Chapter 356

"Goddess of Fate!" Saber said, "Every Heroic Spirit who participates in the Holy Grail War has their own wish. It is because of their own wishes that they choose to become Heroic Spirit and be summoned to participate in the Holy Grail War."

"So what is your wish, Goddess of Fate Belldandy?"

'What is it?' That's a sharp question that can be avoided.

To be honest, Li Pu didn't come here with any wish in mind, but not saying it or making up one would only deepen the hostility and rift.

That...

"The Goddess of Fate weaves the destinies of others but cannot weave her own," Li Pu said calmly. "She can fulfill the wishes of others but cannot fulfill her own."

"You ask me what my wish is?"

"I just don't want to be Goddess anymore."

Chapter Six: Luck E, Lucky D, Luck E X

"Thump thump~ thump thump~ thump thump~ thump thump~"

With a series of very rhythmic knocks, the door of an unassuming guesthouse in Fuyuki City opened.

The woman who opened the door and the man who knocked exchanged glances. After confirming with their eyes that they were gay, the woman let the man in, and they began their secret rendezvous in the small house.

"All the equipment has been delivered." After confirming there were no tails following them outside, the woman closed the door and said, "As planned, Madam and Saber have arrived in Fuyuki City. The Foreigner has also picked them up, and everything is proceeding according to plan."

"Other Master would think that the lady is the Master of Saber and the Foreigner."

The woman walked in through the door, but the man ignored her, focusing instead on the cold, silent weapons.

The woman didn't seem too angry. She walked to the DVD player in the room, turned on DVDV, and said, "This is footage from last night's battle. The resolution is limited, but the general picture is still clear."

Upon hearing the woman's words, the man finally looked away from his weapon and back at the screen.

The scene shows a dark figure, followed by explosions as if it had been hit by artillery fire. The scene then abruptly ends.

The man looked at the screen carefully, pondered for a moment, and then said, "Miwu, what do you think?"

These two dogs... umm... the man and woman are naturally Mai and Kiritsugu, and the scene in the picture is the first battle of the nominal Holy Grail War that took place last night.

"I think Foreigner's judgment is basically correct," Mima said. "It's about concealment and a show of force. Assassin's advantage lies not in the spotlight but in the shadows. But I think Foreigner's judgment isn't entirely correct either. She didn't anticipate the possibility of an alliance between Master. Perhaps Tohsaka's Servant' purpose in showcasing their power was to attract more attention to themselves, thus creating more room for Assassin to operate behind the scenes."

"Is that so?" Kiritsugu seemed to have another thought, and said in a way that was neither a question nor a reply, "Do you think the Foreigner didn't anticipate this?"

Miwu was about to give her answer when she opened her mouth but stopped. She thought for a moment and said, "What do you mean?"

"Apart from the Luck attribute, none of the other attributes of the Foreigner are visible," Kiritsugu said. "Besides, she's not an ordinary Heroic Spirit. As someone who controls destiny, it's unlikely that she wouldn't notice all of this."

"Are you doubting Foreigner?" Miwu asked. "Is she lying?"

"No!" Kiritsugu shook his head and said, "She may not be lying, but I have reason to believe that she certainly didn't tell us the whole truth. She only told us parts of the truth very selectively."

"Betrayal?" Miwu said again, "She came to Fuyuki City alone before. Could she have already betrayed us? Is that right?"

"Maybe not yet." Kiritsugu denied again, "I don't think she would betray us. She may not necessarily need me to be her Master, but judging from the current situation, she may not feel that anyone other than me is suitable to be her Master."

"Is that so?" Miwu asked, somewhat uncertainly.

"Yes, because in the eyes of other Master she is nothing more than a walking Holy Grail," Kiritsugu said. "If it were anyone else, they would certainly have their wishes fulfilled, but fulfilling her wish is not necessarily the case."

Kiritsugu turned to face the huge pile of equipment and said, "Didn't she say that she could refuse to grant other people's wishes, or pay a certain price to grant their wishes?"

"I think she was referring to Command Spell, which means they can grant Master's wish. But if the Master doesn't grant her wish and forces her to use Command Spell, she will make the Master pay a heavy price." Kiritsugu said with certainty, "So as long as I don't intend to use Command Spell to force her to grant my wish, she won't betray us."

"But the key question is what her own desire is." Kiritsugu picked up his weapon and said, "What is the wish of the Goddess who weaves destiny and fulfills wishes?"

"Then..." Mi Wu was about to speak.

"We can leave her alone for now," Kiritsugu said. "Just focus our attention on what needs to be focused on."

The sun had already set on the beach, and the moon had long since risen above the horizon. Li Pu lay half-reclined, floating in the air, enjoying the summer sea breeze of Fuyuki. Saber, still savoring the delicious barbecue she had just eaten, seemed reluctant to leave. Meanwhile, the lady stood on the beach, trying to find seashells, starfish, or other seafood left behind by the receding tide.

"Isn't it really peaceful?" Li Pu said calmly. "If only it could stay this peaceful forever."

Saber remained silent. She had always presented herself as unapproachable, strictly self-disciplined, and aloof. Except for a few moments during meals, she reverted to this unpleasant demeanor afterward.

"Saber," Li Pu said, looking at Saber beside him, "Have you never imagined a time without war and in peace?"

"No," Saber said. "The times I lived in did not allow me to think that way, you know. From the time I took over Britain until the time of its collapse, war was always the main theme of that era."

"It's you, Foreigner, who doesn't seem like the kind of person to make such a remark," Saber said.

Li Pu chuckled and said, "Our appearance signifies the twilight of the gods, the end of a golden age for them. You think I've never been involved in war, but the truth is I've never been far from it."

"I have no interest in discussing my life with you," Li Pu said. "Now do you feel it? An invitation from other Heroic Spirit."

"Of course." Saber stood up, looking eager to try.

"Then let's go," Li Pu said. "Let's go and meet heroes from other eras."

"And Saber," Li Pu said, stretching his limbs. "Don't think I'm a weakling who can't go to the front lines. I'm a warrior too, not much weaker than you."

Let's go meet that guy.

Brother Dog with Luck E, I really want the Gordian Rose in your hand.

It makes a perfect pair with the one I have!

Chapter Seven Diarmuid

"Should I appear on stage or not? Should I appear on stage or not?"

Li Pu muttered to himself under his breath.

"What are you saying, Foreigner?" Saber, who was walking at the front, didn't hear what Li Pu was muttering.

"Nothing," Li Pu said immediately. "I was just thinking about the Servant's intentions and the reasons behind his Master's actions. Does he really expect to eliminate a competitor on the very first day of the war?"

It seems that guy really thinks that way.

However, what really troubled Li Pu was not this; what truly troubled her was something else entirely.

'The Chain of Heaven...' Li Pu sighed inwardly, 'This is a very troublesome thing.'

Knowing the plot, I knew Golden Flash would definitely appear, and the most troublesome thing about Li Pu's Golden Flash Noble Phantasm the Chain of Heaven. That damn thing has a very special setting, which is useless against the other Heroic Spirit in this Holy Grail War, but it's practically a perfect counter to Li Pu.

An item of the 'Law God'! The higher the divinity of the captured object, the more durable the Noble Phantasm becomes, making it one of the few anti-god weapons.

But Li Pu is now a Goddess! Not one who only has half or a fraction of divine blood, she is a god herself! So if Golden Flash uses anything on her, it's a perfect counter!

Damn it! And it seems that Golden Flash himself also has a strong aversion to gods, so does that mean I'm doing a tap dance on Golden Flash's... sensitive spot?

'Sigh... whatever...' Li Pu sighed to himself, 'What's meant to be will be.'

Anyway, we'll have to face Golden Flash sooner or later, it's just a little sooner now.

"Hey~" Now that he had decided to face Golden Flash in person, Li Pu quickly walked past his wife to Saber and said, "How about I deal with this opponent first? It's been too long since I've exercised, I need to do some warm-up before the battle."

Saber glanced at Li Pu, wondering why Goddess who didn't seem to be good at fighting would volunteer. But since Li Pu had asked, she naturally wouldn't refuse; she wanted to see how this Goddess would fight anyway.

"Okay," Saber said, "Since this is your request."

At the Fuyuki City docks, a place piled high with shipping containers, Lancer, exuding his aura and fighting spirit, finally awaited the arrival of his first group to meet him.

Three beautiful women.

Three women? This really surprised Lancer.

"It seems like you're the only ones who have accepted this challenge, right?" Lancer said, sounding both disappointed and excited. "But this pure fighting spirit... that means you're Saber, right?"

That blonde, spirited girl was undoubtedly Saber. Lancer then looked at the white-haired, red-eyed woman behind Saber. She didn't seem inclined to join the battle, suggesting she was Saber's Master. If she was Saber's Master, then this woman standing beside Saber...

"If she is Saber, then you should be the Foreigner, right?" Lancer asked tentatively.

"Oh?" Li Pu said with a hint of surprise, "You actually knew? I thought I would keep it a secret for a long time."

"Of course I know," Lancer said. "My Master told me that there would be an unexpected Servant in the Holy Grail War this time. I thought you, Foreigner, would hide, but I didn't expect you to take the initiative to be with Saber and accept my invitation."

"That's really surprising."

"If you're surprised," Li Pu said, stepping forward with his hands in his pockets, "Would you be even more surprised if I were to become your opponent and duel you one-on-one?"

"Indeed." Lancer said, genuinely a little surprised. "I thought it would be Saber, Saber."

"I will not disturb your duel," Saber declared. "I swear in the name of knighthood that I will not intervene in this sacred duel between you until a victor is decided."

To be honest, Li Pu's fighting style is also quite funny.

"Thank you very much," Lancer said politely. "I hope we can have a match sometime."

Saber nodded in acknowledgment.

"Well..." Lancer said, brandishing his twin pistols, "While not the most ideal opponent, it's still a good thing to fight a Foreigner. It's just that fighting against an opponent you're going to fight to the death without being able to exchange names is really restrictive and disappointing."

"Actually, you don't need to feel disappointed, Lancer," Li Pu said with a mysterious smile. "I know your real name and your past."

"Chief Warrior - Radiant Visage".

A hint of surprise flickered across Lancer's usually composed face. The woman hadn't directly revealed his name, but she had stated his title. So, her knowledge of his name and past wasn't unfounded!

"Could you be a hero from my era?" Lancer speculated. "Why don't I remember you?"

If someone is powerful, knows themselves, and knows the female heroes of their past, how could they not know this name? So why do they have no recollection of her at all?

"Of course not." Li Pu said mysteriously, "I am the one who weaves your destiny. If you want to be a little more particular, you can say that I am the one who brought you this bad luck and led you to that tragic end."

"My Lord?!" Lancer exclaimed in surprise. "No, could you be a princess...?"

"Nonsense!" Li Pu waved his hand and said, "Don't make wild guesses."

"But then again," Li Pu suddenly turned to Saber and said, "Lancer is someone you have some connection with. You are both from the same mythology, and his tragic story happened to you as well, except that you played the role of a monarch, not a Lord."

"Oh?" Saber was even more curious now. "I'm actually looking forward to fighting you now, Lancer."

"But Foreigner, you said you don't have that kind of weird fetish, but I feel like you actually really enjoy doing it, right?"

"NO~NO~NO~NO~" Li Pu waved his finger and said, "I didn't, don't think nonsense."

"Enough talk, I'm going in now, Lancer!"

'Weaving her own destiny? The one who brought this tragedy upon herself. Neither a princess nor a lord! Then who is she?' Lancer mustered all her strength to face the foreigner who seemed to know her very well.

She seemed to take something off her ear and throw it at him. In the blink of an eye, his body was thrown backward at an uncontrollable speed, crashing into the container and becoming unable to move.

What happened? What's going on?

Lancer was struck by lightning before he could react!

"Aaaaaah~" With a heart-wrenching scream, Lancer fell from the container and crashed onto the concrete pavement. The pain from the lightning strike left him limp and unable to get up.

'Oh? Belldandy's skills look pretty useful too.'

Li Pu himself looked at Lancer with surprise. The golden pendant on Belldandy's earring wasn't just a decoration; it was a divine artifact. In the anime Belldandy used it to repel and immobilize the Earth Spirit before electrocuting it. Now it seemed this artifact was even more effective against Lancer's attacks!

With an earring and an electric shock, Lancer was taken down in one round.

I thought it would be a long and tough battle.

Li Pu was somewhat surprised, and Saber was even more surprised. She hadn't expected the battle to unfold this way; everything had developed far too quickly.

From the start of the attack to the end of the battle, Lancer had absolutely no chance to retaliate.

Is this the fighting power of a god? It seems I need to reassess the Goddess of Fate's fighting power; she is definitely not an ordinary support character.

"Is it over?" Saber asked.

"No!" Li Pu suddenly became tense and said, "The real battle has only just begun."

As soon as she finished speaking, ripples appeared on her face, and countless golden chains appeared where she had just stood, weaving a dense net-like structure that tried to trap her in place.

But it was clear that Li Pu fast enough that the iron chain was just chasing after her from behind.

It looks like we can't catch up at all.

'Damn it.' Li Pu didn't want to be locked in the Chain of Heaven. Theoretically, even if he were locked in, he could escape using a time tunnel.

However, the Chain of Heaven is also supposed to absorb magic, so this thing might block Li Pu's other escape routes.

Li Pu was unwilling to test whether his escape skills were stronger or the Chain of Heaven's skills were stronger!

However, dodging like this is very disadvantageous for me; I must let Golden Flash out.