FATE: Target of Grand Master

A woman with blonde hair, dressed in a gorgeous red gown with a deliberately transparent front to show off her perfect figure, stood in front of Xia Yan.

Nero Claudius, the fifth emperor of ancient Rome, had a face almost identical to Artoria, but his physique and personality were much more generous and proactive than that of the unfeeling King Arthur.

"Well, although it's just a formality, the contract's validity still needs to be confirmed through a question-and-answer session. Cough... cough..."

Nero cleared his throat and smiled, "Servant Saber, I have answered your summons! Answer me, are you my player?"

"Yes. Be careful!"

As Xia Yan answered, he saw Li Shuwen appear behind Nero and hurriedly reminded him.

clang!

After blocking Li Shuwen's sneak attack with his crimson greatsword, Nero turned around and said to the young man behind him, "This is a memorable moment for me and the musician. Assassin, you're being incredibly tactless."

Nero's tone was much lower than when he was talking to Xia Yan, clearly indicating his displeasure at being disturbed.

"Hmph, Saber, once you and your Master reach the underworld, you'll have plenty of time to make all sorts of souvenirs."

Li Shuwen raised his knee and aimed it at Nero's spine.

Nero then inserted his crimson greatsword, "Primordial Flame," into his side, and then used it as a fulcrum to perform a pole vault-like movement, dodging Li Shuwen's attack while adjusting his posture to face his opponent.

Li Shuwen reacted quickly, immediately stepping out with his left foot and throwing a punch at Nero, whose foot had just landed.

Nero had no time to adjust his movements, so he pressed down on the "Primordial Flame," cleverly neutralizing Li Shuwen's attack.

Boom!

Li Shuwen's lips curled up slightly, seemingly showing more appreciation for Nero's quick thinking.

"Saber, you are an enemy I must deal with seriously."

After praising him, Li Shuwen did not rush to attack. Instead, he took two steps back, and his aura and presence gradually faded until Xia Yan could no longer sense Li Shuwen's presence.

"This is!"

Nero felt exactly the same way as Xia Yan; she gripped her greatsword tightly with both hands and warily surveyed her surroundings.

"This is Li Shuwen's unique skill: Circle Realm."

Xia Yan reminded Nero in front of him, "This is transparency without using any magic. Even if you try to detect it with magic, it will be useless."

"Oh? I didn't expect you to not only know my real name, but also recognize my abilities at a glance. Have we met somewhere before?"

Li Shuwen's voice seemed to be both right next to his ear and coming from all around him in the distance. Even while speaking, he did not reveal his location.

"Assassin, how is this possible? He just became a Master! He must have used some kind of cheating!"

Julius was very displeased that Xia Yan knew so much about his followers. He drew his dagger, preparing to take advantage of the fact that both of their attentions were drawn to Li Shuwen and launch a sneak attack on Xia Yan.

"Player, I can't sense him. Do you have any suggestions?"

Nero amplified his senses to the limit, but still couldn't find a solution.

"Now that we know his abilities, we also know how to counter them. Saber, watch your back and don't let Li Shuwen sneak up on you. I'll figure out where he is."

Xia Yan released the magic power within his body, forming a giant water sphere.

"Foolish behavior. Not to mention that such an attack cannot hit me at all, even if it did, it would not harm me in the slightest."

Li Shuwen, who had already quietly approached Nero from behind, heard Xia Yan's reminder and temporarily withdrew his attack, instead preparing to launch a sneak attack on Xia Yan.

The water sphere grew larger and larger until Xia Yan felt that it contained enough water to cover the entire square, at which point he tossed it high into the air.

The water balloon, tossed into the air, exploded, creating a light rain that covered almost the entire square, drenching everyone.

At the same time, Li Shuwen struck Xia Yan on the back of the neck.

"Player, bow your head!"

Nero arrived in front of Xia Yan almost instantly, forcefully pressing Xia Yan's head down with one hand while thrusting out his deep red greatsword with the other.

Xia Yan's vision was immediately filled with two snow-white thighs, but he had no time to appreciate them at the moment. Turning his head, Xia Yan carefully observed the battle taking place behind him.

Boom!

The "Primordial Fire" collided with some unseen hard object in mid-air, producing a dull thud.

Without a doubt, that hard object was Li Shuwen's fist.

At this moment, Li Shuwen was quite surprised that Nero had such a precise grasp of his position, but after seeing the water droplets remaining on his fist, he immediately understood.

Li Shuwen was surprised because the ability of "Circle Realm" was a technique that used qi to perceive the surrounding environment and make it exist or disappear. It could achieve oneness with heaven and earth, making the figure blend into nature, and could not be detected by magic. Even touching it would not make him aware of his presence.

However, this effect only applies to Li Shuwen himself; he is merely integrating into his surroundings rather than changing them.

The light rain released by Xia Yan was not aimed at Li Shuwen, but rather at the entire square as part of a survey.

When a raindrop encounters an obstacle before it hits the ground, that location is worth being wary of. And if there seems to be no one in that location, then it is very likely that it is Li Shuwen.

Xia Yan communicated his plan to Nero through telepathy, while Nero prioritized being vigilant about Xia Yan's surroundings. When he saw the raindrops behind Xia Yan appear to be in an unnatural state as if they had hit something, Nero took immediate action.

Having failed in his second sneak attack, Li Shuwen simply gave up and confronted Nero head-on.

Nero pulled hard, dragging Xia Yan behind him. Then, the wind from his fist collided with the blade at high speed, producing a series of explosive sounds.

Having abandoned his obsession with assassination, Li Shuwen's fist techniques were able to be displayed to the fullest extent. In addition, the effects of the circle were still in effect. Even if Nero could observe the clues, the lag in perception would still have a huge impact on the battle.

But this is precisely what makes Nero such an excellent Servant.

Even though Nero was suppressed by Li Shuwen's attacks, he still defended very tenaciously and only suffered some minor injuries from Li Shuwen.

This situation made Li Shuwen frown.

If he had been somewhat casual in the previous battles, he had been extremely serious during the fierce attack just now. Yet, even so, Saber had not died, nor had she suffered any serious injuries. This was enough to show that she was also a master swordsman.

In the end, Nero did demonstrate the level of a master swordsman, but this was not because she possessed superb swordsmanship, but because of her inherent skill called Emperor's Privilege EX, which allowed her to gain abilities that she would not normally possess for a short period of time based on her own will.

It's like calling a deer a horse, where the deer really is a horse; turning black into white, making black appear white.

Of course, this skill is not without its limitations. Due to Nero's tendency to lose interest quickly and his chronic headaches, he forgets the skills he learns in no time. Therefore, he cannot accumulate skills through this skill and eventually become a true all-around genius.

Even so, this ability is still extremely powerful, powerful enough to be able to fight even against a martial arts master like Li Shuwen.