Fate/Zero:Act 2 Part 1

268:22:30

Waver had expected the day to end at the peak of triumph with a successful summoning.

After the previous night spent in a fierce battle with the cackling chickens, he had studied in his bed this night, satisfied with the pleasant weariness of accomplishment.

And—

"... Why, did this happen?"

A dry wind blowing strongly over the public park of the new metropolis, Waver sat on the bench, curling in the lonely coldness. He still couldn't understand, just how on Earth did my plan go wrong?

The summoning was a success. That was a satisfactory response.

Along with the successful summoning, the status of the invited Servant was still imprinted in Waver's consciousness. He was of the Rider class. Although that isn't one of the three major knights, his basic abilities still were at a more than average level. Without a doubt, he was a powerful Servant.

The moment he saw the silhouette of the big frame slowly rising from the summoning circle, behind the white smoke. Waver ejaculated from the exaltation, messing up his pants.

... Thinking about it, the situation had turned for the worse at around that point.

From Waver's knowledge, a "familiar" is the puppet of its summoner.

An existence that can barely survive in the present world by relying on the prana supplied by the magus.

A wooden doll that can be used as the practitioner pleases. That's what a familiar is, essentially. So he had guessed a Servant would be basically the same, more or less.

But that thing that came out of the summoning circle—

Right from the start, Waver's soul was overtaken by the sharpness of the eyes, glowing like a blaze.

The instant the eye contact was made, he had instinctively sensed that the Servant was a mighty one, overwhelmed like a small animal.

The overwhelming presence of the giant blocking his view. From the body odor he picked up, the fragrant of the muscular stature, Waver understood. Nevermind the quibble about him being a ghost or a familiar, he sure is a HUGE guy.

Waver knew that the Heroic Spirits invited by the Grail are not only free spirits, they gain a material "body" to exist in the present world. But, the cluster of massive muscles that was the actual entity, not a virtual image or a shadow, the feeling of impending threat, was beyond Waver's imagination.

No matter what, Waver hated the great man.

It's not just that Waver was, still, a bit shorter than an average person. Certainly, his body tended to be frail, because he had done nothing but study in his childhood, and had had little time to forge his body, but he didn’t think it was a weakness. Rather, Waver had pride in polishing up his intellect.

But, the truth of such an obvious thing, wouldn't get through the big man's muscles. No matter what, the time lag before such a game with a rock for a soul would lift his fist and swing it down is way too short. There is no time to expand into a discussion however brief, and there is also no future in using magecraft.

That is— once he is approached by the fist of that pack of muscles.

"... So, I'm asking you. You must be my Master, right?"

"Hah?"

That was the big man's second question. A booming voice that could shake up the Earth.

He had been overpowered beyond his senses from the first question asked with a voice you could fail to hear.

"Ah— Yes! I-I-I-I'm, I mean, I am! I am your Master, I'm called Wa, Waver Velvet! I mean, that's my name! I'm your Master!!"

Though it really was useless in more than one way, Waver stuck to bluffing with all his might to stand up to the muscles in front of him. ... Even so, he felt dominated by the physique of the unaware giant already.

"Hm, then the contract is complete. So, boy, can you lead me to some archives immediately?"

"Hah?"

Waver was blown out of his mind for the second time.

"Some books, I'm saying! Books."

The giant Servant repeated himself gloomily, leaning toward Waver, stretching a strong arm that looked like the root of a pine tree.

I'm going to be killed— Waver immediately thought, feeling like he was floating. The giant had seized his neck and carelessly lifted him. Waver hadn't noticed until then that he had fallen flat on the ground. He realized that was the reason his interlocutor had, mid-way, started looking even more like a giant.

"If you are one of those magi, you should be able to provide some archive? Now, show me around. We need to prepare for war."

"W, war... ?"

Now that the giant mentioned it, Waver simply had totally forgotten about the Holy Grail war.

Having lived as a blatant freeloader in a private house, Waver had no kind of archive, and reluctantly led Rider to the library.

The central library of the city of Fuyuki was in the public park in the new metropolis still under construction. Frankly, it felt awkward to walk through the city in the middle of the night —with the recent strange murder case, the police frequently announced a state of emergency— Waver felt that what the big muscles in front of him could do was a bigger crisis than being questioned by the patrolling police.

Fortunately, as soon as they came out of the grove, the giant turned invisible.

That must be an ability the Servants have, to go into spirit form. Waver felt relieved as he wouldn't look suspicious walking along a big man with armored cloth, but he still felt the pressure of being followed by that overbearing presence.

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