We pass through the ruined temple and enter the cave leading to the Greater Grail.
The atmosphere reminds me of the caves I visited on school trips when I was a kid. I really like the mysterious vibe. It seems quite charming in its own way.
"How about we take one last break around here?"
"Sounds good to me."
At Cú Chulainn's suggestion, we decide to take a final rest in the middle of the cave. It's my first time sitting down inside a cave.
"Hey, there's something I'm curious about."
"What is it?"
Ritsuka's question time begins...
"How did you summon your Caster, Dumpty?"
So it's that question... I thought I managed to brush it off earlier. This is a troublesome topic. She's digging a bit too deep... What kind of excuse should I use?
Ritsuka is sharper than I thought. If I give her a lame excuse, she'll get suspicious. Revealing that I'm a reincarnated person is a bit risky. Ahh, so this is the hardship characters in isekai stories go through...
"The answer to that is quite simple, my friend. A very simple answer."
"What is it?"
I tried to deflect it like Holmes would, but it seems impossible. I don't have Holmes-level eloquence...!
"It's what you call fate. It was a time when I was being chased by Dragon Tooth Warriors and was about to die."
"I was in the same situation? I guess Masters have something in common."
"Haha... Anyway, I sneaked into a certain house. And while looking for a place to run, I went into a storage shed. Just as I was about to grab a pipe or something to fight back, whether it was my will to live answering me or just a coincidence! She appeared for me from the summoning circle that was drawn there."
An Emiya Shirou-style Servant summoning story. Let's try to gloss over it with that...
"Heh... Really?"
"That is... technically true."
Cath Palug affirms it, at least. It's completely untrue, of course.
"My appearance was destiny, no, inevitability. Because my Master was connected to me from a previous life. Isn't that right?"
"Uhm... I'm not familiar with that story."
"I suppose you wouldn't be~"
That Cath Palug, she's trying to tease me...
"Are you perhaps jealous, Master~?"
Just then, Jaguar poked her head out and asked Ritsuka. Without batting an eye, Ritsuka nodded.
"I'd be lying if I said I wasn't. How should I put it? It seems like you're incredibly lucky, Dumpty. You have a lot of Magical Energy, right? You seem more capable than me. Mash is an amazing girl, but with a Master like me, she seems weak. The Director said it, that I shouldn't be a Master."
"..."
Our gazes turned toward the Director, who had been turned into a piglet, and she shook her head desperately as if to say that wasn't her intention.
Well, well, it seems misunderstandings have piled up and crushed Ritsuka's self-esteem. She doesn't seem like the type to be a potential Grand Berserker. Her personality is more like the typical Ritsuka from the anime or manga. She doesn't give off the vibe of a reincarnated person either, so maybe I should seriously give her some advice.
"Don't look down on yourself so much~? Having confidence and stepping forward boldly is the start of everything! No matter how talented or strong you are, if you just hide in the back like a coward, it's meaningless, nya! So, start by having confidence in yourself!"
Jaguar steps in for me with a sharp remark. Ritsuka seems to have taken something from it.
"She's right. So, Ritsuka, don't worry so much. I was just lucky. There's no need for you to feel insecure. I'm sure you're the type who grows through effort, right?"
"You think so?"
"Yeah, definitely."
Ritsuka's latent potential is her affinity. And an unbreakable will, even among protagonists, of an all-time caliber. In a way, you could call it the most outstanding tenacity among TYPE-MOON protagonists.
And I have no intention of ousting the original protagonist, Ritsuka, and taking her place. That's right, if I had to define it, it would be like a Reincarnated Villainess story, where I respect the protagonist and walk my own path. Of course, in many of those, the world goes to hell because the protagonist is the reincarnated one...
Let's hope this isn't that kind of world. One person like an isekai character, like Nakamura-san or me, is enough.
"You, what's your deal?"
"My deal...?"
And then Cú Chulainn's question follows. Ahh, I hate this...!
"Kira Yoshikage, 33 years old, single──no, just an ordinary, virgin man."
"What, were you a candidate for Great Virgin?"
"Great Virgin...?"
"In our Celtic, no, Germanic tribes, we praised those who kept their virginity until near 30 as Great Virgins. We believed the longer you kept it, the stronger your power became. That Roman Caesar, was it? He said that we Germans believed that if you kept your virginity, you'd grow taller, gain stamina, or build muscle."
"... There would be an abundance of Great Virgins in modern times."
Hey, isn't that just the benefits of NoFap?
"Of course, both I and my uncle lost ours long ago."
"Ah, yes."
I'm 24 now, so in 6 years I'd become a Great Virgin...
"It seems Master cannot become a Great Virgin, then..."
"Ahh, that is both a sad and a joyous thing!"
"... Huh?"
Cath Palug and Jaguar hugged my arms from both sides, and I could feel their chests... The bountiful softness felt through Jaguar's mascot suit, and Cath Palug's chest, smaller than Jaguar's but larger than Sei Shōnagon's.
In my life, I've never had such a golden age... If this is the multi-level marketing scheme I'm getting, I'd rather have my organs harvested and die.
"Ooh~ Popular, aren't we? Becoming a Great Virgin is definitely out of the question. Though you're plenty of a hero already."
"..."
Is she making fun of me? Cú Chulainn died at 30, so when did he lose his virginity? He had an affair with Manannán mac Lir's wife and all, he must have been quite the player, right? And didn't he definitely rape Aífe, Scáthach's sister? The child she bore, Connla, was a young warrior, so he must have been at least in his teens, and if it was before the war, Cú was probably in his mid-to-late twenties... So he raped Aífe when he was a teenager?
I looked at Cú Chulainn with a gaze reserved for trash.
"What's with that look?"
"Rapist..."
"Why!?"
"Cath Palug, would you care to explain?"
"Well, didn't you beat up and rape the Witch of Dun Scáith's younger sister when she was about ten years old?"
"...."
""....""
[That's a bit much. Assaulting and raping your teacher's little sister? That's totally──]
"Ahh~! We've rested long enough, let's get moving!"
The Traffic Light Trio guys. Emiya, Gilgamesh, Cú Chulainn... their relationships with women are really... Why Gilgamesh? The First Night privilege is enough. And he rejected Ishtar's proposal, which led to Gugalanna coming, so he has no room to talk.
In the end, they're all just the same kind of guys, aren't they? Behind the cheerful, likable big brother type lies that kind of disgusting side, everyone...!
And then he went and rejected Medb's confession, so it's basically a case of "rules for thee, but not for me." If he had just accepted it, the war wouldn't have even happened.
If we defeat Saber, we get 3 Saint Quartz... No, I should hold back for now.
"Caster, you're quite the player, unexpectedly."
"He's less of a player and more of trash, Senpai. It's a crime..."
"Bhuiiii...!"
The sound of Cú Chulainn's clothes tearing reached us even here. You reap what you sow...!
Walking through the cave, we soon arrive at the place we saw in Heavens Feel. The Grail doesn't look like the Holy Grail Mud. It just looks like an ordinary Greater Grail. It's glowing?
"You have come..."
"What? You could talk?"
"Hmph, I was merely acting due to the gazes. An interesting Servant..... Hm?"
"What are you doing? Get him."
As I speak, Cath Palug immediately uses her Final Ascension, and Jaguar also charges in her Final Ascension form.
"Now then, feel free to trample over him to your heart's content."
The Carnwennans fly out and swarm around the Darkened Saber. Then, the spinning white stakes gather light and fire a beam.
"Tch, a troublesome opponent to have."
Clicking his tongue, the Darkened Saber immediately begins rapid-firing with his Holy Sword.
"Haha! Too slow! That won't be enough...!!! {Jaguar in the Black}!!!"
Instantly, the area around the Darkened Saber is filled with darkness. Jaguar Man's Noble Phantasm, usable only at night. She deploys a clearly alien darkness, granting Presence Concealment to herself and her allies. In combat, only she retains it, and it doesn't break even when attacking—a Noble Phantasm truly fitting for a real Assassin.
And since Jaguar is nocturnal, her attack power increases as well.
Boom! Kaboooom!!!
The light of the Holy Sword flies from beyond the darkness, but it's meaningless before Cath Palug's defense.
"Well then, shall I play with you a little?"
The stones around her float up, and the Holy Swords transform along with them. With a single gesture from Cath Palug, the Holy Swords fly up over the darkness and then rain down into it, followed by a massive golden explosion. Hmm... Excalibur Broken Phantasm.
I probably don't need to use Incantation-Activated Manifestation...
"Kyahahaha! Is that all?"
Jaguar Man, who leaped out from within the darkness to avoid the explosion, was completely unharmed. And within the smoke of the explosion, the Darkened Saber lay flat, knocked out cold.
"As expected, he was a pushover."
"I, I am not a pushover.... Damn it, you monsters..."
"Monsters? Wrong, I am an evil spirit...!"
She delivers the famous line of the golden-haired, large-chested loli, and the Darkened Saber vanishes, leaving behind a Saint Quartz.
"You, I'll get you later."
This guy holds a grudge. Cú Chulainn fades away like that, but there's no Saint Quartz. Dammit!
Poof~!
"Ah, I'm back..."
And as Cath Palug releases the piglet transformation, the Director returns to human form. I immediately picked up the Saint Quartz and looked ahead.
It seemed like it was almost time for him to appear...
Clap, clap, clap...
Appearing while clapping is a green-flavored man.
Lev Lainur.
"Nice to meet you, {Excalibur}!!!"
"Right as he appears?!"
And so, Lev gets deluxe bombed and vanishes.