Building a Monster Nation From Zero in Another World

"Irisviel?"

"Let's retreat for now, Saber."

"Alright."

Artoria kept a close watch on Diarmuid, worried he might strike again.

"You come back too, Lancer."

Fortunately, Kayneth chose to recall his Servant.

What Waver could understand, Kayneth naturally could too perhaps even more.

"Berserker… and that unicorn girl, most likely a Caster's familiar."

Kayneth faintly realized the greatest variable in this Holy Grail War was the Caster lurking behind the scenes.

The proud Lord of the Clock Tower, for the sake of victory, began to consider forming an alliance.

But unfortunately, Kayneth's identity and position were too awkward.

Gilgamesh's arrogant attitude made any alliance with him impossible.

Artoria's Master was Emiya Kiritsugu, a Magus Killer.

Kayneth despised these kinds of magi who strayed from orthodox Magecraft.

As for Waver—

He was his own student, a thief who stole his Holy Relic.

Kayneth would rather lose the Holy Grail War than ally with such a disgrace.

"Tch."

Kayneth exited the warehouse district, sighing internally.

"Are Caster and Berserker my only remaining options?"

Caster and Berserker had clearly formed an alliance—this was plain to see.

He was considering whether he should join them as well to counter the other Masters and Servants more effectively.

"Kiritsugu."

Elsewhere, Artoria and Irisviel had regrouped with Emiya Kiritsugu.

"You've worked hard, Irisviel."

Kiritsugu shifted his gaze from Saber's injured wrist, then told them everything that had just occurred, including his conjecture about Rin's identity.

"A Heroic Spirit who can summon Heroic Spirits?"

That alone was shocking enough.

But what stunned them more was Rin's suspected true identity.

"King Solomon?!"

Artoria and Irisviel exchanged a look.

The two women increasingly felt that this Holy Grail War was straying into the absurd.

First there was an Archer with unlimited Noble Phantasms, and now a Caster capable of summoning Demon Gods?

Compared to Gilgamesh and Rin, Artoria felt like she was... just too normal.

"King Solomon has seventy-two Demon Gods."

"How many can he summon?"

Irisviel frowned. "If it's all of them, that's a total cheat."

After all, the top-ranking Demon Gods, such as Bael or Aamon, had already surpassed the category of Heroic Spirit. It wouldn't be an exaggeration to call them deities.

"There must be some kind of restriction."

Kiritsugu, who aimed to seize the Holy Grail, saw Rin as an obstacle he had to overcome.

"Then Kiritsugu, you and I—"

"No."

Kiritsugu shook his head. "We stick to the original plan. I'll stay hidden. You'll continue posing as Saber's Master."

"But if we do that, your situation will be very dangerous..."

Rin had already sent an Assassin after him once. There would be a second, and a third.

If Rin truly wanted to eliminate the Saber team, he could simply have his Servants assassinate Kiritsugu and win the war without a fight.

However, Kiritsugu wasn't too concerned about that.

Though their encounter was brief, he felt that Rin wasn't the kind of person to use such underhanded tactics.

"King Solomon could have killed me at any time."

"If he didn't act then, there's no need to worry about him acting later."

Additionally, Kiritsugu had considered the possibility of uniting with other Masters to resist Rin together.

"If it really comes to that..."

Kiritsugu looked at Irisviel. "Then Saber's only job is to protect you until the very end of the Holy Grail War."

Rather than letting his wife die in vain, it was better to withdraw.

---

"Rin-sama."

At Ryuudou Temple, Shuna led the Miko Hime to welcome Rin and the others home.

"Hm. How's Sakura?"

"She's been waiting all night for you to return."

Shuna showed a slightly helpless look.

"But she's still just a child. She couldn't hold out past ten and fell asleep in the living room."

They had been gone all night. It was nearly 4 a.m.

Rin and his followers were Heroic Spirits. They didn't need sleep or food.

In the entire Ryuudou Temple, only Sakura still had human needs.

"That girl..."

Perhaps out of fear of being abandoned again, she was heartbreakingly sensible.

"For the next two days, let's stay in Ryuudou Temple."

Rin recalled the events of the Fourth Holy Grail War.

'Although some things have changed due to my presence, the major developments should remain the same.'

This wasn't just a guess.

With Violet's real-time surveillance, he had a firm grasp on the Holy Grail War's direction.

Barring a few unpredictable minor events.

"Souei."

"Here."

Souei appeared behind Rin, accompanied by Souren and several other Shadow Squad members.

"Have you located that killer I had you track?"

Due to the Holy Grail War starting early, Rin wasn't sure if the serial killer Ryunosuke Uryuu from the original timeline would still appear.

"Found him."

"Hoo~"

Rin sighed in amusement. "Is the inertia of the world really this strong?"

Even with the timeline moved up by a year, under the push of the world's will, Ryunosuke Uryuu still began his killing spree.

"Should I kill him the moment he gets his Command Spells?"

Killing him now wouldn't benefit Rin in any way.

According to Souei's analysis, the best time to eliminate Ryunosuke Uryuu would be right after he successfully summoned a Heroic Spirit.

That way, with the Master dead, the true Caster would vanish too.

"Yeah."

Rin had no interest in the sea monster or that so-called Demon Marshal.

"I'll leave this to the Shadow Squad. Make sure it's handled cleanly."

"Understood."

As Souei's figure disappeared into the courtyard, Rin recalled Kiritsugu's earlier speculation.

"King Solomon, huh..."

"I wonder how you'll react when my true identity is revealed?"

A Demon Lord from another world. A walking calamity commanding endless monsters. The natural enemy of humanity.

Borrowing someone else's name was not something Rin liked to do.

"Then, at the upcoming Banquet of Kings," Rin said, "let my arrival be proclaimed."

(To be continued.)