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44.82% Endless Path : Infinite Cosmos / Chapter 1055: Radiance

Capítulo 1055: Radiance

With evening quickly descending upon the outside world, Vahn and Rin had gathered everyone together to discuss their plan of action for the third night of the Holy Grail War. Rin had started things off by giving her opinion, stating, "I think it's a bad idea to go out tonight. Though we have more information about our enemies, this has only revealed that they are more powerful than we expected. Since we have this Sub-Space, I think it would be a better idea to focus on increasing our combat strength further. Giving up more than two days worth of time just to idle about waiting for an enemy to appear doesn't make any sense."

As Rin had also been steadily increasing her own power, though not nearly as much as Fenrir and Vahn, she wanted to continue focusing on her progress. Scáthach was a veritable treasure trove of information so Rin had been compiling thick notebooks detailing everything she had inquired about. It wasn't often a Magus would have access to someone with limitless knowledge so it almost seemed wasteful to go outside and search for enemies when most Master's were just hiding away. Searching around the city would just expose them to whatever their enemies had planned while remaining back at her Manor allowed them to be more reactive. Though this also meant it would be possible for some Servants to use their Noble Phantasms to try and destroy the whole building, few Master's would have their Servants take such action. The amount of magical power such attacks required could severely reduce their power, meaning any failed attempt to take out an enemy almost guaranteed your own defeat...

Hearing Rin's reasoning, Vahn was actually in agreement with her, though for decidedly different reasons. With his ability to quantify his progress with the Experience function of the system, Vahn could tell he was on the verge of a minor breakthrough in several skills. It would only take a few hours of a concerted effort for him to potentially reach the next rank, qualitatively increasing his strength. Though others had to dedicate themselves to comprehending things in a slow and methodical fashion, he could bypass this requirement by simply 'acting' with intent. The amount of experience he got for each action varied greatly, depending on his efforts, but it still gave Vahn an edge over almost everyone else.

Piggybacking off Rin's words, Vahn gave a small nod before saying, "I agree with Rin. However, I also think it is too risky to simply hole ourselves up without making an appearance. I believe our enemies have been observing our movements so, if we suddenly go on the defensive, they may assume there is something happening internally that requires our focus. This could let us bait out any of the less cautious enemies, but I'd rather not get Rin's Manor destroyed just to lure a Servant or two." After seeing how much devastation Ishtar's arrow had caused, Vahn didn't share the same 'confidence' Rin possessed in the enemy Masters' restraint. If one of their enemies had a long-ranged, Anti-Mountain Noble Phantasm, the only thing that would remain of Rin's house would be the basement and workshop.

Somewhat unexpectedly, Scáthach immediately gave her view on things, adding to what Vahn said in a cold and monotone voice. She even seemed to be shutting down any arguments Rin might make as she looked directly at her while saying, "Stillness leads to stagnation. We must constantly be in motion to prevent our enemies from getting the advantage. They may be biding their time in order to complete various rituals and large-scale magic formations. If we cannot interrupt their efforts, it will be much harder to deal with them later." As only eight Servants had been identified, of a possible fifteen, Scáthach was of the mind that it was necessary to take action immediately, both to avoid having their own base attacked and to prevent the enemies from having time to finish their preparations.

Rin felt incredibly tiny with Scáthach's gaze focused on her, even though she had already started to get over her 'trauma' from what was now nearly a week prior. Seeing Vahn and Fenrir tirelessly work to improve, combined with her own requests of Scáthach for information, had helped a great deal. Still, having someone that had an incomprehensible number of deaths on her hands staring directly at her wasn't something that Rin could bear with composure. This, combined with the fact that she trusted Scáthach's judgment, caused Rin to say, "Then we should move as a group before having Vahn teleport back with those who aren't going to participate in the fighting. Though I want to help, I feel it is more important that I do everything I can to increase my strength for the larger battles that will occur in the future. Even if Ishtar and Ereshkigal are both very powerful, my Od isn't enough to support them for extended battles. I will continue to train here in order to squeeze out every little bit of potential I can manage..."

With Rin voicing her own opinion, the floor was open for everyone else to do the same, leading to Fenrir surprisingly saying, "I am not strong enough to fight. I will stay with Rin to keep her safe and continue training. Unless Master calls me, I will keep training without stopping...I will get stronger, stronger than anyone...!" As she already felt much stronger, after just a few days of training, Fenrir wanted to capitalize on her current momentum. The fact she had grown so quickly was the only proof she needed to understand how weak she had been previously. After training with Eva and reaching a point where most enemies couldn't fight against her, she had become nearly as complacent as her Master. Now that she had seen several enemies that she was borderline powerless against, Fenrir was determined to train until she either hit a wall...or broke through it completely...

Following Fenrir's words, Astolfo was the next to speak, adding in a boisterous and high-pitched tone of voice, "I'll go fight~! If I keept sitting around in this place for much longer, I might just lose my mind, ahahahaha~!" Though it was interesting at first, Astolfo had been spending more time outside of the orb than inside of it. There wasn't really anything to do within the infinite white space other than hanging out with Nobunaga. Though the latter was fun company, Astolfo felt like things would become 'complicated' between them if he kept messing around. He didn't want to commit any acts that would lose his credibility with Vahn before he had even accomplished anything in the Holy Grail War...

Astolfo's words seemed to have been a trendsetter as, immediately following them, Nobunaga showed a somewhat vicious expression as she said, "I'm also beginning to grow impatient. Even the finest sake begins to lose its charm if you aren't working hard to earn it. Since I've accumulated a bit of debt, I'll put in some effort if we come across any enemies." This was followed by Scáthach giving a curt nod before she also added, "I must uphold my dignity as a Teacher. If you face an enemy that you cannot defeat, I will bear the burden for you. In exchange, you will continue to work just as hard as you have been. My expectations for you have only increased, Vahn. Do not disappoint me."

With how her words always sounded stern and to the point, Vahn formed a wry smile before saying, "Sure...I'll be in your care." Though it was already his intention, Vahn could understand from this 'Teacher' of his that she fully intended to have him fight without her help. She would only step in if he couldn't handle it, much like how he had behaved to the girls in the past. Being in the receiving end of things made Vahn feel a little awkward but, having Scáthach's lessons 'literally' beaten into him prevented him from allowing it to show through prominently. At the same time, Vahn resolved himself to put in his 'maximum effort', knowing full-well that Scáthach would only be harsher in his training if he was defeated in battle...

Once everyone had made their intentions clear, Vahn lead the conversation towards their plan of action for the evening. They would all leave together before he used his Qinglong form to bring Fenrir and Rin back to the Manor. After that, Vahn wanted to return to the area where Caster had previously been located. He harbored little hope that the Master-Servant duo would still be in the area but it didn't hurt to check. Depending on whether or not he was able to meet with Paracelsus, Vahn would either return to the Manor or search the area to the West of the city, an area restricted to the public known as the Einzbern Forest. With the Holy Grail War already in full-swing, Vahn was curious about what one of the three major players in the event was up to. Thus far, they had been laying low so, if his intuition proved correct, Vahn felt like they may have already thrown a wrench into things. Since the Ruler-Class Servant had yet to appear, he suspected they may have done something to either interfere, if not outright claim the Ruler for themselves...

Though their discussion lasted for a somewhat tiring two hours, this only accounted for the passage of seventeen minutes in the outside world. By the time Vahn, Rin, and Fenrir were leaving the Tohsaka Manor, it was only a little after 6 PM, the very edge of the horizon still tinged orange and purple with the setting sun. This would have been quite the sight under normal circumstances but, with the city-wide formation in effect, all the natural colors of the world seemed muted. Regardless, Vahn led Fenrir and Rin by hand until they had traveled a fair distance from the Tohsaka Manor. Then, after teleporting them back to the interior, Vahn shared a moderately affectionate moment with the two girls before he ultimately set out under the veil of the night...

---

With the cool evening air gently rustly his hair, Vahn stared out over Fuyuki City or, more specifically, an area in the Shinto District that was around 7km away from the Fuyuki Bridge. This was where Caster had been located the previous night but, now that Vahn was seeing the sight for the second time, there wasn't even a warehouse present. Even with his domain, Vahn could hardly discern the smallest ripple of foreign mana, something that wasn't too surprising considering how fine-tuned Paracelsus' control seemed to be. Though there was still a chance he could follow these minute traces to their origin, Vahn suspected it would be an ultimately fruitless endeavor since Paracelsus would have taken steps to cover his tracks and mislead anyone trying to follow him...

Around the time when Vahn was considering whether or not to immediately head to the Einzbern Forest, a small ripple of mana appeared next to him before Scáthach manifested herself at his side. Vahn looked back at her with a questioning stare, followed by Scáthach saying, "When treated seriously, there is no difference between training and battle. Your pride and arrogance are poor excuses for negligence. When you fight, you should not play with your enemies. Even if they must fall to your blade, it is better to have died an honorable death than to be pitied for their weakness..."

With this said, Scáthach vanished from view once again, leaving Vahn blankly staring at the empty space she had previously occupied...

For a moment, Vahn considered asking why Scáthach would choose to say such a thing but, almost as soon as the thought crossed his mind, he had received his answer. From high above, like a star being born into existence, a golden radiance began to shine down before the figure of a handsome man with dark-brown hair, golden eyes, and a tanned body came into existence. For a brief moment, Vahn was a little surprised as, with the exception of a few subtle variations, the man wasn't all that dissimilar to himself. This wasn't just their appearance, either, but the aura emanating from the man that practically screamed, 'King'. Vahn didn't even need to guess who this Servant was as, based on the black fabrics, golden accessories, and blue accents, it was easy to see the man was Egyptian in origin.

Though Vahn felt a compulsion to swap positions with the Servant he believed to be Ozymandias, an even larger part of him wanted to knock the so-called God-King from the sky. When this thought crossed his mind, Vahn recalled Scáthach's words and couldn't help internally rebuking himself, even as he externally smiled while saying, "Ozymandias, God-King of Egypt...I wonder, what are your intentions for appearing here? How did you find me...?" Though Vahn assumed the latter had been 'courtesy' of Scáthach, he still wanted to see how Ozymandias would respond. At the same time, Vahn was going over his information once again, a peculiar incongruity rising in his heart due to the similarities he shared with this man known as the God-King. Not only had Ozymandias brought great prosperity to his people, he also married numerous beauties, including the 'most beautiful woman in the world'. During his reign, he was reputed to have sired more than a hundred children, and those were only the ones that had been recorded in the royal annals...

As if Vahn's recognition of his identity was pleasant to the ears, Ozymandias gave an approving yet egotistical smile as he said, "It is good that you recognize this King of Kings, knave. In recognition for your accomplishment, We will allow you the opportunity to state your name. Though We will not trouble ourselves to grant you full honors, know that your name will be immemorialized in this God-King's heart, at least for a time." With his deep voice accenting almost every single one of his words, Vahn barely managed to avoid frowning in annoyance with Ozymandias' haughty attitude. At the same time, he realized that his 'act' when first confronting Astolfo wasn't all that dissimilar, causing Vahn to feel the need to reflect on how he presented himself as an Emperor in the future...

Pulling out a set of nondescript black blades, and act that caused Ozymandias' eyes to sharpen considerably, Vahn smiled as he compressed his domain to only 2km, drastically increasing the pressure. At the same time, in response to Ozymandias' words, Vahn plainly, yet confidently stated, "I am Vahn Aldrnari Mason, the Sage Emperor. Come, God-King, I will test your mettle...!" At the end of his statement, Vahn moved like a phantom with [Koku Shundo] and his telekinesis. Ozymandias seemed to be able to stand in the sky with the same ease as others would walk on land so it looked like the battle would be fought amongst the 'heavens'.

With a contemptuous expression on his face, Ozymandias crossed his arms and muttered, "Foolish..." in a somber tone. At the same time, as if manifested from nothingness, a golden bowsprit emerged in front of Ozymandias on a crash course with Vahn. The latter twisted his body in mid-air to evade it but, even after avoiding it by several centimeters, Vahn felt a searing heat on his back as his flesh peeled away before instantly turning to ashes. This wasn't enough to deter his attack, however, as Vahn transitioned into his Zhuque form after sensing the golden arc contained almost pure Yang Elemental Energy.

Seeing Vahn suddenly burst into vermillion flames, Ozymandias actually began retreating backward as he asked, "Are you descended from a God of the Sun? This is starting to become interesting..." Now taking the battle a little more seriously, Ozymandias pulled out a long staff that was similar to an Egyptian Crook. He used this to try and deflect Vahn's swords, which were now burning white-hot, but the latter simply placed them back into his Inventory. This caused Ozymandias' strike to hit empty air as a slightly surprised looked adorned his previously arrogant expression.

Attempting to strike Ozymandias' chest with his hands, Vahn reached forward with enough speed to create a black blur along the trajectory of his movement. However, in a manner similar to how Astolfo had been able to evade him, Ozymandias moved back with slightly faster speed than Vahn's strike. This caused him to overextend a bit, resulting in Vahn twisted his body by instinct as he kicked skyward to deflect Ozymandias' blow. In the same motion, Vahn fired a pillar of flame towards Ozymandias, once again surprising the man as he manifested a golden mirror that simply absorbed the attack. Now it was Vahn's turn to be surprised, especially when the mirror began to glow like an actual sun before reflecting his own attack back at him...

Knowing his flames couldn't be used to him his Zhuque form, Vahn chose to meet the attack head-on, absorbing the expended energy back into his body while spreading his wings in a wide arc. The tips of each feather began to glow with an intense light but, instead of firing off his attack, Vahn immediately retreated with [Koku Shundo] as an even greater radiance expanded below the periphery of his vision. Before Vahn even observed the origin of the golden radiance, he pulled out his [Yoichi Bow] before losing a [Yi] arrow towards Ozymandias' face. The latter had just been about to take a stand on a 30m long golden arc that had sails that seemed to be made of pure Yang Elemental Energy.

Sensing the danger contained within the arrow, Ozymandius raised his staff high, causing a large pillar of golden-white light to rise from the deck of the golden arc. This didn't outright destroy the [Yi] arrow, however, and instead caused it to take effect upon contact with the pillar of light. Immediately following this, Vahn realized he had erred slightly as, while he had been able to resist the effects of a 3-Star [Yi] relatively easily in the past, the current him had no such luxury. In an instant, he found himself pulled towards the black sphere of gravity that had formed above the arc, barely managing to break away from the gravitational pull with his Qinglong form.

Lacking the means to teleport through space as easily as Vahn, Ozymandias' face formed a deep grimace as golden light shrouded his body, anchoring him to the arc. Even with the intense gravitational pull, the arc itself remained stable within the air without showing signs of collapse. It, along with Ozymandias himself, was able to tide through the worst part of the arrow's effect as the black sphere of death began to shrink at a discernable rate. Just as he was about to relax, however, Ozymandias turned his eyes skyward to where he had sensed the approach of impending danger. There, as if mirroring their first meeting, Vahn was standing in the sky as he shot several black arrows towards the golden arc, each having three small sun-shaped runes glowing on their side...

Without wasting a single moment, Ozymandias immediately raised his staff once again, erecting a massive golden barrier to protect the arc as he incanted "I shall give you a reward, lightless one."

"Look on my works, ye Mighty, and bow down! My infinite brilliance. The sun descends here! Ramesseum Tentyris...!" With this incantation finished, the golden arc beneath Ozymandias' body began shining with a radiance far greater than the sun as it sent out a wave of pure golden light to seemed to encroach upon reality itself. Even with his best attempts at evading the light, Vahn soon found himself in a completely different landscape than the Fuyuki City skies. In the distance, there was a vast and seemingly infinite desert while, nearly as far as the eye could see, Vahn's vision was dominated by an incalculable amount of complex and ornate temples...

(A/N: Alternate Titles: 'I imagine it is beneficial to have access to unlimited knowledge as a Magus....','Scáthach's foresight (O_O)...','Emperor vs. God-King')

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Capítulo 1056: Sunset

With his surroundings suddenly changing so drastically, it didn't take a grand feat of deduction to conclude that Vahn had found himself within a Reality Marble. Vahn could remember Rin describing it as a phenomenon that centers around the materialization and projection of one's inner world, often taking a form and function that provided the user an almost insurmountable advantage. In legend, Ozymandias was known to have built several grand Temples, many dedicated to the various gods that supposedly inhabited his body. Because of his ambitions, it was recorded that Ozymandias had declared, "all temples of past, present, and future exists for my divine purpose". As a result, it seemed like every temple, regardless of when, where, and for whatever purpose, had found itself within this infinitely vast space...

Instead of moving to attack, both Vahn and Ozymandias stared at each other from a distance, the latter now having a far more serious expression as he said, "I commend you, Sage Emperor. To force me to this extent, know that you have earned the right to raise your head high in the afterlife. I will have your body enshrined within my grandest mausoleum, a resting ground reserved for only the greatest Pharaohs recorded in the annals of history. Now, quake in awe at the might of all the Gods of Egypt...!" With his words echoing through the area, each of the temples in the surroundings seemed to come alive with an overwhelming magical aura. Vahn could see seven giant Sphinxes ascend towards the sky while, from the ground below, green tendrils coiled towards him at an almost imperceptible speed.

Vahn, still in his Qinglong form, attempted to teleport in an effort to evade but, much to his surprise, the fabric of Space-Time in the surroundings seemed immovable. As a result, his only option was to abandon his Qinglong form and attempt to evade using the enhanced agility of his Baihu form. This ultimately proved a futile effort, however, as the tendrils of green energy moved close to 30,000kmh without being affected by rapid changes in trajectory. Vahn lamented more in this one moment than ever before that he was unable to use Lightning and Light Elemental Magic without a lot of preparation. The only thing he could do was tuck in his arms and legs, shrinking his body as much as possible as the green energy slammed into his body before, as if containing a mind of its own, it attempted to enter through his ears, nose, and mouth...

With the foreign energy invading his body, Vahn was beginning to panic before, nearly causing him to laugh out loud, the energy was broken down far faster than it could invade him. Understanding that the 'sentient' green energy was just an advanced poison containing a curse, Vahn relaxed and just let the tendrils coil around his body as he leaped through the sky to attack Ozymandias. The latter was slightly surprised that Vahn hadn't immediately died, as even Servants would eventually succumb to his curse rather quickly. Even the most powerful would be severely weakened so he misconstrued Vahn's attack as the last-ditch efforts of a dying man as he commanded, "Go. Give him the honorable death he seeks..."

Six of the seven Sphinxes that had formed a defensive formation around Ozymandias immediately moved to intercept Vahn the moment they heard their God-King's order. The one at the very front, seemingly made of a composite of bronze and marble, attacked Vahn with its golden teeth and claws. As the creature was more than 10m long, and relatively slow, Vahn spun through the air like a competition flier before scraping his claws along the underside of the Sphinx's stoney torso. He was a little taken aback that his claws were only able to form thin lines on the stone but, instead of going for a second strike, Vahn slipped through the gap in the Sphinx's legs before targetting the next one.

Seeing Vahn unhesitantly charge at it, the second Sphinx, this time covered from head to claw in golden flames, released a loud roar that carried with it a heatwave easily reaching more than 3,000 degrees celsius. Vahn, however, was completely undeterred by this as his body became shrouded in vermillion flames while both forearms were covered in black scales. As the heatwave slammed into his body, Vahn created another foothold before twisting jumping headfirst into the pressure while forming a penetrative membrane with his [Cantus Bellax] magical shroud. This gave him more than enough momentum to overcome the powerful roar, allowing Vahn to uppercut the bellowing Sphinx, forcing its mouth shut in the process.

Though Vahn was able to send it flying back several meters, he realized that his attacks weren't actually doing damage, at least to the two Sphinxes he had attacked. While doing his best to dodge their combined attacks, Vahn's second process was quickly sorting through the information stored within his mind while trying to come up with a solution. It was possible that the other six were tied to the one laying next to Ozymandias, meaning he would need to kill it in order to deal with the other seven. The next most likely scenario was that they were the manifestations of specific Temple Spirits, requiring Vahn to destroy their temples in order to defeat their avatars. Lastly, though this was a terrifying prospect, it could be the Noble Phantasm itself that granted them their immortality. This would require Vahn to destroy a seemingly infinite space, or at least force Ozymandias to use up his reserves so that it would naturally dissolve...

Even if his second process wasn't providing any real distractions to Vahn's main process, one of the Sphinxes finally landed a clean hit on his body. It had a long tail that was nearly 15m long and covered from base to tip in black scales. At the very end, instead of barbs or hair, the tail formed into the head of a massive cobra that had a golden pattern on its 'cloak', forming the shape of two eyes that had caused Vahn's mind to blank for a brief moment when looking at them. He was already colliding with one of the surrounding temples when he realized something had happened, a gap that wasn't missed by one of the other Sphinxes within the group. This one had sapphire-like fur with amethyst eyes and a mane comprised of mystical blue energy. Using the momentary gap in Vahn's focus, it opened its maw wide before biting down, taking his entire torso in its mouth due to the difference in size.

Fortunately, while a mechanism seemed to make them impervious to damage, it didn't seem to provide them any offensive power. Though Vahn was being shaken around like a chew toy, the Sphinx's teeth were unable to penetrate his flesh. The only worrisome factor was the icy energy trying to invade his body but, as Vahn's Source Energy could adapt to any form of energy, he was able to guide it along his mana circuits without taking any damage. Instead, Vahn was using the Sphinx's attack as a means to recover his severely diminished reserves. It took several long seconds before the creature realized something was wrong, throwing Vahn from its mouth to be dealt with by its kin.

Using the momentum of the 'Ice Sphinx's' toss, Vahn faced down the same Stone Sphinx that had started the attack, a resolute light in his eyes as he pulled out a small nail. As the Stone Sphinx tried to crush him with its massive muscular maw, Vahn stabbed upward with the [Sacred Duplex Nail], successfully stabbing the roof of the Sphinx's mouth. At the same time, Vahn, already in his pseudo-Xuanwu form, directed the entire force of his attack at the very tip of the nail. This created allowed him to experience the surprisingly satisfying phenomenon of watching the Stone Sphinx's head exploding. Though it didn't shed any blood at all, the explosive 'crunch' of stone being fractured apart caused Vahn to smile excitedly as he faced down the other five Sphinxes.

Instead of moving to attack again, the remaining Sphinxes circled around Vahn with greater caution as, high in the skies above, Ozymandias watched the battle with a casual smile on his face. Though Vahn couldn't hear him, Ozymandias stroked the head of the Sphinx at his side, the one seemingly comprised of the very fabric of Space. It had an ephemeral black body that was filled with an incalculable number of stars and spiraling galaxies. The only physical components, as everything else appeared nebulous and almost 'liquid' in structure, were its solid gold wings, shimmering with a metallic sheen, and the ornate gold-lazuli Pharoah's crown that served as its mane. To this most trusted companion of his, Ozymandias lightly stated, "He is quite something, isn't he?"

Without making a single sound, a 'ripple' began to spread across the Sphinx's nebulous face that seemed to communicate its intent as Ozymandias began to laugh in a boisterous manner. Once he had finished, Ozymandias nodded his head and said, "If that is your desire, I will not hold you back. It seems I will need to bestow even greater honors upon him when he dies...fuuu..." With that said, Ozymandias began to contemplate how best to immortalize his battle with Vahn while, at his side, the peculiar Sphinx rose to its feet before becoming absolutely still. Then, several parts of its body began to expand before, similar to an amoeba, it began to split into smaller versions of itself. By the time it was done, its 15m long body had shrunken down to 4m in size as twenty similarly sized clones leaped into the fray alongside the, now four, Sphinxes...

Vahn had just gotten his revenge against the Sphinx with the snake tail when he sensed an amount of energy that created an illusion as if the sky was falling. Looking up, Vahn saw the twenty Sphinxes, each appearing as if they were cut from the night sky, descending towards him. The moment he saw this sight, Vahn's second and third processes completely ceased functioning as his mind simply 'blanked', once again experiencing the peculiar 'nothingness' that had been his companion as of late. In this state of mind, Vahn felt like a passenger in his own body as he began to move like a high-precision machine. It wasn't nearly at the same level as Scáthach, but Vahn felt like he had turned his brain off, his sole focus the annihilation of his enemies...

From atop his golden throne, Ozymandias felt the change in Vahn as small instabilities began appearing in the space comprising his Noble Phantasm, Ramesseum Tentyris. This caused him to click his tongue as it indicated his Reality Marble wouldn't hold up for much longer. He had to expend a lot of energy to allow his companion, the Wehem-Mesut Sphinx, to split so many times. It was a Noble Phantasm all it's own so, in order to keep it manifested, Ozymandias needed to supply his own magical power. Though he was receiving a fair amount from his would-be Master, even that was quickly drying up as Vahn simply refused to die...

Seeing Vahn pull out a rather plain-looking spear that could apparently even cut through the flesh of his pseudo-immortal Sphinxes, Ozymandias released a sigh as the gold making up his Arc, another Noble Phantasm named Mesektet,' The Solar Ship of the Dark Night', began to liquidize. Near his feet, a pillar began to emerge before forming into a lever when it reached the same level as his armrest. Though he was reluctant to use his final card against the same opponent, as it felt like a pyrrhic victory at best, Ozymandias saw Vahn absorb the attack from one of his Sphinxes, converting it into his own Od. This was all Ozymandias needed to see as his commanding voice echoed, "Sun's wrath, serpent that devours serpents, light of judgment, Uraeus...!"

The moment Ozymandias finished his words, he pulled the golden lever without hesitation, causing the front of his arc to open. Located within his arc, serving the function of its core and engine, a massive emerald-green crystal could be seen. There were several rings of gold, each covered with thousands of small runes, fixing it in place. The ring towards the very tip of the massive crystal began to flicker before they eventually turned dark moments later. These rings usually served the purpose of a stabilizing the cosmic energy contained within the crystal. With the one at the end no longer active, a massive beam of green energy, tinged with a golden radiance, rained down on Vahn's location at the speed of light...

Vahn had sensed the massive buildup of energy but, even before his brain could probably communicate with his muscles, his vision was already completed shrouded by emerald green light. Almost instantly thereafter, Vahn could no longer see anything at all as his eyes were liquidized from their sockets as his body, his body following course soon after. He didn't know it at the time but Ozymandias' Uraeus could, for a brief moment, reach the EX classification for a Noble Phantasm while within his Reality Marble. It was a degree of power that wasn't even quantifiable within the Root, serving the purpose of an Anti-Fortress level attack that simply couldn't be blocked without an even more ridiculous Noble Phantasm...

---

The beam from Ozymandias' arc continued to fire for a full thirty seconds before his own expression began to pale. At this point, the surrounding space was filled with spatial fissures while, caught in the crossfire of their own Master's attack, the Sphinxes that had been engaging Vahn were all destroyed along with him. This was extremely taxing on Ozymandias but, at the very least, it seemed his final card had managed to finish the job. Thus, with a tired yet appreciative expression, Ozymandias muttered, "You were a far more worthy opponent than I could have ever anticipated. I wonder what kind of Servant such a capable Master was able to summon...?" At the same time that these words were leaving his lips, Ozymandias allowed his Reality Marble to break apart naturally as he released a tired sigh. In this exact moment, just as he had dropped his guard the most, Ozymandias' eyes widened in shock as the words, "Gae Bolg" reached his ears...

Like a bolt of red lightning, Ozymandias' body was ripped from his arc before he was unceremoniously slammed into the ground moments later. On contact with the asphalt, he coughed up a mouth of blood before clutching his chest with a pained expression on his face. Brackish-Red energy had started to spread from where his heart had been pierced, carrying with it malicious energy that felt like thorns spreading through his body. These thorns pierced all of his organs as they quickly spread through his body, even reaching his mind. If not for the fact that Servants were made up of mana, he would have died almost instantly from the unexpected attack from Scáthach's Noble Phantasm.

With what remained of his strength, Ozymandias glared up at Scáthach, his gold eyes locking with her crimson red gaze as he spat, "You mongrel...you dare sneak attack...this...God-King...?" To this, Scáthach plainly stated in her usual monotone, "There are no such things as sneak attacks. You were caught unprepared. If you are so quick to seek someone to blame for your own folly, you will never be a true King." Even before she finished her words, Scáthach had started to look around the area, no longer paying attention to the dying Ozymandias. This caused him to laugh, not because she was looking down on him, but because her words held a grain of truth within. They were currently at War and, with Servants often having distinctly different strengths, the fault of being 'caught off guard' lay squarely on his shoulders.

Even though it felt like there was no power in his body, Ozymandias began to rise to his feet with an extreme amount of effort. Scáthach turned her attention back to him but made no attempt to stop his actions as, with her eyes, she knew what he was doing. Thus, even as Ozymandias pulled out a golden necklace, Scáthach just watched him with her expressionless face as he said, "That man, the Sage Emperor, was annihilated by my last attack. If he has anyone that was close to him, give them this necklace...it is my most precious treasure in all Creation. It may not hold value to them, but I would rather they keep it than entrust it to the hands of some random Magus..."

Much like every other Servant, Ozymandias had required a catalyst in order to manifest according to the Grails' requirements. His took on the form of a partially shattered golden necklace that had belonged to his one and only wife, Nefertari. Though he had lain with hundreds of women in his time and had more than thirty concubines, the only woman he had ever loved was Nefertari herself. He had lived a life without any regrets but, if given the chance, he would have liked to walk this land once again with her at his side...

With that thought playing through his mind, Ozymandius began to dissolve away into particles of golden light as a contented expression adorned his face. The necklace in his hand began to fall under the pull of gravity but Scáthach deftly caught it out of the air before muttering, "That man would not die so easily. I am not sorry to have defeated you, but I will apologize for interrupting your battle. Thank you for taking care of my student..." Though he may not have heard her words, Scáthach felt like the God-King, who died standing on his feet, deserved to know the truth. Then, when his body had completely vanished, so too did hers, though for decidedly different reasons...

---

Appearing like a phantom near the edge of a parking lot, Scáthach squatted down to pick up a small rainbow-colored gemstone that was only around the size of her thumb. Even then, it seemed to possess limitless vitality as a powerful energy that she couldn't even comprehend radiated from within. Though she didn't know exactly what had happened, Scáthach was able to intuit that this tiny gemstone was none other than Vahn. When he had been attacked by Ozymandias, something that also could have qualified as a 'sneak attack', Vahn had compressed a part of his body before surrounding it with as much Source Energy as he could muster. This had coalesced into the nigh-indestructible gemstone within Scáthach's hand and, as his reserves gradually recovered, so too would his body...

Knowing how close her student had come to death, Scáthach, for the first time in a very long period of time, felt slightly annoyed. Her expression didn't change but, once he managed to regenerate, Scáthach swore that she would give Vahn twice the thrashing as he had previously received. For now, however, she decided to both punish and reward him at the same time, taking the rainbow gemstone in her palm before placing it snuggly between her cleavage. Her instincts told her that Vahn was still 'aware' of what was going on around him so, as punishment for having to clean up after him, Scáthach wanted him to reflect on his actions while growing accustomed to situations he had no control over. When he finally relinquished control and focused on his actions themselves, she believed he would become a truly powerful warrior...

(A/N: Alternate Titles: 'Welcome to the Desert of the Real','Ozymandias would be unstoppable if Vahn was his Master...','( Y )~*angry emperor noises*')

https://bit.ly/2XBzAYu <-(p.atreon link)

paypal.me/Einlion

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