154. The Assassin Akko Appears: Infinite Sword Technique and Flowing Blade Like Fire

In a Holy Grail War featuring seven Heroic Spirits, Suye already possessed four.
Adding the Assassin who should have originally been summoned by the mage Medea, that made five.
Out in the world, only the regular servants—the Lancer, the Berserker, and the unexpected Gilgamesh—remained.
Five against three. Did they still need a plan?
A straightforward steamroll would suffice!

"Medea, how is your current condition?"
Suye looked at Medea, who had just finished forming the contract. Just moments ago, she had looked as though she might dissipate on the spot, but now she appeared completely fine.
Therefore, for Heroic Spirits, magical energy was the ultimate panacea. Regardless of the severity of one's injuries, a single injection of magical energy would instantly restore them to full health and resurrect them on the spot.
Hearing Suye's question, Medea nodded.
"Master, I have mostly recovered. There are no issues."

As she spoke, Medea’s gaze toward Suye carried an indescribable sentiment. Although not entirely blatant, it was enough to make the nearby Archer, who was prepared to watch the show, feel a prick of jealousy in his heart.
*'Clearly, I was the one who picked her up. Why on earth has she become your person?'*
Even without telepathy, Suye could sense the intense resentment radiating from Archer.
To this, Suye could only reply mentally: *'I am you, and you are me. There is no need to draw such a clear line. Everything I am experiencing now will eventually become your memories, won't it?'*
Yet, deep down, Archer still held a slight grudge.
Everyone preferred living in the present, personally experiencing the various beauties of life, rather than constantly seeking validation through memories.
However, these were mere trivialities. The most important thing was to continue the battle at hand.

"Since Medea has already recovered, can you find a way, using magecraft or magic, to summon another Servant?"
This was something Medea had done before; Suye was merely proposing the idea.
As expected, after a brief hesitation, Medea nodded. "I can try."
With that, a flash of light appeared in Medea's hand, and a rather peculiarly shaped dagger materialized.
The blade of the dagger was neither a standard straight edge nor a curved one, but rather shaped like a bolt of lightning, quietly emanating a purple glow. From a distance, it evoked a faint sense of unease.
The true name of this Noble Phantasm was Rule Breaker. Its very existence was a challenge to the rules itself.
It could nullify the contract between a Master and a Servant, or eradicate life forms created through magical energy.
In Medea's hands, however, it possessed yet another function: acting as a "catalyst" to summon a Heroic Spirit.
With this item, Medea could summon the final class—the Assassin—just as she had in the original timeline.
Originally, the catalyst used was the mountain gate of the Ryuudoji Temple, which summoned Sasaki Kojiro. But now, using Rule Breaker as the catalyst, there was no telling who might be summoned.

Inside the room, Medea initiated the summoning ritual before everyone's eyes.
Soon, a magic circle appeared. Guided by Medea's incantation, the magic circle began to glow. Before long, a woman wearing a red-and-black tight-fitting bodysuit, a mask tilted slightly over her head, and dual short blades in her hands slowly materialized.
"You are the one who summoned me? You are my Master?"
The dual-wielding woman opened her eyes and looked coldly at Medea before her.
Medea shook her head, then nodded, stepping aside to reveal Suye standing behind her.
"It is not me, but him!"
Upon seeing Suye's face, a distinct flash of brightness appeared in the woman's eyes.
"Although I am a picky connoisseur of beauty, you certainly satisfy me. Master, come, form a contract with me, and I will let you experience the ultimate exta—"
Mid-sentence, the woman's voice abruptly cut off. The menacing glares of the few people nearby made her feel as though a storm were imminent.
Turning her head, she saw the unfriendly expressions of Saber, Tohsaka Rin, and Medusa, and even Medea, who had just summoned her, did not look particularly pleased. The woman let out an awkward laugh.
"Just a joke. Don't be so tense."
"What is your name, and what is your class?"
Tohsaka Rin stepped directly into the position of the head wife, representing everyone as she posed the question.
The woman shrugged. "My name is Jing Ke, and my class is Assassin."
*'Jing Ke? It really is Jing Ke! Even this could be summoned!'*
Archer could not help but launch into his internal monologue.
*'Wait, and it's specifically the Jing Ke from Honor of Kings? Doesn't the Fate series already have an assassin named Jing Ke? Why are we crossing boundaries?!'*
Archer wasn't rambling randomly. In the Fate mobile game Fate/Grand Order, there was a 3-star Servant named Jing Ke, who was a female hero.
And the background of that Jing Ke was the historical assassin who attempted to assassinate the King of Qin.
When Jing Ke initially debuted in Honor of Kings, the character's concept wasn't that of Jing Ke's younger sister, but Jing Ke herself—a gender-swapped version named simply Jing Ke.
Later on, it seemed the character design was questioned by relevant authorities for allegedly mocking and parodying a historical hero, forcing a change in the lore.
Regardless, in reality, the concept of this Jing Ke was identical.
Thus, this summoning wasn't inherently flawed; it was merely a benign mutation brought about by Suye's existence.
After all, that other Jing Ke truly wasn't as pleasing to the eye as their Miss Jing Ke here.

*'How did we end up summoning Jing Ke? That doesn't matter; she's certainly much stronger than someone like Sasaki Kojiro. Or perhaps, compared to little Jing Ke, you would have preferred that Japanese swordsman?'*
Suye smiled and retorted. Seeing Jing Ke appear, although surprised, he was quite pleased.
Archer sighed. *'That's not what I meant. I was just wondering, if we were to summon the Berserker class as well, would it still turn out to be Heracles?'*
*'What are you getting at?'* Suye also began to ponder the possibility.
Archer snorted. *'Naturally, it would be the savage hammer-wielder, Zhong Wuyan! Sister Hammer and those pairs of—ahem! You just hand her a giant hammer and tell me if she isn't berserk enough!'*
Suye shook his head. *'If we're going that route, I choose Athena. The way she feeds the enemy team is poetry in motion—now that's what I call berserk!'*
*'If we're talking about being berserk, isn't Shangguan Wan'er the truly wild one? Once those little butterflies start flying, it's a massacre!'*
*'And what about Luna’s infinite moonlight combos? Aren't they berserk?'*
*'Mai Shiranui before her rework was the true definition of berserk!'*
*'Indeed, the old Mai Shiranui was truly sultry!'*
*'Are you talking about her outfit or her damage output?'*
*'What do you think?'*
*'Hehehe...'*
*'Wait,'* after letting out a couple of carefree laughs, Suye suddenly felt something was amiss.
Hold on, Mai Shiranui was already his woman, yet here he was, drooling over her like a hopeless loser. Wasn't that foolish? Was his brain fried?
It was all Archer's fault—this Heroic Spirit version of himself. Although they shared the same face, his mind was full of nonsense, dragging his IQ down with him.

"Ahem!"
Suye gave a light cough, breaking the awkward atmosphere between Jing Ke and the female seniors.
"Alright everyone, since everyone is gathered, let's prepare to set out and bring this war to an end!"
The two Masters, accompanied by five Servants, walked out of the Suye residence and embarked on their expedition.

At the same time, a few streets away from the Suye residence, a towering man standing over two and a half meters tall, dressed in little more than a pleated skirt, was sitting idly in a dark corner.
Perched upon his shoulder was a little girl of only eight or nine years old, with snowy white hair and a purple European-style aristocratic dress.
Suye had seen this little girl before. She was the one who had suddenly appeared on his way home from work to warn him that if he didn't summon a Servant immediately, he would be killed.
According to the original lore, the little girl's name was Illyasviel von Einzbern, and her identity was the biological daughter of the protagonist Emiya Shirou's adoptive father, Emiya Kiritsugu.
Although she looked to be only eight or nine years old, she was actually eighteen years old. She wasn't the younger sister, but the older sister.
Emotionally speaking, this older sister deeply resented—no, should be said to truly hate—the protagonist, Emiya Shirou.
Because ten years ago, her father Emiya Kiritsugu had left home to participate in the Holy Grail War, promising her that he would definitely return.
As a result, Emiya Kiritsugu not only failed to return, but he also adopted another child outside, treating someone else's child as his own flesh and blood while leaving his own daughter at home to fend for herself.
Who could possibly endure such treatment?
Following that, Emiya Kiritsugu died, leaving Illyas to transfer all her hatred onto the person who had deprived her of the paternal love that should have been poured onto her.
To take revenge on Emiya Kiritsugu and Emiya Shirou, she endured all manner of inhumane torture and had nearly died during her trials.
So from a certain perspective, the hardships and suffering Illyasviel endured were no less than Matou Sakura's.
What Illyasviel did not know, however, was that Emiya Kiritsugu had not abandoned her; rather, because their family estate was quite special and surrounded by a barrier—and Emiya Kiritsugu had been injured—he had attempted to break through that barrier multiple times without success and could not enter.
Thus, the misunderstanding was born.
In short, ten years later, Illyasviel had come for revenge.
Since Emiya Kiritsugu was gone, she could kill Emiya Shirou to slightly soothe her wrath.
Oh, and now that target had changed to Suye.

"Berserker, how do you think we should kill my dear brother best?"
Illyasviel sat like a little loli on the shoulder of the Berserker Heracles, swinging her two small legs back and forth, looking for all the world like an innocent little girl.
Yet who could have known she was a ruthless person who wouldn't even blink when taking a life once angered?
Upon hearing Illyasviel's words, Heracles did not reply, merely listening in silence like a loyal hound that only executed its master's commands.
In truth, when Heracles was first summoned, like other Heroic Spirits, he had been a hero capable of normal communication.
However, he hadn't been summoned at the start of the Fifth Holy Grail War; he had been summoned long before that. After accompanying Illyasviel through her trials, his linguistic abilities had progressively deteriorated until his rationality was stripped away entirely, reducing him to the raving Berserker he was now.

While Illyasviel was swinging her legs and talking to herself, the very Suye she had been obsessing over appeared before her.
"Yo! Long time no see, o-ni-chan!" Illyasviel greeted him with a smile.
"Are you Su Mutian's daughter?" Suye skipped the pleasantries and bluntly brought up the name Su Mutian.
Fujimura Taiga only knew that Suye's father's last name was Su; everything else had been blocked out, as if the name Su Mutian was not permitted to exist in this world.
Yet Suye was able to speak it aloud directly.
It was very likely that this rule only applied to indigenous ordinary people like Fujimura Taiga.

Opposite him, upon hearing the name "Su Mutian," Illyasviel first froze, and then, as if recalling something, her face immediately twisted into a fierce expression.
"Don't you dare mention that name in front of me!"
Suye understood. Old Su's character setting had indeed been ported into this world; the girl before him must undoubtedly be Old Su's daughter.
*'Another Terry?'*
Suye wanted to sigh. His old man was truly too formidable; even inside a pocket dimension, he managed to leave an impression.
"If I were to tell you that Old Su... ahem! Su Mutian is not dead, and that I can take you to see him? You can confront him face to face about all your questions, and vent all your grievances and anger upon him—what would you say?"
"What did you say?!"
Illyasviel's eyes widened instantly.
Her resentment and hostility toward Suye largely stemmed from her transference of anger away from Old Su. If she could vent that wrath directly onto Old Su in person, that would naturally be the best outcome.
"No need to doubt it. I guarantee I can take you to find Old Su. After all, you are my little sister, aren't you?"
At eighteen years old, Illyasviel didn't need to put on an act or play cute; before the real Suye, she was simply his little sister.
"But... I..." Illyasviel was somewhat dazed. She didn't know if the person before her was lying, whether she should believe him, and if she chose to believe him, where she should go from here in this Holy Grail War.
"Alright, it's settled then. Let's make a proper introduction. My name is Suye. Nice to meet you, Ilya Su."
Illyasviel frowned. "My name is not Ilya Su!"
Suye chuckled lightly. "Then... is it Su Ilya?"
"My name is Illyasviel von Einzbern!" Illyasviel shouted stubbornly.
Suye smiled and shook his head. "Whatever makes you happy. In any case, the one who should be getting a headache over this problem is Old Su, not me."
"It totally is! Hmph!" Illyasviel crossed her arms in protest. "Besides, I haven't agreed to anything yet!"
Suye glanced at Heracles standing to the side. "Finding Old Su might actually yield a way to restore Heracles's rationality and sanity, and let him—"
"Are you telling the truth?" Illyasviel's interest was naturally piqued. After completing the trials alongside Heracles, the two of them had depended entirely on one another for a very long time.
Thus, seeing Heracles reduced to his current state, it didn't sit well with her either.
"I can agree to it, but I'm doing it for Heracles, definitely not to go looking for some Old Su, hmph!"
"Heh!"
Suye smiled and nodded. "I understand."

With Illyasviel dealt with, only the final two Heroic Spirits remained: Lancer Cu Chulainn, the former Archer Gilgamesh, and their shared Master, Kirei Kotomine.
Kirei Kotomine was the supervisor of the Fifth Holy Grail War, acting essentially as the referee.
Yet, despite being the referee, he had also become a participant—not only stripping a participant of their Master status and stealing Cu Chulainn, but secretly harboring Gilgamesh behind the scenes.
Furthermore, his mindset was warped, and his ultimate goal was to manifest "All the Evils of the World."
Suye had no intention of showing courtesy to such a man.
Having resolved matters with Illyasviel, Suye led everyone directly to the exterior of the church known as the Fuyuki Church.
This place was the hideout of Kirei Kotomine, Lancer, and Gilgamesh.
"Everyone, prepare for battle!"
Without waiting for the others to react, Suye slowly lifted off the ground, suspended mid-air, and leveled his hands horizontally.
Beside him, Archer also floated up into the sky. The two adopted the exact same posture, the exact same expression, and the exact same movements.
Simultaneously, they chanted aloud:
*I am the bone of my sword.*
*Steel is my body and fire is my blood.*
*I have created over a thousand blades.*
*Unknown to Death,*
*Nor known to Life.*
*Have withstood pain to create many weapons.*
*Yet, those hands will never hold anything.*
*So as I pray, Unlimited Blade Works.*

Only then did Tohsaka Rin and Saber realize how remarkably similar the two of them were—so much so that they seemed like the exact same person.
As Suye and Archer made their motions, the entire world outside the church suddenly shifted. The sky transformed into a twilight sunset, bathed in an orange-red glow like burning flames.
High above in the sky, amidst the cloud cover, countless gigantic gears manifested and began to slowly rotate.
Beneath their feet, the ordinary ground transformed into a vast wasteland, where countless swords and daggers of various shapes were thrust downward into the earth.

"Unlimited Blade Works! This is a Reality Marble!"
Tohsaka Rin gasped in astonishment. A Reality Marble was a magecraft that rewrote reality using the caster's "inner landscape." Because of its immense power, the Mage's Association classified it among forbidden spells.
She never imagined that Suye would be powerful enough to deploy a Reality Marble, nor that her Servant Archer would bear such an uncanny resemblance to him.

"Have these ants actually sought me out on their own?"
Just as the world was being reshaped by the two men's Reality Marble, a man clad in golden armor resembling a Gold Saint abruptly appeared atop the roof of the opposing church.
That was the King of Heroes, Gilgamesh, nicknamed Gil.
Although the world had been altered by the Reality Marble, Gilgamesh did not take it seriously.
"Come, you little pests. I hope you can at least entertain me somewhat."
As he spoke, a ripple resembling the surface of water materialized behind Gilgamesh, and from within it, countless weapons slowly poked their tips outward.
While Gilgamesh lacked a Reality Marble, he possessed the Gate of Babylon—a powerful Noble Phantasm rivaling any Reality Marble. It served as the key sword connecting to the Golden Capital, opening spatial portals to freely retrieve items from his treasure vault.
The greater the treasures within the vault, the more destructive this technique was.
And as the King of Heroes, Gilgamesh possessed an unmatched arsenal.

"Then let us fight!"
Within the Reality Marble of Unlimited Blade Works, countless swords and daggers upon the ground rose into the air under Suye's command, surging forward like a myriad of swords returning to their sect.
Simultaneously, Archer gripped dual short swords, transforming into a red streak of light as he charged ahead.
*Clang, clang, clang, clang, clang!*
Gilgamesh's Gate of Babylon activated in tandem, countless weapons colliding in mid-air with Suye's sword-hail.
At the same time, a blue blur rushed out from the church, intercepting Archer's charge.
Cu Chulainn entered the fray!

Inside the church, Kirei Kotomine's brow furrowed. He had already spotted Suye and Archer launching their assault from outside, accompanied by Tohsaka Rin, Illyasviel, Saber, and the other Servants behind them.
*Could it be that all the surviving Masters have formed an alliance?*
Kirei Kotomine couldn't fathom why this was happening. Even if those people wanted to ally, they shouldn't have targeted his trouble first.
Had his dual role as both referee and participant been exposed?
Before Kirei Kotomine could sort through his thoughts, a towering, dark figure swooped down with terrifying speed from the sky.
*Boom!*
The church was instantly shattered by a single blow from Heracles's axe-sword.
Gilgamesh and Cu Chulainn were both tied down, leaving them entirely incapable of defending the church and forcing them to watch helplessly as Heracles launched his assault.
"Tch!"
Kirei Kotomine managed to escape the church just in time, but the righteous priest facade he wore could no longer be maintained.
"Why? Why has it come to this?"
"You shouldn't turn your back on me!" Suddenly, a female voice sounded from behind.
Kirei Kotomine felt a sudden tightening in his lower back. He wanted to evade, but it was already too late.
*Squelch!*
The sound of a sharp blade piercing flesh rang out. Kirei Kotomine felt the strength in his body rapidly draining away, and the world itself seemed to grow cold.
"Who... are you?"
Kirei Kotomine tilted his head, gazing at the masked woman who was frantically unleashing combos into his back. With his dying breath, he let out a reluctant roar.
"Farewell!"
Jing Ke did not reply, simply swinging the short blade in her hand once more.
*Squelch!*
Kirei Kotomine died.

High above, the death of Kirei Kotomine failed to cause much of a ripple in Gilgamesh or Cu Chulainn.
One was a true warrior, while the other was a king looking down upon the world. Their relationship with Kirei Kotomine was purely contractual cooperation rather than subordination.
If a Master died, so be it; they could simply find another.
There were so many mages in this world; finding one capable of contracting with them and supplying magical energy was simple enough.
So Gilgamesh thought, despite Kirei Kotomine having supplied him with magical energy for ten years.
The pressing issue at hand wasn't Kirei Kotomine, but the fellow before him.
His abilities were proving to be a troublesome counter to the Gate of Babylon. If he wanted to win, he would likely have to exert some effort.
To this moment, Gilgamesh still did not believe he could lose.
Beside him, however, Cu Chulainn was already covered in wounds.
"Are you going to surrender?" Archer paused his offensive momentum and asked.
Opposite him, Cu Chulainn spat out a mouthful of blood.
"Ahem! You're strong. Far stronger than I imagined. Under normal circumstances, I might have wanted to share a drink with you, but... right now, we are enemies. Spare me the useless chatter; let's keep fighting!"
"There are only Cu Chulainns who die on the battlefield, never children of light who surrender and live in cowardice!"
Archer sighed. He knew Cu Chulainn was stubborn; trying to persuade him to surrender was practically impossible.
"Very well, since you seek a warrior's end, I shall grant your loyalty and valor!"
In battle, the greatest respect one could show an opponent was to give them everything.

On the other side, while Suye and Gilgamesh traded blows with their remote Noble Phantasms, the two of them drew their swords and charged at each other.
In Gilgamesh's hand was a powerful anti-world Noble Phantasm named Ea, the Sword of Rupture said to "split the world," rated EX.
In Suye's hand was a projected Zanpakuto.
This time, however, it was not *Suzumebachi*, but *Ryujin Jakka*—a fire-type Zanpakuto possessing overwhelming destructive power.
Though a projection, it was still capable of achieving Bankai.
It could injure not only Gilgamesh's spiritual body, but his soul as well.
As the flames surged throughout the entire boundary of the Reality Marble, Gilgamesh's confidence finally wavered.
"Just... who are you?"
Looking at Suye, for the first time, Gilgamesh's gaze lacked its usual condescending look of viewing others as mere ants.
Suye snorted. "You don't need to know!"
Those accustomed to standing high above and treating others as ants should simply perish as humble ants within this world.
Gilgamesh might possess formidable abilities, high popularity, and handsome looks, but Suye already possessed all of those things himself.
"Take your doubts and crawl back where you came from!"
"All things in the universe, turn to ash—Ryujin Jakka!"