Emiya, You Truly Delight Me

Actually, the Noble Phantasm had been released for less than two seconds.

When Shirou poured his magical energy into it, the Dragon Severing Platform had already slipped free from its scabbard.

The blade radiated a clear joy, as if it had encountered some peerless beauty... no, a peerless partner.

Then Shirou froze, because after pulling it out, he realized this greatsword only had half a blade. Though its concept as a sword was complete and activation wasn't an issue, the half-blade undoubtedly hindered its full power from surging forth.

So that's it... This sword believed he had the ability to make the Noble Phantasm "whole" again?

As the chains of the bronze Ring-Pommel Greatsword automatically coiled around his arm, Shirou quickly grasped the Dragon Severing Platform's intent.

"Alright, I accept! Now, let's deal with everything in front of us first!"

The half-blade released an astonishing pressure—this might be Dragon's Might. The Death Servants, every Death Servant in the entire area, were crushed into fearful, stumbling steps, their attempts to retreat and flee looking utterly ridiculous and laughable.

Then the blade grew hot and bright, like a scorching sun dispelling the dark rain curtain. Shirou Emiya raised his hand and swung the Dragon Severing Platform, sending a sword wind dozens of meters long soaring high. Those unfinished buildings toppled and tumbled like children's building blocks, crashing with a clatter.

The Death Servants' escape route was completely cut off.

Boom—!

The rain curtain surged violently backward, forming towering water pillars.

Within the vast domain, the upward-spiraling water pillars rotated, coalesced, and were imbued with spirit, transforming into snarling Water Dragons—one, two, three, four...!

More information flooded into Shirou's mind from the Dragon Severing Platform, making him vaguely dream of the Age of Gods. A monstrous dragon named Nine Babies could spew water and fire, letting out sharp infant-like shrieks. One cry froze the Northern Di's fierce waters into ice; another cry set the frozen river ablaze...

So this was the mythical fiend that Hou Yi once hunted. So the evil dragon slain by Yu the Great held such power. Shirou realized that the unsealing of the Noble Phantasm's power was turning this vision into reality.

...Seven, eight, nine!

Shirou leaped high, the mythical Water Dragon's Mad Flow dancing fervently around him. All the Death Servants bowed before this breathtaking scene, sensing their fate. Dozens of them clustered tightly around a battered large transport truck, comically guarding it like a last fortress.

The top of the transport container had already been viciously torn open, revealing the largest of the Death Servants—no longer serpentine. It had a pair of membranous wings, dense bone joints, tougher scales, more ferocious claws and fangs, and a bulkier frame. Standing upright, it towered twice as tall as the serpentine Death Servants... So these creatures had hoped their "leader" would rise and soar to defy fate!

Ha—

The howling nine dragons seemed to convey a sneer of disdain. Shirou raised the sword high above his head and brought it down heavily. The nine coiled dragons, poised and ready, descended with the crushing weight of the atmosphere and Dragon's Might, like a falling heavenly threshold!

The tallest, strongest Death Servant flapped its membranous wings in futile defiance, holding out for a second before collapsing to its knees. Then the Mad Flow crashed down with a thunderous impact. The surging waters instantly froze into a river of ice, while simultaneously blazing into fierce flames. Sharp, infant-like wails rang out immediately—whether they were the Death Servants' final pleas or cries of lament in death...

The rain curtain still fell steadily, the burning river of ice winding like a dragon-serpent through the night, dancing wildly in the cold wind.

Cold. Trembling.

"Hey, you awake?"

Hearing someone's voice beside him in a daze, Zhou Yuxuan tensely threw off the hospital blanket and sat up. He saw Old Tang blowing bubble gum while playing StarCraft, looking utterly carefree.

The room around him was unmistakably in the Prosperous Tang style, clearly his home in Xiangyang. The only dissonance was the flashing light effects and intense sounds of battle from the electronic screen in front of Old Tang.

"Ronald Tang, how was the Death Servant attack handled? Did you contact the main family? Oh, and Lord Emiya... Ah!"

Zhou Yuxuan got too excited and pulled at his wounds. Amid the sharp, stabbing pain, he vaguely recalled the scene of Shirou drawing the Dragon Severing Platform and unleashing the Great True Word Technique. Then, overwhelmed by exhaustion, his vision had gone dark and he'd lost consciousness.

"Brother Zhou, I think you'd better lie down. Your family already sent a full squad to handle the scene over there. As for the relic liaison task, it looks like someone else from the Zhou Family is taking over... And hey, we've been through life-and-death together, right? Just call me Old Tang."

Old Tang waved casually, but Zhou Yuxuan didn't relax.

The task personally assigned by the Wa Lord had been botched. Not only had an important guest nearly died, but the family heirloom sword, the Dragon Severing Platform, had been activated without authorization... What awaited him probably wouldn't be a good outcome.

Suddenly, a clear, melodious voice came from outside the door, sweet and laughing—

"Zhou Yuxuan, we've come to see you!"

Hearing that voice, Zhou Yuxuan's eyes went wide. It was the Wa Lord, arriving together with Shirou Emiya!

When she entered, her face was gentle, not stern at all, showing no sign of coming to interrogate him. She seemed completely unconcerned about his major failure in the mission... Wait, no—why was the Wa Lord being carried on Shirou's back!?

"Wa Lord, why have you come? I mean, at least have someone carry a sedan chair when you travel, otherwise the Family Elders..."

Zhou Yuxuan was so shocked he stumbled over his words.

"A sedan chair? Oh, you mean that annoyingly troublesome eight-person sedan! That's just for show for the old fossils in the family. They're not here anyway. If I had to use that thing everywhere, wouldn't it be a pain? Sigh! What era is it now? Can't they just get me a sports car to cruise around in..."

As the head of the Zhou Family, the Wa Lord naturally couldn't go anywhere casually—she had to maintain appearances. According to the feudal-minded old-timers who'd lived for centuries, the family head had to ride in a sedan chair. Sigh.

"This..."

"Alright, alright, don't be so serious, kid. I've already covered up your 'mission failure,' so don't go blabbing about such trivial matters to the old geezers like an ungrateful wretch."

The Wa Lord rolled her eyes.

Her current demeanor was nothing like the cold expression she'd worn when assigning the task in the great hall. Instead, she looked like a playful, delicate porcelain doll with a fine face... as long as you didn't look below her waist.

The Wa Lord rested her chin on her folded hands, leaning against Shirou's shoulder. Her long, serpentine lower body coiled around Shirou's waist, her tail wagging playfully, leaving him with a face full of dark lines.

—That slippery texture reminded Shirou of his recent close encounter with the serpentine Death Servants, making him slightly uncomfortable.

Come to think of it, he'd only chatted with the Wa Lord online for a while before, but for some reason, when they met in person, her goodwill toward him was a bit too high. Was it because he'd activated the Dragon Severing Platform to save Zhou Yuxuan? Or because he'd had a lively discussion with her about cultivation topics last time?