[FDJ]Chapter 28: Tactical Determination

"The Servant I have summoned is Caster. Currently, we have three visible Servants on our side."

The magus was none other than Flavius Aetius, the grand commander of the Western Roman Gaul province, the pillar of the empire, the protector of the nation in the eyes of its citizens, a great military strategist, and a talented magus of pure bloodline.

"According to the information sent by my familiar last night, the Huns have acquired two more Servants. One is a female swordsman, and the other is a confirmed Berserker."

The homunculus named Syl provided the intelligence it had gathered. As a homunculus familiar deployed outside the Hun camp, it was well aware of the considerable number of puppet familiars there.

"I also sent my familiar, and it gave me a similar report. Yesterday, during the day, a female swordsman suspected to be of the Saber class arrived at the Hun camp, and after midnight, a Berserker suddenly appeared." Aetius enjoyed surpassing others in everything, and he believed himself to be the strongest in the realm of intelligence warfare. No one knew that he controlled the Master of Assassin and could manipulate Assassin as a conduit. The order to kill the Archer's Master was given by him, but he never expected Attila to obtain an Archer-class Servant.

"Hold on, we all know that a Saber-class Servant has already appeared before, although without a Master. That knight is undoubtedly of the Saber class." Prince Torismund of the Visigoths could still recall the scene from over ten days ago when a group of battered soldiers miraculously withstood the Huns' fierce assault on the city of Orleans for nearly a day. It was made possible by a male Saber-class Servant who displayed remarkable leadership abilities, although his true name was unknown. "Two Sabers can't exist simultaneously; even I know this basic rule."

"We're not sure why a second Saber-class Servant has appeared, but the fact is that the Huns currently have three Servants. On the surface, we are evenly matched."

After Aetius finished speaking, he glanced at the Servants of his two allies and his own Caster-class jester. "On the surface, the Huns have a slight advantage. The Archer Servant is known to possess strong long-range support capabilities, an area where we lack an advantage. According to the intelligence report from my familiar last night, both the female Saber and the Berserker are formidable, with strengths not inferior to the Archer. Especially the Berserker, who was injured by the Archer's Noble Phantasm last night but managed to self-heal within a short 10 minutes. We should not underestimate them."

The puppet magus expressed admiration, clapping its crude wooden hand a few times. "Truly worthy of Commander Aetius. My familiar only obtained fragments of information, but you seem to know everything as if you were there. If I foolishly chose to be your enemy, I wouldn't even know where you are, and I would be defeated by you."

"Master Syl, you flatter me. We are allies now, and all information can be shared. If we successfully defeat the remaining enemy Servants and secure the position of the Holy Grail, I will voluntarily withdraw from the competition. You two can have a fair duel to determine the ultimate victor. Having an additional Saber-class Servant also has its advantages. If we eliminate six out of the total eight Servants, we can use the Holy Grail to make a wish." Aetius completely disregarded the fact that his Servant was sitting right next to him as he decided to give up the internal competition.

"Can it be done?" Prince Torismund of the Visigoths glanced at the Caster sitting less than half a meter away from him. He couldn't discern any change in expression from the heavy theatrical makeup on the figure. Additionally, the buttered bread was delicious.

"I don't care about a mere Holy Grail. Such a versatile magical item can be found in our capital of Rome, and equivalent treasures can be obtained. It's enough to make connections with powerful friends like you." Aetius spoke generously, but even Torismund, who was new to the world of magecraft, sensed something unusual about his excessive magnanimity.

The two female Servants present remained silent. They had no interest in joining the negotiation table of the three magus. In truth, each of them had their plans. In the face of the all-powerful wish-granting device, notions of righteousness and morality ceased to exist. Aetius's power was a cause for concern, and Prince Torismund of the Visigoths still needed to consider his political standing. Therefore, the three of them could sit down politely as allies to discuss the siege against the enemy.

Compared to the magus, the Servants wouldn't engage in deceptive tactics. The other Servants present were assumed to be temporary allies, and once the non-aligned Servants were eliminated, they would become immediate enemies. In the Holy Grail War, true friendship was impossible. There could only be one victor, and the rest were all losers!

"Commander, actually, shortly after the fall of Metz, my familiar observed that Archer had battled a Servant suspected to be Assassin. When I arrived with Lancer, I only saw the corpse of a magus, approximately one week before the Huns attacked Orleans." The puppet magus supplemented with information it should have known. If a magus who had resided in Metz for years knew nothing about what happened there, it could only demonstrate their lack of even basic competence.

"That aligns with the information I received as well. Assassin has been wandering the battlefield and has been frequently seen near the Hun camp recently. Archer joined the Huns after losing their Master and formed a contract with Attila. Assassin shouldn't be a Servant in the Hun camp." Aetius smoothly continued the conversation, speaking falsehoods more smoothly than truths. "Unfortunately, I haven't been able to locate Assassin's Master. I initially planned to bribe or eliminate them to eliminate this uncertainty."

"Assassin is a weak Servant suited for ambushing Masters. With the presence of Commander Aetius, if they dare to intrude upon the Roman military camp, they will undoubtedly meet their end. There's no need to worry about a mere shadowy Servant." The puppet magus continued to praise Aetius. If Aetius didn't know that Assassin's Master was under his control and that Assassin was effectively obeying his commands, he would surely suspect the hidden malice of the puppet magus who rarely showed themselves.

How is it possible not to be on guard against Assassin? Aetius, despite his confidence in his magecraft, wouldn't do something as foolish as that. He risks being captured by Attila to manipulate Assassin's Master. That's precisely why he wouldn't even close his eyes for a minute, let alone take a short nap.

Aetius pointed to the sketch on the table, where eight chess pieces were completed in his hands. He placed three pieces in his position, three pieces in the location marked as the Hun camp on the map, and the remaining two pieces—one in the distant city of Orleans and one behind the Hun camp.

"It's a pity that Saber in Orleans is unwilling to come and help. We can't continue to wait either. We discussed the enemy's advantages earlier; now let's understand their weaknesses together." Aetius pointed to one of the three chess pieces in the Hun camp. "Archer has excellent long-range shooting ability, and their Noble Phantasm is confirmed to be a targeted area attack. It may not be fatal, but if the Noble Phantasm hits, I don't think your Servants will fare well. According to my familiar observation, before activating the Noble Phantasm, Archer needs to hit the target with special arrows and then spend four seconds drawing the bow to unleash its True Name, after which the rain of arrows will take another four seconds to descend on the target. Please remember that, Servants."

Lancer and Rider nodded simultaneously. Although they didn't participate in the discussion, they listened carefully to the intelligence shared by everyone. Especially Aetius, who shared the most accurate and useful information to ensure his position as the team leader. It was believed that this was only a part of the information, and Aetius surely held more.

"Very well," Aetius rarely saw his Servants keep quiet, and his mood improved. "Next is the female Saber. I couldn't find any information about her Master's origin. Her attire is very peculiar, and she appears to be quite young. Spies heard that she received a warm welcome from Attila and claimed to be from Chaldea. Her strength is estimated to be average; my spies had a close encounter with her, and she doesn't seem to be a conventional magus. However, her close combat skills are not weak. I suggest engaging her, in hit-and-run battles to delay her movements. She is expected to be the strongest among the three Servants on the Hun side."

"Then leave it to my Rider. My Rider is eager to face strong opponents. She is classified as cavalry and has excellent melee combat capabilities." Prince Torismund of the Visigoths signaled his Servant to step forward. Rider, draped in a cloak, held a cross-shaped staff. Although her face was covered, her saintly aura couldn't be concealed. Aetius's Servants seemed to be resistant to her.

"Leave Saber to me. But I can't guarantee that I won't subdue her in the initial battle," Rider's response made Aetius even more delighted. It seemed that Rider was a straightforward Servant, perfect for frontal combat.

"The third one is Berserker, who only appeared last night. A very berserk Servant, wielding a giant two-handed sword capable of generating small-scale whirlwinds. However, this Servant lacks rationality and was heavily damaged by Archer's excessively long preparation time for their Noble Phantasm last night. My suggestion is to kill Berserker first."

The Puppet Magus volunteered, "Leave it to my Servant. Lancer's Noble Phantasm also has the disadvantage of requiring precise targeting. If Archer can hit Berserker with an eight-second preparation time, Lancer can do it too. And her Noble Phantasm is perfect for a decisive blow."

"Master," Lancer, realizing her Master was saying too much, quickly reached out and sat the puppet back in her seat. "Leave Berserker to me. I'll handle Archer as well. I can take on both of them."

"My Servant, Caster, will support the two of you. Focus on gathering intelligence in the initial battle and strike if you can defeat Berserker. Otherwise, return at the appropriate time."

Aetius had already come up with a better plan in his mind. He wouldn't slowly probe and engage in a three-on-three battle. While the three pairs clashed, Assassin would infiltrate the Hun camp and assassinate Attila or Saber's Master. The probability of success was much higher than killing the Servants on the battlefield. If he was lucky, he might kill both at once.

Servants without Masters were like beasts with broken spines, struggling for a few moments before collapsing and dying. The only thing he cared about was Berserker's Master. According to Assassin's description, Berserker was a Servant with high magical consumption. Aetius estimated that even he, with his level of magical energy, couldn't sustain Berserker's consumption. Aetius had thought for a long time last night, and from his standpoint, he could only replenish his Servants' magical energy by continuously sacrificing the souls of living people. If this operation failed, he would consider having Assassin thoroughly investigate the surrounding area again. Places where the scent of the dead gathered couldn't remain hidden.

"Hmm?" Aetius's familiar suddenly returned to his hand, a small bird-shaped object made of cloth.

"What's happening?" The other two asked simultaneously. They had both noticed Aetius's tense expression, albeit for a brief moment.

"Good news! The male Saber from Orleans has decided to fight alongside us. He rode here last night and will arrive shortly." A false expression of joy appeared on Aetius's face as he placed another one of the pieces on the map, representing Saber. "Now it's 4 against 3. Victory is within our grasp in this battle!"

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