Ryunosuke's chest was caved in from the kick, blood continuously pouring from his mouth.
Yet he still let out intermittent, manic laughter, as if the pain itself was the art he desired most.
Asuka did not strike again.
He grabbed Ryunosuke by the collar with one hand, lifted him up, and hung him on a suspicious iron hook by the wall.
"Since you love watching colors bloom so much, you can take your time admiring your own."
Blood dripped down his legs, pooling on the floor.
Without bandages, he would soon bleed to death.
Sumire Kamado struggled to her feet, watching the scene with a pale face.
A flash of pity crossed her eyes, but she did not stop Asuka.
"...Will he die?" she asked, her voice soft and trembling.
"Yes," Asuka replied curtly. "But not quickly. He will slowly bleed dry in agony."
"I am his retribution."
Sumire bit her lip.
She was no saint, and she agreed that Ryunosuke deserved to die, but not like this.
She hesitated before speaking. "I... I understand why you did it. He killed so many people, so many innocent children..."
"But is this... really okay? Maybe we should call the police and let the law handle him?"
Asuka shook his head. "The law is for humans, not for evil demons."
He looked at the complex emotion in Sumire's eyes and remembered that strong yet gentle boy. "You're just like Tanjiro, always thinking of others. But this kind of scum can no longer be considered human."
Sumire remained silent for a long time.
"...I understand," she finally said, her voice soft but firm. "Then let's hurry up and leave. We can't stay here. The police will come... and we won't be able to explain this."
Asuka nodded. He knew that the rules of the modern world were different from the ones he was used to.
He looked down at Sumire, noticing the Command Spell on the back of her hand glowing faintly with heat.
The knowledge in his mind told him that it was the proof of the connection between him and Sumire.
Faint, but real.
"Let's go."
He stepped toward the exit but suddenly stopped.
The knowledge instilled in his mind by the Third Magic surfaced once more: a Servant's [Materialization] required the consumption of their Master's magical energy.
If the Master lacked sufficient magical energy, the Servant had to exist in a [Spiritual Body] state.
It was an intangible, invisible state that allowed them to move around their Master without draining magical energy.
Asuka tried to focus his mind, sensing the faint magical energy within Sumire's body.
'This is far too weak... And I can feel it, this magical energy is actually my spiritual power... I wonder how she accidentally stumbled upon such a diluted power...'
In the next instant, his body began to turn transparent before completely disappearing.
Only a faint wisp of black mist remained, floating in the air.
Sumire jumped in surprise. "Where... where did you go?"
"I'm still here," Asuka's voice echoed near her ear, though he lacked a physical form. "Materializing drains your magical energy, and since you have so little, I can't maintain a physical body indefinitely. In my spiritual form, I can guide you out."
Sumire froze for a moment, then nodded.
She knew Asuka was right.
Or rather, she completely failed to understand what had happened today.
What was magical energy? What was a spiritual body? She had no clue.
She took a deep breath, adjusting her breathing rhythm to keep her body alert.
"Alright... let's go."
Asuka's spiritual form floated ahead of her like a dark shadow, guiding the way. "This way. The stairs are on the left."
She carefully bypassed the corpses on the ground, her footsteps so light they were almost completely silent.
The exit to the basement was a rusted iron door. She pushed it open with all her might, and a damp, cold wind rushed against her face.
It seemed the outside was an abandoned sewer. The walls were covered in moss, and shallow puddles pooled on the ground.
Asuka's spiritual body floated ahead like a cloud of black mist, occasionally condensing into the shape of a hand to continue pointing her in the right direction.
Sumire followed him and soon spotted an iron grate ahead.
Beyond the grate lay the streets of Fuyuki City, illuminated by dim streetlights, with the occasional car driving by.
"Thank you... Mr. Ghost," she whispered.
The black mist gathered beside her, faintly revealing Asuka's silhouette. "There's no need. You are my... Master. It's what I should do."
"Besides, we have a lot to talk about."
Sumire offered a small smile. Clutching the still-bleeding back of her hand, she fled into the Fuyuki City night with Asuka in his spiritual form.
Meanwhile, on the outskirts of Fuyuki City.
An ancient church stood tall in the night, its cross gleaming coldly under the moonlight.
Beneath the church lay a secret chamber, and in the center of the room sat a massive crystal ball.
It was a surveillance device connected to the Greater Grail.
The overseer, Risei Kotomine, stood before the crystal ball with his arms crossed, his gaze calm and profound.
He was the overseer of this Holy Grail War, responsible for ensuring the fairness and order of the ritual.
Suddenly, the crystal ball let out a low hum.
Risei's expression shifted slightly as he reached out to touch its surface.
Ripples spread across the sphere, revealing lines of ancient runes.
"The seat of Caster... has been activated."
The Caster class typically corresponded to Heroic Spirits who specialized in magecraft. The summoning conditions were strict, requiring a specific sacred relic.
Risei's brow furrowed deeper.
But now, Caster's seat had been activated, yet no Caster Saint Graph had descended.
This meant the summoning ritual had failed.
In its place was an unusually violent surge of magical energy, burning with the flames of vengeance.
"Avenger..." Risei muttered the word under his breath.
Avenger, the avenger.
The eighth class, which should not exist within the seven-class system required for the war. It would only appear when the Holy Grail was abnormally distorted.
Furthermore, this presence... was not a true Servant.
"A Pseudo-Servant..." Risei Kotomine's gaze sharpened. "Not summoned from the Throne of Heroes, but an otherworldly soul forcefully dragged in... The Holy Grail... has made an error."
He pondered why this had happened and what to do next.
Suddenly, the crystal ball trembled again.
This time, it was the seat of Berserker.
Risei's pupils contracted slightly. "This... how can this also be a Pseudo-Servant?!"
The presence was chaotic, carrying a maddening desire for destruction. It was undoubtedly the aura of a berserker, yet it was forcefully suppressed by some kind of shackle.
"Two Pseudo-Servants..." he murmured in disbelief. "This war has derailed from the very beginning."
The underground workshop of the Matou family.
Candlelight flickered in the dark, damp stone chamber.
Zouken Matou, the millennium-old worm, stood hunched before the magic circle, a near-insane smile plastered across his face.
On the altar before him lay a fragment of black clothing.
In the center of the magic circle, a figure slowly materialized.
Zouken Matou's mouth stretched into a wide grin reaching his ears, his voice hoarse and fanatical. "It's done... It's done!"
"What magus... what Magic... In front of him, all magecraft is a joke! I have reached the Root!"
"Watch closely, Kariya! This is the trump card I have prepared for you!"
He turned to look at the pale-faced Kariya Matou standing to the side. He was his son, and the true Master responsible for providing the magical energy supply.
"We are guaranteed to win this war!"
It was a man wearing a black kimono and a white haori, with a bone mask covering his face.
He exuded a violent surge of magical energy. Just standing there, he felt like a tsunami capable of annihilating Fuyuki City.
Kariya looked at the figure in silence, a flash of awe passing through his eyes.
Beneath Berserker's bone mask, a pair of crimson eyes slowly opened.