Red Faction Strategy Meeting

Boom!

Red Lancer Karna was blasted away like a cannonball, crashing into a stone building near the church on the hill. However, in the next moment, under the cold gaze of Black Lancer Vlad III, Karna pushed aside the rubble and walked out unscathed.

The terrifying execution stakes that had pierced Karna's body were extinguished by the red flames of his mana, and the wounds on his body quickly healed. The only injury that remained was a cut from Vlad's spear, corroded by purple-red magical particles. Other than that, not even a bruise was left.

Witnessing this, Vlad sighed inwardly.

This was the defensive power of Karna's golden armor, bolstered by his A-rank Divinity. It greatly enhanced his physical defenses and regeneration abilities. If not for the power granted to Vlad by Her Majesty, he would have struggled to inflict any significant damage.

"Lancer of Black, that purple-red magic earlier... it wasn't your own power, was it?"

Karna, holding his golden spear, lightly touched the narrow wound on his chest. "This is the power of a god."

Earlier, their contest of strength had been nearly even. But when that purple-red magic emerged from Vlad, even Karna had felt a deep unease. It overwhelmed his power, and the self-healing granted by his high Divinity was suppressed.

"Indeed, this is the blessing from Her Majesty. Son of the Sun God, hero of charity, Karna... As much as I hate to admit it, I cannot contend with your strength alone."

Amidst the sea of black execution stakes, Vlad, holding his silver spear, looked like he had returned to the days of defending his homeland against the Ottoman Empire.

"I may be borrowing divine power, but my land is the battlefield upon which we fight! Whether for the restoration of my honor or the defense of this territory, I will give everything I have!"

"Then once again—hmm?!"

Vlad turned his head suddenly. Two arrows infused with mana shot up into the sky, streaking like slender meteors. In the next moment, the sky filled with dazzling light, starlike particles spreading out across the heavens like a galaxy.

The beautiful yet deadly spectacle rapidly descended, each glowing dot representing an emerald arrow. Countless beams of light poured down like torrential rain, the sound of them tearing through the air echoing as one.

Faced with this indiscriminate attack, both Vlad and Karna ceased their own combat to focus on defense.

"Lord of Execution!" Vlad called out. Countless black stakes radiating crimson light erupted from the ground, forming layers of defense around him.

Although Atalanta's Noble Phantasm covered a large area, its power wasn't particularly threatening to the high-level Servants of this Holy Grail War in Romania.

For Servants like Karna and Vlad, the rain of arrows was more of a hindrance than a genuine threat. Karna withstood it with his golden armor, while Vlad defended himself by layering execution stakes.

At the same time, while building up his defensive stakes to block Red Archer Atalanta's attack, Vlad also used the token Selene had given him to temporarily dismiss the Astartes soldiers.

No point in wasting manpower needlessly—once they were dead, there would be a cooldown before they could be summoned again.

"Urgh!"

"Lord Vlad..."

"Hmm." Seeing Black Berserker Frankenstein and Black Archer Chiron jump into the protective barrier of execution stakes, Vlad nodded.

"This ambush didn't result in killing any of the Red Masters, but we did force them to use Command Seals. I would say our mission is accomplished."

Indeed, Vlad knew it was time to retreat. They had missed the opportunity to eliminate the Red Masters at the outset, and now the Red team's Servants were being recalled via Command Seals, placing them at a numerical disadvantage.

Just then, Vlad and the other Black Servants received the order from their Masters to withdraw.

Hearing this, a smile appeared on Vlad's usually stern face.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

As the arrow rain ceased, the area surrounding the church was now completely flattened. It looked as if it had been plowed by artillery fire. All the surrounding trees were gone, and the ground was covered in craters.

Crack!

Vlad leaped out from behind the black stakes. His gaze briefly lingered on Red Lancer Karna and the brown-skinned priest nearby.

"Servants of Yggdmillennia, withdraw!"

"What?! You're running away already? I haven't had enough of a fight! Get back here!"

After one intense exchange, Mordred looked at Black Saber, who silently sheathed his sword and turned to leave. Frustrated, she shouted after him.

Before she could give chase, Amakusa Shirou Tokisada intervened. "Saber, let them go. We also need to retreat now."

"And who do you think you are? Why should I—uh..."

Mordred started to snap back at him but stopped when she remembered her Master's strict orders.

"Yes, Master, I understand." Mordred sighed, frustrated. "Hey, you over there, the brown-skinned one—Master said I have to listen to you. So where to now?"

"Such insolence! Were you never taught proper manners?!" Semiramis, standing beside Amakusa, reprimanded her sharply.

"Huh? Insolence?! And what about you, you old hag going through menopause?"

Semiramis's insult struck a nerve, and Mordred immediately snapped back.

"What did you say?!"

"..."

Watching the scene unfold, Amakusa struggled to maintain his ever-pure smile. At that moment, he thought to himself that perhaps it wasn't such a bad thing he had never gained control over Red Saber.

Had he done so, the constant clashes between Semiramis and Saber's volatile personalities might have driven him mad.

After considerable effort, Amakusa managed to calm both women down. He glanced at the church ruins, now reduced to smoldering ashes, and said, "Let's go. We need a new base now."

"The first round... goes to them."

...

In a sanctuary owned by the Church in Sighișoara.

Creak...

"Master! You're so slow!"

Following the information from his familiar, Kairi Sisigou pushed open the door to the room, and Mordred's complaints immediately reached his ears.

"Sorry, Saber. Given how powerful the enemy is, I thought it better to be cautious..." Kairi shook his head as he was pushed onto a bench by Mordred.

"Tch... Well, Master, at least you finally arrived. Being stuck here with this woman was driving me insane!" Sitting cross-legged next to Kairi, Mordred glared at the woman in black robes seated across from her.

Semiramis's brow twitched. "You! You're really getting on my nerves, you brat!"

"Enough, Assassin. Saber, now is not the time for bickering. Do you really want the Yggdmillennia family to laugh at us?"

Amakusa Shirou Tokisada tapped the table, drawing everyone's attention. With a smile, he poured coffee for Kairi and Mordred, trying to ease the tension.

"Indeed. But, priest, where are the other Red Masters?" Kairi glanced around. Other than the five Servants present, only Amakusa and his two Masters were here.

Amakusa merely smiled and took a sip of his coffee.

"Sisigou-san, the other Masters couldn't make it, so they entrusted us with the strategy discussion. Due to your and Saber's... independent nature, we've convened this meeting especially for you."

From across the room, Semiramis's voice carried an almost mocking tone.

"Annoying woman..." Mordred muttered, and for once, Kairi agreed with her.

Amakusa clapped his hands, signaling a shift in the conversation.

"Alright, Assassin. Let's not dwell on that. Let's get to discussing the intelligence we've gathered."

"Based on the information from the battle at the church, we can now confirm the identities of Yggdmillennia's four remaining Servants."

"Sisigou-san, I believe you've figured out the true identity of Black Lancer, yes?"

"Yeah." Kairi nodded. "We had our suspicions before, but it's been confirmed now. This is Romania, after all, and Yggdmillennia would obviously summon the country's most famous hero."

In Fuyuki, perhaps it was different. But here, in Romania, it made perfect sense to summon the nation's most renowned figure.

"Black Lancer is Vlad III, the voivode of Wallachia." Kairi stated seriously. "With the power of Romania's leylines behind him, he's a tough enemy."

"No..." Amakusa shook his head. "He's not the real problem. Neither is Black Berserker Frankenstein, Black Archer Chiron, or Black Saber Siegfried."

"The real threat is that Divine Servant."

Sitting on the bench opposite Kairi, Amakusa rested his arms on the table, fingers interlocked, and spoke with a grave expression.

"We've already lost two Servants—Rider Achilles and Berserker Spartacus. Both were exceptional, but even with the Command Seals used to recall them, there's been no sign of them."

"Now, let's exchange intel. Saber, Sisigou-san, you were the first to face the Black Servants in the city of Trifas. What can you tell us about your opponent?"

"We..." Mordred started.

"Saber."

"Tch!" Gritting her teeth, Mordred begrudgingly crossed her arms and fell silent under Kairi's command.

"I'll explain." Kairi stepped in. While he hadn't personally fought the Astartes warriors or directly confronted Selene, he had caught a glimpse of the Black Servant from a distance.

Even from afar, her presence had been overwhelming, a crushing pressure bearing down on him as if faced with a divine being that ruled over all. It filled him with a deep sense of dread and despair.

Mordred, meanwhile, had been battered around like a sandbag, barely able to defend herself, let alone strike back.

"What about her class? Did she use any Noble Phantasms? What kind of weapon did she wield?" Amakusa pressed, keen to piece together her class from the details.

"Uh... sorry to say," Kairi glanced at the disgruntled Mordred, then helplessly shrugged. "She only used her fists."

For a moment, the room was dead silent. Even Semiramis refrained from her usual mockery. As much as she disliked Saber, she wouldn't deny Mordred's combat prowess.

"Could it be some kind of combat-enhancing magic...?"

"Rider," a voice interrupted from the corner of the room. Red Archer Atalanta, who had been quietly leaning against the wall, finally spoke up.

"Rider?" All eyes turned to her.

"Yes, Rider. That's the information Achilles sacrificed his life for. The divine Servant is definitely Rider-class."

Though her voice trembled slightly, Atalanta was firm. "I may not have seen Black Rider use a mount, but the massive black-and-white spear she wielded—there's no doubt that's a cavalry weapon."

"A Rider, huh? That gives us something to work with in formulating a strategy."

...

In the corridors of the Fortress of Millennia.

"Ugh..." Who's talking about me? As Selene made her way through the hall toward the homunculus workshop, she suddenly had the urge to sneeze.

But her thoughts quickly shifted when she rounded a corner and spotted a thin, fragile-looking figure up ahead.

"Is that the homunculus you've chosen as the core, Avicebron?"

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