The Madness That Devours

Lancer's spear clashed with Assassin's scythe, sparks flying as their weapons met in rapid succession.

Lucian, standing at a distance, struggled to keep up with the battle's ferocity. Assassin was fast—inhumanly so—but Lancer was a fortress. She countered every strike, pushing Assassin back with overwhelming strength.

Yet something shifted in Assassin's posture.

She stepped back.

Not out of weakness. But because she had decided something.

Her skull-like mask tilted slightly.

"Our battle ends here," Assassin murmured. "I have more pressing matters to attend to."

And then—she vanished.

Lucian tensed.

"She ran?"

Lancer remained still, gripping her weapon tightly. Her crimson eyes narrowed.

"No," she said. "She chose to leave."

Lucian frowned. He was about to question further—but then they felt it.

A pulse.

A wave of twisting, unnatural energy.

The air itself shuddered.

Something was coming.

Something wrong.

---

Elsewhere, Saber and Alter clashed in a maelstrom of steel and flame.

Black Rock Shooter and Insane Black Rock Shooter—two warriors, mirrors of each other, yet wholly different.

Their swords clashed with a deafening roar, sending shockwaves through the ruined city.

Abyss, standing at a safe distance, clenched her fists as she watched her Servant struggle against her darker counterpart.

"Damn it…" she whispered. "She's just as strong."

Alter grinned wildly, her black hair whipping in the wind as she pressed forward.

"You're holding back," she taunted, her voice edged with madness. "Why? Afraid to lose yourself?"

Saber's blue flame eyes burned brighter.

"No."

She pushed back, forcing Alter onto the defensive.

But then—they felt it.

The same pulse.

The same twisting, mind-warping presence.

Saber and Alter both froze mid-strike as reality itself seemed to fracture.

The sky darkened.

The ground cracked.

From the distance, a monstrous, alien screech pierced the air, echoing across the battlefield.

Alter clicked her tongue, lowering her sword.

"Tch. What the hell is that?"

Saber didn't answer. She was already looking toward the horizon.

In the far distance, a storm of black tendrils writhed through the city, and an unnatural void began to expand.

Something far worse than them was revealing itself.

Without another word, Alter turned and left.

Abyss let out a shaky breath.

"Is… is the battle over?"

Saber remained still, gripping her weapon.

"No," she said. "Something else has begun."

---

Foreigner Unleashes Her Madness

Back at the battlefield, Berserker and Archer fought against the impossible.

The warped sky, the twisting space, the whispers that tore at their minds—Foreigner was calling forth something beyond human comprehension.

"This is bad," Archer muttered. "If this keeps going…"

Berserker growled, bracing herself.

Then—they arrived.

Lancer and Lucian appeared first, their expressions grim as they took in the battle.

Saber landed on a nearby building, her flaming blue eye locking onto Foreigner's expanding presence.

Moments later, Alter stood across from her, arms crossed.

Even Assassin lurked in the shadows, watching the situation unfold.

One by one, the Servants of the Grail War gathered.

For the first time, they were not enemies.

Not in this moment.

Because they all understood one thing.

Foreigner was not of this world.

And if they didn't stop it—none of them would survive.

---

To Be Continued…