"Appear now, O great Pharaoh who stands between heaven and earth—Rasseum."
Braving the dazzling impact of the celestial onslaught, a colossal pyramid-like temple rose from the ground, majestically establishing itself on White Hoshino's field.
The dramatic developnt left Hoshino utterly bewildered as she watched the Rasseum ascend before her eyes.
"Huh? Why would using my Prisma Illya's effect to destroy your Spells and Traps suddenly summon sothing like this...? There has to be a limit to how unreasonable this is!"
White Hoshino smugly retrieved the destroyed card from her Duel Disk and displayed it proudly.
"Of course, it's because that set card was sothing I specifically prepared to prevent you from wiping out my back row along with my Equip Spells—my Continuous Trap Card, [Rasseum]!"
[Rasseum – Continuous Trap Card Effect: If this face-down card leaves the field due to an opponent's effect, you can activate this effect. Special Summon 'Heroic Spirit – Ozymandias' from your Extra Deck, ignoring summoning conditions.]
"So while your Prisma Illya destroyed all of my Spell and Trap Cards, it also removed Rasseum from the field..."
White Hoshino solemnly drew a card from her Extra Deck and placed it onto her Duel Disk.
"If even my temple has been razed to the ground, then I have no choice but to fight with all my might! Special Summon—[Heroic Spirit – Ozymandias]!"
[Heroic Spirit – Ozymandias ★★★★★★★★★★ (Level 10)][LIGHT][Spellcaster/Fusion/Effect][ATK 3000/DEF 3000]
"Hahahaha! As expected of you, Master! Even my sacred temple, you destroyed without hesitation!!"
Ozymandias burst into maniacal laughter as his golden eyes glead with a sharp, piercing radiance.
"If anyone else had committed such an act of utter disrespect, they would have been evaporated on the spot. But since the culprit is you, Master, I suppose I have no choice but to demonstrate the true magnanimity of a Pharaoh!"
"Hahahahaha!"
Even Gilgash Alter suddenly joined in with his own crazed laughter, creating a chaotic, double-layered cacophony that rang in Hoshino's ears.
"Sun King! That rusty, outdated temple of yours should have been torn down ages ago! You should follow my example and leave behind elegant records and monunts instead!"
…Gil, your abstract stone tablets hardly qualify as "elegant records."
"When Ozymandias is Special Summoned from the Extra Deck, I can activate the Field Spell Rasseum Tentyris from my Deck!"
Pointing toward the majestic temple that had already risen on the battlefield, White Hoshino activated her hidden trump card with a victorious smirk.
The mont Pegasus saw this card—designed years ago based on ancient Egyptian relics—he was struck speechless.
"A Field Spell crafted from the stone tablets of Ramses II's ruins... Its overwhelming power is undeniable!"
"So it really is Ozy… You again? Why do you keep showing up on the opponent's side…?"
Hoshino had first encountered Ozymandias in a duel against Odion. She had thought that after thoroughly thrashing him back then, he'd have learned his lesson. Yet here he was again, daring to stand against her.
More importantly, this was the first non-Alter Heroic Spirit White Hoshino had summoned in this duel.
"How should I put this…?"
Faced with Hoshino's familiar complaining expression, Ozymandias seed to recall his past defeat and scratched his head in mild embarrassnt.
"While it's true that I am currently standing on the opposing side, the fact remains that the one who summoned … is still Master."
Hoshino's expression grew even more exasperated.
"You're a mighty Pharaoh! How can you not even recognize an imposter when you see one!? Open your eyes and look! Just how much darker has Goldy over there gotten!?"
Ozymandias glanced over at Gilgash Alter and chuckled.
"Oh… Golden One, why the sudden image change? Have you abandoned all of your extravagant decorations? Should I start calling you 'Black-Gold One' instead?"
"I keep telling you, I'm not an imposter…!"
White Hoshino placed her hands on her hips and shook her head in mock exasperation.
"Besides, didn't we already agree? The loser of this duel is the real imposter! Rasseum Tentyris's effect—activate!"
[Once per turn, target one card on your opponent's field; destroy it. This effect can also be activated during your opponent's turn.]
Raising her hand high, White Hoshino issued a bold declaration. Though it was still Hoshino's turn, a massive sphere of crackling electricity began gathering atop the temple's peak.
"Ozymandias, let tell you sothing very important…"
With an impish grin, White Hoshino whispered into Ozymandias's ear.
"Even though this is just a duel… the one who actually destroyed your temple was Illya~"
"Huh?"
Caught completely off guard, Illya blinked blankly for a few seconds before realization struck her.
"W-Wait, I'm the one who destroyed the Pyramid??"
Hoshino sighed and nodded.
"Face reality, Illya. Even if it wasn't intentional, your effect did end up demolishing it."
"B-But, it was Master who ordered to do it!! QAQ"
"Illya, in life, you must learn to take responsibility for your actions! When you've done sothing, you need to own up to it!"
Without a shred of remorse, Hoshino threw Illya under the taphorical bus to avoid taking the bla herself.
"I'm still just a grade schooler, Master! This kind of shady adult behavior is way too soon for !!"
Ozymandias' aura flared dramatically, and a surge of blinding electricity locked onto Illya.
"To think you would dare destroy my temple! A lightless one such as yourself… witness the might of the Pharaoh!"
…Wasn't this guy a little too easy to manipulate?
"Rasseum Tentyris's effect—destroy Illya!"
"—This radiance surpassing even the sun!!"
A saturated blast of lightning erupted from the temple's pinnacle, its sheer intensity rivaling a light cannon as it streaked toward Hoshino's field.
"Prisma Illya's effect—this card is unaffected by other card effects! Whether it's a Great Electric Sphere or a Great Fireball, bring it on!"
A shimring, multicolored barrier of starlight manifested before Prisma Illya, flawlessly blocking the incoming electric bombardnt.
"Oh, but my target was never that Illya… but rather the other one!"
With a mischievous smirk, White Hoshino pointed at the other Illya on Hoshino's field—the original form of Illya, utterly defenseless and trembling in fear.
[Magic Girl – Illya DEF 1000]
The crisp sizzle of electricity filled the air as the helpless Illya was engulfed by the Great Electric Sphere. For a brief mont, Hoshino could almost swear she saw the classic "shocked ani skeleton" effect flash through Illya's small fra.
"Uwaahh… my sto is go…"
Sto? Illya, you an tongue, right…?
[Magic Girl – Illya DESTROYED]
"I—LLY—YAAAA!!" (monotone)
(***)
At the sa ti, in Chaldea.
"Is it really okay to just let them keep fighting like this?" Emiya asked, his expression complicated as he stared at the screen linking the two worlds.
On the monitor, the two versions of Hoshino were locked in a fierce duel, and Illya had just been scorched black by a massive electric sphere.
Hols, standing beside him with a smirk, teased, "Mr. Emiya, you really do worry too much. At this rate, Miss Hoshino is going to start calling you a nagging mother... no, wait—Miss Hoshinos, plural."
"I just don't get it!"
Feeling like she hadn't had any screen ti in a while, Nobunaga finally seized her chance to speak. But what was unfolding before her eyes left her utterly baffled.
"Isn't that Master—the one who wrecked Chaldea—just a fake created by the Holy Grail? Like those Mini-Nobus that went on a rampage before?"
"Oh no, they're not fakes. They're both the real Master," Moriarty—who had just separated from Hols' body—grinned with conspiratorial delight.
"Think of it as a little rebellious phase between daughters. It's our job to indulge Master's occasional whims and clean up the ss afterward."
Although Da Vinci's mischievous experint had caused Moriarty's soul to fuse with Hols' body, part of it was due to the villain's own curiosity. This way, despite not being summoned by Hoshino, he could still move freely around Chaldea.
And maybe, just maybe, he'd get the chance to swipe so toilet paper from Hols' bathroom—a truly risk-free, high-reward endeavor.
Nobunaga looked even more confused. "But Master's not a Servant. She doesn't split into multiple copies based on different Spirit Origins. So how can there be two of her?"
Hols, who had been watching the screen intently, suddenly turned serious. "Miss Hoshino is indeed not a Servant. But she has beco sothing that surpasses any Servant."
"Sothing beyond a Servant?"
Moriarty picked up the thread. "Servants are Heroic Spirits—individuals who achieved great feats in life, ascended into legend, and beca objects of faith. Now tell , Nobunaga, is there any Heroic Spirit whose accomplishnts surpass Master's?"
"..."
Nobunaga fell silent, unable to give an answer.
"There isn't one," Hols said firmly. "Miss Hoshino is the one who saved the world. And not just once."
He spoke with unmistakable pride.
"She prevented the collapse of human history, defeated beings comparable to Beasts—like the Emperor Dragons and the Dragon God Realm in another world. She suppressed the spread of the 'Malefic' Paradox in the future. And ultimately, she vanquished the darkness of Orichalcos, which sought to reshape the world—using the light of hope."
Hearing that, Emiya furrowed his brows. "Even if the worlds were different, the aning of life is the sa. And yet, Master has already saved the world four tis..."
"That's amazing!" Nobunaga bead. "If Master's that incredible, does that an she'll beco a Heroic Spirit? Then we can always be together—this is great!"
But Hols' expression darkened slightly. He raised an eyebrow and turned to Emiya. "Do you think that's a good thing, Mr. Emiya?"
"No," Emiya shook his head. "Achieving such overwhelming 'greatness' can beco a burden that weighs Master down…"
As soone who had once been a re tool of the Counter Force—eliminating threats before they could destroy the world—he knew the difference all too well.
"The missions I received were about removing threats before disaster struck. But to reverse world-ending crises directly? That's sothing else entirely."
"Precisely," Hols nodded. "That's why I say Miss Hoshino is already beyond any Heroic Spirit."
"She has saved the world four tis. The weight of those deeds has built up to an unimaginable degree—so much so that she has broken past the very boundary that limits Heroic Spirits. For a human to surpass those constraints... that ever-growing greatness could beco the final straw that crushes her."
Moriarty stroked his small mustache, unwilling to let Hols have the last word. "Or rather, that final straw has already fallen. Master reached the very brink of collapse after defeating Orichalcos."
With the light of the stars, she had obliterated a darkness that had haunted the world for ten thousand years. She had severed the cursed fate binding Orichalcos and Atlantis. The sheer weight of that deed had pushed Hoshino Chiyuki to the very edge of an abyss known as the limit.
"To be crushed by her own greatness... isn't that the cruelest irony?"
Even Nobunaga—who had initially suspected Hols and Moriarty of exaggerating—now felt uneasy. There was no reason for them to fabricate such an explanation.
"What happens to Master if she's crushed?"
"I don't know."
Hols didn't hesitate.
"This situation has never occurred before. If her 'greatness' becos too imnse, the world might view her as a threat and reject her entirely. Or she might evolve into sothing akin to a world's Counter Force. But all of that is re speculation."
The abyss beyond the limit was completely unknown. It might be a utopia of infinite possibility, or a bottomless hell.
"But one thing is certain—Miss Hoshino will not be able to maintain her current existence. She will vanish into a realm beyond even our reach."
Nobunaga pressed further. "But if that's true, why doesn't Master seem any different right now?"
"That's precisely where the mystery lies," Hols said. "No one knows what would happen if Miss Hoshino exceeded her limits. But at the mont she was about to be consud by that 'unknown fate,' her body reacted as if triggering a defense chanism—splitting her overwhelming soul into two."
Da Vinci had locked herself in her lab for days, frantically searching for a way to prevent Hoshino from collapsing. But even with all her genius, she had no solution.
Then, as if acting on instinct, Hoshino's body made the choice on its own.
Seizing the opportunity, Da Vinci used Chloe's Spirit Origin to stabilize Hoshino's existence.
But the other half of her soul had already slipped away—beyond Da Vinci's reach, as though it had a predetermined destination from the start.
"And that is why there are now two Miss Hoshinos," Hols concluded, turning his gaze back to the screen where the duel raged on.
"In the end, only Miss Hoshino herself can decide how this will end."
"Will one half disappear, emptying the overflowing cup? Or will the two reunite, surpass the limits together, and embrace the unknown?"
"Whatever happens, all we can do... is watch—and do everything in our power to support that girl."
(*****)
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