While Achilles swept away his confusion and became filled with fighting spirit, Jeanne d'Arc was left speechless in shock by the monster before her.
The monster was as large as a small mountain. At first glance, Jeanne thought it was a mountain of piled-up corpses.
What was even more astonishing was the full view of this mountain of flesh upon closer inspection.
The creature had eight arms, three of which lacked joints and bones, resembling octopus tentacles. When swung, they would likely crush enemies like whips.
Its legs, as thick as ancient tree trunks, sprouted numerous insect-like feet. This was probably because its massive body couldn't be supported by just two legs, necessitating this method to distribute its weight.
The head was almost entirely sunken into its neck, with the shoulder area protruding like the upper and lower jaws of a dinosaur.
If it weren't for her "True Name Discernment" skill informing Jeanne that this was the Red Berserker Spartacus, she would have mistaken it for a monster summoned by a Caster.
"OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO————!!"
The monster opened its exaggerated jaws, releasing a thunderous roar. This was both a frenzied outburst and a cry of pain.
To draw Spartacus away, the Red Archer Atalanta once again used her Noble Phantasm. This Noble Phantasm had two forms of attack: one to open a battle with a wide-area scattershot covering the Black faction's vanguard, and another to target a single opponent by concentrating the arrows in a compressed field.
While a single light arrow lacked the power to kill, thousands of light arrows concentrated in a small area had considerable lethality. Only those with immortality, like Karna, Siegfried, or Achilles, or those with extremely powerful defensive Noble Phantasms like "Kavacha and Kundala" or "Rhongomyniad," could escape unscathed from such an attack; others would be severely injured if not killed.
Spartacus, having neither immortality nor defensive Noble Phantasms, naturally suffered massive damage. His body, which had just been restored, was once again shattered.
This damage finally diverted Spartacus' attention from the Hanging Gardens and allowed his constantly active Noble Phantasm, "Crying Warmonger," to once again display its power. The terrifying regenerative ability, driven by his intense desire for battle, transformed his already mutated body into a complete monster.
I am alive!
I cannot die!
I must fight!
I must defeat all oppressors!
Four arms weren't enough, so he grew eight.
If his legs couldn't support his weight, he grew more legs.
If two eyes couldn't find the enemy, he grew eyes all over his body.
The more he was hurt, the more suffering he endured, and the closer he believed he came to victory—even in his berserk state, Spartacus held onto this faith.
"THERE!!!"
The five eyes on his shoulders, neck, and abdomen all locked onto the direction of the attack. His centipede-like legs wriggled madly as he advanced towards the culprit, smashing the ground as he went. The exaggerated strength brought to mind prehistoric beasts from myths and legends.
At this moment, Spartacus had lost all human thinking, single-mindedly pursuing the target that posed the greatest threat and caused him the most harm.
Atalanta, who was both clear-headed and highly knowledgeable about beasts, naturally wouldn't confront such a mindless and overwhelmingly powerful monster. She immediately sprinted at full speed, simultaneously shooting arrows at the monster to keep its attention, and soon encountered Jeanne d'Arc, who was galloping on her horse.
"Hmm? You over there, are you the Ruler?"
Atalanta's voice was as refreshing as a cool breeze, and her nimble movements were reminiscent of leaves swaying in the wind.
However, what should have been a pleasing sight instead sent an unexpected chill down Jeanne's spine.
"—Red Archer?"
Given that she had previously been attacked by a Red Servant, who she guessed was Laer, Jeanne reined in her horse and heightened her vigilance.
"You're wary of me... well, I guess it can't be helped."
Atalanta muttered softly upon seeing Jeanne's caution, then raised her voice.
"I'm truly sorry, but I'll leave the rest to you."
"Leave it to me? Wait—"
Without giving Jeanne any time to think, the green-clad girl spun in the air, darted past Jeanne like a gust of wind, and in that brief moment, drew her oversized bow and shot a powerful arrow at the distant monster.
Before Jeanne could finish her sentence, the girl had already sped away. Renowned for her swift feet, Atalanta's running speed was beyond the reach of either the now arthropod-like Spartacus or the white horse Dun Stallion.
At this moment, Spartacus, hit by another arrow, focused solely on Jeanne. As the supreme authority in this Holy Grail War, transcending both the Red and Black factions, she became his new target.
"Are you the one obstructing me?"
Sensing Spartacus' unrestrained killing intent and desire to attack, Jeanne finally realizes the situation.
"I've been set up."
She glanced upward at the Hanging Gardens, now clearly visible. Even at night, the vegetation and lakes within could be distinguished.
She was very close to her goal. What should she do?
Spartacus had locked onto her, and in this flat terrain, escaping on her own seemed nearly impossible, at least in the short term. Spartacus' current speed wasn't much less than that of Dun Stallion or herself.
Moreover, her objective wasn't to fight the Servants of the Red or Black factions but to reach the Hanging Gardens and meet the person from her "Revelation."
Should she invoke her "Privilege"?
No. The current Spartacus couldn't be restrained by a Command Spell. Unless she used two Command Spells to order his death, he wouldn't stop. However, a Ruler eliminating a Servant was generally something that must never happen.
This meant she could only buy time and wait for an opportunity.
Having made her decision, Jeanne gently patted Dun Stallion's back, signaling it to disappear into spirit form. She then loosened her stiff shoulders and raised her flag to face the battle.
Two massive whip-like arms suddenly struck her. Jeanne swung her holy flag to block and deflect them.
Two arms, thicker than both her legs combined, came crashing down like hammers. Jeanne still managed to defend against them.
However, there was another arm lurking behind!
"Ugh, ah—!!"
Her body was directly hit and sent flying, rolling several times on the ground. Fortunately, the dragon tooth warriors, commanded to kill her and continuously gathering around, ended up cushioning her impact.
As the price for breaking her fall, three dragon tooth warriors were shattered in succession; otherwise, she might have been thrown to the edge of the battlefield. It was a move made possible by the unbelievably powerful force and continuously accumulating magical energy.
But, could that be called a move?
Jeanne, having stood up again, wiped the blood from her lips. The body she inhabited—Leticia's—was safeguarded as a backup. When Jeanne achieved her goal or was defeated, Leticia's body would instantly revert to its original state and be forcibly transferred to a safe place. During this process, any injuries sustained would be immediately healed.
Therefore, it could be said that no matter how much Jeanne was injured, it wasn't a problem... but if she had taken that hit without any preparation, she might have been close to death.
At that moment, she heard a voice.
"Ah, my dear student, you seem to be in trouble. Do you need your teacher's help?"