Chapter Thirty-Eight: The Battle Unfolds Suddenly

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“Aaahhh. This is so frustrating, oh great deity!” Somewhere on the school grounds, beneath a tree, a certain teacher with somewhat questionable morals was squatting, shouting and wailing. Yet the students, long accustomed to Lancer’s bizarre antics, simply walked past him with the utmost calm.

“Ding~” Suddenly, a voice rang in Lancer’s ear.

“What are you up to, Renhua?” Though the voice was nearly the same as always, Lancer sensed something was off and couldn’t help but comment.

“Did you catch me? But you’ve only just returned for a day and you’re already back to normal? Already looking for girls?” The voice betrayed no sense of being caught in a prank, only continuing to probe him.

“Isn’t this task your doing? Or are you just pretending to be clueless?” Lancer spoke without even thinking; this was exactly what he’d wanted to say the moment he received the assignment.

“Who knows? But I didn’t expect your mentality to recover so quickly. Looks like I didn’t need to give you a break after all. Alright, it’s time to come back and finish the job.”

“What?! Now?” No sooner had he shouted this inwardly than his entire consciousness slipped away.

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“Back again?” Lancer sighed, surveying the mist-shrouded world. But he was soon interrupted by a familiar voice.

“So, you’ve finally returned?” Though he knew she was, on the surface, a loli, her other defining traits were clearly scheming and queenly. Yet, for some reason, hearing her say this, Lancer felt an urge to pat her on the head. True to his reputation as a fool, he acted before thinking—his hand reached out and did just that.

“….” From an angle Lancer couldn’t see, Renhua’s face flushed slightly. “What do you think you’re doing, you idiot?” She then tossed a small notebook to him.

Not believing for a second that a scheming loli could be shy, Lancer ignored her and examined the object in his hands. “This is your final reward. Enough chatter—draw your prize, then start the next task.”

“Yes, yes, I understand, milady.”

Seeing that slot machine that had once granted him the Seed of Oni-God, Lancer couldn’t help but feel a surge of emotion.

He pressed the selection button with perfect composure.

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“Choice of Fate: In every world, you have three chances to alter your own luck. Luck will affect the outcome of various events. Each time you change your luck, the previous value is erased; in other words, you can’t pick and choose the best.”

From Lancer’s perspective, this was an incredibly overpowered item, but for some reason he felt as if he were stepping into a trap, though he couldn’t say why. He slipped the coin representing the choice into his ring, then pulled out the notebook Renhua had just given him.

“Servant’s Pact: Number of followers 0/5.” He opened to the first page and found only this line. The rest of the book was blank, but he discovered a slip of paper tucked inside.

“The Servant’s Pact—may be forged with those who truly wish to follow the bearer; those who sign the pact may travel through time and space alongside the bearer.”

Just a few lines, yet Lancer was so moved he felt tears prick at his eyes.

“Ahahaha, at last, our wish shall be fulfilled!” At this moment, Lancer, utterly consumed by his own delusions, brandished the book and laughed maniacally as if poised to conquer the world.

“What are you so happy about? Did you think I didn’t know what filthy thoughts you harbor? I just want you to find me a few people to chat with, that’s all.” Her voice instantly cut off his triumphant laughter.

“Enough. My part is done. Now choose what you need. Of course, you can check your mission first. Remember, I’m looking forward to an entertaining game.”

With a discordant, queenly laugh, Renhua once again vanished into the mists.

“Missions? Right.” Lancer turned his attention to the ring on his hand.

Sure enough, under the original “Challenge” mission, a new task had appeared.

“Eradicate—the abominable deeds of Zoken Matou, who has forsaken all human dignity to cling to life, have enraged the gods. Eliminate Zoken Matou. Reward: 3,000 experience.”

The first mission posed no pressure at all for Lancer. Even if the task had been to protect Zoken, he would have risked failure just to put the man down; now that the mission aligned with his own feelings, it was simply a chance to earn some extra reward.

“Destruction’s Herald—due to misguided actions, the Holy Grail will descend. Destroy the completed Grail before its black mud can taint the world. Mission reward: 4,000 experience???"

The second mission left him puzzled. By the original flow of events, wasn’t that the natural conclusion anyway? What really troubled him, though, was whether he could save Irisviel in the end. Even if he muddled through this time, next time he’d still have to face Illya’s situation, so Lancer searched desperately through the exchange items within his ring.

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His search yielded two valuable items.

Holy Water, one barrel—300 experience: Holy water is highly lethal to all evil beings, with enough potency to kill even a greater demon. In Lancer’s opinion, Zoken didn’t even qualify as a demon, but just to be safe, he exchanged for two barrels. He then found a decent scroll—though its effect was limited, it was cheap at just 400 experience, and he happily bought one.

But solving the problem of Irisviel was another matter. It wasn’t that there was nothing suitable, but he truly didn’t know what to choose.

“Soul Lockstone—Upon the death of a living being, their soul can be confined and later released, but requires a suitable vessel. Price: 100 experience.” On the surface, this seemed like a bargain, but Lancer could tell how impractical it was. First, what exactly constituted a suitable vessel? And even if one were found and used to revive her, would she really be the same person?

“Blood Crystal: By sacrificing all the special abilities of one individual, it will fully restore another’s life, but the revived person also loses all their special abilities.” This one seemed genuinely useful to Lancer. Even if he managed to save Irisviel, he had to consider the impact on the Fifth Holy Grail War, so he pondered what would be the most reasonable course of action.

There were other items that Lancer could only covet but never hope to own—such as the Nuwa Stone and the like. He didn’t even bother to check the stats, knowing the cost would be unbearable.

As for the rest, Lancer didn’t see any need to prepare. Zoken, with his resources, would be easily dealt with, and as for the likes of Gilgamesh, Lancer had no intention of relying on them. For the sake of his own ambitions, he decided to keep saving up.

“Renhua, I’m ready. Let’s begin.” Lancer took off his suit, and the “Light and Shadow” armor, long since restored, manifested around him once more. He donned his mask, his face now betraying no emotion whatsoever. Though this mission was not particularly troublesome, Lancer’s demeanor shifted—he was no longer the shameless teacher, but the “Blood Knight” whose name had silenced the cries of children throughout the Empire during the age of King Arthur.

As he stepped through the jester’s gate, he felt the “Blood of the Oni-God” within him, long dormant, suddenly begin to boil of its own accord.

“Could it be…”

Phew—finally finished! I really went all out tonight, staying up to get this done for the convention.

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