Chapter 65 Returning Empty-Handed

My name is Illya.

Kirei Kotomine is fighting... Diarmuid?!

82:33:12

There were many traces of Emil's presence here.

According to that "report," Kirei Kotomine had found a room on the second floor of the Western-style mansion that was spacious enough and suitable for setting up an anti-magic barrier—a children's room?

The walls were made of charming red bricks, the floor was covered with a soft, soft-yellow carpet, and the furniture was predominantly blue. The small beds, small wardrobes, small tables, and small chairs—any furniture with sharp corners—had already been carefully smoothed down. Picture books were neatly arranged on a small desk, and various toys were scattered in the corners of the room.

Emil had only been brought back for two days, yet they had managed to set up the room to this extent. Even for someone as calm as Kirei, a fleeting moment of surprise stirred within him.

Yet clearly, their approach of treating Emil like an ordinary little girl was mistaken. Emil would only react to external conditions that directly affected her with the barest minimum of effort. Whenever possible, she could stay motionless in a place she found comfortable for an entire day—such places usually being a soft sofa or Kirei's embrace.

Within this children's room, there were several spots where a child had evidently lingered for long periods: a corner of the small bed, right in front of the wardrobe, and... under the desk?

Hah, Kirei sneered internally. His "angelic intuition" told him that Emil had first been crowded around by many people, shrinking into the corner of the bed in fear, then brought in front of the wardrobe to try on clothes—this was most likely the handiwork of that woman Sola—and finally, startled by something, she had hidden under the desk and refused to come out.

However, it seemed she had been moved elsewhere by now, but this could not stop him—

Just as Kirei turned around, a pale-yellow short spear, resembling a venomous dragon, thrust straight toward his face.

82:29:10

"Is your true name Galahad?"

At the negotiation site outside the Western-style mansion, seeing that both sides had basically reached an agreement and begun discussing the finer details, Saber Alter turned to ask Luna, who was also standing aside.

"[Yes,]" Luna replied. "[Even as one of the Knights of the Round Table, I shall not show you mercy, King of Arthur.]"

"After all, Sir Galahad was the only knight who refused to seek the Holy Grail for me," Saber said indifferently, her gaze fixed on the shield in Luna's hand. "I sense something amiss with it. Would you mind releasing its true name?"

"[......]" Luna turned to look at Sola for instructions.

"Heh~ By making such a request, you now owe us one favor," Sola said, waving her hand to indicate approval, before turning to address Kiritsugu Emiya.

"—On the premise of non-hostility, we shall provide you with one unconditional rescue." Kiritsugu, inexplicably finding himself at a disadvantage in the negotiations, glanced dubiously at the black-armored Saber, given that it was a rare sight for her to display personal interest.

"[Then—]" Luna slammed the suddenly expanding shield into the ground. "[The Immovable Object]!"

An illusory giant shield, resembling a towering city wall, materialized to block the space between the negotiating parties.

"Oh... The Immovable Object, is it? Contrary to expectations, its power will likely be reduced as well." Saber Alter carefully inspected the phantom shield and nodded slightly. "If you encounter an enemy that cannot be defeated through 'protection' alone, you may attempt to invoke it with a different incantation."

"[Where the sword of my King points, there lies the destination of our hearts,]" she stated. "Of course, it has no effect on me."

82:28:44

What saved Kirei Kotomine's life was his long-standing prudence as an Executor. Even though his intended opponent was a magus, he had donned that heavily reinforced clerical vestments possessing exceptional bullet-resistant properties.

This vestment had been strengthened with multiple layers of Kevlar fabric, and inscribed upon its interior were defensive runes specially crafted by the Church for its Executors. Combined with the modifications Kirei had made based on his own combat habits, its protective capabilities were fully worthy of being called a Mystic Code.

Another factor was Lancer's underestimation of his foe. That hero of Ireland likely assumed Kirei was merely an ordinary human and did not employ his full arsenal, attacking solely with Gae Dearg—the Rose of Dissolution—in a direct thrust. Coupled with Kirei's desperate twisting of his body to avoid a direct hit, the tip of the spear slid across the vestment like a drunkard stumbling past.

Because a large portion of the vestment's defense relied on magical means, had Lancer pierced him with Gae Buidhe—the Rose of Excision—it would have still inflicted grievous injuries, and instant death would not have been out of the question.

Yet, having barely managed to parry the sneak attack, Kirei regained the initiative. Using the momentum from Lancer's thrust, he spun in midair, landed far away, and crossed his arms, causing six Black Keys to spring forth between his fingers with a sharp scratching sound.

"Lancer..." A bitter taste filled Kirei's mouth. During this infiltration, he had anticipated encountering magical barriers, traps, and familiar guards, and had made preparations accordingly. What he had not anticipated, however, was that the "familiar" would be of such an elevated caliber.

Although he had found Emil's residence, he could no longer pursue further clues. Facing a true Heroic Spirit, he would likely need to exhaust every ounce of his strength merely to escape, while the probability of achieving victory was precisely zero.

"I thought it was merely another manifestation of Assassin attempting to infiltrate," Diarmuid said, appearing remarkably relaxed in the face of his absolute advantage compared to Kirei. "To think it is the Master himself. It appears their 'regeneration' has indeed been interrupted."

Wielding the Black Keys while remaining on high alert, Kirei rapidly surveyed his surroundings. No matter how powerful Lancer might be, his weapon was strictly suited for close-quarters combat. If he could figure out a way to create distance or use the indoor environment to break line of sight...

"Is that some sort of protective magecraft woven into your clothing? In that case—" Diarmuid clearly had no intention of waiting for Kirei to answer. Speaking thus, he took a slight step back, pointed the yellow rose in his left hand toward the ground, and in the next instant, the red rose in his right hand thrust forward like lightning.

The strength and speed of a Heroic Spirit were far beyond anything an ordinary human could match. Even for a thoroughly honed Executor like Kirei, dodging this spear relying solely on his own physical abilities was an absolute impossibility.

Unless he borrowed external force.

The Black Key was an offensive, flattened Mystic Code, pitch-black in color with a short grip, named for its resemblance to the black keys of a piano. In practical application, its effectiveness against magecraft or spiritual entities far surpassed its efficacy against physical targets.

Although most Black Keys were manufactured as complete units, upper-echelon members of the Church or exceptionally gifted Executors only needed to carry grips the size of cigarette filters; the blade could be woven from magical energy whenever needed, simultaneously enhancing its potency.

Temporary Black Keys manufactured in this manner were generally referred to as "Red Black Keys," "Blue Black Keys," or "Green Black Keys," depending on the magical attribute utilized. The specific attribute was adjusted by the user according to the enemy's weaknesses, and the adjustment range also encompassed the size and shape of the Black Key itself.

"Cut!" As the red spear lunged toward his face, Kirei shouted loudly, and the six Black Keys in his hands instantly grew abnormally massive, bursting into flames as they met the spear of piercing magic head-on like a pair of crimson giant claws.

The "Red Black Key," possessing the highest offensive power, had been reinforced by Kirei's Command Mantras, granting him the capital to clash head-on with a standard Noble Phantasm. However, what it encountered was Gae Dearg—the Rose of Dissolution—which possessed the ability to nullify all magical enhancements.

Screech—Boom!

The moment they collided, four of the six Red Black Keys shattered. However, because the magical energy reinforcing them did not originate from Kirei, but rather from the discarded Command Mantras already affixed to them, the contained magical energy managed to deflect the red spear at the very last fraction of a second. The formidable shockwave generated by the impact punched straight through two paper walls behind Kirei.

—Paper walls?

Noticing the peculiar sound of penetration, Kirei glanced toward that direction. A Japanese-style washitsu separated from an English-style guest room and a German-style parlor by paper sliding doors? Although Kirei had noticed the peculiar architecture of this Western-style mansion when the Assassins infiltrated last time, he never imagined it could be absurd enough to reach this extreme.

Just as Lancer retracted his red spear, seemingly preparing to utter another remark, Kirei dropped his hips, squared his shoulders, and hurled himself directly into the "brick wall" beside him.

Crash—

Just as he had suspected, the wall that appeared to be solid brick was merely a layer of wooden paneling affixed with brick-patterned wallpaper. Moreover, the owner of this Western-style mansion seemed to suffer from a certain degree of obsessive-compulsive disorder; the interior design styles of adjacent rooms never repeated, leading to the construction of numerous decorative fake walls merely to partition larger spaces.

This provided Kirei with an excellent opportunity to escape.

Kirei curled his body into a ball, crashed a hole through the paper wall, and entered the adjacent room. The entrance to this room was located on the opposite side of the hole and had no direct connection to the hallway where Lancer had appeared. Therefore, unless Diarmuid immediately mimicked his posture and dove through the hole in the paper door, even smashing through an entire wall without hesitation would cost him several seconds.

As an Executor of the Holy Sacrament Church, Kirei frequently encountered special situations such as walking into traps, targets summoning numerous subordinates, or even the Mage's Association dispatching Enforcers to intercept him. If he could not deal with the situation in a timely manner, he had to make the decisive choice to flee, and that ancient warrior, who had spent his entire life fighting honorably, was clearly not proficient in tracking.

Consequently, by the time Lancer hesitated briefly, broke through the wall, and stepped inside, the room was completely empty.

82:25:13

"[I am deeply sorry, Teacher—]" Amidst the argument between Kayneth and Kiritsugu over whether Saber's newly demonstrated technique counted as a violation of their terms, a voice magnified by magecraft echoed from the direction of the mansion: "[Assassin's Master has infiltrated the workshop and rescued Emil—]"

"Hmph." Kiritsugu Emiya said nothing, yet Kayneth almost wished he would say something. For a magus's heavily guarded workshop to be infiltrated by someone who wasn't even a magus a few years ago, achieving their objective in the process—this was simply...

"[Teacher! He is heading in your direction—]" Waver's voice continued to shout through the amplified magecraft.

"If he comes out holding Emil, I really will have to let him go—" Kayneth turned back to look toward the mansion.

Kirei Kotomine was desperately fleeing with a pair of black feathered wings beating behind his back, cradling a little girl dressed in a cute western dress in his arms, while Diarmuid chased relentlessly behind him.

Hm? That person is...

"Saber, kill her." Kayneth heard Kiritsugu issue the command.

"That won't do." Rider, who had remained silent throughout the negotiations, suddenly stepped in front of Saber. "She is my 'slave'."

The two Heroic Spirits locked horns, abruptly turning the previously amicable negotiation atmosphere rigid.

A moment later, Lancer walked back dejectedly and knelt on one knee: "I am deeply sorry, my Lord."

"No, it's fine. That wasn't the Assassin he was looking for," Kayneth waved his hand dismissively.

"[Teacher—I think I made a mistake—]" Waver's voice rang out once more: "[Emil is still right here—]"