Saber and Berserker were face to face. Alessandro Serpi was extremely worried about the battle, he had never seen a heroic spirit as tenacious as Berserker. Saber was already in position to hit her opponent once more when, without warning, a spell was cast between the two Servants that raised a curtain of smoke.
Berserker took advantage of the situation to escape. Alessandro prepared to fight but saw a man dressed in a very elegant way, he was the magus who launched the spell: Bradley Jenkins.
Together with him there were six other magi and all of them were part of the Mage's Association.
Bradley, in a severe tone, thundered:« You and your war have destroyed our city and involved civilians! You will have to answer for your actions! »
Alessandro, suspicious, asked:
« Since when does the Mage's Association care about civilian casualties? »
« You have no right to speak, magus of the Coven. Now you and your Servant will follow us without making a fuss or you will die here! »
Alessandro had enough magic energy to be able to fight against his enemies but he knew perfectly well that it would be stupid to do this. The Coven was trying to gain the trust of the Mage's Association and disobeying the authority of them would have involved changes in the relations between the two organizations.
Alessandro Serpi surrendered.
That same night, Alessandro, was led by Bradley Jenkins for a corridor that was located in the Clock Tower. The boy had his hands tied by a spell. The two went up the stairs and came to a door. Bradley opened it and told Alessandro to enter. It was a fairly small office, filled with books and maps; there was a shrine in which there were ancient artifacts and there were also small wooden caskets placed on the bookcase. Bradley sat behind the desk and said, in a slightly more calm voice:
« Sit down. »Alessandro sat on a chair in front of his desk. The boy was visibly worried about what was going to happen. Bradley said:
« You can tell your Servant to appear. »
« Saber. »
Saber appeared behind Alessandro, the girl was nervous and seemed to be about to attack the man. Bradley, seeing her gaze, reassured her:
« I'm not going to hurt you, but you must answer for your actions. You have involved civilians in your war and this is a problem for us. Our organization does not like to give in the eye and we do not like staining the image of the magus to the public, we are magicians but we are not a world power. If nations were to consider us terrorists, it would be a problem for the Mage's Association. »
« I understand your fears but … »
« I am not afraid, I know human nature. For many it is difficult to accept the existence of magic and these same people would not think twice about starting a crusade against us. It's not a question of fear, but of pure and simple realism. »« I didn't want this. It was Rider who involved civilians. She had used her Noble Phantasm which acted on people's minds and so we found ourselves fighting against very common Londoners. It was not a choice. »
« We can't erase the traces of a hundred dead people, do you realize it? One hundred people. Print this number on your head, boy: HUNDRED. A hundred people died because of the Holy Grail War, what should I do in your opinion? Let it pass? Act as if nothing has happened? The nation will want to have answers, the nation will want justice. What can we do, in your opinion? »
« Nothing. »
« Excuse me? I don't think I understood correctly. »
« You won't do anything. This is a fault that falls on the Coven, not on the Mage's Association. You are not obliged to act. The Coven will punish me. »
« That's not how it works! » Shouted Bradley slamming his hands on the desk, then added: «You and your Servant have killed innocent people and you have to pay for what you did! Because of you our organization will be targeted by the nation, they will start chasing all the magi and start a real crusade against us! You have to pay for
your crimes! »
Alessandro was calm. He got up from his chair and said to the man, looking down at him:
« I am bound, unable to fight and to be a risk to you. I let myself be caught because I was hoping for your understanding. I'm not your enemy, I can give you Kumahira Yukiko, the Master of Rider. She is the only one responsible, not me. »
« What do you propose, boy? »
« I will kill Yukiko to do justice but I need you to do me a favor: I would like you to help me to do a research about Marco Serpi, a former member of the Coven. »Bradley was doubtful. He didn't trust the boy's plan and asked him:
« What do we do with those one hundred people? »
« We remain silent. The public does not know that there is a magus involved, why say it? Our goal is to capture Yukiko, not to justify what happened. We know nothing. We weren't there. It could have been a paranormal event, a sign of the apocalypse or what they want. I don't care, I don't have time for these things. I want the head of Kumahira Yukiko. »
Bradley Jenkins stood up and held out his hand to Alessandro. The two shook hands. The man said to the boy:
« I trust you for now. Don't betray us, it's not convenient. »
« I know. »
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