The Broken Ring

Tsukahara Meiji held up the gold-forged ring in both hands. Empowered by magecraft within the mystic realm, it gave off a soft, delicate sheen, as though it were the genuine article guarded by the dragon Fafnir in the Age of Gods.

Following the Japanese Magus's shout, the magical energy flowing through his body surged and washed over his chest, stirring his blood. The pain of mana racing through him made it hard to breathe, while this battle's excessive deviation from the plan made it hard to think. He could only rely on sheer willpower to force himself through this task.

The defining trait of the Saber Servant class was powerful direct combat ability. If the Ring of the Nibelungen was used as the Holy Relic, the most likely summon would be the dragon-slaying hero Siegfried, or Fafnir, the great dragon guarding the treasure.

The dragon-slaying hero who wielded the holy sword Balmung would undoubtedly appear as a Saber, possessing excellent magic resistance and combat strength. Even if Tsukahara Meiji was not an outstanding Master, there was no reason for Saber to lose to Assassin in a frontal battle.

If he summoned Fafnir—she carried the fearsome reputation of a magical beast and was clearly unsuitable for any class other than Berserker... If Berserker lost to Assassin in a direct fight, there would be no need to continue the Holy Grail War. They might as well hand the Grail to Assassin.

Tsukahara Meiji firmly believed that as long as he completed the Heroic Spirit summoning, everything would change.

Even he was surprised. Faced with a matter of life and death, he did not feel much panic. His body was indeed trembling uncontrollably, and his voice quivered with fear, but his brain was still working, seriously analyzing the win rate.

Likewise, he did not erupt with the endless passion and unwavering conviction of a Japanese manga protagonist.

At this moment, there was only calm in his heart.

Carl used her body as a shield, standing behind Tsukahara Meiji. The young Magus had no fear that his friend would abandon him.

A warrior dies for one who understands her.

Without Carl, Tsukahara Meiji would still be a destitute Magus performing on the streets of Japan.

For this debt of gratitude, she would not hesitate to give her life.

Facing Assassin's fireball, Carl focused. The azure radiance on her silver bracers instantly shifted into indigo-purple, and her fierce straight punch cleaved toward the fireball!

Fist and flame collided... no, that was not a fist, but a sharp axe. Around Carl's fist seemed to be an invisible cone-shaped barrier, keeping Assassin's immature flames at bay.

This was a Mystic Code designed specifically against magecraft. Carl had once used it to tear apart the magecraft of many Magi. To push the Winsted Family's inherited Reinforcement Magecraft to its limits, it naturally had to be paired with martial arts and magic resistance.

Assassin might have been a Heroic Spirit, but unfortunately, he was ultimately not skilled in magecraft.

Though the surging flames came violently, they still could not breach the anti-magecraft barrier painstakingly created by a professional Magus. As the flames dispersed, Carl had not yet managed to confirm Assassin's location when a piercing agony suddenly shot through her left ribs! This was no figure of speech—it truly felt like her heart had been drilled through!

The black-clad Ninja had somehow already reached Carl's back. A short-handled katana—the weapon known as a ninja blade—stabbed backward through her ribs! Its silver blade was like the fang of a venomous rattlesnake, seizing a momentary opening in its enemy's defense to launch a fatal assault!

Carl knew something was wrong. Enduring the pain, she kicked backward with her left leg. Assassin unusually did not retreat. He drove up his knee, and Carl felt as though she had kicked a hard steel plate; there was no sensation of flesh and blood at all. With a burst of force, Assassin knocked Carl's backward kick away!

Taking advantage of that motion, Carl spun around in short, quick steps and threw another straight punch behind her! Yet halfway through the elbow strike, all the strength in her body suddenly vanished as though swallowed by the sea, and every breath was drained from her!

What she had failed to notice was... the gleaming ninja blade was oozing dark green blood.

Human blood was red. Naturally.

There was only one circumstance in which it could be green—poisoning.

And poison was precisely one of the most common weapons used by Ninja during assassination missions.

The instantly effective paralytic poison had, upon the Ninja's summoning as a Heroic Spirit, been elevated into part of his abilities. The swift and lethal toxin nearly instantly sealed Carl's body.

Blood was no longer flowing from her wound.

That was because the snake venom's rapid spread had caused her blood flow to congeal.

Perhaps in no more than twenty minutes, her blood would completely coagulate into a pudding-like solid?

Humans depended on blood to carry oxygen to every part of the body. If the blood congealed into a mass, death would swiftly follow.

She did not know whether she should be grateful that this poison worked best when ingested. Because it had been introduced into her body through a blade coated in venom, Carl had not died immediately.

But because of that, she had now lost the ability to resist, barely clinging to life as she waited for death to arrive...

"One eliminated."

Like a killing machine, the black-clad Ninja spoke in a cold voice.

His steel-like body swiftly turned toward Tsukahara Meiji.

"Activate! Royal Flush!"

Tsukahara Meiji's words were faster than the Ninja.

He temporarily interrupted the chant for the Heroic Spirit summoning and shouted a poker term.

At some point, translucent Crystal Playing Cards on the lawn beside Tsukahara Meiji had burst forth with magnificent radiance like exploding gunpowder!

Scorching heat erupted, instantly transforming into a blazing sea of fire. Blinding white illuminated the sky and earth, while the green grass was instantly stripped of its moisture and turned withered yellow, releasing a foul smell... The flowing flames were like flaming spears erupting from the earth's depths, instantly cutting off Assassin from Tsukahara Meiji!

Though its range was small, this was magecraft comparable to a C+ ranked Noble Phantasm attack.

The price was one-tenth of Tsukahara Meiji's trump cards: five Crystal Playing Cards.

Against an Assassin renowned for agility, Tsukahara Meiji did not believe Carl could intercept him, though he felt terribly sorry for her...

A Heroic Spirit's pride would make him attack without hesitation. He would bypass Carl and launch an attack from behind her, targeting Tsukahara Meiji... That was the most advantageous approach. Once he summoned a Heroic Spirit, the battle would instantly be rewritten.

Thus, while preparing his chant, Tsukahara Meiji had set a trap.

If he knew the enemy's target, it would be easy to determine where he would land. He believed Assassin's agility would lead him past Carl's defense and behind her, where he would attack Tsukahara Meiji.

A Royal Flush referred to the five playing cards from the Ten to the Ace of Hearts, the highest hand in gambling. It was also the strongest offensive magecraft Tsukahara Meiji could assemble. None of those cards alone possessed the power to turn the tide. But when they worked together to form a hand, the weak cards would unite into the strongest combination allowed by the rules.

Trump cards were meant to be used when necessary!

Using flame magecraft as the foundation, Reinforcement Magecraft amplified the flames' power, wind magecraft spread the fire, water-repelling magecraft reshaped the terrain into one suited for flame attacks, and finally, the initial flame magecraft served as the trigger for another explosive surge of magical energy... Five different types of magecraft from five cards activated simultaneously, stacking layer upon layer until they created an effect where one plus one was greater than two.

What was more, Tsukahara Meiji still had the magical energy Carl had transferred into him. It was almost equivalent to two people using this trump card together, naturally raising its power another level.

This was Tsukahara Meiji's unique method of battle, which he called a card hand. It was a core view once advocated by Lord El-Melloi II: a Magus's worth should be judged by mastery in the use of magecraft, rather than family lineage. Incidentally, Lord El-Melloi II had never mentioned this view again after the Fourth Holy Grail War ended.

The weak had their own way of fighting.

Faced with this vast, chaotic magical energy, even Assassin instinctively sensed that something was wrong. Without magic resistance, his physical strength was already limited. If he took this attack head-on, even if it did not kill him, it would strip him of several layers of skin... Dodging would be easy... but such a perfect opportunity would be wasted...

Worthy of being a Ninja Heroic Spirit, he made his decision instantly. With a tap of his left foot, he lightly leaped backward, while simultaneously twisting forward and launching a spinning kick with his right leg. His body possessed the two opposing qualities of "leaning forward" and "rapidly retreating backward" at once! He forcibly managed to launch an attack before the magecraft fully activated!

Its target was Tsukahara Meiji's neck! The most vulnerable part of the human spine!

Tsukahara Meiji jumped in fright. He instinctively drew in his neck and dodged to the side, but in his panic, his shoulder tilted straight into Assassin's kick!

Tsukahara Meiji felt as though the bones in his shoulder had all been shattered. No, it was probably not just a feeling. He did not possess as much Reinforcement Magecraft as Carl. His bones were pulverized in an instant! Flesh and blood splattered everywhere, bone fragments shooting out like hidden weapons. The hand holding the ring instantly lost its grip, and the agonizing pain made him release it involuntarily! The golden ring traced a slow, graceful arc through the air...

Clang!

A cross-shaped throwing star flew from the retreating Ninja's hand, piercing precisely through the center of the ring and pinning it to a tree. The throwing star was wrapped in the Servant's powerful magical energy. Nearly equivalent to an E-rank Noble Phantasm, it naturally outperformed ordinary alchemical products.

With a crisp sound, the golden ring snapped apart. Two gleaming golden semicircles lost their color in midair.

As though hope itself had fallen.