"Clang!"
Just as before, it was a duel of sword and spear. Only this time, the wielder of the spear was not a Lancer, but a Rider who had abandoned his chariot. Although he had abandoned his chariot, Achilles's threat level had not diminished in the slightest. Perhaps the chariot allowed him to be invincible on the battlefield. But in a one-on-one fight against a true powerhouse, Achilles was at his strongest when he abandoned his chariot. When he discarded Andreias Amarantos (Chariot of the Undying Storm), he activated a Noble Phantasm called Comet Form.
Comet Form was an always-active Noble Phantasm that would activate once Achilles left his Chariot of the Undying Storm. This was the materialized form of the legend "the fastest of all heroes in all eras." It allowed him to traverse vast battlefields in one go, without reducing speed even if there were obstacles. Known as the fastest footwork in all of human history, his accelerated iron fists, when used to strike an enemy's head with maximum speed, combined with the brave ascent of his combat damage effect, could be described as the materialization of a sure-kill move.
Unlike Karna, who faced all enemies with his spear technique, Achilles's fighting style was more free. While wielding his long spear, fierce punches would occasionally strike, always making it difficult for Shirou to parry.
At this moment, Achilles was no longer the Achilles who had been easily confused by a few words from him earlier. After personally defeating his teacher, the current Achilles, though heavily wounded, was rapidly increasing his combat power. Amidst the torrential spear techniques and sudden punches, Shirou's lips curved upward continuously, finally revealing a fierce smile.
Shirou was very familiar with this state of Achilles. It was just like his battle with Angelica; even as his body approached death, his combat power continuously increased. That was conviction! The only difference was that his conviction back then was to save his sister, while Achilles's conviction at this moment was to achieve victory and defeat the enemy before him.
"This is truly wonderful!"
"It's wonderful to have an opponent like you!"
Shirou's originally calm eyes became increasingly agitated. In his battle with Achilles, he was constantly being assimilated. Madness continuously emanated from his eyes. At this moment, Shirou's heart became purer than ever. What future, what Holy Grail War! At this moment, he had only one conviction in his heart: to
defeat the enemy before him!
"Ugh, ahhhhhh!"
"Ugh, ahhhhhh!"
The two, roaring continuously, fought a desperate battle.
Long spear, long sword, fists, short sword. Moving incessantly, they continuously inflicted wounds on each other. After two fierce battles, Shirou's armor was now completely shattered, and the Dragon's Blood Armor had completely failed. At this point, Shirou also had no spare magical energy to re-project armor. All his current magical energy was used to enhance his attack and speed; otherwise, he wouldn't be able to keep up with Achilles's movements at all.
Of course, even without his armor, Shirou had no worries. Because at this time, Achilles had lost his Noble Phantasm, Andreias Amarantos (Brave Uncarved Flower), due to Chiron piercing his heel with a Noble Phantasm. Without this Noble Phantasm, he also had no defensive capability. At this moment, both of them stood on the same footing.
"Bang!"
"Pfft!"
The moment their spear and sword collided, Achilles's fist struck Shirou's face, and the short sword in Shirou's other hand pierced Achilles's body. The next moment, both leaped away, then collided again. And this was a microcosm of their battle. While constantly deadlocked, they continuously left their marks on each other. Their swift figures moved constantly through this wasteland.
Any obstacles were disregarded by them.
"Clang!"
After another collision, Shirou and Achilles finally stopped moving. Both of them, covered in wounds, were now breathing heavily. After all, before this battle, both had already experienced a desperate fight. Therefore, their physical reserves at this moment naturally couldn't compare to their prime. After all, they were already half-crippled.
"Exhilarating, exhilarating, truly exhilarating, Assassin!
It's truly fortunate to have an opponent like you!"
"Ah! I feel the same way!"
Shirou and Achilles, standing on opposite sides, looked at
each other. From each other's eyes, they could see boundless fighting spirit.
"This is great. I originally thought this journey to the present world would be a boring one. I never expected to encounter such surprises one after another." Shirou nodded slightly at Achilles's lament. Achilles, possessing Andreias Amarantos, would be invincible as long as he didn't encounter an opponent with divinity. After all, in the original work, if Chiron hadn't been there in the Black Faction, Achilles alone probably could have taken down the entire Black Faction! Of course, if he were placed in the Fuyuki Holy Grail War, it would be harder to say.
After all, with Gilgamesh present, which demigod wouldn't be countered by him? And both the Fourth and Fifth Holy Grail Wars featured demigod heroes. The Fourth War had Gilgamesh and Iskandar, and the Fifth War even had Heracles, arguably the strongest hero of Greece. Achilles would have a tough time against any of them.
"Lonely? I've never had such a thought; after all, I often encounter beings stronger than myself." Shirou, with his ability to traverse worlds, was never short of opponents.
"Is that so? That's truly fortunate!"
"Indeed!" For a pure warrior without ambition, there was nothing lonelier in this world than not being able to find an opponent. Just like Saitama, how lonely invincibility was!
"In that case, I shall send you off on your final journey!
So you don't stay here lonely!"
"Haha, if you have that kind of strength, then all the better! But can you do it?"
With that, Shirou and Achilles once again raised their weapons, bracing themselves for this final battle. They knew very well that they no longer had the strength to continue fighting; both of them had only one last desperate gamble left. The upcoming battle would be their swansong.
"Achilles!"
"Shirou!"
Shouting each other's names loudly, Shirou and Achilles summoned their last strength and swiftly charged at each other. The two, colliding, continuously swung their weapons at their opponent. Achilles's long spear continuously thrust at Shirou. Faced with this torrential assault, Shirou could only barely parry.
Although he marginally suppressed Achilles in terms of strength and speed, he was actually suppressed by the opponent's god-tier spear technique. In this moment of exhaustion, both had poured everything they had into the fight, with only their martial arts remaining to be deployed.
Block, block, endlessly block. At this moment, Shirou had abandoned all thought, swinging his sword purely by instinct. At this moment, the experiences he had gleaned from countless powerful swordsmen surged into his mind. Various swordsmanship techniques continuously reappeared in Shirou's hands, striking at Achilles.
In the process of wielding his sword, Shirou's swordsmanship continuously grew and evolved. Chiron's swordsmanship, Edelweiss's swordsmanship, Ikki's swordsmanship. The seeds of various swordsmanship techniques blossomed at this moment.
It was in this very instant that Shirou's swordsmanship finally underwent a transformation, reaching the realm of the divine.
"You bastard, you certainly know how to surprise people!"
Achilles, noticing Shirou's improvement, laughed wildly and continuously thrust his long spear. Faced with this godspeed spear, Shirou raised his long sword, imbued with his last magical energy, and brought it down.
"Nine Lives (Shooting the Hundred Heads)!"
"Boom, boom, boom, boom, boom, boom, boom, boom!"
Nine slashes instantly penetrated Achilles's body, leaving nine slash marks behind him.
"What a perfect strike!" Looking at Shirou, who remained in his sword-wielding pose and hadn't fallen, Achilles praised him with a smile. With that, he collapsed!
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