Artoria was the first to speak up.
“Master, is there something wrong with this person?”
Artoria and Sebastian did not get along very well, but she was not the type to pick fights on purpose.
She simply felt something was strange, so she asked.
Her question was on everyone’s mind.
Sebastian had already expected this, so he gave them his prepared answer.
“Clairvoyance.”
When they heard that word, Artoria, Grayfia, and Karna—who all understood what Clairvoyance meant—felt their expressions darken slightly.
After all, high-level Clairvoyance allows a person to see visions of both the past and the future.
If Sebastian had no past grudge against the Lord of the Astronomy Department, then he must have seen something dangerous in the future.
“Don’t worry too much.
My Clairvoyance is low-level, and I can’t control it at all.
It just gives me sudden visions of the future every now and then.”
Sebastian paused before continuing, “I don’t see the future often.
But in one vision, I saw that the Servant summoned by the Lord of the Astronomy Department was named Solomon.
If Solomon wins this war, his wish will plunge the entire world into a terrible crisis!”
“Human History will be burned away, and the past will be rewritten.
That omniscient and omnipotent Demon God King will unleash flames hot enough to incinerate all of humanity, destroying everything.”
Silence fell over the room for a long time.
Grayfia was the first to snap back to reality.
“Lord Sebastian, if that is true, should we contact the Underworld and ask them to send reinforcements?”
The burning of Human History…
Such a disaster was far more terrifying than the ancient Great War between the Three Factions!
It would be worse than losing all Four Great Satans and the leader of the Fallen Angels combined.
It was a crisis that threatened every pantheon in existence.
Under these circumstances, it would make complete sense for every faction to join forces.
However, Sebastian shook his head.
“Reporting it won’t work.
The Devils in the Underworld are too proud.
Even if we tried contacting the Angels, they wouldn’t believe us either.”
“Besides, the Underworld is divided.
Grayfia, don’t forget how many secret agents Rizevim controls—we still haven’t uncovered them all.
The only person we can trust is Sirzechs.
But if Sirzechs makes a move, Rizevim will notice immediately.”
“Who knows what that madman might do if he finds out?”
Sebastian looked at them seriously.
“That is why I am telling only you.”
“The future I saw hasn’t happened yet.
Whether we want to win the Holy Grail War or prevent this disaster, we must eliminate the Lord of the Astronomy Department first.”
Everyone nodded in agreement.
Sebastian then turned to Artoria.
“According to our contract, if you disagree, speak now.
If we can’t agree, we can spar to decide who leads.”
“That won’t be necessary,” Artoria replied, shaking her head.
“I have no objections.
If it means saving the world, leave King Solomon to me when the time comes.”
“Only if we can find him first,” Sebastian said, resting his chin on his crossed hands.
He already held information on six Masters.
He set aside the file on the Lord of the Astronomy Department and picked up the seventh file, which was marked only with a question mark.
“Our main goal is set.
But before we face our main target, we need to track down this unknown Master.
We can’t afford any surprises while we’re still in the dark about who’s participating.”
He paused, then added, “This war won’t be easy.
The fewer unknown factors we have, the better.”
After thinking it over, Sebastian said, “If I had to guess, this last Master is probably from the Matou family.”
The Matou Family.
Amagiri Tokiomi had always assumed the Matou family lacked a suitable heir to participate in the war, so he paid them no attention.
He was wrong.
Matou Zouken had already chosen a candidate long ago.
After all, Zouken was one of the original founders of the Holy Grail War alongside the Einzberns and the Amagiri family!
How could he possibly pass up this chance?
This was not a standard Holy Grail War—this was the first war of a very different timeline.
If things went wrong, it might be the only one.
Zouken had shared the Command Spell knowledge and approached Amagiri Tokiomi on his own initiative.
A cunning old Magus like him would never help without wanting something in return.
Yet despite his intelligence in magic, Zouken made a foolish mistake.
He found a candidate and tricked them into coming to Fuyuki City.
That candidate was indeed chosen by the Holy Grail and received Command Spells.
What Zouken never expected was that this person possessed terrifying power far beyond his control—even without summoning a Servant.
“What a disgusting old creature,” Sajyou Ayaka muttered, staring at the burning flames.
The fire crackled as the old man and his swarm of insects screamed, slowly turning into ash.
Ayaka looked down at the three red marks on the back of her hand.
“A great ritual?
How boring.”
Because she was born connected to the Root, she could easily see everything that would happen in the future if she wanted to.
But she chose not to look.
Knowing the future only made life dull.
She didn’t look herself, and she didn’t like it when others looked either.
The moment she arrived in Fuyuki City, she felt someone else viewing the past and future.
She used her authority to seal away that person’s vision right away.
Originally, she had no interest in this ritual.
But hearing the old man ramble about the Holy Grail before he died made her a little curious.
Since she had time to kill, she decided to join in for fun.
Ayaka smiled, her face radiant and beautiful like flowers blooming in spring.
Everyone thought all seven Heroic Spirits had already been summoned, but they were wrong.
Only six had been called forth so far.
The only remaining class for Ayaka was Berserker.
The Amagiri Residence.
“We need to investigate the Matou estate tonight,” Amagiri Tokiomi said to the group gathered in front of him.
Amagiri Rin stood to the side while Kotomine Kirei listened without expression.
Arjuna leaned casually against the wall, Hundred Faces Hassan hid in the shadows, and Saint George frowned in deep thought.
“The intel from Hundred Faces shows that the Matou estate has cut off all contact,” Saint George sighed.
“We can’t get any information from inside.”
“So the Matou family really is participating,” Saint George added.
“It makes sense,” Amagiri Tokiomi said calmly.
“I allied with the Einzberns, so of course the Matou family wouldn’t sit idly by.
Every Magus wants to reach the Root, and they will risk everything for it.”
“It’s too risky to move during the day.
We’ll head over after dark.”
Tokiomi turned to Kotomine Kirei.
“Kirei, regarding your father Risei…”
Kirei shook his head, his face showing no emotion.
“Teacher, now is not the time to worry about that.”
Tokiomi nodded in understanding.
Saint George placed a reassuring hand on Kirei’s shoulder.
“Don’t worry.
When I find the one responsible, I promise on my honor as Saint George that I will bring you justice.”
In truth, Risei had been killed by Kirei himself.
Yet Kirei showed no emotion on the outside, simply bowing his head politely.
“Thank you for your help.”
Just as no one knew that Kirei was completely incapable of feeling joy, no one could see the dark excitement swirling inside his heart.
He was a complete anomaly.
The first day of the Holy Grail War passed peacefully, with no battles breaking out between the factions.
By the second night, however, every Master had turned their attention toward the Matou estate.
“It’s time,” Sebastian said as night fell, looking at his companions.
He did not plan to take everyone with him.
Sakura Amagiri had to come along as a Master, Sebastian needed to be there, and Artoria and Karna were essential as Servants.
The rest would stay behind to defend their base.
The Holy Grail War was a dangerous free-for-all, and Sebastian did not want their hideout attacked while they were away.
Shirone was still young, so Kuroka stayed behind to look after her.
Ingvild possessed great potential, but she had not yet mastered her powers.
Grayfia was left in charge of overall security.
“Lord Sebastian, please be careful, nya,” Kuroka called out with a wave, while Shirone and Ingvild watched closely.
Irisviel was not a fighter, so she stayed behind as well.
Before they left, Grayfia handed Sebastian a communication spell token.
“Lord Sebastian, if anything goes wrong, use this spell to call me right away.”
“Don’t worry, everything will be fine,” Sebastian replied with a smile.
With two powerful Heroic Spirits by his side, he felt confident.
As for Solomon—Sebastian knew that even if Solomon was summoned, he would be bound by a standard Servant container rather than a Grand Servant’s power.
Against fighters like Karna and Artoria, they stood a solid chance.
Sebastian waved to the group.
“We’re just going to inspect the Matou estate.
We’ll be back before dawn.”
With Sakura Amagiri, Artoria, and Karna following behind him, Sebastian vanished into the nighttime shadows.
Once they were gone, Shirone turned to Kuroka.
“Sister, teach me Senjutsu.”
Kuroka blinked in surprise.
“I thought you weren’t interested in Senjutsu?”
“I’m still not,” Shirone said, looking down at her small hands and clenching them into fists.
“But if I stay weak, I won’t be able to help Lord Sebastian.”
Kuroka smiled warmly and patted her sister’s head.
“Alright.
But Senjutsu training is very tough.”
“I’m not afraid.”
Without another word, Kuroka led Shirone toward the training area.
Grayfia watched them leave before turning her gaze to Ingvild.
Ingvild shifted uncomfortably under her cold stare.
“Um…
is something wrong?”
“You saw them,” Grayfia said calmly, her voice carrying a natural aura of authority.
“As a descendant of the Leviathan bloodline, shouldn’t you master your power as soon as possible?”