[FDJ]Chapter 43: Another Purpose

Aetius witnessed the entire process through the crystal ball. Even he didn't expect Attila to be able to use techniques comparable to a Servant's Noble Phantasm and instantly access such a massive amount of magical energy. The only explanation was that Attila possessed the Holy Grail.

"My Servant disappeared?" Prince Torsmond of the Visigoths, standing beside Aetius, didn't have time to use his second Command Spell, and the remaining two marks on the back of his hand vanished along with Rider. If he had extensive experience in magical warfare, perhaps he could have supported the heavily injured Rider before Jeanne dealt the final blow. Unfortunately, compared to Aetius, he was just a novice in magus.

"Don't be nervous. Losing your Servant won't cost you your life. You've merely lost your eligibility to participate in the Holy Grail War," Aetius assured him, making sure he didn't miss anything. Lancer had "communicated" with Attila through rune texts, and earlier, Gilles de Rais had also warned him about the issue with the Lancer group.

Previously, Aetius had regarded Gilles de Rais as a potential swing vote and didn't trust him, despite his temporary change of heart to support the Western Roman Alliance. However, after Rider's defeat, Aetius changed his subjective judgment, finding Gilles de Rais' warning more credible. "Master Seld, have your Lancer retreat first. Archer is about to enter the camp. The situation is dire."

The puppet's head twitched slightly, and its wooden hand traced a simple pattern on the table as if divining. "Activate. How is Lancer's Noble Phantasm? The two enemy Servants are also injured. I will intercept Archer, who is acting alone."

"Very well, let's not fall back for now." Aetius showed no signs of distrust towards the Lancer group as if he hadn't noticed anything suspicious, doubting the puppet as a mere illusion. "Caster, you deal with Archer. Don't embarrass me again!"

"Yes, Master." Caster didn't contradict his Master's orders and disappeared after receiving the command, turning into a spiritual form.

The puppet magus, self-proclaimed "Seld," got up and left Aetius' sight. Aetius didn't send any additional familiars to track them. He disdained to be cautious towards his "allies." Even if there was a high probability of a problem, he would personally deal with the person in a magus's way if he judged that they truly harbored ill intentions, as it befitted his status.

Dealing with a mere puppet magus of no consequence, Aetius believed he could easily crush them like squashing an ant. As a legitimate magus, inheriting the legacy of the oldest Roman magical family, possessing over a hundred magical artifacts, and a true aristocrat of the magical world, he had no interest in playing games of suspicion with magus from rural areas.

What's even more important is that he used divination on "Master Seld" to confirm that the puppet was indeed just a manipulated doll, and the divination determined that "Master Seld" had no hostile intentions. He was curious about what kind of non-hostile betrayal the true "Master Seld," hiding somewhere, would employ if they were truly a participant in the Holy Grail War with ill intentions.

"Prince of the Goths, stay here and don't take a step before the enemy retreats. You've lost your Servant, and the Holy Grail War is not a noble duel. The enemy is unlikely to spare you because of that," Aetius said without waiting for a response from Prince Torsmond of the Visigoths. He put away the crystal ball on the table and unimaginably melted into the darkness.

----

Suzuki was able to confirm their advantage after Rider completely dissipated into magical particles. Regardless of why Attila possessed a magic attack at the level of a Noble Phantasm, they managed to repel Rider with Attila's help.

At this moment, it was not suitable for Lancer to continue engaging Attila. Without needing to explain the tactics, Jeanne voluntarily went to assist Attila, leaving Berserker to guard against Saber Gilles de Rais. Previously, Lancer and Attila were evenly matched in a one-on-one battle, but with Jeanne's intervention, Lancer's situation took a turn for the worse.

At least Suzuki saw that shortly after Jeanne intervened, she quickly broke through the obstructing flames and engaged Lancer in close combat.

As two of the top three Knights, Jeanne displayed superior close-quarters combat abilities compared to Lancer, Brynhildr. Her relentless holy sword soon shattered the magical shield Lancer used for defense.

The edge of the sword approached Lancer, who quickly pulled back and used her massive spear to block, but she was pushed back by Jeanne.

Attila pursued from another direction, forcing Lancer to summon a tall wall of flames, not daring to let the two get close to her.

"Burn, burn, burn... Disperse!"

The flames suddenly changed to a blue color and erupted violently. Jeanne and Attila stopped their joint assault, each retreating to avoid the scorching blue flames.

Not limited to weeds, even rocks, and soil, which are normally difficult to ignite, were set ablaze by the magical flames, burning alongside the weeds. The magical flames surrounding Lancer could ignite almost anything, including Lancer's massive spear, whose tip was also engulfed in the blue magical flames.

Suzuki sensed that Lancer was about to use her Noble Phantasm. From the information he remembered, Brynhildr's Noble Phantasm, like Rider Martha's, involved suppressing the opponent's quality. However, Brynhildr's Noble Phantasm had greater power and posed a greater threat.

"Jeanne, be careful. Lancer is activating her Noble Phantasm. Its power is not inferior to Rider's." Through their connection via Command Spells, Suzuki quickly warned Jeanne.

Lancer opened her eyes again. Her body floated above the continuously burning magical flames, her eyes reflecting the flickering blue fire. Even her white hair took on a tinge of blue in the glow of the fire.

Lancer's gaze focused on Attila as she continued to rise higher, aiming her massive spear at Attila on the ground.

"Barbarian King, pay with your life for slaying my ally! The pain will last but an instant."

『Brynhildr Romantia: Until Death Tears Us Apart』

Only textual records of Brynhildr's Noble Phantasm existed in Chaldea's database, but Suzuki witnessed the true name of the Nordic Valkyrie's released Noble Phantasm with his own eyes. In an instant, the massive spear grew even larger, and its actual weight seemed to reach the level of a Dragon's in just a few seconds.

The blue magical flames were just a side effect. Lancer's spear alone was highly praised for its sheer mass.

Attila didn't evade. She knew well that it was difficult to dodge a Servant's Noble Phantasm. Rainbow light radiated from her stone sword, gathering magical energy that was not as potent as when she defeated Rider before. She swung her sword at Lancer, who was about to use her Noble Phantasm.

The rainbow light clashed with the magical flames in mid-air. Lancer shattered Attila's incomplete sword light with her spear. The Servant's Noble Phantasm still held an absolute advantage. In a flash of light, the outcome was determined in a single clash. Attila experienced a sense of exhaustion she had rarely felt before. At least since she reached adulthood, no one had been able to defeat her purely through strength alone.

Lancer floated in mid-air, while Attila and her rainbow stone sword were both knocked down to the ground. The situation was dire. In the blink of an eye, the blue flames rapidly spread as the spear hit the ground, engulfing Attila and Lancer. The shattered rocks from the weight of the spear burned within the magical flames, and the unstoppable giant spear slowly rose, preparing for a second strike.

Suzuki didn't have time to fully see the moment of their clash, but he witnessed Attila being defeated. Jeanne, on the other hand, understood the reason: Lancer's Noble Phantasm was true as Suzuki had said, and Attila couldn't withstand it without accumulating enough magical power.

"Jeanne, help Attila!"

Jeanne didn't need Suzuki's order; she would do so instinctively. She stepped into the spreading magical flames and rushed towards Lancer, preventing her from harming Attila. The shattered rocks could be easily crushed underfoot amidst the burning flames. Jeanne felt the scorching heat of the magic and also sensed the strength of the fellow Knight-class Servant ahead of her. In this Holy Grail War, Lancer demonstrated slightly greater power compared to the other Servants.

"Nordic Valkyrie, your opponent is me. The one who killed Rider's Servant is me." Jeanne attacked with her sword, but it was blocked by Lancer's summoned magical shield. Brynhildr possessed magical abilities comparable to the Caster class through rune magic.

Brynhildr retracted her giant spear. Her cold gaze did not linger on Jeanne but passed over Jeanne, who couldn't use her Noble Phantasm. The Valkyrie stared directly at Suzuki, who believed he was at a safe distance.

"Human?" Brynhildr ascended, evading Jeanne's sword. It seemed she was going to attack Suzuki, accelerating towards his position.

Jeanne, seeing her Master in danger, turned around and rushed towards Suzuki. Even Attila, as powerful as she was, couldn't withstand Lancer's Noble Phantasm. If it were Suzuki, he wouldn't even have a complete bone left under the giant spear.

However, Brynhildr stopped halfway. She looked down at the startled Suzuki from above, a cruel smile appearing on her beautiful face. "Very much like the work of humans. Interesting."

Jeanne caught up to Brynhildr, leaping towards the floating Valkyrie in mid-air. She swung her sword, striking Brynhildr's back armor. Flames ignited simultaneously, canceling out Jeanne's subsequent attacks.

"Don't worry, I have no interest in your insignificant Master." Brynhildr neither attacked Jeanne nor assaulted Suzuki. She remained floating in the air, without taking any further action.

Jeanne was also puzzled by Brynhildr's actions. Even if her Master seemed useless and unable to use even basic magecraft, he was still a Master. As long as Suzuki was killed, Jeanne would vanish on her own.

Brynhildr seemed to have sensed Jeanne's thoughts and pointed her finger towards Attila's location.

It was only then that Jeanne noticed a dark shadow that had gathered around Attila, easily entangling the injured Attila. Fortunately, once Attila regained consciousness, she could rely on her brute strength to pull away from the unknown dark shadow and temporarily deal with the sudden appearance of a new enemy.

"What is that?"

"I may not take action, but it doesn't mean others won't." The Valkyrie didn't answer Jeanne. On the contrary, her smile grew even more intense. The fierce battles between Masters and Masters, resulting in life or death, were exactly what she expected. If she hadn't known that Aetius would personally come over, she wouldn't even want to use her Noble Phantasm. Using her Noble Phantasm in the guise of a fabricated Valkyrie was the thing she despised the most.

She detested it more than the appearance of future Masters, which were more prone to losing control.

Suzuki only felt a chill on his neck as a dagger appeared on his shoulder. Without having a chance to see who appeared behind him, Suzuki's combat suit Mystic Code automatically activated its emergency function, releasing all stored magical energy. The flash disrupted Assassin, who was near Suzuki.

The other invisible person was also affected by this flash. Aetius had a chance to strike and kill Suzuki, but even if it were Assassin, he would quickly adapt to this magical attack and swiftly cut down Suzuki.

The dagger pierced the visible Aetius, and he left behind a shattered heart-shaped mirror as he disappeared again. The aimless magical energy disrupted his control over Assassin, who inherently held animosity towards him, giving Assassin a chance to turn the tables. For Aetius, it was just a minor accident. Assassin promptly returned under his control.