I, Ritsuka, Siscon Grand Hero

Archer Emiya Shirou.

This is exactly like the scene when the Crystal Dice first appeared and started flickering!

Another person is responding to her…

Sakura looked at Ritsuka, whose gaze was firm and had finally returned to a state very close to how it was before. Her pale face flushed slightly. "Even if… the path ahead is hell?"

Ritsuka nodded firmly. "Ah… even if it's hell, I have to go through it now."

Gently touching her chest, Sakura took a breath. As if a dying ember flared up, her spirit and energy suddenly became clear.

Her gaze landed on the Archer card in Ritsuka's hand, and Sakura slowly spoke.

"Senpai, that card is a Class Card, but it doesn't hold the power of a Heroic Spirit. It's a fake card Enzō gave me to deceive me."

"No, that's not it. I'm not doubting Senpai's strength, it's just… Senpai will be facing a very troublesome enemy this time."

"The strongest Heroic Spirit—Gilgamesh, the King of Heroes."

In Sakura's understanding, that Archer Heroic Spirit was undoubtedly the strongest. Having fought Ritsuka with an Assassin card, Gilgamesh was the only opponent Sakura worried about for Ritsuka.

He was the biggest enemy in this Holy Grail War!

However, before Sakura could even explain to Ritsuka how powerful the King of Heroes was, her expression suddenly changed.

!!

As if glass suddenly shattered, the suggestion and illusion Magecraft Sakura had cast on herself suddenly failed, and the magic power within her was completely depleted in that instant.

A hole appeared in her chest, and Ritsuka could even see through the hole to what was behind.

"Sakura?!"

Ritsuka got up and quickly moved past the kotatsu to embrace Sakura. The strange feeling that had been stimulating their Clairvoyance was dispelled at that moment.

Blood gushed from her mouth and chest, and Sakura collapsed into Ritsuka's arms.

Although the battle with the doll Matou Shinji had ultimately ended in an overwhelming victory with Sakura's outburst, Sakura had been injured by Shinji before that.

Just before dying, Shinji had activated his Noble Phantasm, the Assassin's Noble Phantasm.

A C-rank anti-person Noble Phantasm, Delusional Heartbeat!

A terrifying Noble Phantasm that uses a mutated demonic arm to inflict a 'curse' on the enemy and then destroy their heart within a certain range.

Sakura, who used illusions, was backlashed by her own illusions. Having used an excessive amount of magic power at once, her magic circuits and magic crest were almost completely paralyzed temporarily, and she hadn't noticed her own crisis.

Even Ritsuka only felt something was wrong. They had been using Magecraft given by Kirei Kotomine to suppress the pain from the Hydra poison within their body.

That Magecraft also had the side effect of causing hallucinations.

Chapter 35 Chapter Thirty-four: I've Liked You For Many Years

The heavy snowfall had gradually stopped. Fuyuki City under the snowy night was incredibly quiet, as if everyone had fallen asleep.

Starlight spilled into the corner of the room. Ritsuka's gaze was low, their mind in turmoil, countless thoughts surging and then dissipating. The hallucinations grew stronger.

Holding the girl in their arms whose breathing was gradually weakening, tears welled up in their eyes. The Magecraft that had been suppressing the painful spot quietly shattered.

The torment that tortured their body and soul instantly appeared on them, even more exaggerated than when they first used Immortality.

This pain was constantly increasing and might only stop when it reached a certain limit.

[Immortality until it is transferred to Prometheus]

Chiron gave Immortality to Alcides, allowing himself to die and no longer endure the pain of the Hydra poison.

Therefore, the limit of Immortality and pain was the period Chiron endured the torment. After that, Immortality would disappear, and the pain from the Hydra poison would also leave with the Noble Phantasm.

In the meantime, it would only get more painful.

Looking up through the window at the clouds moving away, revealing the stars in the sky, Ritsuka looked down at the ground by the starlight. The mottled bloodstains were incredibly conspicuous on the floor.

Gently holding Sakura, Ritsuka noticed many small wounds on her body, clearly indicating she had gone through a difficult battle.

"—Sakura."

"Senpai… don't cry…"

Sakura's face was filled with a gentle smile, but her eyes seemed to be sinking deeper. She rubbed her cheek against Ritsuka's chest, like a large, clingy cat.

Lying on her side in Ritsuka's arms, Sakura looked at the familiar ceiling, her eyes filled with unavoidable regret.

She still had so many things she hadn't done, so many words she hadn't said to Senpai…

"...Senpai... I suddenly feel like this is actually quite nice..."

Lying in Ritsuka's arms, being held tightly by the person she liked.

Miyu's heart suddenly felt a little happy. Things she had never even dared to imagine before could now be done without restraint, as if she was the one gaining more.

"Sakura, I've realized you're not just a little bit silly."

Ritsuka forced a smile, one that looked even worse than a bitter smile, causing Sakura to let out a soft laugh, like a beautiful flower suddenly blooming.

Sakura's injuries were beyond treatment.

Her chest was pierced, her internal organs completely shattered. For a human being, this level of injury was undoubtedly fatal.

Ritsuka had no way to help Sakura recover, and Sakura herself didn't have much magical power left.

If she had enough magical power and had noticed her injuries in time, Sakura could have saved herself.

The Magic Crest, something that could be used to suppress fatal wounds and was in some ways more important than inheriting Magecraft, was now powerless to turn the tide.

In the world of Type-Moon, the existence of magus is distinct from humanity, and the Magic Crest reflects this. It is the solidified mystery that a magus has cultivated over their lifetime, the complete accumulation of a magical family's power.

In other words, it's an heirloom.

Sometimes, to keep the holder alive, the Magic Crest would even transform the holder, separating them from the human category and making them immune to conventional forms of death.

Zouken Matou, a great magus who had lived for hundreds of years, had also left contingencies within his Magic Crest, but they were now ineffective.

This was because, not long ago, Sakura had pushed all her magical power to its limit to deal with Matou Shinji.

Her Magic Circuits ached, her nerve-like Magic Circuits completely overdrawn. Even if external magical power were to be input into Sakura now, she would suffer from the backlash of her Magic Circuits, risking immediate death.

Ritsuka had experienced this feeling before; at that time, Miyu had healed her with miraculous power.

For magi, blood was equivalent to life force. The significant blood loss had depleted Sakura's life force, and this was no longer something that simple magical power could repair.

With her magical power overdrawn and the backlash from her Magic Crest, Sakura's most skilled Butterfly Magic (Illusion) had turned against her. This was also why she had attacked Ritsuka. Of course, she had reacted and stopped herself just in time before she made contact.

But Ritsuka had successfully captured that genuine killing intent and counterattacked.

Lacking sufficient combat experience, Ritsuka could only fight based on skills related to combat experience and gradually developing bodily reactions. It was nearly impossible to make Ritsuka stop in time, especially since she hadn't sensed anything unusual when Sakura attacked.

Ritsuka suddenly felt an emptiness in her heart, a sensation of a large chunk being hollowed out. The last time this happened was when Kiritsugu died and Miyu was captured by Julian.

"So, Sakura is this important to me."

Looking at Sakura, who was slumped against her chest as if she might fall asleep at any moment, Ritsuka spoke from the heart.

A junior a year younger than her, a kouhai who admired her... In the context of just being 'Emiya Ritsuka,' she was someone with whom she could let down all her guard and be herself.

Perhaps, she might even be someone she liked...

"Senpai, it hurts... My whole body hurts so much..."

Her fingers pale, clutching Ritsuka's clothes tightly, Sakura's pained expression almost shattered Ritsuka's emotions.

Tears welled up and streamed down her beautiful face, drop by drop.

Under the starlight, each tear shimmered with an unusual radiance, crystal clear and as beautiful as a jewel, falling onto Sakura's cheeks.

A scene flashed through Ritsuka's mind, and she whispered with a trembling voice, "Pain, pain, fly away—"

"Pfft... Senpai, you're so childish..."

Sakura gave a very, very sweet smile.

"Senpai, I suddenly feel so cold... And, why can't I... see anymore..."

Sakura's voice made Ritsuka instinctively hold her tighter. A warm sensation flowed from her chest; there was no doubt it was Sakura's blood, life draining away in her arms.

She gripped Sakura's hand with her left. Sakura's slender, soft fingers were losing their warmth.

"It's okay, Sakura. You just need to rest a little. I promise... I'll be by your side when you wake up."

The words, barely forced from her throat, caused Ritsuka's body to tremble. She now possessed enough strength to confront Enzō and had prepared for separation from everything familiar in the future, because from the very beginning, she had been ready to die.

This was a 'journey until the very end.'

Although the entire process, the entire situation, had exceeded her expectations.

"Oh, right... Senpai, this..."

Sakura's eyes were filled with a deathly stillness. Her fingers gently grasped something, blood dripping continuously onto it.

It was the Void. Sakura had used her last bit of magical power to retrieve something she always carried with her.

The small panda plush toy, stained with blood, looked somewhat strange at this moment, even to the point of frightening a child. Sakura gently hugged the toy.

"This... is a gift from you when we became friends... Now... it's returning to its owner..."

The toy was thrust into Ritsuka's arms, then fell to the ground.

Sakura chuckled softly, her eyes gradually closing. She wrapped her arms around Ritsuka's back, using her last bit of strength to give Ritsuka a hug.

Ritsuka froze. The presence in her arms suddenly became incredibly weak, as if it would vanish completely at any moment.

"Sakura...! Don't go...!"

"Senpai, I actually don't want to be friends with you..."

Sakura's voice grew fainter and fainter, becoming inaudible. However, her exceptionally sharp eyesight still allowed Ritsuka to clearly see every subtle movement of Sakura's lips.

I don't want to be friends with you... I've liked you for many years...

Chapter 36: Chapter Thirty-Five: Nuclear Peace Ryudōji Temple

The vast starry sky, dotted with countless stars, saw a streak of meteor silently streak across the expanse. If someone were awake and happened to see it, they could make a wish, and perhaps it would truly come true.

Miyu and Ritsuka being biological sisters was something that happened later, under a meteor.

Sitting in their familiar spot, the Kiritsugu and Ritsuka of the past were replaced by the current Ritsuka and Miyu, watching the stars together.

As a meteor streaked across the sky, Miyu made a wish to become true sisters with Ritsuka, and heaven granted her wish. Her crimson eyes turned orange.

So, perhaps shooting stars really can grant people's wishes.

On that final night, watching the river of stars, Ritsuka still couldn't understand what Kiritsugu was thinking.

All she knew was that Kiritsugu trusted her and had chosen her decision. Even if only to live up to Kiritsugu, she had to do everything she could to find Miyu.

Ritsuka wasn't a hero. When faced with a choice between family and the world, there wasn't much room to maneuver.

If she had the ability, of course she would save both...

Treading on the thin layer of snow, Ritsuka walked on the road back to the Emiya residence.

It had taken nearly a full day to bury the already deceased Sakura. Ritsuka sat for a long time at the spot where Kiritsugu Emiya was buried before she could finally return to the Emiya residence.

With no lingering attachments, her existence was gradually collapsing, and her time was running out.

Immortality could maintain her body from falling apart, but her existence would eventually burn out. She likely didn't have more than a week.

Furthermore, limited by the speed of internal replacement, the closer she got to collapse, the more Ritsuka's power would approach the things within the Crystal Dice.

That is, she would grow closer and closer to the power of the true Berserker, Alcides, and the Archer, Emiya Shirou.

If she could manage her time well, overturning the Holy Grail War wouldn't be too difficult.

The only problem might be that hero Gilgamesh, the King of Heroes, whom Sakura hadn't had time to mention.

The oldest of humanity, the King of Heroes.

Although his status wasn't as famous in various mythologies as Heracles, one could still understand his terrifying strength through the myths.

Given the unknown circumstances, Enzō definitely had a trump card.