Accompanied by the sound of colliding metal, Souya once again calmly blocked Astolfo's strike, which had suddenly flashed above his head. With a horizontal sweep of his lance, he sent Astolfo flying along with his magical lance.
Astolfo did not give up. Seeing that close combat was ineffective, he steered his Hippogriff to a safe altitude above Souya and blew into his third Noble Phantasm: La Black Luna.
A massive soundwave laced with a sonic boom erupted from the magic flute. Souya calmly reached out his hand, entirely ignoring the panic-inducing effects. He released his magical energy, shaping it into countless highly compressed water blades that shot toward Astolfo.
Unable to manipulate two Noble Phantasms simultaneously, Astolfo had to stop playing. Relying on the Hippogriff's dimensional shift ability, he narrowly evaded the attack.
Seeing this, Souya merely raised an eyebrow, not overly surprised.
Truthfully, purely in terms of Servant parameters and Noble Phantasms, Astolfo was by no means weak. His A-rank Magic Resistance could even endure two Command Spells, combined with C-rank Monstrous Strength, A+ Riding, and four absurdly powerful Noble Phantasms—far exceeding the average Heroic Spirit. As one of the renowned Twelve Paladins of Charlemagne, his combat capabilities were undeniably strong. The only variables impacting his performance were his mind and personality.
Unfortunately, while Astolfo was strong, it depended entirely on his opponent. If he faced Casters who relied primarily on magecraft, like Medea or Semiramis, he would indeed be a formidable enemy. Even Morgan's magecraft would be affected. But against close-quarters combat specialists like Souya's Lamorak or Siegfried, even with Monstrous Strength, Astolfo was completely outmatched.
Just like now. Realizing he had fully acclimated to Lamorak's power through his skirmish with Astolfo, Souya hesitated no longer. He chuckled at Astolfo.
"Apologies for using you as practice. But now that I am completely familiar with this power, I will have to ask you to exit the stage for now, Astolfo."
Before the Command Spell-controlled Astolfo could react, a powerful torrent of water erupted from Rhongomyniad in Souya's hand.
"Waterfall Stance."
At Souya's command, the water enveloping Rhongomyniad became violent. With a swing of his lance, the weapon crashed down toward Astolfo like a falling waterfall.
Realizing he could not block this strike, Astolfo did not hesitate and immediately prepared to activate the Hippogriff's dimensional shift.
But the next moment, Souya leaped. Empowered by the physical boost of Remnants of the Age of Gods, he perfectly executed the full effect of his technique. In a flash, Souya traveled from the ground to the airborne Astolfo, and the Holy Lance crashed down like a cascade.
"Have a good sleep, you poor, foolish child."
Leaving behind a slightly pitying remark, Souya's lance struck down. Cushioned by the flowing water, it hit Astolfo squarely on the back of the head. Amidst his cry of pain, he was slammed into the ground, falling into a childlike slumber.
Souya offered a slightly wicked smile. He hoped that a knock to the head might make Astolfo's mind a bit more normal, though there was an equal chance it could make him even dumber.
Just as he dealt with Astolfo and turned to assist Atalante, he sensed something and looked into the distance.
The green canopy over there had suddenly shattered, and a figure was sent flying out of it.
"Is that... Achilles?"
Empowered by his Fairy Eyes, Souya clearly saw that the figure sent flying was not the enemy Berserker, but Achilles—the strongest on their side next to Karna.
Souya frowned. But what about Atalante?
He instinctively looked toward the Hunter, only to be surprised that she was already looking back at him.
Or rather, since the battle began, her gaze had periodically drifted to Souya, and she only fully engaged Carmilla after ensuring Astolfo posed no threat to him.
Seeing him look over, Atalante, who had also noticed the situation with Achilles, instantly understood Souya's intent and nodded.
Souya did not hesitate, darting in the direction Achilles had been thrown.
When he reached the forest where Achilles had landed, he found the hero pulling himself off the ground, covered in blood and wounds.
"Whoo! That felt great!"
Before Souya could step forward and ask, Achilles cheered, his fighting spirit reignited.
"A thrilling, no-holds-barred brawl with a Queen from another world... the Holy Grail War is amazing!"
Musing to himself, Achilles laughed and dusted off the dirt. It was then that he finally noticed Souya's presence.
At first glance, Achilles instantly went on guard, but upon recognizing his face, he froze in place.
"Souya?" Achilles asked hesitantly.
"Yes, it is me. What happened to you, Rider?" Souya greeted him helplessly.
"Well, nothing much on my end. But what about you? You look like a completely different person, and you have the aura of a Servant." As if discovering something unexpected, Achilles circled Souya a few times, clicking his tongue in wonder.
Before he could say more, a roar echoed from outside the forest.
"Orpheus!"
"Tch, she's here already." Hearing the voice, Achilles spat out a mouthful of blood.
Souya, however, froze upon clearly hearing the name shouted in that roar.
"What is going on?" Souya instinctively looked at Achilles.
But Achilles looked back at him, his expression turning intriguing.
"Well... since you are here, this works out perfectly. I will go deal with the enemy Archer; I leave her to you."
Souya was left utterly bewildered.
But before he could question him further, Achilles summoned his chariot. Transforming into a green comet, he bolted toward the battlefield.
Watching his retreating figure, which looked suspiciously like he was running away, Souya felt a sudden sense of foreboding.
That premonition quickly became reality.
The next moment, a figure burst from the bushes. The instant she saw Souya's face, her eyes blazed with fury, and she lunged at him.
In her hands were two massive morning stars burning with red divine power.
"Orpheus... Orpheus... I finally found you!"