Chapter 73: Projection Magecraft.
[At this critical moment, Cu Chulainn recovered in time and stabbed Kotomine with a spear.]
[Caenis's decisive smash turned the volleyball into a blazing golden bird, which slammed heavily into the sand.]
[Final score, 7:6]
That sharp crimson spear pierced the Priest with a powerful thrust.
"Ugh…!"
Kotomine Kirei suddenly widened his eyes.
All of his focus had been on Eikou; he had not considered the possibility of a sneak attack from behind at all.
"So it's you again..."
Kotomine Kirei paused briefly, then slowly turned his head to look at Lancer in the blue bodysuit behind him.
"Now I finally remember. In some Holy Grail War in a certain Worldline, just as the great work was about to be completed, just as I was about to Made my own Heaven, I died under the tip of your spear due to a moment of carelessness. Great hero of Ireland, you have always been the same, never once willing to obey my orders..."
"You… your name is Emporio Alnino, right?"
"Who the hell is Emporio Alnino? Who exactly is the person in your memories? He doesn't look anything like me at all. Just what kind of Worldline have you been living in?!"
Cu Chulainn complained loudly.
"You bastard Priest, how long are you planning to keep playing this shitty joke? In your eyes, what exactly are we supposed to be?!"
EMIYA, standing to the side, could not take it anymore and joined in the complaints.
After that, Cu Chulainn finished off the Priest with a single thrust.
Kotomine Kirei collapsed to the ground and immediately went motionless.
"He's really… really dead?"
Eikou looked at Kotomine lying still on the ground, feeling somewhat surprised.
"Not quite to that extent,"
Cu Chulainn shook his head. "This guy's Spirit Origin is pretty troublesome—cockroach-level immortality. One spear isn't enough to kill him."
"I see..."
EMIYA nodded thoughtfully beside them. In his hand, he projected the twin blades Kanshou & Bakuya, a sharp glint appearing in his eyes. "What you mean is, it's still not too late for us to add a finishing blow now, right?"
Cu Chulainn's gaze also turned cold. "That's exactly what I mean!"
"Why is it that you two, who are supposed to be completely incompatible, can reach such astonishing tacit understanding when it comes to tormenting this poor Priest?"
Eikou asked with a baffled expression.
"Ah, our apologies. This isn't a topic suitable for discussion in front of a junior,"
EMIYA said with a very composed smile. "In any case, leave this parasitic Priest to us to deal with next. You don't need to concern yourselves with it."
"Then what about this match..."
"If Kotomine Kirei has fallen, then naturally this is your victory."
Kotomine Kirei had been defeated, and EMIYA and Cu Chulainn no longer had any reason to continue fighting.
"What the hell, so in the end this wasn't a win because we beat you, but because you guys started an internal fight among yourselves?"
Caenis said with some resentment.
"On the surface, it may look that way, but accidents and uncertainties like these are also part of your strength,"
EMIYA said seriously. "If it hadn't been for the young man beside you breaking Lancer's fighting spirit from the very beginning, the Priest wouldn't have ordered him to commit suicide, which then led to him being sneak-attacked from behind at the critical moment. So, in other words..."
He bared his teeth in a grin and gave the two of them a thumbs-up. "There's no need for any doubt—this is a victory the two of you earned with your own strength."
[Both sides acknowledge that this victory belongs to your team.]
[As for EMIYA and Cu Chulainn, they work together to drag away the defeated Kotomine Kirei, planning to take him somewhere out of sight to deal with him.]
[...]
[Although the process was extremely arduous, in the end you still became the victor of this volleyball match.]
[Because the difficulty of this match was very high, you received richer rewards than originally planned!]
[You have grasped some of the outstanding strengths of your opponents.]
[Your relationship with EMIYA and Cu Chulainn has improved slightly.]
[Obtained [Projection Magecraft E]]
[[Projection Magecraft E] (can be raised to C+ under certain conditions): Magecraft that imagines items and then copies and Projects them for a few minutes. Only when the projected target belongs to the [Sword] category will the rank be greatly increased. Can destroy the Noble Phantasm created through Projection and boost its power at the moment of explosion.]
[In daily life within the Academy, you can also copy some simple tools for use.]
[You have learned [Protection from Arrows D]]
[[Protection from Arrows D]: Can defend against flying or thrown attacks, especially flying objects that have been visually captured and identified as targeting oneself.]
[In daily life within the Academy, it can be used during class to dodge chalk thrown by teachers.]
"Oho..."
Eikou glanced at the skill rewards that had just appeared, and a deeply satisfied smile spread across his face.
This was truly incredible—directly learning the signature skills of Cu Chulainn and EMIYA?
Although it was a bit of a pity that he didn't learn any skills from Kotomine Kirei, the results of this battle already left him completely satisfied.
Whether it was [Projection Magecraft], which could create replicas of Noble Phantasms and tools, or [Protection from Arrows], which could evade long-range attacks, all of them were simple, easy-to-use skills—and yet he had learned them all at once.
Eikou couldn't help but feel lucky; fortunately, he hadn't given up halfway through.
"Phew, finally..."
Thud.
Looking at the abundant rewards before his eyes, only now did Eikou feel as if a heavy burden had been lifted from his shoulders. Then, exhausted, he fell backward onto the sand, spreading his arms and legs as he gazed up at the sky.
Both his mana and stamina were completely depleted. Even going to a Singularity to participate in a Holy Grail War hadn't been this tiring—now he was so lazy that he couldn't even be bothered to move a single finger.
Resting his head on the soft, warm sand and gazing at the clear, deep blue sky, Eikou felt both utterly drained and deeply satisfied.
At this moment, Caenis stepped forward, then squatted down and lowered her head to look at Eikou lying on the ground.
Those beautiful blue eyes looked far gentler and calmer than usual, just like the brilliant stretch of blue sky before them.
"Do you want me to carry you to the Medical Room?"
She asked.
"No need,"
Eikou said with a smile. "Thank you, but I just want to lie here and rest for a bit."
"Are you really okay? Kid, don't push yourself too hard."
Caenis showed a look of concern.
"Why are you…"
He was a little surprised and touched. "Suddenly so keen on taking care of others?"
"Hah, what's so strange about me caring a little about a teammate? Do you think I'm some kind of cold-blooded, emotionless animal?!"
[After that, you receive some simple treatment from Medea Lily.]
[After resting for a while, you quickly recover part of your mental energy.]
[You, along with Caenis and Medea Lily, eat a meal at the hotel, treating it as a victory celebration for this match.]
[Your relationship with them gradually improves, and the next stage seems to be drawing very near...]
[...]
[And so, time gradually passes.]
[Very soon, it is afternoon. Finn finishes work, Chiron returns, and begins to guide you all with seriousness and strictness.]
[You cooperate with Caenis and the others, facing waves upon waves of advancing Automata.]
[You all undergo an extremely tense and grueling period of training.]
[Your Charisma and other skills all make a certain degree of progress.]
[...]
[When time reaches five in the afternoon, you finally manage to complete the training session with great effort, and it is time to enter the free activity period.]
[The sun's heat has softened, the sand is still warm, the residual heat has subsided, and the sea surface is calm—making it an extremely suitable time to go swimming in the ocean.]
[But you very quickly discover a problem...]
[This time, there actually isn't a single male student who can go out and have fun with you?]