Rice Flower Singularity (Nine) Berserker...
There was no wind tonight, and only a few stars emitted a faint glow.
In Conan's room, Fujimaru Ritsuka leaned against the bed with her eyes closed, making the most of her last moments of rest. Based on her experience, once the war officially began, it would be an endless cycle of escape and battle.
Conan and Matsuda Jinpei stared at Ritsuka with slightly wide eyes, admiring her seemingly ordinary demeanor and marveling at her carefree attitude.
Even knowing that someone was about to attack, he was still able to calmly close his eyes!
Conan sat at his desk. He gripped his wrist, feeling the strong, rapid rise and fall of his pulse.
The wait for the crisis to arrive was agonizing; the tension mixed with the excitement of fighting alongside legendary heroes caused his body to tremble slightly.
Time ticked by, and Matsuda Jinpei licked his dry lips. He didn't know why a simple investigation had turned into this, but he was determined to find the murderer of his colleague and avenge him!
The three Servants each stood guard in one of the three corners of the room, waiting for the first battle that might occur after the countdown ended.
The safe time on the electronic screen kept ticking away until it entered a one-minute countdown.
59, 58, 57
An unsettling tremor came from the ground, as if some heavy object was repeatedly slamming into it. Almost simultaneously, Fujimaru Ritsuka sprang to her feet, jolted awake, and instantly became alert.
This is a stress response that I forced myself to develop through countless encounters and attacks.
10, 9, 8
"It's coming." Conan clenched his fist, a thin layer of sweat covering the back of his hand.
"Don't worry," Fujimaru Ritsuka instructed in her final moments. "Everyone, remember to refer to your Servants by their class from now on." Her serious expression and battle-hardened composure gave Conan a sense of security.
It seems that no matter how difficult things are, the orange-haired girl in front of me can always find her own path to victory.
3, 2, 1...
"Clang—!"
The door was smashed open with a punch, sending debris flying. Before Conan could even react, the next punch, imbued with deadly intent, hurtled towards him.
"Watch out!" Fujimaru Ritsuka immediately grabbed Conan's hand and pressed him down, causing him to fall forward.
The next second, Miyamoto Musashi's twin swords clashed, blocking the black fist, and his feet were forced back a step by the force of gravity. A large mechanical hand emerged from behind Little Da Vinci and dragged Ritsuka and the other person to the side guarded by Tristan.
Seeing that Ritsuka was safe, Miyamoto Musashi turned his sword, used his feet to brace himself against the wall, and leaped over the huge figure, joining the other Servants to protect the three Masters in the middle.
At the same time, the fist slammed into the spot where Conan had just been standing, creating a large crater. Cracks spread across the wall like a spider web, making it appear precarious.
Conan: "...Really?"
He gasped, staring dumbfounded at the enormous crater in front of him. The doctor's high-tech, enhanced version of the soccer ball had a similar effect.
In other words, the attacker, relying solely on physical strength, equaled or even surpassed his previously infallible soccer technique. Wow, this Servant is way too cheating!
He doesn't have a football right now!
An excessively muscular body emerged from the shadows, its jet-black hair flying wildly. The monster let out a hoarse sound, its eyes filled with nothing but a beastly, warlike desire.
The overwhelming sense of oppression was like an inescapable gravitational force pouring down on everyone equally.
Fujimaru Ritsuka: "...!"
Good news, she's unilaterally acquainted with this Servant. It seems the other side agrees too; when in doubt, go for the Berserker.
The bad news is, the Ark of the Covenant here doesn't grant this guy twelve lives in one go!
"Assistant sister! Do you know this guy?!" While the three Servants were dealing with the monster, Conan grabbed Ritsuka's sleeve and asked, panting.
If Gin's threat to him was like that of a hunter toying with his prey, then the monster in front of him was like an absolute death signal.
If it weren't for Ritsuka and his Servant, even with the highest intelligence and the most delaying tactics, he would have been crushed like an ant in the face of absolute power.
Conan took a deep breath, his heart pounding so hard it was deafening. So, what kind of environment did Ritsuka live in the past that makes her seem so at ease now?
“Of course.” Fujimaru Ritsuka straightened her back, looked up at the fierce figure, and calmly explained, “Hercules, the Greek god of strength.”
Matsuda Jinpei suddenly raised his head; who wouldn't be familiar with such a widely circulated myth?
Hercules, the son of Zeus and a human woman, possessed divine strength and completed twelve impossible tasks for the King of Mycenae, known as the Twelve Trials.
He is a great hero in Greek mythology, the embodiment of strength and courage.
“This time he appears in the world as a Berserker,” Ritsuka continued, “He possesses two Noble Phantasms: Shoot the Hundred Heads and Twelve Trials, which are armor formed by the blessing of the gods and the attribute of immortality.”
A roar echoed. Tristan plucked his magic strings, and several blue magical threads sliced towards the massive body, but only left faint marks on Berserker.
Conan gaped, unconsciously loosening his grip on Ritsuka's sleeve. "Pervert, so perverted! The opponent is such a terrifying god!"
"But there must be a limit to this ability, right?" Matsuda Jinpei asked after a moment of thought. Receiving Ritsuka's nod, he smiled, "Then let's kill a few more times."
He looked up at the towering giant, his eyes gleaming with the same eagerness as Miyamoto Musashi beside him.
Fujimaru Ritsuka sighed, "Musashi is indeed powerful! But the enemy has twelve lives, and each Servant can use their Noble Phantasm at least four times. They can't hold out. They'll definitely be the ones to benefit!"
Furthermore, who remembers that they were supposed to be testing the enemy's strength rather than defeating them?
She raised her right hand, intending to try her luck and use her Spirit Origin Shadow to randomly summon a Servant with a chance to inflict instant death, stacking debuffs on Berserker.
One second, two seconds... there was no reaction at all.
She failed.
I don't know what expression to wear. Is it because I'm used to the frequent unexpected events, or because I realize that this Holy Grail War might be targeting me?
Fujimaru Ritsuka calmly accepted reality.
Because now is not the time for self-pity.
She could sense that Hercules wasn't using his full strength, and neither were her Servants. Everyone was testing the waters, trying to figure out how to strike next.
We should retreat; the space here is too cramped, and Tristan and Da Vinci can't move freely. Besides, with such a commotion and no other Servants coming to help Heracles, there's no need to test the waters any further.
Ritsuka's gaze swept left and right. The main gate was blocked by Hercules; the only way out was—
"...Let's go!" she decided immediately. "Saber, go through the window, we'll meet downstairs!"
"Ha, you're running without even going all out? Are you guys that lacking in confidence?" Matsuda Jinpei asked, puzzled.
But his servant had already obeyed the orange-haired girl's orders, bent down, picked him up, and jumped out of the window. "Ritsuka said so, of course we believe her!"
A cool car appeared in mid-air, with one of the doors wedged against the window, looking precarious. Ritsuka jumped into the car without hesitation.
Little Leonardo da Vinci: "We only ran because we knew our own capabilities! Full throttle!"
Finally, Tristan scooped up Conan and gracefully jumped from the air, "Ah, how sad."
Matsuda Jinpei: "..."
Why does he feel like he's been tricked? Can this group really find out the truth?
Conan was lifted into the air by Tristan like a doll, his voice crackling with the sound of wind, "But there's a problem, where are we going?!"
No one answered, and he didn't ask any further questions.
Because the former London suburbs have somehow become a dense, lush, and vibrant forest.
Leonardo da Vinci's Shadow Border takes the lead, rushing straight into the unfathomable forest.
To prevent the enemy from discovering their tracks based on obvious cart tracks, and to avoid being pursued again, Leonardo da Vinci and Ritsuka proceeded on foot.
The forest is filled with sand and stones, and has many slopes, making it very difficult to walk, just like a real wild jungle.
By the time the group had gathered together, and after walking and stopping frequently, they arrived at a place large enough and suitable for camping, it was nearly midnight.
By now, the tall trees had long since obscured the faint light of the stars, leaving only pitch-black darkness before him. The chill of late autumn also made Conan rub his arms involuntarily.
Fujimaru Ritsuka clapped her hands. "They shouldn't be able to catch up anymore. Let's spend the night here." She smiled at Musashi. "Saber, could you please chop some firewood?"
Hearing this, Conan and Matsuda Jinpei, who had been on edge the whole way, could finally relax a little. Just as they were about to ask how they planned to rest today, they saw Little Da Vinci take out pieces of camping gear from her small backpack.
She kept taking things out even after the equipment had completely exceeded the size of the backpack.
"Hehe, it's so great that I'm so versatile as a Rider~!" Little Da Vinci winked playfully, smiling happily as she looked at the abundant equipment piled up on the ground in front of her.
Fujimaru Ritsuka casually picked up one of the tents and began setting it up. Conan and Matsuda Jinpei, who had initially been watching intently, gradually became stunned.
Conan couldn't help but reveal his beady eyes, "Wow...that's amazing! Ritsuka, the Servant you summoned is truly a genius who was always prepared!"
Matsuda Jinpei also picked up the tent and set it up. "Yeah. That way we don't have to worry about finding a place to stay overnight at all."
“Of course, I am…” Ritsuka’s gaze came over, and Da Vinci slammed on the brakes, almost forgetting that they were in the Holy Grail War and that their names had to be kept secret!
"Ahem, I'm a genius!"
Conan watched her change her tune with suspicion, but didn't say anything more. Using the techniques he'd learned in Hawaii, they successfully pitched the tent, with Tristan providing accompaniment.
Soon, Miyamoto Musashi returned with dry firewood. Da Vinci took out his ignition device and lit the pile of firewood. The moment the fire was lit, everyone felt as if they had come back to life from the cold of late autumn.
Under the campfire, Matsuda Jinpei poked at the firewood and asked Ritsuka, "You seem to know these things very well?"
"This is my... uh, a kind of spare skill I acquired from work?" Fujimaru Ritsuka rubbed her hands together in front of the fire. "I'm already used to it."
Once her frozen brain thawed from the heat of the flames, Ritsuka recalled the brief probing battle and asked Conan, "...By the way, whose Servant do you think Berserker might be?"
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