Wolf Surrounded

Hmm. His good side, eh...

Hmm...

I can certainly understand why you don't feel like you can trust him.

But if nothing else, he really did risk his life to defend Fujimaru.

...I see.

All right, fine. I still don't trust him, but I can deal with him accompanying us.

Is that so? Because I don't recall allowing YOU to accompany us.

I've got at least as much right to come along as this Shinjuku Archer guy does!

Honestly, I'm amazed you've made it this far dragging him along.

Are you simply incapable of being quiet? I can't stand the rattling of your chains and armor all the time.

Oh, like you're one to talk.

...Hey, now that I take a closer look, that's not a bad outfit, at least by your standards.

Why'd you pick it anyway?

Not that I care.

What's so notable about my outfit? This is Shinjuku, remember?

A good Servant always dresses to match their location.

A Lancer I know had a silly-looking Hawaiian shirt that was really quite becoming on him. It suited his flippant persona perfectly.

So why shouldn't I wear the same type of clothing? I don't see the problem.

Hmm... Hmmmmmm...

So hey, on a completely different topic.

That place over there looks pretty shady.

Shady?

All I see are the remains of a perfectly ordinary boutique.

Maybe that's all you see, but I've got a sixth sense about these sorts of things.

There's something there. I'm sure of it.

...Is that so? Something's there, huh...? I see.

So on that note, I'm gonna go check it out! Wait right here. If you leave me behind, I'll kill you.

Huh!? Jeanne!?

Astonishing.

It's refreshing to see how remarkably straightforward she is.

It happened so fast I couldn't even think of a way to stop her...

？！

Waiting is all fine and good, but...

That sounds like multiple motorcycles. Be careful, Master!

I'm picking up three sources of powerful magical energy!

Hey hey, check out the bonus just lying around!

Yeehah! It's a geezer and a chick!

Did we luck out or what! Let's take 'em all!

I can't tell if they're being polite or not.

Wait, what!?

Ahem, my apologies.

They're so all over the place that I couldn't help but be slow to react.

I'm very sorry, Master.

？！

Ugh... I knew that witch would bring us nothing but trouble.

Very well, I suppose I can be moved to deal with them.

Ha ha ha ha! Check these babies out and say that again!

Wha...!?

Oh, they have chimeras.

They're not just any chimeras!

They're special Demonic Beasts made by mixing science and magecraft!

The guy who sold them to us said they're more like Phantasmals, though! That's how powerful they are!

I believe you may have been deceived.

I think the term for it is "false advertising"?

We got a volume discount for buying three of them, so it was a killer deal! Go on, Super Chimeras! Sic 'em!

Even his name for them is unimaginative!

Regardless, do not let your guard down. I suspect they're a deal more dangerous than they look.

They've created a haphazard mishmash of defective components, and somehow made it all dangerous!

Regardless, remain alert, and keep your guard up!

Hey, what's going on? How can they be this strong!?

I-it may be a silly name, but the threat they pose is genuine! And there's still one left!

Heh heh heh! We may be dead, but that Super Chimera still lives! Go on, Super Chimera! Kill 'em dead!

Huh?

It's...dead? No way...

This is...not our lucky day.

I-it's...the Rider of Shinjuku!

I was monitoring his location, but he closed the distance in an instant!

It just killed the Super Chimera in a single bite. How can its jaw even be that strong!?

Master... Back up. Slowly.

You need to get out of Rider's range, carefully.

？！

Ngh...

Master!

？！

Hang on, don't give up just yet!

!?

This is the howl of a soul filled with hatred...

La Grondement Du Haine!

You idiot! You could have killed us all!

What was that!? You're the one who gave me the signal to use my Noble Phantasm!

I did no such...

...You.

Bingo!

Wait, wait! Put down the sacred sword and listen to me.

Th-the fire caused by Jeanne's Noble Phantasm has surrounded you! There's no way to escape!

Good! That goes for the Rider of Shinjuku as well!

Not even you can easily jump over a wall of hellfire like this!

On top of that, we can also use it to keep Master safe! ...Er, as long as he watches out for the heat!

Hahahaha!

At any rate, my apologies for dragging you into this, Master, but I am going to settle my score with Rider now!

？！

Ugh, like Servant, like Master!

Very well, but make absolutely sure to stay behind me!

Here he comes!

Don't expect us to go easy on you, Dullahan!

Did you get it!?

Not yet!

Wind!!!

Bull's-eye!

...What?

Master!

？！

...

It got away...

No, your blow was definitely fatal. And Jeanne's fire was perfect.

Of course, your orders were absolutely spot-on too, Master.

The only failure here was in my strategy. I underestimated Rider's tenacity.

The hatred that wolf bears is deeper than the ocean itself. The wolf is the one controlling the knight.

I should have realized it sooner. Dullahans are only an urban legend.

They may seem scary, but they're nothing more than a harmless concept; at most they're innocent fright.

But not that wolf. Its loathing knows no bounds.

It doesn't eat people out of hunger, but out of hatred.

It really despises people that much?

Oh, yes. After what just happened, I'm certain of it.

That hatred is no mere thing of myth, nor is this wolf something that was simply worshipped and abandoned.

It is a far more direct kind of hatred. The sort that comes from trauma, like having one's wife murdered.

And I know of only one Phantom Spirit who meets that description.

Oh, so it's an inverse.

A beast that made its mark in mythology would be more akin to a Phantasmal.

A being who was once worshipped would never hate humans that much. Certainly not enough to eat them.

I mean, it's such a barbaric act.

So in other words...an inverse. A famous wolf, with little historical bearing.

？！

You are correct, Master.

A man named Seton once wrote about it.

He described it as a real-life Demonic Beast: a monster so smart it was feared as a literal demon.

He loathed humans for killing his mate, Blanca, and that hate persisted until his death.

Lobo...the king of Currumpaw.

Now I see. So it grew by feeding on both humans and hatred alike.

Hey.

The hell's wrong with you, letting it escape after I went and used my Noble Phantasm?

Oh, yes... Sorry about that. It was all my fault. Feel free to chew me out all you like.

Stay away from me. You stink.

I meant scold me for messing up, not ad hominem insults!

Are you ashamed of yourself for this, Master? You. Should. Be!

Yeah. That's better.

Don't do it, Master. Apologize to her once, and you'll never hear the end of it.

Hey! Shaddap, ice bitch queen!

？！

Anyway, we've got this idiot back. Now what do we do?

It's unfortunate we weren't able to finish off the Rider of Shinjuku.

But with those wounds, it won't be returning to the front line anytime soon.

The worst thing about that Rider was its ability to zip around all of Shinjuku.

But now that it's immobilized, we can take out the League of Phantom Fiends.

In other words...

Oh, I know. The Berserker.

Ah, that puppet master, huh... or rather, the puppet herself, as she's the one who poses the most danger.

I say, didn't your parents ever teach you two not to finish others' sentences for them!?

Now I've gone and wasted a perfectly good eureka face!

Shut up.

Come on, Master, say something!

Unfortunately for you, Master is already captivated with me.

Oh please, you wish.

Who in their right mind would be attracted to an ice bitch queen so pale she'd make a corpse look tan?

That is an unfortunate choice of dying words.

Huh? What's the problem?

I mean, she and I are both Alters, so being bad is the same as being good for us.

Speak for yourself. I may allow evil to run amok, but not at the expense of order.

？！

...

I knew you and I wouldn't get along.

Did you actually think I might consider you an ally?

If this were a proper Holy Grail War, I'd already have killed you on the spot.

Oh yeah? Well, no time like the present, huh?

Hmm. You make a good point.

You're damn right I do, ice bitch queen.

Whoa whoa, this isn't right. Why is this happening?

Don't try to stop me, Master.

My intuition is telling me to settle this here and now!

Aah! I think your intuition might be wrong!

Bickering? Is that what you think this is, Master?

I'm going to skewer her alive, just like her good-for-nothing son did!

？！

Haha, well isn't this something.

One moment we're having an ordinary conversation, the next they're trying to kill each other!

This is the trouble with altered Servants!

Now now! Now now now now!

I'm sure you both have plenty you wish to say to one another, and things you'd like to kill each other over, but please, this is hardly the time!

Let's take care of the Berserker of Shinjuku first, then you'll be free to do whatever terrible violence you wish to each other!

Well? What do you say!?

...

...

I suppose I can wait that long to kill her.

Fine with me. I can handle you anytime you're ready.

Wonderful! It's great to see you two getting along! Now, let's use our newly reforged alliance to take out the Berserker of Shinjuku!

Go team!

Let's get out of here, Master.

Go on, lead the way already. Geez, you can be thick sometimes.

？！

...Yay team.

Y-yay.

Mash! Thank you!

Haha, easy there, Archer.

Ugh, what's with this hideout? It stinks, it's old... It's perfect for you, ice bitch queen.

Oh, gross! There's a dog? I hate dogs.

If you don't like it, you're free to turn into your spirit form. Or even better, disappear for good.

You wish. Anyway, if Master can take it, then so can I.

Tch.

Now come on, Master. Don't you have anything to say?

I'm waiting.

Is that it!? Nothing about how good it looks on me, or how well I wear it!?

I know, right? I-I mean, of course it does, since I'm the one wearing it and all.

(What a pushover.)

？！

...?

Oh, another phone call... How would you like to handle it, Master?

？！

I'm glad the rescue mission worked out.

I only wish I had some good news to follow it.

？！

Usually, I prefer to make my reports once I've grasped the full truth of a situation.

In cases where there's no room for conjecture, and ordinary people can't understand what's going on...

I step in and conduct rigorous investigations.

But this time...I'm afraid there was only so much even I could do.

Even though there are still a number of unknowns, I need to pass this information on to you right awayregrettable as that may be.

It's incredibly vexing, but I'm afraid I have no choice.

After all, time is not on our side. I've never seen this man so desperate.

He plans everything down to the smallest detail, and thus utterly detests when things take too long.

So while this method is atypical for him...it also means that everything in my investigation points to him as the culprit.

In this malicious Shinjuku, the station has become a veritable dungeon, and every building here is in some state of disrepair. However...

Have you noticed that there was one building which has been completely replaced?

...That's right. You've seen it before. That strange tower taking the place of the Metropolitan Government Building. The tower that grows day by day.

That tower is...the barrel of a gun.

？！

Hahaha! I don't blame you for being taken aback, Master! But as wild as it may seem, it's the truth.

The Archer of Shinjukuthe one who isn't your Servantis the leader of the League of Phantom Fiends.

And I now know what it is he's after.

He plans to destroy the earth. To obliterate it.

To tackle that tower, you must first defeat the League of Phantom Fiends.

The Berserker of Shinjuku, the Assassin of Shinjuku, the Rider of Shinjuku, and one more...

An Archer that uses modern-day weaponry.

Jeanne d'Arc Alter knows him well, so you should ask her about him.

I'm sure you'll be heading out to defeat these Servants as soon as you have a chance of victory.

Who do you plan on facing next?

？！

Hmm. A reasonable decision.

The Berserker can be found near Kabukicho. He's a typical tyrant, an absolute dystopian.

There's also the logistics problem, what with you being outnumbered, but I'm sure you can handle that.

The real problem is...well, you. I'm guessing you'll be presented with a choice.

Though I'm afraid you'll get hurt no matter what decision you make.

As your guide, let me give you some advice: endure.

Whatever it is, you can take it. Hang on to that nobility of yours, and you'll always be you!

Oh, and as for the Archer of Shinjuku...

...

Don't trust him too much. I have no doubt that he is your enemy.

As long as I'm going around investigating like this, the Archer will surely be able to deduce the conclusion I've reached.

So telling him not to trust him is not a stretch by any means.

Anyway, now I just wait to see how he reacts upon learning about this.

No doubt Master will try to trust him, but some suspicions will surely remain.

When the time comes, will he attempt to kill him, or merely deceive him?

Or perhaps he'll do something that not even "I" can predict. Either way, we'll soon find out.