Chapter 488: [488] Triple Noble Phantasm Combo

Under Jack the Ripper’s sudden assault, the battlefield at the Fortress of Millennia was split into two fronts—the earth-shaking battle against the giant and the mist-shrouded defense of the Masters.

Faced with this, the Servants had no choice but to divide their forces.

"Teacher, and those whose Masters are under threat, go support your Masters! We’ll hold the line here!"

"Understood. To defeat the giant, you must destroy his spiritual core in the brain and the furnace in his heart while he’s airborne. I leave it to you!"

After relaying the information to his disciple, Chiron, Astolfo, Siegfried, and Mordred turned their weapons toward the London mist and vanished into it. Meanwhile, Achilles, Karna, Atalanta, Sakatsuki, and Jeanne d’Arc continued their struggle against the giant, Adam.

Leaving aside the forces tied down in the London mist, Jeanne quickly assessed the heroes around her and realized it was time for her to take command.

She was the Maiden of Orléans, France’s undefeated legend. She had faith that these heroes would follow her lead!

"Sakatsuki! I need your help—can you unleash that Noble Phantasm of yours again?"

"I refuse."

"...Huh?!" Jeanne never expected to face such a crushing defeat where she had been most confident. "W-why?!"

"Because I’m curious to see what Adam’s complete form looks like."

With all the objectives of the Red and Black Faction War accomplished and no Artoria around to rein him in, Sakatsuki had completely let loose. Like a black bird of prey, he darted around the giant, provoking Adam into furious roars. The colossal sword swung wildly, but it couldn’t touch this tiny, elusive pest.

And Sakatsuki? He reveled in the thrill of dancing on the edge of death, his gun spewing crimson light, his eyes blazing with iridescent blue.

In short, he was addicted to the fight.

"Ahem... If Sakatsuki won’t act, my ’Diatrekhōn Astēr Lonkhē’ can assist everyone."

Achilles, long familiar with Sakatsuki’s temperament, coughed awkwardly, trying to smooth things over. "With the precision and destructive power of my spear, I’m confident I can destroy Adam’s spiritual core."

"Then I’ll take responsibility for the heart," Karna calmly accepted his role. That left only the task of lifting the giant off the ground.

Unfortunately, neither Atalanta nor Jeanne possessed the monstrous strength needed to send Adam airborne in a single strike. Servants like Siegfried, who could unleash beams of light, had already left to rescue their Masters, so they couldn’t be relied upon either.

Only Sakatsuki—the same Sakatsuki who had once cleaved through the Black Faction’s fortress with divine twin blades—could achieve this feat.

"Um, Sakatsuki?" Jeanne mustered her courage and called out again.

A sharp, murderous intent radiated from the blade of his spear, stinging the eyes of everyone present. The young man tightened his grip, his form blurring into an afterimage as he drove the weapon deep into Adam’s flesh!

The explosion’s glow illuminated Sakatsuki’s cold smirk.

"Feel the burning truth!"

"...Sakatsuki?"

Violent lightning erupted like a storm, surging from Sakatsuki’s body and drawing hidden iron sand from the earth. The particles wove together into a dark golden ring of light, spinning like a saw as it carved into the giant.

"Fighting... feels damn good!"

Anger... A visible vein throbbed on the golden-haired saint’s forehead as, under Atalanta and Achilles’ horrified gazes, she kicked up a cloud of dust with a backward step. Swinging her arm in a full arc, the holy flag in her hand transformed into a golden streak of light, hurtling like a missile toward Sakatsuki who was flitting through the air.

"Will you just listen to me for once!"

Unbelievably, Jeanne d’Arc’s furious throw actually struck the constantly teleporting young man. With a crisp "clang," the black bird in the sky lost its wings and plummeted to the ground.

Did it sound nice? If it did, then it was a good hit.

"Oww..." Clutching his head, Sakatsuki propped himself up on his elbows to avoid collapsing completely. His vision swam, and in his daze, he saw a large cat-like figure crouching before him, her beast ears twitching slightly as she gazed at him with exasperation.

"Thou truly dost cast all restraint to the wind when relaxed, dost thou not?"

"It’s Atalanta... Let me pet you." Sakatsuki shifted from lying down to sitting up, using Atalanta’s smooth fur to soothe his pain. The catgirl didn’t resist, merely allowing his hands to roam with quiet resignation.

"Normally such a composed person, yet this is how thou behavest when at ease."

"Ha, perhaps you haven’t seen my true nature yet."

Thunk. The holy flag plunged into the earth with a heavy, muffled sound.

"I say, you two, before delving into such profound discussions, could you perhaps assist us in dealing with that damned giant first?"

Jeanne d’Arc’s expression was nuclear-level kind.

"Eeep." Atalanta gulped audibly.

"Oh ho." Sakatsuki’s lips twitched impassively.

"We’ll help." They chorused.

Yet after Jeanne walked away, the pair whispered like schoolchildren scolded by their teacher, still nursing their grievances.

"Honestly, was that really such a profound question?"

"What can we do? That’s ’Human Fortress’ and ’Assault Steel Gorilla’ Saintess for you."

"Pfft, what bizarre nicknames."

"Wasn’t me who said it."

"Hmph. I believe thee."

As they conversed, they returned to the frontlines. Even Sakatsuki clearly wouldn’t show mercy to their own giant when facing a nearly berserk Jeanne. Meanwhile, the saintess had regained her dignified bearing after her brief lapse.

"Alright! Everyone time this carefully! We must eliminate this giant!"

At her command, all except Jeanne and Atalanta providing support entered their Noble Phantasm activation stances.

"—O Brahma."

With crackling flames, the divine spear formed of golden armor and indestructible blades ignited. Karna stretched midair, assuming perfect throwing form.

Seeing this, Achilles proudly raised his beloved spear:

"Go, my spear! My conviction—"

In this split-second moment, Jeanne raised her flag before the giant like a matador, simultaneously blocking its strikes while guiding it toward Atalanta’s effective range.

Yet the giant—or rather, the "Primordial Human"—was no dull creature. Though lacking combat experience, his skirmishes had already forged him into something greater.

Adam’s combat prowess was approaching a level that surpassed heroes at an astonishing rate, and the balance between Jeanne d’Arc and the giant in their sword duel began to shift.

Jeanne d’Arc—was gradually being pushed into a disadvantage.

"Ugh...!"

The giant’s fierce assault evoked images of natural disasters like avalanches or tidal waves. Or perhaps a storm would be a better comparison. Moreover, it was a "harmonious natural disaster," a precise and relentless barrage of attacks—each strike so powerful that even the slightest misjudgment from Jeanne could cleave half her body away.

This spectacle made the watching Servants’ hearts race. The giant’s strength matched its colossal frame, yet its martial skill defied its size. If it were merely brute strength, a hero could counter with finesse; if it were just skill, a hero could endure.

But the strikes of the Primordial Giant, Adam, combined both qualities, making defeat inevitable for an ordinary hero.

Yet Jeanne held on. Though she exerted every ounce of strength to parry his blows, her hands never trembled.

It was terrifying—that was what everyone present thought. But the terror wasn’t the giant. The giant was a formidable threat, but not an object of fear. What truly inspired dread was the Holy Maiden, Jeanne d’Arc—this was the consensus among them all.

If it were a Servant of immense power, it would be understandable. Or if it were a great hero renowned for martial prowess like Achilles or Karna, they might have handled it with ease.

But Jeanne, as a Ruler, was never meant to overwhelm the "Primordial Human." She was weaker than the giant in strength, even slightly inferior in technique. Now, she was merely a sapling caught in a tempest.

And yet, she stood unbroken. It was a situation akin to walking a tightrope in the dark—a single step back would mean death, losing balance would mean death, mistiming a step forward would mean death. Still, she pressed on resolutely.

Thus, she successfully drove the giant into Atalanta’s range of attack.

"Now—!"

Seizing the perfect moment with her Revelation, Jeanne took a forceful step forward, raising her holy banner with a roar—delivering a full-bodied strike against the obsidian sword.

At the same time, the huntress in the treetops drew her bow and loosed another arrow into the sky.

"Phoebus Catastrophe... Complaint Message on Arrowhead!"

The rain of starlight descended unstoppably, like the smoke signal of war. The three heroes—Achilles, Karna, and Sakatsuki—roared in unison, unleashing their most powerful attacks!

"Brahmastra... Curse of Destruction Upon Me!"

"Spear of the End, Piercing the Heavens!"

"The Horizon of Dawn that Purifies the Seas & Green Field Cutting Through the Thousand Mountains!"

This was an unprecedented—Noble Phantasm combination strike!