Time passed quickly. In the blink of an eye, the night was over. The next day, while Yusei was still eating at a breakfast shop on the streets of Fuyuki City, a thin man wearing a hood to conceal his appearance approached him.
The man's face was utterly pale, with veins writhing on one side, looking quite disgusting. His once-black hair had turned completely white. The occasional grimace of pain and his trembling body all undoubtedly revealed this man's identity.
'Matou Kariya…' Yusei watched the man walking towards him, a flicker of interest rising in his heart, and the corners of his mouth unconsciously lifted slightly.
'A pawn in the plan has arrived.'
Before Kariya could speak, Yusei smiled warmly and gestured an invitation.
"Have some breakfast first. We can discuss other matters later."
"..." Kariya didn't speak, sitting down woodenly, but he didn't touch the food.
Yusei didn't mind. Since he wasn't eating, Yusei would just finish it all himself.
After a meal and a bowl of hot miso soup, Yusei felt very content.
Leaving the restaurant, they went to a quiet café. Yusei ordered two coffees, preparing to get down to business.
When the coffee arrived, Yusei took a sip first, then put it down, 'Ah, average quality.'
"You are the Master of Berserker, I presume? I've already discerned that. So, may I ask, what was your relationship with the old man from yesterday? You don't have to answer if you don't want to." Yusei looked at Kariya with interest.
"Matou Zouken," Kariya uttered, a ferocious expression flashing across his face. But then, remembering something, he closed his eyes in pain and said, "He is my father."
"Father? It seems your relationship isn't very good." Yusei kept dropping sugar cubes into his coffee, stirring them in, and said in a casual tone, "And just now, your expression seemed to hold a lot of hatred towards your father."
"How could I not hate him! He is a demon! A disgusting worm!"
"Alright, I'm not interested in your family affairs. Let's talk business. You were sent by that old man to negotiate, right? What can you offer me?" Yusei shifted the topic abruptly, making Kariya, who had been seething with anger, feel like he had punched cotton, leaving him bewildered.
However, upon hearing Yusei's words, he hesitated. Originally, according to Zouken's plan, he was to promise the Holy Grail's wish, asking the Ruler to help the Berserker Faction cheat.
But after hearing Yusei's earlier words, other thoughts arose in his mind.
He gritted his teeth, steeling his heart, and said, "Ruler, you are very strong. As long as you can help me kill Matou Zouken, I will do my utmost to help you seize the Holy Grail."
"The Holy Grail? Unfortunately, I'm not very interested. Why should I, the Ruler, participate in the fight for the Holy Grail? Moreover, I am not an Assassin, so I don't accept missions like assassinations." Yusei said indifferently.
Hearing this, Kariya felt a wave of despair, 'Was I truly doomed to be manipulated by that old monster, unable to save Sakura?'
"However..." Yusei's tone shifted, and he looked at Kariya playfully, "While I won't take action personally, I can provide assistance for you to do whatever you wish."
"Assistance?"
"Correct." Yusei snapped his fingers. Kariya felt a sudden heat on the back of his hand. The mark of a Command Spell appeared. Combined with the previous three, he now had four Command Spells in total.
Yusei said leisurely, "No combat power is stronger than a Servant's, especially a Berserker's. The issue is merely whether it can be controlled effectively. Now I'm giving you the reins. Isn't that enough for you to do what you want?"
"Four Command Spells... This..." Kariya had to admit, he was tempted. Controlling Berserker was extremely difficult, but with so many Command Spells, even Berserker would be firmly restrained.
But there was still one major problem: Sakura's safety.
'Sakura had Crest Worms implanted in her body by the old bastard. If the old bastard decided to burn the bridges, Sakura's safety couldn't be guaranteed.'
Yusei had already thought of this. He smiled and said, "I can give you one more Command Spell. However, this Command Spell is somewhat special. You can choose to give it to anyone."
"Give it? I can give it to anyone?"
"Correct. To be precise, to any Master. The choice is yours." Yusei tapped his fingers on the table, his meaning almost explicit.
'I give you the Command Spell, and you use it as a reward to ask someone else for help.'
After all, they were just Crest Worms. If it were an excellent magus, it wouldn't be impossible to solve the Crest Worm problem.
After a long silence, Kariya, his face shifting uncertainly, asked, "Ruler, if you don't want the Holy Grail, what do you want? Why help me like this?"
"No need for you to concern yourself with that. You just need to remember that these are things you yourself want to do, isn't that right?" Yusei said with a smile.
"Right! I can't wait to kill Matou Zouken immediately!"
Yusei snapped his fingers again. Another Command Spell appeared on the back of Kariya's other hand.
"If you find a partner and are ready to pay the reward, just press the back of your hand against theirs to transfer the Command Spell."
"Alright. Thank you very much!" Kariya stood up and bowed.
Yusei waved his hand, "That's not all. I hope you can publicly announce something."
"What thing?"
"Spread the word that I gave you two Command Spells, and make it clear that your second Command Spell can be transferred to any Master, simply by touching the backs of your hands."
"As for the reason I gave you two Command Spells, just say we traded for various precious magical texts and treasures of this world."
Kariya was slightly stunned upon hearing this, "Wouldn't doing that let others know you are helping me cheat? Then you..."
Yusei glanced at him faintly without saying much. Kariya fell silent and didn't press further.
But he was very puzzled inwardly, 'Why would the Ruler, who professed fairness, voluntarily expose his own unfair actions?'
However, thinking about it, this would also make it easier for him to recruit helpers, which would be more beneficial for his [Exterminate the Worm, Save Sakura] plan.