Servants are essentially cluster of mana—when they clash, the energy they release is as glaring to mages as a bonfire in the dead of night.
Rin immediately sensed the disturbance.
Souta nodded. He'd also felt the energy surge, though due to his different system, he couldn't tell it was mana as clearly as Rin.
"Wait, I need to change!" Rin, drenched in sweat, was about to rush off.
"No need, I got you."
With a snap of his fingers, Souta's divine power cleaned her body and changed her clothes in an instant.
A spell to simulate a full shower, and his matter creation ability dressed her in stylish, appropriate attire—complete with thigh-high black stockings hugging her slender legs.
Rin looked amazed, running her fingers over the silky, high-end fabric.
Her eyes lit up like stars as she latched onto Souta's arm.
"Souta... can you stay a bit longer after this Holy Grail War ends?"
"Life's just too convenient with you around! Cleaning the house? Just snap your fingers, right?"
"Don't push it." Souta peeled her off. "Get serious, we're about to go into battle."
"Battle? Aren't we going to negotiate?" Rin blinked.
"Rin, talking only goes so far." Souta sighed.
"What I've learned from years of negotiations is: the more you try to reach an agreement, the less likely you'll get one... unless you beat them into submission first."
"...Beat them into submission?" Rin's eye twitched.
"Exactly. It's a valid negotiation technique. Some people are just stubborn—until you hit them hard, there's no proper basis for discussion."
"That's threatening, not negotiating."
That night, darkness cloaked the city. Neon lights flickered, casting eerie glows over the deserted warehouse district by the harbor.
A perfect battlefield.
Kiritsugu Emiya crouched amidst stacked containers, sniper rifle at the ready, peering through his thermal scope.
Saber, Lancer, Kayneth, Irisviel... all their heat signatures were locked.
He grinned. Magic concealment? Worthless against modern tech.
"Maiya, can you see Lancer's Master? He's on that warehouse roof northeast of Saber."
Silence. Kiritsugu frowned.
Suddenly, a reply. A man's voice:
"Can't see Kayneth. Dead angle from here."
"...Kayneth?" Kiritsugu froze. That's not Maiya.
"Hold on, I'll come over and check. Just point it out to me."
Panic. Kiritsugu's instincts screamed trap.
He prepared to retreat immediately.
A hand clamped down on his shoulder.
He stabbed backward with a combat knife—hit something, but no scream.
"Don't waste your energy. Stab me all day, it won't matter."
The voice belonged to Souta. In his other hand? Maiya, unconscious.
Souta easily deflected the knife, then slapped Kiritsugu's face, sending him flying into the containers.
No sound. The battle nearby remained undisturbed.
"You... who are you!?" Kiritsugu gritted through the pain, glaring at him.
"Relax." Souta waved Maiya's limp body. "I'm not here to hurt you."
Kiritsugu's face: utter disbelief.
"Sigh... fine, I know you won't believe me."
Souta pulled out a divine card, approaching the wary man.
"I know talking won't work. So let you talk to yourself."
Souta slapped the card on Kiritsugu's forehead.
"This holds your next five years of memories. All the answers are in there."
The card dissolved into light and burrowed into his mind.
A flood of images—overwhelming.
Kiritsugu screamed, head pounding as if about to burst.
His brain overloaded.
White eyes. Lifeless.
His consciousness snuffed out.
The memory card had fried his brain.
"...!" Souta froze, heart skipping a beat.
Crap, I'm here to save people, not kill them!
He stabilized Kiritsugu's soul with divine power, preventing it from returning to the Root, then used one of Kurumi's time-reversal cards to rewind his body.
Once his body was restored, Kiritsugu's soul re-entered it, and he came back to life.
Souta wiped cold sweat from his brow.
"Whew... good thing I'm a god."