Chapter 52

Crunch

The Assassin was slammed into the wall and crushed with a loud noise. The grotesque scene made Hayama, who was standing next to him, gag and cover his mouth.

Meanwhile, the woman in the suit is smashing the assassin's chest with her fists, tearing off his legs with kicks, blasting a hole in his stomach with her elbow, and crushing his head with her hands.

"Isn't this a monster...?"

I muttered in shock. That was all I could do.

Even though he was up against an Assassin who was probably an extremely weak Servant, he was still overwhelmed by flesh-and-blood humans outnumbering him ten times, slaughtering them one-sidedly.

This is what it means to be unrivaled. It makes me feel foolish that I was hurt so much by just a few people.

What's even more surprising is that this woman could not possibly be in perfect condition.

Of course, she had been close to death until just a short time ago, but even before that, she had a physical defect that was obvious at a glance. She was missing her left hand. This meant that this woman outnumbered a dozen Servants with just one hand.

Eventually, the woman crushed the head of one of the assassins, and one of them let out a whistling sound. At the same time, the group of people dressed in black filed out of the room like a receding tide. They seemed to have realized they were at a disadvantage and were retreating.

"Did... you save me...?"

Hayama blurted out in a stunned manner. It was a bit of a silly scene, but it was understandable.

Perhaps still retaining her spirit, the woman remained on guard for a while after the assassins had left, but then she turned towards us and walked briskly over.

Hayama, who had been in a daze up until then, suddenly came to his senses and took a step towards her.

"Th-Thank you very much...!?"

I grabbed Hayama by the collar and pulled him with all my might. He lost his balance and fell backwards, leaning onto me, and the woman's fist was thrust right under his nose.

"……!?"

Hayama takes his breath away.

It was just a punch, nothing special. But we saw with our own eyes the carnage it caused.

If I hadn't pulled Hayama back sooner, or if the woman had taken just half a step further, Hayama would have met the same fate as the other assassins.

The woman was staring at me with emotionless eyes. I slowly opened my mouth to speak to her, trying not to provoke her.

"Okay, let's make a deal. Do you understand Japanese?"

"...What materials do you have?"

"I'll explain the current situation and give you all the information I have. I'll take the loss for the medical treatment for your injuries."

"What is the price you want?"

"A guarantee of our safety. I might ask for something later, but we'll have to discuss that. For now, as long as we don't get killed, that's fine."

The woman stops moving for a moment. She is probably calculating what to do... but as long as she can think, it should be okay. Probably.

"…………Okay. I get it."

After thinking for a while, the woman replied and pulled her fist back. ...No, I'm really glad. If I had ended up fighting this woman from this point on, it would have been dead or die. Seriously.

I feel relieved that he doesn't seem to be just a muscle-brained guy.

Finally released from his tension, Hayama slowly slumped to the ground, while the woman, ignoring him, turned on her heels and collapsed to the ground.

…………Wait, what?

"Hey, are you okay?!"

Hayama stood up and ran over to her. Despite being the woman who nearly killed her a moment ago, she was a model feminist.

She lay face down, not moving a muscle.

I glanced over at Medea, who had been silently watching the situation unfold. Perhaps she had been poisoned during the battle with Assassin. If so, Medea should be able to cure her.

When I crouched down next to Hayama, right next to her head, she turned to face us with a creaking sound. She seemed to be conscious.

Her face was pale, but her expression didn't change at all; in other words, she said with a straight face:

"Excuse me. Do you have any food with you?"

Hey Hayama, don't make that face. It's rude.

Bazett Fraga McRemitz. That's my name.

A seal designated enforcer belonging to the Clock Tower.

He comes to Japan at the request of the Tower to retrieve the Holy Grail, and participates in the Fifth Holy Grail War as Lancer's master.

When he visits Fuyuki City, the setting for the Holy Grail War, he visits Kotomine Kirei, the representative of the Holy Church who is overseeing the war, as instructed by the Tower.

With the cooperation of the Overseer, who gathers all information related to the Holy Grail War and was also a participant in the previous Holy Grail War, obtaining the Holy Grail is almost certain.

Being personally acquainted with Kotomine, I visited him without any particular suspicion, and was taken by surprise because I was already aware of what he was up to.

Thus, I was defeated without even meeting the enemy.

There are no memory losses. There are no physical problems other than the loss of his left hand and hunger. There are no impediments to combat.

After completing my self-examination, I washed my sandwich down with bottled water while watching the boys.

They were the ones who had been in the room when I had regained consciousness. They were fighting a group of people dressed in all black who seemed to be Assassin's Servants.

When I woke up, I assumed that all of them were enemies, and prioritized eliminating the Assassins (temporary), who I thought were more dangerous. After that, when I tried to eliminate them again, they asked me to negotiate, and that's how it's been up to now.

They were a trio of two boys and one girl. The girl was a Servant. She seemed to be of the Caster class.

Caster's master is a black-haired boy with rotten eyes who calls himself Hikigaya Hachiman.

Another blonde who seems to be popular with women is Hayama Hayato.

Both of them were ordinary people with no magical background, and were accidentally drawn into the Holy Grail War. In fact, Hayato didn't even know the name of the Holy Grail War, and was very surprised when he heard Hachiman's story.

On the other hand, I honestly doubt that Hachiman is an ordinary person. He's too calm.

For example, the food he provided.

Two convenience store sandwiches, water, a tube of jelly, a can of food, and a few blocks of solid food.

Apart from the sandwiches, everything else in these dishes is made with storage and portability in mind. This means that the boy is looking ahead to a long-term battle.

In the extraordinary circumstances of a Holy Grail War, is it really possible for an amateur to think about something like that?

"That's all for now. You're Bazett, right? Can I ask you something about yourself now?"

It seems most of the talk is over.

As he was an ordinary person, there was no new information, but I still learned a few things.

"I don't mind talking, but before that, can I ask you a question?"

"What?"

"You said you're a civilian, but have you received any training, even if not in magic?"

"No. Why?"

Yawata blinked at my question and replied with a question.

"You're too calm. It's one thing to be smart in normal times, but there's no way an amateur could stay this calm in a situation like this."

"Well, I agree. That's why I'm making Caster make those kind of suggestions."

Hypnotic suggestion. It's the most elementary step in magic, but I see. That makes sense.

This boy seems to place great importance on remaining calm in an emergency. And his judgment is correct. This is the difference between an amateur and a non-amateur.

Normal humans cannot maintain a normal state of mind under the stress of combat. So they use suggestion to protect their minds. If they could maintain their sanity by doing nothing, that would be insane.

To begin with, the very concept of training the mind is a kind of suggestion. To take it to the extreme, the accumulated training and the bonds with friends are all nothing more than armor that protects the mind.

Even if you're not a magician, autosuggestion is a basic technique for anyone involved in combat. Other examples of suggestion include routing, which is used by athletes.

Hypnotic suggestion is originally used to make enemies or uncooperative people do what you want them to do. Using it to change the mindset of your allies is an extraordinary idea. However...

(I think it's much more abnormal to have a mentality where you can completely depend on others for your own mental state.)

In any case, it made sense. For now, I could trust them, considering they had treated my injuries and given me food.

At the very least, their fighting ability is really low. If they are planning to plot against me, I can just crush them when I find out.

"I understand. First..."

I explained the reason for my visit to Japan and how I ended up in a state of suspended animation.

There's no point in lying here. Besides, from what I've heard, our interests are aligned. So, in order to gain some credibility, and for me to trust them, I need to expose my cards. This is also an implication.

This is different from the commonly spoken word of trust or faith. Doubt clouds judgment. In battle, not suspecting your allies is merely an art.

"...Um, was it Kotomine? Do you have any idea who might be on his side?"

After hearing my story, Yawata asked a question with a serious look on his face. He immediately realized that it was a possibility. He seems to be quite a shrewd person.

"...Let me answer your question. Why did you ask me that question?"

"No one other than Kotomine could have launched an attack at this timing. If Kotomine has Lancer, that means he has an ally."

"What is your basis for assuming that the attack was Kotomine's intention?"

"Geographically, this mansion cannot be a strategic base. It is not particularly a sacred place. The fact that they still set off an attack means that there is something about this mansion that they do not want touched. Considering the situation, it must be you, Bazette-san. And the only ones who know about you are Kotomine and his allies."

"...Is it possible that the Assassin Master discovered you by chance and thought you were an easy target?"

"That's impossible. As we said earlier, we assumed Assassin had been defeated and weren't on guard at all. I'm sure the other Masters were the same. At the very least, if I were Assassin's Master, I would never throw this advantage away."

...100%. This is probably the best answer that can be derived from the current information. This boy is definitely a worthy warrior.

"...I'm surprised. Your analysis is probably correct. With that in mind, I believe that Assassin's master is Kotomine himself."

"...A double contract?"

Hachiman cast a quick glance at his Servant, presumably checking to see if it was technically possible.

The caster didn't particularly deny it. In response, Yawata asked me a simple question.

"What's your reasoning?"

"The Assassin we fought earlier was too weak. When you have multiple familiars, the amount of magical power that can be distributed to each one decreases, lowering the abilities of each one. Assassins are probably Servants that are treated as one when multiple are together, so their individual combat power is probably set to be low, but even taking that into account, there was just too little resistance."

"...In other words, Assassin, who was already weak, was further weakened by his double pact with Lancer."

I nodded.

No matter how weak Assassin may be, he is still a Servant. It is hard to imagine him being able to face nearly twenty at once and remain unscathed. If this is something that has actually happened, then there must be a reason why it happened.

Hachiman thought briefly about what I said before speaking.

"Considering Assassin's ability to conceal his presence, there was no reason not to use Assassin when attacking you. However, Assassin never came up in your story. This means that Kotomine did not have Assassin at the time he met you."

He continues, that's why he thought about stealing a Servant from someone else.

"But a simple question: can someone who already has a Lancer summon another Servant?"

A legitimate question, but about this I felt almost certain.

"I think that Kotomine's summoning of the Assassins was unintended. He didn't summon them himself, he was chosen by the Holy Grail."

"...If there aren't any Masters at the start of the Holy Grail War, then one will be chosen at random from among the people in Fuyuki City? That seems even more unlikely."

"I was the one who summoned Lancer after all. That's why Kotomine didn't count as a summoner. He seems to be a favorite of the Holy Grail."

A curse that held me bound as I nearly died.

I know this because I was actually imprisoned there, but that is the Holy Grail.

And since it was connected to the Holy Grail, we can understand that the Holy Grail wants Kotomine to obtain it. Even if there was favoritism of this magnitude, it doesn't feel unnatural.

Hachiman ponders my words. He can't believe it, but he doesn't have any evidence to completely deny it.

it was good.

A person who readily believes such a story lacks thoughtlessness. On the other hand, a person who dismisses something as impossible without first testing its possibilities lacks flexibility. He is a combination of both.

"Yahata"

Before we started the negotiations, he said he had a favor to ask, which was probably the same thing I was thinking right now.

Out of respect for his powers of deduction, I'll start with the question.

"You said that your goal is to survive, but you lack the power to do so. My mission is to bring back the Holy Grail, but I do not have enough Servants. We can work together. Don't you think so?"