I had anticipated it.
It was only natural to expect Goetia would pull some dog-shit trick with the summoning circle.
However, the problem was whom he would target.
If Ritsuka Fujimaru became that target, it would be fatal. It is absolutely impossible for Mash Kyrielight and Gareth to escape on their own against the Berserker-class Servants—of which there would be at least seven—plus Gilles de Rais, Jeanne d'Arc Alter, and to top it all off, 'Fafnir'.
Ordinarily, resources should have been split between me, Ritsuka, and Mash. Furthermore, Chaldea's base performance alone wouldn't be enough to counter the Demon God King's tampering, which would have made things quite troublesome in many ways.
However, the proof of existence and the quality of the Chaldea staff are on a different level than in the original history.
The ones in charge of my and Ritsuka's proof of existence are none other than the Second and Fifth Magicians' Mystic Code, the Kaleidoscope, and the staff's conduct is overseen by Waver, who is a veteran at handling people, and his graduate student slaves. What does that mean? It means long live the graduate students.
If things went that way, the Demon God King would naturally try to dispose of even me.
I had already confirmed earlier that my combat strength didn't reach that of Lev Lainur, who possesses the power of a single Demon God Pillar. In reality, the force summoned by the Dragon Witch was powerful enough to take on several Demon God Pillars.
Therefore, I induced this situation.
By intentionally diverting all resources to Ritsuka, excluding the absolute minimum proof of existence handled by the staff, I adjusted it so the Demon God King's interference would be easily applied. As expected, the Demon God King placed me inside the final boss's castle to eliminate me early.
Yeah, really…
"Anyone who doesn't see this coming is an idiot."
I set up the Tsar Bomba in advance and finished preparing to enter the Naraka Path.
The interior of the Naraka Path is essentially a sub-space, and its regenerative ability was excellent enough to prolong the life of a completely ruined Zouken Matou indefinitely.
Unlike the refrigerator from a certain movie, it's essentially a bunker that can keep me safely protected from the destruction of a real nuclear bomb.
And if my estimation is correct…
"Oh, Jeanne! Quickly, use your dragon banner to control that evil dragon!"
"Damn it, I can't control it well because of that fire!"
Hmm, a magnificent clusterfuck indeed.
Shall we go one step further here?
"What are you doing, everyone move! You have to weaken it so I can catch it, don't you?"
The moment Jeanne d'Arc Alter issued her command, at that instant when all the Heroic Spirits' senses weakened, I quickly materialized the Naraka Path and transformed my body into a blade using the Asura Path, pinning down the area near Charles-Henri Sanson's heart.
"You mere mortal!!!"
"My, is that Dagon?"
In an instant, giant sea horses with tentacles surrounded me.
The writhing tentacles looked like they were about to rape me any second, and as I repelled them with Shinra Tensei, Gilles de Rais began to laugh confidently, spewing manic laughter.
"You will never die in peace! After struggling to survive, only to go mad from an Outer God and degenerate into a mere mortal, I will tear you to pieces and make you less than pig slop!"
"Mad? Do you really think that's a true monster?"
At that moment, the Berserker Lancer aimed perfectly for my back. I deflected that spear with Shinra Tensei and spat out my puppets from my mouth.
"You're misunderstanding something, Gilles de Rais. To me, the octopus bits you summon don't even qualify as a threat, you moron."
Ever played ping-pong with a Crimson Moon and a Moon? No? Then don't talk.
"What are you doing Gilles, hurry up and kill him!"
"Yeah, buzz off."
Immediately after, the puppets that had regained their circular forms flew into the sky one by one. Some were capable of long-range attacks, but Atalante resisted the brainwashing with desperate force, and I used that gap to leap into the air using Shinra Tensei.
Just as I was soaring rapidly into the sky, the hysterical scream of the Dragon Witch began to reach me from a distance.
"Catch that bastard! Catch him and kill him!!!"
Once I moved a certain distance using the puppets as bait, the director Olga Marie Animusphere's voice began to come through from the control team, as if the minimum resources had started to function.
[Looks like you had a spat. Did you predict this and shift the resources to Ritsuka Fujimaru?]
"Fifty-fifty. Anyway, scan the surroundings. If my guess is right, at least one person followed me."
First off, I've already removed the most dangerous one.
Charles-Henri Sanson, who kills opponents with mental attacks. Since Lancelot, who is a Berserker (not in his lower-body-Berserker state for some reason), wasn't summoned, there are six Servants remaining besides Jeanne d'Arc and Gilles de Rais.
[You sent six puppets, wouldn't they all just be chasing other puppets?]
"I watched their tendencies for a bit; the Dragon Witch always moves together with Gilles de Rais. Probably due to Gilles' nature of failing to protect Jeanne d'Arc."
[It could also be because Ruler and Caster have good compatibility.]
"Anyway, regardless of that reason… plus, I blew up the enemy's castle with a Tsar Bomba, so they'd be even more intent on catching me… so it's best to consider the enemy numbers as seven."
[I can't believe you really threw a Tsar Bomba.]
No, why not? It doesn't really matter, right?
There weren't any civilians there, just the evil dragon and the Servants, so is there some kind of problem?
[…Six puppets plus you equals seven, is that what you mean.]
Olga Marie awkwardly changed the subject.
Still, considering how hard she tried, it landed quite well.
"Yes, so please be careful so no one else tries a surprise attack out of nowhere."
And as expected, the puppets began to be destroyed one by one.
Pierced by Atalante's arrows, destroyed by Martha's fists, the identities of the Servants pursuing me were being confirmed one after another.
Finally, as the last puppet melted into the breath of an enraged Fafnir, I was able to confirm who exactly was pursuing me.
A man radiating enough fighting spirit that it seemed to overflow even to onlookers.
A middle-aged man, a dandy beard, blonde hair, decadent eyes tainted by madness… and decisively, the thorned spear gripped in his hand.
"As expected, this is as far as you can run. At least I knew you had some hidden means… but that must be a ability on par with a Noble Phantasm. You wouldn't be able to use it recklessly."
Correct.
Though I have plenty of other means.
"However, I cannot know if you have another card to compete with the Heroic Spirits I possess, so I cannot fall prey to Mad Enhancement and fight recklessly. I will enjoy the joy of Mad Enhancement the moment I drink from a cup filled with your blood."
"Oh dear."
"...?"
It's very regrettable, but for a warrior like that to maintain his sanity is actually an disadvantageous situation for me.
"Is the Impaler Prince, whose chastity was violated in the rear by Mehmed's army of 20,000, now seeking my back passage too? Homo (๑°ㅁ°๑)‼✧"
"…Your blood won't even be worth a handful. I will tear your limbs, cut your entire body, burn you tied to a stake, and then soak you in oil and burn you again! For you, there will be no heaven, no hell, not even the blessing of the afterlife. I will tear every single piece of your soul and scatter them across the world!"
Mm, as expected, provocation is the best.
Works like a charm, doesn't it?