The sounds of battle rang through the fields that night.
Swords clanged against spears, cutting and slashing their way through ranks of homunculi, golems, Dragon Tooth Warriors, and more. Corpses littered the ground, which ran dark with blood.
Scattered throughout the field were Servants locked in combat, their fluid movements making it look more like a dance than a fight to the death.
Karna brought his spear up, pushing against Siegfried's sword and forcing the Saber back a step. Siegfried retaliated by sending a burst of prana through his sword to blast it at Karna, but it was negated with Kavacha and Kundala.
In the forest, teacher and pupil clashed. Chiron blocked Achilles' spear thrusts and sent his student crashing to the ground.
In another section of the field, arrows rained down and sliced through limbs of homunculi. Atalanta let down a relentless rain of arrows, while nimbly avoiding the enemy's attacks.
In another area, Mordred clashed with Astolfo and Frankenstein. While it was two-on-one, her swordsmanship was still superior to that of both Black Servants, and she was easily holding her own.
In a deeper section of the forest, Jack the Ripper smiled happily as she dismembered some homunculi for their hearts, occasionally turning to the side to cut down any golems that got too close.
Karna sent a silent apology to Haru before his right eye glowed red, activating Brahmastra. A focused beam of prana shot out and burned through Siegfried's side, who barely jumped away in time. The beam went on to incinerate a few homunculi and Dragon Tooth Warriors behind them.
"Magnificent," Siegfried said steadily, grimacing at his burned side. Despite the armour of Fafnir negating most of the damage, it still hurt. He could feel Gordes healing it already, and winced at the telepathic scolding he received along with it. "You have pierced my armour again."
"It comes at great cost to my Master, but she is able to take care of herself," Karna replied. "I am curious about one thing, though."
"What is it?" Siegfried said as he took a ready stance with his sword at the ready.
"I have not seen my counterpart yet. Where is the ruler of this land, Lancer of Black?"
Siegfried fell silent. "I have not seen him in battle."
"I see." Karna raised his spear and the two resumed clashing.
Sorry to cut your fight short but Vlad's intercepting Atalanta, Karnacchi. She'll have trouble with him.
I see. I can fight both of them at the same time, but it will consume more of your mana.
Oh, I'll be fine. I'm only on my second apple and Arthur's barely taking any from me. I suggest you team up with Atalanta to take down Vlad and Siegfried both, but it's your call. Don't forget to watch out for Spartacus.
Understood. How are you doing?
I'm fine. I doubt Semiramis would try to poison me now. I may or may not have subtly threatened Amakusa with another Gandr round to keep him from trying to tell me to give up my Command Seals.
Karna cut off the connection with Haru and leapt back to avoid a strike from Siegfried. "It appears that Lancer of Black has intercepted Archer from my master's observations."
"…"
"I foresee that we will clash again before the end of this war. I will follow my Master's orders to engage Lancer of Black in combat. I do not mind taking on both of you at the same time, but it is your choice." Karna nodded slightly and turned to leave.
"Wait!" Siegfried called.
Karna tilted his head.
"Do you know… what became of the homunculus Rider rescued?"
Karna's lips twitched up slightly. "I believe he is fine." He dematerialized swiftly, leaving Siegfried alone on the battlefield.
Siegfried sighed as he tuned out Gordes' rants about Karna's cowardice. Suddenly, he heard Astolfo's telepathic voice yell through his head.
Someone help me and Berserker with Saber of Red! We're getting pushed back!
Siegfried looked around to locate the androgynous Servant, and noted flashes of red and green lightning not far from him. I will battle Karna again, he thought to himself. And next time… I will not lose.
"Ah, looks like Atalanta got saved just in time," Haru said as she watched Karna burn a wave of stakes aimed at Atalanta from the viewing screens Semiramis provided in the throne room. She casually bit into another golden apple, sighing in relief at the extra burst of mana. Karna's activation of Brahmastra earlier had almost drained her in one go as he had put most of his mana into it.
"I'm surprised you were able to tear him away from his battle with Saber of Black," Semiramis mused as she watched Mordred knock Astolfo to the ground before dodging a strike from Siegfried. "Our Saber on the other hand appears to have some trouble handling three Servants at once."
"She'll be fine," Haru said nonchalantly. "She'll kill me for casually revealing her True Name, but I'm sure Mordred can hold her own."
"The Knight of Treachery is a girl?" Shirou asked, slightly bemused.
"So are a lot of reputed male figures like Nero Claudius, Nobunaga Oda, and Souji Okita, among others," Haru said casually. Shirou stared at her for a few seconds, but Haru had pulled out her phone to farm EXP and therefore ignored him. "What's up with the rogue Servant, by the way?"
"Somehow he was summoned even with the Greater Grail's restrictions and has thrown the Black Faction into a state of confusion following his capture of one of their homunculi which you also sent Lancer to acquire," Shirou answered. "Why did you want him, anyways?"
"A friend of mine from the future asked me to save him. I tried," Haru said with a helpless shrug, looking up from her phone. "I couldn't tell who the rogue Servant is, but if he trips up the Black Faction then all the better for you, right?"
"Only if he doesn't turn his blade on us," Semiramis replied. "My Master has also figured out his identity to be Arthur Pendragon, Saber's father. She may go after him if she finds out."
"Not my problem," Haru said. Internally, she smirked. What they don't know is that they're aware of each other's existence and that they get along perfectly fine.
Feeling a sudden drain on her prana reserves, she quickly popped another apple in her mouth and checked Karna's battle status with Vlad. The golden lancer had activated his Mana Burst of Flames to burn through the Romanian lord's stakes, which explained the prana drain. "He hasn't used Volumen Hydragyrum yet…" she muttered. "Should I switch Mystic Codes?"
"Spartacus has appeared," Shirou announced suddenly. "He's going straight for the lancers."
"Where's Ruler?" Haru asked. "Spartacus is a massive suicide bomb if attacked too much—she's the only one with a Noble Phantasm effective enough to nullify that."
Shirou raised an eyebrow at the news but silently gestured for Semiramis to cease her aerial bombing of Jeanne's location. Semiramis complied with a slight scowl.
"Anyways—" Haru paused as a portal opened behind her and fired a Black Key in a random direction, piercing a certain Caster's cape. Shakespeare shrieked and dematerialized. "Can we get an eye on the rogue Servant? There's no way he wouldn't have shown up to the battle."
Semiramis raised an eyebrow at Haru's casual attack on Shakespeare. "You seem to have quite an interest in him."
"Hey, he is the legendary King Arthur. Can't blame me."
A screen showed up to see Arthur and Sieg leading a crowd of homunculi out of Yggdmillenia castle. Shirou's eyebrows rose higher. "Are they rescuing… the homunculi?"
"Don't the Masters of the Black Faction rely on the homunculi for mana batteries?" Haru asked.
"So they were going against the Black Faction. The fact that the stray homunculus is leading around the Servant means that whoever the rogue Master is, he must be using it as a proxy Master."
"It'd be nice if I could get the homunculus back for my friend…" Haru mumbled, then shrugged.
After all, everything was going perfectly according to her plan.
"OPPRESSORS!" Spartacus shrieked as he attacked Karna and Atalanta. "YOU WILL PAY!"
"… Tch!" Atalanta jumped back as the berserker's fist slammed down on the place where she had been standing just seconds ago. A little distance away from her was Karna, who was busy dodging Vlad's spikes.
It had turned into a three-way fight. Spartacus was unable to differentiate between friend or foe and attacked both Vlad and the Red Servants. Vlad would distract Karna with a wave of stakes before impaling Spartacus' limbs to immobilize him, before summoning another wave of stakes to block Atalanta's arrows. Karna, backed by Atalanta, would keep a few stakes from impaling her before slicing off one of Spartacus' flailing arms.
"This is getting nowhere," Atalanta muttered.
It also didn't help that Spartacus appeared to be mutating. New limbs and other appendages grew out of wounds, and soon the berserker was a deformed mass of flesh and eyeballs. She shot a few more arrows before jumping back to land on a boulder. readying her Noble Phantasm.
"Interesting to see what kind of Master summoned such a berserker as so," Vlad commented casually as he clashed spears with Karna.
Karna blinked back impassively, striking again and forcing Vlad to turn away from Atalanta. "I would not know."
Vlad stepped back slightly. "You are interesting, Lancer of Red. My stakes were even unable to pierce you from inside."
"I have my Master to thank for that," Karna said.
Vlad had tried to impale Karna from inside. Instead of piercing through the Indian hero's body, though, they had been forced outside his body and broken into splinters. That was due to Karna activating Volumen Hydragyrum at the last second, giving him temporary invincibility to all of Vlad's attacks.
They resumed their clash, but then they heard Atalanta's voice call out.
"Phoebus Catastrophe!"
A rain of arrows pelted the ground they were standing in. Karna's flames burned any arrow that got close, while Vlad protected himself with a wall of stakes. The majority of the arrows were aimed at Spartacus, though, and tore through the berserker's body.
As the assault subsided, Karna and Vlad watched as Spartacus' body only mutated even more.
"Oh, this is good pain! I will crush all the oppressors!"
"Oi, what's that eyesore?!"
Karna turned his head to see Mordred, Siegfried, Astolfo, and Frankenstein staring at the deformed mass of flesh. The battle between the two lancers had apparently pushed them to where the two sabers had been clashing.
"That is Berserker of Red," Atalanta informed them casually.
"What an ugly meat balloon," Mordred muttered.
Spartacus chose that moment to swing a fist down at Mordred, but she easily cleaved through his body. "Get out of the way, ugly! You interrupted the best fight I've had in a while!"
Vlad glanced at Astolfo. "You were pushed back even with Berserker's and Saber's help?"
Astolfo smiled sheepishly and rubbed the back of his head. "Well… we were almost close to overwhelming her?"
"Uuu…" Frankenstein mumbled.
Siegfried said nothing and exchanged glances with Karna.
Mordred's irritated voice interrupted their confrontation. "I don't care if you guys all take me on later, just get rid of this eyesore first! I can't fight you guys without it interfering and I think it's going to blow up!"
True to her words, everyone could see Spartacus' body beginning to pulse.
"His Noble Phantasm… and we're close to the city as well!" Atalanta said.
Vlad gritted his teeth but turned to Karna. "I propose a temporary truce until we find a way to destroy this volatile Servant without harming any civilians."
"Noble words, king of this land. I will accept. But how do we destroy him?"
"We need a Servant with a defensive Noble Phantasm or maybe another Noble Phantasm with an equally destructive Noble Phantasm to cancel it out…" Mordred suggested.
"What's going on here?!" Two new voices said at the same time. Sieg and Jeanne then proceeded to stare at each other, as they had arrived at the same time.
"Oh, Ruler and… the stray homunculus," Vlad commented. "Brave of you to come back."
Arthur materialized in front of Sieg, Excalibur out. "Harm the homunculus and I will attack," he warned.
"Oh?"
"I came here to rescue Rider," Sieg stated simply. Astolfo looked torn between being happy that Sieg was alive and well and scared for his safety.
"I came to mediate the battle… but what's going on?" Jeanne asked.
"Long story short, he's about to blow up," Mordred said, waving a hand towards Spartacus. "Any way to nullify the blast?"
"I can probably shield the homunculus with my Noble Phantasm, but that won't completely nullify the damage," Jeanne said. "The rest of you, please go into spiritual form if you are able."
Arthur tilted his head as if receiving a telepathic message, and stepped forward. "My Master has informed me to use my Noble Phantasm against Berserker of Red. Do not worry about protecting me." Master Haru was wise to have me keep Volumen Hydragyrum.
"Excalibur… the Sword of Promised Victory. Show me you are worthy of your title then, King of Knights," Vlad stated.
"Then it's settled!" Mordred said. "I want to battle Father after this, so you scrubs better find another opponent!"
"Wait… father? You're Mordred?!" Astolfo said in surprise. "But that means the Knight of Treachery's actually a girl—"
Mordred casually pointed her sword at him. "Call me that and I'll kill you before battling Father. Got it?"
"Enough talk. He will explode soon."
"Everyone, get behind me!"
All the Servants save Vlad and Astolfo dematerialized. The two remaining Servants stepped behind Jeanne, Astolfo standing in front of Sieg protectively.
Jeanne stepped forward with Arthur at her side. The two exchanged glances. "I want to know what is going on after this," the Ruler said.
"You may not get all your answers," Arthur answered. He turned to Spartacus' pulsing form and released Invisible Air's sheath. Excalibur glowed golden in the dark night, illuminating the battlefield. "Seal Thirteen, decision start!"
The enemy must be more powerful than oneself.
The battle must be one-on-one.
The enemy must not be an elemental.
The battle must not involve personal gain.
The battle must not be inhumane.
The battle must be to live.
Bedivere, Palamedes, Lancelot, Galahad, Gaheris, Kay… thank you. With six seals broken, that is more than enough power.
Just before he swung, Arthur felt a rush of extra mana. Haru had activated an attack up boost on him. Thank you, Master Haru.
"EX… CALIBUR!"
Arthur swung his sword and a wave of immense golden light rushed towards Spartacus just as his body began to explode, and swallowed him up. Behind him, Jeanne chanted the aria for her own Noble Phantasm.
"My flag, defend our brethren! Luminosité Eternelle!"
The entire battlefield was engulfed in light.
While the Servants were busy fending off Spartacus, the Hanging Gardens of Babylon had flown silently into Yggdmillenia ground undetected. Now, it hovered right above a certain area of the castle.
Haru, Semiramis, and Amakusa stood in a large, empty chamber on the lowest level of the Gardens. Semiramis gestured and magic circles appeared before her. "You may want to hold onto something, girl," Semiramis commented. "I doubt humans would be able to withstand the pressure from this spell."
"Got it," Haru replied as she reinforced her limbs and grabbed onto one of the support pillars.
With another gesture, a square in the ground opened up. Below, Haru could see the faint glowing of the Greater Grail, and shivered as she felt its aura of power.
Shirou watched the proceeds go with feverish desire in his eyes. "Soon… soon, the Greater Grail will be ours," he murmured.
Haru looked with mild concern at the Ruler-class Servant that was a friend back in Chaldea. She had heard stories about his wish and desires from other Servants, but witnessing him like this unnerved her slightly. I think I'll have to summon Edmond or Jeanne Alter here to keep him occupied, mana consumption be damned. Even Jeanne's La Pucelle couldn't stop his Noble Phantasm. Let's see here… Edmond's Mana rank is lower than Jeanne Alter's, so I guess I'll summon him when I can. Or hell, how about both of them? Edmond to distract Amakusa and Jeanne Alter to confuse the hell out of Jeanne. I'll just have to eat like 5 apples.
Haru snapped out of her thoughts as she felt mana fill the air. A powerful spell had broken through the Yggdmillenia Castle to capture the Greater Grail, pulling it upwards from its confines within the castle. She watched as the Greater Grail floated into the chamber that was prepared for it, keeping a firm hold on the pillars. The wind howled fiercely around her as the hole slowly closed up.
And suddenly, it was silent.
The Greater Grail sat silently, pulsing softly with golden light and illuminating the dark room. Amakusa and Semiramis stared at the construct in silent awe. "This is… the Greater Grail…" The Ruler-class Servant breathed.
Haru also stared at the Greater Grail in confusion, because it really didn't look like a Grail to her. "It's not a cup?" She asked out loud.
"No," Amakusa replied, having repressed his awe. "The Greater Grail was never meant to be one. It's more like a core than anything else."
"Oh."
Semiramis turned around sharply as screens materialized in front of her. "We seem to have uninvited guests approaching. We must take care of them first."
Amakusa nodded in understanding, and Haru reached out to Karna.
Karnacchi, get back here! They have the Greater Grail!
Understood.
Arthur, stay with Sieg and keep an eye on Astolfo and Siegfried! I'll call you here with a Command Seal!
Understood, Master Haru.
Haru followed Semiramis and Amakusa as they made their way out of the chambers and into the chapel via a secret passageway Semiramis opened in the wall to avoid any Servants.
"Now what do I do?" Haru complained. "I don't want to hide in here. Not while you guys steal the other Masters' Command Seals."
"You're not going to attempt to stop that?" Amakusa asked.
"As if I could stop you. What's the situation, Queen Semiramis?"
"Rider and Archer are intercepting Lancer of Black, Caster of Black and Archer of Black. Lancer is behind them," Semiramis observed casually. "What shall we do?"
"What happened in this fight?" Amakusa asked.
"Darnic uses his Command Seals to force Vlad to invoke his Noble Phantasm… eh, I forgot the name but he turns into a legit Dead Apostle, and then fuses their souls together. Creepy. Oh, wait, I think I can prevent that! Gotta go bye!" Haru rushed off before Amakusa or Semiramis could stop her.
The Master and Servant stared at her retreating form. "Whose side was she on again?"
The Black Servants had just begun their fight with the Red Servants in the hallways of the Gardens.
Vlad, his power weakened, struggled to keep up with Karna's strikes. Chiron and Achilles clashed viciously, neither of them refusing to give an inch. Atalanta's arrows took down golems and homunculi each, some of them also aimed at Avicebron, who shielded himself with more golems.
At first, it looked even.
But slowly, surely, the Red Servants were winning. It was their home turf, after all.
"Why am I weakened here…" Vlad growled as he blocked an attack from Karna.
"You are no longer on Romanian soil. Have your subjects abandoned you, lord of the land?" Karna asked.
A human voice, amplified with magecraft, cut through the fighting. "The Black Faction will not be able to win here."
Vlad turned in surprise. "Darnic?"
Chiron and Avicebron turned as well to see Darnic on a balcony overlooking the hall.
"How did he get here?" Achilles muttered.
"Truly, the Black Faction is weakened here… unless you use that Noble Phantasm, Lancer," Darnic said steadily.
Karna watched as Vlad stiffened. " What did you just say to me, Darnic?" He growled.
"Do not make me repeat myself. I am ordering you to release your Noble Phantasm, Legend of Dracula."
"And I said I would never release that Noble Phantasm!" Vlad snarled.
"Know your place, you mere familiar!" Darnic snapped, his voice growing louder with hysteria. "I did not summon you for nothing! I summoned you so you would win the Grail for me! A Servant must obey what his Master wishes! Now, Lancer…"
"DARNIC!" Vlad's voice held a hint of panic.
"With my Command Seal, I command you to—"
"Oh no you don't! Gandr! "
All the Servants blinked as Darnic seized up and fell from the balcony, seemingly paralyzed. The force knocked the Yggdmillenia clan unconscious, but the Servants were more focused on the red-haired girl that ran up to them, out of breath.
"Master, what are you doing here?!" Karna asked.
"Obviously to save Vlad!"
Vlad stared in shock as Haru pulled out some chains from nowhere and began tying up Darnic. "Girl, what did you just do?"
"I anticipated Darnic would make you use the Noble Phantasm you hated and decided to knock him out. You deserve a fight retaining your own sense of self, not someone else's, Vlad III."
"But he's the enemy…?" Achilles asked uncertainly.
"Believe me, none of you are able to kill a Dead Apostle. Unless you're a saint. Besides, Darnic's wrong. Servants aren't familiars. They have their own selves, their own feelings, and their own wishes. Trampling over all that just for the Master's desire is wrong. That's why I don't care whoever the Servant is. Whether they're an enemy or not, if their Master is being a jerk, I'll do my best to help them out, since they deserve better than that."
Chiron clapped. "Wise words."
Vlad watched silently as Haru used some Black Keys to pin Darnic to the wall, and spoke. "I owe you my gratitude, Lancer of Red's Master. I had observed you in earlier battles and thought you as a worthy Master, but I now see that you are also a considerate mage."
"Ehehe, no need to praise me. I just like helping out Servants."
Karna sighed faintly, but Achilles heard and gave the lancer a sympathetic look.
Darnic blinked awake, and his eyes settled on Haru and a normal-looking Vlad. "Girl…" he growled. "Untie me."
"Nope~" Haru sang, a sudden dark aura rising off her. "Oh, and please don't talk or use your Command Seals or else I might decapitate you with the same spell I used on Gordes." As if to prove her point, a few portals opened up behind her, Black Keys poking out.
This time even Avicebron and Chiron stared in surprise at Haru's sudden change in mood.
Karna could only shake his head. "She had a grudge against him as well… it was my error in forgetting that."
Darnic only smiled grimly as his Command Seals flashed, a silent order in his mind.
"No you don't," Haru said stonily as a Black Key impaled Darnic's hand. Blood gushed out, and Darnic howled in pain. "I don't like hurting people but you're one of the most heartless magi I've ever heard of." Three more portals flashed, Black Keys now impaled into Darnic's other hand and legs. "One more word or thought out of you and the next one goes through your throat."
Darnic laughed, staring into Haru's eyes. "You won't be able to. You've never killed a human before, have you, girl?"
"I won't know until I try," Haru breathed. A Black Key aimed itself at Darnic's throat, but it was trembling wildly, as if mirroring her uncertainty.
Darnic began laughing. "See? You can't do it, girl. I don't know how you were able to defeat Gordes with a simple mind like that, but you don't have the ability or the mindset to kill me here."
The Black Key shook wildly in its portal as Haru continued to stare down Darnic. A drop of sweat could be seen rolling down her neck as she breathed out slowly. Karna attempted to make a move but hesitated when he saw the concentration on Haru's face.
Jeanne, who had just arrived at the scene, stared in shock at the scene in front of her, but Chiron locked eyes with her and shook his head, silently asking her to refrain from interfering.
"Enough, girl." Vlad's voice cut through the stare-off. "You have proven your courage to me. I will repay the debt I owe you now for saving me. This is now a Black Faction problem. I will deal with him myself." He raised a hand, and Darnic's body was flung into the air momentarily as a stake shot through his chest.
Haru flinched as blood spattered onto her uniform, and stepped back. Karna immediately materialized at her side to support her. "Master!"
"I haven't killed him yet," Vlad said coolly as everyone stared Darnic's prone form. "I might, though, but I would lose my chance at the Grail. However, for the sake of your Master, Lancer of Red, I will order the Black Faction to withdraw here. We are weakened here on your territory and you have the Greater Grail in your grasp." He paused as Achilles and Atalanta suddenly grasped their chests and fell to their knees. "Hm?"
"Our… Masters…" Atalanta gasped.
"What happened?" Jeanne asked.
"Our Masters… something happened to them…"
Semiramis' amplified voice echoed through the hallways. "My Master and I request that everyone, friend or foe, gather in the chapel. We have an ultimatum for all Servants."
"They did it," Haru mumbled, still in a daze over what happened with Darnic. "Shirou Tokisada Amakusa… he took the Red Masters' Command Seals…"
"He did what now?!" Achilles and Atalanta swiftly dematerialized.
"What did you say?!" Jeanne ran up to Haru. "What do you mean by Shirou Tokisada Amakusa?!"
"Ruler, my Master isn't in the best mental condition to answer questions—"
"Karnacchi, I may be in shock, but this is more important." Haru used Karna as a support to stand up on shaking legs, but looked Jeanne in the eye. " Shirou Kotomine's true identity is the Ruler-class Servant from the Third Holy Grail War 60 years ago, Shirou Tokisada Amakusa. He wanted the Greater Grail to make his wish of saving humanity become reality. He's the one manipulating the Red Servants and their Masters. We have to stop him or else he'll rewrite the entirety of human history."
"H-how do you know all that?"
"Enough questions; if you want to stop him we have to go now!" With a silent command, Karna picked up Haru bride style and disappeared down a hallway.
Ruler turned to the Black Servants. "I want a temporary truce while we figure out what happened to the Red Faction. Will you accept it?"
"We will," Vlad replied as he motioned for Avicebron, Chiron and the homunculi to follow him.
The Black Servants and Ruler went deeper into the fortress.
At Yggdmillenia Castle, Fiore and the other Masters were slowly coming to terms that their most prized possession was now gone.
"The Greater Grail was stolen by the Red Faction while we were preoccupied with the battle… smart bastards…!" Gordes growled as he punched a wall.
"Uncle Gordes, I know how you feel, but please refrain from damaging more of the castle." Fiore tried to soothe the older mage, but her voice was tight with worry. Caules could only stand back as he watched his sister try and reason with the enraged Musik, silently checking on Frankenstein's condition via their mental link.
Gordes growled. "On top of that, that stray homunculus has the gall to return and free the rest of them! How are we supposed to continue our battle after this?!"
On another side of the castle, Roche sighed mournfully as he gazed at all the destroyed golems. "Teacher's golems were no good against Servants… but that's what we anticipated, though. Alright, I'll go make more for him when he gets back! We'll need to replenish our numbers as fast as possible!"
Finally, on the outer field, a very angry Celenike was confronting Astolfo. Sieg could only watch on as Arthur hovered close to him, wary eyes on Celenike and Siegfried. For his credit, Siegfried seemed more cautious of Celenike than Arthur, and was slowly retreating to where Frankenstein was watching the exchange curiously. Surprisingly, he hadn't been ordered to accompany Vlad to the Hanging Gardens, but instead told to keep guard on what was left of the castle with Frankenstein and Astolfo. He hadn't minded the order, but deep down wished he could have clashed with Karna again.
The two Sabers snapped out of their thoughts as Celenike raised her hand, a command seal flashing as it was used. "Rider, I command you to kill this homunculus!"
"Master, please!" Astolfo cried, struggling against the order. "Don't kill him!"
"Good; there's the face I wanted to see! All twisted up with despair!" Celenike shrieked, her eyes wide and crazed.
Astolfo's large lance materialized as he swung it at Sieg, but Arthur blocked and knocked the Rider back. "Saber of Black, get him away from here!"
Siegfried nodded and pushed Sieg behind him.
Celenike tched and another command seal glowed. "I order you once again. Kill that homunculus, Rider!"
"Master, please!"
Boosted by two command seals, Astolfo still wasn't able to compare against Arthur's skill and instincts, and was being pushed back.
Sieg clenched his fists. "Can't we do anything to help?" He asked Siegfried.
Siegfried shook his head. He kept Balmung at the ready in case Celenike decided to approach Sieg herself, but she seemed to prefer watching Astolfo fight Arthur. "The easiest way to solve this would be to kill Celenike, but that would sever Rider's connection with the world. The other way would be to kill Rider, but…"
"He saved me. I don't want him to die."
"Uuu…?" Frankenstein pointed at Sieg.
"What is it, Berserker?" Siegfried asked.
"Ha… nd…" Frankenstein pointed at Sieg's hand.
"Are you asking if I could contract with Astolfo?"
"Uuu!" Frankenstein nodded.
"I would, but I don't have Command Seals…"
"I am curious, though… your Saber considered to be a rogue Servant to us in the Black Faction. If he rescued you, then who is his Master…?"
"The same one who diverted Arthur's mana consumption to me. His Master has the command seals and can contract with Astolfo, but I doubt they would be able to at this moment." Sieg spoke carefully, making sure not to reveal Haru's identity to Siegfried. While he really did want to trust Siegfried with the information, now was not the time.
"Your rescuer seems to be a skilled magus. What did they want with you?"
"I wouldn't know the full reason why… but you may be able to ask them later."
For now, the homunculus and two Servants could only watch as two other Servants fought with their all.
The Black Faction and Jeanne arrived at the chapel to witness a stare-off between Haru, Karna, Semiramis, Amakusa, Achilles, and Atalanta.
To be precise, it wasn't really a stare-off. Semiramis wasn't staring, but instead glaring at Haru, who had a disturbing expression on her face. It was caught between a grimace and a smirk, with some regret mixed in. Karna was glancing worriedly at his Master, while Achilles and Atalanta were glaring daggers at Amakusa.
Semiramis spoke first, directing her question at Haru. "You meant to betray us all along, didn't you, girl? You've helped out the Black Faction far too many times to call you a loyal Master to the Red Faction."
"Oh? What makes you think that?" Haru replied in a steady tone. She was still holding onto Karna for support, but she stood tall, fearlessly staring back at the Assyrian queen.
"Answer me, girl."
"Who said I was on your side in the first place? I play for one side and that's my side. Our goals happened to coincide so I got you to help me out. I told you I was from the future, wasn't I? Shirou Tokisada Amakusa's wish will bring humanity to ruin, and as a Master who works for the preservation of humanity, I will not let that stand."
"Preservation of humanity…?" Jeanne breathed.
"Assassin, you can eliminate her later," Amakusa said, a pleasant smile on his face as if he was talking about the weather. "As we had said earlier, we had an ultimatum for the Servants on this Greater Holy Grail War. We have control of the Greater Grail. I address the Black Faction here: surrender."
Vlad laughed, a dangerous edge to his voice. "You think we would give up so easily? There is no clear advantage that I can see surrendering to you."
"Oh? Brave words from one who is trapped in a belly's beast," Semiramis commented casually.
"Let's hope it doesn't turn out to be a boulder in its stomach," Chiron retorted.
"Avicebron, let's hear your opinion," Amakusa said.
"How about no," Haru cut in, Black Key portals materializing around her. "Solomon ibn Gabirol, Master of Golems, your wish is to complete your Noble Phantasm, Golem Keter Malkuth. To do so, you will betray the Black Faction and contract with the Red Faction, and betray your own Master by sacrificing him to be the golem's core. You don't need the Holy Grail for your wish at all."
"You know too much, girl," Avicebron replied after a few moments of stunned silence.
"I'll admit this war hasn't been going the way I wanted, but if you die here then one of my headaches will be over."
"Caster, do you really dare to betray us?" Vlad inquired, his voice low and angry.
"I will work for whichever faction will help me achieve my wish."
"Then fall," Vlad spoke simply. His actions spoke louder though, as multiple stakes shot up and impaled Avicebron's body where he stood. One stake, in particular, had gone through his heart to shatter his Spirit Core, and Avicebron fell to his knees, blood pouring out of his wounds even as he began fading.
"So this… is… my end…" Avicebron choked out as he faded. "Let humanity… fall…" He disappeared.
In the silence that followed, Haru closed her portals. "Well, one Servant down." Her voice was detached and hollow. "What do you want now, Amakusa?"
"My earlier wish remains. Surrender or die here."
"I'd rather not surrender or die here, thank you very much. Not when your wish is the subjugation of humanity under the guise of salvation."
"Oya, it looks like my wishes have been revealed to you all," Amakusa said without any shock in his tone. "I have been waiting 60 years for this moment—I cannot die here. Do you really think you can defeat us all here in our own territory?"
"Of course not, but if you'd let me say something—"
"Denied," Semiramis hissed poisonously.
"You didn't let me finish," Haru said petulantly, crossing her arms. " I have the power to end you right here and right now, even without the Black Faction's power."
"What?" Achilles asked in surprise.
"Here's what I'm seeing right here, right now. On Shirou Tokisada Amakusa's side, we have a Ruler-class Servant, an Assassin-class Servant who controls this entire territory, and a Rider and Archer both with great power thanks to their lore and under Amakusa's control thanks to him taking their Masters' Command Seals. On the Black Faction's side, there's a Lancer-class Servant with authority over the land, and an Archer-class Servant with high Divinity and strength. There's another Ruler with no affiliation to any faction. And then, there's my side, and I'll temporarily ally myself with the Black Faction for now. I have a Lancer-class Servant with great conceptual lore. However, I do have a trump card." A wide grin stretched across her face as she held up her hand, Command Seals flashing. "By the power of my Command Seal, I order you. Arthur Pendragon, King of Knights, come to my side."
In a flash of red light, Arthur appeared at Haru's side, Excalibur unsheathed yet still hidden behind Invisible Air. "Master."
Everyone besides Karna gaped.
"Wait, wait, you're the rogue Master?!" Achilles exclaimed.
"You—how are you able to contract to two Servants?!" Jeanne cried. "The Greater Grail would not have allowed this!"
"Yeah, that's the problem: Arthur and Karna here weren't summoned by the Grail. I summoned them into this plane of the Kaleidoscope via the contracts I have with them in my world." And Haru grinned wider, showing off her remaining Command Seal. "I did a little bit of research and turns out I can summon any Servant I'm contracted to back in my own world with just one Command Seal . I have over 100 Servants contracted to me—some who would love a fight. Would you like me to summon Gilgamesh here, perhaps? Or maybe a goddess like Ishtar or Quetzalcoatl? Or maybe a Grand Servant like the First Hassan? And by the way, my Command Seals replenish themselves and my contracts don't break even if I use them all, so I can summon as many as I want. Right here, and right now. I can easily call them here to kill you and wreck this place. Shall I demonstrate for you?"
"All the better to kill you now, girl," Semiramis hissed, chains shooting at Haru. They were deflected immediately by Karna and Arthur before they even got within a few metres of her, and were destroyed by blasts of wind and fire.
Semiramis gritted her teeth, glancing at Amakusa for orders. Achilles and Atalanta continued to stare at Haru silently, something akin to respect in Achilles' expression and shock in Atalanta's.
Haru slowly raised up her hand. "By the power of my Command Seals, I order—"
"Enough," Amakusa interrupted. "I will allow you to retreat here. But bear this in mind—do you really think you will be able to win the war when we have the Greater Grail no matter how many Servants you summon?"
"When there's a will, there's a way. And to quote Murphy's Law: Anything that can go wrong will go wrong." With that, Haru calmly walked out the door with Karna and Arthur trailing behind her, but everyone could hear an explosion after a few seconds, indicating that she had blasted her way out.
"Lancer, what should we do?" Chiron asked.
"We have no choice but to withdraw here. Will you come with us, Ruler?" Vlad asked.
"It seems I have no choice since the rules for this war appear to have been completely overturned," Jeanne said with a sigh. She turned to Amakusa. "Know this, Shirou Tokisada Amakusa—I swear by my flag that I will not let your wish come to fruition."
The three Servants rushed out of the room, leaving behind a contemplative Amakusa and seething Semiramis. Achilles and Atalanta faded into spirit form to leave the two be.
Arthur had switched roles with Karna. He was now the one carrying Haru bride-style as he and the Indian lancer flew through the air, heading towards Yggdmillenia Castle. In his arms, Haru stared ahead almost blankly, and Arthur sent a mental question towards Karna. What happened?
She threatened and almost killed Darnic Prestone Yggdmillenia.
Arthur winced. Back at Chaldea, almost all the Servants shared the idea that their Master shouldn't be the one to shed any blood. Sure, Haru often threatened Shakespeare or Blackbeard with her Black Keys, but she had never once injured them. When interacting with humans in singularities, she hadn't lifted a single finger to harm any of them and just told the less scrupulous Servants to dispose of them quietly if they were a genuine threat to her life.
Will she be alright?
I don't know. How were things on your end?
Astolfo was ordered by his Master to kill Sieg, but I intervened and Siegfried kept him safe. I held off Astolfo but was then called here, so I'm hoping Siegfried and Frankenstein are able to hold Astolfo off. They had the idea of killing Celenike and getting Astolfo to contract to Haru, but obviously, she was in the Hanging Gardens and could not do so.
Let us head towards them then. We can talk with the rest of the Black Faction later.
Arthur nodded and with a very small Mana Burst, he changed course to where he had originally been on the battlefield. From his height, he could see Astolfo and Siegfried clashing, with Sieg not far behind at Frankenstein's side. Celenike hadn't approached Sieg.
Haru spoke up then, her voice sounding normal. "Arthur, is Celenike still alive?"
"She was just before you called me," Arthur said cautiously.
"Sieg's obviously going to want to rescue Astolfo from the creepy woman. I'll contract with him and redirect the mana consumption to Sieg."
"Alright."
They landed right beside Sieg and Frankenstein. Haru held her hand out to Sieg. "Glad to see you're still alive. I'm guessing you want to rescue Astolfo. Give me the Book of the False Attendant; I'll handle the rest."
Sieg handed the book over, surprise written in his features.
"Now then… I believe there's an extra guest here. Jackie, there's someone for you to kill," Haru called.
A young girl's laughter was heard in the wind, and Jack materialized in her battle attire. "Onee-chan! How did you notice we were here?"
Haru smiled and rubbed the young girl's head, causing Jack to giggle. "I had a feeling. See that creepy lady over there?"
Celenike didn't even seem to be paying attention to them anymore, instead relishing the desperate fight Astolfo was putting up. For his credit, Siegfried was holding back, trying to draw Astolfo away from Sieg and Frankenstein.
"She looks scary," Jack whispered.
"She is," Haru said. "If you take her out, that's one less creepy Master we'll have to deal with."
"Okay, we'll kill her!"
Jack disappeared, Presence Concealment activated.
Celenike was laughing maniacally as the tired Astolfo begged her to stop, but then he and Siegfried stopped clashing as a pair of knives swiftly dismembered the woman. Jack reappeared, her knives dripping blood. "The creepy lady's gone!" She cheered.
Astolfo dropped to his knees, and Sieg rushed over to him. "Are you alright?" He asked.
"Y-yeah… but… it looks like this is where my part ends… in the very least, I'm glad I got to rescue you." Astolfo smiled, but his eyes were bright with tears as he began fading into motes of prana.
"Then would you take a second chance if you had it?" Haru asked, walking up to him. Siegfried gave Haru a wary glance but didn't move.
"Yes! Wait, who are you?"
"I rescued Sieg over here; you can trust me."
Astolfo looked to Sieg for confirmation and was met with a nod. "What do I need to do?"
"Hold my hand; I'll handle the rest. Sieg, you're fine with maintaining his prana supply, right? I'll give you some apples later." Haru grasped Astolfo's outstretched hand and dropped 3 quartz she had taken out earlier onto the pages of the Book of the False Attendant, her Command Seals glowing brightly to complete the contract. After a few seconds, the glow subsided and Astolfo's body stopped dematerializing, the Rider now back in the world.
"Thank you so much!" Astolfo cried, shaking Haru's hand enthusiastically.
"No problem," she replied as she tossed the book back at Sieg. "We should get to Yggdmillenia Castle; there's some stuff we have to settle." Haru turned to Jack and ruffled her hair. "Good work, Jackie. Why don't you go back to your mommy? I'll visit you soon."
"Okay! Thanks, Onee-chan!" Jack dematerialized.
Haru sighed as Jack disappeared, reaching out to latch onto Karna's arm for support. "I'm tired."
"I understand, Master, but we still have to talk with Vlad."
"I just want to sleep," Haru whined. Remembering that Siegfried and Frankenstein hadn't said a single word upon her arrival, she waved to them. "Thanks for taking care of Sieg. Long story short; the Red Faction's broken apart so I'm allying myself with you guys. Vlad and Chiron should be back at the castle with Jeanne, so we should go there and discuss what's going to happen."
"You were the supposed rogue Master after all?" Siegfried asked.
"Yeah. I wanted to trip you guys up a bit, but I guess the cat's out of the bag. I probably shouldn't have saved Vlad if I wanted to maintain my secrecy a bit longer, but I couldn't resist. Oh well. I'll tell you guys everything at the castle. Deal?"
Siegfried nodded. "Thank you for rescuing Sieg."
Frankenstein nodded in agreement. "Uuu!"
"I do what I want; but if you guys are happy, it's fine. Now come on. Karna, carry me?"
"Alright."
Karna lifted Haru into his arms, and disappeared into the distance, making use of his agility to quickly head to Yggdmillenia Castle. After a moment's hesitation, Siegfried, Frankenstein, and Arthur dematerialized, leaving Sieg and Astolfo alone.
"Well, shall we get going as well?" The androgynous Rider asked with a grin.
"Yes."
When everyone had gathered in the ruins of Yggdmillenia Castle, Vlad spoke up first. "As of now, the Greater Grail War has fallen apart. The Red Faction possesses the Great Grail but it is entirely controlled by one man: Shirou Tokisada Amakusa. Our main objective is to take him down. Through this incident, though, we have gained an ally formerly of the Red Faction." He gestured to Haru, who gave a tired wave.
"My name's Haru Fujimaru. Most of you I haven't told, but I'm a magus from the future. The easy story is I'm here to prevent Shirou Tokisada Amakusa from achieving his wish since that would bring ruin to humanity, but Zelretch actually sent me here for his amusement."
At the mention of the Wizard Marshall's name, Fiore and Gordes paled.
Noticing this, Haru tried to smile sympathetically. "I'd apologize for messing up your war, but Amakusa's going to mess it up more than me. Zelretch also offered me a reward I couldn't refuse. Also, on an unrelated note. Vlad, how are you still alive?"
"I left Darnic confined in his room and barely alive," Vlad stated simply. "However, there is no other Master to contract with me and I must kill him soon for betraying me."
"Are you going to die then, and regret missing your opportunity to reach the Grail?"
"I would take the opportunity to contract with another Master, but there is no one here, is there?" Vlad asked, gazing pointedly at Haru.
Noticing his gaze, she shot a questioning one back. "What?"
"Was what you were saying back at the Hanging Gardens true? And will you be able to contract with me?"
"No. Complete bluff. I am contracted to over 100 Servants—one of them being you, by the way—but it is impossible for me to call them here with just a Command Seal. I summoned Karna and Arthur with summoning circles, and even then, I've redirected Arthur's mana consumption to Sieg over here since I can't sustain the both of them during a fight. As for me contracting to you, I suppose I could because your Spirit Origin is different from the Vlad III I summoned back in Chaldea, but what would you do once the war is over? I doubt I can bring you back with me."
"That is fine. A temporary contract with you will suffice. I was summoned into this world and I will remain in this world until my end. The Black Faction is still able to redirect mana consumption, but it seems we are lacking homunculi…" Vlad turned to glare at Sieg, who stared back resolutely with no fear in his eyes.
"I will do it," a female voice spoke up, and all eyes turned to a short-haired homunculus with a bandaged leg.
"Tool?" Sieg asked.
"You rescued us, so this is the most logical way to pay you back," the female homunculus replied. She turned to Haru. "What do I need to do?"
"Take this, for one," Haru said, tossing a Book of the False Attendant and 3 quartz at Tool. "Drop the quartz into the book and I'll handle the rest." She went over to Vlad and took his hand, her Command Seals glowing brightly. They faded after a few seconds and she let go, and Tool nodded at her, feeling the slight prana drain.
Gordes eyed the book with obvious interest. "What does that do?"
"It's originally supposed to transfer Command Seals over to an unqualified Master and let the original Master handle the mana, but after I summoned Medea, she reversed the functions. I don't need to use them back home since we have prana generators that can sustain all the Servants during battle, but they have their uses. I believe the original creators were… the Matou? That's what Medusa said, at least."
"Matou? I have not heard of them."
"Uh… I think they used to be called the Makiri? One of the founding families for the Grail, or at least that's what Ishtar told me."
"And just how were you able to summon a goddess? Divine Spirits can't be summoned by the Grail!"
"Uhh… Ishtar's a Pseudo-Servant case. She possessed the body of a magus… I think her name was Rin Tohsaka. Look, you can ask me all you want later. We're here for a strategy meeting, not an interrogation session."
"You're working with us now?" Fiore asked. "Did you betray the Red Faction?"
"I never claimed to be part of them in the first place. Okay, I might have been leeching off them a bit, but I play for my side only. I'm working with you guys for now since that's clearly a better option. Don't worry; I have no desire to betray you. Our goals are the exact same; to take down Shirou Tokisada Amakusa."
"Do we have a concrete plan?" Caules asked.
"No; so we're formulating one. Where's Caster's Master, by the way?"
"Roche? He was pretty despondent after he realized Caster died, so I think he's sulking…"
Vlad subtly shook his head at Haru, warning her not to tell the truth of what happened in the Gardens.
"Alright, so we're missing someone else, then…"
A loud crash caused some to jump, and everyone turned to the door to see a furious Mordred and a resigned-looking Kairi. "The party started without us?! Father! Why didn't you tell them to wait?!" Mordred stomped over to Arthur, causing most Servants to tense as they all knew the legend, but everyone gaped when Arthur simply smiled and ruffled Mordred's hair.
"Sorry, Mordred. I was about to, but they had other business to take care of. Now stop pouting. You're here now, aren't you?"
Everyone turned to stare at Haru and Karna, who simply watched as if nothing was wrong.
"I thought King Arthur and Mordred had… issues?" Jeanne asked carefully.
"Not here they don't. Also, I know you know they're technically the Red Faction, but they're on my side. At this point, how about you guys just accept things as they are? It'll make understanding everything a whole lot easier. Oh, and by the way, Jack the Ripper is Assassin of Black and the cutest little girl you'll ever meet. I'll pass along any plans we make to her so we can include her in the fighting since she likes to dismember people just like she did with Astolfo's former Master."
"I don't think I get anything anymore," Caules groaned.
"Uuu!" Frankenstein agreed.
"Are we all here now?" Jeanne asked once Mordred had settled down.
"Everyone that opposes Shirou Tokisada Amakusa, I think," Haru said, yawning. "Let's get this over with before I fall asleep." True to her word, she was leaning on Karna's shoulder, eyes half-closed and her head buried into his fluffy fire cloak. Karna gently pushed her away and nudged her until she was sitting up straight.
"I was about to ask you for your input since you said you knew everything that was going to happen, but…" Jeanne trailed off as Haru yawned again, clapping her cheeks to wake herself up.
"It'll take Semiramis and Amakusa around three days to prepare themselves to manipulate the Greater Grail to fulfil his wish," Haru said. "You're going to have to figure out a plan to get into the Hanging Gardens on Babylon by then, disable the automated defences, take down the Red Servants and hopefully stop Amakusa from even making his wish. Which, by the way, is currently impossible with the Servants we currently have."
"What do you mean?" Vlad asked.
"Semiramis's defences are top-notch due to her Double Summon ability; allowing her to manifest as an Assassin with the abilities of a Caster. It's not like any of the Servants here have Noble Phantasms that nullify magic right now. I mean, I could summon Medea here…"
"Absolutely not," Karna and Arthur spoke in unison.
Haru scowled. "You guys are no fun. I just need her Noble Phantasm. Please? It'll be temporary and she won't need much mana."
Karna and Arthur exchanged glances, mentally conversing for a few seconds before Arthur spoke. "Only if there is no other choice will we allow it."
"Love you guys too," Haru sighed.
"Actually, I have a Noble Phantasm that can completely nullify magic," Astolfo piped up.
"What?!" Caules cried.
"I can only activate it the night of the full moon, though. Plus, I also forgot its True Name." The androgynous Rider giggled sheepishly.
"The next new moon is in 4 days… it will be too late by then," Fiore said.
Haru groaned. "So this is the price I pay for speeding things up by a day. I'll think up something later. You guys can think up a plan to successfully distract the Red Faction, right? The more firepower or decoys the better. Now if you'll excuse me I really need to sleep." As soon as she finished her sentence, she closed her eyes and fell back into Karna's cloak.
Wordlessly, Karna lifted Haru up, turning to Vlad. "Is there a place for her to sleep? From her current condition, she will remain asleep for a significant amount of time."
Vlad nodded and turned to a homunculus standing behind him. "Prepare a room for her."
The homunculus bowed, gesturing for Karna to follow him before he left.
"Father, are you staying?" Mordred asked Arthur.
"I will stay to pass on any further information on to Haru," Arthur replied. "You can hold your discussions without her input—she can add her information tomorrow."
"All we need right now is a plan to attack and infiltrate the Hanging Gardens of Babylon, right?" Sieg asked.
Arthur nodded.
"Well then, can I propose something…?" Caules asked.
Vlad turned his eyes on the younger Forvedge sibling. "What do you have in mind?"
With a slight stutter in his tone, Caules began explaining his plan.
Haru opened her eyes to find herself in her bedroom back in Chaldea. "Huh… was I dreaming the entire thing?" Sitting up, she glanced around her room. Her charger was still stuck in the wall, and everything remained the exact same as she had left it.
Wait.
Her belongings had been moved around slightly. Maybe Emiya had gotten in to clean up a bit? A more possible candidate would be Mashu, though. The candy basket on her desk was gone as well, replaced by an apology note written by Robin. Sorry for taking your candy, Master, but I needed some way to bait Ibaraki. I'll make it up when you come back. ~Robin
Haru got out of her bed, and only then did she notice her entire body was transparent.
"Oh great, I'm dead. Best way to come back home," she groaned.
Deciding to explore the rest of Chaldea, she walked through the door and into the hallways, making her way to the cafeteria. On the way, she noted that no one acknowledged her presence, which meant she was definitely dreaming. She passed by an arguing Nero and Elizabeth (with an exasperated Tamamo watching both of them), Gawain flirting with one of the staff (what was the person's name again?), and surprisingly, even her beloved kouhai dragging Lancelot away from Da Vinci's workshop.
(She snickered at that scene, knowing that the purple-haired Saber would be thoroughly scolded by Mashu later.)
Peeking into the kitchen, Haru saw Emiya cooking with Boudica. Saber Alter lurked outside in casual clothing, munching away on a burger. She smiled at the familiar scene and turned to leave, but then she heard Emiya say her name.
"… wonder how Haru's doing."
"I do hope she's safe," Boudica said worriedly. "Karna and Arthur may be there to protect her, but I doubt it's enough. She wouldn't have ended up in a place with a harsh climate, right?"
"No," Emiya replied. "I asked around regarding the Great Holy Grail War. Romania is a relatively mild place. Haru will be fine as long as she keeps a cool head. The problem would be how she manages herself in a true Holy Grail War."
"You're right," Boudica replied. "It's nothing like the singularities. A full-out battle between magi and other Servants, and she has close to no support from us. Speaking of Chaldea though… we're still able to contain the more chaotic Servants, right?"
"Worse comes to worst we'll just incapacitate them," Emiya said with a shrug. "She's been gone for about three days and Zelretch said she'd be back in a week, so we just have to hold out for four more days. I never expected that many to go crazy the moment she disappeared, though. Guess that shows just how much control a Master has."
"Do you really trust that… that vampire?"
Emiya shook his head, exasperation in his features. "I've dealt with him a number of times. He does a lot of things out of boredom. Including messing with universes."
Haru turned away and ran down the hall before she could hear Boudica's reply, as she had just seen Kiyohime approach the kitchen. She did not want to go near the Berserker, no matter if she was a spirit or not.
She stopped near the general room, looking inside to see Marie and Jeanne conversing with Mozart playing the piano nearby. Sanson and D'Eon hovered in the area, both shooting wary glances at Caster Gilles de Rais, who was staring at Jeanne. Farther away from them was Edmond, watching the entire scene with a dispassionate gaze. Jeanne Alter was nowhere to be seen, which was mildly strange because she usually hung around her fellow Avenger. Maybe she was sparring?
Haru drifted closer to Edmond, settling down beside him on the couch. She jumped, however, when she heard him speak. "Welcome back to Chaldea, my Master." He turned his head to meet her gaze, his lips curling into a smirk.
"Y-you can see me?!" Haru squeaked.
"I can hear your voice and sense your presence, but I cannot see you. How goes the Great Holy Grail War?"
Haru gave him a brief breakdown of what happened as well as her current problems. Edmond listened silently, his face unreadable. When she finished, he spoke. "Do not be afraid to try what seems to be impossible."
"… Edmond?"
"If you call for me, I will come, no matter how far away you may be, Master. Now, you should wake up. Bring down your enemies with no mercy." His smirk settled into a small smile. "Do come back quickly; or else Chaldea will fall into a state of disorder."
"Got it. Thanks, Edmond!" Even as she spoke, Haru could feel herself floating away from Chaldea.
The last things she saw were Edmond's golden eyes, alight with amusement.