My family runs an adventurer's guild.

A bouquet of lilies~~A bouquet of roses~~

When you wake up~~~ Mom will give you everything~~~

Sleep well~~~ Sleep well~~~ My dear little baby~~~

—Though the song was so innocent and pure, at this moment it was nothing short of a demonic melody that brought death and destruction…

Chapter 47, Fuyuki's Enraged Rise (Third Update! Please Add to Favorites! Please Send Blades! Votes!)

As an indiscriminate, carpet-bombing attack skill, the hypnotic effect of [Sleep God's Lullaby] has a very wide range.

When the goddess of sleep, Momo, unleashes her Noble Phantasm and sings a lullaby, all living beings within a radius of several kilometers will instantly fall asleep.

Even if we calculate based on a maximum effective radius of two kilometers, the affected area would be as much as twelve square kilometers.

This is roughly equivalent to the total urban area of ​​Fuyuki City.

After all, by modern Earth standards, Fuyuki is just a small city.

Therefore, when the goddess of sleep, Momo, began singing her "Lullaby of Sleep" on the rooftop of the Hyatt Hotel, nearly 100,000 residents of Fuyuki City fell asleep within seconds. It would take at least an hour before people began to wake up.

The entire city of Fuyuki, which straddles both banks of the Mien River, seemed to transform into a silent city in an instant.

Sleepyhead herself doesn't think it's a big deal.

In her experience, in those fantasy worlds, even if all the residents of a city fell into a deep sleep for several hours, it would only be a fascinating tale and would not cause any disaster—unless an enemy invaded during that time.

To use an example from Earth, it's like the castle in Grimm's Fairy Tales where Sleeping Beauty lies. As the princess and everyone in the castle fall asleep, time in the entire castle stands still. When Sleeping Beauty is awakened by the prince's kiss, everything in the castle returns to normal.

However, the modern cities of developed countries after World War II are not as simple as medieval towns. While they allow citizens living in metropolitan areas to fully enjoy the development and convenience of modern industrial civilization, they also harbor various powerful forces that can lead to self-destruction. They must be monitored and regulated at all times to prevent terrible disasters such as fires, floods, chain car accidents, and nuclear crises.

Worse still, in the 1990s, the computer technology that humans mastered and used was far from being able to achieve "intelligent cities" and "digital living." From driving cars to electricity and natural gas, everything relied on human operation. If it were truly a science fiction city where everything was maintained by intelligent computers, then even if all the citizens suddenly fell asleep, nothing would happen.

Therefore, while the traditional Japanese streets of Fukayama Town were being consumed one by one by the raging fire, the residents of Fukayama Town were still sound asleep. By the time they were finally awakened by the choking smoke and scorching flames and found themselves surrounded by fire, it was too late...

Meanwhile, in Shinto, another important part of Fuyuki City on the other side of the Miwa River, the situation was equally dire. Although no planes crashed there, a dozen or so car accidents occurred in quick succession when the "Lullaby of Sleep" started—because the drivers had all suddenly fallen asleep. In addition, a small restaurant's kitchen also caught fire because the chef suddenly fell asleep, causing flames to leap to the roof beams and quickly spread out of control.

Under normal circumstances, the Fuyuki City fire department would have already been dispatched to fight the fire, and the police would have begun evacuating the victims and maintaining order. However, the problem is that the Fuyuki City fire department, police department, and city government are all located in the city center, near the Hyatt Hotel. In other words, these powerful agencies, which should be the first to respond to the crisis, are now, under the influence of "The Lullaby of the Sleeping God," the group of people sleeping the most soundly in the city.

Fuyuki City in the Type-Moon universe is not the sci-fi "Academy City" from A Certain Scientific Railgun. It doesn't have an automated fire-fighting system controlled by artificial intelligence, nor does it have security/cleaning/fire-fighting robots roaming the streets...

As a result, in the deepest sleep, Fuyuki City quickly transformed from a silent city filled with snoring into a city of raging fire filled with smoke!

Even more terrifying was that, despite the flames and thick smoke that were raging throughout the city, most of the citizens remained fast asleep and completely unaware.

※※※※※※※※※※※※※※※※※※※※※※※

In fact, the Japanese are quite experienced when it comes to fires.

Because their traditional houses, made of paper, tatami mats, and wooden planks, are inherently flammable.

Japan, being an island nation with an extremely dense population, was a place where, in an era when lamps and candles were needed for lighting, a single fire would burn down at least an entire street.

The most devastating fire in the history of human civilization was the "Meireki Fire" that broke out in Edo (present-day Tokyo) during the early Tokugawa Shogunate period (Meireki was a reign title).

At that time, the Tokugawa family had been in power for decades, and Edo Castle had become a metropolis with nearly a million inhabitants, with an alarmingly high population density. Unfortunately, the city layout was not well planned, the streets were narrow and winding, and the flammable paper and wood houses were lined up one after another. The average resident's home was only the size of six tatami mats, making it extremely cramped.

As a result, the "Great Fire of Meireki" burned down more than 100,000 people and even destroyed the castle tower of Edo Castle.

In addition to causing the aforementioned devastating losses, the "Mingli Fire" also set a Guinness World Record for the highest number of deaths in a single fire, a record that remains unbroken to this day.

—The Great Chicago Fire, the Great London Fire, the Great Moscow Fire, and so on, although the burned urban areas may have been larger, the death toll was far less than that of the Great Meireki Fire in Edo.

Even during the Tokyo air raids in World War II, the death toll was only around 100,000.

In fact, Edo Castle during the Tokugawa Shogunate period suffered far more than just the "Meireki Fire." Small fires occurred almost every year, while major fires happened only once every few years.

After all, cramming millions of people into such a small area, with the entire city filled with flammable paper and wood houses, and each household having to use open flames for lighting, cooking, and heating, makes it virtually impossible to control the frequency of fires.

Therefore, through repeated trials by fires, the Japanese learned a great deal and established a professional fire brigade as early as the Edo period. They also had fire evacuation training for the entire population very early on, and the fire prevention awareness of the general public was far superior to that of other countries.

The problem is, no matter how advanced and comprehensive the fire prevention measures are, they only work if people are awake!

But right now, most of Fuyuki City is fast asleep, enveloped in the lullaby of the God of Sleep...

Fortunately, while the "Lullaby of Sleep" is difficult to avoid, its hypnotic effect is ultimately quite limited in duration.

Moreover, people who are farther away from the Hyatt Hotel, where Dormouse Girl activates her skill, fall asleep more lightly and wake up faster.

Residents in the suburbs were minimally affected, and after the initial panic subsided, people spontaneously organized rescue teams.

Then, more than an hour after the fire broke out, the fire brigade and police also woke up one after another, and without any time to be suspicious, they threw themselves into the intense firefighting work.

Although the best time for rescue had long passed when the fire broke out, at least it hadn't reached the point of utter despair where everything was burned out.

Of course, even so, the loss of life and property in Fuyuki City during this catastrophe is still a staggering figure that brings tears to one's eyes...

Uh, may God bless this afflicted city! Amen!

Chapter 48, The Hyatt Hotel Collapses!

"...Ugh...I feel so dizzy..."

After an unknown amount of time, Kenneth Lecturer, the ninth heir of the Archibald family, finally awoke once again.

Rubbing his sleepy eyes, Kenneth stood up from the carpet and immediately saw his Dormouse girl, Lancer, fast asleep in bed, clutching her "soft, fluffy blanket-rolled spear"—she seemed to be completely exhausted after unleashing her ultimate move, "Sleep God's Lullaby."

Using his Master privileges, Kenneth could roughly determine that the little guy wouldn't wake up without several hours of sleep.

Looking out the window again, he realized that dusk was already falling.

"...Good heavens, it's already evening! How long did I sleep this time?"

"...Is it already evening?" Sora shakily got up and went to the window. "...Huh? There seems to be a fire in the distance?"

"...A fire? That has nothing to do with us... The key thing now is whether Caster has been hypnotized!"

Kenneth casually remarked without turning his head, while simultaneously taking out a crystal ball and chanting a spell. The next moment, a beam of light shot out from the crystal ball, projecting a screen about thirty centimeters in diameter onto the wall, displaying a scene from the hotel's fourth-floor buffet restaurant.

Seeing that everyone in the entire buffet restaurant was still sprawled out, including the monster Caster, and not a single one was awake, Kenneth's tense expression finally eased a little.

"...Very good, the Caster group is still dormant. Now go and eliminate them... Hmm? Who else has come in?"

Through the eyes of the surveillance familiar that had been pre-positioned in the cafeteria, Kenneth suddenly saw a young man dressed in black monastic robes, resembling a member of the church, kick open the cafeteria door and burst in, wielding a longsword called "Black Key," a weapon used by the church's agents.

At first, Kenneth thought this was a punitive force sent by the Church of Sanctuary to deal with the Caster Group. After all, the Caster Group had been using magic to kill and destroy people in broad daylight, exposing the secrets of magic to mortals. Therefore, it was understandable that they would be purged by the Church of Sanctuary.

However, a few seconds later, as the other party accidentally had his sleeve tugged by the corner of a table when entering the cafeteria, Kenneth was surprised to notice that there were three strangely shaped Command Seals on the back of the intruder's exposed hand!

—Damn it! This guy isn't an agent of the Holy Church!

Well, or rather, this guy is more than just an agent of the Holy Church.

He is also one of the Masters in this Holy Grail War, probably a participant appointed by the Church.

"...Heh, what a great harvest! I only planned to take out the Caster group, but unexpectedly, a new prey has appeared...Wait! Since he is the Master, where are the Servants he summoned? Could they have already infiltrated as well?"

Kenneth's first thought was to rush out with his magical costume before Caster woke up, but now there was an unexpected troublemaker. Looking back at the soundly sleeping Dormouse girl Momo on the big bed, he hesitated again.

—My own Lancer, the Dormouse Girl, is currently in a state of exhaustion and paralysis after unleashing her ultimate attack. She won't wake up for a while, so she's naturally useless.

The heroic spirits summoned by the church's agent were nowhere to be found, and most of them were still in good fighting condition.

If you go into battle wearing a Mystic Code, you will face an attack from both the enemy Master and the Servant.

Although Kenneth always considered himself a genius and had a high opinion of himself, he really didn't dare to guarantee that he could defeat a Heroic Spirit equipped with a Noble Phantasm while wearing a Mystic Code.

Not to mention, there's also a Caster group in the cafeteria below. If they're awakened, it's uncertain which side they'll join in this chaos. If they side with the Holy Church's agents, he'll be facing four opponents...

Imagine a single magician fighting against two enemy magicians and two Heroic Spirits at the same time... It's enough to send chills down your spine.

Is this courting death? Is this courting death? Or is this courting death?!

After much deliberation, Kenneth once again decisively backed down, deciding to remain unchanged and continue to be a coward.

"...Well, anyway, let's stay in the magic workshop and wait and see!"

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

After casually tearing off his ill-fitting disguise police uniform and changing into the more familiar black monk's robe, Kirei Kotomine felt much lighter all over.

—Kirei Kotomine, who had been disguised as a police officer and infiltrated the Hyatt Regency Hotel in Fuyuki City by using too many spells to alter other people's memories, was sleeping almost as soundly as the other police officers.

Kirei Kotomine was only awakened from his unconscious state when a firefighter, trying to urge him to help put out the fire, sprayed cold water from a fire hydrant directly into his face.

Of course, after waking up, Kirei Kotomine did not help put out the fire. Instead, he made an excuse to slip away, took off his police uniform, put on the attire of a member of the Church of Christ again, and then sneaked into the Hyatt Hotel again through a back alley, preparing to take the opportunity to eliminate the Caster Group.

In his view, punishing the reckless Caster group and maintaining the secrecy and order of the underworld were far more important than putting out the fire and saving lives.

As if blessed by God, the infiltration of the Hyatt Hotel went very smoothly, without encountering any obstacles. Next, Caster's Master was quickly found.

—This orange-haired young man in leopard print clothes casually rolled up his sleeves, lay down on the table and fell fast asleep, making no attempt to hide the Command Seals on his arm, which could be clearly seen from the entrance of the cafeteria.

That was so easy!

I originally thought it would be a tough battle, but it turned out to be so easy!

Since becoming an agent of the Holy Church, I have never carried out such an easy task!

With this thought running through his mind, Kirei Kotomine decisively drew his standard weapon, the "Black Key"—a sharp, thin blade with a white edge a meter long—and cleanly and swiftly severed Ryunosuke Uryuu's head with one stroke, then cut off his arm marked with Command Seals with another.

—The first loser of this Holy Grail War has been born! Caster's Master, Ryunosuke Amui, died on the evening of the day he summoned the Heroic Spirit!

However, just as Kirei Kotomine bent down to pick up Ryunosuke Uryu's severed arm, he suddenly felt a magical fluctuation behind his head!

Guided by his intuition honed through years of fighting, he quickly rolled on the spot, narrowly avoiding the attack.

Looking back, Kirei Kotomine's heart skipped a beat and his whole body trembled.

Caster, the monster with a dog's head and a lizard's body, had actually woken up from his slumber and was raising his wand at him!

At that moment, Kirei Kotomine didn't have time to think. He hurled his long sword "Black Key" at the other person, then nimbly dodged, using the bar and tables as cover, and rushed out of the self-service restaurant through a side door.

In any case, Caster's Master, the primary target of this raid, is already dead. And once Caster is no longer provided with magical energy by her Master—actually, the magical energy absorbed from the Holy Grail system through the Master—she will usually dissipate and disintegrate within a day or two.

If the spiritual veins are the power transmission lines, then the Holy Grail system is the transformer, the Master is the socket or power strip, and the summoned Servants are the electrical appliances.

Without spiritual veins, the Holy Grail system cannot function.

Without a Master, the plug for the "electrical appliances" has nowhere to go.

Once the Master dies, the Servant who cannot be "charged" can only rely on the "battery" to survive for a while. When the power is exhausted, it will automatically shut down - unless it can find another socket (Master) in a short time.

As for retrieving the Command Seals from the corpse, it would be best if it could be done successfully. Even if it fails, it won't be a big deal.

Therefore, Kirei Kotomine had no intention of confronting the dying Caster head-on, but instead immediately slipped away and made a hasty retreat.

After all, it's very difficult for a human to defeat a Heroic Spirit.

Meanwhile, Quark, the Caster kobold sorcerer who was awakened by his master's death, casually flicked the "black key" thrown by Kirei Kotomine to the ground with his bone wand, but did not cast another spell. Instead, he stared blankly into space.

—The instant-cast immobilization spell he just cast missed the human. This in itself wasn't a big deal, but the magic consumption it caused was greater than casting a dozen or so fireballs before, which greatly surprised Quark.

What's worse, with the death of Ryunosuke Uryu, he felt his own life slipping away every single second.

"...Damn it! It seems that because the Master was killed, the channel for replenishing mana was also cut off!"

Quark was in a real bind: after his Master died, even without using any magic, his body, which was formed from magic, could only last for two more days before it would completely dissipate.

—Unless he can find something to draw upon and replenish his magic power as soon as possible.

If he continues to cast spells indiscriminately as before, his body will dissipate even faster!

The problem is, where can you find any mana potions in this godforsaken place?

Perhaps some Casters can secretly extract the life force of a large number of ordinary people by setting up arrays, and convert it into their own magic power, thereby prolonging their existence in the mortal world.

The problem is that, as a combat-oriented warlock, the kobold Quark is not good at such complex magic circles.

He looked around and was immediately drawn to the arm of Ryunosuke Uryu, which Kirei Kotomine had just cut off and which bore the Command Seals.

—In order to control the Heroic Spirits, the Command Seals on the arms of each Master in the Holy Grail War contain extremely powerful magical energy.

Quark bent down and picked up Ryunosuke Uryu's severed arm, completely ignoring the gold and silver jewelry he had stolen from the jewelry store earlier. He only glanced one last time at Ryunosuke Uryu, who was now decapitated on the floor, before fleeing before the police could break in.

In the luxurious suite on the top floor of the Hyatt Hotel, Kenneth, through the eyes of his familiar and the projection of the crystal ball, saw that the two groups of enemies below had not fought a big battle, but had only made brief contact before disengaging. Kenneth, who remained calm and collected, couldn't help but click his tongue with a slight sense of regret.

"...Tsk tsk! They really slipped away quickly. It seems this battle has to end here..."

However, although the two groups of Masters and Servants did not fight to a standstill as he had imagined, Caster's Master was confirmed to have been eliminated, thus reducing his enemy in this Holy Grail War by one.

Throughout the entire process, he never even stepped out of the magic workshop.

Perhaps this is the wisdom of "winning battles without leaving home"!

Thinking of this, a confident smile involuntarily appeared on Kenneth's lips, as if he could see the goddess of victory already lifting the hem of her skirt for him.

However, Kenneth, brimming with confidence, had no idea that his good mood would probably only last for a few more hours...