Although Artoria and Diarmuid's battle took place right in front of the hotel, Eriri had already isolated the area from the outside world beforehand.
So no matter how much noise or destruction the battle caused, it wouldn't affect anything beyond the barrier.
Diarmuid's expression shifted when he saw his ultimate move blocked so effortlessly.
A sudden sense of danger welled up in his chest. Without time to think, he leapt backward, away from Artoria.
Just as he moved, a golden slash from the Sword of Promised Victory cut through the space he had just occupied.
Had he reacted even a moment later, that strike would've left him gravely injured.
As the brilliant light faded, Avalon—which had broken into hundreds of fragments—reassembled into a pristine scabbard. An unharmed Artoria stood once again in full view.
Looking at her composed expression, Diarmuid couldn't help but sigh.
"Invincible defense, overwhelming offense... there's no winning this battle."
He was at a disadvantage from the start. His Master couldn't provide enough mana, and their Noble Phantasms were on completely different levels. A fair fight had never been possible.
"What's wrong, Lancer? Are you giving up?"
Artoria didn't press the attack. In her overwhelming position, she had full confidence in the outcome.
"Haha, of course not. A knight never turns away from battle," Diarmuid said with a laugh. "Saber, show me everything you've got. Let me see what your full strength looks like."
"Very well, then allow me to bring this to an end."
With solemn eyes, Artoria raised Excalibur above her head and slowly closed her eyes.
Golden motes of light shimmered all around her, converging toward the Sword of Promised Victory. Her body and blade were soon wrapped in radiant energy.
It was a dazzling sight, no less beautiful than Avalon's earlier display.
The tremendous magical power gathering around Artoria made it obvious—she was preparing to unleash her Noble Phantasm.
Diarmuid made no attempt to stop her. Instead, he focused all his remaining strength, readying himself for a direct clash.
Artoria's eyes suddenly snapped open, her gaze locked onto her opponent.
"Excalibur!!!"
With a mighty shout, an enormous golden beam shot forth from her sword, surging straight toward Diarmuid.
Feeling the overwhelming energy, Diarmuid's eyes widened. He knew full well that nothing he could do would defend against it.
The beam lasted for several seconds. When the golden light finally faded, Diarmuid was nowhere to be seen.
The surrounding land had also been completely obliterated.
As the attack ended, Artoria felt her magical reserves untouched—Irisviel's mana supply was simply that powerful.
Watching the battle conclude, Kayneth forced himself to approach Artoria, though his eyes were filled with fear.
That final attack had left him deeply shaken. Though he was a highly skilled magus and had become a "Color" rank—the level just below Grand—in his youth, he was still no match for a Servant.
And certainly not one of Artoria's caliber.
Taking a deep breath, Kayneth slowly opened his mouth and said, "Saber, now that Lancer has been defeated, I've completely lost my qualification to participate in the Holy Grail War. May I ask that you let Sola and me go in peace?"
Hearing that, Artoria turned to him, her eyes revealing a strange glint. Just moments ago, she had received Eriri's plan regarding how to handle Kayneth.
"Hmph, go on then. While I'm not pleased with how you treated Lancer, we're not murderers," Artoria said coolly. "Besides, Eriri never intended to take your lives."
Indeed, Kayneth's fears had always been nothing more than paranoia.
Perhaps the brutal treatment of Gilgamesh had made him mistakenly believe Eriri and the others were merciless. That misunderstanding led him to wrongly assume she would target him and Sola too.
Relieved by the answer, Kayneth exhaled deeply, finally relaxing the tension in his body.
Without daring to linger, he cast a final glance at Artoria and the nearby car, then quickly turned and led a dazed Sola away.
Now that the battle was over, Eriri had already dispelled the isolation barrier, so Kayneth and Sola were able to leave without obstruction, soon vanishing from sight.
At that moment, Artoria dismissed her armor and reverted to her previous dress, then walked straight back to the car.
Upon reentering the front passenger seat, she was greeted by Eriri's voice from the back seat.
"Artoria, you did pretty well just now."
"It's nothing. The real credit goes to Irisviel. I was only able to perform at that level thanks to her mana," Artoria replied modestly.
Though Eriri's praise made her a little happy, Artoria didn't get carried away. She understood that this wasn't purely her own power.
If her Master had been a typical magus and not Irisviel, her performance today would've been vastly different.
Before she could continue, Irisviel chimed in.
"You can't say that, Artoria. While I did supply mana, it's your skill and Noble Phantasms that truly shine."
Artoria fell silent at her words. Before she could speak again, Eriri added from the back seat:
"Irisviel's right. Even with the same magical energy, different Servants yield completely different results."
Illya and Rin also jumped in supportively.
"Exactly! Artoria-nee, you were so cool just now!"
Surrounded by such genuine praise, even someone as composed as Artoria couldn't help but feel a bit embarrassed. For once, she was left speechless.
Just then, Eriri clapped her hands.
"Alright, Lancer's out of the way. That just leaves Kirei's Assassin. Let's go wrap this up."
"Eriri-nee, are we taking care of Kirei himself too?" Rin asked, her tone conflicted.
Though in the original story she had wanted nothing more than to tear Kirei apart, he hadn't done anything yet in this timeline—and as far as she knew, he was still aligned with her father.
So while she had no fondness for Kirei, she didn't want to decide his fate so casually.
Otherwise, she would've already killed him while she was tailing him earlier.
"That's up to you," Eriri replied indifferently. "Deal with him or don't. Your call."
"Hmm..."
Rin thought for only a few seconds before making up her mind.
"Let's leave him be for now," Rin said at last. "If nothing happens in the future, fine. But if he causes trouble, I'll deal with him myself."
"No problem," Eriri nodded.
She then looked toward Irisviel in the driver's seat. "Irisviel, start the engine. Let's head to where Assassin is."
"Alright! Watch me go!"
With Irisviel's excited voice, the engine roared back to life. She spun the wheel in a tight drift and sped off in the direction of their next destination.
...
With the car moving at high speed, only a few minutes passed before they arrived at a luxurious estate.
As everyone got out of the vehicle, Rin stared at the familiar building and couldn't help but comment.
"I can't believe Kirei's holed up in my house."
Standing beside her, Sakura clutched a black rabbit plushie and looked quietly at the home she hadn't seen in months.
It had been roughly half a year since she last visited the place.
Ever since Rin had used a special invite to bring her into the chat group, Sakura no longer had to return to the Type-Moon world just to meet her sister. So, she hadn't set foot here again.
She missed it—no doubt about that.
But the main reason she stayed away was resentment over Tokiomi's decision to adopt her out to the Matou family.
Now, though, most of her bitterness had faded. What remained was a simple difficulty in facing the past.
After all, she was only six years old. Normally, kids that age were still innocent and unaware of the world.
Even though her exposure to supernatural power had matured her far beyond her years, she still found herself yearning for her parents' love.
Sensing her sister's mood, Rin sidled up to her.
"Sakura, let's go to the Zenjou house tomorrow and bring Mom back with us. She'll be so happy to see you. I know you've missed her too. And I've been keeping it secret from her that you're alive this whole time... she's been really sad."
As Rin spoke, the image of their gentle mother came to Sakura's mind.
Scenes of her time with their mother flashed before her, bringing a smile to her face.
She was about to agree, but before saying anything, she instinctively glanced at Eriri—as if asking for permission.
Eriri noticed and instantly understood. She smiled and nodded.
With her approval, Sakura turned to Rin and happily nodded in agreement.
It was clear just how much she relied on Eriri—her status in Sakura's heart had already surpassed even that of her real parents.
Without lingering at the gate, the group opened it and strolled into the estate like they were on a sightseeing trip.
...
Under the night sky, the Tohsaka residence was mostly shrouded in darkness. Only one part of the house glowed with a warm orange light.
But the darkness didn't hinder their vision at all. Everything in the courtyard was clear to them.
After growing used to the elegant villas of the Saekano world, the garden of the Tohsaka estate held little interest for Eriri and the others. Naturally, no one stopped to admire it.
Soon, they had crossed the yard and arrived at the double doors of the two-story main house—the only part of the building still lit.
Eriri casually pushed open the front door, and the group sauntered inside.
Following the dim lighting, the group quickly made their way into the spacious living room on the first floor of the mansion.
There, two figures were seated: Tokiomi Tohsaka, holding a glass of red wine, and a stone-faced Kirei Kotomine.
Even though he had withdrawn from the Holy Grail War, Tokiomi remained as committed as ever to living with elegance.
Moreover, he had already learned the truth about the Holy Grail from Rin. So while he felt a measure of disappointment, it wasn't overwhelming.
That disappointment was far outweighed by the pride and relief he felt from seeing Rin's extraordinary strength.
And with Sakura's future now secured in the best possible way, his overall mood was quite good.
As soon as he saw Eriri and the others enter, Tokiomi immediately rose from the sofa and respectfully walked forward to greet them.
Kirei, expressionless as ever, also stood and followed, taking his place beside his mentor.
"Lady Sawamura, welcome. My disciple and I have been expecting you," Tokiomi said with a deep bow.
"Oh? So you already know why we're here," Eriri replied with amused interest.
Then she nodded to herself. "Well, I suppose that's only natural—it's not exactly a mystery."
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