The next morning.
Kamitani Yuu rose early as usual, humming an unknown tune while busy in the kitchen. He placed prepared ingredients into a clay pot, looking remarkably cheered. Indeed, he had reason to be: yesterday's operations had been a resounding success. Despite a few minor hiccups, he had perfectly achieved his goals.
Not only had he established an unbreakable alliance, but he had also siphoned a massive amount of prana from Kayneth, securing enough True Ether for the next activation of his Heroic Spirit Class Cards.
I'm winning so hard, I might as well be Qin Shi Huang touching a power line, he thought with a grin.
However, at that moment, a sharp "Boom!"—an incredibly loud explosion—echoed in Yuu's ears. To be precise, it wasn't a physical sound but a sensory stimulus, a magical pulse that struck directly at Yuu's keen nerves as a magus.
"What was that? ...Coming from the east."
Yuu looked up through the kitchen window. In the clear sky, a layer of drifting mist was visible. While it resembled the smoke from fireworks, the flickering light within suggested it was no ordinary pyrotechnic; it was likely a magical flare.
"That location... it's toward the church, isn't it?"
Identifying the source, Yuu knit his brows. "The Church has issued a summons? Has some serious incident occurred?"
As the supervisors of the battle, the Holy Church would launch such notifying fireworks whenever they needed to communicate major decisions to the Masters. It was the most efficient way to reach participants whose locations were unknown.
But Yuu felt a sense of dissonance. Uryuu Ryunosuke, the only one likely to cause a truly heinous incident, had been eliminated by him a month ago. Currently, Fuyuki City was quite peaceful, save for the occasional "gas explosion." So, what could have happened to force the Church to call a meeting?
In the magnificent cathedral on the outskirts of Shinto, Fuyuki City.
A heavy, somber atmosphere hung over the pews. Risei Kotomine looked at the thick aura of magical energy before him and let out a helpless, wry smile.
An hour had passed since the signal was fired. Not a single Master had physically appeared at the Fuyuki Church. Instead, six familiars had gathered in their stead.
"I had prepared some formal greetings, but since no one has come in person, I shall get straight to the point," the elderly priest said, addressing the pews filled with familiars.
"The Holy Grail War, which shall grant your deepest wishes, has officially begun. The final Servant, Assassin, was summoned last night."
Risei coughed twice, scanned the room, and continued. "I must unfortunately inform you that the final chosen Master was the Church's own adjudicator, Kirei Kotomine."
The familiars remained still, but through them, the various Masters were undoubtedly shocked. Suspicion regarding the Church's neutrality and fairness immediately flared. Once the adjudicator summons a Servant, the Holy Church's impartial standing is compromised.
"However, please rest assured. The Church has no designs on the Grail of Fuyuki," Risei explained solemnly. "Immediately after summoning Assassin last night, Kirei, as the supervisor, used his Command Spells to order the Servant to commit suicide."
"As you all know, if a Master loses their Servant, the Command Spells on their hand will vanish."
As the old priest finished, Kirei Kotomine—who had been standing silently—raised his hands. As if to prove his innocence, he showed the backs of his hands to the gathered familiars.
Just as Risei said, there was no trace of Command Spells on Kirei's skin. However, that alone didn't prove he had truly forfeited his status. Command Spells could be hidden, and for all they knew, the father was covering for the son.
Risei was prepared for this. He calmly produced the Spiritual Foundation Plate (Spiritron Record) and introduced it. "This plate is a tool entrusted to the supervisor by the Holy Church and the Mages' Association. It displays the classes and status of the Servants summoned by the Grail. Whenever a Servant is retired, the corresponding light will fade."
Risei pointed to the only darkened circle on the plate—the position belonging to the Church. Six other lights continued to flicker steadily in various directions. With this evidence, any doubt regarding the Church's impartiality was quelled.
"To further ease your concerns, I, Risei Kotomine, will act as the secondary adjudicator to assist Kirei in fulfilling his supervisory duties."
After reassuring the participants, Risei added, "Now, if there are any questions, pose them here."
A rustle of movement echoed in the shadows. The sound of chairs shifting, feet moving, and figures departing mixed together before fading into silence. Since the supervisor's notification was clear, there was no reason to stay. As for questions—there were none. As long as Assassin was out of the picture, it didn't matter if the Church continued to oversee the war.
When the church returned to a state of hollow silence, Risei turned slightly to his son. "You'll have to endure some hardship for a while, Kirei."
"...It is fine, Father." Kirei shook his head, a stiff smile appearing on his face. "As a supervisor, as long as the Holy Grail War proceeds normally, that is enough for me."
For some reason, within that smile, there lay a trace of impenetrable anticipation and joy.
___
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