Below this floor, Kischur Zelretch and Kiritsugu Emiya had also begun their clash.
Supporting two Servants in full combat was still manageable for Kiritsugu Emiya.
But if he also had to activate the Magecraft Crest of the Emiya family... then Kiritsugu's mana was beginning to run short.
Through their contract, he had Artoria stop releasing her Noble Phantasm. Feeling the Mage Circuits throughout his body ease considerably, Kiritsugu immediately pulled a specially modified Submachine Gun from his suitcase.
Then he darted out from behind the corner and, without even looking down the hallway, held down the trigger and emptied the entire magazine.
To destroy the workshop above, I still need to plant bombs in at least five locations... Arthur wants to use her Noble Phantasm. It seems the situation upstairs isn't looking good either...
He calmly assessed the situation in his mind. Ignoring Kischur Zelretch, who had effortlessly blocked his barrage with a Mystic Code, Kiritsugu ducked back behind the corner once more. He gave Kischur Zelretch no chance to retaliate. After retreating into cover, he discarded the Submachine Gun and began moving rapidly again.
Origin Bullets and Hotel Demolition...
If the Servant battle in the Magic Workshop upstairs was like a reenactment of a battle between heroes from the Age of Gods,
then the battle below was nothing more than a game of hide-and-seek.
Kiritsugu gave Kischur Zelretch no opportunity to intercept him. He would leave the instant he struck.
He constantly moved through the hotel's complex layout, avoiding a direct confrontation with Kischur Zelretch while planting demolition bombs according to the original plan.
The two encountered each other again.
Without the slightest hesitation, Kiritsugu drew his gun and fired again.
The Mercury Wall rose, blocking his line of sight once more.
Just as before, while Mage's Will automatically deployed its defenses and transformed into a Mercury Wall to block the incoming bullets, Kiritsugu, who had launched the attack, vanished from before Kischur Zelretch once again.
Kischur Zelretch naturally found this cat-and-mouse game utterly detestable.
Yet he had absolutely no way to stop the incredibly slippery Kiritsugu.
He could only watch helplessly as Kiritsugu darted about like an agile loach.
"Come out! Come out, Kiritsugu Emiya! Come out and face me..."
Impotent rage.
This was all Kischur Zelretch could do right now...
It couldn't be helped. Kischur Zelretch at least understood some modern common sense. After all, he was not an ignorant fool like Tokiomi Tohsaka.
He knew that walls could not be torn down carelessly and that many magecraft spells could not be used indiscriminately indoors.
In this complex high-rise environment, Kischur Zelretch did not want to recklessly cause the building to collapse and turn the workshop he and Marisbury had arranged together into ruins. In the end, he could only search for Kiritsugu again with his hands tied.
However, Kischur Zelretch did not know that Kiritsugu's ultimate goal was to tear down the Magic Workshop he and Marisbury had built.
Unfortunately, there were no ifs.
By the time Kischur Zelretch encountered Kiritsugu again, standing there with a cigarette between his lips as though waiting for him, Kiritsugu had already finished planting every bomb.
A cruel expression appeared on Kischur Zelretch's face, and his right hand unconsciously pressed against his chest.
Though he did not know why Kiritsugu was no longer running this time, the fact that he had stopped fleeing was undoubtedly excellent news for Kischur Zelretch.
"So, the rat in the gutter has finally stopped running?"
Kiritsugu could not be bothered to waste words on Kischur Zelretch. He knew they were people from entirely different worlds. There was no need for communication between them.
Thus, as Kischur Zelretch approached Kiritsugu step by step with an excited, cruel expression, Kiritsugu directly took out a detonator and openly displayed it before him.
"Stop. This floor is now filled with bombs I planted. The moment I press this, the entire floor and the Magic Workshop above will be blown sky-high."
Kischur Zelretch stopped. His expression shifted unpredictably, and the killing intent in his eyes intensified.
But unless absolutely necessary, he truly did not want the Magic Workshop he and Marisbury had created to be blown into the sky by Kiritsugu.
After all, building a Magic Workshop cost a great deal of money. The Mana Furnace above alone, which provided mana for the workshop, was worth several million dollars.
A few million dollars might have meant nothing to Sakura, who freely squandered the Matou Family's centuries of accumulated wealth—after all, it was easy to spend someone else's inheritance without feeling the pain... But Kischur Zelretch and Marisbury, who had to support a whole group of people, would not treat money as casually as Sakura did.
"Hmph... What are you after?"
"Iris... Give Irisviel back to me, and I will withdraw immediately."
"Withdraw? Do you even understand what you're saying? After causing such a disturbance here, you think you can simply retreat? As for the woman named Irisviel you mentioned, I have already given her to someone else!
Put down that detonator and duel me. If you survive... perhaps I will mercifully allow you and your Servant to leave!"
Kiritsugu quietly listened to Kischur Zelretch's words. From beginning to end, he did not even blink, his face expressionless throughout. After Kischur Zelretch finished speaking,
he pressed the detonator in his hand without any warning.
Rescuing Irisviel had naturally been Kiritsugu's primary objective in coming here...
But after learning that Kischur Zelretch had given Irisviel to someone else, Kiritsugu's first objective had been declared a failure. Naturally, he changed his target.
As the bombs planted long ago began detonating in sequence,
at the instant Kischur Zelretch was caught off guard, never expecting Kiritsugu to actually do this... a handgun specially modified by Kiritsugu to fire special bullets appeared in his hand.
Bang.
Gunpowder propelled the specially made bullet... Mage's Will automatically deployed its defenses...
At that moment, as if he had recalled something, Kischur Zelretch clutched his chest and collapsed to the ground with a thud.
Kiritsugu frowned tightly as he watched Kischur Zelretch lying on the ground as though unconscious.
Knowing that this entire floor would be completely blown apart by a second round of explosions within dozens of seconds, Kiritsugu had no time to think further.
He then pulled another Submachine Gun from his suitcase and opened fire fiercely at the floor beneath his feet.
With a trace of doubt in his eyes, Kiritsugu gave Kischur Zelretch, who seemed unconscious, one final glance. Then he leaped through the shattered floor to the level below while issuing a retreat order to his Servants through their contract.
Arthur, Leonidas, cover me...
"Maiya, detonate the bombs immediately."
After issuing the separate orders through magecraft contracts and his earpiece,
at the very instant Kiritsugu walked out of the Matou Grand Hotel,
the historic hotel, which had witnessed Fuyuki City's many trials and tribulations, came crashing down amid a series of explosions...
For most people in Fuyuki City, this was a sleepless night. It was a night of sorrow.
Before making his move, Kiritsugu had indeed evacuated nearly all ordinary people by setting the district ablaze with incendiary bombs.
However, amid the chaos, many people were still burned or trampled. At the same time, Kiritsugu's "terrorist attack" dealt a devastating blow to Fuyuki City's entire economy.
After all, that had been the most prosperous central street...
Yet for Sakura, who woke up the next day and saw everything in the news, this was good news...
With a little foresight and a little planning,
the Matou Family, who had long purchased massive insurance policies for properties throughout Fuyuki City, had made an absolute killing this time.
In Fuyuki City's wealthy district, not far from the former Matou Grand Hotel,
Kischur Zelretch, one of the two Clock Tower Lords temporarily staying in a house there through magecraft, pressed his chest with lingering fear. His hand covered the spot where Kiritsugu's special bullet had struck him the night before.
And beneath his torn coat... a black bulletproof vest was clearly visible...
An Unwelcome Guest Invaded the Matou Family...
Inside the Laboratory beneath the Matou Residence.
Sakura held the unconscious Irisviel in her arms like a doll and watched the video before her with great interest. When she saw the amusing scene in the footage, her left hand immediately became restless and gave Irisviel a squeeze.
"He actually wore a bulletproof vest... Tsk, tsk. I wonder whether the prodigy Kischur Zelretch will die of embarrassment if I send this video to the Clock Tower..."
Orochimaru, who had been summoned by Sakura for nearly half a year, had long grown accustomed to her occasional strange and malicious sense of humor.
Besides... compared to Sakura, Irisviel was far more attractive to Orochimaru.
An almost perfect artificial body... This was one of Orochimaru's pursuits for many years.
Obtain her... As long as I obtain this body, the innate Immortal Mode... will no longer be beyond reach.
Unfortunately, Sakura had just firmly rejected Orochimaru's proposal. She had no intention of handing Irisviel over to him.
At first, Sakura had indeed considered following Solomon's suggestion and giving Irisviel to Orochimaru in exchange for an Orobouhime capable of magecraft.
But... after spending the night hugging the sweet-smelling Irisviel, Sakura had changed her mind.
Orobouhime might smell nice too... but she absolutely could not compare to... the Winter Saintess!
Yes, the reason Sakura had changed her mind was not because she could not bear to part with nine-year-old married woman Irisviel. It was because she had thought of a better use for her.
If Irisviel could carry the consciousness of the Winter Saintess remaining in the Great Holy Grail... and complete it,
then... could she gain a Third Magic User?
Even if that magus might be somewhat lacking...
This was not Sakura letting her imagination run wild. Orochimaru's soul-transfer technique combined with Zouken Matou's transfer technique... theoretically, it was possible.
"Orochimaru..."
"Sakura..."
"Stop staring at Irisviel like that. It makes you look like a pervert."
Orochimaru licked his lips, his eyes still fixed on Irisviel with the gaze of an infatuated creep. Hearing Sakura's words, he carelessly shrugged.
"Hehe... Am I not one in the eyes of the world?"
"Mmm... In the eyes of those who don't know the truth, you're only a little strange at most..."
"If that is your praise, Sakura, then I will reluctantly accept it..."
"Fine, nice sense of humor... But Orochimaru, I still won't give Irisviel to you... However..."
"However what?" For the first time since beginning his conversation with Sakura, Orochimaru shifted his gaze away from Irisviel and looked at Sakura.
"However... before long, I can provide you with a body similar to Irisviel's. It may even be possible to give you the complete methods used to create Irisviel!"
As someone Sakura had summoned, Orochimaru truly could not betray her.
But... that did not mean Orochimaru was Sakura's slave. Although he could not betray her or ignore her orders, he could still slack off or obey outwardly while defying her inwardly. He could even hold back during critical battles and let Sakura experience a little humiliation.
Thus, Sakura, who had never made plans concerning Einzbern before, now found it practically inevitable that she would act against Einzbern if she wanted Orochimaru to continue serving her wholeheartedly in the future.
Sakura glanced at the "system" Panel only she could see, at the 3,700 units of Destiny Points displayed on it.
Then Sakura leaned against the unconscious Irisviel once more.
Orochimaru was no stranger to Einzbern. During his nearly half-year of life here, he had naturally learned most of the intelligence Sakura knew as well.
So after hearing Sakura's words, Orochimaru immediately nodded in satisfaction.
"But let me make this clear first. Illya... I won't give her to you."
"I have no interest in her."
"Is that so?"
"Based on what you said before, Sakura, that artificial little brat named Illya is obviously an inferior product with Mage Circuits haphazardly piled together... Her lifespan is very short, isn't it... Sakura?"
"Her lifespan... Just as expected of you, Orochimaru... All right, let's stop here for now. Please put Irisviel away temporarily. A nasty guest has arrived at the door, and I will probably have to deal with this unwelcome visitor first."
"Do you need support, Sakura?"
"Decide for yourself..."
With that, Sakura waved her Magic Wand and activated Teleportation, directly transforming into a cloud of black mist and swiftly flying out of the Laboratory...
In the Matou Family's courtyard.
The traps jointly arranged by Sakura, Orochimaru, and Zouken Matou had all activated.
A vast number of dazzling magecraft spells, "magic," and ninja traps had transformed the entire courtyard into a forbidden zone where humans could scarcely survive.
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