The Council Chamber.
Aside from the massive stained-glass windows, not a single ray of light entered the space. It was a silent, solemn void, vast enough to accommodate at least a hundred souls, yet currently, only seven individuals occupied its depths.
There was a man with a stiff, dark complexion whose expression was so gloomy one might call it melancholic from a distance. Opposite him sat a woman who seemed to embody a total disdain for empty formalities. Beside them was a man of cheerful appearance with slightly wavy purple hair.
Then there was a petite woman with striking orange hair; a half-dragon, half-human hybrid with hair the color of bright mint; a purple-haired woman resting a massive shield at her side… and finally, a knight clad in full plate armor and a helm, the very archetype of a 'Lady Knight.'
The first to break the silence was the knight with the sallow, gloomy complexion—Agravain, the administrator of this meeting and the undeniable proxy for the King in this hall.
“The Roman Emperor is absent, occupied with the inspection of the Triple-Walled City.”
“Sir Gawain is currently immobilized. Sir Bedivere is at the supply depot, and Sir Percival is absent to inspect the ballistae, onagers, and Greek fire along the ramparts.”
“Has the King chosen not to attend?”
“It was deemed necessary for the observation of variables. Judgment has been delegated to me.”
“…I see.”
“Let us move to the main agenda. Currently, for reasons unknown, the ‘Old Men of the Mountain’ have turned hostile toward Chaldea.”
As Agravain finished, low groans of contemplation rose from those seated around the Round Table.
Except for one person…
“Um… sorry to ruin the mood, but what exactly is the ‘Old Man of the Mountain’?”
“….Senpai.”
“No, Mash… I really don’t know. I wasn’t exactly a history buff… I gathered they’re likely the Assassin class, but I’ve never actually met them properly…”
Of course, Ritsuka had technically encountered the Old Men of the Mountain before.
The ‘Hassan of the Hundred Faces’ who appeared in the Fuyuki Singularity—the place she had entered several times—were indeed Old Men of the Mountain. The issue was that every member of Chaldea, including Karma, was obsessively paranoid about the master-assassination specialized skills of Hassan-i-Sabbah. Due to their clinical levels of precautionary measures, Ritsuka had almost never met an Assassin-class Servant, save for those belonging to Chaldea.
“They are the symbols of the Assassin class. Fanatics who follow the faith of Islam, a literal cult of assassins that eliminated the opposition through murder. Hassan-i-Sabbah is the name inherited by the successive leaders of that order—individuals who are essentially the cult’s living executioners.”
“I see… But if the Assassins are hostile toward Chaldea, does that mean they’ve become enemies of this Singularity?”
“I doubt it.”
Mordred interjected, speaking up.
“Those crazy killers might be Anti-Heroes, but they aren’t blind to the state of the world. Besides, one of them isn't even a Heroic Spirit—he’s a genuine living person of this era.”
“Ah… then they shouldn't be able to tolerate the Incineration of the Human Order either.”
“However, it seems they have run afoul of the cult's religious precepts.”
“…Running afoul of their rules… It hasn’t even been that long since that ‘Eyes-Guy’ from Chaldea and this orange-head arrived. How could they have broken a rule already? Are you sure you didn't misinterpret something?”
“It was the King’s judgment.”
Mordred fell silent immediately at Agravain's curt reply.
The King’s judgment. In the sight of a Divine Spirit, which is absolute, the very concept of 'misinterpreting' something did not exist.
“The reason the two Masters, who should have Rayshifted to the same location, were separated was due to the intervention of the First—the Old Man of the Mountain himself.”
“…Then it seems the Mountain has clearly chosen a hostile path against us?”
“And yet, they did not refuse Sir Tristan’s visit; they treated him as a guest. It was only the Master from Chaldea whom they refused to let inside.”
“That makes even less sense… What kind of rule could have been broken to cause that mess?”
“Unknown. Even when questioned, the King provides no answer, leaving only the words that it is a matter he must resolve himself.”
Agravain finished and tapped the table once.
“At any rate, these matters are not of primary importance to us. Our inability to cooperate with the Mountain is Chaldea’s problem. Ultimately, in the task of restoring the Singularity, the Mountain will be forced to participate. As long as we treat them as a non-allied front, there is no issue.”
“Do you really think it’ll be that easy? You’re treating the person who’s our greatest potential ally and essentially the key person like that. Cooperation is going to go just swimmingly, isn't it?”
“…Sir Mordred.”
“What, you think I’m wrong?”
“Let us leave it at that, both of you.”
Lancelot stepped in to mediate.
“If the problem stems from the Master of Chaldea, it is for the Master of Chaldea to solve. However, even if the Old Men of the Mountain refuse to compromise, we cannot simply cast out those who have come from the future to aid us.”
“…So you are suggesting we simply carry that instability forward, Lancelot?”
“If necessary. In any case, the Mountain and the Crusaders are entities that can no longer coexist. The only choices left for them are mutual destruction or hostile symbiosis. One can only hope they make a rational decision… Wasn't that what you intended to say?”
“Indeed. Though time was wasted because someone failed to understand.”
“It seems the one wasting time is you, Agravain.”
Before Mordred could snap back, Gareth, sitting beside Ritsuka, spoke up.
“The Master of Chaldea is not a man who would fail to reach the Sacred City even without the Mountain's aid. Furthermore, he is accompanied by Sir Tristan, making it even more certain. Tell us the real reason you have gathered us here.”
“That is exactly my intent, Sir Gareth.”
Agravain said as he reached into his robes and placed two pieces of parchment on the table.
Mordred, sitting right next to him, peered at the parchment before passing it to Lancelot. Once the parchment had made a full circuit of the Round Table, Agravain spoke.
“This is a monster witnessed two hours ago while observing the battlefield through the King’s sight.”
“…Is it some kind of synthetic beast created by those Crusaders?”
“No, quite the opposite. It went on a mad rampage slaughtering the Crusaders, and the one who appeared afterward… believed to be the caster controlling the chimera… devoured one of the Crusader commanders.”
“A blood-sucking species… Was there a True Ancestor in this era?”
At those words, Ritsuka flinched.
The only ‘True Ancestor’ she knew was a certain vampire who likely accounted for at least forty percent of Chaldea's total combat power on her own.
“It’s okay, Senpai.”
“...Mash?”
“Not all True Ancestors are as powerful as Arcueid-san. Even for a True Ancestor, their actual combat capability is often at the level of a Servant… or sometimes even lower.”
“Being compared to a Servant means they’re definitely not weak, though.”
“Hmm… that is true, but this synthetic beast is also quite the problem.”
Lancelot noted.
Though it was difficult to grasp the full details from a Spirit Photograph on parchment, a knight of his caliber had to be able to gauge the enemy's strength to some degree.
“According to Sir Tristan, one would have to use their full strength to slay that monster.”
“…You were observing Sir Tristan?”
“It was a stroke of luck. When the monster was being observed, it so happened that the Master of Chaldea and Tristan were watching from hiding.”
“Well, that is fortunate.”
Lancelot added with a sigh.
“Though the fact that Sir Tristan has to exert his full strength to face it is unfortunate... So, have you identified the owner of this demonic beast?”
“The Master of Chaldea referred to it as a byproduct created by a ‘Dead Apostle.’”
As a stir of commotion rippled through the Round Table, Agravain tapped the desk again.
“Now that a dangerous entity like a Dead Apostle has appeared, we can no longer be certain that Sir Tristan and the Master of Chaldea can return safely.”
“Are you suggesting we send someone as backup?”
“Yes. And if possible, it was judged proper to either turn that variable into a pawn or eliminate it from the battlefield entirely.”
“But aren't they killing the Crusaders? In a way, a hostile symbiosis, different from that of the Old Men of the Mountain, might be possible.”
“No, that is not the case.”
Agravain asserted firmly.
“The King stated that Dead Apostles are fundamentally entities like the Evils of Humanity—beasts that are hostile to the Human Order.”
“Mmm…”
“In these times, when the survival of the Human Order is already precarious, those Dead Apostles will never be of help to us. It would be most rational to use them as disposable pawns at best.”
“Agravain, I find myself in agreement. There is no need to let anything that poses a threat to the Human Order live in this situation. Especially an entity that indiscriminately releases such uncontrollable monsters.”
Lancelot raised his hand in favor.
“I’m in too. Having something that dangerous running around just gets in the way of scouting.”
“…And you, Master of Chaldea… Miss Ritsuka Fujimaru, what do you think?”
“Um… can I ask a few questions?”
“Of course. There is no information that cannot be shared with the commander of Chaldea.”
“Then… usually, if a Dead Apostle and a True Ancestor fight, who wins?”
At Ritsuka’s somewhat childish yet oddly pertinent curiosity, Mordred let out a snicker, and even Agravain, who had maintained a stiff expression until now, allowed a small smile.
“Usually, the Dead Apostle wins. True Ancestors are often individuals not specialized for combat.”
“I see… so Arcueid-san really was the weird one. Then, could there be a Dead Apostle that worships or follows a True Ancestor?”
“The probability is low.”
“Why?”
“Most Dead Apostles are vampiric species forcibly created through the blood-sucking of the True Ancestor known as ‘Crimson Moon.’ Unless it is the Crimson Moon they hold as their faith, they would only fall victim to the hobby of True Ancestor hunting.”
“Really? Actually, we have a True Ancestor at Chaldea too.”
“I heard that story earlier.”
“But that True Ancestor has two Dead Apostle subordinates. And they're really strong ones from the 27 Ancestors.”
“…What did you just say?”
As Agravain sat up straighter to ask, Gareth responded in Ritsuka’s stead.
“Dead Apostle Ancestor Merem Solomon, and Dead Apostle Ancestor Gransurg Blackmore. Though they exist only as terminals, they are strictly members of the high-ranking Apostles. And as for Arcueid Brunestud at Chaldea…”
“Strictly speaking, she could be considered a terminal of the Crimson Moon.”
Mash added cautiously.
“A terminal of the Crimson Moon… Then, Ritsuka Fujimaru, are you saying you wish to use that terminal of the Crimson Moon at Chaldea to pull this Dead Apostle to our side?”
“Well… if possible? To be honest, I don’t really get the whole 'Dead Apostles are enemies of the Human Order' thing. I'm restoring the Human Order because it's something I have to do right now… and if Dead Apostles are supposed to be enemies, why are there already two at Chaldea?”
“It is three, Master.”
“No, Gareth-san, it's four.”
“…”
Agravain fell silent.
He saw many things through the King’s vision, and it wasn’t as if he could pester the King for every single detail… but what kind of demonic realm was this 'Chaldea' place exactly?
“…I believe I must seek counsel from the King.”
“And if the King permits?”
“Then we execute the operation. We will guide the Master of Chaldea and Tristan to the Sacred City, and attempt to incorporate this mysterious Dead Apostle as an ally... Sir Mordred, prepare for departure.”
“Oh, you got it. Finally heading out!”
“Do not misunderstand your mission. This is not about destroying the enemy or decapitating their leadership; it is an mission where stealth is paramount.”
“Yeah, yeah. No matter how much of an idiot you think I am, I can remember that much!”
“I shall look forward to it. Now then, to the King…”
—BOOM!!!
At that moment, along with the sound of violent destruction, the bells signaling an emergency began to ring out.
Every Heroic Spirit, save for the dumbfounded Ritsuka, leapt to their feet and dashed toward their respective posts.
—Enemy attack! The Crusader Legions are upon us!!!
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