Jack the Ripper.
"He" was an infamous serial killer that lurked the streets of London, England back in 1888. "His" main targets were women—all of them were prostitutes—across many ages, though they usually range from twenty to fifty years old.
"His" murders resounded in the country at that time, mainly due to the fact that "he" was never apprehended.
In the end, the infamous serial killer turned out to be an amalgamation of countless prostitutes' aborted infants. They were given form in order to enact revenge against the women who didn't even give them a chance at life.
Unfortunately, their revenge was cut short by a magus who defeated them. Nevertheless, they were recorded in the "throne of heroes" as a special form of heroic spirit—one that is constituted by the consciousness of thousands of children.
"Mother… When will big brother return?"
In contrast to their chaotic meeting a day ago, it is completely peaceful now. There aren't any magi nor the supernatural interfering with their day.
All of it was brought along by one man.
"He is busy, but he promised to come along after he is done with everything."
"Really..?"
It would've been impossible for Reika to trust someone in a day. However, he is different.
If most people had some sort of underlying motives, he doesn't have one. His eyes are extremely clear to her eyes. It is a sign of purity, something that is nigh-impossible to find on someone.
It was as if he was a Saint who came down from Heaven.
"Then, we'll have to surprise him when he returns!"
A dark-blue aura appeared on Jack's fingers. Several sparks appeared before they all disappeared into nothingness.
Surprisingly, the system of cursed energy worked well on them. They could even "feel" something innate on them by the time they learned how to temporarily harness cursed energy.
Seeing Jack play around with it, Reika felt the long-lost innocence she lost since her parents died.
*****
Sighișoara, Romania.
"To hold the grail war in a famous place…"
I am currently in Romania. To be precise, Transylvannia. It is the same setting in which a very popular legend occurred.
"Vlad III, Prince of Wallachia…"
When I first came into this world, I possessed the list of names of the heroic spirits who participated in this war. They are divided into two factions: Black and Red.
The Lancer of Black is none other than Vlad III, the national hero of Romania.
"The center of magical energy… no, these mana veins are connected into that place."
With a glance, I recognized the familiar mana veins flowing into a specific place. Following the track, my eyes saw a small town enclosed with ivory walls. A castle rested on top of its highest point.
A moment later, my vision returned back to normal.
I gulped the remaining coffee in one go before leaving the cafe.
"Fu… It's quite complicated."
Wearing my usual magister outfit, I took out my "smartphone".
"{The processing of data has been completed, goshujin-sama.}"
Miku's voice resounded from it. The smartphone has several dozen photonic crystals on its motherboard, enabling her to connect to the Internet and process all of its recent data with ease.
Based on normal conventions, she's the equivalent of dozens of supercomputers.
"{Comparing the focal differences of this world, there are three significant events found.}" She explained. "{First, the defeat of the Axis Power in 1949. Second, the existence of [Fuyuki City] in Japan. Third, the Axis Faction's split between Austria and Japan.}"
Miku summed up the differences she found.
First, the Axis Power was defeated four years later compared to my world's history. It wouldn't have been much if not for the fact that Austria and Japan turned on each other. That was a completely new piece of history exclusive to this world.
Lastly, there seems to be a single city that didn't exist in my world. Coincidentally, there was several information contained within the books entrusted to me about it.
It turns out that Fuyuki City was the chosen city for the Holy Grail War to be held on. It has the highest concentration of mana veins compared to anywhere else in the world. It is also the place where the so-called Three Families imposed their authority as the founders of the said war.
The surprises didn't end there.
The most crucial component of the grail war, the Greater Grail, was somehow stolen by the Nazis during World War II. It then landed into the hands of the "Yggdmillennia Family" here in Romania. This family planned to detach from the Clock Tower, leading to the events of this Great Holy Grail War.
At this moment, countless conjectures and predictions appeared in my mind. Slowly, my gaps in knowledge were filled up.
By the time I arrived in front of a graveyard, I had a better grasp of this world's situation.
Just then, one of my abilities worked out on its own.
…
'Huh..?'
My surroundings turned into a hazy battlefield. Corpses were all over the place. They didn't have any distinction—men, women, children, elderly.
It was nothing short of a scene you would find in a war.
"...one more chance. I shall spread the good to all of humanity..!"
The desperate cry of a man reached out my ears.
Before I could even look at him, I found myself transported back to the graveyard.
"Revelations…"
It was my first time seeing [Revelations] being this active. Since it is something special on Rulers, it should give out information on the things to look out for during this Great Holy Grail War.
"That guy…"
Suddenly, I noticed a glance land upon me. I swiftly enveloped my dreamland all around my body. It functioned similarly to cursed techniques—to be more exact, Satoru-san's shrinkage of his cursed technique's radius to his entire body.
As soon as my body is enveloped by it, any form of information emitted by it is intercepted.
In short, everyone would perceive me as a "person enveloped with gray fog". If they didn't focus their attention, they wouldn't even notice me.
"Strange… Did I see it wrong..?"
"Master!"
The familiar girl who wore a tube top along with a red leather jacket immediately materialized her armaments. She pointed her blade on my current location as she watched my every move.
Meanwhile, her Master, a muscular man with a scarred face, finally reacted. Despite the fact he couldn't see me, he brought out a Shorty (small modified shotgun) along with a black knife.
'It's quite strange seeing another version of her…'
The girl in front of me is none other than Mordred. The very same Mordred who slowly grew accustomed to the food trips I brought her into back in my world. Her appetite is the same as how I knew it.
"You really wouldn't show yourself..!"
In a blink, her armored figure is right in front of me. She swung down her precious blade.
Before it could reach me, I nimbly dodged it by jumping backwards.
Swoosh-!
Mordred took advantage of her momentum and spun her body. The downward strike was easily turned into a right slash.
The blade was about to reach me when my dreamland manifested, embodying Satoru-san's cursed technique.
A considerable amount of my mana was spent, but it made the blade remain still in the air. It left me with no choice but to partially dispel the gray fog on my body.
"Wha—?!"
Instead of replying, I gave it a flick. The stunned Mordred received the blow and went into a middle stance.
"Who are you?!"
"It's been a nice meeting. I shall treat you somewhere once everything's over."
I let out these words before disappearing.
*****
"Huh..?"
Mordred was struck silent upon the disappearance of the "intruder".
"He sounds familiar..?"
As she recalled things, her expression went into a state of shock.
"No way…"
"Are you alright?"
"...Master. I'm alright." She replied. "Back then, I could still handle him…"
"Him..? Did you know who that was just now?"
"Mn."
Her armament disappeared, leaving her previous casual clothes from before. Her master, Shishigou Kairi, saw her state of shock. He had already been with her for a week since the beginning of her summoning.
Needless to say, it was his first time seeing her like this.
"He is my acquaintance… that expressionless bloke." She explained with a hint of annoyance. "You wouldn't know whether he is joking or not with his damned face. Anyways, you must've heard about him… Galahad."
"Galahad..?"
A legend regarding him immediately popped up in Kairi's mind.
"The son of Sir Lancelot? The one who returned the Grail to heaven?"
"Mn. But, I wouldn't believe the latter if I were you. He wouldn't have made such a misstep during that time."
Back then, she couldn't believe Galahad's death. She knew him as an expressionless, unmoving knight who followed his King's orders to a tee. When they heard about his apparent death and the cause of it, they couldn't believe it.
In that crucial moment, Galahad actually chose to discard the holy grail at the cost of his death?
"Nothing showed up even on Camelot's fall. It seemed that he died to return that grail, but seeing him now…"
Questions continued to brew up in Mordred's mind. All of them slowly turned into annoyance as she stomped her feet into the ground.
"I swear I'm going to ask him what happened next time!"
Seeing this, Kairi asked her:
"So, we aren't reporting any of this to the priest?"
"He was suspicious to begin with. More importantly, Galahad's not my enemy."
"Why?"
Mordred paused for a while before she thought of something.
"He never had any wish for himself in the first place."
*****
Mordred…
I have an idea on what her wish is. It should go something along the lines of "proving herself to be worthy on the King's throne to our King". It might be a chance to pull out the Sword of Selection or something else.
Either way, my main goal in this world is to unlock the Holy Grail's full potential. This is the first one on my checklist as it would prove to be crucial during that final fight.
I don't have any memories of it, but I have a feeling that it is ominous.
After this, I would collect the other two fragments of the Philosopher's Stone and revert it to its full form once more.
With these two world-shaking sacraments, we would have a higher chance in defeating the Twilight Syndrome.
"Everything's quite chaotic…"
Thinking of the two factions, I pondered on my actions.
I could either interfere blatantly (as long as I have the proper justification as a Ruler) or remain hidden until the last moment.
Then again, I doubt I could successfully pull off the latter. I already have a feeling that this Grail War could become very troublesome if not dealt with properly.
As for using a chance to see the future…
It is extremely risky at this moment. It is similar to a gamble right now.
Back in the singularity, there weren't any "wills" or the likes. Counterforce isn't present in that world since, in Mister Schweinorg's words, "It is abandoned by it".
However, it is all and well in this world. I don't have an idea on its full capabilities nor I would choose to test it at this moment. Perhaps I would do so when my chance to enter the Reverse Side appears, but not now.
"The Black faction has Chiron while the Red Faction… another acquaintance, it seems."
When I first received the list of names, I didn't expect to see so many acquaintances in one go. Mordred is present here, and so is the Atalante of this world.
As Artemis' Orion, I have a (self-imposed) duty to take care of her familia members… even if they belong to another world.
Though, it would be really funny if I met the Orion and Artemis of this world. I do wonder, what would our interactions be like?
With these thoughts, it didn't take long before I fell to a deep contemplation within this hotel room.