Cartloads of food were brought to the table. Xing and her Servant, Saber, ate with great enthusiasm. The two of them were practically devouring Halo-Wing Burgers in single bites, as if engaged in a silent eating contest.
In contrast, Fu Zhu and Rider barely ate anything. Rider stopped after finishing a single Halo-Wing Burger. Judging by her expression, she wasn't so much eating as she was reminiscing about the sensation of being alive.
After a while, Saber also paused her feast of burgers, picking up a drink for a mid-game break. She looked at Rider sitting across from her, who had hardly eaten, with some surprise.
"Rider, aren't you going to eat more? You, like me, should be unable to receive much magical power from the Holy Grail. You need to eat to accumulate strength."
Rider shook her head and glanced at Fu Zhu.
"It seems I don't have to. I am receiving a continuous supply of 'magical power' from my Master. This power is like a commoner suddenly receiving a fortune of an astronomical sum—no matter how hard I try, I can't seem to deplete it."
"Power?"
Fu Zhu was a little confused. What energy on his person could he provide to Rider? His Path? Or…
Suddenly, Fu Zhu noticed his experience bar flicker, dropping by a small amount. He immediately understood. The energy supply Rider was talking about was his experience points.
That made sense. Since the experience points from MC could restore the power of Pathstriders, it wasn't too surprising that it could also provide "magical power" to Servants.
However, judging by the rate at which his XP was decreasing, even if Rider were to unleash her Noble Phantasm for an entire day, he probably wouldn't lose that much experience.
Saber, hearing her explanation, understood at once. It wasn't uncommon for Masters to be brimming with magical power themselves, capable of providing vast amounts of it just as Rider had described.
A short while later, the two champion eaters finally concluded their meal.
Xing patted her round belly and let out a satisfied burp.
"Bro, what's the plan now? Do we go and flatten the Holy Grail War first? Or do we take Rider back to the Astral Express to see Uncle Yang?"
Fu Zhu was also hesitating, unsure where to begin.
Seeing Fu Zhu's hesitation, Rider raised her hand after a moment of thought. "Master, could you please let me go to the Astral Express first? When you summoned me, the Holy Grail granted me some knowledge about the Holy Grail War. When it ends, we Heroic Spirits who were summoned will disappear. I'm afraid I won't have time to see an old friend by then."
Seeing her worry, Fu Zhu smiled and patted her on the shoulder.
"You don't have to worry about that. A tiny little Holy Grail can't stop me."
With that, Fu Zhu took out a [Name Tag] and showed it to Rider.
"Here, this thing is called a Name Tag. It can allow you to defy certain rules and continue to exist in reality. Penacony can't stop you, let alone a small Holy Grail. Of course, the premise is that you want to 'live'. The choice is yours."
Rider's eyes lit up as she looked at the Name Tag in Fu Zhu's hand and listened to his explanation.
If she could, who wouldn't want to stay in this world for a while longer? At the very least, she could go back and see her students, to see how they were doing now.
"I would like to stay for a while longer. Master, can you help me?"
"Of course."
Seeing Rider agree, Fu Zhu immediately placed down an [Iron Anvil], modified the Name Tag, and then tapped it against Rider's shoulder. The Name Tag instantly merged into her body.
Rider clenched her fists, feeling her body become more solid. Moreover, this feeling of solidity didn't affect her abilities as a Heroic Spirit, such as her Spirit Form or her Noble Phantasm.
"Thank you, Master. I have no other requests for now."
"Alright, then let's go. First, accompany me to speedrun the Holy Grail War. I've been looking forward to this for a long time."
After paying the bill, Fu Zhu led the three of them out of Dream-Tide Reef and back to Golden Hour.
Xing looked around. The area was completely quiet, with no other tourists in sight. It was as if the space had been intentionally cleared for the Holy Grail War. However, she couldn't find anyone who looked like a Master or a Servant.
Puzzled, Xing scratched her head and looked at Fu Zhu.
"Bro, I know you want to speedrun the Holy Grail War, but we can't even see any other Masters or Servants. How are we supposed to speedrun this? Don't tell me you're planning to start by speedrunning me?"
The moment Saber heard this, she tensed up and stared at Fu Zhu and Rider. Seeing Saber's serious reaction, Xing quickly stepped in with an embarrassed smile.
"Saber, I'm just joking. My bro would never attack me. Calm down…"
Fu Zhu gave Xing a speechless look. This girl and her big mouth… she hadn't managed to tease him, but she'd scared her own Servant half to death.
"Don't worry. Servants are naturally drawn to each other."
"Aren't those Stand Users? Did you get it mixed up, bro?"
"Don't interrupt, and there's no difference!"
Xing rolled her eyes speechlessly. But in the next moment, she noticed several voices appearing on either side of their group of four.
"Well, well, well. To think the summoned Saber was you."
A blue-haired young man with a cocky smile, arms crossed, walked out from their left. His gaze fell directly on Saber. After staring at her for a few seconds, he glanced over at Rider and couldn't help but frown.
"An unfamiliar face. You must be a local Heroic Spirit, right? Tsk, to run into someone with a home-field advantage right off the bat."
Fu Zhu glanced at the blue-haired youth, and his eyes lit up.
He hadn't expected this one to be an "old acquaintance" too!
"Aren't you Lancer of Misfortune E, Cú Chulainn? Looks like your Luck E is genuine; you ran right into me."
Hearing Fu Zhu call out his true name directly, Lancer's expression changed instantly. A crimson, spiraled spear appeared in his hands in a flash.
"Who the hell are you, you bastard?"
Fu Zhu didn't answer him. Instead, he turned to look to their right, where another old acquaintance stood. However, Fu Zhu's gaze towards him was a bit strange.
"Isn't this Holy Grail War supposed to be a clash between elite mobs? Why is there a… dog mixed in?"
"It's a lone wolf! You devil!"
Scott, seeing Fu Zhu liken him to a dog, was so angry he started stamping his feet on the spot. If he didn't know for a fact that he couldn't beat Fu Zhu, he probably would have lunged forward to bite him.
After his bout of anger, Scott stared at Fu Zhu with a hint of fear.
"Dammit, why is this devil participating in the Holy Grail War too? How the hell am I supposed to fight now?!"
However, Scott gave it some thought. This Holy Grail War was a chance for him to curry favor with Old Oti. If he could win Oti's approval, he might be able to use The Family's power to climb the ladder within the Company.
For this opportunity, even if he had to face this devil, it was worth a shot!
"That… devil—ah, no, I mean Mr. Fu Zhu. This is the Holy Grail War. Fighting is a brutish act that should be handled by Servants. You wouldn't deign to enter the ring yourself, would you?"