Severing and Binding was Kiritsugu Emiya's Origin that had taken the shape of Phantasm Punishment — a Noble Phantasm of Counter Guardian Emiya, the Assassin.
However, when Kiritsugu had been alive, he hadn't been famous because of his ability to damage and restructure the Magic Circuits alone.
He had also been a behemoth to contend against because of the innate Bounded Field passed down in the Kiritsugu Family's Magecraft — Time Alter!
It was the ability to separate the passage of time inside a designated space from the "flow of time" in the outside world.
Time Alter was considered such a potent ability that it had been theorized that, with a surplus Mana flow, and depending upon the user, it could also be called a Reality Marble!
When Kiritsugu was alive, he overcame the monstrous drawback of Time Alter's heavy Magic Energy consumption by creating a flexible method of utilizing it on a small scale that only applied to himself — i.e., his body.
Keeping the scope of the spell to a minimal Bounded Field within his own body, it didn't allow for the world to be affected, but rather allowed for Kiritsugu to adjust a few seconds within his own body.
Still, at the end of the day, Kiritsugu had been nothing but a human.
Time Alter had allowed him to reach inhumane levels of speed, but it had also exacted a disastrous toll on his body, making him die slowly from the inside.
When Kiritsugu died and became the Counter Guardian Emiya, the same Time Alter that had remained innate to him all his life took the shape of a ridiculous Noble Phantasm.
Also, with his status as a Heroic Spirit, he could use the said Noble Phantasm with no consequence.
One thing remained the same between Kiritsugu's Time Alter and Emiya's Noble Phantasm, though.
A tremendous magical energy consumption!
That's why Assassin never used it after Rin summoned him to this timeline.
After becoming a Noble Phantasm, Time Alter demanded an exponentially high value of Mana, which Emiya's Master was supposed to provide him.
As long as the said Master could supply Mana to the Servant, Assassin could keep using this Noble Phantasm for hours. Theoretically.
But even if Rin had found some unknown means to do such an impossible task, it wouldn't have worked at this moment.
First, Assassin not only needed to reach Medusa Alter instantly using his Time Alter-based Noble Phantasm, but he also needed to finish her using his second Noble Phantasm — Phantasm Punishment!
Two Noble Phantasms, together, would make Rin pass out on the other side, where she must already be fighting Dark Sakura.
This was a most significant and outright impossible to overcome drawback.
The thing was, Assassin wasn't just about Noble Phantasms. Not this one.
Not only did Emiya possess Presence Concealment and Independent Action, which let him remain materialized even without a Master, just like Medea and Archer, but he also had Affection of the Holy Grail.
In the shortest sentence, Assassin was the luckiest being on this battlefield at this moment.
This luckiness couldn't be imagined by keeping a broad view, as it was scattered in little, crucial details.
Enkidu's sudden use of modern nuclear missiles — letting Assassin instantly hide his presence, despite all the enemies' senses locked onto him.
Kirei Kotomine's baffling increase in strength, using the Greater Grail's curse — clouding his thoughts… the same thoughts that would have made him instinctively look for Emiya because of their past.
Evil Betty Shaw's moronic presumption that Gilgamesh would let him assist in his fight against Enkidu — ending up with the real Betty Shaw regaining his powers, letting him finish the Eyeball Corpses.
Luck was one of the baffling concepts in the Multiverse.
There was no beginning to its planning.
There was no end to its machination.
All Lucky Ones, even if they lost their luck temporarily, would remain lucky — because that could be a plot of their luck, too.
And so, as Assassin saw his chance, as the Blackened Rider fully materialized, he knew it was time to unleash all his trump cards.
Like a purple wraith, Medea appeared next to Assassin and… stabbed the Rule Breaker in his back — breaking his contract with Rin and making him her Servant!
At the same time, another Rule Breaker appeared in Archer's hand as he projected it using his Reality Marble.
Noble Phantasm —
A distorted image of himself overlapped on Assassin's body as Mana, more than he could have ever imagined getting from Rin, coursed through his veins.
— Chronos Rose!
Time stopped.
From Saber Alter to Lancer Alter, from Black to Kai, from Ainz Ooal Gown to even Betty Shaw, all could perceive, without having the ability to do anything against it.
With a speed five times as fast as his already broken agility, Assassin appeared next to Archer and took the projected Ruler Breaker from his hand.
He might not be able to use Medea's Noble Phantasm, but he could use a projected one, combining it with…
Noble Phantasm —
Assassin's dagger appeared in his left hand, the right hand carrying the Rule Breaker.
Then, as characters on the battlefield stood still, imprisoned in the node of time, he appeared in front of Medusa Alter and… stabbed both daggers into her.
— Phantasm Punishment!
Crac-ckkkkk-kkkkkkkkkkkkk!!
Time regained its momentum.
Black bolts of lightning thundered across the space, laying devastation in their wakes.
In the middle of the battlefield, Medusa Alter was twitching, a tsunami of black mud exploding out of her as Phantasm Punishment destroyed her inner structure and Rule Breaker cut her off from Sakura.
"....AHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!"
The Blackened Rider let out a soul-shaking screech, making the space itself tremble.
Then, with a muffled boom, she exploded in a mass of red and black blood, even before she could have opened her eyes.
A wave of relief washed over all. At one moment, they had seen the doom taking shape. In the other, Medusa Alter already ceased to exist.
And then… Ainz Ooal Gown opened his accursed mouth.
"A commendable assassination," the Overlord said, snapping his fingers, casting the most broken Spell. "But… I wish… you hadn't done that."
Super-Tier Magic —
A sky materialized over their heads, under the true one.
A star fell, tracing a straight line from end to end, granting Ainz's Wish.
All the exploded blobs of curses retraced their path, manipulating Reality itself.
And — before Assassin could unleash his Noble Phantasms again, Medusa Alter regained her body, her eyes opening with an evil grin on her face.
— Wish Upon A Star!!!
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