Shinji Matou At Your Service

Chapter 446: The Crux of the Matter

In a corner of the ancient city of Sighișoara, a pair of green eyes and a pair of blue eyes were locked in a silent stare.

"..."

"..."

The green eyes, resembling the cat's eyes, were filled with intense dissatisfaction.

The blue eyes, as clear as the sky after a rain, were full of confusion.

This staring contest lasted for a good minute until the owner of the blue eyes, Jeanne d'Arc, could no longer endure the silence.

"Um, Red Saber, why are you looking at me like that?"

"It's because of your face. Wow, we do look alike. If my Master hadn't told me your true name, I might have thought... Never mind, it's nothing, just a resemblance."

Mordred shook her head, trying to dispel the inexplicable irritation she felt—after all, it could only be a coincidence that a Frenchwoman from over a thousand years ago looked so similar.

Having had a similar experience before, Jeanne quickly caught on.

"With your father, King Arthur, Artoria?"

"You know my true name? Oh, right, you're a Ruler, you have that privilege—so, you've met my father?"

"Yes, she came with me. We're currently in an alliance for some reason."

Jeanne nodded frankly in response to Mordred's inquiry.

"Alliance? I can't pretend I didn't hear that." Sisigou, who had been smoking nearby, interjected. "A Ruler and the Black Lancer forming an alliance? That's not a funny joke."

"It's not a joke."

The sound of leather boots striking the cobblestone street was accompanied by a dignified female voice that stood out in the tranquil night. Artoria, clad in a wool coat, emerged from around a corner of the winding alley. Her emerald eyes, so similar to Mordred's, paused on Sisigou for a moment before moving to Jeanne.

"I'm back. It seems things went smoothly on your end?"

"Yes, everything went smoothly," Jeanne nodded with a smile.

"What about Jack?"

"She went back to her mother."

"Alone? What if—" Artoria's eyebrows twitched slightly, and her gaze instinctively shifted to Mordred.

Mordred snorted and turned her head away petulantly, avoiding eye contact with her father.

"Don't worry, she left wearing a cloak."

"I see, then there shouldn't be any problems."

Upon hearing this explanation, Artoria's expression finally relaxed. She was well aware of the cloak's protective effects—thanks to it, there was no need to worry about Jack being discovered by other Servants.

Jeanne noticed and teased, "My, my, I didn't expect you to be so concerned about Jack, Mama Artoria."

Artoria blushed and quickly retorted, "And you, Mama Jeanne, that's the cloak he lent you, and you just lent it out like that."

Now it was Jeanne's turn to blush as she stammered, "W-well, he's Jack's father, anyway."

One would think that a King Arthur and a saint wouldn't engage in such banter, but with someone like Rikudou Reika around, both had been influenced by her bad manners.

Though this level of teasing might seem trivial to a seasoned veteran like Sisigou, it was quite different when it involved two of Europe's top ten most famous heroes. In just a few minutes, Sisigou felt his historical perspective crumbling.

You're telling me this is a saint? This is King Arthur? They just seem like two ordinary teenage girls (mentally)! Dealing with Mordred was already enough, and now there are two more with the same face...

Sisigou felt an overwhelming pressure.

Alright, now there's a third face added to the mix.

"What exactly is your relationship with that child?" Mordred asked, voicing her primary concern. If she hadn't mistakenly thought Jack was Artoria's child, she wouldn't have acted so strangely.

"Oh, you mean Jack? Her situation is quite special and hard to explain briefly. To put it simply, she likes to call any woman she feels close to 'Mama.' I've tried correcting her many times, but she just won't change."

Jeanne sighed as she spoke, having no solution for such a stubborn child.

"Is it the same for you, Father?" Mordred asked Artoria.

"Yes, it was a bit unsettling at first, but I got used to it," Artoria nodded.

Mordred should thank Jack. If it weren't for Jack constantly calling her "Mama," Artoria would have been just as unsettled by Mordred calling her "Father/Chichiue" or "My Lord."

However, even knowing this, Mordred was too overjoyed to care. Realizing things were not as she thought, she nearly floated with happiness, grinning foolishly and mumbling, "Ah, so that's how it is, ah, so that's how it is..."

Sisigou watched in speechless disbelief—she looked silly.

Artoria turned to Sisigou, "Is she alright?"

Sisigou almost blurted out—"She's your child, why are you asking me?" But recalling that dream, he swallowed his words. If King Arthur truly knew, Mordred wouldn't be like this now.

It's precisely because she couldn't have what she wanted that she craved it even more, just like himself.

Thinking about his reasons for joining the Holy Grail War, Sisigou took a deep drag of his cigarette and rasped, "She's fine, she'll be okay in a bit. More importantly, I want to propose a deal with you."

"What kind of deal?" Jeanne asked.

"Nothing complicated. You have questions for me, and I have questions for you. How about we trade questions? Don't worry, I won't ask you to do anything against the rules. What do you say?"

Jeanne and Artoria exchanged glances and nodded in agreement.

Sisigou continued, "I'll go first. Why did you two form an alliance?"

"Because there are major issues with this Holy Grail War," Jeanne replied, "Artoria and I are investigating the cause."

"What kind of issues?"

"That's the second question. Now it's my turn—have you seen the Master of Red Lancer?"

Thus began their exchange of information, and over the next half hour, there were numerous exclamations.

"What? The Master of Red Lancer wants to kill you?"

"What? You've been acting alone? You've only seen Red Assassin and her Master? And they contacted you later through familiars?"

"What? You said Red Assassin is like a sister?"

"What? They were in Sighișoara earlier?"

...

In summary, amid all the commotion, both sides obtained the information they wanted. Although many questions remain, one thing is clear to all four of them: the key to the problem lies with the Red team, specifically with the Red Assassin and that peculiar priest Shirou.

Find them, and the answers will follow!