There is no plan.
To put it another way, a concrete strategy to win this war... or rather, even a rough strategic outline, is entirely absent.
"I have a few tactics to secure immediate gains. But will they ultimately lead to victory? That's the problem—they won't."
Prana itself has been drained dry from the land, making even replenishment from Chaldea a struggle. Meanwhile, the opposition holds the ultimate cheat: the Holy Grail.
Furthermore, in terms of the Saint Graph alone, the Mad King has reached the realm of Divine Spirits. He is a force of such magnitude that even if every Servant here were to challenge him at once, we couldn't even manage a mutual destruction, let alone a 1-on-1 victory.
Defeating them in detail, forced reconnaissance, provocations, decoys... all those are possible.
Inflicting sporadic damage on them is easy enough, but when the disparity in power is this vast, accumulating such minor gains will never yield a strategic triumph.
Indeed, it is much like the Eastern Front of World War II. Nazi Germany achieved overwhelming tactical victories with terrifying kill ratios, reducing the Soviet Union to rags in the early stages. However, the USSR's monstrous mobilization capacity and the demon of winter, General Frost, eventually saw countless troops freeze to death or retreat in defeat.
The Mad King stands in the same position. Small, nagging losses? He can afford to ignore them. His subordinate Servants? He doesn't need them. After all, he himself is the strongest.
And yet, the Mad King is no fool. He is actively suppressing our only viable path to victory: contact with Scathach.
"In other words, what we need to do right now isn't 'winning the fight'."
"Then what?"
"Even if it means taking some losses, we must pull in a force capable of decisively defeating the Mad King."
"And that would be Scathach."
"But Commander, if the Mad King is keeping a close eye on her, our going there is nothing short of suicide."
[That's right! Besides, our prana is bottomed out, so we can't even use familiars. One wrong move and we'll be detected instantly!]
"...That is why."
I looked around at my Servants.
Billy the Kid, Robin Hood... Their performance as Servants, unfortunately, makes them second-tier assets at best. Robin's 'No Face King' boasts a concealment level rivaling the Hassan-i-Sabbah, but it isn't enough to fight against the Mad King.
Karna, Li Shuwen. They are top-tier Lancers, more than a match for Servants like Diarmuid or Arjuna. To put it simply, they are on the level of the Round Table... but the Mad King's Servants are undoubtedly receiving territorial fame boosts and backup from the Holy Grail. The Mad King is the type to use every means at his disposal. And against the Mad King himself, their strength wouldn't even be enough to stall for long.
Altera... Since she's currently a cheat-code-status puppet body, she could hold her own in a 1-on-2 fight against the enemy's Servants. The problem is, if she isn't with me, I have no protection. Nightingale is out of the question; her combat prowess is excellent, but her current role is logistics and medical care. If she leaves, the Alcatraz defense line itself becomes compromised. Above all, a Cu Chulainn in his 'King' state wouldn't miss such a gap.
"I have one plan."
"What is it?"
"Before that... Robin, your 'No Face King'... is it possible to transfer it to others?"
"Huh? It's possible, but... surely you don't mean you're going to put that on and go look for Scathach?"
Robin asked.
"No, Commander. Even if you use that, if the enemies use wide-area detection, the Servants' prana signatures will definitely be exposed. The Mad King will certainly seize that opening."
"I agree... The strategy is too dangerous."
"Phew..."
I let out a sigh.
If I'd known I'd be crafting a plan like this, I would have taken Kynee when I made that deal with Brishisan... I lamented inwardly.
*
The Mad King picks up his spear.
Scathach, 'Cu Chulainn's' mentor, has hidden herself somewhere using Runes like a coward, and the Servants Medb summoned with the Holy Grail aren't even enough to relieve his boredom.
"What are you doing~ Cu-chan!"
"Medb. I was just thinking for a moment."
"About that greenhorn Master? Haha! You know they're no match for us, Cu-chan!"
"Yes. However, he has already conquered four Singularities. Even the King of Demon Gods is wary of him, so what's the harm in my being cautious?"
"None at all! Everything Cu-chan does is right!"
"Hmm..."
Cu Chulainn thought.
The Mad King—a king who is insane, yet a king who yearns to be a warrior. It's easy to view such a figure as foolish, but in truth, warriors had to be incredibly sharp-witted. In a battle where swords and spears flash in an instant, a fool who couldn't read the situation or gauge when to strike would lose his head in a heartbeat.
The same held true on the scale of war.
Though there was a difference in the quality of their troops, hadn't Cu Chulainn's Celtic warriors effortlessly ground down the President King's infinitely mass-produced army?
It was simply because the warriors possessed such overwhelming power that they chose to solve most problems with force rather than bothering with mental exertion.
...In any case, Cu Chulainn pondered slowly.
Just how would that Master move... That man already knew much about this Singularity. He would have easily grasped that Alaya, the Counter Force, must have taken some countermeasures. He would have also deduced that it wasn't just some ragtag resistance but a true Adversary that had emerged.
"...I wonder, which way will you come?"
If he headed toward Scathach, Cu Chulainn would move immediately to decapitate both kings.
If instead, he came for the Servants under his command... he would move there, crush the Master, use his subordinates to slaughter the last of the resistance, collapse the Human Order, and bring the Queen of the Land of Shadows to her knees.
If it was neither, he would simply continue sending troops until they withered away, covering the land of America with the Era of the Celts until victory was his.
"Oh? It looks like the enemy Cu-chan was waiting for has arrived!"
"...So they've come this way. I should go greet them, then."
"Uh... but the Master isn't there? It looks like just a few Servants came!"
"A diversionary tactic, then. Medb, track their positions. If they encounter Scathach, we move there immediately."
"Yup! Got it, Cu-chan!"
*
Moving through the blazing sun while maintaining concealment and suppressing prana was exhausting.
To begin with, the land of America itself is absurdly vast, and since I'd sent all the other Servants out as decoys, it would be all over for me the moment I was caught by the Mad King or his subordinates.
"At least the one silver lining... is that organic communication has become possible thanks to Alcatraz... Altera?"
[What is it, Master?]
"...No, it's nothing. I just hope the forces at Washington are moving as planned..."
I looked up at the sky.
The sun beat down relentlessly. Every hour of walking revealed dried-up corpses or human remains weathered down to nothing but bone. Thinking back to the lush green earth of Washington made me feel nauseous.
"Medb... that crazy woman must have drained all the prana from America and concentrated it in one place..."
Since there's almost no atmospheric mana, supplying Servants is a struggle. There was no choice but to have Altera move with me, as she sustains herself via the puppet's special state.
And in this operation... even Altera had to be used as bait.
"It's a gamble, but it's the only way."
Send the Servants, especially those with relatively 'lower' specs like Billy and Robin, to draw attention toward Washington. In the meantime, I would move to make contact with Scathach.
I wanted to bring the Alcatraz core or Nightingale with me, but the core was needed for network maintenance and logistics, and Nightingale was occupied with the wounded. In the end, I had to deploy Altera, my trump card, even though it meant she couldn't protect me directly.
All I can trust in is my own martial prowess... and a meager hope that Scathach will act according to my expectations.
"If my movements are read, that's just how it is... I can only hope they move as I've guided them."
[...Master, I sense powerful prana nearby.]
"Altera, act according to the plan. I will—"
At that moment, upon the shimmering ground where heat haze distorted the desert sun, a literal 'distortion' began to manifest.
With a screeching roar like metal plates being torn asunder, something massive...
"So you were here... the Queen of the Barbarians I saw then. Where is your Master?"
...revealed itself before Altera.
"..."
"...Unable to speak? Well, fine. You're just another life I must extinguish anyway."
—Screech!
The spear Cu Chulainn favored appeared. It had transformed into a demonic spear where the curse was laid bare on the surface, manifesting as massive, serrated thorns like a saw blade.
"...The demonic spear that leads to death. Noted. I will... stall for as long as possible here."
"...Come!"
...And then.
"...It has been a long time, Master. It seems the Mad King predicted your movements after all."
"...I see that, Diarmuid. Is there any chance you'll just let me pass?"
"I have a mountain of desire to do so, but I'm afraid it won't be possible."
I noticed the tattoo-like marks growing around Diarmuid's wrists.
I hadn't heard of such tattoos in Celtic mythology... Nine times out of ten, it's the geas binding him. Unlike Arjuna, who's obsessed with his duel with Karna, people like Fionn mac Cumhaill or Diarmuid—especially Diarmuid—would defect if they only could.
"Still, it is fortunate that you're missing one of your spears."
"I agree... I'd appreciate it if you'd hold out your arm nicely. We'll remove that curse and then kidnap you to our side."
"...I apologize."
I clicked my tongue.
My chances of surviving against even a one-speared Diarmuid? Zero. Altera won't die easily, but it's effectively impossible for her to defeat Cu Chulainn over there. If Diarmuid is linked to the Mad King, he'll already know I'm here. He'll surely brush off Altera and come rushing toward this spot.
The time it would take him to shake Altera and sprint from her location to here is... thirty minutes at best.
...I've placed my bet, and now it's time to face the results.
Keep this in mind: if Scathach doesn't show up within the time limit, we're all dead.
"Then... here I come!"