"Ugh, ahhhhhh!"
"Ugh, ahhhhhh!"
The destructive impacts continuously cancelled and diffused, accompanied by the cessation of the two exhausted combatants, due to the instantaneous release of too much magical energy. Magic beams from unknown sources converged and then spread outwards. As this destructive shockwave expanded, the Hanging Gardens bore the brunt of it. The towering central structure of the Hanging Gardens was instantly severed at the waist, and the spreading destructive magical energy utterly annihilated everything in its path.
At the same time, Shirou and Karna, also enduring this shockwave, completely disregarded their own injuries.
They withstood the surrounding attacks, desperately rushing towards each other, intending to deliver a fatal blow. At this point, both were utterly exhausted, with very little magical energy remaining. With their last reserves of strength, they charged at each other again,
delivering their final strikes.
"Pfft!"
With the sound of blades and spears piercing flesh, the duel between Shirou and Karna finally came to an end.
After their desperate strikes collided in mid-air, their weapons pierced each other's bodies. However, neither strike hit a vital point. This was to be expected. But as their weapons penetrated each other, Shirou, now extremely close to Karna, projected one of the twin blades, Gce Bolg (Kanshou and Bakuya), into Karna's spiritual core. Throughout the entire battle, Shirou had not used Projection Magecraft. But in this final moment, he used Projection Magecraft to deliver a fatal blow to Karna.
"Puh!" Both of them were bleeding from the corners of their mouths. But Karna was clearly spitting more.
"What a beautiful strike!" Karna said slowly, a tragic smile on his face, looking at his opponent.
"If you hadn't abandoned your Golden Armor and obtained the Vajra (God-Slaying Spear), my sword would never have been able to pierce your body!" Indeed, Karna possessed unparalleled defense. But that was his normal state; once he used the Vajra, he would lose that almost invincible defense. And this was why he was pierced by a seemingly ordinary sword.
"If I didn't have the Vajra, I probably wouldn't have been able to withstand your Noble Phantasm just now!"
"So it was a necessary choice!"
"There's no right or wrong!"
As both pulled their weapons from each other's bodies, the already exhausted pair could no longer stand and lay panting on the ground.
"I've never fought so wholeheartedly before. This battle, which made me fight with all my might, is truly exhilarating!"
"It's great to have such an uninhibited battle after death."
"I am satisfied!"
Listening to Karna's words, Shirou was silent for a moment. As the Hero of Charity, Karna's battles were always interfered with by outsiders, ultimately forcing him to fight the strong with the weak. Even in his final battle, his invincible Golden Armor was stolen from him.
Despite being such a powerful warrior, he was never able to fight with his full strength. It was truly regrettable!
"I'm glad you're satisfied. Rest in peace, Karna, Hero of Charity!"
"Ah! Go seize the final victory, Shirou!" Looking at Karna, who was gradually fading away, Shirou raised the corner of his mouth, then gave a bitter smile.
"So, as the victor, what should I do now?"
Shirou was covered in wounds. From the middle of the battle, Shirou had lost the opportunity to use healing magecraft. After all, Karna was too strong in martial arts. Shirou had to exert all his energy to fight him, otherwise, death would claim him. At the same time, neither of them had Master support in their battle. After all, one Master was in the Greater Grail, and the other was hypnotized by his Servant and currently missing.
Therefore, both of them fought while enduring their full body injuries.
But now, Shirou, who should have used healing magecraft, had used his last bit of magical energy to project Kanshou and Bakuya! At this moment, he had no magical energy left. And the wounds Karna had inflicted on him were still bleeding profusely.
"As expected, I still have to rely on this at times like these!" From the bag behind him, Shirou pulled out the All-Purpose Elixir he carried with him and quickly poured it into his mouth. Feeling his wounds rapidly recovering, Shirou smiled, "The All-Purpose Elixir is reliable after all! It seems my idea of carrying a large amount of it was correct."
Immediately, Shirou took out a Mental Power Potion and began to recover his magical energy. Although Shirou's magical energy was no longer composed of mental power, the Mental Power Potion still had considerable effects.
At the same time, Independent Action also began to rapidly restore his magical energy.
However, before Shirou could lie on the ground for a few more minutes, a flash of magical energy shot from outside the Hanging Gardens directly into its interior.
"Has Chiron gone already?" Shirou, of course, knew that was the trail of Achilles's chariot. Looking in the direction he was heading, Shirou couldn't help but give a bitter smile.
"What a troublesome fate!" Feeling some magical energy recovered thanks to the Mental Power Potion and Independent Action, Shirou projected a bow and arrow, aiming at the charging Achilles.
"Whoosh!" As the arrow was released, the flash of light in the sky visibly veered down from above, heading straight for Shirou.
"That's right! Your opponent is right here, Achilles!"
Slowly standing up from the ground, picking up the fallen weapon on one side, Shirou gazed at Achilles's rapidly approaching figure, a smile gracing his lips once more.
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...
After his battle with his teacher Chiron, Achilles drove his chariot, preparing to continue fighting inside the Hanging Gardens. But an arrow flying from below caught his attention. Looking at Shirou, who stood in the ruins, firing an arrow at him, Achilles's eyes once again showed a hint of madness.
The next moment, he shifted his target and headed straight for Shirou. He landed steadily on the ground.
Looking at Shirou, who was in tatters, and the surrounding ruins, Achilles didn't attack immediately but said with emotion, "Even that great hero Karna was defeated? But you are certainly in a sorry state!"
"You too, alright! You were also severely beaten by Chiron!" Shirou retorted with a laugh, looking at Achilles, whose face was bruised and swollen, and who was equally in tatters.
"Hahahaha!"
"Hahahaha!"
They looked at themselves, then at each other, and suddenly burst into laughter together.
"We're truly a mess, aren't we!"
"Indeed, we probably don't even have 30% of our strength left now!"
"But we are the victors!"
"Yes, the victors of battles against great heroes!"
Although their enemies were in a sorry state, Shirou and Achilles saw only glory in them. Karna and Chiron! The departure of these two world-renowned powerhouses would usher in two even stronger heroes.
"This is bad, my fighting spirit is about to overflow!"
"My fighting spirit is also starting to burn!"
Jumping down from his chariot, Achilles raised his long spear and aimed at Shirou. Shirou, likewise, raised his long sword and aimed at Achilles. Although both of them were half-crippled at this moment, their will to fight was stronger than ever. At this moment, even the surrounding air became scorching hot.
"Ugh, ahhhhhh!"
"Ugh, ahhhhhh!"
T
he two continued their death struggle, roaring continuously. Long spear, long sword, fists, short sword.
As they moved incessantly, they continuously left wounds on each other. After two intense battles, Shirou's armor was now completely shattered, and the Dragon's Blood Armor had completely lost its effect. At this point, Shirou also had no spare magical energy to re-project armor. All his current magical energy was used to enhance his attack and speed; otherwise, he wouldn't be able to keep up with Achilles's movements at all.
Of course, even without his armor, Shirou had no worries. Because at this time, Achilles had lost his Noble Phantasm, Andreias Amarantos (Brave Uncarved Flower), due to Chiron piercing his heel with a Noble Phantasm. Without this Noble Phantasm, he also had no defensive capability. At this moment, both of them stood on the same footing.
"Bang!"
"Pfft!"
The moment their spear and sword clashed, Achilles's fist struck Shirou's face, and the short sword in Shirou's other hand pierced Achilles's body. The next moment, both leaped away, then collided again. And this was a microcosm of their battle. While constantly deadlocked, they continuously left their marks on each other. Their swift figures moved constantly through this wasteland.
Any obstacles were disregarded by them.
"Clang!"
After another collision, Shirou and Achilles finally stopped moving. Both of them, covered in wounds, were now breathing heavily. After all, before this battle, both had already experienced a desperate fight. Therefore, their physical reserves at this moment naturally couldn't compare to their prime. After all, they were already half-crippled.
"Exhilarating, exhilarating, truly exhilarating, Assassin! It's truly fortunate to have an opponent like you!"
"Ah! I feel the same way!"
Shirou and Achilles, standing on opposite sides, looked at each other. From each other's eyes, they could see boundless fighting spirit.
"This is great. I originally thought this journey to the present world would be a boring one. I never expected to encounter such surprises one after another." Shirou nodded slightly at Achilles's lament. Achilles, possessing Andreias Amarantos, would be invincible as long as he didn't encounter an opponent with divinity. After all, in the original work, if Chiron hadn't been there in the Black Faction, Achilles alone probably could have taken down the entire Black Faction! Of course, if he were placed in the Fuyuki Holy Grail War, it would be harder to say.
After all, with Gilgamesh present, which demigod wouldn't be countered by him? And both the Fourth and Fifth Holy Grail Wars featured demigod heroes. The Fourth War had Gilgamesh and Iskandar, and the Fifth War even had Heracles, arguably the strongest hero of Greece. Achilles would have a tough time against any of them.
"Lonely? I've never had such a thought; after all, I often encounter beings stronger than myself." Shirou, with his ability to traverse worlds, was never short of opponents.
"Is that so? That's truly fortunate!"
"Indeed!" For a pure warrior without ambition, there was nothing lonelier in this world than not being able to find an opponent. Just like Saitama, how lonely invincibility was!
"In that case, I shall send you off on your final journey! So you don't stay here lonely!"
"Haha, if you have that kind of strength, then all the better! But can you do it?"
With that, Shirou and Achilles once again raised their weapons, bracing themselves for this final battle. They knew very well that they no longer had the strength to continue fighting; both of them had only one last desperate gamble left. The upcoming battle would be their swansong.
"Achilles!"
"Shirou!"
Shouting each other's names loudly, Shirou and Achilles summoned their last strength and swiftly charged at each other. The two, colliding, continuously swung their weapons at their opponent. Achilles's long spear continuously thrust at Shirou. Faced with this torrential assault, Shirou could only barely parry. Although he marginally suppressed Achilles in terms of strength and speed, he was actually suppressed by the opponent's god-tier spear technique. In this moment of exhaustion, both had poured everything they had into the fight, with only their martial arts remaining to be deployed.
Block, block, endlessly block. At this moment, Shirou had abandoned all thought, swinging his sword purely by instinct. At this moment, the experiences he had gleaned from countless powerful swordsmen surged into his mind. Various swordsmanship techniques continuously reappeared in Shirou's hands, striking at Achilles. In the process of wielding his sword, Shirou's swordsmanship continuously grew and evolved. Chiron's swordsmanship, Edelweiss's swordsmanship, Ikki's swordsmanship. The seeds of various swordsmanship techniques blossomed at this moment.
It was in this very instant that Shirou's swordsmanship finally underwent a transformation, reaching the realm of the divine.
"You bastard, you certainly know how to surprise people!"
Achilles, noticing Shirou's improvement, laughed wildly and continuously thrust his long spear. Faced with this godspeed spear, Shirou raised his long sword, imbued with his last magical energy, and brought it down.
"Nine Lives (Shooting the Hundred Heads)!"
"Boom, boom, boom, boom, boom, boom, boom, boom!"
Nine slashes instantly penetrated Achilles's body, leaving
nine slash marks behind him.
"What a perfect strike!" Looking at Shirou, who remained in his sword-wielding pose and hadn't fallen, Achilles praised him with a smile. With that, he collapsed!
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