The dreary air made Alice Phil sigh several times.

"Are you tired? Alice. 」

Kiritsugu asked. Alice hid her melancholy expression and shook her head with a smile.

"It's nothing, I'm not tired. Go on. 」

Alice urged Kiritsugu. Kiritsugu went on to tell all sorts of information about Fuyuki City. On the table in front of Kiritsugu, a map depicting the entire city of Fuyuki unfolded.

"There are two places that are the center of the whole region. One is the mansion of SecondMaster Tosaka. Needless to say, everyone knows the other, and that is Enzang Mountain. All the spiritual veins in the surrounding area converge on the Enzo Mountain. The details are as Patriarch Ahad recounted......

The servants came to the castle before Alice Fell and the others, prepared everything for the venue, and left. Therefore, the venue where the meeting was held appeared to be impeccable. From the table legs to the teacups, it is spotless, and the vase is filled with vibrant flowers. It is impossible to imagine that this place has not been inhabited for sixty years.

It's a lie to say that you're not tired. But Alice Phil was still in bed for a while. But Kiritsugu didn't rest for a moment. When Kiritsugu and his assistant Maiya Kuyu arrived at the castle, it was almost noon. However, as soon as they arrived at the castle, they received a summons from the Fuyuki Church to operate the demons and confirm the overseer's notice, etc., and Kiritsugu was busy with all kinds of chores non-stop. Last night, after the Battle of Warehouse Street, Kiritsugu and the others attacked Lancer's Master Kenes, and even encountered Yan Feng Qili. There was another fierce battle. But Kiritsugu didn't show a hint of haggardness, so there was no reason for Alice Fell to complain about being tired.

No, Alice Fell sighed and had another secret.

"Set up a strong barrier based on the Yandong Temple on the top of Enzo Mountain, so that except for the Servant. All other natural creatures can only enter the barrier through mountain paths. Saber should be aware of this when he acts. 」

If you want to remind Saber of this, just say it to Saber. But Kiritsugu still didn't look at the girl in men's clothes standing behind Alice Phil.

There are two reasons why the air becomes heavy. One is that Saber has shown a resolute refusal to Kiritsugu. Saber's attitude is not new, but has only become more pronounced since he arrived at Einzberen Castle.

"And, in addition to these two places, there are two other important places in the new capital where the leylines are concentrated. One is the Fuyuki Church on Minamigaoka. There is also a new residential area to the east of the metropolitan area. All in all, there are four Linggo locations in Fuyuki City that are capable of performing the Holy Grail Descent. 」

"In that case, wouldn't it be better to knock out Lancer first in order to be more foolproof against Caster?"

But in the face of Alice's repeated questions, Kiritsugu shook his head.

"There's no need for us to confront Caster head-on when he appears. All you have to do is make the most of the location, Saber can run away and disrupt the enemy's line of sight. 」

Alice Phil was taken aback. And Saber was already dumbfounded when he heard Kiritsugu's words.

"Aren't you going to war with Caster?"

"All the other Masters have already targeted Caster. We don't need to do anything, someone else will solve Caster. We don't need to do anything more. To the Master who was chasing Caster with bloodshot eyes, Caster was a big piece of fat. Caster set his sights on Saber, and if Caster made any movement, one or two of the Masters chasing Caster would surely step into the forest, and we would attack those Masters from the side. The Master, who was preoccupied with chasing Caster, would never have imagined that they would change from the role of a hunter to the role of a prey. 」

I see, it's really worthy of Kiritsugu's tactics. Kiritsugu had neither human ethics nor pride as a magician, he was just a hunting tool derived from the formula of the jungle.

Originally, Kiritsugu had no intention of coming to this castle, and why he suddenly changed course to join him, Alice Phil finally understood Kiritsugu's intentions.

"Master, how despicable do you want to be, Master?!"

Saber shouted angrily, and Alice Fell felt a faint pain in her heart. Saber's indignation now was in a sense more intense than the anger he had generated last night at Rider's taunts and Caster's rampage.

"Lord Emiya Kiritsugu, you're insulting the Heroic Spirit. I joined this war to avoid a river of bloodshed. Compete for the Holy Grail, don't shed blood needlessly, minimize sacrifices, and carry the destiny of a man instead of thousands of horses, this is what we should do here as Servant. Why don't you leave the responsibility for going to war to me? One wrong step leads to tragedy. I've made a pact with Lancer to fight again!, don't you have to resort to such despicable means, or do you not trust me as a Servant?"

Kiritsugu did not answer. He remained coldly silent, as if Saber's fierce words were just innocuous words. Kiritsugu's mask-like indifferent expression disgusted Alice Phil.

That man was not the husband she knew.

She did know that Emiya Kiritsugu had a dual personality. She realizes that Kiritsugu has injected all his affection into his wife and daughter, and on the other hand, he has hidden the scars of the past in his heart. What kind of life Kiritsugu lived before joining the Einsberen family, Alice also knows something. But is this the decisive factor that separates the two of them?

And, what prompted Alice to realize this was the woman in black who was present at the meeting. The woman remained silent, silently entrusting everything she had to Kiritsugu. That woman was another reason for Alice Phil's melancholy.

This isn't the first time I've seen Maiya Kuyu. I've seen Maiya Kuyu a few times in the castle of Einzberen. During the nine years that Kiritsugu retired, it was Kuyu Maiya who was in charge of all the affairs of Kiritsugu outside.

A woman who acts together with Kiritsugu before she met Alice Phil. During this meeting, there was not a trace of doubt about Kiritsugu's remarks, and he remained silent. I'm afraid that for Maiya, the current Kiritsugu is the Emiya Kiritsugu she knows.

Suddenly, a faint aroma wafted into Alice Phil's nose. That's the smell of tobacco. The first time Alice met Kiritsugu, he had the smell of tobacco on his body. Alice remembers hating the smell at the time.

I hadn't smelled it for a long time since I married Kiritsugu, and now the smell of tobacco emanated from Kiritsugu's body again. Maybe that's what the smoke of the battlefield smells like.

There is no doubt that the current Kiritsugu has changed back to the Kiritsugu of nine years ago. At that time, in order to obtain the Holy Grail, Ahad took in Kiritsu. Kiritsugu is like a ruthless hound.

And at that time, Alice Fell was just a doll guarding the Holy Grail. While reminiscing about Kiritsugu's past, Alice Phil seems to be looking back on her own past. It's as if the nine years that the two of them have lived together no longer exist. Alice Phil's heart began to get restless.

The person closest to the man of Emiya Kiritsugu now is not himself as a wife, but Maiya Kuyu. Instead of giving out her thoughts, Alice Fell asked a completely unrelated question.

"What about the new rules of war proposed by the Overseer, doesn't he want us to enter a truce with all enemies except Caster?"

"Ignore the new rules. The overseers only provided compensation for the implementation of the new provisions, and did not establish penalties for violating the new provisions. If the Overseers really want to trouble us, we just pretend not to know about it. 」

Completely different from his attitude towards Saber, Kiritsu answered Alice Phil's questions one by one.

"And the overseers of this war have always found it unconvincing. Pretending to know nothing, he hid the Assassin's Master. Maybe he's with Tosaka. Before you know his details, it's better to be suspicious of him for the time being. 」

Saber trembled with rage, and Alice Fell was in a state of silence. Kiritsugu saw this silence as a signal to end the meeting.

"Then let's go here. Alice Phil and I stayed in the castle to prepare for Caster's attack. Maiya returns to the city to gather information. Tell me if anything changes. 」

"Yes. 」

Maiya nodded without hesitation, stood up, and left the conference room. Kiritsugu, who got up later, gathered the maps and materials on the table and left the conference room. Until the end, Kiritsugu didn't look at Saber.

Saber, who was completely ignored by Kiritsugu, bit her lip angrily and stared at the carpet beneath her feet. Alice Phil stayed in the conference room with Saber. At this moment, Alice Phil did not know what words to use to comfort the angry Saber.

No, Saber, the self-esteemed knight, would not expect others to comfort her with innocuous words. What must be done now for Saber is to solve the root cause of the current dilemma. Thinking of this, Alice Phil put her hand on Saber's shoulder as a token of her gratitude, and immediately followed Kiritsugu out of the conference room.

……