On Mount Enzou, a crimson streak flashed by—followed by a thunderous blast and a pillar of fireworks punching into the sky.
Then three golden beams shot back along the red light's trajectory, making the earth tremble once again.
EMIYA leapt backward off a branch. In the next instant, the golden light swept through the space he'd occupied, shearing the branch he'd used as a foothold clean through.
"My Master only told me to come and probe you a little," he said with a light chuckle as he landed on another bough and drew his bow.
"But if I 'accidentally' kill you, I doubt they'll complain."
He released the string. The arrow split midair into a rain of shots, blanketing Ophis.
Ophis strolled through the trees as if she were taking a lazy walk in her own backyard, paying no mind to the missile-like arrows hammering down around her, nor the rolling smoke kicked up by the chain of explosions.
"If you could manage that, I might find you a little interesting. Unfortunately…"
Smiling, Ophis shook her head. She opened the book in her hand—then snapped it shut a heartbeat later and jumped back.
Countless arrows swallowed the spot where she'd been.
"Whoa, whoa. Not letting you pull out weird swords, and not letting you open that book—our strategist drilled that into me before I left,"
EMIYA said, sounding almost amused.
"Still, I honestly expected my attacks to phase right through you again like earlier, so I didn't get my hopes up. But now…"
He dropped to the ground in one smooth motion. The bow dissolved away, replaced by two short blades in his hands.
"That freaky ability of yours isn't invincible!"
The moment the words left his mouth, EMIYA's expression sharpened. His body vanished—and in the next instant, he was in front of Ophis, both blades hacking down in unison.
CLANG!!!
Ophis caught the sudden strike with the book in her hand. EMIYA hadn't expected an easy win; the instant his blow failed, he retreated at once, slipping away from the oncoming rain of golden weapons. Behind him, dozens of swords of varying shapes and styles appeared out of thin air, dropping toward Ophis.
But this time, the attack passed straight through her body again, leaving her completely unharmed.
Ophis drifted a few steps back, widening the distance, and let out a quiet sigh in her mind.
To be isolated from the world was instinctive for the Ouroboros—something she could do with almost no expenditure. But right now, the core of Sha Naqba Imuru was fully engaged, absorbing knowledge from the Root and sorting it into order.
In that state, opening Sha Naqba Imuru while she remained outside the world's boundaries risked an overload.
Her coordinates were within the world while her true body lay outside it—and on top of that, she'd need to extend influence from outside to inside, even affecting both the Gate of Babylon and Ea at the same time. The computational load was simply too heavy; with the Root still being processed, Sha Naqba Imuru couldn't bear it.
So he's wary of the book…
Ophis hesitated—then made her decision.
There was no need to reveal her true power here. Killing this Servant in front of her would be meaningless; it would only let the people behind him understand her abilities more clearly.
And it wasn't as though she couldn't win by conventional means. It would just be more troublesome.
The book dispersed into light. Dozens of golden ripples unfolded behind Ophis.
"Oh? Getting serious now?"
EMIYA still wore that unhurried smile when he saw it.
Nothing to be afraid of. The last person who fought him like this didn't even know where his elbows went anymore.
The next instant, with a storm of cutting air, dozens of golden blades surged toward him. EMIYA snorted, and an equal number of assorted longswords manifested in midair, intercepting every single Noble Phantasm without exception.
"Oh?"
Ophis watched the "fireworks" blooming in the sky where the weapons collided, interest flickering in her eyes.
The scene reminded her of the days she'd played with Enkidu.
Only, Enkidu had been true creation—one might even say she split weapons akin to Noble Phantasms from nothing.
This man was merely copying.
The stench of imitation was far too strong.
As Ophis weighed the thought, EMIYA raised his twin blades again and slashed toward her.
She set aside the pointless sentiment and, for the first time, truly looked at her opponent.
A resolute face. Slightly dark skin. Hair that stuck up like it had been shellacked into place.
There was depth to his presence—he really could be called a hero.
But…
Thinking he could restrain her Gate of Babylon, then charging in with a sword—
He really was underestimating her.
Just as the twin blades were about to touch Ophis's body, a violent sense of danger exploded in EMIYA's chest.
His eyes widened. He forced himself to halt and retreat in the same motion, snapping Kanshou and Bakuya up defensively.
The next instant, the sound of blades shattering rang out.
Cold sweat poured down EMIYA's back as he watched a black sword-edge slide past his throat.
Only a few centimeters more, and he would have gone back to Alaya and died.
He didn't even have time to process what had happened before his Mind's Eye screamed again—EMIYA projected the black-and-white twin blades in front of him once more.
Then they shattered again, effortlessly cleaved apart by the black blade, carving a long bloody line across his chest.
But that brief block bought him the space he needed. EMIYA sprang back in a hurry, widening the gap.
Only then did he have the breathing room to look at Ophis directly.
The pink jacket she'd been wearing was gone, exposing pale, smooth arms. In her hand was a long black sword—the tip stained with his blood, lowering slowly.
The moment EMIYA saw that black sword, his heart jolted.
He couldn't analyze it at all.
He should have been able to read any "sword." Even if he couldn't fully parse it, he ought to glean something. But facing this blade, he got nothing—no information whatsoever.
This was only the second time he'd encountered that.
And the "sword" from the first time had left an impression so deep it still burned in his mind.
Ea, Sword of Rupture—the unknown blade he'd tried to analyze and failed completely.
Was this weapon on the same level as Ea?
EMIYA's focus snapped tight, every shred of his concentration dragged to the front.
He had defeated the King of Heroes before.
But he had never defeated Ea.
Even now, he still had no answer for that blade—the one that claimed to split heaven and earth, yet in truth was capable of unmaking the world.
In the end, EMIYA made his decision.
No matter what that sword could do…
He couldn't let her get the chance to activate it.
He ground his teeth—and charged again.
---
T/N: EMIYAAAAAAAAAAAA
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