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Natsukawa Tora had a dream.
In the dream, a city was engulfed in flames, a black sun hung in the sky, and a jet-black waterfall poured from that sun.
The scene was familiar to Natsukawa Tora; he had already watched it countless times through the screen. After absorbing the magical energy and souls of six Servants, the Holy Grail finally manifested, and the All the World's Evil within it overflowed, dragging everything it touched into a sea of fire.
It was a scene worthy of being called the Apocalypse—at least, with Natsukawa Tora's limited imagination, he figured the end of the world would look exactly like this.
"——————"
At some point, the burning city vanished, the black sun and the All the World's Evil disappeared, replaced by an underground cavern carpeted with skeletal remains. At the center, atop a mountain of corpses, two figures stood—one holding a sword that had pierced the other's heart.
Natsukawa Tora couldn't make out who the two were; his vision looked like it had been smeared with thick mosaic worse than in a low-budget film. The harder he tried to see, the denser the mosaic became.
The only thing he could tell was that both had golden hair.
Then, a surging wave of pitch-blackness burst from the pair and rushed at Natsukawa Tora, swallowing his consciousness along with a roar shouted by someone unknown.
**[Give me back my Saber, outsider!]**
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"Aaaah——————!"
At 8:30 a.m., in a cheap apartment complex in Fuyuki City rented out to single occupants, Natsukawa Tora woke up on the tatami.
The window had been opened at some point; a cool morning breeze drifted in, and bright sunlight spilled over him.
It should have been another beautiful morning—on any other day, Natsukawa Tora would have thought so aloud—but right now, fresh from the nightmare, he felt only icy hands and feet, a chill all over, his clothes soaked in cold sweat.
"Master!"
Beside him, hearing his cry, Arthur appeared at once. Noticing his Master's shaken state, the knight knelt and asked with concern, "Are you all right? What happened?"
"...Nothing. Just a nightmare."
Straightening up, Natsukawa Tora hung his head in silence for a moment, then asked, "Saber... have you ever killed anyone?"
"Yes. Certainly."
"Then add a few qualifiers—an underground cavern, a blonde woman, a backstab. Have you killed under those conditions?"
"..."
For the first time in half a month, Arthur, who had answered Natsukawa Tora's questions about almost everything, did not reply at once.
"Yes." Arthur nodded again. "That was... in a parallel world's Holy Grail War, in Tokyo."
"Who did you kill?"
"My Master." At that, Arthur hastily added, "But please believe me, Master. No matter the mistakes I've made before, this time I will bring you victory."
"...I'm going to take a shower."
Without answering Arthur's vow of loyalty, Natsukawa Tora stood and strode into the bathroom.
Then he plopped onto the floor, gasping for breath.
"Haa... haa... You've got to be kidding me... What kind of hell-mode start is this..."
If any other Master had dreamed that, they'd now feel some distrust toward Arthur. A Servant who once slew his own Master is an unstable bomb; you never know when you might be betrayed and killed, so using Command Seals to restrain the Servant wouldn't be unthinkable.
Like Medea's original Master in the Fifth War, for instance.
But Natsukawa Tora understood Arthur's character. He'd read the novels, the lore books, the game scripts—five years a devoted fan. He knew Arthur was a noble King of Knights; as long as there was no clash of ideals or positions, Arthur would never betray him.
What truly unsettled Natsukawa Tora was the figure Arthur had stabbed in the dream—his former Master.
If he remembered correctly, that person was nicknamed the "Root's Liar" and "Beast of Calamity," linked to the Root from birth, the genuine Princess of the Root, the strongest human Master to appear in any main or side story of the Holy Grail Wars—Manaka Sajyou.
After a contract is made, Master and Servant may dream of each other's pasts; that's normal, and Natsukawa Tora had prepared for it. But never had he imagined that Manaka Sajyou would mark him!
That was seriously fatal! She was a genuine yandere, a woman who, for Arthur's wish to restore Britain, would destroy Quantum Time-Locks and wreck the foundation of human order. A nobody like him, without even a single Magic Circuit, marked by her had only one road—death!
"Master."
Arthur's voice sounded outside the door.
"Are you really okay? That nightmare... did you dream of Manaka?"
"Manaka... so that's the girl's name?"
He twisted the shower knob; hot water washed away the cold sweat. Glancing at Arthur's silent silhouette beyond the door, Natsukawa Tora sighed. "Arthur, grab me some clothes from the wardrobe—my school uniform."
"Ah... sure."
"Whatever happened between you and that Manaka, if you don't want to talk about it, I won't ask. I have only one request for you—protect me in this Holy Grail War. I don't need victory; I just want your protection. Can you do that?"
"...Understood, Master."
Outside the door, Arthur exhaled in relief.
"By the name of the King of Knights and the Holy Sword, I shall defeat every enemy and keep you safe."
"No need to defeat everyone... never mind. I'm counting on you, Arthur." At that, Natsukawa Tora grew playful and joked, "Oh right—if your ex-girlfriend comes knocking, whose side will you take?"
"Master, Manaka and I were never what you think! And I will, as I just swore, protect you to the end!"
"Is that so?"
"Absolutely!"
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