A dozen minutes earlier, with Sasuke's help, Shirou Emiya, Saber, and Rin Tohsaka had slipped past Sasaki Kojiro and charged into Ryudou Temple above.
The temple grounds were unusually spacious and deserted, but Saber, fully armed, could clearly sense the presence of another Servant.
It wasn't Sasaki Kojiro, who was battling Sasuke outside the temple gate at that moment. It was someone else, a man overflowing with magical energy.
No one but Caster could have such power.
The three of them stood back-to-back, ready for anything.
Rin Tohsaka clenched a gem in her right hand and raised her left, which bore her Magic Crest. She was ready to fight at any moment.
Compared to Rin Tohsaka, an accomplished mage, Shirou Emiya was nowhere near as capable.
But that wasn't Shirou's fault. He had never been a proper mage to begin with.
Ten years ago, Shirou had been caught up in a terrible disaster. As he lay dying, Kiritsugu Emiya had rescued him, making him the sole survivor.
Afterward, Shirou became Kiritsugu's adopted son. Even after Kiritsugu passed away, Shirou continued to follow his teachings, practicing the fundamentals of magecraft every day without fail.
Though Shirou was a mage, he knew no basic magecraft beyond Structural Analysis, Reinforcement, and Projection.
And even then, he was only confident in his Reinforcement Magecraft.
That was why Shirou's weapon was nothing more than a metal pipe he had grabbed from the storeroom at home on his way out.
But the pipe in Shirou's hands was now covered in magical energy resembling circuits, casting a faint blue glow into the dark night.
Caster showed no sign of appearing. Frowning, Saber held her Invisible Sword and turned toward a wooden building not far away, guided by her instincts.
"Caster, at a time like this, are you still planning to hide?"
As she spoke, Saber scanned their surroundings, then abruptly looked up at the tallest temple building.
"Of course. That useless Assassin still let you all in."
They heard the voice before they saw its owner.
As everyone watched, a woman appeared on the roof, wearing a hooded cloak of indigo and purple over a violet robe.
Her hood obscured her face. All they could make out was her pale blue hair, and she looked like the mysterious sorceress from a legend.
Her thin lips were lightly painted a pale purple. At a glance, she seemed to be a stunning beauty.
There was no doubt, however: she was Caster.
Saber and the others tensed at once. Rin Tohsaka looked up and challenged Caster:
"Judging by how you're acting, your Master must have been thick as thieves with you for a long time!"
Caster had appeared before them, but Rin was also deeply concerned about where her Master was.
Even if that person wasn't a Servant but a mage, Rin had to be wary of such an unknown factor.
The Holy Grail War wasn't merely a battle between Servants. It was also a contest between mages.
Given that Assassin was outside the temple and Caster was within it, Rin suspected both their Masters were still hiding somewhere inside Ryudou Temple.
In any case, a bounded field reinforced by Territory Creation should be the safest place for them.
But before Rin could think of a plan, Caster laughed from the rooftop.
The sound made Rin's expression turn sour. Caster must have pulled a trick Rin hadn't anticipated.
Otherwise, there was no reason for her to laugh so mockingly.
"You actually thought I'd team up with that useless Assassin?"
"A pawn at best?"
"But you're not entirely wrong. He is one of my watchdogs, after all."
Both Rin and Saber understood what Caster was implying.
Saber fixed Caster with a stern gaze.
Seeing the varied expressions on their faces, Caster let out another scornful laugh.
"Have you finally figured it out?"
"After all, that watchdog doesn't even have a Master."
"I'm a mage. What's wrong with me summoning a Servant?"
Rin's eyes blazed with anger. She shouted, "Caster, how dare you break the rules!"
As well as being angry at Caster, Rin directed some of her fury at the priest overseeing this Holy Grail War.
How had that damn fake priest failed to notice such a blatant violation of the rules?
While Rin and Shirou were still in shock, Saber had already recovered from her surprise.
No wonder Sasaki Kojiro didn't seem like an Assassin. Caster must have summoned him in violation of the rules.
Now that she knew the truth, there was no point wasting time talking.
Saber had to seize the initiative.
Ryudou Temple was Caster's stronghold, and she had already set up a bounded field there that could weaken Servants. If Saber didn't strike first, they would be forced onto the defensive.
With that thought, Saber unleashed her overwhelming aura before Rin and Shirou could react. The air around them began to tremble!
"Boom!"
In an instant, Saber shot forward like a cannonball. With a thunderous blast as she left the ground, she gripped her Invisible Sword in both hands and lunged at Caster on the rooftop!
But even Saber's incredible speed wasn't enough to land a hit. Caster dissolved into several streaks of light and vanished into the air.
Caster disappeared once more.
Saber stood on the roof, frowning as she considered what had happened.
"Teleportation?"
"Or spatial displacement?"
"No. Within the temple she built herself, she can probably imitate and use any kind of magecraft."
Caster's mocking laughter rang out from the void again.
"You'll never lay a finger on me here."
"Not even you, Saber, one of the Three Knight Classes."
The Three Knight Classes were Saber, Lancer, and Archer.
They were usually Heroic Spirits from eras when magecraft was widespread, and so they had extremely high Magic Resistance. Modern mages could scarcely harm them.
Saber, standing on the roof at that moment, had the class skill Magic Resistance at Rank A.
Her Magic Resistance could nullify magic circles and even instantaneous high-level contracts.
Any magecraft below Rank A would be nullified, no matter how powerful.
With her Master having used only one Command Spell, she could even resist orders.
Caster knew this well, so she planned to wear Saber down first.
A powerful surge of magical energy rippled through Ryudou Temple!
Saber sensed the danger and hurriedly jumped down from the roof to rejoin Shirou and Rin. With a grave expression, she told them, "I don't know what Caster is planning, but I can feel powerful magical energy being released all around us!"
Rin could sense it too.
Inside the powerful bounded field, Shirou even felt as though his body had grown unbearably heavy.
The ground across Ryudou Temple seemed to open like a gate to the underworld. Dragon Tooth Skeleton Soldiers began climbing out of the earth, one after another.
In the blink of an eye, Dragon Tooth Skeleton Soldiers armed with all kinds of weapons had filled the entire temple grounds!
They surrounded Saber and the others on all sides.
A fierce battle was about to begin.
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