Chapter 46: The Sword of Damocles
The Hyatt Hotel stood in the bustling heart of Fuyuki's New City.
Given the importance of maintaining the secrecy of extraordinary powers, Kayneth believed that the Einzbern family, as one of the Three Founding Families, would never unleash Avenger's anti-world Noble Phantasm within the city.
If they were to attack head-on, this unified structure, a towering 32-story magic fortress, would surely teach them a lesson.
The entire building was brimming with magical barriers, powered by three magic furnaces. Even the smallest vulnerabilities had been fortified with interdimensional magic, ensuring that even Servants would be heavily restricted within this workshop.
Standing by the floor-to-ceiling windows on the top floor, Kayneth looked down at the New City with disdain.
There was no trace of cultural heritage in the nightscape. It was as if they had abandoned all remnants of the past for the sake of modern construction. Beneath the luxurious facade was nothing more than a vulgar city.
Annoyed, he knocked on his head. That wooden-headed, idiotic student of his was hopeless. So naive—whether Waver could even return to London alive was now questionable.
Suddenly, Kayneth felt as if a massive hand had gripped his heart. He couldn't breathe or think. A terrifying pressure descended from the heavens, and the suffocating magical energy explained everything.
Had the Einzbern family gone mad?
We're all going to die. We're going to die!
A figure materialized behind him, Lancer.
"Master!" Lancer shouted, his voice filled with urgency.
"Lancer!" Kayneth, the composed professor, discarded all grace and yelled, "Get Sola out of here!"
He kicked over a large ceramic jar.
"Fervor, meisanguis."
(Boil, my blood)
A torrent of silver mercury surged forth, like a sentient creature, enveloping Kayneth and forming a large metallic sphere. The sphere then crashed through the floor-to-ceiling window and hurtled toward the ground outside.
This was Kayneth's most prized possession, the Volumen Hydrargyrum—a powerful defensive Noble Phantasm from the El-Melloi family.
"The Einzberns, how dare you...!" The silver sphere plummeted from a height of over 150 meters, but Kayneth's mind was consumed with fury and confusion.
Using such a high-level Noble Phantasm in the city? They had to be insane!
"The spider has appeared. I repeat, the spider has appeared."
Watching through the enhanced scope trained on the Hyatt Hotel, Kiritsugu calmly put in his earplugs, relayed his final instructions through the communication device, and then turned, slinging his rifle over his shoulder as he descended the stairs.
As expected of one of the Twelve Lords of the Clock Tower, Kayneth had reacted swiftly.
The black-and-red war machine had ascended to an altitude of 30,000 meters, far exceeding its designed performance capabilities.
In the distance, the curvature of the earth and the starry sky merged into a breathtaking vista—an image beyond mere imagination.
Suspended in midair, the black-and-red mechanical monster seemed to bring time itself to a standstill.
Target locked.
Saber took a deep breath and swallowed the potion she had been holding in her mouth.
"This is going to be thrilling."
She slammed the control stick down. Flames of black-and-red erupted from the jet's engines, and the entire craft began a rapid descent.
A burning black-and-red phoenix fell from the sky, leaving a blazing trail across the night sky.
Her sword was drawn.
The pitch-black and crimson divine sword plunged downward, a fiery veil enveloping everything in Saber's view. At the same time, Lancelot, manning the controls, could feel his magical energy being continuously siphoned, fueling the monstrous machine.
Saber's Dragon Factor boiled within her.
Perhaps, in the distant past of the Age of Gods, a red dragon had descended from the heavens like this, tearing apart fortresses that seemed invincible.
The earth was close now, and the magical workshop within the tower stood out clearly in Saber's eyes.
The black-and-red sword dragged a hundred-meter-long trail of light, carrying an overwhelming power.
Boom—
Silence reigned.
Magical barriers? Defensive wards? A magical workshop?
The black-and-red sword sliced through everything as if it were tearing through fabric, meeting no resistance.
The entire building began to collapse inward in a grotesque manner, the steel and concrete breaking apart as if disintegrating from within.
A thick cloud of dust engulfed the surrounding streets.
Then came a tremor. The ground shook, bringing with it an even deeper sense of fear. The entire city of Fuyuki trembled in response, though the quake wasn't particularly strong.
Confused citizens wandered out of their homes, only to find that the once-iconic Hyatt Hotel of Fuyuki's New City had vanished. In its place stood a massive cloud of thick dust.
Curious onlookers approached, but they found that the police had already cordoned off the area, as if they had anticipated this event long before.
But... since when did Fuyuki City's police force have so many female officers?
Near the cordon, a young girl hesitantly approached.
Before she could get too close, a delicate figure knelt down in front of her, blocking her path.
"Be a good girl... It's dangerous up ahead, okay?" The soft, sweet voice carried an undeniable charm.
"So... so beautiful."
Beneath the deliberately low-brimmed hat, a pair of wine-red eyes, like roses of love, gleamed.
"We interrupt this broadcast for urgent news…"
"A meteor has crashed… the impact site is the Hyatt Hotel in Fuyuki's New City…"
"Police have launched an investigation… a London billionaire had rented out the hotel… two people are missing…"
"Experts have preliminarily determined… this meteorite holds high scientific value…"
"I'm so foolish, really," Risei Kotomine sighed as he lifted his weary, lifeless gaze and continued.
"I knew the Einzberns would offer their assistance, but I never expected them to pull off something this big."
"I thought everything had finally calmed down after dealing with the Mion River incident this morning…"
"But I never imagined they'd dare to do something like this."
His voice broke into sobs, unable to finish the sentence.
Silently, he began writing his resignation letter. After overseeing this Holy Grail War, he would return home to retire in peace.
The phone call from the Einzberns still echoed in his mind.
"The secrecy of magic?"
"That was a meteorite. What does that have to do with magic?"
The voice on the other end of the phone was dismissive and mocking—it was Avenger's voice.
Risei was too furious to respond.
"You… you've committed a deliberate attack!"
"Oh? But it's only an attack on the surface world. What does that have to do with us 'magi' from the Einzbern family?"
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