[FDJ]Chapter 34: Decoding the True Name

After Berserker and Archer successfully escaped from the enemy and reunited with Saber, they witnessed Saber Gilles de Rais withdrawing as he was about to be surrounded.

Berserker had the intention to pursue, but he was stopped by Saber Jeanne and complied with her request.

In the afternoon, the three Servants quickly returned to the camp. The outcome of the initial battle was not satisfactory, especially when they saw Attila's camp being rebuilt.

"Did Assassin come here?" Archer had the strongest reaction. Despite being covered in dirt from the explosion, she wanted to chase after Assassin without waiting for Attila's response.

"That's why I didn't tell you about Assassin's attack, and I even guessed that Assassin would come, but still didn't let you stay and defend." Attila rode past Archer, signaling her not to do anything irrational. Fortunately, she didn't inform Archer about Assassin's severe injuries, or else she would have gone after him.

Archer gritted her teeth in anger, seemingly unable to find peace without avenging her former Master's death.

"Saber, how are your injuries?" Suzuki attempted to use the magecraft he had learned from his memory to heal Saber, although he couldn't use magecraft.

"No need. Rest until tomorrow, and these minor injuries will naturally heal. Next time you use Command Seals, please give more detailed instructions." There was no trace of blame in Saber's tone; instead, it revealed exhaustion. Saber didn't try to act tough. After taking Rider's Noble Phantasm head-on, she indeed needed half a day of rest to recover to her pre-battle state. Her exhaustion didn't come from her physical body but from encountering her former comrade, Gilles de Rais.

If it were another Servant with a bad temper, they might have vented their anger at their Master for using Command Seals to force them to do something they didn't want to. But not Saber. She possessed the ability to command draconic creatures, a power she didn't want others to know about and had no desire to use. Today, relying on this ability had proven effective, but she considered it pure luck and had no intentions of using it again in the future.

"I have two Command Seals left, and I will use them correctly." Suzuki obeyed Saber's wishes. He had originally prepared some words of apology, but they were rendered unnecessary. Saber was far more magnanimous than the standard Servant he had learned about, able to tolerate misunderstandings that went against her.

On the side, Berserker showed no signs of injury. There were no conspicuous marks on his armor, and even if Suzuki asked, he wouldn't get an answer. And if he had bad luck, he would be frightened by Berserker's roar.

Based on the information obtained from the initial battle, both sides had their victories and losses. Suzuki learned that the Roman coalition had a total of five Servants. Aside from Rider and Saber Gilles de Rais, whose True Names were known, through Archer's account, it was revealed that Lancer was a powerful female capable of wielding a giant spear and strange magecraft. Caster, on the other hand, was very weak and used explosive familiars as his means of attack. It was speculated that he was the Servant of Aetius himself. This conclusion was reached after Archer showed Attila the fragment of the magic box she possessed.

There was also the Assassin Servant, provisionally identified as Hassan, but Suzuki couldn't determine which specific incarnation he was.

Suzuki had a lingering feeling that he had missed something. The Holy Grail War with its eight Servants took place in the 5th century, and he had no way of knowing why he had inexplicably arrived in this era. And so, he spent the past 24 hours from when he arrived in the deserted village to the Assassin's surprise attack on Attila's camp.

Just 24 hours had passed, and everything that had happened far exceeded the knowledge he had acquired at the Chaldea organization. The battles he had encountered in his dreams were much more complex, putting his adaptability to the test.

With three Servants against five, if it weren't for the fact that their three Servants were all strong, the initial clash could have resulted in an immediate victory or defeat. Similarly, without Attila's presence here, Suzuki would have had no chance to escape from Assassin.

The initiative and advantage were in the hands of the opposing side. Suzuki pondered for a long time. In his memories and studies, he did not know how to handle multi-team battles, leaving him with no inkling of a follow-up strategy.

Unconsciously, Suzuki returned to his tent, which he had been in until evening. Saber finished her prayers and asked Suzuki if he would join them for dinner at Attila's tent.

"Dinner?"

"Don't you remember? Attila sent word inviting us to have dinner together tonight. I don't require sustenance, and it seems Berserker doesn't either. How about you?" After leaving the tent, Saber was followed by Berserker. He hadn't spoken a complete sentence since going into a rampage, and he could only express his intentions through inarticulate roars. Of course, most of the time, aside from Saber, no one understood what Berserker wanted.

Suzuki couldn't remember clearly, but he vaguely recalled that a messenger had come to him two hours ago and informed him of something. "Okay. But I absolutely can't drink tonight, for any reason. Alcohol severely impairs my judgment, and I still feel dizzy from it."

"Understood. I'll do my best to discourage any invitations for you to drink, but you also need to be firm. The Huns are not unreasonable people, at least not the generals under Attila." Saber remembered clearly that Attila had ordered that Suzuki Yuki should not be allowed to drink. The "incident" from last night indicated the presence of "enemies" within the camp. Saber had a rough understanding of what happened in Suzuki's absence based on her description. The fact that Assassin could infiltrate without being noticed raised suspicions about the safety of the camp.

If a familiar could infiltrate, it was possible for two, three, or even more to do so.

"I don't know why I drank last night either. I distinctly remember avoiding the invitations of several enthusiastic Hun generals, and then..."

"Please be careful, Master." Saber suddenly leaned close to Suzuki's ear and briefly expressed her guess. "...Try not to leave my line of sight."

Suzuki nodded in agreement. Currently, only Saber could provide complete reassurance to Suzuki. Trusting one's Servant was not something a magus would usually do, but it was mentioned multiple times in the teaching materials of the Chaldea organization. Suzuki was not a magus, nor was he a Master who had participated in the Holy Grail War for the sake of reaching the Root. He had only undergone a series of learning and training to participate in the Holy Grail War and achieve victory, and the Chaldea organization had not taught him anything beyond that.

The dinner was simple, very simple. Apart from a whole steamed lamb and hard bread that Attila had set up in her tent, the seasoning of salt, sugar, and spices was handled by dedicated attendants who dipped the meat. Attila and Suzuki didn't need to do it themselves.

Halfway through the meal, Attila ordered all the Servants and people other than Suzuki to leave the tent, including her ever-present attendants and guards.

"Aren't any of you eating?" Attila herself didn't eat much either. Considering her usual appetite, a lamb leg was simply not enough for her. She symbolically took a bite and didn't touch it again. "I almost forgot that your Servants don't need to eat. Just magical energy is enough."

"Speak your mind, Attila." Archer addressed Attila by her name directly, and she didn't mind this minor detail.

"Let's review the information we received today. In a ratio of three to five, our side doesn't have the advantage," Attila said leisurely while sitting on her throne. She was now serious, and her gaze made Suzuki hurriedly put down the hard bread he had been nibbling on. "I'm sorry, but our food reserves are running low. For the past few days, we only have meat and the hard bread in your hands to eat."

"Is the war about to start?" Saber could tell what Attila was trying to convey. After entering the Hun camp, she observed the logistical situation of the Huns, which was even more primitive and direct than she had expected from a barbarian tribe, considering their excellent weaponry and cavalry quality. The Hun army relied on plundering for supplies, and Saber even learned from some slaves that plundering was deeply ingrained in the Hun culture. Saber didn't care about civilization or the lack thereof, but at present, the food supply they relied on was running short. In a few days, even if the Huns' enemies didn't launch an attack, the Huns would have to take the initiative.

"The grand feast last night also gave the soldiers the wrong impression of time. Normally, I wouldn't make my army wait for such a long time. Perhaps you can't understand. We Huns are a nation built on plundering. We engage in trade and livestock, but large-scale agriculture is nonexistent. Even if Suzuki Yuki and Saber hadn't come last night, I would still have arranged a festive banquet on another day." Attila spoke about this matter with a serious expression that seemed somewhat helpless. It was clear that she didn't like the unsustainable way of life that her people maintained, even though it seemed inconsequential. "In any case, I can only wait for another five days at most. After five days, regardless of whether the Holy Grail War has ended or not, I must lead my troops into battle."

In reality, after Attila set up camp, small squads of cavalry were constantly dispatched to search the surrounding area. Different from dedicated scouts, they primarily served as "foragers." This was also the reason why Suzuki woke up to find himself in an uninhabited village.

"Let's discuss the information we obtained about other Servants today and then formulate the next step of our battle plan," Saber suggested, taking the initiative to start the discussion. Archer, on the other hand, showed no interest in participating. "What's the point of sitting together and discussing?"

"My Master relied on the information I provided to learn Rider's true name, which led to a successful counterattack today. My Master deserves half the credit!" Saber immediately confronted Archer. They seemed to have a natural aversion to each other, starting from when they first met yesterday.

"You make it sound so mysterious. Fine, I admit that Suzuki Yuki can guess a Servant's true name. But he didn't guess the true name of Caster, who used explosives. I believe my description was detailed enough."

"If I could see..." Suzuki tried to explain, but Archer didn't give him a chance to explain.

"Yes, he guessed my name. Perhaps your Master has some talent in that regard."

"Stop." Attila raised her hand to halt Archer's obvious provocation. "Perhaps Suzuki Yuki needs to see the true appearance of the Servant to have a better chance of guessing their true name. After all, he is a Master from a distant future."

"So, can he guess the true name of the Assassin who attacked you today?" Archer was still dissatisfied, and she had grievances against Attila for not letting her go after Assassin.

"Hassan-i Sabbah, also known as the 'Old Man of the Mountain.' But eighteen Servants match that name, so we need to narrow it down further based on the information we have," Suzuki said mechanically and emotionlessly, like a mechanical device reciting lines.

"Can you deduce a Servant's true name based on fragmented information? I have a clue that might be useful." Archer, motivated by her experimental idea, informed everyone in the tent. "When Assassin attacked my Master, he uttered the word 'baiya' before revealing his true name. At that time, he suddenly approached my Master and touched his head with his hand, and then my Master exploded."

"Baiya? Zabaniya (Angels of Death)?" Suzuki unintentionally uttered the word and immediately recalled all the information about Hassan—known as the Shokku Chubu.

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