'Mr. Asuka is still fighting. How can I just hide and not come out?'
She didn't know what she could do, nor did she know how her meager skills could be of any help.
But if she didn't go, if she just hid in the safety of the Worm Space shivering in fear, she would despise herself for the rest of her life.
Not long after rushing out of the manor, a strange sensation suddenly struck her mind.
It was a feeling she had accidentally caught onto during her special training, as if there were some kind of threads floating in the air that ordinary people couldn't see.
Based on Mr. Asuka's analysis, he guessed that it was the residue of magical energy, a special kind of perception.
"There is... something over there," she muttered.
Sumire stopped in her tracks, her ruby-like eyes slightly contracting under the moonlight.
In her vision, a dark red line filled with a bloody and ominous aura was extending from the distant street.
And at the end of that line, two blurry figures were moving rapidly.
One of them, a tall, dark silhouette, was dragging something, his steps staggering and heavy.
And behind that dark silhouette followed a bizarre presence that almost blended completely into the night...
It was the Assassin who had besieged her earlier!
"That's..."
Sumire narrowed her eyes. The amplification of magical energy allowed her vision to far exceed that of an ordinary person.
She saw it clearly.
The tall man was wearing a tattered black priest's outfit, covered in blood...
But one of his hands was tightly gripping a silver-haired woman's hair, dragging her across the ground like a dead dog.
That silver-haired woman... was the woman she had seen at the docks earlier, the one beside the King of Knights!
'Are they working together? That priest and Assassin... Did they capture the King of Knights' Master?'
Sumire's heart skipped a beat.
Although with her level of understanding, she still couldn't comprehend the deception and treachery of the Holy Grail War, her intuition told her that this matter was definitely not simple.
The aura emanating from that priest, even from a distance, filled her with a physiological disgust.
He exuded an empty, hollow malice that sought to devour all happiness.
'I can't just leave this alone... What if they plan to use this woman to coerce the King of Knights into dealing with Mr. Asuka?'
Sumire tightened her grip on the old katana in her hand. Lowering her posture, she used the roadside greenery and shadows to quietly follow them like an agile cat.
Mount Enzou, Ryuudou Temple.
This was a famous spiritual land in Fuyuki City, and also the core of the Greater Grail system.
Sumire Kamado hid in the dark, watching as Kirei Kotomine dragged Irisviel step by step up the stone stairs leading to the temple gates.
"Let go... let go of me..."
Irisviel struggled weakly, but her strength seemed so insignificant before Kirei.
"Be quiet, puppet," Kirei said, his voice hoarse and cold.
The Assassin clone following behind Kirei vigilantly scanned the surroundings to ensure no pursuers had followed them.
Meanwhile, in the woods dozens of meters away, Sumire Kamado held her breath. Even though her lungs stung slightly from the tension, she didn't dare make a single sound.
Sumire quietly observed everything, eavesdropping on the conversation inside Ryuudou Temple.
Piecing together the fragments of words she heard, she was greatly alarmed.
That silver-haired woman was actually the so-called Holy Grail?
Didn't Mr. Asuka and Grandpa Worm say that the Holy Grail would appear through the Holy Grail War? Why did they need to capture someone?
Of course, she didn't understand the difference between the Lesser Grail and Heaven's Feel.
But she still unexpectedly guessed a part of the answer—
'Could it be... if I don't save her, all of Mr. Asuka's efforts will be in vain? The Holy Grail will be stolen by someone else?'
Sumire's heart was in turmoil.
She subconsciously looked at the Command Spell on the back of her hand.
That was the connection between her and Asuka; even separated by a great distance, it allowed for telepathic communication.
She wanted to contact Asuka through their contract.
Snap.
The crisp sound of a snapping dead branch echoed through the silent woods.
Sumire sharply turned her head, looking toward the source of the sound.
In the bushes not far away, a small figure was sneaking forward.
Rin Tohsaka, holding her magical compass, was stumbling right into Ryuudou Temple under the noses of the two secretly observing Assassins.
'That's...'
Sumire's expression changed.
'An ordinary citizen? A child? Why is she here?!'
Before Sumire could figure it out, the conflict inside had already erupted.
After a cold exchange of words, an Assassin stood beside Rin Tohsaka.
"Farewell, eldest daughter of the Tohsaka Family,"
the Assassin finally uttered a hoarse, unpleasant farewell. The pitch-black dagger sliced through the air, thrusting toward the center of Rin's back.
At this moment, Sumire Kamado's mind went completely blank.
She forgot about staying hidden, forgot that she was just a novice who had only learned the basics of magecraft, and forgot that the opponent was a Heroic Spirit who killed without blinking an eye.
Her body reacted a step faster than her thoughts.
"Total Concentration・Water Breathing!"
Sumire's lungs contracted violently, pumping a massive amount of oxygen into her bloodstream.
The twelve Magic Circuits, which had just been upgraded to Rank A quality, erupted with astonishing strength at this moment like an ignited powder keg!
At this moment, the young girl transformed into a blue torrent.
The old katana in her hand, infused with magical energy, actually let out a clear, resonant dragon's cry.
Although the blade was covered in rust, wrapped in that layer of pale blue magical water, it now became sharper than any famous sword!
Squelch!!
The Assassin clone rushing toward the little girl only felt a flash of blue light before his eyes.
Before he could even clearly see the attacker's face, a massive hole had already been opened in his chest.
Thud.
The skull mask rolled onto the ground, dissipating into black smoke.
Sumire Kamado maintained her sword-gripping stance, standing protectively in front of the terrified little girl.
Her hands trembled violently, and her heart was beating so fast it felt like it would leap out of her throat.
'...I killed him?'
This was her first time truly killing a humanoid creature in any real sense.
Even though the opponent was just a Servant's clone, and even though he might not even be considered alive, the sensation of the blade cutting into flesh was so real it was terrifying.
Her stomach churned violently. Sumire quickly turned her head and shouted at the little girl,
"Run!! Get down the mountain! Don't look back!!!"
The little girl was jolted awake by the shout. Crying, she scrambled up from the ground and ran stumbling toward the bottom of the mountain.
"How truly amusing,"
Kirei said, wrapping a few more layers of bandages around his wounds while sizing up the young girl in front of him. "To be honest, I didn't expect you to come here."
"In the previous battle, you were merely struggling to fend off Hassan's siege, yet now you can kill his clone with a single strike?"
His gaze ultimately settled on the old katana wrapped in pale blue magical energy in her hands.
"To dare intrude here all alone without a Servant by your side... Was it to save this woman? Or for that child who ran away?"
"It doesn't matter why!"
Sumire gripped her sword with both hands, trying hard to make her voice sound less shaky. "Let go of that lady! You bastards treat human lives like dirt!"
At the same time, she was also activating her Command Spell, attempting to inform Mr. Asuka of everything happening here.
"Let go?"
Kirei gently shook his head as if he had just heard a joke.
"Since you delivered yourself to my doorstep, there is no reason to let you go."
He took a step forward.
Although his footsteps were still somewhat unsteady, that oppressive presence still made Sumire afraid to relax.
"If I capture you, that Avenger will surely be tied down, won't he?"
Several sharp Black Keys appeared in Kirei's hands once again.
"I thank the Lord for His grace, allowing me to receive such a gift."