The moonless night was blustery, the moon in the sky already nearly half-waned. A cool breeze brought a touch of relief to the sweltering summer.
Above Fuyuki City.
Whoosh!
A Hippogriff sped past, carrying Astolfo and Red Archer on its back.
"Did you find anything, Archer?"
Astolfo asked. They had been circling for half an hour, having set out after dinner to search. The Hippogriff's mobility combined with Red Archer's Clairvoyance was practically a radar.
"No. I haven't spotted anyone suspicious. Hmph, every one of them is keeping their nerve. This may be the most boring Holy Grail War in history."
Having experienced the Holy Grail War both as a child and as a teenager, Red Archer understood its brutality well. It was a battlefield of blood and fire, where Servants slaughtered Servants and Masters fought Masters with tremendous ferocity.
Unlike now. It had been nearly two days, yet there had not been a single proper battle. Aside from the fight between Cú Chulainn and that mysterious Saber. Even they had stopped short, with neither side revealing their trump cards. At best, it counted as a minor skirmish.
The two circled for another ten minutes before the Hippogriff landed atop a tall building. Astolfo scratched her cheek and spoke to Red Archer.
"Wandering around without a goal isn't going to get us anywhere. I've covered most of the city and found nothing unusual. There are only a few places left."
Astolfo raised a hand and pointed.
"There, there, and there."
Astolfo indicated three rough directions. Red Archer raised a brow when he saw them. He knew those places well.
"Fuyuki Church, the Matou Family, and the Tohsaka Family."
"The Tohsaka Family? Rin's home?"
"Right."
"That's a huge building!"
"Yes. Rin came from an extraordinary family. They had their glorious days in the past, but those days have ended."
"Oh, then if she has her own home, why was she staying with Luvia before?"
Astolfo did not understand. No matter how she thought about it, living in one's own home should have been more comfortable.
Red Archer hesitated for a moment before answering.
"Perhaps there are memories in that home she does not like. Besides, Rin has not returned in a long time. A house that large would have fallen into disrepair without anyone to maintain it. Restoring it would take a lot of effort. She is probably too lazy."
From Red Archer's experience, Tohsaka Rin was actually quite lazy. If he was around, she was the sort who would basically leave everything to him.
Thinking of the past, Red Archer's eyes filled with nostalgia, and the corner of his mouth lifted into an involuntary smile.
Astolfo noticed this and asked again.
"How do you know so much? Weren't you summoned together with me? Why does it feel like you've known them for years?"
"..."
Red Archer said nothing. He turned toward Fuyuki Church—the direction of Kotomine Church—and spoke.
"That church seems rather unusual. Let's go take a look."
"Eh? Are you changing the subject?"
Astolfo blinked as she spoke.
"Stop talking nonsense. Let's go."
"Oh, tch. Stingy."
Having failed to learn what she wanted to know, Astolfo pouted and had the Hippogriff take off, flying toward Kotomine Church.
The silver-haired girl had just returned to the church. She changed clothes, took a bath, and prepared to rest. She still had to go to school tomorrow. As the school's only nurse, she had to keep clocking in.
Lying on the bed in a thin nightgown, the silver-haired girl recalled the abnormality she had discovered in the ley lines outside earlier.
What a pain. Sometimes I really wish I hadn't gotten involved, but there's no helping it now. I'll check the ley lines' flow tomorrow. If I still can't solve it... Haa...
The silver-haired girl truly slept well. Less than ten seconds after lying down, she was asleep.
Mordred appeared beside the bed and pulled over a nearby blanket to cover the silver-haired girl.
Then.
Mordred raised her head toward the sky. Of course, she was indoors. What Mordred had actually heard was the sound of wings beating, and she could tell at once that they belonged to something huge.
Knowing it was likely the work of another Master or Servant, Mordred did not make a sound. She slowly vanished and suppressed her presence to the lowest possible level.
In the sky.
The Hippogriff flew past, but Kotomine Church was utterly quiet. The two saw nothing unusual and soon departed.
"Where to next?"
Astolfo asked. Red Archer glanced around, then pointed toward the Matou Family.
"There."
Red Archer knew what Matou Sakura had gone through. He felt deep sympathy and pity for her, but some things had already happened and could not be changed.
The Matou Family residence stood deep in the mountains. Its ancient castle was grim and imposing, giving off an unsettling feeling.
In the forest not far from the castle, two people were skulking about.
More accurately, one person was skulking about, while the other—a muscular, burly man—stood there fearlessly.
"Damn it! I'll make that bitch pay! Lancer! In a moment, I'll use a Command Seal to charge you up. Fire your Noble Phantasm at that castle with everything you've got! Even if it only scares that filthy woman to death, it'll be worth it!"
The more Matou Shinji thought about it, the angrier he became. Petty and twisted by nature, he simply could not endure it. So after nightfall, he had come here with Lancer, preparing to bombard the Matou Family.
Lancer scratched his hair upon hearing Matou Shinji's words.
"Master, that's your home too."
"Bullshit! As long as I'm here, she's out!"
Matou Shinji glared wildly, having already stopped caring about any of that.
"But... my principle is not to harm women and children—"
"Shut up!"
Lancer wanted to refuse, but Matou Shinji cut him off. Matou Shinji raised his left hand, where three vivid red Command Seals marked his authority. The meaning was obvious: he was the Master, he had the Command Seals, and what he said went.
Lancer understood Matou Shinji's meaning. His brow furrowed, and a trace of disgust surfaced in his eyes.
Had he known his Master would be this kind of trash, he would not have answered the summon in the first place. All he got was aggravation.
"Enough! Get ready, I'm using a Command Seal!"
Matou Shinji turned toward the Matou Family residence with a chilling smile on his face. Just as he was about to speak—
"Eh? I didn't expect to find an unexpected bonus."
A voice suddenly came from the sky. Matou Shinji cried out and scrambled behind Lancer, nearly wetting himself from fright.
Lancer sighed. That kind of cowardice was truly infuriating. If someone like this had been in his army, he would probably have stabbed him first, saving him from embarrassing himself on the battlefield.
"You! Who are you people?!"
Matou Shinji stuck out half his head and shouted, putting on a fierce front despite his fear.
Red Archer smiled at his old classmate, then stepped down from the sky and landed before the two of them.
"Me? Just a passing Archer. What are you two doing skulking around here?"
Red Archer spoke in a chilling tone. Matou Shinji felt a shiver run through him, seemingly frozen by Red Archer's gaze. He forced himself to gather his courage and shouted.
"You! What the hell is it to you?! No, I get it now! You're that bitch's Servant! Damn it! Why are everyone else's Servants so handsome?!"
Lancer: "???"
"Lancer!! I order you! Kill him! An Archer dares show himself before the Three Knight Classes? Courting death! Lancer! Take care of him!"
Lancer: "...╮(﹀＿﹀)╭"