Chapter 103: Armistice Agreement? Fight the Wild Beast Together!
South District, Fuyuki Church.
A steel bird tore through the air, piercing the expulsion barrier like a cold light, shooting into the church through a window crack.
In the dimly lit church, only the white-haired Risei Kotomine stood as steady as a mountain.
The other Masters, each displaying their unique abilities, had sent their familiars, which were grotesque in form, to stealthily infiltrate.
The hall was silent. The Holy Church's purpose in summoning the Masters was unknown, and no one dared to speak first.
A moment later, though Risei Kotomine could not see, he clearly sensed five familiar presences converging, and his brow furrowed.
"Ladies and gentlemen, thank you for attending. As the Overseer of this Holy Grail War, I hereby announce an emergency directive."
"Effective immediately, the Holy Grail War is suspended! All participants must prioritize the elimination of the Berserker team!"
"The first to eliminate the Berserker team will be rewarded with a set of Command Spells from us."
At these words, the familiars, diverse in form, instantly stirred with a faint rustling, and the silence in the church was shattered.
The steel bird's spiritual eyes flickered, and it spoke in a human voice.
"Father, at least tell us what has happened?"
"To suddenly demand a ceasefire and then besiege a specific team like this, without a reasonable explanation, it will be hard to convince everyone."
Risei Kotomine's expression was bitter, and he nodded heavily, his voice slightly hoarse.
"The Holy Church discovered during the cleanup operations of the past two days that the Berserker team is wantonly hunting humans and absorbing magical energy."
"Furthermore, due to Berserker's peculiar attributes, most of those whose magical energy was absorbed have been transformed into ghouls."
"Such actions have completely violated the principle of secrecy of the Holy Grail War and must be immediately eliminated to prevent the mystery from being exposed to ordinary people's sight."
The steel bird's gaze darkened, and it speculated coldly.
"Ghouls? Is that Berserker, perhaps, a vampire?"
Since ancient times, only one type of existence could be associated with monsters like ghouls.
That was vampires, also referred to by the Magi of the hidden world as—Dead Apostles.
Dead Apostles feast on the blood of the living, and their actions have a terrifying infectious quality.
However, not all who are drained of blood are qualified to transform into Dead Apostles.
The vast majority of mortal bodies cannot withstand such a transformation, and thus, after their blood is taken, more than ninety-nine percent will only become corpses or ghouls.
These are insane monsters that have lost their reason, retaining only an insatiable craving for fresh flesh and blood.
Logically speaking, for the Executors of the Holy Church, dealing with ghouls should be a common occurrence.
However, Berserker's actions were too extreme. Incidents of anemia and fainting in Fuyuki City were rampant, far exceeding the limits of what the Church could cover up.
At these words, the Masters hiding in various places all felt their hearts tighten, each calculating their next move.
Analyzing the situation from the first night's battle, it was not surprising that the mad beast Berserker would do such a thing.
But what was the intention of its Master?
Not only did he not restrain it, but he completely abandoned the Magus's principle of hiding in the shadows, allowing his Servant to expand its sphere of influence?
The steel bird scanned the familiars around it, some appearing as snakes, insects, rats, or ants, others as flowing earth and stone, and then proposed loudly.
"Since the Overseer has declared a truce, why don't we all meet and collectively hunt down the Berserker team first?"
"Or—do you still intend to fight individually and stand by idly?"
The familiars, incapable of speech, exchanged silent glances. A moment later, they refocused their attention on the steel bird, awaiting further instructions.
"It seems no one intends to go it alone? Very good. Then, let us head to the port immediately to discuss countermeasures."
Before the words finished, the steel bird flapped its wings, swift as an arrow released from a bowstring, and instantly vanished into the sky beyond the church.
...
At the edge of the bay port, amidst scorched earth and broken walls, yellow and black caution tapes crisscrossed, silently warning off trespassers.
Arthur, moving with the wind, descended gracefully from high above, and looking up, he saw the Conqueror, closest to him, had already arrived.
The Conqueror was still casually dressed in a white T-shirt and jeans, a stark contrast to the mighty and majestic Gordius Wheel beneath him, creating a peculiar sense of incongruity.
"Yo, Lionheart King, I never thought we'd meet again under such circumstances!"
Iskandar laughed heartily, raising a hand to wave upwards, his face full of lament for the unpredictability of life.
Arthur dispersed the swirling air around him, landing lightly, and gave a slight nod to the Conqueror.
"After all, no one expected Berserker to madly attack civilians, to the point of drawing the Holy Church into the Holy Grail War."
Iskandar nodded in profound agreement.
"Indeed, that fellow went too far!"
"Oh! More guests have arrived!"
No sooner had he spoken than Diarmuid, wielding twin spears, dispelled his spiritual form and silently appeared.
He first bowed slightly to the Conqueror, who had once helped him, then looked at Arthur with a grave expression, remaining silent.
At the same time, the clanking sound of steel boots on the ground grew louder from afar.
Artoria, with wind swirling around her feet, suddenly accelerated, leaping gracefully from behind scattered and damaged containers.
Arthur concentrated his senses for a moment; there was nothing unusual around. He then remarked in a relaxed tone.
"It seems that arrogant Hero King and his Master are at odds again, too busy to participate in this war council."
Iskandar and Artoria, accustomed to this, both nodded knowingly, clearly not surprised by such a situation.
Diarmuid remained silent. Today, his words and actions were completely different from the first night.
Presumably, he had received new instructions from his Master.
Arthur had no patience to wait for the unpredictable Gilgamesh. He took two steps forward, standing in the center of the open ground at the port, and asked loudly.
"I haven't had much contact with Berserker, and my Master can't even ascertain its ability parameters. How are your situations?"
Iskandar raised a hand to scratch his fiery red hair, explaining with a hint of embarrassment.
"So, Lionheart King, you couldn't detect anything either. I thought it was my little Master's lack of skill. It seems I'll have to apologize to him when I get back."
"Ahem! Getting back to the point, Berserker could directly withstand the trampling of my Gordius Wheel without retreating, so its endurance is by no means ordinary."
Artoria's delicate brows furrowed slightly, and she added.
"Its strength is also not to be underestimated; it's at least on par with me when I was not injured. As for speed, it's slightly inferior."
Diarmuid's lips moved a few times, but he ultimately lowered his head, not uttering a word, keeping his insights to himself.
Arthur lightly tapped his chin with his index finger, pondering and analyzing.
"A hidden characteristic that no one can sense, strength comparable to Artoria's, endurance no less than the Conqueror's…"
"Although the Berserker class can enhance combat power through Mad Enhancement, this one is definitely not an unknown entity, and furthermore—"
Arthur looked up, his gaze sweeping over the faces of the three Servants one by one, a mysterious arc forming on his lips.
"All Servants can draw magical energy from humans, but those who can also create ghouls are few and far between."
The others, hearing this, all nodded silently, agreeing with Arthur's judgment.
He spread his palms, feigning innocence as he continued to explain.
"I originally thought you all would have some guesses about Berserker's True Name. Currently, it seems no one has exact information on him."
"In that case, true cooperation will likely be difficult. How about something simpler: each take a district and clear out the ghouls separately?"
Facing Arthur's seemingly simple but helpless proposal, the three Servants lowered their heads in unison, apparently communicating telepathically with their distant Masters.
Unexpected, yet within reason, a variable still emerged.
"...My Master has a new battle plan, and I'd like to ask you all to hear it."
It was Artoria who broke the silence.
At this moment, her expression was calm, but deep in her eyes, dissatisfaction and struggle with her Master's decision were subtly revealed.