Chapter 155: Eye-to-Eye

Berserker was strong. 

That was Shirou Emiya's first thought upon seeing him. Standing nearly twice the height of a normal person, with dark skin and bulging muscles, this Servant was clearly a killing machine—a meat grinder on the battlefield. 

Rin Tohsaka took one look and could sense that this was a monster whose stats surpassed even Saber's. 

"Ah, did that big brother run away?" 

Walking beside Berserker was a young girl with white hair and red eyes, clearly of European descent. Her calm and composed demeanor reminded Rin and Shirou of the person they had just met. 

That person had also been unnervingly calm, as if nothing could surprise him. 

"Good evening, Tohsaka-neechan, Emiya-nii-san." 

"My name is Illyasviel von Einzbern. 

Yes, that Einzbern." 

The young girl was dressed in thick winter clothing, looking utterly adorable. Anyone who saw her would instinctively think, "What a sweet girl." But in this context, her innocence only highlighted the cruelty of the war. 

She was an enemy. 

"Although I'd like to chat with you both, it seems... that strange big brother hasn't gone too far." 

Illya spoke softly. 

She turned her head to look in a certain direction. 

"Berserker sensed something strange." 

Putting together Illya's words, Rin quickly realized what was happening. The mastermind behind the destruction of the Matou residence hadn't gone far? 

"Archer." 

The red Archer took up a high position. With his Clairvoyance, he could see far into the distance. 

And then... he locked eyes with a young man. If he wasn't mistaken, that was the same man who had destroyed the Matou residence. 

Li Mo stood about a kilometer away, atop a civilian house. The loud noise earlier had disturbed the family living there, but after realizing there was no immediate danger, they had gone back to sleep. 

He stood quietly on the roof, holding something like a mirror, observing the Matou residence. 

The appearance of Berserker and Illya didn't surprise him. The commotion he had caused at the Matou residence was too big, and the Einzbern castle was also in Miyama Town. There was no reason for Illya not to come. 

Besides, Illya wanted to meet Shirou Emiya. 

"Tch, I've been spotted. What a shame, no more show to watch!" 

As Li Mo thought this, he saw the red Archer take up a high position and lock eyes with him. 

Servants with Clairvoyance were, in a way, utterly unreasonable. Lower-level Clairvoyance was manageable, but the highest level could even see into the future. 

"Let's retreat. There's no fight to be had here. Doesn't Illya want to teach her little brother a lesson? What a pity. Rider, where's Lancer now?" 

After leaving the ruins of the Matou residence, Li Mo hadn't immediately retreated. Instead, he had found a good spot to continue observing. At the same time, he had sent Rider to keep an eye on Lancer, Cu Chulainn. 

The blue spearman hadn't made any effort to hide himself, swaggering around as if looking for a fight. Li Mo had sent Rider to deal with him. 

But now, Rider reappeared before Li Mo in her spiritual form. 

"Lancer and I exchanged a few blows before he retreated. Should we chase him? We still don't know who his Master is." 

"Let's not. That Lancer is Cu Chulainn, a warrior not to be underestimated. The most troublesome part is his Noble Phantasm, which inverts causality. Dealing with it would be a hassle. Later, I'll definitely take his Noble Phantasm and study it." 

**"Gae Bolg."** That was Cu Chulainn's Noble Phantasm. It worked by gathering magical energy into his weapon and then delivering a fatal strike. The effect was that the heart was pierced before the spear was even thrown. 

It wasn't homing; the heart was pierced the moment the spear was thrown, and the spear's trajectory was just a formality. 

Li Mo had no way to counter this move yet. 

"I feel like Lancer's state is strange. As a warrior, he seems restrained, as if holding back. He wasn't fighting at full strength." As a fellow warrior, Medusa could clearly sense something off about Lancer. 

During their fight, it felt like he was deliberately holding back. 

"Cu Chulainn's Master is a troublemaker. For a warrior like him, it must be frustrating. It'd be great if we could recruit him," Li Mo said, biting his nails. 

"A warrior like him wouldn't betray his Master so easily." 

"Come on, that priest is his second Master," Li Mo replied. 

"Master of Caster and Assassin, what are you trying to do? Why are you so intent on recruiting all the Servants in this Holy Grail War?" Medusa asked. Li Mo never hid his intentions, and she knew he wasn't trying to deceive anyone. He was straightforward. 

But that only made her more curious. His goal wasn't the Holy Grail; he was more interested in the Servants. 

"Hmm..." 

Li Mo fell silent as he put away the mirror he had been using to observe from a distance. 

He pinched his chin, walking and thinking, before coming to a conclusion: "Probably because I like you Heroic Spirits. How should I put it? Would you believe me if I said I've seen a Master who had over a hundred Servants? Every Heroic Spirit that appeared in this Holy Grail War had once formed a contract with him. 

I thought, if he could do it, why can't I?" 

Fujimaru Ritsuka. Li Mo had watched his journey from the beginning. He was the embodiment of the player, a stand-in. His actions were chaotic, which made sense—after all, multiple writers had shaped his character, leading to inconsistencies. 

But when fiction turned into reality, Fujimaru Ritsuka was just Fujimaru Ritsuka. 

Li Mo then turned to Koyanskaya and asked, "What do you think, Koyanskaya?" 

"Master, what do you think?" 

Koyanskaya remained in her spiritual form, her voice echoing around him as if coming from all directions. 

"Such a clever answer." 

No matter how Koyanskaya answered, Li Mo would have a better idea of Chaldea's current progress. But... thinking about it, Koyanskaya's true body wasn't dead yet; she had been sent into outer space by Taigong Wang. 

Would he have to visit that timeline eventually? 

"Has Illya given up? Is she letting Shirou Emiya and Rin Tohsaka chase me instead? Really? Did she just come to see Shirou Emiya and drop her grudge against Kiritsugu so easily?" 

Illya, Kiritsugu, and Shirou Emiya were a tangled mess. Although Illya was young, her mental age was likely older than Shirou's. 

After all, she hadn't received a proper education, having spent her entire life in the Einzbern castle. So, was Illya just a dropout who had missed out on compulsory education? 

Shaking his head, Li Mo pushed the chaotic thoughts aside. Knowing that the two pairs of Servants were chasing him, he quickened his pace. 

Let's lead them to Mount Enzou first.