"Huff…"
Although she had won, Artoria herself was visibly exhausted. She had already fired Excalibur's powerful beam and engaged in intense bat with La, who was boosted by two and Spells. Defeating him had taken every ounce of her strength.
"Arthur…"
After beied by her, La regained a fleeting moment of crity. The haze of madness lifted, allowing him to pierce through the illusions Zhang Jiao had crafted.
Of course, he reized Artoria's swordsmanship better than anyone else.
As the tip of Excalibur pressed against his chest, La staggered forward. Before Artoria could stop him, he deliberately impaled himself on her bde.
"What!"
Artasped in shock, her body too slow to pull back the sword. She could only watch helplessly as La drove the bde deeper into his chest.
At that exaent, the fog of illusion shattered, and they finally saw each other's true faces.
"Plop…"
La fell to his knees. His once-proud and noble figure began to disie into faint motes of light.
"Sir La, why?"
Artoria's voice trembled with emotion as she tried to uand his as. Why would he choose such a tragid?
"My King, I finally speak to you properly…"
Freed from the shackles of madness, La's voice was steady but tinged with sorrow as he prepared to leave the stage.
"I wao tell you st time… but there just wasn't enough time."
"I didn't e as a Berserker out of anger or reseoward you. No, quite the opposite. I wished for you to punish me personally."
His voice faltered slightly, but the relief in his tone was evident.
"I had hoped that yer and judgment would absolve me of my sins. Only then could I find peace."
For the first time, La raised his gaze to meet hers, his guilt momentarily swept aside.
"And I believe… the princess would feel the same…"
Finally, La mentioned Guinevere, the name he had avoided saying for so long. This was his st ce to seek an answer from Artoria, to see if she shared the weight of their regrets.
But time was not on his side. Before Artoria could respond, La's body disied pletely, fading into the ether.
"Sir La…"
Artoria stood frozen, her sword lowered, uo express the turmoil in her heart. She had finally heard La's true feelings, but she could not grant him the absolution he sought.
From the very beginning, she had never bmed him. Instead, she had pced all the responsibility and guilt upon herself.
"What a loyal knight…"
Zhang Jiao, the se from afar, couldn't help but mutter with a sigh.
Having achieved his goal, Zhang Jiao lifted the dense fog that had bhe battlefield. There was o drain Chihiro's magic power maintaining the illusion any further.
As the mist dissipated, Artoria's sharp, furious gaze immediately fell upon Zhang Jiao. Her eyes burned with rese.
This man… had orchestrated everything, f her to fight and kill one of her most loyal knights. Such vile manipution was unfivable.
But her anger was soon tempered by the harsh reality of the battlefield.
---
Surrounding Artoria were the undead soldiers of Darius III's army. The t Death War Elephant loomed behind them, its glowing eyes fixated on her like a predator watg prey.
Meanwhile, Iskandar's once-mighty King's Army had been decimated. Only scattered remnants remained from what was once a proud and invincible force.
Artoria's team had fared er. With La's death, they had lost two Servants in a single night.
Tonight's battle had e at a tremendous cost.
---
Suddenly, the barre of Iskandar's Reality Marble dissolved, and the se shifted. The scorg sun vanished, repced by the dark skies of Fuyuki's forest.
The battlefield returo reality.
Iskandar dismissed his King's Army. Seeing his overwhelming losses, he had no choice but to cede defeat. However, he wasn't willing to end the fight entirely.
The wheels of his divine chariot roared as he sped across the battlefield. Reag Artoria, he grabbed her by the arm and pulled her onto the chariot before retreating into the distance.
Clearly, while he admitted defeat for now, he inteo settle this score aime.
Brynhildr followed suit. Having suffered no major injuries, she quietly left the battlefield.
Chihiro and his team didn't bother stopping them.
After all, they had fought for most of the night and were utterly exhausted.
---
Tokiomi, too, was reag his limit. Having spent nearly all his Saint Quartz, he didn't have enough left to buy recovery potions. Darius III's relentless attacks had drained his resources almost entirely.
Still, tonight had been a fruitful victory. They had successfully elimiwo Servants and finally dealt with Matou Zouken. That was already an impressive achievement.
As for tomorrow the final night of the Holy Grail War, Tokiomi anticipated an even bloodier frontation.
However, Chihiro had a different predi.
With the truth of the Holy Grail likely to be revealed tomorrow, Chihiro believed most partits would be stunned into disbelief.
After all, when the dark secrets of the Grail's corruption came to light, the war's very purpose would be called into question.
What was the point of fighting, killing, and dying for a wish that was tainted from the start?
With these thoughts lingering in his mind, Chihiro and Tokiomi retreated together, leaving Matou Kariya alone in the silent forest.
Kariya let out a long, weary sigh. His body was battered, and his spirit felt crushed uhe weight of despair.
Perhaps it was time for him to step bad rest. The Holy Grail War had taken a heavy toll on his mind and body.
---
The M.
[Ding! The final round of questions will begin in ten minutes. Please prepare accly.]
[his is the st quiz session. Special rewards will be distributed to each group member based ootal performance.]
---
Iskandar: "What does this mean?"
Waver: "It means this is the st Q&A session."
Chihiro: "I think the Q&A only triggers during major events."
Kayh: "I see. So the 'major event' in this case is the Holy Grail War."
Waver: "In other words, ohe Holy Grail War ends, the Q&A will also end."
Tohsaka Tokiomi: "That makes sense. If this happened daily, there would be 365 questions a year. There aren't enough meaningful questions to sustain that."
Tohsaka Rin: "So when the Q&A ends, what happens to the group itself?"
Chihiro: "Don't worry, the group should remain intact."
Tōsaka Rin: "That's a relief."
---
Meanwhile, in a hidden basement, Artoria k beside Irisviel, whose fading form y motionless.
"Iri…"
Artoria's heart ached as she watched her friend's lifeless body. She wao save Irisviel, but she cked the knowledge or means to do so.
At that moment, she couldn't help but think of Fou. If only that whimsical little creature were here, perhaps something could be done.
Her only hope now was the rewards from the final Q&A treasure chest. No matter how slim her ces, she resolved to try her best.
---
[Ding! The first question is about to begin!]
[Question: O night of the Fourth Holy Grail War, who was the first Servant to leave?]
[A: Artoria; B: Iskandar; C: Gilgamesh; D: La.]
[Please answer within five minutes. Exceeding the time limit will be sidered as giving up.]
Kayh: "As expected, this question was bound to e up."
Tohsaka Tokiomi: "Gilgamesh likely be ruled out. Uhe remaining three joined forces, there's little ce of defeating him."
Iskandar: "I must admit, that's true."
Gilgamesh: "Hmph, it's good you all reize my superiority."
---
"Chihiro, what should I choose for this question?"
Zhang Jiao turo Chihiro for advice.
"The King of querors."
"Iskandar? But isn't he quite powerful?" Zhang Jiao retorted.
"This question isn't about who's stronger," Chihiro expined. "Think about it,Iskandar has been the most proactive and daring partit in this Holy Grail War. If it's the st night, what's the most obvious thing he'd want to do?"
Zhang Jiao thought for a moment, then cpped his hands. "Challenge Gilgamesh!"
Chihiro: "Exactly. And the result of that challenge is all but certain."
Zhang Jiao: "I see. As expected, your mind is sharp as ever."
---
[The time for answering questions has ehe correswer will now be revealed.]
[On the seventh night of the Holy Grail War, the final battle begins.]
[In the quiet night sky, more than ten points of light suddenly appeared, some glowing red and others blue.]
[The Rider fa, stationed in their courtyard, was the first to notice.]
[Iskandar: "What's this formation?"]
["Is this some kind of code? Red and blue f 4 and 7… Does it signify aplishment and triumph?"]
[Waver pondered: "Lighting signal smoke to decre victory? But it's trary to the location of the church."]
[Iskandar smiled and said, "It seems someone 't wait to cim the song of victory."]
Tohsaka Rin: "Only Gilgamesh would pull off something this ostentatious."
Waver: "Of course. Who else would be this extravagant?"
Gilgamesh: "Naturally. That's because I, the kied in the video, am destio triumph."
Tohsaka Rin: "But iy, you were the first to leave the stage."
Gilgamesh: "Absurd! I was not the first to fall!"
Red Hare: "...." (Don't drag me into yument.)"
***
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