She was enduring a rain of arrows in the fields of Nasu. She refused to flee even though so much blood was streaming down from every wound those arrows made. The ones firing were the ones she gave up being Amaterasu to be like. And now they were shouting to kill the demon fox.

Why is this happening?

I just wanted to love humans.

And now they want me dead.

"I never meant to trick anyone!" But her cry fell on deaf ears and the assault continued. Tears were falling from her eyes. She covered them with her hands and allowed her knees to buckle.

"I only wanted to learn what it's like to love..."

Neko stretched and gave a massive yawn. She blearily notice Adolf was still asleep. But she heard someone in the kitchen area. She walked over.

"Caster? What are you doing? Are you going to cook something yummy?"

The Servant was standing before the stove. Her blue ribbon was tying her pink hair up more. "Christmas breakfast. Neko, do you know what Adolf likes to eat the most?"

"Any rice dish will do. But I also want to help with Addie's food. I can't help with the cooking, but I'll fetch anything you need."

Caster was pouting at the frying pan on the stove. "I already checked to see what he has, but it's not much. I wanted to have him try some of my Kyoto Cooking."

"I'm sure he'll eat whatever you make."

"Ugh...Fine. I'll make do. Neko, find the cutting board for me."

"Hm? What for?"

"I need to cut up some onions."

"No!" Neko exclaimed. But she made sure to keep it quiet so she doesn't wake Adolf. "No onions!"

Caster looked surprised. "Why not? Is Adolf alergic?"

Neko shook her head. "No, but they're poisonous to me."

"I'll leave out onions. I'll make breaded shrimp instead. Does that work?"

Neko's mouth was watering a little and vigorously nodded her head. "Of course it does!"

Adolf, meanwhile, was listening to the conversation while pretending to sleep. The feeling of tears in his eyes caused him to wake up. He was glad that Caster was being accepted.

Mikoto and Lancer were drinking together at the counter of a bar. Homra was closed for Christmas, so Lancer was going to start work there tomorrow. Mikoto was having the Red Clan bar be charged for the drinks instead of paying himself, but whatever. Izumo was fine with it before. So he shouldn't complain now.

"The biggest issue will be the Silver King. He's supposed to be immortal. But your spear's curse of death should be able to kill him," Mikoto said to Lancer. They were talking about who to be concerned with most. Lancer said the other two Knight Class Servants, Saber and Archer, while Mikoto said the Silver King with the Gold King second.

"As long as he has a source of life, I'll take him down."

"Good."

Lancer got another drink. The wolf's head on his necklace clinked on his glass a little when he lifted the cup. Mikoto glanced at the silver ornament. "You must like that necklace a lot. I've never seen ya not wearin' it."

"This thing? It's more like a habit now. It's supposed to be a good-luck charm." He let out a bitter chuckle. "It didn't exactly help me avoid destiny."

"Huh?"

He took a drink. "Mikoto, you're talkin' to a guy who found himself unable to fight fate durin' his first life. That's why I have shitty Luck. I'm just a hound who wants to be in a pack again, no one else special. That's why I enjoy bein' part of HOMRA."

"HOMRA's actually the reason I'm fightin'. A Red King is like a bomb with a timer. The previous Red King, Genji Kagutsu, let his powers run wild, killin' him and 700,000 people. Someday, I'll end up killin' my Clansmen. I don't think ceasin' to fight as King will stop the urge to destroy. That's why I need the Grail, so I no longer hafta be King."

Lancer was grinning. "I think ya make a great King!"

"How do ya know? Ya haven't been my Servant that long."

"I can sense good charisma from ya. That might be why people easily look up to ya as their leader."

"I think it's more like they're too stupid to stop bein' around me. I once talked 'bout disbandin' HOMRA and Totsuka tried to convince me not to do it. But I want him to leave most of all. He's been lucky so far, but he'll wind up dead from bein' around me."

"Yeah, but it's also true that he's kept your power from overtakin' ya."

"It's still only a matter of time."

"You're a great guy, so I really am grateful to have a Master like you."

"Whatever." He tried to sound like he doesn't care, but Lancer saw the faint blush on Mikoto's cheeks at the compliment.

The bell rung as the front door opened. A large redhead and a blond girl walked in. The King recognized the first as Servant Rider but didn't know who the other is. The large spirit's red eyes met Lancer's own. Mikoto was expecting a fight to break out. The redhead was surprised to see both Servants grinning at each other, like they were friends instead of enemies in the War.

Lancer was waving. "Yo! Didn't expect to see ya, buddy!"

Rider was coming over. "Same here!"

"Your Master didn't wanna join in?"

"He wanted to go shopping and let me do whatever as long as I don't leave this district. He can contact me telepathically if he's in danger and needs my help." He plopped down in an empty barstool next to the warrior. It gave a groan of protest at the massive amount of weight it suddenly had to withstand. He then placed a drink order with the bartender, who was briefly shocked at seeing a man over two meters tall.

Lancer looked at the green-eyed girl who sat down in a barstool next to Rider. She was being silent aside from placing her own drink order. "She also a Servant?"

"Yeah. She's Saber."

Mikoto narrowed his eyes. "She's Hisui's Servant, huh? Why's she here?"

Saber shot the King a glare. "I'm to make sure Rider doesn't do anything stupid. Is that not allowed?"

"No. So ya aren't here to fight?"

"One, it's daytime. Two, there are too many commoners present who'd get caught in the crossfire. We'll play nice with you two."

"Then we will as well. Looks like Lancer's doin' it already. A little hard to believe they were fightin' last night."

"There's something I wanted to mention first, Lancer," Rider said.

"Hm? What is it?"

"You inflicted a wound on my shoulder last night. I found it strange that it wouldn't close, but I thought it would the next day. But it remained open. You wield a demonic red spear crafted from a bone of the sea monster, Curruid, that inflicts unhealable wounds. After the witch, Scáthach, the one who uses it is the son of the sun god, Lugh. Your True Name is Cú Chulainn."

Saber just stared at Lancer. "He's the Child of Light?!" Then she glared at Rider. "Why didn't you say this sooner?!"

Rider gave a nervous laugh. "I only put the pieces together when we walked in."

Saber released an angry sigh. "You're unreal..."

Lancer took a drink. "It's impressive ya figured out who I am from only a cursed injury. I guess you ancient kings can be really smart."

The large man blinked at the wolf in confusion. "Isn't your father also a king?"

"Yeah, but we only met once. It wasn't long enough to get a 'smart guy' vibe from him." Then he sighed. "Look, I, unfortunately, missed your spirit core. So ya can stop bein' a baby 'bout it."

Rider chuckled. "I'm not complaining about the injury. I'm only saying it gave out your True Name. And there were other things that told me who you are. You're skilled with a spear. And you have beast-like agility."

Lancer smirked. "Flattery won't stop me from kickin' your ass next time we fight. I know how I died, but I'm in a state where none of my geasa have been broken. So you'd better watch out or you'll die!"

Rider gave a hearty laugh, clearly not bothered by the threat. "You don't need to tell me the obvious! I have every intention of making you submit to me!"

"Oh? Interested in having me serve ya?"

"You're a Heroic Spirit! So of course I want you in my army! But you'll need to abandon the Holy Grail."

"Sorry, but I won't give up on my Master so easily." He shot the massive king a scathing glare. "Don't take the loyalty of a Red Branch Knight lightly!"

Rider scratched his beard. "*sigh* I see your point, but you're the second Servant to reject my offer. Saber's response was an outright refusal."

"And it was a good thing, too!" Saber put in. "Why would I wanna follow you?! Especially seeing as how you got your ass kicked last night!"

"Hey, I fell back so it's a stalemate!" the king pointed out. Then he grinned at Lancer. "Though I'd like to pick up where we left off to determine a winner."

"You need to wait until I get to have a crack at a Servant," the blond reminded him.

Rider's face fell. "Oh, right..." The bartender handed him his whisky. That's when Lancer got an idea.

"We'll settle the outcome of our fight with a drinkin' contest!"

Rider glanced at him. "Hm?"

"Yeah! The one to collapse first will be the loser of our skirmish!"

The larger spirit resumed ginning. "You're on!"

Saber facepalmed. "Seriously?!" Then she looked at Mikoto. "Hey, King! Are ya okay with your idiot getting hammered?!"

"Huh?"

"You were too busy drinking bourbon to listen?!"

"Is somethin' goin' on?"

"These dumbasses are gonna have a drinking contest!"

"Oh..." Mikoto waved down the bartender to get another bourbon. "Good for them."

"You don't care about your own Servant getting too drunk to stand?!"

The two male Servants emptied their first shot. "I'm sure he can handle it."

"It's 130 proof!"

"Eh, still don't care. As long as he leaves the bar in one piece, he can do whatever."

"Talk about not having a care in the world..."

8 drinks later

Mikoto glanced at the shot glasses that had collected. "You done yet?"

Lancer grinned. "Not even close!"

5 drinks later

The two Servants were clearly getting tipsy now, but neither was about to be defeated. Saber had given up on trying to stop Rider from the fact he was going to make himself look like an idiot and chose to instead drink her martini, muttering "You'd better win, idiot Rider."

10 drinks later

"I think both of ya will collapse from total kidney failure..." Mikoto mumbled. He was honestly amazed at how many drinks had been downed by the two Servants at this point. But what was even more amazing was the fact they were still going. Servants must have a high alcohol tolerance. Of course, both were drunk now.

"I'm...unbeatable..." Rider slurred. "The King...of Conkers can never be van...Uh...I forgot..."

Lancer was doing his best to glare. "The battles I've been through...This is easy."

"Just stop, Lancer," Mikoto said when he caught his Servant's clumsy attempt to peek under the skirt of a passing waitress with him almost falling out of his chair while doing so. He was already aware of the young man's creepy tendencies, but they were subtle in normal situations. The woman gave the knight a dirty look and hurried away.

Saber sighed. This is probably nearly over. 'Mr. Iwa. You should get here soon.'

'Why?'

'Just do it.'

3 drinks later

THUD!

Rider's head hit the table. Lancer was trying hard not to fall out of his chair. A little later, Tenkei walked in.

"You got drunk without me?!" he exclaimed the second he saw Rider, who was reeking of alcohol and moaning something incomprehensible.

"Is that really all you have to say?!" Saber demanded. "It's your Servant who's passed out!"

"At least he had fun." Tenkei went up to bartender and had Rider and Saber's drinks charged to JUNGLE's account. Then he glanced at the Red King, who was grabbing his own bill. "Suoh."

"Iwafune." The response was curt.

"I know what you're thinking, but it's not only daytime but also Christmas. We should play nice with each other for today."

Mikoto gave him a cynical grin. "Aw, not in a fightin' mood?"

Tenkei met his gaze with a glare. "You really want to do this?"

Then Mikoto chuckled. "I'm just messin' with ya. 'Sides, our Servants aren't exactly in any condition to do battle."

Saber had her hands on Rider's shoulders. "I can handle his weight, but I also need you to pretend to carry him, Mr. Iwa."

The Grey King was still glaring at the Red King. "Alright." He went over to where Saber had just effortlessly lifted Rider into a standing position. Tenkei pretended to help Rider out the door, the Servant being carried between him and Saber but with the woman supporting the spirit's weight.

Mikoto went over to his own Servant. "C'mon, Lancer. It's time to go."

"Go? T'somewhere fun?"

He was helping the demigod walk. This spirit's breath reeked. "Sure, whatever." Then he sighed. A powerful badass...reduced to a drunken state. Almost hard to believe it was him fighting like a demon last night.

"Ya wanna be my best friend? Caref'l...I killed the one I had in Ireland...Might kill ya too."

Wait, he's killed his best friend?! You'd think he'd at least tell his own Master about that before now. Or...does it weigh so heavily on his consciousness that he doesn't even want to clue it to his own partner while sober?

Mikoto was in front of Homra when Lancer spoke up again.

"Huh? Where we now?"

"Home."

"Uh oh. Forgot it was my turn t'do laundry. Don't let Scáthach know..."

"Wasn't that a name of someone from his past? Is he even aware of what time period he's in?" Mikoto opened the bar's front door and walked in.

"You two have fun?" Even though that question was directed at both young men, Izumo's eyes were fixed on Lancer.

"We went to a bar. I had a normal amount of alcohol. Lancer, on the other hand..."

"Highway to the danger zone!"

Izumo facepalmed. "How does he even know that song..? Actually, nevermind. So, how did that happen?"

"We ran into Servants Saber and Rider in the bar. Lancer and Rider engaged in a drinkin' contest. Lancer won, but..."

"Wait, ya encountered Servants?!"

"There was no fightin' 'cause it's daytime. I'm gonna get him in my bed." Mikoto handed Izumo a paper. "Here's the bill for what Lancer drank."

"Alright." As soon as Izumo grabbed the paper, Mikoto hurried to the stairs. He was halfway up them when he heard Izumo scream "WHAT THE FUCK?!"

Mikoto was about to enter his room when Tatara came out of Anna's. "Huh? Why you up here?"

"Anna wanted to show me something in her room." Then he took notice of Lancer. "What happened there?"

"Drinkin' contest. He's gonna have a major hangover. Gonna get him in my bed."

"I'll help." He ran over and began to support the spirit from the other side. Both of them managed to get Lancer in the room and on the bed - he was too far gone to even try walking now, making him dead weight. Mikoto removed the Servant's black jacket, black shoes, and necklace. The hoop earrings looked too small to catch onto anything. He also pulled off the hairtie holding together the blue hair that went to the bottoms of his shoulderblades. This would make it easier for the demigod to sleep.

He set a wastebasket down by the bed. "Use this if ya hafta throw up."

Lancer was wearing a goofy grin. "Thanks...You're a real good friend, y'know?"

Mikoto smiled a little. "Yeah, yeah. Just get some sleep." He helped the drunk knight lay down.

"'Night, Daddy."

Mikoto started then glared at Tatara on the couch, who broke out laughing. "Shut. Up."

"Sorry, sorry. Just never thought you'd get called that directly."

Mikoto grumbled something before plopping down on the couch next to Tatara. "I can't believe he's actually a prince. He sure doesn't give off that impression. But I guess I'm not really one to talk."

"He's royalty?!"

"Apparently his father's a king."

Right then, Lancer shifted in his sleep with a murmur. "Don'tcha touch my steak, Láeg..." He said a few words more, but in Gaelic. The tone suggested he was saying a threat.

"What the fuck language is he even speakin'?!"

"Probably his native language."

Now Lancer was slurring his words so much that it'd be impossible to know what he was saying, regardless or whether or not the language could be understood.

The Red King groaned. "I can't believe how pathetic he can be!"

Tatara giggled. "You say that, but you see him as a good companion instead of just your Servant, don't you?"

Mikoto turned his head away in an effort to hide his embarrassment. "Shut up."

"You feel better about being partnered with him since he'd be able to kill you if you lose control."

Mikoto chuckled. "I think you're onto somethin'. Hopefully I'll win the damn cup before then and stop bein' King."

0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0

She had looked up to the king. She wanted to be just like him. This desire grew stronger when Morgause revealed Arthur is her father. She joined the Knights of the Round Table and would be more than happy to carry out any request, all to gain Arthur's respect.

However...

"Why won't you acknowledge me as your son?! Why do you refuse to relinquish the throne to me?!"

She had revealed herself to him. But he refused to see her as the next king.

She finally got an answer from him at Camlann, while he was driving a lance through her body.

"The reason is that you never had the qualities to be king."

"Fa-Father..." She held out her arms to be embraced by her father for the very first, and last, time. But it never happened. So she stabbed him with Clarent with the last of her strength. In an effort to take him with her.

Nagare opened his eyes. He had fallen asleep while in his wheelchair.

"So that was a dream of my Servant's past, huh?"

0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0

Saber lugged Rider into the elevator of a parking garage. "Stupid drunk..." Rider's head hit a wall of the elevator. "Oops." She didn't sound sorry at all.

Tenkei glanced at Saber out of the corner of his eye but didn't say anything as he took out a key, sticking it in a keyhole of the control panel and turning it. The elevator went down to the lowest level. At another door, he had the panel there scan his PDA. It opened to the water storage when it registered that he's a J-rank member of JUNGLE, the highest rank in the Green Clan.

"What happened to Rider?!" Sukuna demanded once the King and the two Servants reached the room.

"He had a little too much to drink," Tenkei replied.

Saber scoffed. "More like 10 too many."

"Isn't passing out drunk Mr. Iwa's job?" Yukari asked.

"That's what I thought," Saber said. Then she looked at Tenkei. "Where ya want him?"

"Just put him on my bed."

"Fine."

"And be gentle about it!"

"Whatever. You aren't my Master."

"She's like a rebellious child," Tenkei grumbled when Saber hauled Rider out of sight. "But I guess she's used to rebelling against authority."

"You actually don't hold authority over her," Yukari reminded him. "That'd be Nagare."

"You've been defending her a lot lately." Yukari and Saber seemed to get along well. It may be because both of them betrayed their leader.

"I was stating a fact."

Kotosaka spread his wings. "Caw! You like Saber! Caw!"

Saber materialized in the room. "My ears are burnin'. Is someone talking about me?"

Sukuna plopped down in front of the T.V. "Just about how I got this new video game and you might want to play it as well."'

The knight grinned. "Really? I wish you said something sooner!"

"Don't get too absorbed," Tenkei said sternly. "We'll be eating in a half hour."

Saber chuckled. "That reminds me of whenever Gawain was on cooking duty. I told him like a million times to take cooking lessons. I mean, how the hell do ya burn water?!"

Nagare blinked in surprise. "Oh? You have bad things to say about a Knight of the Round Table?"

"Gawain isn't the only one I have issues with. Galahad was just a bastard with a shield and had serious daddy issues."

"You also had pretty bad daddy issues," Tenkei pointed out.

"Shut up."

"Were there any you liked?" Nagare asked.

"Well, I was okay with my half brother, Agravain. He's pretty cold, but at least he didn't piss me off."

"There's another thing I need to ask. What do you wish for?"

Saber looked away from the T.V. at her Master. "Huh?"

"Like Masters, Servants are fighting to get a wish granted. So why do you fight?"

"I want to pull Caliburn from the stone. I think it's the only way for Father to acknowledge me as king."

Nagare thought about his dream about his Servant, how all Saber wanted was her father to notice her. But he - actually, Nagare's sure that was a female - never really did. "I see..."

"So you want to be king," Yukari murmured.

"I know that it's in my right to be one. But Father refused to see it."

Sukuna spoke up. "Saber, you're being surrounded."

She returned her focus back to the T.V. "Shit!"

The Gold King slid open the door to the room he and his Servant were in. A chalk eraser suddenly hit the top of Daikaku's head an clattered onto the ground. Assassin was laughing loudly while pointing at the Gold King. "I can't believe ya fell for that!"

Daikaku sighed and picked up the eraser. "I can't believe you set up such an immature prank."

"I got bored. Sue me. I'm resortin' to playin' with my goddamn scarf! Do ya have modern clothes for me yet so I can go into the city?"

"Yes. Just remember -"

"Yeah, yeah. No killin' durin' the day."

"And a couple Usagi will be there to keep an eye on you."

Anna popped out and rushed to Mikoto's side as soon as he and Tatara left the room. She looked around. "Where's Lancer?"

"I put him to bed," was Mikoto's reply.

"Did something happen to him?"

"He became like King after a bad day," Tatara answered.

Mikoto let out a growl. "Shut up."

Once they emerged into the bar, Izumo looked up. "Were ya able to pour Lancer into bed?"

"He's sleepin'," Mikoto replied. He took out a cigarette and lit it while sitting down in a bar stool.

"Considerin' what he drank and how much, he might be out for awhile."

"Yeah, I already figured that," Mikoto said while waving dismissively.

"Mikoto, ya should look up your Servant's legend. It might help ya better understand him."

"Hm?"

"Ya don't know much 'bout his past. He may have some things weighing him down. This'll stop ya from sayin' the wrong things to him."

Mikoto's mind went to Lancer's comment. "When I was takin' him back here, he said he killed his best friend."

"Ah, Ferdiad. I believe it was durin' a war with the nation of Connacht. I unfortunately don't know the details 'bout it."

"I'll ask Lancer 'bout it when he wakes up."

"Ya sure? It might be uncomfortable for him to talk about it."

Mikoto had already guessed that from the fact the demigod hasn't mentioned it before. "Somethin' like that, I feel I need to know more right away. I'll go ahead and read his legend. If I get the answer before he wakes up, I won't ask him."

Archer wandered into the horse enclosure. He hadn't seen it yet. Garland was hanging all over the stables. Andy was by one of the horses, giving it food. But something seemed to be upsetting him. The young man was grumbling angrily and he was shooting the horse downright irritated glares. The only words the centaur could make out were "stupid horse!"

"Is something wrong?"

Andy looked at the Servant. However, his irritation was still present. And it was directed at the horse he was tending to. "Archer!"

Archer came over to stand by the ginger. "Do horses bother you?" He glanced at the horse when he asked that.

The Special Squad member grit his teeth. "No. I'm okay with them. I'm on duty to take care of this thing today."

"I'm going to take a wild guess here and say you have some personal grudge against this one?"

"Is it really that obvious?"

"Yes...I can sense a lot of anger coming from you. So what did...I'm sorry, but what's its name?"

"White Bean Tofu Stew."

Archer just blinked. "...Come again? I'm afraid I must have misheard you. It sounded like you said White Bean Tofu Stew."

"You heard me correctly," Andy snarled. His eyes flicked to the horse. "That's what I'll turn it into one of these days!"

There was an awkward pause from Archer. He decided not to even bother asking the reason for that name. "And where is all your animosity coming from?"

"This menace kicked me in the face, not once, but three times!" He gave the horse a glare strong enough that it alone should have been enough to kill it and it seemed to shrink down. "The name the Reds gave it was better. Right, Basashi?"

Archer rubbed the back of his neck. "It seems to continually be the victim of some dark food-related jokes..."

Andy continued staring the poor animal down. "The evil thing deserves it!"

A flash of silver flew out at Archer. It hit his upper right arm, but bounced off without damaging anything. It was like it made impact with a steel wall.

"I had my doubts, but it looks like you guys really are immune to normal attacks."

Saruhiko was casually walking in with a smirk on his face.

"Mr. Fushimi, what do you think you're doing?!" Andy demanded, giving the young man in glasses a nasty glare. Archer was just looking at the black-haired Clansman with a neutral expression on his face.

"Ooh, that's a good look, Doumyouji. You should give it to the enemies more often!"

"You're attacking an ally?!"

Archer spoke up. "I knew that attack was aimed at me, but I let it hit since I could sense it wouldn't be able to damage me. Besides, I didn't sense any intention to harm." He picked up the knife and handed it to the young man. "Here's your weapon back. It looks like it was chipped a little."

Saruhiko tsked. "You Servants truly annoy me."

"Huh?!" Andy exclaimed. "Archer annoys you?! How?!"

"I used to be most annoyed by Kings. They might act all nice. But they're fully aware of the fact they're more powerful than other humans and so they look down on us. And now we have the Servants."

"But Archer isn't acting like that!"

"He may not be displaying that arrogant superiority in his eyes yet, but he will the first time he saves all our asses."

"Mr. Fushimi, I already said that the people of SCEPTER 4 deserve respect for all the work they do," the centaur said, speaking evenly and without a hint of anger in his voice.

Saruhiko got up to Archer's face, locking his blue gaze with the Servant's green. "It doesn't matter. It's just impossible for me to like you."

"I was only reminding you of what I said. How you feel about me is up to you."

Saruhiko huffed and turned, walking away. "You're truly annoying."

"And that's why he doesn't have any friends," Andy growled. "And he isn't one to talk! He acts so smug with those he deems weaker than him and dislikes anyone stronger! I don't even like being alone in the same room as him!"

"So he's always like that?"

"Mr. Fushimi seems to enjoy giving people the cold shoulder. He'll cooperate with you and stuff, but there's no changing the fact he won't like you."

0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0

There was a knock on Reisi's office door. Reisi looked up from his jigsaw.

"Come in."

The door opened and in walked Gouki Zenjou. He used to have the nickname Zenjou the Ogre. Reisi smiled at him.

"It's rare to see you in my office, Mr. Zenjou. What can I do for you today?"

"I want to address a concern regarding your Servant."

"Is he stirring up trouble?"

"Nothing like that. He actually seems to be getting along quite well. For now. But given how powerful Servants are, if Archer goes out of control, will you be able to kill him?"

"Yes. He's pacted with me, so I can use a Seal to make him commit suicide."

"Even if it means forfeiting the Holy Grail?"

"Yes. Like anyone else with powers that stays from the correct path, an out-of-control Servant will only bring about chaos, which SCEPTER 4 will not stand for. But why are you asking this now?"

"I know you're entrusting Ms. Awashima to kill you in the event your Sword of Damocles falls. But I wanted to know how you planned to kill Archer in case he goes too far, even if it meant your ideal won't be reached in your lifetime. I also want to know, what is your plan for this Holy Grail War?"

"I will take a neutral stance. Given it's nature, Archer and I will be attacked. We'll fight only to defend ourselves."

"A tactic like that, it sounds like you aren't that obsessed with winning."

"The Grail will hasten a plan I already have to create my ideal world. As such, I'm not too fixated on it."

"Is Archer okay with it?"

"I've already informed him of the stance I'll take. He said he's fine with how I decide to play this game."

There was a knock on the door. Reisi looked at it.

"Come in." The door opened and Seri walked in. "Ah, Ms. Awashima."

"Captain, I have the documents you requested." Then she noticed the other person in the room. "Mr. Zenjou! What brings you in here?"

"I was asking him about his plans regarding his Servant."

"Regarding Archer? Did something happen?"

"Nothing yet. But I want to know what the King will do in the event Archer does do something disastrous to us."

Seri looked down sadly. "I know what you mean. Despite Archer insisting that he's merely a weapon, he's still a person able to make his own choices."

"That's the thing," Reisi said. "Kings have a Sword of Damocles to keep them in line. For Servants, it's the Command Seals. Without either, there would be untold destruction. The hearts of people can be troublesome, so it helps to have a leash just in case."

Gouki glanced at Reisi. "I did some research on the notes about Servants that Ruler provided us. In the event a Servant does turn against their allies, they are unable to direct an attack on their Master. But if, while going out of control, Archer is able to somehow break the pact..."

"...Then I would also be in danger," Reisi finished.

Seri spoke up. "I also did some research on Servants. It's very difficult to break a pact. It typically requires a Command Seal or some other outside help." She shook her head. "Perhaps we should stop talking this way. Archer doesn't appear mentally unstable, so this may all be a concern that will never come to pass."

Reisi smiled. "But there's always a chance. That's why it's a good idea to have a safeguard."

Gouki narrowed his eyes. "That's why you've entrusted Ms. Awashima to kill you in the event you go too far?"

"That is correct."

Unseen by either, Seri bit her bottom lip. Yes, she would need to strike him down in that case. Personally though, she prays that will never come to pass.

Smoke from crumbling, burning buildings filled the sky, so much that it was impossible to tell the time of day. The air was heavy with the stench of burning corpses. The streets were filled with a red-and-black liquid, like mud. Whatever it touched went up in flames. A large creature that appeared like a big cat with seven heads and ten horns prowled through the smoldering ruins of what was identified as Tokyo. It was standing atop the mud like it's a solid surface. A deafening howl from the multiple heads broke the otherwise silent air, aside from the noises the buildings made as they crumbled to the ground.

There was a smokey silhouette of a person on their knees atop a hill overlooking the devastated city. When they spoke, the voice sounded distorted, making it impossible to identify the person.

"What...What have I done..?! I only wanted to make people happy!"

"Master Ichigen, you're crying."

Kuroh and Berserker were gazing at the King with concern. He gently put his fingers on one closed eye. He did indeed feel wetness.

"Are you alright, Master Ichigen?"

"Yes. I'm fine. I'm sorry to worry you two."

Berserker clung tightly to his hand. "Please don't space out like that again!"

Ichigen possesses clairvoyance to see possible futures. But what events lead to the one he just saw? Are they already hurling towards it? It's this uncertainty that truly frightened him.

Okada: You just made fun of me.

Anna: You wish you were able to play with your son, don't you? That's why you enjoy playing with me.

Cú Chulainn: Stay next to me!

Nagare: The man's truly a beast.

Yukari: It's been a while, Kuroh!

Chiron: It sounds like the power comes from mystic eyes.

Misaki: That was before you betrayed HOMRA by joinin' the Blues.

Tenkei: Y'know, I really hate overly idealistic people like you.

Mordred: I'll fucking kill you!

Next chapter: Humans and Servants