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Yuto raced back after pinpointing Medea's location, but a question nagged at him. Medea held the Golden Fleece, a treasure said to summon a dragon when tossed to the ground. Yet, she lacked the skill to call forth phantasmal beasts. So who had summoned this ancient dragon?
"Sister."
A figure emerged from the shadows, Sakura Tohsaka, dressed in a pure white gown, her beauty radiant like a flower princess. She faced Rin, her expression a mix of emotions as Rin stared back, stunned.
"Sakura, you're working with Caster? Did you summon that dragon too?" Rin's voice was sharp, her eyes narrowing at her younger sister. The sting of betrayal tightened her chest.
Sakura stayed calm. "Don't give me that betrayed look, sister. This is the Holy Grail War, only the strong survive. It's not a game."
Rin's temper sparked. "Oh, you think you're all grown up now? Fine, let's see who wins."
"Already rattled?" Sakura teased. "Looks like you're short on patience as well as… other things."
The air between them crackled with tension.
Yuto shot Rin a quick glance, silently asking if she wanted to fight. She gave a firm nod, rolling up her sleeves and casting a reinforcement spell. Her muscles flexed, and with a stomp, the ground split beneath her feet.
"Today, I'll teach you to respect your elders," Rin said, beckoning Sakura with a smirk.
Sakura didn't flinch. She drew a handful of blue gems, summoning a magical gauntlet that warped the air around her with raw power.
Yuto turned to Artoria. "Stay here. Aigis will keep you safe."
The golden-haired girl nodded. "Be careful, Archer."
Yuto stepped in, instantly drawing the eyes of three female Servants below.
"You're here," Scathach said, a faint smile on her cool face. With Archer's strength, taking down these two would be easy.
"It's you!" Medusa's voice burned with rage. She hadn't forgotten how this man, wielding Perseus' treasures, had injured her and humiliated her Master right in front of her.
She moved to unleash her petrifying gaze, but Scathach stepped in, forcing her back into the fray.
"Interesting," Medea said, her voice smooth under her purple hood. "Which hero are you, Archer? So young and striking, you've caught my attention."
Her laughter was soft and enticing, the night wind pressing her thin dress against her graceful form.
"Witch of Betrayel, Medea, how did you summon that dragon?" Yuto's blunt words wiped the smirk from her face.
"Boy, you need to learn some manners," she snapped.
"Oh? If you don't talk, witch, I might just have to make you," Yuto said with a playful grin, his eyes lingering on her for a moment.
Medea's anger flared. "Try it, you brat!" She hated cocky men and being called a witch.
"Come on, then," Yuto challenged, arms spread wide.
Medea's hands moved fast, firing a storm of magic bullets that streaked toward him like a meteor shower.
'Bronze Mirror Shield!' Yuto grinned, pulling an ancient bronze shield from thin air. To Medea's shock, it soaked up her attack and shifted into a prism, sending the bullets racing back at her.
"That's… Perseus' bronze shield?!" Medea gasped, yanking back her hood to reveal wide eyes.
The shield held strong, redirecting the barrage toward the startled witch.
Medea dodged desperately, but a stray bullet clipped her, knocking her from the sky with a yelp.
"Got you!" Yuto called, summoning the Chains of Heaven. The divine chains sensed Medea's godly blood and snapped around her, binding her tight.
As the granddaughter of the sun god Helios and the nymph Perse, Medea's divinity made her a perfect target for the chains.
"Well, well, Caster," Yuto said, stepping closer and pulling back her hood. Her flushed, beautiful face glared up at him, caught in a humiliating pose. "Didn't you say you wouldn't let me off?"
"How do you have that tyrant's chains?" she demanded, straining against the bonds.
"What tyrant?" Yuto asked, puzzled.
Before she could answer, golden particles swirled in the air, and a tall blonde woman stepped out, her golden heels clicking sharply. Gilgamesh, the female King of Heroes, radiated power and disdain.
Yuto's mind raced, 'What?! Is that Gilgamesh?'
"Hmph, useless witch. You couldn't even last a minute." She casts a disdainful glance at Medea before turning her piercing gaze to Yuto.
"And you, Mongrel, dare to lay hands on my Chains of Heaven? What kind of hero are you, touching my treasury?"
'Well, she is definitely Gilgamesh' Yuto thought then smirked. "Well, if it isn't the self-proclaimed Queen of Heroes. Tell me, did you trip over your own ego on the way here, or is that just how you always make an entrance"
Gilgamesh's face darkened. "You dare insult me, mongrel!"
"I'd like to see you try something," Yuto shot back, unfazed.
Medea, still bound, stared in disbelief. Was this Archer crazy, taunting the mighty Queen of Heroes?
Gilgamesh's eyes narrowed. "You've got the nerve, mongrel. If I didn't have other plans, I'd deal with you right now."
She raised her wrist, showing the Command Seals glowing red, and pointed at Medea. "Medea, return. I still need you for the Greater Grail."
"I…" Medea's head dipped, her expression heavy with resignation.
It was almost ironic. Since arriving in this world, Medea's path had been paved with setbacks. Her original Master had been outmaneuvered by this female King of Heroes from the start, driven to suicide on the spot. Against Gilgamesh's overwhelming power, Medea had no chance to resist.
Under a mix of threats and persuasion, Medea had not only become Gilgamesh's Servant but had also broken the rules of the Holy Grail War. Acting as a Master herself, she summoned the Assassin, Li Shuwen.
The reason Gilgamesh and Medea exploited these loopholes in the Grail War's rules traced back to a calculated move. The last head of the Matou family had died by Gilgamesh's hand a decade ago.
For ten years, Gilgamesh had woven her plan. She manipulated Medea's original Master, forcing the transfer of Medea's Servant contract right at the outset. After coldly eliminating the unnamed female magus, Gilgamesh set her sights on her true goal: constructing the Greater Grail to unleash the black mud and fulfill her long-held ambition.
She had already gathered all the fragments of the Lesser Grails from the Fourth Holy Grail War, waiting for Medea, the witch of the Age of Gods, to forge the final Grail. Everything was set, once all the Servants were defeated, Gilgamesh would perform the ritual.
But then Yuto crashed into her plans like an unexpected storm.
His interference threw her careful scheme off course. Now, with Medea on the verge of being taken by Yuto, Gilgamesh had to step in. She couldn't let the boy steal the witch tasked with crafting the Greater Grail.
Normally, the Holy Grail manifests only after four or five Servants fall. But as the sole victor of the Fourth War, Gilgamesh held an ace: the unused souls of many Servants from that conflict. Even with only Rider and Assassin defeated this time, she could still force the ritual.
"Hmph, reluctant?" Gilgamesh sneered.
She activated her Command Seal, and in a flare of crimson light.
Medea sighed, helpless, and vanished in a flash of light, slipping free of the chains. Gilgamesh nodded, satisfied, and turned to leave. But Yuto wasn't done. A dark red sword beam sliced through the air toward her back.
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