Accepted no Magic, but anime Magic world! Half-religious chosen-one bullshit born head! Yeah! Essence—if Magic, fuck off Grail War. Did, but no Magic! Only way get—other Mage help unlikely, fact/help ability. Or Grail itself!
Two non-Mages in war! World soul pushes me... somewhere. Theory instant war join higher powers drop Magic cookie—bullshit. Possible bullshit! Local world soul consciousness, Grail too!
Recall Shirou Emiya—died, got... honestly dunno who/what, but HIGHER offered job as... um... world Guardian? Didn't get specifics; fend outer demons, per him genocide humans some Africa. Why? Fuck if know; top someone exists, does something.
But no HIGHER revelations/offers me. Breaks theory, besides sounding bullshit, don't buy. Thought maybe slept through—no.
No exit, need Grail! Fuck demon/twisted wish, figure out. Worst? No world-end/half; can't pull—plenty stop it! Worst Japan zeroed pop. Unpleasant, tolerable—what care Japanese? Mage chance, Grail maybe true great/powerful potential! Vs country pop? Pfff, obvious! Magic! Hear me world?! Give Magic, don't force extremes!
*Minute silence.*
Nothing. Conscience clear—world ok or, likely, doesn't give shit. Nothing, make reckon!
Now recall war non-Mages. First... um... some... hm... forgot looks; whiny arrogant loser grandpa-gifted Magical tome. Deep soul urge kill; if chance, indulge. But cool grandpa/magic book no fit. Pity.
Second non-Mage: local teacher-Maniac-killer found Caster in Forest. Perfect all ways! Caster maybe knows become Mage! Only issue—find her; known coords forest night rain. Or no rain, added drama? Hope strong, roam nights forest hope, but brain knows fail. No fit.
So recall TV squid Master. That Caster named... um... Gilles de re? Who... Mmm, mistook Artoria for Joan of Arc—narrows France some year.
I watched the story about Joan of Arc on TV as a kid, back in THAT childhood—in my past life, around age 12. And all I remember from it is that before they burned her at the stake, a priest or some local nobleman supposedly fucked her? And that's where my knowledge of her ends; I don't even know the year. Or what she was actually famous for.
Ahem, anyway, my thoughts went off track—well, Gilles was summoned by some guy who was doing artistic carvings on people in back alleys. And for most of the war, these two maniacs were slicing up people for fun. What conclusion can we draw from that?
Wellll, if you stretch the facts to fit even some weak magical theory, then—he somehow, through mass sacrifices, squeezed a drop of magic or prana out of people—that vital energy, and in some unknown way used it to activate his Magical circuit. What the psychopath was thinking at that moment is a mystery to me—but I doubt he even realized what he'd done. And somehow the Grail perceived all that as a ritual Servant summoning.
I used to think you needed a complex ritual, some drawing on the floor with candles, a Catalyst for Servant summoning—some historical figure's item or a powerful artifact. But bam, something like this. Fine, let's say it's possible to summon a Servant without a Catalyst—I've heard somewhere that then you don't get a specific Servant and class, but the one closest in worldview and spirit to the summoner.
Hmmmm... I don't remember exactly when the Grail War starts, but I can roughly estimate the year—if I try to summon a Servant by spirit throughout the whole year, I might get Caster. Though more likely they'll give the last Servant from the "whatever's left" pile to the very last guy. Hm, or not? For some reason I thought Assassin, but I think Caster summoned him, and only after that were Artoria and Shirou summoned.
Oh yeah, I need to get used to calling them by name, or not? Hm, probably not, or I'll blurt it out by accident and it'll be awkward. When it's unclear who someone is but they suddenly know your name that you're hiding—it makes you suspicious, and I don't need extra suspicion.
After thinking it all over, I concluded that yeah, I might actually get Caster! Or anyone! Sure, it'll distort the story that I've pieced together in my notebook—but my very existence has already distorted it! Though mass sacrifices don't appeal to me, and how many is "mass"? 5 people? 10?
Pondering that led to the thought that just slaughtering people in a basement and yelling obscene ditties at the ceiling while hoping for results is dubious. As far as I remember, Shirou Emiya had... um... a shed? Somewhere on the floor under a pile of crates, I don't remember what he buried it under, but hidden from view.
Ahem, anyway—there's a magical drawing there for Servant summoning! If I copy it and then spill people's blood onto it—that should greatly increase the chances of success! Otherwise it'll be stupid if all I achieve is pointless human deaths.
Well, that's already like a skeleton of a plan! Now I just need to figure out... oh, a lot. From how I'll get there, where I'll live, what I'll live on—well, there's the option of looting the people I'll be killing. And I need to think about everyday stuff too. Hm, and it'd be good to learn the exact date. Okay, recall, that video with the squid was in—let me figure out the current year in my head and how much time has passed. Around 1994? And the season, spring?
Let's assume. Hm, Servant summoning will probably start earlier. Fine, settled on the year: 2004. If all the prep starts in winter, or maybe even 2003, they'll probably start summoning Servants. Weighing it this way and that, factoring in basic recon and daily life, I should start prep in 2002 already in Fukuoka. And right now it's 2000. Mda.
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Read the story months ahead of the public release — early chapters are available on my Patreon: patreon.com/Granulan