Chapter 87 Hey! Look what I summoned?
Arthur, who hadn't expected to actually get anything useful, raised an eyebrow, took the old notebook, and began to examine it.
He casually flipped through a few pages, his expression suddenly turning cold.
Then he abruptly looked up, his gaze like lightning piercing Ryunosuke Uryu, and asked in a deep voice.
"Where did you get this thing? Have you experimented with the methods described in it?"
His question seemed to touch a nerve in Ryunosuke Uryu.
The other party's numb and cold expression suddenly became lively, a morbid fanaticism flashing in his eyes, and he responded excitedly.
"I dug it out of the warehouse at my old house! Of course I experimented! That's the coolest art! It's my life's pursuit!"
"You know that feeling of holding a warm heart…"
Smack!
Arthur backhanded Ryunosuke Uryu, cutting off his babbling, his eyes icy.
"You annoying scum, if I wasn't worried about alerting others, I'd really kill you right now."
That night, the Fuyuki City Police Department welcomed a heavyweight guest.
The serial killer Ryunosuke Uryu, who had been on the run for many years, actually voluntarily surrendered.
He not only confessed to his crimes but even committed suicide on the spot at the police station entrance, his behavior was strange and perplexing.
Meanwhile, Arthur, the instigator, had quietly arrived in the suburbs of Fuyuki City.
Under the faint moonlight, Arthur meticulously drew a summoning circle on an open patch of ground.
The summoning materials, guided by the magical power at his fingertips, intertwined and resonated, spreading out faint glows along the pre-set patterns.
After confirming that there were no errors in the summoning circle, Arthur brushed off the dust from his hands and teased Fou, who was obediently squatting beside him.
"Speaking of which, summoning a Servant always requires a Holy Relic as a catalyst."
Arthur cupped his right hand, and a brilliant Holy Sword appeared out of thin air, accompanied by flying golden sparks.
"What do you think would happen if I put it in? Could I directly summon one of the Knights of the Round Table?"
"Fou!?
Fou's beast eyes flashed with an unconcealable excitement at the words, his tail wagging back and forth behind him, as if he was tempted.
Arthur chuckled twice at the sight, quickly stepped into the summoning circle, and raised his hand to insert the Holy Sword into the central position.
Generally speaking, if a Master particularly wants to summon a powerful Servant, they need to prepare a Holy Relic with a deep connection to that Servant as a catalyst in advance.
Without a Holy Relic, the one who answers the summon will inevitably be the Heroic Spirit with the highest compatibility with the Master.
As for combat power, that's another matter.
Arthur, holding the Holy Sword as a ready-made catalyst, naturally didn't want to gamble on that ethereal compatibility.
With that, the preparation work was completely finished.
Arthur retreated outside the summoning circle, his left hand held level with his chest.
Crimson magical power surged from his body, gathering in his palm, subtly resonating with the glowing array patterns.
"—Proclaim—"
"—Your body shall be under my command, my fate shall be with your sword—"
"—By the call of the Holy Grail, if you are willing to follow this will, then answer my summon—"
"—Here I make my oath—"
"—I am the one who accomplishes all good in the world—"
"—I am the one who spreads all evil in the world—"
"—You are the seven heavens bound by three great words—"
"—Come forth through the wheel of suppression, Guardian of the Scales—"
Arthur chanted the ancient incantation, and the magical power in his body surged into the summoning circle like a flood.
He could clearly feel that the summoning circle, using the Holy Sword as a catalyst, was constantly searching for a matching Heroic Spirit, preparing to guide its descent.
But just then, Fou, who should have been obediently waiting, shot out like a white lightning bolt, diving headfirst into the center of the circle!
Buzz—!
The circle trembled continuously, suddenly emitting a dazzling bright light, and a strong magical storm swept across the surroundings, stirring up rolling dust.
Arthur's eyes narrowed slightly, and he raised his hand to block the fine dust blowing towards him.
At this moment, the Command Seal on the back of his hand had already appeared, three intertwined crimson petals glowing brightly.
However, when the dust gradually cleared and he saw the figure slowly solidifying in the circle, the corners of his mouth couldn't help but twitch violently.
"Is this real? Is this reasonable?"
…
The buzzing completely stopped, and the raging magical storm subsided.
A silver-haired man, clad in a long sorcerer's robe adorned with floral decorations, leisurely stepped out of the circle, lightly holding a simple wooden staff in his hand.
He looked like a young man in his twenties, giving off the impression of a gentle and harmless older brother from next door.
Yet, as soon as Arthur saw him, an inexplicable urge to beat him up welled up in his heart!
Regardless of Arthur's thoughts.
The Servant, making a grand entrance, cleared his throat twice, a perfectly pitched hint of smugness on his face, and introduced himself.
"A pleasure to meet you, Master. My name is Merlin, the Magus of Flowers, as the world calls me."
"I personally don't like formality, so please kindly call me Big Brother Merlin."
His guess was confirmed, but Arthur couldn't bring himself to smile, only raising his hand to constantly rub the bridge of his nose.
"Merlin, right, I have…"
"Fou! Merlin must die, Fou!"
Fou, who had been blown away by the magical storm, shot back like lightning, letting out a resentful growl, interrupting Arthur's question.
He used a tree branch to leap into the air, transforming into a white whirlwind, and kicked straight towards Merlin's handsome, smiling face!
Merlin's smile remained, as if he hadn't reacted, and was immediately tackled by the sudden attack from Fou.
The man and beast instantly devolved into a wrestling match!
"Cath Palug! You ungrateful beast! Stop it right now!"
"Fou (〝▼ω▼)!"
"Ahhhhh! I really shouldn't have adopted you, you beast!"
"Fou (╬▼ω▼)!"
"Cath Palug?"
Arthur, who had been planning to watch the show, his eyes subtly shifted, took two steps forward, and picked up the pure white cub that was still struggling.
"You're saying Fou is the three-eyed cat demon from Britain mythology?"
Merlin got up awkwardly, carefully rubbing the claw marks on his cheek, and said with a sheepish nod.
"That's him alright, this beast, I don't know how many people he's deceived with his cuteness and soft paws, utterly detestable!"
Fou, being held, turned his head and bared his teeth at Arthur, growling, wishing he could immediately fight that scoundrel incubus for another three hundred rounds!
Arthur extended a finger, gently scratched the cub's chin fur, and kindly advised.
"Although I also really want to beat Merlin up, he's still useful right now. After we're done, you can do whatever you want with him, alright?"
Merlin's smile instantly froze, then he performed a standard 'rubbing hands like a fly' act, smiling apologetically.
"Master, I'm still here, you know. Please don't say such heartless things so casually, I can get sad too."
Arthur gave him a sidelong glance, too lazy to bother with his exaggerated acting, and then asked.
"Why did I summon Merlin using the Holy Sword?"
"Why can an immortal incubus respond to a summon?"
Merlin scratched his hair, revealing a slightly troubled smile, and explained dismissively.
"After all, if you look closely, there is indeed a deep connection between the Holy Sword and me."
"Besides, I am an incubus skilled in illusions, after all. Occasionally deceiving the Holy Grail ritual is quite plausible, wouldn't you agree?"
Arthur's eyes narrowed: "Let's put the connection aside for now, deceiving the Holy Grail ritual?"