DOTM: Chapter 584/586

Chapter 584: Basaka
A gloomy room, the glow of a magic circle, and a small girl with red eyes and long white hair.

The little girl recited the incantation with determination. The flow of magical energy brought her immense pain, yet she seemed unaffected as she completed the entire recitation.

The magic circle erupted with dazzling light, followed by a blast of air from nowhere that nearly knocked the frail, small girl off her feet.

Fortunately, the gust did not last long. As the magical glow faded, the gloomy room gradually returned to calm. The surrounding lights were dim, but bright enough for everyone present to see clearly.

"Did it fail?"

Two distinct voices, both emotionless, echoed from the shadows in the corner, as if discussing something unrelated to them.

"The items we prepared in advance were suddenly damaged. It isn't surprising that a summon relying purely on luck would fail."

"What should we do then? Give up this opportunity?"

"Perhaps try again. We still have enough time to make preparations."

Vaguely, two figures could be seen in the dark corner. They seemed to have no intention of stepping out of the shadows.

"So, should we let her try again next time?"

"Let her try again. If it fails again, discard her as ordinary waste."

The two continued their conversation, while the little girl, the "subject" of their discussion, remained motionless and didn't turn to address them. She stood quietly, head bowed, looking at her hands.

"Strange..."

"What's strange?"

"I clearly felt the contract was completed..."

The little girl suddenly sensed something was wrong. The voices of the two people just now were emotionless and cold, but this new voice was full of doubt. That was not a tone anyone here would use.

She immediately looked up, her red eyes wide, and stared in the direction of the voice.

Not only her, everyone in the room fixed their gaze there.

Where the magic circle had just been, a tall young man stood. The mechanisms and traps meant to capture the summoned Servant instantly upon appearance were all shattered.

"This is bad!"

Seeing all their prior arrangements fail, the two in the shadows reacted at once, preparing to unleash magic to activate the backup mechanisms.

However, before one of them could act, his vision blurred. In the next moment, he was no longer in darkness but standing in the brightest part of the room, at the location of the original magic circle, and positioned exactly where the trap was aimed.

Before he could understand what had happened, a shattering sound came from the shadows, accompanied by the unfamiliar man's voice: "A bunch of idiotic trash."

He looked up and saw the unfamiliar man seeming to brush something dirty off his hands as he stepped out from the dark shadows where he had just been.

That was the last thing he saw, because he was then completely trapped by the activated mechanism, unable to move, his sight even sealed.

The next second, he felt nothing at all.

After casually dismantling another one, Ethan looked at these artificial life forms with disdain. He grabbed a wet wipe and vigorously cleaned his hands, then turned back to look at the little girl with long, slightly pinkish white hair.

"Was it you?"

Ethan had already learned from Madeleine that his arrival in this world, in order to reasonably use various powers, required choosing an identity more aligned with this world's rules.

Aside from that, this world's rules placed no restrictions on him. Essentially, he was the same as before, so the concepts of Classes and various restrictions targeting special beings like Heroic Spirits did not apply to him. For example, the rule that Divine Spirits could not descend directly as Heroic Spirits and had to demote themselves did not affect him.

As for Classes, if Ethan wished, he could call himself any Class, because for him, a Class was only a title.

Looking at the person in front of him, he already knew whose place he had taken and which Class he had occupied.

"Berserker?"

"Is that so..."

Ethan scratched his cheek with a finger, wondering whether he should call himself Avenger, which seemed to fit his identity better. However, considering that this Fifth Holy Grail War he had entered was just the traditional clash of the seven main Classes plus the Archer Gilgamesh, a remnant from the Fourth Holy Grail War.

After thinking it over, he decided it was better to go by Berserker, at least it would not be too out of place.

"You don't even know your own Class? With a head that muddled, you really are a Berserker."

"..."

"I am your Master, Illyasviel von Einzbern."

"Oh."

Ethan knew that this small girl who looked like an elementary schooler was actually someone whose real age was close to adulthood. Her physical development had stopped due to a special constitution, and her lifespan might be only a little over a year. It seemed implied that Illya had a way to solve that problem; it just depended on whether she wanted to continue living.

"Then state your True Name, Berserker."

"Ethan."

Illya frowned. Although she looked very young and was not that old in reality, she possessed extensive knowledge and had conducted detailed research on potential Heroic Spirits.

But no matter how hard she tried, she could not recall any historical hero with that name.

"A nameless hero?"

There were indeed heroes in history who accomplished great deeds yet remained unknown. Such figures could also become Heroic Spirits. She just had not expected to summon one.

"That doesn't seem like a bad thing."

The advantage of a nameless hero was anonymity. When fighting enemies, even if their identity was exposed, opponents could not respond in a targeted way, because they would not know any legends about this person, making it impossible to infer weaknesses from myths.

There were disadvantages too. As the Master, Illya also did not understand her Servant, making it difficult to fully utilize his strength.

Fortunately, the Einzbern family had performed this summoning two months early for this Holy Grail War. She had enough time to get accustomed to this Servant and figure out his true power.

"In that case, it isn't suitable to use Mad Enhancement immediately."

Mad Enhancement was a skill unique to Berserkers. After using it, a Berserker would lose sanity but gain greater combat power. The Einzbern family had planned to summon the legendary hero Heracles, then use Mad Enhancement to push his power to the limit and rely on his overwhelming strength to win the Holy Grail War.

However, something went wrong with the prearranged preparations, forcing Illya to change methods temporarily and attempt a general Heroic Spirit summon, which resulted in this unknown hero. Judging by the methods he used just now, his strength should not be weak, which was the one thing to be pleased about.

But what worried her was that this person did not seem very obedient.

Watching Ethan wander around the room and look at everything, especially when he glanced at the magic traps prepared to restrain Heracles, the disdain in his eyes was obvious even to the most insensitive person.

"There are traps like these everywhere here. So either obediently follow my orders, or be restrained and imprisoned."

"Imprisoned?"

Ethan had no good feelings toward the Einzbern family. They were a strange group, puppets created by mages who, after being abandoned by their master, continued their master's research tirelessly. The focus of that research was a ritual called the Holy Grail War.

The Einzbern family held a very important position in this world, but that meant nothing to Ethan. He had been displeased with them for a long time. Previously, he did not have time to bother with them, since he would not come to this world just to cause trouble for a group of puppets. But since he encountered them now, he would not show them a pleasant face.

If they were content to mind their own business, that would be fine. But if they wanted to treat him like Heracles, restrain and imprison him, then use Mad Enhancement to erase his intelligence and control him like a dog.

Then Ethan would let them understand what the wrath of a god meant.

He felt that Heracles also had the ability to break free from those restraints. It was just that for Heroic Spirits, the Holy Grail War was only sending down a projection, with a few exceptions being true bodies like a certain King. Restraint and imprisonment were irrelevant. At that time, Heracles only wanted to help Illya, who was trapped in hatred, so he allowed the Einzbern family to do as they wished.

Ethan was different. He did not come here to be locked up in a dark room.

Ethan circled the room. There was nothing else worth seeing, so he walked to the large door. Just as he reached out to open it, he immediately withdrew his hand and stepped back.

"The ones looking for trouble have arrived."

It looked like a single step back, but in reality, he instantly returned from the doorway to Illya's side in the center of the room.

Almost at the same time, the large door erupted with a strange fluctuation, destroying everything nearby and even corroding a large section of the surrounding walls.

Immediately after, a group of "people" rushed in carrying various tools. Seeing the chains clearly imbued with energy, it was obvious what they intended to do.

(To be continued.)

Chapter 585: The Einzbern Family’s Treasure

The Einzbern family had made considerable research achievements, but their combat ability was only average. Otherwise, they would not have hired outside help to fight in the Fourth Holy Grail War.

Therefore, it was impossible for these dolls to capture Ethan. He did not even need to lift a hand. Fireballs continuously appeared around him, easily eliminating them.

As Ethan moved through the vast, sprawling Einzbern castle, the number of "living" dolls decreased steadily.

Illya quietly followed behind, watching him blast a doll with a fireball, crushing the Einzbern family with overwhelming force.

At first, the Einzbern family told her to use a Command Seal to order the Servant to stop, which would make it easier for them to capture him. But Illya did nothing. She did not know why. Perhaps, deep down, she wanted to see this scene.

However, as Ethan continued, a rare feeling of panic arose in Illya's heart. She began trying to give him orders, but he did not react, continuing to launch fireballs one after another.

"Were you a sorcerer in your lifetime?"

Unable to stop him, Illya stopped wasting magic power and continued following him, watching him slowly destroy the Einzbern family.

For Ethan, whether this family existed or not was meaningless. Although he had come to help Madeleine eliminate the intruder, that did not mean he would allow any local forces that threatened him to remain.

"Maybe Madeleine will be very depressed."

On the first day of his arrival, the first thing he did was destroy a faction that held an important position in the background setting.

Hearing Illya's question, Ethan stopped and turned his head, emphasizing, "I am a mage."

In this world, there is a relatively clear distinction between sorcery and magic.

Sorcery refers to things humans can accomplish through other means. Sorcery shortens and simplifies the process to achieve the result.

For example, lighting a fire can be done with many tools, and sorcerers can do the same with sorcery.

Or building a structure. Ordinary people can accomplish it through time and labor, while sorcerers can create a structure using sorcery. The result is the same, but the process and time differ.

Magecraft, on the other hand, refers to things ordinary people cannot accomplish no matter how hard they try. This is also why magic is becoming rarer in this world. As technology advances, humans can do more and more, so fewer things are classified as magic, and more are categorized as sorcery.

So when Ethan said he was a mage, Illya's first reaction was: This is an old-fashioned guy.

Normally, when a Heroic Spirit is summoned as a Servant, they are instilled with modern knowledge to help them adapt and display their proper strength.

However, some old-fashioned individuals cling to their former beliefs and do not accept new things easily.

For example, some ancient mages would be classified as sorcerers in modern times, but they refuse to accept that change in identity, since it feels like their status has dropped significantly.

After circling the castle a few more times, Ethan remembered that the head of the Einzbern family should be something like an artificial intelligence, but he did not know where it was. After searching for a while, he could not be bothered to continue and left the castle directly.

He looked back at the little girl still following him and wondered what to do next.

It was not only Ethan who was thinking. Illya was also considering what to do now.

Although this Servant was not very obedient, his strength was sufficient, which met her needs. So, did she still need to care about those things?

Although the Einzbern family suffered heavy losses, those dolls were merely consumables to them. No one would care how many were lost, not even the current head of the family.

On the contrary, because of Ethan's powerful display, the Einzbern family might even treat him like a treasure.

So the events that followed took a strange turn. Ethan, who had nearly wiped out the Einzbern family, was finally led by Illya to meet their "head."

Calling it a meeting was not quite accurate. Ethan did not see the real body of that entity.

Afterward, Ethan received a warm reception from the Einzbern family. Everything was arranged to ensure he would wholeheartedly help them win the Holy Grail War, or rather, complete the ritual.

In a warm, well-lit, and cozy luxurious bedroom, Ethan stood leaning against the window, watching Illya, who had just woken up, get ready with the help of two maids.

"Ahem, do I need to leave?"

Although Illya looked like a child and wore thick pajamas, it still felt inappropriate for an outsider to be present.

"No need. We should use this time to get to know each other. Only then can your combat power be maximized."

Ethan curled his lip. In reality, his combat power could be fully utilized normally, since he merely occupied a slot and was not otherwise limited by the rules of the Holy Grail War.

He did not even need to draw magic power from Illya to act freely. A severely rule-breaking Servant like Heracles would consume a large amount of Illya's magic power and cause immense pain just by moving.

The various preparations made by the Einzbern family were designed specifically for Heracles, but an accident during the summoning led to a temporary change in plan.

"Are you really a Berserker?"

Since the battle that day, Illya had been doubting this.

The original plan was to summon Heracles in the Berserker Class. But it became a random summon, and no one knew which Class would appear. Although Ethan claimed to be a Berserker, his fighting style looked more like a sorcerer's.

Moreover, Ethan himself had said he was a mage. What kind of mage would respond to a summon in the Berserker Class?

No matter how she thought about it, it felt wrong. Illya suspected she had been tricked.

"It is not proper for a Servant to hide their true Class from their Master."

This was a real world. There was no status screen for the Master to check. A Servant's Class was determined by the Heroic Spirit after being summoned.

"No, I did respond to the summon in the Berserker Class."

Ethan emphasized inwardly: After all, I took Heracles's spot. But he could not say that to Illya.

"Aren't you a sorcer... a mage? Could a mage skilled enough to become a Heroic Spirit also serve as a Berserker?"

After finishing her preparations with the help of her maid Sella, Illya kept looking at Ethan with suspicion.

"Does that mean you have considerable adaptability to many Classes?"

"Something like that."

Ethan thought about the seven common Classes in the Holy Grail War.

Saber. There was no suspense. Besides magic, his best skill was swordsmanship. For a long time, he fought with a sword, and even now, despite his high magic level, he still habitually drew his blade for close combat.

Archer. He rarely used a bow, but that did not mean he could not. Even if he could not match top marksmen, his skill was above average. Moreover, everyone knew Archers in this world never used bows. With his fighting style, serving as an Archer would be effortless.

Lancer. His adaptability to this Class was average. He had never been particularly interested in long weapons, though he did practice staff techniques to complement the mage profession.

Rider. This Class was special. As a captain, his adaptability was extremely high. After deep exchanges with a certain goddess, his riding skill had greatly improved.

There was no need to mention Caster. That was his old profession.

Assassin. This should have been the worst fit, but ever since he realized, eliminate everyone who sees me, and no one will know I was here, serving as an Assassin was also effortless.

Including Berserker, he could serve in all seven major Classes. Even for unconventional Classes outside the seven, he could impersonate them without any sense of incongruity. Just like with the seven major Classes, it was merely a title. He was not like true Heroic Spirits, for whom Class determination directly affected personal abilities.

"You can serve in all Classes?"

Illya did not believe it. She felt that although she had summoned a powerful Servant, he was not only disobedient but also particularly fond of bragging.

"I hope your strength is at least half as great as you boast."

"It will only be stronger than you think."

"Let's do some tests so I can better assess your strength." Illya pointed to the snow-covered forest outside the window. "Go there."

"There?"

Ethan turned his head and immediately understood what Illya meant.

"Are you talking about those wolves?"

Illya was a little surprised. She knew from the head of the family that there might be hungry wolves in the forest now, and these packs could be used as training targets. The main goal was to practice cooperation between Master and Servant.

How did Ethan know? Did he see them?

"It is windy and snowy outside. It is too troublesome to go out. If you want to see my strength, you can see it just as well here."

Ethan snapped his fingers. Almost at the instant the sound rang out, Illya saw a giant fireball appear in the clear sky and smash straight toward the forest.

(To be continued.)

Chapter 586: Fuyuki

"What was that move called?"

"What?"

"The Magecraft that completely destroyed the forest outside the Einzbern castle, along with the bounded field, and even severely damaged the castle itself."

After getting off the plane and arriving in Fuyuki, the site of the Holy Grail War, Illya finally asked the question that had been bothering her for a while, though it had only been the time it took to pack up at the Einzbern castle, leave, and fly to Fuyuki.

Because the power Ethan displayed was too astonishing, the Einzbern family believed his strength could completely crush all enemies in this Holy Grail War. Power at that level no longer required fine-tuning, and from the powerful attack spells Ethan could cast, they concluded that his cooperation with Illya was very tacit. Although they did not understand how Illya could withstand the magical energy consumption of such powerful magic, they still decided to let her depart early.

Only Illya knew that Ethan did not use her magical energy at all when casting spells. She had no idea how this was possible. The knowledge she had learned from the Einzbern family told her this was abnormal, but she chose to keep this secret.

However, that powerful magic... she wondered if she should still call Ethan a magus. Given the terrifying power he had shown, calling him a magus felt a bit insulting.

"You're asking about that move?"

Meteor shower? Flying fire meteor? Falling meteor? Obstacle Quaking Star?

"Actually, it doesn't have a name. It's just summoning a large rock at random, then accelerating it, accelerating it, accelerating it, and after accelerating it to a certain extent, transferring it above the forest and dropping it. That's all."

"That's all...?"

If Illya had not been a powerful magus who understood how incredibly difficult such a seemingly simple thing was, she might have believed Ethan's nonsense.

"Magecraft of that level is just a snap of your fingers for you?"

"Roughly."

Ethan was not exaggerating. Since his spellcasting relied mainly on manipulating mental power and magical energy, any physical movement was irrelevant. Whether snapping his fingers, standing still, or even jumping around doing a Swan Lake dance, it was all fine as long as it did not affect his control over mental power and magical energy.

"Then, if you were to go all out, how powerful a spell could you cast?"

"Well..."

Sitting in the luxury car prepared by the Einzbern family, Ethan looked at the distant, peaceful city while thinking about how to answer.

"Since I rarely cast spells at full power, I am not sure either."

Illya suddenly understood why this person had not left behind any stories, legends, or magic books to become a Heroic Spirit. Becoming a Heroic Spirit at this level of strength was not surprising at all.

The only strange thing was why this person had not left behind any legends or stories. Was it because he was too powerful, so his experiences were deliberately erased by certain people?

She could not have imagined that the reason Ethan had not left legends was because he was not from this world at all.

The car only circled the edge of the city, not driving directly into Fuyuki. It followed the city's edge into a suburban forest.

"This is Einzbern property, including the surrounding forest, which is protected by a bounded field. Of course, a bounded field of this level probably does not concern you."

"Mm."

These spells seemed crude and fragile in Ethan's eyes. He did not even need to actually cast. A thought was enough to destroy all these bounded fields.

"You should be very clear about the Holy Grail War, right?"

Knowledge of the Holy Grail War existed in the minds of every summoned Servant. However, Illya was not sure about this Servant named Ethan, so she asked again after arriving in Fuyuki.

"The Einzbern family decided to summon a Berserker precisely because they could ignore the Heroic Spirit's will and focus on obtaining the Holy Grail and winning this war."

But now Ethan was not mad. Although he held the Berserker Class, the Einzbern family had no ability to add Mad Enhancement to him. If they really tried to do that, the Einzbern family could say goodbye to this world. A larger pit would appear next to the huge pit at their doorstep.

"So, I want to know what wish you want to achieve."

It was best for Master and Servant to reach a consensus. Otherwise, if they both hid their intentions, their otherwise powerful combat strength could not be fully utilized, and the mission would end in failure.

"Wish?"

Ethan shook his head.

"You don't need to tell me the things used to fool outsiders. I know the true nature of the so-called Holy Grail War."

The Holy Grail War's claim of being able to grant any wish was originally just a gimmick to attract outsiders and deceive Heroic Spirits.

Its essence was a magical ritual to create a hole between the Root and the present world, aiming to achieve the Third Magic, materialization of the soul, also known as Heaven's Feel, a magic that allows humans to gain immortality.

As for fulfilling any wish, for magi, after breaking through the wall between the Root and the present world, they gain nearly infinite magical energy. For magi, this is indeed a universal wish-granting machine that can fulfill any wish.

But this is different from truly being able to achieve any wish. Wishes that cannot be achieved through sorcery or even magic absolutely cannot be realized.

Furthermore, the Holy Grail is currently polluted. The magical energy flowing out through the hole created by it is also polluted. This is the famous black mud, and if one attempts to use this polluted magical energy to make a wish, all wishes will be distorted.

"You know the truth about the Holy Grail War?"

"A special ritual performed to complete a certain magic, using beings like Heroic Spirits to create special bombs to blow a hole in the wall."

Illya was truly shocked this time. She never expected Ethan to know the true nature of the Holy Grail War.

"Since you know, why did you still respond to this summoning?"

The so-called bombs were these Heroic Spirits. Any Heroic Spirit who knew the truth would be unwilling to be manipulated by human magi in this way.

"I have some other things I need to do."

Ethan casually took some whiskey from the small refrigerator in the car. He wanted a drink, but it was all alcohol.

"So young, yet you brought so much alcohol."

"My actual age is not young anymore."

The topic shifted, and Illya did not press further. It was enough to confirm that Ethan did not want to achieve any wish through the Holy Grail.

"Then you should eat properly and drink less of this stuff that is bad for your health. Do you want to look like an elementary school student forever?"

Illya suddenly felt a throbbing in her forehead. She knew she would not grow any further and did not have much life left, so she should not care. But the way this person spoke still made her very angry.

As a result, her frustration had not completely subsided by the time they reached their destination, a castle in Fuyuki's suburbs. She could only tell Sella and Leysritt to move their things in and thoroughly clean the castle.

She was not planning to go inside until it was clean.

"You want to go out for a walk?"

Ethan also had no interest in going inside to eat dust. He stood at the main gate, looking at the nearby forest. The road ahead led directly to Fuyuki, but it was far. Walking into the city without a car would take a long time.

"After all, we will be fighting here. It is normal to get familiar with the battlefield in advance, right?"

In fact, she wanted to visit someone, but she was not planning to tell Ethan. She did not know how to explain it either.

"Actually, it doesn't matter whether we look or not. It makes no difference to me fighting anywhere."

If it was an open area, he would cast spells freely. If it was in the city, to avoid harming civilians, he would usually open a Mirror Dimension and pull his opponent in.

Either way, his fighting style would not change.

Of course, he could also choose not to fight, since his purpose here was to find that intruder. But he thought an excellent Transmigrator would definitely find ways to get involved in the plot.

When that person discovered Ethan, this inexplicable intruder, they would definitely make contact proactively, or try every means to eliminate this potential competitor.

In other words, as long as Ethan showed up and participated in this game, his target would come to him. He would not need to search, which was why he had been taking his time and chatting with Illya since arriving in this world.

"If you want to clear your head, just say so. I actually want to take a look too."

"..."

Illya felt the throbbing in her forehead start up again just as it had calmed down. She decided to ignore Ethan and walked to the garage alone, chose a car, and prepared to get in.

She had just pulled the door open and had not gotten in when a force from behind pulled her aside.

"What are you doing driving a car, kid? Sit over there."

Then Illya watched Ethan sit in the driver's seat, skillfully find the key in the sun visor, insert it, and start the car.

"What? Don't you want to go out for a drive anymore?"

Although she seriously doubted Ethan's driving skills, Illya still got into the passenger seat. However, two seconds later, she regretted it.

(To be continued.)