Winner, Winner, Chicken Dinner!

"Why do you think that is?"

Kiritsugu Emiya looked at Fu Yuan, who had clearly discovered something, and as if he had forgotten his previous lesson, asked with a hint of anticipation.

"I don't know."

Fu Yuan felt that he was being so supportive. Oh no, did that mean he was starting to seem smart?

The corner of Kiritsugu Emiya's mouth twitched, yet for some reason, he did not feel too disappointed.

Fu Yuan paid no attention to Kiritsugu Emiya's reaction. Instead, his small nose twitched, and his whole face brightened.

He very consciously ran into the kitchen to help carry things, with absolutely no awareness of himself as a Heroic Spirit.

As breakfast was nearly over, Irisviel looked worriedly at the furrow-browed Kiritsugu Emiya. However, she could not help with this sort of problem.

Fu Yuan contentedly ate the last bite on his plate, even though etiquette dictated that the last bite should be left untouched!

Only then did he notice his troubled Master. Full and satisfied, his brain was clearly working better now!

"Mm—right! Back at the hospital, I ran into Fat Tiger!"

Kiritsugu Emiya seemed to suddenly catch hold of some inspiration. As for who Fat Tiger was, he had pieced together from Fu Yuan's usual chatter that it should be that King of Heroes.

In other words, it wasn't just that priest who had already withdrawn who knew about my alliance!

(This time, although Kiritsugu Emiya had noticed that something was off, he still did not know that Kirei Kotomine's Heroic Spirit remained alive.)

It was as though everything suddenly clicked for him, even if it was bad news.

Then, just as he finished sorting through all the threads and was about to make a new plan, Fu Yuan seemed to remember something else and added,

"Mm, that's right. The priest knew too, though his Heroic Spirit was pretty weak."

Kiritsugu Emiya gradually fell silent. What the hell was this?

Assassin really had not died!

And how could you fail to remember something this huge? Were you useless?!

Just as he was about to open his mouth and mock Fu Yuan, Fu Yuan seemed to suddenly recall something else and continued,

"Mm... when Irisviel, Kariya Uncle, and I formed our alliance, I think it was next to the Lancer pair's base?"

Fu Yuan did not sound very certain when he said it, but judging by the magical aura he had sensed from that hotel, only Kaineth should have been capable of setting it up!

However, although Kaineth had noticed traces of battle below at the time, because of his wife, he had not gone to investigate. He had only assumed that two Heroic Spirits were fighting.

He had no idea about their alliance at all.

Kiritsugu Emiya felt like the him from a few days ago had been an idiot, actually believing that no one else knew about his alliance with Kariya Matou.

Fu Yuan suddenly slammed his right fist into his left palm, as though he had remembered something important.

"I also sensed Rider's presence! Mm, that should be everything."

Although Rider's group had clearly not noticed them due to the vast range of his perception, it was still a possibility, right? So he mentioned it too.

Kiritsugu Emiya suddenly slapped himself across the face. The him from a few days ago, who had felt as though the world was in his grasp, had been a complete idiot!

He looked at Fu Yuan with obvious displeasure. This was the culprit behind his brain-dead decisions.

Kariya Matou had spent a long, long time sorting through what Kiritsugu Emiya had said earlier. Now, looking at the clearly self-isolating Kiritsugu Emiya, he confusedly dealt another blow.

"So we're not waiting anymore? Didn't you say we should wait for them to start fighting first?"

Kiritsugu Emiya turned back and glared at him. Wait his ass! If they waited any longer, everyone else would be coming for them!

Kiritsugu Emiya's expression darkened. It seemed the first battle of the Holy Grail War would have to be started by him.

That completely went against his previous principle of keeping a low profile.

(Principle of keeping a low profile: 1. If I really can't keep a low profile, then kill all the witnesses. That way, I'm still the low-profile Magus Killer!)

"Get ready! Tonight, we'll start the first battle!"

Kiritsugu Emiya's tone suddenly turned solemn—or rather, he returned to his usual self.

"Of course. Schicksal S-rank Valkyrie, Fu Yuan, awaiting your orders."

Fu Yuan became serious for once and struck a pose he had not used in a long time.

But Kiritsugu Emiya clearly did not appreciate it. Instead, he glared at him rather viciously.

Sensing all of this, Fu Yuan pouted in obvious dissatisfaction.

What kind of person is this?! I'm playing along with you!

He had not considered at all that Kiritsugu Emiya had become like this because of him, since none of those matters seemed like a big deal to Fu Yuan.

"King, what's wrong?"

Tokiomi Tohsaka looked at Gilgamesh, who had been standing in the courtyard for some time, unable to understand.

Gilgamesh's demeanor was clearly different from usual.

"Prepare yourself, Tokiomi. The stage play is about to end."

After becoming female, Gilgamesh was obviously a little less chuunibyou, faintly showing signs of turning into Serious Gil.

Though she was still extremely chuunibyou.

Tokiomi Tohsaka became rather excited upon hearing this, but quickly suppressed the emotion.

As long as they did not start the battle, victory was assured! With Assassin hidden in the shadows and the King of Heroes, his long-cherished wish might finally come true.

Or rather, the common wish of all Magi: reaching the Root.

"Professor Kaineth, do we really need to be this cautious? Isn't there still one day left?"

Waver watched Kaineth setting up magecraft everywhere, clearly unable to understand. Was there really a need to take this so seriously?

With the two of them together, were they not already invincible?

If not for the alliance—or rather, because of Rider—Kaineth would not even want to acknowledge him right now.

But it did not matter. As long as Rider could pull his weight normally, that was enough.

Good Luck, Have Fun! Chicken Dinner Tonight!

Naturally, Irisviel and Illya did not need to come along for this operation. Even Maiya had been told to stay behind.

Irisviel: Was something wrong here?

Fortunately, since Illya and the others had spent several days playing wildly, they did not throw childish tantrums.

The other four handsome men were at the castle entrance, helping Kiritsugu Emiya sort through the things he had prepared.

Fu Yuan stood last before Einsbern Castle, his expression calm. The most eye-catching thing was the Crimson Feather Fan in his hand as he gazed up at the sky.

"Saber, do you also understand Star Gazing?"

After Irisviel stayed behind to watch the children, Kariya Matou consciously took on the role of hype man.

In this regard, he was just like Irisviel—genuinely dumb!

Fu Yuan visibly grew proud when he heard that. He could say with complete confidence:

He had studied it!

Even though he had not learned it.

But at the very least, he knew how to strike the poses and what equipment was necessary.

He revealed an unfathomably mysterious smile, lightly waved the feather fan in his hand, and as Kiritsugu Emiya unhappily sensed the mana draining from his body—

The wind rose!

After completing his preparations, Fu Yuan seriously stared at the few stars in the sky, his expression turning somewhat strange.

However, he quickly suppressed that trace of awkwardness. With a sweep of his feather fan, the mana in the air was stirred.

Eight words appeared in the air.

"Good Luck, Have Fun! Chicken Dinner Tonight?!"

Kariya Matou very cooperatively displayed a puzzled expression. It looked impressive, but the emotions transmitted by Berserker through the Command Spells seemed somewhat disdainful.

"...You've had your fun. We can go now."

Kiritsugu Emiya glanced at the pocket watch on his wrist. Though they were not in much of a hurry, he had no intention of wasting time here.

Fu Yuan curled his lips, then sharply snapped his feather fan shut. With a casual flick, it had already turned into an Iron Fan reflecting the moonlight.

Noble Phantasm:

Fu Yuan's Magic Fan (E)

A fan that can be used for magic tricks?

Kariya Matou looked at that seemingly sharp fan and could not help sighing at how many Noble Phantasms Saber had.

Though he could sense that Berserker seemed even more disdainful.

Lancelot, entirely black save for his terrifyingly red visor, was clearly uninterested in such flashy things.

He could casually pick up a stone from the roadside with a higher rank than that, though it would quickly turn back into an ordinary object once it left his hand.

"I always feel like Saber has a lot of Noble Phantasms!"

At those words, Fu Yuan's lips visibly curled into a smug smile. Ah, this! Suddenly, he did not miss Irisviel anymore!

How could anyone be so suited to being a hype man?!

Fu Yuan lowered his head in obvious embarrassment, though the smile at the corner of his mouth could no longer be restrained.

"I'm ashamed, I'm ashamed. It took me three whole minutes to make a fan like this."

Although he spoke as if he were embarrassed, his expression was clearly full of pride.

Though for this brief one- or two-minute performance, he had painfully removed Fu Yuan's Diary (E).

But the others did not know that!

"Amazing."

That was Kariya Matou's heartfelt admiration. Though Saber was sometimes unreliable, he truly had many tricks.

Kiritsugu Emiya was also visibly surprised when he heard that and glanced at Fu Yuan. By his understanding, Saber had no need to lie about something like this.

In other words, he had really made a Noble Phantasm in only three minutes, even if it did not look particularly powerful.

"Then what does this Noble Phantasm do?"

Kariya Matou asked what everyone present was thinking, though he was simply curious.

Fu Yuan silently drew in a sharp breath.

Irisviel, it's not that you weren't enticing enough. It's just that Kariya Uncle is too good at this!

Sorry, Irisviel.

Hehe! If there's another chance in the future, I definitely need to show off in front of Kariya Uncle—

"It actually doesn't have much use."

"It can only unleash destructive power close to an A-rank Noble Phantasm when necessary."

Though countless thoughts raced through his mind, Fu Yuan put on an unsatisfied expression, as if such power was not even worth his attention.

As for how it could unleash A-rank destructive power, that was simple: self-detonation. No matter how low its rank, it was still a Noble Phantasm.

Its status was there. Empowered by the world's rules, it was just that shameless!

Oh, right. The other white-haired one from the future Fifth Holy Grail War used this as his signature move.

The one who reacted most strongly upon hearing this was the pitch-black Lancelot. He simply did not believe that such a weak Noble Phantasm could unleash so much power.

Yet his no-longer-noble character still retained the most basic aloofness, and he said nothing.