IBHJ Chapter 818

A hole opened up on the snowy ground, revealing a large teleportation magic circle. Shirou looked at the magic circle, feeling a deep sense of irony. This was a secret passage left behind by Svadilfari, intended for the giants to sneak inside and invade Asgard. However, before the secret passage could be used, Loki discovered Svadilfari's identity, and Odin killed him. Later, Shirou used this very passage to save Skadi. And now, it was being used once again, this time to assassinate Surtr. This move was incredibly risky, as it hinged entirely on the assumption that Surtr had not discovered the secret passage! The outcome, life and death, and even the entirety of human history were all riding on this single point. This move was as precarious as walking on a high wire - one misstep and everything would be lost!

Yet, Artoria gambled, just as she had over 1,500 years ago when she bet that the Roman Emperor would spare her life and that Attila would not see through her disguise. And now, she was gambling everything again, and Shirou supported this gamble!

Victory or defeat, life or death... everything was on the line. Even the craziest gambler wouldn't have the guts to bet on a game with no active control. But Shirou and Artoria had placed the heaviest bets of their lives.

Svadilfari's secret passage sprang to life, and the snowy ground cracked open, revealing a magic circle entrance that led straight to Asgard.

Shirou swung his sleeve and said in a deep voice, "Let's do this!" He gripped the Holy Lance tightly and was the first to enter the secret passage. The Knights of the Round followed close behind, their breaths held, not making a sound. All that remained was the increasingly cold wind and snow, and the clank of their armor.

In Asgard, Surtr's right-hand man, Eldur, led the most elite 3,000 royal soldiers among the fire giants to guard the perimeter. "Stay sharp and be ready! This is the most important moment in tens of thousands of years. We can't afford to fail!" he shouted.

The 3,000 royal soldiers were on high alert, each of them itching for battle. They knew all too well the heavy price their ancestors and their king had paid to reach this day. It was the continuation of generation after generation, the efforts and hopes of each generation, that had finally brought their race to this point. How could they let the path of hope, woven by their ancestors, vanish because of their mistakes?

Eldur turned his head and glanced at Surtr, who was constructing the final section of the Sky Road on the horizon. He didn't believe that any human army could break through Bergelmir's defense line and invade Asgard, but just to be safe, he remained vigilant and on high alert. Eldur and his troops, patrolling the surface of Asgard, were completely oblivious to the fact that a sharp knife had already quietly slipped in through Asgard's underground secret passage.

...

With the support of a strange and mysterious magic circle, Mordred took control of Demonic Bodhisattva's mind, forcing it to ignore Shudde M'ell's attack and continue focusing on Sixth Seat. Sixth Seat's speed was incredibly fast. Even at full power, its speed alone could easily outpace the Demonic Bodhisattva's hand attacks.

However, the fact that he was dodging also indicated one thing: at this moment, facing Mordred's Grail, he had lost his absolute invincibility and could be attacked by Demonic Bodhisattva. In other words, if Demonic Bodhisattva's hands caught him and dragged him into the black hole, he would suffer immense damage. However, Mordred didn't look happy or excited at all. Instead, she grew more and more anxious as the number of Demonic Bodhisattva's hands decreased.

Sixth Seat also noticed this. He sneered, "They're getting fewer and fewer. Is it because your mana is running out, or is Kiara getting more and more exhausted?"

"Damn it!" She cursed. At that moment, Demonic Bodhisattva's abdomen suddenly glowed, and countless hands burst out, covering the sky and earth like a demonic tide. They swept away Shudde M'ell's tentacles along the way. However, just as this wave of hands was about to reach Sixth Seat, his body suddenly dispersed like mist, swallowing all the hands.

Crunching sounds filled the air, and after a moment of chewing, Sixth Seat reversed those hands, degrading them into pure mana and transforming them into magical cannons. He fired them back at Demonic Bodhisattva. Boom! The blast engulfed her and continued its momentum, shooting towards Mordred. She quickly dodged, and the cannon passed by her side, falling towards a distant iceberg, causing it to disintegrate, reduced to nothing more than a cloud of icy dust.

"Dividing the Grail's power into separate pieces and sealing away its true potential? That's a pretty immature way to use it. Playtime's over, Mordred." Sixth Seat hovered in the sky, looking down at Mordred. "You'd better use the Grail's ultimate ability while you still can. Since you've assimilated with it, you should know exactly what I'm talking about."

Mordred gritted her teeth, her hands clenching into fists. She knew exactly what he was implying, but she refused to acknowledge it. "I don't know what kind of nonsense you're talking about," she scoffed, "and frankly, I don't care. Kiara!" She turned to Demonic Bodhisattva, her eyes flashing with urgency. "Just kill him already! We've wasted enough time on this bastard."

With a wave of her hand, she once again exerted her control over Demonic Bodhisattva's mind, compelling her to attack. But to her surprise, Demonic Bodhisattva suddenly cried out in pain, her body convulsing as if struck by lightning.

"Ah, that hurts!" Demonic Bodhisattva gasped, doubling over in agony. Mordred's eyes narrowed sharply at the sound.

"Oh? Have you snapped out of it?" Sixth Seat looked at Demonic Bodhisattva, a bit surprised.

"Even if I was being controlled, don't you think you went a little overboard, senpai?" Demonic Bodhisattva shot him a dissatisfied look. "My lower parts are practically burnt to a crisp thanks to you. I can't even use them anymore." She huffed, crossing her arms over her chest. You're gonna have to take responsibility for this, senpai."

"Instead of saying such gross things, you'd better hurry up and kill the enemy that's messing with your head," Sixth Seat said.

"You have a point," Demonic Bodhisattva smiled as her body quickly returned to normal, her skin smooth and soft once more. She looked at Mordred with half-closed eyes and a charming smile. "Playing around with my mind is going too far, Mordred. You're so mean." Her smile was gentle, but her body radiated a chilling killing intent, giving off an aura of cold death.

"Oh, so you can mess with other people's minds, but no one's allowed to mess with yours?" Mordred tightened her grip on her sword, glaring at Demonic Bodhisattva. "Didn't seem to bother you when you were playing around in my head back in Romania."

"Mm, I'm just not into playing with women, that's all. But..." Demonic Bodhisattva suddenly glanced at the Grail, her smile growing wider. "That little cup of yours and Shirou's sword look pretty tasty. I kind of want them for myself."

"Enough with the nonsense, Kiara. We don't have time for games. Take her down and get the Grail back. Then, we'll let the people from Chaldea and the Giants kill each other off. If that Eternal King guy shows up, we'll take him out too! If we catch him by surprise, he's as good as dead."

Both Demonic Bodhisattva and Sixth Seat were radiating a chilling killing intent, causing Mordred to tighten her grip on her sword even more.

...

The icy winds whipped across the snowy plain as Salter charged forward on Dun Stallion, her sword held high. The thundering hooves of her mount were lost amidst the clash of weapons and the roar of giants. All around her, the troops of Eternal Kingdom surged forward, a tide of silver and steel against the towering forms of their enemies.

Salter's eyes darted across the battlefield, taking in the ebb and flow of the fight. Her lips moved in silent commands, directing her legions with the subtlest of gestures. Where she pointed, the lines of battle shifted, humans pressing forward or pulling back in perfect coordination.

As the battle raged on, Salter raised her head to look at Asgard. She could almost feel the presence of Eternal King, watching over them from Asgard. In her heart, she silently wished, "Eternal King, may victory be yours, as it shall be mine."

...

"Just as I thought, they have defenses in place!" Using black mud, Shirou observed that the underground passages were guarded by a group of giants and couldn't help but sigh.