Chapter 222
After giving Jeanne a kunai engraved with the Flying Thunder God formula so they could contact each other when necessary, Kiriya got into the car with Gordes and headed for Yggdmillennia Castle.
Before entering, he felt an oppressive gaze settle upon him.
Looking up, Kiriya spotted a tall, middle-aged man dressed in a long black coat.
The tremendous magical energy radiating from him immediately gave away his identity.
’That should be Lancer of Black—Vlad III.’
The two merely exchanged a distant glance.
A moment later, Vlad III disappeared back into the castle.
Kiriya paid it no mind and followed Gordes inside.
...
In the luxurious great hall at the heart of the castle, Kiriya was greeted by a handsome young nobleman with a refined, scholarly air.
His voice carried both admiration and unmistakable enthusiasm.
"Welcome to Yggdmillennia, young hero."
"I am Darnic Prestone Yggdmillennia. I have been awaiting your arrival."
At Darnic’s words, the Masters and Servants gathered throughout the hall all turned toward Kiriya.
Their gazes held a mixture of curiosity, confusion, and scrutiny.
Kiriya met all of them without the slightest discomfort.
He stood straight as a drawn sword, his expression calm.
"A pleasure. I’m Kiriya."
"That’s... he’s just a normal human?"
A handsome boy sitting nearby yawned, looking thoroughly bored.
Roche Frain Yggdmillennia.
"The clan head called all of us here in such a hurry just for him?"
He sighed.
"Can we get this pointless meeting over with? I still need to ask Caster about golem construction."
Many of those present had no idea what had happened more than ten kilometers away.
They had simply been summoned to the hall without explanation and were still trying to understand why.
"Oh? I think he’s rather interesting."
Beside Roche, a voluptuous woman watched Kiriya with unabashed interest.
Celenike Icecolle Yggdmillennia.
Her gaze burned as she slowly ran her tongue across her lips.
"What an adorable boy..."
Her voice dropped into a murmur barely audible to anyone nearby.
"I’d love to take him somewhere private and—"
Rider, standing beside her, immediately gave her a disgusted sidelong look.
"What a creepy woman."
He quietly clicked his tongue.
"Too bad you’ve misunderstood something."
"That guy isn’t some doll you can push around however you want."
"Is he the human from that battle?"
A graceful young woman with elegant features studied Kiriya curiously.
Fiore Forvedge Yggdmillennia, the designated successor to the clan.
"Are you certain, Archer? No matter how I look at him, I can’t sense any magical energy at all."
When the battle had erupted earlier, Archer’s exceptional senses had immediately noticed it.
Using his Clairvoyance, Chiron had observed Kiriya fighting Karna from afar and relayed what he saw to Fiore.
"Do not allow appearances to deceive you."
Chiron’s voice entered her mind.
"It is true that I sense no magical energy from him."
"Yet he gives me an unmistakable sense of danger."
The Heroic Spirit paused.
"He resembles a sword that has been forged, folded, and sharpened countless times."
"I see."
Fiore smiled serenely.
"Receiving such praise from you only makes me more curious about him."
Her younger brother, Caules, silently watched Kiriya as well.
His eyes flickered thoughtfully.
’Does this have something to do with that battle earlier?’
...
Darnic was unsurprised by Kiriya’s composed demeanor.
Powerful individuals usually possessed some degree of pride.
That was perfectly acceptable.
As long as Kiriya wanted something, there was room for negotiation.
A combatant capable of contending with Karna was more than worthy of respectful treatment.
"Kiriya-san, your willingness to visit our humble home is an honor."
Darnic began with the expected courtesies before smoothly moving to the real subject.
"Since you have come here, I assume your objective is the same as ours."
"The Holy Grail."
"Am I correct?"
"Yes."
Kiriya nodded without hesitation.
"Thank you for your candor."
Darnic bowed gracefully.
"Then after what occurred earlier, I imagine you already possess some understanding of the present situation."
"I do."
Kiriya nodded again.
"This is an unprecedented Holy Grail War."
"Seven Servants of Red and seven Servants of Black will fight as opposing factions. Once one side is defeated, the survivors will ultimately compete among themselves, and the final victor claims the Grail."
He looked directly at Darnic.
"That’s why I came here."
"I intend to join the Black faction."
"Would you welcome me?"
"Of course."
Darnic’s face immediately brightened.
He bowed deeply.
"Your participation would undoubtedly make this Holy Grail War far more remarkable."
"However..."
He straightened.
"If you do not mind, I have one question."
"Why choose the Black faction?"
"Because you’re weaker." Kiriya answered so casually that the entire hall seemed to freeze.
Then it exploded.
"You arrogant bastard!"
Roche shot to his feet and pointed angrily at Kiriya.
"My, my."
Celenike smiled dangerously and ran her tongue across her lips again.
"This little boy really doesn’t know how to speak properly."
"Perhaps he needs to be taught some manners."
"Oh?"
Kiriya tilted his head toward the two of them.
"You disagree?"
His black eyes silently turned crimson.
The Sharingan activated.
And with it—Genjutsu.
In an instant, the luxurious great hall vanished from Roche and Celenike’s perception.
And a blood-red world replaced it.
Their bodies were pinned helplessly in place as enormous iron spikes pierced straight through them.
Again.
And again.
And again.
The pain repeated without end, as though their bodies were being run through from every conceivable direction.
"Hah... hah...!"
Roche and Celenike collapsed onto the floor.
Both gasped desperately for air, their bodies trembling uncontrollably.
Kiriya’s cold voice reached them from above.
"Still have any objections?"
The two jolted.
Then they shook their heads so rapidly they looked like rattles.
Fiore and Caules, both naturally more reserved, had wisely avoided joining in the insults.
Now, seeing Roche and Celenike reduced to that state without Kiriya even moving from where he stood, cold chills ran down their backs.
"Mystic Eyes?"
Darnic and Caster exclaimed almost simultaneously.
Their gazes toward Kiriya changed at once.
Shock was quickly joined by something far less restrained—
Greed.
Desire.
For magi, Mystic Eyes held an extraordinarily special place.
In broad terms, Mystic Eyes were created when the eyes themselves functioned as magical organs, transforming ordinary sight from a passive means of receiving visual information into a medium capable of directly influencing the outside world.
Their effective range usually extended wherever the user could see, and their effects became particularly potent when the target met the wielder’s gaze directly.
Because they were difficult to identify from appearance alone and equally difficult to defend against, possessing powerful Mystic Eyes was often regarded as a mark of an exceptional magus.
However, Mystic Eyes created through artificial modification were only one category.
Far rarer were those possessed naturally from birth.
Medusa’s Mystic Eyes of Petrification were an extreme example.
Naturally occurring Mystic Eyes were generally far more powerful and possessed vastly greater potential than artificially manufactured ones.
And Kiriya—a young man with no detectable foundation in magecraft whatsoever—clearly possessed naturally occurring Mystic Eyes.
More importantly, these were of a type that none of them had ever seen recorded before.
What did that imply?
An entirely new phenomenon.
Unknown possibilities.
Mysteries no magus had ever studied.
How could anyone dedicated to magecraft possibly remain indifferent to such a miracle?
’I must obtain those eyes.’
Darnic silently made his decision.
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