Shinji Matou At Your Service - Chapter 515: Premonition and Revelation

Karna suddenly lifted his foot and stepped forward with enough force to shatter the stone slabs beneath him.

The divine spear he launched rushed towards the advancing radiance of the star’s brilliance, carrying the undeniable glow of the sun.

As if provoked by this brilliance, or perhaps enraged by the power of the natural deity, the Holy Lance in Artoria’s hand condensed into an even purer light. The light, overly condensed to its limit, pulsed, brewed, and roared.

In this roar, it welcomed its true liberation!

“Rhongomyniad!”

Light cascaded!

Light surged!

The light of divine retribution and the scorching sun paled in comparison.

The planetary power eroded all matter, casting a straight line within the corridor between fantasy and reality.

This light pierced through magnificent palatial complexes.

This light sliced through miraculous gardens.

Finally, it spanned the night sky.

Where is the kingdom of the heavens?

Wherever it is, my radiance shall strike it down.

This is the power of a star-made Noble Phantasm, proudly standing at the pinnacle of all Noble Phantasms!

However, though the Holy Lance is mighty, the opposing Noble Phantasms are not weak either.

The rain of light arrows summoned by Atalanta heralded the clash of Noble Phantasms, stirring ripples in the star’s brilliance with the divine powers of the Sun God and the Moon God.

Following this was the Divine Spear infused with the Sun’s flames, the main force of the Red faction, a Noble Phantasm more powerful than “Brahmastra: O’ Brahma, Cover the Earth.”

Karna’s hidden Noble Phantasm, his ultimate move. It imbues the unextinguishable blade with Karna’s inherent heat effect and launches it. Its power, range, and effect surpass those of Brahmastra: O’ Brahma, Cover the Earth, with a performance comparable to a nuclear weapon.

Now, the destructive power of this nuclear bomb was confined to a very small area.

This was partly due to Karna’s deliberate control, but more so because of the pressure from Rhongomyniad

The release of any wide-area weapon involves a process, and Brahmastra Kundala is no exception. If unimpeded, the power of the Noble Phantasm would rapidly spread from the spear’s tip, leveling the surrounding palatial complexes.

However, if another force neutralizes the expanding power, the destruction radius of the Noble Phantasm will correspondingly reduce. Karna exploited this principle in reverse: due to the overwhelming power of the Holy Lance, the potency of Brahmastra Kundala was consumed by the star’s radiance before it could spread, resulting in no wastage and fully counteracting the Holy Lancer’s force.

Ultimately, though a nuclear weapon-grade Noble Phantasm, even if its rank wasn’t as high as the Holy Lance, it couldn’t be underestimated. This counteraction significantly reduced the Holy Lance’s power, which was eventually fully absorbed by Achilles’ manifested small world.

Even in the presence of the star-made Noble Phantasm at the pinnacle of all Noble Phantasms, the unextinguishable blade and the world shield maintained the dignity of high-level divine armaments!

The dazzling lights collided, instantly stirring up a fierce whirlwind at the explosion’s epicenter. It swept up everything around, causing continuous destruction. Not even a speck of dust remained.

The overwhelming vortex of magical energy shattered the surrounding walls, destroying the enclosed corridor and even the nearby palatial complexes with sheer violence.

Amid the scattered light particles, Achilles, invincible in his era, had trembling arms, barely able to hold his shield.

Karna fared no better, drenched in sweat and steaming—astonishing for a hero of flames, a true son of the sun, who wouldn’t sweat even when scorched by the sun’s flames.

Only Atalanta, shielded by the two men and not facing the star’s radiance directly, remained relatively unscathed. As soon as the magical storm subsided, she immediately drew her bow and launched wave after wave of arrows at Artoria.

Previously protected by her teammates, it was now her turn to protect them.

Surprisingly, faced with Atalanta’s fierce assault, Artoria, who had stood her ground earlier, stepped aside, allowing them passage without resistance.

“Black Lancer, you—?”

Atalanta’s beast ears twitched, and her archery paused—the Knight King’s retreat was swift and decisive, showing no signs of fatigue. Why did she retreat?

“My Master’s command has been fulfilled; I will no longer hinder you.”

Artoria spoke as she lowered the Holy Lance, demonstrating her stance through action.

Shinji’s command was to buy time.

Why buy time?

Artoria didn’t know, but it didn’t affect her judgment—three Red Faction Servants were obstructing her Master, so she only needed to incapacitate them to prevent pursuit.

After a brief exchange, Artoria had gauged that her martial prowess was, at best, on par with Karna’s. Conventional methods wouldn’t suffice; using her Noble Phantasm was the only option.

When making this decision, Artoria was immensely grateful she had manifested as a Lancer rather than a Saber. Against renowned heroes like Achilles and Karna, Excalibur would struggle to achieve her goal. Fortunately, she had the more restrictive but stronger Rhongomyniad.

She was fully confident in the fully liberated star anchor, and the Holy Lance did not betray her trust.

Even though the opposing side blocked the Holy Lance’s power, it came at the cost of significant stamina and mana for Achilles and Karna. Achilles’ trembling hands and Karna’s sweat-drenched state were the best evidence, greatly reducing their combat effectiveness in the short term.

Atalanta, with a lower-ranked Noble Phantasm, had less consumption, but her strength still lagged behind the two great heroes. With Artoria watching her, she was not a major concern.

On the other hand, Artoria, with the dragon factor within her, constantly generated mana, making her naturally adept at prolonged battles. Combined with abundant mana support from Shinji, she had no worries about depletion.

Deflecting Atalanta’s arrows was manageable; even unleashing the Holy Lance once more would be feasible—this confidence fueled Artoria’s decision to release her Noble Phantasm.

The reason she didn’t release it again to finish off the exhausted trio was partly due to concern over their desperate counterattack and more because her Instinct forewarned her of something.

Something was brewing, an event so significant that even the Counter Force couldn’t ascertain it, bringing unprecedented risk. To counter this risk, every bit of strength was crucial.

Gazing ahead, she met Jeanne’s eyes, and the undisguised gravity in them told Artoria she too had received a revelation.

Just then, the ground beneath everyone suddenly began to shake.