Chapter 39: His Name

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"Master, I think we should retreat for now."

Jeanne glanced at the two opposing Master-Servant pairs in front of her. A faint look of relief passed over her face as she spoke to her Master.

"If it's two against one, I won't be able to win."

What's more, the other side had an Archer—a ranged combatant.

Fighting a swordsman with strength on par with her own while also having to guard against a powerful archer was far too dangerous, even more so than battling two melee opponents at once.

"Are you kidding me? I've finally found the traitor who massacred my entire clan, and now you want me to run?!"

The armored old man glared at Jeanne. His hatred burned so intensely that he wanted nothing more than to tear Roy apart right here and now.

There was no way he'd retreat.

Jeanne sighed softly, her expression resembling a mother trying to reason with a stubborn child.

"If you die here, your wish will never be fulfilled. Does that not concern you?"

"Guh!"

The old man stiffened.

In his eyes, revenge and the fulfillment of his wish clashed fiercely, twisting his face into a mask of rage and frustration.

"If we continue fighting, I can hold them off for a while, but you won't survive their counterattacks. That Archer is no joke."

"Enough! We're retreating!"

The old man snapped, cutting off Jeanne mid-sentence.

"Understood, Master."

Jeanne breathed a sigh of relief.

She really didn't want this armored man and Roy to kill each other.

Both of them were victims of fate, products of tragic circumstances. Their lives had already been marred by sorrow. It would be best if they never crossed paths again.

Yet fate had brought them together in the Holy Grail War, of all places, after so many years.

"Roy…"

Jeanne cast a long glance at the white-haired, red-eyed boy in the distance.

Her eyes flickered with a deep, unresolved guilt.

"I'm sorry."

With that, she lifted the armored old man effortlessly with one arm and retreated swiftly into the distance.

"Master!"

Okita Souji's eyes locked onto the retreating figures.

If they pursued now, there might be a chance to stop them!

Yet, she hadn't received any command to act.

Confused, she turned back to Roy.

Roy stared at the direction where Jeanne and her Master had fled, his expression one of baffled disbelief, as if something had hit him unexpectedly. He seemed to be murmuring something under his breath.

"Don't chase them."

Rin Tohsaka's voice interrupted, stopping both Servants.

"They're heading towards the city center. If we fight there, the casualties will be enormous."

Suddenly, Roy's head snapped around, his gaze as cold as ice as he glared at Rin.

The blood-red hue of his eyes sent a chill through the air.

Archer, standing in his red coat, tensed, silently stepping forward to place himself between Roy and Rin.

Okita Souji's eyes gleamed, and without a word, she positioned herself protectively in front of Roy.

For a moment, the atmosphere crackled with tension, as if a single wrong move would set off an explosion.

"Archer, step back."

"…Rin?"

"It's fine, just trust me."

Archer's face twisted with reluctance.

He could see the malice burning clearly in Roy's eyes, and he felt uneasy about letting Rin confront him without protection.

But under Rin's increasingly insistent gaze, Archer had no choice but to retreat a few steps, leaving Rin exposed while still keeping close enough to act if needed.

Roy's cold eyes watched their little performance with detached indifference.

"He entered the city illegally and attacked a Master who was defending it. The city itself rejects him," Rin said calmly, meeting Roy's gaze head-on. "I'll gather a team to track him down immediately. I'll even help you deal with him. But for now, please, put your glasses back on, alright?"

Her voice was gentle, like a mother coaxing a stubborn child.

Okita Souji's eyes widened slightly in surprise.

She was surprisingly adept at this, wasn't she?

It seemed like this wasn't the first time she'd had to calm him down.

Roy's gaze was sharp and cold as a blade, staring at Rin as if trying to burn a hole through her.

After a long, tense moment, he slowly raised his hand and put on his glasses.

"You make a good point."

Roy's expression shifted as if flipping a switch, and the ominous aura surrounding him disappeared in an instant, replaced by a mild smile.

"We shouldn't lose sight of the bigger picture. The real threat lies with the corrupted Servants outside the city. If we don't take them out soon, Fuyuki City will be in grave danger."

The charged tension in the air dissipated.

Rin visibly relaxed, letting out a breath she didn't realize she'd been holding.

"I'm glad you see it that way."

Even though she'd faced Roy in this state before, his overwhelming killing intent was always unnerving.

Every time they stood face to face like this, her heart pounded with anxiety.

One wrong move, and she was sure Roy would burn her to ashes on the spot.

"By the way, your Servant's identity has been exposed."

Rin's smile returned as she pointed toward Okita Souji.

Then, she gestured upward toward the sky.

"Chances are, Bazett will be coming after you soon."

Roy glanced skyward.

Even though it was nighttime, the Servant battle had been far too conspicuous, attracting a host of familiars that now circled above them. No doubt, Okita's appearance had already been spread among the magi of Fuyuki City.

At the very latest, Bazett would come knocking by tomorrow or the day after.

"I was ready for this the moment I summoned Saber."

Roy shrugged nonchalantly.

Bazett was indeed a troublesome opponent.

But if he could defeat her once, he could do it again.

Even the Mage's Association held no threat to him. With his Mystic Eyes of the Reverse Moon, capable of controlling all forms of sorcery, the mages of the Association—even the top-tier ones—were like children to him.

He had never taken the Mage's Association seriously.

Besides.

Now that the identities of Saber, Archer, Lancer, Rider, and Berserker were clear, he had a solid grasp of who they were.

As for Berserker, based on the Einzbern family's methods and Illya's behavior, it was almost certain that he was the same Greek hero, the infamous "tree log," who was endlessly hyped only to suffer humiliating defeats time and again.

Which meant only Assassin and Caster remained unknown.

Given Bazett's personality and the relic she likely used, Roy already had a strong suspicion about which Heroic Spirit she had summoned and what class they belonged to.

The only true mystery was Assassin—both the Master and the Servant were still hidden in the shadows.

But from another perspective…

Of the seven Masters, Roy held two of the spots. Rin, Illya, Bazett, and the armored old man filled four more. The last slot, then, was obvious.

The Matou family.

Among the three founding families, only the Matou family had yet to make a move.

If Zouken Matou was still alive, then he was surely a Master by now.

If he was truly dead, the Greater Grail might have chosen someone else in the Matou family—perhaps Matou Sakura, or another branch member. One way or another, this final position undoubtedly belonged to the Matou family.

"I'll start mobilizing a team to track down that Lancer's Master. Do you know his name? Any information would help—the more detailed, the better."

Rin planned to contact her secretary at City Hall through her familiars and coordinate the search. With several magi working together, they could strip that old man down to his very core in no time.

"I know."

Roy's expression darkened as he nodded.

"His name is Chiyouemon. He's a magus who's lived for nearly four hundred years."

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