"The contract between Tohsaka Tokiomi and Archer has been severed, and Matou Kariya has also died along with Berserker..."
Hearing this good news, Amakusa Shirou looked up at the enormous cross hanging on the wall behind him, a smile spreading across his face.
Caster and Berserker had both confirmed their exit and now it was only a matter of time before Archer followed suit.
Meanwhile, Lancer's fate with his Master remained uncertain, but they still had two surviving combatants and multiple Command Seals on their side. Things seemed to be progressing quite smoothly.
Assassin had also discovered Rider's stronghold; as long as they maintained this momentum and eliminated them, the Holy Grail War could be declared over.
This is good news...
As long as he held out until the end, he would be the ultimate winner.
However, dealing with the aftermath of this Holy Grail War was indeed a bit troublesome...
...
Winter, Fuyuki City.
[Good Morning...]
The television was broadcasting news about last night's unusual occurrences.
[Hello everyone, this is a report from the Fuyuki City Radio. First, at 2,17 AM today, a serious fire broke out at the Tohsaka residence in the suburbs of Fuyuki City, and no casualties have been found so far. According to the results of investigations by the police and relevant experts, it has been confirmed that the fire was caused by an explosion due to a gas leak...]
In a remote outpost in Fuyuki City, Roy was leisurely having breakfast with Waver, who was wrapped in bandages. At that moment, the television news reported on the brutal battlefield where Saber and Berserker had teamed up to fight Gilgamesh the previous night.
Upon seeing this news, Rider tapped his ears, lamenting that he hadn't participated in such a fierce battle last night, while Waver looked on in disbelief.
He had been inexplicably caught in an explosion set off by the explosive genius Emiya Kiritsugu and had almost been sent to the skies. Now, waking up early in the morning, he was informed by Roy about how spectacular last night's battle had been.
Even a Master had died, Berserker had exited, and Tohsaka Tokiomi had also withdrawn from the Holy Grail War. This turn of events could not be described as anything but fortunate.
Now, with Professor Kayneth's fate uncertain, it seemed that Roy's Servant had betrayed him. With Tohsaka Tokiomi's withdrawal, their remaining targets were certainly him and Roy. In this Holy Grail War filled with big shots and lunatics, Waver felt an overwhelming lack of security as a novice magus.
His original stubbornness had completely vanished after witnessing the brutality of the Holy Grail War. He had come to deeply understand his own weakness. Without Kayneth's companionship, he felt utterly helpless; even Roy, who had only just become a magus, far surpassed him.
"Berserker has exited the battle..."
"What a shame. If such a strong warrior could be brought under my command, conquering the world would surely be much easier."
"Idiot Rider, why are you still thinking about conquering the world at a time like this? We should be figuring out how to deal with the enemy first!"
"Hahaha, don't worry, kid. With me here, I will definitely protect you. Didn't I promise to take you to see the end of the sea?"
Iskandar chuckled, saying seriously, "Even when I gain a physical body and start conquering the world, I will still be your Servant."
"That's not the point!"
"If you wanted to recruit Berserker, you might be disappointed. Lancelot will only pledge loyalty to King Arthur." Seeing the playful exchange between the Master and Servant, Roy shook his head.
"And he's quite content with that..."
"Really? A loyal knight, how unfortunate... But... "
Iskandar's tone shifted, and his tiger-like eyes fell back on Roy. "Kid, your Caster seems to have betrayed you, huh?"
His gaze shifted to the Command Seal still visible on Roy's hand.
"But why don't you use the Command Seals to forcibly summon him back? Or just command him to commit suicide? Why let him roam free while the contract is still in place?"
After Iskandar raised his question, Waver looked at him with understanding, his curious gaze falling upon Roy as well. This was indeed a question he had as well.
Since the Command Seals were still valid, it meant he could still forcibly control his Servant. Wouldn't it be better to use the Command Seals to make him commit suicide? What was the point of letting him stay with the enemy?
Furthermore, there was another question. They had both been blown into the air together, yet he had passed out at the explosion site and only woke up this morning. Why had Roy recovered so quickly? Not only that, but what was the source of the Servant-like magical energy radiating from him?
Although Waver believed Roy would not betray him, he still had too many questions in his heart, as Roy harbored far too many secrets. Now that Professor Kayneth was gone, Waver often felt scared.
Some things are terrifying precisely because they are formless and mysterious.
And Roy, who he couldn't fully understand, instilled fear in him.
"Are you doubting me...?"
Roy sighed and finished the porridge on the table in one gulp.
"Let me correct you. The Servant I summoned is not Caster, but Avenger."
"Avenger... the Avenger?"
"That's right, the Avenger. His true name is the protagonist from The Count of Monte Cristo, Edmond Dantès, also known as the King of the Caverns. He is the world's most famous avenger."
"As for the real Caster, he was already eliminated on the eve of the Holy Grail War. We were merely masquerading under the identity of Caster."
Noticing the rift that had developed between them, Roy decided not to hide anything and began to explain.
"Though he has betrayed us, his target is only me, and you are all just collateral damage, so don't worry. He won't lay a hand on you or Rider. His goal has always been singular... "
"To kill me."
"To kill you?!" Hearing Roy say such a terrifying thing in a calm tone sent a chill down Waver's spine.
"But..."
As he prepared to question the reason behind this, the reporter's news on the television suddenly caught everyone's attention.
"According to numerous suburban residents from last night, many blinding lights erupted in the night sky around dawn, accompanied by deafening explosions. Some citizens even witnessed a golden galaxy piercing through the night sky and managed to capture photographs... "
In the next moment, the host took out a blurry photograph, made unclear by shaky hands during the shot.
"The golden river of stars... could it be a Noble Phantasm?" Waver's eyes widened in disbelief.
"Wow, I didn't expect that little girl to have such a powerful Noble Phantasm. I wonder how it compares to my Ionioi Hetairoi?"
Seeing their astonishment, Roy simply shook his head. Unlike the two who hadn't been present, he had witnessed everything firsthand last night, thanks to Merlin's Clairvoyance.
Thus, the moment when Artoria unleashed her Noble Phantasm was within his observation.
The dazzling river of stars was, in fact, the Anti-Fortress Noble Phantasm unleashed by King Arthur... Excalibur, the Sword of Promised Victory.
Although the Holy Sword wasn't fully unleashed, even in its restrained state, the power it exhibited was incomparable to an ordinary Noble Phantasm. Yet, Gilgamesh's mythical defensive Noble Phantasms successfully withstood the attack.
When multiple legendary defensive Noble Phantasms were layered together, even the Sword of Promised Victory could not easily break through.
Indeed, this old version of Gilgamesh lived up to his reputation... his battle style was efficient and ruthless, giving the enemy no hope at all. Even when facing a Command Seal-enhanced Artoria and Lancelot, the combined efforts of the King of Knights and her strongest knight did not put him at a disadvantage.
Similarly, those engrossed in the battle showed no regard for the unwritten rules.
The sounds of their battle and the resulting phenomena were loud enough to be heard across half of Fuyuki City. However, this was not much of an issue, as certain people existed precisely to handle such events...
See, he's already made his appearance.
"I am Kotomine Kirei, the overseer of Fuyuki City's church. I will now explain the situation in detail."
Taking the microphone from the host, Kotomine Kirei maintained a blank expression and then proceeded to deliver a thoroughly fabricated explanation.
"Father Kotomine, could you please explain the cause of last night's strange phenomena in the sky?"
"It was caused by a gas leak."
*Cough* *Cough* *Cough*
The host choked on Kotomine's response, looking at him with disbelief. Could he seriously be making such a ridiculous claim? What kind of gas leak would produce golden lights visible across half of Fuyuki City? If you're going to lie, at least make it plausible!
However, Kotomine had no intention of considering the host's reaction. He continued speaking, undeterred, "According to our investigation, there was a large-scale gas leak from the natural gas pipeline near the suburban residential area of Fuyuki City last night, which caused widespread hallucinations."
What?! At this point, the host's expression could no longer hold back. What kind of absurd reason was this? To claim that hallucinations were caused by a massive gas leak?
Even the staff on set were left speechless by Kotomine's explanation. Any sensible person could tell that his words were nothing but nonsense.
"But, as far as I know, a gas leak wouldn't cause... "
Before the host could finish, Kotomine took out a document... a fabricated report he had hastily coerced from the police the night before... and handed it to her, successfully silencing her.
"So... we urge all citizens not to underestimate gas leaks. Every year, many people suffer from hallucinations or even die due to gas leaks. So... please be cautious and protect yourselves!"
Listening to Kotomine's bizarre explanation on television, Roy couldn't help but twitch at the corner of his mouth.
Could everything really be explained by a gas leak?
The company responsible for gas installations in the moonlit world must be truly unfortunate, as nearly every mishap was blamed on them.
"I remember this guy is supposed to be the overseer from the Holy Church..." Waver muttered, feeling utterly speechless as he pointed to the still-fabricating Kotomine Kirei.
"Doesn't the Bible say that if a follower of the Lord lies, they will be condemned to Hell after death?"
"Indeed, most religions prohibit lying, and Christianity's punishment for it is said to be Hell. However, for a man like Kotomine Kirei, it's unlikely that he cares. To him, neither Heaven nor Hell holds any significance."
"Still... instead of discussing these trivial matters, shouldn't we be preparing to welcome our guest?"
Raising his hand to stop Waver from continuing his complaints, Roy exchanged a glance with Iskandar, and then both of them turned to look outside the door.
"It seems we have a visitor."
...
"Damn it!!"
In the castle of the Einzberns, Emiya Kiritsugu's brow twitched uncontrollably, his nails digging deep into his palms as a few drops of blood dripped from his fingers.
Surveying the wreckage around him, the castle's bounded fields had been precisely breached, and the corpses of various homunculus were strewn across the ground. Someone had infiltrated the castle while they were away and abducted Irisviel.
In other words, while he was busy hunting down Tohsaka Tokiomi all night, someone had taken the opportunity to snatch the prize right from under him!
"Iris..." Kiritsugu growled, his face dark as he scanned his surroundings, his hand trembling involuntarily around the cigarette he was holding.
"Kiritsugu..."
Maiya Hisau, Kiritsugu's assistant, wanted to comfort him, but she didn't know what to say.
The situation had changed too rapidly. When they left the Einzbern castle, they had constructed the most robust defense system possible. Every angle of the castle's defense had been perfected, ensuring that even if a Servant attacked, they would have enough time to respond. Only then did they feel safe leaving Irisviel at the stronghold alone.
But despite such defenses, someone had managed to find a weakness, breach it precisely, and intercept all of Irisviel's distress signals. Whether it was familiar spirits or electronic communications, everything had been blocked.
This meant that the culprit was not only highly proficient in magecraft, but also knew that Kiritsugu was skilled in modern technology... and had devised countermeasures accordingly.
At this point, Kiritsugu had a good idea of who the attacker was.
That person had come seeking revenge...
And now, Iris had been dragged into this because of him...
"What should we do now? The culprit has hidden their tracks extremely well and left no useful clues."
Like Kiritsugu, Saber was also deeply worried about Irisviel's safety.
"I understand..."
Kiritsugu rubbed his forehead, fatigue evident in his voice. "You two should leave for now. Let me calm down on my own for a while."
"But Kiritsugu, you... "
"I'll be fine."
"Let's go, Miss Maiya. Giving Kiritsugu some time alone might be best right now."
"I understand..."
With that, the two of them left the room, leaving Kiritsugu alone to collect his thoughts.
***
Keeping a precious item like the Power Stone is hard, so for your own sake, drop the Power Stone here, otherwise I can't guarantee your safety!