[Trial Quest: Holy Grail War]
[Participate in the Holy Grail War, achieve victory, and destroy the Holy Grail]
[Reward: Unlock special space]
[Special Trial Mechanism: Equipment slot and Character Card slot locked]
[Special Servant Summon: Special summon as an intruder. Part of the current world's energy is borne by the system, part by the host. No class restrictions]
After falling asleep, Takatsuki naturally arrived in a new world, as expected, the original world of the Throne of Heroes—Type-Moon.
A very deep world…
"I wonder which Holy Grail War this is, or if it's a variant Holy Grail War I don't know about?"
Takatsuki had watched many Type-Moon works, but only up to a certain point. Later, with various fan works being treated as parallel worlds and the advent of FGO, which made the series into a world with exaggerated power levels, he stopped paying attention.
If this was some variant Holy Grail War, then it was highly likely he wouldn't know the plot. Takatsuki appeared in a forest, unable to discern his location.
Coupled with the special mechanism of locked equipment and character card slots, it meant that nothing in Takatsuki's equipment slot could be used.
Other things were fine, but…
Takatsuki sighed as he looked at the Gate of Babylon.
"Forget it, it can't boost my combat power anyway now."
The character cards and equipment in the equipment slot weren't very important anymore. Takatsuki was somewhat relieved that he had integrated all twelve talismans into his body and equipped himself with Stigmata, which ensured his combat power.
"Never mind, I'll summon a Servant first."
The system's special Servant summon didn't require a complicated summoning ritual; instead, it offered a one-click, foolproof operation.
As the summoning ritual began, a massive magic circle appeared on the open ground before Takatsuki.
Golden light emanated from the magic circle, and a figure with golden curly hair appeared within it.
"…"
"…"
Their eyes met, and the golden-haired figure suddenly moved.
Takatsuki remained unmoving as the fist came towards him, as if he were startled.
But just as the fist reached his face, his wrist was grabbed.
"Is Miss Durandal really that short-tempered?"
Takatsuki teased as he looked at Durandal before him.
However, he was also panicking internally; why had he summoned Durandal!?
"Who are you? Where is this?!"
Durandal felt the grip on her wrist, a force she couldn't break free from, and looked at the young man before her.
"My name is Takatsuki. As for where this is, I'm not sure either. I just arrived a little earlier than you."
Looking at Durandal, Takatsuki didn't know how much she knew. Logically, Servants should be instilled with knowledge about the Holy Grail War when summoned, but on one hand, she was specially summoned, and even the source of her magical energy wasn't the Holy Grail but the system.
"More importantly, Miss Durandal, do you know the current situation? You attacked me as soon as you arrived?"
Durandal took a deep breath and closed her eyes slightly, seemingly recalling something.
"Holy Grail War?"
"Exactly, the Holy Grail War. In terms of the Holy Grail War's roles, I am the Master, and you are the Servant. While I don't expect you to strictly follow my commands, at least let's avoid conflict between us."
"I understand. Can you let go of my hand now?"
Takatsuki seemingly released Durandal's hand without any guard. Durandal didn't make any impulsive moves either, rubbing her slightly sore wrist as she looked at Takatsuki.
"I generally understand the situation, but why me? Also, is it 1994 now?"
"1994?"
The information Durandal unintentionally revealed helped Takatsuki confirm some things: "If you're asking why it's Miss Durandal, it can only be a matter of luck, as Servant summoning is random. And… Miss Durandal, haven't you noticed? We are no longer in our original world; this world has no Honkai Energy."
"No wonder…"
Durandal clenched her fist; she had just felt her power drop significantly.
"Durandal, your bloodline is a powerful one born from Honkai, but its powerful essence also lies in Honkai. To unleash your full combat power in other worlds without Honkai, Honkai alone isn't enough. However, the energy you're consuming now is provided by me, so you don't need to worry for now."
Durandal looked up at Takatsuki: "Who exactly are you? Why do you know about our world? Honkai shouldn't exist in this world."
"What, Miss Durandal hasn't recognized me yet?"
Takatsuki smiled, looking at Durandal who was too straightforward to recognize him, then took a deep breath.
"This is… Hamon!"
"How did you… Wait a minute, your name is Takatsuki… Takatsuki! You're Takatsuki from St. Freya Academy! The one who brought Hamon and Armament Haki!"
Seeing the familiar Hamon, and combining it with Takatsuki's name, Durandal finally recalled the name of the author written in the textbook she had once obtained, and she had also seen Takatsuki's information and photos in the Schicksal's database.
"That's right, we are from the same world, fellow countryman, Miss Durandal, so I know you. How about it? Is this sincerity enough?"
Durandal had only failed to recall Takatsuki's identity due to the sudden influx of information. There would be a long period of interaction later, and if she remembered then, it would put Takatsuki in a very passive position.
"I see, but why would you... So that's it, is that how the so-called Hamon and Haki came about?"
Durandal wasn't stupid; she was just too straightforward and rigid, making her easy to trick.
"Excellent, excellent, that's exactly right."
Takatsuki clapped his hands, choosing not to lie about it.
"No wonder Schicksal couldn't find any record of your past experiences, no matter how much they investigated your information."
It wasn't that Schicksal hadn't investigated Takatsuki, but they couldn't find any of the things Takatsuki mentioned. Theresa had also received some intelligence, which was why Theresa was very suspicious at first.
"That's right. Miss Durandal, can you keep this a secret for me?"
Durandal crossed her arms: "Why should I keep it a secret for you?"
"I will naturally offer sufficient sincerity and compensation, but before that, Miss Durandal, you should already understand the essence of the Holy Grail War and our mission, right? Is there anything else you need me to explain?"