FATE: Target of Grand Master

"Hmph, all you can do when you can't win is play the victim. Is this all there is to your goddess act?"

Anastasia continued to exude a powerful sense of oppression.

"Don't be so arrogant. If it weren't for the fact that it's freezing cold here, I would definitely make you taste what it's like to become a stone sculpture."

Euryale clenched her little pink fists, extremely unwilling.

"The strong never complain about their circumstances. I wouldn't mind turning you into an ice sculpture right now."

Anastasia's response only added fuel to the fire.

"alright!"

Xia Yan spoke up to stop the two from arguing and got back to the main topic.

"Anastasia, if you want to become the Queen of the Lostbelts, my Servants are indispensable. Knowing how to win over and appease forces that are beneficial to you is a skill a qualified ruler must possess. Or do you think you alone are enough to defeat the Thunder Emperor and completely seize control of the entire empire?"

After speaking of the princess, Xia Yan turned to look at Euryale.

"Ellie, my main mission this time is to help Anastasia. If I don't complete it, I won't be able to go back. Are you willing to watch us all remain in this icy world?"

Xia Yan's words immediately silenced the two women.

Yuri knew very well that Xia Yan was usually very gentle and willing to tolerate their little tempers, but once it reached the point where he felt he should take action, he would not hesitate to stop them, and his aura would instantly become unquestionable.

Anastasia, on the other hand, was experiencing Xia Yan's domineering presence for the first time. To put it another way, the princess even felt a hint of joy that she herself was unaware of.

She had always felt that Xia Yan was a bit too gentle, even to the point of describing him as weak and insecure. (Of course, that was Xia Yan's persona as a court magician before he entered the trial.)

Now that Anastasia has seen Xia Yan's strong side, she feels that Xia Yan is becoming more and more reliable.

With their argument over, Xia Yan could finally relax and think about his next move.

Currently, three of the Servants I brought have been recovered, with Morgan and Ereshkigal remaining to join the party.

Xia Yan wasn't worried about their strength, but precisely because of their strength, their continued absence from the team must mean something unexpected had happened.

"Anastasia, investigate the surrounding area again."

"I've already had Wei investigate, and nothing unusual has been found in the area."

Xia Yan looked at the princess with some surprise, not expecting that she had already conducted the investigation before his orders.

"Why are you looking at me like that? You don't think I'm just a puppet who only follows orders, do you? I'm a member of the royal family, after all. I have some analytical and judgment abilities."

Anastasia raised her head slightly and said with some pride.

"As expected of Her Highness the Princess."

Xia Yan naturally didn't mind giving Anastasia some affirmation at this time.

However, after praising him, Xia Yan fell silent again, because he didn't know what to do next.

It was getting dark, and if they didn't set off back to Moscow soon, they would have to spend the night outside.

Not to mention that the freezing cold outside is not suitable for sleeping, Anastasia, a noble member of the royal family, as well as Euryale and Musashi, are not suitable for camping in the wild with their thin clothing. They should at least find a village.

boom!

Just as Xia Yan was pondering which village to go to and how to avoid disturbing the villagers, a huge explosion accompanied by a powerful wave of magical energy swept in from afar, causing all the Servants and even the Slaughter Soldiers present to tremble.

"Xia Yan, this wave of magical energy spread from a very far distance. To be able to travel such a long distance and still retain such powerful magical energy, both sides in the battle must be extremely powerful. Even if they haven't reached the level of beasts, they are already close to beasts."

As someone who had once transformed into a beast, Nero's words carried immense authority.

Could it be that...?

Xia Yan suddenly had a guess.

"Anastasia, if we allow Vi to probe in a single direction, could we extend the probe's range?"

Anastasia nodded and said, "Yes, but the limit is ten kilometers."

"Alright, then have Wei investigate the direction of the explosion immediately."

Anastasia immediately did as instructed, and after a moment, the princess withdrew from the position and said, "There is indeed a high level of magical energy in the northwest direction, but because the magical energy is too high, we cannot determine the exact location."

Anastasia's reply was exactly what Xia Yan expected.

After all, once you get used to Morgan, there will always be a sense of loss when using other Servants, especially Caster-class Servants. This is not because other Servants are not good enough, but because Morgan is too good. According to Xia Yan's assessment, apart from the original Solomon, there is probably no other Servant that is easier to use than Morgan.

If we add the factor of being able to bring someone home as a wife, then Morgan is undoubtedly number one.

"Alright, then head northwest immediately. As usual, Nero, you take me first. Musashi and Euryale, one of you is injured and the other isn't good at high-speed movement, so you and Anastasia can follow at normal speed."

After saying that, Xia Yan and Nero rushed into the seemingly endless snowstorm.

The remaining three Servants looked at each other, and finally Anastasia called out to summon the Killer Hunters, and then followed behind with the other two Servants.

boom!

Boom! Boom!

Boom! Boom! Boom!

As Xia Yan and Nero drew closer to the high-magic-reaction zone in the northwest, the frequency of the explosions and the spreading magical ripples increased.

Along the way, Xia Yan even saw a destroyed village, where many Yaga were fleeing in terror in the opposite direction.

"Xia Yan, be careful. There are many high magic reactions ahead, about a dozen in total. Among them, there are two with abnormally high magic reactions. I suggest we wait until Anastasia arrives with the main force before proceeding."

Nero was right. She couldn't use her Beast Origin right now, and with only her Saber-class Origin, it would be difficult to protect Xia Yan from so many high-magic-reaction attacks.

But Xia Yan wasn't worried at all.

Putting everything else aside, Xia Yan could only think of three beings capable of causing an explosion of this scale in this world.

One is Ivan the Terrible, the Lostbelt King who is still fast asleep in the imperial palace in Moscow; another is Koyanskaya, the wicked and unscrupulous merchant who exploits Yaga in this world; and the last one can only be the first Servant of his own contract, a Lostbelt King stronger than the Lostbelt King of this world, Morgan le Fay.

"It's alright, keep going, my safety will be guaranteed."

Seeing Xia Yan's determination, Nero didn't say anything more and led Xia Yan to continue towards the two directions with the highest magical reactions.