Fate: Hero of Justice Takeover

The next day, night.

After spending the morning curled up in the hotel reading, binge-watching TV all afternoon, lazing in bed a bit longer, and teasing Draco for a while, someone finally managed to pull themselves back from the brink of complete laziness and rode off on their motorcycle.

Honestly, after finishing the battle in the second Singularity, anyone would want to take it easy, maybe even laze around until the world turned upside down.

The good fight has been fought, the path has been walked... Can't I just slack off a little?

But reality had a way of reminding him that slacking off was never an option—not in this lifetime, at least.

Because, according to the original plot, tonight was when Miyu and the others would face the Berserker-class Card Servant—the great hero of Greek mythology, Heracles.

Yes, the very same one Illya always shouts about: "Berserker is the strongest!"

Even without his sanity and in his "youthful" version, Uncle B is still Uncle B—a two-and-a-half-meter-tall giant, practically unkillable when paired with the Snow Castle... Wait, wrong setting.

In truth, Berserker's strength comes from his Noble Phantasm, "God Hand."

"God Hand" turns his body into an impenetrable armor, nullifying all attacks of Rank B or below, whether physical or magical. It also grants an automatic resurrection effect upon death, with 11 charges stored—meaning Heracles won't die unless killed 12 times.

Additionally, this Noble Phantasm enhances his resistance, much like the famous Saint Seiya line: "The same technique won't work on me twice."

In the original story, if Illya hadn't awakened and rushed to support Miyu, followed by the two pulling off the classic magical girl power-up moment, Berserker would've long since turned Miyu into "Miyu paste."

And the reason Sakatsuki had his eyes on Heracles was simple—he coveted "God Hand" too!

Don't forget, in this world, the Fate Compendium offered a reward system: the "Ability Extractor." After defeating seven Servants, Sakatsuki would get one chance to extract an ability from a Servant.

And these abilities weren't limited to just skills—they included Noble Phantasms too!

From the moment that reward was announced, the world of Prisma Illya had its tone set. Though the Ability Extractor didn't work directly on Sakatsuki himself, it could power up his Rider-class Noble Phantasm—the motorcycle Sword in the Stone—in unprecedented ways.

This wasn't some casual playground anymore; this was a full-on Noble Phantasm enhancement dungeon tailored for Sword in the Stone!

After battling the Card Servants, the Ability Extractor's progress had reached (5/7). In other words, Sakatsuki needed at least one more kill to activate it.

According to the familiars scattered around Fuyuki, Miyu and the others had already geared up and were about to head out.

"Guess it's time for me to move too."

At this thought, Sakatsuki suddenly recalled the phone call before leaving and couldn't help but sigh. "Just how carefree is this woman...?"

Reports from the familiars indicated that Illya and Miyu had been at odds all day. Though neither spoke, the awkward tension between them was palpable—so much so that Sakatsuki, sitting in front of the TV, had been itching to grab a cheer baton and yell, "Illya, go for it!" or "Miyu, don't chicken out!"

It was just a thin layer of paper between them, yet they acted like there was an insurmountable chasm.

Or perhaps, precisely because they cared so much, they were at a loss.

Thinking this, Sakatsuki couldn't help but clench his fists—hard.

That woman—Irisviel, Illya's so-called mother—had completely let go after getting Sakatsuki's initial assurance. She'd been happily traveling the world with her husband, living their best honeymoon life. And when Sakatsuki called her last night, she'd been too busy applying sunscreen to Kiritsugu to even listen properly before hanging up!

Damn it! I want someone to apply sunscreen for me too—wait, no! How can a mother be so heartless?!

Her daughter had been dragged into the world of mystery, was going through a friendship crisis, and yet this mother wasn't just unbothered—she even tried to rope Sakatsuki into helping!

What kind of logic was that? Had she just decided to freeload off him? "If you're favored, you can afford to be reckless?"

While grumbling, Sakatsuki naturally hadn't obediently complied. Instead, he'd locked onto Irisviel's location through the phone signal in seconds, then used a displacement magecraft to toss a little "gift" her way.

Nothing harmful—just a prank gadget that, when triggered, would light up the sky with colorful pollution and float slogans like "Irisviel and Kiritsugu abandoned their daughter to go on vacation!"

Since it was broad daylight in Virginia Beach, even if the gadget went off before they could stop it, only magi would see it in the sky.

Probably no big deal... right?

After a moment's thought, Sakatsuki switched his still-vibrating phone from "vibrate" to "silent," stuffed it into his pocket, and hummed a tune as he revved the engine.

Now then... it's hunting time.

***

While Sakatsuki was busy hunting Card Servants, Miyu, Rin, and Luvia—minus the absent Illya—arrived in the Mirror World via the Sapphire Wand.

"Jump complete."

With Sapphire's announcement, the trio found themselves in Berserker's Mirror World.

"This place is cramped," Rin muttered, eyeing the lone skyscraper that made up the entire world.

The narrower the space, the more dangerous it was in a crisis.

Honestly, her eyelids were already twitching.

"It's proof the distortion has lessened," Luvia said optimistically. "If we retrieve the card here, then perhaps—"

Before she could finish, the building shook violently. From the rooftop, a beast-like giant roared at the sky. Though he wasn't wielding his axe-sword, his massive, muscular frame—enhanced by his bracers—exuded overwhelming pressure.

"What is that?!"

"You've got to be kidding me!"

The two magus-trained girls immediately sensed the danger. In such a confined space, this towering Servant had every advantage!

And he wasn't even playing fair!

With a deafening roar, the monster didn't bother with greetings—he leaped high and slammed down, cracking the rooftop with a single punch.

"Shoot!"

As the main combatant, Miyu reacted instantly, but her mana bullets only exploded harmlessly against Berserker's face, leaving behind a wisp of smoke.

As his golden and crimson eyes snapped open, Berserker closed the dozens of meters between them in an instant, charging straight at Miyu!

Miyu barely had time to dodge. The flying debris struck her body, protected by her magical barrier. Though unharmed, the impacts stung sharply.

If the aftermath is this painful... I can't even imagine what a direct hit from those fists would do!

"Mark/Set!"

Two voices rang out in succession. Precious gems transformed into waves of fire to obscure vision and massive boulders to cage the beast—but the prison lasted mere seconds before Berserker broke free with sheer brute force!

"What kind of absurd strength is this?!" Even Miyu couldn't help but complain.

"The bounded field is too small. In a place like this, his charging power is way too threatening!" Just as Rin had feared, the terrain inherently favored such a Servant!

In fact—they shouldn't have left Berserker for last!

***

While Miyu's group struggled in battle, Illya's household was a mix of warmth and chaos.

The reason was simple...

Just minutes ago, the lady of the house—Irisviel von Einzbern—had abruptly returned from her sunny Virginia Beach vacation, taking the fastest flight back. She'd thrown open the door, announced her triumphant return to a stunned household, expertly changed her shoes, tossed her luggage aside, and barged into the bathroom, where she found Illya curled up in the tub.

With a bright smile, she chirped:

"Yahho~ Illya, my darling! Long time no see—Mommy's hooome~!"

"M-Mom?!"

And now...

Splash, splash, splish-splash.

Amid the sound of rippling water, two fair-skinned figures lay in the cramped bathtub.

The two looked more like sisters than mother and daughter, their skin flushed a healthy pink from the heat, smooth and supple—a sight to make any man drool.

Except one still had room to grow, while the other... was at least a C-cup.

"Speaking of which, Mom, your return was really sudden, wasn't it?"

The moment the topic was brought up, Irisviel's expression stiffened slightly, a flicker of guilt and irritation in her eyes.

Who would've thought that little brat would pull a "mutual destruction" move on her?!

Virginia had become uninhabitable—every magus in the state now knew the infamous assassin was there!

Waaah, my tanning time, my bikini, my honeymoon with Kiritsugu...

Mentally crying rivers, Irisviel kept her composure and instead teased her beloved daughter:

"Hmm? Was my sudden return inconvenient for you?"

Illya averted her eyes. "N-No, not really."

A blatant lie. As her mother, Irisviel saw right through it.

Thanks to that damn priest, she'd learned everything on the flight back. But instead of calling Illya out, she just smiled and said:

"My work wrapped up early, so I came back ahead of Kiritsugu. He's still tied up there and can't return yet." (In reality, he'd been dragged away by the Mage's Association for "tea.")

"I see..."

Noticing Illya's lack of enthusiasm, Irisviel's eyes gleamed mischievously. Her hands slipped underwater, creeping toward Illya's waist—then squeezed!

Water sloshed as arms emerged, the tub nearly overflowing.

"So now, let me check how much my darling has grown! Ah, no—let's bond!"

She grinned playfully, but her efforts were wasted on Illya.

"If that's the case, Mom, isn't this method a bit too intense...?"

Seeing Illya finally perk up a little, Irisviel finally broached the real topic.

"So... anything change while I was gone?"

***

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