"Mm..."
Adjusting his casual clothing, Waver was a bundle of nerves.
Just moments ago, he'd received Saber's Master's reply, requesting a meeting to discuss the alliance.
'If you're too scared, you can decline.'
Rider had given him the choice, but Waver understood this meeting held strategic value for his Servant.
Considering Emiya Kiritsugu's "notorious" reputation, saying he wasn't afraid would be a lie. The man had ruthlessly killed magi through any means necessary.
Sitting across from him was no different from negotiating with a tiger.
'Calm down, Waver Velvet!'
'You're Rider's Master. There's nothing to fear.'
Deep breath. Steady the pulse. Settle the mind.
Once he was certain his composure wouldn't crack, he stepped through the door.
"Sorry for the wait, Rider."
"We can head out now."
Looking at Rider in casual long sleeves, Waver spoke with determination.
"Hmm. Not backing down. That's commendable."
"Let's hope you maintain that confidence through the actual meeting."
Glancing at Waver's earnest expression, Lelouch replied.
"I'm your Master, after all. I won't embarrass you!"
"Good to hear."
"Choosing such a conspicuous location. I suppose that's a form of sincerity?"
Kiritsugu and Saber sat at a café's outdoor table, watching the approaching pair with a flat expression.
This was a commercial district. Any altercation would attract immediate attention.
'No traces of magecraft.'
'No hidden mines or explosives.'
Kiritsugu's habitual caution had already verified--the area was safe.
"Magus Killer, Emiya Kiritsugu."
"You've killed plenty of magi. But you've never deliberately targeted uninvolved civilians."
"Even if you'd love to kill me right now, you'd never make a move on a street like this."
Far steadier than expected, Waver sat in his chair, mimicking Rider's usual poise as he delivered his opening.
He couldn't let Kiritsugu detect even a hint of anxiety. That would immediately cede negotiating power.
"..."
The hand reaching for a cigarette froze mid-air. Kiritsugu recognized that the boy had done his homework.
Someone who'd researched his reputation and still proposed an alliance.
Dozens of methods to kill Waver flickered through his mind, but none suited the circumstances.
Moreover, he and Saber genuinely needed external support. The earlier brawl had confirmed that Assassin and Archer operated as a unit.
Against those two combined, fighting alone would be suicide. Even setting everything else aside, the simple strategy of Archer holding a Servant's attention while Assassin slipped away to assassinate the Master was virtually impossible to defend against.
This exact concern had led Kiritsugu to accept the meeting.
Still, the terms of the alliance would depend on what Rider and his Master brought to the table.
'No resentment?'
Waver, Kayneth's student, had clashed with his mentor at the Clock Tower. Yet here he sat, showing zero hostility toward the man indirectly responsible for Kayneth's death.
Did he not know? Or was he pretending it hadn't happened?
"Mmm!"
Saber, meanwhile, had already helped herself to the food on the table without a shred of ceremony.
'Has she never eaten before?'
Sipping his coffee, Lelouch cast a sidelong glance at Saber's appetite with quiet astonishment. He'd never seen anyone eat with such fervor.
"Let's get to it."
Kiritsugu's lit cigarette dangled near the chair. He was curious what the boy would say.
"I'll skip the pleasantries. You know the situation as well as I do."
"For the coming stages of this war, I propose a temporary alliance between our sides."
Waver placed both hands on the table, fingers interlaced, and spoke.
Rider had entrusted this negotiation to him entirely. He had to handle it with care.
"Hmm?"
Saber's ahoge twitched as she glanced curiously at Rider, who sat leisurely sipping coffee without any apparent interest in speaking.
'An unknown King of Britannia.'
'Not even going to open his mouth?'
Trying to read the Emperor's intentions, Kiritsugu couldn't quite pin down what this man was after.
He didn't know Rider's true name, but judging from Saber's endorsement, this was indeed one of Britannia's former rulers.
Logically, Britannia's history wasn't especially long. Tracing its monarchs should yield a viable match. But from Saber's reports, this particular young King didn't fit any conventional profile.
"Assassin and Archer are on the same side."
"Their Masters, Tohsaka Tokiomi and Kotomine Kirei, are teacher and student."
"No single pair can handle them. You don't want to suddenly face two Servants at once, do you?"
"The same applies to you."
Those deadened eyes showed no reaction. The seasoned man remained unmoved.
"I don't know what wish you're chasing."
"But surely you can't accept being eliminated midway?"
"More to the point, your wife's and assistant's deaths, and my teacher's and his fiancée's deaths, are established facts."
This was the conclusion Waver had reached: intelligence gathered, then processed through his own analysis.
An alliance required offering terms that would move the other party.
First, equality of standing. Second, negotiation leverage. Third, clear contractual terms.
Verbal agreements meant nothing. No binding power whatsoever.
Emiya Kiritsugu.
The utterly rational man would never refuse the "friendship" Rider and Waver were extending.
No other faction would willingly ally with the "Magus Killer."
And Saber alone couldn't handle both Archer and Assassin simultaneously.
Joining forces was the only way out. That obvious benefit was the decisive leverage.
He couldn't refuse.
Staring at the composed young man before him, Kiritsugu acknowledged his position.
From the very start of this negotiation, he'd been on the weaker side.
The boy saw through everything.
Setting aside the still-hidden Masters of Caster and Berserker, every other Master was an enemy with whom alliance was impossible.
Rider's camp had extended the olive branch first, effectively forcing his hand.
Either ally with them, or scramble to find the unknown Caster or Berserker Master.
The former was right in front of him. The latter was pure uncertainty.
If he rejected Rider, he'd simply gain one more dangerous enemy.
And as for going their separate ways and hoping for the best?
Kiritsugu genuinely wasn't willing to gamble on whether Archer and Assassin would come to kill him first, or whether he'd find a better ally in time.
This time, he'd had no choice from the beginning.
'I see now.'
Grasping the Emperor's logic, Kiritsugu finally understood.
The reason Rider hadn't said a single word was because he didn't need to.
As long as Kiritsugu wasn't stubborn to the point of stupidity, this was a foregone conclusion.
Especially for a rational extremist like Emiya Kiritsugu.
Only if he abandoned all logic would the words "I refuse" pass his lips.
"Then let's use this to formalize the alliance's terms."
Producing two prepared parchment scrolls from his coat, Kiritsugu placed them on the table.
A cursed contract.
[Translated and Rewritten by Shika_Kagura]