[FDJ]Chapter 4: Capricious Woman

A camel walks amidst raging flames, and no survivors are left in the harbor. As no witnesses are beholding the face of the devil, the devil boldly reveals her true form and enjoys the prelude to hell without any observers. It has been a month since the appearance of the Holy Grail in Fuyuki City, and the last sanctuary in the city turned into scorched earth.

It is difficult to believe that a large number of unarmed humans could survive for so long, maintaining order for a month, and there are still a few individuals surviving in this city. Owing to humans' ignorant nature, the devil can only temporarily come to this conclusion. Otherwise, if she was in the position of a human, she could not think of a reason not to commit suicide immediately for liberation. Even if this city can be saved, it will be meaningless for humans in the city, as it can only happen after the death of all human beings.

The camel lowered its head and gnawed in charred pieces of flesh. This hellish creature is no longer a low-level monster, but it has still not changed its habit of devouring flesh, which truly disgusts the devil holding its reins.

Her gorgeous and vibrant gown swayed slowly, as her darkness surpassed the despair that filled the city. The devil extends her hand and points to a Servant who has approached. The truth hidden in magecraft is reflected in her eyes.

"Are you the Caster-class Servant from this fragment? Caster Cu Chulainn?"

The devil remains unresponsive amidst raging flames as if she can only exist in such an extreme environment. Death, sin, unforgiveness, the shadow of hell... many ominous words can describe this beautiful-faced woman (devil).

Caster Cu Chulainn approaches and utilizes the basic invisibility spell from rune magic. Although he does not hope to achieve the level of Assassin's presence concealment, he never expected to be discovered, even when standing behind several shipping containers.

Without rashly attacking the person and beast amidst the raging flames, Caster Cu Chulainn walked along the aisle of the harbor and dispelled magecraft on himself. "Beautiful lady, although you don't look like a human, I still have to ask: Is there anything I can help you with?"

"Interesting Servant, don't you think it would be better to disappear immediately in front of me?"

"That's not possible. We Celtic warriors cannot just stand by and watch a beautiful woman wandering amid the flames."

Caster Cu Chulainn maintains what he believes to be a safe distance from which he can escape, unaware that, in this singularity, it makes no difference wherever he escapes.

"Slick talker, how interesting. Aren't you supposed to be looking for a new Master to form a contract with?"

The devil smiles enough to bewilder ordinary humans who are not resistant to magic. She was not in a hurry to get things done. It is interesting for her to converse with a bold Servant who came before her. If she feels bored, her camel can devour the remains of another Servant.

"This city has already begun the process of destruction, and everything should be heading towards annihilation. However, as the number of humans in the city decreases rapidly, the amount of magical energy in the atmosphere is increasing. As a Caster-class Servant who has descended, it is not difficult for me to create a 'sanctuary of prayers' that gathers magical energy. I can continue to exist even without a Master."

"Establishing a Magecraft Workshop? Your Caster-class Servants are indeed convenient, able to replace the essential requirement of a Master through clever means." The devil seems inspired and cannot help but laugh, as she thinks of something even more interesting.

"Although you are beautiful, you instinctively give me chills. In this unquenchable blaze, the scorching sensation is swept away by you." Caster's words sound pleasant, but he quickly assesses that he cannot win against the opponent. This is why he willingly revealed himself; otherwise, he would never allow such an evil entity to roam freely in this place. "By the way, My Lady. Do you know why the flames cannot be extinguished here? Even my Rune magic cannot put them out. The tragedy of hell will probably continue until the Holy Grail War is over."

The devil once again smiled, enjoying the company as an eager seeker of knowledge. "Based on what you've seen, is it because Rider dispatched his legion to massacre the survivors in this city?"

"I also don't understand why Rider suddenly targeted the harbor where the survivors gathered."

The devil waved her hand, interrupting Caster's description. "I will only answer your previous question. The truth is something that your participants can discover, which adds flavor to it. You witnessed the massacre first, and then the great fire erupted, right?"

Caster nodded in confirmation.

"And you deduced that the concentration of magical energy in the atmosphere continues to rise as the number of humans decreases?"

Caster also nodded to confirm this.

"Then the answer is roughly presented before you, isn't it?" The devil gestured for Caster to reach his hand towards a nearby location. "Right here."

Similar to Servant's Noble Phantasm, the devil materialized the "answer" that Caster wanted to know and presented it before him. She had near-omniscience and was able to "find" anything hidden.

Caster was met with a more intense scene of raging flames. It was when all survivors in the city perished that Fuyuki City began to burn. This place was the starting point, igniting an even more magnificent fire.

"I probably shouldn't have obeyed the Holy Grail's summons and come to this city destined for destruction to participate in the Holy Grail War," Caster said self-derisively, with a mocking tone, after obtaining the answer. Here, victory or defeat loses meaning. Saber had won before, but then she transformed into an uncontrollable special Servant and resurrected other Servants, causing the concluded Holy Grail War to replay.

If Caster were to emerge victorious, it would only mean changing the "protagonist" responsible for the disaster.

"How can we stop the spread of this catastrophe?"

"I will only answer one question, and the rest you must explore the truth yourself. Here's a hint: if you truly find a way to stop the catastrophe from spreading, I will kill you immediately."

The devil's smile sent further chills down Caster's spine. The devil appearing here was far from benevolent, and it was fortunate that he was attracted to despair. From the devil's final reminder, it was clear that she had intimate knowledge of the calamity that befell Fuyuki City and was unwilling to let anyone stop this disaster.

"My Lady, since my search for a way to stop the catastrophe would anger you, how can I satisfy you?" Caster did not openly express his desire to prevent the disaster from spreading. Obtaining more information from the devil would be helpful for his plan. He planned to do the opposite of what she said.

"I told you from the beginning, disappear from my sight immediately!" The devil's playful desires were satisfied. While she did not truly care how long this singularity would exist, openly revealing relevant information to a Servant would compromise her identity. In an instant, she and the camel beside her were engulfed by the flames, and no trace of the devil could be found.

The foul stench of charred and decaying flesh consumed by the camel lingered on the ground. Caster confirmed the bite marks and set the corpses on fire, waiting for the flames to spread. Undoubtedly, the female devil and the camel monster he saw just now were real and did exist for a moment.

"What a capricious woman!"

Caster could not determine the identity of the female devil, but judging from her words and actions, she would likely be observing somewhere, probably until she lost interest and left.

"Being eaten by a camel with sharp teeth... spare me. I'd rather die in a more dignified way." Caster passed through the flames and returned to his temporary "sanctuary of prayer" to replenish the magical energy he had consumed today.

He was more concerned about the previous night's events than his journey as a traveler in a parallel world. It was clear that he had witnessed his familiar "saw" Assassin being killed by Saber again, but he reappeared shortly after, and this time, the Assassin that appeared didn't attack Lancer or Lancer's Master at the most opportune time, as if he couldn't use his Noble Phantasm anymore.

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The plan to establish a new base in the harbor area failed. Shinji and Yuki followed Lancer and temporarily took refuge in a residential area near a convenience store in the commercial district. No single living person remained in the harbor, and naturally, no survivors could be seen in other areas of the city.

At this time, Yuki was asked to participate in the formulation of the next plan, officially joining the Lancer's team.

Shinji had no joy in escaping from Assassin's clutches. Yuki remembered reading in his studies that "if a Master can escape from an Assassin-class Servant, it's a cause for celebration."

More than once, Shinji had a gloomy face and complained about the taste of the canned food Lancer had simply cooked. Yuki kept count, and it was the fourth time.

It would also be the last time.

In a fit of anger, Lancer swung her lance and smashed it through the table, knocking all the food on top of it. She had already shown sincerity in cooking food for her master as an apology. If it were her previous personality, a part of Shinji would be lying in the pot, continuing to simmer, while another part would be shared with the new Master, Yuki.

"Speak your mind, Master. I'm not happy either!" Lancer warns her master, causing Shinji to momentarily suppress his anger and inquire about her intentions.

"You wanted to go to the harbor, right? To leave Fuyuki City by boat I have fulfilled your request, so please state your next demand!"

Yuki was well aware that Lancer had the advantage in terms of information, far more than Shinji and himself. She was also the team's sole combat force, making her natural choice for the team leader. This goes against the principles of team combat. Yuki recalled some knowledge about alliance strategies in the Holy Grail War, mostly from the perspective of magi, analyzing the pros and cons. However, he only had a vague understanding and could not apply it. For example, he didn't know how to reconcile the conflict between Lancer and her Master, Shinji.

"Isn't the Holy Grail War a magical ritual to compete for the Holy Grail?" Shinji casually spoke, earning a disdainful glance at Lancer. He was looking for someone to vent his frustrations, and Yuki, the burden of the team, played that role perfectly.

"Don't state the obvious!"

"Why don't you compete for the Holy Grail?"

It was at this moment that Shinji realized that Yuki, an unknown individual of the same age he had picked up, possessed extensive knowledge about the Holy Grail War but was completely unaware of the recent events that had unfolded in Fuyuki City over the past month.

"The Holy Grail? It had already determined its owner, the Saber faction. This was one month before Fuyuki City fell into chaos. Do you think we can win against Saber?" Shinji didn't reveal the whole truth immediately. He was unsure about Lancer's attitude and whether she would suddenly get angry if he revealed too much. He despises women who are unpredictable in their emotions.

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