There was a moment of silence before all three servants blurred into motion. Richard charged forward, his superior speed once again catching Medusa off guard, just barely managing to raise her spear in time. Stuck defending, she could do nothing when Caster appeared to her right and shot another barrage of fireballs at her.

Or so I thought.

Suddenly, her hair shifted and turned into chains, launching at Richard's side. The unexpected attack shoved Richard aside, giving Medusa the chance to jump over the incoming fireballs and dashed towards Caster, spear raised to impale him. Caster cursed, leaping backwards to dodge the multiple thrusts.

Recovering quickly, Richard intercepted Medusa, and they once again clashed weapons. It was hard to keep up with their swings, but it looked like Richard was slowly gaining ground, and thanks to his skill, his strikes were only getting faster. Medusa tried to distract him with another set of chains; however, Richard jumped back to dodge them and leapt forward to reengage, not giving her a chance to recuperate or change targets.

While Medusa and Richard clashed again, Caster launched a barrage of fireballs, lading just in front of Medusa, the resulting explosion blocking her vision of the incoming Richard. However, before Richard could capitalise on the opportunity, chains appeared from the smoke in all directions.

Richard immediately went on the defensive, deflecting and sidestepping those he could not. Caster once again dodged the chains sent his way with surprising agility for someone of the caster class but was intercepted by Medusa.

She tried to focus the blue caster with blistering swings from her spear, yet Caster blocked each strike with his staff. "Ha. Even as a Caster, I'm the better lancer," he taunted, parrying the Medusa's strikes with ease.

His comment seemed to enrage Medusa as her strikes got even faster and stronger. However, it appeared that was what Caster was going for, as suddenly Richard appeared behind Lancer, having dealt with the chains and had been waiting for a chance to strike while I was watching the fight. His sword swung down onto Medusa, who was able to avoid being beheaded but was not able to avoid losing her left arm. With a shriek of pain and anger, she used her remaining limb to swipe at Richard, who jumped back to safety.

I heard a retching sound and turned to see Fujimaru bent at the waist, arms clutching her stomach and dry heaving. The others didn't look any better either, Mash had a pale face as she stepped back to comfort Fujimaru, and the Director's eyes had widened in shock.

Unlike the other non-servants here, I was more accustomed to violence. While most injuries were magical in nature and thus had very little blood and gore, the memory of Draco bleeding out in the bathroom and Mr Weasley covered in bite marks rose to the forefront of my mind.

"Master. What should we do with her?" Richard's question brought my attention back to the servants. Medusa was standing in place, bleeding from the stump of her left arm, surrounded by Richard and Caster, their respective weapons ready to finish her at a moment's notice.

The question gave me pause, what could we do with her? The obvious answer was to kill her for her actions; it was the one I favoured the most, and it wasn't like we had the means to contain her. However, the other option was to keep her alive for questioning so that we may gain some information about what's happened in this singularity. There was no guarantee that Caster would stick around to help us now that Medusa had been dealt with.

Just as I was about to ask the Director what to do, Medusa took the decision out of our hands. She let out a shriek of rage and lunged toward Caster; her spear pointed at his heart. I raised my wand instinctively, and just as a spell came to mind, Richard was on her left, sword swinging down in a perfect arc.

Unprepared for the strike and with no way to block, Medusa could do nothing as the blade sliced into her side. The strike caused her to stumble, but like a wild animal, she kept charging toward the caster. Said Caster looked unfazed at the charging servant, a knowing smirk on his face.

Just as Medusa got within range of Caster, the ground beneath her feet lit up with a rune, and before she could react, she was engulfed in flames so hot I could feel the heat from here. Her screams of pain echoed around the courtyard as the fiery pillar persisted.

Eventually, the fire dissipated, and the burnt form of Medusa was visible. As a being not made of flesh, she was tougher than humans, but she didn't come out of this unscathed. Her once pale skin was now covered in burns and scorch marks, and her pristine hair was now singed. Before she could gain her bearings, Richard was in front of her and thrust forward with his sword.

There was a gasp of pain and a sudden stillness in the air; Medusa clung to Richard's arms feebly. Richard pulled his sword from her chest, blood smearing the blade. Medusa stumbled back when his sword was drawn free, clutching her wound with her good arm in shock, before she vanished in motes of light.

The area was quiet before I heard Fujimaru speak up, "Is she d-dead?" she asked aloud.

"I think so," I said, "Director, is there any way to confirm it?" I asked Marie as I turned to face her, only to see her frozen in shock, wide eyes staring at the spot where Medusa had vanished.

Walking up to her, I gently shook her shoulder, "Director?"

She startled at my words, spinning quickly to look at me, "w-what did you. I-I mean pardon?" She stuttered out.

"Is there any way to tell that a servant is dead?" I repeated the question.

Refocused, she pondered my question, "hmmm. Chaldea would be able to detect a servant's spirit origin, but I doubt it can do that in its current state. A servant could also possibly tell," she answered.

Nodding at her answer, I walked towards Richard and Caster, the former noticing me first and smiling at me, "Master, the enemy is defeated." He said, sheathing his sword.

Well, that answers that question, I thought. "Good fight, you were amazing, you both were," I complimented. Caster perked up at his inclusion and walked over to us.

"Nice going, master. The commands were lacking, but for your first proper servant fight, you weren't too bad," He commented.

I let out a sigh, "was it that obvious?" I asked.

He nodded in reply, but before he could continue, the others walked over to join us.

Marie seemed to have recovered from Lancer's death. However, Fujimaru and Mash were still a bit pale, with Mash still rubbing Fujimaru's back soothingly. "Is everyone okay now?" I asked.

"Well?" Marie said expectantly, "Is she dead?"

"She is Director," I replied, "Saber confirmed it."

"How can you tell?" she asked Richard.

"Servants can tell when another Servant is nearby unless they're using a skill or magecraft," he explained. Marie nodded, appearing satisfied by his explanation, before looking at Caster.

"Thank you for helping with Medusa", she thanked the blue-haired Caster, who shrugged nonchalantly.

"As I said, I had my reasons for helping you guys out," he said. Suddenly, a serious look appeared on his face, "so, who are you people? I didn't think there were any humans left in this city?" he asked.

Recovering from the sudden tone shift, Marie briefly explained who we were and our objective here. Caster listened intently, nodding along but never taking his eyes off Marie. When she was finished, Caster closed his eyes and seemed to mull over the Director's words before nodding once and looking at us.

"Alright, I'll work with you," he stated.

I was shocked, and from the silence behind me, so were the others. From our small interaction when he first appeared, he made it clear that this would be a temporary alliance to defeat Lancer. Did we do something to impress him? I certainly didn't. Maybe he was more impressed with Richard than the rest of us.

"Why?" I asked.

"You're here to fix what happened in this city, correct? Then we share the same goal, and as good as I am, I can't fix this by myself," he explained. "And it doesn't hurt that you have a first-class Saber as a servant," he added.

I mulled over his explanation, looking to Marie as I did and nodded; there wasn't a reason not to accept his help. Getting the unspoken message, she nodded and stood to face Caster. "We would be glad to team up with you. Unfortunately, you will have to go without a Master as the two we have are already maxing out Chaldea's current power supply," she apologised.

Caster merely waved his hand, "and I wasn't looking for a new Master. We may be allies, but I prefer to keep some independence," he replied.

"So, what now?" Fujimaru suddenly asked. "Do we stay here? Because if so, I want a room facing away from the creepy statues."

"The building you were heading to originally is still intact last I checked, so we can continue onwards," Caster suggested.

"But won't Archer start shooting at us again once we leave the school?" Asked Mash worriedly, a thought that I, too, shared.

Caster merely shook his head, "he won't. Once you entered the school, he probably figured that Lancer would deal with you, so he probably isn't looking for you now."

"How positive are you?" Marie asked, her voice laced with doubt. "Archer has no reason not to attack us if we reappear, so how can you be sure?"

"Archer and I have a history, you could say, so I know him quite well by now. I can guarantee that he will not attack when we show ourselves," Caster assured, and to prove his point, he walked over to the school gate and stepped onto the street.

There was a tense moment of silence as we all watched Caster intently, Richard getting ready to intervene should Archer start to attack. But after a few seconds where nothing happened, Caster turned to us with a smug smile.

I relaxed, seeing that Caster was fine and walked towards the entrance, hearing the others following suit behind me. I stepped out onto the street and, seeing that Caster and I still were not getting attacked, the rest followed suit.

"We'll continue as we did before, Richard in the front and Mash at the rear. Caster, you'll be with us in the middle, does that suit you?" I asked. Caster nodded in agreement, and with no other objections, we continued towards the second owner's house.

The rest of the trip went by faster with Caster's presence, as any skeletons we encountered were mowed down twice as fast until Marie eventually pointed towards a building just ahead. "That's the second owner's house," she directed.

I first noticed the architecture; it was more in line with European mansions than Eastern architecture. Also, it was surprisingly intact compared to the other buildings in the area, the windows had been blown out or cracked, but the structure itself was stable. Other than that, it was no different to the other buildings we had passed.

As I passed through the front gate, I felt an invisible yet harmless force wash over me. I noticed Fujimaru looking around as she walked over the threshold. "Don't worry," I said, "it's probably just a bounded field to detect people who enter the property. Probably explains how the building is still mostly intact," I explained.

Richard reached the front door first but waited for everyone to catch up. Once we all were, he looked to me, silently asking for permission, to which I nodded. He gently turned the doorknob and slowly pushed the door inward when the door audibly clicked.

A dark empty entranceway greeted us, which led to a staircase leading to the first floor, and also connecting what looked like the kitchen and another room to the side, most likely the living room. Before anyone could enter, I stepped forward and raised my wand.

"Homenum Revelio."

I waited for a few seconds, and when nothing returned, I holstered my wand and gestured for the others to follow, "it's safe; no one's here," I said.

"How do you know? Nothing happened," Fujimaru asked.

"And that means no one is home. If someone were present, a shade of that person would have come back," I answered.

"So cool," Fujimaru muttered as she and everyone else walked inside. Caster narrowed his eyes at my wand but continued with the others. I followed behind after closing the door, cast a quick Lumos and found them in what I guessed was the living room, the Director standing in the middle of the room.

From what I could see, the house continued the western theme inside. A standard coffee table stood in the centre, surrounded by a deep red sofa and matching chairs. Marie took the chair at the head of the table; Fujimaru collapsed onto the sofa with an exaggerated sigh, with Mash and I joining her. Richard and Caster elected to lean on either side of the living room entrance. The Director took a moment to get comfortable before she spoke.

"Fujimaru, Mash, look for food, enough for dinner and breakfast, and try to find a light source; we can't keep using Potter's magic. Harry, you must be exhausted, supplying Saber mana for so many fights, so take a break for now," Marie ordered. Gudako let out a loud groan of protest before getting up and looking for the kitchen with Mash in tow.

Getting comfortable, I opened my mouth to speak but felt something small jump on my lap. Looking down, I saw a white-furred squirrel-like creature adorned with a blue and white collar staring up at me with blue eyes.

"Fou!" I exclaimed in shock.

I heard Marie sigh in exasperation and looked at her for an explanation. "Oh, right. Fou came along with Mash and Fujimaru. Somehow," she explained. "I didn't tell you because it wasn't worth mentioning at the time."

I looked back down at Fou, who was still looking at me in what looked like disapproval. "I'm sorry, Fou. I didn't know you were here; can you forgive me?" I apologised, gently stroking his fur.

Fou regarded me for a second; his eyes narrowed before he began nuzzling into my hands. "Fou! Fou!" he exclaimed.

I smiled, "thank you, Fou", and faced the Director again, continuing to pet Fou, who had now settled onto my lap. "Now what?" I asked Marie.

She regarded Fou and me with a raised eyebrow before answering. "When Mash and Fujimaru get back, we will make some light, and then we'll ask Caster about what's happened in this city and what we can do to fix it."

As she finished speaking, said persons returned, Mash, carrying candles and Fujimaru Carrying food cans. "We're back! And we found everything you asked for," Fujimaru said exhaustedly, "can I sit down now?"

"Yes, that's everything. Put the candles on the table, leave the tins on the floor," Marie replied. Cheering slightly, Fujimaru dumped the tins on the floor before her and flopped onto the sofa next to me. Mash walked to the table and set the candles evenly. Once finished, she stepped back and sat on Fujimaru's other side; I raised my wand and lit each one with a quick Incendio.

With the room bathed in the candlelight, we all turned our attention to the blue-haired Caster leaning against the wall. "Now that we're all here, we can get down to business. Caster, what happened to this city? Where are the inhabitants? And where is the Holy Grail?"

This chapter was tough, but it is finally done.

In other news, I have finally defeated Solomon, just in time for Seraph.