Out of the Blue (Second Update) / The Final Stretch

"Command Spell! Come here--"

As Heartless chanted, a dazzling golden light suddenly shone beside him. The light was so bright that for a moment, everyone was unable to discern what was happening in the arena.

However, everyone could feel a powerful magical force suddenly rising in the carriage.

"I'm getting impatient, Master."

After the light faded, the woman who appeared beside Heartless said this to him.

There should be a second update this afternoon.

(By the way, today's goal is to secure a top-two finish and potentially even a top-three finish.)

Chapter 370. Unexpected Events (Second Update)

"I'm getting impatient, Master."

Upon hearing the woman beside him say that, Heartless gave an embarrassed smile.

"Haha, because chatting with this [Lord] was so much fun, I completely lost track of time."

"That's such a boring and perverse sense of humor of yours."

The woman scoffed at her Master's carefree, grinning attitude.

"... Hephaestion".

Looking at the woman who had suddenly appeared beside Heartless, the Lord El-Melloi II Prince whispered the name she had given him.

"Oh?"

The female warrior turned her attention to the Lord El-Melloi II Prince, following the sound.

"Looks like you've escaped with your life."

"Thanks to a friend, I'm perfectly healthy, which is really disappointing."

"Tsk!"

Having shifted her gaze from the Servant, the Lord El-Melloi II once again focused her attention on her Master.

Actually, I've been thinking about you—

"Oh? What is it?"

Heartless blinked with interest, captivated by what the Lord El-Melloi II Prince had said.

Why did you invite me here?

As he spoke, the Lord El-Melloi II took an envelope from his breast pocket. It was the invitation he had found in the safe in his room earlier.

"The reason why they'd risk exposing themselves to lure me to Rail Zeppelin [Rail Zeppelin] by leaving an invitation in the safe..."

The Lord El-Melloi II, gazing at Heartless, spoke in a low voice:

"It's probably to mislead the [Holy Grail System] into thinking there's a subspecies of the Holy Grail here."

"Oh my~"

Upon hearing this, Heartless raised an eyebrow slightly.

"Indeed, you created a subspecies of the Holy Grail. Even if wishes cannot be granted, it still guarantees the ability to summon Servant. On this basis, you summoned me to the train to further enhance security. With me, who was recognized as Master in the Fourth Holy Grail War, there is a higher possibility that the Holy Grail will misunderstand. Then, to prevent me from becoming Master, you even forged Command Spell."

The Lord El-Melloi II pointed to the Command Spell Seal engraved on Heartless's hand—now missing a stroke—and said.

"Then, believing everything was ready, you disguised yourself as Caules and boarded the train. On the first night, you summoned your Servant."

With that, your plan has come to a successful conclusion.

"Wow, that's amazing! You got it all right!"

A round of applause suddenly erupted in the carriage, Heartless slowly nodded.

"The method that took me about a year to come up with was completely cracked by you in such a short time. It's really a blow to me."

"I was just checking the answers; there's nothing to praise about it."

Despite Heartless's praise, the Lord El-Melloi II remained frowning.

"Having already received so many hints, nothing I do can compare to the achievements of the discoverer or inventor. Besides, if it weren't for [that incident], I might have been caught off guard by you back then."

But you probably didn't expect, and couldn't possibly have expected—"

The Lord El-Melloi II's brief pause whetted the appetites of everyone in the carriage.

"Besides me, there is another Master on this train who participated in the Holy Grail War."

"Ah, that's right."

Heartless's expression gradually turned bitter.

Ever since that [unplanned] Servant was summoned, although his plans continued, he always felt a little more apprehensive.

Fortunately, the other party did not come out to disturb them.

But now it seems...

"Saber's Master, you are one of them, aren't you?"

Heartless shifted his gaze to the young man in the corner.

It's incredible that a young man of such a young age participated in the Fourth Holy Grail War ten years ago and survived.

"..."

The Lord El-Melloi II Shirou in the corner, his expression slightly dazed. This child, once acknowledged by the King of Conquerors as someone destined for greatness, had grown into a man. (Note 1)

"Yes, it's me."

Shirou had already become the center of attention, arrived at the center of the carriage, followed by a girl with short blonde hair.

"Then I think this person should be..."

Heartless smiled as he looked at Mordred following behind Shirou.

"Shut up!"

Mordred cut Heartless off abruptly, fixing his gaze on the woman beside him.

"Let's settle the score from last time as well."

"This is going to be difficult."

With a troubled expression, Heartless looked at the crowd before him.

The two Servant beside me are currently locked in a standoff. This is unavoidable; with both sides possessing equal combat power, not making any rash moves is actually the best option.

As for Heartless, his initial thought was simply to leave this place. However, given the current situation, if he didn't reveal something, he probably wouldn't be able to leave safely.

"You don't seem to be in a hurry?"

Looking at the red-haired man who still maintained a gentle smile on his face, the Lord El-Melloi II prince had a vague sense of unease.

"This is unavoidable. If this continues, it will become a hindrance to me, so I'll try to resist."

"Resistance?"

"Yes, like this."

Heartless gently covered his left chest with his hand.

[Turn, my heart!]

It was a melody that sounded like singing.

The next second--

Something has been reversed.

The intense sense of disorientation, as if the whole world had been turned upside down, suddenly made everyone in the carriage feel nauseous.

Then, something appeared ahead, in the direction the train was traveling.

"What... did you do?"

"Although I am not of the imaginary number attribute, I can still do something similar. As the price for this heart."

Heartless said calmly.

Heartless, also known as Heartless, is said to have gotten his name from a fairy who stole his heart.

It now appears that after stealing his heart, the fairy left him with another privilege in exchange.

"Is that [Forest of Einnashe's son]?"

As the immense magical power continued to spread ahead, the group finally recognized its source.

"Although I don't quite understand why the train was able to escape the entanglement of [Forest of Einnashe's son] before, even if the child is not as good as the original, it would be too shameful for such a great mysterious figure to simply leave the stage."

"You bastard..."

Having already guessed what the other party had done, the Second Lord El-Melloi II couldn't help but let out an angry groan.

"I secretly retrieved the core of [Forest of Einnashe's Son] and sealed it in my imaginary pocket. Then I just released it in the direction the train was heading."

As he spoke, a loud, strange noise came from the front of the train.

Looking out the train window, everyone could clearly see the tentacle-like branches constantly approaching from the front of the track.

"The newly formed [Child of Forest of Einnashe] requires a vast amount of magical power. So, what is the source of the most abundant magical power in this vicinity?"

Seeing Heartless's meaningful smile, everyone present couldn't help but swallow hard.

Is that even a question?

Rail Zeppelin [Rail Zeppelin], already entangled in tree branches, is being relentlessly devoured by the [Son of Forest of Einnashe]!

There's not much plot left in this volume; it should be finished in about two chapters.

I can finally give out candy! ()

Chapter 371. Nearing the End

Boom!!!

Feeling the tremors emanating from the train's roof, the Magecraft still gathered at the P.andaemonium, apart from a few of the individuals involved, felt their emotions were on the verge of collapse.

At a time like this, why do you still have time to fight?!

And this was also what Heartless was thinking at that moment.

"Hmm..."

Heartless, perched atop the train, frowned as he watched the scene unfold before him; his earlier confident demeanor had vanished completely.

According to his original plan, he had summoned the [Son of Forest of Einnashe], which had completely occupied the train tracks. The [Rail Zeppelin], having lost its escape route, had absolutely no way to resist the invasion of this great and mysterious figure.

Unless... Saber helps.

In fact, Heartless never dared to underestimate Saber, who was outside his plans.

Although the other party's name is still unknown, Heartless, who has conducted a detailed investigation into the Holy Grail War, understands that Servant summoned as [Saber] is a hero capable of taking on a hundred enemies single-handedly.

If the strongest trump card possessed by this still-unknown Saber—her [Forest of Einnashe Noble Phantasm]—could directly eliminate [Einnashe's Son], then perhaps this train could escape this calamity.

But--

"Hey, hey, hey, you're way too weak!!"

Mordred's lips curled into a rather arrogant smile as she looked at the Servant was using a weapon to block the demonic sword in her hand.

"You bastard..."

Feeling the intense impact emanating from the weapon in her own hand, the female servant who called herself "Hephaestion" glared at the blonde girl Servant.