Chapter 998

【It was truly heaven's protection; this trip actually allowed him to just barely dodge Archer's strike.】

【But as a price, he rolled down the stone stairs with a "thud" and didn't stop until he reached the middle platform.】

【Already seriously injured, he had taken a terrible fall this time.】

【But just then, he fell at the feet of the King and Kojiro; the two who were dueling turned their heads in unison upon hearing the sound.】

Caules: "Hiss, just looking at that hurts."

Tohsaka Rin: "Can this be considered being saved?"

Fiore: "No, although he didn't die under the other party's blade, after being tossed around like this, it feels like he won't survive either."

Amakusa Shirou: "That's right; judging by the amount of bleeding, there's no saving him now."

【"Shirou! Hang in there! Damn it, having suffered such a serious injury, did you actually fall down from the stairs?"】

【Seeing that it was Emiya Shirou, the King immediately abandoned Kojiro and hurried to pick him up.】

【Looking at the wound on Emiya Shirou's back that had been torn open, and his pale face from blood loss, Artoria was very anxious.】

【However, she didn't know healing magic either.】

【Anxious, she didn't notice that after she picked up Emiya Shirou, some yellow particles emerged from his body, successfully hanging onto his life.】

【It was Avalon; this scabbard had saved Emiya Shirou's life once again.】

Zabiko: "Saved by Avalon again; this thing really is a divine artifact."

Gao Wen: "That goes without saying. If it hadn't been stolen by that woman Morgan back then, the King definitely wouldn't have died in the end!"

Mordred: "..."

Artoria: "Enough, Sir Gao Wen; let's not talk about the past anymore."

【"Uh..."】

【Emiya Shirou gradually regained his senses and opened his blurred eyes; the first thing he saw was the worried King, and the unknown Servant behind her.】

【To save him, she actually ignored her own back, putting herself in such a dangerous situation!】

【"C... careful, Saber..."】

【Emiya Shirou hurriedly warned, wanting the King not to worry about him and to face the enemy immediately.】

【Artoria, however, didn't care about that much; she activated the power of Invisible Air, used the wind to bind the wound, and at the same time pressed down hard on the bleeding area with both hands to slow the blood flow.】

【The effect was obvious; Emiya Shirou's blood loss was becoming less and less.】

【"There's still time; according to Shirou's recovery speed, as long as we turn back immediately..."】

【Artoria only then breathed a sigh of relief and at the same time remembered her own situation.】

【Turning around to look, Sasaki Kojiro was just standing there nonchalantly.】

Lancer: "You didn't take the opportunity to launch a sneak attack? Are you really an Assassin?"

Caretaker: "I am a swordsman; although I don't know why I became an Assassin, I don't like this kind of behavior of taking advantage of others' precarious situations."

【Artoria: "Assassin, why don't you attack me?"】

【"That would be unromantic; no one can break a flower in an instant."】

【Kojiro smiled: "Nothing, I was just mesmerized. Although the expression when fighting for one's life is good, the anxious look when thinking of one's master is also hard to part with, so I couldn't help but focus and appreciate it."】

【Having said that, he put away his long sword, indicating that today's battle was over.】

【"Tonight has been very enjoyable; I shall take my leave now."】

Lancer: "Hahaha, he actually has quite a bit of class."

Artoria: "Kojiro, you have the potential to be a knight."

Caretaker: "Hahaha, spare me; knights and all that."

He couldn't stand the rigid rules and regulations of knights.

【"What? Are you going to let us go, Assassin?"】

【Artoria looked at Sasaki Kojiro in surprise.】

【She had a seriously injured Master by her side now; logically speaking, this was the best time to defeat her.】

【Kojiro: "That's right, as long as you promise that you will finish this battle, I will let you go. It would be too much of a pity for me if you, in your current state, couldn't fight me with all your heart."】

【It wasn't charity or sympathy, but to satisfy his own desire to fight a powerful swordsman.】

【Although he would probably be severely lectured by the mother fox after letting Saber go, it didn't matter anymore.】

【The King immediately looked at Kojiro with awe and said with utmost seriousness: "I understand, Assassin. I will definitely cross swords with you."】

【Kojiro: "A good answer. I look forward to it, King of Knights."】

Caster: "Hmph, this guy is indeed unreliable."

Caretaker: "Thanks for the compliment."

【Just as Artoria was preparing to take Emiya Shirou away, Archer charged down straight toward them, his twin blades pointed directly at Emiya Shirou.】

【Artoria didn't notice until Archer was close because the other party had completely concealed his killing intent.】

【She was also very surprised; she didn't expect that the one who wanted to kill Emiya Shirou was Archer.】

【But now it was troublesome; she was holding Emiya Shirou, and her right hand holding the sword was pinned, making it impossible to parry.】

【"Clang!"】

【However, this couldn't stump the King; she used attack as defense, and Excalibur collided heavily with Kanshou and Bakuya, successfully resolving the crisis.】

【And Kojiro also blocked Archer's path at this moment.】

【Just kidding, he had just let them go, and you come to block them—isn't this slapping him in the face!】

Archer: "Hmph, meddlesome."

Tohsaka Rin: "Kojiro, your stance changed way too fast."

Caretaker: "This isn't a matter of stance, but a matter of conviction."

Caretaker: "I already promised to let them leave; if I let this guy take action, wouldn't I become a joke?"

【"Do you want to get in the way, samurai?"】

【Archer looked at Kojiro coldly and said: "Hmph, a mere pawn of Caster, you are worthy of fighting me?"】

【"You're the one who should be saying that."】

【Kojiro mocked: "I let you in just to scare that mother fox, but you fled in the face of battle out of fear of death; it's truly disappointing."】

【So it turns out he hadn't failed to notice Archer; he had let the other party in on purpose.】

【It seems his relationship with Caster isn't very good.】

【The next moment, the battle began again.】

Caster: "Kojiro, you guy—"

Caretaker: "Hahaha, sorry, it seems our compatibility is not good."