IBHJ Chapter 966

"Crack crack crack—"

The Command Seal flickered and vanished in an instant, as if activated by an unseen force. At the same moment, four beams of brilliant light, radiating immense power, emerged from the mud tide, dispersing the surging mud.

"Who?"

"...Is it those fools from the Pure Land?"

"No," the Lord of Salvation quickly denied as it made the surging mud tide engulf those rays of enlightened light with immense power, directly assimilating them into the pitch-black mud. However, this brief respite allowed Artoria to avoid one attack from the mud tide.

But having avoided one attack, how could she avoid a second?

Looking at the second surging mud tide, her muscles tensed, her grip tightening on her sword as she gritted her teeth.

This time, there would be no unexpected help.

The realization hit her like a physical blow. The contract between the Enlightened One and Shirou had ended, severing her last lifeline. She was truly alone now.

"Put down my vessel!" the mud roared.

Artoria's jaw tightened as she glanced at the unconscious Shirou. A fierce determination blazed in her eyes. She had to get him out, no matter the cost.

But as the mud tide surged around them, reality set in. Resolve alone wasn't enough. The old saying "where there's a will, there's a way" rang hollow in her mind. The world, she knew, had no shortage of failures – of those who tried and fell short despite their best efforts.

'What can I do?' The question burned in her mind, desperation creeping into her thoughts.

Suddenly, Kiara's voice broke the silence. "My skill! I can use it to pull them out!"

Hope flared for a brief moment, only to be extinguished by Morrigan's anxious reply. "It won't work. You can't break through the surface of the mud tide. If you can't do that, there's no way to reach them."

Kiara's face fell. "There has to be something we can do!"

Shirou and Artoria were trapped, like filling inside a bun. If they couldn't tear open the bun, the filling couldn't escape.

But how to tear open the Lord of Salvation's mud tide? What power could stand against such a force?

"Ah—!"

Ayaka clutched her head, her face contorted in pain.

"Ayaka!" Kiara's voice filled with worry as she reached for her friend. "What's happening to you?"

The others looked on, helpless and confused. With Shirou and Artoria still trapped and Ayaka now in distress, the situation seemed to be spiraling further out of control.

Suddenly, Ayaka's body went rigid. Another cry, sharper this time, escaped her lips. In an instant, her form erupted with light, blazing as bright as the midday sun. The others shielded their eyes, momentarily blinded by the intensity.

"Look!" Morrigan shouted, pointing towards Ayaka.

A beam of concentrated mana shot out from Ayaka's glowing form, lancing directly towards the roiling mud tide. The air crackled with power, heavy with the scent of ozone.

For a heart-stopping moment, nothing happened. The beam, despite its obvious power, seemed to have no effect on the Lord of Salvation.

But then—

"There!" Kiara gasped, her keen eyes catching what the others had missed.

Where the beam touched the mud, a small hole had formed. It was tiny, barely noticeable, but definitely there.

"Pull them out," Ayaka said with an unnaturally calm voice.

Kiara felt a chill run down her spine. Something was off, terribly off. She stared at Ayaka, her body tensing on its own. The pain that had twisted Ayaka's face moments ago was gone, vanished without a trace. But it was Ayaka's eyes that really set off alarm bells for Kiara. They were clear as a cloudless sky, almost unnaturally bright.

Seeing Kiara staring blankly at her, Ayaka frowned, "Why are you just standing there? Hurry! I can't do this again!"

"Oh! Right!" Kiara shook her head, forcing herself to focus.

Without wasting another second, she summoned her power. A pair of pale hands shot from her, plunging into the mud tide through the tiny gap. She felt around blindly, heart pounding, until—

"Got them!"

Her ghostly fingers closed around familiar forms. With a grunt of effort, she yanked back, pulling Artoria and Shirou free from the darkness.

"I did it!" Kiara's face lit up with relief. She spun around, grinning. "Ayaka, we—"

The words died in her throat. She was surprised to find that Ayaka had already fainted and collapsed on the ground. She looked as if she had been dehydrated, her face pale and covered in cold sweat. She rushed over to help her up.

"Shirou...!"

Morrigan's voice cracked as she scrambled over to him, her hands shaking as she reached out.

Artoria was already there, cradling Shirou's head in her lap. Her face was filled with exhaustion, but her eyes never left him. "Don't worry," she said softly, her fingers gently brushing his hair. "He's fine."

Morrigan pulled back, her gaze darting between Artoria and Shirou. Her expression was a storm of emotions - relief, concern, and something deeper, more complicated. She opened her mouth as if to speak, then closed it again.

As Shirou and Artoria emerged from the darkness, the mud tides convulsed violently. Like vampires caught in sudden sunlight, they recoiled and slowly began to recede. The brilliant aura surrounding Shirou and Artoria dimmed, its power seeming to push back against the Lord of Salvation's will.

The remaining mud flowed together, swirling into a small, ominous vortex. Through it, the Lord of Salvation's gaze fell on them. The image flickered, growing fainter with each passing moment.

"All things... becoming one with me... that is... the true salvation..."

Its gaze settled on Shirou, a flicker of something unreadable passing through its eyes. "Fujimaru Shirou... I'll remember."

With those final words, the Lord of Salvation slowly closed its eyes. The vortex, along with the last remnants of the mud tides, faded into nothingness, leaving behind an eerie silence.

Kiara let out a long, shaky breath. "It's over,"

She shuddered, her mind still reeling from their encounter. "The Lord of Salvation... that power was... overwhelming. Even Demonic Bodhisattva seems tame in comparison."

"No," Artoria said, clenching her fist. "It's just beginning."

That was the Lord of Salvation, the very reason Heroic Spirits existed, the entity the Council wanted to free, and Chaldea's greatest enemy.

She looked down at Shirou, her expression softening as she gently stroked his face. Despite the gravity of the situation, a small smile tugged at her lips. "Let's go back first. It's a good time for the King to have a good sleep."

...

— It's time to wake up.

A voice, soft yet insistent, drifted through the haze of Shirou's consciousness.

His eyes fluttered open, but instead of the world he expected, he found himself adrift in a sea of clouds. A figure, hazy and indistinct, hovered before him.

"Who are you?" he asked.

— You've forgotten me, but I haven't forgotten you, Fujimaru Shirou, visitor from outside.

"Who are you?" he asked again.

— I am the ghost of the past, my name is Tethys.

The hazy figure said.

"You're Tethys? Was it you who gave me the vortex?"

The cloudy figure seemed to nod, its form rippling like water.

— Yes. And you've finally met It, met that ghost of the past. It has caught your hands and feet, but remember, never fall into Its absolute evil, or you'll find it hard to return.

Tethys's voice grew fainter, the words echoing as her figure began to recede into the misty distance.

"Wait!" he shouted. "I still have so many questions!"

He lunged forward, trying to grab Tethys's fading form. But no matter how hard he ran, she remained just out of reach. The distance between them seemed to stretch impossibly, defying the laws of space.

His heart pounded as he pushed himself harder, his fingers clawing at wisps of cloud that slipped through like smoke. It was like chasing after the truth - always one tempting step away, yet impossibly distant. No matter how fast he ran, how far he reached, the answers kept slipping away.

— Remember, never succumb to its absolute evil, or you'll find it hard to return.

The final voice lingerred in his mind, then everything faded like smoke in the wind. There was nothing left.

"How can I find freedom?" He murmured. "How can I obtain the future?"

But no one answered. It was a question no one could answer for him.

"Freedom..." His legs gave way, and he crumpled to the ground that wasn't there. There was no path forward, only a blinding whiteness; no path back, only a suffocating darkness. Nothing in any direction. He couldn't find the way to the oasis.

"How...how can I find freedom?" he murmured again.

Suddenly....

"Mom, Mom, wake up, wake up—"

A tearful voice rang in his ears.

Shirou's mind snapped back to his body as someone shook him. Fighting against the fog in his head, he pried his eyes open. The world swam in a blur of colors and shapes, then slowly came into focus. A tear-stained face filled his vision.

"Mordred..." He weakly lifted a hand, resting it on her head, but he lacked the strength to even brush her cheek.

"Mom!" Mordred's face lit up, pressing into his hand.

The physical contact disoriented him for a moment. So, he was still alive. He hadn't become a monster of absolute evil?

"You're finally awake." Artoria approached, concern written all over her face.

He nodded, wanting to speak, but exhaustion overwhelmed him. He didn't have the energy to even form words.

"All of you, get out. Mom needs peace and quiet!" Mordred declared.

"But she needs someone to look after her," Artoria argued, gesturing towards the bed.

"You'll all just get in the way and hurt Mom, especially you. You're an expert at hurting Mom, so I'll take care of Mom by myself."

With a series of sharp gestures, she herded Artoria and the others out, slamming the door behind them.