"You know me? Unfortunately, I don't recall you, Foreigner."
Joan of Arc studied Kain carefully, searching her memory—but no matter how hard she tried, she couldn't remember ever encountering him. Still, she knew about Kain: a very rare case, a descendant with a unique lineage.
Kain's appearance was an anomaly in the Holy Grail War. During the summoning, he had inexplicably connected to a place other than the Throne of Heroes. Because of this, he had been summoned by Sakura Matou as a descendant, not a traditional Servant.
"So the accident the Church mentioned… it referred to the appearance of a Ruler," Kain muttered to himself.
The Holy Grail War, which had been proceeding within his expectations, had suddenly taken an unexpected turn.
Joan of Arc was a problem.
As Ruler, she possessed two Command Spells for each Servant.
Although the Ruler class was meant to supervise and protect the integrity of the Holy Grail War, her presence might conflict with Kain's objectives.
For Kain, victory was the result that mattered—not the process. If a referee like Joan interfered in the process or exercised her authority to intervene, it could seriously disrupt his plans.
The church fell into silence. Kain said nothing. Joan of Arc also remained quiet.
Everyone else, however, was still processing what Joan had just revealed.
Rin Tohsaka, her face tense with anger, tugged at the corner of Emiya Shirou's clothes.
Those two are the Servants who forced me to withdraw from the Holy Grail War, she typed quickly on her phone, showing Shirou the message.
Shirou looked shocked, then immediately grew wary of Kain and Rider.
However, both Shirou and Rin found something odd—the Masters of Kain and Rider still hadn't shown up. Even more strangely, Joan didn't seem to mind.
Maybe they already came but chose not to enter the church, they speculated, just like Shirou and Rin had initially.
Before long, Ichiro and Illya also arrived at the church. Yet, once again, their Servants were nowhere to be seen. Joan of Arc scanned the surroundings, then closed her eyes slightly to sense for presences.
Suddenly, she opened her eyes wide and declared:
"The seventh Master is actually a Servant who summoned another Servant. This violates the rules of the Holy Grail War. As Ruler, I will now exercise my authority granted by the Holy Grail to strip the seventh Master of all powers."
As soon as she finished speaking, a golden magic circle appeared beneath Joan's feet. It shimmered briefly, then vanished.
In the next instant, a Servant—Medea—appeared in the church.
Her face was half-covered by a hood, but her fury was evident. Though the Assassin she summoned, Sasaki Kojirou, couldn't leave the temple gate, he was still a valuable combatant.
Now, having been forcibly stripped of her status by Joan of Arc, Medea stood silently, barely able to suppress her rage.
Once Medea had materialized, Joan addressed everyone:
"Now that all Masters and Servants are present, I will announce the revised rules of the Holy Grail War."
"I am Joan of Arc, the Ruler summoned by the Holy Grail. Due to the Foreigner descendant's appearance and violations committed during this Holy Grail War, I hereby declare a new structure for the competition."
All the Masters grew tense at her words—especially Rin Tohsaka, who started anxiously counting on her fingers, calculating implications.
Joan of Arc continued:
"First: Because of the descendant's existence, one Master now has two Servants. This is unfair. Therefore, all remaining Masters are granted the right to summon an additional Servant or ally with a new Master. The total number of participating Servants will increase to fifteen."
"Second: The Caster had summoned Assassin as a Servant, violating the structure. I have now stripped her of that power. A new Master will be chosen to take her place. Until all Servants are fully assembled, I advise you not to begin the war prematurely."
"Third—and this is my personal request: I hope all participants follow the rules set by the Church and avoid harming innocent civilians."
With that, Joan of Arc concluded her announcement.
The others were clearly stunned by her pronouncements.
Among them, Tohsaka Rin quickly asked, "Ruler, if someone loses their Servant, can they summon another one to continue participating in the Holy Grail War?"
Joan nodded. "Of course. With the appearance of the descendant, the rules of the Holy Grail War have changed."
Upon hearing this, Rin Tohsaka secretly clenched her fists in excitement. This meant she could participate in the Holy Grail War as a proper Master once again, rather than simply supporting Emiya Shirou as an ally.
But Kain suddenly spoke up and asked Joan, "Six Servants are enough to fill the Holy Grail. So why increase the number? If the Grail is already full after the death of the sixth Servant, what purpose will the remaining ones serve?"
Joan replied calmly, "The nature of the Grail has changed because of your presence, Your Excellency. Six Servants are no longer enough to conclude the war."
"Tch. What a hassle."
Kain frowned. Originally, killing a few Servants would have been enough to end the war. But now, everything was shifting. If powerful Heroic Spirits were summoned due to the extended slots, things could become much more troublesome for him. The chance was low—but not zero.
Seeing that no one else was speaking, Joan continued, "I possess a Command Spell for every Servant involved in this war. I hope all of you follow the rules of the Holy Grail War. If you violate them, I will not hesitate to use my authority as Judge to remove you from this war."
That was a serious warning.
Until now, most of those present hadn't known about Joan's ability. But now they understood clearly—she could command any Servant on the field. If she judged someone in violation of the rules, even one Command Spell would be enough to force their withdrawal.
Kain, however, was already thinking about how to circumvent the restrictions of the Command Spells. His goals were entirely different from Joan's. Following the rules she laid out would completely hinder him.
Joan then concluded, "That's all I needed to say. From now on, the Holy Grail will begin choosing new Masters. You may return and attempt to summon Servants. Once the number of participating Servants reaches fifteen, the Holy Grail War will officially begin."
She was referring to herself, Archer, and Assassin, all of whom had been returned to the Grail. That meant six Servant slots were still vacant.
"Church Overseer—no, Master Kotomine Kirei," Joan said, turning toward him. "Since you've chosen to participate in the Holy Grail War, the surplus Command Spells you possess are a disruption to the war's balance. As Judge, I will reclaim those excess Seals."
As she spoke, she extended her armored hand toward Kotomine. A golden light radiated from it. Kotomine quickly felt the effect—all the Command Seals granted by the Church were stripped away, leaving him only with the three he had stolen from Bazett.
Kotomine Kirei frowned slightly, but then returned to his usual calm. This Holy Grail War had changed too much. Though he was displeased, he could do nothing against the Ruler—not yet.
He wasn't sure whether attacking the Judge would disqualify him from the war entirely. Without a Servant, he would be at a serious disadvantage.
Joan ended the meeting with a simple statement: "These are the only rules I needed to deliver. If you have no further business, you may leave."
She added that she would now be supervising the Holy Grail War throughout Fuyuki City. Unlike the other Servants, she still needed to eat and rest.
"Let's go. I'll take you back first."
Kain glanced in Soichiro Kuzuki's direction and, after confirming that the tracking magic had been properly set up, placed his hand on Rider's shoulder. With a flicker of light, he used Apparition to return her directly to the Matou villa.
Then Kain warned Matou Sakura—who was still pretending to be Rider—not to go out at night. He was going out to hunt enemy Masters, and perhaps Kotomine Kirei would do the same. Especially after what Jeanne had said about him earlier, someone might get curious.
"Let's go, Rider. I've already set up the tracking spell, but I'll be changing the plan a bit."
Kain originally intended to kill Soichiro Kuzuki and Caster to hasten the end of the Holy Grail War. But now, it seemed more beneficial to subdue Caster and gain some assistance instead.
Conveniently, Kain also wanted to test the Matou family's familiar magic. The Matous, who had developed the Command Seal system, were particularly skilled at control-based magecraft.
After Kain left, the other Masters also departed one after another. Unlike Kain, they didn't have spatial teleportation, so they left the church at staggered intervals.
Although Jeanne had declared that the Holy Grail War would only officially begin once all Servants were summoned, no one wanted to let their guard down.
"Emiya-san, I'll head back alone tonight. Since I can summon another Servant, I'll be rejoining the Holy Grail War as a proper Master," Rin Tohsaka said cheerfully. What she'd learned tonight had been wonderful news. The Tohsaka family had collected several holy relics in advance.
"Well then, good luck, Tohsaka," Emiya Shirou replied with a smile. Then he asked, "By the way, Tohsaka, based on what the Judge said, does that mean I can also summon another Servant?"
"That's technically true," Rin admitted, "but I wouldn't recommend it, Emiya-san. You and Saber still haven't established a proper mana channel. If you summon another Servant, it'll only create more trouble."
She wagged her finger and added, "Your situation is too unique. It's lucky that Saber can gradually regain her mana through rest, but if a serious battle breaks out…"
Rin trailed off, her cheeks flushing red. She didn't dare say the other method of mana restoration aloud—the one involving bodily fluids. There was no way the dignified Tohsaka family heiress would say something like that.
"Tohsaka?" Shirou asked, puzzled by her sudden silence.
"It's nothing," she replied quickly, shaking her head. "What I mean is, your mana capacity right now just isn't suitable for summoning another Servant—unless you can help Saber unleash her full strength."
Emiya Shirou sighed helplessly. Saber was still recovering her mana slowly, and it took at least a day or two after each battle. If his next Servant turned out to be like Saber, then he really wasn't suited to summoning another.
Besides, summoning a Servant required a holy relic. Without one, it was like drawing a random card. Although compatibility was usually taken into account, strength wasn't guaranteed.
Not all Heroic Spirits were strong—some were famous, but weak. If he summoned one like that, even an average mage might be able to defeat them.
Meanwhile…
Soichiro Kuzuki and Caster were also on their way back to Ryuudou Temple.
Caster's expression was grim. She had suffered the most tonight—her movements had been restricted, and her summoned Assassin had been forcefully taken from her.
Now, if she dared summon another Servant, that damned Jeanne d'Arc would probably intervene again.
Holy Grail War… Holy Grail War!
If I win, the rules don't matter.
"Still thinking about what happened just now?" Kuzuki suddenly asked, startling Medea beside him.
"Not really," she replied after a pause. "The plan hasn't completely collapsed… but it'll be much harder to win the Holy Grail War now."
"In any case, just do your best," Kuzuki said. After a moment of silence, he continued, "Compared to all that, I'm more concerned about the 'descendant' the Judge mentioned."
"The descendant…" Medea repeated thoughtfully, immediately recalling Kain. He was a Servant with a handsome face and composed demeanor—someone who could've made goddesses fight over him in her era.
Of course, while his looks and presence were impressive, what truly caught her attention was the Holy Grail War itself—changed by Kain's presence.
"Master Soichiro, what do you think about that man?"
"He wants to kill me. We might be his next targets," Kuzuki answered coldly. When he had left the church, he'd felt Kain's gaze. As someone who had once been an assassin, he recognized it well—they were on that man's kill list.
"That bastard dares…" Medea hissed angrily. "Don't worry, Master Soichiro. I won't let him hurt you."
But just as she said this, Medea suddenly felt a surge of danger. A strange magical energy was closing in fast from outside.
"Master Soichiro, watch out!"
Before she could even finish, Medea hastily cast a protective barrier—but just as it activated, their entire car exploded in a violent blast.
Boom!
The entire car was engulfed in flames in an instant. The violent explosion blasted a massive crater into the hard ground, sending countless fragments flying in all directions as fire raged across the scene.
Despite being shielded by protective magic, two figures were flung away by the shockwave, crashing into the cliff beside the mountain road with a heavy, muffled thud.
Medea groaned in pain. Her whole body ached. Even though the protective spell had softened the impact, the sheer force of the explosion was no joke. If the cliff hadn't stopped her, she felt she might have flown dozens of meters further.
"Master Soichiro!?"
Medea immediately turned to check on Soichiro Kuzuki. His condition was much worse than hers—he had passed out after slamming into the cliff. Fortunately, the protective magic had saved him from losing any limbs.
"Flaming Python!"
Suddenly, a voice rang out. Medea's head snapped upward, and in the next instant, the night sky was dyed a blazing red.
A colossal flame python, tens of meters long, coiled in the air above them. It spotted her and Soichiro immediately, and with a flick of its tongue, dove toward them like a predator on the hunt.
"Damn it!"
Medea cursed under her breath. She quickly activated her magic and lifted Soichiro into the air, attempting to evade the flaming serpent's attack.
But just as they took flight, Medea sensed a black shadow speeding toward her. With Soichiro in her arms, she couldn't properly defend herself—just as she turned to react, the shadow struck.
Boom!
The tremendous impact drove both Medea and Soichiro straight into the cliffside, embedding them deep into the rock. Moments later, the fire python surged forward, ready to strike again.
…
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