Shinji Matou At Your Service

Chapter 98: Race (Part 1)

"The long-awaited Fourth Holy Grail War Grand Prix has finally arrived."

"We are broadcasting this ground-speed battle from our specially designed track on the outskirts of Fuyuki City."

"I am the mysterious magus in charge of live coverage and commentary, cough cough, Saita... no, Saiki Kumagoro."

Under the cover of night, Shinji's voice, as if he had chewed on a pack of Xuanmai and couldn't stop, announced. Unable to reveal his true name, he directly borrowed the name of the strongest being from another world.

"Now, let's take a look at the condition of the participants waiting for the race to begin."

"First, we have Archer in the number one position, his ride is the KAWASAKI ZZ-R—"

"No, it's the Golden Babylon." Archer, who was making final adjustments to his motorcycle, glared at Shinji dissatisfiedly.

The Golden Babylon, true to its name, was shining with golden light. After obtaining ownership of the KAWASAKI ZZ-R1100, he took out an unidentified item from the King's treasury and transformed the motorcycle's exterior into gold.

For Gilgamesh, gold was a symbol of taste, gold was style, and gold was the most noble color in the world.

"Sorry, let me correct that, it's the Golden Babylon." Shinji looked at the motorcycle that had transformed from mysterious and low-profile to glamorous and restrained his urge to make sarcastic comments while continuing his commentary.

"Hmph, victory belongs to me." Archer revved the engine, making a declaration of inevitable victory.

"Next is Rider in the second position, his ride is also his Noble Phantasm, the chariot pulled by two divine bulls—Gordius Wheel."

"This is the popular racing vehicle of modern times, right? I like it."

Rider's laughter easily drowned out Shinji's voice.

"I won't lose, my bulls!"

"Moo~~~~~~" The two divine beasts associated with the sky god Zeus let out a long howl, and the moving hooves gleamed with dazzling lightning, leaving Waver, who was riding with Rider, trembling in fear.

"Ri... Rider, are you okay?"

"Don't worry, kid." Rider's large palm patted Waver's frail shoulder. "This King is a Rider with a Riding skill level of A+. There's no way I'll lose to Archer and Assassin."

"Are you... okay?" Waver muttered with his head lowered.

"Lastly, in the third position, we have Assassin. Her ride is the Honda CBR600F2, no, it's Gáe Bolg Alternative (Piercing Death Sky-Soarer)."

"Master, when did you change the name?" Scathach raised her head and asked her Master, waiting quietly for the race to begin.

"I just changed it. Look, Archer's Golden Babylon, and Rider's Gordius Wheel, they both sound so cool. We can't be weak in our momentum, so I came up with this idea. If you have any objections, we can change it again."

"..."

After three months of being together, Scathach had become accustomed to Shinji's impulsive thinking. She calmly responded, "Forget it, let's stick with this name. Hurry up and get on."

"Alright."

Shinji quickly ran to the third position and sat behind Scathach, holding the handlebars with his left hand. Scathach's body was slender without an ounce of excess fat, and her waist was flexible. With his right hand maintaining the posture of holding a microphone, he shouted.

"Alright, the participants are all in position. Now, I announce that the Fourth Holy Grail War Grand Prix is about to begin. Who will be the first among the Servants and Masters? Countdown—"

"5—"

"4—"

"3—"

"2—"

"1—"

"0—"

At the moment the countdown reached zero, the three vehicles raced past the starting line simultaneously.

The thunderous lightning generated by the galloping bull hooves, the roaring sound of the engines inhaling and exhaling, shot straight into the sky.

"The competition is intense right from the start. The participants in each group are not giving an inch, tightly biting each other."

"Archer's Golden Babylon maintains a slight lead. The bike is equipped with an inline-four DOHC liquid-cooled engine, with a maximum horsepower of 147. With the assistance of RamAir intake compression, its acceleration performance is outstanding, making it a true king of speed."

"Very well, let's settle this in one go."

Archer, riding the Golden Babylon, was filled with high spirits. The twin beasts on wheels seemed to respond with a wild roar. The surrounding scenery rapidly receded, and the rushing airflow that would blind an ordinary person was just a refreshing gust of wind to Archer. He enjoyed this feeling.

"Archer is getting faster and faster, Rider."

"Don't worry, kid. The road is still long, and there's a curve ahead."

Rider, driving on the ground with his wheels, was not in the least bit anxious. After materializing, he had already driven his chariot around the entire Fuyuki City, so he was very familiar with the road conditions.

"It's not easy for Archer to handle turns at that speed."

As Rider said, a curve appeared. The suburban highway was built along the mountains, winding and complicated. Pursuing speed alone could easily lead to accidents, from minor scratches to disastrous crashes.

The wild steel beast emitted a piercing howl, the sound of the tires rubbing violently against the ground. Archer paid the price for being unfamiliar with the road conditions and realized the curve a bit too late, so he could only decelerate through brute force to make the turn.

"See, I told you." Rider threw Archer a provocative look and tightened the reins in his hand.

The divine bulls, with their connection to Zeus and the conquering king known as his son, made a tremendous sound.

The sound overwhelmed the roar of the engines, and the intense impact was enough to shake the earth.

It was like a sudden thunderstrike on the battlefield. The dazzling flash turned the night into day, accompanied by a deep roar that even overshadowed the sound of thunder.

"!!"

The lightning did not descend from the sky to the earth but swept horizontally across the surface. No... It looked like lightning, but it was a unique phenomenon caused by the rapid movement of the divine force wheels.

In that flickering lightning, a blue and white figure darted through. Despite the dense and formidable thunder, it did not affect this figure.

It was Scathach's Piercing Death Sky-Soarer!

Although the performance of the sports motorcycle, formerly known as the Honda CBR600F2, was the weakest among the three groups, Scathach's driving skills and her experience of traversing the Einzbern Forest once were enough to bridge the gap.

Her graceful yet precise cornering, remaining composed in the face of thunder, impressed Rider and fueled Archer's fighting spirit.

"Charge, Bull!"

"We're going, Golden Babylon!"

The first curve was left behind by the three participants.

"The rankings have changed. Archer, who was originally leading, has fallen to last place, replaced by Rider in first place and Assassin in second. But this ranking is only temporary. The upcoming race will be the first high-difficulty track of this competition, a series of winding curves. Will there be new changes there?"

After saying this, Shinji finally let go of the dangerous posture of loosely holding the microphone. He embraced Scathach's waist with both hands and said softly,

"That's enough, Sensei."

"Yes, it's time to show our true skills."

Scathach said, lowering the visor of her helmet.