"A campaign against Caster?"
Illyasviel was startled—not because she feared Jiang You would lose. She knew that guy's Noble Phantasm would forcibly drag any opponent into a one-on-one duel regardless of numbers, so having more people was meaningless to him.
What truly irked her was that Kotomine Kirei had mobilized so many Masters and Servants against Jiang You. She felt that, given Jiang You's personality, there had to be a reason behind his actions.
Illyasviel wanted to speak out. She wasn't the type to hide her emotions. Command Spells began to appear on her body—she was ready to attack Kotomine Kirei directly. But in the next second, her hand was grasped by Matou Sakura.
Illyasviel met Sakura's eyes and instantly understood her meaning. She let out a soft "hmph" and retracted her magical energy.
"The Master of Berserker, it seems you share a bond with that Caster."
Though it was only a moment, Kotomine Kirei still sensed Illyasviel's hostility. Maintaining his official tone, he continued, "Matters of ordinary people indeed have nothing to do with you all. But Caster is currently destroying the secrecy of magecraft. Even your Einzbern family won't be spared. I hope you can distinguish what's truly important."
"Even so, there's no need for so many people. Berserker alone is enough to take care of it."
Illyasviel tried to take on the responsibility of subjugating Jiang You herself.
"Being too greedy isn't a good thing."
Kotomine Kirei shook his head.
"Caster is not someone who can be dealt with by a single Servant."
"That's right," Tohsaka Rin agreed with Kirei. During her encounter with Jiang You, she had faced at least four other Servants. At first, she thought they were allied with Caster, but after seeing the other Masters, she realized they were all Servants Jiang You had summoned using a Noble Phantasm similar to Jason's.
"Caster is very difficult to deal with."
"One Servant alone won't be enough," Bazett added. She was the only Master here who had actually fought Jiang You, and her intel was more detailed.
"To fight him means facing multiple Servants. Caster currently commands at least one extra Caster, two Assassins, and one Berserker. The identities of the Assassins have already been revealed due to his Noble Phantasm—Hundred-Faces and Serenity. One can create clones, the other is poisonous all over."
"And one more thing: the Servants he summons seem to have some sort of limitation—they don't directly trigger his Noble Phantasm."
Illyasviel pouted unhappily. Of course she knew all of this about Jiang You.
"Then it's settled..."
Kotomine Kirei was about to officially declare the beginning of the campaign against Caster when a certain Servant barged in, ignoring protocol.
"Archer, didn't I tell you to wait outside?"
Emiya Shirou was annoyed. He thought his future self must be a total jerk for disregarding rules like this. He vowed never to become like that.
"Can't help it—I have really good eyesight."
Archer didn't respond directly. Instead, he pulled out a portable radio he had "borrowed" from a local home and tossed it to Shirou.
The radio, propelled with great force, slammed Shirou to the ground, knocking over several benches before coming to a stop.
Wincing in pain, Shirou clutched his lower back. "Are you trying to kill me?!"
He glared at Red Archer, who simply pointed to the radio in his hand. "I think you'll want to hear what's playing. Every station in Fuyuki is broadcasting this right now."
["Hey Hundred faces, how do you use this thing again...? Press these two? Got it!"]
The unmistakable voices of Illyasviel and Matou Sakura came from the radio.
["Testing, testing—good evening, mages of Fuyuki!"]
"It's that Caster!" Kotomine Kirei recognized Jiang You's voice. He realized that Jiang You's "game" had finally begun. At that moment, a dull pain flared in his neck.
["Let's play a game! I know, I know—it sounds weird. Who has time to play games with some unknown guy, right? That's why I've prepared an amazing prize—Soul Crystals! I don't need to explain their value. Tempted? If so, join my competition! I call it—Duel City! Anyone with desire, come duel for this grand prize!"]
"Soul Crystals?!"
Tohsaka Rin, like everyone else, turned to look at Illyasviel. The Einzbern family had never hidden their ambition—every mage in Fuyuki knew they were trying to replicate the miracle of the Third Magic.
But Rin didn't see any particular reaction from Illyasviel. It was as if her family had already achieved that goal.
["Now then, let me explain the rules. First, I'd like to thank Mr. Atrum Galliasta. It was thanks to his funding that I was able to buy out the amusement park to serve as the venue. Let's give him a round of applause!"]
["If you want to participate, mages, please go to the ticket booth at the amusement park to get your entry 'Duel Ticket.' That grants you the right to duel. Tickets are limited—first come, first served! And don't try anything funny with the ticket lady—she's poisonous all over. Of course, all current Holy Grail War participants already have decks. Each can obtain two Duel Tickets using their Servant—they're seeded players. (Details on deck generation to follow.)"]
["This game uses a points system. Each ticket can be used to duel and snatch tickets from others. Rules require both sides to wager the same number of tickets, so the more you hold, the greater your chances!"]
["In addition to stealing from other contestants, I've also prepared a few neutral monsters. Battling them won't cost you anything. For them, it's a Shadow Game; for you, just a normal duel. Let me describe their glorious deeds—starting with the four 'wild monsters' in the commercial district, each worth one ticket..."]
Jiang You then described each person's crimes in detail, assigning them a point value between 1 and 3 based on severity.
["Now, the church district: Kotomine Kirei, value 5. Crimes: patricide, child trafficking, and abuse. His high value reflects his difficulty. Contestants targeting him—be careful. Losing to him will leave you weakened for a while, and that could cost your life."]
["This stage will last for two days. The four contestants with the most tickets at the end will advance to the final! So once you've gathered enough, avoiding battles isn't a bad strategy either."]
["The final winner will duel me—and if you win! You'll become the new master of the Third Magic's crystallized form! Now, come duel! You who harbor desire—duel to claim everything!"]
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Cutting daily 2 chaps to one for now, until schedule frees up and hardware issues. Rip monitor.