Flauros's countless eyes spun wildly, as if calculating at speed.
After a moment, his voice shifted into something eerily clinical.
"Analysis complete. Target possesses Mystery Resistance. All supernatural forces from external sources—phenomenon interference, spatial interference, causal interference, fate interference… cannot take effect."
"Physical laws: confirmed effective. Magic and divine power: ineffective."
"Then how about this?!"
A thick, dark-red tentacle shot out from the massive flesh pillar, lightning-fast, wrapping around Yu Ai's ankle.
Yu Ai was caught off guard. His balance broke.
"Wait—this is not how it's supposed to go, is it?"
A Demon God Pillar is supposed to be a stake-like pillar, right?
Flauros didn't care. The tentacle yanked Yu Ai up upside down.
"Feel the frailty of mortal flesh!"
The tentacle swung violently, slamming Yu Ai into the floor again and again.
Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!
He crashed into stone, broken columns, walls—each impact dull and heavy, rubble exploding outward.
"Waaah! Help! Ow—ow—ow! I'm dead, I'm dead, I'm dead! Unlucky, unlucky, unlucky!"
Ritsuka's face went white. "Crap! He can't block physical attacks! Rescue him!"
Mash stared at Yu Ai—being smashed around yet still clearly yelling complaints—her worry turning into disbelief. "S-Senpai, wait! That's not right. A normal person would be critically injured or unconscious after one slam. But he… he can still shout 'unlucky' clearly! And he sounds full of breath. His body toughness is beyond imagination. His bones definitely aren't broken."
Jeanne watched him being rag-dolled, her banner flames wavering again. "Even so, if this continues he will… and we still have no way to attack the Demon God Pillar… Master! Please allow me to use my Noble Phantasm!"
Self-destruction.
At this point, only self-destruction.
Yu Ai was battered and filthy, like he'd been thrown into a washer then jammed into a spin dryer. His whole skeleton protested. But his bones really were absurdly hard; after the pain came a tingling itch of rapid recovery and clotting.
He even instinctively learned to release the "energy" inside him, strengthening defense like magical output—but this couldn't go on.
Bang!
On the next slam, as he forced down dizziness and pain, something deep inside him ignited—something primal.
Win.
He had to win.
All noise vanished from his mind. Then a colossal tree phantom—like a world-supporting pillar—appeared in the deepest part of his consciousness.
Its trunk reached heaven; its canopy spread like a vast parasol.
Words flowed naturally from his lips:
"There is a tree, born within heaven and earth, a hundred fathoms tall—by it the gods ascend to the sky—"
The moment the spoken spell left him, an ancient, vast aura descended.
"What?! This presence—"
A blue-green wooden spike appeared out of nowhere above the connection between Flauros's tentacle and main body, ignoring distance.
It radiated the will of heaven and earth.
Slash!
It pierced the tentacle instantly.
Dark-red blood and torn flesh splattered.
"Gaaahhh—!"
Flauros convulsed. Yu Ai fell free, staggered, steadied himself, wiped blood from his mouth, and spat a mouthful of dust-grit.
"I'm full of dirt… alright, my turn."
He lifted his head, gaze calm as he looked at the writhing pillar.
The void on both sides behind him tore open. Two immense green divine trees surged forth, the same source as the spike.
Their ends reshaped into two giant wooden hands, five-fingered, crude and ancient like carvings from primeval wood—yet filled with terrifying strength.
"Had fun just now, huh? Now it's my turn. Eat this—uh—yeah, this—'Momentum Crush… Heavy Smash'!"
Yu Ai snapped his fingers.
Snap!
Two massive wooden fists fell like heaven's mallets, striking from left and right as if swatting a mosquito.
"No—my King—!"
The impact wave expanded like a tidal surge, collapsing what remained of the hall. Within the double strike, the Demon God Pillar shattered like a fragile model fed into a planetary grinder—dense cracking noises—then it was ground into fine dust.
Boom.
Dust drifted. The giant fists dissolved into the air.
Where Flauros had been, only drifting motes of magic remained.
In their center, a Holy Grail glowed in gold, floating quietly—the only light in the ruins.
The battlefield went dead silent.
Only small stones sliding off broken walls could be heard.
Ritsuka, Mash, and Jeanne stared at the Holy Grail, then at Yu Ai—standing amid rubble, brushing dust off his hospital gown and rubbing his waist with a pained grimace.
Ritsuka hurried over. "Mr. Yu Ai! Thank you—truly. We really thought… we were finished."
Yu Ai raised an eyebrow. "Oh? You know my name? I don't think I introduced myself."
Ritsuka pointed at the interface only she could see. "When you came in, the system said 'Yu Ai requests entry into your world.' I pressed 'Yes.'"
Mash stepped up and bowed. "Thank you so much, Mr. Yu Ai! If you hadn't arrived in time, the consequences would have been unthinkable!"
Jeanne lowered her banner and inclined her head, gentle yet solemn. "Thank you for saving the Master, Mash, and the future of this land. Your strength is awe-inspiring, and your aid is an immeasurable kindness."
Yu Ai waved it off. "No need for thanks. I don't like working for free. If I'm helping, I'm collecting. So—what are you paying with?"
Mash looked up, startled. "P-Payment?"
"Of course. This is off-the-books work. Charging is reasonable, right?" Yu Ai nodded.
Ritsuka scratched her head, embarrassed. "Um… Mr. Yu Ai, we came here via Chaldea's spiritron transfer. We… don't really have anything valuable on us. And things from this era… you probably don't need."
Jeanne stepped forward, interrupting. "Please allow me to pay this fee."
"Jeanne?!" Ritsuka and Mash exclaimed together.
Yu Ai looked amused. "Oh? You're paying? With what?"
Jeanne closed her eyes, as if listening to something. When she opened them, her blue gaze was clear and unwavering.
"I have received a revelation from the Lord. Mr. Yu Ai—your power… the Authority called 'Pingdi Mu' carries the ability to connect different spaces. This connecting force can even reach the Throne of Heroes."
"The revelation tells me that I, as a Heroic Spirit, can transfer my record on the Throne of Heroes—through your 'tree'—into a medium you possess."
"Then I can serve you as a Servant."
Yu Ai genuinely froze. "Wait—transfer the Throne record? That's possible?"
"Jeanne! No!" Ritsuka protested. "You're an important companion! And it's too dangerous—what if—"
"Yes, Jeanne!" Mash added. "A record transfer from the Throne—this is unheard of! Your Saint Graph might be damaged!"
Jeanne smiled softly at them. "Master, Mash, please do not worry.
"First, I am sincerely grateful that Mr. Yu Ai saved you and this land. Paying a fee is only proper. On a battlefield, mercenaries collect payment; people trade themselves to exchange captured companions—these are not strange things.
"Second, I was summoned as a Ruler to correct this Singularity.
"Now the Holy Grail has been recovered and the Singularity repaired. My duty is complete.
"Returning to the Throne, or choosing a new road, is not essentially different to me.
"This revelation may be the Lord's direction for me."
Yu Ai considered it, then nodded. A blood-deep instinct rose—he felt he understood how to use this Authority to establish such a "connection."
"Fine. If you insist. Give me your hand."
Jeanne placed her gauntleted hand into Yu Ai's palm without hesitation.
The instant their hands met, Yu Ai's Authority ignited. A spoken spell flowed naturally from his mouth:
"Rooted in the ninefold depths, branches probing the highest vault—
Heaven and earth as steps, the myriad worlds as bridges—
By the tree as pledge, let the spirit return to its nest—
Where this branch points, there lies the coordinate of the Throne of Heroes—"
Space behind Yu Ai trembled violently. A colossal green wooden pillar erupted upward, its tip puncturing the boundary of space and extending into an indescribably vast dimension—
The Throne of Heroes.
The pillar hummed. A stream of light—dense with information and existential essence—flowed down from the Throne along the pillar, into their joined hands.
Yu Ai felt a warm, green wooden tablet condense within his "Pingdi Mu." On its face, Jeanne's imprint emerged faintly.
At the same time, a clear, stable bond formed between him and Jeanne.
The light faded. The pillar's phantom dissolved.
Jeanne withdrew her hand, sensing the change. She was no longer connected only to the Throne; she was more firmly anchored in the wooden tablet within Yu Ai's possession.
She looked at Yu Ai and smiled from the heart, then bowed with solemn grace:
"Saint Graph record transfer complete. Servant, Ruler—Jeanne. No matter what hardship lies ahead, we can only advance. May I move forward with you… Master."
-------
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