MMMS 55

By the time Irisviel and Lancer reached the forest, it was already over. Frost coated the ground beneath the moonlight, and the wind had died completely. Only the winners remained in the wrecked clearing.

Ryuuto sat on a shattered tree trunk, legs crossed, one arm wrapped around the witch beside him. Their pose made their relationship crystal clear to Irisviel and Artoria—he was the Master now.

Morgan seemed to be enjoying Arthur's defeat. The queen nestled against the boy looked more stunning than ever. Her cold blue eyes first lingered on his face with affection, then slid over to her sister like she was appraising merchandise.

"Hey, Irisviel, Lancer. Took you long enough." he greeted them casually, cigarette dangling between his fingers. He treated the women like they were just part of what he'd won from Kiritsugu.

"Hmm." In the moonlight, he lounged with a beauty at his side, smoke curling around them, savoring his victory.

"I think we all understand that I am the master of Einzbern Castle now. Looking forward to working with you." He turned his right hand, making sure they saw the deep red Command Seals etched into his skin—proof he now owned Lancer.

"...Ah... Aah." Irisviel's legs buckled when she saw the Seals that had been taken from her husband. She collapsed to her knees.

After what felt like forever, she finally asked in a hoarse voice. "Where is Kiritsugu?"

"He begged nicely, so I let him go."

"...You didn't kill him?"

"No. I wouldn't do anything to make you sad. As long as Kiritsugu stays away from now on—stays away from you—he'll be fine."

"..."

Finding out her husband was still alive, Irisviel finally caught her breath. She lifted her head. "Can I trust you? If I do what you want, you'll leave him alone?"

He nodded. "On that, you can trust me completely. I won't lie to you, Iri." He blew smoke rings into the night air, his voice oddly sincere.

"..."

The forest went quiet again.

After several seconds, Irisviel stood up from the ground and spoke with hollow calm.

"Kiritsugu has abandoned his duty as Master tonight and fled Fuyuki. The Einzberns acknowledge defeat in the Fourth Holy Grail War."

She stared at the boy who had gone from enemy to master of her fate. Her red eyes held nothing but emptiness—the dull acceptance of her new reality.

"Master of Caster."

A pair of bright blue eyes locked onto him from across the clearing. He looked up from Irisviel to meet Artoria's gaze.

Even with a collar, a lion's still a lion. A dragon's still a dragon. Artoria's face showed neither submission nor defiance—just steady resolve.

"Got something to say, Lancer?" he asked. "Save the lecture on chivalry. I didn't pull any dirty tricks tonight. Speaking of dirty tricks—that's your old Master's specialty, isn't it?"

His voice dripped with contempt. "Hiding behind a woman. Making his wife pretend to be Master while he skulks in the woods taking potshots. What a magus! So brilliant, Kiritsugu. Just brilliant."

"..."

No one spoke up to defend Kiritsugu.

Irisviel turned away, the truth stinging. Tonight was her first glimpse of how her husband really fought, and it wasn't what she'd imagined. His tactics had been dishonorable—and he'd still lost completely.

Ryuuto, on the other hand, could've played it safe. Instead, he'd chosen the harder path.

He'd used himself as bait, taking a bullet just to drag his enemy into the open. By any code of honor, Ryuuto had fought nobly. Even King Arthur couldn't help but respect that.

"..."

After meeting his eyes, Artoria's shoulders trembled slightly.

So that's how it was. She'd thought he was just some cocky, evil Master, but the truth was different. He'd chosen such a reckless approach tonight just to prove himself to her. Maybe she'd judged him too quickly.

"I understand."

Her face calm as still water, Lancer made her choice. She'd never really seen Kiritsugu as her Master anyway. He'd never even spoken a single word to her. And since Irisviel—the person she'd sworn to protect—had already submitted to the Caster team... There was only one path forward.

"Master of Caster, I will answer your Command Seals and accept you as my Master."

Ryuuto: "...Eh?"

Morgan: "...Huh?"

Instead of looking pleased at Artoria's pledge, the Caster team looked completely thrown off. They exchanged a baffled glance.

["Wait... Master, hold on."] Morgan's dark eyebrows pinched together, her cheeks puffing out. ["This isn't what we talked about."]

["Don't look at me! Not my fault she's not following the script..."]

Morgan pressed him: ["Master, what did you promise me earlier? You said Arthur would absolutely refuse you as her Master. You said she'd fight the Command Seals with her Magic Resistance. And when that happened, you'd hand her over to me so I could corrupt her with my magecraft."]

--"Caster, Lancer's all yours. Do whatever you want with her. Turn the noble King of Knight into something that suits us both." He'd promised Morgan exactly that just three minutes ago.

But now the enemy had surrendered without a fight. King Arthur's quick surrender left both Ryuuto and Morgan at a loss for words.

He couldn't make sense of it. By all logic, after he'd forced a kiss on Irisviel, stolen Kiritsugu's Command Seals, and claimed his wife, Lancer should hate his guts. So why was she looking at him with those understanding eyes?!

What he didn't realize was that while he'd been tormenting Kiritsugu for fun, Lancer saw his actions as brave and righteous. If someone like that would protect Irisviel, she couldn't ask for better.

Meanwhile, Caster's mood had hit rock bottom. Her long-planned [Sister Corruption Plan] had fallen apart, and now Arthur was giving her Master those warm, friendly looks.

Everything about this pissed Morgan off.

The witch's negative emotions quickly transformed into action.

["Ow! Caster, why are you pinching me?!"]

Morgan glared at the king of knights, forcing a smile as she sent a telepathic message: ["Master, say something to make Lancer angry."]

["...Huh?"]

["Arthur wants to join us, so you should humiliate her. Knights crack easily when shamed... Master, show me your manly side. Make her cry with your words!"]

When it came to pushing people's buttons, Ryuuto was the best Morgan had ever seen. She herself was one of the biggest victims of this boy, often being angered to the point of fainting.

She had no doubt his mouth could flip Artoria from ally to enemy in seconds.

He just stared at her. ["I'm not doing that. Why should I make her mad? Do it yourself. Aren't you two already on bad terms?"]

He'd been looking forward to watching Morgan corrupt her sister, but he didn't want to be the one to piss off King Arthur.

["Weren't you the one who swore you'd give Lancer to me as a toy? Are you breaking your promise?"]

["Come on! This is force majeure! Who knew she'd be so understanding?"] He frowned. ["...Besides, didn't I win tonight's battle all by myself? You barely helped, Caster."]

Ryuuto's classic move—changing the subject by criticizing Morgan's performance.

["Seriously? Are your eyes broken? I faced Lancer head-on. I used a Command Seal to teleport you straight to where the enemy Master was hiding. And you're saying I didn't help?"] She made it clear her part in their win was just as important as his.

Her quick thinking when she teleported him to Kiritsugu's position after he'd been shot was the game-changing move of the night.

But this hadn't been their original plan. Morgan had simply read her Master's intention after seeing him take a bullet, then improvised. That kind of ambush required split-second timing and complete trust—something most teams couldn't pull off.

By the way, after Ryuuto took Kiritsugu's Command Seals, Morgan had quickly grabbed one to replace what she'd used.

'Just one Command Seal. Such a cheapskate.' He was about to snap back at Morgan when Artoria cut in.

"...Master of Morgan. If you want my loyalty, there's one condition. If you can't meet it, I'm afraid we we won't be compatible."

"Condition?" He narrowed his eyes, thinking: Probably some boring rule about not hurting civilians.

["Yes! Master, turn her down!"] Morgan perked up, seeing a chance to salvage her plan.

Lancer looked softly at the broken Einzbern woman beside her.

"Keep Irisviel safe. That's all. Do that, and this lance is yours for the Holy Grail War."

"..." He had nothing to say. He was going to do that anyway.

Artoria read his face and finally dropped her guard. She stepped forward and held out her hand.

"Then I look forward to working with you."

["No! Don't take her hand!"] Morgan yanked at his sleeve, tears welling in her eyes.

Morgan wasn't fighting because Artoria was King Arthur, her enemy. She was fighting because, in her mind—

Ryuuto should only need her as his formal Servant.

She stared at her sister's outstretched hand, teeth clenched. 'Are you going to take what should be mine again, Arthur!?'