Part 76: Boy meets girl (IV) / Replay of the legend

Music: Tender Scenery



No, I'm more worried about her Noble Phantasm.
"I will not be able to maintain my body if I use it."
Saber said that.
That means that Saber will disappear the instant she uses that sword.



"…Can you promise me one thing before we fight?"
"…? Yes, I do not mind if it is something I can do."

"…Okay. Um, I don't want you to use your Noble Phantasm no matter what situation we end up in.
It's a serious matter if we use that on the ground, and I don't want you to disappear even if we can defeat Berserker with it."




"Yes, I understand. I do not intend to use the Noble Phantasm either. I do not think I will be able to defeat Berserker with the amount of magical energy I have, and more importantly, I will not be able to obtain the Holy Grail if I disappear."
Saber declares so.
That makes me happy.

"All right. You're the same as always. I'm relieved that you're so sickeningly calm."


"…Hm. What is that supposed to mean, Shirou?"
"No, it doesn't mean anything. Let's just go outside. Tohsaka will complain at us again if we're late."


"You are right. It seems to be Rin's hobby to complain at you."
…Saying such an ominous thing, Saber heads to the exit.

Then.
Saber's body falls forward as if she tripped on something.
"…!!"
I quickly grab her hand.



Ohnoz, touching hands reminds us of that SEX we had last night!




Saber blushes even more.
…Her figure looks like me from earlier.

"Oh"
I blush too.
Her hand in mine. …I vividly recall Saber's sensations and pull away quickly.



Unable to say anything, we just stand there.

"…L-Let's go outside. We have to go or we won't have much time."


"T-That is right. Let us hurry, Shirou."
We start to go with that forced conversation.

There you have it. All Saber needed to correct that "I am a servant before I am a woman" bullshit was a good, deep dicking.





"Tohsaka. This place is okay, right?"


"…Yeah. It meets several conditions, but I don't know about the view being so open. There aren't any escape routes for you or Saber."

"…Hm."
She's such a perfectionist, considering even the escape routes.


"Let's look for another place. We should have time."
Tohsaka reenters the forest.


"……"
But Saber stares into the distance and doesn't move.





I feel a chill.
I can't forget it, since I felt it once already.
I can't even see him nor feel his presence.
But this pressure on my body must be because of him.

Music: Footsteps of Destruction



A girl's voice echoes through the forest.
Beyond the mist.
From inside the forest far away, something black comes straight for us.

Hold on. I'll be there to kill you soon

…Is it because we're in a clearing under the open sky?
I feel like Ilya is talking to us while looking down from the sky.



This is bad, this place is too open… whoa, how fast are they going!? It won't take them even two minutes to get here…!"
Tohsaka is flustered.



I'm telling you this place is bad! We have to go somewhere else…!"
Tohsaka takes my hand.
But we won't make it.

"This place is fine. Let's fight here, Tohsaka.
We're lucky just to be able to fight with the three of us together, so we can't wish for more."


"Idiot, I'm telling you that's no good…! There's too much space here…! Saber can't stop Berserker by herself, and you'll be in his range no matter how far away you are…!"

"I know you're worried about me, but everyone's in danger now. And besides, there's no escape now, right?"


"Ugh… that's true, but…"

"It's fine with you too, right Saber? We'll take Berserker on here."


Saber nods quietly.


"G-Geez…! Fine. I'll be pissed if you die too easily…!"

She'd only be mad because it would mean her precious Saber would disappear.



Yeah, you found that out last night.

She gets away from the clearing and goes up a tree in the forest.

"They're coming, Saber. Are you ready?"
"…You too. Please do not come any closer than you are now once the fight starts. I will not let Berserker near you, no matter what."

Saber answers in a quiet voice.
…The fog flickers.
From the morning fog…
As if a black darkness is seeping out, the mad warrior appears along with a white girl.




"…Oh, so Saber's recovered. I see, that's why you stopped running.
…That's disappointing. It's cute that you think you can win just because of that, but


Wait, how did you UGH, in my ruins?!


I'm sorry, Shirou's going to die here."

Her laughter echoes through the forest.
Does it irritate her?
Saber, standing beside me, is so worked up that she could attack at any moment.



…Tohsaka must have finished climbing the tree.
If she's going to place herself, it will be near the center of the clearing.
Nobody would notice if she was right where the branches are overlapping, and they should be strong enough to support her as well.


"…I see, so that's how you're acting. Then I guess there's no more point in talking. I'll kill you two and Rin


Hold on. Where's Rin, Shirou?"

Ilya's tone changes.
…I guess that's what you expect from Berserker's Master.
She has a complete understanding of what can be overlooked and what can't be.

"Tohsaka isn't here. She left us behind a long time ago."


"You guys went your separate ways? Oh yeah, you two would just be a burden to her. She should be able to run away faster by herself."

"…That's right. Knowing her, she should be out of the forest by now. You won't make it even if you go after her now."



""
…Thank God.
If Ilya can only sense the boundaries of the forest, she doesn't know about Tohsaka yet.
Actually, she completely believed what I said.


…Ilya is certainly a cold-hearted Master.
But stillcan't that cold-heartedness still be recovered?

SHE IS ABOUT TO MURDER YOU, YOU STUPID FUCK

"…Ilya, I'll ask one more time before we fight.
Won't you stop being a Master and stop this battle?"




"…And besides, I'm the one that should be asking you.
I'm the head of Einzbern, so I won't repeat my words… but I can still listen if you're going to give me a different reply…?"

…She has a little hope in her voice.
But as long as Saber is beside me, I can't nod to her words.

"My answer won't change. I'm Saber's Master.
If you won't stop being a Master, I'll defeat Berserker and make you quit."
I declare so while looking at Ilya and Berserker.

Music: Stop



In that instant.
The air in the clearing freezes.




"…I see. Then I'll really kill you.
I'll disintegrate you and your conceited thoughts, Shirou…!"





A pattern is appearing on her face.
No, it's not just her face.
That thing is all over her bodyit's a huge Command Spell, incomparable to the ones we have.



As if to answer it, the giant behind her roars.







""
A scream that shakes the earth.
The giant screams as if going insaneand its every ability increases as it deforms and swells.

"It can't be. You were just taking his reasoning away? You have not been using his berserker abilities all these times…!?"
Saber's voice is uneasy.
It's only natural for her to feel a shudder.
Even I, unable to tell how strong a warrior is, can sense that it is not to be messed with.

"Go…! Kill anything that nears you, Berserker…!"



"!!"
It's an explosive roar.
It roars out, not even a howl now, and the giant jumps in.

Music: Sword of Promised Victory

















It is the return of legends.

In this forest filled with the morning mist, the two shadows clash without ceasing.
Berserker is just overwhelming.







If his horizontal blow is a whirlwind, his descending blow is a waterfall. If Saber takes such an attack, it would prove fatal even for her.

Saber repels such attacks straight on without faltering.
Against storm-like blows, she deflects them with all her might.

If she doesn't, she will be slashed in half along with her sword.
The infinite blows that continue without pause are in fact a blow diverted with all her might.







The continuous sound of clashing.
Their ranges are different.
Their speeds are different.
Their strengths remaining are too different.

The only thing possible for Saber is to smash her sword into the unavoidable attack and stop it from slashing her by offsetting it with her own blow.







To speak metaphorically, Berserker is a broken rock drill.
The blade spinning in all directions will mercilessly destroy all that approach.
If one reaches out even a little, that's it.
One would get entangled in the blade and be shred into pieces unable even to run away.

…A normal human can't go up against such a thing.
If approaching it is fatal, you can only run away.
But Saber places herself within the blades and does not retreat.

So she will be cut down bit by bit.
The swords make sparks, and it's only natural for her armor to splinter bit by bit.
She is constantly putting herself in fatal situations.



""
I just hold my breath.
In ancient times…
The heroes that went up against dragons must all have been like her.

They know well enough that their strengths are different.
But still, they bet on the chance of a lifetime.

A great violence surpassing human.
They defend until the only opening appearsand many warriors died when no such miracle occurred.
Their fight is just that.
A dazzling battle that takes my eyes away, but…
It has only one end prepared, with it being Saber's defeat as she is hurt more by the second







""
The roar shakes the ground.
Berserker's whirlwind cuts through the wind and flings back the defending Saber.
Saber's armor chips away with every blow, and as she hits the groundshe charges bravely at Berserker without falling to her knees.

She already fell to her knees once in the last day.

…But she's already at her limits.
Saber's breathing wildly, and her movements are slowing down even to my eyes.
She's not even trying to create an opening in Berserker.
Saber will be slashed by him in a few more blows