Church, Priest, and Command Spells

The church was not in Miyamachi, but southeast of Shinto, roughly seven or eight kilometers in a straight line from the harbor.

Considering the actual conditions on the road, it was nearly ten by the time Shiki reached the church.

That was only because he had picked up the pace halfway there.

"Ah, if only there were bike-sharing services. My moral compass is just too strong—I really can't bring myself to do anything against my conscience."

The Black Knight beside Shiki did not quite understand what his Master meant by "bike-sharing services." After thinking it over, he assumed it was some convenient means of transportation.

He did not respond. After all, he had previously suggested carrying his Master here quickly.

With a Servant's speed, they could have arrived in a very short time.

But his Master had refused, saying he wanted to enjoy the night scenery and experience the culture of this era while he was at it.

He did not understand what there was to experience about this era's culture.

Suddenly, the Black Knight stepped in front of Shiki, drew his Demon Sword from thin air, and took up a guarded stance. Every nerve taut, he carefully surveyed their surroundings, wary that a hostile Servant might suddenly rush out.

"Master, something is wrong. I smell blood."

"The smell of blood?"

Shiki had not smelled anything. His counterpart had suffered from a strange illness since childhood, leaving his sense of smell and taste dull, apparently from years of medication.

When he activated his Mystic Eyes, the world before him took on a different appearance. He found no other Servants and no trace of a Magus, so he told the knight to lower his guard.

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

"Master?"

"There is no one else here. Only us."

"Only us?"

The Black Knight heard another meaning in his Master's words: there was no one inside the church. More precisely, no living person.

"Master..."

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

It was an utterly ordinary church. Light streamed down from above, brightly illuminating the interior. More than a dozen rows of seats stood empty, while the pulpit at the front appeared somewhat sacred beneath the lights.

Yet beneath that sacred atmosphere lay an old priest.

Blood had pooled across the floor. His unclosed eyes filled anyone who met their gaze with an inexplicable fear.

"Master, he has been dead for more than two hours."

After examining the body, the Black Knight brought Shiki bad news. "Not long after we finished subjugating Caster, this priest was shot to death."

"Shot?"

Shiki immediately thought of modern firearms. The first person who came to mind as someone capable of using such a weapon was Kiritsugu. But he quickly dismissed the thought.

"It couldn't have been Kiritsugu. Two hours ago, Kiritsugu was still playing a shooting game with me. Besides, based on Saber King of Knights's performance tonight, Kiritsugu could receive a Command Spell as a reward. There was no need for him to come here and kill an old priest. It would do him no good and instead make him a target for everyone. After all, Rider and I, the main forces in subjugating Caster, have yet to receive any Command Spell rewards."

"Then could it have been Rider? No, with that Emperor's overbearing personality, he would not do something like this. His Master is merely an accessory and has no decision-making power. As for Lancer..."

"Master, I do not believe Lancer did it. Please do not insult a true knight who keeps his chivalric oath."

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

Still, Shiki had not expected his Black Knight to hold Lancer in such high regard.

"My apologies, Mr. Lancelot. I gave you the wrong impression. But why do you think so highly of Lancer?"

"Master, though Lancer did not directly fight Caster tonight, the fact that he destroyed his own Noble Phantasm to lift the King of Knights's curse is enough to earn him the highest respect. Lancer is a true knight."

A true knight? If certain people heard that, they would probably laugh out loud on the spot.

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

"Master, of course I know those rumors and legends. But that was Lancer's true original self—the Knights of Fianna knight Diarmuid. The Lancer manifested in the Holy Grail War is only Lancer."

"I see. I understand."

Shiki understood what the Black Knight meant. Legends were merely legends. The manifested Lancer was not the complete Diarmuid from those tales, but only a part of that legend descending here.

The Black Knight took a step back. Correcting some of his Master's mistaken thoughts was one of his principles, just as when he had served his former lord, King Arthur.

Having had his thoughts interrupted, Shiki no longer dwelled on who had killed the old priest.

It could only have been one of those few people. He would find out eventually.

To be honest, Shiki felt nothing in particular about the old priest's death. They did not know each other.

From the memories he retained, this old priest had colluded with Tokiomi Tohsaka, intending to keep the Holy Grail War hidden and prevent it from causing widespread destruction in the outside world.

The intention had been good, but the Heroic Spirits summoned into the Holy Grail War were not easy to handle. Each had their own convictions and temperaments. How could they possibly obediently follow orders?

"Master?"

"It's nothing. I was just thinking... isn't this world treating me too well? Whatever I want, even if it is not delivered straight to my door, I always get some kind of convenience."

The Black Knight looked puzzled. Was this world not impartial to everyone?

Seeing that the knight did not understand, Shiki did not explain. "Forget it. Just treat it as nonsense. I'm simply lucky."

Shiki walked over to the old priest and crouched down. After activating his Mystic Eyes, he saw the priest's right arm filled with the radiance of magical energy crystals, equal in scale to the Command Spells on the back of his right hand.

"Rather than letting someone else benefit from them, give them to me. Your son will only become a Joyful Monster of evil, while with these Command Spells, I might be able to make the world a better place."

The Mystic Eyes' Hungry Ghost Path ability activated, and magical radiance spread across the old priest's arm.

Once he felt the Hungry Ghost Path's power take hold of the Command Spells, Shiki raised his hand and pulled. More than a dozen red points of light were torn free, arcing through the air before falling one after another onto his right arm.

"Hiss!"

A searing agony struck him, putting immense strain on his nerves. An ordinary person would likely have passed out from the pain long ago, unable to endure it.

Yet even such agony made Shiki only furrow his brow slightly. It was easier than he had expected, and his connection to the Command Spells remained stable, showing no signs of going out of control.

Just like that, Shiki obtained this powerful source of magical energy.

With this immense magical power, how much of his strength would he recover? He truly wanted to test it immediately.

But now was not the time.

At last, the burning pain gradually subsided. Shiki looked at the Command Spells on his right arm, smiled faintly, then turned and left.

"Mr. Lancelot, let's go. Find Lancer. Tonight, we'll make him leave the stage."

"As you command, Master."

The Black Knight's figure vanished within the church. In spiritual form, he passed Shiki and disappeared into the night sky.

The true operation was finally about to begin. He would defeat every opponent. Without fail.