The Witch's Trap in the Dense Forest

Everyone finally breathed a sigh of relief...

"Ah! I finally found it!" Gabriel exclaimed, this time the girl took out a sword from the cave of light.

"Shouldn't this be in Roland's hands? Why do you have this?" Shirou recognized it at a glance as a top-tier holy sword that was no less powerful than Excalibur.

Gabriel explained:

"Hmm, it seems you know a lot about these things. That's right, this is Durandal. Because there is no real Roland in this world, it's just that the story follows this setting. Some of us who were caught up in this are given various missions by this world."

Roland hasn't received the Holy Sword yet, and my role is to give it to the actress playing Roland so she can pass it on to Emperor Charlemagne or something.

"In the game, this is also the highest-level SSR sword. I've gotten it but haven't even played with it yet."

Gabriel toyed with the Holy Sword and muttered to herself. When she saw Satania beside her, she grinned mischievously, slowly drew Durandal, a sword renowned for its sharpness and sturdiness, pointed it at the red-haired demon girl, and ran towards her.

"Whoa! Gabriel, don't come any closer!" Satania screamed and ran around the house as she realized something was wrong.

"What? Satania, you've been saying you wanted to duel me, right? Now's the perfect time, let's fight!" Gabriel chased after her, and the two wandered around the house.

"Alright! Alright! Stop fooling around!" Vignette pulled Gabriel back, asking in confusion, "By the way, don't you have a convenient skill like Divine Step? Why don't you just send yourself there?"

"I've tried it!" Gabriel said.

"Huh? Then why are you still here?" Vignette asked curiously.

"Divine Step ...and then..." Gabriel turned her head away and muttered softly.

"Huh? What? It was too quiet, I didn't hear you," Vignette asked, puzzled.

"So that's why! My Divine Step failed! And then!" Gabriel shouted furiously, her face flushed red, "My panties are gone! Ahh..."

"..." Everyone in the room fell silent at that moment.

'So... this is why the angels have been staying in their rooms and never going out?'

Gabriel blushed and lowered her head, forcing herself to say, "Anyway, this is up to you. Roland is currently on the front lines fighting the Arabian Empire. You can find out by asking around."

"Oh... oh." Shirou awkwardly took the sword and replied.

"Imam! Imam! What should we do? The angel is going to give the holy sword to the other side?!" the attendant officer exclaimed in alarm.

"Gahhhhh..." Unfortunately, the old lady had already completely fainted, foaming at the mouth. The combination of the treasure bottle and the Doomsday Horn was far too stimulating for her.

"Oh my god! Imam! Imam! Someone come quick! Get a doctor here!" the attendant officer cried out in alarm.

"Yes, yes!!" The guards rushed out in a flurry.

"If you're going to leave, now's the time!" Gabriel whispered to Shirou, looking at the chaotic Arab women.

Shirou nodded, then looked at his three companions and said, "I'll go out for a bit. There's a battle going on outside, so..."

"We know. Be careful, we'll wait for you to come back! It's a promise." Yukino nodded in agreement.

"Okay! It's a promise!" Shirou agreed, then turned and ran outside.

However, what the boy didn't know was that they were on the battlefield at that moment.

The woman, later known as Saint Roland, was reciting sonnets in the style of the Dharma while fighting the enemy.

Her long golden hair was tied into a ponytail and draped behind her, giving her a handsome and dashing air. Her eyes were not light gold or turquoise, but a deep blue like lake water, which was the only difference between her and the Artoria boy remembered.

The woman pierced the throat of the last enemy with her slender sword, then plucked a small white flower from the tree and began to play with the petals for divination.

The woman plucked the first petal with her slender hand, her eyes filled with tenderness as she said:

You like me.

The woman looked at the second petal, frowned slightly, and said:

You don't like me.

When she was about to pluck the third petal, the woman had already calculated that there were still six petals left on the flower, so she simply plucked five of them at once and threw them away.

Then, a satisfied smile appeared on his face as he plucked the last petal and gazed at the sky with affection, saying:

"Oh, Shirou, my little kitty, you really do like me. Are you looking at this sky now, thinking of me too?"

"Achoo~!!!"

At that moment, Shirou, who was wearing an invisibility cloak Projection from the outside of the city and riding his horse towards the other side of the boundless grassland, sneezed loudly.

Chapter 324 The Dense Forest Witch Trap

The boundless grassland, the paths trodden by horses, and the wild plants growing wildly on both sides, some as tall as a person. The azure sky and the emerald green grassland, everything is as beautiful as a painting.

The horse let out a long, joyful neigh and galloped off. Butterflies chased after it, treading on the fragrant flowers. Everything seemed to blend harmoniously with nature, but Shirou had a bad feeling about it.

After the horses galloped through a valley, they arrived at the border of Western Europe and saw an unusual sight: green grass stained with red blood.

One after another, armored corpses lay fallen along the road, telling the boy that this was the cruelest battlefield. Only now, the soldiers were women instead of men.

Unlike later shooting games where a few shots are enough to take someone down, this is the era of cold weapons. If someone's stomach is pierced, their intestines will slide out through the gap.

With a single axe blow, the large and small intestines and pancreas of the person cut in half at the waist are all exposed. When a spiked club strikes the skull, the head caves in and cracks open, spilling out white brain matter. The most common knife and gunshot wounds cause the person to bleed uncontrollably until the moment of death, turning the earth into a red river.

Among these people, there were also those who were like Valkyrie on the battlefield, invincible and unstoppable.

Further afield, at the site of the battle between Charlemagne's French Empire and the Arabian Empire, a Taiga served as the boundary, with a wooden bridge spanning it, secured by thick, long ropes to make it as stable as possible.

However, in reality, people fight and lose their lives every day in the vicinity for control of the bridge.

"Shirou, you've finally come to see me." A Black Shadow, playing with flowers, emerged from the sun-dappled woods and said.

"Huh? Artoria?" Shirou stared at the Black Shadow that emerged, and recognized her as a girl with long, pure golden hair, looking majestic. It felt as if he had returned to his past life, to that time when he appeared in the storeroom under the moonlight, the knight with the golden-haired girl in armor.

"No, something seems off. Who are you?" Shirou asked, puzzled.

"Prince, I am your most loyal knight Roland," the golden-haired female knight said, offering the flowers in her hand to Shirou.

"Eh!?" Shirou exclaimed in surprise.

As Gabriel said, because she is Gabriel, the role she plays is Gabriel. Therefore, Roland, who is synonymous with a holy knight, is similar to Artoria, the queen of knights.

"As expected, her Spirit Origin is Artoria's, but there are some differences." Shirou looked at the blonde, blue-eyed woman, then took the holy sword from his horse and handed it to the blonde girl.

"Roland, this is the holy sword that the Gabriel entrusted me to deliver to you."

"Oh, thank you! Shirou, let's give each other a warm hug to celebrate this important day!" The blonde woman casually took the holy sword, played with it for a moment, then hung it on her belt. She then smiled brightly at Shirou, opened her arms wide in ecstasy, and waited for the boy to fall into her embrace.

"No, there's no need," Shirou waved his hand and took two steps back. It was a familiar face, but the style and personality were completely different, making it hard for him to adapt.

"Hey, sweetheart, didn't you come to see me? Are you shy now? How cute. If you're not coming over, then I'll go over to you." Roland smiled and moved closer to Shirou.

"Stop! Stop!" Shirou shouted at the girl.

The blonde woman said with a pained expression, "Shirou, I've already traveled from Europe to Asia and Asia again for you, making two round Europe. Do you still want to test my sincerity?"

"Huh?"

The blonde woman suddenly grabbed Shirou's hand, her gaze aggressive as she looked at the boy, and said, "You can't be unaware of my feelings for you, can you?"

"No, calm down!" Shirou exclaimed, startled.

"Calm down? You want me to calm down? But how can I calm down in front of you? My feelings for you are as fiery as an erupting volcano. If you still don't believe me, then you can cut open my chest yourself and take my heart out," Roland said excitedly.

"No! No! It doesn't need to go that far!" Shirou exclaimed.

"Hmm..." Roland rested his chin on his hand, staring intently at Shirou.

"Hmm?" Shirou looked at Roland with a puzzled expression.

"Hmph..." The other person looked at Shirou very seriously.

"Um...?" The blonde girl cupped Shirou's face in her hands, moved them to the left and right, and then spoke very seriously:

"Shirou! Your face... definitely looks more handsome from the right side!"

"Give me back the normal Artoria right now!" Shirou said with a helpless, bitter smile, turning his head away.

"Hey! You bastard! Get your hands off Prince Shirou right now!"

At that moment, as if hearing Shirou's prayer, a silver-haired girl rode over.

"Jeanne d'Arc ..." Shirou began.

However, Roland stood up first, blocking the way and shouting, "Ferrau! You're causing trouble again!"

As a warrior from the Arabian Empire, Ferrau, though her true form is the silver-haired Joan of Jeanne d'Arc, is indeed an enemy of Christianity due to her rebellious nature, constantly contradicting the Saintess, hating France, and rejecting Christian doctrine.

"Hahaha! Let's fight, Roland!"

"Ferrau! Don't disturb my time with Shirou!"

"Huh? How could I possibly let you stay with Shirou?" the silver-haired girl shouted angrily, her eyes wide.

"Haa!!!"

The paladin Roland, the Arab warrior Ferrau, and the strangely transformed Artoria and Jeanne d'Arc exploded amidst flames and sword light, their thunderous roar shaking the ground. In an instant, the open space became a disaster zone.

At that moment, Shirou saw a figure on horseback slowly approaching, and the Black Shadow on the horse's back seemed very familiar.

When the horse came in, he realized that it was Xuanzang sitting on it.

The injured Xuanzang brought bad news.

The girl managed to utter one sentence before losing consciousness. "Sita was injured and captured by Charlemagne... Be careful, witch..."

"Hey! Xuanzang!" Shirou caught the black-haired woman who had fallen from her horse, picked her up, and fled towards the back mountain.

At that moment, dozens of eerie ghosts, like spirits without souls, appeared behind them, emitting red light and black smoke. With everyone's help, Shirou finally managed to get rid of them and ran upwards, floating in the air.

"Heretics... kill!"

"The Witch Lord's Enemy... Punishment!"

Black veils concealed their faces as they rode galloping on horseback, enjoying the ride. Their arms were also wrapped in the same black veils, and sharp, Arabic-style scimitars hung at their waists. A single slash across the throat was enough to take the life of their target.

They were like ghosts, yet not ghosts; like assassins, yet not assassins. As Charlemagne's subordinates, Astolfo commanded the famous Black Veil Army, and they were supposed to be responsible for guarding the city where Charlemagne was located.

But now their eyes are empty and lifeless, as if they lack self-awareness. They are an assassination squad dispatched by the witch, and they have been following Xuanzang all the way.

Shirou could only hold Xuanzang and retreat step by step. Unfortunately, the scimitar did not give him a chance.

The clash of steel against steel, the sparks flying between blades, the severed scimitar spinning in the air before finally embedding itself in the earth.

It was Roland, a girl in the body of Artoria. He stepped forward and stood up, blocking Shirou's path.

"Shirou, let me fight for you! No! I want to fight for you! Hahahaha!" Roland drew his holy sword, laughing as he stood in front of the Black Veil Army.

"Roland, but they are your companions, aren't they?"

"Everyone's acting strangely. I'll apologize later. For now, Shirou, you should focus on getting yourself out of here!" Roland shouted.

"I understand!" Shirou lifted Xuanzang onto the horse, then mounted and prepared to escape.

At this moment, more soldiers from the Black Veil Army emerged and surrounded Shirou.

A spinning beam of fire shot towards them, forcing the women of the Black Veil Army to retreat.

"Jeanne d'Arc! Thank you!" Shirou exclaimed gratefully.

"Shirou! Go! And I am Ferrau!" the silver-haired girl shouted, charging towards the Black Veil Army.

"I understand! Thank you!" Shirou kicked the horse sideways and charged quickly into the distance.

"Hmph, so you've come to help too," Roland said, glancing at his mortal enemy.

"Well, consider this a temporary truce!" Jeanne d'Arc said fiercely.

Meanwhile, in Charlemagne's palace, the Dense Forest Witch sat in the courtyard, leisurely sipping wine.

In her opinion, Charlemagne was an incurable fanatic who wanted to forcibly twist the world into a single faith and change the minds of everyone in the world.

When Shirou arrived near the castle

"Shirou, you've finally arrived." The Dense Forest Witch appeared with a smile.

"Dense Forest Witch! What exactly is your purpose?" Shirou asked, frowning.

The witch smiled and waved her hand, saying, "Don't get so excited. Answer my question first: what did you gain after severing your connection with the gods?"

As a truly independent individual for the first time, wasn't he feeling relaxed and wanting to do something?

"The scissors won't sever your connection; it's only a matter of time." The witch handed the scissors to Shirou and said, "I hope Shirou will stay."

"What exactly do you mean? What do you want me to do?" Shirou asked, holding the scissors, puzzled.