests tonight."

"...Kiritsugu, the one who's coming... is Kirei," Irisviel told him after confirming in a very short time.

This answer also gave Kiritsugu a headache.

Saber was currently fighting Caster, and Morgan remained in the castle to deal with Kayneth, responsible for protecting Xi Jianxi's two adopted daughters.

Given Morgan's situation, unless the new enemy involved those two children, she would be completely unwilling to help fend them off.

"Maiya and I will go."

Kiritsugu picked up the assault rifle in his hand.

Although he had considered Kirei Kotomine the most dangerous enemy in this Holy Grail War from the beginning and had been wary of him at all times, Kiritsugu did not want to face him this early.

It was just that, clearly, just as Kiritsugu had noticed Kirei early on, Kirei had also been targeting Kiritsugu early on and had seized this window of opportunity to infiltrate the Einzbern forest alone.

It was an unpredictable variable that was completely against Kiritsugu's plan, but fortunately, at this moment, he had no worries.

Even Kirei Kotomine wouldn't be able to break through the barrier that was keeping him out.

Iris was safe, and Saber was fighting valiantly.

Having made up his mind, Kiritsugu immediately left the castle with his assistant Maiya, preparing to set up traps in the forest to intercept Kirei Kotomine.

Emiya Kiritsugu breathed in the cold, damp air of the forest. It was a world apart from the Einzbern forest in Germany.

He couldn't quite remember.

How long had it been since he had stepped onto a battlefield where the odds of victory were immeasurable?

Thirty-two, or thirty-three?

In less than a minute, Artoria had almost madly killed sea monsters one after another. She couldn't count how many more sea monsters had spawned.

She vaguely sensed that this would be a longer minute than she had ever anticipated.

She glanced back at Xi Jianxi. His body was already stained with the sea monsters' blue-black liquid, but he remained unfazed, diligently preparing his magecraft.

Caster knew very well the danger posed by Xi Jianxi. Even if he ignored his presence on an emotional level, he didn't let his guard down on a rational level.

Gilles de Rais used his Noble Phantasm, 'The Annales de la Cité Fleurie,' to its maximum potential, disregarding the terrain disadvantage and accelerating the summoning of sea monsters. Even he himself was submerged by the sea monsters, making it impossible to attack.

Forty-six!

Artoria silently set a number in her mind with the heaviest tone.

The forty-sixth one.

Even with enough mana to support her, she killed a circle around Xi Jianxi with all her might. However, just as she tried to continue wielding her invisible sword, a sea monster seized her left wrist.

Artoria roared and severed the tentacle.

But this also created an opportunity. A sea monster lunged at Xi Jianxi from behind, about to devour him and the unconscious boy.

"Xi Jianxi—!"

As Artoria shouted a warning, Xi Jianxi clenched his fist, calmly turned his head, and glanced at the larger sea monster.

Caster revealed a sinister smile that no one could see, anticipating the sea monster devouring Xi Jianxi and gaining a large amount of mana.

Two beams of red and yellow light severed the sea monster.

Rather than waiting to see the outcome and then seizing the opportunity to kill Caster, Diarmuid followed his heart and came to the aid of Xi Jianxi and Artoria.

"Lancer..." Artoria was very surprised.

Xi Jianxi smiled faintly. "Prepare yourselves for the mana surge, Saber, Lancer!"

He opened his hand again, and a Rune flashed and disappeared.

"Wild Thunder (Holy Grail War)."

As the words were spoken, lightning, so blinding it hurt to open one's eyes, flared from the void, sweeping across the battlefield. Neither the Sea Monster nor Caster could escape.

Artoria and Diarmuid instinctively moved closer to Xi Jianxi, relying on their Magic Resistance to shield them from the aftershocks of the Grand Magic.

The Sea Monsters, unable to withstand the lightning under such immense magical power, after a brief, irregular spasm, burst and scattered like water-filled balloons.

The damp earth, soaked in blood, pulsed with electricity, and the vegetation gradually turned scorched and withered, appearing as devastated as if a famine had swept through.

"This is..." Diarmuid marveled, inexplicably.

"...True Grand Magic," Artoria murmured softly.

Lasting less than ten seconds, the lightning quickly dissipated, leaving behind only a devastated battlefield and the occasional lingering electric current.

As for Caster, the moment the magic was activated, he realized the situation had escalated beyond his expectations and made an emergency retreat.

"This probably counts as part of his 'perfect preparation,' too."

"Considering you stepped forward earlier, Lancer, I'll let your Master go tonight," Xi Jianxi said calmly, as if the scene before him had nothing to do with him. He carried the boy towards the castle. "Next time, I'll come to your door personally."

"I am deeply grateful..."

The moment Lancer saw Xi Jianxi, he knew what kind of enemy Kayneth had encountered.

And the other party was magnanimous enough to let him off the hook.

"Unfortunately, it's not yet time for a break, my husband."

Then, Morgan, after informing Xi Jianxi of the situation at the castle, added in a relaxed tone.

Chapter 30: Kiritsugu vs. Kirei

Another reason Kiritsugu Emiya didn't want to face Kirei Kotomine so early was the complete lack of tactical analysis on this Executor.

Kirei first sought refuge at the Church of the Holy Church, citing the loss of his Servant. He had largely refrained from taking action, instead secretly dispatching the Assassin, who had feigned his withdrawal, to gather intelligence.

However, based on prior investigations, Kiritsugu was certain that Kirei was not purely an intelligence operative. During his time as an Executor, he had a considerable combat record.

After becoming Tokiomi Tohsaka's disciple, Kirei also studied magecraft for two years. Upon receiving his Command Spells, he feigned a falling out with Tokiomi and left the Tohsaka household.

Such a person should not be underestimated in terms of his combat prowess as a Master.

If possible, Kiritsugu would have preferred for Xi Jianxi and Kirei Kotomine to clash first. Whichever party won would have been beneficial to him.

Moreover, given Xi Jianxi's unfathomable strength, Kirei would likely be certain to die if he faced him.

But that was merely his initial expectation. Now that Kirei Kotomine had come to him, Kiritsugu couldn't ascertain the status of Saber and Caster, and he couldn't directly order Saber to retreat to intercept Kirei.

However, Kiritsugu believed that, looking on the bright side, the opponent was in the same situation.

Weapons, magecraft, or anything else—Kiritsugu had not revealed any of them. By seizing the right moment and using this ambush to eliminate Kirei Kotomine, and incidentally cause the Assassin's demise, it would also be a good outcome.

Fighting on home turf, Kiritsugu was able to set up a rather rudimentary, but effective, trap to restrain his opponent.

The moment Kirei Kotomine stepped onto the battlefield, he was met with a barrage of bullets from automatically firing rifles, strategically placed within the forest and enhanced by magecraft.

As an Executor with extensive combat experience and a considerable amount of prior investigation, Kirei knew that Kiritsugu would inevitably use modern weapons, which magi typically disdained, and was prepared for it.

Initially, Assassin had only reported that Kayneth's surprise attack on the Xi Jianxi residence was unsuccessful. However, Kirei heard that Kayneth had turned his attention to the Einzbern Forest, which made him somewhat anxious.

If Kiritsugu Emiya died here, Kirei's objective in the Holy Grail War would be thwarted.

To meet Kiritsugu Emiya, and unaware that Xi Jianxi and Berserker were also present, Kirei infiltrated the battlefield alone.

Facing bullets firing from all directions, Kirei agilely dodged while throwing the Black Keys in his hand.

Clang, clang, click—

The sounds of metal being struck and the very structure being destroyed echoed.

Kirei knew the Black Keys had only hit weapons.

Was this a pre-set trap? Was Kiritsugu Emiya still in the castle?

Regardless, Kirei believed it was necessary to enter. Even if he had to fight Kayneth, he had to stop Kayneth from killing Kiritsugu.

If anyone was to kill him, it should be him—after he obtained the answers he sought.

Kirei continued to walk forward, stepping on the dry branches scattered on the ground. As soon as he took a step, another assault rifle fired at him.

Without even needing to look, Kirei dodged and threw a Black Key, but this time it missed.

Kirei dodged several times in succession. The rifle's bullets could only trail half a step behind Kirei's movements, hitting the dirt and tree trunks behind him.

Hiding behind a rather thick tree, Kirei used his magecraft-enhanced vision to pinpoint the enemy's location.

Then he spotted a corner of a black trench coat.

A faint smile involuntarily appeared on his lips as Kirei spoke:

"I didn't expect you to personally step onto the front lines. It seems Caster has caused you quite a bit of trouble. Your Servant alone can't possibly handle every situation."

However, Kiritsugu did not reply. Kirei didn't expect Kiritsugu to respond to such a question.

Instead, as his words fell, Kirei threw four Black Keys from either side of the tree trunk.

They spun towards Kiritsugu Emiya's direction. These weapons, with blades formed by magecraft, could also act as curved shurikens depending on the user's skill.

Kiritsugu, sensing Kirei's attack, ducked forward to evade at the last possible moment.

"Time Alter—Double Accel!" (Fixed Time Regulation, Double Speed)

His body anticipated the danger faster than his mind could process. The magecraft crests on Kiritsugu's body activated Emiya family's inherited time magecraft, creating a bounded field within him, thereby accelerating his individual actions.

To an onlooker, it appeared as though the caster had suddenly sped up.

Accompanying the swirling Black Keys was Kirei himself. His brutal roundhouse kick struck a tree trunk only wide enough for one person, causing it to deeply indent and slowly bend.

The trunk, collapsing with a roar, kicked up dust and dead leaves that danced and intertwined in the air.

Kirei, a smile unconsciously playing on his lips, watched Kiritsugu hide once again.

Kiritsugu had already deeply understood Kirei's dangerousness from their brief exchange. Because of this, he subtly signaled Maiya to wait for an opportunity.

A rash move to provide covering fire would not only be ineffective but could also lead Kirei to detect Maiya and attack her first, leaving Kiritsugu unable to manage both fronts.

"I see," Kirei murmured to himself again.

His missed kick earlier was merely a miscalculation of Kiritsugu's speed, not an inability to keep up with it.

Now that he knew his opponent could operate at normal speed using magecraft, he simply needed to calculate his attack patterns based on that speed.

Leaning against the tree, Kiritsugu gasped for breath, the strain on his body from activating the magecraft crests.

He slightly turned his head, glancing at Kirei, who was still some distance away. He took a flashbang from his trench coat, preparing to create a diversion before retreating to the castle.

A one-on-one fight, especially without preparation, was far too disadvantageous. He didn't believe his trump card could hit Kirei Tohsaka in the darkness.

He pulled the pin.

"Time Alter—Triple Accel!" (Fixed Time Regulation, Triple Speed)

Needing to retreat while also creating a diversion, Kiritsugu had to resort to even greater speed.

The moment the flashbang detonated, he retreated towards the castle at extreme speed. If he could draw Kirei into the engagement between Morgan and Kayneth, he would have a chance to re-evaluate his stance.