Chapter 85: Manifestation

Morgan descended slowly onto the earthen platform, rejoining Irisviel and Kiritsugu Emiya. Her blue eyes swept calmly over the surroundings.

All the Assassins had been eliminated, dissolving into pools of black mud. Under the forced activation of the Greater Grail, that sludge gathered and began to encircle the platform where Morgan stood, like a creeping swamp.

She glanced at the Command Spell on the back of her hand. Just moments ago, she had created five clones, and to make up for the Mana consumption, had used one of the Command Spells.

Normally, with Shiomi's Mana supply and her own exceptional reserves, Morgan could easily sustain her spells and combat.

But this time, she could feel Shiomi holding back slightly. She didn't need to ask—he must have pushed himself to the limit against Gilgamesh.

Even so, as she watched her clones gradually dissipate, Morgan understood that maintaining them would now require consuming another Command Spell.

The Assassins were already gone. There was no point in wasting any more Mana.

The only surprise was how stubbornly that priest endured.

Though Morgan had to avoid direct contact with the black mud and was nearly treated as a Mana source by the forcibly awakened Greater Grail—giving Kirei the upper hand—he had only taken a few gunshots and lost the use of one arm to Kiritsugu's bullets. He wasn't out of the fight yet.

Just then, the hole in the sky erupted, pouring an even greater torrent of pitch-black matter into the lake at Ryuudou Temple.

The lake, once clear, had turned murky. Steam rising from the surface signaled the water had almost reached boiling.

"Oh…" Kirei glanced back at the gaping hole above, speaking with casual detachment. "Looks like the King of Heroes has fallen too."

There was no bitterness or regret in his voice over a fallen comrade—only cold acceptance.

"You probably don't know this," he said with a satisfied smile, "but Archer's soul is more than three times the size of a typical Servant's. With that much soul converted into Mana, nothing can stop the Grail from activating now."

Morgan raised an eyebrow and slowly lifted her hand.

"So what? It's just a sophisticated ritual. Each phase has its own countermeasure. But you won't live to see it."

As magical energy coalesced in her hand, she prepared to strike Kirei down in a single blow—then turn her attention to stabilizing the Greater Grail's anomaly.

But behind her, Irisviel suddenly gasped.

Morgan froze, halting her spell.

Whatever Irisviel saw, Morgan saw too.

A silver-haired woman in a black ceremonial gown was slowly emerging from the Greater Grail. Around her, grotesque flesh twisted and writhed, sprouting arms that waved eerily—some as if trying to touch her, others as if worshipping her.

"That's the core of the Greater Grail…?"

Kirei also turned, his gaze fixed on the figure.

Kiritsugu's voice trembled as he looked on from the platform. "Iri… what is that?"

"…Justeaze Lizrich" Irisviel whispered, staring in horror at the woman who shared her face.

If that was the Grail's manifested form, there could only be one explanation.

Justeaze Lizrich von Einzbern.

The former head of the Einzbern family. She had sacrificed herself to set the Holy Grail War in motion, and though her body perished, her will remained within the Greater Grail.

Irisviel was a homunculus modeled after Justeaze, created by the Einzberns to perfectly replicate her abilities and appearance.

"The massive Magic Circuit left behind in the Great Cave… it was all her doing," Morgan murmured, gazing at the figure in the black gown from afar.

Justeaze's dark form floated gently forward and landed beside Kirei Kotomine.

"Only four Servant souls to awaken me? Laughable. You call that a sacrifice?" she sneered coldly, her voice dripping with malice. "And you, a representative of the Holy Church—this is the best you can do?"

Kirei tried to respond—but his strength was suddenly gone. Staggering, he looked down.

A pale, sinewy hand had sprouted from the lake and pierced through his back, clutching his heart without him even noticing.

With a sharp pull—

The hand withdrew, and Kirei collapsed backward like a severed kite string, tumbling into the mist-covered lake.

Irisviel covered her mouth, choking down the surge of nausea as she watched the hand, still holding his heart, slip back into the black mud.

Kirei Kotomine—the enemy they had feared the most—was ultimately slain by the very thing they had awakened.

"Fresh hearts taste divine—but it's not enough, not nearly enough!"

Justeaze grinned with madness, licking her lips as if she'd just savored the most exquisite delicacy.

Her gaze locked hungrily onto Morgan.

As a Servant brought forth by the will of the Holy Grail, Morgan's very existence naturally stirred its craving.

"Devouring both Servant and Master still isn't enough. Now you want to consume me too?" Morgan had no intention of dying quietly. She lifted off the platform again, rising high into the air.

But being a Servant came with a fatal disadvantage—if even a single touch landed, she would be forcibly absorbed, recycled as fuel for the Grail's activation.

She needed to keep her distance, unleash destructive Magecraft from afar.

But almost immediately, Morgan realized she had made a critical miscalculation.

This aberrant Greater Grail's manifested personality wasn't some simplistic, mindless evil.

As if tearing through the barriers of time and space, Justeaze was suddenly right in front of her the moment she ascended.

"You smell delicious. Be a good girl and become my sacrifice."

Justeaze extended her hand, reaching toward Morgan's chest.

There was no time—not to cast a spell, not to use a Command Spell for teleportation. No warning, no opening. As easily as one might stroll across a garden, Justeaze could reach anywhere.

She was the ultimate predator, feasting without hesitation since her awakening—seeking to fill the Grail with the seven Servant souls it demanded.

But fate was not yet sealed.

A crimson flash split the air between Morgan and Justeaze, severing Justeaze's arm. Black blood sprayed outward.

In a blink—less than a second—a familiar figure grabbed the witch by the shoulders, pulling her away from Justeaze at lightning speed.