"Hey!"
A massive figure descended from the sky, crashing into the battlefield like a meteor.
"Where is the oppressor? Show yourself!"
Spartacus had arrived.
With a swing of his giant blade, a fierce wind scattered the dragon-tooth soldiers. Spartacus, wearing a mysterious smile, let out a thunderous roar.
"Whoa~! The Red Berserker is as ferocious as ever," Astolfo, sitting atop his majestic eagle, scratched his head and then slapped his cheeks. "Guess I should get serious too!"
Without a second thought, Astolfo flew straight toward the floating garden.
"Hm?" Semiramis raised an eyebrow. Under normal circumstances, she might have found the pink-haired knight amusing and maybe even toyed with him a bit. But right now, she was in no mood for games.
[Hide your Noble Phantasm]
Semiramis' lips curled into a smirk as she slowly read the message composed of dragon bone fragments, then shifted her gaze to Cyd, who stood beside the text as if daring her to react.
"Interesting," Semiramis murmured, snapping her fingers and sending twelve magic circles out.
"Huh?" Astolfo's mouth fell open, his pink eyes reflecting the approaching lights.
Twelve torrents of magic power surged toward Astolfo in midair.
"You've got to be kidding!"
Even pulling out his magic book didn't help—he was blasted away.
"Um... can she really see the message we left for her?" Jeanne tugged on Cyd's sleeve.
"Of course, she can," Cyd replied, nonchalantly crushing the skull of a nearby dragon-tooth soldier and tossing the body to Jeanne. "Now, put this one together."
"Uh..." Jeanne awkwardly hugged the dragon-tooth soldier's body.
"If you don't know how ask Leticia to teach you," Cyd sighed, rubbing his forehead as he watched Jeanne clumsily fiddle with the dragon bones. He couldn't help feeling like she was a bit hopeless.
"I don't think that Empress will pay any attention to you," Atalanta said seriously, crossing her arms. "She might not even be looking this way."
"Oh, she's definitely watching. She got burned by me once before," Cyd said, stepping forward and stretching his shoulders. "She's been watching us ever since I stepped onto the battlefield."
Atalanta nodded. No wonder she felt like someone had been watching them.
"Done!" Jeanne raised her hand, eager for praise.
"Now, Jeanne, let me ask you something," Cyd snapped his fingers. "What's the key to keeping things secret?"
"Uh... being low-key?" Jeanne tilted her head.
"Exactly. So, do you think that thing up there is low-key?" Cyd nodded toward the floating garden.
"Not... at all," Jeanne finally understood what Cyd meant.
Even though it was nighttime, the floating garden was far too conspicuous. It stood out even in the dark, like a beacon. Not everyone would be asleep at night, and the garden's massive size made it impossible to hide by dawn.
"So, we asked her to hide it?" Jeanne realized with a start.
"No, we can't order a Servant to stop using their Noble Phantasm. We just need her to throw some concealment magic over it," Cyd waved his hand dismissively. "But knowing that woman, she's the type who'll do the opposite of what you ask if you're too polite. Being rude might actually work better."
For some reason, Jeanne had a bad feeling about this.
Cyd raised his right hand and gave the floating garden the middle finger.
"When dealing with someone as tricky as her, this is the fastest way!"
On such a vast battlefield, Cyd was no more than an ant. There was no way the Empress, high above and watching everything like a theater, would care about an ant's gesture.
Semiramis, however, felt a vein throb on her forehead.
She had been calmly enjoying the bloody spectacle on the screens around her, even though they were at a disadvantage. But when Cyd's image appeared, she couldn't remain calm.
That mocking middle finger, paired with the crooked message spelled out with dragon bones, was meant to provoke her.
"Please don't do that!" Jeanne quickly grabbed Cyd's hand, the one with the middle finger raised. "That's not nice!"
"Relax~ The more you ask nicely, the more she'll ignore you. Sometimes reverse psychology works better," Cyd patted Jeanne's head with his left hand.
"I think it's working," Atalanta tugged on Cyd's cloak, pointing to the floating garden.
The twelve magic circles that had blasted Astolfo now turned toward them, brimming with terrifying magical energy.
"Hmm, it must be because of how ugly Jeanne's writing was," Cyd's cloak unfurled into two dragon claws—one lifted Jeanne as a shield in front of the magic circles, while the other helpfully held her flag. "Time to redeem yourself."
"What? I was very careful with those letters!" Jeanne protested, kicking her legs in frustration.
"Sure, sure~" Cyd shrugged and tossed Jeanne behind him.
"Wait! Let me use my Noble Phantasm to block it!" Jeanne grabbed onto Cyd's clothes.
"Don't worry. Just stand behind me," Cyd twisted his neck, his voice calm and reassuring. "It's just a magic blast, trust me."
Atalanta crossed her arms again. With her speed, she could easily escape the blast zone that was aimed at Cyd. But if Cyd said to stay behind him, she wouldn't go anywhere.
"—————"
Twelve beams of light shot straight toward Cyd's position. The blinding light made Jeanne instinctively close her eyes.
There wasn't time to activate her Noble Phantasm now, so just like Cyd said, she had to trust him.
"Noble Phantasms are strange things," Cyd mused, calmly watching the approaching light with his hands in his pockets.
They were abilities never possessed in life, but they ascended to this form through legends. Semiramis never had a floating garden during her lifetime, but it became part of her myth, and so she gained the Noble Phantasm [The Hanging Gardens of Vanity].
Abilities from life could also change through legend. Achilles' invulnerability came from the blessing of his mother, making non-divine attacks useless. Siegfried's armor, gained from bathing in dragon blood, negated any attack below B rank.
Cyd, too, was invincible, but his invulnerability was fundamentally different. Achilles died because of Apollo, a god, so his immortal body had a weak spot when he became a Heroic Spirit. Siegfried died from a stab in the back, and he had a vulnerability too. But Cyd was different. In his legend, no one could harm him, and there was no record of his death. Thus, his invincibility became a Noble Phantasm only in his Heroic Spirit state.
His Noble Phantasm: [Unfinished Symphony].
Like an unfinished melody, this Noble Phantasm would remain incomplete as long as there were beings who believed Cyd was still alive. It would continue endlessly, like a song without a conclusion.
Perhaps only when Cyd truly died and all hope was lost would this flawless Noble Phantasm show a weakness. But until then—
The beams of light scattered as if they had hit a prism, reflecting in all directions. The dragon-tooth soldiers caught in the light were instantly turned to ash. The ground was gouged out, leaving smoldering trenches, and the battlefield seemed to descend into hell. Yet behind Cyd, it was like a sanctuary, untouched by the destruction.
Cyd was an invincible presence.
"My Lord..." Jeanne opened her eyes, staring in awe at Cyd, who stood bathed in light. As the glow faded, Cyd calmly looked toward the floating garden and met Semiramis' gaze through the projection. Then, with a resolute expression…
He raised his middle finger.