The next day, Romania.
Sighișoara.
"I'm telling you, Mordred, still not over it?"
Walking down the street, Naoki asked Mordred, who followed him in her spiritual form.
Since receiving Avalon from him the previous night, Mordred had been like this. Even when Naoki asked her to materialize, the girl didn't react, though she would respond when spoken to.
"Getting your father's scabbard made you that restless?"
"Hah? That kind of thing stopped bothering me ages ago. I'm just thinking." Mordred replied curtly. "Back then, when Father and I fought at Camlann, she didn't have her scabbard…"
The reason King Arthur was an ever-victorious, invincible king was because she wielded both the Holy Sword and its scabbard. The Holy Sword made her unbeatable, and the scabbard made her fearless.
"The scabbard could make Father immune to bladed weapons, and even if wounded, he'd recover quickly—practically immortal… If Father had the scabbard when we fought, maybe…"
If that were the case, let alone killing King Arthur, Mordred might only have been able to hold Artoria at bay.
"If Father had the scabbard back then, how could I have beaten her—that's what I'm thinking about."
"Is that even worth thinking about? If that were the case, you'd probably have been taken out in two or three moves."
Naoki said this bluntly, not caring that his words might upset Mordred. But before she could get angry, he added, "But thinking about that kind of thing now is pointless, isn't it?"
"Huh?"
"The Battle of Camlann is over. You and King Arthur both got hurt—that's a fact. Why waste time thinking about impossible scenarios? Besides, overthinking complicated stuff like that doesn't suit you at all."
Though Mordred wasn't in physical form to have her head patted, Naoki raised his hand and waved. "I gave you the scabbard not to make you daydream but so you could use it to crush all our enemies."
"Tch! I don't need you to tell me that!"
Mordred replied irritably, but there was a faint hint of delight in her tone.
She liked a Master who vibed with her, one who thought about wiping out all enemies.
"By the way, where are we going now? The enemy's hideout?"
"For now, we're meeting people who might be our allies. You know this Holy Grail War is seven versus seven, right? We're the Red Faction, and besides me, the other six Masters have already gathered. We're going to meet them."
Mordred caught the implication of Naoki's words.
Not joining, just meeting. This meant her Master had no intention of moving together with the others.
'Hehe, that's fine by me!'
As they spoke, the two passed through the main street of Trifas and arrived at a church.
Opening the door and knocking twice, Naoki saw a man kneeling before a statue of a deity. "This is the meeting place, right?"
"Yes."
The black-robed priest stood and turned to face Naoki. "Pleased to meet you, Moon Fall Magus. I'm the overseer of this Holy Grail War, Kotomine Shirou."
"Kotomine?"
Naoki feigned confusion, raising an eyebrow.
"Are you related to Pastor Kotomine Kirei from Fuyuki City?"
"Kirei?"
Kotomine Shirou—or rather, Amakusa Shirou Tokisada—was slightly surprised. Though he'd been informed by the Mage's Association that Naoki was coming and had prepared to deal with him, he hadn't expected a connection to someone he hadn't seen in ages.
"I'm his adoptive older brother, raised by his father for a time. But since our adoptive father passed, I haven't seen Kirei in years." Shirou said, pausing to think before deciding to follow Naoki's lead. "How's Kirei doing these days?"
"He's a pastor at Fuyuki Church, living with his daughter. My relationship with him is so-so—I don't visit often, but he seems to be doing fine." Naoki said with a smile. "This is really 'surprising,' though—the overseer being Pastor Kotomine's family."
"I feel the same. Thank you for telling me about Kirei. Shall we end the small talk and start exchanging information?"
Shirou gestured for Naoki to sit.
"Regarding the Black Faction, we've gathered some intel. It seems most of their Servants have assembled, except for Assassin, whose presence is unknown—we should assume they're here too. Also, Lancer's true name has been identified: Vlad III."
Vlad III.
The vampire known worldwide as Dracula, nicknamed the "Impaler Prince." was a king of this land—Romania. This time, he was summoned as Lancer in his homeland.
"A Servant's strength is influenced by fame. In Romania, the Black Lancer might not be summoned as a vampire but as a hero, with his power likely maximized, which is troublesome." Shirou explained. "Fortunately, our Servants are also excellent, at least in quality."
As Shirou spoke, a captivating woman in a thick gown appeared beside him.
"Red Assassin, true name Semiramis. Pleased to meet you, Moon Fall Magus."
"—Is it okay to reveal true names so openly?"
"No issue. From now on, we're allies fighting side by side. I believe this level of trust is necessary." Shirou explained. "Besides, if we're fighting together, using Noble Phantasms is inevitable, and true names will be revealed eventually. It's better to disclose them now for better war strategy planning."
This was an exception for this Holy Grail War. In a typical Holy Grail War, hiding true names was paramount.
"We're now complete except for Saber. I'm sure Master has summoned Saber—may I know Saber's true name?"
"Mordred." Naoki answered.
Shirou looked pleased. "The Knight of the Round Table? That's great news. As an ally, her strength is highly reliable. Come with me, then, to meet the other Masters."
"No need."
Shaking his head, Naoki stood and walked toward the door. "I don't get along with Mage's Association folks, so the meeting's unnecessary. Cooperation is fine—if you have plans, let me know, and I'll try to coordinate."
"Acting alone might get you surrounded."
"Then I'll make the moon fall again. And I don't think my kid is so weak that a mere encirclement would bring her down."