Copenhagen

Everyone looked at each other but no fighting started.

As the priest had gone away the fighting atmosphere vanished. Katrine disappeared. Emiya and the redhead were eager to continue their fight but were constantly looking at me who looked as if going to leave too but then almost turned into a referee.

At some moment Berserker's Master lost her patience and left with her Servant puffing in displeasure.

Looking closer he turned out quite a character. Rather high and sturdy. He used to swing his claymore mockingly with one or both his hands, obviously ready to turn his innocent swordplay into real fight. The armor was quite a masterpiece but as far as I could see the owner cared rather about functionality rather than beauty. There were a lot of hit traces all over it (though, not from Saber's sword, such weapon leaves only one trace). On the left side there was a small shield covering armpit with heraldic symbols. And as a part of the whole picture there was fleur-de-lis.

Strange buddy. Hope, we'll not face him in combat.

Only me and Emiya left.

"Seems, no one wants to believe me."

I looked on him with suspicion.

"Should they?"

He smirked, aware what I hinted at.

"If I had wanted to turn everyone from fighting I would have plotted something better."

…

"And… what kind of evil was there."

"That's not a question to me, but to Einzberns. I know only common so I can mix it all up. I can only say that this thing took my old life and almost ruined my new one."

Suddenly he got serious and turned to me.

"Are you going to fight for the Grail?"

I couldn't say that the question took me unawares, the problem was that I couldn't give the final answer.

"If I say "no", that would be lie. But I can't say that I am eager to possess it. I am just a mercenary, you know. If I get the Grail, good, if no, f…k it, I've got the pre. I am not going to put my head under the axe. My aim here is different."

No Shirou was confused. Such priorities were obviously original for him.

"You joined the war for the most powerful artifact in history just for money?"

"Not only, I said. I have business to one of Masters."

"Whom exactly?"

He obviously started remembering all Masters whom he had met.

"Alexey Orlov. A bit higher than me, dark hair, looks as if he has just dug out of grave. His Servant is Lancer. Was Lancer. There is no him anymore. If you see that freak say him hello from my left, he will understand."

"Alright… If he is out of Servant he must be in the church."

"No, he is not the type for that. I'd rather believe that he hides and waits for a chance to get a Masterless Servant. Or prepares a trap."

Silence.

Thinking that nothing else should happen today I went back to the hotel. On my way back I took my weapon. Let's take a look. Hmm, would be better to change one crossbow's shoulders just in case.

When we were just a block away from the hotel, Assassin suddenly appeared and waved his hand. I took a dagger and the unbroken crossbow.

For some time nothing happened but half a minute later streetlights started to fade away. A figure appeared. It turned out to be Caster.

"Please, forgive me, I like effects."

He sneakered and stepped aside.

"I seemed to say you something."

Elisabetta went straight to business

"Gute nacht, fräulein. Good weather, don't you think?"

My word didn't even make her smile.

"May I, at least, hear what you have wanted to do? To make me out? That's the thing I am always ready for!"

She snapped her fingers, and a fireball appeared. Caster tensed up too.

"Okey, okey, just kidding, not funny, I got it. But can you, at least, answer the first question?"

"No."

"Awwright. Then what do you need from me now?"

"…Wanted to ask what you wanted to achieve?"

"Me? Nothing special, just follow the stream. You know, my Servant is not good for open fights, and there was quite a chance to follow a battle of two or more couples and, with luck, finish the remaining one."

Her lips twitched slightly as if she restrained herself from smile in the last moment."

"And that's all? How low."

"Nothing doing, desu. Not everyone has masterplanning families, someone must play mob's role."

This time the girl smirked rather evidently.

She turned to leave and suddenly stopped at the very border of darkness and light.

"The one you are looking for is out of war."

"Thank you, fräulein, but I know it."

"How so?"

"I am Assassin's Master, remember?"

"…You've chosen a dangerous enemy."

"It wasn't me who chose him."

They left and a minute later the lights turned on.

Oh, that woman…

"You know, Assassin, I am tired of all this. Let's go and sleep."

…

9:30

With no fights as it were on the second day I felt almost great. I haven't acclimated well enough but woke up easy enough, rearmed my weapon, breakfasted and… found out that… I got nothing to do!

There was nothing for me to do in Shinto, I've studied Miyama. Should I take a full scale discovery of the temple? Only that left, fortunately, there was a good photospot.

Still not sure, I went out of the hotel and… understood that everything had already been decided.

On the square near the entrance stood with his back leaning on lamppost… Emiya Shirou!

I could literary feel tension from Assassin even though Saber was nowhere to be seen. Though, I had no doubt that he was nearby.

By the way, he was not leaning. By the time we went outside he had managed to doze off, so that he was awakened only by sudden out of nowhere thunderlike cough which literary made some poor pedestrians jump up.

Shirou drowsily shook his head and noticed me, Diego was still in his ghost form.

"Good morning!"

"You don't look like having it."

Emiya stretched his hand for shaking but stopped, not understanding what I meant. I started thinking whether I had said something inappropriate when he gave a painful smirk.

"Yeah, kinda like it. Have a chance to talk?"

"It depends on what exactly. And where."

"I've got a place, you'll like it. And about what… How do you think yourself?"

Well, I had some thoughts but decided to keep them to myself. Shirou didn't show any kind of hostility. The chance of him plotting to ambush me was extremely low. It was morning, no one was sleeping. Around us was the most crowded part of the city. Plus loads of people in buildings.

As soon as something happens, the Most Important Rule goes to hell.

We went quite little, less than a block. Our target was quite a typical looking bar with "Copenhagen" naming in alphabet. Looks interesting.

There was no one inside. We ignored main entrance and went to the black door where a woman was smoking.

"Just look whom we have here! Shirou, why visiting us so suddenly?

"Hi there, Otoko! Haven't opened yet?"

"As if you don't know out timing. But, as I can see, that's the thing you need."

"If we may. My foreign guest had arrived and asked me to show him around."

"Wow! You haven't worked so long, Emiyan, but still help us! A whole new client! For that I am ready to open earlier!"

"Good morning, my name is Sergey."

I bowed ceremoniously causing a wave of exclamations like "Ow, no need to!", "Emiyan's friends are my friends!" and so on.

It was easy to see that the place was not to open soon. Nothing was prepared, there were no even handkerchiefs on tables.

"So, what does our dear guest want?"

"Orange juice!"

I stopped all the attempts to give me alcohol in the morning.

Emiya was a bit surprised but didn't say a word.

While that Otoko was away I dived into my tourist backpack and dug out of there a fist-sized pyramid with a nut eating squirrel[1], put some energy in it, so that the image of squirrel glowed.

"Now we can talk, your friend will only hear normal men talk."

"Wow, quite a rare thing. I only heard about them."

"Helped once to the magus who made them. So, what did you want to discuss?"

Shirou thought for some seconds and said straightforwardly:

"I want to make a temporary alliance."

By that time Otoko came with juice and went away saying that she had some stuff to be arranged and that Shirou could take anything he wanted if he remembered where it was.

I tried to hide my surprise and asked:

"Why so?"

"I need to take down Elisabetta Einzbern. And you are the only one who had shown his disinterest in the Grail…"

"Personal disinterest. I've got a contract on it. If I complete it, good, no, I don't care."

Shirou spent some time thinking and changing tactics.

"I just meant that you want to get to the very end but… how to say… Anyway, do you remember that redhead Master of Berserker? Her name is Alice. We have, so to say, personal grudge. Not me, but it's a long story. I've got to watch her actions but I don't like Elisabetta's activity. Soon after our yesterday meeting she killed Master of Archer."

"Then why not to kill that Alice girl first? You had quite a chance to settle your grudge yesterday."

(If it were not for us. And many other folks too.)

Emiya was silent again. Finally, he reached over the counter, took a bottle, a glass, poured some and drank. First, I didn't understand his doing but then he spoke again.

"You'd find that anyway, if you survive until the end… Or would die," he added the last with a grim smirk. "In short, Einzberns specialize in making homunculi. Many people who dig under them know that. But there is a secret they hide the most: they use their skills in making a homunculus that serves as a vessel to call the Grail."

I almost dropped my glass.

"Wait a minute, doesn't the Holy Grail appear in the end of the war?"

Emiya smiled once again.

"I don't know who'd hired you, but either he was ignorant himself, or decided not to tell about it. In fact, what you have said is true. Do you remember Elisabett saying about Ilya? Iliyasfiel, the homunculus whose body was to become the vessel for the Grail during the previous war. Then she was kidnapped by the overseer, Kotomine Kirey who wanted to play a game of his own. That time I managed to help her. But with Alice and Elisabetta's defiance I have to choose what to deal with."

"But as far as I know she…"

"Yes, she is not the vessel homunculus, but a true member of Einzbern family. The vessel must be hidden while she fights in the war. But hidden doesn't mean protected."

Hmm, then the picture goes interesting. Killing Caster is hard but possible, in theory. Then, what is the chance that old ways can be repeated? Don't even know. But who?..

"Let me guess, you have managed to find something about Orlov? But I told you about him last night!"

"I have my own means. Just didn't like your story about Lancer and he hadn't hidden in the church. If he is really going to pluck at a straw, it may be his way to get the Grail. Especially, if he has an accomplice."

"Kinda like that yours Kotomine?"

"Exactly."

I gave a deep thought.

"And you think that Alice is this accomplice."

"Have no a slightest idea."

Hmm, quite an interesting layout we have. If that old bastard is not just sitting, but helps his accomplice and even joins battles with him (or her), they may have a chance against Caster. Especially, if Orlov uses some old tricks. Elisabetta might be aware of this and wanted either kill everyone last night or simply look around.

"So, you want to take Einzbern girl out of the game, hide her and the homunculus, and then take down Alice and leave the priest with a pure innocent boy. And then what, we would cosplay "Highlander"."

"The last point is not obligatory. You know, I have some experience in dealing with priests."

I laughed heartly.

"Aren't you too overconfident?"

"It's not overconfidence. It's about principles."

I took his bottle which turned out to be bourbon, poured a little into my glass and jingled our glasses.

"That'll do!"

[1] - in Russian version it was a reference to "Тайный Город"/"Secret City" (or "Hidden City", I don't know how or whether it was translated into English), Russian urban fantasy novel series by Vadim Panov.

章 14: Copenhagen

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章 14: Copenhagen

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