"...Where did you go?"
As night gradually fell, raising the curtain on the fourth night of the Holy Grail War, a girl's inquiry rang out as Morgan materialized atop a tower.
A quick glance—no need to guess, it was her troublesome Master.
"Just making some preparations."
"Preparations?... Heh, you seem a little different now." Manaka paid Morgan's explanation no mind; she had only asked casually. However, despite this, her sharp senses could still detect that Morgan seemed to have changed somehow.
Though outwardly she looked almost the same, there was a new... softness? in her features. It was hard to imagine such a word being used to describe the legendary wicked Fairy Queen Morgan.
"Is this the preparation you made?"
Seeing Morgan's silence, Manaka pouted. "How cold. I'm your Master, you know."
"Well, whatever. Just don't interfere with my plans."
She said this with considerable tolerance.
For Manaka Sajyou, as long as it didn't involve her prince, she had no interest in what Morgan did.
After all, her entire heart was currently fixated on her prince, eagerly anticipating their next meeting~
Gently stroking her cheek, she could feel a faint blush. The blonde girl was completely intoxicated.
"Now~ Tonight's performance is about to begin~"
Her gaze fell upon the courtyard, where a burly man sat in a chariot with a small figure beside him.
As if sensing her gaze, the great king grinned.
"Honestly, to think they'd set their sights on this king."
"Rider?"
"It's been so quiet, I thought I could leisurely cruise to the end—but then again, winning that way would not align with my path as a king."
"Rider, what are you talking about?"
"Nothing... They're coming!"
"Hold on tight!"
Without giving Waver a chance to react, the great king gripped the reins and began his night's gallop.
Trailing behind him was a dark figure riding a strange creature resembling a Pegasus—the Knight of the Lake, Lancelot.
The two sides engaged in a fierce tug-of-war in the sky.
"Those two are having a grand old drag race in the sky."
Standing on a rooftop, Elysia couldn't help but sigh. "It looks like a lot of fun."
"Well, they are Riders. Contests of riding skill are a specialty of this class," [Illya] remarked.
"But speaking of which... although it's a battle between Riders, it seems the other Servants can't sit still watching this either."
As he spoke, his gaze fell on a figure speeding towards them, joining the race between the other two.
"It's that sister who always messes things up!"
"It's not surprising. That goddess is indeed the type who loves to join in the fun, show off, and compete." Ishtar's appearance wasn't surprising at all.
At least, not to [Illya].
As for Miss Manaka, her expression was not so good.
"That woman."
Manaka Sajyou was displeased.
According to her plan, the first target for tonight was to eliminate the Iskandar team, which had been staying out of the fray. Thus, she had opted for a direct approach, sending Lancelot straight in.
And now... the goddess's interference had turned it into a race!
"Pfft."
Morgan actually let out a laugh, which irked Manaka somewhat. We're on the same side, you know! Show a little self-awareness as a Servant!
Then again, she never knew this woman could laugh.
"Forget it. This is fine too."
"That useless goddess was one of the targets anyway. Since she delivered herself to my doorstep... Hmph, it just means adding one more to the list. This way, I'll be one step closer to my prince."
"Fall of the Holy City."
The Stigma on her chest glowed brightly as Manaka Sajyou activated another ancient Grand Thaumaturgy she had learned.
As the name suggests, this magic was part of the same series as Conflagration of the Holy City. Both were reifications of the Ten Crowns of the Beast of Sodom.
However, unlike Conflagration, while both were Grand Thaumaturgies, Fall was far more dangerous.
If the former was a Grand Thaumaturgy of fire powerful enough to burn the holy city of Jerusalem to the ground, then the latter was a more specialized Grand Thaumaturgy.
Almost instantly, with the surge of magical energy, the entire city of Fuyuki seemed to begin to change.
"This feeling..."
Jeanne frowned, looking up at the sky.
[Illya] confirmed her feeling:
"Mmm... it's a Grand Thaumaturgy that tempts people to fall."
In the Christian Bible, humanity, exiled from the Garden of Eden, is inherently burdened with original sin.
Faith in that dove is interpreted as "atonement," but in essence, this religious faith is the very original sin that leads humanity astray.
Not an ideal, but an unrealistic fantasy, a daydream... indulging in pleasure, bound by the shackles of desire, the final result is the destruction of the holy city, the legendary land of paradise flowing with milk and honey.
And the foundation for all this is the existence of the great enemy of Christianity, the Beast of Sodom.
The moment it was manifested in the form of magic... it would cause the hearts of the people within this city to rapidly corrupt, swiftly transforming it into the holy city of Jerusalem before its fall, and then... reenacting the tragedy of Jerusalem.
As a top-tier magus herself, Morgan was of course aware of this spell's effect.
"A wretched spell."
That was her evaluation. Even by Morgan's standards, she had to admit this spell was truly foul.
Although it was a genuine Grand Thaumaturgy, a human miracle second only to True Magic, its effect...
"At least, its effect is excellent—"
"Besides, someone like you has no right to complain about my magic."
"After all, you're looking forward to its birth too, aren't you?"
"Aren't you afraid this spell will be broken by that woman named Elysia, just like the last one?"
Hearing that name, Manaka's expression turned a little unnatural. She spoke with a hint of displeasure, "Don't mention that name... Hmph, this time, not even that woman can undo this spell."
As she spoke, she was filled with confidence.
After all, unlike Conflagration of the Holy City... if the flames of the holy city could be extinguished, then once the Fall of the Holy City began, the process was irreversible.
Indeed, a formula could be erased, but once the human heart began to corrupt, it was not something magic could easily influence.
Unless one killed everyone in the city... but then again, that would only make the Grand Thaumaturgy complete faster.
"Everything... is already irreversible."
"With this power, I will bring my prince back to my side."
The blonde girl vowed with conviction.
However, the next moment—
Fwoosh
A crystal arrow hit the dome of the sky and exploded.
The next moment.
Crystal flowers bloomed all over Fuyuki City.
As Manaka Sajyou's face turned green... the perpetrator, Elysia, lowered her bow.
"Indeed, even I can't easily dispel this magic... By the way, this spell is so targeted, even bad Jiang Qiao would have a hard time handling it properly."
"It's just that..."
"Even if the magic cannot be stopped, I have my own ways to counteract it."
"What is that?"
"...In terms of effect, it's a magic completely opposite to that child's," the silver-haired girl replied to the confused Miss Illya, her youthful voice tinged with a hint of emotion.
Just like the legendary "Key of EGO," its effect had not changed even after being transformed into Primordial Magic.
Elysia's magic was a power that could awaken the initial stirrings of life, the most sincere emotions of humanity... without a doubt, it was genuine Fairy Magic.
"By the way... you... seem a little too close to me."
[Illya]'s gaze flickered uncertainly to Miss Illya, who was leaning against him, feeling a bit speechless.
"Eh?!... For some reason... you smell so good... I want to take a bite."
"Let me take a bite, just one!"
Thump! Miss Illya, in a daze, tried to pounce on him, but the next moment, a crisp thwack sound was heard.
Miss Illya stood to the side with a bump on her head, teary-eyed and looking aggrieved.
[Illya], on the other hand, clapped his hands and wiped a drool mark from his face, saying irritably:
"Honestly, pull yourself together! You've been completely captured!"
"I know... but, I can't help it..."
Miss Illya hugged her knees and muttered under her breath.
She wanted to say it was this bad boy's fault.
After all, with [Illya] not home today, Miss Illya had been happily catching up on her anime.
However, she had already finished Yuki Yuna is a Hero and had moved on to Gushing over Magical Girls and Magical Girl Blue Star...
...Miss Illya had to admit, while these two works were different from the previous ones, they were... very! Very lewd!
For the pure Miss Illya, this kind of stuff was a powerful assault on her young mind.
But then again...
She felt that these two magical girl works, despite being overly lewd in some aspects, were... surprisingly interesting. She even felt an urge to try them out herself as she watched.
Without a doubt, a new door had opened in Miss Illya's worldview.
However... she had just unlocked a brand new kink during the day, only to be tested by Miss Manaka's magic at night—you're going to test Miss Illya with this magic? What Illya could withstand such a test!
Hmph, what fall from grace? I'm just aspiring to be a magical girl!
"She's a lost cause."
[Illya] couldn't help but complain.
"Elysia, give this child a bigger dose."
"No problem!"
Elysia was quite enthusiastic, smiling sweetly.
Naughty children who don't behave do indeed need a good baptism.
"Yamete!"
Miss Illya's screams could be heard, but regardless, after being thoroughly infused with beautiful energy, she was finally free from the clutches of Slaanesh—averting the danger of becoming the second XXXX.
She had a Zen-like expression, her eyes empty, as if her entire life had lost its meaning.
"...Is Illya okay?"
The missus was a bit concerned.
"It's nothing, just let her rest for a bit."
"...That's good... By the way, Illya, let mommy give you a hug."
Although she said that, the missus had already shamelessly hugged [Illya] and was rubbing against him vigorously, a look of obsession on her face.
...
[Illya] had a helpless expression. This missus seemed to have fallen victim to it too... but it seemed she was hit by Elysia's spell, her motherly love was overflowing to an excessive degree!
But it was obvious... he couldn't inject beautiful energy into this one.
After all... if he injected any more, he had a feeling something terrible would happen.
Undoubtedly, under the influence of Manaka's Fall of the Holy City and Elysia's Flower of Humanity, two major spells, Fuyuki was currently in a rather strange situation.
It was undeniable that there were cases of the more malicious individuals committing acts of violence.
But the next moment, they would be caught by a righteous passerby and held down on the ground for a heartfelt lecture.
"It seems your magic... isn't very effective."
Morgan couldn't help but laugh mockingly.
"Shut up!"
"..." Manaka was furious with shame.
Indeed, her spell hadn't been dispelled, but because of that big home-wrecker's completely opposite magic effect, the progress bar for Fall of the Holy City was practically stuck... Although overall, she had the upper hand, as there were always more bad people, but... the speed of this progress bar was like a turtle crawling.
By the time it was full... she could already imagine children from those two home-wreckers, big and small, and her prince crawling all over the place!
Aaargh!!! I don't want that!
She was in a terrible mood, feeling as if that woman was her nemesis, having her completely wrapped around her finger!
But...
I won't admit defeat just like that!
"Don't think you can stop me with this!"
Manaka Sajyou gritted her teeth and gave her instructions:
"Go help Lancelot, and take down that useless goddess for me, now!"
Seeing Morgan dawdling, Miss Manaka was annoyed and spoke in a low, threatening tone:
"Get moving, now. You don't want to see your Britain forever out of reach, do you?"
Morgan didn't speak, simply dissolving into spiritual particles.
Watching her leave, Manaka Sajyou's gaze fell on the dark night sky, on the other magic that was contending with her Fall of the Holy City. She let out a cold snort.
"Just you wait! Even without the accumulated power of Fall of the Holy City, I can still do it... When that time comes, my prince, you must wait for me~"
At the thought of her prince, the blonde girl became intoxicated once more.