"Kiritsugu, what's wrong?"
"Ah... it's nothing. Maintaining Saber's mana supply last night took more out of me than I expected. Even though Saber didn't participate in the battle... I just didn't get much sleep."
"I see."
Leon's concerned voice came through the phone.
Yet rather than feeling comforted, Kiritsugu only felt the chilling sensation of bargaining with a tiger.
Still...
This had been his own choice.
To obtain the Holy Grail.
To bring about world peace.
To ensure that tragedies like the ones he had witnessed would never happen again.
"If we're not targeting Rider and the others," Kiritsugu asked, "then who do we go after next?"
By asking the question this way, he had effectively acknowledged Leon as the one directing their operations.
"After yesterday's fight with Archer, we've already demonstrated overwhelming superiority in this Holy Grail War. If we don't reduce the number of remaining Masters and Servants soon, they're likely to form an alliance against us."
"Relax."
Leon's tone remained remarkably calm.
As long as both Irisviel and Artoria stood on his side, there was virtually no chance of losing this Holy Grail War.
"We officially have two Servants."
"But in terms of actual combat power, we have the equivalent of three."
"Now that Lancer is 'dead,' the worst-case scenario is a three-on-three against Archer, Caster, and Assassin."
"As for Rider..."
"He's not the type to submit to someone else's command, nor is he likely to gang up on us simply because everyone else does."
"So—"
"We'll deal with whatever comes."
"We're already in an almost unbeatable position. The rest is just a matter of execution."
Leon smiled as he covered his right eye with one hand, leaving only his left eye to meet Kiritsugu's gaze across the distance.
"Judging from your tone," Kiritsugu said, narrowing his eyes, "it sounds like you've already chosen our next target."
He couldn't help pondering what deeper meaning might lie behind Leon's actions.
In reality...
Leon was simply striking what he thought was a cool pose.
He had no idea that Kiritsugu had begun unconsciously overanalyzing everything he did.
"Did you read this morning's newspaper?" Leon asked instead of answering.
"The newspaper?"
Kiritsugu glanced toward the copy Maiya had bought earlier that morning, still lying open on the bed.
"I did."
"Despite all the destruction from yesterday's battle, they still managed to explain it away as a gas explosion."
"Typical Fuyuki City."
A rare smile appeared on Kiritsugu's face.
The authorities' habitual excuse amused even him.
Gas explosion.
A convenient explanation for absolutely everything.
"Not that."
Leon shook his head.
"Look at the last page."
"There's a report about dozens of missing children."
"That's our target."
"...A Servant is responsible?"
Kiritsugu immediately understood.
The smile vanished from his face.
Children were the world's greatest treasure.
Anyone who harmed them...
Was unforgivable.
Even the ruthless Magus Killer had once been an ordinary boy.
A bright, optimistic child who dreamed of becoming an Hero of Justice .
But over the course of his tragic youth...
That dream had twisted into something resembling a curse—
A desperate obsession with ensuring that every sacrifice made in the name of justice would never be meaningless.
Kiritsugu Emiya had become a man full of contradictions.
Only when children were involved could he briefly reveal the heart of the boy he once was.
He had been following the reports of the missing children.
But in order to remain focused on the Holy Grail War—
In order to pursue what he believed to be ultimate justice—
He had forcibly suppressed his anger.
Now...
The moment Leon confirmed that a Servant was behind the disappearances...
All that suppressed rage burst free.
At the same time...
He felt something resembling salvation.
Because this meant he could continue advancing the Holy Grail War—
While also punishing those responsible.
For the first time in a long while...
The man named Kiritsugu Emiya smiled with the pure joy of a child.
"...This is wonderful."
The words escaped him almost unconsciously.
"So."
"Do we have any leads?" Kiritsugu asked as he picked up the newspaper and carefully reread the article.
Meanwhile, the battlefield of The King's Bottomless Appetite had moved from the grilled corn shop to a nearby Chinese breakfast restaurant.
Leon dipped a fried dough stick into warm soy milk as he answered with a question of his own.
"You remember what happened with Caster last night, don't you?"
"I do."
"I tried tracking him afterward."
"But it was only one of his familiars. It didn't leave us any useful clues."
"There."
"Take a look."
"...At what?"
Kiritsugu frowned.
"I don't follow."
"Look at your feet."
Following Leon's instruction, Kiritsugu lowered his binoculars and looked down.
His pupils contracted instantly.
He reflexively stumbled backward two steps.
A black armored hand had silently emerged from the shadow where he had been standing only moments earlier.
It was holding out a torn piece of human skin.
The dried blood covering it had already turned dark brown.
Berserker.
That bizarre ability to lurk within shadows...
It could even be used like this?
Kiritsugu was genuinely shaken.
If he and Leon hadn't been allies...
Berserker could have killed him without warning.
Had Saber—and her Instinct (Rank A)—been standing beside him, he might have survived.
Even so...
It was enough to demonstrate just how terrifying Berserker truly was.
He could fight.
He could endure.
He could escape.
And he excelled at ambushes.
Even if his raw combat power was inferior to Saber's...
A Servant like Berserker was, in many ways, better suited to Kiritsugu's methods than a knight who valued honor above all else.
Meanwhile...
Saber, the former bearer of the Holy Sword...
Seemed far better matched with Leon, the Holy Sword's wielder in the modern era.
A sudden thought crossed Kiritsugu's mind.
Perhaps fate had played a small joke on the two of them.
Regret...
Always seemed to accompany every stage of life.
◇ BONUS & SUPPORT ◇
◇ 1 bonus chapter for every 10 reviews — drop a comment!
◇ 1 bonus chapter for every 100 Power Stones.
◇ Read 70 chapters ahead on P@treon → patreon.com/Sagamaster789