Thick bolts of lightning painted the space with yellow and red rumbles.
Leaving behind a bloody streak, Gae Bolg returned to Black, puncturing through Medusa Alter's heart and leaving her cursed.
The blackened Heroic Spirit coughed out black blood, the chained needles in her hand slipping from her grip.
With a thud, her knees struck the earth.
Black walked toward her, wielding the spear, boiling with Mana.
From Top-level Epic-Grade to Top-level Heroic-Grade of an Item, there existed such a chasm that crossing it with one jump was almost unheard of in the Primordial Tower.
Yet it had happened to Black.
He had just consumed almost all his Mana reserves.
However, even before the spear had returned, his reserves had hit their maximum limit once again.
There was so much Mana, Life, and Breath within Black, in fact, that one could have mistaken him for a Heroic Spirit of the Ruler-Class.
Not to mention, the Grail Heart within him, fueled by his Mana-, Life-, and Breath-rich blood, had begun working again, amplifying the boiling reserves even more.
"… And all that for nothing," Zelretch's voice entered Black's ears.
Boooooooooooom!!!
A bloodfall, dozens of feet wide, drowned Medusa Alter, the Greater Grail's black hole humming monstrously in the sky over her head.
Like a puppet gaining new strings, the white-haired, evil Spirit began to stand up.
Shirou, Rin, Sakura, and Medusa's faces paled, all thinking the same words together. "… Is there… no end to it…?"
Hiding in a distant corner, even Ainz Ooal Gown thought that the Contestant who had been shocking him time after time seemed to have met an insurmountable wall.
No matter how strong Medusa Alter was, with the last attack, she should have died, the Greater Grail disappearing along with her.
Then why…
Black closed his eyes, the corners of his lips arching up.
From the other side, Kai walked out smiling as well, Medea following him.
"…?" The Characters knew that this was Berserker's true appearance. However, they couldn't sense the same Heroic Spirit–like Mana from him anymore.
"… No matter what I do…" Kai began.
Black finished. "… Medusa Alter won't die, because…"
"… We are unlucky…" They said together, activating Serpent Affinity.
With a BANG, Medusa Alter's head jolted.
In the very next moment, instead of attacking Black, she kneeled, the blood pouring out of Greater Grail pooling around her.
Her body was shaking, as if she could come out of the effects of Serpent Affinity anytime.
Kai didn't doubt that even if he were to blast her with the Anti-Army Soaring Death Skill of Gae Bolg now, she would still survive.
Yet, the smile on his face didn't disappear, his gaze landing on the notification in front of him.
…
[
Contestant Kai D. Stormborn
You have been cursed
…
Luck: -30
]
…
"Your Majesty," Kai asked, "would you consider me unlucky?"
Zelretch, for once, felt incredibly amused. He truly did not know what Red was cooking… had been cooking with this Luck business. If He wanted to find out, He could certainly do so by letting His soul return to the main body.
However, that would kill the fun out of it.
And the Contestant knew it, too.
Was that why he was including Him in the conversation?
"… Yes," Zelretch nodded, humoring the Contestant. "You are indeed unlucky."
He wouldn't mention any impossibility. But stating mere facts wouldn't let Red survive, either. Even now, the fate that Zelretch saw clearly indicated that Red would die, and the Greater Grail would use the Homunculus as a core, birthing Angra Mainyu.
Then… why did He feel like the battle had already come to an end?!
"Would you consider Medusa Alter lucky?" Black asked.
Zelretch's pupils twitched a little, sensing a mystery. "… Yes."
The smiles on Kai and Black's faces became a grin as the Conspirator of Fate asked the final question. "And would you say that Medusa Alter's luckiness is a result of my unluckiness?"
Zelretch, the Deep One, didn't want to answer. But He had already decided to play the game. Backing out now would only make Him look down upon Himself.
So, He nodded for the third time. "… Yes."
"Don't you see it, then?" Kai asked. "Even when I am unlucky…"
Black flicked the blood off the spear. "… I am lucky!"
As if a tsunami had crashed ashore, an enormous amount of silver mist came pouring out of Kai's body.
Taking her true, monstrous form, the Three-Headed Devourer presented itself to this timeline for the very first time.
-Bloodline Manipulation!-
As Selene used her Ability, the Heroic Spirit's shaking body suddenly calmed, the Serpent Affinity regaining its control over her.
Then, the head of the snake, with black swirls bubbling in its eye, pounced on Medusa Alter.
-Devour!-
With a squelching pop, Medusa Alter's entire body exploded, becoming a blood paste.
In the next moment, with a single gulp, Selene devoured the Blackened Heroic Spirit entirely.
A humtook over the world.
Red cracks began surfacing out of the Greater Grail, the black hole shaking as if it would explode, annihilating the entire world.
Selene's entire stomach bulged, the same red cracks appearing across her body.
-… Master!- she screamed, thrashing her heads, squirming like a giant worm. -… I… can't…-
Booms and bangs rang out as her tail crashed against boulders, raising clouds of dust.
"… Your Majesty," Kai asked, for the last time, "… would you help me now?"
"Have you gone insane?!" Zelretch asked, feeling extremely disappointed. "… Haha! Was this your trump card? To ask for help?! This is the first time I am seeing unluckiness begetting foolishness. Did you really think that you could tame a corrupt emanation by letting your pet devour her?! Is that why you have been purposely making yourself unlucky, to force me to help you…"
Kai frowned.
"Would you just shut up, old man?" Black asked.
Zelretch: "…"
Kai humbled himself once again. "Would you, Your Majesty?"
For a moment, other than Selene's wild thrashings, no sound or sight occurred in their surroundings.
Then, the space pulsated, and an ancient fog originated from nowhere.
From the fog, a tall, imposing figure walked out, making Zelretch's pupils widen in shock. "… It can't be…"
However, before the Jewel Golem could finish His words, the figure's gaze landed on Him. "Begone!"
Crack-Boooooom!
Zelretch's Jewel Golem, housing His soul, exploded in countless shards, causing a rain of multicolored Mana.
And, with this grandiose display of colors in the background, Yhwach eyed Kai… proudly.
"Never thought you would reach this point," He praised, smiling. "… Yes. I will help you, Son of Storm."
*****************
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