บท 528: C528
As night faded, the morning sun took its place, shining bright and bold. Soft sunlight filtered through the morning haze, painting the ground with a warm golden hue. It was a sight to behold.
The Yggdmillennia clan worked fast, tidying up the battlefield near Trifas before the sun could claim the sky completely.
What was once a chilling scene of blood and gore now looked eerily pristine. All that remained were bits of stone golems and white bones peeking out from under the rocks, silent witnesses to the fierce battle from the night before.
Avisbron and Astolfo kept going back and forth about who should have A-11072. Meanwhile, Vlad's stance was hard to guess, leaving things ambiguous.
Down in the Yggdmillennia castle's dungeon, Spartacus was giving the homunculi a lesson on what freedom really means.
Everyone's attention was drawn to the dispute between Avisbron and Astolfo, but they didn't realize that the true seeds of rebellion had already been sown beneath the ground.
Shirou leaned casually against the dungeon entrance, arms crossed, and watched the homunculi as they asked Spartacus questions one after another.
He let out a quiet laugh and made his way out.
But soon after leaving the dungeon, he spotted Arjuna a short distance away, giving him a hard look.
He paused for a moment and asked, "Is there something you need, Archer?"
"You better not get in the way of my fight with Karna!" Arjuna replied with a chill in his voice.
Shirou smiled and shook his head, saying, "If it's just for that reason, you don't need to tell me in person. As long as the duel isn't during the day, I won't intervene."
"Hmph, you're clearly not a Ruler," Arjuna huffed, turning away.
"But some rules have to be followed," Shirou said with a laugh as he left as well.
According to the Holy Grail War rules, the night was designated as the time for battles, whereas daytime was reserved for rest and recuperation. These rules were not explicitly written but were instead understood as an unwritten rule. Servants who valued order naturally adhered to it, while those who disregarded such order would not.
Fortunately, most Servants in this war had a sense of honor.
The Fortress of Millenia wasn't just impressive above ground. Below, it had several underground facilities. The dungeon where Spartacus was confined was one, and the chamber where homunculi were grown was another.
But the largest was the huge cavern right under the heart of the castle. Six decades ago, after Darnic stole the Grail, he made sure this space was carved out just beneath the castle's foundation.
The purpose of this underground cavern was self-evident: it was meant to house the Greater Grail that had been taken from Germany sixty years ago.
Shirou made his way to this underground chamber.
The room itself was cavernous, constructed from stone, with a massive Greater Grail crystal placed in the center. Surrounding the crystal was a circular walkway enclosed by glass, giving it a futuristic vibe.
The massive crystal emitted a soft, golden light, and on its surface was an engraved image of a woman who bore a striking resemblance to Irisviel. Bathed in this gentle, golden illumination, the crystal resembled a divine statue of an angelic goddess.
This was the very Greater Grail that Darnic had stolen from Germany.
Shirou stood in front of the glass, taking it all in. After a brief pause, he finally cast a quick glance at someone already in the underground chamber.
"Saber?"
At the sound of his voice, Saber, who had her hand resting on the window glass with her eyes locked onto the Greater Grail finally snapped out of her thoughts.
"Assassin?" she met his gaze, "Are you here to see the Grail too?"
He nodded in response.
"It's not surprising, after all, this is what we are competing for." Saber smiled and then turned back to look at the Grail, saying, "It's just a pity that the Grail hasn't been activated yet."
He responded with a nod and a slight smile, saying, "I've actually participated in a Holy Grail War before, so I have some understanding of it."
Saber looked at him, her expression showing a hint of surprise.
In the Holy Grail War, the summoned Servants weren't the true Heroic Spirits. They were more like echoes or replicas. For the true Heroic Spirit up in the Throne, the whole war was but a brief, passing dream.
There were exceptions to the rule, like being summoned when still alive, and Saber was one such case.
At this moment, she remembered that Assassin had also mentioned that his original body was still alive when he was summoned.
In a way, this similarity made Assassin somewhat like her.
He stood beside her, gazing at the crystallized Grail and remarked, "Shouldn't this war be considered unusual? There's no Lesser Grail; only the Greater Grail. It uses the Greater Grail to absorb the souls of all participating Servants and, in the end, activates the Grail to grant one person's wish."
Saber nodded, this was also what she knew.
"Speaking of which, Assassin," she asked with curiosity, "what is your wish?"
She wouldn't typically ask about someone's wish, as it might be considered impolite. However, Assassin seemed to share a connection with her from another world, and he didn't appear to be sly or cunning, so her guard was relatively low.
"My wish?" He chuckled and waved the notion away. "I'm not here for the Grail, and I don't have any wishes that need the Grail to fulfill."
"So why answer the Grail's summons?"
He smiled, "I didn't exactly answer the summon. More like, I stole the Grail's summoning slot."
Hearing this, she was stunned.
Stole a summoning slot?
She could manifest here and now because her original self made a deal with Alaya. That agreement left her caught in a limbo between time and space, which allowed her summoning to this world.
As for Assassin's situation...
Well, she felt she had seen something new today.
"By the way, Saber, what about you? What's your wish?" He turned the tables.
She responded with curiosity, "Assassin, aren't you closely related to a 'me' from a parallel world? If the trajectory of my life hasn't changed compared to that 'me', you should be aware of my wish."
He gave her a once-over, eyeing the noticeable differences in her height and the armor hugging her flat chest. "Well, between that Saber and you... there are some, uh, noticeable differences."
"Is that so... Actually, my deepest wish is to save my homeland, to change the tragic fate that befell my kingdom. I wish I could go back to the day of the selection and refuse to draw that sword."
"I thought as much." He chuckled, then added, "Well, in that case, you better give it your all."
"Yes," she nodded, her intense gaze softening into a subtle smile. After a moment, her curiosity bubbled up again. "Speaking of which, Assassin, you were a king too, weren't you?"
He nodded, "Yes, I was once a king."
Saber's face brightened slightly, "That's wonderful to hear. I remember being in a Holy Grail War where I encountered two other kings. Yet, both of them ridiculed my wish. It's comforting to know that in this war, neither Lancer nor you have ridiculed my wish."
His brow arched in curiosity. "Who were these kings you're talking about?"
Saber didn't hesitate. "King of Conquerors, Iskandar, and King of Heroes, Gilgamesh. Throughout that entire Holy Grail War, they never missed a chance to make fun of my wish. However, it was from Gilgamesh that I learned that in the endless worlds, there was a version of me hailed as Eternal King who achieved my long-cherished wish. It gives me hope. That's why I will not give up!"
Upon hearing this, a slight twitch appeared at the corner of his mouth.
Saber noticed. "What's wrong?"
He waved away her question. "It's nothing."
But his mind was spinning. How did all of this fit together? Jeanne d'Arc was from his world, and now this original Saber somehow knew about him through Gilgamesh? It was baffling!
Taking a deep breath, he decided to steer the conversation away from the confusion. "Anyways, you should keep moving forward. You've got this, Saber!"
She gave a grateful smile. "I appreciate it, Assassin." Then with a serious expression, she added, "However, once the faction war is over, I won't hold back against you."
He smiled, "The feeling is mutual."
At that moment—
"Boom~!!"
A thundering crash resounded, sending tremors throughout the castle.
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