---o---
There is a record in the Book of Genesis.
So Jacob was left alone, and a man wrestled with him till daybreak.
When the man saw that he could not overpower him, he touched the socket of Jacob's hip so that his hip was wrenched as he wrestled with the man.
Then the man said, "Let me go, for it is daybreak." But Jacob replied, "I will not let you go unless you bless me."
The man asked him, "What is your name?" "Jacob," he answered.
Then the man said, "Your name will no longer be Jacob, but Israel, because you have struggled with God and with humans and have overcome."
The so-called Jacob's Limbs refers to a martial art that could go toe-to-toe with the God of the Old Testament, and even gain the upper hand.
In the Type-Moon world, besides Jacob himself, the most proficient practitioner of Jacob's Limbs is Moses. The grand architect of the Type-Moon world, Kinoko Nasu, explained this through the mouth of Ozymandias in his Takebouki Diary:
"Come and witness a true laser-man, the Sun King of Ancient Egypt, Ozymandias, has arrived---! But spare me from having to fight Moses! That guy can really part the sea with his fists!"
Although there's a great deal of jest in this, considering Nasu's position, it's not impossible that he might just decide to make it official canon one day.
"So, tell me again, why does an incubus like me, who can't even lift a chicken, have to act as a bodyguard for a guy who knows Jacob's Limbs?!"
On the Sumerian plains, the complaints of a certain incubus rang out.
The owner of the voice was a young man who seemed like a breeze blowing across the grasslands.
However, he appeared to lack any sense of urgency or responsibility, giving one the impression that he was a suspicious con artist.
Without a doubt, this was the essence of Fou himself—Merlin, who had previously been sent out by Gilgamesh to find Gudako and Mash's party, who had been taken directly to Ishtar's temple by Li Zihan.
However, unlike when he set out with a little goddess by his side, he was now alone.
He stood before the current director of Chaldea, holding a staff with a holy sword embedded in it.
"How many times do I have to say it? My current constitution makes it impossible for me to use 'Jacob's Limbs'!"
The doctor, who did in fact know 'Jacob's Limbs', retorted irritably to the Grand Caster candidate who was prone to biting his tongue whenever he tried to recite a long incantation.
"Besides, the enemy on this trip is a genuine sun god. As someone who isn't a Heroic Spirit, even if I could use 'Jacob's Limbs', I could at most exchange blows with him once or twice before being utterly defeated."
"Alright, alright, that's enough. Speaking of which, why did you decide to volunteer as my guide?"
The doctor, who had just been in contact with a certain someone who would sooner or later be torn apart by women if he wasn't strong enough, sat at the designated meeting point and sighed.
"It's because of our many years of friendship, of course! I came to help you!"
The incredibly handsome man, who could be called one of the top pretty boys on the moon, held his staff and gave a brilliant smile to the man who was once a member of their Clairvoyance chat group.
"To come and find you, I even specifically left Anna-chan behind."
"Be moved! Come on, offer me a thunderous round of applause!"
What an idiot.
That was the look in the doctor's eyes as he stared at Merlin.
Merlin's full name was Merlin Ambrosius.
He was the son of an incubus and a princess.
Although he had a human form, he was a being of a completely different nature.
An incubus is a spiritual entity that parasitizes humans.
Fundamentally, they lack a "self." They only copy the personality of their human host.
But Merlin was half-human, and so he possessed a half-baked self—he had purpose and consciousness, but no emotions.
He was an alien creature disguised in human form.
He was merely a bystander in human history, with no intention of ever truly joining humanity.
Whether it's humanity as a whole or individuals, in the end, it has nothing to do with me.
The only reason he even helped humanity was because he enjoyed the "results left behind by humanity" and wished to witness humanity's final conclusion.
He would never take the initiative to help "a single person."
Not even Artoria, whom he had raised like a daughter.
Based on his understanding of Merlin, Romani was certain that this fellow had a reason for proactively seeking him out to be his bodyguard.
"Don't always call me out like that."
As if sensing Romani's gaze, Merlin sheepishly raised a hand and scratched his cheek.
Then, he burst into a hearty laugh.
"Alright, I admit it. I was kicked out."
Extremely pathetic words spilled from his mouth.
"Because I ran up a debt of a thousand King's Silvers at the brothel and was hitting on the tavern owner's wife."
"Add to that failing the mission King Gilgamesh assigned me to find the people from Chaldea, and scamming Anna out of her allowance to pay for prostitutes... I was kicked out of Uruk."
"If I don't redeem myself and quickly get the people from Chaldea out of Ishtar's temple and back to Uruk, your big brother Merlin is going to be sleeping in the wilderness."
Hearing these words, Mr. Romani fell silent.
He had still underestimated this guy.
This fellow...
He wasn't the failure who single-handedly dragged down the reputation of all of Camelot, as he had imagined...
This half-human, half-phantasmal being had single-handedly dragged down the moral standards of the entire human race and the reputation of all phantasmal species by a good half-meter.
He really couldn't understand why Magical Girl Meri-chan would hang out with this scumbag.
Dr. Romani, who to this day did not know that the so-called Magical Girl Meri-chan was actually Merlin in drag, grumbled to himself.
Honestly, a cute girl like Magical☆Meri could be ruined if she has a scumbag for a manager.
"Speaking of which, when is this sun god you mentioned—the one who's shacking up with the goddess Ishtar and has taken Ritsuka and Mash-chan hostage—going to arrive?"
Merlin, who was already plotting to update his personal website when he got back to Uruk and use his Magical Girl Meri-chan persona to troll his #1 fan Romani, sat down beside him and asked.
"We've been waiting for a long time."
He was actually quite anxious.
After all, if he couldn't redeem himself, it would be difficult for him to return to Uruk.
And if he couldn't get into Uruk, he couldn't get free drinks by flirting with the tavern owner's wife, nor could he get freebies at the brothel with his handsome face.
"It should be soon."
Dr. Romani, who had arrived at the appointed location an hour ago and had been waiting ever since, was thinking about how to complain to Magical Girl Meri-chan about what a degenerate his teammate was.
"Let's just wait a bit longer."
Hearing this, Merlin said nothing more and simply waited quietly.
And then...
Night fell.
---o---
Author's Note:
PS: I suddenly feel like writing a story about being a strategist in Chaldea.