Next Day, Dawn
Near the battlefield, Saber gazed at the nearby Rider and his Master, frowning slightly.
Over the past few days, their combinations had thoroughly settled terms.
Both sides would assault the strongest combination together. Attacking each other before eliminating that Servant and Master was forbidden.
Although Artoria felt this simple contract document had many loopholes to exploit, the three Masters, including Kiritsugu, had all signed it.
She didn't know what that Master named Waver was thinking, but since an old snake like Kiritsugu dared to sign the contract, it meant the remaining loopholes weren't necessarily bad for their side.
Only now, Artoria felt her "Intuition" constantly warning her that something was wrong.
[Kiritsugu, Rider has brought his Master.]
[Yes. After all, Rider has a riding Noble Phantasm and can carry his Master to the battlefield. But I know what you want to say, Saber.]
[You think Rider's move might be a conspiracy, right?]
[Although I might be overthinking, my "Intuition" tells me the situation ahead will be more dangerous than I imagine.]
[Yes. Although we all know we must eliminate Caster's Master this time, in this situation, we are still opponents who must fight to the death. Expecting the other two to be of one heart with us—I don't think you'd have such naive thoughts.]
[Indeed, so...]
[If the situation is wrong, notify me to use a Command Spell to retreat immediately.]
[This... if we retreat here, we still have a chance to win later. Don't forget, killing the Master is not the condition for victory.]
[Killing the Servant is.]
[You mean...]
[Killing Caster, then avoiding Caster's Master, is also a tactic. Of course, if Caster's Master comes to the battlefield and Caster is still hiding, then we can only fight hard.]
[Hmm, indeed. The difficulty of killing that Master is too high; killing Caster is a better method for us.]
[But splitting the battlefield... won't work. If Caster really encounters danger, Caster's Master can summon him back to his side.]
[Correct, so when the fight really starts, either you or Rider must stall that man. Only by stalling Caster can his Master be afraid to summon Caster to his side.]
[Hmm... although I do not fear challenges, doing so easily turns into a situation where we do the work for others to benefit, right?]
[Yes. If you face Caster's Master, even if you stall him and let the other two Servants kill Caster, you will suffer great damage. So your tactic is primarily "delay"—of course, if there's a chance to take him out, you are permitted to use the Holy Sword.]
[And after Caster is killed, I will call you back with a Command Spell. So for the next period, I will observe the situation nearby using bat familiars equipped with cameras. If you feel you really can't handle the lane—don't hesitate, just say it.]
[I see, I understand.]
On the other side, Waver Velvet was also communicating with his Servant.
However, they didn't say much. After seeing Saber appear and Assassin's figure flash by, Iskandar issued a reminder to Waver.
[Master, wait and see the specific situation. If only Caster's Master comes, we join forces with the other two Servants to attack that man. But if Caster comes, we change tactics.]
[Yeah, that tactic you mentioned last time, right? Use your Noble Phantasm to split the battlefield, and after you release the Noble Phantasm, quickly defeat Caster, then choose a strategic retreat.]
[Exactly. If Caster unknowingly appears on the battlefield, abandoning his workshop, his danger level naturally drops to the lowest. I'll seize the opportunity then; a charge with Ionioi Hetairoi should be enough to take him out.]
[And you—must follow beside me. Although Assassin claims "not to be good at frontal combat, so I will wait nearby for an opportunity to strike," who knows if they will immediately seize the chance to attack you once Caster dies and the contract is fulfilled.]
[Indeed. Rider... never mind, let's not talk about this.]
[I can feel it—that guy is here! Prepare for battle!]
On the empty battlefield, everyone saw a Master actually charging in from the front.
To be honest, aside from hiding his face with a mask, what the other party was doing was truly a bit scary.
Everyone wasn't stupid. Knowing there was a combination of three Servants allied here, that man still chose a frontal breakthrough.
Either his brain was cramping, or he truly felt he had the strength to pierce through the combination of Rider, Saber, and Assassin from the front.
Okay, Assassin really could be ignored—that guy wearing a skull mask had been squatting nearby in spirit form from the start.
Assassin with Presence Concealment was an expert at hide-and-seek. Other Servants and Masters couldn't find these hidden Hassans unless they attacked actively.
[Hmph, good courage. But Caster... heh, unsurprisingly, should be nearby.]
Watching Aaron and Saber meet and begin to exchange blows, Iskandar on the ox cart suddenly saw an unnatural magical fluctuation in the area behind Aaron.
Raiden Mei, following behind Aaron, didn't get too close to him. After all, according to Aaron's plan, he should actively lure away the other Servants first, giving Raiden Mei a chance to search for Masters nearby.
But when Raiden Mei arrived in this vicinity—several Assassins suddenly materialized from the air, rushing towards Raiden Mei from all directions.
Raiden Mei already knew there were over seventy Assassins.
But she simply didn't expect—that this time, there were actually over fifty Assassins squatting nearby.
These Assassins knew very well that even if they added up, they weren't Aaron's match.
So—these Assassins' goal from the start was the Servant, Caster.
Even if Raiden Mei hadn't come here, they would have started a large-scale search for Raiden Mei's trail from here after Aaron appeared.
After all, although Tokiomi and the other two groups hadn't communicated on this aspect, he harbored the same thoughts as those allies.
If you can't beat Caster's Master, it doesn't matter; just eliminating Caster is enough.
After all, what the Holy Grail War needed...
—Was always just the souls of the Servants.
...............