"This idiot!"
Whether it was Saber in danger, Kayneth's attack, or Kotomine Kirei's appearance, Yustisa, who had been watching coldly, finally could no longer sit still.
Irisviel is the Lesser Holy Grail of this Holy Grail War. Her existence is more important than the seven Masters and Servants. If something happens to her, even if the Holy Grail War is over, the Holy Grail Summoning Ceremony will fail.
Nothing must happen to Irisviel—Thinking this way, Yustisa left the castle, left the best observation position, and headed straight for where Irisviel was.
Overwhelmed by an inexplicable sense of urgency, she forgot to tell Shinji that the "Little Holy Grail" did not require Irisviel to be alive, not even her specially adjusted body. It only needed to preserve her heart so that it would not affect the ritual.
At this time, Yustisa did not realize that the importance of Irisviel was not because she was the Little Holy Grail, but because she obtained the human soul and emotions that Yustisa desired.
... ...
Also feeling anxious was Hisau Maiya, who was seriously injured and unable to move.
The two had agreed before that during the duel with Kotomine Kirei, Irisviel would only be responsible for providing secret support and must not show up no matter what the situation.
Maiya knew very well that if she failed, Irisviel, who had no combat experience, would never be a match for Kotomine Kirei.
"Ma'am, no!"
Maiya ignored her own injuries and coughed up blood as she tried to stop Irisviel.
Kotomine Kirei put down his fist and looked expressionlessly at the android who was suddenly confronting her.
He did not understand Irisviel's actions. In his opinion, Irisviel was Saber's Master and the core of the entire Einzbern camp, someone who must be protected at all costs. If she died, Einzbern would repeat the mistakes of the last Holy Grail War.
According to Kotomine Risei, the Einzbern family was too focused on alchemy and not good at fighting, so they left early in every Holy Grail War. Judging from the situation of hiring Emiya Kiritsugu as a mercenary, they should have reflected on that humiliating experience.
Then, with the female guard lying on the ground, why did the Master of Einzbern appear alone in front of Kotomine Kirei? Isn't this courting death
"Woman, it may surprise you, but I am not here to defeat you."
It sounded like a low-level lie that no one would believe, but it was Kotomine Kirei's truest thought. Meeting Emiya Kiritsugu on the battlefield was Kirei's goal, and compared to that, everything else was unimportant.
"I know it very well, Kotomine Kirei."
What surprised Kirei was that Irisviel actually believed it.
"I know what you want to do, but it's impossible. You can't reach Emiya Kiritsugu. We will stop you, right here!"
Kotomine Kirei was confused by Irisviel's words—what was her basis? Was it ignorance? Or did she really have someone to rely on
When her opponent hesitated, Irisviel pulled out her signature weapon hidden in the cuff of her coat. No, it wasn't a weapon at all, it was just a bunch of soft metal wire.
"Madam, this man is an agent, a master at hunting magicians. He is not an opponent that ordinary magic can deal with!"
Irisviel responded to Maiya’s cry while squatting on the ground and enduring the pain with a quiet smile.
"Kiritsugu taught me more than just driving! He also taught me to live, not as a puppet, but as a human being!"
In front of the speechless Maiya and the surprised Kirei, Irisviel poured her magic power into the wire. The extremely thin wire untied itself and began to flow between the fingers of Irisviel's hands like a living thing.
No one knew that Irisviel's magus rank was higher than her husband, Emiya Kiritsugu.
No one knew that Irisviel already had the experience of using her magic as a means of attack in battle.
Indeed, the Einzbern family magic is the refining, creation and application of matter, and there is no offensive magic. However, Irisviel has created a fighting style that belongs only to her, based on what she learned from her husband who has always been in battle and her determination to live with him.
"shapeistLeben! (Shape of Life)"
Through the chanting of two bars, magic is woven in one breath.
This is Irisviel's secret technique - metal form manipulation, a secret technique that no one in the entire magic world can match.
The silver threads crisscrossed and traced, forming complex outlines. Intertwined and combined, it looked like a complex three-dimensional object made of rattan crafts, with fierce wings and beaks, and sharp claws.
It was an exquisite silver wire craft based on the prototype of a giant eagle.
No, it's not just a replica model.
"kyeeeee!!"
With a loud scream like a metal blade, the Silver Eagle flew up from Irisviel's hand.
It was an artificial life form created on the spot using alchemy, a weapon given life by Irisviel who was now facing a life-or-death situation.
The flying posture of the Silver Eagle, like a bullet, far exceeded Kirei's imagination. He dodged the attack in the nick of time, but the razor-sharp beak still grazed the tip of his nose.
After the first strike missed, the Silver Eagle immediately circled above Kirei's head. This time it swooped down with its two claws, aiming for Kirei's face.
However, this was not an attack that was difficult for the Agent to deal with. Kirei was not afraid of the sharpness of the hook claws and punched at the eagle with his extremely powerful fist.
The rapidly descending eagle was unable to change its trajectory, and the fist hit the eagle directly in the abdomen.
"Hmm?"
It was Kirei who made the sound of surprise.
When hit by the fist, the eagle turned into a shapeless silver thread and entangled his right fist like a vine.
Although Kirei immediately used his left hand to pull, the silver thread also entangled this hand. The silver thread that had just been flying in the air in the form of an eagle, this time tightly bound Kirei's hands like handcuffs.
"snort!"
Faced with such a predicament, Kirei simply snorted coldly and rushed towards Irisviel. He was a master who had fought to the death with countless magi in the past, but he was not afraid at all because his hands were sealed. He only needed to get close and launch a kick to decide the outcome.
"How naive!"
Irisviel scolded, injecting more magic power into the silver thread.
A bunch of silver threads stretched out from the silk bundles that bound Kirei's hands, and this time it ran through the void like a snake, wrapping around a nearby tree trunk.
Even Kirei couldn't resist this time. As he lost his balance and tried to find his footing, the silver thread tightly wrapped around the tree trunk, constantly dragging Kirei, and finally tied his wrists firmly to the tree trunk.
The diameter of the tree trunk was over thirty centimeters, and it was impossible to break or pull it up with human strength. The actions of this terrifying agent were finally completely blocked.
However, now was not the time to celebrate victory. Under Kirei's arm strength, Irisviel was gradually losing the advantage she had worked so hard to gain.
Kirei’s hands should have been cut by the pressure of the silver wire, but her muscles, which had been trained to be as strong as steel, were stronger than Irisviel could have imagined. Her silver wire was almost broken and was on the verge of breaking. In order to strengthen the metal and keep it tight, she could only continuously use all her magic power.
"Ms. Maiya, please hurry up!"
The one who held the key to victory was Maiya, who was lying on the ground. Irisviel had already used all her strength to restrain Kirei, and she was the only one who could deal the final blow to the immobilized Kirei.
Without getting close enough for the opponent to kick him, it would be enough to shoot at the exposed head. Kirei now could not use the sleeves of his bulletproof suit to protect his head like he did just now.
After a short respite, the injured Maiya regained feeling in her hands and feet. She groaned in pain from her broken ribs and slowly moved toward the discarded M950.
Victory or defeat was a test of willpower measured in seconds. Although she gritted her teeth because of the pain in her magic circuit, Irisviel still tried her best to persevere.
Maiya picked up the gun and fired. As long as the strength of the silver thread could be maintained until then, Kotomine Kirei, Kiritsugu's biggest threat, could be eliminated.
However, they still underestimated the power of Kotomine Kirei and the power of Bajiquan.
Irisviel, who had no knowledge of Chinese boxing, thought that simply tying Kirei's hands to a tree would make him powerless. However, a boxer with advanced skills had weapons all over his body.
Kirei stomped his feet hard on the ground, causing the tree trunk to vibrate violently. The deafening sound startled Irisviel.
This is the sound that would be made if you punched the center of the tree with all your strength.
The sound of striking rang out again, but unlike the last time, this time the sound was mixed with the sound of trees breaking, a sound that sent chills down people's spines.
Although she could not see the situation clearly, Irisviel, who was manipulating the silver thread, understood through her sense of touch that a huge crack had appeared on the tree trunk, right near where the silver thread was entangled, and directly below Kirei's hands.
Kirei placed his hands close to the bark, and was striking the tree trunk with his palms with all his might.
Chinese boxing does not only rely on the strength of the arms or wrists, but also mobilizes the power of the feet on the ground, the rotation of the waist, the twisting of the shoulders, and the arms and wrists. It concentrates the total explosive power of the whole body on the fist, thereby delivering a blow that is unimaginable for ordinary people.
If necessary, it is possible to use parts of the body other than the arms to exert force. This is called "inch force" in Chinese boxing.
A third blow echoed through the forest, louder than the last, and the tree trunks gave a final wail.
The broken fibers snapped under their own weight, and the tree that served as the fulcrum of the silver thread collapsed.
Kirei calmly broke free from the circle of silver threads, grasped the threads with both hands, and tore them apart piece by piece.
Irisviel felt a strong sense of weakness due to the feedback from her magic being broken, and she knelt down on the spot.
Silently watching the two women’s desperate eyes, Kirei walked to the M950 that Maiya was about to pick up with the calm steps of a winner, and crushed the resin frame with his hammer-like foot.
"You bastard!"
Kirei glanced at Maiya, who had not yet stood up and was leaning over and moaning with hatred, without any interest, and then kicked her in the abdomen at random. Maiya fell to the ground and fainted without moving.
Afterwards, Kirei stared at Irisviel with cold eyes devoid of any emotion.
He was so sure of victory that he didn't notice that the silver threads scattered on the ground were quietly gathering together.
PS: There is a master in the book club who has practiced Bajiquan since childhood and has practiced for 20 years. I asked him before writing this chapter, and he said that the scene of Mapo fucking the tree is possible. Mapo's realm is probably one level lower than that of the founder of Bajiquan in the three-dimensional world. It can be seen that Lao Xu has really done research in this regard.