Chapter 235 – Smash the Ground
The sudden reinforcements greatly eased the pressure on everyone. Although many were curious about Hachiman Hikigaya's true identity, defeating Caster was clearly the top priority right now.
Several minutes passed. Iskandar, Diarmuid, and Artoria had already retreated from the outermost line, replaced by the shrine maidens numbered 2 through 4. The first shrine maiden, their leader, now stood silently behind Hikigaya, watching as the group discussed their next move.
"Big brother…" Sakura tugged lightly at Hikigaya's sleeve.
"What is it, Sakura?"
"Um… the foxes…" Even though she knew it was an odd request for the current situation, watching the fluffy-tailed white foxes darting around her made her desperately want to cuddle one.
"Foxes?" Hikigaya was still trying to guess what she meant when the leader shrine maiden calmly lifted Little Five from her shoulder and placed the fox into Sakura's arms.
"Feel free to pet it as much as you like. Even if you kill it, it doesn't matter." After all, as long as the Inari god lived, they could revive infinitely…
"!!!" As the subject of that remark, Little Five obediently nestled in Sakura's arms, but her eyes toward her eldest sister turned strange. The desire to stab someone is hard to hide.
Sensing it instantly, the leader shrine maiden reached out and pinched the fox's furry ears. Little Five shivered from head to tail and shrank completely into Sakura's embrace.
This small episode was quickly set aside. Just as Iskandar and the others were still arguing over Caster, Karna returned from his scouting mission.
"Master…" Though he found it strange that so many people and foxes had joined the group, he sensed they carried the same divine aura as Hikigaya. With that, he let it go. Nodding a greeting to Hikigaya, he immediately reported his findings.
"I found Caster's trail."
"Where?" At his words, everyone's attention locked onto him.
"Directly beneath us." Karna pointed to the ground.
"After I left, I found a huge circular fissure about one kilometer away. Entering the underground through it, I discovered the remnants of the beast Saber destroyed earlier. Most likely, Saber only destroyed its surface body—the rest of it, along with Caster, are hidden below."
"Underground, huh? That's troublesome…" Iskandar scratched his head. They weren't like sneaky Caster, skilled at burrowing and hiding. If he refused to come out, they had no way to reach him.
"Perhaps we could use the fissure Lancer mentioned to enter," Irisviel suggested.
"But that would put us completely at a disadvantage," Kayneth countered immediately. Nobody knew how many monsters lurked underground, nor where the giant beast or Caster were hiding. Most importantly, they had no knowledge of the terrain. If they recklessly descended, Caster could easily use the environment to pick them off one by one.
"Um… maybe we can force them out instead…" At this moment, Waver timidly raised his hand.
"Force them out? How?"
"Since Caster and that giant beast are hiding right under us, haven't they already hollowed out most of the ground? If we destroy the last remaining supports, the whole area will collapse… and they'll be exposed."
Waver kept his head down, not daring to meet anyone's eyes. After all, his idea was extremely destructive. If carried out, the entire center of Fuyuki would collapse into a massive crater spanning kilometers.
"Hahaha! That's my Master!" At first, everyone was stunned. Then Iskandar, realizing how feasible the plan was, slapped Waver heartily on the back. Waver winced in pain, convinced his Servant was just bullying him again.
"Cruel, but… it would work," Irisviel agreed after some hesitation. It was the most efficient way to minimize casualties while forcing Caster into the open.
Since even Irisviel had no objections, Kayneth naturally had none either. Hikigaya remained silent throughout, tacitly agreeing.
"So, how do we make the ground collapse?" With the plan settled, execution became the new problem.
Collapsing the ground required an extremely violent method. Saber had already used her Noble Phantasm once; though she had somewhat recovered, it would be unfair to rely solely on her again.
"In that case, please leave it to me." Just as Hikigaya was about to ask Karna to unleash his Noble Phantasm, the leader shrine maiden—who had been quiet after sending Little Five away—spoke up.
She nodded once to Hikigaya, then stepped back a few meters. Her human form shifted into a massive golden three-tailed fox, over two meters tall.
She raised her right forepaw and pressed it to the ground. The earth let out a sorrowful groan. Repeating the action several times, the ground beneath their feet began to tremble violently.
"How did you do that?" As the shrine maiden returned to human form, Hikigaya asked curiously.
"Lady Inari is the goddess of harvest, and harvest is tied to the earth. Thus, she holds partial authority to commune with and command the land…" She answered truthfully—then her legs gave out, and she collapsed forward into Hikigaya's arms.
"Hey, are you alright?!" The sudden change startled him.
As he floundered, the shrine maiden in his arms transformed again—this time into a small, white, single-tailed fox, about the same size as Little Five.
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