Chapter 221
Jeanne was not some gullible innocent who would trust anyone after hearing a few convincing sentences.
Her earlier attitude toward Gordes had already made that perfectly clear.
The reason she was willing to believe Kiriya came down to one of her Skills—
Revelation.
It was similar in principle to Intuition.
While Intuition functioned as a sixth sense primarily in battle, Revelation guided its wielder toward the course of action most suited to accomplishing a particular objective, such as choosing the correct path during a journey.
And right now, Jeanne’s Revelation was telling her that trusting Kiriya would help her fulfill her duties as Ruler.
"Just out of curiosity, how exactly are you planning to stop him?"
Kiriya looked at her.
"You’re not thinking of trying to talk him out of it, are you?"
"If you are, I’d give up on that idea now. I think his whole ’salvation of humanity’ plan is complete garbage, but I’ll give the man credit for one thing—his conviction is real."
"He endured sixty years for this and is willing to sacrifice absolutely everything, including himself."
Kiriya shook his head.
"You’re not talking someone like that down with a passionate speech."
"As a Servant, Amakusa himself isn’t particularly impressive in combat, but his will and determination are another matter entirely."
Jeanne frowned.
"Do I really seem so naïve to you that I’d rely on words alone?"
"To be fair, I was slightly worried your kindness might get the better of you."
Kiriya answered with complete seriousness.
"I’m not that simple-minded."
Jeanne’s expression became firm.
"If he is a Servant, then I’ll settle this as Servants do."
"Now that’s some spirit."
Kiriya immediately gave her a thumbs-up.
"Just what I’d expect from the Saint of Orleans."
"I-It’s nothing that impressive."
Jeanne scratched her cheek, looking slightly embarrassed.
"It’s simply my responsibility as Ruler."
Then she hesitated.
"And you don’t need to call me ’Saint’ or anything like that. Jeanne is fine."
"Sure."
Kiriya raised one finger.
"But in exchange, stop calling me Kiriya-san. You’re making me sound older than I am."
He smiled.
"Just call me Kiriya."
"All right... Kiriya-kun."
Jeanne carefully shaped the unfamiliar intimacy of the name.
"That’s better."
Kiriya extended his hand.
"Then from now on, we’re comrades."
"Comrades?"
Jeanne looked at his outstretched hand in confusion.
"You intend to stop Amakusa Shirou Tokisada, right?"
Kiriya spoke calmly.
"But you saw what happened earlier. Karna alone is already troublesome enough."
"And he isn’t the only monster on the Red side."
"Amakusa also has Atalanta and Achilles under his control."
Jeanne’s expression changed dramatically.
"W-What?"
She bit her lower lip.
"Are you certain?"
Her current incarnation possessed excellent Parameters, and Ruler came with numerous privileges.
Her Magic Parameter alone could even reach EX rank.
Even so, facing three legendary heroes of that caliber at once was not something Jeanne had the confidence to handle.
Then Revelation activated again.
For an instant, she glimpsed a fragment of what lay ahead.
That was enough.
Jeanne could no longer doubt Kiriya’s information.
"How do you know all of this?"
She stared at him in bewilderment.
Information concerning Servants’ True Names and the internal situation of the Red faction should have been among the most closely guarded secrets in the entire Holy Grail War.
"Well..."
Kiriya smiled mysteriously.
"I have my sources."
He waved the subject aside.
"But there’s something else you should be thinking about first."
"What?"
"You need more fighting power, don’t you?"
Kiriya pointed a thumb toward himself with shameless confidence.
"As luck would have it, I happen to enjoy fighting."
The legendary heroes summoned into this war were all masters of combat.
Every one of them had developed their own understanding of martial arts through countless battles.
And Kiriya possessed the Mangekyō Sharingan, one of the greatest copying tools imaginable.
If he could fight more of them and absorb their combat techniques, the benefits would be enormous.
Not to mention that battle itself generated excelia and raised his Status.
There was absolutely no reason for Kiriya to pass up an opportunity like this.
Jeanne shook her head.
"I’m sorry, Kiriya-kun, but I can’t accept that."
"Huh?"
Kiriya stared at her.
"Why not?"
Who turned away free reinforcements?
"Don’t tell me you’re still worried about neutrality."
His expression became serious.
"This concerns humanity and potentially the entire world. There’s no reason to obsess over technicalities at a time like this."
"You should be gathering every ally you reasonably can."
"The Holy Grail War is a conflict between Masters and Servants."
Jeanne calmly stated the rules.
"You are neither."
"There is no reason for you to become involved."
"Allowing what happened earlier was already a failure on my part as Ruler. I cannot knowingly repeat that mistake."
Kiriya broke into a grin.
"Oh, is that all?"
"You just need me to become a Master?"
He waved casually.
"Give me a little time. I’ll have a slot soon enough."
Jeanne instinctively glanced toward Gordes in the distance.
"You aren’t planning to..."
"No, no."
Kiriya immediately waved both hands.
"I’m a civilized person."
"I’ll simply explain the situation to the leadership of the Black faction and make it clear how valuable having me on their side would be."
"I’m sure their boss is capable of recognizing a good deal."
"Would they really agree?" Jeanne asked doubtfully.
Magi were people willing to sacrifice almost anything in pursuit of the Root.
Would they willingly introduce another powerful competitor into the Holy Grail War?
Kiriya looked amused.
"Do you think they have much of a choice?"
"Either they give me a Master position and I join the Black faction..."
"Or they refuse, and I join the Red faction instead."
He spread his hands.
"Which option do you think they’ll pick?"
Jeanne gave him a helpless look.
"Kiriya-kun, you can be surprisingly devious."
"I’m giving them an enormous addition to their combat strength."
Kiriya sounded perfectly innocent.
"Besides, I only need the position of Master. I’m not even asking them to hand over control of a Servant."
"If they still complain after that, there’s no saving them."
"All right."
Jeanne finally nodded.
"That argument is difficult to dispute."
She extended her hand.
"Then I look forward to fighting alongside you."
"Haha! Likewise."
Kiriya shook her hand.
And so, despite having met only hours earlier, the young man and the saint formed an agreement to stand together in the coming conflict.
Sometimes, fate worked in strangely convenient ways.
"Great."
Kiriya immediately brightened.
"Once I’ve officially become a Master, let’s go beat some sense into Amakusa Shirou Tokisada."
"I’m afraid we can’t."
Jeanne shook her head.
Kiriya froze.
"Huh?"
"My Revelation has shown me fragments of what may happen, but Amakusa has not yet committed an actual violation that justifies Ruler’s intervention."
Jeanne explained patiently.
"If I attacked him before he takes concrete action, I would compromise the fairness of the Holy Grail War."
"So basically, we need to catch him red-handed."
Jeanne paused at the blunt phrasing.
"...Essentially, yes."
"Works for me."
Kiriya’s eyes shifted thoughtfully.
"As long as we keep an eye on the Greater Grail and prevent him from tampering with it, there’s no rush."
Then his expression brightened again.
"In that case, how about we clean up another unstable element in the Holy Grail War first?"
Jeanne immediately became interested.
"Who?"
Kiriya rubbed his chin.
"Jeanne, have you ever heard of Jack the Ripper?"
"Jack the Ripper?"
Jeanne blinked.
"The serial killer active in London during the nineteenth century?"
Then realization dawned.
"You mean..."
"One of the Black Masters summoned Jack the Ripper as Assassin, hoping the lack of reliable information about Jack’s identity would make the Servant difficult to counter."
Kiriya shrugged.
"Unfortunately, the summoning went badly, and the Master lost control."
"Now Assassin is roaming around freely, hunting people and feeding."
Jeanne’s expression grew darker with every word.
And in Jack’s case, "feeding" was not a figure of speech.
This Jack the Ripper was no heroic figure.
She was a murderous wraith.
She delighted in killing humans, tearing out their organs, and consuming both flesh and souls to replenish and strengthen herself.
By the time Kiriya finished explaining, Jeanne’s face had become grim.
"Where is she?"
"Sighișoara."
Kiriya glanced at her.
"Near the Red faction’s base."
He smiled.
"Want to go?"
"Of course."
Jeanne nodded without the slightest hesitation.