Guardian Spirit Lu Bu (3K)

The Reincarnator codenamed Jaken held a steel spear and wore an elaborate blue-and-white combat outfit. He had deliberately set his Avatar to look like this before entering this world, intending to mislead the other Reincarnators.

But this Mercenary Tao seemed to have seen through his identity at a glance.

A nameless unease began to rise within him. At that moment, he suddenly realized the danger. White Face had merely promised that Gilgamesh would appear behind him, but had never said when he would appear.

Bai Cangshu raised an eyebrow, the smile on his face growing more mocking. His pupils shifted as though he were a snake studying its prey.

"Tch. You’re not even a Master, yet you dare show yourself so openly before me because you want to kill me. Looks like you really are an idiot."

Bai Cangshu saw no trace of a Command Spell on the other man’s hand.

Ma Yuanzhang let out a muffled grunt but did not move. Nor did he use his Command Spell.

Jaken found this even stranger. The reason he had dared to search everywhere for Mercenary Tao and reveal himself after finding him was because he had likewise confirmed that Mercenary Tao, who had pursued White Face into this world, had indeed been turned into a Servant.

In truth, Jaken had not sensed Mercenary Tao’s aura at all. He had specifically waited here only because this was near the Emiya Residence, where the likelihood of triggering plot events and missions was greatest.

Only after unexpectedly encountering a Plot Character he did not recognize who possessed Command Spells, and hearing him order Mercenary Tao to kill someone, had he happily revealed himself.

When a Fierce Beast like Mercenary Tao was constrained by Command Spells, that was undoubtedly the easiest time to kill him.

Just as Kiritsugu Emiya had done in the original work—threaten the weak Master and make him use a Command Spell to kill Mercenary Tao…

Jaken’s right hand was steady. The spear tip pushed another inch forward, already fully embedded in flesh.

He could feel that the human in front of him had tensed and trembled all over from the pain.

"Use your Command Spell now. Make Mercenary Tao kill himself, or… die!"

His tone was icy, the command unquestionable.

Jaken kept his body as hidden behind Ma Yuanzhang as possible, but Mercenary Tao merely smiled.

Although Bai Cangshu had only met Ma Yuanzhang recently, he had a precise grasp of human nature.

The other man had summoned him without a Holy Relic, and had shown such indifference and detachment before.

Bai Cangshu judged that he was most likely another "outsider," someone lacking empathy and most of the normal emotions that humans ought to possess.

Good and evil, gains and losses—none of it held much value in the eyes of such people.

And unlike Bai Cangshu, Ma Yuanzhang did not possess great power to keep himself from being influenced by others. Therefore, he had likely been affected by all manner of factors while growing up.

He had already become thoroughly twisted and alien.

There was no shortage of such twisted people in the Type-Moon world. Bai Cangshu had read him correctly: threatening him with his life was useless.

Sure enough, under Bai Cangshu’s smiling gaze, Ma Yuanzhang raised his hand, and his Command Spell lit up.

"Mercenary Tao, kill him!"

Bzz!

Bai Cangshu instantly appeared behind Ma Yuanzhang. This was not his own ability, but an effect inherent to Command Spells, which could forcibly teleport Servants and even enhance their strength.

But neither Bai Cangshu nor Ma Yuanzhang was a true Heroic Spirit Servant or a qualified mage Master.

They simply could not bring out the Command Spell’s full effect.

Jaken’s heart jolted. He had not expected this weak Master to ignore his threat, and he thrust forward with all his strength.

Pfft!

The spear tip drove deeper into flesh, but a hand had already seized the silver-white shaft.

When Jaken exerted force, he felt his strength vanish like a mud ox sinking into the sea. The silver spear was completely immovable.

Whoosh!

The air surged at him like a wall.

Jaken instinctively threw his face back, released the spear, and raised both hands in front of himself. Blue-gray armor emerged over his body.

Bang!

A tremendous force sent Jaken flying. The moment he left the ground, he felt the armor around his elbow beginning to shatter.

Meanwhile, Mercenary Tao merely stood where he was, gripping the silver spear in his left hand and throwing a punch through the air with his right.

Jaken’s scalp prickled, and every strand of black short hair stood on end. That bone-deep fear made adrenaline surge through him in an instant, pushing his concentration to unprecedented heights.

His Strength stat was definitely above forty!

Jaken did not see Golden Flash appear from the corner of his eye, and the urge to retreat rose in his heart.

But against someone like Mercenary Tao, retreating was no easy matter.

Sure enough, Mercenary Tao’s figure blurred. Alarm bells rang wildly in Jaken’s mind, and he could no longer hold back for the sake of his objective.

Powerful spirit energy erupted from within him. The next moment, a massive figure descended from the sky, wielding an even more massive weapon.

Clang!

Bai Cangshu released the silver spear and raised his left hand. The Sky Halberd struck down violently against it.

A Blazing White shockwave exploded outward.

The concrete beneath Bai Cangshu’s feet instantly rippled outward like waves.

Unable to keep his footing, Ma Yuanzhang fell to the ground.

Cries of alarm also rang out from the more distant courtyard.

Bai Cangshu stood motionless, looking at the towering armored spirit over three meters tall. The spirit’s body was solid, and its red cape whipped wildly in the wind.

That strike had been immensely powerful, far beyond an ordinary strength-focused Reincarnator.

"Hmm?!"

Beneath the faceplate, the spirit seemed equally astonished that Bai Cangshu had remained standing and caught its blow one-handed.

But Jaken had no mind to care about that. He issued an order while rapidly retreating.

"Fengxian, kill him!"

Jaken had entered this world and voluntarily joined the Holy Grail War because he possessed a similar enhancement system that allowed him to command spirit entities.

It was the Guardian Spirit system from Rakshasa Street. Likewise, this was one reason he had been willing to ally himself with White Face.

He was not a Master, and his Guardian Spirit was not a Servant. He was not required to fight to the death in the Holy Grail War, so the risk was not too great.

But once the Greater Grail appeared in the end, even if the mana within it had now completely transformed into All the World’s Evil, that thing would still be more than enough to enhance his Guardian Spirit and grant it a fully physical form.

He had no fundamental conflict with White Face, yet even so, Jaken was still filled with lingering fear.

"Damn it, that bitch White Face really can’t be trusted…"

She had clearly promised to have Gilgamesh accompany him, yet White Face had played tricks. Fortunately, he was not the type who fought with his own body either.

As long as Lu Bu held back Mercenary Tao, he could…

Bang!

A horrifying impact erupted behind him. Jaken turned around and saw only the huge spirit with both feet planted on the ground, uncontrollably sliding backward before crashing through a courtyard wall and completely demolishing the wooden building behind it.

Mercenary Tao stood where he was, the muscles in his right arm bulging. Still smiling at Jaken, he took one step forward, and the distance of several hundred meters vanished.

Tap tap tap!

Amid hurried footsteps, the door of the house Bai Cangshu had been preparing to attack opened, and a woman holding a wooden sword ran out in a panic.

At the same time, a red-haired Shōnen in a tracksuit emerged from the other side, the crimson Command Spells on the back of his hand dazzlingly vivid.

Clack.

Amid the sound of silver-white armor shifting, a petite blonde woman in a blue dress and white armor stepped in front of the Shōnen and the woman with the wooden sword.

She clasped both hands before herself as if gripping a sword invisible to human eyes.

"Who are you people?"

Though Saber asked "you people," she was clearly staring at Bai Cangshu.

This man in a pink robe stood amid the shattered neighborhood, radiating an intense sense of presence. His long black hair danced in the wind, and an unsettling smile rested on his face.

With just one glance, Saber knew she disliked the man before her. Yet as she frowned, she also sensed that he was not entirely chaotic.

That contradictory feeling kept her from immediately attacking.

Boom!

The wooden house exploded, and Guardian Spirit Lu Bu rose to his feet once more. Bai Cangshu’s attention was involuntarily drawn to this novel spirit entity.

He licked his lips. Seeing it from afar, Jaken suddenly felt a chill run through his entire body, seized by an extremely bad premonition.

Bai Cangshu’s black hair danced behind his head in the wind. He had hundreds of thousands of Yin Spirits inside him. If he could examine how a Guardian Spirit like this worked… Ha~

The next moment, Bai Cangshu suddenly frowned, and the ground beneath his feet instantly exploded.

Almost at the same time, Saber Artoria looked up at the sky as well. She raised the long sword covered by Invisible Air before her with both hands.

Clang!

Clang!

Pfft!

Three streaks of light descended almost simultaneously. Bai Cangshu knocked aside two of them, but the final golden gleam pierced Ma Yuanzhang’s chest, where he had been stabbed earlier.

"Urgh… pfft—"

Ma Yuanzhang had not yet realized what had happened. He raised his hand, seemingly intending to use his final Command Spell, but before he could speak, blood gushed from his chest cavity.

Bai Cangshu looked up and saw a golden figure standing in the air. After meeting Bai Cangshu’s gaze, the red-eyed figure frowned.

"Mongrel, who gave you permission to look directly at this king?!"

Whine—

Pfft!

A golden sword passed through Bai Cangshu’s afterimage and embedded itself in the ground.

This sudden development shook Jaken, but…

He looked at Mercenary Tao. Although Gilgamesh’s sudden appearance had caught everyone off guard, were those three descending swords really so difficult for Mercenary Tao to react to?

Had Mercenary Tao deliberately allowed his Master to be killed?

But without a Master supplying him with mana, a Servant should not be able to remain in this world for much longer. That was the rule governing Servants and Masters. Did Mercenary Tao intend to escape this world?

A flood of questions arose, but the next moment, Mercenary Tao’s figure abruptly vanished, followed by a collision.

Then Mercenary Tao slammed Lu Bu away again. The two of them smashed through a large number of houses, thoroughly awakening the ordinary people in this neighborhood.

Your Guardian Spirit Lu Bu has been affected by the special ability Yin Spirit Possession.

Lu Bu has resisted this effect.

Your Guardian Spirit Lu Bu has been affected by the special ability Yin Spirit Possession.

...

A barrage of notifications suddenly appeared before Jaken. Realizing something was wrong, he disregarded the possibility of drawing Saber and Shirou Emiya’s attention and shouted aloud.

"Lord Gilgamesh, kill Mercenary Tao quickly!"

Gilgamesh looked down at Jaken from above, his eyelids lowered and his expression cold.

Whine—

A sharp sword plunged into the ground before Jaken.

"The next time you dare order this king around, your fate will be the same as that fellow’s."

At that moment, Ma Yuanzhang had begun to convulse, and the signs of life were fading from him.

Yet his eyes held no fear at all, only confusion and incomprehension. He brought the black notebook before his eyes, reading through other knowledge in his gradually darkening vision, then tried to use his last bit of strength to Curse Kill the only person in his memories who had refused to abandon him—his teacher, Taiga Fujimura.

Taiga Fujimura suddenly recognized the student lying in the pool of blood. Throwing aside her wooden sword, she rushed toward this student who had always been gloomy and withdrawn.

"What happened to you? Hang in there, Ma!"

In his nearly blackened vision, Ma Yuanzhang felt as if Teacher Fujimura were the only light. Once again, he saw the smiles she had shown him time after time.

"That smile… I hate it so much… Teacher…"

Ma Yuanzhang twitched twice more, then fell completely silent, becoming the first Master to die in this Holy Grail War.