Chapter 8: -8- [ Master ] and [ Servant ]
After his vision returned, Rozen found himself in a vast forest.
"——"
The forest was eerily quiet, not even a single sound of birds or insects could be heard.
"This is the battlefield for this simulation?"
Rozen quickly scanned his surroundings.
This wasn't Rozen's first time participating in a simulated battle. He quickly adapted to the current situation and knew what would happen next.
"It's about time to be 'summoned,' right?"
Rozen muttered to himself.
As mentioned before, in the face of the grand task of "correcting human history," Apparitions like the humans who were the Chaldea's Apparitions were quite insignificant.
Apparitions were merely executors and followers of orders.
The true warriors who fought in various eras to correct human history were beings of higher existence relative to humans.
They were heroes.
They were transcendent beings.
In the past, they had left various great achievements in this world, becoming legends.
By virtue of their great achievements, these legends had been elevated to a similar existence as Spirits and were called "Heroic Spirits," recorded in the "Throne" located outside of both world and the time axis.
Only such beings were true warriors.
Chaldea possessed the system called "Fate," which summoned the Heroic Spirits from the Throne and allowed them to form contracts with Apparitions who had the "qualifications."
The Heroic Spirit summoning system — "Fate."
Through this system, those who formed contracts with Heroic Spirits and gained the right to command them were called "Masters."
Those who had descended from Heroic Spirits and became the familiars of Masters were called "Servants."
All magicians who could become Apparitions had the potential to be Masters.
Rozen was one of the top contenders among them.
The next second, a mechanical-sounding prompt rang out.
"Activating the Heroic Spirit summoning system: Fate."
As the prompt vanished from this world, a splendid magic circle suddenly rotated before Rozen and appeared on the ground.
"Has it arrived?"
Gazing at the magnificent magic circle, Rozen couldn't help but be enchanted.
No matter how many times he saw it, Rozen was still captivated by it.
The intricate patterns, the beautiful geometric shapes, the magical significance contained within, and the surging mana swirling before him all made Rozen, as a mage, feel a passionate fervor.
After all, it was a miracle that could never be achieved by an ordinary mage.
It was a broad path leading to the truth of the world.
Any mage couldn't simply turn a blind eye to such mysteries, let alone Rozen, who was a "devotee" of the craft.
"When will I be able to accomplish this level of 'summoning' with my own power?"
As Rozen whispered to himself, within the dazzling magic circle, a figure gradually took shape.
"Servant Summoning: Complete."
"Contracted Servant: Archer."
"Battle time: 30 minutes."
"Simulated battle: Begin."
The prompt faded, and the magic circle also gradually vanished, leaving behind the formed figure.
Looking at the figure standing before him, the fervor in Rozen's heart receded like a tide.
The reason was simple - the summoned Servant before him made it impossible for him to maintain that enthusiasm.
The figure was shrouded in black mist, with only the outline of its body visible, while the rest was enveloped in pitch-black magic. It seemed more like a shadow than a human form.
Staring at it, Rozen first let out a sigh, then sighed again in disappointment.
"As expected, the current 'Fate' can only summon Servants of this level."
Although Chaldea had the Heroic Spirit summoning system, summoning Heroic Spirits as familiars, or Servants, to command them was not an easy task, considering they were legends in the Throne.
According to Chaldea's records, they had only succeeded in summoning Servants three times. Those three Servants were said to be currently living in Chaldea, but their whereabouts were unknown to anyone.
Even Rozen, who had lived in Chaldea for three whole years, only knew one of them and knew the location of another. As for the third, there were no rumors about them, making them incredibly mysterious.
As a result, casually summoning and commanding Heroic Spirits in a simulated battle was not an easy task.
The Servant summoned before Rozen was at best an "Eidolon" of one of the Heroic Spirits in the Throne, like a degraded, mindless remnant or a projection, possessing only a small fraction of their power.
"Although it's only a small fraction, it should still be much stronger than an ordinary mage. If I were to face it, I would be defeated in just a few moves."
Having calmed his initial disappointment, Rozen reassured himself.
"And being in the Archer class should be advantageous for me."
An Heroic Spirit is separated from the timeline and can be summoned from any era, whether it's the past or the future.
However, summoning the actual Heroic Spirit recorded in the Throne is an extremely difficult task that is almost impossible for humans.
Thus, humans can only summon their pseudo-servants or "Familiar Spirits."
By using this method to summon an Heroic Spirit, their abilities are limited to a specific aspect of their original self.
For example, if an Heroic Spirit was proficient in both sword and spear during their life, when summoned as a Familiar Spirit, they will only possess the abilities related to either the sword or spear.
This specialization determines the Heroic Spirit's class, known as the "Servant Class."
Upon manifestation, an Heroic Spirit will receive the "Spirit Core" as their heart, and their body will be formed using mana as the foundation, thereby obtaining the container known as the "Spirit Base" or "Noble Phantasm."
This Spirit Base determines how much of their original power they possess and in which class they manifest.
There are usually seven Servant Classes:
- Saber
- Archer
- Lancer
- Rider
- Caster
- Assassin
- Berserker
The Servant Rozen summons is an Archer, skilled in long-range combat and equipped with powerful ranged weapons.
"For me, the most desirable Servant classes are Archer, Caster, and Assassin because they complement my abilities the best."
Rozen's mind is filled with tactical ideas as he squats down, places a finger on the ground, and closes his eyes.
"Magic Circuits, activate."
Within Rozen's body, the "switch" generating "power" is turned on.
Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone