Kane stood frozen, his eyes wide as they fixated on the figure in front of him. Shirou—wounded, bloodied, yet standing—was alive.
"You… you should be dead," Kane muttered, his voice barely a whisper. "Even if Cruz died… the poison in your body… it should still be active…"
Shirou wiped blood from the corner of his mouth, his crimson eyes burning with defiance. "You know, I could tell you how I survived, but…" He shrugged with a smirk. "Naah. What's the point? You won't be around to remember it.
Kane's brows twitched, rage and confusion mixing in his expression.
Meanwhile, inside his mind, Shirou thought back to that desperate gamble.
'The last move was a huge risk. My body was already shutting down, and fighting both of them in that state would've been suicide. But Cruz… he had immunity to the poison effect. If that was a skill, then maybe—just maybe-the system would let me absorb it. I wasn't sure. I didn't know if resistance skills could even be transferred. But at that moment, I had no choice but to bet everything on the system.'
The flame around Ashbringer roared to life, glowing brighter than before.
'If not for the system, I'd be dead right now. I let my guard down… I underestimated Cruz just because he was at the late Apprentice level. But level doesn't always tell the whole story. People often get stuck at the same level because of a limiter that exists at the end of each stage—a narrow bottleneck that must be broken through to progress further. These limiters aren't just found at the end, either; they also appear between the early and late phases of each level, though those are slightly easier to overcome. In contrast, the final bottleneck is much more restrictive.
However, thanks to my system, I'm not bound by this logic. While others struggle to push past their natural limits, I bypass these barriers entirely. Each time someone breaks through to the next level, their mana output and efficiency rise significantly, leading to a sharp increase in their overall power. I let my guard down just because Cruz was at the late apprentice level. I won't make that mistake again.''
Shirou narrowed his eyes at Kane. "Let's end this."
With that, they both moved.
Ashbringer came down in a fiery arc, meeting the golden blade of Kane's right arm. Sparks flew as steel clashed. Kane raised his left arm, now shaped like a second blade, and slashed horizontally. Shirou jumped back mid-air.
"Ashbringer—Crimson Arc!"
A wide arc of fire burst from his blade, cutting through the air toward Kane. But instead of dodging, Kane charged straight through it, his left arm shifting into a broad shield. The flames splashed harmlessly off it.
Shirou gritted his teeth. "Ashbringer—Inferno Surge!"
A swirling vortex of flame launched forward. Kane tried to block it again, but the surge was too strong—it blasted him off his feet.
'Good. Now's my chance! I have to end this quickly. My body's messed up, my movements are slower, and my HP is already below half.'
Shirou dashed forward, Ashbringer burning in his grip. The flaming blade crashed into Kane's shield again. But Shirou didn't stop—he slammed his hand onto the ground.
"Earth Release—Seismic Quake!"
The ground trembled violently as cracks raced outward beneath Kane's feet. The earth buckled to throw him off balance. But Kane growled, brought both hands together, and morphed them into a massive hammer. He slammed it into the ground, shattering the terrain and forming a large crater.
"Damn it—he broke through my quake," Shirou muttered as he lost balance, the pain in his body making it harder to stabilize.
Kane charged in, his right arm transforming into a heavy axe.
"Earth Release—Earth Wall!"
A tall slab of stone rose between them. But it exploded a second later as a blast of fire tore through it.
'No, wait—he didn't come through…!shit, he destroyed it with his explosive fire ball.'
Instinct screamed at him Kane came from behind.
Shirou spun around—
Too late.
The axe crashed into his chest—but it failed to pierce his skin. The golden coloured skin of Kane dimmed at the last second and Shirou didn't have to look to know who did that.
Shirou smirked, realising what had happened. "I owe you one, Amelia."
Kane stumbled back in shock, confusion evident in his eyes. Shirou didn't waste the moment. With a fierce roar, he raised his sword—
"Ashbringer—Flame Edge!"
The blade ignited and slashed through Kane's right arm above the elbow. Flesh tore, blood sprayed, and Kane screamed in pain as his severed limb dropped to the floor.
Shirou gasped for breath. He raised his blade again. "My mana's almost gone. I need to finish this now."
He swung, but Kane's remaining left hand twisted into a blade and blocked the attack. Then Kane opened his palm, summoning a glowing fireball between them.
Shirou's eyes widened. "If that explodes—both of us will get hit!"
Kane laughed. "No, we won't. Since the mana is produced from my own mana, the amount of damage I will take will be less than half. But you…" He grinned. "You'll take it all."
The fireball exploded in a brilliant flash.
A wave of heat roared out. Dust and dirt flew in all directions as the ground shook.
Smoke filled the air.
Kane chuckled confidently.
But when the dust cleared, his smirk disappeared.
Shirou was standing. Bruised. Battered. But alive.
"…How?" Kane choked out.
A soft glow shimmered around Ashbringer.
A system window flickered in front of Shirou:
[Ashbringer]
[Immune to all fire-type attacks while holding the sword]
Shirou's lips curled into a tired smile. "No point in explaining."
He charged again, even though his entire body protested with every step. 'He's lost his right hand. He's vulnerable now.'
Kane met him head-on, his left hand reshaped into a sharp blade.
"I only need one hand to kill a brat like you!" he roared.
Their weapons clashed—flames against gold. Sparks danced through the air with each strike. Despite his injuries, Shirou's swordsmanship was sharper, more precise. Each movement was deliberate. Each slash had intent.
Small cuts began forming across Kane's body. His defense was faltering.
But then, Kane ducked low and swung his leg.
Shirou barely saw it in time.
The transformed axe-leg struck his left side.
Shirou was flung backward, crashing hard into the ground. He coughed, gasping for air as he clutched his abdomen. Blood seeped through his fingers—deep and painful.
Kane stood tall, his leg still in the shape of an axe. "I missed your vitals. Impressive reflexes… but I won't miss next time."
'He can morph his legs too… Damn it. He was waiting to land that hit.'
Shirou forced himself up, but Kane was already upon him.
The axe-hand came down like an executioner's blade.
"Phantom Mirage!"
Shirou split into two figures, both of them shifting in opposite directions.
Kane hesitated—just for a second.
'Now! This has to work!'
Shirou stared at his mana bar—just a sliver left.
He raised Ashbringer, pouring everything he had into one final strike.
"Ashbringer—Flame Edge!"
The blade ignited.
Kane smirked. "You fool. That much mana output—you gave away which one is real!"
He launched his attack straight at Shirou's head.
But at the last moment, Shirou released the element he'd been suppressing the whole time.
Lightning surged through his body, boosting his speed just for a split second.
He dodged the blow.
And in that instant, Ashbringer came down, slicing through Kane's body.
Blood sprayed.
Kane stumbled back as Shirou dropped to his knees, his vision blurring.
'I… I did it…' he thought.
But then a cold realization hit.
'The system… where's the notification…?'
In front of him, Kane slowly rose, blood pouring from the wound. His left arm reshaped into a blade.
"I… will kill you…" he growled, his steps shaky.
But Shirou only gave him a ired smile and closed his eyes.
The next moment, a sharp whistle cut through the air.
A spear made of ice flew past Shirou—
—And struck Kane through the chest.