Know the enemy and know yourself, and you will never be in peril in a hundred battles. Know yourself but not the enemy, and you will have one win and one loss. Know neither the enemy nor yourself, and you will be in peril in every battle.
These words, often popularly quoted as 'Know the enemy and know yourself, and you will win a hundred battles,' are from none other than the Art of War by Sun Tzu—a masterpiece that left an eternal mark on the history of warfare through its emphasis on information strategy.
To know the enemy and yourself means safety regardless of the frequency of combat. Knowing only yourself leads to a toss-up, essentially a fifty-fifty struggle. And if you are ignorant of both your foe and your own state, you invite disaster at every turn. Simply put: you must understand the enemy's formation and maintain absolute control over your own forces. Otherwise, death is the only certainty.
In this landscape of information warfare, reconnaissance is the most vital of all acts.
Ordinarily, one would deploy light infantry or mountain troops with high mobility and stealth capabilities... but the objective of our scout mission is the Clock Tower, the heart of the Association, which has transformed into nothing less than a den of inhuman horrors.
In such a case, what is required is a Reconnaissance in Force.
"If we go on a scouting mission, a confrontation is inevitable. Since we're scouting in the open, we must bring sufficient combat power. Conversely, we must leave enough strength behind to protect this base."
"Sounds good. How do you intend to split the teams?"
"Before that... did you find anything regarding the weaknesses of Nikola Tesla, Jack the Ripper, or the King of Storms?"
I asked the question.
While I understood their weaknesses as defined by their 'legends,' things like weaknesses in their Prana paths or specific tactical habits... there was a possibility that the advisory detective had already deduced them through observation.
"Regrettably, none aside from the legends surrounding Jack the Ripper. Even if I possess some measure of combat capability, presenting myself before an Assassin or those wielding Anti-Fortress Noble Phantasms would be suicidal. I have only been able to determine the frequency of their appearances based on reports."
"Then it can't be helped."
Since I had already pulverized Mephistopheles, the enemy's effective strength was reduced to three.
The murderer Jack, Nikola Tesla, and the King of Storms...
"Assuming the worst... if we are attacked by all three enemies during the scouting mission, it would be best for Mordred to stay here for base defense along with Ritsuka."
"…Why? Leaving aside whatever finisher Karma-san uses, Mordred has the highest firepower, doesn't she?"
Ritsuka asked.
"Mordred's firepower is certainly high, but the enemy has the King of Storms. No one here can mimic that level of destructive output."
Even my 'Tengai Shinsei — Heavenly Obstruction' is ultimately just the manifestation of immense mass falling from the sky. In contrast, that mad King of Knights—the Alter version—simply fires beam bombardments incessantly. And she does it as easily as a standard attack!
"Furthermore, the lance wielded by the King of Storms is the very weapon that once slew Mordred. In terms of conceptual compatibility, it's a disadvantageous match for her."
"Tch!"
"Of course, that doesn't mean you'd lose a clash of Noble Phantasms... you're more than capable of intercepting them if they attack. Ritsuka, your Path only grants backup from Chaldea, but within the Bounded Fields of Paracelsus or Zolgen, that conversion of magical energy will be much more efficient."
"I shall ensure the support is absolute," Paracelsus replied.
"Gareth, you stay here as well. Your parameters and mobility are excellent, but the enemy's Assassin is specialized in killing 'women.' A Saber like Mordred might endure, but you, Gareth..."
"…Mm, I can't deny that. To be honest, I don't have the confidence to survive a Noble Phantasm that reverses causality."
"Mash, for the same reason, I need you to protect Ritsuka without fail."
"Understood!"
That leaves...
"The Author Duo is also out. The most important thing in a Reconnaissance in Force is a safe return, and your parameters are far too low."
"Hmph! To think you would even consider making me scout, how absurdly foolish."
"I didn't ask you, did I? Anyway... for the same reason, Jekyll, you're out too."
"…Why? If it comes to it, I can go wild with my Noble Phantasm."
"Hmm... indeed. Even if Jekyll's Noble Phantasm makes him unable to distinguish friend from foe, his temporary parameters should at least reach the level of the Three Knight classes... similar to Mordred," Zolgen agreed.
But that wasn't the real issue.
"While Dangerous Game: The Secret Game of Sin does explosively increase parameters, the inability to distinguish between targets is too great a demerit. Furthermore, his base parameters as a Berserker are simply too low."
"Then who do you intend to take?"
"First, Paracelsus, Zolgen, and Nursery Rhyme must remain. The first two need to maintain the workshop and protect the civilians... and as for Nursery, you know why, right?"
"Lacking in stats, I suppose."
"The person coming with me will be Tristan, who belongs to the Three Knight classes and has no specific elemental weaknesses. And..."
I turned my head toward a man wearing an intrigued smile.
"I'll take the man who can analyze the 'true purpose' currently unfolding within the Mages' Association—Sherlock Holmes."
*
When moving troops, one must be as swift as the wind.
Such was the case for Tristan and me right now.
Tristan, as an Archer who functioned as a sniper while constantly changing positions to confuse opponents, possessed naturally high Agility. As for myself, I utilized the repulsive and reactive forces of the Deva Path to achieve high-speed travel... of course, it took countless days of suffering to master such a technique.
Holmes?
Well... thanks to Tristan's high Strength, he was able to carry him while we moved.
"Since it isn't evening yet, there's only fog. No Servants, Shadows... or rather, those zombie-like things are wandering about."
"To be precise, they are a type of vengeful spirit. The ones Jack the Ripper manipulates."
"Master, will we be able to accurately locate Jack?"
"Even with the Rinnegan, pinning down an Assassin is difficult... though my eyes can read the essence of Prana, those maniacs are capable of hiding beyond the very veil of magical energy."
In terms of pure concealment, the Assassin class—those who surpassed even the likes of Angra Mainyu who could hide within Ley Lines—were unparalleled. Moreover, Jack the Ripper was a class of Heroic Spirit comparable to Hassan-i-Sabbah when conditions were met... her concealment ability within a foggy night was legendary for a reason.
Fortunately, Chaldea was providing direct investigation and briefings on the other two strategic-grade Servants, excluding that troublesome Assassin.
Paracelsus and Makiri had returned to their workshop to focus on producing Elementals and Homunculi. Mordred and Gareth were stuck to Ritsuka's side for the time being. I didn't expect much from the authors, but Nursery Rhyme's Jabberwock should be able to block most common attacks.
[As you probably know from being there, the Clock Tower headquarters is perpetually inscribed with magecraft for detecting enemies. Beyond that, there are repelling incantations to bar civilians and various surveillance evasion charms...]
"I know. It also possesses the ability to avoid interference from other summoned creatures."
This was exactly why I couldn't use my Animal Path summons to observe the enemy camp, unlike in other Singularities.
Pushing in by force risked collapsing the Clock Tower, while merely testing the waters would result in being shot down immediately.
"We need to head inside... but something feels strange."
"Is it a detective's intuition?"
Tristan asked with a smile.
"While you may possess the Instinct skill, true intuition is a matter of the mind."
"…The mind?"
"It is not a mere guess. It is the process where, the moment a situation is encountered, the conscious step-by-step solution is skipped. One introduces every possible scenario within their mind... and pulls out the most rational one—the 'answer.' The Instinct you possess is a refined predictive capacity, born of experiences carved into your soul, allowing you to sense and react to the opponent's next move in the heat of battle."
"Oh... that sounds plausible. However, our King sometimes appeared to see into the future through her Instinct."
"I can do that as well. If provided with sufficient experience, data, and various preliminary information, predicting the future is quite simple. Deducing the Niagara Falls from a single drop of water or identifying a smoker from a speck of dust follows the same principle. You simply see the future, while I infer the past. That is the only difference."
"Your discourse on abductive reasoning is all well and good, Mr. Advisory Detective. What truly matters is what 'incongruity' you've sensed with that logic of yours."
"It is far too clean."
Holmes stated.
"Naturally, no civilians would flee to the Clock Tower... because a repelling Bounded Field would be in place. However, for a place supposedly occupied by the 'Mafia' faction... the surroundings are far too tidy. With the exception of the dusty floors, which have accumulated days' worth of grime due to a lack of foot traffic."
"…"
"As you know, dust accumulating on the streets is no ordinary thing. Especially in a London choked with smog—a mix of steam and toxins. Furthermore, this Clock Tower is the Mafia's headquarters. Yet, to have this complete lack of human presence... is that not exceedingly suspicious?"