Magician in Type-Moon

Page 658

Although there are several variations of the name, it generally refers to a general term for items that are natural or man-made, possess powerful or special magical properties, and can be used as catalysts and the core of rituals.

They are often ancient and mysterious crystallizations, and powerful cursed objects are used in the core of high-level 'magical costumes' and complex 'techniques', and can even determine their final 'form' and power.

They are treasures that magicians dream of, and the focus of countless conspiracies and struggles.

Mick hadn't finished speaking, and hadn't even had a chance to describe in detail what made the cursed artifact so special; he had only provided a vague beginning—

"That item contained the blood of 'something'..."

"I reject."

Matou Ike immediately interrupted him, rejecting him decisively without any hesitation.

His voice was calm yet carried an undeniable decisiveness, as if listening for even a second longer would be a waste.

The man's eyes widened dramatically, seemingly surprised by the swift and decisive rejection. He waved his hands wildly, striking a gesture of accusation that was both devastated and almost comical.

"Hey, wait a minute! Can't you refuse after hearing a few more details? This is rare information; we can at least collect it as 'information'! Who knows, it might come in handy later?"

He tried to salvage the situation by leveraging the value of the information.

Matou Ike's eyes were cold, and she pointed out the crux of the matter incisively:

"Because you're not even willing to reveal what that 'thing' actually is."

A cooperation invitation that refuses to disclose even the core terms is inherently fraught with traps and dishonesty. The other party only wants to pique curiosity with the vague concept of "blood," but is unwilling to bear the risk of revealing the truth.

"Haha! How cautious you are, Your Excellency."

Mick scratched his short-shaved hair, a wry smile on his face, seemingly giving up on continuing the persuasion.

He waved his hand, his attitude suddenly becoming quite straightforward:

"Very well then. I won't force you."

He said, sounding quite relaxed, "Of course, I don't think you'll go out and 'spread' my 'true colors' and the suggestion I just made."

“…Because of doing so,” Matou Ike replied coldly.

"This is tantamount to a disguised 'confession' that we are indeed connected to the murderer, and may even have participated in your 'dismantling' plan."

Reporting a spy's private contacts will only complicate matters and make it harder for them to clear their name.

In fact, even if Matou Ike ran out now and shouted that a spy named Mick had suddenly come to him, confessed his identity, and proposed a dangerous deal, no one would believe him.

How credible is the statement of the most suspicious person?

Moreover, given the current delicate situation where Albion has been turned into a 'living concept weapon,' Matou Ike is unwilling to easily antagonize the overall order of the Clock Tower, as that would bring even greater trouble.

Sometimes, silence is the wisest choice.

“You really know the rules of the game here—” Mick’s smile became somewhat meaningful. He said no more, just nodded. “Farewell, Lord Matou.”

His dark-skinned figure turned and walked away, his casual demeanor as if to say, "Next time we meet, I'll get a different answer," filled with an unpleasant confidence and implication.

The magic of the barrier dissipated quietly as he left, and the door closed gently.

After the human presence had completely disappeared from the room for a while, Matou Ike slowly, seemingly letting down her guard, lay down on the excessively comfortable bed, letting her body sink deeply into the soft, weightless mattress.

Just as Matouike relaxed her entire body, trying to find a moment of peace and reflection in the comfort of weightlessness—

Whoosh—bang!

A sharp whistling sound suddenly rang out, followed by a deafening crash as glass shattered!

The window, precisely struck by some high-speed flying object, shattered instantly. Countless shards of glass flew in like diamond dust, appearing particularly bright and deadly in the sunlight streaming through the hole!

However, Arcueid reacted even faster than Matouike.

Almost at the same instant the window shattered, a golden figure moved like a ghost, blocking Matou Ike from danger!

Clang! Clang clang!

A series of hard, rapid, teeth-grinding sounds clashed violently at a very close distance above Matouchi's head—the sound of sharp blades colliding at a speed too fast for the naked eye to perceive!

As the shadows of clashing blades seemed to be instantly 'split in two,' one half landed steadily and transformed into a hooded blonde girl—Arquette.

She lowered her body slightly, and her blood-red eyes, peeking out from the shadow of her hood, flashed with an inhuman, icy fighting spirit.

Her hands, without her noticing, had bent into claws that resembled sharp, deadly blades, radiating a chilling aura.

On that broken window frame, a figure blocked part of the sunlight, swaying and writhing in an extremely ominous manner.

That's definitely not human!

Its arms were unusually long, almost touching the ground when they hung down, and where the hands should have been, the fingers were completely replaced by 'sharp blades' with a cold glint and an eerie curve!

Its legs are twisted to an angle that is almost like the reverse of joints, like some kind of arthropod, providing bizarre yet stable support.

Its upper body leans forward to an exaggerated degree, almost licking the ground, in order to match its twisted lower limbs!

That's... a strange doll! A creation designed with malice and murderous intent!

"An automaton?" Matou Ike frowned, quickly rolled off the bed, and his eyes sharpened.

Seemingly realizing that its sneak attack had failed and its first strike had missed, the terrifyingly shaped automaton suddenly 'flipped' its body in a way that defied physical intuition, and leaped backward out of the window as if it had been launched, trying to create distance!

"Don't think about it!"

Without the slightest hesitation, Arcueid 'darted out' like a golden lightning bolt, leaping out of the window to give chase!

A fierce battle erupted on the lawn outside the window!

The first attack! The doll's curved legs slammed into the ground, and its blade-like arms crossed and slashed towards Arcueid's neck! Arcueid's golden claws parried precisely, sparks flying!

The second attack! The puppet twisted its waist with incredible flexibility, and its other arm blade, like a scorpion's tail, stabbed towards Arcueid's heart from an extremely tricky angle!

Arcueid dodged to the side, his claws slicing across the doll's shoulder, leaving a trail of sparks and some unknown lubricant!

The third attack! The puppet silently and suddenly 'lowered its body', landing on all fours, crouching like a real wild beast, its arms covered in sharp blades now resembling the forelimbs of a praying mantis.

It seemed to realize that the blonde girl in front of it was no match that could be easily killed.

However, even so, its next change is 'beyond imagination'!

A series of teeth-grinding metallic scraping and deformation sounds were heard, and the automaton's limbs 'further split' at the joints.

From the original bladed arms and bent legs, more, thinner, and sharper secondary blades suddenly emerged! Like metallic death flowers blooming in an instant!

Not just the limbs!

Even its face, which might have been made very 'proper' or even gorgeous, suddenly 'split' in the middle!

The skin peeled away, revealing a complex mechanical structure beneath, and—more, densely packed, red-glowing 'eyes'! They spun coldly, locked onto Arcueid!

The three heads and six arms are a manifestation of divinity in mythology, representing "all-encompassing observation and all-encompassing attainment." But did the creator of this automaton also use that legend as a "magic trick" for killing? The pursuit of ultimate observation and ultimate attack!

The automaton suddenly 'jumped up', no longer maintaining any human-like shape, but more like a 'spider' or 'mantis' made of blades. Six (or even more) 'blades' flashing with deadly cold light descended from all angles, like a storm, upon Arcueid!

Arcueid showed no fear and charged forward! Her figure transformed into a golden whirlwind, her transparent claws unleashing countless arcs of light that tore through the air!

Three rounds of attacks!

Eightfold skill!

—This is the seventeenth time in one go!

However, under the all-seeing gaze of Matou Ike's demonic eyes, the subtle changes on the battlefield were clearly visible.

The automaton's sharp blades, with their multi-limb, multi-angle, and ultra-high-frequency attacks, often "beat" the girl's movements, blocking her dodge space and counterattack path.

Arcueid's elegant and fierce attacks, which were like a dance, were gradually forced to turn into a 'defensive battle', with its golden claws being used more to block, parry, and deflect the deadly slashes coming from all directions.

“Although it wasn’t its peak period,” Matou Ike calmly assessed.

"But to be able to fight the 'True Ancestor Princess' to this extent with just pure physical design and killing program... this automaton's design and driving core are worthy of 'praise' - or rather, worthy of high vigilance."

The shockwaves and blades generated by the fierce battle between the two sides violently shook the surrounding forest trees, causing the branches and leaves to sway violently and countless emerald green leaves to fall like raindrops.

The falling leaves were also precisely cut off by the omnipresent, lightning-fast blades, turning them into even finer fragments.

The cold, crisscrossing trails of those sharp blades even briefly 'appeared' above the sunlit 'white mist' that permeated the forest, like a sketch of death.

"Hmm—"

A suppressed, painful groan rang out.

The sleeve of the girl's right upper arm suddenly 'torn open,' revealing a long, thin wound, from which a wisp of bright red 'blood' splattered out and streaked through the air.

Although the wound wasn't deep, it was the first time Arcueid had been truly hit since the start of the war!

Perhaps due to the sudden pain, or perhaps due to some strange power contained in the attack, Arcueid's upper body uncontrollably tilted for a moment, breaking her perfect balance and revealing an extremely brief opening!

The automaton would never miss such an opportunity! It immediately seized the chance to close the distance!

Chapter 683 Murder Scene (4k)

That 'blade monster,' comparable to a destructive storm, made a screeching sound from all its joints, concentrating all its power and all its killing intent into the next strike!

One of its many cold, inorganic blades, like a venomous snake emerging from its hole, slashed down diagonally in an extremely tricky 'spinning' trajectory, aiming straight for Arcueid's exposed neck side due to her loss of balance!

The speed and power of this attack far surpassed its previous ones! It was as if it had been concealing its strength all along, waiting for this moment to deliver the fatal blow!

However──

Just before the cold, sharp blade slashing down diagonally was about to touch the skin on the side of her neck, a sudden change occurred!

An invisible and intangible force, unseen by the human eye, precisely 'struck' the puppet's torso or a point of balance!

The puppet, struck by this sudden impact, visibly faltered, 'slightly losing' its perfectly calculated balance, and the trajectory of the fatal blow shifted by an imperceptible yet crucial margin!

This gap of less than one-tenth of a second was enough for the True Ancestor!

Arcueid seized the fleeting opportunity, his left leg, which had seemed useless due to his loss of balance, suddenly lashed out like a taut steel whip. Instead of kicking at the blade, he struck the doll's relatively vulnerable waist and abdomen at a tricky angle, forcefully using the enormous impact to send his opponent flying!

The doll, like a baseball being hit, tumbled and flew backward, crashing heavily into the grass about 'Digital' away, crushing a patch of bushes.

But it immediately 'stood up' using its contorted, insect-like limbs, seemingly undamaged.

On its cracked face, countless red sensor lights flashed rapidly, and its head began to slowly and unnaturally turn left and right, as if recalibrating the target, or as if expressing a kind of inhuman confusion.

Then, an even more bizarre scene unfolded—the automaton's cracked, mechanically-covered 'face' stretched its muscles into an extremely stiff, distorted arc—it 'smiled'.

Not only the main face, but also the structures that split off like additional observation points, all displayed the same eerie smile—three 'faces' simultaneously and silently 'laughing,' full of mechanical mockery and chilling malice.

The laughter stopped a second later.