[FDJ]Chapter 97: Night of Madness (Part 6)

Without direct explanation, Suzuki Yuki and Eleanor completed a simple collaboration. The act of surrender was merely a deceptive tactic to buy time. Eleanor soon realized that Suzuki Yuki, despite his straightforward character, possessed incredibly keen observation skills. In just a few seconds, he not only gathered information about Berserker Godfrey but also, relying on his familiarity with the Holy Grail War, identified his weakness.

Although Berserker Godfrey hadn't lost his ability to speak, his Berserk state still sealed away a significant portion of his rationality. For him, thinking was far more challenging than combat.

Tricks on the battlefield were nothing more than breaking shields with hammers and repelling cavalry with spears. While Eleanor was in a state of panic, Suzuki Yuki remained remarkably calm. Eleanor understood why she found Suzuki Yuki appealing. A man who is serious about something is charming.

As Rider mounted the war chariot, he surpassed the previous limits of instantaneous acceleration. The dispersed prana was no longer a colorless mist. This time, a golden light enveloped the chariot and the horses—a manifestation of a generation's imperial authority. The war chariot rushed towards Berserker, who had no time to react.

Even with an exceptional attribute as a Servant, one couldn't remain unscathed against an A-rank Anti-Army Noble Phantasm. Under normal circumstances, there would be no exceptions.

After the high-speed collision, the war chariot shattered into pieces. Eleanor timely jumped off and suffered no harm. On the contrary, Suzuki Yuki and the others present felt a slight recovery of their mental fatigue. Their physical condition also improved compared to before, as if someone had sounded the horn of attack, granting them an intangible blessing.

The direct impact was even more evident in Don Quixote. Although he had previously relied on magecraft to mend his injuries, now, despite not fully recovering, he felt an indescribably good state. Even with the damaged spiritual core at risk, he could unleash strength comparable to an uninjured state during the day.

Suzuki Yuki understood the reason behind this. His Servant's Noble Phantasm was not only an Anti-Army Noble Phantasm but also a rare war-starting Noble Phantasm. Its power could be even further amplified when used in team coordination. Unfortunately, it seemed that Don Quixote couldn't fully utilize his Noble Phantasm.

Just when everyone thought the surprise attack could yield significant results and the continuous attacks from the two allied Servants could secure victory in this battle... Eleanor was the first to realize the imminent danger.

She hastily moved to the side, pressed for time, without summoning her chariot again.

Amid the collision, where dust and magical energy mingled, Berserker let out another roar. His anger had reached an uncontrollable level. Seemingly connected to the Crusaders, the female Servant seized the opportunity during his moment of judgment and swiftly employed her Noble Phantasm to bring him down.

A streak of swordlight pierced through the dust, leaving a deep groove in Eleanor's wake.

"Heathens! How dare you mock me!!!" Berserker Godfrey shouted, leaping into the air, and utilizing an incredible burst of magical energy to catch up with Eleanor, who was attempting to escape.

His massive sword loomed threateningly at Eleanor's neck, yet it appeared that this berserker still exercised restraint.

"...Damn it! Why can't I kill you!" Berserker bellowed in anger, his words dripping with resentment. He made several attempts to swing his sword, but ultimately, he reluctantly withdrew it.

"Your Master has forbidden you from killing me," Eleanor recalled Richard's promise on that day. She hadn't taken it seriously before, but she knew the kind of person her beloved son was. He would stop at nothing to achieve his goals. Once provoked, he would become a tyrant, much like herself.

"Yes! Who exactly are you? And why do you carry the aura of our Crusade?!" Every word that escaped Berserker Godfrey's lips reverberated with impact as if he were shouting at the people around him through a microphone at maximum volume.

Considering his armor, which propelled him forward, it wasn't too far-fetched to imagine him equipped with a microphone.

"I am Richard's mother. A direct participant in the Second Crusade."

"The troublesome brat's mother? Well, considering your connection to the Crusade, you and your Master can leave. Your son has already used his second Command Spell on me today, and I can't guarantee whether he'll need to use his third." After speaking, Berserker disregarded Eleanor. Engaging in prolonged conversation was a heavy burden for him, and dispatching all the heathens within his line of sight with his sword granted him greater comfort.

The dangerous gaze shifted towards Aphaf and Don Quixote, an Islamic girl, and a Spanish knight, undoubtedly both belonging to the heretics.

After Berserker caught up to Eleanor, Suzuki carefully observed Berserker's condition. It appeared that only a few marks were left on his armor, and surprisingly, Eleanor's A-ranked anti-army Noble Phantasm didn't inflict significant damage on Berserker. This surprised him greatly, especially considering the hidden skills Berserker possessed. Among them, the most likely one was "Guardian of the Holy Sepulchre," which potentially allowed him to withstand even high-level Noble Phantasms.

Berserker Godfrey lacked the typical "low defense" characteristic of most Berserker-class Servants. On the contrary, he seemed to have reached an impenetrable level of defense, much like his armor. Defeating him through sheer skill would be impossible.

To overcome such a Servant, they would likely require a significantly greater power to confront him directly. However, even when combining the strength of Rider Eleanor and Alterego Don Quixote, they were far from a match for Berserker Godfrey.

Feeling pressured by Berserker's relentless pursuit, Aphaf swiftly summoned a wooden door in place, realizing that escaping wouldn't work. She had to take the risk and use her Mystic Code to teleport to a location connected to the door.

But as she summoned the door quickly and activated the unfamiliar Mystic Code using the power of her Mystic Eyes, she realized that this was meant to be her last resort. She still had at least two other methods she hadn't tried. It felt as if someone had intentionally erased the other options from her mind, leaving only the choice of using the Mystic Code to open a door.

Don Quixote realized that his Master was summoning the door and intending to use the Mystic Code to connect to it, but it was too late. He attempted to shout and stop her, but the door opened naturally under Aphaf's control.

Upon opening the door, Aphav suddenly comprehended what had occurred. She had been completely manipulated earlier, and someone had guided her to use the Mystic Code "Open Door."

Behind the opened door lay complete darkness, a void, as if the Mystic Code hadn't connected to its intended destination but had merely opened a pocket. Despite this, Aphaf, who had successfully utilized her magic, knew that it should have connected to a location where she had placed a marker.

"Close the door!" Don Quixote finally stepped in front of Aphaf, disregarding the danger posed by Berserker right before their eyes, and reached out to close the door that should never have been opened.

Don Quixote reached out his hand and realized that the door had already fallen into the opened imaginary space. The imaginary space continued to visibly expand at a rapid pace as if something was about to emerge from it.

In the next moment, a sword light swept from behind the opened imaginary space. Berserker Godfrey, disregarding the fact that the sword light had entered the imaginary space without any reaction, quickly rushed towards the space and pointed his sword directly into it.

Don Quixote hurriedly moved the immobile Aphaf away from the expanding imaginary space.

"What's going on?" Suzuki, who was less than 30 meters away, hadn't had time to figure out the purpose of Aphaf summoning the door when he suddenly felt a severe headache and discomfort throughout his body. Various low murmurs in different languages echoed in his mind as if more than ten completely different people were simultaneously discussing something. Each of them was an expert in their respective fields, but their language was incomprehensible to Suzuki, causing direct mental harm beyond his understanding.

Rider Eleanor also quickly took Suzuki away from the opened imaginary space, summoning her chariot once again. She pulled Suzuki and hurriedly retreated.

Considering Suzuki's aversion to witnessing the grotesque, she used the ability of her Noble Phantasm, "Queen's Crown," to calm his state.

"Don't try to understand the voices you hear. Ignore them and keep your focus on me, or you will die!"

Just as Rider finished her instructions, a copper mirror hidden in Suzuki's waist pouch automatically emitted a bright light, shielding him from the intangible and distorted evil power.

The light from the copper mirror shone directly toward the imaginary space, and Suzuki instinctively looked over there. He saw Berserker shouting the true name of his Noble Phantasm within the space.

"The Endless Crusades: The Holy City Stands at the Horizon (The Endless Crusades)!"

In an instant, a brightness comparable to daylight, or even brighter, cleared away all the overflowing twisted magical energy. The others hadn't yet noticed the monster attempting to emerge from the opened imaginary space, but Berserker saw transparent and dazzling multicolored light bubbles rapidly gathering and attempting to come out from the opened imaginary space.

The specific power of the Noble Phantasm couldn't be confirmed, but Suzuki and Aphaf both saw the divine light, forcing them to cover their eyes. If the power was the same as what Aphaf initially saw, a sword light with a range of 1200 meters, it would be easy to deal with the monsters hiding within.

However, in the next moment, Berserker seemed to receive a direct counterattack and was thrown several meters away while defenseless.

To others, the light bubbles passing through the divine light couldn't be seen throughout the process of leaving the imaginary space. Just their existence alone brought an infinite sense of suppression, easily affecting anyone who contemplated them.

Suzuki and Aphaf were finally able to see the monsters appearing from the door, but it took nearly three minutes since the door was opened for their eyes to capture the light bubbles gradually leaving the opened imaginary space.

Don Quixote had been guarding in front of Aphaf all along, but he knew very well that he couldn't contend with the monsters appearing from the door with his strength alone. Protecting his Master was the top priority, and the second task would require cooperation.