Glancing out the window on a whim, he found that it was already dawn.
The slowly-rising sun inspired no emotions in Emiya Kiritsugu's heart, and he continued his task of compiling information.
He had met Maiya at this hotel in front of the city station, three days ago. Now it was a hidden headquarters for them, one of many. The first thing he did was to suspend room service, and then he papered the walls with blank maps of the Fuyuki region. After that, he began annotating various locations on the maps with information pertaining to them.
The data, had been collected over several days of searching on foot, reconnaissance by familiar, the variance of the leylines, tapping the police radio for information on missing people, and simple surveillance of various locations. And all these data points, dutifully indicated on the map nocturnal happenings in Fuyuki City regardless of size or importance like a mosaic, showed a state of utter chaos.
Emiya Kiritsugu's right hand continued its work of writing while his left hand mechanically shoveled his nutrition – hamburgers from a fast food restaurant he bought while investigating – into his mouth.
When he had finally finished with his markings on the map, Kiritsugu studied them, and re-determined the direction of the Heaven's Feel.
Caster – the night before, more children had gone missing from the city. It would appear he did not care about the warrant for his arrest issued by the authorities, and he was still continuing his inhuman acts without restraint.
Rider – no clues at all. After the attacked on the castle he is have yet to make a move, tracking them would be difficult. Appears to be openhearted and forthright, a formidable enemy without flaws.
Berserker – the wild card of this war, no, the most versatile and dangerous enemy as of the moment. Capable of many specialities, weakness known is limited to his Master, approach with extreme caution.
And then Assassin and his master Kotomine Kirei.
Kiritsugu sighed deeply, lighting his first cigarette for the day. In the end, he still felt apprehensive about this.
Kotomine Kirei. The greatest 'oddity' in existence during the Fourth Heaven's Feel –
Kiritsugu still could not understand exactly why this man had entered the war.
When he had discovered Assassin during the chaotic battle at the warehouse street, Kiritsugu had already realized that Assassin's Master was Tohsaka Tokiomi's puppet, only responsible for the task of scouting. But after Archer demise, Kotomine Kirei has gone cold.
Kiritsugu exhaled a mouthful of hazy cigarette smoke with an exasperated sigh as he continued thinking.
He could only feel waves of dread whenever he thought of Kotomine Kirei, as though he were imprisoned in bottomless darkness.
"…what exactly are you planning?"
Kiritsugu finally murmured without thinking. His concentration was broken when his name is called by someone with a familiar voice.
"Kiritsugu." The voice called.
'Irisveil?'
Kiritsugu whipped his head at the source of the voice. Only to be grace with Saber presence calling him, a smidge of disappointment appear in his heart before he squashed it.
"Saber." Kiritsugu returned without emotion, if it bother Saber she didn't show it on her face, instead...
"You need to rest." She admonished Kiritsugu, but he didn't replied still focuses on the map. Saber frown at this, she isn't used to be ignored.
"Master." She called again.
"You haven't slept for 2 days." Saber remember that Kiritsugu was still busy even when Irisveil is alive.
Still no response, she continued.
"You need to keep your health and strength for this war, which means you need proper rests." Saber said.
No response.
"Master, your condition will get worsed if you didn't rest."
Still no response.
"Master, fatigue is also the enemy, if you lose in a battle because of the lack of rest, you have no one to be blame but yourself."
Still no response.
"Master, it's getting really annoying now, speak before I forced you to."
Still no response.
"Master, stop acting like a child and listen to me, you.need.to.rest."
A twitch but still no other response.
"Master, I really insist that you..." Saber was halted by Kiritsugu.
"Alright, alright, I'll rest, just...don't bother me anymore." Kiritsugu said as he stand from the table toward the bathroom, from the edge of his eye he saw the bag containing Irisveil body, he tried not to look at the bag as he went to the bath.
This state of being impatient and frustration irritated him. It was probably a sign that his judgement was beginning to dull. He would need to rest and start over, and not because Saber reminder annoyed him.
After going to the bathroom, Kiritsugu lay down on the bed and used a self-hypnosis spell to disperse his consciousness. This was a crude way of eliminating mental stress, via the disintegration and cleansing of the psyche.
This self-hypnosis was not a high-level form of thaumaturgy, but the dispersion would cause a lack and dislocation of self-consciousness, so few people were willing to use it. But to Emiya Kiritsugu, it was the most efficient, and thus the best form of rest, and so he used this method frequently.
The scattered consciousness would be restored after about several hours, and the hypnotized person would wake up. Until then, the body of the hypnotized person would be like unto a corpse in terms of unconsciousness – but it should be safe to use it at this hidden place.
Kiritsugu, relaxed after dispelling the image of his enemy from his mind, fell into a deep sleep. Felling safe with Saber at his side.
Facing the rising sun, the streets outside the window began a new day.
Saber just smile while looking at Kiritsugu went to sleep, the man has been through a lot, losing his wife and assistant to the enemy, she is sure a rest will do wonder to him.
Kiritsugu unexpectedly is acting quite childish when she forces him to rest, perhaps there is still humanity inside of him after all. Saber saw Kiritsugu tried his best not to look at a certain bag and sighed, this war has not been to her expectation with losing Irisveil and miss maiya they're forced to rely toward each other.
Saber mood goes down even lower when remembering the previous night, somehow what happened tonight reminded her of losing Guinevere and Lancelot due to her own mistakes. Looking at her Master sleeping form, Saber swear that she will not lose this war, for the sakes of her kingdom.
But for now, she will protect her Master first. Saber is now standing in front of the door.
It was a few hours later just as the sun is set, Kiritsugu is awaken by his Servant shout. Right at this moment, an unanticipated evil chill suddenly passed through his entire body.
"Master!!?" Saber shout while opening the window.
"It came from the river direction." She said grimly. Kiritsugu quickly stand and pick up the bag containing Irisveil.
"Let's go Saber." He said urgently.
"Yes." Saber replied as they leave the hotel.
No matter what, the ones who perceived the presence of the strange sorcery weren't Saber and Kiritsugu alone.
The spell-like waves emitted from the surrounding of Mion River were close to the multiple aria of the ritual magecraft class, something which could not be activated without at least 10 people. Certainly, every magus in Fuyuki city―namely, all the masters participating in the Holy Grail War, would have sensed that at once.
From the base Kiritsugu prepared to Mion River which was the source of the abnormal magecraft, they needed just a few more minutes to cover that distance with the Mercedes she was driving.
Logically thinking, since the streets of Miyama town were narrow and complicated, the time required would easily exceed 30 minutes. Nevertheless, the Riding skill of this Servant achieved the miracle of overthrowing this reasoning. The speed of the silver automobile which rushed through the narrow lanes and curves with bumps and close-shaves, had already achieved the preposterousness of making one doubt even the laws of nature.
Springing off from the road onto the path along the riverside, the automobile stopped after it landed with an elegant spin turn. Without waiting even for the car wing door to open, Saber leaped out, and ran up the bank while Kiritsugu is going toward another spot to observe the battlefield. The fog was thick enough to block the vision of ordinary humans, but it did not block Servants' eyesight.
Sure enough, her bitter enemy was right in front of her, calmly standing still at the center of the river, which was 200 meters wide.
"Just as I thought, it's Caster."
Saber gritted her teeth, and observed the enemy Servant painstakingly. Alone and not accompanied by his Master as usual, he was standing straight on the sandbar-less river center, as if standing on the water surface.
Upon a close look, the thing which was turning into his foothold, was grotesque shadows gathering beneath the water surface. Looks like the swarm of creatures she battled at the forest the other day, had gathered under Caster's feet.
From the abnormal emission of prana. there was doubt that Caster was performing some sort of large-scale magecraft. The outset of this strange fog which centered about the river, was probably an aftermath due to this as well. Not showing even the expression of him focusing on his incantations, he was merely standing relaxingly― The vortex of raging prana overflowed from the grimoire in his hands, distorting even the space around it.
An extraordinary prana furnace, a Noble Phantasm which compiles the monologic procedures...Falling into the hands of a lunatic, there were no weapons as dangerous as this.
Under the feet of Caster the dark surface started shaking. The countless creatures which had gathered under the summoner's feet, protruded their innumerable tentacles simultaneously―weren't they swallowing down Caster who was standing on their heads, receiving them?
At the first look, Caster appeared to have been assaulted by the familiars which had betrayed him. However, with his entire body covered by the tentacles, Caster proudly raised the voice of his mad, ringing laughter further up a tone, which was already similar to a strange shriek.
The bubbling surface swelled up, and pushed up Caster who was still being swallowed by the tentacles. Before one knows, the number of the creatures becoming his foothold increased. If one considers the depth of the river, that number was already more terrifying than imagined.
"Caster is...being absorbed??"
In front of the eyes of the horrified Saber, the amount of creatures crowding at the summoner's body itself kept swelling. The summons ofPrelati's Spellbookhad to be of an inexhaustible supply. The countless tentacles entwined among each other and fused together, and was already becoming a lump of meat.
The glittering, filthy mucus which could make one nauseous, was pretty much a sandbar of meat; an island of meat. Yet, as if that was still not enough, the assembly of creatures swelled continuously.
The dirty lump of meat had already swelled to the size of a sphere. No, maybe this is the real form of the diabolic underworld. All the familiars Caster had employed until today had to be but the bits and pieces ofthis; small fries which would not exceedthis.
"That is..."
A grotesque shadow rising with darkness as its background. At that disgusting and yet overwhelming majesty, Saber held her breath.
Even the champions of the deep seas- whales and giant squids, could not boast of such large size. A nightmare which governs the ocean in the realm that is outside this world. Without a doubt, that aquatic giant fits the name of a "sea demon".
'It seems have underestimated this fellow...Summoning such a monster!' Saber thought.
Caster did not even have the recognition of what a battle or a victory is. That demented Servant probably planned to wreck the "Holy Grail War"- the conduct itself; and to send it back, idle. Together with all the lives in this city.
"Thch"
The shiny greaves hit the water surface, and silver splashes scattered in brilliance. But, the tips of her toes did not sink. With hardness identical to a ground, the water Saber stepped on accepted her sprint. It was just the miracle which could happen to the king due to the blessing of the Lady of the Lake.
As she got closer, the figure of the sea monster grew all the more. As if bending over towards Saber, it overwhelmed her with its odious dignity.
Like a group of snakes, the curvy tentacles which extended all over freely, stretched out to intercept the approaching King of Knights.
Nevertheless, neither its strangeness nor its odiousness could hinder her sprint. Right now, fear and impatience were the same in Saber's heart.
"Let's settle this, Caster!"
The beheading strike of the Barrier of the Wind King which was swung over her head with renewed fighting spirit, first hit the sea monster with a merciless stroke.
At the top of a building two individual could be seen looking at the monster wracking havoc on the river a man with tanned skin and a woman with dark skin wearing a skull mask, the man turned his head toward the woman.
"Assassin, explained." Berserker ordered Assassin.
"Well, as you can see..." Assassin is stopped by Berserker.
"I can see well enough Assassin, I am asking, how?" Berserker clarified.
"I see. Well for starters..." Assassin started.
Apparently Rider and his master had found Caster hideout, but they find that Caster is not present there so they opted to destroy his hideout and everything inside, a good decision, Berserker thought.
But it seems Caster didn't appreciate Rider turning his hideout into a wreck and it ended up provoking him instead, and thus the current situation everyone facing right now, bar Assassin and Berserker of course.
As of right now from where he is, Berserker can see a speck of blue trying to contain the large creature wracking havoc in the middle of the river and a figure riding a horse rushing to the bridge close to it.
'Rider'
It seem Rider is screaming something to Saber before he jumped from the middle of the bridge into the creature with his Master, Berserker is a bit surprised when the creature, Saber, Rider, and his master suddenly vanish in a burst of light.
'A Reality Marble'
An explanation quickly appear in Berserker mind, after all how can he of all people didn't recognized a reality marble when he see one.
"What? Where did they go?" Assassin asked, looking at him expecting an answer. Berserker indulged her.
"Reality Marble." Berserker informed her.
"What? You mean..." Assassin said in shocked.
Rider Noble Phantasm is a reality marble, now the question is what kind of power it has?
Before he can think about it further another burst of light appear on the river while Rider and Saber is now standing on the edge of the river not far from the bridge, the massive creature is nowhere to be seen.
"It seems the situation is already under control." She said, Berserker just nod silently. Looking at the servants gathering on the shore, he saw both of them leaving separately.
"And now they're leaving, what are we going to do Berserker?" Assassin asked him.
"Have you found what we asked?" Berserker asked her, Assassin nod in confirmation.
"Yes, the vessel is currently within Saber master possession, we haven't been able to find the opportunity to take it from them yet." Assassin reported.
The previous night after Berserker failed to kill Rider, he and Assassin started to negotiate the term of their alliance. The result was to be; in exchange for Berserker dealing with Rider, Assassin will give Berserker and his master the vessel of the Holy Grail to them.
After both servant fulfilled each objective, their alliance will dissolve and they returned to become enemies in this war. This was heard and agreed by both sides and sealed with a geass signed by blood instead of ink, because Berserker master refused to a meeting face to face.
"Then as promised I will deal with Rider." Berserker said to Assassin who nodded.
"When will we start?" Assassin asked.
"Tonight." Berserker firmly answered, better to strike while the iron is hot, or while Rider is exhausted from dealing with Caster.
"Approved." Assassin said while vanishing, leaving to fulfilled her objective.
Assassin appeared in front of a man wearing priest outfit. Kotomine Kirei looked back at her without emotion.
"Berserker will move tonight to face Rider." She reported.
"I see." Kirei replied nodding
"What of our preparations?" He asked.
"We are awaiting your command, master." Assassin replied.
"Good, commence the plan." Kirei declared.
"Affirmative." Assassin said vanishing to the designated spot needed to complete their plan. While Kirei leaving quickly to another place, urgency can be felt from his attitude.
'Kiritsugu Emiya.' He thought.
'Can you give me a satisfactory answer?' Kirei wonder I his mind.