To battle against the shadow of a legend from a thousand years ago and emerge victorious—
This is a feat any magus would boast of, a medal any warrior would wear with pride.
Upon confirming such an achievement, anyone would surely let out a sigh of relief, feeling a genuine sense of ease, right?
But a slash of black sword energy tore through the air, shattering all such illusions.
"Hey, is he okay?!"
"Big Brother Sakatsuki!"
Cries of alarm rang out, but this time, the priest who had remained unscathed even under a barrage of magical bullets collapsed to the ground, motionless.
Miyu tightened her grip on her staff, instinctively stepping in front of the others. "Sapphire, reinforcement."
"Understood. Visual enhancement applied to Lady Miyu."
The girl scanned her surroundings warily, soon spotting a figure slowly materializing.
"...Found her. She's standing on the bridge!"
Clad in black-and-red armor resembling draconic scales, the golden-eyed swordsman cast a predator's gaze toward them.
Without a doubt, this was another Heroic Spirit manifested through a Class Card.
"Wh-What's going on, Ruby?"
"The worst-case scenario has occurred." For the first time, Ruby's voice trembled.
"Completely unexpected, yet it has indeed happened," Sapphire added with her usual calm. "This is a second enemy."
No sooner had she spoken than the distant swordsman reversed her grip on her blade, slashing upward to unleash two intersecting waves of black sword energy.
Rin and Luvia immediately recognized that this was no ordinary attack—it was a charged strike that no A-rank magical barrier could hope to block.
"Danger!"
"Get out of the way!"
The two magi instinctively shoved the children beside them to safety, but the gem-based bounded fields they erected shattered on contact, leaving them knocked to the ground in an instant.
"Big Sister Rin! Big Sister Luvia!" Illya, pushed to safety, turned back instinctively, only for Miyu to grip her arm tightly.
"Wait, Illyasviel! You can't act recklessly!"
"But Big Sister Rin and Luvia—"
"Please calm down, Illya," Ruby interjected. "Life signs have been detected. They're alive for now."
"Then we have to save them!"
"That's exactly why we need to stay calm and think carefully!"
"Miyu..."
As the two magical girls argued, the black-armored swordsman had already appeared beside Rin and Luvia, her reversed holy sword etched with intricate patterns gleaming ominously.
Her hair flowed like liquid moonlight.
***
[Class Card · Saber defeated.]
[Current energy charge: 4/7.]
"Mission complete." The phantom steed beneath her let out a satisfied whinny before dissipating.
Her once-tied hair now loose from the Noble Phantasm clash, the cold-faced girl caught the hovering Class Card, her golden eyes flickering with unease as she glanced to the side.
In her line of sight, the priest twisted his body, raised his gun, and pulled the trigger—a single shot piercing straight through Caster's heart.
"Master..." Katou Danzou murmured, an uncharacteristic trace of worry surfacing in her eyes.
She had just returned from her mission to protect Caren and was immediately summoned by Sakatsuki for assistance, leaving no time to explain what was happening.
Though a puppet whose actions were dictated by commands, something in her calculations told her the scale of calamity that would unfold once her master learned the truth.
Would she be deemed incompetent and dismantled?
No—if she acted according to instructions, this was the optimal choice.
But still...
"...Why am I hesitating? Now is not the time for this." Shaking her head, Danzou purged unnecessary thoughts from her processing module, focusing on the task at hand.
Slotting the Saber Card into her mystic code, a spiritron-constructed reversed holy sword materialized in her grip.
"...Guh." As if wrestling a rebellious dragon, Danzou gritted her teeth, struggling to control the rampaging magical energy before hurling the sword toward her master with all her might.
The black sword energy roared forth, striking the priest squarely in the back in the blink of an eye.
BOOM!
An explosion of flames masked the glow of spatial displacement as Sakatsuki abruptly appeared beside Danzou. He opened his mouth to speak but froze mid-thought.
Beneath the city lights brighter than the stars, the Heian-era kunoichi tilted her head slightly, her black hair cascading like a waterfall, exuding an ethereal, dreamlike beauty.
What a vision under the moonlight.
The stirring in his heart made the words spill out unbidden: "You look beautiful, Danzou."
"...Thank you." Seemingly caught off guard by the sudden compliment, Danzou blinked before lowering her head humbly.
Finding no trace of bashfulness in the puppet's demeanor, Sakatsuki smirked in amusement and took the Saber Card from her. "I'll teleport you over shortly. Remember to conceal yourself with illusions."
"Understood. Disguise is one of Danzou's specialties."
With a flicker of displacement magecraft, the ninja vanished. Sakatsuki weighed the Class Card in his hand, a mischievous chuckle escaping him:
"Hehehe, I'm coming in, Saber~~"
If the Class Card had a mind of its own, it would surely struggle and let out a cry of despair.
But Sakatsuki mercilessly clenched his fist around it and issued the command:
"Install."
Spiritrons surged once more, enveloping the rapidly growing boy. Dragon scales morphed into armor, a visor concealing his face as the reversed holy sword of the planet settled effortlessly into his grip.
A modified being with the heart of a dragon. A Knight of the Round Table personally ordained by King Arthur.
With these two traits, Sakatsuki's compatibility with the King of Knights far exceeded expectations.
"Hmm, heavier than I expected." Adjusting to the weight of the greatsword and armor in his first transformation as Saber, Sakatsuki quickly adapted, even utilizing Mana Burst to leap effortlessly onto the bridge's apex.
"So this is what Mana Burst feels like. Mmm, come to think of it, didn't I also gain an affinity for this skill before?"
Even as he mused, his movements didn't slow. His draconic heart pumped out vast quantities of magical energy, channeling it into the holy sword.
The moment Miyu spotted him, Sakatsuki grinned and unleashed a ruthless slash of black sword energy toward them!
Just as he predicted, Rin and Luvia, recognizing the futility of resistance, chose to sacrifice themselves to protect the two magical girls.
Thus, history repeated itself—though Caster had been defeated, Illya and Miyu would still have to face Saber alone, striving to rescue Rin and Luvia without guidance.
Oh, and there was also the "corpse" of the priest boy played by Katou Danzou, lying motionless nearby.
With another burst of Mana Burst, Sakatsuki cleared the bridge in a single bound, landing silently beside Rin and Luvia as he observed the tense magical girls with amusement.
"Now then, let's see your resolve, my adorable little sisters."
***
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