I, Kurumi Tokisaki, Am a Wanderer

"Breaking news..."

...

"The scenes of three recent murders..."

...

"All feature mysterious patterns resembling magic circles, drawn with the victims' blood..."

...

A child's tender throat let out a scream of despair, crying out "Monster! Demon! Hell!" The indescribable biological horror covered the child's final glimmer of hope.

"The transformation from hope to despair, that moment of terror—what do you think of it?" The voice was delicate and soft, spoken with an almost sympathetic tone, yet the words it conveyed were chilling.

"How do you find the taste of fresh fear and death?"

The strange man looked up, intoxicated by the weeping from this nightmare, his hands trembling uncontrollably as they clutched at his chest.

"Cool!" The serial killer known as Ryuunosuke Uryuu was flushed with excitement. "You're just too cool."

Finally, in this boring world, he had found someone worthy of his respect.

The last Servant, Caster, had arrived.

The deceptively peaceful Fuyuki City once again lifted the curtain on war.

A bloody conflict between seven magi and their Servants.

Assassin must "die." This was the conclusion reached by the head of the Tohsaka family, Tokiomi Tohsaka, and the executor of the Eighth Sacrament, Kirei Kotomine.

Only when the deadly Assassin was removed from the war would the Masters leave their workshops, exposing themselves.

Word from the Church confirmed that the last Servant, Caster, had been summoned. However, no Servant had yet appeared before the magi.

Yes, Kirei Kotomine, the priest under the supervision of the Holy Church, had secretly joined the Holy Grail War, even forming an alliance with the Tohsaka family, one of the founding families.

They were putting on a show.

At 3 a.m., the night sky over Fuyuki was deep and dark.

Kirei Kotomine dispatched Assassin to the Tohsaka residence, a western-style mansion fortified with various barriers, resembling a fortress.

Assassin flitted through the complex barriers, moving like a shadow thanks to his class skill, Presence Concealment.

Then—

Just as he reached out to touch the barrier's seal, a brilliant spear shot out, piercing his hand and pinning him to the ground.

On the roof of the Tohsaka residence stood a majestic figure, shining like gold.

"You lowly worm groveling on the ground, who gave you permission to lift your head?"

His crimson eyes burned like the blazing sun, his presence so resplendent it dimmed the stars. He looked down on Assassin like an insect, his tone dripping with contempt.

"You have no right to look at me. A worm should die like a worm, lying on the ground with its head down..."

Behind him, a golden portal rippled open, filling Assassin's entire field of vision—countless swords, spears, and weapons floated, their overwhelming magical energy impossible to hide.

All were materialized miracles—Noble Phantasms.

Despair.

Blades tore through the air, Noble Phantasms slicing through flesh and embedding deep into the earth, a cacophony of endless roars. The Holy Grail War had claimed its first victim, though it was a complete slaughter.

Outside the Tohsaka residence, at least four participants' familiars silently watched, like grim crows.

Emiya Kiritsugu was a first-rate magus. As a magus, he understood magi.

He would use any means necessary to achieve his goals, whether through magic or firearms, magecraft or modern technology. To him, they were all just tools.

He loved all people, sincerely wishing happiness for everyone, yet he also had the resolve to kill anyone.

Now, he had finally arrived in Fuyuki.

The noble King of Knights was not suited to act alongside him, even though that girl bore her own heavy resolve.

He devised an unexpected strategy—complete separation between Servant and Master.

Or rather, not complete separation. He glanced outside the hotel, where a black-haired girl sat quietly in a café, reading a book, her serene smile hiding a flicker of dark light in her eyes.

Irisviel would act as the public Master, leading Saber in a grand performance to draw the attention of all the Servants. Meanwhile, he, Kurumi, and the tool known as Maiya Hisau would serve as the hidden assassins to silently strike down their enemies.

Maiya Hisau was a beautiful woman with sharp, intimidating features.

She bore the other side of Emiya Kiritsugu's blood debt, stripped of her humanity and turned into a weapon. From the moment Kiritsugu saved her, she became an instrument aiding the "Magus Killer."

"Something happened at the Tohsaka residence last night." As a competent intelligence agent, she wasted no time getting to the point after confirming the safety of the area.

"I've recorded it. Also, all the equipment has been delivered."

Trained by Emiya Kiritsugu, she had no aversion to modern technology. She pressed the power button on the TV remote.

Unlike other magi, her familiars were equipped with small CCD cameras. Most magi were not wary of modern technology, their arrogance stemming from their bloodline biases.

Emiya Kiritsugu watched the recording of Assassin's seemingly suicidal actions, deep in thought.

As expected...

Assassin wasn't dead; he knew this better than anyone. The Hassan of the Hundred Faces was not a single entity but a group of assassins bearing the name Hassan.

Each persona had its own manifestation.

That golden Servant... Emiya Kiritsugu frowned. That was the true threat.

Gilgamesh, the oldest "King of Heroes."

A tyrant from Mesopotamian mythology, "two-thirds god, one-third human."

In this war, since Saber had already been summoned, he manifested as Archer? Kiritsugu found this troublesome, as Archers typically had strong adaptability to Noble Phantasms, and unfortunately, the oldest king was never short of them.

As he analyzed the situation, he began inspecting the equipment Maiya had brought.

A Walther WA 2000 bullpup sniper rifle.

A Calico M950A submachine gun.

...

Various firearms, grenades, flashbangs, even plastic explosives.

No magical energy, purely modern weaponry.

This was precisely why Emiya Kiritsugu was despised by other magi.

But in the end, these were just weapons. From the ebony box Maiya carefully presented, Kiritsugu took out his own special gun.

Resembling a medieval musket, its walnut stock and grip embedded with a blackened barrel, it felt like a short sword in his hand.

This was his Mystic Code.

Skillfully, he loaded the gun, flicked his wrist to close the chamber, and the gun became one with his hand.

The entire process took less than a second.

Maiya watched in surprise as the man who had not held a gun in nine years suddenly seemed like the brilliant "Magus Killer" had returned. But his brows were furrowed with worry.

She approached him from behind, gently wrapping her arms around him, her cold lips kissing him.

Asking her if she loved Kiritsugu was meaningless, just like asking if a hand loved the brain. She was merely a part of the machine known as Emiya Kiritsugu.

In the corner of the room, from within the shadows, came the sound of a girl's soft laughter.

And then, it faded away.

Assassin brought Tokiomi Tohsaka very bad news.

The Holy Church's "spiritual device" displayed—an eighth Servant had descended.

Avenger.

-165:17:21