For some time now, Caren had been under immense stress and so busy that there were moments she couldn't even find time to take a proper bath... She had initially believed that overseeing the Holy Grail War in Fuyuki City would be an easy assignment. Even when a small incident occurred, turning her into a Master herself, she hadn't thought much of it; after all, she held no desire for the Grail.

Only now did she realize that matters were far more troublesome than she had imagined.

She couldn't pinpoint when it started, but this Holy Grail War had long ceased to be just that. It had morphed into a chaotic melee of various Heroic Spirits, then escalated into a dark conspiracy aimed at world domination. As the situation expanded further, figures on the level of the Twenty-seven Ancestors themselves began to appear.

The entirety of Fuyuki City had become a stage for rampant chaos.

Of course, the involvement of the Mage's Association and the Church went without saying.

Caren was acutely aware of her own limitations. In exorcism, she might be considered capable—though perhaps not even that, given her first attempt ended in failure. In terms of sheer combat, however, she was completely incapable of holding her own. Facing the current state of Fuyuki City, she felt utterly powerless to intervene.

Thus, when the Executors from the Church Headquarters responsible for combat arrived in Fuyuki City, she felt a slight sense of relief. She never imagined that it would be these very Executors who caused her the most trouble.

Standing in the center of the hall, looking across at the twenty-odd Executors seated like potentates in their chairs, Caren's emotions were complex. While she wasn't fully informed about their backgrounds, she had some inkling: there were ruthless murderers, demonic beings resembling demons but bearing no relation to them, and mysterious individuals possessing bizarre abilities—even an immortal monster and an Ancestor were rumored to be present.

The Holy Church, outwardly pristine, hid countless vile things within its structure.

Naturally, these matters had little to do with Caren. Using evil power to subdue evil was, in her view, no great sin; after all, both a common kitchen knife and a demon-forged blade could be used to kill. There was no inherent difference.

Even if some of these Executors carried sins so grave they couldn't be cleansed even after dying hundreds of times, as long as they possessed formidable strength that the Church could utilize, they would be accepted... Stripped bare, they were nothing more than executioners, a butcher's cleaver.

It was just that sometimes, those cleavers turned against their own allies.

"Hey, Nun, what's the status of the task we assigned you?" At that moment, a burly man with a massive frame and only one arm bellowed, his voice coarse.

"I am currently investigating," Caren replied, bowing slightly.

Though she was the supervisor for Fuyuki City and technically an Executor of the Church, the significance represented by their titles, even if identical, was vastly different—like the two sides of a mirror. She understood this perfectly. In front of these genuine Church Executors, she was essentially nothing.

"Investigating? You've been saying that for three days now!" The Executor immediately flashed a ferocious look.

"My deepest apologies, the nature of this incident is exceptionally bizarre, and my capabilities are insufficient..."

"If your capabilities are insufficient, then what good are you!" While Caren was speaking respectfully, before she could finish, a chilling killing intent flared in the one-armed man's eyes. Instantly, a black demonic shadow leaped out from within him, opening its gaping maw to bite towards Caren's head.

"Whoa, whoa, easy there," but before the shadow could strike, another Executor darted out from the side and intercepted it.

"What are you doing?" The one-armed man immediately recalled the shadow, frowning and glaring at the newcomer.

Although internal conflict was forbidden within the Church with severe penalties for discovery, such rules meant little to these Executors. One was an awkwardly positioned Exorcist, the other a core combat unit Executor of the Church—the priority was obvious. As long as the actions weren't too overt, the higher-ups wouldn't interfere, especially in such an exceptional situation; it was no different than swatting a stray cat or dog.

The one who blocked the attack for Caren was a small, thin man with beady, shifty eyes, giving off an impression of pure malice. He licked his lips, his gaze lingering on Caren with a lecherous grin. "What a waste. Killing such a delicate flower before enjoying her is a true shame. Why don't you let me savor her first?"

With that, he reached out to grab Caren's cheek.

As for the actions of these two, the other Executors acted as if they saw nothing, ignoring them completely. Some even wore expressions of excitement.

There really is every kind of person, Caren thought inwardly, sighing without showing any change in her composed expression, having narrowly escaped death only to face lewd advances now.

However, just as the lewd man's hand was about to brush Caren's face, a sharp, cold lance suddenly materialized from thin air, pressing against the man's throat an instant before his touch.

"Take your claws back!"

The wielder was a man clad in blue armor, his facial features sharply defined, silver earrings dangling from his hands. His eyes, as cold as the spear tip, fixed upon the Executor as he spoke icily.

This was Lancer, Cú Chulainn.

The Executor startled, instinctively retracting his hand, yet he seemed unafraid even facing a Heroic Spirit, chuckling dryly. "Heh heh, I'm just following orders, why get so worked up? At worst, I won't kill her after I'm done. After this Holy Grail War ends, you'll just return to where you came from anyway."

His meaning was clear: Cú Chulainn was a Heroic Spirit, destined to return to the Throne of Heroes once the war concluded. Even if he protected Caren temporarily, he couldn't protect her forever—making his intervention pointless.

Cú Chulainn’s grip on the spear never loosened. He stated deeply, "Though I dislike this woman's inherent nature, since she is my Master, protecting her is my responsibility as long as I exist. As for what happens after, that's none of my concern. If you dare extend your claws again... I'll be taking your heart!"

As he spoke, Cú Chulainn glared, his fearsome might fully unleashed.

Feeling the oppressive aura Cú Chulainn emitted, the Executor instinctively took several steps back. His casual expression vanished, replaced by one of deep gravity. He didn't doubt for a second that if he took one more step forward, the spear would pierce his heart.

While he might not fear Heroic Spirits in principle, the question of whether he could actually win a fight was another matter entirely.

After all, Heroic Spirits were the highest level of combat power in this world. Even in their incomplete state summoned by the Grail, few—save for Magicians and the Twenty-seven Ancestors—could face them alone.

Swish!

Simultaneously, all the Executors who had been seated now stood up. They could afford to watch the drama unfold moments ago, but Cú Chulainn's appearance forced them to take this seriously.

"Looking at you all, do you fancy a match?" Cú Chulainn grinned.

"Don't be so arrogant!" One Executor was clearly enraged by Cú Chulainn's dismissive attitude and shouted loudly.

Although Heroic Spirits were powerful, there was only one of him. They, the Executors, were not ones to back down from a fight either; whether they would win or lose in a real confrontation was uncertain. Moreover, there was Caren—even if Cú Chulainn could defeat them, protecting her completely amidst this general melee would be difficult.

Neither Cú Chulainn nor the Executors yielded an inch, and a fight was about to erupt. However, right at this tense standoff, a slightly immature voice suddenly sounded: "In a situation like this, you all still have the mood to fight amongst yourselves? Everyone should calm down, it's better to let this matter pass."

Everyone instinctively looked towards the source of the sound. In the corner of the hall, a handsome youth stood up from his chair, squinting slightly with a smile.

"Miss Nun, you probably don't want to escalate things either, right? Could you perhaps call your retainer back?" The youth's gaze settled on Caren as he spoke.

"Hmph!" Cú Chulainn sneered at him. "Since you call it internal strife, why didn't you step out earlier? Showing up now as a peacemaker is a bit redundant, wouldn't you say?"

"My apologies, my apologies, I must have dozed off for a moment," the youth said with an apologetic smile, then turned to the Executors. "Who offended Miss Nun? Hurry up and apologize."

Hearing this, the one-armed man and the lewd man looked visibly awkward. While they dared to challenge a Heroic Spirit, they lacked the courage to confront this youth. Asking them to apologize felt like too great an insult to their pride.

"If apologies were effective, what would we need laws for?" However, just as they hesitated, a commanding voice suddenly rang out. Immediately, brilliant gold light filled the void, and a short-haired, golden-haired girl emerged slowly from the radiance, accompanied by countless weapons. Her crimson eyes held an arrogance that scorned everything as she looked at the two Executors and declared decisively, "Offer this King your life in atonement!"

If Cú Chulainn's appearance had only inspired threat among the Executors, then facing this girl now added a layer of palpable fear to their expressions. Especially the myriad of weapons—which looked incredibly formidable and were certainly terrifying in reality—caused their hairs to stand on end.

In sheer aura alone, this girl was several times more terrifying than Cú Chulainn. More importantly, this girl was a Heroic Spirit, and the weapons floating in the void were undoubtedly Noble Phantasms. Even a fool could deduce that if the girl chose to project all these Noble Phantasms within the confined space of the church, no one would escape certain death.

The one-armed man and the lewd man were now genuinely terrified, cold sweat faintly beading on their foreheads. They had known Caren had a Heroic Spirit, but they never imagined she would have more than one, and one of them so formidable.

If they had known earlier, they never would have dared to act so presumptuously!

Is this woman... too low-key?! (To be continued. If you enjoy this work, please come and cast recommendation votes and monthly tickets. Your support is my greatest motivation.) RQ