Author's Note: Ah, Heaven's Feel, you are now in the third part of the trilogy and the pandemic happened. This gave me enough time to finish and polish 2 chapters of different stories.

Disclaimer: I don't own anything. Credit goes to Gen Urobuchi and Type - Moon for Fate/Zero and Hiroshi Shiibashi for Nurarihyon no Mago.

Chapter 28: Elation

She walked.

She is walking briskly.

She is doing all of this while still ignoring the one who holds her semi – automatic Calico ever so cautiously at the Servant who casually came in and got out of their home like it was nothing.

All the while saying this:

"Kejoro – san. Let's go home. We cannot do anything about this now."

Kejoro can only nod her head, and left Irisviel to recuperate in the area where she is now.

As she ignores Saber's pensive mood at what Caster has said to her.

Maybe I had said too much.

Caster is still lost in thought about what she had said to the King of Knights. Being impolite and disrespectful to those who have royal bearings is already considered by her to be an insult towards the authority.

But then again, politeness and respect is not really appreciated in a bloodbath.

But, this is for the best. If we ever meet in a battle field, then that will be my lot, and I will not mind dying by her hands.

I am just a tool, after all.

Not long after, another thought came to her head. This time though, it's not her that is thinking it.

I can hear your thoughts plainly, Caster.

"Eeep!"

An undignified sound emerged from the mouth of the accused as the persecutor stared at her with examining eyes.

"S…since when… did you hear it?" The accused asked the persecutor with a nervous smile, as if she is denying the charges in the first place.

"From the start, you former impolite and disrespectful shrine maiden." The persecutor flatly replied with an all – knowing look. "That kind of self – degradation is what you would not do of all things."

"Truly smart coming from one who takes pride in sexual prowess." Caster sighed as she said those words that can make Kejoro almost irritated at the prospect. "I take it that you had steeled your resolve at this point."

"And I take it that you are not ready yet." The Master pointed out the situation to her with quick accuracy and with no chance for Caster's rebuttal. To which Caster heaved another sigh.

"So it seems." Caster dejectedly replied, to which her Master is actually surprised at what she has heard from the one who almost had the audience in her hands on that day that they defeated the Caster who unleashed the disaster at Mion – gawa, gaining the cooperation of other Servants and Masters, and at the same time holding them in awe at their monstrous feats.

The youkai Master patted her with assurance on the head.

"This is one of the hardest decisions that we have to make at some point." She stated it as plain as the light of the sun. "Allies are not really an option in this war if the ones who we really wanted an alliance to do not even trust us."

"And we are about to enter the next phase too. Playing chess in such a wide scale like this is not my area of expertise, especially if what I only do is keep logs." The youkai mused carelessly.

"For that, sugar is what we need." Caster pondered as they passed by a crepe stall filled with luscious fruits for the season of spring on the menu.

With each, or all, of those fruits being arranged like an architect's masterpiece built upon by thick and milky cream at the base and the freshly cooked, thin and pillow – like pastry as the foundation, the humble crepe serves as bliss and a weakness for everyone with a sweet tooth.

"I prefer some savory foods myself, but sugar it is." Kejoro agreed as they passed by it. Those kinds of treats carry a heavy price, but if they are built and cooked like that to perfection, then it will be worth their expense.

Before they can even approach the food paradise with great eagerness, Caster noticed something is amiss with what Kejoro had mentioned just now.

For that, she must ask that question.

A stray idea comes to her head.

As Caster walked together with her Master, she only noticed just now that her Master has an unusual array and variety of information. She also had connections with certain people which provide her a wealth of knowledge. The various tidbits of information that her Master have are the following:

The location of the bar where she asked the youkai for help.

The location of her house that is currently a vantage point for the house of the Tohsaka, the Matou, and the Emiya manor.

She also seems to have a vast knowledge with regards to the incidents that are happening in the town of Fuyuki.

So many incidences that one can consider as a jackpot.

Or is it actually a jackpot that her Master has concocted behind the scenes.

To answer those questions nibbling in her head, Caster is the first to break the silence after visiting the manor.

"It is clear to me that you are attempting to protect the world order together with your clan." Caster began. "But may I ask you what your actual job is?"

"What do you mean by that?" Kejoro asked as she counts the money to buy some items for lunch. To her disappointment, she can only come up with only three thousand yen on her pocket, enough for them to last for some days.

In the best case scenario, they can have a feast in meat and potato stew for two days and a simple ramen for four days. In the worst case scenario, the only thing that they will be able to cook are stir – fried vegetables with chicken liver to last for two days and a soup made from leftover stir – fried vegetables and chicken skin to last them for four more days.

That crepe stall certainly did not help her in that budget.

Her thoughts went back just in time to catch what Caster is inquiring.

"Your actual job." Caster flatly replied in all seriousness.

Kejoro, being a little intimidated by her Servant's behavior, decided to disclose her job.

"You may know of this, since you read my mind and all…" Kejoro began, to which Caster replied in annoyance.

"Just get it out already!" Caster almost shouted. "Just for curiosity's sake, since I'm still being left out in the dark about your actual job even though you're a youkai. Have seen glimpses of it, but it doesn't mean that I can draw an actual conclusion of it."

Kejoro, surprised at that last bit, decided to reveal everything to her who she considered as her partner.

"Back in the day, hostesses…" She trailed off as Caster gave her a dirty look, to which Kejoro clarified.

"Not that kind of hostess." Kejoro coughed up as she clarified the term. "Back then, hostesses are respected as they serve customers with food, entertainment and lodging."

"How's that related to your job?" Caster narrowed her eyes. "Sure, they serve the basic amenities that human beings need for his or her journey, but how can your job protect them?"

As Kejoro turned her head to face her, Caster has just sworn that she saw a nasty glint in Kejoro's eyes reminiscent of the clandestine section of Japan.

"We hold the information that both humans and youkai sorely needs to survive." Kejoro smirked, something that Caster should be aware of when she knows she has won the argument. "But among those archives of information, there are some things that humans and youkai are not allowed to know."

"And those are…" Caster's curiosity got the better of her as she is eagerly anticipating what can make her Master so great.

"We hold certain dangerous information, from black markets, espionage logs, locations for dangerous events to safe houses for certain people and youkai and gathering of notorious spirits." Kejoro replied, to which Caster wondered how her certain knowledge of the Holy Grail War will fit into the bill. "We keep log of all who enters and leaves the country, whether human beings or youkai. You might say that I can become a rogue agent because of what I hold."

"You had me at keeping logs of those who leave and enter the country." Caster commented as she looks for a small market place. "Is your job really a hostess or a person in charge of immigration and emigration?"

"One thing I know for sure…" Kejoro replied nonchalantly as they go to that market where Caster pointed at. "Emiya Kiritsugu was getting his information and arsenal from Fujimura Raiga, a rather infamous man in our book."

A long pause reigned in the air as Kejoro walked ahead. Before she even knew it, she is now at a back alley with Caster grabbing her clothes.

"You have that information that you blurted out so casually…" Caster grinned in malicious anger as Kejoro just gave out a casual smile that is actually designed to tick off her Servant more at her promised victory. "Why are you not doing anything about it?"

"But we did something, remember?" Kejoro reminded Caster of who they went to after the fiasco that happened that is Lancer's death. "We went to that house to make clear of our intentions for coming in the first place."

"And it does nothing since we have not encountered him…yet…" It is Caster's turn to have her thoughts trail off as she remembered the last thing that his accomplice, Hisau Maiya, did to attempt a contact at Emiya Kiritsugu.

Kejoro sighed in relief as she saw Caster realize something from the exchange that they have earlier.

For that, her Master can only earn a mild punt on the head as Caster walked away.

"Very well, Kejoro – san." Caster sighed in defeat as she saw that her Master's mind is not actually on her chest. "Since you made me realize several things, I can only designate you as even more dangerous than what you seem to be."

"Thanks for the compliment?" Kejoro is unsure of whether her Servant is happy that her Master proved to be actually adept at reconnaissance or almost frightened at the fact that her Master's thoughts are as devious as an assassin.

He can only operate under the assumption that the priest presiding the war is still alive.

But then, certain events led him to doubt the assumption, such as him finding out about the church floor having traces of blood, and a male's blood at that, where there is none. Certain tracks are being made visible with enough dust spread over, and with an extracted essence of the succubus, only led him to believe that the judge is being murdered.

He cannot trust anyone, now more than ever. He must always be one step ahead of his competitors, as only having the strongest Servant ever known to Magi is not enough.

Now operating based on his deductions made just now, and knowing that the landlord has a connection with the priest not participating in the war, he decided to forge an alliance with the landlord and put the priest not participating in the war out for good.

The reason why he will do this is because no matter how he sees it, a former Master is still a Master. May the Root forbid it, but if he will get an opportunity to be a Master again, he will take it. Even if it means taking the Command Seals away from the judge's body, to which only the priests knows how to take all of it from a presiding judge priest.

Also, he knows that if the judge presiding the war is dead, a Landlord of Fuyuki can wield all the power of judgment and can sway the opinions of the other Masters as he wishes. He can even make the other Masters surrender to him as he also holds the sole line connecting the Magus Association to the church.

Kotomine Kirei was, and still is, a factor that he cannot ignore.

Adding to the dilemma is the proposal of Kejoro and Caster to him. As much as he would like to take them up on the proposal, the fact that they are still a Master and Servant pair makes them competitors to seize the Holy Grail. Knowing some Casters in general are fickle when it comes to their proposals, he can consider it as a distraction for them to grab the opportunity to get the Holy Grail and have it for themselves.

But then, to what end they will use the Holy Grail?

Kejoro is an unusual Master, as rarely does he sees Magi of ghostly origins. To him, Magi are monsters, but she is unlike any other Magi that he encountered.

If she is an actual Magi.

At the public library of Fuyuki, where Maiya handed him the information, he even found out that the word "kejoro" refers to a Japanese ghost of legends and not an actual person, therefore marking her name as not her actual name.

Her Caster can only be described as even more unusual. In the past Holy Grail Wars that he got from the Einzbern archives, never he has seen a Caster of Eastern origins, as the Grail system strictly prohibits other Masters from taking advantage of the land through summoning Eastern Servants. How she came to being is out of his comprehension.

But then, what has happened has happened. Remembering Kejoro's words made him even more confused.

They have exhausted themselves from that long walk. So to refresh themselves, they had to take a long and soothing bath.

Of course, Caster took longer in the hot tub than what Kejoro estimated due to the fact that she is still amazed by the fizzling bath soaps that they bought from the store. Humanity indeed progressed in the matters of comfort and hygiene even though their basic sense of morality became more complex as time passed, such as the news where people start to take extreme measures for animal rights.

After that refreshing shower, she let Kejoro take a bath next, to which she saw Kejoro being frustrated at the fact that she did not introduce Caster to fizzling bath soaps earlier. She can only apologize at what happened later as she has more pressing matters to attend to, such as making an early dinner for them to begin their surveillance over the other participants.

That was the plan at least, for after that refreshing bath, Caster's body instinctively lied on the porch. To which her Master also let her body slump at that point.

She did not dare to impose this question, but in order for her to understand what her Master is thinking, she must take initiative to ask the dreaded question.

"Have you ever become tired of being an immortal?"

"Where did that come from?"

"Just answer the question."

"Well, if you were to ask me, of course not." Kejoro replied lazily. "I have my friends here. What more could I ask for?"

"Well, I did..."

Kejoro turned her head to see her Servant in a pensive mood, which is a rarity for her as she is too used to her bursts of energy that she basically forgot the backstory that made her a legend.

"…And I got punished for it."

Caster's Master heaved a long sigh before getting up from where she is lying from.

"I'm guessing that I'll get one of your flashbacks from your past life through a story that you want to tell."

"This story will not reach more than one thousand words without it, though." Caster quipped as though it is natural for the scene to progress, to which Kejoro felt a chill down her spine as if they are breaking some unknown law that can cost them their lives if kept unchecked.

"But let me save you from that scene and be direct about it." Caster talked as if they have all the time in the world to take, to which her Master felt another chill which states that they are breaking the unknown law again.

"Yes, I got bored of being immortal. Yes, I descended down to earth to learn more about the human beings. Yes, I am a foolish woman for doing so. And yes, the gods and goddesses found it funny for me being defeated by humans when I can just put them to silence with another chant of a spell that can cause genocide."

Several seconds have passed by mercilessly as Kejoro's Servant recounts the events that made her a legend.

Precisely, how her foolishness had led her to this state and earned a seat from the Throne of Heroes.

"To be fair, Amaterasu hid in a cave for some time just because someone did a wrong thing to her."

Her Servant turned her head to see her Master stretching her arms forward towards the nothingness.

"I remembered someone had said that if there are gods and goddesses who only concentrated on a single aspect, they tend to be emotionless and even ruthless especially if you are a god of war. You and Amaterasu are not such people. One proof of that is that you haven't summoned the rest of the royal regalia just to be done with it."

Caster widened her eyes at the realization.

It is not that she is not intending to use it at any point, but she completely forgot that she has the rest of the royal regalia to overturn the tide of the war.

She should have thought of it before creating an inferior knockoff of one of the regalia.

But then again, she considered Kejoro's state as of now. She is a Master, and at the same time, a Japanese citizen. So any law that they will break, Kejoro will have to answer it alone, as she may cause a ruckus around Japan and the ritual will be compromised.

Wait.

They are supposed to ruin the ritual at the earlier time possible. And those royal regalia are the only ones that can end the war in two to three days if she ever decided to use those and hold back.

"Don't tell me that you have forgotten it. I will laugh at you if you ever forgot those things."

"Wha-"

She got her guard almost completely down. But Caster can still turn the tide around.

And so, she smiled.

"Do you want to be caught by the police that badly and botch the ritual so bad that the whole world will know about it, Kejoro – san?" She asked real nicely as Kejoro realized the implications of "not forgetting" the regalia.

"I will not mind it one bit if you say so."

The eerie sense of foreboding reminded her Master that she is one of the Three Great Disasters of Japan. If she wills it, she can even do what she says without any embellishment.

"Fine, let's stick with the mirror."

"Glad you know of it, Goshujin – sama." She still smiled as she scored another point. "Even I know that there must be limitations if you ever have weapons that can guarantee to start another Disaster."

"Huh, how bored the sun goddess can be?"

"You're talking to one, Kejoro – san."

"As if I truly believe in…"

She realized that what she has said is not right as she saw her Servant's face of utter flabbergasted expression.

"I can't help it. I still can't believe that someone like me can summon someone like you." Kejoro sighed at her mistake.

Caster can only ponder what she has said earlier and tried to put herself in her Master's perspective.

But then again, ghosts of local legends are not treated as people.

They are the ones who attempt to adapt to the changing environment that they are in.

In this world where no one believes in spirits anymore, they are living proof that they still exist and will still strive to exist in this world.

They are fueling their existence with the people's belief in them for the past century, centuries, or even millennia.

For them, living with the human beings is enough. Any more distinction and their existences will be gone like the mist in the morning.

If she is put in the same situation, in order for their existence to survive, they must adapt.

Not as fully pledged gods and goddesses, but as fragments of them.

"You are a concept too estranged for me to even comprehend. Even if I say that I am fighting in a war, they will not believe it as you do all the fighting instead. I'm just someone who summons somebody and happens to be compatible as you are."

"Well, that explains our arguments."

It was her Master's turn to be flabbergasted.

"W-Wha—"

"Compatibility makes us the same, but that doesn't mean that we don't have our differences." Caster began as she stood up. "Rather than comprehending it, I just appreciate that harmony called individuality."

"We are the same, yet we are different…" Kejoro pondered as she also stood up slowly from where she is sitting from. "Where have I heard it before?"

"And that, my Goshujin – sama…" Caster smiled with the brightness of the sun as they look on to a new day. "is why I love the concept of humans with all of my heart. Hate may permeate my thinking, but not for the entire humanity living their lives as it is."

"Sesshouseki is what resulted from my blind hate." Caster began as she recalled the bitter memories of her indiscriminately killing humans with her residual power. "Becoming what you hate with all of your heart leaves a bitter aftertaste."

…

The awkward silence permeates the atmosphere. Kejoro knew better than to bring up bitter topics, especially that roller coaster of emotions where she met the monk she thought was dead in history and that the only record of him is that he successfully exorcised the curse of the Sesshouseki.

And that the next thing that they saw is how low can human beings go for the sake of an omnipotent wish granting device to the point that morals are now discarded.

Rewriting history books will be too much of a pain if anybody found out about this.

"I hate to say it, but we're like old philosophers contemplating on the meaning of existence of humanity." Kejoro sighed at the objectivity of their observation.

"And that is one of the mistakes humanity made, which is why they are filled with doubts." Caster blinked twice.

"I fear what the other mistakes humanity made by their mere existence." Kejoro pondered as she stared at the afternoon sky.

"Like completely not continuing to inquire and be blessed by ignorance, thanking whoever sent them the gift, whether good or bad." Caster started.

"Or how moderate moderation is?" Kejoro complemented Caster's comments with one of her own.

Caster placed the icing on the cake with the comment.

"Or we could just heed Rider's advice and deal with absolutes."

A long awkward pause passed before laughing at each other senselessly.

"Well, that is a laugh that I never had in a long time." Caster wiped away the tears from her eyes from the excessive laughter session that they have. "Thank you very much for clearing my mind, Kejoro – san."

"Think nothing of it." Kejoro answered brightly. "After all, summoning you in the first place really had its perks like making me believe in gods and goddesses again."

Believing in gods and goddesses.

The act of belief in itself is enough for a goddess to exist.

Seeing as she has her parameters set to win mode from the get go, it only serves as proof that Kejoro still sees them with certain distinction from other existences and gives them the respect that the gods and goddesses as they deserve.

This will be the deciding day for them.

An alliance is the best idea for them to advance further towards their goal of reaching the Root of Akasha.

Tohsaka Tokiomi pondered those things as he sips his green tea.

A knock is heard three times from his door.

"You may come in."

The priest entered the room after offering his apologies for entering his room.

"There is no need for formality, Kotomine – kun." Tokiomi answered with a wave of his hand. "Have you given him a proper funeral?"

"Yes." He answered to the best of his abilities, although it comes off to one of those who will hear it as empty reply.

"I hope you will approve of the decisions that I will make for the next days to come." Tokiomi started. "As you will be the next priest judging the Holy Grail War, I must ask of you to approve my actions."

"There will be no problems with regards to your decision." Kotomine replied. "I can assure you that my duties will be carried out faithfully as per the church's orders."

"I see that you took the liberty of informing the church of the state of the Holy Grail War as of now." Tokiomi mused with satisfaction.

Kotomine Kirei almost let out a smile on his face as he did not accomplish that task yet, but with mere statements, he developed a sense of security for his teacher to relax on.

Since when he became an expert on convincing people is beyond him.

All that is important is that he will attain his goal of getting one step closer to the enigma known as Emiya Kiritsugu.

And he will make sure that nobody else will get in the way.

Not Tokiomi.

Not Archer.

Not even Saber.

Servants are mere spirits, and he can disable them with his black keys.

But then, there is one more pair that dares to stand in his way. He can take care of them easily, but something about them made him wary.

One of which is that the other Caster of the Holy Grail War knows too much about the farce. If she knows more about the ritual, she can easily replicate another Heaven's Feel ritual to suit the land's whims.

The second one is that the Master of the Holy Grail War possesses properties akin to ghosts.

This is the first of its kind that a Servant has a Master who possesses almost the same properties as a common ghost liner.

Moreover, their person of interest seems to be the same.

And that is to get to Emiya Kiritsugu.

"Any objections to what I have proposed?" Tohsaka Tokiomi asked him intently.

"No, I don't." Kotomine Kirei caught himself just enough to listen to the details of the supposed alliance. "In fact, it is the perfect opportunity for us to share what we know with them, and consequently, what they know from us and the other participants of the ritual."

"Very well. We'll make the preparations this night." Tohsaka Tokiomi stood up from where he is sitting and brought the jewel staff with him as he walks out of the door. "It would not be elegant if I send you there. I must appear there as a common courtesy to the one that I will ally myself to. Of course, the goal remains the same."

With these in mind, they will now meet together.

The Tohsaka and the Einzbern will meet for an alliance.

As founders of the ritual, they will make sure that the preparations will be smooth, and that no one will get in their way.

Meanwhile, the priest took his leave and left the room in a courteous manner, about to attend to his duties.

But upon closing the door, an unknown sense of elation filled his being as he talked with his teacher earlier. He cannot comprehend as to why this is happening to him, but with this positive energy, he feels that nothing awry will go wrong for him at that very moment.

For that, he will meet with Archer.

It is an impossible task, but with the farce now in his hands, he will let this Holy Grail War play out as he sees fit.

A/N: From there, I think I will skip the whole alliance scene since it will be exactly where it will play out. What will come next though, I still have to decide. Please rate and review. No flames please.