The Church, the Priest, and the Command Spells

The church wasn't in Shinshiyama Town, but rather southeast of Shintō, about seven to eight kilometers from the port as the crow flies.

Considering the actual road conditions, it was nearly ten o'clock by the time Shiki arrived at the church.

This was only because he had picked up his pace midway.

"Sigh, I wish there were shared bicycles. It's because my moral compass is too strong; I just can't do anything against my conscience."

The Black Knight beside Shiki didn't quite understand what "shared bicycles" meant. However, after much thought, he figured it was some kind of convenient mode of transportation.

He didn't respond, as he had already suggested bringing Master here quickly before.

With a Servant's speed, they could reach this place in a very short time.

But Master hadn't agreed, saying he wanted to enjoy the night scenery and experience the culture of this era.

He didn't understand what was so enjoyable about this era's culture.

Suddenly, the Black Knight stepped in front of Shiki, drawing his Demon Sword from the void and assuming a defensive stance. His nerves were on edge as he scanned their surroundings, wary of any enemy Servants suddenly appearing.

"Master, something's not right. I smell blood."

"The smell of blood?"

Shiki, however, didn't smell any blood. His alternate self had suffered from a strange illness since childhood, which affected his sense of smell and taste, likely due to long-term medication.

Activating his Magic Eye, the world presented a different scene before him. He saw no other Servants and no trace of magi, so he told the Knight to relax his guard.

"Mr. Lancelot, put away your weapon. Let's go inside."

"Master?"

"There's no one else here, just us."

"Just us?"

The Black Knight caught another meaning in Master's words: that there was no one inside the church, or more accurately, no one alive.

"Master..."

Shiki pushed open the church doors first, and the scene inside came into view.

It was a perfectly ordinary church. Light streamed down from above, illuminating the interior brightly. Ten or so rows of seats were empty. The altar at the front, bathed in the light, appeared somewhat sacred.

However, beneath this sacred atmosphere lay an old priest.

Blood pooled on the floor. His eyes, wide open in death, instilled an inexplicable fear in anyone who met his gaze.

"Master, he's been dead for over two hours."

After checking, the Black Knight delivered the bad news to Shiki. "Shortly after we finished dealing with Caster, this priest was shot and killed."

"Shot?"

Shiki's mind immediately conjured images of modern firearms. The first person he thought of who could use such a weapon was Kiritsugu. But he quickly dismissed the idea.

"It couldn't have been Kiritsugu. Two hours ago, Kiritsugu was playing a shooting game with me. Besides, given King Arthur's performance tonight, Kiritsugu would receive a Command Spell as a reward. He wouldn't need to come here and kill an old priest. It would bring him no benefit; instead, it would make him a target. After all, Rider and I, as the main forces in dealing with Caster, haven't received our Command Spell rewards yet."

"Could it be Rider? No, given that Emperor's overbearing personality, he wouldn't do something like this. His Master is merely a subordinate with no decision-making power. As for Lancer..."

"Master, I don't believe Lancer would do this. Please don't insult a true knight who upholds his chivalric vows."

The Black Knight interrupted Shiki's thoughts, making him realize his words were somewhat inappropriate.

However, Shiki was surprised that his Black Knight held such a high opinion of Lancer.

"My apologies, Mr. Lancelot, for the misunderstanding. But why do you hold Lancer in such high regard?"

"Master, although Lancer didn't directly engage Caster tonight, the sheer righteousness of him destroying his own Noble Phantasm to lift the curse on the King of Knights deserves the utmost respect. Lancer is a true knight."

A true knight? If some people heard that, they would probably burst out laughing on the spot.

"Hasn't Mr. Lancelot heard the rumors about Lancer?" Shiki was very curious and wanted to know how his Black Knight would answer this question.

"Master, I am aware of those rumors and legends. But that is the true Lancelot, Diarmuid of the Knights of Fianna. The Lancer manifested in the Holy Grail War is merely Lancer."

"I see, I understand."

Shiki understood what the Black Knight meant. Legends were just legends. The Lancer manifested here wasn't the complete Diarmuid from legend, but only a part of that legend that had descended.

The Black Knight took a step back, correcting some of Master's flawed thinking. This was one of his principles, just as it was when he served his former lord, King Arthur.

His train of thought interrupted, Shiki no longer dwelled on who killed the old priest.

After all, it could only be one of a few people, and they would eventually find out.

The old priest was dead, and honestly, Shiki didn't feel anything in particular. They didn't know each other.

In his memories, this old priest had colluded with Tokiomi Tohsaka, intending to keep the Holy Grail War contained within secret circles, avoiding large-scale destruction to the outside world.

His intentions were good, but unfortunately, the Heroic Spirits manifested in the Holy Grail War were all difficult individuals with their own principles and tempers. How could they possibly obey orders obediently?

"Master?"

"It's nothing. I just feel like this world is too kind to me. Whatever I want, even if it doesn't arrive directly, it always provides some convenience."

The Black Knight looked confused. Wasn't this world treating everyone equally?

Seeing that the Knight didn't understand, Shiki didn't explain further. "Never mind. Just pretend I'm talking nonsense; it's just good luck."

Shiki walked up to the old priest and crouched down. After activating his Magic Eye, he saw that the priest's right arm was covered in a glow of mana crystals, comparable in scale to the Command Spells on his right hand.

"Rather than letting someone else have them, why not give them to me? Your son will only become a monstrous perversion of evil, but with these Command Spells, perhaps I can make the world a better place."

The mana-devouring path's ability activated, and the mana glow covered the old priest's arm.

Sensing the mana-devouring path's ability acting upon the Command Spells, Shiki raised his hand and pulled. A dozen red light spots were ripped out, falling in an arc onto Shiki's right arm.

"Hiss!"

A burning, searing pain struck him, his nerves enduring immense pressure. An ordinary person would likely have fainted from the pain and been unable to hold on.

But even with this agony, Shiki merely frowned slightly. It was easier than he expected, and the connection to the Command Spells was stable, showing no signs of rebellion.

Just like that, Shiki obtained this powerful source of mana.

With this vast mana, to what extent would his strength recover? He truly wanted to test it immediately.

But now was not the time.

Finally, the burning pain gradually subsided. Shiki looked at the Command Spells on his right arm, smiled faintly, and turned to leave.

"Mr. Lancelot, let's go. We need to find Lancer and eliminate him tonight."

"As you command, Master."

The Black Knight's figure vanished within the church, phasing through Shiki in his spiritual form and disappearing into the night sky.

The true operation was finally about to begin. He was determined to defeat all his opponents!