*One day before the Holy Grail War begins.*
In a coffee shop, a woman waited for a customer.
"I'd like a coffee," a man's voice called out.
The woman looked up from her phone and saw a man, about 25 years old, tall, with green eyes and long blond hair tied in a ponytail; his voice sounded helpless.
"So... what kind of coffee would you like?" he asked the cashier.
"A regular coffee," the man replied.
"Understood," the woman responded, somewhat confused. "That'll be three euros."
The man pulled a wad of bills of different denominations and colors from his pocket.
"Which one of these is three euros?" the man's question threw the woman off.
She took a five-euro bill, and he gave her two coins.
"Please wait a moment while your coffee is ready," the cashier explained to the man, who now suspected he was a barbarian who had lived his whole life under a rock.
Ether Pendragon, or now, Saber, was a man who had always been served, for as long as he could remember. No matter how much the Holy Grail explained to him how the modern world worked, knowing something wasn't the same as understanding it.
Saber left the café with a medium coffee, noticing the approving nods he received.
"I don't understand why we're doing this," Saber said. "I came here to defend the country I ruled long ago, not to socialize with the people of this world."
"Don't be like that. While I have a point, you need to know how to do these things, since we don't know how long you'll be here. You need to know how to do this sort of thing," explained Raines, while Lancer simply nodded, sipping a raspberry milkshake.
Saber just sighed, hoping the war would finally begin. He came here to destroy enemies, not to strange-looking shops with strange people and strange customs.
...
Night had fallen, and within a summoning circle, magical energy began to glow.
There was no one around; the place was completely empty. It was as if a ghost were using the circle alone to summon something from beyond.
After a sudden, brilliant flash, two figures appeared: a young woman in a red hood and a tall, bearded man.
The young woman opened her eyes and saw that the place was completely empty. She immediately knew what was happening and why she was there.
She glanced back at the man, who stood motionless.
She had a mission: to monitor and ensure that this Holy Grail War didn't spiral out of control, that the rules were respected, and to eliminate any anomalies that violated the war's regulations.
But suddenly, she felt a sharp pain in her head and ducked down. The man behind her didn't react; he remained as still as a statue.
The young woman returned to her normal posture, clutching her temple.
"So I have another mission, huh?" he said to himself, looking around. "Let's go," he ordered.
Seeing the young woman leave, the large, robust man silently followed her, like a guardian, or at least that's what he appeared to be.
...
Kiss-shot opened the door to the hall where the true ancestors gathered, only to find Alcatraz glued to his computer monitor playing WoW while a stranger devoured a mountain of junk food.
"This food is delicious, want some?" the stranger asked, bringing a classic beef and cheeseburger to Kiss-shot and Caster, a black cat. It's worth noting that Caster was resting between his wife's breasts.
"That'll have to wait for another time. I don't want to get my cat's fur dirty," Caster replied.
"If they're not donuts, I'm not interested," Kiss-shot responded honestly.
"Then I'll bring donuts next time," the man said, returning to his feast.
At that moment, Vlov entered with two other men.
One looked like a Roman soldier, while the other wore crusader garb, but with a mask covering his entire face.
"Where are the others?" Vlov asked.
Kiss-shot just shrugged as she sat down, removed the cat from her chest, and settled it on her lap.
"My master went to look for something about seeking the truth; to be honest, I didn't understand it. Meanwhile, Archer went to survey the area," replied the man, still eating.
"And you are?" Vlov inquired.
"Assassin," said the man now known as Assassin.
This Servant was a man of about 23 years old, dressed in formal attire, with a full mustache and short brown hair.
"Wow, we have two Assassins on our side; they must have two Servants of the same class, surely. I just hope it's not Berserker," Caster commented. "No, wait; they have more Servants than we do, so it's quite possible something like that will happen."
"That shouldn't be a problem; "If I understand correctly, you are all true ancestors, there's not much to worry about," Assassin said, relaxing.
(Note: Since there are no factions like in Apocrypha, when two Servants of the same class are on screen, I will refer to them by their names, or by name if one is known and the other is not.)
"I think you're mistaken; the Holy Grail War is between Servants, not between Masters." "It can happen, but it's not the idea," Caster explained.
"It's clear we're in a unique situation, but if this involves the word 'war,' then anything can happen and any tactic is justified as long as you win the conflict," Assassin said calmly to Caster, leaving him speechless, since he was right in a way.
This wasn't a normal Holy Grail War, so thinking about normal situations was pointless.
"Bah, you beat me this time, but next time I'll have a way to counter-argue," Caster complained, settling down on Kiss-shot's lap to sleep.
Assassin just smiled at this.
"They still haven't told me where the others are," Vlov roared, somewhat annoyed.
...
"Alright, we're all gathered here; the Holy Grail War starts tomorrow, so we'll begin with our plan," explained Altrouge, accompanied by her Assassin servant.
"I don't know if we should go our separate ways; each of our plans is so far-fetched it's hard to call it a plan," complained Rita, sitting and staring at the blood.
"Besides, we're at war with the Clock Tower; I don't know if splitting up and going to different places is a good idea, knowing they could attack us as a group," said Archer, a somewhat thin but strong young man with green hair and curled horns on his head.
Caster looked at this man and immediately recognized him, both from the legend and from his past life. He may have appeared as a child before, but here he was in his more mature form, from the time of the Trojan War. The man Caster was referring to was none other than Paris.
"Each of us has fought alone; even if we wanted to fight, what would we be able to fight about?" Rizo explained, not far from Altrouge.
"Besides, if things go badly, we have plan B," Altrouge explained.
"Which is?" Archer asked.
"Working as a team," the vampire princess said.
"Wouldn't it be better to start working as a team immediately?" the man wearing the mask that covered his entire face spoke for the first time. Caster immediately recognized him as a man.
"Why would we fight together?" Chaos questioned, somewhat annoyed by the suggestion. "If I can defeat you alone with Archer and Assassin, there's no need to fight with you."
"And there's your answer," Caster commented, pretending to be asleep.
It should be noted that, however much these true ancestors are cooperating, it doesn't mean they like each other or that they've changed their ways.
In fact, the only ones who fight as a team are Rizo and Altoruge, and only if the princess wants them to.
"That means they won't fight together until things get really bad," Carmilla concluded.
"Maybe that's for the best; my abilities can be very destructive, and I don't want to end up hurting or even killing my temporary companions," Assassin said, standing up and stretching.
Basically, the situation is that everyone will work separately; those with Servants will seek out other Servants to kill them or, if they can, the Master, while the others will try to eliminate all threats around them, whether they be mages, clergymen, or others.
"This is going to go very well or very badly," Caster whispered.
"Caster," Altoruge said.
"I had to say something," Caster complained, to which Kiss-shot couldn't help but smile mockingly at her husband.
"I need you to do something if you can," Altrouge ordered.
...
In a dark place, Bazett Fraga McRemitz stood, staring at her magical seals. She never expected to find herself in this situation, but since Dante left, she had become one of, if not the best, enforcers.
This was thanks to Dante, who had been courting her for some time, especially because of the weapon she always carried; it had caught the attention of the former leader of the enforcers.
She was chosen from among the enforcers who were to participate in the Holy Grail War.
"What's wrong, Master?" Archer asked.
"Nothing," she replied, shaking her head.
"Master, I'm bored. Can you materialize me now so I can do something else?" Berserker asked.
Bazett just sighed.
"You attract a lot of attention. It would be dangerous if they saw you. You're a jarring sight, especially in these catacombs, where yellow stands out so much; it would be like shining a flashlight in total darkness," Bazett explained to Berserker.
"Boo," he groaned at her explanation.
Currently, the situation in the clock tower is critical; everything is tracked, everything is controlled, and everything is sealed off. Now there are more barriers than students, all in fear of an attack.
Unlike the true ancestors, they had a base whose location they knew. The vampires' hiding places were unknown, so they couldn't attack; for now, they could only defend themselves and await a counterattack.
"Can I come out now?" Berserker asked, to which Bazett couldn't help but hold her head in her hands because her own servant was testing her patience.
"You're like a little kid," Archer remarked.
"I'll take that as a compliment," Berserker replied, feeling slightly offended by his fellow Servant's words.
"I'm just being honest, that's all," Archer explained to his master. "If an enemy appears, I could send Berserker to face it; if there are two, I'll back him up."
"Yes, that's a good idea; he can stretch his muscles, huh" Berserker began making warm-up sounds.
Bazett could only wipe her eyes at the scene unfolding in her mind.
At that moment, a disturbance was felt; someone had deactivated the barrier surrounding the area.
"Master," Archer said.
"Yes, I noticed," she replied, looking around.
Currently, she was guarding the entrance where the Holy Grail was hidden.
Out of nowhere, a black cat with red eyes appeared.
"Maiu," it meowed.
"A familiar?" Bazett wondered.
"Master, be careful," Archer warned, and instinctively, Bazett lunged forward, dodging Kiss-shot's attack, which destroyed everything around her.
Bazett immediately got up and looked at Kiss-shot.
"Are you a Servant?" she asked defensively. During my time at the clock tower, no one had ever met Kiss-shot; the only one who knew more or less what she looked like was Zelrecth, since he knew that Helena and she were practically clones.
When Dante was at the clock tower, Kiss-shot was either doing other things or resting in her husband's shadow.
Kiss-shot simply looked at Bazett and returned her smile, revealing his teeth.
"It would be rude not to introduce myself. I'm Caster. Nice to meet you. Now die," Kiss-shot said, lunging for Bazett's neck.
"Berserker!!" the purple-haired woman exclaimed.
"Understood," Berserker replied excitedly, and amidst the two deaths, a burly blond man with sunglasses appeared, dressed in black and white and wielding a black axe with gold accents.
With a swing of his axe, a yellow electrical current shot toward the vampire, but Kiss-shot reacted quickly, sliding across the ground to avoid the attack.
Kiss-shot, noticing the sudden enemy, shifted her attention from Bazett to the emerging Servant, giving the Clock Tower Master a chance to distance herself from the two.
"Come on, it's about time I showed off; it's time to shine, admire how I, Sakata Kintoki, vanquish all evil that stands in my way," Berserker roared, while Bazett merely sighed with exhaustion.
At that moment, Berserker looked at Kiss-shot closely and realized something: this woman was far more golden.
"How is this possible?" he exclaimed in disbelief.
He was about to say something else, but had to block the next attack, which was aimed straight at his face.
Standing firm, he crossed his arms to cushion the blow, but to his surprise, he felt as if a mountain had crashed into him at full speed, sending him flying and destroying several buildings and tombs around him.
Kiss-shot wasted no time and went after him.
"Is he really Caster?" Bazett wondered, seeing Kiss-shot's level of strength.
"I couldn't say for sure, but I can confirm he's a Servant," Archer replied.
Berserker, snapping back to reality after the blow, dodged Kiss-shot's attack by lifting his feet into the air, spinning, and delivering a kick. The vampire took the hit, taking a few steps back.
Kiss-shot's face was wounded, but in just a second it vanished as if nothing had happened.
Seeing this, Berserker eyed Kiss-shot more cautiously.
"Let's see if you can regenerate from this," Berserker said, holding his axe as it began to glow, electrifying him. "Golden Slash."
With several spins and his axe engulfed in a violent lightning bolt, he slashed at Kiss-Shot's position.
Berserker's attack destroyed everything in front of him, but when the dust settled, his opponent was nowhere to be seen.
"Pretty destructive, but quite dodgeable," Kiss-Shot said behind him.
Berserker turned around, using his axe as a shield, blocking Kiss-Shot's punch.
The truth is, Kintoki isn't a very good fighter; his skills lie more in causing collateral damage and chaos on the battlefield, not to mention brute force.
Even knowing this, Berserker still had some ways to fight, using his abilities more strategically.
Raising his fist, Berserker enveloped it in lightning, creating a blinding light that forced Kiss-Shot to close his eyes momentarily, creating an opening that his opponent immediately exploited.
With her other hand, she lowered the lightning axe to slice Kiss-Shot in two, but even with her eyes closed, she took a step back so the cut only grazed her.
"What?!" Berserker exclaimed, only to be met with a punch to the face from the vampire, sending him crashing into a large tomb.
"Even if you had landed that blow, nothing would have happened," Kiss-Shot remarked, smoothing her hair, and I opened my eyes again as the blinding light faded.
Berserker stood up and adjusted his sunglasses; he was no longer smiling and showing off, he was annoyed, and his skin turned a little redder.
Dropping the axe, Berserker launched himself at Kiss-Shot with his bare fists, which she accepted. Their fists collided, but Berserker was the only one who complained, even though Kiss-Shot appeared to have suffered more damage.
Fists flew and shrieked; none defended; they simply attacked and counterattacked.
Out of nowhere, Kiss-shot received a buff, something Bazett noticed from afar, and he swiftly dodged a punch from Berserker to position himself and land one on his jaw.
Before the golden man could be sent flying, the vampire grabbed his foot and began spinning him at breakneck speed, slamming him into the ground. He bounced as the ground shattered from the brutal impact.
Once Berserker stopped, Kintoki wiped the blood from his mouth as his body grew redder and redder.
This was Sakata Kintoki's Madness ability. He doesn't receive the benefits of the Madness Charm. In return, he retains a normal capacity for thought. A Luck Check is performed each time he takes damage; failure sends him into a frenzy, and his stats, except for MGI and LCK, increase. On that occasion, his entire body turns red.
(Note: Literally taken from the wiki).
Berserker summoned his axe again, tearing off his already torn and blood-soaked shirt. He wrapped his axe in lightning and charged at his enemy.
Kiss-shot just smiled and ran straight ahead to take the blow.
Meanwhile, Bazett pondered what had happened. Someone had momentarily buffed Kiss-shot, but there was no way anyone could have done that; It was just them and the cat.
At that moment, she reacted. Looking to the side, she saw the cat sitting there, watching the chaos unfold; a normal cat would have run away.
"It's incredible to see something like this, isn't it? Meow," the cat commented, licking its paw without looking at Bazett.
At that moment, she realized this cat was a Servant, perhaps the real Caster.
Clenching her fist, she ran and punched where the cat was, but it reacted immediately and jumped aside, creating some distance.
The red-eyed cat raised its tail and tensed its body as it roared at Bazett.
"I haven't done anything to you, and you attack me? Was I one of those dog lovers?" the cat said.
"You can't fool me. You must be the real Caster, or not?" Bazett questioned the cat.
"You're not funny at all," exclaimed the cat, now recognized as a caster, darting between the buildings, pursued by Bazett while Kiss-shot and Berserker continued their fight.
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Servant List Update.