It was afternoon now; there was still plenty of time before the grand stage of evening arrived.
As long as Circe imitated Gilles de Rais and caused a commotion by the riverside, drawing all the Servants there to attack her—
The careless Sola would surely be ambushed by Maiya Hisau.
At that moment, he would step in and intercept…
Hahaha!
Although it would disrupt the later plot developments and cause him to lose his foresight advantage, it no longer mattered.
After "taking" two women, he would be fully capable of dealing with the later Holy Grail showdown!
For now…
He would first go greet his good neighbor~~
With that thought, Haruka Kasugano picked up a bunch of bananas and walked next door.
Watching him head over with a grin, Circe became even more convinced of her earlier suspicion.
This Master of hers… was definitely here for women!
She recalled the appearances of Irisviel and Artoria.
Which one was he after?
Saber?
Impossible. That flat-chested woman? If that were his preference, then she herself would qualify too!
No… it didn't seem like he was interested in her at all…
She was dressed so lightly—any normal man would be unable to resist, right?
Yet he barely looked at her and treated her like livestock to run errands.
Which meant… he liked the white-haired one next door?
That noble-tempered, well-proportioned… homunculus?
But hadn't she only been "produced" a few years ago?
Tsk…
Was it because she herself was too old?
Circe couldn't figure it out and decided to keep observing.
Knock knock~~
Haruka Kasugano knocked on the door.
Out of caution, Artoria came to open it.
"It's you! What are you doing here?" she asked in surprise.
"Oh? It's you! I heard new neighbors moved in next door, so I came to greet them! I didn't expect it to be you!" Haruka Kasugano said excitedly.
With the skill "Disguise Work" enhancing him, his act was flawless.
Because it wasn't magecraft, Artoria's Magic Resistance had no effect.
And with the additional boost from "Espionage," no one would suspect him of hostility.
They would only think he was a warm, enthusiastic neighbor!
"This is just a small token. Please accept it!" Haruka Kasugano smiled.
Artoria accepted the bananas and quickly thanked him.
At that moment, Irisviel also came out.
Seeing Haruka Kasugano, she smiled. "How are your injuries?"
"All healed! Thank you both!" Haruka Kasugano replied cheerfully.
"You've just moved in, so you must have a lot to arrange. I won't disturb you."
"Since we're neighbors now, let's look after each other in the future!"
With that, he turned and left.
Artoria and Irisviel were still setting up their workshop and appreciated his tact.
Overall, seeing someone they had helped now lively and well made both girls feel proud.
Irisviel picked up the banana Haruka Kasugano had given them, peeled it, and took a bite.
"I've never had a banana before! It's too cold at Einzbern—bananas don't grow there!" she said excitedly.
As she held the banana in her mouth, she felt a strangely familiar sensation—
But couldn't recall why.
Then she gently began eating it.
"There are many delicacies you haven't tried yet. You'll have plenty of time in the future," Artoria said with a smile.
"This banana… is quite delicious…" Irisviel said shyly, her cheeks slightly flushed.
…
Watching Haruka Kasugano return with a grin, Circe couldn't help asking, "You just delivered bananas? What's the point? Why not go straight after them?"
"What are you talking about? I'm just caring about my good neighbors. Why are you making it sound so dirty?" Haruka Kasugano laughed.
Circe puffed up angrily. "Liar! You definitely have ulterior motives!"
Haruka Kasugano ignored her and urged, "Are your monsters ready? Tonight's a big deal."
"Why rush? It's just a small monster—I can prepare it easily!" Circe snapped.
She stormed off to the warehouse to check on her creature.
At that moment, Haruka Kasugano's phone rang again.
"Hello~ Lady Tohsaka?"
"What do you mean go for an abortion?"
"No, no, I'm busy tonight… And isn't there supposedly an earthquake in Fuyuki? Didn't you see the news?"
"Tomorrow! Definitely tomorrow!"
Listening to the call, Circe grew even more confused.
Lady Tohsaka?
That title definitely implied someone else's wife.
This guy… could it be…
She recalled that Irisviel was also someone's wife—
Oh ho!
So that's your fetish!
You like married women!
If that's the case… I qualify too~~!
Circe couldn't help but laugh slyly.
Her curiosity about Haruka Kasugano, due to his mysterious nature, slowly turned into affection—being naturally romantically inclined.
In any case, she was now thinking about turning Haruka Kasugano into her obedient little piglet~
In a few days, she would find an opportunity to make him drink her barley porridge~
Hahaha!
…
At dusk.
The sunset hung in the west.
For some reason, the entire city of Fuyuki was shrouded in thick fog that night, conveniently concealing Circe's presence.
Circe even wondered if Haruka Kasugano could predict the weather too.
She was ready.
Following his instructions, she went to the riverside and threw something into the river.
Then she began chanting.
The spell originally required massive magical energy, but thanks to the system's abundant supply, she could cast it directly without gathering additional mana.
Before long, the object in the river erupted with violent magical energy.
Boom boom boom—
The entire city felt the tremor.
Naturally, this shocked all Masters and Servants.
It wasn't even night yet—this Caster was openly violating the principle of secrecy.
The Overseer, Risei Kotomine, immediately issued an order: all Servants were to cease fighting each other and jointly eliminate Caster.
Artoria and Irisviel hurriedly drove toward the river.
Iskandar and Waver rode their chariot there.
Gilgamesh boarded his golden vessel with Tokiomi Tohsaka to observe from above.
The most proactive were Diarmuid and Sola.
Based on Haruka Kasugano's information, they had been lying in wait by the river for quite some time.
Though the fog prevented them from finding Caster before the magic was unleashed, they still arrived earlier than the others.
"Lancer, that must be Caster!" Sola said excitedly.
"Yes! I can strike now!" Diarmuid replied.
"I want to go with you! Please~! I don't want to be separated from you!" Sola pleaded.
"No! Lady Sola, with you there I can't fight at full strength! Do you not trust me?" Diarmuid said.
"Of course not! Fine… be careful…" she said, blushing.
"Yes!"
With a whoosh, Diarmuid charged toward Circe.
Sola watched him leave with deep affection, gripping the rooftop fence.
"Lancer…"
At that moment, Maiya Hisau spotted Sola through binoculars from afar and quietly made her way toward the building where Sola stood.
And Haruka Kasugano was also observing everything from a neighboring building.
Thanks to "Presence Concealment," Diarmuid had never noticed him lurking nearby.