Because of this, she happened to run into the Red-side Caster in the city who was performing some kind of magecraft ritual, and by virtue of her class ability, she recognized the other party's true name at a glance.
"Circe, the witch of the Greek island, you should know her, right?"
Jeanne continued, "She has been summoned in this Holy Grail War. I suspect this fog is also related to her, but for some reason she deliberately set up magecraft to protect the residents here…"
"Is that strange?" Ritsuka didn't quite understand. "Shouldn't Circe be doing that?"
"That's someone who's famous in Greek mythology for having a terrible personality!" Jeanne said as if it were only natural.
"For her to actually take mortals into consideration, that really is unbelievable."
Considering that the overall moral standards in the Age of Gods Greece weren't exactly high, Jeanne's evaluation could be said to be quite fair.
But Ritsuka didn't think so. She said with a grin, "Maybe while Circe likes to toy with humans, deep down she also loves them, it's just that the way she shows it is a bit extreme and twisted?"
"Huh?"
"A bad personality and loving humans can coexist."
Ritsuka said it very naturally, "I've seen plenty of examples where someone causes a huge mess, then regrets the damage they caused afterward."
"They clearly feel sorry, but refuse to say it out loud, and instead sneak around trying to make up for their mistakes."
Mash nodded repeatedly as if holding back a laugh, seemingly recalling some past events as well.
Jeanne blinked, saying in disbelief, "There are really people that awkward in the world?"
"There are, and quite a lot of them." Ritsuka sighed with deep feeling. "If everyone could just be more straightforward, I wouldn't have to deal with stomach aches all the time…"
"Sounds like you have it tough too." Seeing a work-weary kind of bitter smile appear on the student-like Ritsuka's face, Jeanne couldn't help but feel a bit of sympathy.
"Well, you get used to it."
Ritsuka perked herself up and smiled. "Even though there are a lot of tsundere types, once you spend enough time with them, these awkward people are actually pretty cute~"
Time passed without anyone noticing. The sun began to touch the horizon, and in the dim light, the shadows of everything stretched to their limits, while a faint mist drifted through the air.
Just as the three of them were planning to find a place to stay for the night, a small snow-white creature with fluffy fur suddenly ran out from somewhere.
With light, nimble steps that even Servants couldn't avoid, it leaped onto Mash in just a couple of bounds.
"Ah!"
"Fou~"
The fluffy little creature, with a pair of large ears, looked somewhere between a cat and a dog, but its cuteness was like the sum of both.
It jumped into Mash's arms and thoroughly enjoyed the softness of the well-developed part of the girl's body, making the Demi-Servant girl blush, though she looked completely used to it by now.
The purple-haired girl was startled at first, then relaxed after seeing clearly. "So it's Fou-san… honestly, you followed us during this Rayshift too? Where have you been all this time?"
"Fou~"
The little creature didn't speak, it just burrowed inward, making Jeanne beside them show a strange expression.
'This little animal… doesn't seem simple at all!'
———
Night fell, and the fog once again covered Trifas. The residents, already experienced with this, had long since hidden back inside their homes.
Ritsuka and the others, however, didn't stay in an inn, instead they took the initiative to clear out the magical beasts on the streets.
The barrier set up by Circe was not absolute protection.
If the number of magical beasts reached a certain level, their ferocious nature would be stimulated by their companions, continuously increasing until they ignored the threat of the barrier and forcibly attacked the residents' homes.
When that happened, Trifas would become the site of a tragedy too horrible to witness.
To prevent that situation, Ritsuka chose not to go to bed, forcing herself to stay awake and reduce the number of magical beasts together with Mash and Jeanne.
Objectively speaking, these two Servants were first-rate. Their parameters and combat experience were flawless.
However, there was one subtle issue, both of them specialized in defense and were quite lacking in offensive means, basically relying on brute force to smash enemies with the weapons in their hands…
When dealing with some tougher magical beasts, this fighting style was undoubtedly inefficient.
The two outstanding Servants had to spend quite a bit of effort to deal with enemies far weaker than themselves.
This difficult "grinding monsters" experience felt like running daily dungeons with only single-target Servants, having no choice but to slowly normal-attack enemies one by one. It was honestly kind of miserable.
Ritsuka couldn't help but miss the many combat-oriented Servants back in Chaldea. If even one Saber or Archer were here, the progress would be much smoother~
Was Ritsuka lucky or unlucky? Before long, a "Saber" really did walk out of the thick fog. However, she belonged to the enemy camp, and her class was actually [ider.
"Be careful! It's the Black side's Rider!" Jeanne was the first to sense the arrival of the King of the Wild Hunt and stepped in front of the orange-haired girl protectively. "Her true name is..."
"King Arthur, Artoria." Ritsuka looked at her with a serious expression and calmly spoke her true name.
"Oh? You actually recognized me. Have we met somewhere before, little girl?"
Emerging from the dense fog, Artoria was not wearing her helmet today, and her breastplate looked somewhat lighter, but seated on her warhorse she still appeared imposing.
Behind her were two magical beasts that had been mercilessly pierced through.
She observed Ritsuka with great interest, not only because the other party might be an "acquaintance," but also out of curiosity about the orange-haired girl's background.
As far as Rider knew, there shouldn't be any other Masters in this Holy Grail War. And… the thing in that Demi-Servant girl's hands looked somewhat familiar.
She hadn't noticed at first, but after taking a closer look, as the appearance of the cross-shaped great shield gradually overlapped with something in her memory... her eyes widened.
"So it can be used like this…"
"That's right, interesting, isn't it?"
Ritsuka seemed able to guess what Rider was thinking, and then added, "There are many more things you wouldn't expect."
"Oh?" Hearing this, Rider couldn't help but size Ritsuka up from top to bottom.
"Seems you're not an ordinary magus. I feel there's a special 'connection' between you and me… it seems that some version of me from a parallel world is acquainted with you."
'More than acquainted, I even helped your "son" turn your coffin lid into a surfboard... but there's no need to mention that kind of thing!'
"This Holy Grail War really has brought together quite a few strange characters." Artoria sighed, then raised her lance and pointed it at Ruler, incidentally including the Chaldea duo within her attack range.
She had "ties" with Ritsuka and Mash, but that didn't stop her from leveling her spear. For a king, the most important thing was to separate public duty from private feelings.
"Miss Jeanne!"
"Stay calm."
Jeanne raised her hand, signaling Mash not to rush forward, then asked sternly, "Rider, what do you intend to do?"
"Ruler, don't you understand your own position? And yet you dare to show yourself openly in the city."
King Arthur shook her head. She had no particular issue with Jeanne herself and even admired many aspects of the saint who saved a nation.
But eliminating her was a consensus between the two factions. After all, no matter which side wanted to monopolize the Greater Grail, Jeanne would be a major force.
Ruler hadn't done anything wrong. The problem was that she had been summoned into a Holy Grail War where everyone was cheating.
"Hand over the two Command Seals that correspond to me, and I can let you go."
Rider didn't attack immediately, instead saying this, which surprised Jeanne.
"You… want Command Seals?"
"I have no intention of letting that woman Medea become my Master. There is no one in this world who can restrain me." Rider's thinking was very simple.
"With your two Command Seals, combined with my own Magic Resistance, even if I fall out with Medea in the future, she won't be able to do anything to me… consider it a precaution."
"I see, but I refuse!"
Jeanne's expression was serious. "Transferring Command Seals without cause is a violation!"
"…What a stubborn person. It would benefit you too, you know."
Rider frowned, black-red magical energy rippling along her lance. "In that case, I'll use brute force to make you submit!"
"Mash, prepare for battle!"
"Understood, Master!"
The Chaldea duo braced themselves, because they both knew how powerful this form of King Arthur was. With just Mash and Jeanne, they likely couldn't match her.
Jeanne also gripped her flagpole tightly, thinking that no matter what, she had to protect Fujimaru Ritsuka, the "Master of Human Order."
A great battle was about to break out, but at that moment, several Servants changed expression at the same time and retreated...
BOOM!
A thick bolt of lightning struck the ground. The astonishing surge of magical energy blew away the surrounding fog, and a black-haired young Servant appeared from within the lightning.
"Everyone, give me some face. Let's call it a night here."
"Berserker?"
Artoria was a bit surprised. After a brief pause, she dispersed the magical energy on her lance.
She was confident, but she didn't think she could take on three at once, especially when none of these three Servants were simple.
One of them even brought a round table with her... no, a round table shield. Artoria knew very well just how high that shield's defensive power was.
"Why are you protecting them?"
Rider had already given up the idea of fighting, but still asked with interest, "If I remember correctly, you should be on our side, right?"
There were plenty of reasons, but explaining them one by one would be too troublesome.
Iori thought for a moment, then smiled casually. "Because they're all beautiful girls. Does a hero need a reason to save a beauty?"
"…"
Artoria was speechless for a moment, and Jeanne didn't know how to react either.
Ritsuka nudged Mash. "Hey, did you hear that? He said I'm a beautiful girl!"
"That is indeed the case."
Although the reason was perfunctory, it was surprisingly persuasive. Artoria couldn't find any fault with it. Since it was just a casual question to begin with, she had no interest in probing further.
In the end, she took a deep look at Mash and the great shield in her hands, then pulled her reins and turned her horse, disappearing into the fog.
She didn't plan to return tonight. She intended to hunt some magical beasts to vent her frustration.
"Phew…"
Only after Rider's presence completely disappeared, and the wails of magical beasts echoed faintly from the distant fog, did everyone relax. Iori let out a long breath.
"Good thing I managed to bluff her. Otherwise, it would've been troublesome."
"Huh?"
Ritsuka asked the boy in surprise, "You're not her opponent?"
Seeing how flashy Iori's entrance had been, she thought he was a top-tier fighter capable of standing on equal footing with Rider.
After all, even the usually proud Rider had spoken to him as an equal, which indirectly proved his strength.
Iori waved his hand. "I'm just a weak Berserker, I don't have the powerful strength of the three knight classes."
"The reason Rider retreated was mainly because Ruler was here. My appearance just gave her a way to step down."
"Is that so?"
Ritsuka felt like the truth wasn't exactly as Iori described, but she didn't dwell on it.
"No matter what, thank you for helping us. My name is Fujimaru Ritsuka, and this is Mash. Um, you already know Miss Jeanne, right?"
"Good evening, Master of Chaldea."
Iori smiled and said, "I'm the Red side's Berserker. You can just call me Iori."
"You know about Chaldea?" Ritsuka was a bit surprised, but this wasn't the first time she had encountered such a situation.
Some Servants with special origins could perceive the matter of the Incineration of Human Order. Some could even "see" other singularities.
She figured Iori might be one of those special Servants.
Sure enough, after introducing himself, Iori continued, "Not just Chaldea, I know a lot… anyway, first, let me offer thunderous applause to the savior of human order!"
BOOM!
Blinding lightning burst from Iori's left hand, turning into a flowing pillar of light that pierced through the dense fog and vanished. Almost at the same time, an explosion and miserable wails could be heard.
"It's magical beasts!"
Everyone reacted quickly. Mash skillfully raised her shield and stood in front of Ritsuka.
"Looks like the previous surge of magical energy attracted them." Iori calmly looked around, coldly examining the shadowy figures flickering in the fog.
"Perfect. Their numbers have been increasing anyway. It's about time to clean them up!"
———
With limited visibility and a large number of enemies, Ritsuka originally thought this would be a rather difficult battle. But in reality, that wasn't the case at all.
The Berserker who called himself "weak" displayed absolute dominance.
No matter what kind of magical beast he faced, he could resolve the fight cleanly and efficiently, almost turning the street into an assembly line for slaughtering magical beasts.
Saint Jeanne could still assist by guarding his back, but Mash and Ritsuka barely needed to participate in the battle at all… how should she put it, it felt like teaming up with a high-level NPC in an RPG game.
That night, the streets of Trifas were drenched in a rain of flesh and blood. And when the fog dissipated, the severed limbs of the magical beasts all vanished, as if nothing had ever happened.
"Phew… finally over!"
Ritsuka stretched greatly. Ever since arriving at this singularity, she hadn't had a proper rest, and now she was extremely tired.
But she still remembered her mission, so she forced herself to stay alert and went to find Iori.
"Berserker, you..."
"Sorry, I already have a Master." Iori spoke while holding his sword in reverse grip, sheathing Ame-no-Murakumo back into its scabbard.
This divine sword was longer than ordinary blades, and Iori was currently in the form of a fifteen- or sixteen-year-old boy.
Due to his height and arm span, there was some inconvenience when drawing and sheathing the sword.
In the future, once he grew to the height of seventeen or eighteen, this wouldn't be an issue anymore.