That protagonist is trash; I could do better!

As they approached the location where the water elemental spirit had reported, Shinji Matou looked down at the city streets from the sky, his expression slightly changing: "That's it!"

Looking down at the main streets of Fuyuki City, a thick white fog can be seen enveloping several streets, quiet yet eerie. Pedestrians outside the fog seem completely unaware of its presence.

Shinji Matou entered an empty alley, walked out of the street, and investigated the edge of the thick fog.

Could it be the Holy Grail system at work?

"I can't sense any trace of magic in this mist, so it shouldn't be due to the Holy Grail system, but it certainly can't be something that happened naturally."

"Shall we go in?"

The Mystic Eyes shone brightly, penetrating the depths of the dense fog, where indeed there were strong magical fluctuations. Only a battle between Servants could cause such a level of magical disturbance.

We can't ignore it, even if there's only a one percent chance that Saber will be removed from the game.

Regardless, Shinji Matou assumed that their combination was on his side, and he wanted to acquire both Saber's combat power and the Einzbern family's artificial human technology.

It is worth mentioning that the Einzbern family's artificial human technology belongs to alchemy, and there are past examples of achieving the Third Law [the materialization of the soul].

Shinji Matou stepped into the thick fog, and after only a few steps, he stepped on a corpse.

It was a middle-aged man, dressed like an office worker, with his throat cut and his chest ripped open. Colorful intestines and blood were spilled all over the ground. The corpse's face was filled with fear and pain, as if he had been subjected to inhuman torture before his death.

The horrific death even made Shinji Matou, who was used to seeing corpses, frown. What kind of Berserker did Ryunosuke Uryuu summon that drove him to such a state of madness, even his own sanity?

As they continued forward, more and more corpses appeared, all of them in the same state of death.

Shinji Matou heard Saber's anxious voice: "Irisviel! Irisviel! Are you alright!"

Please give this lazy bum a recommendation vote to motivate him!

By now, some of you probably already know who Berserker is!

Chapter Thirty-Seven: Avalon

Before Shinji Matou could get close to Saber, a sharp gust of wind swept in, and the Void Elemental Spirit behind him immediately revealed itself, blasting it away with a punch enhanced by magic.

boom!

A fierce gust of wind burst forth, tearing apart the concrete road surface and dispersing the surrounding mist. Immediately afterward, Shinji Matou saw a blue figure rapidly approaching from the depths of the mist.

Saber!

The moment Matou Shinji recognized the Servant's identity, a storm howled before his eyes, and an invisible sword was already slashing down on him.

Unstoppable, swift and ruthless!

Shinji Matou was inwardly alarmed. As expected of Saber, any other Caster would probably have been killed by this sword. Fortunately, the Mystic Eyes of the Elements could perceive the movement of magic power and detect Saber's surprise attack in advance. The Void Elemental Spirit, with foresight, blocked the invisible sword.

Clang!

The elemental spirit gripped the invisible sword tightly, sparks flying, and the storm that swirled around the holy sword surged endlessly.

【Wind King Barrier】: The storm that wraps around the Holy Sword changes the refractive index of light, thus concealing the Holy Sword. It can also be used as an offensive Noble Phantasm when necessary.

As he stepped back to create some distance, Shinji Matou quickly explained, "Saber, I meant no harm."

Saber's blue eyes fixed on Shinji Matou, who had flown to the rooftop. She didn't give chase, but her guard remained high: "Caster, huh? Why are you here?"

Shinji Matou mumbled, "My familiar reported to me that you've encountered a bit of trouble."

Saber was not surprised at all and snorted coldly: "So that means you've been spying on me and Irisviel all along."

Shinji Matou shrugged: "You could say that."

"Caster, answer my question, where did we first meet?"

"Airport."

"your name."

"Shinji Matou".

"How much did I eat while we were at the hotel?"

"Who knows!"

Shinji Matou shook his head speechlessly: "We still need to cooperate for now. At least until the Tohsaka family withdraws, I am not your enemy."

“That’s not the point. Never mind, since you can mention the Tohsaka family, that's proof of your identity.” Saber shook her head solemnly and put down the invisible sword in her hand.

Sensing that Saber's hostility had disappeared, Shinji Matou jumped off the roof and asked in confusion, "What happened?"

Saber replied irrelevantly, "Caster, here's a warning: if you make any hostile moves, I will kill you immediately."

Shinji Matou shrugged and followed Saber into the depths of the fog. There he saw Irisviel lying unconscious by the roadside, her white coat stained with blood, her right hand pressed against the wound on her abdomen.

Berserker actually managed to hurt Irisviel, who was being protected by Saber!

Shinji Matou's suspicions deepened, but he put on a gloating expression and sneered, "You call yourself the King of Knights, yet you can't even protect your own Master."

Provocation works very well on Saber's knightly personality; we should be able to extract some information from her.

Saber paused, a layer of gray mist clouding her azure eyes, and said self-reproachfully, "It is indeed my responsibility; I was too negligent."

Wow~

Shinji Matou was taken aback; he hadn't expected her to admit it so readily.

"Is it Berserker?"

Saber shook his head: "I don't know. If Assassin hadn't already appeared, I would have even thought that guy was Assassin."

Shinji Matou pointed to the unconscious Irisviel: "May I check her injuries?"

“I brought you here for this very purpose.” Saber’s tone softened as she pleaded, “You’re a magician; you should know healing magic.”

"You really don't hold back when it comes to ordering people around, as expected of a king." Shinji Matou squatted down, carefully moved Irisviel's right hand away, and cast a healing spell.

A faint light flashed across Shinji Matou's hands, but Irisviel's injuries showed no signs of improvement.

"It's a curse." Shinji Matou's demonic eyes gleamed as he exclaimed in surprise.

“I was fighting a demon,” Saber added.

Shinji Matou continued examining Irisviel's injuries, pondering, "A demon? Interesting. The curse on her isn't complicated; it can be removed in a little time. But it seems I don't need to go to such lengths."

"what happened?"

"Although it's slow, the curse is gradually disappearing, and her injuries are healing. The Einzbern family's homunculus shouldn't have this ability. Your Master should have a medium for summoning you planted within him."

At some point, Irisviel, who was lying on the ground, opened her eyes. Her beautiful ruby ​​eyes had lost some of their luster, and she weakly replied, "Avalon, as expected of Mr. Caser, even the Einzbern family's top-secret information cannot escape your eyes."

Avalon, the scabbard of Excalibur, possesses the ability to heal all wounds, even stopping the aging process.

"Avalon, my... scabbard?" Saber was taken aback at first, looking at the holy sword in her hand and muttering to herself in a daze.

A magician once asked her a question: would she choose the sword or the scabbard? She chose the sword…

Irisviel looked at Saber apologetically and said, "I'm sorry, I've kept this from you all this time. It was Ahadeon's will. More than half of my body's functions as the most perfect android are based on Avalon's conceptual abilities."

No wonder they were able to create the perfect android ten years ahead of schedule.

Shinji Matou understood perfectly well that, in normal history, the homunculus who could fulfill the functions of the strongest Master and the Lesser Grail was Illya. She was the daughter of Kiritsugu Emiya and Irisviel. She was not a pure homunculus, but rather incorporated human concepts. Her birth in the womb made her the second most powerful homunculus after the Heaven's Feel, or the Third Law.

If we do not use the concept of humanity, it is indeed possible to create a perfect artificial human based on the concept of Avalon.

Saber gently comforted her, "Irisviel doesn't need to apologize. It's good that the scabbard remains inside you, so I can fight the enemy with peace of mind."

As the fog gradually thinned, Shinji Matou heard voices and called out to Saber, "Let's leave here first and find a secluded place to talk."

Saber picked up Irisviel and asked with concern, "Irisviel, can you hold on?"

Irisviel smiled and said, "Your Master is not that weak."

"Yes, then please hold on tight."

Shinji Matou suddenly interjected, "Wait, I know a good place to go."

"That's really suspicious."

“Saber, let’s go with Mr. Caster. I think we can trust him now.”

“Irisviel, I will not make the same mistake. Even if Caster is not hostile to us for the time being, it does not change the fact that he is an enemy.”

Shinji Matou smiled and said, "I will prove that we are not enemies."

It's time to take them to see that thing.

Irisviel smiled gently, put her arm around Saber's neck, and urged, "Let's go."

Avalon is a forbidden word in English.

Chapter Thirty-Eight: Mount Yuanzang

Shinji Matou takes Saber to Mount Enzo, the forest where Ryudouji Temple is located, above the Greater Grail system.

The Servants were all very fast. While Shinji Matou was flying in the sky, Saber, carrying Irisviel, easily caught up with him with a few leaps on the ground.

The night wind was chilly, and I gradually drifted away from the hustle and bustle of the city.

More than ten minutes later, the group stopped by the roadside of Yuanzangshan Road.

Saber looked up at the quiet Mount Enzo before her and asked warily, "This is a barrier, Caster. Did you bring us to your magic workshop?"

Caster's combat strength is basically tied to the magic workshops he created, and even Saber, whose magic power is only A-rank, wouldn't dare to easily storm Caster's territory.

Shinji Matou smiled and said, "I haven't had time to build a magic workshop of this size yet. As an artificial human from the Einzbern family, you should know what this place is like."

Irisviel, being carried in Saber's arms, had a complicated expression: "Yes, this mountain is a forbidden area where Servants are not allowed to approach, and it's located above the Greater Grail System."

Shinji Matou nodded: "It's a natural fortress for Servants. If we can occupy this place and fight a defensive battle, ordinary Servants will definitely not be able to break through. Anyway, I'm not very interested. Come with me. I once set up a magic node nearby."

Limited to ordinary Servants, Saber, Excalibur, and Archer's Ea could probably flatten this mountain, so Shinji Matou wasn't very interested in this place.

Shinji Matou led Saber into Mount Enzo via a mountain path.

"The oppressive force has disappeared?" Saber was puzzled.

This path was created by Shinji Matou after he possessed the Holy Grail and broke through its system. Within the path's area, it is unaffected by any barrier.

The three arrived at a rock wall. Shinji Matou walked in front, his body mysteriously passing through the rock layer. His voice came from inside the rock wall: "Come in, it's just a simple illusion."

Saber looked at Irisviel and, after receiving permission, followed Shinji Matou into the cave.