Overseer's Death

"Ally?"

Waver's eyes showed a hint of surprise.

"With your and my teacher's strength, do you really need to ally with us?"

The combination of the strongest Master and the strongest Servant wasn't something unimaginable. Even breaking through the Holy Grail War overnight wasn't out of the question. So, why would they seek an alliance with him?

"Individual power is sometimes limited and your teacher is not as invincible as you imagine..." Arkhan sighed with a hint of resignation. "In a one-on-one situation, I'm confident I can match any Servant. But this is war after all, and the only goal of war is victory. So, any means, no matter how dirty, are within the acceptable range."

"Are you referring to the alliance between Archer and Berserker?" Waver asked cautiously.

Arkhan nodded slightly.

"That's one aspect, but I'm concerned their preparations might go beyond that."

After a moment of contemplation, Waver suddenly stood up, widening his eyes.

"Saber!"

"Yes." Arkhan nodded. "To deal with me, Archer's Master will definitely seek an alliance with Saber's Master. After all, they are the three founding families, and we are just outsiders."

Moreover, with Kiritsugu's personality, he would never miss such an opportunity. Even if Artoria and Irisviel revealed the truth about the contaminated Holy Grail to him, he would choose to ignore it. He wouldn't give up as long as there was a glimmer of hope unless reality completely overpowered him.

"That makes sense..." Waver contemplated, rubbing his chin. As strong as Lancer was, facing Archer, Berserker, and Saber simultaneously was an overwhelming situation.

"That's why, we need your help." Arkhan stood up. "I'll handle Archer and Berserker when the time comes, and leave Saber to Rider."

"Huh? You're going to face Archer and Berserker alone?" Waver widened his eyes slightly.

Archer and Berserker were undoubtedly the most powerful Servants in this Holy Grail War, aside from Lancer. He thought Lancer might assign one of them to him.

"Archer has an Anti-World Noble Phantasm. Rider's Noble Phantasm, Ionioi Hetairoi, wouldn't be effective against that. As for Berserker, you and Rider already fought him, yes?"

Recalling the night when Berserker wreaked havoc in Rider's Noble Phantasm, Waver couldn't help but feel a bit uneasy. Though he hated to admit it, the risk was indeed high if Rider faced Berserker alone.

'Even with Rider's Noble Phantasm, Berserker could easily take Rider's head with his elusive speed...'

Waver sighed inwardly, acknowledging his own weakness. If he could supply enough magical energy, the Servant's parameters under his command would be enhanced, preventing Berserker from overpowering Rider so easily.

"I understand. We'll take care of Saber when the time comes." Waver pounded his chest, eyes serious. "I won't let her interfere with your battle until it's over."

"Not bad, Master. That's the spirit! No matter how powerful the enemies in front of you are, just crush and trample them all! Guhahaha!" Iskandar laughed heartily. "Although I don't want to lay a hand on that little girl, for the sake of your future, I'll let it slide this time."

"You should've listened to me in the first place!" Waver retorted.

"Since it's settled—Hmm?" Arkhan frowned slightly as Kayneth's urgent voice suddenly echoed in his ears.

"With this command spell, Lancer, come to my side immediately!"

'Trouble?' Arkhan furrowed his brows.

Before he could pondered further, a powerful suction force suddenly emanated from nowhere, and his body involuntarily transformed into spiritual particles, disappearing in the blink of an eye.

"Vanished...?" Waver blinked, bewildered, and turned to Rider. "Was he forcefully summoned?"

"If I'm not mistaken, that seems to be the case..." Iskandar rubbed his chin. "Hmm, calling Lancer all of a sudden, could something be wrong with your teacher?"

"No way! It's daytime, and my teacher is in the church, right? How could anything go... wrong...?"

Waver's voice trailed off, knowing how proud his teacher was. Unless faced with an unsolvable problem, he wouldn't waste a command spell for just summoning his Servant.

Could it be that his teacher was really in danger?

Thinking about his position as a Master, Waver felt a hint of anxiety.

"Rider! Quickly! Let's go to the church!"

"Guhahaha, I was just thinking the same!" Iskandar laughed boisterously.

He tossed the package in his hand onto the bed without a second thought, and his clothing instantly shifted to brown battle armor. With a swift motion, he unsheathed a sword at his waist, pointing it towards the sky outside the window.

"Descend, Gordius Wheel!"

"Are you crazy?! It's daytime! Let's just go on foot like a normal person!"

===

Inside the church, a radiant spiritual particles gathered, and Arkhan, clad in silver armor, materialized. As soon as he appeared, a strong scent of blood and lingering gunpowder assaulted his senses.

His black eyes shifted downward, and he saw an elderly man in a priest's robe lying on the ground, a large hole in his chest, blood flowing steadily.

Life had completely left him.

It was Kotomine Risei, the overseer of the current Holy Grail War.

Arkhan didn't harbor much bias against Kotomine Risei. Though he hadn't firmly chosen a side, Risei did lend a hand to Tokiomi, albeit reluctantly, and didn't engage in anything too extreme. Therefore, Arkhan tolerated his presence, refraining from taking any action against him.

But the current situation...

He turned to look at Kayneth nearby, surrounded by shimmering jewels, his expression slightly solemn.

"I understand you're a noble, but summoning me for corpse collection? Isn't that a bit too much?" Arkhan sighed.

Hearing his Servant's nonsense, Kayneth's face turned as dark as the bottom of a pot.

"You think I killed him?"

"Isn't it so?" Arkhan shrugged. "Anyone seeing this scene would likely come to that conclusion."

"Hmph, I don't know this old man, and we have no conflicts of interest. Killing him would only make me an enemy of the Holy Church. There's no benefit for me." Kayneth snorted and crossed his arms.

"As a Lord of the Clock Tower, do you really care about that kind of thing?"

"But my reputation would be affected!"

"Fair point." Arkhan nodded then rested his chin on his hand, pondering.

Kayneth, in this alternative scenario, hadn't suffered the same degradation of dignity and honor as in the original story.

In this situation, he indeed had no reason to act against Risei.

So, what actually happened?