IBHJ 1213

"Don't make this complicated—just kill her now!" Demonic Bodhisattva shouted.

Mikarus frowned, clearly annoyed. "I don't take orders from you, Lady Kiara."

"Do you always get hung up on little details like this? Anyway, hurry up and—" she couldn't even finish her sentence before Manaka started laughing.

"Hehehe..."

"What's so funny?" Mikarus asked with a deep frown.

"I'm just really happy, that's all. And honestly, I'm grateful to all of you." Manaka slowly lifted her head. The beautiful right side of her face, including her eye, suddenly shattered like a porcelain mask, revealing nothing but darkness underneath.

Yet somehow, she was smiling—a genuinely happy smile.

She looked just like a twelve-year-old girl who'd gotten exactly what she wanted for her birthday.

But seeing such a pure, joyful smile on that broken face was so disturbing and wrong that it left Mikarus frozen in shock.

"Wait a minute—!" Demonic Bodhisattva stared at the smiling Manaka, her eyes suddenly shrinking to pinpoints as she gasped, "Has she—awakened?"

Manaka casually stood up and brushed the dust off her dress.

When the soldiers saw her stand up, they immediately pulled out their swords and swung at her head. But before they could even get close, mud swords shot out from her back and sliced right through them.

"It won't work. Nothing can destroy eternity except Mordred's Grail. Your power has absolutely no effect on eternity..." Demonic Bodhisattva couldn't even finish her sentence as she watched the pierced soldiers dissolve into smoke right before her eyes.

"That's impossible!" she gasped in horror.

"What a warm welcome right as I'm waking up," Manaka said with a delighted smile. "You must really like me. Or wait—maybe it's my prince Arthur you're after? Such a naughty girl, too bad Arthur belongs only to me. But don't worry, your sacrifice will help bring Arthur back. Isn't that wonderful? Hehehe..."

She covered her mouth and giggled softly. More mud streams suddenly burst out from behind her, piercing straight through the soldiers surrounding her with sharp slicing sounds. The soldiers instantly vanished like smoke.

Everything went completely silent except for Manaka's laughter bouncing off the trees.

"She's a... a monster..." a soldier stammered, unable to hold back his fear.

"That's pretty rude," she said, casually waving her hand. The soldier's head immediately separated from his body and vanished like smoke.

Manaka puffed out her cheeks like a pouting child. "I'm a maiden. Someone who admires that king, who's working to bring him back, the future Queen of King Arthur."

A wave of pure terror instantly washed over everyone present.

Everyone—even the Imperial soldiers with their eternity—stared at her with absolute horror in their eyes.

The entire scene went completely silent, as if Manaka had stolen all sound from the world.

She turned toward Ayaka with an elegant smile. "Oh, you're still alive, Ayaka. You look like you're in so much pain. Come, let big sister put you out of your misery."

Her smile was bright and cheerful, but her body radiated a bone-chilling murderous intent, with sinister black mist swirling all around her.

Manaka walked straight toward Demonic Bodhisattva. As she passed by, the Imperial soldiers backed away instinctively, fear flashing in their eyes as none of them dared to stand in her way.

Even Mikarus couldn't bring himself to stop her.

"No—please don't come any closer..." Ayaka stared in absolute terror at Manaka as she approached with that smile on her face.

Nothing had ever frightened her like this—not even Demonic Bodhisattva's torture or her own brushes with death. Nothing compared to the horror of watching her "sister" walking toward her, one step at a time.

"Stay back! Stay back!" she screamed. "You monster!"

Manaka just kept smiling calmly at Ayaka, moving toward her with graceful, unhurried steps.

Demonic Bodhisattva watched Manaka coming closer and found herself frozen in place, completely unable to move.

She's woken up—she's actually woken up!

We're always just one step too late!

They should have killed Manaka before that monster inside her could wake up.

And now? Now it was all over!

Those crowns couldn't hold that monster back, and even eternity powers had no effect on her!

Now, even the Imperial Armor she was wearing couldn't give Demonic Bodhisattva the slightest comfort or feeling of safety.

But just when she thought it was all over, she noticed something off. "Wait! No! This signature isn't the true Manak—"

Manaka's eyes flashed with a cold light. Before Demonic Bodhisattva could finish her thought, Manaka flung a glob of black mud right into her eyes.

"Agh! My eyes! You... even at a time like this, you're still calm enough to put on an act?" Demonic Bodhisattva finally understood what was happening.

The monster's power might have awakened, but Manaka—this fake personality—was still in control.

It was all fake Manaka's trick!

She had used everyone's fear of her true personality to her advantage, pretending to be the monster they were all terrified of!

But it was already too late!

Manaka smeared mud over Demonic Bodhisattva's eyes, then quickly formed a blade of mud and sliced off the giant hands holding Ayaka. She grabbed Ayaka by the shoulders.

"Let's go!" Ayaka struggled in terror. "Get away from me, you monster!"

"You're not getting away that easily!" Demonic Bodhisattva, furious and half-blind, summoned a golden spear that shot instinctively toward Manaka. With a sickening slice, it tore through Manaka's right shoulder.

Manaka bit her lip against the pain, gripped Ayaka's shoulder with her left hand, and smashed her head against Ayaka's forehead. There was a dull thud as their heads collided, blood streaming from the wound. Ayaka slumped unconscious, and Manaka grabbed her limp body and ran as fast as she could.

By the time Demonic Bodhisattva had wiped the black mud from her eyes, they had completely disappeared.

"Just perfect! We had her right in our hands and she got away!" Her face darkened as she turned to Mikarus and the others. "Now do you see what we're dealing with? If that woman stays alive, that monster will eventually resurrect! And if that monster comes back, the Ultimate Evil behind it will follow—and then your Empire and even His Majesty will be destroyed! We can't afford to hesitate or overthink this. We need to use everything we've got to kill that thing before the monster fully awakens!"

Mikarus nodded. "I understand now."

Demonic Bodhisattva turned away, her teeth clenched in frustration.

She knew that Manaka's ability to resist the crowns and kill those with Eternity could only mean one thing—the true [Manaka Sajyou] was starting to wake up!

This cannot happen!

The First Vessel had to be destroyed before she fully awakened!

…

"Hmm?" Shirou frowned and suddenly looked up.

"What's wrong?" Witch Artoria asked.

"Nothing. I just felt my heart skip a beat for some reason."

"Probably just an after-effect from the Great Transfer Array," she said with a smile, then sighed and pointed ahead. "But seriously, where exactly did master Nerissa send us?"

Shirou turned to look where she was pointing. As far as he could see, there were steel ruins scattered everywhere, like some kind of massive iron graveyard.

"I have no idea. But one thing's for sure—this definitely isn't Britain." He paused before adding, "At least, not the Britain from Pan-Human History."