While Emiya Shirou was busy rescuing the homunculi on the battlefield, the Servants of the Black and Red Factions clashed violently in a brutal confrontation.
The entire battlefield had been split into four distinct regions.
The most expansive and violent struggle unfolded right in the center.
Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!
Explosions continuously erupted at the heart of the battlefield.
Countless black iron stakes surged from the ground, radiating shockwaves and scorching heat outward in waves, illuminating the night sky with blinding bursts of flame.
In an instant, the entire sky seemed engulfed in fiery red—
—but just as quickly, the crimson flames were forcibly split apart.
Whoosh!
A sharp noise sliced through the air.
A silver-white figure burst through the roaring inferno, swinging a massive blade to part the flames. Like a meteor descending from the heavens, he delivered a thunderous slash aimed directly at Karna, who stood calmly wielding his spear.
Clang—!
The air itself quaked from their clash as Karna's flaming spear collided with the sword shrouded in silvery brilliance, sparks scattering from the intense friction.
Before Karna had the chance to retaliate, a fierce roar came from his flank.
"Haaaaa!"
Without warning, a black iron stake erupted from the ground, crackling with golden lightning.
Holding his spear firmly with one hand to counter Siegfried's blow, Karna shifted his gaze to the side.
A girl clad in a white gown, shimmering with dazzling golden lightning, charged at him, swinging a massive hammer. Electricity surged around her body as she leaped off the iron stake beneath her feet, propelling herself toward Karna at lightning speed.
Gathering every ounce of strength, she swung her hammer downward, aiming squarely at Karna's head.
"Aaaahhh—!"
Yet, Karna instantly thrust out his other hand, conjuring a searing inferno that surged toward her.
BOOM—!!
Golden lightning and blazing flames collided violently in midair, producing a deafening explosion.
"Ugh…!"
Siegfried hastily retreated from the blast, skidding backwards as the powerful shockwave dragged his feet through the earth, leaving two charred streaks before he finally stopped.
The clash between fire and lightning lit up the night sky brilliantly.
"Aghhh!!"
With another fierce cry, the young woman with the hammer flew from the smoke cloud, tumbling violently across the battlefield before finally coming to a stop. Yet, she immediately stood up again, eyes blazing with rage as she gripped her hammer tightly, glaring into the smoke above her.
Ignoring her severe burns, she gritted her teeth, undaunted and furious.
As the smoke gradually cleared, Karna emerged, suspended in midair like a hero awaiting his fiery execution. Countless iron stakes impaled his body, holding him rigidly aloft.
Yet his expression remained utterly unchanged. Flames erupted from his body, burning with the intensity of the sun itself.
The sheer aura of his presence made all three opposing Servants sense mortal danger.
"Three against one, is it? Well, it hardly matters."
"Right here, right now, I shall eliminate you all."
Karna paid no attention to the iron stakes piercing through his body. Under the scorching heat, even the strongest iron melted into molten liquid, dripping onto the earth below.
Attacks powerful enough to slay any ordinary Servant had not left even the slightest mark on him.
He hovered invincibly in the sky, staring emotionlessly down at the three Servants below.
[Kavacha and Kundala: O' Sun, Become Armor]
Rank: A
Type: Anti-Unit (Self) Noble Phantasm
Range: 0
Maximum Targets: 1 Person
A divine armor that reduces all enemy interference—physical attacks, magecraft, curses—to merely one-tenth of their strength. Provided with sufficient mana, Karna ignores almost all injuries. It also grants him regenerative abilities capable of recovering even fatal wounds.
In other words, as long as Karna had enough magical energy supplied, he was effectively invincible in this Holy Grail War.
It wasn't merely due to his golden armor significantly diminishing damage. As the son of the Sun God Surya, Karna merged with Surya after death, granting him unparalleled divinity and compatibility with divine attributes.
Such powerful divinity provided Karna immense offensive and defensive strength—this alone was enough to drive enemies into despair.
After losing their Archer and Berserker, the Red Faction had desperately ensured Karna's strength by obtaining jewels containing immense reserves of magical energy from the Mage's Association.
These precious gems, said to have originally belonged to the magus who created the concept of the Holy Grail War, had eventually fallen out of favor due to their exorbitant costs.
The Mage's Association had acquired them from a certain twin-tailed young woman who, according to rumors, had grown so impoverished she could barely afford meals, ultimately selling her beloved gems under the temptation of a certain golden-haired woman with spiral curls.
"Such arrogant words!"
Standing below, Vlad III gripped his black lance tightly, his expression filled with rage as he pointed it at Karna suspended arrogantly in the sky.
Such blatant disrespect toward three Servants at once could not be tolerated without anger.
Yet Karna remained unshaken by Vlad's furious glare, staring back impassively, his eyes holding a will as unyielding as steel.
Suddenly, Karna spun his spear sharply.
The next instant, the blazing spear thrust forward as a crimson flash, aimed directly at Vlad III standing on the ground.
BOOM!
Flames collided with iron stakes erupting before Vlad, unleashing yet another terrifying shockwave.
Even Vlad III, empowered to top-tier Servant strength by his territorial advantage, struggled merely to trade blows with Karna.
A flash of silver swiftly approached from Karna's blind spot.
But Karna radiated heat like a miniature sun, flames continuously exploding from his form, his seemingly endless magical energy pouring forth relentlessly.
He spun his divine spear sharply, showing no intention of dodging. Just as Siegfried's silver blade descended to slash at his shoulder, Karna's spear struck precisely, impaling Siegfried through the abdomen.
Blood splashed freely from Siegfried's wound.
[Armor of Fafnir: Blood Armor of the Evil Dragon]
Rank: B+
Type: Anti-Unit (Self) Noble Phantasm
Range: —
Maximum Targets: 1 Person
Nullifies all attacks equivalent to Rank B and below. Attacks of Rank A or higher have their damage reduced by a Rank B equivalent.
Yet even this formidable armor proved insufficient against Karna's casual strike, which effortlessly pierced through Siegfried's body.
With A-rank Strength inherent in his divine spear, combined with Karna's superb skill, it easily overcame Siegfried's formidable dragon blood armor.
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