[FMMISM] Chapter 54: Attacking the Einzbern Castle

"Let's go, Caster. We're going to take down the Einzbern Castle."

After enjoying Morgan's homemade potato stew, Ragna, dragging the bewildered Morgan, left the inn.

Winter nights always arrived early.

As they stepped out of the inn, the sky had already darkened, casting doubt on whether dusk had even arrived.

"Our mission tonight is to conquer the Einzbern Castle."

Ragna explained to Morgan as they walked.

"Look, it's been days already, and nothing interesting has happened. Since the Holy Grail War isn't progressing at all, we can't keep going like this. So, tonight, let's take out the Master from the Einzbern side."

"What about Assassin?" Morgan asked.

"Oh, Zealot? I've assigned her another task." Ragna casually whistled. "With just the two of us, we're more than enough for the Einzberns."

"...Alright, understood."

Although Ragna's frivolous attitude made the serious Morgan uneasy, she restrained herself from lecturing her Master. Because to her, his words carried an underlying meaning of 'Caster is strong enough, so I only need you'.

In reality, Ragna was thinking the opposite.

'Assassin is too damn strong. If she were with us, those fellows wouldn't stand a chance!'

Zealot, who was skilled in reconnaissance, stealth, assassination, hypnosis, poisoning, curses, summoning familiars, and other abilities among the eighteen Zabaniya, was virtually invincible.

Seriously speaking, Zealot could wipe out the other six Masters in a single night, without exaggeration.

If Morgan knew what Ragna was thinking right now, this jealous and petty fairy princess would probably ignore him for a week.

In the next moment, Ragna began to butter her up again.

"After all, Caster, you're the only one I can trust with my back, hehe."

Ragna turned his head to Morgan.

"What do you think, Caster? How about staying with me as my woman after the Holy Grail War ends?"

Staring at Morgan's cold and peerless face, Ragna spoke seriously.

"I know the present world is way more interesting than just staying locked up in your garden, right? And don’t worry, I won't treat you unfairly, whether it's materialistically or physically—"

"Save that discussion for when we've eliminated at least half of our enemies."

Morgan interrupted his rambling with an indifferent expression and voice.

"If you want me to be your woman, show me something that’ll make me fall for you. Like, maybe start by fixing your flippant attitude when you confess to women before a big fight."

With an arrogant expression on her face and a hint of subtle satisfaction, Morgan critiqued Ragna coldly, without holding back.

"Also, don’t be so obvious about not liking it when I serve you potato stew."

"...Ahh, got it." Ragna smiled calmly, then inwardly clicked his tongue. 'As I thought, this woman is indeed not easy to deal with... Okay, let's change the subject.'

"Oh right, Caster."

"Yes?"

"Speaking of which, your sister with whom you have a very poor relationship..."

Ragna asked casually and calmly as if discussing what to eat for supper.

"You know, that Arthur... what's her real name?" Ragna asked, gazing into Morgan's eyes.

"..."

A brief silence.

Ragna knew that Arthur was more like a title—or rather, a pseudonym.

After all, the true name of the King of Knights hidden in history was not Arthur Pendragon but Artoria Pendragon, at least in this world.

Only a few people knew this name, but without a doubt, Ragna believed that Artoria’s elder sister, Morgan, was very well aware of it.

Surprisingly, Morgan rolled her eyes and gave an answer that surprised Ragna.

"Arthur's real name is Arthur, right? The King of Knights who leads the Round Table, Arthur Pendragon."

"..."

A long silence.

Ragna, upon hearing her answer, paused briefly, taking a moment to gather his thoughts.

"Ahh, right, of course... Arthur's real name is naturally Arthur..."

Ragna nodded, hiding a smile at the corner of his mouth.

'Well, well... I found something interesting...'

===

After a two-hour journey, the two entered the forest on the outskirts of Fuyuki.

On the winter night, the forest was truly a sea of trees.

In stark contrast to the bustling city nearby, the Einzbern Castle was built right in this forest.

It was said that the Einzberns were a family who obtained the legendary 'Das Rheingold' from the epic 'Song of the Nibelungs'.

Of course, the so-called Das Rheingold wasn’t literally ten tons of gold but rather an item on the level of a Mystic Code or a Noble Phantasm and could be understood simply as the Western version of a cornucopia.

"Inexhaustible and limitless gold...?"

Walking side by side in the deep forest at night, Ragna became increasingly excited after hearing Morgan's explanation.

Which dragon didn't love gold?

Moreover, Ragna was the Great Red Dragon from the Bible who wept and slew his own mother for treasure. Perhaps the greedy and gold-loving image of dragons in later generations was all due to his infamous reputation.

"Alright, I'll take this thing." Ragna happily made his decision. "But before I get it, I’ll go get the princess first."

"Isn't your goal to get rid of the Master from the Einzbern family? Master, you should be confident and have a solid strategy by now, right?" Morgan glanced at the pleased boy next to her and made her displeasure known.

In this forest, impenetrable magecraft traps were set up, concealing countless familiars. Even from a kilometer away from the forest entrance, the master of the castle should have already sensed their arrival.

Given that, Morgan's concerns were not entirely unreasonable.

"A strategy? That thing... Of course, we don't have one at all..." Ragna grinned and turned his head towards the front. "Well, here they come."

Morgan also looked ahead.

In their line of sight, two beautiful women appeared like gems in the midnight.

A silver knight holding a holy lance and a pure white princess in a white coat.

"Heh..." Morgan raised his lips slightly.

"Can't believe you sneaked into Einzbern's forbidden territory like that... Lancer and I must look pretty insignificant to you." Irisviel, her face stern and solemn, glared at the two intruders. "Nice to see you again, Lancer's sister. No need to exchange names, right?"

"Iri! It's nice to see you again! I've missed you so much!" Ragna, his face beaming, enthusiastically waved towards Irisviel.

"Hmph." Irisviel snorted coldly, turning away and ignoring his warm greeting.

Ever since Ragna stepped into this forest, Irisviel felt her heart pounding beneath her voluptuous chest, held tightly in her arms.

Just now, she had been freaked out to find that, upon seeing the handsome face of the black-haired boy, her mouth had involuntarily filled with a large amount of saliva.

Blushing and irritated, Irisviel lightly bit her lower lip.

Why was her body reacting like this?

Could it be because she had never experienced such an intense kiss before?

After all, her husband, Emiya Kiritsugu, was a justice seeker devoid of such interests.

Although she had been married for eight years, she had never experienced a kiss until that incident at the BBQ restaurant, where she was kissed not just with an ordinary kiss but with a French kiss.

In other words, Ragna was the first man to show Irisviel what a true kiss meant.