Chương 573: Berserker
Edward entered a spiritual form as he accompanied Tohsaka, Shirou, and Saber to the Church to meet Kirei. The discussion proceeded with how he remembered it in the anime. Saber stayed outside while Shirou learned about the Holy Grail War and stated his displeasure at this game, specifically that masters must kill one another to be the final winner.
He did not want to participate in such a cruel competition, but Kirei played on his desire to save people to convince him that he was the best choice to be the final winner and prevent the grail from falling into the wrong hands. Once the conversation ended, the group returned home.
The Church:
"Why don't you say anything?" asked Kirei, talking to himself in the empty church.
"What do you expect me to say?" asked a shadow that seemed to have always been here, but no one noticed.
"The legendary Arcane Emperor is participating in this war, and you want me to believe you have nothing to say?"
"It has yet been determined whether he is worthy of his legend," said Gilgamesh, who did not like how this Arcane Emperor is often compared to him, the King of Heroes.
Kirei turned to face him, "Is it me, or does it seem like you have a deeper reason for not liking the Arcane Emperor?"
"I have nothing to hide," replied Gilgamesh. "It's because of [Netheri]."
"The legendary floating city?"
"My Gate of Babylon contained all powerful Mystic Codes ever created or wielded by any hero, but I don't have this city or any of the Arcane Emperor's works besides a few of his early works," explained Gilgamesh. "I don't know how he did it, but I want what is rightfully mine."
The Arcane Emperor is famous for many things, one of which is his accomplishment in Alchemy, specifically the field of Mystic Codes (Magic Artifacts).
"You should be careful when dealing with him," warned Kirei. "From what Lancer said, he might have detected something." Lancer's report showed that the Arcane Emperor only used basic spells, a sign that he was weary of prying eyes, so he decided not to reveal his real ability.
"Do you think I will lose?" asked Gilgamesh with a hideous expression.
"I'm telling you to be careful when dealing with an opponent of this caliber." After saying these words, he walked to his office without any more words.
…
As Tohsaka's group walked home, they were forced to stop as a little girl with all white hair appeared before them with a towering figure.
"Hello, big brother," said Illyasviel von Einzbern. "Excellent, you're here with everybody. I can kill all of you and eliminate the weaklings. Berserker, get rid of them."
The close to three meters tall Berserker followed his master's orders as it slowly walked toward the group. Edward suddenly appeared and said, "Saber, I will assist, but you must stop it."
Saber did not immediately respond to him but looked at Shirou, "Master, what's your order? Do you have a plan?"
"Let's…follow his plan."
"As you wish."
"What about me? What should I do?" asked Tohsaka.
"You're in charge of dealing with the Master. Go easy, and don't kill her if you can."
"Why?"
"She's a girl with a poor fate. If I can help it, I don't want anything to happen to her."
Tohsaka gave him an odd look, "If you say so."
Edward raised his staff, and countless magic circles surrounded Saber, who immediately raised her guard. "Relax, I'm just boosting your stats so you have a chance against such a titan."
He was not lying as Saber felt a rushed power coursing through her veins. Her defense, strength, agility, stamina, magic defense, and even mana capacity had drastically increased. She glanced at him before rushing toward Berserker, directly clashing against him.
"Your turn," said Edward, looking at Shirou.
"Me? What can I do?"
"You need to learn the basics to provide better help/mana to Saber," Edward replied before casting a spell. "As I said before, it will hurt."
Shirou immediately began to groan in pain as he held his head. Edward secretly praised him for not screaming in agony on the floor. He directed his focus to the battle. Despite his buffs, Saber was still disadvantaged in his fight against Berserker, whose real identity was the Greek Demigod Hercules.
He raised his staff to fire Mana Missiles, targeting Berserker's weak points and forcing him to stop many of his offenses. Saber would take this opportunity to strike, but the Demigod was extremely agile for his size. Furthermore, despite losing his mind due to his Berserker Class, he still retains the battle experience and instinct from when he was sound of mind.
Suddenly, an energy-based weapon materialized in Berserker's empty hand as he began to duel wield. Saber's pressure immediately intensified.
'Illya's familiar?' thought Edward as he recognized this type of magic that turned familiars into weapons. He checked on Tohsaka's battle. In the anime, she was slightly overwhelmed by Illya's magic, but now, it was the reverse. However, the little white-haired girl was smart and noticed Tohsaka's lack of control of her mana due to the sudden increase and used it to her advantage to hold on in this fight.
'I cannot continue to fight so passively,' thought Edward. He could sense Gilgamesh's hidden presence and knew that if he did not reveal some information, it might force the latter to act in unpredictable ways.
After pondering briefly, he knew what to do. Saber continued to attack Berserker, but she was losing. The latter's stats were higher than hers, and his combat ability was much better. Her only advantage was Edward's support and intelligence, as Berserker only acted on instinct.
Saber lured her opponent into a false move, and after sacrificing a sword attack on her shoulder, she created an opening. She immediately activated a part of her Noble Phantasm—Excalibur. She generated a massive slash that cut Berserker's upper body in half.
"Get out of the way," screamed Edward, and Saber turned around to see what looked like a cannon appearing from a void crack above his head. She rushed forward to pick up her master, who was still in pain and rushed out of the way.
The cannon flashed with thunder before firing. A booming sound echoed in the neighborhood, followed by an explosion where Berserker stood. Many of the surrounding houses were destroyed as a result of this attack.
"Is it over?" asked Tohsaka, who was blown away by the wind generated by this attack.
"No," replied Edward, and as expected, Berserker and Illya appeared perfectly intact at the explosion's epicenter.
"It seems I was wrong," said Illya in a cute but intimidating voice. "You guys are not as weak as I believed, especially you, Saber. I look forward to fighting with you again."
She disappeared without a trace, making some members of the team feel relieved.
"You seem to be hiding a lot from me," said Tohsaka to Edward.
"That's obvious," he replied. "You can ask once we're alone, but know some things should be known at the right time."
She glanced at him but said nothing more. Shirou was still in terrible shape, so they brought him home and helped him recuperate.
"Why are you staring at me?" asked Edward, perplexed by what Saber had been doing since they returned.
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