4. Negotiate to have him give her to you for something in return
was either this or 3 for me.
4. Negotiate to have him give her to you for something in return
was either this or 3 for me.
4.
Lancer can't take our word at face value, not after what happened to Saber, so a simple promise wouldn't work well. Instead we can bargain with him, learn if there's anything e can offer that he wants. Failing that, we might get some more insight on his personality and what we can get away with him.
4
Location: Pinyang City, Level 1
Year: 2018
I can’t let Lancer take Demonic Assassin away. But I can’t fight him either. I need to somehow get him to leave her with us in a peaceful manner. But how?
… there’s no choice. I’ll have to negotiate somehow.
“Wait!” I call out desperately. “D-don’t leave yet!”
Right now, Lancer has all the cards; he’s practically holding a knife to our throats. I can’t fight him nor can I threaten him. At the same time, I can’t convince him with empty promises. So then, the only thing I can do is barter with him. I need to give him an offer he can’t refuse!
“… what is it? You have something else to say?” Lancer asks, stopping at my request.
“W-well, like Saber mentioned, we can’t just let that woman go free. She poses too much of a threat to us. We need to have her under wraps in order to guarantee our own safety.” I explain to him as calmly as I can. “At the same time, I understand your position as well and why you’re here for her. But, since we’re currently at ceasefire, I believe a… compromise might be possible to satisfy both of us.”
As I speak, the gears in my mind turn as quickly as they can, trying to assess Lancer’s reaction and think of what to say. Just like with Rider, I need to carefully gauge his mood and figure out what he wants so that we can strike some sort of deal. Right now, his expression is serious and attentive. It seems he’s properly hearing me out before replying.
“I-in other words, I’m saying that dealing with her is one of our highest priorities. One for which we are willing to pay any cost.” I conclude as persuasively as I can. “What do you say? Isn’t there anything you’d like in return for leaving her with us?”
“…”
Lancer doesn’t speak; he remains stoic and pensive. No emotion surfaces on his face as he contemplates my offer for a brief moment. And then, coming to a sudden decision, he replies with utmost solemnity.
“I don’t bargain with other people’s lives.”
At that moment, the bestial hostility that had been missing in his demeanor returns. A familiar wave of killing intent emits from his body, just like when we confronted him on Level 4. Just being in the presence of such violent energy is enough to make one faint.
He’s serious. Or rather, he’s pissed off. Once again, he’s treating me like his sworn nemesis.
“A person’s life is something that cannot be given value. Nor is it something that can be traded or bought.” He states harshly, betraying both animosity and condemnation.
His intense glare freezes me in place, like a deer in highlights. Chilled to the bone, I’m unable to say anything in response or even move my legs. The only movement granted to me is a shivering gulp.
Unfortunately, before I can recover, Lancer turns away. He stomps to the exit, still carrying Demonic Assassin on his shoulder. It’s clear from his attitude that negotiations are completely off, and any other bridges for discussion have been burnt. Like before and like always, Lancer cannot accept me or my methods. The only thing left between us is to kill each other.
Reaching the wall with the hole in it, he takes one last look back and gives a final remark.
“Young man. You still haven’t given me a clear answer to the question from last time. Find one before we meet again.”
And then, in a flash, he’s gone.
“W-wait…” I call out desperately. I try to give chase, but my feet don’t move.
Only after they’re completely gone do my legs give way and I crumble to the ground, as if coming to terms with my failure – no, it’s just finally collapsed now that the threat of death is gone and there’s no need to stand anymore.
“Dammit…” I curse sulkily.
They’re gone. Both Lancer and Assassin. In our condition, we’ll never be able to catch up to them. They’ve now completely evaded our grasp.
Shit, I messed up. I wasn’t good enough at negotiating. Because of that, we lost our hold on Nie Yinniang. After all the fighting Saber did, risking numerous injuries and near death, I wasn’t able to do my part and seal the deal. We needed to secure Assassin at all costs, but I screwed up and didn’t consider Lancer’s sense of justice!
“Master…” Saber mutters, watching my show of frustration with concern. But she has no words of comfort to offer.
And so, the battle with the Demonic Assassin ends.
Neither gaining nor losing anything, the curtain is drawn on another fierce battle.
Year: 2018
Location: Pinyang Hospital, Level 1
Two days have now passed since the bathhouse battle.
After the fight ended and the enemy got away, Assassin and the others finally arrived, having received the news of the battle and hurried to get there as fast as they could. Saber and I were immediately brought to the hospital where we were healed up as best as possible.
Once again, I’m amazed at the magi and doctors they have on staff. They treated both our wounds incredibly well using a combination of surgery and magecraft. Even the hole in Saber’s stomach and tear in her back were healed up before she died. I have heard that Eastern Magecraft includes many medicinal techniques on a different level from Western tradition, but it’s interesting to see it displayed from a Lostbelt.
During the procedure, they gave me some pain-relieving powder which put me into a hazy half-asleep state for most of it and I wandered the line of consciousness for hours. When I finally came fully back to my senses, it had already been more than a day since the battle. And, to my pleasant surprise, the hand that had been chopped off was re-attached.
For now, I still can’t move it and it’ll apparently take another few days for everything to fully reconnect, but I managed to regain my lost limb. It would’ve been really bad if I lost it, since it had Saber’s Command Spells on it, but all went well in the end.
And so, now that everything’s over, I’m once again sentenced to stay in the hospital for a bit until I’m fully healed. The only difference this time is that Saber has been put in the same room as me…
““Hello!””
Two cheerful voices suddenly enter the room. It’s Yingying and Alisha, one politely entering and the other wildly barging in.
“O-oh, welcome.” I greet them awkwardly. “Thanks for coming by.”
“I heard your operations were both a success. How are you doing, dear?” Yingying asks gently. She walks up to my bedside, holding two bags in her hands.
“I’m okay. There doesn’t seem to be anything off other than some fatigue and my arm. I’ll be back to normal in a week or so.” I tell her.
“I see, that’s good to hear.” She beams. “Oh, I brought you a get-well present and some entertainment as well.”
“Ah, thank you very much. You’re always so thoughtful.” I reply graciously. I was expecting it, but I’m grateful none the less.
Like last time, she hands me both a bag of fruit and another bag filled with books. I open up the bag of books to inspect the contents, fully expecting to find more heavy textbooks, but am surprised to see a much more varied collection. Including textbooks, there are also a few smaller books that seem to be novels.
Are these the fiction novels that Yingying told me about last time? I pick one up curiously to examine it and—
I’m surprised to find an illustration of a naked lady on the cover.
“Eh?” I gasp in pure shock. My hand begins to quiver while holding the erotic novel and my eyes dart to Yingying.
“W-well, last time you seemed a little disappointed with just the textbooks, so I thought I’d bring a more varied collection in hopes one of them would suit your preferences.” She nervously explains, her face red as the fruit. “I, um… I tried my best.”
“Huh? N-no, I wasn’t, I mean, I didn’t, well that’s…” I stammer awkwardly.
Now that I think about it, I do recall her worrying about me not liking her gift last time and wondering if I would’ve preferred erotic literature instead, but I thought I made it clear I didn’t want any! Her immense consideration has put me in an awkward position, but I can’t easily deny her due to the sincerity of her intentions. The more I mumble about nothing, the more I find myself unable to express the well of complex emotions within me. In the end, I can only hang my head and thank her shamefully for the gift I didn’t want.
Ahh… Today, my wife bought porn for me. The shame I feel cannot be expressed in words.
“Here. I got you a present too.” Alisha suddenly chimes in and pushes something into my face.
“Hm? What’s this?” I ask.
The thing Alisha hands me looks and feels kind of like clay. Does she want me to try my hand at arts and crafts to stave the boredom?
“It’s an Ether Clump. You should understand what it’s for, right?” She states with a knowledgeable tone.
“Uhh… would you be mad if I said no?” I wonder.
“Good grief. You really are an amateur.” She sighs.
She takes the clay-like substance back from me and then holds it in the palm of her hand so I can see it clearly. Then, it suddenly begins to glow. Even I can tell that Alisha’s pouring magical energy into it; the more she puts in, the brighter it becomes. And then, it begins to fly as sparks of lightning start shooting out from it. In the end, after only 20 or so seconds, the clump of clay has turned into a floating ball of electricity.
I’m amazed, but what follows is equally impressive. Alisha then puts the lightning ball onto a nearby table and leaves it alone. After about a minute or so, the light begins to dim, and the intensity of the sparks decreased. Soon enough, the lightning ball loses all its luster and gradually returns to its original clay-like form, no different from how it started.
“Get it? Ether Clumps are conductors for magical energy that always return to their original form after a while. They have no inherent value and are generally just a failed creation.” Alisha lectures haughtily. “But since they’re infinitely self-restoring, they make a good target for unleashing your prana on.”
“So… you want me to just pour my magical energy into it? That… kind of sounds like a stress ball or something.” I point out.
“Mn, well, close enough. It’s for training.” She declares. “I want you to practice controlling, processing and outputting your magical energy with this thingy as your dummy. You can also try altering its shape or base properties once you’ve leveled up a bit. Your fundamentals are trash after all, so you should take this chance to work on your basics.”
Oh, I get it. So, it’s like muscle training, but for my magic circuits. Certainly, I’m not very good at that either, so I could use the training. It seems easy and simple enough that I can even do it with one working hand while hospitalized.
“Hmph. Just because you’re hospitalized, doesn’t mean you get to slack off okay? You’re my student, so I expect you to be working your butt off even if you’re on your deathbed.” Alisha touts pridefully.
Nevertheless, I’m glad she came by and gave this to me. I won’t have to stop my training now even though I’m injured.
Well then, I received some nice gifts from both Yingying and Alisha. Once I’m released from the hospital, I’ll have to think of a way to repay them both…
After putting their gifts away, the two girls stay for a bit to chat. Yingying starts peeling the fruit she brought while making small talk with Saber. At the same time, Alisha takes the chance to discuss more serious matters with me. I didn’t have the chance to fully debrief the others on what happened before getting carted to the hospital, so I fill Alisha in on the entire encounter and battle with Demonic Assassin.
“I see, so Lancer showed up and took the Assassin away…” Alisha nods after I finish my brief summary.
“Yeah, sorry…” I apologize solemnly. “I messed up. I shouldn’t have let her get away.”
Hanging my head in shame, I personally reflect on my personal failure. We desperately needed to deal with the enemy assassin one way or another. Saber did her best to defeat her and got badly injured from it; she did her part as best as possible. So, it’s only my fault that the enemy got away. I can’t deny how badly I screwed up, so I also can’t say anything back if Alisha mocks and berates me for it.
Surprisingly, though, she just shrugs.
“Huh? Ah, yeah, I guess that’s too bad. We’ll have to deal with her properly next time.” She says nonchalantly.
“Eh? Th-that’s it?” I gasp a little and raise my head to look at her blasé expression. “Y-you’re not going to laugh…?”
“Hm, why? Did you say something funny?” She asks, tilting her head.
“N-no, but… I dunno. I thought you’d mock me for messing up or something…” I tell her awkwardly.
“Oi! Who do you take me for? I wouldn’t get mad at you just for that!” She pouts unhappily.
“S-sorry!” I quickly apologize. It seems I’ve offended her a little.
Hm, I guess I misjudged her. She’s a lot more generous than I expected. I suppose, though I’m trying to stop unfairly hating her, my old biased view of her as a condescending elitist still hasn’t gone away completely.
“Haah, look. It’s not like I’m upset or disappointed or anything, okay? You did well enough just surviving the encounter. I can’t ask any more from you.” Alisha states with a little sigh.
“So… you just don’t expect anything more from me? That’s the most I can accomplish with my meager abilities, huh?” I also sigh, thinking once again about my lack of competence. Thought it hurts, I can’t deny that truth after how badly I failed.
“Wait, what? N-no, that’s not what I meant. I’m not saying you’re bad, it’s just… you know. It was just bad circumstances. That’s all.” She waves her hands in a flustered manner. “D-don’t worry about it! I’m sure you’d be able to do better next time!”
“Ah. Yeah, I guess I did drop the ball this time around. I wasn’t able to bring out the most of my abilities. I didn’t push myself enough. I need to work harder…” I sulk gloomily.
“Yeah, that’s right. No, wait– No, no, that’s not it either. I mean, it’s good to work hard, but also it’s not like I’m saying you didn’t give it your all, but but but— Ah, geez! Shut up!” She cries and then suddenly punches me in the face.
“Guah! Wh-what the hell?” I exclaim after getting hit. It doesn’t really hurt, but it’s shocking, nonetheless. “Oi, don’t suddenly hit me when I’m already injured.”
“Shut up, shut up, shut up! You were being too gloomy, so you deserved it!” She proclaims unreasonably. “Listen! I’m not good with words, but I’m saying that you did a good job, okay? So, stop being gloomy and cheer up already!”
“O-okay. S-sorry, I guess.” I find myself apologizing.
I suppose I was being a bit too somber there. That was rather rude to self-reflect in front of others.
After raging for a bit longer, Alisha eventually regains her composure and straightens herself back to her usual lecture-like attitude.
“Ahem. Look, the situation’s not that bad, okay? Sure, we didn’t kill the enemy Assassin, but that wasn’t our immediate goal anyways. We were only trying to not get killed by her, so surviving the fight alone is good enough.” She explains coolly. “Not to mention, the results are in our favor. With all the injuries she received, it’s unlikely the Assassin girl will attack us anytime soon. She’s apparently in worse condition than Saber and she doesn’t have access to our healing and medicines, so she’ll be in no fighting state for a long time. That means we won’t have to worry about getting assassinated any time soon. So, you did a good job overall, okay?”
“W-well, yeah, but Saber did all the fighting. I wasn’t able to do anything…” I mumble.
Seeing my head hang, Alisha swiftly bops it again.
“Hey! I said no sulking. The achievements of the Servant belong to their Master too, understand?” She declares adamantly.
“R-right. Sorry again.” I apologize once more.
She’s horrible at it, but I finally clue in on the fact that Alisha’s just trying to cheer me up. If even she’s doing so, I suppose I need to get my head out of the clouds and focus.
“Um, anyways, what you’re saying is that we don’t need to worry about Nie Yinniang for a while, right? Since she’s injured, we’re safe from assassination for now?” I ask to confirm.
“That’s right. We can afford to leave her alone if we want. But… there’s also the option of going on the offensive.” She remarks, suddenly sharpening her glare.
“Huh? What do you mean?” I wonder.
“I’m saying that her weakened condition is something we could take advantage of. Instead of waiting for her to recover, we can take her out now while she can’t fight back.” Alisha proposes.
Hm, she makes a good point. With that giant wound Saber dealt her, Nie Yinniang would be easy prey for any other Servant. Someone like Rider or Starkad could probably finish her off now in just one attack. It would indeed be the ideal chance to deal with her once and for all. But…
“But we don’t know where she is. This whole thing began because we have no way of tracking her.” I comment critically. “Not to mention, she’s with Lancer. He won’t let us kill her without a fight and doing so will break our ceasefire.”
“Well, we know that they’re somewhere on the first level, right? After coming all the way up here, I doubt Lancer will head to another level. In fact, it’s likely he’s somewhere near the city in order to keep an eye on us. So, even if we can’t track them, we might be able to find wherever they’re hiding out.” Alisha remarks. “If it comes down to a fight, there’s no problem. Starkad and I alone could take them out with our eyes closed!”
Hmm, she has a point, but I’m still uneasy.
It’s true we can’t entirely ignore the enemy Assassin. But is attacking her the right choice? There’s a lot to consider here…
Choice!
3.
You can discussThe OG RequiemConQUEST and other Quests in Discord (disc is much more active here).
Click the image to ConQUEST
4. I'd rather scout for now. Even if Assassin can't fight, Lancer might have some cards up his sleeve and we'd better not rush in blindly.
2 - They’re off their footing at the moment, if we strike the compound now we can take them down before they make preparations to take us out
Quest of Fate
Apocrypha Universe Fate Quest Project
---
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Hermes Servant Collection Master Post
4. Lancer is clearly not willing to negotiate nor give up Assassin, but rushing in blindly also sounds like a bad idea.
4
3
here is a list of my servant sheets(new and improved format for my servant sheets)
Come explore the White Library, and reach the bottom of this Abyss
Fate / White Memoria
4
The Act of dozing off in the afternoon is a luxury indeed.
Coffee would be nice, though.
[Collection of my Servant Sheets]
Now Revamped!
Year: 2018
Location: Pinyang Hospital, Level 1
To attack or not to attack? I take a few moments to gather my thoughts and decide. After some moderate consideration, I make up my mind.
“Hmm, I think we shouldn’t attack them just yet. I’d rather not pick a fight with them at the moment.”
I tell this to Alisha as confidently as I can, but there’s still a bit of uneasiness in my voice. Well, I guess it’s hard to be decisive when the situation’s so uncertain.
Alisha, as well, doesn’t seem very eager about my decision.
“Ehhhh? But it’s the perfect chance to take the enemy Assassin out.” She pouts, clearly displeased.
“Even so, I think we should be particularly careful. It’s too reckless to attack immediately without any preparation. You weren’t there, but I fought the enemy Assassin myself, so I know just how crafty she is. Even on her last leg – no, especially on her last leg – she’s not the type that can be killed easily. On the other hand, since she won’t heal as quickly as us, we’ll have plenty of time to attack them later. If we wait for Saber and me to be healed first, we’ll be in even better standing when we fight them for real.” I explain my thought process to her in detail.
“Hmm… I suppose you have a point. You’ve fought both of the Servants before, so I guess you know them best.” She mutters, nodding along a little.
Huh, she’s being surprisingly reasonable for once. It’s a good thing she’s not purposefully being defiant like before.
“Oh, that said, it’d still be good if we knew the location of their base beforehand.” I add. “Could I count on you to look for it? Discreetly, of course.”
“Hah! Of course! Who do you think I am?” She puffs up proudly.
“I see… Then, I’ll leave it to you. Thanks, Alisha.” I smile and bow a little to emphasize my gratitude.
“H-hmph. There’s no need to thank me. This much is only natural. W-we’re partners after all…” She states before folding her arms aggressively, though her cheeks do seem to turn red for a bit.
Though I hate to admit it, this time around it seems that I’ll have to rely on Alisha to take care of things. At least until I’m out of the hospital, I’ll have to trust she won’t get into any trouble.
Well, one way or another, our next course of action is made. Though Demonic Assassin had gotten away at the last moment, we might still get another chance to deal with her soon. In anticipation of that moment, I’ll have to do my best to heal up quickly.
Year: 2018
Location: Pinyang Hospital, Level 1
After a little more small talk, Yingying and Alisha take their leave from the hospital.
“I’ll visit again soon, dear. Please get some rest, okay?”
“Don’t forget your training okay? I won’t forgive any slacking off!”
With such spirited farewells, they went back home and took with them all the energy in the room. Once it was only Saber and I left, the only thing left was a suffocating tension.
“…”
“…”
Awkward silence stiffens the air. For a long period, neither of us say a word. The only thing shared between us is the room; neither feelings nor thoughts are exchanged during our shunning contest.
It’s been like this since the battle ended and we both came to our senses. As for the reason… well, it’s pretty obvious.
Saber is in love with me.
That’s what she told me not too long ago. At the time, I barely had any room to process and address this fact before Demonic Assassin suddenly attacked. But now that the battle’s finally over, my mind returns to this horrific truth.
Saber is in love with me.
As much as I despise it, I can’t deny this fact. I can’t ignore my Servant’s feelings. But at the same time… I don’t know how to address them.
I’ve already told her I don’t reciprocate her feelings. So now what? Do we keep things the way they were? Should I treat her differently? Should I try to keep my distance? Or should I try to closer to her?
I don’t know. I really don’t know.
It might be easier if Saber took the initiative, but she’s been awfully silent as well. Is she just waiting for my orders as a faithful Servant or is she feeling awkward about the situation as well? I don’t even know that much anymore.
Dammit… how did it come down to this?
Lamenting these turn of events, I bury my face in my pillow and smother a scream.
I’m tired from over-thinking this. For now, I guess I’ll sleep. Perhaps an answer will come to me in my dreams…
Interlude:
The Flower in the Dung Heap
Hu San Niang.
That was the name of the girl who would become a Hero of Justice.
She was born the third daughter of a wealthy warlord and grew to become a woman of great martial and marital ability. Her skill with the sword was extraordinary and her valor in battle commendable. But most of all, she was beautiful. Tall and slender, her natural beauty was compared to a Begonia flower. With her noble upbringing, impeccable skills, and peerless beauty, there was no man in the country that would not be ecstatic to have her as a wife.
So it was that she had been arranged to marry the son of another wealthy family. He too was a man of noble stature and good pedigree. Though she could not say that she felt affection for him as a woman, she believed that she would come to love him as a wife once their engagement was complete. She would be properly married, bring honor to her family, and live on happily ever after.
—And then, everyone died.
A group of bandits attacked her fiancée’s family. Though she rushed into battle to save him, it was of no use. He was hacked to bits by the enemy and his village overrun. Even her own family, who had peacefully surrendered to the bandits, was still slaughtered mercilessly. Only she, who had been captured alive, survived the massacre.
The emotions she felt when she learnt of the outcome could not be expressed in words. She must’ve spent endless hours crying for all the lives that had been lost. Everyone she knew and loved, her entire life until that point had been taken away with a single battle. She felt immeasurable sorrow for what was lost and uncontrollable hatred towards those who took it all away from her.
And yet, it was those very people she now found herself amongst. Held captive in the bandits’ home base and with no home to return to, the young beauty knew she had no choice but to comply with their every demand.
The arrangement was made swiftly. She was to marry one of the bandits: an ugly, grotesque man famed for his lecherous nature. He was actually someone she had fought during the battle in which she was captured. The moment he saw her beauty, he attacked her with perverted intentions and was promptly defeated by her blade. But now, she couldn’t muster even a single finger’s worth of resistance against him or his perverse desires.
Immediately after the marriage, her new husband led her to his quarters. He pushed her down and had his way with her, sloppily licking every inch of her body before diving between her legs.
It didn’t feel good. In fact, she didn’t feel anything at all.
Even as he violently plowed through her virginity, she felt nothing inside except the hollow despair in knowing this would continue for the rest of her life. Any hope she had left for escaping this prison was already shattered to pieces.
From then on, day after day, she would work for the bandits as their slave. Night after night, she would pleasure her husband as his toy. The proud and noble flower of the battlefield was now nothing more than a common toy, spending the rest of her life pleasing the lowlifes that took everything away from her.
That was the tragic tale of Hu Sanniang, a flower planted in cow dung.
—At least, that’s how it should’ve ended.
When was it that that all changed?
When was it that her immeasurable sorrow became joy?
When was it that her uncontrollable hatred became affection?
The eternal animosity she held towards her captors diminished day-by-day without her noticing and a foolish fondness took its place. As she became more and more familiar with the bandits, she began to sympathize with their cause and care about their success. She began to believe that the men who killed her family were more than inhuman monsters – they too were people trying to do the right thing.
Sometimes the bandits would praise her work and offer her words of encouragement. That made her want to work harder for them.
Sometimes her husband would be gentle in bed and caress her softly. That made her like him quite a bit.
And, before she knew it, she had become one of them. She joined them, not as their captive, but as their comrade. She lived with them, fought with them, and died with them as brothers in arm. She believed in their cause and believed that she was one of them.
But, of course, that was never true.
She was never their real equal. She was never freed from the chains of her captivity. She had no choice in the matter. She had never even wanted to be there to begin with.
Her heart should’ve eternally yearned for vengeance and escape, so why was it now filled with sympathy and camaraderie? Why did she entrust her back to the men who slaughtered her parents and siblings? Why did she look at the grotesque man who violated her daily with warmth and affection?
There could only be one reason.
This irrational, irregular, irresistible contradiction could only be…
Love.
“Ah, hey, Saber. What’s up?”
The young man spoke as awkward and rigidly as always, doing his best to look her in the eye. Despite his timid, almost submissive nature, this man was her current Master.
In her next life as a Heroic Spirit, she met him.
At first, he was an enemy she had fought against, but she came to understand that he was someone worth following. She swore her absolute obedience to him and became his Servant.
He was a strange man, to say the least. He was neither a warrior nor a leader, neither was he strong-willed nor ambitious. Occasionally, he would get a burst of ego and act tough, but more often than not, he skulked around with his head down trying to not step on anyone else’s toes. He never seemed confident about his choices and backed down from hostility quickly. His demeanor was anything but manly, much less commanding.
Even so, she was loyal to him. As a Servant and as a person, she was prepared to devote everything to him and obey his every order to the letter.
And yet,
“Don’t talk like that. It’s disgusting.”
He was furious when she offered her sexual services to him.
“Ah. N-no, sorry, I didn’t mean that. You can say whatever you want and uh… I’m sorry.”
And then, he seemed upset and remorseful when she followed his orders.
It was as if he hated her loyalty. Her many efforts to please him, which had worked on numerous men before, fell flat and only seemed to make him angry. From her perspective, it was almost as if he hated being happy.
Over time, even though she was rarely by his side, she continued to pick up on his idiosyncrasies. Like how he had a beautiful, loving wife he clearly liked, and yet wouldn’t bed. Or how, despite being the master of the household, he contented himself with sleeping on the floor. Or how his battle strategies could only be considered tactically insane, putting himself in the heat of battle when he had nothing to offer and everything to lose. Or how he acts like he doesn’t care about something, but obviously is invested in it and indirectly tries to learn more. Or how sometimes, when everyone else is having fun and getting along and he thinks no one is looking at him, he smiles a little just from watching them but never dares to join in.
Everything about him was contradictory to her knowledge of men. He was, in almost all respects, the complete opposite of her husband.
How strange. He was truly a strange man.
Puzzled by her Master’s plentiful peculiarities, she began to wonder what it would take to gain his approval. What could she offer to make this man pleased? What does her Master actually want from her?
At that point, she hadn’t even realized the mistake in her thinking. If she was truly obedient, she should’ve just followed his orders without thinking. It didn’t matter what he wanted, she simply had to do what he said. And yet, she began to think about his desires and, in doing so, about him.
Something was blooming within her that made her go beyond obedience. Something that made her think about him at all hours of the day. Something that made her heart leap when he called upon her. Something that made her not know what to say when she was next to him.
Thinking back to her past, she deduced that there could only be one source of this irregularity.
This bewildering, befuddling, bewitching emotion could only be…
Year: 2018
Location: Pinyang Hospital, Level 1
… that was the dream I had.
I wake up with an all too vivid recollection of the dream I just had.
It was a strange dream in which I saw events I haven’t experienced and learned things I shouldn’t know about. In fact, it was much more likely that the dream I saw belonged to someone else…
“A Servant dream, huh…” I mutter to myself as I come to the obvious conclusion.
They mentioned this phenomenon in Chaldea, but this was my first time really experiencing it. Apparently, it is possible for Masters to see their Servant’s dreams and vice versa. The conditions for it happening seem to be random though and what you’ll see is as certain as any other dream.
This time, I dreamt of Saber’s past… and her present. I saw both the events surrounding her marriage and her experiences as my Servant. It wasn’t anything I didn’t vaguely know about before, but it had a different sting seeing them from her perspective.
“Ahh….” I groan beneath my breath as memories of what I saw continue to haunt me.
For a while, I just stare at the ceiling motionlessly, thinking about the dream. Then, out of a little curious, I turn to check on the other bed of the room and find Saber still in bed. She seems to be sleeping peacefully, unaware of my turmoil.
… dammit, she’s gorgeous. I’ve always known this, but she really is an attractive woman. Right now, the term Sleeping Beauty is all too apt. And not only is she pretty, but she’s super strong, incredibly smart, and intensely loyal. You couldn’t ask for anything more.
Now that I’ve lived through her story, I can’t help but see her in a different light.
To be honest, sometimes I forget that she has sentience. I’ve gotten so used to thinking of my victims as puppets or machines that I forget that they are capable of emotions too. Even if I created them, they’re able to feel and think like any other person. They can be happy or sad or feel proud or feel betrayed. They can even fall in love…
But of all people, she had to fall in love with me. She really has bad luck with men, huh? There are plenty of good catches out there; it shouldn’t be a problem for her to get a proper hunk who’ll actually treat her nicely, so why did she end up falling for a jackass like me?
I… to be honest, I still don’t know what I want to do with Saber. But there is one thing I can’t deny now that I’ve seen that dream.
I want Saber to be happy. I don’t even know how that would work now that she’s already dead, but I still want it. She’s gone through too much shit in her life on top of getting brainwashed by me. Shouldn’t such an innocent person deserve a happy ending? Am I too much of a hypocrite for caring about the person I wronged?
I don’t know…
“… mn—gh.”
A mumbling noise suddenly broke the silence.
Slowly and sloppily, Saber’s eyes open and she gets up.
“Ah, h-hey. Good morning, Saber.” I can’t help but greet her.
“… good morning, Master.” She returns the greeting curtly as ever.
“Um… did you sleep well?” I find myself asking. With all that’s going on in my brain, I don’t know what else to say.
Surprisingly, she doesn’t answer immediately like she always does. She seems to contemplate something before addressing me again.
“No, Master. I did not sleep well.” She answers in a matter-of-fact tone.
“O-oh. Is that so? Umm… did you have a bad dream?” I wonder awkwardly.
“Indeed, I saw a very unpleasant dream.” She answers.
So, I wasn’t the only one having a bad dream, huh?
Speaking of which, about the dream I saw… should I tell her about it? It does seem rude to have looked through her memories without her permission. But it might not be a topic she wants to discuss.
Either way, we can’t keep up this awkward tension forever. I need to talk to her, whatever it’s about.
Choice!
I'm gonna go with 2. I wanna know what she saw.
2
4. Tell her the truth about everything (your ability and what you did to her)
Yes I'm changing my vote.
Last edited by Bird of Hermes; November 6th, 2020 at 11:44 AM.
Quest of Fate
Apocrypha Universe Fate Quest Project
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Beast's Lair Discord Server For Fate Quests
Hermes Servant Collection Master Post
2
here is a list of my servant sheets(new and improved format for my servant sheets)
Come explore the White Library, and reach the bottom of this Abyss
Fate / White Memoria
1
The Act of dozing off in the afternoon is a luxury indeed.
Coffee would be nice, though.
[Collection of my Servant Sheets]
Now Revamped!
4.
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