Fate: How About a New Savior?

Three months later, the exploration and restoration of the Sixth Singularity officially began.

This Singularity held an unprecedented foundation value for human history, and the Seventh stood apart as the only one located in the distant dawn of the Age of Gods.

With the restoration of Singularities I through V completed, the plan for isolated restoration missions came to an end. From here on, the remaining Masters and Servants of Chaldea would work together to conquer the final two Singularities.

The year was 1273 AD—the year the Ninth Crusade failed and the Catholic Church lost its influence over Jerusalem. A time when the Mamluk Sultanate, the Mongol Empire, and the Christian states were locked in struggle.

According to Romani's speculation, the ones who obtained the Holy Grail might very well be the Crusaders. Only by letting history's defeated side claim the Grail could this particular distortion make sense.

With this prediction in mind, the team completed their Spiritron Transfer—landing in the middle of a vast desert.

That alone wouldn't have been a problem; deserts were common in the Middle East. But a sudden, violent sandstorm had kicked up, making it nearly impossible for the newly transferred group to open their eyes.

"Master! Director! Over here! If you stay there, you'll get blown away!" Mash shouted through the storm, reaching out to Ritsuka and Olga Marie.

Fou cried out frantically, clinging to Ritsuka's shoulder.

"My eyes... my eyes...!" Ritsuka cried in pain.

Shiomi, already steady on his feet, quickly activated the Primordial Runes. In the heart of the sandstorm, he formed a calm zone that suppressed the storm and shielded the group.

"Huh...?" Ritsuka blinked as the howling winds around her abruptly vanished—only the sand clinging to her skin remained.

"The wind stopped?" Olga Marie said, blinking in surprise.

Scáthach helped Sakura and Caren up, then gave Shiomi an approving nod. "Good reaction."

"Is everyone accounted for?" Shiomi brushed sand off his clothes and turned to check.

Sakura, Caren, Olga Marie, Ritsuka, Gray.

Morgan, Scáthach, Mash.

A sizable team assembled for the restoration of a Singularity.

"Everyone's here," Sakura confirmed after scanning the area.

Caren looked up. The sandstorm now swirled around them, avoiding a radius of roughly a kilometer. An invisible dome seemed to cover the group, shielding them from the chaos.

"Is this really Jerusalem?" she asked.

According to Chaldeas' calculations, they should have arrived near the city. But all around them was nothing but swirling sand—no trace of civilization.

"Chaldea's communications are currently down. We'll have to rely on our own eyes for now," said Scáthach.

Shiomi shrugged. "If the coordinates for Jerusalem are this off, it might be another part of the Singularity's distortion..."

Before he could finish, Morgan called out sharply, supporting Gray as she sat down.

"Husband, over here. Something's wrong with Gray."

Shiomi rushed over.

Gray hadn't sat down from weakness—her body had begun to change.

Her silver-gray hair was slowly transforming before everyone's eyes. A few strands had turned golden, as if something had dyed them midair.

"What is that?!" Olga Marie exclaimed in shock.

Her knowledge of Gray was limited to the girl's time in Chaldea. All she knew was that Gray came from a mountain village in Britain, served as a gravekeeper, and—due to special circumstances—possessed abilities far beyond modern humans.

"My body... it's changing again..." Gray murmured, tugging up her hood to hide her hair.

Since she was a teen, her body had stopped growing entirely, remaining in the form of a fifteen-year-old girl. In the Magus world, such a fixed state wasn't unusual—others had simply assumed she froze her development a little earlier than most.

Still, even without a mirror, Gray could feel it clearly.

Just like twenty years ago...

Back then, her features had gradually shifted, until she looked exactly like Artoria, the King of Knights.

Now, even the color of hair she had always thought was her own... was beginning to change.

"Is this also caused by the Singularity?" Ritsuka asked, worry in her voice.

Shiomi stood up, eyes fixed on the dunes ahead. "I don't think it's the Singularity's influence. It's this Singularity itself... The King of Knights, Artoria, has manifested again."

"Huh? But isn't this the year the Ninth Crusade failed?" Sakura looked just as confused.

"Exactly. That's the problem. Why would a time period unrelated to the King of Knights trigger changes in this child's body?" Scáthach turned and headed up the sand dune, going to scout the sandstorm beyond.

With magic, even the low visibility wasn't a barrier for her.

Fortunately, Gray's transformation had stopped at a few strands of hair turning gold.

Morgan then raised a hand, casting a restraining spell on her. "I've suppressed the power inside you connected to Artoria as best I can, at least until the next shift. Until we confirm if it's tied to Artoria, avoid combat at all costs."

"...Okay." Gray nodded and picked up the cage hanging at her side—only to find another oddity. "Add?"

Up until their departure, Add had been its usual teasing self, constantly mocking Gray. But now it was dead silent, unmoving, reduced to nothing more than a cube.

Gray tried calling to it, but it remained unresponsive, as though all its functions had been wiped clean.

A creeping unease began to rise in her chest—one that quickly spread to the others as well.

Olga Marie grabbed Gray's hand. "In any case! Our first objective in this Singularity is clear: figure out what's happening to you, and why Add suddenly went silent."

Meanwhile, Shiomi stepped to the side, activating the Mystic Code in his hand. A massive desert wind-sail vehicle appeared before the group.

It was a transport crafted by Da Vinci using the materials available, designed with Morgan's assistance as a fellow Magus to handle the harsh terrain of the Sixth Singularity.

Powered by a hybrid of an internal mana reactor and wind sails, the vehicle could carry the entire exploration team.

"Everyone, get aboard. First, we need to get out of this sandstorm and find a place where we can settle down," Shiomi instructed.

But then, Scáthach's voice rang out from the top of the dune, cutting through the wind:

"Before that—get ready to fight."