──The train opened its eyelids.
It was a sight that could only be described as such. A giant eye appeared at the front of the Rail Zeppelin, which was supposed to seem normal on the outside, even if the inside was strange.
No, it was Mystic Eyes.
The Mystic Eyes that were inserted were the Noble Colour of “Flame.”
Emitting a power a hundred times greater than that of the Mystic Eyes, the mystery emitted from the giant eyes burned away the branches of the ice tree as far as one could see.
When compared to the "Flame" Mystic Eye that Yvette used in that ice and snow forest, it was clear that it surpassed that by an order of magnitude. Both its terrifying firepower and range exceed Yvette's counterfeit magic eye, which should be comparable to the Noble Color, by a ridiculous margin. It is like fireworks and missiles. This rail zeppelin possessed such immense mystery that it is foolish to even compare them.
Another anomaly, then, was happening on the rooftop.
“Ah… Ah…”
A low moan spilt out in front of me.
Even I couldn't believe it. It seemed as if Faker's magical eye - the Noble Color of "compulsion" - had once again overpowered us. However, I had been ready this time and I broke free as fast as I could.
“This, is,”
Karabo shook his head as well from the place where he was blown away. This was definitely the moment that she would overwhelm us with her evil eye. As a warrior, Faker was definitely far above both of us.
Then, why is this the result?
For some reason, the female Heroic Spirit was bleeding profusely.
"...You…"
The edge of her lips erupted with bubbles of blood as she held a rip in her armor.
It was my own scythe that did it. The full force of the blow was still resonating in my arm. The blow that ripped through her body diagonally would not spare her from serious injury, no matter how servant she was, and yet this female Heroic Spirit stared at her master sternly without even kneeling down on one knee.
"You've been waiting for this moment, haven't you? You were waiting for the moment when I would turn to my Mystic Eyes."
"...Hah, I knew you would turn to your Mystic Eyes."
My master whispered behind my back while holding that Mystic Code in his hand.
Nazar Boncugu.
A talisman with an eyeball motif that protects against Mystic Eyes.
Master had spoken of the power to see. He said that what manipulated Karabo seven years ago and in this incident was hypnotic mesmerism using the power of seeing, and that the stronger the power of the Mystic Eyes, the more irresistible that hypnosis would be. Now Master had used it in reverse and had briefly incapacitated Faker.
"Of course, it is not my magic, but rather Miss Adashino's."
Master spoke with the shattered Nazar Boncugu in his hand.
The eyeball amulet broke, as if it could not withstand the intensity of the magical power.
Heartless was motionless.
Karabo, whose sternum was likely broken, was falling back.
Master spoke on a rooftop which was temporarily scoured by the Mystic Eye projection of the Rail Zeppelin against the Child of Einnashe.
"Let me ask you one thing. ...One thing rubbed me the wrong way, did you, perchance, develop doubts before you died?"
"...Tch."
Suddenly, I remember.
At that time, Faker told Master that all of Iskandars’s subordinates had only ever put their own interests first. That was back at the back of the train, the first time she called out Master to do battle.
"If I follow your thinking, it would not surprise me in the least if you came to a disagreement with the other followers of Iskandar while he was still alive. It would be more natural, given your proclivities. In fact, it's quite conceivable that you could have challenged all of them, testing if they truly wished to be his followers. If that is the case, then perhaps he would have wanted you, as well as your brother Hephaestion, to meet me."
"...Fuck, you,"
The woman said in a hoarse voice while Master smiled faintly and bitterly.
"Don't you dare speak of my lost king, you fool who merely played soldier for half of a month!"
Master's voice now sounded terribly earnest.
"It can't be lost. The shadow of that king. Even if the kingdom built by the great king is shattered, even if the generals kill each other, even if it is forgotten by all, and even if he is erased from history, its meaning will not be lost. That is why I am here now!"
"Sophistry!"
Faker shouts.
Her broken sword roared.
I should have been alert enough to catch it, but my own body had started to grow lethargic.
This was fearsome endurance. What kind of a heroic spirit is this? Even though she had received wounds that would have killed even a non-human, Faker was still alive and well. This was the resilience of the body double of a man who had conquered the known world.
"The magus has sealed my sword. Your disciple has sealed my magic. And you sealed my Mystic Eyes. Yes, I admit that. Each one of them, though not all your acts, show some kind of talent as a leader of man."
One by one, as if breaking off of them, she spoke.
“Then, let me see you survive from this point on.”
When she swung her broken sword, the sky was torn apart into the void.
The majestic figure that appeared with black clouds from within that void was the Gordian Wheel.
At last, the female heroine had invoked her Noble Phantasm. Shooting through the void, were hoofed hooves of lightning. The chariot-drawn bone dragon raged, ready to destroy any enemy.
"This dragon species is a result of the serpent worship of Dionysus."
"When the king entrusted me with his chariot, I controlled it by magic, just as he controlled his chariot by the divine authority of Zeus."
Master would tell me this later.
It is said to be a relatively widespread myth within the Greek culture of the Age of the Gods, as, for example, the witch Media of Colchis vanished on a dragon chariot after killing the treacherous Jason. That is why Master must have been able to discern that this Heroic Spirit was a sorceress.
“Is this fine, Master?”
“Haha, it is your choice,” smiling innocently, Heartless jumped into the chariot.
As soon as Faker swung the reins, the chariot arced wide, running alongside the rail zeppelin. Once they had gained distance, a pause was the only thing between now and death. This was the true value of a Heroic Spirit that could crush the entire train, let alone us.
“That… what do we…?” I looked up and groaned to myself.
Karabo's black keys would not be able to reach them. And as long as it is located above the flank of the Rail Zeppelin, it would be out of range of the great Mystic Eye projection seen earlier, and moreover, it is unlikely that Olga Marie's Great Magecraft would be able to be fired again.
“...Gray, it is all up to you.”
Master said that and sat down on the rooftop.
“Master?!”
“I leave it to you. I leave my entire life to you.”
Master nodded his head to affirm that again.
＊＊＊＊＊
The great Mystic Eye projection dealt a severe blow to the Child of Einnashe.
Nevertheless, the staff watching on had not the slightest sense of superiority that they had struck a blow.
That was to be expected.
"Expelling the Mystic Eye,”
with a thud, a transparent tube was ejected. Inside the tube, a Mystic Eye which had just used its Mystery, was cruelly transformed into a black eye.
“...”
Neither the conductor nor the auctioneer lets a word slip. However, the meaning was clear.
In just one use, the Mystic Eye had been burned out.
How many magi would scream at the sight? Even if some of them would have a stroke, it would not be a surprise. A rare Mystic Eye, which is comparable to a bag of precious stones, was used up in a single shot of the projection.
The conductor bit his back teeth, and cold red blood dripped down to his chin.
It is no wonder that he hesitated to follow the Deputy Manager's instructions. Although he was trying to protect his former master's train, he had to use up the collection to do that. If he could have just died right now, then he would have chosen that end for all of them.
However, the mission does not allow it.
However, the mission was to protect this train, which was the last mission entrusted to them. Even if the former manager had nothing more to say.
“Continue, I’ll load the Mystic Eye,”
The auctioneer whispered and inserted a new Mystic Eye tube into the recess.
The conductor no longer let out even a single grunt.
From beyond the burnt-out tips, new branches of death could be seen avalanching in. The Child of Einnashe has not given up yet. Just as they have not given up on themselves. Then, they knew what they had to do.
"Confirmation of the completion of Mystic Eyes. Start the second projection sequence. Connection with the Mystic Eye is complete. Analysis to be completed in 3...2...1..."
The reason why he does not exude sadness in his voice is that he is a professional.
Again, he pulls the lever he does not want to pull.
“Great Mystic Eye Projection!”
The Great Mystic Eye, glowing eerily, quickly killed the Icy tree branches that surged towards it.
＊＊＊＊＊
Together with the train's Mystic Eye releasing once more, the chariot drew a beautiful arc across the night sky.
It was like a rainbow, I thought. If magic were visible to the eye, I am sure a brilliant light would have been reflected on my retinas. My ears, which had been ‘Reinforced’ beyond their limits, even heard a voice from the chariot.
"If I... hadn't died when I did... that schism wouldn't have happened...!"
It was a scream.
It was a lamentation.
It was the inescapable stigma that was carved into the souls of so many Heroic Spirits.
I suddenly remembered a dream I had yesterday.
── "Why did you seek this? Why did you not let go of it? You knew it was a dream, so why didn't you let it go?"
──"Answer me, Iskandar!"
I wonder which Iskandar that was a cry to.
Was it to the real Iskandar or Faker herself? I felt it was both and yet neither.
And then, as if to forget such vectors, her beautiful lips began to weave a mouthful of words.
"My allegiance is to the King! In this moment, lend me the name of Thunder!"
The release of the true name. The quintessence of the treasure that Faker had never ultimately used in previous battles.
If so, there is only one thing that can counter it.
“...I am going to have to break through,” I muttered to myself.
Cool the mind. Stop all unnecessary functions. I am but a cog in one Great Mystery. I become part of this mechanism and I sharpen my precision. I reach a place far away from fear and hesitation and I emerge into a trance-like state of consciousness.
Ah, if that is so, then this must be the sound that starts my operation.
"Gray… Rave… Crave…Deprave…"
The incantation overflows. My self-suggestion brings me even deeper.
There is enough mana. Being on a leyline, together with the presence of the Rail Zeppelin and the relentlessly approaching Child of Einnashe, provides more than enough energy for me to take in. In this environment, there is no doubt that my Noble Phantasm can be deployed.
(But... will it reach?)
Can I defeat that chariot?
No matter how well I can wield the shining spear Rhongomyniad, and even if Faker is in a class that represents fakes, the true power of my opponent remains the same. Can I overcome such a monster?
Despite these doubts, my lips, which have become automatic, speak the predetermined words.
“Grave carve… for me…”
"Please calm down," then, a voice spoke up.
Supported by Caules, the blood-stained old man walked towards me. The blow received from the Faker seemed to have been more serious than expected, and his open wound revealed the whiteness of his fractured sternum inside.
(Karabo...)
I cannot speak.
I'm already in a trance, and the Add deployment process has disassembled the scythe into a pillar of light. On the other hand, Karabo's eyes were clouded white, yet they were still shining as if dazzling.
"...Oh, I'm surprised. That is a noble phantasm. To think that it could be wielded by a human."
Has the impulsive personality from when he was fighting the Faker already disappeared, or was it because of my self-hypnosis that Karabo's tone of voice had returned to the soft one I knew?
And now Karabou is advising me gently and quietly.
"It seems that this spear is filled with prayers. Thirteen condensed forms of prayer."
Is that a sight seen with his Mystic Eyes?
I don't understand it myself.
But the old man smiles kindly and speaks.
"Listen closely to the voice of the spear. Listen to the way someone prayed a long time ago. You should be good with that."
(The way someone prayed a long time ago...)
What is this? This is…
What is this? Why…
Why is it that Add's voice can be heard from within the pillar of light?
"Yihihihi! The way that things ought to be has come! Hey, Gray! All this time you have been slumped up in the corner of a room hiding behind your hands! You have never really thought about what you wanted to be, have you?"
(Add…)
Karabo blinked several times at the sound of the raspy voice.
Regardless, Add continued.
"But hey, it's time for you to ask yourself! What do you want?! Ah, if you want to do something here, you need to say it! If there is something you want to protect and want help with that, no one will know unless you say it!"
(Add... you...)
I felt pain in my heart for some reason, as this person was terribly talkative.
The only friend I had back in my hometown asked me that question. I remember that when I was a child, I was often called something like "stupid gray," which made to cry. The longer I was there, the less I was called that, and it completely disappeared after I decided to follow my mentor to London.
“I…” My voice spilt out.
I'm in a trance, so I'm terribly awkward. I don't know what my true feelings are.
Even so, I will do my best to put this into words.
"I want to protect my master and everyone else. I want to be able to protect myself."
“Hihihihihi, I hear you loud and clear, stupid Gray…”
"──Suspension of pseudo-personality. Magical power collection rate has exceeded threshold value. Initiating second stage of limited release."
Add's voice switched back to his usual automated voice.
The automated voice then moved on to something I was hearing for the first time.
"Seal Thirteen - Round Table Decision Start!"
“...”
His words reminded me of a legend I was told long ago.
Originally, it is said that the holy spear was not a weapon.
It is also said that the original Mystery was brought about when humanity took over as the spiritual leader of the world. The planet was then covered in a texture of human-focused 'physical laws', and several anchors were thrust into the earth to maintain that thin texture.
Rhongomyniad, the spear that shines to the farthest reaches of the world, is one such anchor.
This anchor, created to sustain the world, was placed in the hands of a knight-king who sealed it in the image of the king and his knights.
In other words, the seals restrict the 'power' of the Holy Lance. Thirteen seals.
The true Holy Lance can only be released in a situation where multiple prides and missions can be accomplished.
The number of votes required for a complete release is seven.
Now, inside the Holy Spear, a round table vote is declared.
“This is the battle for life." ──Approved, Kay.
“This is the battle against a stronger foe." ──Approved, Bedivere.
"This is a battle for humanity." ──Approved, Gaheris.
"This is a battle for truth." ──Approved, Agravain.
“This is not a battle against spirits." ──Approved Lancelot.
By no means was it all of them.
Only five, not even half.
However, the five seals that had just been unleashed were now gushing out from the spear with a light I had never seen before. More than anything else, the fact that so many prayers were being acknowledged and encouraged supported my heart.
(──This, this means.)
I make up my mind.
"Phase III limited release is now in effect."
Along with the new automated voice, I, in a trance, had moved on to the last sentence.
“Grave… for you…”
Sing. Praise. Compose.
Ancient Mystery, may you now perish.
Sweet mystery, may you return to nothingness.
In the distance, I saw Faker swinging the reins.
"Ride forth, Hecatic Wheel!"
The chariot turned into a shooting star with the moon behind it.
What an intense and beautiful star overtaking the Earth. It goes without saying that the amount of magical power that gushed out was enormous. Should the assault of the Anti-Army Noble Phantasm hit the earth, it would have easily created a crater or two.
A fierce star, clad in lightning.
With that, I slowly raised my spear.
“Holy Spear, release.”
As I looked up at my own spear, it occurred to me.
How dazzling this light is!
How my heart is boiling!
Did every knight in the old days have such a burning heart?
The chariot was now right in front of me. The lightning was so fierce that I thought my eyeballs were being burned out of my head. As if in response, the holy spear in my hand converged into a purer light. Converged to the extreme, the light pulsated and seemed to be about to break out into a frenzy.
Come on, scream.
Let loose with a roar.
“From the farthest ends, Rhongomyniad…!”
A twisting light rushes through the air.
The scorching heat and the lightning was lukewarm compared to this. A torrent of light shot out in a straight line from the roof of the Rail Zeppelin into the night sky, annihilating all matter. Wherever you are, heavenly country. Wherever you are, my light will shoot you down.
Inside the light, the Hecatic Wheel had also disappeared.
The light that shoots down even stars is soon absorbed into the arms of the night, as if it were destined to be.
＊＊＊＊＊
"How did... this...?"
I whispered to myself, stunned, as I unpacked everything.
Normally, I would have been comatose. In fact, I think I was unconscious for a few seconds. Perhaps I had been unconscious for tens of minutes or hours without realizing it. If I could, I would have fallen down and slept like a log. It wasn't only my body that was screaming, but also my magic circuits that had been overworked. Exhaustion was settling in my brain and nerves, and I felt like I was sinking into mud up to the top of my head.
But I couldn't collapse just now.
I was convinced that if I collapsed here, I would not be able to get up for several days. There were many things that needed to be done before then.
“Turn inside out.”
It was just before I released the Noble Phantasm that I thought I heard such a voice.
That is why I could not by any means fall down until I confirmed that my surroundings were safe.
I moved my whole body. My five limbs, which had been lighter than feathers a moment before, seemed to have had their blood vessels replaced with lead. Still, I crawled awkwardly and miserably across the rooftop.
“Ms. Gray!”
On the other side, Caules was there waiting for me.
In the arms of the bespectacled boy, limp and helpless, the old man had lost his strength.
“...Karabo...”
I didn't need to hear the rest of the boy's trembling voice. No matter how well-trained the agent's body was, there was no way that this old man could survive having his breastbone crushed. No, perhaps he may have exceeded the limits of his brain and body when he put his magical eye back into his eye socket. I wonder if he was even able to see the appearance of the spear Rhongomyniad activating.
Was the last view he saw the past or the present?
A voice called out from beside him.
"He helped us until the very end. …Even though, I could do nothing for him."
“...Master.”
What am I going to do?
I had never felt something like this before, and yet I couldn't stop the hot sensation from running down my cheeks. I had received something very precious, and now I would never see the person who gave it to me again. It was the first time for me to face such a fact, and I did not know what to do. I wanted to turn to my master's side, but I just couldn't do it.
Apparently, the train had passed beyond the range of the Child of Einnashe.
The train did not open a new Mystic Eye, and instead, the horizon was gradually changing color.
Master took a small breath.
“We have dragged out the auction for so long. It’s about time now.”
“Ah, hah…”
I am sure.
I will remember this color for the rest of my life.
Whenever I see similar colours in the rest of my life, I will remember the memory of having received something precious at that time. Whenever the past comes to the surface like a bubble, I will feel the bitter warmth of the past.
As if it were an ephemeral dream.
The sun had yet to show itself, but the faint scarlet of the morning glow was faintly blotched across the tracks.
Originally Posted by Rafflesiac
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