The Garden on the Verge of Collapse

The moment Semiramis swung his right hand down, the chains behind him suddenly began to sway like snakes.

Perhaps in this Great Holy Grail War, the two of them were the most incompatible.

She would not tolerate an empress who could rival her, nor a rebellious knight who led his nation to destruction. Moreover, for Semiramis, rebels were objects to be punished; but for Mordred, kings were beings who had to be defeated.

Therefore, in a sense, these two people can be considered complete opposites.

"Ughhhh!"

Mordred roared.

Semiramis, however, remained unfazed by her roar, which emanated intense killing intent.

The Empress, seated on her throne, easily met Mordred's roaring charge. Sword and Magecraft clashed in mid-air, and then, in the impact of the explosion, Mordred was sent flying.

Seeing Mordred land in a disheveled state, the Empress, seated on her throne, gazed at her with a radiant smile:

"What's wrong, Saber? Come here, my neck is right here."

"You bastard!"

Faced with Semiramis's provocation, Mordred, whose anger was completely ignited, charged forward, his body almost turning into a blur under the enhancement of [Mana Burst].

With just one strike, if one's sword hits the opponent's body even once, the outcome of the battle can be decided.

But things clearly didn't go as Mordred had hoped—

Faced with the berserk Crimson Lightning, the Empress seemed rather bored and merely moved a finger.

"The Water King (alugal)."

Beautiful fish scales, with a transparent, water-like color, appeared between Mordred and Semiramis. These were the scales of a creature that roamed the oceans of the Age of Gods, and their defensive capabilities were comparable to the shields of the Age of Gods.

At such close range, Mordred could clearly see the mocking smile on her lips. Perhaps, as Semiramis had said earlier, she was treating this battle as mere entertainment.

"You bastard!!!"

Although his anger grew, Mordred had no choice but to halt his attack. The ominous chains behind Semiramis were once again hurtling towards him.

Once the chains that were chasing them were completely severed, a considerable distance had once again been created between the two.

"What, is that all you've got?"

Seeing Mordred looking a little out of breath, the Empress chuckled, "However, I must commend you for being able to move through my poison for so long."

"What--?"

A sense of astonishment filled Mordred's heart. Perhaps it was Semiramis's reminder that brought Mordred back to her senses from her anger, and she realized—

I don't know when it started, but the numbness that gradually spread from my limbs began to erode my nerves.

It was hard to breathe, and even the skin exposed to the air felt like it was on fire.

"Damn it... is it poison?"

Her vision was distorted. As a minimum of resistance, Mordred reflexively pulled out her helmet, which she had put away, and covered her face. Although it only had the power to hide her true name, it was still Noble Phantasm given to her by her mother. Even though it was incomplete, it could barely block the Empress's Magecraft.

"Oh? In that case, things should be able to continue for a while. Very good, very good indeed, a very wise decision. I'll reluctantly give you a compliment."

Semiramis said with a cheerful smile.

"Stop talking nonsense. This environment is all caused by your Magecraft, isn't it?"

"Of course. Who do you think I am? Semiramis, hailed as the oldest poisoner. The Poison of Origin is a universal poison. Although I specially concocted it to deal with you Servant this time, unfortunately, it was all in vain. So, at least I should see you struggling to survive--"

"You really have a twisted sense of humor..."

Mordred stretched his limbs; thankfully, although he was slightly sluggish, it didn't affect his combat ability.

As for those toxins?

Oh--

Mordred believed that as long as he could take down the guy who was poisoning them in a short time, everything would be fine!

"Oh, you haven't given up yet? Honestly, you could have been spared if you had just knelt at my feet."

"Shut up, you old hag! Who would choose that dog-like way of life!"

Mordred, who was already prepared for another attack, curled his lip in disdain.

"Old woman...?!"

Facing the speechless Empress, Mordred mocked loudly, "What, unwilling to admit it?"

Speaking of which, the fact that you've managed to hold out until now without betraying that guy, is it because you've fallen for him? If that's the case, you're really like an old cow eating young grass!

"Old Niu..."

Although her face remained calm, Semiramis's eyes were filled with icy malice. She had made her decision: once she caught this rude woman, she would slowly poison her!

Tsk, now that we've angered this guy, let's see if we can find a weakness!

Mordred raised her greatsword and gazed at the Empress seated on the throne, thinking to herself.

Just then, a message was silently transmitted to Mordred's ear—

[Saber, are you still there?]

"Pooh!"

Mordred, struck by the chains mid-air, fell to the ground, coughing up blood from his face beneath his helmet.

It's not just my body that's suffering; even my vision is starting to blur. If this continues, the longer it drags on, the worse it will become.

Faced with a situation where close-quarters combat proved ineffective, Mordred quickly made a decision—

To achieve our goal, we must pay a price. If we fail, we'll probably die. We have no choice but to fight to the death now. Since we can neither retreat nor stay, we have no choice but to keep moving forward.

If that's the case, then there's only one answer --

Crimson lightning reappeared on Mordred's body, and with the rapid flow of magic, even her paralyzed body seemed to improve somewhat. Gathering strength in her arms, Mordred gritted her teeth and propped herself up, taking the greatsword into her hand, and pulling the helmet that covered her face back into her armor.

Facing the Empress, who held a mocking expression, Mordred, raising her greatsword, resolutely swore an oath:

"I'll use this royal sword to cut you in two!"

The sword Mordred Clarent is named Clarent.

This sword was not originally Mordred was entitled to wield. It was a sword that proved his right to the throne, a sword that only a king was entitled to use.

However, Mordred, who forcibly took the sword from King Arthur's treasury, subdued it with her overwhelming power. But this was not because she wanted a sword suitable for a king, but simply because she wanted to obtain the sword's power.

So she transformed the "King's Sword," which had the best effect as a "catalyst" for amplifying the King's power, into an evil sword of hatred.

Later, on the battlefield at Camlann Hill, Mordred wielded this sword, inflicting a fatal wound on King Arthur at the cost of her own life.

Compared to the legendary King Arthur, a mere ancient empress is nothing special at all!

"' Clarent Blood Arthur (ClarentBlood Arthur)'--!!"

The Crimson Lightning, a symbol of hatred, has arrived as summoned, approaching the throne with devastating destructive power.

Crimson Lightning charged at the countless unfolding scale shields. The scales, known as the hardest, were torn apart like scraps of paper.

Boom!

The unstoppable crimson lightning shattered the Empress's throne with a deafening roar.

We got it!

Upon seeing this, Mordred's lips unconsciously curled into a smile, but the chill that came from behind her the next second made her immediately dismiss the idea.

"--You seem to have made a fatal mistake."

The snickering behind her made Mordred instinctively want to turn around, but chains that suddenly appeared all around her mercilessly bound her limbs.

Immediately afterwards, Semiramis appeared before her eyes.

"You bastard...!"

Upon seeing Semiramis, Mordred understood—

Neither the shield blocking the Empress's path nor the Empress herself were merely decoys to lure him into action. His every move had already been incorporated into her plan.

However, you haven't thought of the other operation yet...

"Why would you think I would stand on the same stage as a knight galloping on the battlefield? How foolish, Saber, you are utterly foolish."

You previously said something like, "Who would choose such a dog-like way of life?" Well then, congratulations, your death this time will be worse than even a dog's.

"Hey..."

Semiramis thought she had uttered the most vicious words, but Mordred's reaction surprised her. Despite being bound hand and foot by chains, Mordred wore a victorious smile.

"You're the one who deserves to die, you old hag!"

"What--?"

The moment a sense of astonishment crept over him, Semiramis sensed something was amiss—

A pale yellow mist had inexplicably begun to fill the room.

This pungent, smoky mist actually...

Poisonous?

As Semiramis instinctively raised her hand to dispel the surrounding mist, a childish voice suddenly reached her ears:

"[Maria the Maria the Ripper]"

Chapter 287. The Courtyard on the Verge of Collapse

"Cough cough, ptooey ptooey ptooey!"

Mordred lay on the ground, taking deep breaths as she tucked her helmet into her armor. The exhaustion from the battle and the spread of poison in her body left her unable to recover for a while.

As soon as Lily arrived in the room, she rushed to Mordred's side and used Magecraft to help Mordred expel the toxins from her body.

Thanks, Caster.

Not long after, Mordred complexion had returned to normal, got up from the ground, thanked Lily beside her, and turned her gaze towards her former opponent, only to find a figure standing in front of Semiramis—

"Ha ha..."

Semiramis gave a strained smile.

Blood gushed from her ripped abdomen. Although the heavy black dress she wore was barely visible even when soaked in blood, the pool of blood spreading across the ground clearly indicated the severity of Semiramis's injuries.

Jack the Ripper's Noble Phantasm embodies the type of legend surrounding her life.

[The Mist] recreates the acidic smog that claimed many lives in 1850s London, creating a fog-like barrier. [Mariathe Maria the Ripper], on the other hand, recreates the murder cases that became synonymous with Jack the Ripper, but this time targeting the victims of the murders.

There are three conditions for activation: the time of day must be night; there must be fog; and the target must be female. Once these three conditions are met, an unavoidable and undefendable curse can be unleashed, tearing apart the target's internal organs.

In addition, the skill [Murderer of the Misty Night] allows Jack the Ripper to unconditionally gain the initiative at night. This series of conditions ultimately led to the current situation.

"It's... really ugly..."

"Do you have any last words?"

"It's just a matter of the victor taking all, what's there to say?"

Seeing Ruler walk up to her, Semiramis's dignity as an empress prevented her from showing any sign of defeat or dejection in front of her enemy.

May God bless you...

Looking at the Empress lying on the ground, Ruler clasped his hands together in prayer for her. Her heart, which served as her Spirit Core, had been torn out of her body, so it was only a matter of time before she was eliminated.

However, Ruler's actions do not seem to have gained the Empress's approval:

"Get out of here, Ruler, you utterly boring saint. You're incredibly dull, only following a predetermined path."

Hearing Semiramis's barbed words, Ruler, who had lowered his arm, sighed and said nothing more. He had more important things to do. He turned his gaze to Wang Xiaoming, who was holding Jack the Ripper beside him.

"Mr. Ming, let's go."

Wang Xiaoming nodded, turned around, and greeted Lily and Mordred.

Watching Wang Xiaoming and the others leave, Semiramis, whose body was already beginning to transform into spirit particles, suddenly had the image of Amakusa Shirou appear in her mind.