Chapter 42 The Yangtze River Invasion

My name is Illya.

Did I not say that was part of the plan?

130:55:11

Surrounding the dense forest of the Einzbern Castle lay a massive expulsion barrier.

Any sentient being attempting to advance inward would unconsciously adjust their path to bypass the castle. This expulsion effect grew stronger the closer one got to the castle, and only those with magical talent or absolute direction blindness could reach this legendary structure unaffected.

At this very moment, however, something indescribable was barrelling deep into the forest. It looked like a giant billow of black smoke, yet it possessed the speed, the roaring noise, and even the destructive power of a locomotive.

"Gah-oh-oh-oh—!"

It charged straight ahead, emitting a harsh and meaningless roar. All trees blocking its path were shattered and knocked down by sheer brute force, leaving nothing behind but an eyesore of a trail through the woods.

"So there is such a use for it after all." High above a forest clearing far ahead of the monster's charging route, Iskandar sat atop his beloved steed, gazing from a distance. "It has been a long time since those two old companions of mine went on such a rampage."

Bucephalus, the great black stallion, snorted in agreement.

"Clearly, the enemy intends to use your Divine Wheel of the Heavens as a battering ram. By crashing all the way through like this, they break the Einzbern protective barriers layer by layer. Only after your chariot is completely wrecked by the counter-magic will they finally step onto the stage themselves." Floating beside him in a white formal dress was Caster, who had returned immediately after concluding an alliance with Kayneth's faction.

She seemed extremely dissatisfied with the fact that she was much shorter than Iskandar. Whenever she drew close to him, she would use magic to lift herself into the air. Although this leveled their heights, the disparity in their physical volume only became more pronounced as a result.

"That being said, the protective barrier around that castle was already broken long ago, back when that Archer attacked." Rider tactfully chose not to point that out, instead pulling the reins to urge the great black stallion higher for a better view.

Along the path of the black chariot's assault, besides the flying trees, rocks, and dirt, there were translucent light walls—visible only to those proficient in magecraft—that would manifest from time to time only to be instantly shattered. These were the defensive barriers set up by the Einzbern family throughout the forest.

"That golden fellow flew straight over from the sky riding his Noble Phantasm; anti-flight barriers are useless against powerful Noble Phantasms." Caster replied while casting adjustment magecraft on a large, fixed spell array in the clearing below. It looked like a node of some gigantic magical barrier, and under Caster's control, it was currently dispatching commands to numerous other nodes.

"Ha! The golden fellow, I like that name." Rider laughed heartily, then glanced at the girl's actions. "What is that for? That Berserker is about to barrel through here."

"Though charging blindly like this will trigger and destroy most of the barriers, those types that require active activation remain unaffected. Now I shall let the Berserker, already deep within enemy territory, taste the might of my modified counter-barrier." The girl looked utterly confident.

"Hmm," Rider stroked his chin and suddenly asked, "Modifying a barrier of this scale isn't something that can be done in a day or two, is it? Besides, many of the crucial nodes shouldn't be located outside."

Even if her Master had been captured and she had allied with them immediately, there simply wasn't enough time. Just when had she managed to modify the entire forest's barrier to make it her own?

"...I have no obligation to explain that. You just want your chariot back, don't you!" Caster's eyes widened as if struck in her weak spot, but she immediately forced herself to ignore the question.

"Very well, then how do you plan to stop that dark brute?" Rider seemed to have no intention of probing further, raising a finger toward the direction from which the roaring sound of the assault was growing ever closer. "I certainly can't stop the charge of those two old fellows."

"Hmph, of course by making them stop on their own. I am the 'Saint of Winter,' you know~" Caster spread her arms in a gesture resembling an embrace.

Whoosh—

With the girl's movement, Iskandar felt a bone-chilling gust of wind sweep through the forest. The piercing cold felt utterly bizarre to the body of a Heroic Spirit, which had long since been immune to natural environmental influences. Meanwhile, Caster—who called herself the Saint of Winter—had her garments fluttering; her shoulder-length white hair and fire-red eyes had entirely transformed into a shimmering, icy blue.

"[Frozen Baptism]!" "Boom!"

The world instantly turned a stark, blinding white. The densely swirling and scattering snowflakes were so blindingly thick that Rider could barely make out the figure of the girl standing mere paces away. At the same time, the black-and-red chariot that had burst through the forest and into the clearing was instantly frozen in place, forming a colossal block of ice.

"Phew—the rest is up to you, King of Conquerors." Caster descended slowly as her hair and eye colors returned to normal.

"Gah-aaaaah!!" As if responding to her words, the previously frozen Berserker and chariot broke free from the massive block of ice in the next instant, roaring as they charged toward them.

"A mounted duel?" The red-haired giant curved his lips in a confident smile. Even with Berserker driving the Divine Wheel of the Heavens, having lost its momentum bonus meant it was by no means a match for the Conqueror summoned under the Rider class!

130:49:12

"We won't wait for Caster. We are leaving the castle first."

In the first-floor hall of the Einzbern Castle, everyone in Emiya Kiritsugu's faction except for Caster had gathered to listen to his arrangements—everyone except Lin Hao, who purposely turned her head away to ignore him.

"The two Sabers will intercept Archer in the garden. Irisviel, you take Lin Hao and retreat in the direction away from the battlefield. Maya, come with me to scout the flanks of the enemy's advance route." Kiritsugu issued his orders swiftly.

As a Mage Killer who had roamed various battlefields for years, the moment Kiritsugu heard the rules change, he sensed a profound malice. After exchanging intelligence with the Sabers regarding the golden and the pitch-black Heroic Spirits, he finally arrived at this decision.

First, judging by the fact that Archer had reached the castle previously without destroying the barriers along the way, his flying machine likely possessed the trait of ignoring magical barriers. Given his arrogant demeanor and speech, the probability of him bringing along other participants from Tohsaka Tokiomi's faction was zero. Therefore, leaving both Sabers—whom Archer was interested in—right here was a reliable way to restrict him.

Second, if the remaining participants wished to approach the castle, they would have to forcefully shatter the magical barriers along the way rather than stealthily infiltrate. Irisviel had not considered this possibility; on the contrary, she and Lin Hao had even heightened perception sensitivity while repairing the barriers. Consequently, if the barriers were broken while they were nearby, the pain fed back through their magic circuits would be enough to cause them to faint. Thus, evacuation was mandatory.

Finally, Saber lacked the [Independent Action] skill. Leaving aside the white one, to sustain the combat capability of the black Saber, Kiritsugu needed to remain within a certain range. However, merely hiding to watch the battle would make them vulnerable to surprise attacks by the Assassins, who were equally skilled in concealment. Therefore, he decided to do the opposite: take the initiative to find Berserker's Master and eliminate them. The Berserker class also lacked Independent Action, meaning Tohsaka Tokiomi's student, Uryu Ryuunosuke, had to be nearby.

"Does anyone have an objection?" Kiritsugu scanned those present.

Maya naturally had no objections. Hearing that there was a Heroic Spirit coveting her beauty, the black Saber was already raring to teach the fellow a lesson, so she had no problem either. That left only Irisviel and Lin Hao, both of whom seemed somewhat overly preoccupied with the Saint of Winter.

"Don't you go bumping into Assassins casually again," the Chinese girl spoke up once more, undermining him. "Command Seals aren't meant to be wasted like that."

"Xiao Hao, where is Caster? Is she still refusing to return?" Irisviel's expression looked somewhat anxious, feeling less like she was worrying about an ancestor?

"She—uh!" Almost simultaneously, Irisviel and Lin Hao wore expressions of pain.

"Kiritsugu! The enemy is aggressively breaking straight through the forest barrier from the east! It's not bypassing; it's a destructive intrusion!" Hisui Maya, who had regained control of her bat familiars, reported immediately.

"Execute the transfer according to plan, right now!" Kiritsugu nodded at the Sabers, strode over to Irisviel's side to support her as she walked outward, while Maya pushed Lin Hao's wheelchair.

Given the personality of that golden Heroic Spirit, he certainly wouldn't wait for others to clear the path for him, even with such an unobstructed direct assault. He would likely appear within the castle grounds very soon. They could only hope that Saber's allure for him was strong enough.

"Eh—Xiao Hao?" Having just left the Einzbern Castle and ventured a short distance into the forest, Kiritsugu noticed that Irisviel's expression suddenly relaxed, but she immediately turned her head to look at Lin Hao as if realizing something.

"Caster, is back," Lin Hao frowned, her voice stuttering slightly. "She is... in..."

Whoosh—

Everyone present sensed a violent surge of magical energy erupting in the distance, followed by an unusually fierce cold wind blowing outward from the center of that fluctuation. Kiritsugu even saw a layer of white frost instantly blanket the large trees beside him.

"Caster has gathered all the sensory nodes around the castle onto herself! And she is fighting the enemy!" Irisviel cried out in near panic, even making a motion to turn toward the center of the magical eruption, while Lin Hao clutched her head, motionless.

As far as Kiritsugu knew, for every node destroyed, the person sensing them would instantly feel a pain akin to having their hair slowly tugged until a strand was ripped out. The intruder was clearly wreaking havoc on a massive scale, yet Caster was fighting him while maintaining the sensory feedback of the nodes? Judging from Lin Hao—who was nearly rendered unconscious by the meager feedback transmitted purely through their magical link—that Saint of Winter was truly ruthless.

"That is because she wants to protect you," Kiritsugu pulled his wife back and said. "That is all the more reason for us to evacuate immediately and get as far away from here as possible."

Though he rarely did so, he could still speak some reason when he wanted to.

"...You are right." Irisviel nodded slowly, seeming to struggle to hold back tears, before resolutely turning around to help Maya push the wheelchair toward their planned hiding spot.

Surely Caster didn't cast some sort of charm magic on Iris! This hardly looked like someone treating an ancestor.

Kiritsugu continued leading the way while thinking about this with a puzzled frown.