"Why... why would you say that?" Jiang You asked, sensing an unsettling shift in Atalante's gaze—a simmering anger.
"Who are you, possessing his Spirit Origin?!" Atalante's eyes blazed with hostility. In truth, she had a decent impression of Jiang You. If he hadn't intervened, that golden servant would have annihilated the entire city—an attack power nearing that of a god. Though Atalante was impulsive, her values remained steadfast, and she had a particular fondness for children, truly living up to her heroic reputation.
"If you were truly him, you would never have made such a choice."
"In the end, it's all a misunderstanding," Jiang You shrugged. "Tiamat is like Jason—a companion of mine. She would never harm humanity."
"Do you really consider me a companion?!" Jason's voice burst from the side, but no one paid him any attention.
"Tiamat?"
Jiang You had merely said it casually, but to the others, it carried significant weight. Atalante frowned. "Calling the Beast 'Mother'—and you still claim to be Jiang You? Your origins don't even align!"
"So, you've occupied another servant's Spirit Origin?"
Achilles agreed that this was the most likely explanation, which would explain why Jiang You had given two completely different names. "Jason, you've been deceived. He's not the person you think he is."
"So what's the deal with all this?! Has this guy changed or something?!" Jason remained utterly confused.
"Emmm, as expected, convincing him with words alone won't work."
Now that Jason was stubbornly clinging to his beliefs, further conversation would be pointless. "Then we'll have to settle this by force. As the victor, my words will carry more weight, right?"
"I'm sorry, but I won't let you have your way. I won't initiate an attack. I understand these 'duels' all too well. In this situation, most servants wouldn't stand a chance against him."
Atalante knew the effects of Jiang You's Noble Phantasm. While her individual deck strength was weaker than Jason's, Noble Phantasms were indeed governed by card strength, but interpersonal relationships mattered even more. If your deck included gods, even if your individual cards were weaker, it wouldn't matter.
"Chiron, focus your attacks away from that Eastern Servant. His Noble Phantasm will forcibly convert any assault into a card duel, just like what's happening to these two."
"Understood."
Having assessed the situation, Chiron stepped into the barrier. He had initially stayed outside, wary of potential hidden effects within the Duel Space, allowing him to provide immediate support if needed.
"Teacher?!"
Jason was both surprised and delighted to see so many familiar faces in this Holy Grail War. While genuinely pleased, Chiron's disapproving gaze made him avert his eyes, unable to meet his teacher's gaze.
"Jason, I've observed your battle with Achilles. Frankly, I'm deeply disappointed. I taught you the same techniques Achilles used. If you had paid proper attention in class, you shouldn't have been so utterly outmatched."
Among all his students, Jason was the one who worried Chiron the most—arguably his worst student ever.
"When we get the chance, your assignments will be tripled!"
"Noooo!!!"
Jason glanced at Jiang You, who was stifling a laugh. He finally understood that Jiang You had planned this all along. That sly bastard must have known from the start that Chiron was here too!
"Teacher, we're Heroic Spirits now. We can't grow anymore. There's really no need for all this!"
"For us servants, this is like living another life," Chiron said. "As long as our Spirit Origins don't return to the Throne of Heroes, we can continue to record information."
Chiron disagreed with Jason's assessment. "Since you're starting over, and judging by your demeanor, you've lost all your previous knowledge, then your research should start anew as well. How about starting with carrying a backpack again?"
"You're pushing it too far now!" Jason wailed, tears welling up but refusing to fall.
"I'm very grateful to you, sir, for giving me the opportunity to reunite with my wayward student," Chiron said, shifting his attention to Jiang You after reminiscing with Jason. Ignoring Jason's muttered complaint, "I'd rather we hadn't reunited...", Chiron continued.
"However, the current situation doesn't allow me to express my gratitude. The threat posed by the Beast is too great; we can't afford to linger here. So, I apologize, but I must attack you. At least, Jeanne d'Arc... both Jeannes must remain."
"What's that got to do with me?!" Jalter glared at Chiron. Though she had indeed come to support Jeanne, she hadn't even declared her intentions yet, and the enemy was already planning to strike her.
"Hmph! Is this what Heroes are like? Launching attacks on others so casually? Hahahaha, come on, try me! I'll burn you to a crisp!"
Seeing Jalter eager to spar with Chiron, Jiang You didn't stop her. The fiery servant never stayed idle for long, and this would be a good way for her to work off the post-meal lethargy.
When Atalante showed signs of joining the fray, Jiang You stepped forward to block her path. Jalter's strength was decent, but only decent. Without the Holy Grail's amplification from the First Singularity, she was likely on par with Jeanne—her attack power significantly enhanced (excluding Jeanne's La Pucelle), but her defense clearly weakened. Chiron, a top-tier servant, would likely gain little advantage in such a fight. Jeanne's earlier escape had drained her considerably, making her an ineffective ally. Thus, Jiang You couldn't allow Atalante to join the battle. "I'm sorry, but you're my opponent."
Atalante's cat-like pupils narrowed with disdain. From Jiang You's movements, she quickly assessed his situation. "You still haven't mastered his Spirit Origin, have you? His physical stats aren't particularly strong, but they shouldn't be this poor. You can't fully unleash his power. As long as I don't initiate an attack against you, you can't activate your Noble Phantasm... So, you can't stop me!"
Atalante was overthinking things. Jiang You had always struggled to fully utilize his heroic spirit panel. During the Fifth Holy Grail War, he had rarely appeared in actual combat, spending most of his time playing Duel cards. It was understandable that Atalante would misjudge his capabilities.
"Didn't Chiron say? 'As long as the Spirit Origin doesn't return to the Throne of Heroes, it can continue recording information.' How long has it been since we last met? You know nothing about my current state, do you?"
Jiang You chuckled. If Atalante had actively avoided combat before, he would have been truly troubled. Her speed made her notoriously difficult to catch. But now, he had nearly abandoned Duel cards entirely.
"Has the Assassin's Spirit Origin affected your speed?" Atalante assumed Jiang You was referring to this, as the Black Faction's Assassin slot was currently vacant, and his sudden appearance seemed to fit perfectly.
"Even with the Class advantage, you're no match for me. Your true opponent isn't me."
Atalante's true intention was to have Karna, their strongest member, fight Jiang You. As a member of the Indian Pantheon, Karna's strength was beyond question, and his Deck likely contained other gods, making him their best chance of defeating Jiang You. If they could restore Jiang You to normal, his Noble Phantasms could then be used to fight Tiamat, potentially turning the tide completely.
"Assassin? You've all been wrong from the start. About the true enemy, about my Class—everything!"
Jiang You decided to give Atalante a little shock.
"Not an Assassin? Could you be a Caster? But... all the Casters have already been revealed. Could someone be impersonating one?"
Atalante realized Jiang You had no reason to lie about this. "Is someone among us lying?"
Atalante had never particularly liked that writer who spoke in such cryptic, mystical terms. Despite being a Caster, he barely knew any spells, making it reasonable to suspect he was an impostor. However, Tiamat had already crushed him, so he couldn't have been the liar.
That made the Black Faction's Caster even more suspicious. He claimed to wear a mask because he didn't want to form close bonds with others, so no one knew what he looked like beneath it. He called himself Avicebron, but no one except his Master could verify his identity. It was entirely plausible that he wasn't who he claimed to be.
Watching her ears twitch frantically, Jiang You knew she was already lost in wild speculation.
"Completely wrong reasoning, but you've arrived at the correct answer. You're quite the talent."
Amakusa was indeed a Ruler, but he had been summoned illegally by the Einzbern family during the previous Holy Grail War. Now, posing as the true arbiter of this war, his sole aim was to seize the credit for saving the world and thus rightfully claim the Holy Grail. Even without the Holy Grail, he would have pursued this course, but with it, his ultimate goal remained "saving" all of humanity. However, explaining this to her now would only lead to her disbelief.
"Then it's time to reveal the answer. I am neither Caster nor Assassin—I am Foreigner!"
As Jiang You spoke, he activated his passive Skill related to Azathoth. In an instant, the air filled with an overwhelming, chaotic aura of terror.
Due to various reasons, this Skill couldn't be sustained for long periods. However, it was supremely effective for making a grand entrance, similar to "Dragon's Majesty." It instantly conveyed to others that you were immensely powerful, extremely powerful. Jiang You rather enjoyed these moments of public display; to be honest, it was quite satisfying. Case in point, Atalante nearly flattened her tail in fear—a Beast with such pronounced animalistic traits was far too easy to read.
Jiang You activated the Skill for only a moment before shutting it down. Had he sustained it any longer, none of the servants present, except for the two engaged in the Duel, would have survived.
The sheer threat even interrupted Chiron and Jalter's battle. They paused their clash, their gazes drawn to the servant whose presence had nearly stopped their hearts.
"Are you insane?! Turning that on out of nowhere—are you trying to kill me?!"
Jalter was the first to react. Having witnessed Jiang You activate his identity verification before, she had some psychological preparation. Even so, she was still gripped by overwhelming fear, nearly losing face in front of the enemy, which made her face flush crimson.
"Why don't you just fight them yourself? After all, everyone here combined wouldn't stand a chance against you!"
In Jalter's mind, Jiang You was overwhelmingly powerful. The truth, however, was that he was a summoner-type servant whose true form might not even be able to defeat Jason. Of course, this was without activating his passive ability; continuously maintaining it would trigger a Human Order crisis.
Chiron's face went deathly pale. As an expert on Greek mythology, he knew the gods well. Yet none of those deities had ever exuded such overwhelming power as Jiang You. In Chiron's eyes, Jiang You's strength surpassed the gods' by several orders of magnitude. He had initially planned to bypass Jiang You and capture Jalter and Jeanne, but now it was clear Atalante's intelligence was flawed. Jiang You was likely on par with a Beast. Realizing that all the servants present couldn't defeat him combined, Chiron immediately revised his strategy, retreating beyond Jeanne d'Arc (Alter)'s range.
"Atalante, let's go!"
Though Achilles couldn't leave, abandoning his companions was no longer the issue. Jiang You had revealed his true power, so Chiron could no longer afford to hold back. As the leader responsible for the entire Beast subjugation team, he knew that allowing them to be picked off one by one would cripple their fighting power. At the very least, he needed to inform the others about Jiang You's situation and, if necessary, contact the Mages' Association and the Church for reinforcements.
Speaking of the Beast, why hadn't Amakusa notified the Church? This thought suddenly struck Chiron as deeply unsettling, but he had no time to dwell on it.
"?"
Atalante, just recovering her senses, found Chiron already pulling her away to retreat. She quickly caught on; her legs were still trembling, and her primal instincts screamed at her to flee. Jiang You was far too dangerous.
"But Achilles..."
"Don't worry about me, Big Sister and Teacher. I'll find a way to escape."
Achilles understood the urgency of the situation, but he wasn't confident in his chances of escape. He suspected Jason was merely a pawn being paraded to mock them, but as a man, he couldn't show such weakness. He added firmly, "Rest assured, I'll be fine."
Atalante realized she had been too careless. Knowing Jiang You's strength, any entity capable of possessing him would undoubtedly surpass him in power. Even without relying on Jiang You's Noble Phantasms, this being would possess formidable combat capabilities. She hadn't anticipated this creature's terrifying power. Could they, as servants, truly survive this crisis unscathed?
"Did I say you could leave?" Jiang You, having reached this point, wouldn't let them escape easily. "Since you're already here, you might as well stay. Then we can have a proper chat. Melusine!"
After considering his options, Jiang You summoned Melusine. As a flying servant, her speed far exceeded her B-Rank Parameter. Intercepting Atalante would be no problem. Moreover, as a fragment of Albion's essence, she was a bona fide Top-Rank servant. Taking down both opponents simultaneously would be a piece of cake.
A crimson meteor streaked across the sky.