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Chapter 72: The Struggle Between Knights
🕑 Added 2025-05-23 11:36:42 +0000 UTCEverything was still continuing, and the battle had only just begun.
In the darkness of night, Arthur had already sensed something. He discovered that even though Iskandar's battle had ended, the battle on Jeanne Alter's side had not yet begun. Arthur felt very uneasy, so he immediately shifted his target. In Arthur's heart, Jeanne Alter's position was very high.
On the other side, Artoria's figure also appeared nearby. Because her Irisviel had disappeared, Artoria asked others, and the news she received was that she had been taken away by a mass of black mud. How could that be? Who exactly was it?
Artoria was still speeding on her motorcycle, but aimlessly—she was already very anxious.
"If it were him, he definitely wouldn't be as lost as I am," Artoria constantly mocked herself, and once again thought of that ever-smiling figure.
"What? Missing me?"
At this moment, perhaps having heard Artoria's inner call, Arthur descended from the sky riding a white horse. One was a modern high-speed vehicle enhanced by the Wind King Barrier, the other was an ancient warhorse. The speeds of the two were surprisingly comparable.
"What's wrong?" Arthur looked at Artoria's anxious expression and asked strangely.
"Irisviel is gone!"
"How is that possible?" Arthur was disbelieving. Diarmuid was fighting Jeanne, Iskandar had just retreated, and now, all that remained were his two Jeannes and Gilgamesh. These were all his people! How could someone take Irisviel?
"Who is it?" Arthur suddenly realized that something had escaped his control.
"I don't know, I only know it was a mass of black mud."
"Black mud?" Arthur was shocked. How could the Holy Grail interfere in the Holy Grail War again and again? Arthur didn't know that all of this was because his appearance had disrupted the rhythm of the Holy Grail.
"No, black mud, evil! Could it be that fellow has emerged?" Arthur muttered—Angra Mainyu, the Evil of All the World! It must be him.
"You know? Who is it?" A light reappeared in Artoria's eyes. She had fallen into a dark path, but Arthur's appearance brought light to her once again.
"Angra Mainyu, the Evil of All the World. If it was black mud, then it should be him. However, how could he descend early?"
Arthur was also very puzzled. Angra Mainyu, the one who was dealt with by Artoria in the Third War, was still around?
"It's him!" Artoria also recalled the scene of her and her blackened self killing Angra Mainyu back then. "Impossible, he died long ago! And I killed him with my own hands!"
"Nothing is impossible. Right now, we can only hope that Irisviel is alright." Arthur looked helplessly at everything before him. It seemed he had a lot to deal with.
"Quick, come with me, our target might be there!" Knowing that Angra Mainyu was still around, Arthur became even more worried about Jeanne Alter's situation. He immediately applied the Wind King Barrier to the white horse, and like a gust of wind, he quickly left. Artoria did the same, increasing her speed to the maximum and rushing towards the destination. At this moment, the two once again advanced side by side.
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Arthur's speed was absolutely swift. Flying was indeed faster than running on the ground, but Artoria was still half a step behind.
Unlike Arthur, who was still flying in the sky, Artoria drove her motorcycle into a pitch-black industrial area. In this strange industrial area, Artoria felt a familiar aura.
Swish!
Suddenly, a red light shot out directly. Carrying a powerful aura, it didn't target Artoria but instead pierced the motorcycle beneath her.
Artoria had seen this red light before—this was the Piercing Red Rose of Carnage!
Artoria leaped directly, dodging this non-lethal attack. The red spear struck the motorcycle, piercing through it. Then, a figure holding a spear walked out. It was none other than Diarmuid Ua Duibhne.
"Lancer, why are you here?" Artoria said, looking at the newcomer, feeling inexplicably confused.
"Helpless. My opponent sensed an aura and abandoned me to run away. So, my lord gave me an order to stop you," Diarmuid replied helplessly. One could see that he still didn't want to fight Artoria, but unfortunately, fate was not on their side.
"Is there no other way?" Artoria looked at Arthur above and shouted loudly, "Arthur, I'm entrusting Irisviel to you! You must save her!"
"Understood!" Arthur heard Artoria's words and nodded. He believed that Artoria, with her Noble Phantasm, wouldn't lose to Diarmuid, so he could go save them with peace of mind.
Artoria saw Arthur leave and showed a slight smile. "As expected, you're the one who understands me best." With her mind at ease, Artoria turned back to face Diarmuid opposite her.
"In that case, let's finish our unfinished battle."
"My greatest honor!" Diarmuid said with a smile. His wish was about to be fulfilled.
Artoria threw the Red Rose on the ground back to Diarmuid. Her pride wouldn't allow her to do otherwise. Diarmuid caught his spear, as if he had known all along.
Whoosh!
The wind howled, and the two clashed here once more. Artoria directly thrust her sword. On the surface, it looked very plain, but in fact, with the enhancement of the Wind King Barrier, the impact of this strike was almost comparable to a small artillery shell.
Diarmuid couldn't retreat and could only raise his two spears to block Artoria's sword. In an instant, a powerful force came from his spears, and Diarmuid was knocked back several steps by Artoria's powerful destructive force. Diarmuid immediately used his short spear to support himself, dissipating some of the force, and then stopped retreating.
Looking at Artoria, who had an exceptionally strong aura today, Diarmuid smiled and said, "This is what a real battle is!"
Diarmuid adopted a strange stance and charged forward once more. He flicked his spear, and the red spear shaft drew a bright arc in the night sky.
Artoria brought her sword down directly from above, hitting the center of the spear perfectly. The two directly intersected.
Artoria had decided to resolve this unfinished battle. This was the resolution that came from her heart. Diarmuid also sensed Artoria's feelings, and his emotions rose to their peak.
"Is this the fire of the Knight King's fighting spirit? To encounter two such powerful Knight Kings in this battle! It is truly my honor, Diarmuid!"
The two had now reached their final moment. If they didn't fight this time, they probably wouldn't have another chance in their lives.
In that case, how could they not engage in a hearty and unreserved real battle?
Perhaps, their battle was meant to be like this—without any reservations, without any concessions, charging forward bravely. This was their battle.
Their battle had reached its climax, but their hearts were very happy.
"I, Diarmuid, the First Knight of the Knights of Fianna, hereby challenge my enemy!"
"In that case, the Lord of Britain, Artoria Pendragon, accepts your challenge once more!"
The two continued to fight. At this moment, their sword and spear met in the air, and the powerful sparks they created could illuminate the dark street.
The struggle between knights was about to happen.
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The white steed, empowered by the Wind King Barrier, cut through the night like a silver comet. Arthur rode with grim focus, his senses locked onto the pulsing malevolence ahead. Irisviel's absence weighed on him—her gentle spirit didn't belong in the clutches of darkness. And Jeanne Alter, his own shadow given form, now stood in danger of being twisted into something unrecognizable. The thought coiled like ice in his gut.
Angra Mainyu. The name alone was a curse.
The trail of corruption led to Fuyuki's outskirts, where skeletal factories loomed like forgotten tombs. The air here was thick with something worse than decay—a choking, oil-slick miasma that clung to the skin. Arthur dismounted, boots landing soundlessly on cracked pavement. Excalibur materialized in his grip, its golden light pushing back against the suffocating dark.
A figure emerged from the writhing black ooze—shapeless, shifting, a mockery of life. From within that form, Arthur sensed a core of immense, tainted power. This was Angra Mainyu's vessel—or perhaps Angra Mainyu itself.
Then he saw her.
Jeanne Alter stood motionless beside the abomination, her crimson eyes dulled, her usual fire extinguished. Thin tendrils of black mud coiled around her limbs like puppet strings. There was no defiance in her stance, no recognition in her gaze. Only emptiness.
No sign of Irisviel.
"King Arthur," came the voice—a grating chorus of whispers, as if a thousand tormented souls spoke at once. "How kind of you to join us."
Arthur's grip tightened on Excalibur. "Release them."
Angra Mainyu laughed, a sound like bubbling tar. "Why would I do that? The Grail thirsts, and these two will make such fine offerings." A shadowy limb gestured toward Jeanne Alter. "Especially her. So much rage, so much pain—already so close to breaking."
Jeanne Alter moved.
Her sword, wreathed in blackened flames, arced toward Arthur with lethal precision. He barely raised Excalibur in time—steel shrieked against steel, sparks flaring in the dark. But there was no fire in her strikes, no passion. Just cold, mechanical efficiency.
"Jeanne!" Arthur called, blocking another blow. "Fight it!"
She didn't react.
Angra Mainyu's laughter slithered through the air. "She can't hear you. Not anymore."
Black tendrils erupted from the ground, lashing at Arthur like whips. He twisted away, Excalibur flashing as he severed them mid-strike, but Jeanne Alter was already pressing forward again. He was caught between two fronts—one a controlled ally he couldn't afford to kill, the other an ancient evil he couldn't ignore.
A flicker of doubt crossed his mind. I can't hold back forever.
Then, a memory—Jeanne, the true Jeanne, her unwavering light cutting through the darkest nights. If there was any chance of reaching Alter, it lay there.
Arthur exhaled, steadying himself.
This wasn't just a battle of blades. It was a battle of wills.
And he refused to lose.
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