38

While the book was only forty-four pages, it was dense. Each page had a basic description for each power, but it also contained every single detail possible.

The issue was that every detail mainly consisted of how a power worked in the specific instance that I could use it. Class Card Heart, for example, detailed what precisely a class card could do when implated but not what a class card was or any other uses.

This was less prevalent with the more powerful ones like Master Craftsman or Castle Brunestud. However, it was still irritating and meant most of the night was spent attempting to pull new scraps of knowledge from the Grimoire.

While I didn't get new skills or any other improvements, it was time well spent as I now understood my powers better. If I went against somebody with the same power, I would still lose, as seen with Gilgamesh, but I felt like I was slowly working to bridge that gap.

Closing the Grimoire, I set it to the side and stood up. Walking outside, I could see the sun rising. I didn't quite know how it worked, but the pocket dimension seemed to work based on what time it was anchored in.

That meant that outside it would be sunrise. I was curious how it would work if anchored to the NeverNever, but I resolved to test it at some point.

Sitting down the small stairs leading into the house, I waited for my simulacrum to return. They would arrive at dawn to drop off the supplies and then leave to expand the Dust filters.

As I waited, I traced over the patterns for bigger Dust filters. I knew how to make filters that could cover entire oceans, but those required the resources of an empire to build. I would start smaller.

Looking up from my thoughts, I saw a skeletal figure walking up the Path with a sizeable bag held over his shoulder. Strangely enough, I did not see the other simulacrum, which made me frown as I waved him over.

"Where did the other one go?" I asked as he slowed down and dropped the sack at my feet.

"Zouken jumped us; it turns out that worms with his soul in them work quite well for murdering Monsters. We were heading back when a swarm leaped out of the bushes and ate 6.0."

My frown grew; that was a significant issue. I had managed to take Zouken by surprise, but now that he was prepared and knew some of what I could do, a brutal fight was ahead.

While he was at his lowest point, he was still a magus that had lived half a millennium and founded the Holy Grail War. That was leaving out his lich-like immortality; so long as one of his worms existed, he would live.

I also assumed he was the one who summoned Caster as he would have the knowledge on how to cheat the system, as seen by Cursed Arm Hassan.

That meant he had a powerful Caster and Kirisatgu on his side, both of which were powerful. Their only flaw was that they lacked a frontline fighter, which left them at a disadvantage against Lancelot.

I bemoaned the fact I had been unable to grab any Origin Bullets. That would have been incredibly helpful, as a single shot would kill both Zouken and Caster.

Picking up the sack, I peered inside and grinned. This was a bounty of Dust that most people would kill to have even without Arcana of Matter. I didn't have any use for it currently and had even less time to waste.

Hauling it towards the forge, I folded the top closed and rested the sack next to the forge. The weather was always lovely, so I didn't have to worry about rain or wind messing up my work.

Clearing my throat, I shouted out to 5.0. A few moments later, he shambled around the corner rubbing his eye-sockets. "I'm going to be updating your powers; then we are heading out," I said as I poked their heads and did just that.

As they were twitching and assimilating their new powers, I went inside and checked around to see if anybody was up. Sola-Ui and Komainu were fast asleep.

I wanted to have Sola-Ui let Komainu know that we were leaving, but she was asleep, which nixed that plan. As I scribbled out a note, I let my mind wander briefly. I needed to get Sola-Ui something else to do; sitting around all day was not a good use of her time, and even helping with basic household chores could help.

Pushing those thoughts to the side, I finished my note and walked back outside, seeing that 5.0 and 7.0 had finished with their assimilating; I also gestured for Lancelot to follow along.

"7.0, where were you jumped by the worms? Zouken will most likely be somewhere around them." I asked as we started walking towards the Path.

"Near where the docks meet the suburbs, they crawled out of what appeared to be a half-open sewer grate." He replied as I shifted the Path toward where he described.

The Path was short, and 7.0 led us to where Zouken ad attacked him. It was a fairly standard road except for two things, it was completely empty, which, while that would be normal this early in the morning, not even insects dared to approach.

The other was I could spot a few spots of strange fluid where the worms had died. The bodies had been recovered, but Zouken had missed a few fluid splatters.

As I approached the sewer grate, the Grimore swelled again; however, the energy bubbled before settling back down.

Shaking my head, I leaned down and lifted the sewer grate. It was easy, as something had already pushed it off the hole, which allowed me to get my fingers under it, and my enhanced strength did the rest.

"Follow me, keep your eyes peeled; we're going into close quarters, and I do not want to get jumped," I said as I hopped into the sewers with the others following close behind.

Landing in a crouch, I straightened as I peered out into the gloom of the rank sewers. I didn't know where Zouken was holed up, but sewer systems could stretch for miles, and I would have to take my time.

Summoning my staff, I strode into the depths, taking a moment to conjure Celestial Fire on the top of my staff. It would grant me greater sight and be a source of fire I could quickly expand.

The search was long and tedious; we did run across a few worms, but a blast of Celestial Fire quickly dispatched them; it did, however, mean that he likely knew we were coming.

That would, however, not save him, I thought as we explored the sewers. Soon we discovered the highest location of his worms which meant that he was nearby.

As we scoured them away with Celestial Fire, I saw a group of them merge together to form the decrepit form of Zouken and speak.

"There is no need to continue this way, I do not wish for conflict, but if you bring it, I will fight." I twitched at this; he had attacked us in the castle. He should have stayed out of the war if he didn't want to fight.

"You would have stayed out of the war then," I said as I raised my staff, unleashing another gout of brilliant celestial flame. Zouken's worms collapsed into a writhing swarm before the fire could reach them, allowing some to escape.

Scowling, I stormed further into the sewers with my staff prepared and my head on a swivel. What I was doing might be stupid, but I wasn't allowing a five-hundred-year-old magus and Caster to have any more prep time.

Soon enough, we arrived in the lair of the duo. It was fifty covered in squirming worms and corpses in various states of being eaten. As I walked forward, I saw a different figure, not Caster or Zouken.

He looked very similar to Caster, except he was more real. Servants were spiritual beings which to the average man didn't mean much, but I could tell with my Arcanum that this boy was not a Servant.

"Who are you?" I asked while my simulacrum and I raised our staves, ready to attack. The figure laughed as he unwrapped a small red and white candy and popped it into his mouth before speaking.

"Francis Prelati, the alive one, not the Servant. Side note the food nowadays is quite good, especially the candy." That was not good; the only thing I knew about Prelati was that he was the person who good Gilles de Rais to do all the terrible things he did; what that meant in the Nasuverse, I had no clue.

"I'll give you two options then," I said, speaking firmly. "First, you can surround and leave, or we can fight it out, and I don't place a three vs. one in your favor."

He chuckled in response to that before flicking his wrist, distorting the area around us to form spikes from the sewer walls. We were prepared for the attacks, so it was simple to dodge around them.

As I dodged, I raised my staff and sent out gouts of flame; the Celestial Fire burned and caused Prealti to dart back and raise a wall. The fire did not care and burnt through the wall and into his flesh.

Shrieking, he fled deeper into the tunnels sending a few spikes behind him. They were far off the mark and allowed us to get to work. This appeared to be a morbid larder of some sort, and it held dozens of bodies, all fueling Zouken's twisted Magecraft.

The Celestial Fire burned away what Zouken had made and caused me to grin; he would be pissed that I had destroyed his second workshop. After we cleaned up the larder, we continued on, wary of traps.

As we arrived in the next chamber, I saw Prelati talking to Zouken. Raising my hand, I sent a flurry of white magic to gain their attention. Quickly moving out of the way, they both turned to face me.

"I'll give you one more chance, you can leave and forfeit your place in the war, or we'll have to fight, and that will not go well for you, Zouken," I said with my staff outstretched scintillating colors of blue and purple played across it's top.

He smiled briefly before clicking his fingers and allowing the worms that make up his form to pull apart as Prelati ducked back and started raining spikes upon us.

Simultaneously a bullet tore through 5.0's form, causing him to collapse; he could only gasp before dusting. My eyes darted towards where the shot came from, and I saw the form of Kirisatgu duck around the corner. Snarling, I sent a salvo of Eldritch's Blasts at his disappearing form, causing the wall to be blown apart.

Behind me, I heard a voice chanting and whirled around as 7.0 went on the offensive against Prelati. Raising my staff to attack Caster, various worms got in the way, slowing me down.

"I make an offering. To this broken world, I offer blessings and thanks, and sacrifices! I offer thanks to mother Atë, born the embodiment of madness! I offer blessings to the holy spirits of the world, who taught me magecraft, the madness of men! "O' saint and knight who showed me a different madness, neither of you were mistaken! I make an offering! To all humanity, permitted by this broken world, I offer the sacrifice that is me!"

As he finished the chant, he gave me a nasty smile and uttered the last two words that would activate his Noble Phantasm, "Grand Illusion."

The Noble Phantasm blew past my mental defenses as I scrambled to fight back. I could faintly feel the Grimoire expanding before I opened my eyes to my surroundings.

My voice was stuck in my throat as I looked at my surroundings. My house was very similar to how it looked in Castle Brunestud, except for a few key differences.

The house was missing, the cars were still there, and the mailbox was at the end of the long driveway, but the entire building was gone. I could see clumps of ice and snow around the edges and rubble from where the edges of the house had failed to be transported. I didn't know how but I was home.