Discussion / A Temporary Rest...

Judas's cross? Did that mean the cross on him, or the cross that crucified Jesus?

My big sister finished drawing it...jpg

Discussion

Regardless of whether it was true or not, King of Conquerors and Diarmuid both looked at Mikaela with a trace of gravity in their eyes. If it was merely a cross, that would be one thing.

But if it truly was the cross that had crucified Jesus... then... just who was Mikaela?

A heaviness arose in their hearts. Suddenly, Mikaela's identity seemed strangely mysterious. Could her true identity... be Judas, the one who had betrayed the Son?

However, they quickly shook their heads inwardly. Judas had been male in history, definitely not a woman.

Even so, King of Conquerors and Diarmuid regarded Mikaela with greater seriousness. Clearly, they would not consider her a "weak Saber."

"But what exactly is this evil god?"

Waver began to ponder. He had seen it clearly just now. When Saber had arrived, Gilles de Rais had been incredibly arrogant, even mocking Lancer as nothing more than a brute with strength and no brains.

But ever since Saber had appeared, everything had changed. He had decisively left, even displaying wild delight.

That was not merely the expression of seeing a "kindred spirit," but...

Waver Velvet looked at Mikaela's calm expression and felt that her identity must be something truly extraordinary.

"Well, who knows?" King of Conquerors slapped Waver's frail little body, scattering his thoughts in the process. He grinned boldly at Mikaela. "My Little Master and I will be leaving for now. We shall meet again if the chance arises, Saber."

With that, King of Conquerors drove away in his ox cart, taking Waver with him.

"Then I shall leave for now as well. After tonight's commotion, I believe that Caster will not emerge to commit evil again for the time being." Diarmuid put away his twin spears and gave Mikaela a slight nod, indicating that he too would return to rest tonight.

Mikaela said nothing. She also put away Oath of Judas, feeling that she should leave this place quickly.

The two left the scene together.

"Kid, what do you think of that Saber?" On the way back, King of Conquerors—Iskandar—drove his ox cart high-profile through the skies above Fuyuki City while asking Waver what he thought of Saber.

Previously, King of Conquerors had thought that his Little Master was a fledgling who needed this Holy Grail War to prove his own worth.

But just now, King of Conquerors had seen the word "wisdom" in his Little Master. Though Waver appeared somewhat timid and arrogant, he truly possessed a wisdom that could not be concealed.

"What do I think?" Waver seemed surprised that his Servant would ask him such a question. Logically speaking, wasn't he dying to get home and watch television right now??? Why was he asking this?

Over the past few days, Waver had long since despaired of this "King of Conquerors." He acted like a total shut-in, knowing nothing but eating every day!!! Then he had Waver buy all sorts of books and videotapes, even histories of recent wars and so on...

Honestly, Waver truly had no idea what those things had to do with the Holy Grail War!!

"Why are you so surprised? As your Servant, of course I want to hear your opinion." King of Conquerors laughed when he saw Waver's expression. "Don't you hope to gain the proper recognition of others? If you want recognition, kid, then you must voice your thoughts and find a way to make others acknowledge what you say."

"Oh~~~~" Waver's voice rose slightly, as though he felt that King of Conquerors had a point.

"Ahem." Waver coughed a few times and began recalling Mikaela's earlier actions and expression. He slowly said, "Actually, I think she is hiding a great deal. Not just her identity, but other things as well."

"Oh? Why?" At that moment, King of Conquerors was like a student, carefully listening to what his Little Master had to say.

"Because it is simple. When she saw us, didn't she show an extremely 'guarded' expression?" Waver calmly analyzed the scenes from earlier. "Normally, it is understandable to be wary upon seeing unfamiliar Servants, but at least there would be a few words exchanged. Yet she seemed extremely repulsed by us, as if we were terrifying monsters."

"Repulsed? Could it not simply be excessive vigilance?" King of Conquerors raised his doubt. Although he had noticed that, he had not thought too deeply about it. Sometimes, the harder one pursued certain things, the less one gained.

Waver shook his head, looking quite serious. "If it had only been our first meeting, I might have thought so too. But last night, when she first met Lancer, did she show that kind of 'repulsed' expression?"

"No."

King of Conquerors shook his head slightly. He had witnessed Mikaela's battle with Diarmuid last night. Her words and actions had been nearly flawless, making one think of an upright knight.

Though her final method had been somewhat underhanded, knowing she was no match for her enemy and thus attacking their weakness was an extremely practical tactic.

"But why would she show such repulsion toward us? Could she know you, Rider?" Waver threw out another question and continued, "If she did not know Rider, then this should have been our first meeting. Even if some intelligence had leaked, that Saber had no reason to display such repulsion toward us."

"I naturally do not know her. Her characteristics are far too distinctive. If I had truly met her, I would naturally have told you."

King of Conquerors suddenly fell into thought again. He looked at his Little Master. He really had not seen it before—his Little Master was a talent of wisdom.

"So I think she must be hiding many things." Recalling what had just happened, Waver sighed. "Not only her attitude toward us, but also the evil god Caster mentioned. None of those questions have been resolved."

"That Archer hiding in the shadows may be very mysterious, but now I feel that this Saber standing in the open is the one hiding the deepest."

"In other words, she is the great enemy of this Holy Grail War?" A trace of gravity flashed through King of Conquerors's eyes. Clearly, he agreed with what his Little Master had said.

My wife!.jpg

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Taking a Break

"Mm, I do not know either." Waver shook his head slightly. Seeing King of Conquerors's grave expression, he sighed. "After all, her status parameters are like that. Honestly... I know a little about the Holy Grail War, so naturally I know that Saber's parameters are supposed to be the highest among all classes. But her parameters are simply dreadful, hahahahaha."

At the thought of the status parameters he had seen on Saber earlier, Waver could not help smiling. Just comparing their data! She could not even compare to his Rider.

Though she might have some clever tricks, when it came to actual combat, Waver felt that his Rider could crush that Saber.

Bang—!

Seeing his Little Master suddenly start laughing to himself, King of Conquerors smiled helplessly and directly smacked him to the ground. "What are you laughing foolishly about? Those parameters are merely restrictions imposed on Servants."

"Huh?! Isn't that our opportunity?!" Waver stuck his butt up in the air. That blow had left him dazed, and he did not get up right away. Instead, he looked at the towering King of Conquerors. "You should understand this principle too, right? The enemy's restrictions are our opportunity."

"Fool. What if that restriction was something she imposed upon herself?" King of Conquerors rolled his eyes and said helplessly, "Kid, do not forget what humanity relied on to defeat fierce beasts in the beginning."

"Weapons? Magecraft?" Waver answered weakly. He felt it could only be those two things.

"Wisdom! Wisdom!" King of Conquerors looked at Waver with great seriousness. "Humanity relied on wisdom to walk step by step to where it is now. Even the gods in the heavens probably never imagined that humanity would have such a glorious future."

"If humanity had relied only on weapons, it could never have created the glorious sight before us."

King of Conquerors pulled Waver to his feet and let him look at the bright nightscape below. These scenes had truly been created by humanity, not bestowed upon mankind by the gods.

"Just like the darkness beneath the nightscape, has Saber hidden her strength as well?!"

As though inspired by King of Conquerors, Waver suddenly understood something. He abruptly stood up and looked at King of Conquerors. "You mean Saber knows her parameters are at a disadvantage, but that is not her disadvantage—it is her advantage?! Because anyone can see those parameters. In other words, anyone will underestimate that Saber."

King of Conquerors smiled and nodded. He now sincerely felt that his Little Master was quite remarkable. Waver was no mediocrity, but a true talent of wisdom!

"Just like her Noble Phantasm. At first glance, it seems terrifying, but if you think carefully, even if it truly was the cross that crucified Jesus, it would not have much effect on us. On the contrary, if Jesus himself descended into the world, then he would be the one who should fear that Noble Phantasm."

As a Servant, King of Conquerors understood very well what Servants were. A Noble Phantasm was not necessarily better just because it had greater fame, because those highly renowned Noble Phantasms consumed astronomical amounts of mana.

The cross that had killed the "Son of God" seemed powerful at first glance, but the ability it displayed made one shake one's head. It felt as though that cross did not deserve the title of "slayer of the Son of God."

As a military strategist, King of Conquerors had caught a different scent. Though Saber in this Holy Grail War had been making quite a splash and seemed forced to reveal her strength before the war had even properly begun, the strength she had hidden was what was truly terrifying.

Furthermore! She might possess the ability to "alter" her own parameters. Though that seemed somewhat impossible, King of Conquerors would not conclude that something could not happen merely because it was "impossible."

"Well, there is no need to concern ourselves with that right now. The most important thing is to find Caster's location." Though King of Conquerors considered Saber a troublesome figure in this Holy Grail War, for now he still needed to focus all his attention on Caster.

Before eating the main course, having a few appetizers was not a bad choice.

"Caster's location?" Waver once again sank into thought by himself.

"Oh? It failed?"

After speaking with his fiancée, Kayneth was in excellent spirits. He looked calmly at Diarmuid, who knelt on one knee with the words "I am guilty" practically written across his face.

"My Lord, this is all my fault. Tonight, I..."

Diarmuid recounted everything he had done tonight, including encountering Abigail and Rin Tohsaka at the beginning, Saber's and Rider's appearance to help him at the end, and Caster's immediate departure without another word...

"Rider?" Kayneth frowned slightly, seemingly recalling something unpleasant as an expression of disgust appeared on his face.

"My Lord..." Diarmuid lowered his head even further. Every part of tonight's operation had been a mistake on his part. No matter what his Lord said, he would humbly accept it and use those words to spur himself onward.

"No, you did the right thing. If you had kidnapped the Tohsaka family's daughter, I would instead have reprimanded you." Kayneth picked up the coffee beside him and looked down at the bowed Diarmuid. "As Lord of the El-Melloi Faction, I came to participate in this provincial Holy Grail War in pursuit of an honorable victory. Kidnapping Tohno Shiro's daughter is something I would never do, even if you killed me! It would disgrace my honor."

"My Lord!" Diarmuid immediately became emotional. He raised his head and looked at Kayneth's calm expression, feeling that his wish had finally been fulfilled!

"However!"

Kayneth's tone suddenly turned stern. He stared at Diarmuid with coldness in his voice. "You were the first to discover Caster and his Master. You clearly had the best opportunity, yet you did not kill either of them. That was your mistake."

"Yes, my Lord... It was all my fault."

Diarmuid lowered his head again. Every mistake tonight had been born from his own failures and hesitation. Had he decisively killed Caster's Master, those children could have safely left that "darkness" tonight and welcomed the bright future that belonged to them.

"However, that blond girl named 'Abigail' has made me think of something." Kayneth would not blame his Servant too harshly, even though tonight had ended in failure.

But Diarmuid had also brought back much intelligence. What concerned Kayneth most was not that the servant-class maid was Saber, nor that her weapon was the cross that had crucified Jesus.

It was the blond girl named Abigail, who had first appeared beside the Tohsaka family's daughter.

PS: "I still owe 19 chapters =A= I will work hard to make up the updates. Everyone, hurry and throw recommendation votes at me. The author has not been feeling well lately, and the weather is getting colder. Remember to drink more hot water."

Going to Watch the Show?

The news that three Servants had hunted Caster tonight was no secret at all.

Inside the Tohsaka residence, Tohno Shiro had fallen into deep thought. His heart could not settle—not only because of Caster, but also because of his daughter.

"Sigh." Tohno Shiro stood up and looked into the distance, confusion flashing through his eyes. Could it be that, as the Einzbern homunculus had said, he should not have adopted Sakura out to the Matou family?

Tohno Shiro did not doubt the Einzbern family's malicious intentions, because they would disdain doing such a thing. If the Matou family declined, it would not benefit them much either.

Though the Three Great Families competed with one another, they also understood in their hearts that the Holy Grail War was a battle belonging to their families.

It was one thing for other "outsiders" to interfere in this Holy Grail War, but once they had a chance of winning, the Three Great Families would certainly unite and kill the outsiders together.

Moreover, though the Matou family had somewhat declined, it had existed for so many years and surely possessed vast assets and powerful Magic Crests.

Even if this generation had declined, should a descendant with considerable talent for magecraft emerge, they could still use those assets to rise again.

Einzbern naturally would not be foolish enough to deliberately drive a wedge between the Tohsaka family and the Matou family, because if the heads of those families discovered it, the two families would join forces to resist the Einzbern family.

Though the Einzbern family was quite famous, this was the territory of the Tohsaka family and the Matou family! The Holy Grail War was being held here as well.

Precisely because he knew this, Tohno Shiro began to hesitate. If the Einzbern homunculus was right, then with the Holy Grail War already underway, did he still have time to save Sakura?

The scales of victory had already tipped in his favor. If nothing unexpected happened, then the victory of this Holy Grail War was destined to belong to him, Tohno Shiro.

The Tohsaka family's long-cherished wish would finally have hope of being realized through him.

"Tohno Shiro, are you content to remain here sighing all day?"

At that moment, King of Heroes Gilgamesh sat on the sofa. Looking at the room without even a single "light bulb," disgust flashed through his eyes. Yet at the thought of what would happen next, he concealed that disgust.

"My King." Tohno Shiro looked at Gilgamesh and hid the confusion within himself. As the head of the Tohsaka family, he had to maintain elegant speech and conduct at all times, even before this King of Heroes.

"It is quite lively outside. All sorts of mongrels have emerged, and under that clown's manipulation, they have begun dancing merrily." Gilgamesh reclined on the sofa, recalling what he had seen earlier. A pleased smile appeared on his lips. "Watching this fine show alone is not bad, but seeing you cooped up in this house every day, I cannot quite bear it. As my retainer, you should accompany me to watch this 'fine show.'"

Calling the Holy Grail War a 'show.' Tohno Shiro gave a bitter smile. He did not know how to judge King of Heroes anymore.

Though their chances of victory were great now, many Servants had yet to reveal their trump cards. If they stumbled, he would not even have tears left to shed. They had to proceed cautiously.

But this King of Heroes simply did not understand the words "suffer a setback." Every day, he only knew how to go out for walks and specifically watch the battles of the other Servants.

As for the "clown" Gilgamesh mentioned, Tohno Shiro already knew who that was. The "clown" was the Servant summoned by Einzbern.

The Servant whose negotiating ability was especially formidable, yet whose strength was abnormally weak.

"Hm? What is it? I am speaking to you. Do you intend to answer me with silence?" Gilgamesh looked at the bitterly smiling Tohno Shiro. The smile on his face gradually vanished, replaced by calmness.

The calm appearance of a king could make others feel fear.

At that moment, Tohno Shiro keenly felt that rage seemed hidden beneath Gilgamesh's calm demeanor. Just a moment ago, Gilgamesh had been asking whether he wanted to go watch a fine show together.

Tohno Shiro had merely remained silent for a moment, yet Gilgamesh's smile had disappeared, and he had become like this.

"My King, if that is your wish, then I shall naturally accompany you to watch the show." Faced with Gilgamesh's sudden change of expression, Tohno Shiro could only lower his head, not daring to meet his eyes.

Gilgamesh's personality in history was that of a temperamental tyrant. Though his strength was immense, this temperament left Tohno Shiro unsure what to say.

"Boring."

Gilgamesh looked at Tohno Shiro, who had lowered his head, and shook his own slightly. The disgust in his eyes deepened. If he had to decide everything himself, then what was the point of having retainers?

The logic was simple: either go, or do not go!

No matter which answer it was, Gilgamesh would not have said much. But this sort of answer that kicked the ball back to him felt utterly dull. He might as well go tease that clown, or enlighten Kotomine Kirei.