Fate: Hero of Justice Takeover

The beam of light shattered the floor-to-ceiling window, even piercing a massive hole through the Mirror World.

The young swordswoman who had caused all this gasped for breath, as if struggling to suppress something. But in the end, she couldn't hold back—the Saber-class card burst from her chest, and her staff, no longer in the form of the holy sword, flew out with it, skidding to the edge of the gaping hole.

Even with the aid of an unknown power, Miyu still collapsed to her knees. It felt as though a fire was burning inside her body, intensifying with every breath until it consumed her from the inside out.

This was the sign of mana depletion—her body unconsciously drawing on her life force to sustain its magical functions.

"Come back… Sapphire," Miyu forced out the words, "Replenish my mana… now."

"Understood—"

BOOM!

As if rising from the depths of hell, a hand dripping with molten lava burst from the ground, seizing the unprepared Sapphire staff in an iron grip.

A charred, monstrous figure struggled to its feet, crimson patterns pulsing with each breath, making the Berserker appear like a demonic god, exuding an oppressive aura of despair.

"How… could this—?"

"Lady Miyu!"

Sapphire writhed desperately in the giant's grasp, but it was futile. Meanwhile, Miyu, collapsed on the ground, was now within arm's reach of the towering Heracles!

To think… to think it would end like this…

As the Berserker raised his fist high, Miyu could only stare up in bitter resignation.

A gust of violent wind swept over her—Heracles brought his fist down without mercy. If it landed, Miyu would undoubtedly be reduced to "Miyu-chan" (a pulp).

But then—

From the top of the blasted hole, a pink figure leaped down. At the tip of her staff, a blade of condensed mana formed. With a single, clean slash, she split the giant clean in two!

Landing in front of the blood-spewing Heracles, the girl slid forward several meters, stopping right in front of Miyu.

A magical girl, pink as a blooming flower bud.

To Miyu, she was the last person she wanted to see here.

"Illya?"

"Sorry I'm late, Miyu." The girl standing protectively before her bit her lip, struggling to hold back her emotions.

"Why are you—?"

You shouldn't be here.

I was supposed to handle this alone.

My friends shouldn't have to suffer like this.

This time, Illya understood the unspoken words in Miyu's voice. Realizing the depth of their bond, the tension in her heart finally released.

"To me, Miyu is—"

Whirling around, under the shimmering illusionary light, Illya fixed her ruby-red eyes squarely on the flustered girl.

"My most important… my dearest friend!"

Before Miyu could process those words, Illya turned away and shouted, "Rin! Luvia!"

"Zeichen!"

"Anfang!"

With those cries, six gemstones streaked toward the Berserker like meteors. Having just revived from God Hand, Heracles dodged backwards—but this time, the meticulously crafted gems weren't meant for attack.

"Gleipnir!"

With the final incantation, the six gems fused together, unleashing magical restraints inscribed with runes. Chains of lightning intertwined with a gravity field, pinning the roaring beast firmly in place.

"It worked!" Rin and Luviagelita, who had arrived with Illya, pumped their fists in triumph.

"As expected, a Ten Count magecraft can affect him!"

Ten Count—a magecraft that compresses hours-long contracts into ten or more verses of incantation.

(For reference, Kiritsugu Emiya's Time Alter is also this type of magecraft.)

While Gleipnir held the beast, the two magical girls continued their conversation.

"Why did you come here…?"

"I'm sorry… I've been such an idiot."

Miyu blinked in surprise—Illya's blunt admission wasn't what she expected. But Illya pressed on.

"I fought without any resolve, just because someone asked me to. I treated it all like it wasn't real… But once I realized this was reality, that it was dangerous… I got scared."

She laid her heart bare before her friend, tears of regret spilling from her eyes.

"The dumbest thing I did was running away from reality… never once thinking about how my friend felt."

"Miyu was always working hard, carrying my share of the burden too."

Then, Illya bowed deeply to Miyu.

"So… I'm sorry. This apology might be late, but… I want to fight alongside you again! I don't want to see my friend facing danger alone anymore!"

Miyu blinked.

Once.

Twice.

Thrice.

How could she describe what she felt in that moment?

It was like a field of green grass suddenly bursting into bloom—an endless sea of flowers.

"Thank you… Huh?!"

With a yelp, someone shoved her from behind, sending her tumbling straight into Illya's arms.

Instinctively, Illya caught her best friend. She should have been surprised, but beyond that, an overwhelming joy and warmth surged in her chest. She hugged Miyu tightly, feeling the same strength in Miyu's arms as they embraced.

"Thank you, Miyu."

"No… thank you, Illya."

"Mmm, that's more like it! A simple 'thank you' isn't enough—girls need to stick close to strengthen their bonds, right?"

A teasing voice cut in. The reunited pair jolted and turned, only to freeze in shock.

"B-Big… Brother?"

"Illya's brother?" Miyu whirled around—and her eyes widened in equal disbelief.

"Brother…?"

"Wait, where did this guy come from—ah!"

"Tch, another intruder—huh?!"

All four of them—Illya, Miyu, Rin, and Luvia—stared in varying degrees of shock.

Because standing before them was a red-haired man clad in crimson attire, his eyes veiled by a shroud of holy cloth—Sakatsuki!

"Seems like the 'Red Archer' effect made me look like Shirou again~"

Completely unaware that his "Rosy-cheeked Youth" trait had once again triggered a critical success, Sakatsuki scratched his head, chalking it up to Emiya Shirou's lingering karma.

"But never mind that, everyone—Heracles is about to break free, you know?"

"Ah!" The girls snapped back to reality just as Heracles roared, shattering the high-tier magecraft binding him!

The air pressure exploded, sending shockwaves through the confined space. Cracks split the ground as Rin and Luvia hastily dodged, while Illya and Miyu were effortlessly scooped up by Sakatsuki and moved to safety.

The moment they landed, Miyu reached out toward Sakatsuki.

"Is it really you… Brother?"

Miyu could never forget—when her brother had fought Angelica to cover her escape, this was the form he had taken.

The crimson robes, the fluttering shroud, the fiery red hair burning like flames.

The light had seared her eyes that day.

Wings spread. In the youth's hand, the golden Grand Archer's bow materialized. Staring down the roaring Berserker, he chuckled coldly — and slowly drew back the great bow.

"Thanks to the Class Card's weakening, you're down to your last life, huh?"

A torrent of light, rivaling a Noble Phantasm's release, condensed into a single, razor-sharp arrow.

With the draw of the bow, a hurricane swirled behind him. Amid the gale that threatened to blind them all, Sakatsuki released the string without hesitation.

TWANG!

Like the roar of an anti-materiel rifle, the arrow pierced Heracles' spiritual core in an instant—ending his final trial and death!

[Berserker's death confirmed.]

[Skill Extraction activated.]

[Extracting… Extraction complete!]

[Converted to Skill Entry: God Hand!]

Skill Entry: God Hand

Rank: EX

When equipped, this Skill nullifies all attacks Rank B or below, whether physical or magical.

When equipped, the wielder gains instant regeneration from fatal damage, with 11 stored charges. One charge is restored every 24 hours.

When equipped, any attack that lands once will be rendered ineffective if used again within 24 hours. All resistances reset after 24 hours.

***

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