Shinjuku's Rider—Hessian Lobo, despite appearing more like an Avenger-class Servant, is still referred to as a Rider by the likes of James Moriarty and Salter.
The title is secondary; Alaric can see clearly that James Moriarty has been guiding Fujimaru Ritsuka and the others to eliminate the other Servants of Shinjuku.
From the initial rendezvous at Shinjuku Station to this sudden encounter with Hessian Lobo, Moriarty has orchestrated events, including inducing Jalter to release her Noble Phantasm to create a battlefield environment.
Moriarty's intentions are quite transparent—assisting Chaldea, or more specifically, Fujimaru Ritsuka and her allies, in defeating the Phantom Spirit Alliance. This alliance of four Servants is the greatest threat currently looming over Shinjuku.
As for Moriarty's motives behind aiding them, Alaric chooses not to dwell on it for now. What he does notice, however, is Moriarty's deep understanding of the Shinjuku Servants' information, which conveniently fills in the gaps in Alaric's knowledge.
This is also why, after dealing with Hessian Lobo, Alaric has no intention of eliminating Moriarty. He needs the information.
Although Alaric can track the locations of the Servants, he is unfamiliar with their specific circumstances. Charging in recklessly would only put him at a disadvantage.
Understanding Alaric's reasoning immediately, Moriarty doesn't hesitate. The fact that Alaric could swiftly take down Hessian Lobo demonstrates his power as a top-tier Servant.
If Alaric were to unleash his full might here and now, no one would be able to stop him.
Acknowledging this, Moriarty doesn't hold back his information and says:
"If Rider is dead, then the Phantom Demon Alliance is down to just Berserker, Assassin, and that modern Archer."
"As for Assassin, it's a figure capable of disguising themselves as anyone."
"Berserker, on the other hand, is partnered with dolls. In Kabukicho (Entertainment District in Shinjuku), there are over two hundred permanent coloratura singers, along with a hundred patrolling Shinjuku regularly."
["So, three hundred in total?"]
Hearing this staggering number, Mash's expression turns pale. Even with their current strength, breaking through such a force seems near impossible.
"In other words, if you attack head-on, all two hundred coloratura singers will swarm you!"
Moriarty chuckles. "Hahaha, that would be suicidal. Even if we survive, if the Master dies, it's game over. Ah, I'm digressing. Let me continue."
"The two hundred coloratura singers wander Kabukicho continuously, listening to the voice broadcast through the loudspeakers. This voice belongs to Shinjuku's Berserker—our leading lady, Christine."
"Whenever she sings, the singers applaud. They repeat this routine twenty-four hours a day."
Moriarty continues, as though narrating a grand tale:
"In other words, Kabukicho has become an impregnable fortress. Apart from the dolls that can suddenly charge out of buildings, they can also spot us clearly from the rooftops. If that happens, they'll all rush at us at once, and it's game over."
"One more thing: the patrolling coloratura singers routinely abduct humans. Their purpose remains unknown. Additionally, no matter how many are destroyed, the patrolling singers will be restored to a hundred within thirty-six hours."
"What kind of situation is it to have a hundred patrolling singers?"
Salter, who had previously fought some of the coloratura singers, furrows her brows. She knows just how dangerous these singers are. But even she hadn't expected their numbers to reach such a terrifying scale.
Not just Salter—Jalter is equally surprised. "I've destroyed quite a few myself."
Despite their prior encounters, this is the first time Salter and Jalter have learned detailed information about Berserker. The level of difficulty is far beyond what they imagined.
After finishing his explanation, Moriarty concludes, "If you want to attack head-on, you'll have to deal with two hundred coloratura singers. That leaves you no choice but to consider other strategies, doesn't it?"
"Infiltration, perhaps?"
Fujimaru Ritsuka snaps her fingers, standing beside Alaric with a calm expression. "Can we infiltrate?"
"Unfortunately, it's impossible for humans to infiltrate among two hundred dolls."
Moriarty shakes his head, rejecting Ritsuka's suggestion.
"Then I can use my Excalibur Morgan."
Salter suggests, "I'll just blow up all of Kabukicho indiscriminately."
"That's not possible." Moriarty shakes his head again. "Even if you destroy Kabukicho, the coloratura singers and Berserker will survive."
"And you should have noticed by now—this Shinjuku is already abnormally saturated with magical energy. While it hasn't reached the level of the Age of Gods, the magic vortex here far exceeds anything from 1999 Shinjuku. This overwhelming magic even seeps into the buildings. The current Shinjuku is so saturated with magic that even the structures are imbued with it."
"From my observations, even if you use your Holy Sword, it would be difficult to flatten Kabukicho."
The magical environment not only boosts the speed at which lifeforms recover their magical energy but also enhances the overall world. With mystery blanketing the land, all materials are brimming with magical energy, making them more durable.
This environmental change increases the difficulty for Servants to destroy the world. In today's age of waning mystery, Excalibur Morgan is considered top-tier firepower.
However, in an era of flourishing mystery, its destructive capability fluctuates—not because its power diminishes, but because the environment strengthens the materials, making them harder to destroy.
Salter acknowledges this. "That's true—"
"Oh my, how brave of you to admit it! Admitting you're weak, huh? Such courage!" Jalter smirks, mocking Salter without mercy, as though she would never let go of any chance to ridicule the cold-blooded knight.
To this—
"By the way, even if you used your flaming Noble Phantasm—"
Salter responds indifferently, "It wouldn't make much of a difference in Kabukicho."
"I can still burn you to a crisp," Jalter snaps back immediately.
Ignoring the bickering between Salter and Jalter. Alaric, stroking his chin, gives his answer under Moriarty's watchful gaze.
"The numbers don't matter. I can handle them."
Neither fazed by the three hundred coloratura singers nor seeing them as a significant threat, Alaric finally confirms the nature of the scattered magical units after learning the details.
In addition to the Servant presence in Kabukicho, the numerous magical units are identified as the coloratura singers, which pose little threat to Alaric.
Moreover, there's the Age of Gods magical environment Moriarty has repeatedly emphasized.
"This might just be my stage."
Grinning, Alaric strokes his chin and says, "An Age of Gods-like environment, huh? It's nostalgic. If it were in an environment like Mesopotamia, my power would be far greater."
Now that a fragment of his truth has surfaced, Alaric understands why the scale of his attacks in Mesopotamia had swelled so dramatically.
That was the manifestation of his ability to absorb—absorbing atmospheric True Ether and other elements to fuel himself, which caused his aurora attacks to expand incessantly into a terrifying force.
When the black aurora surged from the farthest reaches, his true nature was already revealed.
"Are you planning a frontal assault?"
Fujimaru Ritsuka, understanding Alaric's intent, asks curiously, "Now?"
"Of course. Time waits for no one. Let's finish the job now so we can clock out early. There are only a few Servants left, right?"
Alaric smiled and said, "The final issue is that tower. If I want to get in early, I need to resolve everything else first."
After gathering intel on the Phantom Demon Alliance's Servants, Alaric decided to head to Kabukicho alone and eliminate the Shinjuku Berserker!
"I'll take action in my Round Table Knight form. I'll go ahead first!"
With a wave of his hand, Alaric decisively unfolded his steel wings and, under the watchful eyes of Ritsuka Fujimaru and the others, soared into the night sky.
Heading toward Kabukicho as pointed out by James Moriarty and the Servant reactions detected by Alaric, he transformed into an aurora streaking across the vast darkness.
["That's certainly efficient, Sir Alaric."]
Mash smiled helplessly and asked, ["So, Senpai, are we heading back, or should we follow Sir Alaric to Kabukicho?"]
"We'll follow him. If Sir Alaric is breaking through head-on, we might have a chance to get in as well."
Without a moment of hesitation, Ritsuka Fujimaru gave the order. Letting Alaric head to Kabukicho alone didn't sit well with her no matter how she thought about it.
However, Alaric refused to take them along, choosing instead to go ahead on his own.
...
At the same time, Alaric, streaking through the night as an aurora, didn't head straight to Kabukicho. Instead, he descended onto the rooftop of a certain tall building. The aurora made a sharp right-angle turn, constructing a trail of light in the night sky before landing not far from someone's gaze.
The approaching aurora stirred up the night wind, causing ripples to flutter in the air.
Tap, tap.
"You are—"
Hands in his pockets, Alaric scrutinized the man in the distance. Clad in a green suit with disheveled shoulder-length white hair, his crimson eyes burned with an endless fire—something that could only be called the flames of vengeance.
What should have been a tie swayed like flickering flames, and wisps of black mist coiled around the man.
Edmond Dantès, more widely known by his aliases, the Count of Monte Cristo or the King of the Cavern.
He is the most famous Avenger in the world. Framed by a malicious conspiracy and falsely accused, he was imprisoned in the hellish Château d'If. Yet, possessing an iron will, he never despaired and ultimately obtained the treasure on the island of Monte Cristo, returning to Paris—
There, he dragged the powerful individuals who had wronged him into the depths of hell.
His vehement life, the drama of vengeance while concealing his true identity, and his love and obsession with his trampled and stolen lover, Mercédès, as well as his journey through anguish and regret, ultimately leading to redemption, have earned him admiration from people worldwide, including France.
He is remembered as the world's most famous Avenger.
One could even call his story an ancient revenge novel.
Though the Count of Monte Cristo was a creation of Alexandre Dumas, modern research has revealed that the priest Abbé Faria, who guided Edmond in Château d'If, was a real historical figure…
"Are you Edmond Dantes?"
Although Alaric knew the man's name, he felt an oddly familiar aura when locking eyes with this man—
It was an inexplicable sensation of being overwhelmed, not by strength, but by something deeper.
'Ah, someone like Moriarty.'
From the man's posture, it didn't seem like he was strong in physical combat, but Alaric could see the same kind of intelligence in his eyes—one akin to Moriarty's, or even Sherlock Holmes'.
"It seems I can't hide it from you—"
Not intending to keep up the pretense, the man dropped his disguise the moment Alaric spoke. As a flash of brilliance rippled, the true face hidden beneath the mask was revealed.
It was the visage of a certain detective Alaric knew all too well.
"Holmes?!"
Alaric's expression showed his astonishment upon seeing the familiar face. He hadn't expected to encounter Sherlock Holmes here, and from the looks of it, Holmes still retained memories of their previous interactions.
This meant that this was the Holmes who had left after the Sixth Singularity.
After accompanying the Atlas Institute team through the Sixth Singularity, Sherlock Holmes had somehow transferred to Shinjuku.
'So, he has Spiritron Transfer capabilities, rather than being summoned. If only I'd taken that ability from him back then—'
Alaric quickly deduced that Holmes wasn't summoned as a Servant but had physically moved between Singularities using Spiritron Transfer. Summoning would only reconstruct an informational entity, creating something similar but not identical, while Spiritron Transfer implied actual physical movement.
As if reading Alaric's thoughts, Holmes chuckled. "It seems you've been through a lot since we parted at the Atlas Institute, Sir Alaric.
Of course, just as you've guessed, I used Spiritron Transfer to travel from the Sixth Singularity to this Shinjuku.
It was, in fact, my original purpose. At the Atlas Institute, I used the Tri-Hermes system to determine whether Singularities could still arise even after humanity was restored."
"From the current situation, it seems Singularities still occur even after the restoration of humanity."
Quickly understanding Holmes' reasoning for being here, Alaric asked curiously, "So, what exactly is the source of this Shinjuku Singularity?"
"Let me explain first. If humanity shifts from the state of incineration to one of restoration, and if there are massive anomalies in the twisted history, Tri-Hermes would issue a warning.
These anomalies—capable of erasing the correct history and shaking the world—would eventually be preemptively suppressed by Counter Force or some other entity. However, during the transition to restoration, these forces could resurface in the gaps of history—
Like a computer virus that revives when the system reboots. Tri-Hermes calculated that the Shinjuku of 1999 is precisely a location where such forces have emerged. While the exact cause is unclear, there is one incredibly significant entity involved."
"Ugh, you're still as vague as ever."
As Holmes began his lengthy explanation, Alaric picked his ear, wearing a look that said, "This guy is at it again."
"So, is it Moriarty's doing?"
Having already deduced the identities of most of the Shinjuku Servants, Alaric quickly zeroed in on the only suspect.
In terms of power, Moriarty wasn't exactly top-tier. However, when it came to orchestrating crimes through others, he was unparalleled.
Furthermore, with Holmes present, it was hard not to suspect his arch-nemesis. If "Good" Moriarty was assisting Ritsuka Fujimaru in handling the Phantom Demon Alliance, then what about "Evil" Moriarty?
Could he be the one pulling the strings, wielding the power Holmes described—capable of erasing correct history and shaking the world?
"That conclusion can't yet be drawn. After all, I haven't fully uncovered the mysteries of this Shinjuku."
Holmes chuckled and said, "But surely you've come up with some theories, haven't you, Sir Alaric?"
"I have no idea. I'm not a detective."
Shrugging his shoulders, Alaric spread his hands. Seeing that Holmes wasn't going to give a direct answer, he changed the subject. "Then can you at least tell me what that tower is for?"
"It's a barrel, but as for what it's meant to fire and how much destruction it could cause—"
Holmes smiled and said, "That's something you'll find out later."
"You're so cryptic, Holmes. Was Watson always the one who made your speeches easier to follow?"
Not gaining much useful information from Holmes, Alaric waved him off and prepared to proceed to Kabukicho, where the Shinjuku Berserker was located.
Holmes, seeing this, didn't stop Alaric's actions.
After all, this meeting was not only because Holmes wanted to observe the current state of Alaric, but also because Alaric, with his absurdly vast range of perception, had locked onto Holmes, who had disguised himself as Edmond Dantes.
As for this sudden appearance of Alaric in the Singularity, after a day of remote observation and this conversation, Holmes could conclude that Alaric's mental structure hadn't undergone any drastic changes.
But the truth within was something that surprised Holmes—Alaric's growth left even him somewhat astonished.
The difference from the time of the Sixth Singularity was immense, and what stood out even more was the pitch-black aurora.
The slaying of the Hessian Lobo, and that single punch that subdued the Lobo, emitted a brilliance of magical energy that seemed as though it would tear the night apart.
Holmes, possessing an A++-rank skill, "Inherent Insight", a capability to discern the essence of things, would never overlook any piece of information with his acute observational abilities.
Although fundamentally different from the principle behind Clairvoyance, it allowed him to make predictions almost equivalent to foreseeing the future.
Additionally, there was his Noble Phantasm, which was constantly active: "Elementary, My Dear". This Noble Phantasm, granted to the Servant incarnation of Sherlock Holmes, refined his origin of investigation into a Noble Phantasm.
Even when faced with a truly unsolvable mystery, it would inevitably generate a clue or path leading to the truth.
For example, even if there were a treasure chest whose key was lost, the key would become "not lost"; it would become inevitable that the key could be found somewhere in the world.
Therefore, almost the instant they met, Holmes had already noticed the truth Alaric had never concealed.
A fragment of something called Humanity's Evil.
The aurora flared again, piercing the night sky and vanishing from Holmes' sight in an instant.
Left standing alone on the rooftop, Holmes turned to look in another direction—towards Fujimaru Ritsuka, who was heading to Kabukicho.
"This is quite the conundrum, Sir Alaric."