"Your world?" Jibril's curiosity only grew, and she smiled, clearly entertained. "So, this is a pocket world… I'm surprised you can create one! Maybe I should upgrade your 'head collection' ranking again~!"
"I call it Unlimited Blade Works. This is the world that reflects my heart," Riku said calmly, looking up.
Unlimited Blade Works takes on a different appearance depending on its user.
For EMIYA, it's a wasteland covered in countless swords, burning fires dancing along the horizon, and giant gears turning in the dark sky, like a forge.
For Shirou, it's a red field at sunset, endless swords sticking from the ground and nothing else.
"Enjoy it while you can, Flugel—Jibril!" Riku shouted, nearly roaring.
As soon as he spoke, the Noble Phantasms buried in the sand all around began to float up, aiming at Jibril.
Riku's magic and power far surpassed the originals. What he did here was even more overwhelming than Archer or Shirou.
WHOOSH—WHOOSH—WHOOSH!
Dozens of legendary swords shot through the air at Jibril, the roar of their flight echoing through the domain.
CLANG!
Jibril's expression remained relaxed, almost delighted. She simply held out her left hand, conjuring a defensive spell.
It's worth noting: since this was Riku's world, there were no outside spirits here. Jibril could only draw on the spirit energy within herself, which actually weakened her a little.
A series of impacts echoed as the Noble Phantasms hammered her shield, but only left surface marks. They couldn't break through.
Jibril, the "special" Flugel, was a defect—an outlier. When she was first created, her power was below the standard Flugel. But over years of battling the strongest warriors and constantly learning, she'd become one of the most powerful of her race.
The barrier she now used was something she'd adapted from the Elves' magic, even stronger than the defensive spells all Flugel were granted at creation.
"That's it? I'm a little disappointed," Jibril said, shaking her head. "This is only about as strong as high-level Elven magic. It's not a threat to me."
"Oh, is that so?" Riku didn't get angry at her taunt. His golden eyes were ice-cold.
CRACK!
Suddenly, one special sword struck the shield—a clear, sharp sound rang out!
Jibril's barrier, which could resist even Dragonoid attacks, was pierced by a single blow, the sword speeding straight at her.
Jibril's eyes flashed and she instantly vanished, appearing elsewhere in the sky—the sword missing its target.
"Oh? You slipped a sword with anti-magic properties into that barrage. All the other attacks were a distraction, weren't they?" Now Jibril looked serious, her killing intent exploding outward.
"Flugel spatial magic, called 'Spatial Shift'… what a troublesome power," Riku said regretfully. "I was hoping that last strike would at least hurt you a bit."
Flugel can teleport anywhere within their line of sight and, if they've marked a location, can instantly travel to it, much like the Teigu "Shambhala," but even more convenient.
"Hehe… you actually surprised me for a moment there," Jibril giggled with a mad glint in her eye. Beautiful face or not, her mania was unsettling.
"So to properly preserve your rare head, I guess I'll get serious now," she said, instantly shifting from playful to deadly.
Jibril vanished, appearing behind Riku and slashing at his neck with her black energy sword.
CLANG!
But several of the projected swords Riku had set to guard him shot over, intercepting her attack.
Even so, Jibril's sword sliced through them like butter.
But that brief moment was enough for Riku to escape, boosted by Skywalk. He quickly put distance between them and unleashed a barrage of Noble Phantasms at Jibril.
Hundreds of swords swarmed, a dazzling spectacle.
But Riku didn't think this would be enough to beat such a powerful Flugel. He narrowed his eyes and poured all his energy into the imitation Excalibur in his hands.
The next strike… would be the deciding one!
A surge of energy flooded into Excalibur, making the sword blaze with brilliant light—sparks scattered in every direction, the sand around Riku pushed away by an invisible force.
"Why can't you just give me your head like a good boy?" Jibril huffed, almost pouting as she teleported away using her spatial shift, her view obscured by the light. But no matter how cute she looked, no one could mistake her for anything but a monster.
"This next attack—if you think you can block it, go ahead and try, Flugel!" Riku shouted, confidence and defiance clear on his face as he stared up at Jibril in the sky.
"I can sense the power from here. You're trying to bait me into a head-on clash, aren't you?" Jibril grinned, eyes sparkling with interest. "Well, you've got my attention, so I'll humor you—just this once."
Her own energy surged, condensing into a black spear crackling with lightning—a weapon of pure, terrifying destruction.
"Excalibur!" Riku roared, unleashing a blinding beam of energy that shot straight at Jibril, who hovered in a swirling shield of swords.
"Sky Strike!" Jibril called out, matching him—her energy spear colliding with Riku's light beam in midair.
The two attacks smashed together, like a meteor striking the earth. Shockwaves exploded outwards, lightning flashed, and the very air seemed to tremble as the two powers wrestled for dominance.
"Haah!" Riku, refusing to back down, poured even more energy into the clash, pushing Jibril's attack back—just a little.
"How interesting! But my attacks aren't that simple!" Jibril laughed, cranking up her power and restoring the stalemate. She really wanted to see just how far Riku could go.
Riku, however, only smirked. In the heart of the collision, something changed.
With a thunderous boom, the combined energies erupted, an apocalyptic blast tearing through the entire world of the Reality Marble. The shockwave was so intense, it began to shatter the fabric of Unlimited Blade Works itself.
"Damn you!" Jibril hissed, eyes wide as she realized what Riku was doing—he was using her power as a catalyst for the explosion. Was he really trying to take her down with him?
The blast was enough to seriously wound even her, but killing her? Not quite. It would, however, obliterate Riku.
"My precious specimen!" Jibril groaned, teeth clenched. Her main concern wasn't her own survival, but that Riku's head (her new 'collectible') would be destroyed before she could claim it. With so much energy flying around, even her teleportation wasn't totally safe—one wrong move, and she'd be badly hurt.
But unknown to Jibril, Riku had planned for this all along.
Just before the shockwave hit, he'd activated his best defensive Noble Phantasm—Rho Aias. Even a fake was enough to absorb some of the explosion. And before the last shield broke, Riku had already used the Teigu, Shambhala, to teleport himself to safety.
Seconds later, the blast faded. Unlimited Blade Works was gone, and the land outside had been carved into a massive crater.
Jibril hovered above, clothes torn and a few new wounds showing. She was livid.
Damn it! My rare specimen is gone!
If she'd known Riku would risk everything, she would've just gone all out and killed him quickly.
But she didn't realize that this was exactly what Riku was counting on. If Jibril had really gone for the kill, he'd have used Shambhala to escape right away, exposing his spatial ability, but saving his life.
Instead, everything had gone just as he planned. Jibril thought he was dead, so she wouldn't be chasing him across the world… for now. But Riku had a feeling they'd cross swords again someday—and next time, things might end very differently.