Red Faction's Assassin—Semiramis' fortress Noble Phantasm, the Aerial Garden of Vanity, though located above the battlefield, was safe from being targeted thanks to its altitude. On the contrary, it gave them a complete view of the entire war below. The atmosphere was calm and leisurely.
"—Master, we've already lost two members now, you know?"
The Empress sat on her throne, chin resting on one hand, her tone bored as she glanced at Shirou standing beside her. Not a trace of panic could be heard in her voice.
"Could it be that this, too, was within your calculations?"
She straightened in her seat, curling her lips into a sly smile.
"…"
At that moment, Shirou wore a stern expression he had never shown before, his eyes fixed on the massive screen projecting the battlefield.
"Breaking news! Breaking news! A first in history! Who would have thought our Saber would fall this early?! Ahh, what a miracle indeed!"
In the middle of the hall, Shakespeare twirled theatrically, narrating in a booming voice as though performing a play.
Shirou only shook his head quietly…
"No… this is beyond my expectations. In my calculations, Saber should have lasted until the end."
He let out a sigh.
"Well, no matter. The world is unpredictable. And Black Saber's strength is far too great—I know that firsthand. Since our Saber lost in their duel, it only proves the other is indeed superior."
It was time to proceed with the next stage of the plan. All was for the final outcome. Compared to the result, these sacrifices were nothing.
"Heh… look on the bright side. The Black Faction also lost a member. That makes it even."
"But… we've lost two."
The Empress' rebuttal carried no weight, her tone entirely casual—more like idle chatter than actual complaint.
"That doesn't matter. My plan had no use for Spartacus at all. Besides, that one was disruptive from the very start. Him leaving makes things easier for both sides."
"Ohh~? So heartless, Master~?"
She smirked, casting him a sidelong glance.
"There is no heartlessness here. Only tactical choices."
Shirou's tone never shifted, as relaxed as ever. The Empress showed no surprise. By now, she was more than used to her Master's nature.
Turning her attention away from him, she focused once more on the fortress' controls. During their conversation, the airborne citadel had already drifted silently above the Black Faction's base—the Fortress of Millennia.
From the sensors below, they could even observe the inner courtyards of the castle, as well as the distribution of homunculi and automatons stationed inside.
"We've arrived… Master, what now?"
She raised her eyes slightly at Shirou.
"Then let us proceed with the next stage. Assassin, begin the Greater Grail retrieval plan."
At his words, the Empress' lips curled into a wicked smile. She pressed her hand against a ruby embedded in the armrest of her throne.
Suspended directly above the Black Faction's stronghold, the airborne garden cast its vast shadow across Trifas, as though its palm had seized the moonlit night.
"Weak little magi of the Black Faction… open your eyes wide and witness! This is the true pinnacle of magecraft!"
Her voice resounded high from the throne, echoing with ethereal grandeur across the fortress below. Stretching out her arms, she unleashed her sorcery.
The bottom of the garden flared with a colossal magic circle, its brilliance illuminating the entire castle below.
Rumble! Rumble!!
Moments later, a tornado-like gale surged upward from the fortress, as though forming a tunnel linking directly to the entrance at the garden's base.
"Ohh~! Could this be—?!"
Shakespeare was ecstatic.
"Yes~! That is the very purpose for which this garden was built! All for the Greater Grail! Come forth—let us behold your true form!"
The Empress rose from her throne, arms spread wide, her voice ringing in exalted fervor.
Beneath the garden, within the Black Faction's fortress—
The fortress, caught in the cyclone, was on the verge of collapse. Glass windows shattered into fragments, concrete crumbled into gravel, and walls split apart, all sucked upward into the vortex and drawn into the passage leading to the aerial garden above.
The surrounding rooms trembled violently, threatening to collapse at any moment.
Inside the fortress, the homunculi panicked, running in all directions. Some were even pulled up into the skies.
Rumble! Rumble!!
Fiore felt her chamber quiver violently. She froze for a moment before realizing what was happening.
"Could it be—!!"
With that chilling thought, she slowly maneuvered her wheelchair toward the window to see outside.
"!"
Before her eyes was a castle crumbling under the cyclone's assault, nearly at the brink of ruin—and above it, the massive airborne fortress blotting out the moonlight.
"No way… are they trying to take the Greater Grail—"
Rumble!!
Before she could finish, the room shook even more violently.
"Ugh!"
She gripped the wheelchair's armrests tightly, holding herself steady.
Outside, the courtyard's surface was torn apart by the raging winds. Countless stones and bricks were sucked upward, revealing a massive golden sphere buried below.
The sphere, caught in the cyclone's suction, slowly rose into the air, drifting upward toward the fortress above.
So it was true!
Fiore understood at once. Red's true goal was clear—they had been deceived. The battlefield on the plains had only been a diversion, drawing their attention away while the enemy crept toward their castle. And now, caught off guard, they struck decisively. No… the real target had always been the Greater Grail hidden underground.
Click…
At that moment, the room's lights flickered out, plunging it into darkness. Only a sliver of moonlight spilled through the window.
Rumble!
A tremor even stronger than before shook the room!
"Kyaa!"
She was thrown from her wheelchair, hitting the floor hard.
Thud…
"Ugh… it hurts."
Damn… her back again…
Biting back the pain, she struggled to lift her upper body, crawling across the floor with her arms, dragging her useless legs behind her as she reached toward the wheelchair.
But her timing was unlucky. The fortress continued to quake, and the wheelchair rolled further away, sliding in the opposite direction.
"W-wait—hah…"
Watching her chair slip farther away, Fiore let her arms drop, her strength gone. She lay face down, gasping for breath.
The next moment, the heavy computer monitor on the desk toppled as its cords tore loose, falling over the desk's edge. Its path led straight toward the helpless girl below!
"!!"
Fiore's eyes widened. She raised her arms over her head, bracing herself in despair for the pain to come. But… it never did.
Whether by chance or fate, when she dared to open her eyes, she saw clearly—
Bathed in moonlight, a woman in a kimono had caught the falling object effortlessly, and quietly set it back in place.
Yes… the goddess she adored had once again saved her.
Fiore's gaze lingered on the woman's figure in a daze. Whether it was her imagination or not, in that moment, she felt the tremors of the room vanish—replaced instead by the pounding of her own heartbeat.
—
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