The stakes driven into Cú Chulainn's body began to swell outward.
Though they were smaller and less noticeable than the others that had risen directly from the ground, they had indeed pierced Cú Chulainn's internal organs. No matter how great a hero, anyone in such a state would have their movements hindered, making it impossible to avoid the Noble Phantasm release of the Immortal Blade.
This was why Shinji declared with such certainty:
"It's over."
The pure flames of the sun enveloped his spear, radiating an incredible light and heat, illuminating the Son of Light, who had been impaled by the stakes.
Though pale and bleeding from his mouth and nose, Cú Chulainn showed no fear. Instead, he raised his spear defiantly.
"It's not over yet."
"Do you think someone like me wouldn't know how to counter the Gáe Bolg? No matter how causality is reversed, there must always be a thread connecting cause and effect. Once that thread is broken, the reversal of causality collapses."
Shinji's expression didn't change, nor did he move. Behind him, his Servant's True Form materialized and donned itself as armor.
By nullifying the effects of reversed causality, Gáe Bolg in its human-targeting form was reduced to merely a sharp thrust—insufficient to pierce the defense of his armor. Without a successful strike, the connection between cause and effect would break, making the guaranteed hit invalid.
Cú Chulainn acknowledged this assessment frankly.
"You're right. But this is exactly what I've been waiting for—Master, use the Fragarach!"
As he spoke, a gray stone orb appeared behind Bazett.
The moment Cú Chulainn gave the order to act, the orb transformed into a dagger engraved with three runes, becoming a pale blue streak of light that pierced straight through Shinji's chest.
Indeed, it went through his chest directly. Shinji's protective armor vanished the moment the dagger was fired.
It wasn't due to any fault of Shinji's. Even after his previous battle with Rin, and now fighting this duo for so long, he was still in excellent condition—he could have fought for another hour if needed.
The reason his armor disappeared was entirely due to the special properties of Bazett's Noble Phantasm, Fragarach—the stone orb that transformed into a dagger. Though it appeared unremarkable and easily overlooked, it was Bazett's trump card, a relic passed down from the Age of Gods through the Mac Lir family, to which Bazett belonged, and it had a significant connection to Cú Chulainn himself.
Fragarach, originally held by the sea god Manannán mac Lir and later passed to his foster son, Cú Chulainn's father, Lugh, was one of the legendary divine weapons. Its full name was Gouging Sword of the War God (in the Nasuverse).
When not in use, it appeared as a leaden stone orb, but when activated, it transformed into a dagger. Its effect, much like Cú Chulainn's Gáe Bolg, was a guaranteed hit against a single target.
However, where Gáe Bolg reversed cause and effect—determining the result first and then the cause—Fragarach was even more exaggerated. Its essence was one of causality distortion and time reversal! The full name, Gouging Sword, didn't just refer to the literal meaning of striking after the opponent moves but hitting first. It also rewrote the fact that the opponent had acted, turning that fact into the opponent never moved. It was this very effect that allowed Lugh to destroy the Death God Balor's fully awakened Mystic Eyes of Death Perception.
Of course, Fragarach's power came with strict limitations. To fully activate its might, the opponent had to use their trump card first, or else it was no more than an ordinary dagger, slightly stronger than a typical short sword.
In Shinji's case, Ashura's Armor undoubtedly qualified as a trump card, thus triggering Fragarach to erase it and pierce his chest.
"Urk!"
Shinji, now with a hole in his chest, spat out a mouthful of blood. His hands fell limply, and the Golden Spear he had been holding dropped to the ground, disintegrating into spiritual particles.
Then, another streak of light shot through his left chest, accompanied by Cú Chulainn's weak yet apologetic voice.
"Gáe Bolg! Your heart—I'll be taking it!"
"Sorry, kouhai, I know you have an extraordinary healing ability. If we don't finish you off, it's us who'll die—though it was that woman's demand, we don't want to die."
Cú Chulainn followed up with a Noble Phantasm attack. Conceptually, Fragarach was superior to Gáe Bolg, but its damage output was weak, not enough to kill someone who could survive something as powerful as the Jewel Sword.
Thus, Cú Chulainn delivered the final blow, aiming for his left chest—his heart. Besides its causality-reversing effect, Gáe Bolg also had a secondary curse similar to the Harpe—the wound it inflicted was cursed, making it extremely difficult to heal. Cú Chulainn used this method to block Shinji's self-regeneration.
After suffering two consecutive fatal wounds, Shinji glanced at the blood gushing from his chest, then at Lancer. He spoke in a low voice:
"Yeah, I get it. It's not just that you don't want to die—I don't want to die either. So, I guess I'll have to do what Shishou said and kill you."
Protected by the blessing of True Ancestor's Blood, his body, even with a shattered heart, still hadn't perished and retained enough strength to strike back.
His blue left eye turned gold, and the sun's flame that had not been unleashed earlier gathered entirely in his eye, focusing into a scorching beam that shattered the runic defenses of Cú Chulainn and pierced straight through his body.
The shot hit his left chest—his heart.
An eye for an eye, a heart for a heart.
You pierce my heart, I'll pierce yours.
"Lancer!"
Bazett's eyes widened in shock, her lips trembling until they bled.
She stood only a few steps away from Cú Chulainn, yet she could only stand there, helpless, and watch her Servant die.
It wasn't that she didn't want to help. She simply couldn't move. Aside from its insufficient direct damage, Fragarach had another drawback: after it was used, the user would be momentarily paralyzed. If the first strike didn't kill the opponent, the user would be left vulnerable, completely defenseless.
Shinji, having destroyed Cú Chulainn's spirit core, turned his neck to look at Bazett, his golden left eye staring unblinkingly at her. She stared back, her gaze filled with fury.
It was as if she were saying—Kill me. If you have the guts, come and kill me. Let me go with him!
But before Shinji could gather the sun's flame once more, Bazett's body began to move in a strange, erratic manner, swaying left and right unpredictably.
She was still paralyzed, but she was being carried at high speed—by none other than her Servant, the blue spearman Cú Chulainn. His nimble footwork and swift speed were completely unnatural for someone who had just suffered a fatal wound.
"Battle Continuation, huh?"
Shinji withdrew his gaze, nodding thoughtfully.
"Fine, I'll let him go. Considering how hard Brother Dog is trying, I won't chase after them. Besides, I'm not in the best condition for pursuit right now. Cough, cough… Isn't E-Rank Luck supposed to mean he always misses? Why did he hit me? Is my A-Rank Luck a lie? Ugh… This isn't the time for that. I need to find someone to heal me fast."
Spitting out another mouthful of blood, Shinji staggered forward, quietly clutching a small vial in his hand.
Not far behind him, a red-eyed crow silently flew into the sky.