FGA Chapter 16

Contrary to how he act, Rider is not a fool

A convining coward who plot and plan against the person closest to him, but never someone who overestimate his worth

Yesterday's even have forced him to reconsider his perspective to a certain Master of his

Jason is not a combat-efficient Servant. Neither is Medea. Not to menion their current feud, the two of them will not survive the war with the likes of Saber or Lancer. There's no reason to think Shinji had thought so when he propose the plan

An alliance between two Servants naturally would mean the two finding out about each other's identity. So to solidify Caster's loyalty to him, the Matou employed countermeasures beforehand. On his side, his identity is in risk of being compromised

Until only the two remains, Shinji Matou had a leverage on Caster courtesy of the Ryuudou temple, while he leashed Rider with the threat of Medea

It show that Shinji Matou is not only a coward, but on with brains

The cunning to evade danger. The ruthlessness to do harm unto others. The cowardice best fitted for one's survival. It is the trait of a person used to controlling others

Once again, he is not a fool to think, even for one moment, Matou had not been naive enough to consider sacrificing him to Medea

"The problem is when he will do it" He gazed at the city outside

When the other five Servants are taken care of? No, then it would be too obvious. Most likely, the Matou guy will take the initiative for a premptive strike

Shinji seems like a patient kind of guy, but it'll only a matter of time before the gallow rises.

After all, only a coward knows another coward best

___________

I found myself wondering if I'd gotten lucky with deceiving Rider

The only reason I'd managed to convince Caster is situational at best. With the combination of [Silver Tongue] and immaculate acting, the Servant is content to form a faux alliance on the surface while she seek to undo my countermeasures.

Meanwhile, Jason would be on guard for my action. His chance of betraying me seem to have went down as long as he believed me to have the upper hand, assured that I had already formed the deal on the basis of using him as scrap

All warfare is based on deception

"Gaslight your enemy at every opportunity, and victory is yours"

Today I attend classes as usual.

My friends smiles and wave at me. I had gotten used to it.

I may look average, but the fact that I occasionally hang out with Rin may have elevated my social status in their eyes

Who is that ugly guy? Oh, he is friend with the top bitch of the school? Nevermind, he looks so handsome. Why is he such an asshole? He is Rin Tohsaka's childhood friend? Then it can't be helped that he is so charming

My origin as a [Parasite] is working as intended. Not only do I become a being capable of extending my reach to any living being...I can also leech off their social prestige!

"Hey Shirou" I stopped at the canteen when break come.

To my surprise, my redheaded friend is standing there with an apron along with the cooks

"Did you get employed by the headmaster or something?"

The heat of the kitchen flared up, illuminating the figure of the redhead at one of the table. One hand holding the large spatula while the other held the pan with which the rice is cooked in, he looked no more a soldier fighting the battle of his life

"No. I'm just helping with the cooking" Shirou wiped a sweat from his eyebrow as the sizzling flame edge close to him "I decided to see if my culinary abilities can be used to help people in need. The school kitchen just so happen to be one man short today, so they invited me over"

"Is your plate to their liking?"

"Well, they don't seem to have any criticism...."

I look behind him. As if to attest to his claim, a kitchen knife flew past my face before stabbing into the wall

Several men in white aprons with cooking equipment in hands were fighting each other. In the middle, a half eaten plate of fried rice is being passed around with nauseous speed

Some were dual wielding kitchen knives. Others equip themselves with forks and spoon and pantries as armors. Overall, it looks ridiculous. This is the kind of guerilla warfare one would expect from Shokugeki Soma than a series centered on magic wars

"Get out, Shirou-sama's food is mine!'

"I'm the head chef, give it to me!"

"He made that dish for me. I'm entitled to finish it"

If you'd just close your eyes and imagine those middle-aged uncles as young, sexy teenage girls, those lines would sound no different coming from a romance novel

Shirou get his own chef harem in the span of one day. So scary

"Enjoying what you're seeing?" I smirked at him. Shirou is holding a smile pretty similar to mine

"Sorry, it's just that I've never noticed it before" He chuckled "People seems to be happy whenever they eat my food. I just thought it was hilarious that's the only reason I've ever tried out cooking"

"You mean...you started your hobby because it brings smiles to people?" I stopped. It is hard to comprehend for somebody like me. To imagine wasting my time for other's pleasure is anforeign thought I'd never bothered to entertain

Then again, this is the guy who risk the world to save the smile of one girl. Even a psychopath like Kirei would have known something is wrong with him

Regardless, I wasn't here to remind him of the past

"There's a certain matter I want to talk about. I guess Rin had already briefed you on it, but...how goes the matter with summoning your Servant"

A Master is the priority target in the Grail war. Natural sense dictates Shirou must summon a Servant in order to protect himself, if not to be used as hostage by another Master

In the original timeline he stumbled upon the sight of a Servant altercation and almost got killed for it. This time the notice was given premtively, meaning I can change it for the better. There's a variety of ways this could play out. Either he prepared himself or I can organize an ambush

As i asked the question, the boy's smile faded

"I think I'll do it tonight"

"Great. Just tell me if you have questions"

"I wasn't a good Magus, far from it, but...she told me it was the only way I can survive" He heaved a sigh "I'm worried Shinji. Why are you guys risking your life for this Grail War again?"

The question caught me off guard

There's a multiple of reasons I could have listed. Personal desire. Self-gratification. Pursuit for a higher realm of knowledge. Chaos upon humanity. Magus have always been creatures who seek what is unattainable to the modern man. The Holy Grail is a reflection of those desires

There reallly is no obligation for us to participate. Any of the player and pieces can forsake their duty should they feel it unnecessary, and yet none of them did. Ultimately, even Shirou joined the war because he has his own dream

And for me, what do I want?

The answer came easier than expected

"World peace, I guess"

Shirou's eyes snapped straight to me. There was an eery glow in them, reminiscnet of a forge fire

"What? You have something to say?"

"You can't be serious..."

"And why not?" My eyes narrowed "I may not be some hero freak like you, but there are some things even I can't let go of"

It's basic logic, really

Some saved the world because it's the right thing to do. Some do it because everything close to them will perish should that happen. I want to prevent the earth's destruction because I'm one of the idiots living in it

Hell. If this planet is somehow destroyed by Goetia with me as the sole survivor, you can bet I'd become a Master just to get back everything

"Yeah, I guess you weren't so bad after all..."

"The hell you're saying? Do I need to elaborate on how I'm literally doing this for myself rather than saving others?"

The boy huffed and turned around. As Shinji walked away, there was a moment of silence. Shirou look into thin air in contemplation

"I might have misjudged him"

For the first time, the redhead was shown a different side to the normally annoying boy.

That Shinji is anything but selfish is surprising

He remembered their childhood. How Sakura would always talk about her brother like he is a living saint. He always dismiss it as some kind of sibling worship, but now he's not so sure. The word the boy said had sounded so straightforward and genuine

For a person who had been abused and discarded like her, someone like Shinji might be one of the only person to ever treat the Matou girl as a human being

"If such a person participate the war because of a selfless cause, maybe I can do the same..." He muttered

At that time, Shirou made a promise to himself. This will be a war without tragedy or bloodshed. If any blood were to be spilled, it would be his own

___________

The shining sun hang overhead, blasting its cancerous X-ray and radioactive space material that is prone to cause some weird mutation on the body at higher dosage to the ground. Overall, It is a beautiful day to expose your skin outside

Fuyuki's morning market is not the most crowded of places. Even at 9 in the morning, it can be guaranteed there will only be a few elderly up and about to shop for the day. Yet it is on one of those days that Archer found himself wandering outside while the sun has yet to shower him with its blistering radiance

One might wonder what he is doing here, a man with tan skin and broad, yet slender build walking amongst the elderly while carryinng a couple of grocery bags with him. But Archer is currently scouting for potential Servants nesting inside the city, and it's serious work

As a Servant of the Bow, he was granted exceptional eyesight capable of spotting things human eyes can't perceive. He of course used this to his advantage. With the variety of monsters participating this Grail War is bound to end in disaster, Archer is determined to gain every advantage possible

It is also on one of these days that Archer spotted a couple hanging by the market stalls

"What shall we have for dinner tonight, Souchiro-sama?! Hm, octopus and rice? I've heard Japanese people loves these things called Sushi. I would like to try as well, and then we can have it paired with sake while I leaned in your embrace in the moonlight~"

It's just a lovesick wife and her tired husband. Most likely they are newlywed- nothing to write home about

He kept a lookout for Servants hiding near him

"Cu, for the last time you're not allowed to participate in these kind of activities when I am gone. Running around naked with a band of dogs while claiming they're your "Irish brotherhood"? You're lucky the police hadn't caught us yet!"

An exasperated college student and her blue-haired boyfriend? She seems mad at him. Archer strangely relate to the guy

But he can't lose sight of his mission. A Servant may be lurking near him, waiting for the chance to strike—

"Ahhhh! That Onii-chan over there! Iliya is caught by the police and they're about to send me to something called an "orphanage". Please help meeeeee! I don't wanna go to kiddie prison!"

Then there's a girl with red eye and white hair that look strangely familiar. She is slamming on the police office's window while calling for him

Archer ignored them in favor of paying attention to his surrounding

So far, no signs of Servants have been spotted. He suppose they wouldn't be stupid enough to appear in broad daylight

He has a feeling this war will be one filled with bloodshed and tragedy. Only time will tell, but for now he is done for the day