Inside the cave.
After seeing off the security team and the refugees, Rin eyed Roy with suspicion.
"Why are you looking at me like that?"
"Are you in heat or something?"
"...You make it sound like I'm some kind of uncontrollable animal."
Roy's face darkened.
What kind of nonsense was that?
Do I really seem like someone who can't keep it in his pants?
"Utaha was the attendant you chose last month, then you took Hayasaka from me, and now you're showing kindness to those sisters… That makes four, doesn't it? And every single one of them is a once-in-a-lifetime beauty!"
This has to be a heat cycle, right?
Rin glared at Roy, visibly displeased.
That "marry me" nonsense he'd spouted before was definitely just a joke!
She crossed her arms and side-eyed him, her fingers unconsciously tapping against her elbow as she stewed in irritation.
"What are you even thinking?"
Roy sighed, exasperated.
"I just don't want them falling into the hands of someone like Atram."
Atram?
Rin paused, her delicate brows furrowing slightly.
She'd been too busy handling the refugees earlier to notice Atram's reaction.
But she was well aware of the behaviour of some magi in Fuyuki City.
Her hands were tied by the Mage's Association, and the most she could do was issue orders prohibiting unnecessary harm to refugees.
"What did that guy do just now?"
"He looked way too excited when he saw those sisters. Speaking of which, I made a pretty interesting discovery earlier…"
Roy recounted what he'd seen when he sent a familiar to spy on Atram's mansion.
Rin's expression immediately darkened.
Atram's lineage was one of latecomers to magecraft.
Though his family possessed the "Primordial Battery" magecraft—a signature of the nouveau riche—in this era, factors like extraction difficulty, transportation challenges, and usage limitations meant oil was nowhere near as profitable as it once was.
For a family like his, exploring new directions in magecraft development was understandable.
But his actions clearly skirted the dangerous edges of the restrictions Rin had imposed.
The fact that he dared to tread into such gray areas proved he didn't take her decrees seriously.
At its core, his behaviour was no different from harming refugees.
"It'd be great if we could use this Holy Grail War to wipe out the Mage's Association."
Roy's lips curled into a meaningful smile.
"At the very least, we should destroy this branch in Fuyuki, right?"
The Mage's Association's control over the Far East had always been weak.
Coupled with the transportation difficulties of this era, if they decided to openly defy the Association, the main branch might not even bother retaliating.
Of course, that was assuming the Greater Grail wasn't in Fuyuki.
As a relic of the Third Magic, the Mage's Association was dead set on obtaining it.
"I don't need you to tell me that."
Rin shot Roy a sidelong glance.
After years as mayor, she'd already considered countless ways to dismantle the Association's branch, both overt and covert. The problem was execution. This Holy Grail War was an opportunity, but pulling it off would still be next to impossible.
"As long as you understand I'm not just thinking with my dick."
Roy waved a hand dismissively.
His kindness toward the Nakano sisters really was just about keeping them out of Atram's clutches—that bastard cycled through women faster than most people changed clothes.
How could he let his 2D waifus fall into the hands of someone like that?
If he did nothing, he wouldn't be able to live with himself.
Of course, he wasn't going to pretend he didn't have his own ulterior motives. Who wouldn't want to get closer to their favorite 2D heroines?
But so what if he had those thoughts? Who didn't?
The important thing was, he hadn't acted on them. Utaha and Hayasaka had been at his place for days, and he hadn't crossed any lines.
After enduring three years of curses, his self-control was one thing he had absolute confidence in.
If they weren't willing, he wouldn't lay a finger on them.
"Let's go."
Roy started heading down the mountain.
"Who's the next target?"
He was referring to the corrupted Servants.
"Hold on a second."
Rin looked up at the sky.
A moment later, a bird-like familiar descended and landed on her shoulder.
"Bazett seems to have defeated the corrupted Lancer too."
"Obviously. Bazett could practically fight as a Servant herself. The corrupted Lancer had no Master, so it was basically two against one. A stomp was inevitable."
"Her Servant seems to be a Caster—a blue-haired young man dressed like a druid. The magecraft he uses is probably Nordic runes."
"Mhm, I already know who it is."
"Seriously? Are you reading the script again… Oh, wait, by your logic, it's 'parallel world records,' right?"
"Pretty much."
Roy nodded with a smile.
"Then it's almost certainly Cú Chulainn, son of the Celtic god of light, Lugh."
"The Child of Light? Bazett is a descendant of the Red Branch Knights from Celtic mythology, so summoning Cú Chulainn fits her personality. He might even be her idol. Cú Chulainn himself studied under the Queen of the Land of Shadows, Scáthach, and learned the Primordial Runes, so he qualifies as a Caster. But if it's Cú Chulainn, he'd definitely be stronger as a Lancer."
"Mhm. That leaves only three corrupted Servants."
"Yeah, the corrupted Saber, Assassin, and Berserker… Which one do you think we should go for?"
Rin released the familiar, letting it fly back into the sky, then turned to Roy for his opinion.
"Is that even a question? Obviously, the corrupted Assassin."
"Right. The corrupted Saber is King Arthur, and that holy sword is way too overpowered. The corrupted Berserker's identity is unclear, so the corrupted Assassin is the obvious choice—we know who it is, and it's weaker, an easier target!"
Rin nodded in agreement. She'd also been leaning toward hunting the corrupted Assassin first.
"You've already taken down the corrupted Caster and claimed a Command Seal. The corrupted Assassin should be ours to handle!"
"Sure."
Roy readily agreed.
The corrupted Assassin was Hassan of the Hundred Faces, with dozens of split bodies. Fighting them would be a pain, so he was happy to leave it to the Archer-Rin duo. An extra Command Seal or two wasn't a priority for him.
His reason for hunting corrupted Servants was the same as Rin's—to eliminate threats to Fuyuki City's safety.
The thought of Fuyuki being destroyed was something he couldn't bear.
Suddenly.
Another familiar descended from the sky, landing on Rin's shoulder.
Before she could even ask, it screeched in alarm.
"Emergency! The corrupted Saber has left her position—she's on the move!"
"Which direction? Don't tell me she's heading for the city walls?"
Tohsaka Rin's face paled. Was the corrupted Saber attacking the city?
BOOM—!!!
A pitch-black pillar of light suddenly erupted in the distance, piercing the heavens. The overwhelming surge of magical energy was palpable even from kilometers away.
"That direction is—?"
Roy narrowed his eyes.
"Not the city walls!"
The bird familiar shrieked.
"It's the Einzbern Castle!"
***
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