[Dirge of the Cursed Blood Rain]
This was a brutal technique—rebuilding the body by releasing mana beyond its limits, letting it run wild, then using a curse to trigger an abnormal phenomenon after discarding one's physical form. It was a suicide attack usable only by fairies who shared a spiritual core with the environment.
A curtain made of blood rain nearly covered the entire cave. The ground beneath this rain of blood was continuously corroded, burned, and riddled with holes. The entire cave floor resembled ice heated at extreme temperatures, rapidly melting away.
Hiding behind Mash, Ritsuka peeked through a gap at the bloody scene outside. Though she wasn't directly hit, her skin still felt a burning sensation. The abnormal phenomena caused by the curse weren't limited to the blood rain alone—the surrounding air was also affected. Essentially, Ritsuka was now in an environment where the very air was poisonous.
If not for Mash protecting her, she would've already passed out from inhaling the corrupted air. But even so, she couldn't hold on much longer—it was only a matter of time.
"Ugh… uhuk uhuk uhuk…"
Her legs gave out and she collapsed. Ritsuka covered her mouth and coughed violently.
"Senpai! Are you alright?"
"I… my head's so hot… it feels like fire is burning inside my body…"
"How is this possible? Senpai shouldn't have been hit by Akuta-Senpai's attack."
Panic suddenly surged in Mash's heart. In a sense, both she and Ritsuka were newcomers in their respective fields. In this situation, she had no idea what to do.
Should she carry her senior away from here now? But the exit was at least a hundred meters away. They might get caught in the blast while moving—
*DUAR!*
Just as Mash thought that, amidst the blood rain continuously drenching the ground, a beam of black light suddenly pierced through. Then, a cold, furious scream echoed in their ears.
"Excalibur Morgan!"
It was the release of a Noble Phantasm's true name.
Black aurora light exploded from the Holy Sword in Black Saber's hand. With a single swing, he shattered the red-blood light in the air that had been continuously summoning the blood rain!
The rain of blood, which had been relentlessly melting the ground, instantly stopped. The impression of rain ceasing and the sky clearing immediately came to Mash's mind.
Leaning on his Holy Sword, Black Saber, whose armor and dress were severely damaged, took a heavy breath. "That was truly an astonishing method. Such a decisive suicide. If this weren't the Holy Grail War, but an actual battlefield, it would've been a defeat for our side."
"But unfortunately, that's all it amounts to."
He turned toward Mash and Ritsuka. The black Saber raised his sword and began walking toward them. He could see it—while the shield girl might still be strong, the black-haired man could no longer endure. Now was the perfect chance to eliminate both at once.
(So this is the replacement you chose, Sir Galahad… Perhaps there is potential worth trusting, but now is not the time for potential.)
(I'm sorry.)
With regret in his heart for his subordinate knight, Black Saber raised his Holy Sword high—
"Tch, not dead. You really have incredible luck."
An unexpected voice suddenly rang out.
The sword swing halted mid-motion. Black Saber stared in shock at the cave, which should've been empty aside from the three of them. "An illusion?"
"No. Why would you think it's an illusion? Did you really believe I was dead?"
"This voice… Akuta-Senpai?!"
Upon recognizing the voice's owner, Mash gasped. "Y-You're still alive? But earlier you…"
"There's no rule saying suicide has to end in death! Besides, I can't die even if I want to!"
*WHOOSH!*
Along with Hinako's voice, a cluster of light particles suddenly appeared before Black Saber without warning. In an instant, they reformed into Hinako's figure.
Hinako, who had just committed suicide mere seconds ago, had risen again on the spot!
Looking at Black Saber, whose armor was now mostly gone, Hinako sneered. "Your life is truly tenacious. Though I didn't really intend to finish you off in one strike—good. Then, let's do it again!"
Once more, the terrifying, uncontrollable mana reaction erupted from Hinako!
Both Black Saber and Mash remembered—this was the phenomenon that occurred when Hinako committed suicide earlier.
"Akuta-Senpai! Stop! You can't use that technique again!" Mash shouted. "Because of the curse phenomenon caused by runaway mana, your body can barely withstand it anymore! If you continue—"
"Hah?"
Hinako turned toward Ritsuka behind Mash—sure enough, as Mash said, Ritsuka's condition, leaning against the wall, looked terrible. She appeared gravely ill and could pass out at any moment.
(Such a small impact and she can't even endure it… Humans really are fragile—)
*SRAK!*
The sound of a sword swing suddenly came. Without hesitation, Hinako blocked the blade aimed at her with her arm. Then, she leapt back and returned to Mash's side.
"Akuta-Senpai, your arm—"
"Just a surface wound."
As Hinako said that, her severed arm rapidly regenerated and healed completely. Mash didn't know what to say—just like Ritsuka, in these few short hours, she had experienced far too many things she couldn't accept.
Witnessing this scene, Black Saber slightly frowned. "Immortality, huh? Then I'll have to decapitate you or pierce your heart… No, given that you can resurrect after suicide, your immortality might be real. To kill you, I'd need a Noble Phantasm capable of destroying immortality."
For example, the Holy Sword Perseus used to kill Medusa in mythology—but unfortunately, Black Saber didn't possess such a Noble Phantasm. The only Noble Phantasm he had was the Holy Sword in his hand.
"Yeah. A weapon like that might be able to kill me. But you don't have it, so you can't kill me. On the contrary, you definitely can't defeat me. Whereas I can kill you."
Hinako said as she raised her hand. Limitless mana continuously gathered from nature into her palm. In just one breath, she formed an enormous mana sphere.
Aiming it at Black Saber, Hinako hurled the mana ball in her hand with all her strength!
(This— a sphere made of pure mana. Its prototype should be Gandr, but its power rivals the earlier blood rain… I see, so there's a way to use it like this.)
Facing the incoming light, Black Saber's Holy Sword immediately emitted black aurora light, and he slashed at it!
*BRAKKK!*
A soul-shaking roar echoed once more!