Chapter 191 – What the hell is this? Maybe I just opened it the wrong way!
As the sun rose, the fog before their eyes still showed no signs of clearing.
Berserker Jack, in the form of a nobleman, walked ahead to lead the way.
Mash, Ethan, and Little girl Jack walked together, while Frankenstein still cautiously followed behind, her hand always gripping the mace tightly.
Ethan had clearly told her that a temporary agreement had been reached with Berserker Jack and that she could return.
However, Frankenstein stubbornly insisted on following.
Originally, communication with Fran could only happen through her expression and attitude. After trying a few times, Ethan gave up and let her do whatever she wanted.
Thanks to the electromagnetic waves emitted continuously from the mace in Fran's hand, the fog was pushed back slightly, allowing them to barely see the path ahead and the surrounding scenery.
On the windowsills of the old houses along the road were empty flower pots; even the walls were mottled and corroded, revealing a cold gray-white color.
The entire street carried an atmosphere of death, with no signs of life or people at all.
"I know what you're thinking."
Berserker Jack, walking in front, noticed Ethan's gaze and turned his head back with a smile.
"But unfortunately, whether you believe it or not, you are the first living people I've ever met."
"Oh, what a coincidence indeed."
Ethan replied nonchalantly.
It wasn't that he didn't believe it, but—when those words came out of Jack the Ripper's mouth, who could actually believe them?
Seeing that Ethan didn't seem to care much, Berserker Jack said nothing more and silently continued walking along the cobblestone road ahead.
"Anyway, in this fog, there are only heartless puppets and wandering Magical beasts."
From time to time, faint sounds echoed in the fog, as if something was stepping across rooftops and the ground.
Mash and Frankenstein immediately turned alertly in that direction.
But those figures quickly disappeared.
"Don't worry, the route I've chosen for you won't attract their attention."
Rustle…
Just as Berserker Jack finished smiling and saying that, a sound seemed to come from within the fog ahead.
"Looks like I haven't been to this place in a while—I need to clean up a few messy things first."
A silver dagger shimmered faintly in Berserker Jack's hand.
"Please wait a moment, I'll be right back."
As he stepped into the thick fog, the sounds of beasts groaning and sharp daggers tearing flesh rang out immediately.
"Mama, don't worry! We'll protect you!"
Little girl Jack clung tightly to Ethan's arm, looking extremely obedient.
"Yeah, thank you."
Ethan reached out to pat Little Jack's head.
"Senpai… I'll also do my best to protect Senpai!!!"
Mash immediately said from the side.
Seeing his kouhai-chan seemingly trying to compete with Little girl Jack, Ethan quickly smiled and replied to Mash.
"Of course, I always rely on you, Mash."
Hearing Ethan's affirmation, Mash finally smiled.
"Sorry, looks like I interrupted everyone's conversation."
Berserker Jack once again stepped out of the fog—only this time, the dagger in his hand was gone.
"It's all cleaned up now. Let's keep moving."
Continuing to follow Berserker Jack ahead, Ethan saw on the nearby ground clear traces of a battle.
In many places, there were deep cuts left by a sharp blade.
However, there were no enemy corpses to be seen.
As if Berserker Jack had fought with some kind of invisible creature.
Could it be… some kind of ghost?
Ethan thought carefully—yes, that was definitely a possibility.
After passing through a few small alleys and walking along what looked like an abandoned shopping street for about half an hour, they finally arrived in front of a large bridge.
"Alright, just cross this bridge and we'll be there."
Berserker Jack pointed at the solitary bridge ahead and said.
"Beyond that is outside the bounds of 'Old London.'"
"So the 'Selection' is being held here?"
"Looks like you've gathered quite a bit of information."
Berserker Jack smiled like a gentleman.
"But forgive me, I must speak frankly—you're still not qualified."
"Not qualified?"
"That's right. The 'Selection' is only open to those inside the city. You need to enter the city first."
After saying that, Berserker Jack once again stepped forward to lead the way.
"Senpai?"
Mash looked at Ethan, seemingly waiting for his decision.
"Mama, do you want us to go scout it out first?"
Little girl Jack held Ethan's hand and looked up to ask.
"No need, let's just go together and see for ourselves."
Very soon after they set foot on the bridge and proceeded a bit further, their vision ahead began to reveal the outer perimeter wall.
As they drew closer, Ethan quickly noticed something unusual.
Completely different from the ancient English style of Old London, the wall before them was not built from bricks, nor assembled from stone blocks, and definitely not cast from concrete.
Instead, it was a seamless structure made from some kind of special modern material, and one could even faintly see magical light flickering on its surface.
The fog was completely isolated outside the wall.
Right below the wall was a massive city gate.
For some reason, just looking at it gave off a sense of danger.
"Later we'll have to pass through this gate. Once we get through the inspection mechanism, we can enter."
Berserker Jack explained as he walked.
"Inspection mechanism?"
"It's actually a mechanism to determine whether one is qualified to enter the city. When it was first built, a great number of 'Old London' residents were rejected—rumor says tens of thousands were denied entry. Truly a tragic past."
As he said this, Berserker Jack sounded like he was reading a news report—his expression was completely casual.
Continuing forward, Ethan quickly saw the gate Jack had mentioned.
From the outside, the gate looked almost identical to the electronic doors used everywhere in Chaldea, and there didn't appear to be any guards around it.
"——————?!"
Wait a second—did London at this point in time already have doors like these?
"Senpai, there doesn't seem to be anyone guarding the place."
Mash immediately surveyed the surroundings, and she didn't find anyone who looked like a guard.
"Guarding? No no no, this gate is the guard."
To help Ethan and the others understand the situation, Berserker Jack once again summoned a dagger from his hand and threw it toward the gate.
As the dagger approached the gate, a sharp shrill sound suddenly echoed from around it.
After that, several lasers shot out from the gate, directly melting and vaporizing the dagger completely?!
"As you can see, if you try to force your way in, that's what happens."
Berserker Jack shrugged.
"But it seems like you've got a way to get us in."
Ethan looked calmly at Berserker Jack.
"I really like people who can think on their feet. It seems that you summoning another Jack at that moment… wasn't just a random coincidence."
Faced with Berserker Jack's direct compliment, Ethan said nothing more.
After that, the gentlemanly man removed his hat, and then his body began to transform right before everyone's eyes—eventually turning into a refined gentleman with blond hair, blue eyes, and glasses.
"Jekyll?!"
The moment Ethan saw Berserker Jack's transformed appearance, he immediately recognized him.
"Oh? Seems like you know this doctor too. But I'm merely borrowing his form temporarily."
"Jekyll" adjusted the clothes on his body.
"Alright, please don't say anything unnecessary—just follow me inside."
He pushed up his glasses on the bridge of his nose and walked toward the gate.
As soon as he approached it, a voice rang out from above:
"Please verify your identity or present your identification card, or else you will be denied access to the city!"
"Jekyll" calmly said:
"Requesting reentry into the city."
"Scanning identity signature… Scan complete."
Ethan and Mash tensely watched the composed man ahead of them.
"Identity confirmed. Welcome back to the city, Doctor Jekyll."
After that, the warning voice became noticeably more gentle.
"I've also brought along a few assistants I found outside. They'll need entry as well."
"Individuals not listed in the city's approved registry will not be granted access. Please take note!"
A warning rang out from above the gate.
"Jekyll" remained calm, nodding to Ethan to signal them to step forward.
"Senpai? Should we rethink this?"
Mash looked worried.
"Don't worry, he probably won't harm me."
What Berserker Jack wanted most was to discover his true self—to learn who Jack the Ripper really was.
So he absolutely wouldn't kill Ethan.
Because if Ethan died, Little girl Jack would vanish as well. That would be of no benefit to him.
"Mash, if you sense anything unusual, activate your Noble Phantasm immediately."
It never hurt to have a backup plan.
"Understood, Senpai!"
Mash tightened her grip on the shield in her hand, then looked at Ethan and walked with him toward the massive gate.
"Mama, don't worry—we'll protect you really well!!!"
Little girl Jack hugged Ethan's arm and walked forward with him.
"Uhh Ughhh..."
Frankenstein tried to follow, but when she looked at the gate, she backed off.
When Ethan and Mash arrived under the gate, they could immediately feel something from above scanning their bodies.
"Warning: No valid citizen qualification detected! Warning: No valid citizen qualification detected!!!"
Upon hearing the alert, "Jekyll" immediately and calmly looked up and said:
"I have clearance to enter with assistants. Requesting use of that right."
"Understood. Doctor Jekyll has the right to bring assistants. Three companions confirmed. Access granted!"
With that voice, the massive gate in front of them slowly began to open.
"Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to the city of London!!!"
What appeared before them was a city filled with towering high-rise buildings?!
Looking around, all kinds of cars in various designs zoomed through the streets, and huge electronic screens continuously broadcast announcements.
In the distance were rows of magnificent buildings—and there were even airships and dirigibles flying through the sky?!
Could it be the gate they had just walked through was the lackey of Truck-kun, the entrance to an Isekai world?
If the city shrouded in deathly fog behind them was London, then the one now before their eyes looked nothing like any image of 19th-century London.
"Alright, let's go in."
"Jekyll" spoke calmly as he took the lead, stepping through the newly opened gate.
"I didn't expect your 'Thousand Faces' to be this advanced."
Ethan said as he walked behind "Jekyll."
Unlike ordinary disguises, Berserker Jack could actually become someone else entirely.
"Because I don't know who I truly am, it's only natural that I could be anyone. This Doctor Jekyll is actually quite well-known here, so after gathering enough intel, I was able to take on his form."
Ethan turned to look back.
In the distance, Frankenstein stood to the side of the bridge, watching their group leave.
Since things had happened too quickly earlier, he hadn't gotten a chance to properly say goodbye. To be honest, he felt a little regretful.
After all, Frankenstein had helped them.
But now that they were inside the city, the most urgent thing was to quickly locate Draco and Noah.
"Doctor, can you hear me?"
Ethan lowered his head and spoke into the bracelet on his wrist.
"Zzzzz... Loud and clear... Communication has been fully restored!"
Doctor Romani's image suddenly appeared.
"Phew… That's a relief. I thought the signal dropped again. If it had, the tech department would've had to work overtime."
Doctor Romani looked as if he had just breathed a huge sigh of relief.
"Doctor, we've made it inside. Please help us locate Draco and Noah."
"Huh? You guys already got in?!"
The Doctor looked utterly shocked.
"Oh? Is this some kind of future communications technology? But who is this weak-looking guy?"
Berserker Jack gave Doctor Romani a full-body scan with his eyes.
"I feel a strong urge to dissect him with a dagger, just to see what's inside."
"We'd like to dissect him too. He seems fun."
Little girl Jack also stared intently at Doctor Romani.
"Uwaa! Why would anyone say such terrifying things?!"
Hearing those comments, Doctor Romani collapsed backward, but quickly snapped back to his senses.
"Wait a second… I think I see two Servants?! Don't tell me, Ethan, did you…?!"
"Let's talk about that later. Right now we're focusing on identifying their positions and planning the next move. Please confirm the coordinates quickly."
Now that they were inside, the priority was to prepare for the next step.
"Alright, let me see…"
Doctor Romani, still lying face-down on his desk, began searching. But just moments later, he suddenly shot upright!
"Huh? What is it, Doctor?"
Mash asked, confused.
"I just detected Draco's magical signal—very close to you!!!"
"Close by——————?!"
Before Ethan could even react, the sound of blaring sirens erupted all around them!
"Unregistered entity moving at high speed within the city, heading toward the northwest gate! Dispatching 'Guards' for pursuit! All unrelated citizens, please clear the area immediately! I repeat—unregistered entity moving at high speed within the city…"
"Where's the northwest gate?!"
Ethan immediately asked Doctor Romani.
"Let me look it up!!!"
"I don't think… we need to."
Berserker Jack raised his hand and pointed ahead.
From the road in front of them, a commotion suddenly broke out—something was rapidly approaching at incredible speed!!!