"!"
Sabrac had never imagined something could remain intact under the scourge of his flames, nor had he anticipated Shirou Emiya's sudden reversal in mid-retreat.
He truly hadn't expected this human's tactics to be so reckless. Unable to react in time, Sabrac could only watch as Shirou hurtled toward him at terrifying speed.
In an instant, a violent hurricane burst forth from the surging torrent of flaming blades—like two unstoppable storms colliding fiercely, wind against fire.
The moment Shirou touched those flames, he felt his skin sizzling, emitting a burnt stench.
Just the briefest instant of contact made Shirou feel he'd already stepped through the gates of hell.
Had it not been for his abrupt reversal, giving Sabrac no chance to respond, combined with his extreme burst of speed, Shirou would have been entirely consumed.
Any longer in those flames, and Shirou knew he would lose consciousness completely.
Boom—!
A heavy, artillery-like impact echoed across the air.
Shirou's armored helmet slammed ferociously into Sabrac's skull.
The sheer force instantly dislocated Shirou's right shoulder. If it weren't for his extraordinary physical strength and the empowerment from Incursio, his right arm would've been torn clean off by the impact.
With his right hand useless, Shirou had no time to swing his sword at Sabrac. Instead, at that desperate moment, he'd driven his own helmeted head straight into Sabrac's face.
The overwhelming force hurled Sabrac away with the collision.
But then scorching heat erupted suddenly in Shirou's abdomen.
He immediately understood that Sabrac had already regained his senses and was preparing a counterattack.
I won't let you succeed!
Shirou screamed in his heart. With the combined healing power of Avalon and the Holy Shroud, Shirou's right arm—already recovering from dislocation—grasped Sabrac's shoulder fiercely.
In midair, Shirou swung his heavy sword with his left hand, aiming directly for Sabrac's head.
Boom!
An explosion erupted from Shirou's abdomen at the same instant.
The tremendous force blasted Shirou backward, sending him crashing hard onto the ground.
Violent gusts shredded the very space around him.
"Gah—!" Shirou coughed, blood spraying from his mouth.
Like a discarded soda can, Shirou hit the ground heavily, rolling several times before finally coming to a stop, blood endlessly spilling from his mouth onto the pavement.
Now, the armor covering Shirou's abdomen shattered into fragments, scattering to the ground.
At such close range, even if Sabrac couldn't unleash his full strength, the explosion exceeded Incursio's ability to withstand.
Though Incursio absorbed most of the damage, it still reached its limit with that one attack.
Shirou clenched his teeth, forcing himself to stand despite the excruciating pain flooding his body, but immediately fell back to one knee.
Looking at his abdomen now, it was a mangled mess of blood and flesh. Beneath the shredded tissue, one could barely see protective layers woven of Incursio's threads.
Had Shirou not hastily used Incursio's threads to shield himself, the blast would have pierced straight through his body.
Even then, Shirou's condition wasn't optimistic—this wasn't merely a penetrating wound, but damage from a point-blank explosion.
Every part of his body had suffered varying degrees of injury.
Thankfully, Shirou's attack had come quickly enough that Sabrac hadn't poured sufficient Power of Existence into the blast.
But one thing still puzzled Shirou deeply:
Why hadn't Sabrac dodged my blow to his head?
Trading life-threatening injuries for certain death—by any calculation, Shirou would've come out ahead.
Even if Shirou had died from that attack, it would still mean a human life exchanged for the life of a Crimson Lord—no Crimson Lord would miscalculate such a simple trade-off.
Then, only one possibility remained.
An uneasy feeling crept over Shirou.
Bang—!
Clenching his jaw, Shirou stamped his feet hard, instantly dodging to one side.
The armor once again swiftly covered his entire body.
Terrifying flames carrying countless blades erupted once more from beneath the ground.
But this attack was hastily executed, its scale far smaller than before—only targeting the spot where Shirou had collapsed moments earlier.
Sabrac burst forth from the ground once again.
His eyes were entirely crimson now, glaring at Shirou with ghost-like intensity. Even the burning air around him turned abruptly cold, heavy with killing intent.
"To survive my Stigma, even neutralizing my curse... just how many Treasure Tools do you possess?"
Sabrac's low voice echoed from midair. This was the first time he'd ever encountered someone capable of nullifying his Unrestricted Spell.
All of Sabrac's attacks carried his signature Unrestricted Spell—Stigma.
It was an ability that caused wounds inflicted by his attacks to continuously expand, little by little, over time. Ordinary healing and dispelling spells had no effect. Even Flame Hazes could only await inevitable death once afflicted.
Simply put, it was an enhanced, unstoppable version of Gáe Buidhe's "Yellow Rose of Mortality."
Not only were injuries impossible to heal, but they continually worsened on their own until the victim inevitably perished.
Yet now, this Unrestricted Spell had inexplicably failed against a mere human. Sabrac simply could not understand.
"No—it activated, but it was nullified the instant it took effect."
Reflecting on the sensation transmitted through his own attack, Sabrac confirmed his spell had indeed activated. He had clearly sensed the wound rapidly spreading upon Shirou Emiya's flesh at the moment of impact.
Yet, in the brief moment he'd spent hidden underground, his carefully laid curse had vanished without a trace.
It was impossible for any ordinary human to neutralize an Unrestricted Spell. The only explanation was that Shirou possessed another Treasure Tool of unparalleled healing capabilities—strong enough even to dispel an ability cast by a powerful Crimson Lord like Sabrac.
Suddenly, Sabrac became deeply curious about Shirou Emiya's identity.
Never mind having multiple Treasure Tools—even encountering a human who survived within a Fūzetsu while directly challenging Crimson Lords was unprecedented.
The idea that a human could use Treasure Tools to battle Crimson Lords was something even dreams rarely conjured.
But Sabrac quickly abandoned his speculation about Shirou's origins. After all, this human would soon be dead, and those Treasure Tools would become his. Shirou's true identity no longer mattered.
He was merely human, after all. No matter his origins, to Crimson Lords, he was nothing more than livestock.
"He really is an extraordinary human brat, isn't he?"
Nearby, the sunglasses-wearing man, lighting his cigarette with murky violet flames, quietly voiced his admiration.
---
T/N: OUGHHH SHIROUUU
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