Arrived in Type-Moon, Now Lost Contact

As Kiritsugu Emiya had predicted, the cold black and blue screen suddenly displayed an image composed of red and orange. To confirm, Kiritsugu switched to a telescopic sight and continued to observe. Before him was a vision like a deep sea, emitting colorful phosphorescence with a pale green hue, like a living target.

Without a doubt, Kiritsugu Emiya attached a silencer to his sniper rifle and pulled the trigger on Lancer's Master, just as expected. Lancer's Master must have used illusion or a magic to hide their presence, but that wouldn't work against this machine. He was about to repeat the fate of all Mages who had fallen before Kiritsugu.

The bullet tore through the air with a whistling sound, and Kiritsugu Emiya already saw the end.

A Mage who wasn't fully prepared absolutely couldn't withstand a sniper rifle shot. Not even a Lord from the Clock Tower.

"My dear disciple, you've come too?" Although phrased as a question, the tone was affirmative, confident, and arrogant, like a circus ringmaster inspecting a clown. "I knew you'd go downhill when you left the Clock Tower, but I didn't expect you to fall this far, unable to even see through such a simple trick."

Cold sweat prickled his skin. The moment Lancer's Master transmitted their words using Magic Power, Kiritsugu Emiya felt a sense of mortal danger. He looked sharply at his previous target, and the subsequent situation sent chills down his spine.

The "person" hit by the bullet shattered into pieces in an instant, splashing everywhere like a fluid. No, it was a fluid. Liquid mercury, silver and white, shot out from the crane at an astonishing speed, like a pack of frenzied dragons seeking to tear their target apart.

"Time Alter—Triple Accelerate!" Without hesitation, Kiritsugu Emiya activated Time Alter, strengthening it directly to triple speed. Although triple speed Time Alter would cause great damage to his body, there was no time to think about that. 300 meters was only a matter of seconds for that surging mercury.

However, Lancer's Master's voice was heard again. The extremely non-standard Japanese made Kiritsugu Emiya's heart lurch.

"Time Alter? It seems you've forgotten who helped you obtain this Magic Crest from the Association." Lancer's Master sneered. "Every magic has its corresponding strengths and weaknesses. If you prepare in advance, it's very simple to counter a certain magic."

Time Alter, the magic of time manipulation that the Emiya family had explored for generations. Normally, the results of this exploration would be accumulated in the Magic Crest on the back of Kiritsugu Emiya, the fifth-generation successor of the Emiya family.

In reality, it wasn't like that. Kiritsugu Emiya's father, Norikatsu Emiya, had an accident during his Dead Apostle transformation experiment, which led to pursuit by representatives of the Church and pursuers from the Mage's Association. Since his father was the cause of this calamity, and unwilling to let the same thing happen elsewhere, the young Kiritsugu shot and killed his beloved father. The Emiya family's Magic Crest was also recovered by people from the Clock Tower who arrived later. Afterward, Natalia Kaminsky, who became Kiritsugu Emiya's adoptive mother and master, negotiated with the Mage's Association, allowing Kiritsugu to inherit twenty percent of Norikatsu Emiya's Magic Crest.

This meant that eighty percent of Norikatsu Emiya's Magic Crest was in the Clock Tower, and that eighty percent had already been inherited by someone else. And now, that imposter who inherited the Emiya family's crest had come to this battlefield, becoming Kiritsugu Emiya's enemy.

It was a disaster. It was like a level 20 player encountering a level 80 player of the same profession. He knew all the skills the other player knew, and the other player knew skills he didn't! Although battles between Mages couldn't be purely measured by numbers, one could still imagine how terrible Kiritsugu Emiya's gaming experience would be if they truly fought.

However, this wasn't what Kiritsugu Emiya was most worried about. He was more concerned about Lancer's Master. Someone who could obtain a specific sealed Magic Crest and was willing to bestow such an incredibly precious inheritance upon their disciple. There weren't many people in the Clock Tower who could do that. Looking at it this way, all the enemy's information pointed to one of the twelve people at the pinnacle of the Clock Tower—a Lord.

Being ambushed by a Lord who had prepared long in advance was something that could be boasted about for a hundred years in the magical world. If the attacker were still alive, of course. Without hesitation, Kiritsugu Emiya chose to flee.

He had just found a glimmer of hope to save the world; how could he fall in such a meaningless thing as a magical duel!!!

However, Lancer's Master had no intention of letting his "disciple" go. His master threw out three precious jewels without hesitation, drawing exaggerated parabolic arcs in the air before landing on the ground. These were three jewels that stored a large amount of Magic Power.

"My dear disciple, I remember you were quite passionate about fighting." Lancer's Master's voice came again. "Since that's the case, let me test your practical combat skills after leaving the Clock Tower."

One topaz, one ruby, and one emerald. The moment they landed, the three jewels shone with magical brilliance. The ruby released terrifying heat, the emerald released poisonous gas, and the topaz stirred up dry and violent winds. The three powers combined to form a lethal wave.

Using reinforcement magic to strengthen his body's defenses, Kiritsugu held his breath and charged. Only by breaking through before this combination magic fully formed was there a slim chance of survival. Looking back or hesitating would lead directly to death.

His entire body felt the searing pain. His eyes couldn't open; if he opened them, he'd be blinded by the poisonous gas and heatwave. He couldn't breathe; if he inhaled this level of toxic heat, even his internal organs would be incinerated.

As the three jewels shattered, a violent explosion occurred within the wave. Kiritsugu Emiya, who had barely broken through the wave, was blown away by the concussive force of the explosion and crashed heavily onto the ground. Then, he struggled to get up, activated his magic again, and ran towards cover.

Damn it, whoever your disciple is, they've had the worst luck in eight lifetimes!!! The injured Kiritsugu Emiya ran, jumped, and dodged between the shipping containers at an inhuman speed, roaring in his heart.

The situation had become clear: a master and disciple from the Clock Tower had a conflict, and they had tacitly chosen to fight their decisive battle in Fuyuki City.

Then, the most infuriating thing happened to Kiritsugu Emiya. That disciple was as skilled with firearms as he was, and his magic was also Time Alter! He had been mistaken for his disciple by that first-class Mage with poor eyesight.

But Kiritsugu Emiya couldn't explain. This Lord had no intention of going easy on his disciple. By the time he turned back to explain, he would have been riddled with holes by mercury a hundred times over.

"Fervor, mei sanguis" (Boil, my blood)—a phrase in Latin was heard, and the next moment, several shipping containers exploded, spewing out thousands of kilograms of mercury, which transformed into blades, spears, swords, and halberds, attacking the fleeing Kiritsugu Emiya in groups.

Kiritsugu Emiya swore that he and that bastard who framed him were irreconcilable enemies.

"Slash!" A loud voice rang out. Kiritsugu Emiya's face turned pale, and he activated Time Alter, stacking his magic to its highest level.