A little way down the hillside from Fuyuki Church, deep within the forest, stood a Western-style mansion.
Few ever ventured there. Most of Fuyuki's residents had only heard rumors of the place, and those few curious enough to seek it out ended up getting lost, inexplicably emerging elsewhere without ever finding it.
But the mansion did exist. It was said to be the property of the Edelfelt family, a renowned Magecraft lineage from Finland. Ever since the Third Holy Grail War—when the Edelfelt sisters turned against each other and suffered defeat—the family had not returned to Fuyuki. Their estate had since been entrusted to the Mage's Association for safekeeping.
Now, the mansion served as a temporary residence for a Holy Grail War participant dispatched by the Mage's Association—Bazett Fraga McRemitz.
Bazett had arrived in Fuyuki one day before Sakura. Using a Rune Stone earring, she summoned her Servant, Lancer, and began a comprehensive investigation of the city before all the Masters and Servants had assembled.
So, when tonight's battle occurred outside Fuyuki Church, it was no surprise that Bazett and Lancer took notice.
Cautious as ever, Bazett didn't rush to the scene. Instead, she had Lancer—already out on reconnaissance—go check the situation while she observed the battlefield through the shared senses between Master and Servant.
"...Unbelievable. I told you not to act until we had intel on all the Masters, didn't I? And you still found time to go shopping? How carefree can you be?"
Through Lancer's eyes, Bazett saw the unfolding battle. What she didn't expect was that he hadn't returned immediately—instead, he'd stopped by a nearby 24-hour convenience store.
"I'm not dumb enough to get caught, okay? You should eat something too, Bazett. If you keep living off canned food, you'll never grow tall." Lancer shook the shopping bag in his hand with a helpless sigh.
"I appreciate the gesture. But from now on, consult with me before doing anything on your own." Bazett took the bag from him.
During the first three days, she'd been thrilled—after all, she had summoned the hero she'd admired since childhood: the Child of Light, Cú Chulainn.
But it didn't take long for him to shatter her illusions. For the seven days leading up to the Holy Grail War, Bazett had been in a constant state of disorientation and frustration.
In that sense, she was quite in sync with her Servant.
Still, those seven days weren't wasted. After eliminating the Mage's Association observers, Lancer uncovered a Servant who was secretly murdering civilians and using their souls as fuel to restore power.
That Servant was Assassin, who possessed Presence Concealment. And since there was no immediate reason to engage, they hadn't found an opening to catch him.
In the past few days, Fuyuki's news had already reported multiple murder cases...
"Let's set that aside. How was the situation at the church?"
"Hard to say." Lancer plopped down and waved his hand. "Saber and Archer were fighting at first, but their Masters seemed to know each other, so they stopped halfway through. Then Berserker showed up, and the two of them teamed up against Berserker's side without missing a beat."
"I already know that." Bazett frowned. "I'm asking for your opinion. How strong were the three Servants that appeared tonight?"
Lancer thought for a moment, then shrugged. "Didn't fight them myself, but they all looked solid. Especially that Archer—he was swinging a sword around and holding his own against Saber. As for Berserker, he looked like the kind of guy you can't just kill off easily. If we're going to fight him, we'll need to be fully prepared."
"My thoughts exactly," Bazett said. "Based on the intel we have, the three Masters should be from the Einzbern, Tohsaka, and Shiomi families. Einzbern and Tohsaka can wait, but we need to pay close attention to Saber's Master."
"Huh? Why? Don't tell me you know her?" Lancer looked confused.
"Something like that," Bazett nodded. "Her father used to be a Sealing Designation Executor. By the time I joined the Mage's Association, he had already stepped back from the front lines."
Bazett had become a Sealing Designation Executor in 1996, after the Fourth Holy Grail War. At that time, Tenkei Shiomi was gaining fame for having taken down a Lord of the Clock Tower during the war. Bazett never got the chance to meet him, but she'd heard his name praised from all directions.
"Oh? So she's the daughter of an old-timer?" Lancer grinned.
"More than that. Even though he's retired, among us Executors he's still considered the strongest—no contest," Bazett said frankly. "They say he's a master of Rune Magecraft and can even use a few of the original Runes, the kind barely anyone can decipher."
"Ohh..." Lancer sounded intrigued. "So you're saying we'd better keep an eye on his daughter too, huh?"
"Exactly." Bazett stood up. "From what we can tell, all the Servants have probably already been summoned. Starting tomorrow, I'll head out and conduct field investigations myself."
Lancer perked up. "Oh? So my Master's finally ditching the sit-tight strategy and taking the fight to them?"
"Lancer, are you seriously that naive?" Bazett was clearly annoyed. "Now that all the Servants are here, clashes like tonight's are going to keep happening. When they do, we need to strike—catch them off guard."
"So basically, you're saying we're jumping straight into a battlefield mess? Sounds perfect—right up my alley!" Lancer was fully on board.
"You really have no sense of planning..." Bazett sighed, exasperated.
The fight outside the church had undoubtedly drawn attention from more than just their faction. All sides were surely on the move, operating in secret.
"Isn't that the perfect counterbalance for your style?" Lancer replied casually.
Lancer remained neutral toward everyone—enemy or ally. Not even his own Master was an exception.
That was just how he was.
Friends one day, enemies the next. Enemies today, allies tomorrow.
He was the kind of man who'd fought to the bitter end in times like those.
After spending the past week or so learning that all too well, Bazett knew she couldn't expect Lancer to fully align with her mindset or tactics.
"Fair enough."
She grabbed some food from the shopping bag, ready to recharge after another sleepless night.