Shinji Matou At Your Service

After everything was done, Shinji finally had a chance to catch his breath. The highly tense nerves in his body relaxed, and the feedback from various parts of his body was presented one by one in his mind.

"My ribs... four of them are cracked... cough cough... my lungs and liver have been compressed to a certain extent..."

Among Scathach's warrior teachings, there was a special program called "Body Control," which Shinji privately referred to as "torture."

From the first day of training, Scathach would inflict injuries on different parts of Shinji's body in various ways. In addition to toughening his physique and training his resistance to impact, she also wanted Shinji to remember various types of pain and accurately assess his condition.

In Scathach's view, a qualified warrior must have full control over their physical condition to make the most accurate judgments in battle.

Over time, Shinji no longer needed modern instruments or magecraft to examine his body. He could determine his injuries solely based on the feedback transmitted through his nerves to his brain.

"Heh, compared to Sensei's hellish training, this is nothing... This level of injury can be healed with the healing runes Sakura made."

Shinji found a relatively clean corner, leaned against the wall, and took out two rune stones from the pouch where he stored them. He attached one rune stone to the nearest location to the wound and crushed the other one forcefully.

There are two ways to use rune stones: stable activation for continuous release and crushing for one-time use.

Shinji used the first method to heal his bodily injuries and the second method for wide-ranging detection.

The emerald green rune representing life steadily released the power of healing, bringing a soothing coolness that alleviated Shinji's pain and gradually repaired the damage to his body.

The colorless rune representing detection shattered in an instant, emitting an invisible magical energy that, when encountering foreign magical energy, created special fluctuations and fed back to Shinji. The detection radius was one kilometer, serving as a small-scale radar for the mysterious aspects.

After the rune shattered, for one minute, Shinji received no feedback, indicating that there were no magical energy fluctuations within a radius of one kilometer. It seemed that this tentacle creature was a standalone boss without any accompanying minions, so there was no need to worry about being attacked for the time being.

With this thought in mind, Shinji released the materialization of Harpe. Although it was one of the two Noble Phantasms with the least consumption, Shinji, who also supplied magical energy to both Justeaze and Scathach, had gotten used to being thrifty. If he saved a little, they would have more magical energy to use.

This unspoken appreciation was exchanged for the concern of the two contracted Servants. Just a few minutes after Shinji sat down, he received a communication from Justeaze and Scathach.

"Shinji, your mana consumption is abnormal."

"What exactly happened?"

"Not much, I encountered a tentacle summoned by Caster and had to exert some effort to deal with it."

Shinji's tone sounded relaxed as if he had simply moved a slightly heavy stone.

Since it was already resolved, there was no need to worry. That was his thinking.

"Is that so." The trembling tone indicated that Scathach had already seen through Shinji's pretense of ease, but she didn't expose it.

"As long as you're okay." On the other hand, Justeaze seemed visibly relieved. She truly believed it.

Regardless of the reactions of the two women, Shinji's matter had concluded. The real deal was happening in the Einzbern Forest.

"How is the situation on your end?"

"The battle has been going on for some time. Caster is currently fighting against Saber and Lancer."

Although Justeaze's response was only one sentence, it allowed Shinji to deduce the course of events.

Just like in the original timeline, Caster's target was indeed Saber, and his whereabouts were discovered by Lancer or Kenneth, leading them to the Einzbern Forest. Due to their shared target and the affinity between knights, Saber and Lancer formed an alliance.

"I'm still on my way. It will take about ten to fifteen minutes."

Scathach's response made Shinji's evaluation of the Caster group rise even higher. Misleading and delaying Scathach's footsteps, trapping himself and Kariya in the underground sewer—these were all strategies employed by the Caster group.

"Being able to reach this point, I have to say, you've done well. But the higher the praise, the less likely we are to let you go."

Shinji's gaze turned cold, and he was about to urge Scathach to pick up the pace when he heard Justeaze continue, "Lancer's Master, Kenneth, invaded the castle from the front. Maya accompanied Irisviel in retreat, leaving Emiya Kiritsugu to deal with Kenneth."

Shinji quickly asked, "Which side are you following?"

"Neither. I'm currently at the core of the castle. From here, I can see everyone within the bounded field."

The castle was the core of the bounded field, and only by being in the castle could one have maximum control over the bounded field. Irisviel had left the castle, allowing Justeaze to gain partial control over the bounded field. The reason she could stay in contact with Shinji within the bounded field was because of this.

"Wise judgment. Inform me immediately if anything goes wrong on either side. Sensei, hurry."

Combining the plot of the Fourth Holy Grail War, Shinji had come up with many bold ideas, and tonight was one of them. If everything went smoothly, he and the Matou family might gain a significant advantage.

Shinji closed his eyes, and the figures of Kenneth and Emiya Kiritsugu alternated in his mind. The curve of his smirk resembled that of a mischievous fox.

"The highest rank in the Clock Tower hierarchy, the 'Brand Rank' Magus, Lord Kenneth El-Melloi Archibald."

At the Clock Tower, the headquarters of the Mage's Association, magus are assigned a "Rank" corresponding to their abilities.

There are a total of seven Ranks, from highest to lowest: Grand, Brand, Pride, Fes, Cause, Count, and Frame.

Kenneth's Rank, "Brand," is the second Rank. However, due to the strict criteria for the "Grand" Rank, very few magus achieve it, and it is rarely seen at the Clock Tower. Therefore, "Brand" is often considered the de facto highest Rank, and it is the highest Rank that most Lords can reach.

Kenneth is highly regarded by his family, allies, and school, and is considered one of the most qualified magus to challenge the "Grand" Rank. He can be said to be one of the strongest magus in the Clock Tower—not counting those ancient monsters who have lived for countless years.

"The pride of the Mage's Association, an existence that countless magus can only look up to for their entire lives, has encountered an assassin specially trained by the Association to deal with magicians. I can only say that your luck is as bad as your Servant's, both rated E."

"Living in this world, how would you know the saying 'From ancient times, Lancers are blessed with E-rank luck, and from ancient times, Lancers are miserable'? This misery doesn't just apply to the Lancers themselves, but it also affects their Masters. Perhaps your original luck wasn't E, but the moment you formed a contract with a Lancer, your luck assimilated into E."

"Unless you're someone like Constantine or Zhao Yun, who have absorbed all the luck of Lancers as the chosen ones, or a master so powerful that no curse can kill them, no one can resist the misfortune of a Lancer."

"Don't you see? Even Artoria, who had A-rank luck as a Saber, was killed by Mordred after changing into a Lancer. Oh wait, she didn't die, it was close though, otherwise, there wouldn't be the story of Fate."

"In short, cherish your life and stay away from Lancers—excluding the destined ones like the protagonist."

"But then again, if Lord Kenneth doesn't do something foolish, how would I have the opportunity?"

PS: I reiterate, that the Heroic Spirits do not have classes. Medusa can only use one Noble Phantasm at a time due to the limitation of the Rider class. Shinji obtained all the Noble Phantasms that embody the legend of Perseus, and as long as his mana can sustain the full armament, it is not impossible.

PS2: Medusa's Mystic Eyes of Petrification can affect not only living beings but also inorganic objects. In Fate/Grand Order, in the seventh chapter, during the Revenge Order, the Demon King Medusa's Eyes of Petrification were fully activated, petrifying Leonidas along with his Noble Phantasm.

PS3: Come on, let's sing together: "Fifty-six Brothers, fifty-six swipes; fifty-six Masters shooting, bursting with power; fifty-six Holy Swords, firing together; Lancer is dead, Lancer is dead, Lancer is dead~" (Here, the "Masters" refer to Chiron, the centaur Master who trained many heroes such as Achilles and Heracles.)