Chapter 260: Curtain Call
"It's over now..."
As the energy storm gradually subsided, the barrier constructed by Avalon faded away.
Hikigaya Hachiman looked around at Ryūdō Temple, which had been completely reduced to ruins by the previous battle.
Suddenly, a gust of wind blew past, and Artoria's anxious face flashed past Hikigaya Hachiman as she rushed toward the position where Gilgamesh had stood earlier.
"The Holy Grail... has been destroyed?"
Looking at the meager remnants of the Holy Grail on the ground, Artoria knelt down listlessly.
"......."
Hikigaya Hachiman and Karna, who had descended from the sky, exchanged glances, both seeing the helplessness in the other's eyes.
No one would have expected the Holy Grail to be caught in the collateral damage of the battle just now.
And despite being hailed as an omnipotent wish-granting cup, it could still be destroyed by external force...
From this point alone, it was certain that the Holy Grail was not omnipotent.
However, Hikigaya Hachiman obviously could not voice these thoughts to the sorrowful Artoria.
"Why... did things end up like this?"
Artoria tremblingly cupped the fragments of the Holy Grail in her hands, attempting to communicate with the so-called Greater Holy Grail through the shards.
Yet, no matter how Artoria called out in her mind, she could not establish a connection with the Holy Grail.
"Is there still more waiting?"
The worst-case scenario had occurred: the Holy Grail for this war was completely destroyed. If Artoria wanted to avert the doom of Britain, she could only return to that hill covered in corpses and continue waiting...
While Hikigaya Hachiman sympathized with Artoria's plight, it was impossible for him to conjure a Holy Grail for her.
Therefore, intending to let Artoria have some peace alone for the moment, he prepared to take Karna and deal with all the residual black mud nearby.
The black mud can be destroyed!
This was what Hikigaya Hachiman had observed during the lulls in the fighting.
But just as he turned to leave with Karna, another change occurred in the sky.
The sky looked as if a large hole had been torn open, revealing a pitch-black aperture.
Immediately, to Hikigaya Hachiman's curious gaze, countless amounts of black mud rained down, pouring over the disheartened Artoria kneeling on the ground.
"Saber!"
The limited spiritual power in his body rapidly circulated. Almost instinctively, Hikigaya Hachiman charged toward Artoria.
"?"
Hearing Hikigaya Hachiman's call, Artoria, who had let down her guard due to the end of the battle and the destruction of the Holy Grail, looked up at Hikigaya Hachiman.
When she saw the anxiety on Hikigaya Hachiman's face, she instantly became vigilant.
Looking up, the black mud was pouring down upon her.
Without hesitation, Artoria immediately got up, released the Invisible Air on her sword, and used the force of the wind to escape the black mud's attack just in time.
"Master, what is going on?"
The three retreated to a place the black mud could not reach for the moment. Artoria's face was full of bewilderment as she looked at the 'hole' in the sky that was continuously pouring out black mud.
"This is probably due to the Holy Grail's destruction..."
Hikigaya Hachiman's eyes first lost focus, and he stood still like a wooden figure for a moment.
When he recovered consciousness, a wry smile immediately appeared on his face.
Alaya had once again pulled his consciousness away for a conversation.
Alaya told him a piece of good news and a piece of bad news.
The bad news was that because the medium connecting to the Greater Holy Grail was destroyed, the hole in the sky was a direct conduit to the Greater Holy Grail, and the black mud in the Greater Holy Grail was continuously pouring into this world through that channel...
The good news was also related to that channel.
Because all the black mud from the Greater Holy Grail was flowing through the channel, Alaya had found a way to completely purify the Holy Grail.
Soon, she would make the source of the Holy Grail's contamination pass through the channel, and then excise the contaminated part of the Holy Grail connected to that channel. Hikigaya Hachiman only needed to completely destroy the source and the part of the Holy Grail connected to the channel, and the mission would be complete.
"That's easy for her to say..."
Checking the emptiness of the prana in his body, Hikigaya Hachiman couldn't help but complain.
They had just finished fighting Gilgamesh. Although the three of them looked hale and hearty, their bodies were actually running low on prana.
Under such circumstances, they were still required to fight, and the enemy was the culprit that contaminated the Holy Grail...
Perhaps sensing Hikigaya Hachiman's complaint, or perhaps having already considered Hikigaya Hachiman's post-battle state,
Not long after Hikigaya Hachiman's words fell, a light-blue membrane instantly enveloped him.
"Master!"
This sudden change instantly alarmed the two already highly vigilant Servants.
Karna even raised his spear tip, ready to attack the membrane and rescue Hikigaya Hachiman.
"Lancer, wait!"
Hikigaya Hachiman was also startled by the sudden blue shield around him at first.
But after realizing that his prana was recovering at an alarming rate while he was inside the shield, he quickly stopped Karna's action.
Soon, as Hikigaya Hachiman's internal prana was replenished, the excess prana spread through his connection with Karna and Artoria, flowing into their bodies.
"What a miraculous power..."
Carefully feeling himself returning to his peak state, Karna drew a conclusion about the sudden appearance of the shield.
Initially, with the prana Hikigaya Hachiman supplied, his materialized body could only exert a fraction of his true strength.
However, with the replenishment of energy from the shield, his strength had broken the previous limit and entered a new realm...
"Gurgle....."
Suddenly, the black mud stopped pouring from the position of the 'hole.' A monster that defied description, emanating an ominous aura all over its body, was struggling to drill out of the 'hole.'
"Is that the culprit Alaya mentioned?"
Hikigaya Hachiman thought, looking at the monster in mid-air.
Having no intention of fighting another round, before the monster completely emerged from the channel, he immediately commanded Karna and Artoria to use their newly replenished prana to unleash their Noble Phantasms again.
With two dazzling beams of light streaking across the night sky, the Fourth Holy Grail War in Fuyuki City finally reached its successful conclusion.
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