You are very strong, but my painting style is better than yours!

The Second's whole body trembled, and the corners of his eyes could not help but twitch twice, but he still forced himself to endure it.

"You're well-informed... But to be honest, there's no privacy in the Clock Tower. You can find out my affairs by just asking around.

Yes, the El-Melloi family was in a huge debt before I inherited it, and I have been working hard to pay it off... But what does this have to do with you, Lady?"

"Because I have 'Rhine Gold' in my hand."

"Huh——" The Second straightened his back subconsciously.

"That 'Rhinegold'? The Rhinegold described in Norse mythology and Wagner's operas, which can make people greedy and is considered the source of the 'evil dragon phenomenon'?

Einzbern actually...ah, this makes sense!

Over the years, you have failed countless times, wandering around and not daring to stay in one place, but even so, you still have a steady stream of resources invested in hopeless experiments...

So that's how it is. You have this gold which symbolizes infinite wealth, so you don't have to worry about resources at all!"

A trace of shock flashed across the eyes of the Second Emperor, but he immediately asked in confusion, "Let alone the wealth that the Rhine Gold can bring, as a holy relic and a mysterious crystal, it is also a treasure that all magicians are eager to obtain... How dare you leak this information?"

"Because I believe in the integrity of the monarch." Sera nodded reservedly, but what she was thinking was completely different.

If Iori hadn't asked her to say so, if Einzbern didn't have only this one chance left and there was no point in keeping the Rhinegold... She would definitely not tell this secret to anyone!

Are you kidding? Not only the El-Melloi family, even the chief Barthel-Melloi family of the Clock Tower cannot resist the temptation of the Rhine Gold - that is a secret treasure passed down from the Age of Gods!

After a brief pause, Sera thought of Iori's instructions:

【Give him an offer he can't refuse! 】

"Mr. Monarch, you don't want your 'sister' to know that you rejected such a trivial request from a person who holds the Rhine Gold, do you?"

II: “…”

Volume 98: Death Comes to the Holy Grail War: Chapter : Amakusa Shiro: Did you listen to what people say? (Two in one)

Hey~

Coming out of the cafe, Sera let out a long sigh, looked up at the gloomy sky in London, and then walked towards the corner along the rough cobblestone road.

Turning the corner, she saw a man in casual clothes squatting on the ground, shaking half a sausage in his hand. In front of him was a calico kitten being tossed around by him, sometimes jumping and sometimes spinning, but the cute little paws just couldn't touch the delicacy she had dreamed of.

"You are quite leisurely."

Sera was somewhat surprised to see this scene, and she really couldn't connect the boy's behavior with the word "Berserker".

Iori said without turning his head: "Well, is it similar to what I said?"

"Yes, just as you expected. Although it was not straightforward, the monarch El-Melloi II still promised to fight for a Master position for us and provide us with information about the Clock Tower in the future."

Sera couldn't understand why Iori, a Servant, knew so much about the Clock Tower and even knew about the debt situation of the El-Melloi family... Even she didn't know such things. Where did Iori get this information when he was just summoned?

Perhaps there are related special skills, such as [Intelligence Gathering] and [Clairvoyance]?

But that's usually only for casters and assassins, he's a berserker...

"Sure enough, she agreed. After all, no matter how noble the Second Prince is, economic pressure is an objective reality. Even if he is unwilling to bow down for a few pieces of silver, his sister definitely doesn't mind cheating him for money."

Iori raised his hand, and the kitten immediately stopped, staring at him with its cute big eyes, as if expecting something.

He also smiled slightly - letting the kitten watch him eat the remaining sausage.

"..."

The cat blinked and a very anthropomorphic expression of shock appeared on its face. It probably didn't expect that there would be such shameless humans in the world. Even though it had performed so hard, it refused to pay the "cat tax."

Even Sera, who is an artificial human, couldn't help but blush at Iori's childishness at this moment.

"Funny expression... Don't worry, I'm not a monster." Iori laughed and took out a fish sausage from his pocket. He tore open the package and put it on the ground.

"bye Bye!"

"Meow~"

Iori and Sera walked side by side on the street. He had already materialized, and passers-by could see him. He didn't care at all about the rule of "hiding your true form as much as possible" in the Holy Grail War.

Both of them are very good-looking, and have a lonely and noble temperament. Even though their outer clothes do not match, they still attract many curious and envious glances when walking on the street.

It doesn’t matter. Even if someone with ulterior motives sees it, what can it do? Is there anyone else in this world who can tell Iori’s real name?

"Iori, where on earth did you get this information?"

Sera felt that there was something weird about her as a Servant from beginning to end.

First, he called himself "Aizome Iori", but Sera looked through a lot of information and did not find a hero who met the requirements in history or mythology.

Secondly, his job title is Berserker, but he is extremely rational and has never shown any madness or paranoia.

When Sera wanted to find out, she found that she was completely unable to "read" his panel data. The Master's privileges were of no use at this time, leaving her in the dark about her Servant... She felt very uneasy deep down.

The last and most important point: Iori is too adapted to modern society.

Servants are basically taught some modern common sense, but that basically means they won't make jokes like "there are villains on TV". However, Iori knows a thing or two about diet, housing, transportation, habits, and even trends in modern society!

Sometimes he behaves more like a real human being than Sera, the android.

"As a Servant, I don't want to deceive you, nor can I just find an excuse to fool you, but for this question, I can only say... This information already exists in my mind, and I can extract it and use it when necessary."

Iori looked very happy, and if it weren't for the horrible weather in London, he would probably be in an even better mood.

The technological tree of Soul Society is more advanced than that of the modern world, but it was "two hundred years ago" after all, and various technologies were not popular, and the living standards of the people were similar to those in ancient times.

As for the empire...let alone.

Only in Type-Moon, in late twentieth-century London, could he once again enjoy the convenience of modern technology, and it just so happened that this time he also temporarily possessed a "spiritual base", allowing him to enjoy it as fully as he did in the flesh... Naturally, he was very happy.

As for his attitude towards Sera, he can definitely be described as gentle and amiable.

"Did it exist beforehand?" Sera frowned, then relaxed because she thought of a possibility.

"Is it an ability similar to 'Future Vision'?"

"Well...haha, you can really say that." Iori smiled, "After all, what I 'seen' hasn't happened yet."

"That makes sense," Sera said, suddenly realizing.

[Future Vision] is a relatively rare skill or talent in Type-Moon. For ordinary people or magicians, it is hard to predict whether it will bring good or bad luck. Sometimes being able to predict the future not only fails to bring them happiness, but will completely ruin their lives.

"My [Future Vision] is of the 'determinative type'. I can see the possibilities of the future, but it is not certain to happen. It will change according to our actions... So don't expect me to tell you the final answer, Sera."

Iori smiled and added: "The outcome of this war will ultimately be witnessed by you in person."

"I...I understand." Sera nodded a little timidly.

Even though she had imagined the worst possible outcome countless times beforehand and had prepared herself to sacrifice, when she actually participated in the Holy Grail War, she couldn't help but feel a little uneasy.

This "uneasiness" is what really distinguishes her from other artificial humans, just as the predecessors of Einzbern commented on her:

For an android, the emotional circuits are far too sensitive.

"But I still don't understand why they would make such a big bet, and why they would choose El-Melloi II. There are many people in the Clock Tower who are more powerful than him."

As soon as one problem is solved, another one immediately comes to mind.

"Why the Second? Because he is one of the few magicians who possesses this thing called 'conscience'."

Iori sneered: "When negotiating a deal with other monarchs, you must be prepared to be swallowed up skin and bones. After all, they are magicians... It is extremely stupid to demand them with worldly eyes and moral standards.

Only the Second is different. Since he has chosen to cooperate with us, there is no need to worry about him plotting against you behind your back, let alone worrying about him trying to find loopholes in the contract - he knows how to find them, but he doesn't bother to do so."

"You have great confidence in him... But even so, isn't 'Rhinegold' too expensive a price to pay?"

The content of the contract between Serra and II is as follows:

She will directly give the Second a large sum of money, and as a reward, the Second will help her solve the problem of the Master quota. And the Second will continue to provide Sera with information about the Clock Tower in the following war.

At the end of the contract, there is an additional clause, namely:

If the Einzbern wins the Holy Grail War, then in order to thank El-Melloi for his help, Sera will give the top-level holy relic "Rhine Gold" to the El-Melloi family.

"El-Melloi II is not a fool. If you don't give him some real information, how can you expect him to work hard to collect intelligence for you?"

"Well, we should only need the Master quota. As for the subsequent support from the Magic Association, we can get it from the Masters in the same camp."

Maybe he still felt a little reluctant. After all, the Rhine Gold was the only heirloom of the Einzbern family. Handing over this thing that could bring endless wealth...

"Masters from the same camp?" Iori wanted to laugh when he mentioned this, "You'd better not have too much hope in those people."

You haven't even seen it yet - Sera was about to say that, but when she thought of Iori's [Future Vision], she had to shut her mouth.

"Anyway, I do this for a reason, and you'll understand in the future."

"So what's the next step?" Although Sera was dissatisfied with Iori's strong attitude that dominated everything, she still believed that his decisions followed the established strategy and were reliable and trustworthy.

At least it looks realistic, which is something she, a robot, can't do.

"How many Masters are there now?"

"According to the information given by the Second, the Master has already been selected. If we join now, one of them will be eliminated, but it is hard to say who it will be." Sera explained, "Because the Clock Tower has already handed over the Holy Relic to them... Maybe someone has already successfully summoned a Servant."

"That is to say, not everyone has completed the 'Servant Summoning', and the Holy Grail War has not yet fully begun... Then we can give it a try."

Iori then asked her a seemingly irrelevant question: "Who is the supervisor of this Holy Grail War?"

-

The Supervisor, as the name suggests, is responsible for monitoring the development of the Holy Grail War to ensure that it does not go off track and trigger things that no one wants to see.

For example, in the world line of "FZ", a caster summoned a giant sea monster that was too destructive and could not be concealed, exposing the mysterious world to ordinary people. In this case, the supervisor has the right to call on other masters to besiege the caster together.

This role is usually played by a priest sent by the church. He is not a master himself and will not favor any side. He is an absolutely neutral character.

However, the situation in this Holy Grail War in Romania is different!

What the Thousand Worlds Tree did not only offended the Clock Tower, but also made the Holy Church uneasy. They were worried that this would destroy the balance of the mystical side, so they rarely expressed their full support for the Magic Association.

They sent a priest as a supervisor or messenger, who occupies a position himself and will also participate in the battle as the master of the Magic Association (Red Side) camp!

The name of this priest is——

"Kotomine Shiro~"

In the dense forest, Iori and Sera stayed in a clearing in the woods, looking at the small church at the end of the road. The black-haired boy slowly chewed on the Japanese name.

"You seem very interested in this man," Sera asked curiously, "Shouldn't we meet him at the church?"

In theory, all the masters of the red team should come to see this supervisor, symbolically register, and gather together to discuss future courses of action.

After receiving information from Shiro Kotomine, Iori took Sera on a plane and rushed to somewhere on the European continent, but when they were only a few steps away from the agreed location, he stopped inexplicably.

"No need." Iori looked deeply for a while, then shook his head, "I originally thought I could take advantage of it... but now it seems that it's not possible."

"Picking up leaks?"

"Calm down and feel it. Can you discover what is hidden in that church?"

"This……"

After Iori's reminder, the android girl's expression became serious, and a magical light flickered slightly in her beautiful red eyes. She stared at the church in the distance, and after a moment she became surprised.

"Is this... a barrier?"

"Yes, the chapel in the front is fine, but the church cemetery in the back is completely covered by a powerful barrier, which means that the priest has summoned his own servants." Iori shook his head slightly, "Although it is not a very impregnable position, it is too suicidal to rashly attack the temporary workshop of a magician of the Age of Gods."

"...You were originally planning to raid the priest?" Sera looked at Iori in astonishment, "Why?"

"For your victory, my dear Master." Iori smiled slightly, "Even if you win the Red and Black War, you still have to compete within the same camp. After all, there can only be one winner in the end... and this man is your biggest competitor."

Sera was still puzzled: "Father Kotomine Shiro... But judging from his resume, he is just an ordinary priest who is keen on helping the weak. He has neither shown any special qualities nor any experience related to the Holy Grail War."

"If he is really an ordinary priest, why did the church send him?" Iori curled his lips.

"But it's meaningless to say this now. He is a very cautious person. At this distance, his servants should have noticed our presence a long time ago, but there has been no movement, which proves that he will not leave the 'safe range'.

It would be too difficult to launch a surprise attack... I decided to abandon this battle plan."

"it is good!"

Sera chose to believe Iori. Although this boy did things as he pleased, the silver-haired girl began to think that it was not bad to follow his orders... She was originally a cyborg~

But just as the two were about to retreat, the sky suddenly darkened, and the cold wind blowing through the forest made a sound like a ghost's howling, and an indescribable sense of strange oppression descended on everyone's heart.

"This is……"

"Don't let go of your perception!" Iori suddenly shouted, "Focus on your mind and don't use any magic!"

"I understand... but what exactly is this?" Sera was left breathless. Her weak body could not withstand such a strong pressure. She could not help but lean on Iori's back, but once she touched the boy's body, her breathing became much smoother.

"This is the power of a hegemon." Iori looked up at the sky, "A Servant with the attributes of a king has descended... but I don't know who he is coming for."