Fate: Hero of Justice Takeover

On the building's rooftop.

"The sniper failed."

After the gunshot was blocked by a sword, Kiritsugu Emiya knew that the plan to assassinate Rider's Master had failed.

After all, the essence of assassination is surprise. Once discovered, it's no longer an assassination.

Hmph, no one would consider wielding a massive sword and hacking down anyone in sight as assassination, would they? That would be laughable.

As for the attack by Maiya afterwards, it was merely an experiment to confirm the effects of magical bullets; if it could kill Rider's Master, that would be a bonus.

With lightning speed, Kiritsugu dismantled his firearm, his expression cold as he prepared to leave before Rider could react.

However, just then the warning signs he had honed through life-and-death experiences flared up.

Not bothering with the expensive parts, Kiritsugu tossed the items in his hand aside, opening his magical circuits and activating the only specialized magic he knew, at the fastest possible speed.

"Time Alter, Double Accel!"

With his magecraft activated, Kiritsugu's internal reality marble expanded, pushing him to a speed nearly that of a servant, and he leapt backwards, narrowly dodging a streak of cold light like flowing water.

His black trench coat flared out like wings before being torn to pieces, drifting away in the wind.

"Ha... ha..."

The strain of using magecraft caused his blood vessels to rupture, and with every breath, there was a metallic taste in his mouth. Narrowing his eyes, he looked at the shadowy servant in front of him, slowly retracting a short dagger.

"Assassin."

The figure before him, wearing a skull mask and a coarse black robe, could only be the Assassin who had been killed in front of everyone earlier.

Now, this servant resurrected from death, raised its weapon at him again.

The murderous intent of the servant, the resistance to its own death, the fear of repeated deaths and resurrections—if it were anyone else, they would have crumbled under this immense pressure.

However, Kiritsugu Emiya was not that type of person. In battle, he would remain calm, analyzing and processing information like a machine, always seeking a way to defeat or kill the enemy.

Thus, when Assassin appeared for the third time, Kiritsugu immediately overturned his previous judgment and concluded.

"...I see now. It wasn't a mere escape from Tokiomi's mansion, but rather, the servant has truly died twice and exists in a multiple form."

If Sakatsuki were here, he would likely smile and tell Papa Kiritsugu.

"Congratulations, you've got it right."

In the Fourth Holy Grail War, the Assassin summoned by the priest Kirei Kotomine was known as Hundred-Faced Hassan, and her (or his?) only Noble Phantasm, Zabaniya, was what made this servant so elusive.

[Zabaniya: Delusional Illusion]

[Rank: B+]

[Multiple souls exist within a single body. By splitting their soul, the servant can exist in multiple forms in the present world, up to 80 versions of themselves. The separated souls can sometimes act independently, but they are usually unaware of each other.]

In simpler terms, this skill is akin to dissociative identity disorder, allowing Hundred-Faced Hassan to split into up to eighty individuals, dispersing across Fuyuki City, acting like human surveillance cameras, monitoring the actions of other participants. Due to the Assassin class's inherent skill "Presence Concealment," Hassan's surveillance is nearly undetectable.

Putting aside combat strength, Hundred-Faced Hassan's functionality in the Holy Grail War, which relies heavily on intelligence warfare, is crucial. In the original work, the corrupted Kirei Kotomine used the information provided by Assassin to steal the Lesser Grail, sow discord between Rider and Saber, drive Shinji Matou insane, and nearly win the Holy Grail War.

Also, Assassin's so-called low combat strength is merely relative when compared to other servant classes.

Against ordinary magus, even the weakest servant could easily tear them apart.

For example, right now.

Whoosh!

A faint sound of air being cut echoed as a nearby stone flew and shattered the handgun that Kiritsugu had just pulled from his pocket.

The recoil from the shattered gun caused a cut in Kiritsugu's palm, but his face remained unchanged. With the enhancement from his magecraft, he increased the distance between him and Assassin and threw a grenade.

"Such trivial items cannot harm me."

Hundred-Faced Hassan casually said, flicking a stone and detonating the grenade in midair.

However, Kiritsugu knew that ordinary weapons could not harm a servant, and he would never be so careless.

Was the purpose of his thrown items merely to cause damage?

As the explosion clouded the view, Kiritsugu threw all the other items he had into the nearby area to confuse Assassin's line of sight. Then, he leapt into the air and fell straight down from the building.

The wind howled as he fell. Only a few meters from the ground, Kiritsugu clenched his teeth and silently muttered.

"Time Alter, Triple Accel!"

His internal Reality Marble expanded once again, making Kiritsugu move as though his actions were at triple speed. To an outsider, it would look like a figure falling from the sky, then vanishing in the blink of an eye.

Even a servant would instinctively assume that Kiritsugu had used magic to escape by jumping.

Who would have guessed that the window on the third floor had briefly opened and closed, and the famous Magus Killer was already lying in a soundproofed secret room?

"Cough... cough..."

A barely audible cough, Kiritsugu swallowed the blood rising in his throat, enduring the pain as he retrieved a first aid kit and began treating himself.

Of course, his plan didn't stop there. Kiritsugu had already set up traces around the building, and if Assassin followed them, they would find nothing.

The safest place is often the most dangerous. This safe house was constructed by the Fuyuki City underworld's Fujimura Group, with almost no connection to him. It was for this reason that it could fool the guardians of Fuyuki City, as well as the Matou and Tohsaka families.

After sending Maiya a signal, Kiritsugu quickly treated himself and closed his eyes, intending to rest for a while to regain some strength before planning his next move.

However…

Riiippp.

The sound of soundproof foam being torn apart, and Assassin, holding a blade, stepped into the safehouse, looking down at the man who had almost fooled him.

"If not for my Master's reminder, you would have truly deceived me, modern assassin, Kiritsugu Emiya."

Had he been found out? Kiritsugu's mouth twitched bitterly, his mind filled with both frustration and confusion.

Who saw through his disguise?

But at this moment, there was no time to ponder that. Before he could rise, Hundred-Faced Hassan had already raised her dagger and thrust it toward Kiritsugu's chest.

"I won't kill you. Instead, I will offer you to my Master. Prepare yourself."

Is this the end? Kiritsugu's pupils slightly widened.

At that moment, he saw behind Assassin, a girl in a strange ceremonial dress, holding a blood-red spear.

"Hello, nice to meet you."

With a polite greeting, the spear transformed into a red flash and pierced through Assassin's heart.

"Gáe Bolg: Piercing Scarlet Spear!"

Clearly, this Assassin's actions were Kirei Kotomine's initiative, driven by his interest in Kiritsugu. The priest, with his wicked ways, was more than capable of doing such a thing.

***

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