Fate/Magus Path

Midnight.

The Forbidden Area of the Gravekeeper Village.

"This is the forbidden area of the Gravekeeper family. There are indeed quite a few special spirits here. However, they are all low-tier minions that can only rely on their numbers to create trouble for intruders."

Raising his hand, he released magical energy, dispersing a large wave of approaching ghosts, and the group continued deeper into the area.

The scene before them looked like something out of a tomb-raiding drama; the narrow underground corridor was filled with strange mist, combined with the eerie presence of ghosts and graves, creating a truly terrifying atmosphere.

Roy led the three others, moving in a formation with one in front and three behind, along the path paved with green stone bricks.

Bersac couldn't help but twitch his eyelids at such a violent method of intrusion.

These special spirits had existed here for over a thousand years, and the long passage of time had worn away their intelligence.

Although the individual strength of these ghosts was not strong, their sheer numbers were frightening. These special spirits were transformed from the beings that had died on this land.

The accumulation of soul bodies over fifteen hundred years was like a swarm of ants; confronting such a large scale of ghosts in such a narrow passage was extremely dangerous.

Even Bersac, as a gravekeeper of the village, would bring special lanterns and potions to disperse the spirits every year when entering the forbidden area to avoid direct combat with them.

Not long ago, after Gray arrived, he led the group into the forbidden area.

However, the situation in this forbidden area was not as calm as Bersac had described.

As soon as they entered the tunnel, they encountered a large swarm of ghosts. Before he could use the special lantern for dispersing ghosts, Roy had already released magical energy, shattering clusters of ghosts. Note that he simply used magical energy to crush them.

His endless magical power and potent magic elements were extraordinarily fierce; thousands of magic circuits operated simultaneously, lighting up the starlight. He walked in front, and his green mystic eyes emitted a sparkling glow in the mist, precisely controlling the terrifying amount of magical energy and compressing it to a designated range. Any ghost approaching from the front would be crushed directly by the swirling magical energy released.

The Mystic Eyes of Soul Binding was a jewel-rank mystic eye with special effects against spiritual entities.

Faced with these eyes, no matter how many ghosts came, they could not cause effective harm to Roy. Instead, the moment these spirits were gazed upon, they would lose their ability to resist, becoming obedient lambs ready for slaughter.

Within a few breaths, countless ghosts disappeared. The originally aggressive spirits began to flee in panic, and many others, unable to escape in time, were shattered, dissipating into spirit particles within the area.

"It's so terrifying…"

Seeing the ghostly swarm being continuously crushed by the magical vortex, Gray pulled her gray hood over her head, clutched her master's clothing, and curled up behind the old gravekeeper.

Having been in contact with ghosts all this time as a gravekeeper, she had never seen anything like this, and the scene before her frightened her significantly.

"It's alright, Gray. He controls his power very precisely; he won't harm us."

The old gravekeeper put away the lantern and reached out to pat Gray's head, offering her comfort.

He hadn't seen a scene like this in so long, and the shock he felt wasn't much less than Gray's.

However, he could understand Roy's intentions.

So, he sighed and said to Gray, "There's no longer a need for this forbidden area to continue existing. If we don't deal with the ghosts hidden inside and allow them to escape, it could cause a major disaster. Solving this in one go actually helps us a lot."

"Is that so…"

Upon hearing her master's words, Gray looked weakly at Roy, who was sweeping through the front of the group.

Her impression of this man grew with more understanding.

Gentle, powerful, huh…

"Artoria, what's the deal with this companion you brought?! His power is so strong! Even in our time, I've never seen such a ferocious magus! And this astonishing magical power... could he also be a dragon breed? How can such a terrifying magus still exist in this era?!"

Add in the cage was also shouting noisily, which made Artoria's brows furrow slightly.

Since the moment he met Artoria, Add had been making a fuss.

At first, Artoria was a bit puzzled by this metal lifeform that suddenly called out her real name. Because of the drastic change in tone and appearance, she hadn't recognized Add as her sworn brother... Sir Kay... immediately.

In a panic, Add, to prove his identity, started babbling about Artoria's embarrassing childhood stories in front of everyone.

So, as he rambled on about how Artoria caused a ruckus at her father's estate as a child and played knight games with him, later becoming a knight and doing those silly things.

Gray noticed that the cage containing Add had been snatched away by Artoria at high speed, and she held it tightly in her hands.

Artoria spoke slowly, "Alright, Kay, I already know it's you."

"You're still as noisy as ever after such a long time. If you don't want to die again, could you please shut your mouth?"

*Crack*

It sounded like a metal breaking, along with Add's wailing.

"Ah! It hurts, it hurts! Stop, Artoria, I'm going to be crushed! I don't remember training you to be this strong! Merlin, yes! It must be Merlin's fault!!"

"Gray! And that guy over there! And the old man, hurry and save me! I'm really going to be crushed; don't just stand there and watch!!"

Hearing Add's cries for help, Bersac glanced at the fuming king of knights and silently shook his head, choosing to ignore it.

He wouldn't get involved in the matters between King Arthur and Sir Kay.

'Not worth it. I'll take my leave; good luck to you, Sir Kay.'

"Be quiet, Sir Kay."

Artoria frowned, scolding Add, and increased her grip slightly.

"Add, is he going to be okay?"

The soft-hearted Gray couldn't help but worry upon hearing Add's painful cries.

Although Add often spoke without thinking, getting into trouble for his comments, over time, Gray had long regarded him as a partner. Seeing him in such pain, she tugged at Artoria's sleeve, asking her to let Add go.

Upon hearing Gray's request, Artoria's heart softened. She released her grip on Add and handed him back to Gray.

In a gentle tone, she said, "Sir Kay, if you dare to bring up such things again next time, I won't hold back."

"N-No, I won't dare! I promise not to mention the time you stole your father's sword to play with, Artoria."

Add, having narrowly escaped a disaster, hurriedly assured her.

"Kay!!"

Artoria had no intention of letting him off this time. She took Add back from Gray and gave him a good beating.

As for the interactions among the other three, they gradually became harmonious... perhaps, just perhaps…

"Well, isn't this a good interaction? With someone as interesting as Kay acting as a mediator, I believe Artoria and Gray will be able to communicate better."

Roy smiled as he looked back at the group gradually mixing together, breaking the oppressive atmosphere.

Without interrupting the exchange between the two girls who looked alike, Bersac quickly quickened his pace to walk beside Roy, carefully maintaining a safe distance.

Getting too close would risk being crushed by that overwhelming magical power.

The two moved ahead, clearing the path.

"It really is an interesting place."

After walking for about thirty minutes, Roy glanced around at the unchanging green stone tunnel, beginning to ponder the oddities of this place.

Is it really moving forward, or is it a loop?

"It's like a snake biting its own tail, where the head and tail correspond, maintaining a special cyclical pattern."

Then Roy glanced at Bersac and asked, "When you came and went here, did the scenery and structure remain the same?"

"What do you mean?"

"The changes around us... not only the patterns of the green stone slabs but also the degree of weathering... are maintaining an eerily unchanged form."

"No, I find it very strange as well. Actually, when entering the forbidden area this time, I suddenly felt something unusual."

Bersac shook his head and said, "According to the customs of the gravekeepers, I enter the forbidden area once a year. Although the path to the forbidden area is long, we still have about fifteen minutes of walking to go based on time."

"However, this time feels very strange. I also have the illusion of going in circles. But this is a one-way path, so getting lost shouldn't happen."

"Is that so? It seems you're also…"

With his green eyes accurately capturing everything around him, Roy nodded silently and then provided an answer to Bersac's confusion.

"Do you know? We have already walked fifteen kilometers, and the changes in scenery have experienced five cycles. Almost every time we walk three kilometers, we get trapped in a cycle."

"At one point, I tried to use magical energy to leave some marks on the walls to indicate our route, but they all disappeared during the process of walking. So, this space has been tampered with, and the methods used are quite sophisticated."

"Are you saying that someone entered the forbidden area before us and did something here?!"

Upon hearing this, Bersac was shocked.

"Yes, the bounded field here is very clever. It is certainly not a simple closed-loop pattern; it could be a combination of a mobile, pieced-together special type of bounded field. Of course, there is also a possibility that it is a large bounded field."

"However, that possibility is low. After all, maintaining a large bounded field requires an enormous amount of magical energy. But this bounded field gives me the impression that it hasn't reached the level required to form a large bounded field."

"So what should we do? Should we return the way we came and think of a long-term solution outside?"

"No, that would be too troublesome, and we are already lost. Even if we go back, it would be difficult to find the entrance again."

"However, you need not panic. Although the special bounded field here is clever, it is not difficult to break. There are probably two methods."

As Roy explained, he reached out to touch the wall.

"The first method is the most formal, the entrant needs to have knowledge of bounded fields, carefully analyze the details about this bounded field in this passage, locate the bounded field nodes, and then wait for the opportunity to shatter them."

"However, among us, there certainly isn't a skilled magus well-versed in bounded field magecraft, so we can't use that. As for the second method…"

As Roy spoke, the palm of his hand that was touching the wall began to exert force. His five fingers pressed against the nodes of the wall, causing cracks to suddenly appear all over the tunnel. The entire passage began to collapse rapidly as if the very heavens and earth were crumbling.

He smiled and said, "Using magical power that far exceeds the bounded field's tolerance, or an attack spell powerful enough, or the destructive Noble Phantasm of a Heroic Spirit to shatter it directly is also a viable method."

"For example, just like what I'm doing now... breaking the rules of this bounded field with absolute strength!"

*Boom!*

*Boom!!*

The continuous sounds of explosions echoed throughout the tunnel, with walls, ceilings, and everything around them collapsing at a terrifying speed.

The falling green stone slabs and debris rained down like a storm, the terrifying momentum suggesting that they could be buried underground at any moment.

"The tunnel is collapsing?!"

Artoria watched the collapsing tunnel warily.

"Add, what on earth is happening? This is terrifying."

Feeling the violent shaking of the tunnel and the green stone slabs falling in front of her, Gray hugged her head, her face pale with panic.

"Ahhh!! I don't know what's happening either! What kind of foolishness did you get into?! At this rate, we'll all be buried alive!!"

"It's nothing, just choosing the simplest method to break it." 

"Are you crazy?! The bounded field is indeed broken, but we haven't gotten out yet!!" Add shouted anxiously.

"Calm down, there's still a way." Roy reassured the panicking group. He exchanged a glance with Artoria and then spoke.

"The special bounded field that trapped us has been shattered. It will take some time before it fully collapses. Right now, we just need to rush out before the tunnel collapses."

"As for the specific direction, going forward leads to the endpoint, while going back returns us to the starting point."

Hearing Roy's absurd suggestion, Bersac felt speechless and began to complain internally, "Isn't your so-called solution a bit too brutal? You blew up the forbidden area directly; how are we supposed to get out after entering?"

But before he could ask further, Artoria no longer hesitated. She picked up Gray and, amidst her startled cries, dashed out quickly.

"Eh?!!"

Leaving behind Gray's surprised exclamation.

Since Artoria's body was too petite, carrying someone as large as Bersac would be a bit strenuous, so he entrusted the task to Roy.

Although the old man looked fit and capable of running on his own without issue, to prevent the possibility of him falling behind, Roy decided to carry him.

*Boom!*

The speed of the tunnel's collapse increased. Seeing this, Roy wouldn't allow him to refuse; he directly picked him up and then activated his limb-reinforcement magecraft. Coupled with his special physical qualities, he burst forth with agility that rivaled that of the heroic spirit Artoria.

Roy glanced back at Bersac and calmly said, "Hold on tight; we're about to accelerate."

Then, Roy steadied his footing and sped out.

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