Chapter 119 - 39.2

Gawain couldn't allow that to continue. "With me! With me! We must stop that magician!" The knight was clearly desperate to stop Luvia before she killed more of his men. He knew that abandoning his position would greatly weaken his sacred gear but he could still keep it going for those who stayed close.

All the knight needed was a few moments to get his men ready for the attack. He established a connection to those close to him, practically abandoning everyone else to fortify just twenty men.

Just by stepping away from the prepared position where the center of his power was added a huge weight to his shoulders but green mana kept him going as his soldiers joined with him.

But the magus wasn't showing any mercy or giving them time to organize. Every time a group of soldiers formed to try and attack her she would throw a jewel and use it like a bomb or if someone tried to play the hero she would shot them down with a spell or curse.

They all knew that the Order of Pendragon of old wouldn't be having those kinds of problems but the present one couldn't compete without their leaders' sacred gears.

With that in mind Gawain led the charge, he was the only knight present and with his Green Knight Mantle he was the best chance they had of victory.

However the Order of Pendragon was underestimating Luvia. They didn't know how to fight a magician like her, a magus like her, any longer as the secrets and training to deal with this situation were lost with time.

They weren't a mercenary group, they weren't a real army, they were a secret organization that dedicated themselves to King Arthur and without their king and allies to guide them the Order of Pendragon had no real enemies to fight against. They stagnated and the world passed by them, too many setbacks left them isolated and weak.

Jewel magecraft was far more dangerous than they could ever predict and Luvia was extremely proficient in it. When she saw the enemy leader approaching with a retinue her eyes gained a glint of malice.

'There you are, you coward. You are going to pay for Auguste's death.' She blamed herself as much as them but that didn't matter at the moment. Turning fully to face her hated enemy, Luvia threw every gem on her hands in his direction.

Already having an understanding of what was happening, even if he didn't know much about magecraft, Gawain would have reacted negatively about anything Luvia had thrown at him. "WALL!"

With the support of their Commander sacred gear the soldiers moved quickly and a shield wall was quickly lifted to protect them from all of the explosions they expected.

They didn't understand that every jewel was the equivalent to a small bomb.

Another thing that was clear to all was that the gallery was getting so damaged that it would have to pass by serious reforms and reconstruction before opening again.

Despite their shields all the members of the Order with Gawain were thrown back, including himself. Explosion after explosion shook the building as some tried to get up to keep fighting but the jewels still had plenty of mana to spare. Luvia had stopped focusing on elements and was focusing only on blowing them up.

For the moment Gawain felt the pull of his sacred gear still working with all those who charged with him but he knew that wouldn't last if he didn't act quickly but it was growing weaker by the second. He knew it was inevitable that its power would diminish but the knight couldn't leave Luvia unchecked.

Standing up faster than anyone else he charged ahead to draw fire while still keeping his sacred gear going. Wounds healed and other men tried to follow their leader but it was too late, Gawain was already many steps ahead.

As usual he knew he was the most tantalizing target and he made sure Luvia knew he was coming. "Magician!" He announced loudly but there was no need as she was already charging in his direction, her eyes filled with hate.

A roar was the prelude for their fight as Gawain started with a two handed swing of his sword that Luvia ducked before delivering a punch to his stomach. It didn't hurt, even as his armor crumbled against the Reinforced fist the Green Knight Mantle neutralized any possible injury as he brought his sword back to slice the blue magus.

Using her position and the fact that Gawain wasn't really in position to counter attack, Luvia threw a high kick to his face which made the knight take a couple of steps back, off balance. Before he could even understand what was going on Luvia moved behind him and grabbed him by his waist, his feet leaving the ground as the young woman delivered a suplex.

There was nothing that Gawain could do when his neck hit the damaged but still hard floor of the gallery, Luvia had positioned herself perfectly to make sure her attack broke his neck. She made sure to hit him hard and fast with the help of Reinforcement, burying Gawain a few inches below the floor.

"HELP THE COMMANDER!" One of the soldiers called out as Luvia stood up after apparently killing the leader of their Order.

"It is fine if you don't surrender." She spoke firmly before moving closer to the closest soldier and burying her elbow on his armor, sending the man flying back. "I have some anger to vent anyway."

However Gawain was not dead even if he found it hard to breathe in his position. 'She is too strong. While I was worried about stopping her from killing the others, challenging her was a mistake.'

As his head was buried and he was in a really uncomfortable position, the knight found it extremely difficult to move. He could feel the pain from the hit, his neck struggling to stay connected and his back almost broken because of how he was standing, bending backwards with his head on the floor.

'If it wasn't for the mantle I would be dead.' Gawain admitted as he focused on what he was about to do. 'I need to get out soon or I will suffocate. I refuse to die now, when we are so close to our goal!'

Pain, that was all that ran through Gawain's mind as he forcefully turned around with his head still buried to get into a better spot to take out his head from the floor. Once again his Noble Phantasm was saving his life as his neck would have broken or he would be bleeding to death without it.

But every single movement was painful and the knight felt the full extent of it, the Green Knight Mantle only stopping him from getting hurt and nothing else. 'I need to return to where I set up the Stone Commandments' center. It is our only chance of beating her.' So excited for his victory that he had committed a mistake, Luvia's attack had humbled him once again. 'We are so close, we can't fail now.'

With that last thought Gawain pulled his head out of the stone floor and took harsh gulps of air before his vision cleared and he saw almost all of his soldiers on the floor and realized the consequences of his mistake were worse than he thought.

By stepping away from his position he had greatly weakened the effects of his sacred gear, the fact that his mind was blind from pain ment he couldn't work to force it to keep going either.

The golden aura was missing from the battlefield and his men got punished by Luvia because of it. The blue magus fury was relentless but the members of the Order tried to resist. With their leader down and without his sacred gear support they fought carefully even as the Heiress of Edelfelt kept breaking their bones.

Gawain knew he had to get back to his initial position but with Luvia on his way there was no hope. It was just a matter of time before she pushed his Noble Phantasm to its limits or found another way around it.

The knight despised his weakness, hated what he had to do but he knew it needed to be done. "FREED!" He shouted with all the air of his lungs, getting the attention of all in the gallery, Luvia especially glaring at him with hate. "Neutralize the magician quickly or all is lost!"

Usually the Mad Exorcist hated receiving orders, "Okey dokey." But he wasn't going to risk his boss' fury later.

"Wait!" Xenovia attacked to try and keep Freed pinned in place but Rapidly just made him too fast for her and the white haired man escaped. "Luvia!"

Her name was the only warning that Luvia received that Freed was going to attack but the magus was already prepared; she had prepared to face most of the Excalibur Fragments from the moment she heard about them in Fuyuki.

Weeks of preparation seemed to pay off when Rapidly collided with a barrier of mana behind Luvia. "You didn't think it would be that easy, did you?" A huge jewel was shining around her neck, a huge sapphire bigger than a golf ball that the blue magus had prepared for emergencies that had been filled by years with mana from her family.

A common practice for families with a history of Jewelcraft.

That was her main preparation to counter the Holy Swords, a barrier made with decades worth of mana. "Actually, I did~" Was all Freed said before Luvia felt something on her midriff, it was a new sensation that she never felt before. "I wanted to give you my other sword but this one will do~"

It took a second for Luvia to recognize the pain she was feeling, just one second before she felt the invasion of Excalibur Blessing to its full extent as it had pierced her body from the front to back.

She didn't scream, holding the pain in and glaring at Freed with tears forming in her eyes. Her mind was running by miles in an instant as she tried to throw a punch at the man.

However Luvia's Reinforcement, for the first time since she mastered the skill, failed. She only noticed when her fist connected with Freed's face but the Mad Exorcist didn't budge. Then she finally noticed the white aura surrounding Freed, Holy Aura which empowered his blow to pass her shield and cut her intestine and liver.

The same Holy Aura that was supposed to be a force to protect humanity was now running amok on her body and disrupting her mana. A gift from God which was supposed to be the sweetest of medicines had been turned into the most devastating of poisons as Luvia's own soul screams from pain as her blood spilled and covered both her sword and dress in red.

On seeing Excalibur Blessing, Luvia's screaming mind managed to connect the final dots; that was the best sword for rituals, it fits the name as its main purpose was to offer blessings from God.

However that Blessing turned into a curse in Freed's hands, his personality and desires caused the aura to invade Luvia's body in a corrupt manner that clashed with her mana and made her magic circuits burn like never before.

Luvia wanted to cry, to weep, to scream.

Despite her strength and pride she did end up screaming. A weak scream, a sad scream without strength as the blood kept pouring out.

Yet, despite all that, Luvia still glared at Freed even as her hand failed to reach him for another punch and landed on Blessing. "You know something? You are pretty with red all over. It brings out your eyes. Hahahaha."

Xenovia was trying to reach the white haired man but members of the Order tried to get in her way. They heard their leader's command and knew that what Freed was doing was supposed to be crucial for the operation. They fully turned their backs to the Mad Exorcist and tried to keep the blue haired woman from reaching him even if it cost their lives.

Her rush to help in her allies plight didn't dull her skills but she was unsettled by what could be called a suicidal charge of the members of the Order which tried to stop her. They threw their whole bodies in her direction, their weapons ignoring hers and aiming only for her. The Exorcist had no choice but to defend herself, Destruction drenching in blood but that was enough to save her life even if they succeeded in stopping her from advancing.

Irina who was more friendly to Luvia was shocked but that only lasted for a second and she raised Mimic to her eye level, preparing to impale Freed's back. She was furious over what the Order had done to someone she was learning to like and that fury brought out the Holy Aura once again. If her attack connected not even Blessing's aura could save the stray Exorcist..

However that fury also gave her tunnel vision as many soldiers discarded their weapons and grabbed her arm. Holy Aura helped Irina fight them off but they were relentless and with Mimic in sight they didn't care about their lives any longer. If Shidou Irina were a more combative person she could order Mimic to stab them without even moving.

As she didn't, other soldiers began to stab and punch her while the rest focused on getting Mimic. Soon Irina was falling down but Mimic's aura and her clothes kept her mostly safe as she began to fight back but failed as the people holding her arm stopped her from moving as she needed.

Neither of the Exorcists could help their new ally as Luvia's magic circuits fought against an infection made of what was supposed to be benefic energy. Every moment Excalibur Blessing remained in her was another moment of torture visible in her face and slowly the fight left her expression.

Slowly, as slow as he could, Freed took out Blessing from Luvia's body. He was enjoying seeing the suffering on Luvia's face with a huge smile. She tried to keep her composure but it was too much pain and tears were already escaping her face.

When the blade finally left her body, Luvia couldn't stay standing and fell to her knees. 'I can't feel my legs.' Her overloaded mind managed to think as her hands moved to try and close the wound.

"Damn! You look beautiful like that?" Freed commented with a smile. "Are you in the mood for some fun? I know I am."

That was too much for Gawain who finally got up and began to circulate the area to return to his initial position. "Don't let the poor girl suffer, Freed."

"But that is the best part!" Freed whined but the smile on his face just showed how much fun he was having. The knight was deeply regretting having allied himself with such a sadist. "Fine, fine. Spoilsport."

Every single part of the Mad Exorcist's nature demanded him to ignore the knight, to just keep going and have fun. However he was well aware of Xenovia making her way towards him and wasn't foolish enough to think that just because someone was down that they were out.

He saw some of what Luvia could do and letting her live was a risk that a warrior like Freed wasn't willing to take. "God, I hate blondes." Blessing raised above his head he whistled. "Look up beautiful, to the last thing you're gonna-"

Bright lights pierced through the windows again as another vehicle broke through and invaded the gallery in a rush. The car hit some of the soldiers and kept advancing in Freed's direction, who was shocked and surprised by the events but not enough to stop him from using Rapidly to escape.

All watching expected the black car to hit Luvia but were surprised when it stopped to her side and another twin tailed haired girl jumped out with a cat by her side. "What the fuck you happened with you, Edelfelt?"

"Rin this is not the time!" The redhead driver protested as he also stepped out of the car and looked around, studying the situation. When he saw the bloody sword on Freed's hand he knew who was the main responsible for Luvia's wounds. "Kuro, how is she?"

"Lots of Holy Energy is circulating on her body." The nekomata replied while standing at the wounded girl's side. "I need to purify it completely or it's going to fry her soul. Rin-"

"I got the wound already but it is also messing with my mana." On the black haired magus was a copy of EM that she was using for the treatment. "Goddamned!" Rin discarded the scalpel and took out a huge jewel from around her neck. "Don't dare to die, Edelfelt! Not unless I kill you!"

"Why- why-" Luvia, usually strong and confident, stuttered while her unfocused eyes looked at Rin. "Why are you helping me… you poor excuse- of a ma-gus?"

"You are making it really hard for me." Despite her comment, Rin's jewel was positioned above the wound as she began to work. "Damn, still not enough."

The new arrivals are left mostly alone as the Order was focusing on retrieving the Excalibur Fragments and Freed was watching them with amusement. "How the hell did you guys find this place?"

A furious Shirou traced Muramasa before replying. "The smoke helped."

"Huh?" Looking around Freed noticed that there was a fire going on in the gallery, a lot of fires really that he wasn't paying attention to before. "Weren't the boundary-" Quickly he raised his swords to block Shirou's direct slash. "Let me finish you son of a bitch!"

"You hurt Luvia." Shirou said curtly and to the point, making the white haired man blink.

"Oh, you are the blonde's girlfriend? Say, was she a virgin?" Freed couldn't say anything more as Shirou began to push him back with a fast sequence of strikes that he was forced to defend.

Both Rapidly and Blessing moved with increasing speeds and even then Freed found himself on the back foot as Shirou kept attacking. The fight got faster and when it appeared that the Mad Exorcist was about to be defeated, Holy Aura began to cover him and for the first time he managed to break Shirou's guard and force him back.

Just for a second before the redhead adapted and both kept clashing, his eyes resting on the Fragments for a second-

More gaps that began to be filled, his mind connecting a picture of a familiar grass field.

A girl entering womanhood or a woman leaving girlhood, as beautiful as a fairy-

*Static*

Rituals and prayers, the building of a church, the blessings of paintings-

*Static*

High speed fights far faster than most cars before they were even invented-

*Static*

A huge city was under construction during the day but at night the sword was used to bless every stone. Every centimeter received its blessings and prayers of protection until it became a true fortress of Holy Energy.

*Static*

Blood, blood, blood, fight, fight, fight.

*Static*

Luvia's suffering while the blade is removed slowly, its holder face mad with glee.

-fury like he never felt before fills Shirou with determination as he pushes the blades harder than he ever did before. 'I am going to kill him.' The redhead decided with a fast slash to the white haired man's chest only for Freed to intercept just before Muramasa connected.

But the tip of the Noble Phantasm was close and the priest's robes failed to stop the blade from touching him despite any protection the Mad Exorcist had. Freed felt the bite of Muramasa and panicked, both swords pushing the katana away as he looked down and saw some blood.

A furious Mad Exorcist was about to make a comment but he needed to stop a stab from Muramasa before the Noble Phantasm could reach his heart. "Can't you just chill for a second."

"No."

While Shirou dealt with the biggest threat, Yoruichi focused on trying to filtrate the Holy energy inside Luvia. "Keep her awake, Rin. If she lose conscience now-"

"I got it!" Rin was still focused on trying to close the wound but was failing to make a definitive headway.

"Forget about me- This is nothing less- than I deserve. You should leave… It's too dangerous." Luvia tried to push Rin away but she had no strength to do it.

Not willing to believe it was Luvia who said such a thing, Rin tried to calm her down. "Don't worry, we have the world's strongest bodyguard." She motioned to Liz with her head who was standing close and watching anyone trying to approach them.

Some of the soldiers of the Order of Pendragon noticed the white haired woman but ignored her, their focus turning to either slow down Xenovia or take down Irina. "They aren't attacking."

"We aren't their target." Yoruichi could feel her fur and the air tingling both from the work she was making on Luvia as well as Shirou's fight. 'If she wasn't like this I could transform and finish this. These swords may be dangerous but are weaker than I thought.' She glanced at the blue magus' suffering face before shaking her head. 'But if I do that now, she will die.'

"How did you… find this pla-ce?" Luvia tried to talk but Rin shushed her. Not that it stopped the Edelfelt, she never listened to her cousin anyway. "Were you… looking for the… Excalibur Fragments too?"

"Yes. The smoke from the fires and the noise helped a lot. You are lucky that the boundary field is stopping people from looking too closely or else the fire fighters would already have swarmed the palace." Yoruichi explained to try and help calm the girl down. "We were just coming back from another of their hideouts when we saw a fire truck pretty much running around without direction because of it." But it wasn't working and the nekomata was growing increasingly frustrated with her patient. "Stop fidgeting already and let me concentrate. This is harder than you think."

Yoruichi could feel the Holy Energy inside Luvia combating the natural mana that a magus like her had and her vital force suffering because of the conflict. That kind of energy shouldn't be doing that to a human, at least not to the extent that the nekomata was fighting against. So she had to use her Ki to try and fix any damage while keeping Luvia alive and functioning.

Which wasn't helped by the fact that Luvia didn't seem to want to survive the experience. "Stop wasting your time. I did it to myself." The blonde lifted a hand but it soon fell down, much to the two other women's alarm. "I landed on this mess… overstepped my boundaries and now… now I pay my penance-"

"Can you drop the 'rich girl' act for a minute while we are trying to save your life so I can punch you later?" Rin declared fimly, refusing to stop treating her. 'There is too much blood.' She glanced at Yoruichi and saw the look of concentration on the cat's face before shaking, focusing back on her work.

"Auguste is dead because of me." That was news to Rin who looked at Luvia in shock.

"Your butler is dead?" The only bodies she was around were using armor or something similar.

Rin had only met the man once when he showed up in Kuoh to deliver Luvia her homework she had forgotten. All she could really remember of the old figure was that he didn't like Shirou and doted on Luvia like a grandfather.

For Rin the old man's death was regrettable but not important, however Yoruichi took a look at Luvia and realized what the blonde magus needed. "Where is he?" With more strength than she had mustered before, Luvia pointed to the wrecked car close to a wall. "Liz, go get him."

"Are you sure?" Leysritt's red eyes inspect the area for some members of the Order still around them. Most were out of the fight but she wasn't one to take risks.

"Just do it." Realizing that Yoruichi had something in mind, Liz obeyed. She marched to the remains of the limousine which was flipped on its side and looked at it for a second. "Open it up. I can feel a life sign in there."

Luvia perked up and Liz once again obeyed, the homunculus fingers easily digging into the metal before she pulled off part of it where would be below the passenger's front seat. Those who didn't know about her or her strength watched in astonishment as a tall lean woman ripped the car apart with her bare hands.

Took the white haired maid a minute to find what she was looking for and extract him out but eventually Liz returned to their car while carrying a wounded but alive Auguste, much to Luvia's relief.

However it wasn't all good news. "He needs medical attention." Liz stated the obvious.

Unlike his charge who just had a single but huge wound, Auguste's body was covered with them; blood dripped from his forehead falling down from the side of his face that was missing his glasses, his suit was wet with many red spots all over it, just from looking it was possible to see a bone out of its socket as his left arm was in the wrong angle and from the damage they could observe as Liz laid him down they could tell there were more internal wounds.

Evidently Liz was correct, Auguste needed medical attention, fast. "Give me back the EM." Rin ordered and the homunculus delivered. The black haired magus looked at the scalpel, Luvia and her butler. "I don't think I have enough mana for both of you."

Rin was speaking with the fact in mind that she needed to take care of both at the same time to maximize their odds of survival. The main problem was that neither could really wait for one of them to receive treatment first. While Yoruichi was keeping the Holy Energy at bay for now that was only temporary and Auguste's wounds were still open and bleeding.

To make sure her mana wouldn't be wasted, Rin would need to focus on someone and despite her animosity with Luvia it was clear she was Tohsaka's pick.

'Of all times for her to forget our animosity.' Luvia managed to think with amusement as a hand moved to her neck. She lowered the collar of her dress to reveal the sapphire brimming with mana just above her breasts.

At the sign of the extremely valuable jewel full of mana, Rin couldn't help but curse. "You have to be fucking kidding me."

"Language." Liz chastised in her duty as a teacher and Luvia managed to chuckle.

"You forgot… that your family is … a branch of mine?" The blue magus managed to chuckle despite the pain and the peril of her life. "We started this particular tradition… cousin Tohsaka."

An eyebrow twitched. "Can't we just let her die? Please?" Despite her complaint, Rin removed the stone from Luvia's necklace delicately.

Yoruichi was about to call Rin a tsundere but refrained. The Tohsaka Head needed to focus and so did she. "Shirou would be disappointed if we did that." She couldn't help but add anyway.

Shaking her head, Rin stabbed Auguste with EM while her other hand worked with the jewels to close Luvia's wound. "After we stabilize them we should leave."

"We wait for Shirou first." Leysritt's eyes were now turned to the redhead's battle as he clashed with the Mad Exorcist.

Gawain had stopped moving around the gallery, not believing how things developed. 'This is impossible! How can someone be as fast as the Holder of Excalibur Rapidly.' He thought in panic as his eyes remained glued on Shirou and Freed's fight.

A flash of steel had Freed moving his head to the side as Muramasa delivered a small cut to his cheek, the white haired man's left hand already moving for a counter as Blessing moved for Shirou's chest only for the katana to already be blocking it, pushing the blade back.

Rapidly was on its way to the magus' neck but with a fast shift of his arms the back of Muramasa's handle deflects it.

All happened in just a few seconds as the two fighters had made no movement besides swinging their blades and Gawain was witnesses to two superhumans collinding at high speeds.

'Are they even human?' The Commander of the Order of Pendragon questions himself as Holy Aura begins to cover Freed once again. It was the second time the stray Exorcist was using it but so far it didn't help him get a decisive blow. 'Now the pace changes.'

His prediction was correct as Freed's speed increased greatly and his strikes grew more precise. Muramasa was moving constantly to stop everything but Freed was relentless as he used his two swords perfectly for attack and defense. A side attack with Rapidly had Muramasa pinned and Blessing going for Shirou's open chest. The redhead dodged it with a roll immediately raising his katana over his head to stop Rapidly's follow up.

But Blessing had an opening and Shirou had to trace another sword, a shorter version of Muramasa, to stop the other blade's attack. Now with two swords of his own Shirou pushed Freed back and began to attack only for the Mad Exorcist to block every single strike with his Fragments.

Soon the fight began to change again as the Holy Aura began to waver, Freed quickly realizing what that meant with Shirou starting to notice how the Mad Exorcist started to get more defensive.

Once the white aura disappeared Freed threw himself back but Shirou gave chase. "Trace on!"

Swords form in the air and begin to fall, their trajectory aimed exactly locked where Freed should be. Yet the Mad Exorcist pivoted and moved to the side at the last second, the swords stabbing the ground harmlessly. "You think I haven't fought enough magicians to not recognize an aria?"

Shirou threw the smaller Muramasa in Freed's direction but the white haired man deflected with Blessing before stopping the main Muramasa with both his weapons. But the white haired man was just a little too slow and the blade cut his arm. It was small but it was a sign for things to come if things kept going like this

Observing the fight for as long as he could, Gawain realized a couple of things. 'We are going to lose.'

It wasn't just Freed's fight, from the corner of his eyes Gawain could see Xenovia rushing towards his undesirable ally and Irina struggling but dealing with his soldiers. Their best chance of victory should be the stray Exorcist but he was failing to deliver.

'He is used to fighting with light swords, not with real metal, even if he is trained for such.' Despite the speed of the fight, Gawain noted how the white haired man moviments looked uncomfortable and stiff. 'All the Excaliburs are two handed weapons, heavier than the standard sword. Light swords have no weight on them while every single Excalibur weighs at least ten pounds because of the special metal.'

Since Freed was carrying all the Fragments they had retrieved that meant that, not only he was lifting one heavy sword in each hand but he also had another extra twenty pounds under his robes.

'The only exception for that rule is Mimic and that one…' He looked at Irina still struggling, the Holy Aura allowed her to stop his men from getting the sword but she was only one against a dozen. Turning back at Freed's fight he saw the Holy Aura returning to help the white haired man. 'If he had Excalibur Mimic then one of his hands would be essentially free.'

There was also the Holy Energy of the swords to consider. While Excalibur Blessing had the strongest one, Mimic was not far behind as Gawain could see and compare both auras. Looking at his hand he knew he would never be able to use the Excaliburs to their full potential, only those with the light element could.

The leader of the Order couldn't help but envy Freed a little. 'If he wasn't beyond human limits, if he wasn't superhuman, he never would be able to fight like this. Neither use their auras or even hold all those swords for that matter.' For a second he regretted not having taken Valper's offer to enhance him but the knight quickly focused on what he must do. 'If defeat in this battlefield is inevitable then we must change to another.'

And he knew exactly how to change the battlefield.

Previously in her life Irina was sure that she could fight for a whole day straight, thanks to her training and stamina she never doubted that for a second. Now she was rethinking that notion as she kicked a helmet into a soldier of the Order's head and knocked him down while throwing another one from her shoulder.

'I am starting to get tired of this.' Irina admitted only to herself as she jumped over another soldier and kicked him in the back of his head. A woman with a spear tried to pierce her chest but the Exorcist jumped again and cut the spear in four parts before kicking the older woman's side. 'I need a break.'

Most of the members of the Order around the chestnut haired Exorcist were already beaten and she took a moment to take a breath. She could see most of her enemies attacking her partner and gulped some air to prepare to help Xenovia.

"Exorcist!" However all Irina's plans came crashing as Gawain came running in her direction with a sword held high. "I won't let you escape!"

Irina almost couldn't believe what the knight just said. "'Escape'? I have been kicking your butts the whole night?!" She was more confident than she was when they fought before and Holy Aura soon covered her again. 'He looks to be tired as well. This is my chance.'

She expected Gawain to be trying to remain in one place again but since he was charging straight to her, Irina would have to adapt.

Mimic remained as a sword as its Holder threw a long swing against the knight, the metal acting like a whip once more. "Stabbing doesn't work? Let's try to hit you hard!" She announced confidently.

That was exactly what Gawain was counting on and when the metal hit his side he felt it slice his armor and hit him with enough strength to break his balance. 'Pain is good; it reminds you to keep going.'

Recovering just before falling, Gawain kept his charge going as Irina kept hitting him with Mimic. He didn't even try to defend himself as the hits kept breaking his armor apart and only the Green Mantle kept him safe but that wasn't perfect as bruises began to show up, the Noble Phantasm reaching its limits.

The wounds on Gawain's skin told Irina all she needed to know, she was breaking thought and that in turn kept her going. The knight wasn't trying to hide the wounds or even bothering to raise a defense, he wanted her to keep going just enough to secure his victory.

'This is the best way to change the battlefield.' Gawain told himself to push through the pain as Irina lost her Holy Aura again and he kept going. 'Closer! Just a little closer!' He told himself on a loop as he kept his charge going.

At that point Irina was growing disturbed by how much damage the knight had taken and the fact he wasn't stopping. His approach suddenly became much more intimidating but the Exorcist refused to panic.

Instead of losing herself to fear, Irina fell back to her training once again.'If a dangerous enemy is getting too close, push them away before he gets closer.' Usually that would involve certain traps and prayers made to affect supernatural beings.

However Gawain was a human. He had a Noble Phantasm but was still completely human. And all that Irina had to repel him was a sword. Except that her sword had a theoretical infinity range, or so Irina liked to think as she made it bigger and pointed at Gawain, the knight already ready for what was to come.

When Mimic began to fly in Gawain's direction he shouted. "Green Knight Mantle!" The second that took the sword to reach him was enough for the Noble Phantasm to cover his body with green aura. For the first time since the fight began, Gawain properly dodge the blade, accelerating in Irina's direction. "You shouldn't reveal all your tricks before your opponent."

Much faster than he was before, Gawain finally covered the whole distance between him and Irina. Mimic had already returned at the command of its holder and Irina moved to stab the knight again, this time with a proper sword.

When the knight took the blow, the active Noble Phantasm nullified the damage completely as his defense was so high that he ignored the blade and once more stopped Mimic from even marrying his skin.

No longer the knight was taking damage, he wasn't even feeling pain anymore. He took it all and kept standing without retreating another step and instead advancing as Irina tried to have Mimic to keep going. Holy Aura began to empower her again as she saw the knight's sword come in her direction from above his shoulder.

By the direction that the weapon was going Irina needed to block it or risk losing her life as the green aura was still around the man and her cape and combat uniform were most likely not to be enough.

Both blades collided in opposite arcs and Irina fully expected to start a struggle against the blond. Only for him to let his sword go, leaving Irina completely open when he grabbed her arm with one hand and the other moved for her face. There was nothing the Exorcist could do as Gawain hand held her face and he slammed her on the floor.

"You may be superhuman with your Exorcist training but that is irrelevant thanks to my Noble Phantasm." Irina tried to struggle but Gawain held her firmly, ignoring her glare. With her free hand she tried to force him to let go but he held on. "Without the proper instincts of a warrior, the determination to see victory at any cost, you can never beat the Green Knight."

That was the true power of the Green Knight Mantle, giving the user the power of the Green Knight that once had his head cut during a party for King Arthur, an attempt from Morgan le Fay to kill Guinevere with shock and fright.

As the mantle given to the original Sir Gawain belonged to him first, when it ascended to a Noble Phantasm, it imparted some of the prowess of its original owner to the user. However it was still a low level Noble Phantasm and couldn't save the user if their head got cut but it still could give a body resistant to wounds as was promised to the original Gawain on his quest.

With the power of the Green Knight it didn't matter if Irina was stronger than the average human, Gawain effectively became inhuman and surpassed her with a body that could not be harmed.

He tried to lift her head to slam it on the floor again but Irina moved her legs and locked them on his arm, Gawain being tall enough that such a maneuver was possible, while keeping her neck in place. Never before she had been more thankful for the training she did to strengthen her bones.

There was a brief struggle as Irina tried to break Gawain's arm while he tried to force her to let go of Mimic. All the while Irina glared at him and the knight couldn't help but feel shame as her strong eyes had a rightful indignation on them.

'Now I am really a thief, stealing from girls in the middle of the night.' The leader of the Order lamented. 'But I must do my duty.' His gauntlet hands struggled against the Exorcist's gloved arm as he hoped that the metal would hurt her enough for Irina to drop the sword.

But she resisted, her eyes making clear that she didn't intend to let go of Mimic easily. Even with protection she was still feeling pain but her resolve but Irina's resolve shone brighter than anyone else Gawain had ever met. Didn't mean he was going to stop as he tightened the pressure on both her face and arm even more.

Neither was willing to budge, neither was willing to give up.

"Sir!" But the two of them were not alone and the remains of the Order of Pendragon moved to help their Commander and Irina realized the deep trouble she was in.

Surprise only lasted a second on the Commander before he started throwing orders "Get the sword! This position is compromised! We must send Freed ahead!" Those without their helmets couldn't hide their disgust at the idea. 'But is the right one.' He took as much comfort as he could in the thought. "Whatever kind of magician that boy is, Freed can't beat him with the Excaliburs he has and if we lose them we will have no hope of resurrecting our king."

Determination filled their hearts as Irina lost hers, the determination of these soldiers was starting to scare the Exorcist as they were ready to do anything for their goal. Her resolve returned and she held Mimic as firm as she could but it wasn't enough. She never realized that if she used the sword properly she could be free but she didn't.

It took a few seconds but they didn't need to break her arms or even cut them by the opening between her uniform and gloves. They just needed to open her fingers, Irina's grip may be tight but Irina couldn't stop the soldiers from peeling her fingers from the sword one at a time.

First was the tumb, then the indicator. When only the little finger was left, Irina couldn't stop them. "I got it!"

The Commander moved at that signal and slammed Irina's back on the floor. He noticed his men step away and did the motion again. While strong willed, Irina wasn't able to keep her legs on a lock and was forced to let go and Gawain lifted his arm so his soldiers could take their place but still held the Exorcist's face to stop her from fighting back.

"Give it here!" Gawain ordered a soldier as he looked at Irina's eyes beneath his hand. 'Stabbing her forehead would have solved all your troubles.' A small voice told him before he ignored it. 'I don't have a weapon to do it anyway.'

He told himself the lie to try and feel better, ignoring Mimic on his grasp as even if he couldn't use its abilities, it was still a very sharp sword. It was inevitable that Irina would escape the five people trying to hold her, she was beyond human limits, they weren't.

Instead of saying anything else, the heir of Gawain began to run towards his first position to prepare for the next part. 'I need my sacred gear to make sure everything runs smoothly once Freed is out.' His conscience was heavy but he was determined. 'For King Arthur.' He kept repeating that for as long as he could. "Freed! Time to GO!"

Both Shirou and Freed turned to look at the blond with Mimic on his hands, one with a glare and other with a smile. "Sorry red. Fun is over!" Faster than before the white haired man attacked the magus with everything he could, forcing Shirou to block constantly until they ended up locked into clashing swords again. "For now."

"Trace on!" Shirou could see what Freed was doing and moved to stop him.

He traced swords above their heads once again but Holy Aura protected the Mad Exorcist and made him accelerate even more, focusing on his legs as Freed ran away while laughing maniacally.

He was growing more used to the speed of Rapidly and unfortunately for the redhead he wasn't fast enough to catch up with Freed. It was a problem that Yoruichi had warned him about before, his reactions were good, his sword skill almost flawless.

But in raw speed, in a race, he was lacking, something that touki could help him with but he hadn't mastered it yet.

"Get back here!" Shirou tried to keep up but even if he was fast Freed was much faster and the white haired man reached Mimic in a second, placing Blessing back on his robes before holding the katana with a laugh.

"Whoa! So light!" The Mad Exorcist looked at the advancing magus, ready to keep up the fight.

Only for Gawain to push him away. "GO NOW!" Slamming his right hand on the floor, the stones where he was standing began to glow and levitate, revealing that there were lines written on them. "Stone Commandments!"

Golden aura surrounded the stone and began to cover the area, blinding many of the present. The members of the Order of Pendragon felt their strength renewed at being infused with the aura of the sacred gear once again.

The Exorcists heard the name and managed to realize exactly what they were facing. "The Stone Commandments, those are-" Xenovia began.

"An almost Longinus level sacred gear." Irina finished before kicking away from the soldiers trying to surround her. She raced close to Shirou who was glaring at Gawain, arriving just as Xenovia did. "That sacred gear-"

"Gives power to everyone loyal to the user in an area." Shirou interrupted as his eyes turned to Freed who started to run, breaking one of the few remaining windows of the gallery and escaping. He wanted to pursue but looked back to Gawain as his men began to get up and surround them, all more powerful than before. "At its strongest it can give ten protections, ten Commandments that increase the fight capability of their followers. Fortunately he can't go for all ten yet."

Agravain's warnings and words came to Shirou as he glared at the Commander. In an attempt to give the redhead the best chance possible of reuniting the Fragments, the black knight had given him all he was willing about his allies' sacred gears.

In a seconds the moaning and wounded members of the Order got up ready to fight, some of the unconscious ones also stood up but that wasn't surprising for the trio watching the events.

Now that Gawain was forced to reactivate his sacred gear, all its protections were in sight; To never tire, to heal all wounds, to have the strongest armor, to have the sharpest blades and to be fearless.

"Just five." Xenovia observed with a frown before throwing Shirou a glance. "That is what you meant. Five must be his limit."

"Indeed it is." Gawain admitted with a glare, he was unarmed and tired but he looked more imposing than before. Around him the soldiers of the Order looked ready for their final fight. "Five Commandments. That is all I can fill these stones with." They landed on his hands and held them both in one each arm. "Unlike Moses who had God's help with the original, I need to fill them with my own strength." He glared at Shirou with hatred. "And I see that someone gave you more information than you should have. Who was the traitor?"

All soldiers glare at the redhead who scoffed. "I would call you a traitor for joining forces with a man like Freed." He looked back, prompting Gawain to look over his shoulder and notice the struggle to try and save Luvia.

A pang of guilt crossed the Commander's chest but his face didn't change. "She came here of her own volition, killed some of our men and got in the way of our mission." He looked at Shirou who was looking at him right back. "Forgive me for having no sympathy for her."

"You all shouldn't be in Fuyuki in the first place." Shirou replied with stoicism as he prepared his sword.

"Shirou, Luvia's condition is getting worse!" Yoruichi call had Shirou, the Exorcists and most of the Order looking at her. "This golden energy is too similar to Holy Energy! I can't help her like this!"

Gawain looked at his sacred gear in understanding and admiration. 'Maybe I could have used the Excaliburs.' Even at a distance he could tell with a glance that Luvia was suffering but his resolve didn't shake.

"Then we need to take that fake knight out, fast." Xenovia pointed out the simplest solution and offered her partner Destruction. "Irina, get ready to leave the building. I'm really going to go all out."

At a nod from the chestnut hired Exorcist, Shirou frowned. "So you can only go all out by bringing down the building. Sounds like a waste."

"I can't… control it completely yet." Xenovia admitted with a frown.

"Sacred gear?" Shirou sarcastically.

"My real sword." From a flick of her hand a light began to appear and Shirou felt an immense power emanating from it. "Get your friends and get out. I'll open the way." Then she glared at the magus. "After that you will have to explain why you were interfering with our mission."

"We don't want the Fragments." The eyes of the two met and Xenovia could tell Shirou wasn't lying. "But that isn't important right now. The world may be at stake."

"Isn't that a little melodramatic?" Irina asked with a small smile, already feeling the positive effects of a Holy Aura protecting her again. "This ain't the first time someone stole the Excaliburs, you know? We just have to get it back."

Raising an eyebrow, Shirou tried to speak gently. "You lost one of the Fragments, remember?" The twin tailed Exorcist began to scratch her head with embarrassment. "Besides, if we don't stop Freed quickly then he may restart the Great War."

An alarm bell rang on both the Exorcists' minds. "What do you mean?" Asked a wide-eyed Xenovia.

"Something weird started to happen in Kuoh a few hours ago." Shirou commented, his eyes never leaving Gawain as the Commander glared back at the magus. "So I may never have rebuilted a legendary sword but I can't help but think that something weird is happening in the place with the biggest branch of the town's ley line on the exact same day a weapon like that pops up can't be a coincidence."

"It seems the traitor gave out a lot of our plans." The disgust on the blond's voice just made Shirou more irritated.

"Rias felt the ley line act weirdly and called me on my cell phone, ever heard of those? You must haven't since you didn't have the decency of leaving a proper scout outside while using these subpar boundary fields." He rolled his eyes at the Commander's clear frustration.

"Shut up! This was the best we could do with the help we had and we are about to accomplish our objective!"

"Yeah, close to starting a war." Shirou said back, still glaring. "Do you understand what I mean, right?"

Xenovia knew the question was for her. "Holy Swords close to the Heiress of Pillars and siblings of the Maous… that is a real recipe for disaster."

Shirou was happy she caught on to the situation fast. "Then stop wasting time and go."

"But we can't leave you to fight against all of them alone." Irina was already prepared with Destruction to get some payback from the Order. "His sacred gear is also hurting Luvia-san and we can't leave our ally behind."

That was something that Shirou could agree with but was easily solvable. He looked back to his group and called out. "Get in the car and get out of here."

"Shirou?" Liz clearly didn't like the instruction but Yoruichi nodded her approval.

"It would be for the best. Dealing with two similar energies like that is too hard." The noble yokai admitted. "After we leave, Luvia's chances are going to rise considerably."

"Don't leave Shero on my account." The blue magus tried to move but the wound didn't let her. "I-"

"Shut up or you die." Rin summarized the situation easily. "Liz, help me get them in the car."

"No, we can't." Liz refused, her eyes focused on Shirou who looked back at her. "I won't leave Shirou alone."

Some could understand her dedication and loyalty, Shirou was even moved by it. Except that he couldn't let her stay. "You are the only one who can drive them out of here."

The white haired maiden knew he was right; Yoruichi had to focus on keeping Luvia alive and Rin had to keep treating the wound and couldn't drive even if she hadn't to keep healing Luvia. Auguste could be the driver if he was conscious but with his wounds even that would be a risk.

But Liz's priority was always Shirou. "I won't-"

"Leysritt! Take the others and go back home!" Shirou's firm voice cut the maid off and everyone looked at him. She looked at him, denial written all over her face as she knew what he was about to do. While Shirou was Liz's priority, he was concerned about everyone present. "That is an order."

Sofly, almost a whisper, Shirou spoke as gently as he could. He didn't like giving orders on anything, especially to Liz.

Her red eyes closed for a moment before she opened them slowly.

"Yes, Master." Because she couldn't challenge them or express her opinion. She just nodded her head again and began to follow the order. "I shall place the man inside first. Make them ready to be moved."

Almost robotically the homunculus followed the order and began to place Auguste in the front seat, adjusting it for more comfort. Neither Rin nor Yoruichi commented on anything when she picked up Luvia and slowly transported her to the back, instead the nekoshou moved to sit close to her as the red magus took off the coat she had borrowed.

"Emiya!" She threw the red coat towards him and Shirou catched it with ease. No words were needed as they nodded to each other, Rin understood that there was no time for arguments but the redhead really didn't want to give the order to Liz. "Kick them out of town."

Instead of criticizing or disagreeing, Rin tried to incentivize Shirou, something he appreciated. "Will do." Like the coat it changed to fit his size and protect him better as the gem in the center of his armor began to glow. "You two go as well."

"Shouldn't we all go then?" Xenovia asked nonchalantly. "Your business partner is the one in danger."

"Someone needs to stay behind to make sure we aren't followed or that those guys don't give us troubles there instead of here." Shirou replied back, his eyes looking back at the members of the Order who remained weren't moving at the moment. "Besides, it's not your job to get the Fragments back? You better go do it before I am done here or I will go and do that for you."

Xenovia threw a small glare to Shirou before letting out a chuckle. "Fair."

"Xenovia?" Irina was curious because of her partner's attitude but the blue haired Exorcist just chuckled again.

"This guy got guts if he thinks he can defeat them all and finish our job. Let's give him a chance." She smiled sincerely, her eyes on Muramasa. "After this we should spar sometime, Noble Phantasm against Noble Phantasm."

The implication brought a smile to his lips. "Heh. I would like that." Soon it left as he looked back at the Order who gave him a lot of headache during the day. "Go."

"Let's move out, Irina!"

"Yes!" Xenovia began to run in Kuoh's direction, ignoring everything else and jumping out of a window with Irina right behind.

Soon the car with the rest of Shirou's group began to move as well, the magus giving it a last glance as Liz looked back. There was life still in her eyes and she nodded but he still felt some guilt as the car broke another window to leave.

"This place really isn't opening anytime soon." Shirou commented out loud with a smile before it was gone again. "Apologies for the delay but I appreciate that you let everyone just leave the party like that."

"It wouldn't be polite to keep people who don't want to be present." Gawain tried to get into the joke but he couldn't, he was too uncomfortable for that. "Besides, one of them has an Excalibur. They going to Kuoh means a step closer to the return of King Arthur so it is to our benefit."

"Do you really believe it's going to be that easy?" Shirou looked around at the many bodies in the gallery. "From what I can tell Freed is just one man and you all had troubles with just Destruction."

"Freed won't be alone there." Gawain felt comfortable saying that because to him there was no difference. "And we will help, once we have dealt with you."

Shirou couldn't stop himself from laughing a little. "Not if I have something to say about that." His cocky grin had many of the soldiers mad but they didn't advance. "Not even counting on Rias, Sona and their peerages. I bet that Freed is about to bite much more than he can chew."

"Huh, looks like the traitor didn't tell you everything. Or he was one of the ones who didn't know enough. I wonder." The Commander's rumination ended when he shook his head. "It doesn't matter. We will be there soon and can secure the Excaliburs by ourselves."

Not believing what the man just said, Shirou just shook his own head. "Don't your sacred gear need a few minutes to set up? Especially in a huge space like a school? With a college?" The glare the Commander was giving Shirou was murderous. "Even if you get there I doubt you and your men can do much. Or even get past me for that matter."

"I will discover who that traitor is and make sure they pay for speaking too much." The declaration came with a great deal of hatred since his trump card was revealed before the fight even began. "But you think you can stop us? You are right I need time to prepare but look here." He held the stones, which looked too metallic to be stone in Shirou's opinion, over his shoulders. "The Stone Commandments are already active and my men fight each with the strength of ten others."

"Meh, fought against tougher odds." Shirou sounded uninterested, almost bored by the blond's statement which made the Commander more frustrated. "So I am just going to deal with all of you and then go stop Valper from reforging 'Excalibur'."

Gawain didn't know what irritated him the most, the sarcastic tone when he said the name of the sword or that he planned to stop its rebirth in the first place. "The only way you are stopping Excalibur's resurrection is over my dead body!" His loyalty won out and he complained about the latter and his men followed with shouts of determination.

Once again Shirou wasn't fazed but the glare he gave had more irritation in it. Taking a deep breath, he said "I don't plan to kill any of you." Upon hearing those words Gawain flinched and shook his head.

"So you are the same as that girl then, lacking the determination of a warrior." He glared at Shirou as the soldiers of the Order looked more confident. "Then you can't beat us. At least the blue haired woman had the guts to fight properly."

It was Shirou's turn to shake his head and he laughed a little again. "You think that killing is the measure of what one needs for a fight? Or maybe one's strength? That is hilarious." But all humor had left the magus' face as he looked at Gawain and his soldiers with pity. "You kind of remind me of my father if he was more of an idiot and less mature."

"'Your father'?" The sudden turn on the conversation shocked the Commander of the Order.

Shirou noticed the shock from the man and chuckled. "Yes, much like him you also do things that you don't like to accomplish your goals. It doesn't matter the risk or costs, the mission comes first, ain't I right?" The silence confirmed the redhead's observation which just amused him more. "But unlike my father who can live with the consequences of his decisions, you hide behind things like 'loyalty' and 'honor'."

"You dare?!" One of the soldiers charged at Shirou but he expected that, wanted that. Instead of replying immediately he moved quickly, cutting the man's tendons with Muramasa to then turn to the side and hit the soldier in the back of the head with the handle.

"Oh yeah, I dare." Shirou replied as the armored body fell down, unconscious. Many tried to understand what was happening but Shirou just continued talking. "You think that killing is something great? Something necessary for a fighter? No, it isn't. What someone truly needs in the battlefield is resolve."

For a moment it seemed that Gawain would disagree or order an attack but the blond paused. "Killing means resolve, the resolve to see things through."

"That… sounds more like an excuse." Muramasa touched the back of the man's armor and everyone thought Shirou was about to finish the job. "Look at this guy for example; he is out of the fight and can't do anything like this. Should I kill him?" No reply meant that he had some people thinking. "Of course not. Killing is easy, any idiot with a knife on the street can kill someone. That doesn't mean that people should do it." Relaxing the katana on his shoulder, he stepped away from his last victim to point to another soldier. "This guy was killed because of your mission, your goal. Was it worth it?"

A nod came before the answer. "Yes. We all came prepared to give our lives for our king."

After letting some people agree the magus spoke again. "I disagree, because he is dead." Shirou then pointed at another body. "So is he." Then another. "So is she." He relaxed his arm and looked at the soldiers with pity. "Everyone that died here, every member of the Order of Pendragon that died today, is in your head. How does that feel?" Gawain flinched. "Sucks, doesn't it? Killing is easy and you killed them all."

"The Exorcists-"

"Your mission, your Order, you are their leader!" Shirou interrupted Gawain. "Would they have stolen the Excaliburs without your permission? Wouldn't they be here in Fuyuki without your say? If the Excaliburs weren't stolen, would the Exorcists be here to kill them?" Shirou crouched down, examining one of the dead. "This is one of Xenovia's, no hesitation. Like you, she also had a mission. She, like every man and woman who follows you, is a soldier." He glared at the Commander as he got up. "It wasn't her who chose this fight, her superiors did. Same as your men."

The Commander was growing increasingly frustrated by Shirou's talk. "Is there a point to this?"

"Yes, surrender now and no one needs to get hurt." Shirou cut to the chase, he tried to be nice but it was clear he was falling. "Unlike my father, who is an assassin mind you," some surprised was clear and voiced at that information but the magus paid no mind, "you lack the resolve to do what is necessary for your mission."

"After all this you think I lack resolve?!" Gawain picked up a sword from the floor with fury. "I am as willing to die as my men! For our king! For our Order! I was always ready to throw away my life!"

"But that was never necessary." Shirou could see his words weren't reaching Gawain but he was trying. "There is always another solution-"

"You come to talk about all this after insulting our resolve?!" A sarcastic laugh escapes the blond's lips which unsettled some of his men. "We are the last remnants of Camelot! We have a duty to King and Country! To bring back-"

"And after all that you still let my friends go." Shirou's interruption shocked Gawain who couldn't believe how cold he sounded.

But he recovered quickly. "Did you want them dead by chance? Sorry to disappoint you but we don't kill the wounded, we are honorable men!" The shouts and screams showed how much the men agreed with their leader.

However now Shirou only looked at them with more pity. "My father would have killed them to minimize the risks and external factors." Also by being more efficient but he didn't need to say that. "Huh. You all are a joke. Working with a murderer and sadist like Freed while preaching about honor and loyalty. You saw his hand work first hand and yet still insist on being 'loyal men'. King Arthur would hate all of you."

Gawain couldn't let it slide. "Our duty-"

Shirou didn't care. "And that is why you lack resolve. You hide behind words like 'duty' and 'honor' to justify using the easiest way." Those words clearly stung some men. "Bringing this fight into an inconspicuous city while hiding because you don't want to harm innocents is a paradoxical response; either you go all out for your mission or you don't do it in the first place."

"Shut up you bastard!" Finally Gawain lost his patience mostly because some small part of him agreed with the magus.. "We are going to kill you, get to Valper and recover the Excalibur! Our king will return!"

Steel sings as Shirou raised Muramasa and placed his free hand on the blade. "Not by you, not while I am here."

"Then you better kill us!" A fanaticism that wasn't present before makes itself known in the Commander's voice. "We won't stop! After killing you we will march to the academy and kill all there if necessary! Excalibur will be reforged!"

Taking a deep breath, Shirou still wanted to impart something before they started. "Remember when I said that any idiot could kill? This is what I meant; anyone can give any reason to kill someone else and hide behind a facade. My father at least owns his decisions, no matter how wrong, unlike you all."

"I grow tired of your snark!" Declared the Commander.

He was about to order the attack when Shirou spoke once again. "What one needs is just the 'want' to kill or the 'need' to kill?" The steel on Shirou's eyes kept the blond in check as he took a step back.

'I am… afraid of him? This boy is at least half my age… and I am afraid of him?'

With eyes that promised death by themselves, Shirou remained stoic as mana began to flow into Muramasa. "Everyone has wants and needs but when it comes to killing there is the consideration that once done it is irreversible. Taking away a life… Only in legends that kind of event can be undone." And considering their world he saw it as possible even if not easy or simple. "I for example want to kill Freed for what he did to Luvia, the torture and cruelty he imposed on her for his own pleasure. I don't need to kill him and considering she is alive I may even offer him to surrender because he didn't kill her immediately but that doesn't change the fact that a huge part of me wants to kill him."

And considering the kind of person Freed was, Shirou knew he wasn't going to feel guilty about it after.

"But I don't need to kill him as far as I know. Had you not send him away or we were in a more open environment I am sure I would have beaten him with enough time. Maybe then I would kill him or I would have sent him to a hole where he would never see the light of the day again."

Every single word, the soldiers and their Commander couldn't help but believe in every single word that Shirou was speaking. He was talking about how the result of the fight, a fight against most of the Excaliburs Fragments, was already decided with his victory after just a short exchange and they knew he wasn't lying.

"Understand something about me; I don't like killing. That is why I am taking my time and trying to talk you all down from fighting. Even if I don't want to kill any of you, accidents can happen and I would like to avoid them."

"You think you already won." Gawain realized with dread as he still believed in the redhead's every word. 'He already won.' His analytical mind wanted to reject the notion but everything else wanted to agree with it. "We won't stop."

"Oh, you will. When every single bone of your body is broken, when your body is cut to the point you can't move, you will. Which brings us to 'need'." If nothing else, Shirou's eyes looked even more menacing and determined. "I don't need to kill any of you. Even with the Stone Commandments or the Noble Phantasm on your back," Gawain held his mantle protectively, "I don't need to kill any of you. You are too weak."

"In a fight things change, the true strength of man appears and unknown factors present themselves." The Commander spoke to himself and his men, trying to muster all the courage he could find. "You can't tell the result of a fight before it even starts."

"Most would disagree, I certainly do." There were many things that helped Shirou to determine that the Order of Pendragon couldn't beat him if he went all out.

Some of it was the information that Agravain gave to him, the details about Stone Commandments, of how strong it could make the members of the Order being the main one. After fighting theirs all day, Shirou had a base since they all had the same training, instructions and equipment.

Combined with that there were also the weapons and damages to the gallery to consider and the fact that Shirou fought against Irina and managed to keep up with her easily, even winning during their spar despite both holding back.

Just by looking around Shirou gained enough information to clearly define that the Order of Pendragon, at their best and with every soldier in the city present, couldn't beat him. He even knew the sacred gears of all knights and their powers so if he decided to go for the kill and all out he was sure he would win.

Didn't mean he was going to lower his guard. His speech wasn't only to try and convince the members of the Order to give up, a part of him wanted it to fail anyway because of how the whole situation made him angry, especially in the last few minutes.

There was also the fact that even if the Stone Commandments made the men fearless they were still capable of feeling their nerves and uneasiness.

"You think you can beat us without killing anyone?" Gawain couldn't believe those words.

"I can, I will." Resolve, that was what everyone was seeing behind Shirou's eyes, a resolve so strong that intimidated lesser men. "I don't want to kill any of you, had you tried to keep Luvia and the others here that would be different but you let them go. For that I thank you."

Muramasa began to glow for a moment before it stopped, many thought that was a trick of the light and couldn't see any difference in the blade.

Shirou gave no time for anyone to think about it as he kept speaking. "Had Luvia died I probably would kill all of you. But she didn't and I only want to kill the person who made her suffer."

Didn't stop him from still being furious with them and needing to vent some of his aggressivity to try and calm down. That influenced his attempt to de-escalate the situation quite a bit but Shirou couldn't help himself. These people did give Freed the Fragments which caused the whole mess and his anger felt justifiable despite how much he tried to hold it in.

"You are underestimating us." Gawain wanted to retreat, wanted to give up and go home. Too many of his men had died and he felt lost.

However 'the sunk cost fallacy' forced him to keep going. Despite all the warnings, all the chances and every instinct telling him that fighting against Shirou was a bad idea he took a step forward, refusing to show submission.

"I will- No! We will show you our resolve!" All soldiers drew their weapons, their loyalty absolute and the aura around them grew stronger because of it. "ATTACK!"

"AAAAAAAHHHHHHH!" The shout came with a charge and all the last thirty men of the Order of Pendragon marched to their last stand.

Taking a deep breath, Shirou had no intention of hesitating. 'It will only take an extra minute to beat them all without killing.' Was his best estimate with all considerations. "Lightning Muramasa!"

Faster than any soldier present could keep up with Shirou found himself in the middle of them, katana swinging even faster as it cut their armor and shields like butter. Those that were hit felt the electricity running through them even as Shirou was already moving to the next.

"I don't need to kill any of you." Shirou spoke gently as five soldiers fell around him and the others turned to keep fighting. "But this is still going to hurt. A lot."

They threw themselves at him anyway, fearless as the Stone Commandments made them be.

Only one showed fear in his face, the Commander felt the emotion as he knew that soon he would be matching blows against Shirou by himself as the magus ignored him and moved to the next soldier.

'Why isn't he aiming for me first?' Gawain wondered with fear. He knew Shirou was aware of his presence and power of his sacred gear, he couldn't understand. 'Is it because of my Noble Phantasm?'

The single look Shirou gave him killed that theory on the spot. It was a glance filled with determination, resolve and conviction that had a chill running on Gawain's spine. Only for the katana on his hand to defeat another soldier easily and then move swiftly as he turned to the next.

It was then that Gawain realized why Shirou wasn't aiming for him first; It wasn't because of the Green Knight Mantle or a sense of fair play, it was because he was using the resistance his sacred gear gave to his men to make them harder to kill.

Another glance from Shirou noticed the realization on Gawain's eyes and he spoke out loud with a smirk. "See, I don't need to kill any of you."

…

The night had already fully fallen when Rias, Akeno and Medusa arrived back at Kuoh. It took them a little longer than expected but they still made excellent time all things considered. They arrived at the gates which were already closed and the two runners stopped for one of them to catch their breath.

"Finally." Rias whispered with a frown while cleaning some sweat off her forehead. "I really wish we could have flown here. Walking takes too much time."

"Or maybe you are just… a little out of shape, Buchou." Akeno committed from the side, Medusa's legs firmly secured beneath her arms as the purple haired goddess held her neck.

An eyebrow twitched as the King looked at her Queen with a deadpan stare. "Fair for you to say miss 'I have the speed of a Knight and you should keep up'. Totally fair." Both may be mage type fighters but Akeno had the edge on physical attributes thanks to her Evil Piece. "And I will let you know that I exercise every day."

"Sometimes even at night when she thinks no one can hear Shirou 'helping'." Medusa added which made Rias blush and had Akeno smiling more.

"The boundary field-"

"Is not perfect." Medusa mentioned with the same small smile at Akeno's side.

"Oh my~"

Rias knew she had to cut it short before her Queen got into more teasing. "I don't want to hear from someone that had to be carried for the last leg of our run."

Running from one side of the town to another was something extremely difficult to most people, doubly so when they had to run fast and even more so when they had to keep up with someone faster.

In that effect Medusa couldn't keep up with Rias and Akeno the whole journey, she tried her best but she couldn't use her power and her small body soon hit a limit.

"Sorry for being small." The smile on the goddess' face showed that she wasn't sorry at all. The fact her cute appearance didn't hide her smugness didn't help the Gremory King's mood.

"You are enjoying this." Rias pointed out.

"Yes."

Akeno nodded her head eagerly. "I kind of enjoyed it too. Never had given anyone a piggyback ride before." She moved a little and Medusa moved in sync so their eyes could meet. "Are you comfortable?"

"Yes, I am. Thank you for asking." Both turn to look at Rias. "Unlike some people."

"Indeed."

Shaking her head, Rias marched towards the gate. "Ha ha ha." She laughed sarcastically as a magic circle appeared in her hand, opening the gate. "I could carry her if I had a Rook's strength and a Knight's speed. Why there isn't a King's Piece to help with that." Hearing Rias mumbling her complaints only made the duo giggle. "Now we should just-"

Barely Rias took a step inside Kuoh's territory and she was already feeling a dread that she couldn't explain. She wasn't the only one either as once Akeno and Medusa also crossed the boundary field around the school they could immediately tell that something was terribly wrong.

"That is-" Rias began.

"A magic circle-" Akeno said at the same time, both interrupting each other.

"A huge magic circle." Medusa gathered their thoughts and jumped off the Queen's back. "It is practically covering the whole school's area."

Once Medusa said it, Rias and Akeno realized how true the statement was. The golden magic circle was dominating the skies of the Kuoh completely and both knew that if it wasn't for the boundary field around the territory then the whole Fuyuki would have seen it.

If neither of the women knew better they would say that it was still day inside Kuoh.

"Who could have made such a thing?" Akeno asked offhandedly. "Could it have been…"

It was Rias who answered before the Queen even finished the second question. "Valper Galilei. I have no doubt." The redhead King glared at the huge magic circle with hatred. "Can't you feel it, Akeno? That magic circle has more than mana in it."

After looking at it for a bit, Akeno's expression grew concerned. "Holy Energy. And quite a lot of it."

"Don't let your senses confuse you." Medusa interrupted the devils. "There is Holy Energy involved but it is not what it seems. If anything it reminds me of fools gold."

Both devils glance at each other before Rias asks "Are you sure?"

The purple head advanced a couple of steps, still looking up. "Yes. It appears to be Holy, even Divine, but the 'flavor' of the mana is wrong." Both goddess and King ponder the implications but the Queen just took another look and decided to ignore the circle for the moment.

"We can discuss this later, for now we obviously have a bigger problem." Akeno brought the other two back to reality as they looked at her face. "After we deal with the circle we can figure out from the coward's own mouth how he did it."

Medusa nodded in her agreement but Rias remained silent for a moment. 'Where is Sona during all this?' She knew that if her fellow heiress had felt the same things that she did then, even if Sona had already left the premises, she would be around Kuoh solving the problem. "We better go check out the center of the circle."

Akeno then looked at Medusa with some concern. "Maybe you should hide in the clubroom with Gasper."

The little goddess gave the Queen a look and pointed up. "I doubt that the protections in the club can stop whatever that is."

"Have you seen Shirou-kun's workshop?" They both knew Medusa did, she spent most of her time outside of it. "That place is a bunker."

Instead of directly complaining, Medusa asked a question of her own. "Are you telling me you two can't deal with a single old man with delusions of grandeur?"

"She got you there, Akeno." Rias said with a chuckle. She could see Medusa's point anyway, as far as they knew it was only Valper doing something and they should be able to solve it by themselves.

Yet the dread remained as the mana from the magic circle basically flooded the place and even disrupted Rias' senses.

The three began to march ahead and Akeno felt something in the area, something that was distinctively different from the fake Holy Energy from the magic circle. "Light?"

"Akeno?" Rias heard her best friend whisper something and asked in concern.

"I think I felt Light Energy." She closed her eyes to expand her senses but she lost the feeling. "It is different from the Holy Energy from the circle. It felt more… genuine and powerful." The Queen looked at the magic circle with a frown. "Much more powerful."

Not underestimating her friend's senses, Rias nodded and opened her wings for a moment before retracting them. "Avoid flying for now. Maybe we can catch whoever is doing this off guard."

The trio advanced and took a turn to the more open propriety of the school. Now they could clearly see the shadows of people fighting but couldn't see exactly who they were.

However it didn't take long for the devils to recognize the school uniform in some people and began to run faster towards their allies as one of them was being held by their neck in the air, struggling to escape the dark figure who kept holding them firmly.

"Is that the best you all have?" A smooth baritone asked with amusement as Momo got up and summoned a blue magic circle. "Well, at least you are trying."

He threw Tsubasa straight in Momo's direction and the white haired girl couldn't react as both she and her friends fell down in an entanglement of bodies. Sona watched this with irritation as she got up and summoned her own magic circle and shot huges globs of water at the man.

With a wave of his hand he dismissed the attack and sent a shock wave towards Sona, the heiress raising her arms to protect herself.

"Born To Be WIld!" Only for the Red Stand to intercept the blow with its own body. "Looks like you need some help, Sona."

The Stand disappeared as the Sitri King turned to look at her friend with wide eyes. "Rias." The Gremory King couldn't tell if it was relief or panic that she heard on her friend's voice but when she glanced at Sona she saw fear. "You shouldn't be here! We need my sister or Sirzechs!"

For a moment Rias was in shock at her oldest friend's attitude. Looking around she noticed that Akeno was by her side ready to fight while Medusa was helping Tsubaki with a wound on her leg.

She now could understand the panic in Sona's voice, most of her peerage, with the exception of Saji who wasn't present, had been soundly defeated by one person. They all looked wounded but alive with clear signs of having fought for hours as many barely had any mana left and were close to passing out.

The whole area around them looked like it had been a victim of a bombardment, full of holes, the earth turned into itself and ripped apart in many places. She had to look again to make sure Sona's peerage was really intect considering that the damage told a far more brutal history about the place even if the blood looked minimal.

Indeed the redhead King could tell that most wounds were minor and that while the Rook had the worst it wasn't even that bad. Despite not having an EM and using basic first aid it was clear that all of them could still be brought back to their feet with time.

But the implication that Sona's team had all fought and were beaten by someone was concerning. Especially since the battlefield indicated that they attacked with everything they had and still didn't win. Rias counted heads again to make sure, no one was dead. That meant that whoever defeated them was so strong they didn't need to kill to win.

After swallowing her breath, Rias glanced at Sona. "Who is really helping Valper Galilei?"

Her concern for her friends blinded Rias for everything else. Including the fact that the threat was still there.

"Finally! The other protagonist of our play has arrived!" The Heiress of Sitri had no time to reply when the guilty party spoke first. "I welcome you, Rias Gremory! Oh, can't forget about Baraqiel's daughter too. I confess I was excited to meet you, once upon a time."

The newly arrived trio turned to the tall man with long black hair dressed in a long mantle of the same color. The easy going of his smile unsettled Rias while Akeno felt the back of her neck tingle as the comment about her father made her furious. Fortunately for her that fury was buried under a heavy weight of caution as her senses were screaming how dangerous the man was.

Then the man locked eyes with Medusa's and he turned all his focus on her. "So you really are a goddess."

Medusa stood up and looked at the man with no fear and some hatred. "Are you a god?"

"Hahahaha. No my dear, I am not a god. Never was and never will be." He said with humor and Rias noticed Sona shivering at the words. "But I can understand your confusion. Even after I fell there was still some Divinity left in me, a Gift from my Father you could say." Slowly he turned to Rias. "You asked who I am, Rias Gremory?"

"I asked who was helping Valper but I suppose you are him." She noticed the old man in question praying behind the taller one and was sure his shoulders were shaking. 'He must be really confident in this guy to guard him.'

"Rias, he is-"

"Now, now Lady Sona, please, allow me to introduce myself." Suddenly the man's presence grew even more than most could resist and those in Sona's team who were recovering fell back down as they couldn't stand before his power. "Who I am, you asked, here I shall deliver for I was one of Heaven's angels and a leader of its Hosts. My name is on the scriptures, the Bible and brings terror to all my enemies." Ten wings appeared behind the man and his shadow seemed to block the light from the magic circle. "You know me, even if just by name. You fear me, even if this is the first time we met. I am Kokabiel, the Angel of the Stars!"

Silence followed his introduction as his power returned to him and the air grew lighter, the devils laying on the ground feeling relief as a mountain left their backs. Rias and Akeno for their part were stunned and terrified, the implications of that person being in Fuyuki working with someone like Valper making the King tremble.

Even Medusa knew who the man was from her books and if his power wasn't enough to make her fear him then what she read about Kokabiel was enough to know how precarious things were. The three now understood how the Sitri Peerage had been so easily dealt with while the Cadre looked pristine.

'The stories about his power were not exaggerated.' The goddess could feel the sweat on her brown as she realized that this may be her last day on earth.

They had no time to properly process it as the fallen angel spoke excitedly. "What do you think? Was that a good introduction? I was working on it while your friends tried to stop Valper from doing his job."

The shock eventually wore off and Rias turned to look at Sona. "Why didn't you call your sister?" She certainly was ready to make a magic circle and call her brother.

Sona swallowed heavily, both air and her pride as her throat felt dry as a desert. "Because he promised to kill everyone if I tried."

"Indeed I did." Kokabiel admitted, his wings disappearing on his back. "It is part of the rules of our game."

"'Game'?" Akeno really didn't like what she was hearing.

"Yes. A fun game, a prelude to our play, where they try to go around me and kill Valper before the Excaliburs arrive." He pointed to the Archbishop who remained standing in the same place with a smile. "And guess the good news! Now that you are here, you have to play." Kokabiel slowly turned to Rias and she shivered, feeling like a rat before a tiger. "No one can leave until we have a winner. You win by surviving, I win by Excalibur being reforged." His smile was full of bloodlust. "Should I go through the rules of our game?"

There was no escaping, that was a fact that everyone present was fully aware of just by looking at Kokabiel's smile. He had no intention of letting anyone leave and if they broke his rules then there would be death.

"I really should have called my brother." Rias admitted with fear.

"Yes, we should." Sona stood up besides her best devil friend.

"Hey, don't feel bad. It wasn't like any of you expected me to show up for something like this." Kokabiel trying to cheer them up only made the two pureblood devils more irritated. "Chins up girls. You still have a chance to live. All you have to do is beat me."

Usually they were confident, proud devils, admired by all their school by their pose and grace. Recently Rias even began to make waves in the Underworld with her boldness and resolve.

None of that mattered now as the pureblood devils saw the size of the mountain they had to climb just to survive.

"Well, shit." Rias couldn't help but swear and Sona turned to look at her friend in shock because of the language.

But Sona didn't complain. In fact, she agreed with the sentiment.