Fate: Hero of Justice Takeover-Chapter 217: [] The Bandaged Monster and the Fairy Tale Witch

"About how to obtain the Mystic Eyes of Death Perception?"

Shiki Ryougi, her short knife stained with blood but her kimono spotless, smiled as she looked at the severely injured boy standing before her.

"Hoho... Sakatsuki-kun, you're quite direct. We are enemies, you know?"

"It's just a difference in stance, Miss Shiki Ryougi." Sakatsuki endured the numbness in his abdomen, left arm, left leg, and right calf, barely maintaining his standing posture—those were the results of his organs failing after being struck by Shiki's lines of death.

"Up until now, you've slashed me twenty times. Even if I have no intention of harming you, breaking through my defenses has pushed this body to its limits, hasn't it?"

As Sakatsuki said, although Shiki Ryougi appeared calm and composed, her heavily rising chest and trembling limbs proved that her stamina was nearly exhausted.

"Miss, you wouldn't want [Shiki] to lose her body so soon, would you?" The boy whispered like a demon.

After a moment of silence, Shiki Ryougi sheathed her short knife, clasped her hands together, and still wore a faint smile. "As expected of Sakatsuki-kun, you've already anticipated this moment. Then, Shiki Ryougi's extermination of the calamity shadow ends here."

"Calling it an extermination of my shadow, but aside from one strike, all the others landed on me, right?" Muttering this, Sakatsuki also relaxed his guard, only to hear Shiki Ryougi continue.

"Setting aside the mission, I admire your willingness to fight against death for the sake of what was entrusted to you. In that case, I'll tell you about the 'Mystic Eyes of Death Perception.'"

Turning around, Shiki Ryougi gradually disappeared from Sakatsuki's sight like morning dew, her voice unhurried as it echoed.

"Those who sit on a treasure trove without realizing it, return to the dreams of the night."

"Although I don't know what you've experienced before, turning the trial into this form... this is no game. If this continues, that old man might end your trial, you know?"

***

Night, trial, old man, Mystic Eyes of Death Perception.

With these four elements combined, even if Sakatsuki's mind was slow, he should have realized it by now.

"Probably, it's from that time..."

Muttering this, Sakatsuki summoned the Fate Compendium and began flipping through the system logs.

When he reached the reward given for defeating Assassin, the once-jumbled content now finally revealed itself to him.

[Record Condition 2 Reward: "First Generation Valley Trial"!]

The First Hassan, the Old Man of the Mountain, the Grand Assassin.

Only he, who had reached the level of Grand, could interfere with the records of the Fate Compendium. However, now that the Fate Compendium had fused with Moon Cell, his disguise was finally removed, revealing the true nature of the reward.

The dreams Sakatsuki had every night, the places he reached, were not merely dreams—they were trials set by the First Assassin for him!

Sakatsuki stared at this record, lost in thought...

"Uwaaaaaa! What have I been doing all this time?!"

A scream echoed through the sky.

Recalling his past attitude toward this trial—completely lacking a sense of responsibility for the trial. At first, it was just to vent his desire for battle. After being taught a lesson by the three bush brothers, he started looking for cheats to speedrun the level

A true veteran of soul-like games.

"Thinking about it this way, it's a miracle King Hassan didn't come swinging his greatsword at me..." The scummy boy wiped the cold sweat from his forehead. "Alright, I've decided. Tonight, I'll seriously participate in the trial!"

Having made this decision, Sakatsuki turned to look at Touko Aozaki's tightly shut door, sighed, and then smiled slightly.

"Although this might be the last time we meet, goodbyes should always be clean and straightforward. Let's leave it at that."

The Aozaki family's attribute is wind. Whether it's the older sister or the younger sister, when parting, it's always "the wind blows, and before you know it, they're gone."

Saying goodbye to the 'wind' sounds pretty silly.

The white-haired, golden-eyed boy turned and disappeared into the night.

"Then, goodbye, Touko Aozaki."

***

Misaki City.

—A haunted house was built on the hill.

That was an ancient legend that had been circulating in Misaki Town for a long time.

Then, as if adapting to the modernization of the town, the rumors quietly changed.

For example, the abandoned house that had long since decayed would light up as soon as night fell.

Or, countless crows would gather on the hill and then disappear.

Also, on foggy days, children would get lost there and go missing.

And, the eerie screams heard late at night even disturbed the residential area... This last one damages the reputation of a certain magus and must be corrected.

The versions of the rumors grew more and more numerous.

And so, the mansion on the hill, which should have long since fallen into ruin, slowly came back to life a few years ago.

In the center of the hill, where people dared not approach, hidden in a forest so dense that even daylight couldn't penetrate, lay the ruins.

The remnants of magic, discarded by the era, that would appear in a fairy tale world.

That was—

The mummy-like Sakatsuki stopped in his tracks, gazing at this eternally silent house.

The main building could accommodate about three ordinary households, and outside was a garden surrounding it. The garden's corners were marked by tall iron fences, with thorny vines neatly climbing up them.

The Kuonji Residence.

The witch's house on the hill, known to everyone in Misaki Town.

"It's much larger than I imagined... As expected of the 20th century."

Muttering as if afraid to wake the sleeping, Sakatsuki placed his hand on the front door. Although there was no keyhole, the defensive magecraft had already begun to attack him fiercely.

Click!

The door opened. Sakatsuki shook his slightly numb hand and stepped into the mansion known as the haunted house.

Quiet, empty, the entrance hall had no electric lights. The only light source was the moonlight streaming through the high skylight.

On nights with only the moon and stars, this was the most comfortable garden.

"Haa..." Taking a deep breath, the cool, dry air filled his nostrils, spreading to his injured lungs and bringing a refreshing sensation from within.

Aside from his breathing, he could hear nothing, but in his heart, a melody he had almost forgotten played, making his fingers twitch involuntarily.

Only those who have played 'Mahou Tsukai no Yoru' would understand the contradictory feelings of excitement and calm that Sakatsuki felt as he stood in this fairy-tale-like mansion.

At some point, a girl appeared on the staircase leading to the second floor.

Under the hazy light, Sakatsuki couldn't see her face clearly, only her solemn, nun-like black dress.

Unlike Kotomine Kirei's heaviness or Araya Souren's bitterness, she was like a quietly blooming black tulip, swaying with a mysterious and cold fragrance.

"..." Silently, the uninvited guest smiled and nodded slightly to the girl on the stairs.

"..." Silently, the girl seemed taken aback for a moment, then turned and hurried away.

Behind her, the pale, bandaged monster, exuding the thick aura of a phantasmal species and an unmistakable stench of blood, began to pursue the unarmed girl. After a moment, as if unable to hold back, he shouted.

"Hey, don't run! Stop!"

***

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