Heroic Spirit Summoning

The night in Asakawa possessed a tranquil beauty.

When all was silent, the city lights linked together into a colorful galaxy, setting off the dim hues of the sky. Most of the residents here were people unable to adapt to the fast pace of city life, so naturally, their slower lifestyle made them more inclined to stay home and rest at night.

In that respect, Asakawa was more suitable for the Holy Grail War than Fuyuki. With Japan's rapid economic development, Fuyuki had already become a high-tech metropolis, bustling with traffic even late at night. That was completely at odds with the Holy Grail War's need to stay hidden.

On the peaceful roads, an occasional car would pass by, its swaying taillights tracing calm arcs through the heavy night.

Carl did not dislike this tranquility.

To the northeast of Asakawa lay a stretch of artificial mountains. Verdant trees spread across equally lush grass, brimming with life, while the slightly damp air further enhanced the atmosphere of leisure.

Of course, to Magi, this was probably nothing worth mentioning. Cultivating plants had been a subject of magical research long ago. Judging by the results, Magi might have developed a similar civilization centuries before science, but in terms of versatility, they had never matched science's pace.

Still, to Magi, that was not a problem.

After all, Magi were beings above ordinary people. It was only natural for nobles to command techniques that commoners could not. That was a belief widespread among Magi.

Tsukahara Meiji was a little cold. As mentioned before, the word spring merely gave people the impression of all things coming back to life. In truth, spring had nothing to do with warmth. If anything, April was still part of the cold season. Naturally, Tsukahara Meiji, wearing only a sports jacket, did not feel very comfortable.

By that logic, Carl, dressed in a close-fitting blue garment, should have been even colder... but Carl's clothes were his Mystic Code. Empowered by magecraft, they were actually warmer than Tsukahara Meiji's...

The two hurried through the stillness toward the convergence point of the Leylines.

Carl truly was a cautious Magus. His preparations before the battle were so thorough that they frightened Tsukahara Meiji a little. She had even determined the locations of Asakawa's Leylines.

In the quiet forest, even the insects chirped only sporadically. The rustling of grass and leaves beneath their feet sharply struck Tsukahara Meiji's eardrums and heart. A few distant barks forced the air called silence into his lungs, chilling its way down to his heart and lungs before stirring an unease called the unknown, which spread from the boy's heart throughout his body.

The more important the place, the more nervous one became. That was only natural, especially when the surroundings were so quiet, so... terrifying.

For the first time, Tsukahara Meiji found the night so frightening. He could clearly hear his own heartbeat, the faint thumping flowing from within to without, then returning from without into his mind. The white mist Carl exhaled with her calm breathing only intensified his fear.

"If I'd known... I shouldn't have read horror manga before leaving."

That was how he complained.

Of course, it was neither a sigh nor a complaint. He was just acting silly. He simply did not want to be crushed by this silence and hoped to chat with Carl about anything at all, to deal with the increasingly hushed, increasingly solemn atmosphere.

Carl gave a quiet hum but did not respond.

After an unknown amount of time, Carl raised a hand to stop him. The German woman declared in an utterly certain tone:

"This is it. The place where the Leylines are most active."

Carl's words made Tsukahara Meiji feel as though he could finally breathe again. Finish this quickly, then hurry back to sleep—that was his only wish right now.

They stood in an area where the vegetation was especially thick.

According to Carl's measurements, this was precisely where the Leylines converged.

Different places had different names for Leylines. In China, the most common term was Dragon Veins.

When ancient emperors chose their capitals, they always sought favorable weather and peace. As the capital, it naturally had to offer the most comfortable life—otherwise, if there were earthquakes one day and droughts or floods the next, the emperor was not an idiot. Why would he establish his capital there?

Ancient Chinese Daoists and sorcerers devoted themselves to developing their own methods for locating Dragon Veins.

As one of China's six great ancient capitals, Beijing was naturally a place rich in Dragon Veins. Asakawa was geographically close to Beijing and benefited from that, with Leylines extending in all directions through Asakawa before converging in Beijing.

The place Carl had selected was an area where magical energy flowed relatively vigorously.

Neither Carl nor Tsukahara Meiji counted as first-rate Magi, so they could not afford to waste anything. They had to make their Servants' attributes as outstanding as possible. In a place rich in Leylines, they could borrow the Leylines' power to further improve their Servants' various parameters.

Using livestock blood mixed with mercury, Carl traced mysterious patterns. Under her hand, the murky dark-red liquid pressed out a thick crimson line through the green grass, though under the cover of night, black was the only distinct color.

Drawing a magic circle allowed no room for even the slightest mistake. To begin the Heroic Spirit summoning at midnight, when magical energy was at its most active, Carl had to ensure success on the first attempt.

Tsukahara Meiji was happy to leave the work to her. He simply squatted on the ground, focusing on the way the red liquid flowed while repeatedly reciting the Heroic Spirit summoning chant in his heart.

Although Carl had said, "The chant for summoning a Heroic Spirit can come from the heart. What matters is your intent," Tsukahara Meiji still wanted to recite it as correctly as possible. After all, this was a grand event held only once every sixty years. He had been fortunate enough to participate, and if he got the words wrong, it would be unbearably embarrassing!

What if participants in the next Holy Grail War looked through the records and said, Whoa! This guy Tsukahara Meiji couldn't even recite the chant right! Just imagining it sent a chill down Tsukahara Meiji's spine. To be hated while alive and become a laughingstock after death—such a life would be far too tragic.

Focused on drawing the magic circle and reciting the chant in his heart, Tsukahara Meiji gradually became completely absorbed. The insects, the barking dogs—he could no longer hear any of them. At that moment, only the Heroic Spirit summoning chant remained in his mind, repeated over and over, utterly familiar to him.

"Alright, then give me the catalyst..."

Carl seemed to have finished drawing the magic circle.

Hearing that, Tsukahara Meiji looked up from his own world, but what he saw was not a ring or oak branch Carl was handing over.

Her hands were crossed before her chest, and she did not appear to be holding anything. Instead, a mercury-like silver gleam faintly flowed from within her clothes, down her azure sleeves, and into her wrists. Like the gauntlets commonly seen in fighting games, the inconspicuous glow quietly wrapped around her forearms and condensed into a Mystic Code. A solid structure of silver clasped itself piece by piece around her arms, like part of her flesh, revealing a hard metallic sheen.

That was clearly not a catalyst.

It was Carl's second Mystic Code. Tsukahara Meiji had heard her mention it before. It was a Mystic Code Carl had prepared for herself, with numerous reinforcement spells and magical energy deflection spells inscribed upon the gloves.

This was the secret art of the Winsted Family.

For example, Fuyuki's Tohsaka Family specialized in transferring magical energy, while Abner's Winifred Family had unique expertise in the precise control of magical energy. The subject the Winsted Family had devoted itself to was reinforcement. Composite reinforcement, at that.

It was no exaggeration to say that if the previous head of the Winsted Family had cast Reinforcement Magecraft upon himself, his body would have been strong enough to rival a Servant's.

(This is... a combat stance?... Wh-why did she put that on?)

Tsukahara Meiji did not understand, but his instincts told him Carl would not make a mistake. Trust her. So the Crystal Playing Card quietly slid from Tsukahara Meiji's sleeve into his palm.

"Then hold onto it."

Carl's sea-blue eyes caught Tsukahara Meiji's cautious guard, and she nodded in satisfaction, silently praising her companion for understanding so quickly. She clenched her fist and extended it toward Tsukahara Meiji, but he could clearly see that she was holding nothing... it was merely a fist.

Just as he did not know what to do...

Clang!

The sound of metal striking metal!

Like a flash of lightning, brilliant sparks burst from the silver-braced portion of Carl's hand! The tremendous force sent Carl's arm flying upward! Carl furrowed her brows and pulled her arm back with all her strength!

For a projectile to possess that much force—to knock away Carl's strength-enhanced arm—showed just how powerful that strike had been!

A Servant! Not a Magus!

Thud!

Next came the sound of wood being struck.

A cross-shaped shuriken was embedded in the darkness, gleaming with a cold, striking light amid the night.

An enemy attack!