Chapter 17: You Should Feel Honored

The Church? Risei Kotomine?

Zoran mentally chewed on these two names. Now that he was the Master of Caster, his participation in the Fourth Holy Grail War was official. Under these circumstances, it was technically reasonable for the nominal mediator, Risei Kotomine, to invite him for a meeting.

However, this news carried a different weight for Zoran.

Hassan must have seen everything last night, and since Tokiomi Tohsaka was in league with Risei Kotomine, the motive was transparent. Zoran arched an eyebrow. It seemed Tokiomi Tohsaka was afraid. He was trying to use this "official" channel to fish for information.

"Shendu," Zoran called out softly.

"I am here."

Shendu's massive frame slowly materialized. This was the "Spirit Form" ability inherent to Servants, allowing them to fade from the physical world. Through their recent discussions, Zoran had gained a general understanding of Shendu's current capabilities.

Having manifested under the Caster class, the primary powers of his Twelve Talismans had been scaled back, an unavoidable compromise of the summoning system. On the flip side, however, much of his ancient knowledge and sorcery as a Demon Sorcerer had returned to him. Zoran had inquired about his Noble Phantasm, and as he suspected, it differed slightly from the original lore.

In a Holy Grail War, the Caster class excels at Territory Creation to gain a home-field advantage. It was clear that the summoned Shendu's abilities had shifted toward this specialty.

"It seems I need to adjust my appearance slightly," Zoran murmured.

This was the most basic of demonic abilities: temporarily assuming a human guise. In Shendu's eyes, Zoran's ethereal form was enveloped in a layer of violet-black Demon Chi, gradually shrinking to the height of a normal man.

As the mist dissipated, a man appearing to be in his late twenties stood in his place. He still wore the elegant Taoist robes; his face was lean, and his eyes glowed with an inner light. With a long face and a short beard, he possessed an air of a transcendent immortal.

Shendu appraised his brother with great interest. Even in human form, Zoran's temperament remained unchanged, though the innate pressure of his true demonic form was now tucked away, leaving him looking exceptionally mysterious.

"How do I look?" Zoran asked with a smirk, shaking his wide sleeves.

Shendu let out a raspy chuckle. "My brother, you know I have always been satisfied with you. A demon in human skin... I like the feeling."

"Excellent." Zoran placed his hands behind his back and began walking toward the Church.

The towering spire of the Church appeared before him. Zoran's gaze swept casually across the surroundings. While the Church claimed to be absolutely impartial and forbade Masters from monitoring the grounds, there were always disobedient participants watching.

Kiritsugu Emiya was one of them. As a competitor in the Fourth Holy Grail War, the "Magus Killer" was a formidable contender. After all, he was a Master who used any means necessary to achieve his goals, and he had summoned Artoria Pendragon of the Saber class, one of the three strongest knight classes.

With a thought, Zoran drifted toward the Church with an air of detached grace. This was his first formal appearance; he decided there was no need to be too overbearing, at first.

He pushed open the heavy doors. Inside the dim hall stood a man nearing fifty. He was not tall, dressed in priestly robes, and squinted at the newcomer.

"Please, sit," Risei Kotomine said with professional courtesy. "I assume you are the Master of Caster?"

"Correct."

Risei studied the foreigner before him. Based on his attire, he was almost certainly Chinese. He hadn't expected this war to attract a magus from the neighboring superpower, but the man's composed demeanor suggested he had significant backing.

Sighing, Risei adopted a persuasive tone. "The Holy Grail War is not a contest to be held in the open. Last night... Caster's actions risked harming innocents. I hope you will exercise more control over him. After all, this is an internal matter for magi; we do not wish for the uninitiated to suffer."

Typically, a Master and Servant share the same stance. While this old fox mentioned Caster by name, he was undoubtedly lecturing Zoran.

However, Zoran didn't answer the question directly. Instead, he asked with feigned curiosity, "I heard that earlier today, the Master of Assassin came to the Church seeking sanctuary. Has he been eliminated already?"

Risei blinked, confused by the sudden change in topic, but nodded. "Yes, he has."

He began to feel a faint sense of pressure. Though Zoran's human form was far less threatening than his true self, his height and effortless confidence still made Risei uncomfortable.

"Then... why did I encounter a Hassan again last night?" Zoran asked as if discussing a triviality. "Is he not dead? Or perhaps, as the 'impartial' judge of the Church, is there something wrong with your eyes?"

Risei froze. He gritted his teeth. "You must be mistaken. Hassan was indeed slain by Archer. There is no doubt about that..."

Before he could finish, Zoran reached out a hand.

In an instant, a dark humanoid shadow in the ceiling rafters began to twist and struggle, forcibly snatched out of the darkness. It was one of the souls of the Hundred Faces Hassan. It was now trapped in a sphere of Demon Chi, suspended in mid-air, stripped of all strength and escape tactics.

"This... this is..." Risei was speechless.

This was a direct slap to the face of the Church.

Zoran remained composed. He slowly closed his fingers into a fist. Hassan's body began to twist and buckle; the heart-stopping sound of snapping bones echoed through the silent cathedral. In a matter of seconds, a heap of mangled flesh fell onto the center of the church floor.

Only then did Zoran tilt his head slightly, looking at Risei Kotomine with a half-smile. He lightly brushed his hands together, though no filth had touched his pale, slender palms.

Standing before Zoran, Risei was paralyzed, neither daring to move nor speak. In a single day, their conspiracy had been dismantled by this Master. But even more terrifying: what kind of sorcery was he using? Telekinesis? Or some other exotic craft?

From start to finish, Zoran had only made a small, effortless squeezing motion. If the Command Seals on the back of his hand didn't mark him as a Master, Risei would have mistaken Zoran for a Servant himself! By all appearances, this man looked more like a Caster than his actual familiar!

In the dark, deathly silent church, the sound of Zoran's pacing footsteps rang out. He let the corners of his mouth turn up.

"In truth, you should feel honored, Risei Kotomine. I chose to disregard the filth of the earth and personally set foot here to attend this meeting."

"What... what does that mean?"

Risei's voice trembled. He suddenly felt a bone-chilling dread. From the moment this man appeared, the entire event had veered wildly off course.

Was he... a demon?