Is It Wrong to be a Grail in search of some Entertainment?

by SpokesOfTime

With the ejection of a Holy Grail to a Universe where it does not belong, Heroic Spirits long since passed, come to life, purely, so the object in question, can enjoy its Vacation. A Dungeon remains to be conquered, and without a war to fight, the Servants will step up to the task, but the question remains, is that all that is happening?

3. Celebrations!

It was late evening by the time Aurelian returned to the Church, his own glow long since subsided, and with any unsavoury characters giving him a wide birth due to his appearance. When he came upon the church, he looked to the roof, and beheld a most curious event, he saw Matthias seated on the brick tiles, with a large Raven seated on his palm nuzzling against him.

Aurelian waved slowly at his fellow Servant who waved back with his other hand and jumped down after momentarily tossing the bird in the air. Indeed, when he landed, the bird merely flew down and perched itself on Matthias' shoulder again, nuzzling against his ear.

Aurelian raised an eyebrow, "Truly, to be called the Raven King is apt for yourself is it not?" to which the Lancer seemed sheepish as he scratched the neck of the bird gently. Lancer spoke, eyeing the receipts in Saber's hands, "I assume you… opened an account with the Guild? The lack of bags of valis gives it away."

Aurelian nodded, "Indeed…. the earnings were high to say the least." To which the Lancer-class Servant raised an eyebrow, "Oh?" while Aurelian continued, "Twenty Million and a few hundred thousand in exact." Before offering a copy of the receipt to Lancer who gently took it and began perusing it, before he himself began to burst out in laughter not unlike Aurelian had back at the Guild.

The Raven too seemed happy at its human friend's laughter and began to caw quite loudly, while Aurelian himself smiled at this. The Lancer servant wiped a tear from his eye once he stopped laughing and spoke, "Golden Rule?" to which Saber nodded in the affirmative, "Golden Rule."

Lancer then spoke, "Ho… so the primary beneficiary of the account is Lady Hestia, with the rest of us mentioned as well. Indeed, we can purchase an adequately sized house with the amount." To which Aurelian crossed his arms and nodded, while responding, "Indeed, where are the little Master and the Goddess anyhow?" to which Matthias responded, "They went to take a bath somewhere, at separate locations if I'm not wrong. They asked if I wanted to come, but I reminded them that any grime or blood on my person would merely disappear when I dematerialized, not to mention the fact that Servants… do not sweat."

Saber mused the same and spoke, "A bath sounds nice… indeed I miss the Roman Bathhouses well enough, though I suppose you yourself are fond of hot springs?" to which Lancer nodded yet again, as he stroked the back of his corvid friend, "Indeed, I would like to take one sometime soon, but there is no hurry."

Lancer then seemed to remember something, and concentrated for a moment before opening a grey portal in front of himself, and poking his hand through, and pulling out two parchments. Aurelian spoke, "Store a copy of the receipt inside there as well, that is if you do not mind Lancer." To which Lancer nodded and did as told.

Aurelian spoke, taking both the sheets, "I assume these are your statuses post the Goddess updating them?" to which the Lancer nodded as he sighed when his Raven took flight and left the area, and stared after its shrinking form.

Bell Cranel

Level 1

Strength: H107- F389

Defense: H105- G250

Dexterity: I98- F350

Agility: H180-E480

Magic: H-150-D580

Aurelian spoke, his eyes gently widened, "This… cannot be normal no? Indeed I can understand his Magic gain due to my own expensive nature… but such extraordinary growth…"

The scholarly Raven King nodded and spoke, "He is a prodigy, there is no doubt about it, something about him bolsters his own growth to extra-ordinary levels" as he removed his bronze wreath and stared at it with a hard look.

Aurelian then switched sheets, and was not surprised at what he saw:

Mátyás Hunyadi

Level 1

Strength: I0

Defense: I0

Dexterity: I0

Agility: I0-I1

Magic: I0

Indeed, the Hungarian Servant seemed offended at the sheet as he spoke, "It is obvious that I can't gain anything from such weak monsters, but to give me 1 point of growth in something I possess A+ parameters in almost seems to be an insult rather than something to be surprised by. Perhaps I should have fought that strong beast? Wouldn't you agree, Emperor?"

Aurelian did not say anything, as inside he wholeheartedly agreed with the King's assessment. He then looked ahead, as he'd felt the presence of his patron god, and so, sure enough saw Vesta and Bell walking down the street towards them with a smile on the latter's face.

Bell came up running, "Hey Saber! You exchanged the crystals, huh? Today's lessons as well as fighting those monsters seemed to have made me so much stronger! If I grow like this every day, I think I can shatter the Sword Princess' record no?"

Vesta scowled, but only softly as she spoke, "As much as I do not approve of letting my sweet Bell fight something like an Orc with statuses at H, I cannot deny the effectiveness of the same. Though I suppose it makes sense that Lancer did not gain anything apart from 1 point in agility, which can be explained away with him moving that fast all the time."

Aurelian spoke, "I might have gained some points so to speak, I indeed faced a beast the equivalent of a Level 7 adventurer, though it was still not close to a fight." To which Hestia looked horrified as she spoke, "A level 7 monster on the 10th Floor? What is happening?! BELL! WHY DIDN'T YOU TELL ME YOU RAN INTO SUCH A THING."

The boy in question looked much like a rabbit caught in front of a gang of foxes, as he stammered out, "W-w-we didn't fight the thing together, Lancer took me away to s-s-safety, while Saber fought it on his own." Saber spoke, "Indeed, the monster was called a Juggernaut." And he rubbed his own neck sheepishly as he continued, "It only appeared because err… I punched an Infant Dragon into the Dungeon walls hard enough to cause damage to them. But it was an abnormal Juggernaut in the fact that it possessed a Magic Crystal, indeed, a particularly large one."

Hestia seemed gobsmacked momentarily before she puffed her cheeks out and continued, "A juggernaut with a crystal? That is strange indeed, how much did it sell for?" to which Aurelian chuckled as he showed her the second copy of the receipt, to which her eyes threatened to jump out of their sockets as she let out a strangled noise that was entirely incomprehensible. "Tw-tw-twenty Million? H-h-how?" to which Lancer was the one who responded, gently calming the goddess by patting her head, as they walked inside the Church that was their home. "Our skills… Golden Rule that is, clearly allowed this to happen. Though I should tell you the earnings are closer to ten million than not, seeing as to how we've kept aside ten million for house hunting."

Hestia mumbled something, still in a daze, "Millions…. In a day…" before grabbing Bell in a sudden cry and shouting, "Bell, you're too good for me! To summon such wonderful children to our familia. Waaaaaah" as she started crying.

It was Saber who interrupted the touching scene, gently extricating the goddess from the thoroughly gobsmacked child, as he spoke, "Lady Vesta… let us update my own status before heading to the restaurant Bell has an appointment with." The goddess nodded, wiping away her tears as she spoke, a smile on her face, "Indeed, we will celebrate your summoning! And our Familia's grand earnings! Uwahhh!" as she skipped down the stairs of the Familia home.

It was Matthias who sighed, "I wonder if God himself is as whimsical as this Greek goddess…. Perhaps that would be considered heresy." To which Saber winked as he spoke, "Indeed, if he is present in this Universe, who knows what your Christian god exists as, perhaps a little girl?" to which the Catholic Servant turned white as he spluttered something in denial while Saber chuckled as he went down the stairs.

It was not five minutes later that Aurelian got up off the bed, as he fastened his clothes on yet again, as he read through the parchment,

Lucius Domitius Aurelianus

Level 1

Strength: I0- I5

Defense: I0

Dexterity: I0-I3

Agility: I0-I5

Magic: I0-I2

Hestia seemed surprised as well as she spoke, "Oh… that monster must have been very strong, if you gained fifteen points in total, Saber!" As she fixed her hairstyle again. Saber shook his head as he spoke, "Not in particular no, I simply went all out from the very beginning so as to ensure that no one else would be caught in our fight. I feel perhaps Lancer should have fought it, he would have gained hundreds of points if Bell's growth is any indicator."

Hestia fidgeted for a moment as if she had been caught in a lie before shaking her head and jumping as she spoke, "Forget all that. Maybe the two of you can explore the Deep Floors sometime later! Today we celebrate!" to which the two Servants exchanged a look as they exited the church and made for the Hostess of Fertility.

====================XeX====================

Hestia's Familia made it to the establishment without much fanfare, and entered to the wafting breeze which was carrying scents of foods of various sorts and origins. Adventurer parties were cheering as they shared drinks with one another, while cat-eared waitresses were serving the customers along with an elf.

Matthias raised an eyebrow at the sight as he spoke to Saber, "That elf has seen battle if nothing else" to which Saber nodded. It was then that a high pitched voice spoke out, "Bell! I'm glad you came!" to which the party turned around to face Syr Flover, the waitress from the morning.

Hestia gritted her teeth as Bell spoke, "E-r-r, yes! We came, after all I-I had to return your lunch box after all!" gulping audibly as Hestia's face continued to morph in strange ways. It was Saber this time who patted the small goddess' head in an effort to calm her, while Lancer spoke, "Err yes, let's get a seat at the Bar, no?" to which the Waitress nodded as she led them to the bar, calling out to her colleagues for the same.

Saber and Lancer sat beside one another, with Lancer himself perched on the end-seat of the Bar, while Bell was seated opposite the owner, Mia Grand, a tall stout woman, while Hestia sat in between Bell and Saber.

Mia spoke, her voice booming, "So you're the one Syr gave her lunchbox to, I can see why, she's taken a fancy to your pretty face no doubt! Hahahah" as the waitress and boy in question turned red. She then looked at Saber, the oldest member of the party barring the goddess, as she spoke, "Ho, you're the Familia Captain? Well, go on then! Order something, food or drink! We won't run out!"

Saber nodded as he spoke, "I am not the Captain so to speak… indeed we have no hierarchy, but I would like some… Spagetthi with Meatballs as you call it, with a garum garnish…err….fermented fish sauce if you have it, along with wine if you have any, preferably a good red one." Lancer then spoke as well, taking his greaves off and placing them on his lap, "Perhaps a meat stew of sorts, I miss goulash, preferably with some good chicken inside. Make sure to season it well, and I'll have thirds if it's good. Oh as for the drink, just ale for me, make sure it's strong."

The owner nodded, her laughter booming out yet again, "And you, Bell Cranel? Lady Hestia?" to which the little goddess ordered meat skewers with ale, while the young boy ordered pasta and some fruit juice, while they waited for the same.

Lancer spoke, "Oh as for the bill, charge it to the Hestia account at the Guild" while the Owner nodded, mildly surprised, as both the Servants observed the crowd. Lancer spoke softly, "Indeed… the children of the gods so to speak… are a lively… varied bunch, no? I wonder how Iskandar would react to the same, he would no doubt ask to outdrink everyone here." Saber nodded, but before he could respond, their piping hot meals were placed in front of them.

Saber was surprised to see a small amphora of what was clearly garum, and smiled as he poured a few drops onto his spagetthi, and bit it, reminiscing of Rome. He finished chewing as he spoke, "Indeed… reminds me of my time in the army. They used to call me Hand on Sword you know? It was embarrassing on its own, then later the infamous Restitutor Orbis came into existence." As he chuckled softly.

Lancer on the other hand, drank his stew deeply, and finished the entire bowl in half a minute before motioning for seconds, and responded, "I understand what you mean. As Servants… we can never be brought to our own times, so we must recreate it on our own somehow. It is curious you know, Paprika as a spice was never present in Hungary when I ruled, indeed it was only imported a few decades later, but a legend sprouted up that we, the Hunyadis, had a family recipe of goulash which included the spice, and so it retroactively became part of my legend, and a food I find comfort in."

Saber nodded, before turning to see the curious waitress, Syr approach Bell as she untied her apron and hung it up. She spoke, "How are you all finding your food? Are you enjoying yourself too Bell?" as she gave him a bright smile.

Hestia, however, was in her cups, as Lancer had accepted her challenge of drinking Ale, to which she was soundly loosing, seeing as to how the Servant had already finished 17 mugs, drawing the ogling and cheering of other seated adventurers.

Syr giggled at the scene as Bell blushed and responded, "It… is fun… I'm glad to be...enjoying stuff with my familia, I guess. We didn't have such restaurants in my village, and I didn't do much but farm with my grandpa either way before he passed, so it is truly overwhelming." And finishing so, he bit into some potato puffs that he had ordered.

Syr giggled, and sat down, while Saber muttered to Lancer, cutting into a large pork belly he had ordered, "I like this cooking… I wonder if I could make it, I've always been fond of improving my men's rations on my own." As he munched on the same slowly, Mia spoke, clearly having heard his words, "Ho? A general who cooks for his own men? That is something I've never heard of. They must have been fond of you very much then."

Aurelian smiled softly before speaking, "Indeed, I miss my men, but I'm long since retired…. Or exiled to be more correct, and after my exile, here I am as an adventurer, truly life is strange." Hestia seemed to have heard these words, as she bit her lip sadly and wailed, "SABEEER! Waaah! Your care for your soldiers…. YOU UNDERSTAND US GODS CARING FOR OUR CHILDREN! Waaah, poor Saber… hic…" as she dozed off on the bar, her head on her arm.

Lancer gave her a glance, as he had already finished 30 mugs of ale, and spoke, his eyebrows raised "I… I feel it… a slight tingling in my finger…. Is this what it is to be drunk?" To which the patrons who had surrounded his back began to roar in outrage and cheer, while one particular adventurer thumped his back good naturedly. Hestia then jerked her head open, before mumbling, "HA! I knew it… Lancer… can't keep his drink in!" before she fell off her stool, only to be caught by Saber who tutted in mild disapproval and placed her back on the stool.

Syr giggled yet again before speaking, leaning forward towards Bell "I'm glad you came today… though your goddess here doesn't seem to be holding her drink very well." Bell nodded sheepishly as he spoke, "I mean it's the least we could do after you starved in the morning as I took your lunch. Lady Hestia's… bubbly and energetic to say the least at being here!."

Syr giggled, "Indeed she is." to which she then placed her finger on her chin in a thoughtful manner as she spoke, "Are you the newest member of the Hestia Familia?" to which Bell shook his head, before swallowing his fruit juice and speaking, "Not at all, I was the first member, Saber and Lancer over there were former kings and generals of their nations and joined afterwards. We don't…err… really have a Familia Captain but I suppose they can be considered to be the Joint Captains?"

She spoke, "Saber…? Lancer? Those are strange names..." to which it was Saber who responded, "I am afraid it is a custom for those who have left our nation… we go by names that denote our proficiency rather than our true names unless in a private setting. Lancer here was a famed spearman in addition to his other professions, and I was called Hand on Sword by my men, hence Saber." To which the waitress nodded, with a thoughtful expression on her face.

Hestia woke up for a second time, this time giving Bell and Syr a dirty eye, as she spoke, "Don…'t tink … hic… you can take Bell from me… waitress! He's mine!" to which Syr began to giggle while Bell yelped, his own face turning a deep crimson. She then nodded, "Indeed, the two of you give off the air of royalty. I think the only other Familia which has two kings which knew one another before joining is Freya familia."

Saber raised an eyebrow, his golden eye shining brightly as he spoke, "Indeed? That seems to be something I would find intriguing", before turning to see a large group of people walking into the room. Aurelian recognised them as a… pallum, a pair of elves, a dwarf, a werewolf, and a few humans, both amazon and not, led by a…. rather lanky goddess as the Grail provided him the necessary information about the specieses.

Hestia spoke, suddenly a lot more clear, "Oh… I feel we should leave. Miss Waitress, please pack all the food into takeout. I understand the bill will be charged to our account." Lancer, who had finished an even 50 mugs of ale, turned around at the statement, and spoke, "You… are not fond of that goddess, Lady Hestia?"

Hestia herself responded, "No… I do not like Loki, she is… annoying to deal with." But it would seem it was too late, as the Norse Trickster Goddess opened her eyes upon spotting Hestia and walked forward towards her, accompanied by the blonde Girl and a stern-looking green haired Elf, while the rest of her party went and grabbed a table.

"Oh hey, shorty, didn't think I'd see you in here any time soon." Before she looked over at Lancer and his pile of fifty mugs of ale before speaking, "Oh my…. Thor would love you. How many mugs is that?" while the expressionless blonde girl began to count the mugs individually.

Lancer spoke, his eyebrows raised, "I believe it is fifty, Lady Loki" and looked over at Mia Grand for confirmation, who simply smiled brightly, raising her thumb up in approval. Loki clapped at this, ignoring Hestia's outraged expression at having been ignored, "Oh? A familia member who can handle that much drink? Thor would say something outrageous like, "The more he drinks, the stronger he is", You've done well for yourself, chibi!" to which Hestia seemed to momentarily struggle with her expressions before reining them in and politely saying, "Indeed, my Familia's now at three members, what's it to you?"

Loki raised an eyebrow, though her eyes themselves were still shut while crossing her arms, "Haah? Is that any way to speak to someone politely congratulating you about your success, chibi? Don't tell me ya getting new members went to your head and made ya go cuckoo like Apollo!"

Hestia puffed her cheeks in anger as she spoke, "For your information, the only reason I have three familia members rather than none is because the two of them" pointing towards Aurelian and Matthias, "joined up after saving my little Bell from that Minotaur your Familia sent up after scaring them!" she half-shouted.

Loki grinned in a wide manner, causing Saber to raise his own eyebrow before saying, "So you're thanking me then chibi? Ha, I knew you had manners after all! Someone even told me you've opened an account at the Guild! So much success after my children sent one Minotaur up the floors! You should be hugging me in delight, shorty!" she said.

The blonde girl tilted her head before speaking, "I was chasing the minotaur…. I do not think anyone would have been hurt." As she stared at the potato puffs Bell was munching on.

Hestia it seemed, after hearing these words, had finally had enough, "YOUR THINKING IS AS FLAT AS YOU ARE, LOKI! THAT MINOTAUR WOULD HAVE KILLED BELL IF SABER AND LANCER WEREN'T PRESENT! AND YOU EXPECT ME TO THANK YOU FOR THAT?", this caused the trickster goddess to turn as red as her own scarlet hair, and lunged at Hestia, her eyes moist, grabbing her by her cheeks and kneading them between her fingers.

Hestia herself, small as she was, was unable to fight back, and resorted to flailing around aimlessly, before Saber decided it was time to intervene, flaring his divinity for exactly half a second before he gently pulled Loki's hands away before saying, "Lady Loki… I believe that our goddess has had enough to drink, but even so I request that you do not needlessly antagonise her. And besides, she is right that if we were not there to intercept the Minotaur, she would be grieving over a corpse of a young boy, even if your own child was chasing the monster. I do not think that is something anyone would be thankful for."

Loki seemed momentarily taken back, both by his actions as well as the small divinity flare, before she huffed, tears still in her eyes, and turned sideways, saying, "Your Familia member has common sense, loli big boobs, but he seems to be some sort of former old king, so that's expected anyhow. I'll tell my Familia to be more vigilant, can't have half the city's gods complaining about their low level adventurers dying due to some monsters running away from the strength of my children ya know. Besides, you learn to keep your forked tongue to yourself, shorty, hmmph." Before turning around and walking away.

The green haired elf lowered her head a fraction, speaking, "I am glad you intervened..." to which Aurelian responded, "Saber." As she continued, her face momentarily confused, "Saber. Our goddess can be… a handful at times, I would have had to intervene myself if you did not. I am Riveria Ljos Alf, the Vice-Captain of the Loki Familia, I shall hope that the rest of our encounters shall be as peaceful as this one.

The blonde girl tilted her head yet again, before speaking, "I'm Ais Wallenstein. You seem strong, goodbye." As she walked away, she gave a small look at Bell, before turning yet again, and so it was the Hestia Familia's turn to be perplexed by her short statement as they took their takeout and left the building.

Hestia huffed, as they walked down the street, "Hmmph, who does that blonde girl think she is, calling Saber strong instead of apologising for not catching the Minotaur in the first place. Sword Princess or not, people need to learn manners." Before her face continued to morph in displeasure.

Lancer spoke to his fellow Servant, while he gave half a glance at the strange look on Bell's face, "Those adventurers… they seemed decently strong, eh Saber?" to which the Servant nodded, "You could deal with them all at the same time I suppose, though perhaps your Reality Marble and the activation of your Spear would be necessary for the same." To which the Servant simply raised his hands and placed them on the spear on his shoulder before muttering, "To be that strong due to the Falna alone… I wonder if I should actively pursue a level up now."

As they finally returned to the Church and Hestia instantly fell asleep on the Bed, Bell spoke, a bright smile on his face, "Today was fun! We should do that once a week…. I-I mean if you don't mind." The old man gave a small smile before speaking, "It is fine, our funds might as well be inexhaustible unless you're considering purchasing a building without my knowledge. That said…. I will be training you tomorrow while Lancer will go house-hunting with the guild guide. If there is still no adequate house to be found, I suppose I shall have to use my Noble Phantasm to create one, though how to explain the same will be a problem."

Bell nodded vigorously, excited at the prospect of training with Saber again, before stretching himself out on the bed. He then noticed a strange series of marks on his hand and spoke, "Hey Saber? What are these marks?"

The Servant seemed momentarily taken aback before observing them properly, after which a look of clarity appeared on his face. He spoke, "Those are what you call Command Seals, I'm surprised they only appeared now, and by the look of the design, they appear to be Lancer's. Command Seals are three absolute orders given by the Grail to Masters so that they can give unavoidable commands which empower their Servants."

Aurelian seemed to have a pensive look on his face, before continuing, "Indeed, the more specific the command, the greater the seal's power. If you for example, command Lancer to defeat an opponent stronger than him, he will gain the power necessary to do so. If you command me to come to your side, even if I am a Continent away, time and space itself will bend to the magic's whims and bring me to fight by your side. Hmmm, yes, if you ever find yourself in trouble, use the Command Seal, master, but do not use it frivolously, for in effect there are only two seals, as using the third seal erases the contract between us; though I am not fully sure if that would continue to be the case in this world."

Saber then fidgeted with his mask for a moment before speaking, "I am curious, try to bring forward my own Seals, I wonder if they're superimposed upon one another in separate magical layers." To which Bell nodded at the explanation, concentrating on Saber's command seals in his mind.

A soft red glow occurred, and Lancer's seals had disappeared, with the markings on Bell's hand now displaying three markings in the shape of a sword. Aurelian hummed in approval and then asked Bell to dismiss the seals altogether, to which Bell nodded and did as asked, and the seals disappeared.

Saber bid Bell a good night, to which Bell responded in kind as the Servant dematerialised while he laid back on the sofa and began thinking of how strengthening a Servant already as strong as Saber would be, and while he was fantasising, he entered into his slumber.

Back at the bar however, while the Loki familia audaciously exchanged jokes and made raucous noise as they ate and drank, Riveria turned to her goddess momentarily, and was concerned when she noticed a rather pensive expression on Loki's face.

She spoke, "Lady Loki? Is everything allright?" to which the Trickster goddess removed her hand from her chin before looking up and opening her eyes, "Oh… hmm, yes… that old man" to which Riveria tilted her head in confusion before speaking, "Saber from Hestia Familia?" to which the trickster goddess nodded before speaking, "Yes him… he is… strange. By all rights he should only be a Level 1… yet I felt something strange from him for half a second. If you ever get into a fight with him…I suggest you be cautious, mama."

A tick mark of anger appeared on Riveria's forehead, as she spoke, "Who are you calling Mama?" to which the Trickster Goddess stuck her tongue out, while Riveria struck Loki's head with moderate force causing the goddess to begin wailing in mock hurt. But she considered the words spoken anyhow, and kept it to herself.

====================XeX====================

It was a strange dream Bell was having; indeed, in it he was sharpening a sword not unlike Aurelian's against a whetstone. Then he realised, that it was in fact, Aurelian's sword, as he looked down at the armour he was wearing which was the exact same.

After a while, he was satisfied with the sword's sharpness and so walked over to a map laid out on a richly furnished table, the knowledge came to him rapidly, as he thought, "Shapur is dead, the sorcerer fled after our duel, and died anyway, how disappointing. His successor Hormizd's death only means that we shall be able to annihilate Bahram and bring the Sassanids under the auspices of the Roman Empire."

Saying so, he sighed, for he had the belief that he was too old for this, even if as a Demigod he was not bound to the same tiredness that a regular man would possess. They were currently camped at the border of Thrace, at Caenophrurium, and were waiting to cross over into Asia Minor while Aurelian himself was bringing to bear another batch of fresh recruits along with the legion currently encamped with him.

He sighed, and thought to himself "Might as well take a walk along the camp, the soldiers could do with some lessons in swordsmanship." He walked out of his tent, and was surprised to say the least, to see the notarius Mucapor and three other high-ranking officers of the Praetorian Guard approaching his camp slowly.

They seemed to be surprised to see him outside his tent, but there was something off about the way they were walking. For Mucapor had a hand behind his back, and Aurelian misliked the scene. He spoke aloud, "Ave, Mucapor, what news?" to which the Praetorian responded, "Ave, Caesar, we were… concerned about yourself."

Aurelian narrowed his eyes and approached the four men, a hand on his hilt, until they were but a metre apart from each other. And almost in an instant, the notarius turned his hand around, bringing to bear a dagger Aurelian recognized to be Shapur's. Shapur had claimed that the dagger had been infused with enough curses and spells that it could kill him, though the mage had been disarmed before he could ever strike with it, and had been forced to use regular magecraft in their duel.

His brain was working in extraordinary speeds, for indeed it was afforded to him by his divine nature, as he thought, "That dagger was under the custody of my secretary…. Eros. I see, he has plotted to have me assassinated… though I know not why." Indeed he could draw his gladius in an instant and kill all four of the ordinary men, or disarm them with only his hands and beat them to a pulp, or any hundred other ways of the same.

But he… he knew it was his time, he had done as his father commanded, given another millennium to the lifespan of the Empire, two hundred for Rome itself and restored all the splintering fragments of the empire, barring the evacuation of Dacia. He was… content so to speak, and did not mind re-joining with the over-spirit of his father-self. And so he gave a small smile as the dagger pierced his heart, and fell to the floor.

In the distance he could hear a regular squad of legionaries shout in absolute outrage, as they charged, screaming, "CAESAR!", throwing their pilums into the notarius and his fellow plotters. Indeed, one soldier came ahead, tears in his eyes, as he cradled the fallen Emperor in his own lap, shouting, "NO! Caesar Aurelian… this should not be… he was the perfect Emperor… why must he have been taken to his grave by a dastardly plot?"

Aurelian muttered, "Do not worry, Rome shall not fall… not for a good while longer… I would request…. you …. tell Ulpia… she must… do her duty… for Rome's sake…. Aeterna…. Victrix."

The soldier nodded, his hot tears splashing on Aurelian's neck, as he repeated the line, "Aeterna… Victrix." And so Bell's dream ended, as Aurelian perished at the Thracian border, before his spirit floated up to join a large body of light, his father… Sol Invictus.

====================XeX====================

Bell woke with a start, sweating deeply, for indeed he had been stabbed in the heart in his dream, and so he rubbed his hand over himself to ensure that he had not, infact, been hurt. He looked at the clock and was surprised to see that it was half past nine, and that the goddess had already left the household.

He realised that what he had dreamed was quite possibly how Saber had died. He slapped himself gently on the cheek as he stretched himself awake, before realising that there was a pot of something being cooked on the kitchen stove.

He looked around to see who it was that was cooking the same, but saw none of his servants, he shrugged, and went ahead in brushing his teeth and washing his face.

He then turned as the familiar aerial distortion of materialization occurred, to the sight of Saber stirring the dish with a ladle, he went over to see what it was and saw that it was some sort of meat stew. He spoke, "Oh! Good morning Saber, I wondered who was cooking this."

The older man smiled as he spoke, "Hmm yes, I dematerialized when my attention was not required for the dish. It is a simple meat stew from my days in the Legion, so do not expect any chef-grade cooking but I hope you'll enjoy it all the same."

Bell nodded, as he continued to stretch when Saber beckoned him over when the dish was complete and poured out a good portion in a bowl. Bell took a spoonful before widening his eyes as he spoke, "This is good Saber! It reminds me of the stew my grandfather used to make… back in my village!"

Saber nodded, before pouring himself a bowl and biting into the chunks of meat. Bell fidgeted for a bit, wondering how to bring up his dream before speaking, "Say…. Saber…. I had a dream of Caenophrurium." To which the Servant's spoon stopped mid-air and his eyebrows raised as he spoke, "Oh? Oh! I suppose I should have mentioned it, sometimes due to the contract… a Master and Servant can have dreams about each other's lives. I suppose you saw the circumstances of my death?" to which Bell nodded, unsure how to react at the Servant's nonchalance.

Saber then bit into his spoon and had a thoughtful expression as he chewed before swallowing and saying, "Indeed… my death was less than ideal, I would have very much have liked to see Ulpia… my wife, as well as my daughter, but I found peace in it all the same."

Bell shouted in surprise, "But your own men betrayed you! How did you find peace in that, Saber?!" to which the old man seemed mildly surprised at Bell's outburst before speaking, "I suppose it comes from the fact that I was never fully human, though I lived most of my life as humbly as possible, with my glory coming as a by-product of my actions, as well as the fact that my nature as a demigod-incarnate of Sol made me accept my death quicker than both people as well as other demigods who were not incarnates."

Bell seemed to think this over before Aurelian continued, "Indeed, while I do wonder occasionally if my continued life could have given further life to the Empire, I do not regret my death. Regret is an emotion one should never feel, indeed, there was a story among a group of auxiliaries I once served with which roughly translates to, the ferryman across the Styx, the river of the Underworld, would pay you a copper for your thoughts and a gold coin for your sadness, while you yourself would pay a gold coin to cross."

Bell tilted his head in confusion, to which Aurelian clarified, "What the soldiers meant was, to cross from purgatory into a proper afterlife, one would have to pay a gold coin for the same, but the same ferryman who ferried you across, would pay a gold coin in return if you brought out your sadness so he could drink deeply from it to sate the thirst of he who is a cruel spirit even if he is a psychopomp."

Bell muttered, "Psycho….pomp" to which the Saber class Servant smiled and explained, "Spirits, angels, creatures or deities who escort deceased souls to the afterlife" to which Bell nodded in understanding.

Aurelian then fed himself another couple of spoons before continuing, "For an evil spirit… or a lesser deity to value sadness at the same extent as a soul's afterlife would indicate that wallowing in the emotion… and the offshoot that is regret, only serves to ruin one's life. Indeed this is why I suppose I do not really have a wish for the Holy Grail, with perhaps the closest thing to a wish already fulfilled, that is peace and security for my family and my nation, which while for the latter did not last forever, but lasted far longer than anyone ever thought it would under all the duress it faced."

Aurelian then spoke, "I am not saying that it is wrong to grieve if one is faced with loss or be frustrated at hardships, but to stay in the pit those emotions dig is a terrible thing. Perhaps my way of thinking is twisted due to my very nature itself, but even the soldiers who believed in my leadership and words went to their deaths with a smile on their lips more often than not."

Bell nodded, pensive at these words as he finished his bowl, after which he spoke, "I suppose that makes sense, though I do not fully understand it" To which the Saber-type Servant laughed gently, and ruffled the young boy's hair, "No… I suppose you would not… you are still far too young to consider all this, Bell." To which the Boy nodded, his sombre expression gone.

He then spoke, "Where are Lancer and the goddess? Did Lady Hestia decide to work today as well?" to which Aurelian shook his head as he cleaned the pots under running water, as he spoke, "No, Lancer's gone to hunt for houses…errr… fortresses as I said, and trusting in his intellect, he will not return until he's scoured the entirety of each premises for secret entrances and analyse it for defensive capabilities. Lady Vesta on the other hand, went to purchase a suitable formal gown for some sort of banquet of the gods she will be attending at Ganesha familia's premises. Both of them will not be back for several hours to say the least."

Bell nodded, before he spoke, "Ummm…. Saber? Do you think we can train like yesterday?" to which Saber nodded, and fastened his mask as they headed for the city walls so as to be able to train efficiently without interference.

When they reached an empty section of the wall, beckoned on by a Ganesha familia guard who had borne witness to Lancer's extraordinary drinking feats yesterday night and recognized them to be part of the same Familia. Once they'd reached the top, Bell ran past Saber quickly, before turning around to face him, his stance mimicking the one he had learnt yesterday.

Saber spoke, his eyes glowing beneath his mask as he did so, "No… today I believe you should learn how to face a human opponent with a sword. One can never tell when a scrupulous adventurer might find you to be easy pickings and decide to attack you." Saying so, the Roman Emperor summoned his Sword, the Gladius Mundo Iobeleum came into existence.

Bell was momentarily surprised at having to face the flaming sword, before he steeled his determination and readied his knife. Saber spoke, "Don't worry about the flames… they are… uh…. illusionary so to speak, as I am not filling it with my Mana Burst skill to bring out it's destructive properties, or activating it to use its own power."

Bell nodded, and so when Saber did the same as well, he jumped forward, using his high agility skill to his advantage, bringing his knife up in an angle so as to deny Aurelian the use of his extra length. Aurelian however, merely moved his sword in place far faster than the boy, and deflected the blade.

Saber then spoke, circling his young master, "Good, your intuition serves you well, going in close and denying the enemy their greater reach is the smartest thing a dagger-wielder can do. Throwing daggers is never effective unless you have great skill in the same, and a dozen knives on your body. Come again."

And so Bell did exactly that, over, and over, and over, and over again, hundreds of slashes, thrusts, and stabs being effortlessly deflected by the older man, as his form was corrected over and over, minimising the energy loss, and eliminating wasted movements from the boy's technique.

This happened over hours, with the occasional Ganesha familia guard popping in to observe the showmanship of extraordinary skills. Bell would then occasionally perform exercises to build up his muscle under the Servant's supervision, and re-practice the unarmed stances and footwork he had learnt yesterday.

It was in the late afternoon that Bell finally collapsed, exhausted by his practice, though he indeed felt that he had a far better chance of fighting an adventurer than before, and trusted his knife skills a lot more.

Bell spoke, his voice full of awe, "Wow Saber! You haven't even broken a sweat, you really are something else." And Aurelian muttered something in turn… too mollified to explain to the boy that Servants did not sweat.

It was after a few minutes that Saber who pulled him up, speaking, "Come on then, I believe it is time we return home, you can take a bath on the way." To which Bell nodded, as they made their way to a bathhouse, wherein which both the Hestia Familia members took a quick shower, lathering themselves with liquid soap, after which they took a dip in the common hot water bath of the locale for half an hour with the Roman Servant in particular going through the full process of immersing himself in the hot room after the warm bath, and then jumping into the cold room with its frigid water.

Indeed, he sighed to himself, "It is no thermae… but it is good enough, it is not like I can experience a laconicum either." As he headed to the locker room for posterity's sake and re-equipped his armour and clothing rather than summoning it onto his body.

Bell spoke, as they walked home,"Uwahh… you seemed to enjoy yourself Saber!" to which Aurelian nodded, "Indeed… we Romans were always fond of our Baths, even Matthias should be fond of thermal baths or hot springs so to speak, his country was chock full of geothermal fissures. Indeed it almost makes me regret evacuating Dacia." To which Bell clapped, "Oh? So he is like the people from the Far East! I've heard that they too love using hot springs!"

They finally arrived at the Familia home, only to see both Lancer and Hestia standing outside the door of the church. Hestia waved towards them when she spotted them, while Lancer himself was, seemingly speaking to a Raven, quite possibly the same one as yesterday, though Saber could not be sure.

Bell noticed that Hestia was wearing a light brown dress with accents of crimson red, and thought that it complimented her dominion over the hearth.

The raven cawed when both the Servants came close, "Saber… Master." To which the aforementioned servant raised an eyebrow as he spoke, "I see you have… freed the bird's tongue, Lancer, I suppose I should expect it to gain full sentience and join our familia officially next." He then turned towards his patron goddess and spoke, "Ah, Lady Vesta, the dress suits you well, indeed you shall make waves at the banquet, whether you care to or not."

Lancer responded first, "I have located an adequate fortress so to speak. It was once owned by the Osiris Familia before they were banished after a defeat by the Zeus and Hera familias several hundred years ago. It is dilapidated in a sense, but refurbished I believe it holds strong strategic value, located as it is at the Western edge of the city, and possesses a good double layer of walls, while the main structure itself is large enough to house forty five people if need be, without accounting for accommodations for cleaning and cooking staff. Indeed, there are a couple of secret tunnels that are in good condition that I traversed at maximum speed and found lead to a forest outside the city, as well as into a small warehouse in the port city nearby as well."

Saber nodded, "I trust in your eye, Lancer." To which the Raven King raised an eyebrow as he spoke, "Ho? But indeed Emperor, I went ahead and purchased the premises for a cost of six million. Indeed in a normal state it would have been worth twice that, but as the circumstances are, we have received a discount."

Hestia then puffed her cheek, as they turned the street as they walked to their destination of Ganesha's home, the strangely named "I am Ganesha", and then spoke in annoyance, "To trade one dilapidated church for a larger, dilapidated fortress ? That doesn't seem like a very good deal to me! Besides, whoever heard of the Goddess of the Hearth living in a fortress! Hmmph!"

Saber raised an eyebrow at his goddess' antics, and said, "Aren't you the Goddess of the Home as well as the State? A fortress can indeed be considered to be a home of those who defend the state, so I see no problem in such a place being our familia home."

Hestia's expression softened, as she spoke, "I suppose you're right, the Hestia Fortress has a nice ring to it, maybe we can call it the Hestia Castle instead, ooo, or the Hearth of Bravery! That's even better, though the dilapidated nature worries me still" and saying so, she bounced around energetically for a moment.

Aurelian waved it off as he spoke, "I suppose I shall have to use my Noble Phantasm for the same, it can restore the fortress to its original state, though I suppose you shall want some modifications done to the building so it truly resembles something you would dwell in, so worry not….." he trailed off as the party of four bore witness to the gigantic statue of Ganesha in front of them, as well as the many gods and goddesses embarrassingly passing through the same.

Lancer was the one to break the silence, "I… I …. I have no words…. I believe if even someone as disinterested in proceedings other than battle as Karna saw this it would be enough for him to break out the Vasavi Shakti and blow the place to kingdom come, doubly so due to his Indian origin. This universe's Ganesha is…. something else.

His raven cawed in agreement, "Blow, blow, blow it up, caw caw caw" while Saber spoke, "Err…. I believe this is where we part, Lady Vesta. I do not wish to… pass through the Indian God's crotch." Hestia nodded, and waved at her familia as she entered the building while Bell himself was still gobsmacked and unmoving.

Saber spotted a pair of Ganesha familia guards who looked just as depressed as the Hestia familia were stupefied, and turned to leave, poking at his young master's cheek in an effort to wake him from his stupor. It was then that Aurelian turned rapidly, a sharp look in his eyes, as they began to glow brightly.

Lancer too turned in the direction that Saber was staring at, only to behold a beautiful man of medium height with medium length blonde hair, emerald eyes, and long arms and legs. He wore a violet suit matching his long-sleeve coat, pants, shoes, a yellow button shirt inside, and a white cravat around his neck. Lancer was oddly reminded of Bedivere by the man's looks, the utterly devoted knight, though he saw none of the loyalty, and more of a quiet confidence in the man…. no the god's face.

Escorting him was what appeared to be an elf with long black hair, and red eyes, wearing a frilled white dress with a white coat with light blue edges over it. Saber forced the glow in his eyes to dim, though it would seem the god had noticed him staring.

The god said nothing, but merely smiled at them with a lingering look of curiosity on Aurelian as if it was the most natural thing to do, and walked through the crotch, while his escort merely left the setting on her own. Saber growled, "There is something off about that god…. I thought I felt a large sense of malice from him." to which Lancer responded, "Indeed…. one would assume him to be a dignified, wealthy prince from a first glance but…. I misliked something about him, and I cannot place what it is."

Bell ogled his Servants, not sure how to respond before speaking, "I think that was Lord Dionysus, though if the two of you suspect him of something, maybe we can keep an eye on him?"

Saber nodded, and gave a lingering glance of his own onto the back of the god, before walking towards their new Familia home while his master and his fellow Servant returned to the Church, to pack up their belongings.

Once he arrived, he set about activating his Noble Phantasm to restore the fortress, while thinking, "Unlike the mortals of this world… Servants share no compulsion to avoid killing deities. Though I do not like the idea of killing Bacchus, if need be, there shall be no other outcome."

Well! There's Chapter Three! It came out pretty fast if I say so myself, hope you enjoy it! Again, all constructive criticism is welcome, both on reviews and on PM!

Candidates for future servants for now:

Archer candidates: Arash, Proto-Gil, both of them, Tristan.

Rider: Iskander.

Caster: Tamamo-No-Mae, Proto Merlin.

Assassin: Regend: Savior of France, Semiramis, Shouten Douji.

Berserker: Darius III.