"So, the enemy will attack from the north?"
After Ophis's brief explanation of the situation, the Servants generally understood what they were facing.
In response to Arjuna's question, Ophis shook her head slightly.
"It's highly probable… but not certain."
"Um… My 'God' has already confirmed that the north will be fine."
"A revelation, then…?"
After Jeanne's confirmation, Ophis gave a quiet nod.
"In that case, we need to build walls. But before that, someone must stall the beasts—and later guard the walls once they're done."
As she spoke, Ophis's gaze swept over Altera, Jeanne, and Arjuna.
All three likely had experience leading troops.
Altera possessed Tactics at Rank B, though her "strategy" mainly consisted of bulldozing through everything.
Jeanne had Revelation at Rank A—but her "strategy" also boiled down to bulldozing through everything.
Arjuna was famed as a lone hero, not a commander, with no tactical skills to speak of. His preferred method was to quietly eliminate the strongest foe first.
Taken together, these three didn't seem particularly reliable for defense.
Then…
"Altera, Jeanne, Arjuna—I'm entrusting this task to you three."
…If one didn't suffice, she would just send all of them.
"Overall command goes to Altera, but consider Jeanne's input whenever possible."
Military tactics plus divine revelation—at the very least, that combination should be able to hold the line.
"Um, I… my support magic is strong, and I can heal fairly well too. If possible…"
Medea has healing abilities?
"Then wounded soldiers will be sent back here. Medea will handle their treatment."
Sending her to the front seemed unwise for now—she was clearly nervous. Letting her start with healing duty would be better.
Heracles, in his current state, would serve best as a pure frontline powerhouse.
With five of them assigned, Ophis turned toward the last Servant in white robes.
"Ah, Master, could you give me as much freedom as possible? There are, ah, complicated reasons~ Also, let me take Heracles with me, please. I'm just a frail little mage, after all."
"I need a reason."
Ophis's stare hardened. Even without her instinctive aversion to his aura, she couldn't allow two top-tier combatants to sit idle.
"Well… There's a certain 'monster' still sleeping in this era. I can't say how much I can do, but someone needs to make sure she stays asleep a little longer."
[He's perceptive. Let him go.]
"…Fine. I'll leave it to you."
"No worries, no worries, I'll do my very best Ah, but don't let your guard down. I might end up weakened afterward for… certain reasons, so please let Heracles stay with me to protect me, okay~?"
"Roaaaar────" (Why not guard the child instead?)
"Later, I'll grant you the title of Court Magician, allowing full access to the temple's resources. Anything else?"
After brief thought, Ophis nodded and looked around the group again.
"…Is something wrong?"
She paused, then glanced toward Altera.
Although everyone's attention was on her, Altera's gaze burned so fiercely that Ophis couldn't ignore it.
"No. Nothing."
Altera shook her head.
"Then, I only need to destroy any enemies that approach, correct? I'll do it my own way."
Leaving those words behind, Altera turned and walked out.
"Altera… Forgive me. King Ophis, please entrust the northern wall to us. Upon this banner, I swear—not a single beast will cross even half a step!"
As Altera left, Jeanne bowed deeply and followed.
"In that case, I'll also withdraw to fulfill the mission. Should any emergency arise, please summon me at once. Excuse me."
With his two companions gone, Arjuna naturally followed.
Watching the three disappear, Ophis took out a golden dagger and carved several lines onto a stone tablet before handing it to Merlin.
"You three, take this to Siduri. She'll handle your arrangements."
…Siduri—the priestess girl. Ophis had known her name all along; she had simply never spoken it aloud.
Finally got a name. Congratulations.
"Oh-ho, thank you kindly. Well then, farewell for now."
"I-I'll do my best, Master!"
"Roaaaar────!"
When the last of the Servants had left, Ophis sank to the floor of the hall.
"Inori… Summoning details."
[Hmm… This summoning was indeed odd. To summarize: the summoning of Archer, Medea as Caster, and Berserker proceeded normally. According to fate's judgment, the Heroic Spirit who could have filled the Assassin role would've been too weak to matter. Though one potential candidate had the power to influence this war, the chance of summoning them was almost zero. Thus, Jeanne took the place of that essentially useless Assassin—well within expectations.]
At Ophis's prompt, Inori continued.
[However, midway through the summoning, that mage Merlin forced his way in, replacing the original Rider slot. At first I worried about interference, but it seems he isn't here to sabotage us, so that's fine.]
"The issue is… Lancer?"
[Exactly. Lancer's summoning truly went wrong. I clearly sensed a Lancer being called, but something interfered midway and erased their presence. Even so, I can confirm they're still somewhere in this era.]
"I see…"
Ophis nodded.
They both understood without needing to say more.
There was one Heroic Spirit who would definitely have answered her call.
Yet among the six present, that person was missing. Which meant—
She rubbed her temples again. Ever since Enkidu's passing, she'd caught herself doing that more and more often.
[And lastly, Saber!]
"…There's a problem with Saber too?"
[Yes. I sensed… Saber was forcibly summoned.]
"Forcibly summoned?"
[The ritual for that portion was altered by a powerful external force. In this world, it's probably the work of those two. I could've interrupted the summoning, but fate's revelation advised against it, so I let it proceed.]
As Inori finished, Ophis rubbed her temples once more.
These troublesome problems… just kept piling up.