Chapter 417

【At this moment, this very second, time stood still forever in her heart.】

【………】

【"The final Servant... has finally manifested as well, has it?"】

【Shinomiya Residence.】

【A middle-aged man with silver hair combed meticulously back stood with his hands behind his back, looking up at the silver pillar of light piercing the sky.】

【"The Holy Grail War has finally begun."】

【The woman named Shinomiya Nayatake sighed with a hint of reluctance.】

【Her own life had also entered its countdown.】

【…….】

【Fuyuki Grand Hotel, fifth-floor suite.】

【Yukinoshita Haruno stood before the floor-to-ceiling window, squinting as she watched the radiance rising at the edge of the horizon.】

【Shiromeguri Meguri sat on the edge of the bed, assembling a visually striking heavy sniper rifle amidst the clatter of metal: "It's Caster, right? Doesn't look like a pushover."】

241. Kuroba Kaito: Damn it, don't go down the path of crime.

【Haruno shook her head: "Manifesting at this point in time—unless it's an extremely formidable Servant, the Caster team is already out."】

【If Caster were given time to prepare, it would likely be a formidable rival no less than the three Knight classes, perhaps even stronger.】

【If the time limit for the Holy Grail War were not seven days, but seventy.】

【A formidable Caster-class Servant could easily set up a celestial-grade grand ritual; ending the Holy Grail War in an instant by killing all seven riders would not be impossible.】

【But if unprepared...】

【The notorious expert in slaughtering mages, Yukinoshita Haruno, curled her lips into a smile.】

【It would instantly become the weakest of the seven.】

【The strongest, yet also the weakest.】

【Just like the countless mages she killed in her youth, even though a flick of a finger and a terrifying spell could destroy her and everything within dozens of meters.】

【But before that, a mere magic bullet from a lady's pistol could pierce their skulls.】

【Compared to their mobile-battery-like firepower, they themselves were far too fragile.】

【"True."】

【With a crisp 'click', she expertly chambered a round, and Shiromeguri Meguri turned back like a gentle wife: "With Saber's Magic Resistance, it should be the Servant least worried about Caster."】

【She couldn't help but sigh inwardly.】

【As expected of the Einzbern family.】

【To possess such a Holy Relic, and to actually summon that legendary King to manifest.】

【Not to mention those absurd base stats and Noble Phantasms.】

【A+ rank Magic Resistance alone would leave most Casters blind.】

【Unless it was a Heroic Spirit sublimated from a top-tier mage of the Age of Gods, that King could hack a bunch of them to death with his eyes closed.】

【Added to that peerless base attributes and Noble Phantasms, it would likely be a ruling existence in any other Holy Grail War.】

【Even if a god-tier Caster manifested, facing that King would be nothing more than a matter of trading one sword for a few more to hack them to death.】

【But even with such an absurd Heroic Spirit, this Holy Grail War was not without opponents.】

……..

"No, I admit this version of Saber is indeed absurdly strong, but Caster is the Holy King."

At this moment.

Billions of eyes watching this scene closed in pity.

They seemed to see their own tragic end in the future, and the endless regret of that time.

"To be honest, their thinking is understandable."

Mutual Aid Society.

Natsuki Subaru looked with pity at the confident Masters on the Sky Curtain.

"Yeah, after all, every one of them is incredibly strong; a Caster without prep time is indeed no threat."

Hideyoshi also couldn't bear to keep watching.

A+ rank Magic Resistance.

Even super-spec grand magic thrown at them wouldn't make them break a sweat; one sword strike could cut off a normal Caster's head.

The problem is, would the Holy King be a normal Caster?

………

【"Leave Caster aside until it shows its value; that golden King summoned by the Shinomiya family this time is likely a significant threat."】

【Shiromeguri Meguri stood up and waved her hand, sparking an arc of electricity to construct the image transmitted by the familiar monitoring the Shinomiya family.】

【"The ability looks somewhat like Projection Magecraft."】

【"But Projection Magecraft requires truly analyzing the Noble Phantasm; to have seen the true form of so many Noble Phantasms, this Heroic Spirit is likely a famous figure in history."】

【Watching that magnificent scene of war.】

【She studied every frame, every expression, every detail over and over.】

【"The gap is too large; with Assassin's strength, there's no way to probe for more information on that golden Heroic Spirit."】

【Yukinoshita Haruno turned back: "Before that golden Heroic Spirit makes another move, let's study the information on the other four Heroic Spirits."】

【All that is known is that ability to replicate and deploy Noble Phantasms.】

【Whether it's magecraft or a Noble Phantasm, it's impossible to tell.】

【Giving up on this meaningless thinking, Haruno lit a cigarette, holding it between her slender fingers and sniffing it gently at her nose.】

【She didn't smoke; it was just a habit.】

【Sniffing the scent of the cigarette, it was as if the foster sister she had killed with her own hands was still by her side.】

【"Meguri, what do you think of Assassin?"】

【Shiromeguri Meguri looked at the image transmitted by the familiar for a long time, finally shaking her head: "Too deliberate, too reckless, as if intentionally going to die."】

【"The Holy Grail War hasn't even truly begun, yet they rushed into the mage workshop of a local powerhouse…"】

【Haruno nodded, her gaze drifting.】

【Did they not care about winning the Holy Grail at all, just wanting to complete the mission?】

【No.】

【Without an obsession that could only be realized by the Holy Grail, one wouldn't be chosen by it.】

【"Meguri!"】

【Haruno toyed with the cigarette and suddenly asked: "Where is Assassin's Master now?"】

【"The supervisor of this Holy Grail War notified that Assassin's Master has applied for asylum at the Holy Church and has already headed there."】

【Shiromeguri Meguri was somewhat suspicious.】

【But since it was endorsed by the Holy Church, Assassin should truly be out of the game.】

【The next moment.】

【Haruno looked up: "Meguri, arrange familiars near the Holy Church; once Enoshima Junko steps out of the church, snipe her immediately!"】

【Shiromeguri Meguri was stunned: "Is that okay?"】

【The Holy Church is a behemoth on par with the Mage's Association; killing someone they are protecting…】

【And for a Master who has already exited and is worthless?】

【Haruno chuckled, bent her finger to flick the cigarette butt into the ashtray, and looked out the window with a distant gaze.】

【"That supervisor might not necessarily represent the Holy Church anymore."】

………

"Damn, so decisive?"

People were shocked.

"As expected of the butcher who killed thousands of mages; it feels like she didn't even confirm if Enoshima Junko was a problem."

"Did you guess right or not?"

"Hahahaha, they actually thought Gilgamesh's Noble Phantasms were Projection Magecraft; Archer Emiya sent an inquiry."

"Actually, in a sense, they guessed right; after all, there really is someone who plays like that, right, Archer Emiya?"

"After all, who the hell has such a big imagination to guess that the Noble Phantasms are all real, and are the prototypes of all Noble Phantasms."