The Fourth King

Chapter Seven

Disclaimer: I don't even own a disclaimer for chapter six, nor do I own the time some of you will spend checking that there is not in fact a disclaimer on chapter six.

A/N: I'd been neglecting the other Masters since their snippets in Chapter Two, so I decided now would be a good time to pay some of them a visit.


'Three days have passed since the Matou Mansion was destroyed in the as-of-yet unidentified incident, codenamed "Gojira". Codename selected due to Ilyasviel's inexplicable insistence that something with that name was involved, to the point where she actually managed to irritate her caretakers enough that they contacted us.'

Kiritsugu put his pen to the side for a moment, staring at the mission journal. He wasn't sure why he felt he needed to record this information, but... something about that surge of energy on that day made him feel... fragile. He shook his head. If this helped him focus past the surge of fear, then so be it. It was a far less destructive quirk than he could have had.

'Investigation of the ruins revealed high levels of residual radiation. It is uncertain exactly what could have produced that level of radiation without destroying a far larger area. Current theory is that it was caused by a Servant. Saber has admitted to being capable of unleashing similar forces with her Noble Phantasm, though analysis of the damage reveals that no attack came from ground level. This would implicate a Rider with some form of flying mount. Archer was considered, but the damage patterns are at too high of an angle.'

It worried him in particular that whatever this was, it was an act of a Master. For another Master to be willing to cause such visible damage was incredibly alarming.

'Sources from across the country have all confirmed that the level of energy being used was on a level that all magic-users of any degree could feel the aura. Contacts back in Europe have confirmed that there has been a lack of response from both the Church and the Association on the subject.'

That was one of the more disturbing things Kiritsugu had found out over the past few days. Something on the scale of this incident, an aura that could be felt clear across Japan, should have merited a large-scale response. But there was nothing.

'There has not been a lack of response in the mundane community, however. I was far from the only one to have identified the radioactive nature of the destruction of the mansion, and the JSSDF has mobilized significant forces to investigate the possibility of a nuclear-capable terrorist cell. Access in and out of Fuyuki is heavily restricted. There has actually been a response from the Association and Church in this area, assisting all magi in the area in passing the inspections. This confirms that the incident was not unnoticed, but is instead being deliberately ignored. This is highly irregular.'

To say the least. The Association didn't just ignore things of this magnitude, not when it already had drawn attention. At least, they didn't before now. Kiritsugu sighed, setting down his pen. He had known the Grail War wouldn't be a typical job, but this was legitimately worrying. If he was going to be alone against these sorts of odds, then even having Saber wouldn't be enough. The Magus Killer sighed, resting his face in one hand.

He was going to need more gun.


The presence of the JSSDF was incredibly annoying to Ryuunosuke. He hadn't managed to make a kill in two days, and it didn't look like the fuzz was going anywhere after that boom. He also hadn't seen Bluebeard in the past day, which was odd.

"I return, Ryuunosuke, with a grand treasure!"

"Uoooh?! Did you manage to grab someone?"

"Alas, I did not. I too was angered by the men stifling our art, but as I was about to teach them a lesson, a man approached me while I was astralized. He handed me a tome and said I would know how best to use it. Do you see its beauty, Ryuunosuke?"

In the man's hands was a book, but even Ryuunosuke knew it was no ordinary book. It looked to have been bound by something strange and almost leathery that recalled the substance that bound the other book Caster had shown him. But this one seemed to shift, the substance crawling about on its own.

"Yeah, so it looks kind of nifty, what of it? Isn't your other book like this, too?"

"Ah, but that's the beauty of it, Ryuunosuke!" Caster flipped open the book, seemingly at random, and jabbed his finger at a passage. "Read it, Ryuunosuke!"

Ryuunosuke looked down at it again, but the text looked to be gibberish in symbols he didn't understand. "Ah, Bluebeard-san, I can't read that. I don't speak the language."

Caster paused for a moment. "My apologies, Master. In my excitement, I had actually forgotten this was not the language of your land. I shall translate it for you in but a moment." He focused, and the words on the page began to twist, blurring together and apart, until they reformed into kanji.

"It's okay, I guess. So who was this guy? You get his name?"

"He called himself Al-Hazred, my Master. Now, it is ready. Read, and you will understand what a glorious gift has been given unto us!"

Ryuunosuke did read. Several moments passed, and he started laughing. Low, at first, but steadily building, mounting in volume until it echoed throughout the chamber they stood in. Caster's smile grew as he saw the understanding in his Master's eyes.

Some things should not be known to man. Among those things, there were many that in particular should not be given to a serial killer who commanded the spirit of an ancient and powerful dark mage.

Within that tome, all of those things could be found.


Waver Velvet had a headache.

Alone, this fact meant very little. He'd fallen pretty hard three days prior, when the incident had occurred. Rider had been relatively unconcerned after a quick check confirmed he hadn't been concussed, instead opting to stare out the window solemnly. And really, if it weren't for circumstances being what they were, he could just go fix himself some tea.

No, the main issue with him having a headache was that Waver Velvet was also currently in jail.

As it turns out, the papers he had didn't match up with the family he was staying with. The JSSDF's search for possible suspects in the bombing quickly pointed suspicion at the boy no one could remember having lived there but the grandparents. He lacked papers, but more importantly, Rider lacked papers and, when pressed, claimed to be Alexander the Great. The Grandparents had overlooked that quirk of his, as Waver had vouched for him, but the JSSDF men weren't so sure. They had been looking for someone crazy enough to bomb the mansion, and claiming to be Alexander the Great was awfully crazy.

Initially they were going to just detain the two temporarily until they figured out the actual country of origin of the two clearly harmless, if delusional, individuals. Then Rider did something stupid. Not wanting to be held captive, he astralized while in custody when no one was watching the room. This immediately lead to panic.

"Rider, please, just keep it down," the boy moaned quietly to his astralized Servant.

"Boy, to be contained like this is a disgrace! You know I can break us out of here in moments!"

"I wouldn't need to break out if you had just stayed materialized! They were going to let us go because it was only a passing suspicion, but then you vanished! Now they think I'm an accomplice to a super-terrorist cell or something that broke you out."

"NO ONE CONQUERS THE KING OF CONQUERERS!"

Waver flinched from the sound only he could hear. "At least maximum security means the other Masters aren't likely to come after me."


Post-note: Was going to include Kirei and Kayneth/Sola-Ui in this chapter, but my brain decided it didn't feel like cooperating, so they get their sections next chapter.