Purchased Technology / Conversation...

Gilgamesh dissolved into golden particles and vanished from the sofa. He had no interest in saying anything more to Tohno Shiro.

"Whew."

After watching Gilgamesh leave, Tohno Shiro straightened his back and quietly breathed a sigh of relief. He truly could not fathom the King of Heroes' temperament, but the man's sudden departure did let him relax somewhat.

"'Watching the show,' huh?" Tohno Shiro looked at the intelligence report in his hand and fell into thought. Right now, the most pressing matter was probably Caster.

Fuyuki City was already in a state of panic. If this continued, he would likely be questioned as well.

"This must be resolved within three days. However, that Caster seems to have set his sights on the Einzbern family's Saber. Should I make use of that?" Tohno Shiro sat in his chair, fingers tapping against the desk as his eyes slowly closed.

He seemed to be considering whether he should speak with the Einzbern family and have both sides temporarily join forces against Caster.

But when he thought of the Einzbern family's homunculus and her hostility toward the Holy Church, Tohno Shiro felt a headache coming on. Hopefully, this conversation would not touch on that issue.

PS: "Still owe 19 chapters."

Bought Technology

"Did you use that state?"

Inside Einzbern Castle, Emiya Kiritsugu looked at Mikaela, who had just returned, and said calmly, "The consumption does not seem particularly severe. Although a great deal of mana was drawn away in that instant, it did not affect my normal movements."

"It really was only an instant. It did not take long." Mikaela sat on the sofa and looked at Maiya Hisau standing beside Emiya Kiritsugu. Somewhat puzzled, he asked, "Where is Irisviel?"

"She has already gone to sleep. It is late now." Emiya Kiritsugu checked his watch and said evenly, "It is nearly dawn. If I followed my usual schedule, I should be asleep as well."

"Before sleeping, remember to drink warm milk and move your body around a little." Maiya Hisau spoke very calmly. In order to secure victory in this Holy Grail War, she kept an extremely strict watch over Emiya Kiritsugu's physical condition.

If Irisviel was the woman who allowed Emiya Kiritsugu to completely relax,

then Maiya Hisau was the woman who kept Emiya Kiritsugu at a warrior's peak condition.

"Mm." Emiya Kiritsugu gave a brief response, then looked at Mikaela. "So, can you use that state properly now?"

"Do you want me to try?" Mikaela looked at the expressionless Emiya Kiritsugu and said calmly, "In just those few seconds, how much mana did you consume?"

"Not much. At that rate of consumption, it would be enough to let you fight for roughly three minutes." Emiya Kiritsugu clearly remembered the sensation of having a large amount of "mana" suddenly drained away.

"Three minutes is too short. If I use a Noble Phantasm, you might be drained dry in an instant."

Mikaela frowned slightly. Emiya Kiritsugu himself was indeed excellent, and he was also the type of highly capable Master who could support, fight, and think.

But the Masters Mikaela had in mind were people like Illya, Kayneth, and Sajyou Manaka—types with enormous mana reserves. If they allowed him to fully unleash his power, then forget Gilgamesh.

Even if all three golden targets came at him together, Mikaela could defeat them with his own wisdom and strength.

What? How would he defeat them? He would turn into King Hassan and charge straight in. The Holy Grail War would definitely be over in one night! Once his blade came down, their heads would already be on the ground by the time they reacted.

In Chapter 6 of FGO, Ramesses II had been cut down several times by King Hassan. However, because he could not die inside his temple, he escaped disaster.

Without a temple or any other strange buffs supporting them, Mikaela was confident that before they even began, he could turn directly into King Hassan, walk over while ringing the bell, and let them experience what a Grand Assassin truly was.

"In an instant?" Emiya Kiritsugu felt like smoking again. He would not stubbornly say something foolish like those immature idiots: "How will we know unless we try?"

On the contrary, he felt Mikaela's words made sense. He could ignore the mana consumption just now, but if a "Noble Phantasm" were used, then who knew how much mana it would consume.

He could sustain the normal consumption, but if they truly entered battle... he alone would be unable to sustain that amount of mana.

After thinking for a moment, Emiya Kiritsugu looked at Mikaela's calm face and said, "I want Irisviel to become your Master. What do you think?"

"..." Mikaela did not speak. He simply looked calmly at Emiya Kiritsugu. "Are you sure? If I harbor ill intentions, you could die."

Handing his Servant over to his wife seemed harmless enough, but Mikaela, who understood Emiya Kiritsugu's nature, knew that this man could not fully trust a so-called Servant.

"There is originally only one causal link between a Master and Servant. If the mana supply and Command Seal authority are separated, then Irisviel will, in a sense, also become your Master, while I retain authority over the Command Seals. If you do anything out of line, I will forcibly control you with a Command Seal."

Emiya Kiritsugu spoke very calmly. Naturally, he would not fully trust Mikaela. Though they had spent some time together and Mikaela's character was trustworthy,

trust was trust. Emiya Kiritsugu would not place all his bets on Mikaela. If Mikaela developed any ill intentions, Irisviel alone would likely be unable to restrain this "mature" young man.

"Can you do that?" Mikaela found this "principle" strangely familiar as he listened. Was this not something Kayneth had researched?!

"I cannot, but someone has done it. The Einzbern family purchased this technique at a great cost." A faint smile appeared on Emiya Kiritsugu's lips. "Before this Holy Grail War began, the Einzbern family paid a great many prices to purchase numerous magecraft techniques advantageous to me. This is merely one of them."

"Oh..."

Mikaela narrowed his eyes slightly. This did surprise him somewhat, but upon further thought, it did not seem like such a big deal.

To the Clock Tower, the Holy Grail War was merely a magecraft battle held in the countryside. Reaching the Root was nothing more than a pretext. Just because someone claimed it could reach the Root, did that make it true? What a joke!

If one Holy Grail War could allow someone to easily reach the Root, there would be far more than just a few Magicians in this world.

Other magi would not pursue the Root with such inhuman obsession either.

"Then why did you not have Madam link with me earlier?" Mikaela asked, puzzled. He did not understand. If they possessed such technology, Irisviel should have linked with him sooner.

Irisviel's mana supply was practically cheat-level as well. Later, after she absorbed the souls of five Servants, she would link with the Greater Holy Grail. Then... the mana accumulated by the Greater Holy Grail over many years would pass through Irisviel, the "Lesser Holy Grail," and flow into Mikaela's body, supplying him with an unimaginable amount of mana.

Of course, that was a matter for later. Even in terms of mana alone, Irisviel was certainly stronger than Emiya Kiritsugu now. So why had they not done this from the beginning?

"We had no way of knowing roughly how much mana you consumed. If, as you described, activating a Noble Phantasm would drain me dry, then I have Command Seals that can temporarily provide a large amount of 'mana.' But Irisviel does not."

Emiya Kiritsugu slowly gave his answer. If Irisviel were to "die" from insufficient mana right at the start, that would be quite a disaster.

PS: "The author has been having some relationship problems, so... sorry. Only one chapter today."

Conversation

Mana was finite. Whether it was Emiya Kiritsugu or Irisviel, both had finite mana reserves. The Greater Holy Grail had plenty of mana, but it could not be endlessly consumed either.

Sitting on the rooftop, Mikaela gazed at the bright moon in the sky and gradually fell into thought. After winning this Holy Grail War, how was he supposed to return to his original home?

Break through the walls between worlds with a massive amount of mana? That was clearly impossible. Breaking through the world barrier might send him to the outside of the world, that place filled with monsters. Could he truly survive there with his current strength?

But Mikaela soon slowly shook his head. There was no need to think so far ahead right now. Once he held the Holy Grail in his hands, he would find another way.

"Are you lost?"

Maiya Hisau quietly appeared beside Mikaela. As the woman assisting Emiya Kiritsugu, she naturally had to keep herself in "perfect" condition, whether in terms of her figure or anything else.

She had come to Mikaela because she saw that he had something on his mind and wanted to see whether she could help.

"Mm." Mikaela nodded. Looking at the moon above, he sighed. "I do not know whether we can win this Holy Grail War. Although we have made many preparations, every one of those people is difficult to deal with."

He had planted plenty of contingencies. If one plan failed, there was another! Even if every plan failed, Mikaela still had ways to provoke battles between two sides.

For instance, Kayneth versus Waver, or Tohno Shiro versus Matou Kariya. A battle between them was inevitable, and he could sit back like Assassin and watch the tigers fight.

But the prerequisite was that Caster had to be dealt with. As long as that man was eliminated, everything afterward would become much simpler.

Yet Mikaela still felt uneasy, as if many people had their eyes on him. The feeling irritated him greatly. He preferred to keep a low profile.

In this Holy Grail War, the more high-profile someone was, the faster they died. He understood that principle well. That was why whenever he appeared, he did not openly provoke others as though he were the protagonist. Instead, he entered the battlefield as a second or third party.

Logically, no one should be watching him. Even Gilgamesh, the arrogant King of Heroes, could not possibly care about a minor Servant like him, could he?

Mikaela did not consider himself some great hero, nor did he possess any shining trait worthy of attention. He was merely an ordinary human, though he wielded a few special abilities. Yet those abilities had always been borrowed.

Compared to Heroic Spirits who had earned countless titles, won endless glory, and defeated many enemies, he was nothing remarkable.

That was why Mikaela felt so irritated now. Who exactly had set their sights on him? Could it really be as Emiya Kiritsugu said, with Caster targeting him? But even if he carried only a trace of Abigail's aura, that man should not have reacted like that.

Which part had gone wrong? Had he missed a step somewhere?

"Crack."

In his agitation, Mikaela crushed a card without another word and turned into Victorious once more. She began reconsidering the problem surrounding herself while holding a pipe in her mouth, forcing herself to calm down.

"You are very irritated." Maiya Hisau looked at Mikaela, crouched on the rooftop, and asked curiously, "You care more about winning this Holy Grail War than Kiritsugu does."

"He should care more than I do." Seeing Maiya Hisau strike up a conversation, Mikaela was not some aloof person. She lowered the pipe in her hand and looked at the other woman calmly. "He has staked everything he has on pursuing his dream. In that regard alone, he is far stronger than I am."

"No, you care more than he does." Having remained at Emiya Kiritsugu's side, Maiya Hisau had naturally seen all kinds of people. Moreover... having grown up in a wartime environment, she possessed remarkably strong instincts.

Those instincts told her that Mikaela's obsession with victory in the Holy Grail War was even stronger than Emiya Kiritsugu's.

"..." Mikaela fell silent. Her emerald eyes looked at the "cold" woman before her. Maiya Hisau's expression remained as indifferent as ever, as though she did not care that a Servant capable of easily taking her life was watching her.

"I only have one life."

Mikaela sighed. After being summoned by Emiya Kiritsugu, she had already told him why she would go all out to assist him in winning this Holy Grail War.

But now, Maiya Hisau seemed to want to "guide" her, so Mikaela decided to explain why such a "small problem" had made her so restless.

"Someone must have told you this before: when people are killed, they die." Mikaela held the pipe in her mouth and looked at Maiya Hisau calmly. "Human life is incredibly fragile. Even so-called great heroes can easily die if their hearts are pierced."

"In my previous life, or rather... in another world, I exhausted every bit of energy I had to fight a powerful enemy and projected a Noble Phantasm. I do not know what the final result was, but I likely died then because I ran out of energy."

At that, Mikaela fell quiet for a while before looking at Maiya Hisau. "If I put it in terms used here, I probably depleted all my mana and overdrew my life force."

"Though I do not know how much life force I expended back then, since I came here, that body of mine has probably become a dried corpse—or perhaps an old man."

Mikaela smiled mockingly, as though she found her past self too reckless.

"So... you joined the Holy Grail War because you want to return to your original world?" Maiya Hisau asked.

"This is a war, a war that I absolutely cannot lose. I told Emiya Kiritsugu that I am merely an ordinary person. My abilities may look powerful, but if I use them with an ordinary human body, then at most I can reach the peak of what an ordinary human can do. I can ignore some Servants, but I cannot fight Servants who are truly powerful."

"Mana has elevated my strength."

Mikaela closed her eyes. She could already feel mana more abundant than Emiya Kiritsugu's flowing into her body. It belonged to Irisviel.

"Likewise, this strength has made me understand one very simple thing: I do not know whether I will be able to participate in another Holy Grail War next time."

"If I cannot... then if I am eliminated from this Holy Grail War, I will be eliminated in the truest sense."

PS: "Three chapters tonight! Just woke up."

Careless

After Emiya Kiritsugu transferred Mikaela's mana supply line to the sleeping Irisviel, he nodded slightly. Now, everything could be considered settled.

"You have not rested yet?" Maiya Hisau slowly opened the door and walked in. From her movements, she seemed to think that Emiya Kiritsugu and Irisviel had already gone to sleep.

"Maiya, I am about to sleep. There are just a few things I still need to confirm." Emiya Kiritsugu rose from the bed and reached for the clothes beside him, but Maiya Hisau stopped him.

"Hmm?" Emiya Kiritsugu looked at Maiya Hisau in confusion.

"That Servant already said you wanted this, did he not?" Maiya Hisau took out a map. It showed the preparations the two women had arranged at the hotel earlier, with detailed intelligence on the other Masters and Servants, as well as the residences of the known Masters.

"This really is..."

A smile was forcibly squeezed onto Emiya Kiritsugu's cold, stern face. He seemed unsure what to say as he looked at Maiya Hisau. "In a sense, him becoming my Servant truly is a trump card."

"Even a trump card must be handled carefully. He could hurt you." Maiya Hisau spoke like an emotionless machine. Though she knew the Servant's senses were extremely sharp, she still spoke ill of Mikaela.

"I know. We both know."

Emiya Kiritsugu unfolded the map and looked at the marked locations. His hand unconsciously reached toward his pocket, as though he wanted to take out a pack of cigarettes.

But a hand stopped him. Emiya Kiritsugu looked at its owner and seemed to understand. He withdrew his hand and shook his head helplessly.

"...Madam is still asleep. Please restrain yourself." Maiya Hisau slowly withdrew her hand and glanced at Irisviel, who was asleep in bed.

Irisviel seemed to be having a sweet dream. A gentle smile capable of melting anyone's heart hung on her face.

"Then let us get straight to the point." Emiya Kiritsugu did not waste words. After opening the map, he began explaining their next move under the moonlight.

Although they had discussed it earlier, after speaking with Mikaela, Emiya Kiritsugu felt they needed to plan several steps ahead. Otherwise, if something unexpected happened, they could easily be caught scrambling.

"Yes."

Maiya Hisau stood beside Emiya Kiritsugu, looking at the map on the table to show that she was listening.

"At present, we know the residences of four enemy Masters." Emiya Kiritsugu looked at the marked locations and said calmly, "Tohno Shiro, Kotomine Kirei, Kayneth, and Matou Kariya."

"According to Saber, the Master who must be found first is that 'unexpected intruder' named Waver." Emiya Kiritsugu casually took out photographs of Waver Velvet and the King of Conquerors and placed them in a corner of the map.

"He must have his reasons."

Looking at Waver Velvet, whose face seemed to scream "weakness," Maiya Hisau believed Mikaela must have his own reasons. Otherwise, he would not have set his sights on a harmless-looking youth.

"Exactly." Emiya Kiritsugu nodded. He too believed that Saber's focus on Waver Velvet must have a reason. After tonight's campaign,

Saber must have felt that the young man had discovered something he was hiding.

"If Saber had not reminded me, I would have nearly forgotten about this man." Emiya Kiritsugu picked up the King of Conquerors' photograph and stared at the red-haired, muscular man, falling into thought.

Honestly, a man who revealed his True Name the moment he appeared, along with that foolishly innocent Master who had entered the Holy Grail War on a whim—

from any angle, they were the sort of people easily overlooked.