Simulation: Starting from Under One Person

Speaking of which, the Gemstone Elder... hasn't been human for a long time~

Currently, there isn't a significant difference in skill among the magicians in Fuyuki City; there's no one-sided dominance.

Therefore, it is highly likely that it is a Heroic Spirit.

And the key is...

Who was so unethical as to launch a sneak attack on other Masters before the Holy Grail War even officially began?

After a mental struggle, Kiritsugu Emiya, still unable to come up with a solution, ordered, "Maiya, strengthen the castle's defenses."

“Okay.” Hisayu Mami nodded slightly, indicating that she understood.

"Saber, don't leave Irisviel's side."

Saber nodded slightly in response to Kiritsugu Emiya's instructions, and said solemnly, "Master, please rest assured, as a knight, I will definitely protect Irisviel."

"Hmm." Kiritsugu Emiya showed no extra expression, his gaze returning to the documents on the table.

Although it was an unexpected situation, there's no need to change the plan.

I just need to add some insurance...

With these thoughts in mind, Kiritsugu Emiya's mind drifted away.

at the same time……

In the study on the second floor of the Tohsaka residence, Tokiomi Tohsaka and Kirei Kotomine were also discussing the same matter.

Compared to the calm demeanor of Kiritsugu Emiya and others, Tokiomi Tohsaka's attitude was much more anxious, after all...

Regardless, he did have some feelings for Matou Sakura, and he believed that giving her up for adoption to the Matou family was for her own good...

Therefore, upon learning that the Matou mansion had been destroyed and the entire Matou family had disappeared, he felt somewhat worried about Matou Sakura.

"Kirei, I remember you sent Assassins to monitor the Matou family. Do you have any information about the attackers?"

“Teacher, when I heard about the fire at the Matou residence, I already contacted Assassin to inquire about it.”

Kirei Kotomine remained expressionless, completely calm and without a trace of panic, and said in a flat tone, "But the Assassin clone responsible for monitoring the Matou family has lost contact..."

Upon hearing this, Tokiomi Tohsaka's expression immediately became more serious, and he said thoughtfully, "Although the Assassin's strength is relatively low, defeating a Heroic Spirit is not something everyone can do..."

"Is it a Heroic Spirit?"

"K."

Kirei Kotomine agreed, but he didn't mention that the more Assassin clones he had, the weaker he became. After all, no matter how weak Assassin's strength was, his status as a Heroic Spirit couldn't be changed, and it wasn't something that could be easily resolved.

In particular, Assassin has the ability to conceal his presence, which can reduce his visibility and make him unnoticed by everyone.

Therefore, the person who killed Assassin, whether a magician or a Heroic Spirit, must be... quite powerful!

With his index finger lightly tapping the desk, Tokiomi Tohsaka pondered for a moment before instructing, "Kirei, keep the Assassin clones monitoring each Master unchanged, and send out all the other Assassin clones gathering intelligence to search for the Matou family."

Kirei Kotomine responded in a low voice and turned to leave to deal with the matter.

Meanwhile, Tokiomi Tohsaka went to another room and used some kind of device to synchronize his vision with that of his familiar to check the situation at the Matou mansion.

Meanwhile, the rest of the people made the same choice.

After all, such a big event is impossible to ignore...

After a period of time, the number of ordinary people gathering near the Matou residence did not decrease, but rather showed an increasing trend.

More and more onlookers gathered from all directions, and various discussions gradually increased, making it somewhat noisy.

By this time, the flames inside the ruins had been extinguished, and police officers and firefighters had entered the ruins to search for the cause of the fire and check for any victims...

"Based on the information currently available, the cause of the fire is likely a natural gas explosion."

After some investigation, the group came to a conclusion.

The fire originated underground, likely from an explosion of a buried natural gas pipeline, which blew the entire house away...

But the problem is...

Are natural gas explosions really that powerful?!

Such a large villa, not even a corner of the wall is left, it was completely razed to the ground... a dent!

After careful consideration, one police officer explained, "The villa's doors and windows were probably tightly closed, allowing leaked natural gas to fill the house, which was then ignited at some point, causing the explosion..."

“I think that’s a bit far-fetched,” one officer disagreed.

“Agreed,” the other person agreed.

"The power is a bit exaggerated..." another person said.

"It shouldn't be a simple natural gas explosion, after all... this crater is a bit deep!" A person stood at the edge of the crater, looking at the crater which was more than two meters deep, and muttered to himself.

“Indeed,” the others agreed.

Immediately afterwards, another group of people who had finished exploring the ruins gathered around and recounted their findings: "The damage was too severe; it's impossible to determine if there were any injured people."

"It's more accurate to say that the power of the flames was absurd; nothing was left behind."

"Logically speaking, even in the event of a fire, something should have been left behind. How could it have burned so cleanly? I think..."

After a moment's thought, someone offered their opinion: "This isn't quite normal."

"Another unusual incident? This is really troublesome!" one of the officers said, pressing his temples with some distress.

For some reason, not only in Fuyuki City, but also in other parts of the world, strange events occur every now and then.

The sources of these anomalies range from magicians to things outside of magicians, such as ghosts...

These unusual events are documented and then submitted to higher authorities.

Now that it has been determined to be an abnormal event, the measures taken need to be changed.

The highest-ranking officer looked at the others and asked in a low voice, "Who will write the report?"

The group exchanged glances for a moment, then simultaneously turned their gazes to their superior, their expressive faces seeming to say: "Of course it's you!"

A certain boss: "…………" Dare to be a little more diligent?!

Chapter 276 Mordred's Methods of Gathering Intelligence

The magicians gleaned some information from the conversations between police officers and firefighters.

Although they couldn't pinpoint the arsonist, they did gain some other intelligence.

For example, the explosion might have been caused by a combination of magic tricks and natural gas.

Of course, this may not be entirely accurate.

At the same time, in the air...

Fang Rui, who was invisible, looked down at the several familiars hidden in the tree canopy and, following the connection between the familiars and their masters, locked onto the people who were controlling the familiars.

"So it really is Emiya Kiritsugu and the others..."

They turned their gaze away from the ruins.

The pit, which was completely exposed, contained no special materials whatsoever, only ordinary gravel.

"As expected of me!"

After boasting for a while, Fang Rui stopped smiling. Not getting a good deal wasn't a big deal for him.

However, there were unexpected gains in other areas.

My gaze shifted and landed on a certain spot in the crowd.

An ordinary-looking young man then came into Fang Rui's field of vision.

In terms of appearance, he fits Fang Rui's impression of a villain, and the thick aura of blood surrounding him makes him seem like no good person.

"It should be something like something no suke..."

His gaze shifted slightly downwards, examining the back of his hand for a moment, but there was no trace of a Command Seal.

In other words, he has not yet obtained a Command Seal.

"No need to fight over it, that's great!"

With that in mind, Fang Rui, relying on his previous research, successfully communicated with the Holy Grail and obtained a Command Spell.

Meanwhile, a message was sent by the Holy Grail to all Masters: all seven Masters were present, and the countdown to the official start of the Holy Grail War had begun...

One possibility is time; even if not all attendees are present, the Holy Grail will randomly select a lucky audience member after the designated time has elapsed. Another possibility is that the time is unknown, but all attendees are present…

So... it's a countdown.

They'll tell you outright how much preparation time you have, and that you can do whatever you're allowed to do during that time.

"Just one day..."

"Preparation time... should I say it was sufficient? Or insufficient?"

Fang Rui rubbed his cheek, his tone conflicted.

With only one day remaining in the gacha pool, there was simply no extra time for him to choose an auspicious day.

Although he has a 100% chance of winning no matter what card he draws, drawing a favorite card and drawing a disliked card are completely different experiences.

"Hmm, let's try other methods!"

With that, Fang Rui returned to his temporary residence and began to inscribe the Heroic Spirit Summoning Array...

As evening approached and preparations were complete, Fang Rui began drawing cards...

Unlike others' card-drawing process, Fang Rui didn't chant any incantations. Instead, he directly activated the Heroic Spirit Summoning Circle, establishing a weak connection with the Throne of Heroes outside the world, attempting to summon one or two Heroic Spirits...

Unfortunately, most of the heroic spirits declined Fang Rui's "invitation," indicating that they were not interested...

Fang Rui was willing to take a forceful approach and drag the Heroic Spirit directly out of the Throne of Heroes, but the Throne of Heroes was special. With Fang Rui's current strength, rushing in to snatch the person wouldn't be a problem, but he would definitely be ganged up on afterward...

Therefore, Fang Rui didn't resort to force, but instead used words of persuasion, and successfully convinced the two heroic spirits...

Clad in full red and white armor, he exuded an ominous aura due to his berserk state, resembling a knight who had emerged from hell, his fierce presence overwhelming.

"Roar----"

A roar, devoid of reason and brimming with murderous intent, echoed through the courtyard.