A Saiyan's Journey

"People are already dead, yet you're still watching."

Zuke descended from the sky, gazing at the kneeling Artoria with a smirk.

Artoria didn't reply, her vacant stare fixed on the lifeless Kiritsugu Emiya before her. Despite their ideological differences, Kiritsugu was still her Master.

It wasn't Kiritsugu's death that saddened her but rather the abrupt end of her Holy Grail War.

With her Master gone, she had no source of magical energy to sustain her existence as a Servant. Without it, Artoria would soon return to the Throne of Heroes.

Only Servants in the Archer class, with their Independent Action skill, could survive briefly without a Master's mana supply.

But as a Saber, this had nothing to do with her.

"…I've lost, haven't I? There was never even a sliver of hope for victory."

Artoria finally accepted her defeat. From the moment her initial attack on Zuke failed, she knew she couldn't win.

As the King of Knights, she had wanted to give it a try, but with her Master's death, continuing was no longer necessary.

"Losing to me isn't too bad. The other Servants didn't even last a single exchange before I eliminated them. At least you showed off some of your abilities."

Zuke nodded and spoke to Artoria.

What he said was true; the other Servants hadn't even managed to reveal their abilities before being instantly defeated by him.

Even Gilgamesh only managed to use Enkidu, and that wasn't his strongest move—his Ea didn't even get a chance to surface.

In comparison, Artoria at least unleashed her Excalibur, which was far better than the others.

Artoria fell silent. She suspected that Zuke's words were mostly true, but why did they sound so infuriating?

Releasing her Noble Phantasm was already considered an accomplishment compared to the others, but it still felt too pitiful.

"In recognition of your help in taking out Kiritsugu Emiya, I'll tell you about Irisviel's situation."

Zuke smiled at Artoria. Of course, the main reason he was talking so much with her was his pre-existing fondness for her character from before his reincarnation.

Artoria still seemed unaware of the Lesser Grail. By informing her, Zuke could at least help her understand why Kiritsugu had abandoned Irisviel.

"…So that's it. No wonder Irisviel suddenly became so frail. I thought it was due to some defect in her being a homunculus."

Upon hearing Zuke's explanation, Artoria, whose body had already started to turn translucent, chuckled bitterly.

"Who would've thought it was because she absorbed the souls of other Servants as the Lesser Grail… I didn't notice at all."

"Not noticing is normal. Who would've imagined the Grail descending in such a manner?"

Zuke shrugged, not blaming Artoria for her ignorance.

In truth, there was an even more troubling aspect—once the Holy Grail manifested, it would be filled with All the World's Evils.

Zuke hadn't yet figured out how to deal with that, so he decided not to mention it to Artoria. After all, she wouldn't be able to help.

"Yet again, I couldn't save my country… What a pity."

Artoria gazed at Zuke, then gently closed her eyes as her body gradually vanished. Naturally, her soul would return to the Lesser Grail.

"Now it's just Rider and Caster left… Hmm?"

Watching Artoria disappear, Zuke was about to leave when he heard a loud rumbling from above.

It sounded like thunder but was interspersed with the heavy creak of spinning wheels.

Looking up, Zuke saw two Divine Bulls descending from the sky, pulling the Gordius Wheel.

"Oh-ho! Long time no see, young Servant!"

As the Gordius Wheel crashed into the ground, leaving a massive crater, Iskandar's hearty voice rang out.

Faint retching noises could also be heard—apparently, Waver still hadn't gotten used to the Divine Bulls' driving skills.

"It's you? What are you doing here?"

Zuke looked at the unexpected arrival of Iskandar with mild surprise.

"I just found the newly summoned Caster in the city and dealt with him."

A faint smile appeared on Iskandar's face, though his eyes flashed coldly.

"That guy and his Master were complete scum, so I took care of both of them."

Hearing this, Zuke understood. This iteration of the Holy Grail War's Caster, Gilles de Rais, and his Master, Ryuunosuke Uryuu, were notorious for their murderous pleasures.

Unlike Zuke, who killed for a purpose, these two delighted in random slaughter.

As the King of Conquerors, Iskandar did not oppose killing, but he abhorred preying on unarmed, innocent civilians for fun.

Ryuunosuke's targeting of children had particularly disgusted Iskandar.

"I see, so you eliminated Caster… Did you come here to deal with Saber next?"

Zuke grinned. He had no issue with Iskandar taking out Caster, as he had no interest in Caster's Noble Phantasm for summoning monsters.

"That's right. My little Master, though timid, managed to locate Saber's hideout using familiars."

Iskandar laughed heartily, clapping Waver on the shoulder, nearly knocking him off the Gordius Wheel.

"But… Judging by the state of this forest, don't tell me you've already taken care of Saber?"

Iskandar glanced at the devastation in the forest—the aftermath of Artoria's Excalibur. The ground was shattered, and the forest had a gaping path cut through it.

The lifeless body of Kiritsugu Emiya on the ground confirmed that the battle was over.

"It's not just Saber."

Zuke squinted at Iskandar.

"Assassin, Berserker, Archer, Lancer—I've dealt with them all. The Holy Grail War should now be down to just the two of us."

His words left both Iskandar and Waver frozen in shock.

Neither had expected Zuke to be so ruthless, wiping out nearly all the participants in just two days.

"Wait! Based on what you said, there should only be Rider left now!"

Waver finally caught on to a glaring issue in Zuke's statement, looking at him incredulously.

"Then what is your class? Isn't the Holy Grail War limited to seven Servants!?"

To be continued…

Guys, sorry, I forgot to update this lmao…

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