Chapter 99: The Outsiders' Variation
The Police Department on the main road did not share the same expansive field of vision as Shirou and his companion, but they felt the violent magical fluctuations just as clearly.
"W-What's happening?" several officers shouted in confusion.
John looked in the direction the youth and the girl were facing. What he saw was a tide of Noble Phantasms—dozens of times more numerous than all the Noble Phantasms the Police Department possessed—and a flash of light colliding against it.
The face of the figure who unleashed that swinging strike of light was hidden behind layers upon layers of lethal blades. However, high above the countless weapons, a Heroic Spirit clad in heavy golden armor stood with his arms crossed. His profile was visible to Clan Calatin.
'This intensity...'
Though it was only a glimpse, John immediately felt a crushing physical pressure of fear equal to what he felt facing the Archer Heroic Spirit.
The former target of the Police Department, the strongest King, Gilgamesh—this was the first time John and the others had seen him with their own eyes. Was that swordsman, whose identity they recognized from his flash of light after a brief previous encounter, actually fighting him single-handedly?
The sight of hundreds of Noble Phantasms stacked together was something bordering on myth.
Wanting to see the reaction of the people who had just saved them, John's attention instinctively shifted back to the two beside him. However, they were merely staring at that Heroic Spirit as if looking at a troublesome person they didn't want to meet. Or rather, it was the kind of gaze one reserves for something unpleasant.
"?"
'Is that attitude... normal?'
Noticing the youth's previous action of drawing his bow and his current gaze toward Gilgamesh, Bella was the first to regain her composure. She asked, "Are there two enemies!?"
"Yes, in two opposite directions. One at the church, and one behind the hospital."
"!!"
The Police Department snapped back from the battle between Gilgamesh and Saber. John rushed to the front, hand over his chest, and shouted along with several of his seniors:
"Is there anything we can do? Please, give us orders!"
Shirou gave a faint, wry smile at his pure, untainted goodwill. After thinking for a few seconds, he asked tentatively:
"On the left is a Heroic Spirit called Gilgamesh. On the right seems to be a creature called a Dead Apostle. Can you pick one side to be responsible for?"
In truth, the hope of the Clan Calatin standing against the Gilgamesh on the left was non-existent. However, it wouldn't be bad if they could handle the Dead Apostle on the right. That would allow Shirou to stay with Saber.
"..."
The excitement John felt a moment ago froze on his face the second he heard the targets. Not only him, but the others also had twitching eyes and strange expressions, as if they had heard something fatal in an unexpected place.
"Responsible for" meant they had to resolve the matter on their own, right?
The Clan Calatin could not answer this proposal...
It wasn't that they were unwilling. Primarily, while all of them were capable of overcoming the fear of death, if it came down to the confidence of guaranteeing the mission's success...
To the left was a rain of Noble Phantasms pouring out massive prana like meteors, occasionally illuminated by flashes that seemed capable of incinerating entire armies. To the right, did "Dead Apostle" refer to that kind of Dead Apostle? The undying species that was invulnerable to blades and broke weapons upon impact?
Their hearts were in the right place, but as far as results go, it would be bad if they ended up being a hindrance.
"?"
Shirou: ?
Their reaction left Shirou confused as well.
'I just mentioned it in passing, but your expressions are too strange. Setting aside the King of Heroes, do you have some sort of history with Dead Apostles too?'
By "too," Shirou meant that his own contact with Dead Apostles was minimal. His only experience was standing on the same side as a certain 27 Ancestor and nearly being suppressed by the enemy together—but after Shirou created an environment where that person could freely use the ability called "Principle Blood Fort," that guy practically fought the enemy to a standstill alone, leaving Shirou's companion to finish things off. Regarding that incident Flat mentioned, Shirou felt regretful that he hadn't actually dealt any effective damage to the enemy.
However, using the level of an "Ancestor" nicknamed the "Financial Demon King" as a benchmark for a powerful Dead Apostle... Shirou could clearly see that the Dead Apostle in the distance was exponentially lower in terms of existence. Although the expression on his
face was much more ferocious than the "Financial Demon King," who remained calm regardless of how the situation changed, he was far inferior in both aura and presence.
Despite the bluster, he probably wasn't that strong. He was at a level Shirou felt was quite manageable.
He didn't know if this Dead Apostle belonged to an Ancestor or if that Ancestor would cause trouble later, but at this point, he just had to go for it.
"In that case, I want you to wait directly at the main entrance of the hospital. We will take responsibility for dealing with them.
The Heroic Spirit inside is very dangerous. Others will arrive at your position to support your operation. Just wait a few minutes—we will also come to support you ourselves."
Shirou didn't have the expectation that he could actually command the people before him. However, the woman who should have been their commander did not contest for leadership; instead, she listened silently among the crowd. As for Flat, who hadn't been looked at, he shifted his position to the left, consciously squeezing himself into Shirou's line of sight.
It seemed they really were going to follow Shirou's lead for the time being.
The Heroic Spirit of Death inside the hospital made no move. It was impossible to predict what would happen after entering, but the current situation was too chaotic; the patient girl, Tsubaki, had to be taken away as soon as possible. Otherwise, something could happen to her at any moment, and her presence might even endanger the medical staff and other patients.
As long as Shirou and Saber were absent, Alcides could easily blow up the hospital itself. Therefore, he had to gather the Police Department (representing Caster) and Flat (representing Berserker) at the entrance.
Shirou would go to the battlefield he was heading toward to rescue the Nameless Assassin and Sigma. Once they, representing Assassin and the True Lancer, also arrived, the Tsubaki Kuruoka rescue team would be rock solid.
Finally, he would find a way to rescue Richard and have him join Shirou and the others.
This could be described as incredibly extravagant. Facing a single Heroic Spirit of Death with a lineup consisting of Shirou plus six Heroic Spirits—using power equivalent to an entire Holy Grail War to forcibly break the stalemate.
...In fact, this was the first time Shirou had seen a situation where the Heroic Spirits capable of fighting a Holy Grail War were all standing on one side—his side. If anything, it made one wonder how the opponent could possibly fight.
"...I hope everything goes smoothly."
Thinking about it made his head throb.
In John's observation, after a brief moment of being dazed, Shirou quickly pulled his thoughts back. He and Saber looked together toward the distance where the golden brilliance was blooming. As another pillar of light erupted, he suddenly said to the girl beside him:
"Saber, go do what you want to do."
Saber understood his meaning in an instant.
"This is the only way to save both at the same time. Saber, you have the same plan as I do, right?"
Saber didn't argue; she only shook her head.
"...However, I am breaking my promise."
It seemed there was such a thing. Looking back, when Shirou had just returned home to a chaotic situation, Saber had said angrily, "Next time, we must fight together." Saber, who always took pride in keeping her word, was going to break it this time. Moreover, Saber should have been the one to bring it up, but Shirou had done it in her stead.
"It's already been fulfilled. Saber hasn't broken her promise. You were a huge help in the battle just now. I wouldn't have known what to do without you; I can't keep fighting alone."
As a corner of the horizon flickered like fireworks, Shirou spoke slowly in a half-joking tone. Saber probably couldn't hold back any longer either. Saber, more than anyone, could not stand by and witness a threat to a companion.
"Because I can't fight alone, I'll be hurriedly relying on Saber to face the Heroic Spirit of Death with me later."
"...I understand what you mean, Shirou."
Seemingly realizing she should respect Shirou's proactive consideration, Saber lowered her eyes peacefully. Parting for a moment did not mean losing the other. It was only for a few to a dozen minutes.
Only, she felt the time spent fulfilling the vow of fighting together was a bit too short. Only, she cared far more for his safety out of her sight than she worried about her own battle.
Even so, Saber had the same resolve as Shirou to do what must be done.
In her capacity as a young girl, she lowered her voice and said, "Shirou, see you in a bit."
That was the end of it. Sharing a silent understanding, Shirou and Saber turned their backs to each other at the same time. Immediately, they would turn into silver light and a swift shadow heading in opposite directions.
Before they left, a hand from someone behind reached out as if to pull them back, but it didn't catch Shirou's wrist; it only called out to him. The member of the Police Department Shirou had saved indicated he had one more question.
"That thing from before... was that the Black Mud?" John asked.
The curse that, if swallowed, would dissolve you with a crunching sound. The malice that uses the body as a furnace to char the soul trapped within. Because John had almost been swallowed, he had felt a tiny fraction of it. Malice created by humans, charring souls and dissolving people—it wasn't magecraft, but human nature and the desire to wish others dead.
And so... he also understood that it was something Shirou had fought against before.
"Yes, that was the Black Mud," Shirou answered plainly.
He spoke as if he were already used to it, and as if he didn't think there was anything to be proud of in what had happened before.
Leaving John with a view of their backs, the two vanished simultaneously.
The girl with the golden hair disappeared so fast that John couldn't even see where the silver light went after a single step. The last thing he saw was a slight softness appearing on the girl's cheek for the man who had been beside her just now—before that softness was tucked away deep into her heart.
Her aura switched accordingly.
The Heroic Spirit swordsman, re-arming herself with the title of the King of Knights, raced toward the battlefield where the Lionheart King was.
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