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MP : 31 Master Plan
🕑 Added 2024-10-20 22:00:02 +0000 UTCFuyuki Church.
As time passed and the night deepened, moonlight cascaded from the sky, illuminating the beautiful building and giving it an ethereal glow.
The cross on the rooftop shimmered slightly, transforming into a beacon of magical energy that summoned the Masters participating in the Holy Grail War.
"This should be the place, right?"
Standing outside, Artoria lifted her gaze, examining the church.
"Go inside, Saber. If you need any assistance, I'll support you from a distance."
At that moment, Kiritsugu's voice came through her earpiece.
After everything that had happened the previous night, he was now even more cautious about showing himself.
Despite the priest's assurances, as a skilled magus-killer, he trusted no one lightly.
The invitation to gather all the Masters in one place might have been explained to him in advance by that priest, but there was no guarantee that everything Amakusa had said was true.
If this was a trap, the consequences would be unimaginable. After all, this was the church, the territory of those priests, and entering it blindly was too dangerous.
The church was a stronghold for the priests, just as a magical workshop was for a magus. Once inside, they would be at a severe disadvantage. If Amakusa Shirou had set up any traps in advance, the outcome would be disastrous.
To go there in person was akin to gambling his life on Amakusa Shirou's honesty.
Kiritsugu didn't trust Amakusa. While his plan and ambitions seemed grand, Kiritsugu wasn't willing to take that risk.
His honed instincts from years of walking on the edge warned him that Amakusa Shirou Tokisada was extremely dangerous, no matter how one looked at it. Until he could fully see through Amakusa's true intentions and confirm whether this grand plan was genuinely feasible, Kiritsugu wouldn't place his trust in him. Nor would he allow Irisviel to be put at risk.
After much thought, Kiritsugu decided to let Artoria enter with surveillance equipment alone, while he would remain on the other end, giving instructions via communication devices. Artoria had no objections to this.
"Kiritsugu, they've arrived."
Artoria turned her head toward the distant treetops, where a powerful magical presence was approaching, with no attempt to conceal it.
"The magical energy is strong, and they're not hiding it. It should be Rider. It seems the other Masters will arrive soon."
"Rider, huh… I understand, Saber. Since this is the church, there's no need to engage in direct conflict with them. Enter the church first, and follow my instructions from here on out."
"Understood."
The conversation ended, and without hesitation, Artoria turned and entered the church.
Just as she mentioned, in the night sky, the Gordius Wheel rumbled through the air, accompanied by the sound of thunder as it rapidly approached.
"Ah! Ah! Rider, you idiot! You idiot! At least listen to me a little! Don't fly so fast! I'm getting motion sickness! Motion sickness!"
"Hahahaha! This is the best speed for racing a chariot through the sky. Hold on tight, we're about to land."
From the sky came hearty laughter and a high-pitched scream tinged with tears.
Amid the sound of Waver's pride being crushed beneath the wheels of Gordius, the chariot made a perfect landing.
That is, if you didn't count the few trees that the divine bulls had unceremoniously smashed through.
Hoisting a petrified Waver over his shoulder, Iskandar leaped down from the chariot, warily scanning the surrounding forest and sniffing the air.
"The magical energy is quite clear. I didn't expect another group of Servants to beat us here, kid."
"Eh, other Masters are already here?"
"Someone's definitely arrived, but how many is hard to say."
"But Professor isn't here yet. Let's wait for them to meet up with us. I'm a bit scared to go in by ourselves."
At the thought of being in the same room as those terrifying Servants, Waver couldn't help but shrink back.
"Ugh…"
Glancing at Waver, who had already started to grow nervous, Iskandar sighed, flicked his forehead, and said disapprovingly.
"Kid, what's the matter with you? What's this pathetic behavior? Depending on others will only make you weaker. If such a small situation has you this tense, what are you going to do about proving yourself?"
With that, Iskandar's large hand came down on Waver's forehead.
"Ouch!"
The familiar sensation, followed by the familiar course of events. Waver clutched his forehead once again.
"Kid, this king's eyes have always been sharp in recognizing talent. You have potential, but your character is terrible. That's your greatest flaw."
"So think carefully, look closely, and tell me the answer when the time comes. What is it that you have chosen?"
"Rider…"
As these words fell, Iskandar pushed open the church doors with his large hands without waiting for Waver's response. Instead of sneaking in quietly in spiritual form, entering boldly was more his style.
The style of the King of Conquerors.
He pushed the doors open.
What greeted him was a spacious church, with moonlight streaming through the skylight, illuminating the figures standing inside.
However, there weren't many people there yet, clearly not everyone had arrived.
Inside the vast church, aside from the young priest waiting at the altar, only three figures were scattered around.
One was the youthful King Arthur he had met before at the pier, but her Master seemed to be absent... had she come alone?
Another was a middle-aged man in a red suit, sitting on a bench with a cane and neatly trimmed beard... Tokiomi Tohsaka. He carried himself with elegance, clearly a noble. Like the others, his Servant was not visible, likely hiding in the shadows.
The last person seemed to be associated with the Church... Kirei Kotomine, wearing a black priest's robe and a cross pendant, standing beside Amakusa Shirou.
As the doors opened, all eyes turned toward Iskandar and the slender, refined young man standing next to him.
"Welcome, Rider, and this young magus." Amakusa Shirou greeted them warmly.
"H-Hello." Waver nervously greeted in return.
"Apologies, as many of the Masters have yet to arrive. Please, feel free to take a seat and wait a little longer."
"Haha, no need to apologize, I'm not in a rush." Iskandar laughed heartily. "But I think waiting won't be necessary... they're already here."
"The presence of another Servant is approaching…" Artoria spoke, sensing Fionn's familiar aura.
Everyone turned to look at the entrance once more, where another trio had appeared.
Roy, Kayneth, and Fionn had arrived, their forces well-prepared. Having both Rider and Lancer was more than enough, and the Count had been ordered to remain at the magical workshop to guard against any sneaky tactics from other magus or the Church.
Kayneth, knowing the risks of death, had been cautious in his actions. Not only had he set numerous protective measures in place at his workshop, but he had also established backup locations for easy relocation if needed.
"Hmm, how surprising. I didn't expect the two of you to arrive together." Tokiomi remarked with an unfriendly tone, clearly displeased as he spoke to Roy. "Have you already allied with Lord El-Melloi?"
"Indeed, I'm just an ordinary person dragged into this magecraft ritual. It's hard to survive without relying on a magus." Roy replied sharply. "It seems the head of the Tohsaka family isn't planning to let me live, so of course I've sought refuge with someone reliable. Isn't that only natural?"
"At least what Lord Kayneth demands is something I can afford, while you... well, you're simply out for my life."
Roy shot back without hesitation.
"I see… I've truly underestimated you." Tokiomi's eyes darkened as his grip on his cane tightened.
But Roy wasn't intimidated. This was neutral ground, after all, and Tokiomi wasn't going to blatantly break the rules to target him in front of everyone. Besides, Kayneth and Roy were by his side. He doubted Tokiomi would dare attempt anything against him in Kayneth's presence.
As expected, Kayneth stood beside Roy, glaring at Tokiomi with displeasure, offering his support. Roy was a talent he had his eye on and planned to bring into the El-Melloi family. He wasn't going to allow some backwater magus to bully his future apprentice.
"Hmph." Tokiomi snorted, noticing Kayneth's hostile gaze and wisely chose to remain silent.
Since he hadn't brought Gilgamesh with him to avoid causing trouble, he had come alone. This wasn't the time to provoke Kayneth.
After the verbal exchange ended, Roy turned to Kirei Kotomine and Amakusa Shirou. "Supervisor, I believe fighting inside the Church is against the rules, correct?"
"Indeed, combat is prohibited within this neutral zone." Amakusa Shirou replied with a gentle smile, sensing the tension rising in the atmosphere.
After scanning the room and noticing that nearly everyone had arrived, the young priest stepped onto the platform, his pale hair glowing faintly in the moonlight, and began his speech.
"It seems that all the Masters who were meant to come have gathered. Now, let us proceed to the main topic."
His soft voice echoed through the church.
Under the Supervisor's guidance, the Masters, who were originally enemies, had gathered in this place for a rare moment of peace. Though there was no gunpowder or fire, the tension was palpable.
Tokiomi frowned, glancing around with confusion. Where was his old friend Risei? Why had Amakusa Shirou become the Supervisor instead? What had happened? And what was his purpose in gathering all the Masters?
As he looked at Amakusa Shirou standing at the podium, unease grew in his heart.
Of course, most of the Masters present, except for Roy, shared the same confusion about Amakusa Shirou's intentions.
But Roy knew him well... Ruler, the leader of the Shimabara Rebellion, a tragic Christian saint... Amakusa Shirou Tokisada. For reasons unknown, he had appeared in this timeline, where he did not belong.
If the Servant summoned by the Einzbern family sixty years ago had been Amakusa Shirou, there would have been no Angra Mainyu and no corruption of the Grail, only a pure Heaven's Cup.
However, Edmond Dantès, the Avenger of this war, could unmistakably sense the evil of Angra Mainyu's curse. The Holy Grail was still tainted. So how had Amakusa Shirou come to be here, with a body, as the Supervisor?
Who had summoned Amakusa Shirou during the previous war?
Returning to the present...
Unlike Roy's pseudo-True Name Discernment, Amakusa Shirou possessed the real thing. After gathering information over the past few days, he had already discerned the True Names of nearly all the Servants in this war. With his plans fully formed, he was ready to act.
The stage was set. Almost all the players were in place, and it was time for Amakusa to begin executing his long-prepared master plan.
