He had intended to use the dagger's short length to gain an advantage in close quarters against the Black Key's longer reach, but Kotomine Kirei moved with surprising fluidity, abandoning the Black Key and seizing Hisau Maiya's arm in just a few moves.
"...This is... Bajiquan?!" Hisau Maiya was utterly horrified, but it was too late... After grabbing her arm, Kotomine Kirei swept his left foot, knocking out her supporting leg, and an elbow strike instantly broke several of her ribs...
As Hisau Maiya crumpled to the ground, all that remained in that moment was despair... However, as she fell, she saw Irisviel's actions...
"Madam, no!!!" she screamed in terror, disregarding her own injuries and potential consequences, but she could not ignore Irisviel's safety—this was the mission Emiya Kiritsugu had entrusted to her!
"This man is an Executor who specializes in hunting magi; a mere magus cannot defeat him!"
But Irisviel merely offered a gentle smile. She continued channeling magical energy firmly into the metal wires. Her husband had shown her the meaning of "living," and she, too, had to make her own efforts to repay him!
"Remnants, grant you life!" Two short verses of a spell, controlling the metal wires as easily as her own body.
The metal wires gathered, weaving like a work of art into a soaring eagle with outstretched wings! Under Irisviel's command, it moved with bullet-like speed!
Kotomine Kirei reacted too slowly and took a hit, a bloody gash appearing on his body. However, despite the eagle's power, he instantly saw the weakness of this magecraft!
"How naive!" He lunged rapidly toward the magecraft's user—Irisviel!
No matter how powerful the controlled eagle was, the magus herself remained incredibly fragile... Irisviel reacted swiftly. As Kotomine Kirei lunged, she injected more magical energy into the silver threads, making them accelerate abruptly. They instantly wrapped around Kotomine Kirei's limbs, then continued coiling, their ends tied to a nearby giant tree!
"Ugh!?" Kotomine Kirei let out a surprised gasp.
However, with his limbs bound, Kotomine Kirei's bones creaked throughout his body, sounding as if they were breaking. With a loud roar and a thunderous crash, the giant tree actually snapped in two!
Irisviel and Hisau Maiya, who was struggling to retrieve the gun that had fallen to the ground, both gasped in astonishment. They knew nothing of the explosive force techniques in Chinese martial arts...
The silver threads were broken, and the magical backlash left Irisviel powerless. They could only watch in despair as Kotomine Kirei walked toward them.
The victor strode forward, each step seeming to pound on their hearts... "I will ask you only one question!" Kotomine Kirei said, his eyes profound.
"Whose will is this thought of yours, to protect Emiya Kiritsugu!"
His outstretched right hand seized Irisviel's slender neck, lifting her up. Unable to breathe and with excruciating pain in her neck, Irisviel's face turned red. She instinctively grabbed at the hand that could end her life, but it was useless...
In truth, Kotomine Kirei already knew the answer to this question, which was why he felt such pain and... loss!
It was like a drowning person grasping at a straw, only to find the straw pulling him into deeper despair... Feeling his pant leg being grabbed, Kotomine Kirei looked down. Hisau Maiya had crawled over, enduring immense pain. The hand gripping his pant leg and the resolve in her eyes gave him an answer!
With a kick, Kotomine Kirei broke a few more of Hisau Maiya's ribs! But that resolute hand still would not let go...
Irisviel, twisting her body in pain, looked at him with her jewel-like red eyes, filled with anger and disgust... This only infuriated Kotomine Kirei further... But before he could act, a voice echoed... "Sky-Shattering Flash!"
A sword aura, following a curved trajectory, slashed toward Kotomine Kirei!
In that instant, his soul told him that if he didn't dodge, he would surely die!!
He had intended to use Irisviel as a shield, but the sword aura moved strangely, bending and curving, making him completely unable to predict its path...
Weighing the pros and cons, he decisively threw Irisviel aside and rapidly retreated!
A sharp sword aura cut between Kotomine Kirei and Irisviel, leaving a clear gash before their eyes—a deep mark carved by the sword aura...
"...You should be gentle with ladies, Kotomine Kirei... Didn't your parents teach you that?" With a hint of teasing, a figure approached from not far away. It was Ryougi Raku, who had just arrived...
"Raku!" Irisviel clutched her neck, breathing heavily, but still looked at the newcomer with joy.
"Madam, are you alright?" Ryougi Raku asked with concern.
Irisviel shook her head, seemingly unharmed, but she coughed a few times, apparently having choked on her excited shouts earlier...
"Madam, please rest aside for now. I'll take care of this guy!" Ryougi Raku said, turning toward Kotomine Kirei.
"...Cough, cough, please... please be careful. He is Kotomine Kirei, an Executor of the Church!" Irisviel urged.
Ryougi Raku nodded, indicating he understood, not even glancing at Hisau Maiya at his feet...
"...Ryougi... Raku!" Kotomine Kirei said in a low voice, looking at the newcomer, his entire body tensing with qi, adopting an extremely cautious stance.
He did not summon Assassin; he knew Lancer must be nearby!
Ryougi Raku smiled faintly at him, and the short sword at his waist was drawn in an instant. He charged toward Kotomine Kirei...
Kotomine Kirei dared not be careless, swinging his Black Keys, ready to defend. But unfortunately, facing Ryougi Raku, his previous dominance was completely reversed...
Ryougi Raku held the short sword reversed, like a dagger. Though Kotomine Kirei's boxing and Black Key techniques were formidable, the difference in physical prowess was too great. In just three exchanges, a cut appeared on his body, and that was despite his tight defense!
A block parried the incoming Black Key, and the hilt of his sword struck Kotomine Kirei's chest. However, it did not achieve the result Ryougi Raku expected; most of the force was neutralized by the talismans on his clothes...
Frowning slightly, he switched the short sword to his right hand, using it to parry Kotomine Kirei's Black Key. His left hand clenched into a fist, and the power of the earth surged from his feet, flowing through the twist of his waist and the tremor of his arm. Man and earth became one, and the fist, vibrating, struck out in a tiny space, yet the power it carried was immense! This was precisely the "inch force" Kotomine Kirei had used earlier. Though Ryougi Raku was not skilled in any specific boxing style, his perfect control over his body allowed him to execute such a technique effortlessly, simply by understanding the principle!
In Kotomine Kirei's vision, the fist was still wrapped in blood-red light, and the spells on his clothes lost all effect without any resistance—it was the power of demon-slaying!
With a muffled "thud!", Kotomine Kirei felt as if his chest had been punched through, but the sensation in his body told him he was now at the other's mercy...
With a gentle push of his left hand, Kotomine Kirei fell. Ryougi Raku half-crouched, and the dagger in his right hand instantly plunged beside Kotomine Kirei's head...
The cold gleam and killing intent from the dagger pricked his skin painfully, but Kotomine Kirei no longer cared. His entire body was in excruciating pain from the previous punch, rendering him unable to exert any force. Since he had lost, he accepted it...
Kotomine Kirei, who had previously struck fear and despair into Hisau Maiya and Irisviel, was utterly defeated by Ryougi Raku in less than two exchanges. The disparity was too great, leaving the two women completely stunned...
Of course, in their current posture, it looked like a young man had pinned down an older man...
Emiya Kiritsugu had relied on familiar terrain, guerrilla tactics, and explosives, coupled with Ryougi Raku's playful attitude, which was why he lasted so long. Kotomine Kirei, on the other hand, challenged him head-on, and it would have been strange if he hadn't lost quickly...
"...Do you feel empty, Kotomine Kirei? Disappointed in Emiya Kiritsugu? Don't know the meaning of life?" With his back to Irisviel, Ryougi Raku spoke softly, a malicious smile playing on his lips.
Hearing these words, Kotomine Kirei's face changed dramatically. Even with the dagger plunged beside his eye, he had remained stoic, but now he finally showed a reaction...
"...You..." Before he could finish, Ryougi Raku twisted the dagger in his hand, making him swallow his words.
"Don't speak..." Ryougi Raku looked up toward the castle; someone was rapidly approaching...
"...Hmph, let me tell you some of the things you seek!" With a mischievous grin, Ryougi Raku lifted Kotomine Kirei entirely, but from an observer's perspective, a young man so easily lifting an older man looked very strange...
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
(TL : More Chapters @patreon.com/c/Gooberilla)