[FDJ]Chapter 23: The Furious Berserker

The surface tranquility was shattered by a loud noise, surprising everyone who was waiting for someone else to make a move. The suspected Assassin Servants were unable to conceal themselves completely, raising the question of why the person causing the commotion was not discovered beforehand.

Attila, the King of the Huns, dispatched over 30 cavalrymen, with Archer disguised among them, wearing a linen cloak. Jeanne d'Arc remained in the camp; she couldn't take any risks as her Master was by her side. It would be unwise to recklessly pursue and attack Assassin during the night.

Suzuki was also awakened by the commotion. The festivities in the Hun camp came to an early halt, and most of the soldiers entered a state of readiness, ostensibly guarding against a surprise attack from the Western Roman Empire's army. The sound of horns echoed, and one group of soldiers after another passed by Suzuki's temporary tent.

"Saber, it seems that enemies are approaching," Suzuki was unaware of the situation, still not realizing that the provoking Servant outside was most likely Assassin.

Jeanne d'Arc stopped her prayer and stood up, walking to the entrance of the tent. "Archer has gone out for reconnaissance. It would be best if we don't follow."

"Archer, reconnaissance? Could it be an Assassin Servant with the ability to conceal their presence?" Suzuki's reaction speed barely satisfied Jeanne d'Arc. The knowledge of the Holy Grail War that the former possessed compensated for the difference in magical power. For example, a normal magi would have remotely sent their familiar to investigate and would have transformed their tent into a magical workshop before going to sleep, instead of getting drunk and sleeping until the second half of the night.

"It's highly likely."

"We can't go out. Let's hope Archer can come back safely. The commotion earlier might have been deliberately created by Assassin to lure us out, knowing that we would turn a blind eye."

From being drowsy to becoming extremely calm, Suzuki's transformation made Jeanne d'Arc suspect that he wasn't a normal person. The difference from his unreliable appearance during the day was significant.

"Your speculation is possible. But I don't think a mere Assassin can pose a threat to Archer, who doesn't have a Master to hold him back." Jeanne d'Arc was confident about this. That green-haired hunter may not be to her liking, but her archery skills were impeccable.

At this moment, Suzuki suddenly figured something out. Since entering the Hun camp during the day and seeing Archer, he had been trying to guess her true name. Now, he recalled all the details from their brief encounter earlier in the day: a female hunter, the symbol of nature in emerald green, agile and nimble movements, elements of a cat or perhaps a lion... The unique shooting style with the bow and arrows, as if praying to the heavens...

Tauropolos, the Bow of Heaven! The name flashed inexplicably in Suzuki's mind.

The hero who wielded the Bow of Heaven could only be the Greek mythological hero who participated in the hunt for the Calydonian Boar—Atalanta. The characteristics of this hero matched everything Suzuki had observed, and Atalanta, in the myth, was eventually transformed into a lion.

"Archer's true name is Atalanta. In the Chaldea organization I belong to, there is information about that Servant. She is a hunter skilled in long-range combat, and her Noble Phantasm is Phoebus Catastrophe."

Upon hearing Suzuki's conclusion, Jeanne d'Arc didn't fully believe it. Archer's true name wasn't important to her as long as she could defeat her at any time without needing to find her weakness. However, it did somewhat make up for her dissatisfaction when Archer and King Attila of the Huns instantly recognized her true name during the day. Jeanne d'Arc was a bit excited at the thought of calling out "Atalanta" behind Archer and seeing if she would be startled, thus verifying Suzuki's guess.

"The key is to assess Assassin's strength, right? Even if we guess Archer's true name, that information won't have a direct use until she becomes our enemy," Jeanne d'Arc said. She was eager to draw her sword and rush out of the camp to compete with Archer in killing the provoking enemy. But for Suzuki's safety, she restrained her desire for battle.

Meanwhile, the black-clad figure moving through the forest was busy dealing with the relentless pursuit from behind. The Servant who intentionally exposed his position and provoked them was none other than Assassin, wearing a skull mask. However, he never expected that Berserker would suddenly appear less than a hundred meters behind him.

Assassin could discern that the rampaging Servant chasing after him with wild swings was Berserker. Just based on the chaotic roars and the "swordsmanship" relying purely on strength, he could tell.

Over 30 lightly armored cavalry from the Hun camp were directed towards the hill where he and Berserker were located. Assassin wasn't afraid of human cavalry, but with a slight discernment, he sensed the presence of a hunter. He realized that Archer, who had killed his Master, was mixed among the cavalry.

Assassin decisively increased his speed and circled the hill to shake off Berserker, then concealed his presence and evacuated the area.

The situation had completely deviated from Assassin's original operational plan. He dared not face the siege of multiple Servants here.

Before making his official retreat, Assassin glanced back at Berserker, who had lost his target. The enraged Servant swung his giant sword, continuously cutting down trees, unaware that another Servant was closing in.

Staying and observing the situation was also a viable strategy for Assassin to choose, but he didn't want to take any risks. Regardless of Berserker, whom he didn't know much about, he had experienced Archer's archery skills firsthand. If it weren't for the fortunate opportunity to target the Master, Assassin had no advantage in a confrontation with Archer.

"Disappeared?" Archer, who had chased after him alongside the Hun cavalry, pursued down the hill but found that Assassin's magical presence had vanished in an instant, leaving behind...

A berserker that could be seen with the naked eye.

Archer couldn't believe her eyes because she hadn't seen another Servant on the hill before. She even suspected that this strange Servant was an illusion created by Assassin.

The giant sword swept through the air, and the raging Servant let out intimidating roars, causing half of the horses to come to a halt. One cavalryman who couldn't dodge in time was struck by the magical force and was sent flying more than ten meters, along with his horse. The person couldn't get up after falling to the ground.

"Fall back! Everyone, retreat!"

Archer didn't conceal her identity. She dropped her cloak and leaped agilely from the back of her horse onto the nearest tree branch. She strung her bow and released an emerald green arrow before landing on the branch.

Following closely were two more physical arrows, aimed at the same spot.

The frenzied Servant blocked two of the physical arrows with his giant sword, but the fastest arrow struck his shoulder, leaving a mark on his fully covered armor.

"Roarrrr!"

Archer successfully attracted the attention of the Servant, and his roar frightened the cavalry horses, preventing them from approaching. The trees that remained standing in the forest trembled as well. All of the Servant's actions had an outward release of magical energy, primarily of the wind attribute, which was relatively common. However, common didn't mean easy to deal with. Archer couldn't think of a quick way to subdue him using her Noble Phantasm.

The Servant's armor also had special properties. Archer witnessed the mark she left on his shoulder pauldron healed completely within two seconds.

"Ah!"

The fully armored Servant unleashed his magical power, similar to Jeanne d'Arc's during the day. Instantly, he closed in on Archer, causing the tree she stood on to shatter into wooden fragments. A whirlwind followed, sweeping up everything from the grass and soil on the ground to the leaves and the arrow shot by Archer.

The berserk Servant, devoid of reason, deflected the arrows shot at him, twisted the sword's edge, and swung a second strike towards Archer, who was spinning in mid-air.

The sword's furious gust struck Archer, sending her crashing to the ground without having a chance to unleash her full potential.

His speed was on par with Archer's.

Archer didn't dare to approach the frenzied Servant haphazardly. She couldn't guarantee that Assassin wasn't lying in ambush here. At the same time, she began planning her tactics to subdue the opponent. There was no doubt that this berserk Servant was Berserker.

The only part of Berserker's body that wasn't covered by armor was his head, including his disheveled hair and extremely distorted countenance. It wasn't easy to notice this unless one had excellent night vision like Archer.

Archer rapidly shot a dozen arrows, slightly reducing the force behind each shot, seemingly aiming for quantity over strength to harass Berserker. At the same time, Archer circled behind Berserker, attempting to gain the high ground.

As expected, Archer saw that Berserker only defended against the arrows aimed at his head, while not deflecting all of the other arrows. His sweeping sword missed its mark, and Berserker pursued Archer up the hill.

Archer calculated the distance and, when she felt adequately prepared, suddenly stopped running and shot an arrow toward Berserker's chest. This time, her shooting speed finally surpassed Berserker's reaction time, leaving a mark on the chest plate of his armor.

"Phoibos Catastrophe, Arrow of the Complaint!"

Drawing her bow towards the sky, Archer shot an arrow into the air. As a result, Berserker caught up to Archer, narrowly missing her waist with his giant sword.

Performing agile somersaults and leaping onto a nearby tree branch, Archer continued to draw arrows, aiming at Berserker's head.

Berserker stared intently at the arrowhead as Archer prepared to release her shot. Lost in his madness, he failed to notice that Archer had just used her Noble Phantasm.

The rain of arrows fell like a deluge, completely covering the area where Berserker stood. Realizing that he couldn't defend against the arrow shower solely with his giant sword as it descended from the sky, Berserker was left vulnerable.

Under the assault of the arrow rain, Berserker's heavy armor began to crack. He screamed and attempted to break free from the range of the arrows but was struck in the knee by a heavily charged arrow from Archer. The towering Servant toppled to the ground, his body pierced by numerous emerald-green arrows.

"If you hadn't manifested as a Berserker, I wouldn't have been able to deal with you," Archer remarked, leaping down while maintaining her aim. The arrow shower she had unleashed earlier was only at one-third of its full power. Based on her judgment, this level of attack wouldn't be enough to kill the monstrous Berserker Servant before her.

Berserker, living up to his reputation, didn't stay down for long. In less than 10 seconds, despite being riddled with arrows, he rose to his feet, emitting a roar and raising his tightly clenched giant sword.

Archer estimated that she would need to shoot at least four arrows into Berserker's head to kill him. She was preparing to aim for his head when an "ally" who wanted to claim credit for the victory appeared. "Just a heads up, you better not get close to him. Even if you're a Saber-class suited for close combat," warned Atalanta.

However, the arriving Saber, Jeanne d'Arc, ignored Archer's warning and dismounted, running towards Berserker. She wouldn't have acted so recklessly if it weren't for recognizing the crazed Servant standing before her.

"Is it you? Etienne?" Jeanne's shout caused Berserker, who was preparing to strike, to halt his sword swing. He turned his head and looked at the sword-wielding Servant calling out to him. The frenzied winds of his magical power gradually calmed until they ceased entirely. Berserker remained rooted in place, staring directly at Jeanne without making any further moves.

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