She said to Hachiman Hikigaya, who could barely remain standing by leaning against the window:
"Let me borrow your 'Oath of the Swordless' and 'Buli...'"
Hachiman Hikigaya knew that the lives of the Heroic Spirits behind his Noble Phantasm and Craft Essence were utterly incompatible with Mahiro Oyama.
But he said nothing, merely nodded and let Mahiro Oyama press a hand against his shoulder to exchange the items in their inventories.
Both his hands had been completely blown away by "Fantasy Collapse." He could not hand them over himself.
The instant Mahiro Oyama obtained and equipped the Noble Phantasm, her entire body convulsed as though shocked by electricity.
"Ahhh..."
She had no choice but to stop. She simply could not use it.
"Then what about your 'Rationality Evaporates,' Shido?"
Shido Itsuka handed it to her with his remaining left hand and said at the same time:
"Our combat experience and skills aren't even in the same league as Archer's. If Ryuguuin Seiya hadn't held him down from the front earlier, we might not even have gotten the chance to approach him."
"B-but..."
Mahiro Oyama equipped the Noble Phantasm and completely transformed, but this time there was no smile on her face. She merely lowered her head.
"...Is this really how it ends?"
"Sniff... We've come this far. It's not that I want to win... I just can't accept it! I really can't accept it!"
She sobbed as tears dripped onto the ground.
Who could accept this?
Shido Itsuka clenched his remaining left hand into a fist and took a deep breath.
"...I'll go."
"Wait."
Hachiman Hikigaya swept his gaze over the battlefield and looked toward the building opposite them. He had always had a question—had Kazuma Satou really been blown to death?
He did not believe it... Kazuma Satou, who was tougher than a cockroach, had no equal in his grasp of the battlefield, and immediately retreated whenever danger arose, could not possibly have exited so easily.
Clinging to the last shred of hope, he stared fixedly at the battlefield.
Suddenly, Hachiman Hikigaya's pupils contracted. He spotted a sneaky figure, and a smile tugged at his lips.
Though it pulled at his wounds, he continued smiling through the pain and stopped the two of them.
"Since we've made it this far,"
"Then at the very end, let's believe in our—Captain."
--
"Go."
Cú Chulainn's lips moved slightly. He faced forward, but spoke to Kurisu Makise behind him.
Kurisu Makise took a deep breath, preparing to retreat.
A blade flew toward the direction she was about to step back into!
Cú Chulainn shattered it midair with a thrust of his spear.
"Trace..."
Archer stretched out his hand, but could no longer project anything. This battle had lasted too long; even his Master's mana was nearly drained dry.
Could he only wait now?
Suddenly,
A red glow flashed around his body. His wounded body recovered slightly, and a portion of mana appeared out of thin air within his depleted reserves.
Archer lowered his head, closed his eyes, and smiled.
"Nicely done, Rin."
Rin Tohsaka: "Aaaaaaaaaah!!! (Screaming!)(Shouting!)"
Rin Tohsaka: "Archer, you bastard!"
Rin Tohsaka: "Why are you saying my name at a time like this?!"
Archer: "Wasn't I praising you? Your timing with the Command Spell really was excellent. You used it as soon as your mana was exhausted by your Servant. Compared with that wasted first Command Spell, this was textbook-level usage."
Rin Tohsaka: "Get lost! I didn't ask you to speak!"
Archer: "Master... aren't you being a little too harsh on me?"
Rin Tohsaka: "The reputation my Tohsaka Family built up over centuries has completely gone bankrupt because of that one sentence, you know?"
Tokiomi Tohsaka: "..."
Nagato Tohsaka: "..."
Archer: "Is it possible that there was never any reputation to speak of in the first place?"
Rin Tohsaka: "Aaaaaah! I'm so mad!"
Rin Tohsaka: "I'm terminating our contract!"
Tokiomi Tohsaka: "Rin, this red Archer has a sinister personality. Use the remaining two Command Spells to make him kill himself."
Rin Tohsaka: "Yes! Father, it really is nice to still receive guidance from my father in another world!"
Archer: "Hey, don't do it. Seriously, don't."
Archer: "Putting everything else aside, look at me... I'm pretty strong as a Servant, right?"
Gilgamesh: "You only know how to bully children."
Archer: "Fuck, you're the single least qualified person here to say that about me."
Cú Chulainn: "Enough, stop arguing. We're watching the stream. No matter what, I need to see this ending with my own eyes."
--
Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!
The daggers thrown at Kurisu Makise
Were all blocked by Cú Chulainn. His eyes had long since gone completely dim.
The functions of his body had already completely stopped.
He had been dead for a long time.
Forget his vision—he no longer even possessed his five senses.
He blocked those flying blades entirely through the instinct of a hero and a beast.
"Hrunting, Chains of Heaven."
Archer raised his hand and summoned his bow along with a twisted, grotesque black demonic arrow.
"It's time... to say goodbye."
At that moment,
Kurisu Makise watched as points of light gradually began drifting from Cú Chulainn's body. They were the spirit particles that formed him.
"What a pity... I finally met a good woman, only for it to... end like this?"
Cú Chulainn murmured before completely losing consciousness.
He was only forcing himself to keep his body here a little longer, just to block a bit of the explosion's impact.
Hearing that whisper,
Kurisu Makise gripped her staff and suddenly felt utterly powerless. She was unwilling to accept it, yet also wanted to burst into tears.
Suddenly, someone tugged at the hem of her clothes.
A young man in a green cloak materialized.
"Don't cry. Crying makes you look bad."
He smiled.
Kurisu Makise looked at him with hope and asked:
"Is there a way?"
Kazuma Satou looked ahead and held out his hand to her.
"Give me the 'Golden Fleece.'"
"Here."
After Kazuma Satou received it, a selection appeared before him.
Golden Fleece Inspect / Lend / Transfer / Discard
"Transfer."
'Golden Fleece' has been transferred to official operator Kurisu Makise.
He tossed the Golden Fleece back to her, got to his feet, and walked forward alone.
Kurisu Makise did not understand what he intended to do,
Until Kazuma Satou's voice
Came from ahead.
"Do you remember? You said... you bought an Imitation Heroic Spirit Foundation that seemed pretty useless."
"Huh?!"
Kurisu Makise instantly realized what Kazuma Satou wanted her to do.
Kazuma Satou came to Cú Chulainn's side. The other man was covered in fatal wounds.
"Though I'm not too sure, he should be a Heroic Spirit. Perhaps real heroes are like this."
"You?!"
Kurisu Makise immediately understood.
"But I've never used this kind of magecraft before. This... is too difficult."
Kazuma Satou turned around and smiled.
"Believe in yourself! You're far more capable than any of us—a Person of All Trades."
Then, he walked past Cú Chulainn and took out his Kiku Ichimonji Norimune, which had already snapped in half.
Kazuma Satou lowered his head and looked at the broken blade. Raindrops fell onto it, and his youthful face was reflected in its blurred surface.
Was he afraid?
The blade trembled.
"Hahaha."
Kazuma Satou laughed a few times to bolster his courage, spread the broken sword in his hand, and leaned forward.
"The brave and the heroes have already taken their final bow.
Let this insignificant man take the stage for now."
"Hmph, what can you possibly... do?"
Archer fired the fully charged Chains of Heaven toward the two behind him.
In the pitch-black rainy night, the green-clad youth rushed forward, tightly gripping the broken sword in his sweaty palm as he charged toward that arrow of destruction, roaring with all his strength:
"Let this world know that true heroes—NEVER TAKE THEIR FINAL BOW!!!!"
"—!"
Kurisu Makise closed her eyes and forced back her tears. When she opened them again, they shone with resolve.
She gripped Hecate's Staff tightly, holding the Golden Fleece and the Imitation Heroic Spirit Foundation in her palm at the same time.
Before you continue