Holy Grail War

She was one of the two great beauties of Private Toyosaki Academy, hailed as the "High Mountain Flower"—possessing an elegant countenance, ink-black hair cascading like a waterfall, a white headband atop her head, and delicate skin that gave off a strong Literature Girl vibe.

Even so, that didn't change the fact that she was a failed author.

Her light novel Youth Love Travelogue had just been mercilessly axed again after the second volume released!

Editor Machiko Ako's explanation was that her novel lacked the real feeling of true love...

Agony!

Ultimate, universe-shattering, supernova agony!

The light novel she had painstakingly pondered over, meticulously crafted, had died in the womb once more.

How exactly was she supposed to write a love story?

Did she have to go and experience a sweet romance herself?

Utaha scratched her hair in frustration. She wouldn't exactly mind dating someone or anything.

But the boys at school were all a bunch of hormone-driven beasts, offering none of the sense of security she could entrust herself to. She was still a girl with a princess dream, hoping to wait for her own knight.

As for just picking some random guy to date? No way. That kind of thing—no way!

She might as well check Twitter first.

Utaha Kasumigaoka sighed, casually pulled her phone from her bag, and unlocked it.

Then, the moment she entered the Twitter page, her brow furrowed tightly.

Old man on the subway staring at phone.jpg.

What the hell?

Since when did Twitter have ads, and such vulgar ones at that?

Delete!

...Why can't it be deleted?

Utaha Kasumigaoka was a bit bewildered.

Still, the ad was too much of a mood killer, so she chose to watch videos on Niconico.

But what caught her off guard was that even Niconico had this ad.

She'd switch again!

The girl narrowed her eyes. There was no way every single site had this rogue ad.

Ten minutes later...

Utaha Kasumigaoka slumped into her desk chair like Ge You, a salted fish who had lost all dreams, starting to question her life.

She had figured it out now.

Some ridiculously skilled hacker had hacked websites all over the world just to implant a rogue ad.

This had even topped the national trending list.

Bro, you went through all that trouble just for this?

What a waste of talent not to go hack the Pentagon of the Akkameli Nation!

Utaha complained helplessly.

Sure, the websites still worked fine, but that bottom-right corner was really annoying.

She was agonized, as if ten thousand ants were crawling all over her body, hoping the countries would quickly resolve this hacker attack. Otherwise, even opening Fumino River Bunko would show the rogue ad—truly unbearable.

But because of this, Utaha grew a little curious about the hacker's motive.

What if she clicked on the rogue ad?

Utaha Kasumigaoka fell into thought.

There were no private photos on her phone, nor was it an expensive electronic device. Even if it got bricked, it wouldn't be a big deal.

Suddenly, curiosity overpowered reason. The long black-haired beauty clicked on the yellow ad.

First, a landing page named "Observer Net" popped up.

Then, a background dominated by ivory white appeared, with a single video hanging lonely on the site.

"..."

Utaha Kasumigaoka fell silent.

Bro, couldn't you have made the site a bit richer?

But she clicked on the video anyway.

"Fate/stay night... Holy Grail War?!"

The girl muttered the video's name unconsciously, her beautiful eyes showing surprise.

With her extensive knowledge, she instantly translated the video's name.

The video was very short, only two minutes. She first clicked into the description to read, quickly grasping what story this video was telling.

In Fuyuki City, a group of supernaturals summoned dead ancient heroes to fight for them in a battle royale over the Holy Grail, a wish-granting artifact. Observer Net even specifically noted this was a story set in a parallel world.

"The parallel world hypothesis... interesting."

Utaha Kasumigaoka raised an eyebrow, a strange light flickering in her beautiful eyes.

The story format was also novel, on par with the Steel Land she'd seen yesterday.

Then, she put on her pink headphones and clicked play!

"Thump, thump, thump—."

In an instant, a soul-stirring, blood-pumping BGM prelude erupted, frantically stimulating every nerve ending. Exquisitely detailed visuals, real enough to immerse oneself in, appeared, pulling the viewer's soul in like a black hole.

In the blink of an eye, Utaha Kasumigaoka lost her sense of direction, her beautiful eyes staring blankly at the screen.

Accompanied by a young girl's melodious singing, countless brilliant scenes flashed by.

On a towering skyscraper, two ancient heroes clashed fiercely under the moonlight.

"Bellerophon—!!"

The Beauty Snake roared, her pure white neck stained with blood. A fantasy species, the "Pegasus," which should not exist in time, appeared, charging toward the ground like a white comet, the surrounding air compressing and exploding into rolling waves of force.

Under the moonlight, a sharp sword light flashed like an arc, severing the boundary between heaven and earth.

"Secret Sword: Swallow Return!"

–––The ultimate blade was complete, the sword light vanishing in a flash on the moon of the Void.

The dashing Blue-Clad Swordsman, blood trickling from the corner of his mouth, unleashed a slash approaching the Five Great Magics.

"Sword of Promised Victory: Excalibur—!!"

The noble King of Knights roared, the ahoge on her head trembling, the light sword in her hand transforming into a golden torrent that blasted toward the sky.

"Gae Bolg!!"

The hero of Celtic Mythology roared, hurling the magic spear that was sure to hit and kill!

"Damn it, to think I have to get serious dealing with scum like you!!"

The Golden-Haired Man was furious beyond measure. Golden ripples formed across the sky, and countless gleaming swords, blades, axes, halberds, and polearms rained down like a storm, determined to slay the great blasphemer who defied the king.

Utaha Kasumigaoka was immersed in the realistic visuals, completely unaware of the passage of time.

The progress bar quickly passed the halfway point, but when the final, climactic character appeared, the girl's beautiful eyes widened in shock.

As an outstanding student at Private Toyosaki Academy, she had been an exchange student at many schools.

That person... that familiar girl... she had seen her at Sobu High School!

"Shimo Yukino..."

She murmured to herself, somewhat incredulous.

The soul-stirring visuals continued, already reaching their peak!

14. The Ally of Justice Exposed, the Beloved Shimo Yukino!

The Middle East, reduced to ruins, was shrouded in a city of smoke stains that had not been washed away for a long time.

Under the terrible ravages of war, the broken walls and collapsed buildings of several large structures could be seen everywhere. The disaster victims' eyes were dull and numb, a mangy dog with graying temples lying listlessly on the ground. The atmosphere was filled with suffocating oppression.

A woman in a plain headscarf and red clothes silently stared ahead.

As if articulating the scene fixed in her heart, a hoarse female voice followed.

"I also know that valuing others more than oneself is hypocrisy."

The camera slowly panned, and the figure of this Traveler appeared in the refugee camp.

She sat by a white tent, a sad smile blooming on her beautiful face. Dirty children, their smiles innocent, surrounded the Traveler, happily eating the food she pulled from her heavy travel bag.

The atmosphere was oppressive yet filled with hope, like flowers blooming just before dawn.

The plain headscarf wrapped around her hair, making it impossible to read the complex emotions in her eyes.

"Even so... even so..."

The camera slowly zoomed in, magnifying her face. Beneath the weathered, pale hair, her eyes were revealed—as sincere and resolute as flames, full of humanity, a dazzlingly beautiful light of ideals blooming within them.

"The wish for others to find happiness... should be a beautiful thing."

The scene shifted again, as if returning to a past time.

That face grew younger, eyes resolute as she stood at the edge of the Sword Graveyard, blood streaming from her eye sockets, fine beads of sweat sliding down.

Even covered in wounds, she never lost that unyielding stubbornness.

Those who embrace justice never fear the thorns ahead!

The woman standing before her gritted her teeth in fury, as if unable to understand why anyone could be so foolish.

Interwoven with the girl's memories, the dream passed down under the full moon ignited an indomitable conviction.

"BOOM--!!"

Two massive swords descended like divine punishment, rolling up a terrifying pressure wave as they came.

The girl's hair stood on end, blue arcs of electricity flickering in her palms. With a crisp clang, two ancient Noble Phantasms materialized in her hands, instantly deflecting the two Great Swords that sought to pierce her body.

Then, her gaze unwavering and defiant, she charged forward with twin blades in hand, her ideals pouring out along with a hoarse roar!

"This dream is NOT wrong!!!"

Countless Great Swords flew past, hurtling toward the girl, as if even space itself would be torn apart!

The air trembled, the sky split open. The black-and-white twin blades deflected every threat. Amid a deafening, thunderous explosion, the earth was gouged into deep furrows, splashing up great clumps of mud that blanketed several meters.

In the mist, the girl was like a rampaging falcon, her legs a blur of lightning, surpassing everything!

The White-Haired Woman's cold expression shifted slightly, as if struggling to accept it.

But no matter what, under the girl's aggressive assault, the two drew closer and closer.

Twenty meters...

Ten meters...