Drawing on his experience from his previous life and their time together, Rovey had come to understand Scáthach's personality well. Once she had made up her mind, no one could force her to change it—not even him, her Master. Even if he forced her, she would surely let Artoria go anyway.
So Rovey simply went along with it and answered Scáthach.
"Since she's your opponent, you can decide, Scáthach."
"You agree, Master?"
Scáthach was clearly surprised that Rovey had so readily agreed to her willful request. She dispersed the runes hidden in her hand, a smile appearing on her face. She had even been prepared to defy a Command Seal just moments ago.
Yet she had never expected her Master to be so understanding...
She could not help feeling both surprised and pleased.
Sure enough, partnering with someone intelligent and compatible saved a great deal of trouble. Clearly, her Master was exactly the sort of person she had hoped for.
"Cough, cough..."
As Scáthach steadily approached, the severely wounded Artoria suddenly spat out several mouthfuls of blood. Her injuries were grave; she had clearly been driven into a corner.
"The breath of stars gathered..."
Gritting her teeth, Artoria intended to cast everything aside and make one final all-out attempt with her Noble Phantasm. Just as she was about to speak its true name...
"Arrrrrrrr—!!!"
An enraged roar suddenly crashed into the battlefield.
Saber, who was about to unleash her Noble Phantasm, and Scáthach, who was preparing to leave, both froze. Then a pitch-black figure smashed into the battlefield like a cannonball.
—BOOM!!!
The black figure, its violent aura, and that piercing roar echoing throughout the battlefield made the two women's ears ring. Then, from the billowing smoke, a terrifying figure crouched on the ground like a hunting hound emerged.
Berserker.
"...Lancelot? Why is he here too? Is he planning to attack King Arthur?"
Looking at the suddenly appearing black figure, Scáthach wore a puzzled expression, though she also sensed trouble.
She had seen Lancelot's hatred for King Arthur before, along with his frenzied state of relentless pursuit.
King Arthur had just taken a Noble Phantasm from her and had no way to withstand the Knight of the Lake's rabid assault. Scáthach would have to stop him.
"Berserker! Has another enemy appeared?"
Dragging her badly injured body back several steps, Artoria's expression darkened further. Lancer and Berserker had both gathered here, and with the other two Heroic Spirits from the nearby battlefield, she was completely surrounded. Escaping unscathed was already impossible.
"Lancer, I'm here to help you."
Following the appearance of the black knight, a young man with a somewhat foolish-looking face appeared behind him through the swirling smoke.
The newcomer was Matou Kariya...
About an hour earlier.
The Matou Family.
While the Assassins were besieging Kenneth, Matou Zouken received a call from Rovey.
After thinking for a moment, he summoned Matou Kariya to the living room.
"Do you understand the situation?"
After roughly explaining what had happened over there, Matou Zouken asked indifferently.
He had not expected that brat Tokiomi Tohsaka to join forces with the Einzbern Family to bombard Kenneth and send out several Servants.
And as it happened, Kenneth also had several Servants helping him. A three-against-three melee was very likely to break out next.
Since that was the case, he had every reason to send his Berserker in to join the fray.
Though he was allied with Rovey, he had his own little schemes. He deliberately instructed Matou Kariya to arrive a little later.
Let them fight three against three first. Once Servants began suffering casualties, Berserker could enter and reap the spoils, expanding their advantage. If possible...
It would be best if Tokiomi Tohsaka's Heroic Spirits and Kenneth and Rovey's powerful Heroic Spirits fought each other to the death and ended up mutually wounded...
That way, his Berserker could effortlessly clean up the battlefield and claim victory.
That damned Old Worm. Even now, he's still plotting against others. What a sinister bastard...
After hearing Matou Zouken's instructions, Matou Kariya cursed his despicableness inwardly and grew even more disgusted by his actions.
"I understand. Clean up the leftovers and take out Tokiomi Tohsaka's Servants, right?"
But he was trapped under another's roof and had no choice but to bow his head. He could only continue enduring and wait for the right opportunity.
Matou Kariya confidently patted his chest and declared that he would handle everything from here on out.
Wasn't it just about making trouble for Tokiomi Tohsaka? He loved doing that.
No matter who it was, as long as they went after Tokiomi Tohsaka, Matou Kariya had to lend them a hand!!
And so, this scene came to pass.
Having just arrived, Matou Kariya looked around but saw no sign of Assassin or Archer, which left him somewhat surprised.
After searching the area for a while, Berserker beside him seemed to sense something and immediately dragged him here at high speed.
And what he saw gave him quite a fright.
Scáthach and the severely wounded Artoria were both on this battlefield.
Though Matou Kariya knew this Saber was not Tokiomi Tohsaka's Servant, he also knew that Scáthach was his ally. By that logic, Scáthach's enemy was his enemy as well.
So he did not hesitate to give the command to Lancelot beside him.
"Then go, Berserker. Haven't you always wanted to deal with this Saber? Your chance is here."
Matou Kariya pointed imposing at Saber before him, and Berserker turned and charged toward Scáthach.
His black body firmly shielded Artoria behind him, leaving everyone present stunned.
Matou Kariya looked baffled. "Huh?"
Then he hurriedly shouted, "Get back here, Berserker! I told you to attack Saber, not Lancer!!"
Yet Lancelot, charging forward without hesitation, had no intention of obeying his command and continued rushing straight at Scáthach.
"Has he lost control?"
Even Artoria, who had just been pushed into a desperate situation, was stunned by this sight.
She looked up at the black knight's unflinching back, and for a moment, it felt strangely familiar.
Could it be...
Just as she was about to think of a possibility, the communicator tucked into her sleeve sounded with Emiya Kiritsugu's urgent voice.
"What are you spacing out for, Saber? Take advantage of their infighting and retreat! I've already had Maiya prepare transportation nearby!"
"Oh... right."
Hearing Emiya Kiritsugu's urgent call, Artoria could no longer spare any thought for the question in her mind.
She hurriedly rose from the ground, released magical energy to increase her speed, and sprinted toward the ruined streets without looking back.
Before leaving, she even remembered to thank Berserker, who was holding Scáthach back for her.
"Arrrrrrr—!!!"
That word of thanks made the already unstable Berserker even more berserk.
This left Matou Kariya unable to defend himself. He hurriedly waved at Scáthach, trying to prove his innocence.
"No, it really wasn't me! I'm not on that Saber's side!"
"And Berserker, what the hell are you doing? Get your ass back here!"
Seeing Berserker ruin everything and let Saber escape, Matou Kariya flew into a rage and cursed.
But stimulated by Saber's severe injuries, Berserker clearly had not calmed down. He continued treating Scáthach as an enemy of his own accord.
...Had he completely gone mad?
"What a nuisance."
Seeing this, Scáthach, who had never intended to pursue Saber, frowned.
As an ally, Scáthach had wanted to give Berserker some face, but she could no longer tolerate this.
"I'll help you calm down a little, Knight of the Lake."
And so, amid Matou Kariya's shouts, two Servants who should have been on the same side launched a new battle among the ruins.
"Stop! Stop fighting!"
"Please, stop fighting!"
With Matou Kariya's thoroughly ill-timed cries, the battle between the two Servants somehow became even stranger.
Even Rovey could not help covering his face when he saw this. "Forget it. Let them play by themselves for now."
Saber had already left anyway. As long as Scáthach did not get serious or use her Noble Phantasm, Lancelot should be fine with his skill.
But after seeing Lancelot's abnormal behavior, Rovey gained a new estimate of this man's unpredictability.
He was fine as long as he did not encounter Artoria. The moment he saw her, he would pounce like a wild dog and beg for a beating.
You could not ignore him, but helping him would earn you no gratitude either. If you hurt Artoria, he would even turn around and bite you, just like this very scene.
Overall assessment: a complete stray mutt. His combat strength was decent, but his brain was not. If he remained around much longer, he would probably cause even more trouble.
Fortunately, Matou Kariya still had unused Command Seals, the troublesome Assassin had already withdrawn, and the badly wounded Saber would not be able to cause any waves for a while. Together with the three Servants he had just brought under his control, everything was ready.
He might as well use up Lancelot and swiftly finish off Tokiomi Tohsaka and the others...
Matou Kariya's body would not endure this strain much longer, so some matters were better moved up the schedule. Besides, his plan was nearly complete.
Since that was the case, it was time to take that Old Worm's life. No, it would be more accurate to say that he would send him to heaven.
For Justeaze Lizrich von Einzbern, what he was about to do truly counted as a good deed and an act of mercy.
"—Amen."
He murmured with a compassionate expression.
"This... this is..."
Through the few familiars still lingering on the battlefield, Tokiomi Tohsaka could still monitor the situation there. When he heard that familiar voice, his expression froze.
"It's... Matou Kariya?!!"
"Matou Kariya?"
It was not just Tokiomi Tohsaka. Upon hearing that name, Kirei Kotomine was also stunned and asked:
"Didn't he abandon magecraft and leave Fuyuki City? How could someone who never received formal training become a Magus in such a short time..."
"That is why he chose the easiest-to-control Berserker, perhaps... It seems the Matou Family truly has no intention of giving up."
Tokiomi Tohsaka frowned and calmly analyzed the situation.
"But if the Matou Family's Servant is not the expected Caster and Scáthach, but another Berserker; if Kenneth's Servant is Fionn mac Cumhaill; and if that brat Weber Velvet summoned Rider, then who are the Masters of Caster and Scáthach in this Holy Grail War?"
Tokiomi Tohsaka furrowed his brow, deep confusion filling his eyes.
Matou Kariya's appearance had overturned all his previous predictions and thrown the current situation into chaos.
Even Assassin on his side had already withdrawn, yet he still had no idea who Caster and Scáthach's Master was, or which faction they belonged to.
At first, he had assumed Matou Zouken was controlling Caster and initiating these actions. After all, besides the old head of the Matou Family, there were not many in the Holy Grail War who understood the rules so thoroughly and could conduct an irregular summoning, but...
Matou Kariya could become a Master too?
Tokiomi Tohsaka found that difficult to accept.
Naturally, he knew Matou Kariya very well.
He was a man Tokiomi Tohsaka had defeated, and the only member of this generation of the Matou Family with talent for magecraft. He had originally been the inheritor of the magical path upon whom Matou Zouken had placed great hopes.
Tokiomi Tohsaka had to admit that, in terms of talent alone, Matou Kariya might indeed have been just a little stronger than him. But Tokiomi Tohsaka did not care.
Before you continue