"Die, venomous woman!!!"
Mordred mercilessly swung her king's sword at Semiramis. She put all her strength into this swing, a strike truly beyond human capability.
However, Semiramis, the Empress of Poison skilled in magic, fights in ways that defy human logic.
Though shocked, she instinctively activated the innate ability inherited from her mother, Derceto. The divine fish-scale armor, the same color as her evening gown, unfolded in the path of the king's sword.
Faced with the overwhelming power of the king's sword, even the divine fish scales couldn't withstand it and were split in two. But this bought Semiramis extremely valuable time.
In the end, the blood-stained king's sword did not cleave the Empress in two. Thanks to a timely spatial shift, the sword only managed to slightly slash her shoulder.
"Just like mother, you're excellent at running away."
Mordred regretfully shook her king's sword, once again confirming the similarity between Semiramis and Morgan: neither possessed a hero's pride. When faced with unfavorable situations, they would shamelessly turn and flee, valuing their own lives above all else.
"Ah, I'm sorry, I messed up. Both Father and Ruler rarely cooperated with my bitter strategy; we may never get such a good opportunity again."
Indeed, this was all part of a bitter strategy.
From the moment the three were poisoned to the final surprise attack, everything was planned to kill the garden's owner, their detestable arch-enemy. The Hanging Gardens of Babylon was the foundation of Shirou's side. Without it, victory would be within reach.
Semiramis was the type who enjoyed toying with her enemies and taking pleasure in their misery. As long as the bait was tempting enough, the likelihood of her appearing personally was very high.
Thus, when Semiramis intercepted Jeanne, Jeanne was already considering implementing this plan.
Jeanne dared to do this because she was confident. They had nearly been wiped out by poison in the last attack. How could they not be prepared this time? Remember the antidote serum Kairi had requested?
Kairi's reward for participating in this Holy Grail War was a specimen of a Hydra larva. Using the residual toxins in the larva, he could make an antidote serum.
Of course, this serum could only neutralize Hydra's poison and was ineffective against Bašmu's poison, which was the limit of what Kairi could do—after all, he was a necromancer, not a specialist in poisons and antidotes.
However, if Kairi couldn't do it, Chiron could. As the teacher of the god of medicine, Chiron's medical skills had long surpassed the mortal realm.
In three days, he thoroughly analyzed the Hydra larva provided by Kairi and created an evolved version of the super serum, based on the highly potent poison of the Hydra, one of the highest-ranking poisons in human history.
The super serum not only neutralized Hydra's poison but could also neutralize and resist all poisons not surpassing Hydra's toxicity for a certain period. While Bašmu's poison was strong, it was conceptually on par with the Hydra, falling within the super serum's resistance range.
However, this super serum was not perfect. Its raw material was the Hydra larva specimen, specifically the poison sac located in the Hydra's throat, utilizing the principle of fighting poison with poison. The super serum itself was a potent poison. Direct ingestion would be akin to bidding farewell to the world. Thus, one had to be poisoned first and then inject the serum to neutralize it.
So, Jeanne, Artoria, and Mordred were indeed poisoned initially. But the moment they were poisoned, they ingested the pre-prepared super serum. Since detoxification took time, they indeed endured immense pain, which was exactly what Semiramis wanted to see.
To ensure safety, during the process of the serum neutralizing Bašmu's poison, Kairi appeared to distract Semiramis, creating an opportunity for the three Servants. Unfortunately, Semiramis's instinct to flee became second nature, ultimately foiling their plan.
"There's no point in talking about it now. Let's quickly deal with the enemy in front of us."
Kairi Sisigou, the true proposer of the plan, tore open his collar and glanced at an accessory around his neck that was gradually turning a dark color. This was a precious mystic code obtained from the Yggdmillennia family, a legacy of Darnic. As long as he had it, he wasn't afraid of Semiramis's poison.
◇◇◇
The Empress, who had returned to her throne, looked down in contemplation. The blood flowing from the shoulder wound caused by the king's sword stained her clothes, but she didn't seem to care.
"Unexpectedly, they can neutralize Bašmu's poison... No, not just Bašmu's poison, other poisons seem to have been neutralized as well."
Both the hatred for being struck and the shame for running away had now vanished without a trace. If there was anything to hate, it was her mind that had become overly complacent due to dominating this garden. Being intoxicated by the garden's power had led to her momentary carelessness.
"But there will be no next time. Neutralizing doesn't mean immunity, and being able to neutralize doesn't mean they won't be poisoned. Moreover, poisoning is easy; detoxification requires a process—You are in the midst of battle now, and the slightest laxity could cost you your life. Next, I will use all my power to cleanse you!—Taste it well, this is the true wine of the Sikera Ušum!"
The space trembled, and a multicolored poisonous mist filled the entire throne room, rapidly spreading under the influence of magic.
Soon, the entire garden was enveloped in the poisonous mist.
Atalanta, who was skillfully maneuvering around the swift-footed and shadowy Berserker, suddenly paused and quickly injected the super serum into her body by pressing a certain spot on herself.
But this brief pause allowed the relentless evil wolf to catch up, delivering a punch to her back that sent her crashing into the wall.
"Ugh."
The huntress, not known for her resilience, spat out a mouthful of blood.
"My spine seems to be broken... No choice but to gamble."
Gaining some strength back, Atalanta pushed herself off the wall and charged at the enemy exuding a maddened aura. A new stream of spiritual energy brewed in her hands, eventually forming a cerulean shield.
On the other side, Chiron's situation was even worse. Affected by the poison, he had taken several arrows to protect his Master, barely able to move.
"Archer!"
Caules, also suffering from the poison, groaned and struggled to lift his arm, gathering magical energy.
"By the Fifth Black Command Seal! Heal Archer!!!"
The red magical energy symbolizing a miracle was activated, infusing the poisoned and wounded Servant's body with new vitality.
"Thank you, Master! I will surely achieve victory."
Under the power of the Command Seal, Chiron returned to his peak condition but did not continue to shoot arrows, for his arrow had already been released and would surely hit its mark.
"Antares Snipe!!!"
Black Archer Chiron unleashed his Noble Phantasm.