"Looks like I wasn't the only one prepared for this meeting." After unleashing his fury, Caster's face twisted into a dangerous grin. "You've brought along a Magus capable of defiling even the divine."
"And you're one to talk, Caster," Shiomi shot back, voice thick with mockery. "You've got no right to bask in the radiance overflowing from the Holy Grail... not like this so-called 'Saint Jeanne d'Arc.'"
He knew full well that the Grail in Fuyuki wasn't the Church's true Holy Grail.
"Hahahaha! Radiance from the Lord? I, Gilles de Rais, have no need for such things!"
A thick, leather-bound tome had somehow appeared in Caster's hand. The cover shimmered with a damp sheen, like it had been soaked in water—but it was human skin.
It was just a book, yet it pulsed with magical energy on par with a Noble Phantasm.
"My comrade Prelati left me this grimoire, granting me the power to command an army of demons." Arms spread wide, Caster shouted joyfully to the sky, "This is my bliss, my faith, my ideal!"
Shiomi ignored his manic elation and calmly took the child from Artoria, cradling him in one arm.
"This is bad. The mana flow from these summoned creatures is off. I don't think we can whittle them down slowly," Shiomi muttered, glancing at the unfamiliar child. "And with this burden, Saber…"
Artoria immediately understood.
Leaving the child aside while they fought would only split their focus—and worse, the child, having just been saved, might end up as fresh food for the sea demons.
"What's the plan?" she asked, slashing at the enemies with her invisible blade.
She was stretched thin. Just as Shiomi had said, every time one sea demon was slain, two or three more took its place, tightening the encirclement.
"We hit them with Grand Magecraft—and take that Caster out in the process," Shiomi said.
Artoria instantly caught on. "Like you did when you fought Lancer last night?"
"Exactly. These sea demons have high magic resistance. I need to boost the spell's power and precision." Shiomi crouched down, half-kneeling in the wet soil, laying the child gently against his leg so he was resting in the mud. "But I'll need you to hold them off while I prepare."
"How long?"
Artoria swung again, this time cutting down five in one breath. Still not enough.
"One minute," Shiomi replied.
At that, a surge of determination welled up in Artoria.
"If I can't even hold for a minute, then I don't deserve to fight for the Holy Grail."
She smiled, eyes sharp as blades, fixed on the monsters—and the Caster beyond them.
Caster had watched the battle from the previous night. He remembered Shiomi. Knew he was a powerful Magus, capable of rivaling even a Servant.
So he opened the grimoire in his hands and began chanting. The sea demons swelled in number at an absurd pace.
In mere seconds, their count had grown to over thirty. Shiomi and Artoria could barely even see Caster anymore.
And it was exactly because of this explosive rate of multiplication that Shiomi had put so much weight on "one minute."
"But don't worry. If we can't hold out even a full minute, someone will be more than happy to wipe us both out with a massive spell," Shiomi joked.
"Even you?" Saber blinked, then chuckled. "Then I'd better give it everything I've got—wouldn't want to become another casualty of my sister's Magecraft."
It was their first time working together, and they were from opposing factions. Deep down, Artoria was tense, unsure if this "hostage swap" would be enough to keep Morgan in check.
After all, Shiomi was far more capable in combat than Irisviel.
But Shiomi's actions had already eased the doubts in Saber's heart.
"One last thing—how would you like Caster to die? Burned, electrocuted, frozen, or torn apart by the wind?" Shiomi had already begun preparing the Grand Magecraft.
Saber let out a small laugh. "Then go with whatever won't set the forest on fire but can still kill him."
"As you command."
...
Einzbern Castle, guest room.
"You seem awfully pleased, my dear husband." Morgan's tone carried a hint of displeasure.
Irisviel blinked in confusion. As someone who was also a wife, she instantly recognized where that tone was coming from.
"I think it's just Mr. Shiomi's way of easing the tension," she replied with a wry smile. "It helps Saber focus on the fight and gives him a chance to protect that child."
Sharing a room with a Servant from a rival camp had already gone far beyond what Irisviel had anticipated.
"No need to be so nervous. Even if you're Artoria's Master, I'm not going to lay a hand on you," Morgan said, gaze fixed on the crystal ball. "Besides, without the Lesser Grail, the Greater Grail can't be activated anyway, right?"
Irisviel was momentarily shocked, then quickly caught on.
"You already knew."
"It's a unique system, I'll give you that. But if the Servants knew the Grail War's true purpose from the start, the whole thing wouldn't function." Morgan spoke of the Holy Grail War's inner workings like it was casual gossip.
"As expected of a Magus from the Age of Gods," Irisviel admitted. "Still... the fact remains—it is a wish-granting device. That much is true. So—"
Morgan turned to face her.
"Are you serious?"
"What?" Irisviel didn't follow.
But Morgan didn't elaborate. She simply lowered her gaze slightly.
"Looks like break time is over. Your place really is swarming with visitors."
"What?!"
Irisviel suddenly realized she'd been so focused on Shiomi and Artoria's battle that she'd failed to notice another intruder breaching the barrier from a different direction.
"Kayneth El-Melloi..." she murmured, shifting the crystal ball's viewpoint to spot Kayneth stepping into the forest.
But he was alone—his Servant had gone toward Saber's location.
"That was fast."
Morgan rose from her chair with elegant composure.
The protective wards surrounding Shiomi's domain had been tampered with—subtly and skillfully, like a lock being picked.
Morgan, already monitoring the state of the barrier, had noticed this at once.
"Are you going to intercept him?" Irisviel asked.
"Isn't that exactly why I was left here? Even if someone casts a spell strong enough to level a city, this room won't so much as flinch."
Morgan walked out calmly and shut the door behind her.
At once, Irisviel felt a powerful barrier surge into place. No one could enter or leave now—not without breaking it first.
Still, the ward didn't cut off communication with the outside. Irisviel could continue watching the forest through her crystal ball.
Meanwhile, Kiritsugu Emiya was out there in the woods beyond the castle, silently monitoring the battlefield.
...
(40 Chapters Ahead)
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