It had been three days since Raiden Mei was transported to this strange place.
During these three days, the terrifying battles she had imagined did not occur.
This world was peaceful—at least on the surface, it seemed no different from her own world.
In this Far Eastern land, people lived ordinary lives. The Holy Grail War mentioned by the System and Aaron didn't seem to interfere with their daily routines at all.
As for her and Aaron, they had found a secluded apartment to stay in.
There was no need for hypnosis magecraft; Aaron simply threw a large amount of cash at the problem to solve their housing situation.
Regarding food, after Raiden Mei turned the place into a magical kitchen using the skill [Territory Creation: C], she combined [Item Construction: C] and [300 Styles of Shenzhou Home Cooking: C+] to process ingredients into magical food.
Magical food created through the synergy of these skills not only had all toxicity removed but also possessed special properties.
For example, basic meat buns and other portable wheat-based foods could provide a minor recovery of physical stamina.
More complex home-cooked dishes like tomato and egg stir-fry, drunken spare ribs, Dongpo pork, and braised beef with potatoes could provide effects like increased strength, mental energy recovery, and heightened perception.
Of course, there was a minor restriction: only one buff of the same attribute could be active at a time.
Although Raiden Mei felt she couldn't yet perfectly create dishes with stronger buffs based on her current research into the skills, Aaron was already incredibly satisfied.
He had some confidence in his own strength, but from the past until now, he had always had one major weakness—stamina.
Now that his endurance was covered and he had buffs, he naturally felt more confident about winning against strong enemies.
For Aaron, the most troublesome issue right now was...
—Although he possessed the [Kaslana Bloodline] physique, his stomach capacity hadn't increased.
Eating too much made him bloated, so if he ate too much magical food without digesting it, Aaron estimated he might actually have an accident.
As for the shared mental connection skill slot, Aaron equipped [Spirit Commands]. At the same time, he instructed Raiden Mei to equip the [Galvanism: B] skill.
Since no one had attacked them for three days, Raiden Mei, who had been cooking magical food non-stop, couldn't help but feel a bit uneasy.
Strange. Wasn't the Holy Grail War supposed to be cruel?
So what is going on right now... I'm just squatting in a mage's workshop cooking every day. Aside from drastically improving my culinary skills, does this serve any purpose?
"Caster, is it really okay... for us to be like this?"
On the morning of the fourth day, Raiden Mei looked at Aaron, who was resting with his eyes closed, and spoke helplessly.
"According to you, there can only be one winning pair in this battle. If we just stay here and don't act..."
"Heh, actually, if we keep this up, the advantage we accumulate will only get bigger."
Hearing Raiden Mei's words, Aaron opened his eyes and extended his right hand.
As electricity crackled directly in his hand, Aaron continued speaking to Raiden Mei.
"Because of Galvanism, I've been using this ability to accumulate electricity and strengthen myself these past few days. The more charge I store, the more my physical specs increase, and my injury recovery speed improves."
"Plus, over these three days, the magical food you've made already covers a wide variety of functions. If we keep going like this, our advantage will snowball."
"That being said... but..."
Sensing a provocation coming from not far away, Raiden Mei smiled bitterly.
"The enemy is already nearby. In this situation, we can't really keep slacking off, can we?"
"Hah... It's about time. Let's move then. If we don't go out, those people will find us sooner or later."
"I'll conceal myself and leave. You should find a time to leave here as well."
Recalling the modus operandi of a certain 'Partner of Justice,' Aaron said grumpily.
"Logically speaking, Masters usually can't hurt you. But considering some people have absolutely no morals, if the two of us stay in a residential area... it might not be very friendly to the surrounding residents."
"Is that so... For example?"
"Like planting bombs around the building to blow the house sky-high just to kill a Master—some people would actually do that. Master, you wouldn't want to see innocent people get dragged into this because of you, right?"
"Someone would actually do something that excessive...? But speaking of which, Caster, you're surprisingly gentle."
Looking at Aaron, who was already prepared to leave, Raiden Mei breathed a sigh of relief and smiled.
"I initially thought..."
"Don't overthink it. Keeping the neighbors safe isn't the only reason."
After concealing his body with War Fog, Aaron didn't voice the true reason in his heart to Raiden Mei.
Raiden Mei was a kind person. If a kind person saw innocent people lose their lives because of her...
Considering this young lady hadn't seen much darkness yet, in a sense, Mei's stress resistance was even worse than Kiana's.
Combining these points, if Mei got into a fight and was injured, she might be fine. But if she saw others die because of her, the probability of her turning into a Herrscher was actually quite high.
Last time, he was able to beat up the Herrscher of Thunder because she was careless at the start. This time... well, it's not like he couldn't fight, but if he could avoid a fire in his own backyard, playing it steady was the better choice.
As for the possibility of other Servants trying to attack their base directly...
First, let's rule out Gilgamesh and Iskandar, the two show-offs who would definitely go to the docks to posture.
Then rule out Brother Lancer, who is currently provoking all Servants.
Next, we can rule out Lord El-Melloi, whose Master has already targeted Tohsaka Tokiomi.
That's a total of seven Servants. Archer, Lancer, Rider, and Berserker definitely won't attack. Caster is Raiden Mei herself. The Assassin group just successfully played dead, so they won't pop up immediately either—and even if they did, a single Hundred-Faced Hassan couldn't handle Raiden Mei. If they came, they'd be the ones in trouble.
Finally, there's the Saber, the Cotton-Quilt King. She's still an upright knight right now. Killing a Master...
Heh, she even let Lancer go back to save his Master. She completely disregarded the possibility that Kayneth knowingly used a Command Spell to order Diarmuid to kill Emiya Kiritsugu. Aaron felt he didn't need to worry about her actively plotting against Raiden Mei.
The Servants in the Fourth Holy Grail War were all strong, but there were very few who could coordinate well.
Matou Kariya talked about saving Sakura and killing Tokiomi, but when the fighting started, it was like his brain atrophied; of his two wishes, he only remembered killing Tokiomi. He focused entirely on Tokiomi, making his own life a living hell. Lancelot, a Servant with considerable strength, was truly wasted in his hands.
Artoria and Emiya Kiritsugu went without saying. Those who know, know.
Tokiomi's tactical thinking wasn't wrong, but he was blind and got stuck with a 'daddy' he couldn't command. And this 'daddy' was conspiring behind his back with his apprentice to screw him over. Call that teamwork...?
Yeah, forget it.
Hundred-Faced Hassan was a pure tool. Originally great for assassination, but he got screwed over by his Master.
Waver and Iskandar actually had good compatibility, but in terms of coordination... Waver was a bit of a dead weight. Aside from the three Command Spells in the final battle, for most of the time, Iskandar had to consider conserving mana because the supply wasn't quite enough.
As for Diarmuid and the Lemon-head Lord...
Don't even mention it. Their compatibility was terrible.
It was precisely because these six camps had various internal mismatches that Aaron could feel slightly at ease.
Otherwise, an Artoria who listened to Emiya Kiritsugu for assassinations, or a Gilgamesh who coordinated with Tokiomi's strategy to cautiously spam Gate of Babylon and finally drop Enuma Elish...
Hiss, better not scare myself. That kind of plot doesn't exist. Calm down, calm down.
As for why Aaron chose to attack-move when Diarmuid was provoking—the reason was simple: points.
Back in *Akame ga Kill!*, he unlocked a hidden mission by killing Zank the Beheader.
And facts proved that the rewards for hidden missions were indeed incredibly generous.
So now, given the opportunity, he would definitely choose to prioritize defeating the enemy most likely to be defeated to unlock the mission.
The situation was different from the past. He wasn't the novice who relied solely on that one minute of Ittou Shura to solve enemies. In this situation, there was nothing wrong with maximizing his own benefits.
After all, cowardice and caution were completely different things. Choosing to hide when you know you have a high probability of defeating the opponent, and can escape even if disadvantaged...
Heh, hide, hide, hide. You can run, but you can't hide forever.
"Oh? A new presence approaches."
At the docks, Lancer Diarmuid of the Fourth Holy Grail War looked at the visitor who appeared before him and frowned slightly.
"Hmph. Although the Holy Grail War is a battle where both sides hide their True Names, do you intend to hide your face as well, sir?"
"Oh, my apologies for that. After all, I'm too ugly. I'm afraid I'd scare a high-and-mighty knight like you to death."
On the way here, Aaron had already clamped a pale white mask, which had turned into a D-rank Noble Phantasm, onto his face. He had also equipped his Teigu and boosted his attributes by consuming various dishes provided by Mei.
According to his calculations, even in this base state, his speed and perception had increased by at least thirty percent.
Currently, these buffs would last for about three minutes.
But three minutes... was actually enough for Aaron to settle the outcome with the opponent.
"A fellow who hides his head and shows his tail... Hmph, so be it."
Seeing that the man before him intended to maintain this faceless appearance, Diarmuid lowered his stance slightly.
As a Servant who revered chivalry, he obviously had no goodwill toward such secretive enemies.
In this situation, since the enemy had concealed his face, Diarmuid naturally had no desire to exchange many words with such a person.
[Lancer, be careful.]
At this moment, Kayneth, who was observing the battle nearby and had not yet had a misunderstanding with Diarmuid, sent a message.
[This guy, I can't see his Class or attributes clearly. This Servant is a bit strange.]
[I see. So the mana fluctuation on him wasn't my imagination? Thank you for the warning, my Lord.]
[But I have already sworn to bring you victory—since he is hiding his head and tail, that action also implies he lacks the confidence to face me directly.]
[Indeed. In terms of presence, the opponent is clearly inferior to you. Then let me witness your skills, Lancer.]
[End it quickly. Strike before other Servants arrive in the vicinity. Of course, if there is a chance to take this fellow's life, using your Noble Phantasm is fine.]
[...Thank you for your trust, my Lord.]
After cutting off communication with Kayneth, a murderous intent appeared in Diarmuid's eyes.
Although he disliked battles where names were mutually concealed, when he came to this world this time, he swore to offer victory to his Lord.
And this time, his Lord trusted his strength immensely—allowing him to use his Noble Phantasm was the best proof.
Using a Noble Phantasm was almost equivalent to [Revealing True Name] for Servants. Once the True Name was exposed, a Servant could easily be targeted by enemies using weaknesses from their legends.
If a Servant lost, they would at most return to the Throne of Heroes. But the Master who lost because the True Name was exposed... Diarmuid knew they would definitely not have a good ending.
In other words, in Diarmuid's perception, the Master allowing him to use his Noble Phantasm freely was equivalent to entrusting his life to Diarmuid's spear.
For the First Knight of Fianna who craved to offer glory to his Lord, was there anything more blood-pumping than this?!
"Ho, obvious killing intent."
*Facing this kind of enemy, I was actually thinking of using him for testing. Current me... seems I really have gotten a bit cocky.*
"This killing intent is something we should release as enemies, wouldn't you say, unknown Servant?"
After assuming a combat stance and exchanging greetings, Diarmuid's body instantly vanished from his spot.
At the same time, Aaron immediately activated two Spirit Commands.
[Spirit Commands—Focus, Intuition, Activate.]
After activating the two Spirit Commands that boosted accuracy and evasion, Aaron could feel that it wasn't an illusion last time when he felt things within his vision slow down.
*Heh, the effect of heightened perception?*
*In that case, even if my technique isn't refined enough and my experience is inferior to these knights who lived through slaughter on the battlefield, I can easily evade their attacks before my movement patterns are seen through.*
Diarmuid's spear speed was indeed fast, but no matter how fast he was, a long spear was ultimately a weapon that sacrificed speed for reach.
*With his current speed, dodging is easy for me. Then...*
Easily dodging the strike, Aaron activated the special effect of the Teigu [Water Dragon's Possession: Black Marlin] on his finger.
Before coming here, he had specifically investigated the surrounding environment.
This location was close to where Saber and Lancer fought in the original work. In other words, there was a large amount of water nearby.
At the same time, to prevent ordinary people from disturbing the battle, Kayneth had specifically set up a barrier to drive them away.
In other words, everyone here right now was involved in the Holy Grail War.
Since everyone was a target that must be killed from the start, Aaron felt there was absolutely no need to hold back as long as he didn't interfere with innocent passersby.
"You... your movements are surprisingly agile."
Looking at Aaron, who was continuously dodging attacks, Diarmuid felt quite surprised.
"But why not draw your weapon—are you looking down on me?"
"To be honest, a little bit. After all..."
After rolling to create distance from the enemy before him, Aaron placed his hand on the ground and suddenly smiled.
"To force me to use my full power, this state of hiding your Noble Phantasms isn't quite enough."
"This move doesn't seem to have a name in the original work, so... whatever, names don't matter."
"Let's see how many reckless fools are hiding nearby!"
Diarmuid, who hadn't realized what was happening, stared at the water waves suddenly manifesting around him, stunned for a second.
"This is... You're this agile, yet you're Caster?!"
"Who knows—by the way, you actually have time to chat with me?"
[Damn it! Lancer, use your Noble Phantasm! Kill him quickly!]
At this moment, Kayneth, whose IQ had not yet gone offline, immediately realized Aaron's intention.
[He guessed there were Masters nearby, so he plans to use this move to take me out!]
When facing other magi, Kayneth naturally didn't think he would lose. But the problem was, the enemy fighting Lancer was a Servant.
Caster was a class only those skilled in magecraft were chosen for. When facing a Servant skilled in magecraft, could his Volumen Hydrargyrum completely defend against the opponent's attack?
Kayneth didn't know, and he didn't dare to gamble. He could only ask Lancer to see if he could interrupt the opponent's casting.
If that really didn't work, Kayneth felt he could only use a Command Spell to strengthen Lancer and have him carry him away from here.
*This Servant is truly damnable, actually using such underhanded means!*
*Shouldn't Servants fight Servants?*
*What kind of hero targets the Master!*
Diarmuid naturally couldn't hear Kayneth's internal complaints, but looking at the surrounding waves, he did feel the crisis growing.
His B-rank Magic Resistance could render great magecraft ineffective against him, but the problem was that this move looked more like an attack from a released Noble Phantasm than a magic attack!
*Using an Ultimate right off the bat—isn't this guy afraid of his True Name being guessed???*
*I thought this guy wearing a mask and cloak without drawing a weapon was the one hiding his head and tail. Now it seems the one hiding his head and tail is me, wrapping my twin spears in cloth.*
*Using a Noble Phantasm upon meeting is equivalent to directly telling the opponent the range of your True Name—is this guy reckless, or is he strong enough to have such confidence?!*
"Stop right there! Caster!"
"No~ way~ speaking of which, can you go any faster?"
After dodging Diarmuid's twin spears, Aaron spoke to Diarmuid with incredible calm.
"Soon, this place will be flooded. Although I don't expect this level of water impact to kill your Master, the problem lies in—once your Master reveals himself, other Masters might start targeting him."
"If you don't take me out, your Master isn't necessarily dead meat, but he'll definitely be in danger."
Sensing Diarmuid's twin spears getting faster, Aaron sneered.
"That's right. If you don't eliminate me, your Master will die—attack me with that thought in mind."
"Sir, don't push people too far! This is a battle between us—"
"Are you kidding? From the moment we stepped onto this battlefield, both you and your Master became my enemies. Could it be that the high-and-mighty knight thinks—defeating enemies on the battlefield is wrong?"
"Stop with the double standards, Sir Knight. Instead of condemning me with your mouth, you should consider using your strength to defeat me."
After glancing at the surrounding waves, Aaron suddenly stopped moving.
"No, maybe it's already too late. After all..."
"The time has come."
With a snap of his fingers, the water condensed by Black Marlin directly submerged the docks.
"Caster! You bastard!"
"Move. Move faster. It's too late to hammer me now, hurry and save your Master—anyway, the moment you move, I'll know where your Master is. Then I'll just fire a Great Magecraft spell over there and he's dead."
"It's fine if you don't move either. Anyway, if your Master isn't drowned, I'll just increase the volume until he is. Come on, come on, let me see. Will you move or not?"
For Kayneth to defend against this wave with his strength—that was indeed not a big problem.
But for Diarmuid to watch his boss get flooded and fall into danger, he certainly wouldn't be reconciled.
Diarmuid sadly discovered that less than a minute into fighting this opponent, it was as if his inner thoughts had been seen through.
Mr. Knight of the Lance, who wished to be loyal to his Lord, would want to save his Master even if he knew the Master might be fine.
And now, Aaron had spoken his plan aloud. This was a pure open scheme.
Either Diarmuid goes to save him, and it becomes a race between him and Aaron's attack.
Or Diarmuid watches his boss get submerged—but he couldn't do that.
[Lancer you bastard what are you thinking hurry up and come save me are you hesitating because of a few words from the enemy are you an idiot that's a water manipulation skill and there's no water around so he can't attack me do you really want to waste my Command Spell hurry up!]
[...Yes, my Lord!]
Hearing Kayneth's exasperated voice, Diarmuid dared not hesitate for a second longer. He immediately tried to burst with speed to reach his Lord's side and save him.
But Aaron, who had already sensed Diarmuid's intent, did one thing.
He took out buckets filled with water from his storage space and made them appear directly at his feet.
Diarmuid and the hiding Kayneth, seeing the two plastic buckets appearing beside Aaron, instantly sensed something was wrong.
*Wait, what is this? Teleportation magecraft???*
*That... that's liquid inside too, holy crap!*
The water turned into sharp blades and throwing spears, projecting directly along Diarmuid's path.
Seeing this scene, Kayneth directly abandoned the idea of 'saving Command Spells' and, with incomparable humiliation, activated his first Command Spell.
[Lancer, protect my life!]
[Acknowledged!]
Diarmuid was already burning with anxiety. With the boost from the Command Spell, he instantly moved to Kayneth's side. Taking his Lord, he completed several continuous jumps and temporarily left the dangerous area.
But compared to the relatively lucky Kayneth, others in the vicinity were not so fortunate.
Kayneth's barrier did drive away ordinary people unrelated to the Holy Grail War, but...
—Emiya Kiritsugu's assistant, Hisau Maiya, was no ordinary person unrelated to the Holy Grail War.
Just now, she and Emiya Kiritsugu had arrived at the battlefield. After discovering the two pieces of intelligence—that the Servant fighting Lancer was Caster, and that Lancer's Master was nearby—they had intended to find an opportunity to ambush Lancer's Master.
Because of this reason, the two didn't leave after gathering intelligence but prepared to look for a chance to headshot Kayneth.
But also because of this reason—they were now too late to escape.
As the water controlled by Black Marlin began to submerge the nearby area, Emiya Kiritsugu gritted his teeth hard and made a choice that wasn't very heartless.
According to his philosophy...
Emiya Kiritsugu needs the Holy Grail to save the world → Emiya Kiritsugu needs to eliminate other competitors to get the Holy Grail → As long as he can defeat other competitors, it doesn't matter if others are accidentally pitted to death → In this fierce competition, Command Spells are important → Preserving Command Spells is what he should do; they shouldn't be wasted on things unrelated to combat.
But now, he rushed directly to Hisau Maiya's vicinity and activated his first Command Spell.
[Saber, come here and get me out of here!]
Artoria, instantly appearing there, looked at the surrounding water. She helplessly tucked Emiya Kiritsugu and Hisau Maiya under her arms, then with a few leaps, delivered the two to a safe zone.
Looking at the flood appearing around them, Artoria instantly understood what had just happened.
On her way here, the Servant provoking others had already started fighting another Servant. As a result, after sparks flew between the two sides, one side directly released a Noble Phantasm.
And Kiritsugu and the woman beside him, who intended to act in the dark, very coincidentally and unluckily became the targets of this Noble Phantasm attack.
*Truly unbelievable. If you were going to act in the dark, at least be a little careful.*
Of course, Artoria wouldn't voice the complaints in her heart just because her Master made a mistake once.
But now, both Artoria and Emiya Kiritsugu understood one thing.
Emiya Kiritsugu's plan to hide and let Irisviel pretend to be the Master had ended before it even began.
"Kiritsugu, please hide well with your assistant. I will go defeat the surrounding enemies. If we let him continue like this, you might still be attacked."
"No, wait, Saber."
Stopping Artoria, Emiya Kiritsugu spoke to her.
"Wait. Act after the battle between Lancer and Caster concludes."
"You mean... you want me to act after both sides are mutually wounded?"
Hearing Emiya Kiritsugu's idea, Artoria frowned slightly.
"This method, isn't it a bit..."
*Sure enough, my compatibility with this King of Knights is absolutely terrible.*
Sighing slightly, Emiya Kiritsugu didn't say anything more.
He knew that while she respected his ideas, it was only 'respecting ideas.' Asking a Servant known as the King of Knights to do things she considered incredibly despicable... the fact that she hadn't turned hostile was already giving him face.
Moreover, Emiya Kiritsugu was already angry at Artoria.
He was angry that 'Britain entrusted a heavy mission to an innocent young girl,' and even more angry that 'Artoria accepted this fate.' Emiya Kiritsugu, angry about these things, didn't want to communicate too much with the Servant in front of him anyway.
Realizing his way of thinking was completely different from hers, Emiya Kiritsugu indifferently lit a cigarette and responded with his actions.
*Do what you want. I can't control you, and I can't be bothered to try.*
*Kiritsugu, you...!*
Helplessly realizing that Emiya Kiritsugu had chosen the path of refusing communication, Artoria could only turn her gaze back to the battlefield.
On the battlefield, Lancer, who had already rescued his Master, turned his gaze to Caster below.
On the other side, Caster, having failed to succeed, seemed to have no intention of leaving either.
Both sides still wanted to fight, so... what about herself?
As a knight, Artoria suddenly realized that intervening in their battle at this moment seemed a bit inappropriate.
Although intervening when they were both wounded was worse, if she intervened now, it would be equivalent to interrupting the duel between the two. This... didn't quite fit her chivalry.
If speaking as a Servant—Kiritsugu's choice was to let her stay put first. As for whether to finish them off after they had their fun, that was a matter for later.
"Kiritsugu, you and she be careful here. I'm a bit worried about Irisviel."
"Ah, go protect Iri. I just surveyed the situation around us; there are no other enemies on our side for now."
"Kiritsugu, no, that is...!"
Hisau Maiya, who had sensed the atmosphere was wrong from the start, began completing her professional duties, continuing to gather intelligence on the vicinity.
And now, she discovered an enemy nearby.
An enemy who shouldn't be here.
"Kiritsugu, Saber. To our far right, there is a figure in black robes wearing a skeletal mask."
"Is that... the Assassin Kiritsugu mentioned had already been eliminated?"
............
After using one precious Command Spell, Kayneth was safe for the time being.
Before the battle started, he absolutely didn't expect such a thing to happen.
Moreover, he felt this couldn't be blamed on him.
As one of the Three Knight Classes, and one of the agile ones at that, the Knight of the Lance theoretically should be able to keep the enemy firmly pinned down in combat.
It would be one thing if it were the Archer class with extremely high ranged output, but the problem was that this time it was a Magus, a Caster!
The Knight of the Lance had Magic Resistance, a skill that countered the opponent to death, and incredibly swift speed. Shouldn't he suppress the opponent in close combat so hard they couldn't breathe, making them unable to use Noble Phantasms or magecraft?!
This Caster even actively came to play melee with Diarmuid. The melee Spearman didn't finish off Caster, and even let him use a Noble Phantasm that nearly killed his Master...
Thinking about it carefully, isn't this because Diarmuid is incompetent?!
If not for his incompetence, why would I have to suffer such a scare!
Although Diarmuid didn't perceive the change in Kayneth's inner attitude, the expression on his face right now was clearly not looking good either.
He had sworn to bring victory to his Lord, but as a result, his Lord was nearly drowned by the enemy in one move...
This wasn't just a slap in the face; it was practically stepping on his head and shitting.
Could he tolerate this?
Could his Master tolerate this?
"Lancer! Kill him for me! If you can't kill him, don't come back to see me!"
"Yes! My Lord! I shall follow your command!"
Even though the two had completely different thoughts, Aaron, down below, felt the murderous aura released towards him by both Master and Servant simultaneously.
"Woah, so much killing intent."
"I only made one move; no need to be so petty, right?"
............