Chapter 40
The fog thickened and swirled around the Einzbern grounds, the forest hushed until even a whisper was like cannonfire. Bounded Fields overlapped and enclosed the entire area, turning it into a would-be deathtrap for any intruders. On the edge of the forest, a shadowy presence materialized.
"Master, this is the location, correct."
Standing in direct defiance to the silent forest, a tall rider clad in black armor appeared, seated on a skeletal horse with red shining eyes that stood eerily still, it's mane fluttering slightly in the wind.
"Yes, enter the Bounded Field and engage the enemy Servant, then retreat after you have accurately gauged their abilities."
"I take it that this is only a scouting mission then."
"Learn as much as you can, use any methods you deem necessary."
"Understood."
Even if she didn't smile under the dragon-like helmet, there was still a feeling of anticipation in her heart. This was the Artoria that had persisted in being heartless, clutching the holy spear until the very end with her core defiled from her actions in life. Yet, she was not emotionless.
"Giddy up, Llamrei."
At her command the dark beast pawed the earth, steam snorting from his nose as he prepared to charge. Lowering his head, his tail swung as his muscles tensed, potential energy storing up as his muscles bulged and stretched. Lancer leaned forward, lowering her center of gravity as her lance pointed forwards, the length lighting up with red lines as the spikes lit up as well.
*sstzzzzzzzzz!*
A high pitched whir started up, the drill spinning slowly at first, then speeding up as purple and red wind wrapped around it, a poisonous trait inherent in the mana corroding even the very air it existed in.
"Charge!"
The shout spurred Llamrei to kick off the ground, his hooves digging deeply into the earth and kicking up clods of dirt as he ran forward, hind and fore legs moving in perfect sync to achieve a natural rhythm that propelled both him and his rider forward like a rocket. Without stopping, they charged through the first Bounded Field, breaking it with brute force as they reached the first tree. The lance mowed down the tree without any resistance, piercing through the thick trunks easily and sending the tree trunk flying with the pure force, tearing it apart as wood splinters were consumed by the miasma whirling around the lance.
*BOOOOOM*
Like a rocket tearing through the sky, Lancer hurtled through the trees, cutting down trees left and right as her shockwave shook the trees near her path, while those in her way were obliterated outright. A path of destruction cutting through the forest was formed in her trail, leaves, branches and the remnants of tree trunks blown to pieces littering the ground in her wake. Snow melted in the shape of hoofprints that sank deeply into the ground, and Bounded Fields fizzled out of existence from the combined might of her Magic Resistance and the sheer amount of mana she was releasing.
Inside the Einzbern Castle, Illya snapped to full attention from the kotatsu.
"Berserker! Intruders!"
Wolfing down the crunchy melonpan in one gulp, Berserker shot out of the kotatsu and ran out of the door before she could even finish the word "Intruder", racing through the halls to get to the main entrance and out the gates into the forest to meet the invading force.
*vuon*
The lightsaber hummed to life as she dashed through the forest, this time in it's single-bladed configuration, reserving the saberstaff as a surprise for later. Gradually, the black whirlwind tearing through the forest drew closer to the black dot sprinting through the forest, red blade a the ready.
*VUON*
The first thing she saw of her opponent was the red blade swinging at her face, banking on the momentum of her charge to make the blow undodgeable. Yet, she managed to arch her back below the blade, laying flat against her horse as only the tip of her helmet was sliced off. The metal went bouncing on the forest floor as Llamrei suddenly went careening to the side from the impact of a tree that crashed into his sides, while red electricity danced across his body, sparking up to his master's metal armor as well.
Grabbing the reins, she tugged hard, sending Llamrei into a complete 180 turnaround as she slowed him to stop while digging her spurs into his sides, the horse obeying despite the occasional twitches from the shock. Facing her opponent, she leveled her spear at Berserker, now no longer spinning at the same rate as before.
"Are you Berserker?"
Berserker remained silent, her hood pulled up over her head as she stared at her enemy, one hand holding her sword diagonally in front while her left hand stored crimson lightning, ready to release the energy at any moment.
"Your lack of speech answers for itself."
*ZSHHH*
Her horse abruptly galloped towards Berserker, accelerating to her in an instant, the lance reaching out to pierce her in one go. In spite of its lack of maneuverability, the horse was undeniably fast. Berserker was left unable to dodge, blocking the thrusting lance with Necrocalibur.
*SHIN*
The blow blew her backwards as she used the force to jump backwards, rolling on the ground to create some distance between them. Yet as soon as she landed, Lancer charged again, reaching her in the blink of an eye with her trusty steed and refusing to let her rest. The next few blows were repeated as the momentum of the charge made it difficult for Berserker to dodge and take the blow, her speed unable to keep up with the horse's swift charge. Normally, the charge of a horse would require some amount of time to accelerate to the desired speed. However, with Lancer's horse as a Servant, even that time was reduced to a negligible time span, with almost instantaneous movement. The only problem was that there was no real way to immediately change directions mid-charge.
*BOOM* *BOOM* *BOOM*
Consecutive blasts resounded through the air as the lance pierced the air, carrying the deadly wind as a cone of death that preceded the rampaging charge of the fierce stallion. Even with Berserker blade parrying the blow and her telekinesis pulling him off course by the smallest of margins, she was still unable to fully block them, and each blow blew her backwards, closer to the Einzbern Castle.
*BO-Thoom!*
The red blade grinded across the black drill, releasing red sparks as it cut through the poisonous miasma around it and crashed into a red spike, stopping it's spin entirely. The entire cloud of poison dissipated, the lance stopping in place as even the horse halted. Lancer applied more strength, a red flare bursting from the back of her elbow, endowing her arm with even more strength. Yet the lightsaber did not budge in the slightest.
Bounded Fields surrounded the entire perimeter of the forest, most of them used for detection and repelling intruders. However, there were some that were set there for the purpose of supporting allies should the need arise. Homunculus, humans and mages would be strengthened while fighting these areas, the level depending on the master of the area. In this moment, the one controlling all the Bounded Fields was Illya, and she diverted her formidable mana reserves towards supporting Berserker, the Bounded Fields springing to life as translucent walls surrounded Berserker and Lancer, blue light wrapping around her limbs as red electricity sparked in and out.
With the Holy Grail now supporting Berserker's existence as well, she suffered less pain and her mana drain was less intensive, giving her some more leeway.
"Berserker, kill the intruder."
The command came through clearly in Berserker's head, a rush of strength flowing through her muscles and limbs as her aching arms from parrying the violent charges dulled, her body refreshed and ready to battle at peak condition.
"ORA!"
The lightsaber thrust out, a swift thrust followed by one spin, two spins, three spins that chained into an endless amount of rotations as the saberstaff appeared, the other blade humming to life to assault Lancer at speeds imperceivable by the human eye. A spinning buzzsaw of red buzzed angrily with lightning as Lancer held up her blackened spear to block the incoming slashes, using the wide body of the lance like a shield to hold back each slash, barely able to hold her own. Llamrei, sensing his riders' unrest, moved backwards as fast as he could. However, the physique of a horse made it a difficult task, and he was unable to back out of Berserker's range as she continued attacking Lancer with a limitless combo.
Lancer's arms shook with the consecutive blows as the lance trembled, both hands holding it upright and shifting it left and right to prevent her slashes from reaching her. Her Mana Burst was constantly active to counter Berserker's forceful strikes from tearing the lance from her hands, the Bounded Fields enhancing her strength to such a degree that compounded with the Black Bean paste she had eaten earlier, made her into an absolute monster on the battlefield. Earlier, her being seemingly pushed back with each blow was simply a front to lure in Lancer until she was in too deep to escape. Even now, the other Bounded Fields erected on the site hindered her movements, however small the effect may have been with her Magic Resistance.
"It seems that you are in trouble, Lancer. Do you require assistance?"
The priest could easily sense her slight frustration and concern with her current predicament. Perhaps if it came to it, she would need to unleash her Noble Phantasm to escape.
"Do not interfere."
She was far from beaten yet.
A light red glow suffused her body and horse, and the black armor gaining a red tint. The lance lit up as well, the red lines glowing to converge at the tip.
"Remove anchor."
Berserker pressed the attack even harder, her blade rippling through the air as her body spun, each stroke promising a swift end for Lancer. Then the unthinkable happened. Her saberstaff failed for a second, the blade shortening to just scrape past her lance. At the same time, a mana burst much larger than previous attempts burst out of her back, allowing Lancer to swing her spear with her full strength like a log at Berserker, forcing her to block as she rotated back to face her. The revolution broke as her body went gliding through the air from the blow, the combo stopped in its tracks.
Blessings from the End of the World was a skill automatically given to all wielders of the holy spear, providing a rank up to Luck and Mana parameters when active. Passively, it provided enhanced healing abilities, similar to Avalon, but not to the extent of completely healing any injury with enough time. However, the passive aspect of this skill was sealed with Lancer Alter, in exchange granting a greater boost in parameters when used.
Berserker hummed in thought as she got back to her feet, unperturbed by the sudden failure of her lightsaber.
"It seems you have a luck boosting skill in your possession. High parameters as well, and combined with that weapon, I take it that you are Lancer?"
The knight stayed silent, her helmet obscuring her features.
"Your lack of speech answers for itself."
Her words were thrown back in her face.
"That's enough Lancer. Come back."
Upon receiving her Master's command, she frowned. She disliked leaving the battlefield after doing so little, but she knew she was there simply to scout as well. After a moment, she replied.
"Another minute Master."
She would state her actions clearly and let her Master know. It wasn't a request, it was a statement.
Lowering her spear, she grasped the reins of Llamrei once more, the red aura still covering her armor.
Opposite her, Berserker stood her ground, saberstaff and electricity in hand. A
All around them, shattered tree trunks littered the snowy ground, wood chips and splinters scattered across the white snow, until it was more brown than white, with branches here and there. High above them, the moon shone brightly, the fog now reduced to mere mist that wisped weakly across the ground. A strong wind blew through the hole Lancers charge had left in the forest, scattering the remaining mist crawling along the ground.
"Get ready Berserker, we're going to do that."
Illya prepared to test the new weapon they had, as Berserker mentally readied herself.
Lancer gathered mana in her lance, the lance no longer spinning this time, but glowing brighter and brighter as each line and spike bathed the surroundings in red light.
Each side prepared to unleash their power, mana gathering thickly in the air until it could choke a normal human to death.