[FMMISM] Chapter 39: Kiritsugu's Unease

Zealot's Zabaniya was to recreate all the Zabaniya created by her predecessors, except for one.

Although she stubbornly believed that her own Zabaniya was far inferior to those of her predecessors, the truth suggested otherwise.

Compared to 'Hassan of the Cursed Arm', who sacrificed his own arm to obtain 'Delusional Heartbeat', Zealot achieved it without sacrificing any arm, undoubtedly a more successful endeavor.

Unlike 'Hassan of the Serenity' who turned everything about herself, including bodily fluids, mucous membranes, nails, skin, and breath, into deadly poison, Zealot's 'Delusional Poison Body' existed only within her bloodstream.

However, this wasn't due to a lack of talent, rather, Zealot feared indiscriminately spreading poison, potentially harming her comrades and innocent people.

Zealot also had some Zabaniya that didn't align with those of her predecessors, such as 'Raving Shadow Flash'.

It was said that the Hassan who created this Zabaniya could transform every strand of their hair into delicate spider silk and, without anyone noticing, sever the heads of their targets several kilometers away.

In contrast, Zealot, who preferred direct confrontation, used this Zabaniya as an AOE attack to slaughter and control nearby enemies.

Furthermore, her 'Ichor of Reverie', which manipulated her targets through song, possessed power surpassing that of her predecessors.

Against multiple opponents, she could manipulate their brains and send their Magic Circuits into a frenzy.

Focused on a single individual, even ordinary Servants would kneel before her.

For human targets, she could even fully dominate their brains or slowly burn them from within, similar to how she dealt with Ryuunosuke.

Zealot arranged numerous Zabaniya that had reached the realm of Noble Phantasms, selecting the most suitable tactics from among them.

She could even use multiple of them simultaneously.

Ignoring her lack of practical combat experience and psychological resilience due to not becoming a Hassan, Zealot, who had mastered eighteen Zabaniya, was undoubtedly the most versatile assassin.

Tonight, under Ragna's command, she was employing Hassan's renowned Zabaniya known for its 'searching' capability.

Zealot, dressed in a school swimsuit, used her body to search for a certain someone participating in the Holy Grail War.

Feeling the flow of wind and magic, forming echoed in the space, Zealot treated the entire port as her own body, with streets, warehouses, and buildings as her internal organs.

This was possible due to 'Meditative Sensitivity', a Zabaniya that could sense all surrounding terrain structures as part of her own body.

In fact, its actual applications seemed to go beyond this.

However, since there were only a few records of Hassan who created this Zabaniya, even Zealot doubted whether this Zabaniya and its creator truly existed.

Soon enough, Zealot located the target.

Normally, searching for a target in a large and open area like the Shinto Port would be very difficult, but Ragna provided her with some clues—a mage using firearms.

With this clue, Zealot could easily pinpoint the target's location.

Additionally, there was another crucial factor.

After removing her airtight black robe and donning a shameless school swimsuit, even if Zealot didn't want to admit it, she found that her body had become more sensitive than before.

'Meditative Sensitivity', which she wasn't particularly skilled in using, was now more effective.

As Zealot's fair shoulders trembled slightly under the moonlight, she stared at the ground and inhaled sharply.

'Lord Angel, you actually helped me grow to this extent... Was all of this within your calculations?' Zealot thought with reverence before speaking up. "Master... We've located the heretic you're looking for."

"Hou? So fast?" Ragna was surprised.

If it was so easy to find hidden targets, wouldn't the Holy Grail War turn into a chaotic slaughter if he exploited this method?

"It's all thanks to your guidance." Zealot looked up with a dreamy expression. "If you hadn't discovered my potential, someone as ordinary as me wouldn't have achieved anything."

'Huh? Because of me?' Ragna felt a bit dizzy and after a brief pause, he responded. "Right... You're right. As long as you understand, it's not in vain that I've done so much for you. Anyway, let's go and take me there."

"Yes, Master."

Zealot came to his side, then suddenly stood still.

"Hmm?" Ragna raised his eyebrows.

"Um... Can I touch you?" Zealot nervously rubbed her small hands together, speaking timidly.

"Hmm..." Ragna thought briefly and nodded. "Consider it a reward for helping me find the enemy."

At his words, Zealot couldn't hide her joy, her cheeks tinged with a faint blush in the night.

'There's something wrong with her head...' Ragna thought speechlessly.

A moment later, Ragna suddenly felt his feet leave the ground and realized that Zealot had princess-carried him.

"I asked you to take me but not to do it this way... Well, whatever..." Ragna sighed.

Zealot probably didn't even know what a princess carry was, having lived her whole life in a religious sect.

Seeing Zealot's expectant gaze, Ragna waved his hand casually.

And so, a tall girl in a school swimsuit carrying a boy in a princess carry disappeared from the rooftop of the hotel, blending into the night, speeding like the wind.

===

In the container area along the port, Emiya Kiritsugu was lurking.

As a sniper rifle known as Walther WA2000 was propped up among the towering containers, Kiritsugu surveyed the battlefield through its electronic scope.

There were two targets detected by the scope's thermal sensor.

Standing on the main road was Irisviel, silently supporting Artoria from behind.

And on the rooftop where another heat source appeared, without a doubt, was the enemy Master.

Kiritsugu chuckled satisfactorily in the darkness.

Just as he had anticipated.

Saber's Master must be using concealment magecraft, but unfortunately, such tricks were meaningless before his scope.

In this sea-like view tinted with pale green emitting phosphorescent colors, Kiritsugu had lost count of how many skilled mages he had killed.

Just like all mages who fell by his hand, Saber's Master was about to meet the same fate.

Soon, Kiritsugu contacted his assistant on the other side of the battlefield, Maiya Hisau.

"Maiya, Saber's Master is hiding on top of the warehouse northeast of Lancer. Can you see him?"

"..."

After waiting for a while, there was no response from the communicator.

"Hmm?"

Kiritsugu furrowed his brow in confusion.

He knew Maiya was an outstanding battle veteran, so she wouldn't be idle on the battlefield.

Taking out a nearby binocular, Kiritsugu peered in Maiya's direction.

Unfortunately, her side was a complete blind spot.

Since their respective coordinates were set to maximize enemy detection, mutual observation became impossible.

"Maiya, what's happening on your end? Respond immediately if you hear me."

Kiritsugu raised his sniper slightly, feeling a strong sense of unease in his heart.

"…"

Much to Kiritsugu's dismay, there was still no response from Maiya's communicator after a long while.