The Future (Volume One Ends)

Impact

Everything was mixed together and drawn into the vortex, surrounded by chaos. After the sword's edge, the sky, sea, and earth reappeared, the former myriad phenomena were meaningless, and a new order was formed.

The Black Mud screamed silently, struggled, and was then swept into the rift called "Destruction".

The scene before them, resembling the most hellish place, left everyone present stunned, except for Wang Xiaoming—

"Medea, hurry!"

The anxious urging brought the crowd, who had been lost in the radiance of the golden Heroic Spirit, back to their senses.

Without needing many words, Medea beside him understood immediately and vanished from her spot in a flash.

The others, however, turned their attention to Wang Xiaoming.

The answer to the question was given in the next second.

A chilling malice began to emanate from the [hole] in the sky.

Immediately following, Black Mud, filled with one of the curses of "all evils in the world," possessing the destructive power to burn away all life, cascaded down like a waterfall, directly beneath which stood the main hall of Ryuudou Temple!

Everyone present understood the "power" of this Black Mud; if the two children were to come into contact with it...

Fortunately, in the blink of an eye, the purple robe reappeared in the arena, and compared to before, she was now surrounded by a purple cocoon of light.

Within the Magecraft woven cocoon of light, the two sleeping children breathed steadily.

Seeing this, Wang Xiaoming finally breathed a sigh of relief, a feeling that had been hanging in the balance throughout.

The moment Medea emerged from the main hall with her two children, a torrent of Black Mud, like a waterfall, poured down from the dome of the main hall and gathered there, as if accumulating power to break through the dam that "bound" her at any moment.

If the Black Mud is allowed to continue washing over the area, it won't be long before Black Mud overflows from the main hall's gate.

"Then I'll leave it to you."

Turning his gaze to the weathered-looking man beside him, Wang Xiaoming solemnly made his request.

"Master--"

At the same time, Saber's gaze also fell upon them.

The man nodded, and the master and servant, who had never understood each other before, finally reached a tacit understanding at this moment.

Emiya Kiritsugu, flashing the Command Spell on his wrist, commanded his Servant:

"In the name of the second Command Spell, Saber, destroy the hole in the sky."

"Yes, Master!"

Since the start of the Holy Grail War, Saber has never so wholeheartedly agreed with her Master's decisions.

The Holy Sword in his hand was raised high, and the light symbolizing victory shone brighter than ever before.

"Excalibur!!"

The swung Golden Sword swept away the darkness in the sky with its overwhelming firepower.

Under the radiance of the Holy Sword, the 'hole' in the sky, from which Black Mud continuously overflowed, split the entire sky in two.

Before the dazzling light had completely faded, Emiya Kiritsugu used the last Command Spell on the back of his hand:

"In the name of the final Command Spell, Saber, destroy all the Black Mud!"

He drew out the remaining magic power within his body and wove it into the light of destruction.

--This is the final strike.

The dazzling beam of light, like a wild horse, swept across half of Ryuudou Temple and plunged directly into the "mud pond" filled with Black Mud.

The instant the light touched the Black Mud, a sharp, terrifying sound emanated from Black Mud. Or perhaps the sound didn't come from the Black Mud at all, but from the countless cursed souls within Black Mud, howling in despair, unwilling to be destroyed, unwilling to fail, unwilling to give up.

But it was all in vain. The hole was about to close, and the Lesser Grail was no more. The Black Mud was powerless to resist. The power unleashed by the roaring torrent of light as it evaporated the Black Mud shocked the entire Fuyuki.

As the first rays of dawn pierced through the clouds, dispelling the darkness of this small town in the far east, they also dispelled the gloom in everyone's hearts.

--Let this end my battle.

Saber put down the Holy Sword in her hand and thought to herself.

"Ah, it's over. I'm really not quite done yet."

A rough voice suddenly came from behind, attracting Saber's attention.

"Oh, Saber, that was great!"

Upon noticing Saber's gaze, Rider gave her a thumbs-up. Lancer, standing nearby, smiled and echoed her gesture.

Where is Archer?

After smiling and nodding to them, Saber glanced around and noticed that a golden figure seemed to be missing from the crowd.

"Goldie, I haven't seen him since he broke free from 'that thing'."

Rider scratched his head, seemingly unaware of Archer's presence.

"Is that so? Then let's just ignore him."

Ultimately, Saber was just asking casually.

Achoo!

On the other side of Mount Enzo, a golden-haired Heroic Spirit suddenly sneezed.

"Is Saber missing the King? Or is she captivated by the King previous heroic demeanor?"

After rubbing his nose, Archer suddenly laughed.

"If I had known... um?"

The laughter didn't last long before the golden-haired Servant noticed the strange change happening to him.

"This is..."

Saber was somewhat surprised to see the golden, shimmering light emanating from Rider.

"Time's up..."

"Not just Rider," said Lancer, who was emanating the same light from his body.

Since Rider and Lancer were Heroic Spirit resummoned by the Lesser Grail after their defeat, they naturally could no longer remain in the mortal world after the Lesser Grail disappeared and they lost their "summoning vessel".

"Well then, goodbye."

Watching the two figures disappear into the distance, Saber chuckled softly. She decided to leave the remaining time to their Master.

--As for myself

Feeling the remaining magical energy within her, Saber hesitated whether to greet Kiritsugu, but upon seeing his vacant eyes, she involuntarily stopped in her tracks.

What are you hesitating about?

A familiar voice came from behind her. Saber turned around and found Wang Xiaoming and Caster standing behind her, smiling at her.

"It's like this..."

After listening to Saber's concerns, Wang Xiaoming smiled and said:

"Don't let his appearance fool you. If you leave without saying goodbye, Mr. Emiya will definitely be heartbroken. After all, he's a comrade-in-arms who fought alongside you."

"Is that so? Thank you so much."

After listening to Wang Xiaoming's explanation, Saber probably had her own answer. She nodded her thanks to the two of them and then turned to walk towards Emiya Kiritsugu.

Watching Saber's retreating figure, Wang Xiaoming smiled and shook his head, then turned around, preparing to say something to Medea.

However, they saw specks of light emanating from Medea, a sign that the Servant was about to disappear from this world.

Chapter 137. The Future (End of Volume One)

The faint glow emanating from Medea was exceptionally noticeable in the night.

Seemingly well aware of her own situation, Medea showed no surprise upon witnessing this scene.

"It still doesn't work..."

With a slightly helpless, bitter smile, Medea lifted her hood, and the night breeze lifted Medea long hair, revealing her elfin face and a somewhat bitter expression.

She wanted to stay, hoping to live with the man in front of her.

This was Medea's only thought.

But that's something I'd rather die than do.

--During the Holy Grail War, a large portion of the magical energy that Servant to maintain their presence in the world is provided by the Greater Grail, while the Master only needs to be responsible for commanding and acting as a "coordinate".

However, once the Holy Grail War ends and the Greater Grail enters a dormant state to regenerate its magical energy, the Master will have to bear the burden of all the magical energy consumed by the Servant in the mortal realm.

And this kind of consumption... it might drain Wang Xiaoming dry in an instant.

Ultimately, it's because Wang Xiaoming, as the Master, is simply too weak.

"Feel sorry..."

Looking at Medea, who was emitting faint lights, and understanding the situation as well, Wang Xiaoming helplessly lowered his head. At the same time, a feeling of resentment welled up from his heart and spread throughout his body.

--If only I could be a little stronger.

"It's not your fault."

His lover's tender words whispered in his ear. Then, Wang Xiaoming felt a warm body suddenly snuggle into his arms.

Suddenly, Wang Xiaoming felt as if time itself, except for the two of them, had been frozen by True Magic. The only remaining flow of time intersected between the two of them.

It seems that only the warmth of each other's bodies is all that can be felt in this world.

Time seemed to have frozen, yet it also felt like it had only lasted a moment.

The heartbeat pounded like a drum, but Wang Xiaoming couldn't tell whose heart was beating, nor did he want to.

Seemingly because of her bold move, Medea lifted her head from Wang Xiaoming's embrace and smiled shyly.

Then, in the next instant, her lips were sealed shut.

A warm, slightly sweet, yet inexplicably melancholic touch; their lips seemed to melt together.

Their lips met, their lovemaking intense.

Moment--

Lips parting.

Looking up at Wang Xiaoming's lingering gaze, Medea's figure gradually faded as she reached out to caress her lover's cheek.

"Then the next step will depend on Anada's efforts."

"Certainly!"

Suppressing the myriad emotions in his heart, Wang Xiaoming looked at Medea in his arms, took a deep breath, and said in a low voice:

"Wait for me in the future."

Upon hearing Wang Xiaoming's confident answer, Medea was slightly taken aback, but the surprise in her eyes was quickly replaced by affection:

"Okay, sure."

As the gentle voice blew by, a cool breeze that heralded the dawn, the purple figure slowly dissipated into Wang Xiaoming's arms, like a dream.

"Oh, right..."

Just before parting, a message from Medea left Wang Xiaoming stunned.

Although there was no light in the pitch-black space, the scene inside was still clearly visible.

In this endless space, a purple figure is turning the pages of the book in front of her.

Seemingly having seen something interesting, the sound of turning pages suddenly stopped, and the finger paused on a certain spot on the page.

After a moment, she shook her head with amusement, closed the book, and said nothing more. Only the slight curve of her lips, hidden beneath the hood, betrayed her feelings.

"The future...?"