Shinji Matou at Your Service

The light of Brahma! The light of the sun! The light of the Command Spell! The light of faith! The light of life!

All five sources of brilliance converged into the Unfading Blade, forming the strongest strike since the battle began!

"Brahma, curse my body (Brahmastra Kundala)!!!"

With a roar, Shinji took a step forward, lowering his center of gravity. He channeled power from his legs to his waist, then from his waist to his right arm, finally concentrating all his strength on his wrist.

Just as he was about to release this strike, the Crimson Fruit, the core of the entire Forest of Einnashe, suddenly contracted and expanded, as if it were a heartbeat.

"Thump!"

The sound was faint, insignificant compared to the roaring heat of the burning atmosphere.

But to Shinji, it felt like a heavy hammer striking his chest, causing his blood to surge violently, making the golden spear in his hand deviate from its target.

"Damn it!!!"

Originally aimed at the tree's roots to utterly destroy the life source of the Crimson Core, the spear now veered thirty degrees to the left, landing among the Core's elite guard.

A small sun reappeared, and solar flames ravaged the surroundings.

The Command Spell-empowered Noble Phantasm still ensured significant destructive power, but the Crimson Core, as a culmination of blood and flesh, was no easy prey. Without a direct hit on its roots, killing the Forest of Einnashe was an impossible task. Although half of the core's roots, a third of its canopy, and a quarter of its trunk were reduced to ashes, the core itself endured.

This was partly due to Shinji's unclear command; he had ordered the destruction of everything except the Crimson Fruit, without specifying the primary target as the roots. Without a clear target, the Unfading Blade, which lacked a homing attribute, couldn't accurately strike, giving the Crimson Core an opening.

Perhaps after spending so much time with Arcueid, Shinji had adopted her trait of faltering at crucial moments—though Arcueid hadn't faltered earlier, Shinji now had.

But now, Shinji had no time for frustration, anger, or self-reflection. He was in grave danger.

The Crimson Fruit continued to pulse even more rapidly after the Noble Phantasm was missed, increasing in frequency.

Correspondingly, Shinji's heartbeat accelerated as well. The heart, which controls blood flow, sped up, causing his blood to flow faster.

Within mere seconds, Shinji felt like a living volcano, ready to erupt at any moment!

This was the power of the Crimson Core, the second-generation Einnashe's ability! As a vampiric plant, it had expanded relentlessly over eight hundred years, regularly plundering flesh and blood. The blood it had consumed surpassed that of ancient Dead Apostle Ancestors. With the blood essence it gathered, the fruit it bore naturally possessed the ability to control blood flow—otherwise, it couldn't ensure that the blood its minions gathered would all be concentrated within it.

For vampires, who rely on blood, this ability had limited utility since controlling blood was a basic instinct. However, for humans, this ability was a deadly threat. Even someone as strong as Shinji, who had trained in Scáthach's Body Control, couldn't precisely regulate his blood flow. Unless he abandoned his humanity immediately, he could only watch as his blood flowed faster, causing dizziness and impaired movement.

To make matters worse, the enemies surrounding him weren't limited to the Core. As the solar flames dissipated, vampiric plants closed in, ready to strip Shinji of his flesh, drink his blood, and consume his body.

At this moment, Arcueid and Pegasus were still in the sky, Merem was even farther away, and the vampiric trees and beasts were within striking distance. Shinji had only himself to rely on.

"I command thee with the third Command Spell: engrave the rune—Isa!!!"

Isa, one of the runes, was part of both the original eighteen primordial runes and the subsequent twenty-four derivative (common) runes, with minor differences in their inscription.

Isa symbolizes ice, representing balance, stabilization, maintenance, and the manifestation of self-will—meanings that Shinji needed at this moment.

Ice would lower body temperature and slow blood flow. The balance would harmonize the body and alleviate symptoms. Stabilization would maintain his slightly improved state. Manifestation of self-will would strengthen his spirit, reducing the adverse effects on his body.

Empowered by a precious Command Spell, the rune Isa was maximized in strength, allowing Shinji to regain his mobility. With Indra's Thunder in his left hand and the Harpe in his right, he relentlessly cut down the enemies around him.

But this state was only temporary; the magic of the Command Spell was limited, the Crimson Fruit continued to pulse, and it was gradually distancing itself from him. Continuing in this way would only lead to his death.

He couldn't afford to drag this out—there was no winning a war of attrition with a vampire. He had to overpower it quickly!

And he did have a stronger attack than Brahma's Divine Light.

"Don't make me revert to my old ways! I'm sorry, but you have to be sacrificed again. I really am sorry, but... perhaps this is my destiny. Even though I have a water attribute, I seem to have a knack for explosions."

What was Shinji's old habit? Explosions! Also known as bomb fanaticism! Because the mana used came from stored reserves within the Noble Phantasms, Shinji bore little burden, and there was no need for complex control. Given his dire state, this was the best option.

"Indra's Thunder, I'm sorry, but you're always the first to blow up!"—Boom, a mushroom cloud crackling with lightning.

"Ishṭar's War Spear, I'm sorry, you've been out of the spotlight for so long, only to be blown up as soon as you reappear!"—Boom, divine power ripped through the earth.

"Harpe, I'm sorry, you've helped me the most, but still—"—Boom, the unkillable slain, specializes in breaking immortality.

"Athena's Shield, I'm sorry, you've protected me countless times, but—"—Boom, everything in its path turned to stone.

"Unfading Blade, I'm sorry, Karna, I've let you down."—Boom, the mightiest explosion.

"Still not enough? Winged Sandals, I'm sorry, you're going too."—Boom, feathers scattered.

Shinji only had these Noble Phantasms on hand. The rest were either intangible, like the Kazikli Bey and couldn't be exploded, or lent to family and friends as trump cards for self-defense.

This limited his ability to unleash a full-scale nine-Noble-Phantasm assault like he had against Shirou, causing total mayhem. As for the higher-level self-destruct, that was even less feasible; his battered body couldn't handle it even if he wanted to. Consequently, he couldn't blast the Crimson Core away—vampiric plants combined with bloodsucking entities had terrifyingly tenacious vitality.

However, the current Shinji was no longer the inexperienced version who relied heavily on Noble Phantasms. Now, he was the man closest to achieving the Third Magic, understanding the essence of Broken Phantasm better than anyone, even more than that red-clad Archer.

Thoughts converging! Fantasies materializing! Origins connecting! Power transforming!

Next, let me show you what true Destroyed Illusion really is!