Ch 135: Red, is the color of pain.

Akeno woke up, and stretched as she stifled a yawn. She lifted her upper body to take a look at her surroundings.

She was on a bed in a minimally furnished room.

[Greetings, User.] A feminine but distinctly synthetic voice suddenly interrupted her.

"Hi, System." said Akeno.

[User can communicate with the System mentally and doesn't need to speak out.]

[Okay? Is this working? If so, would you mind calling me Akeno, rather than User?]

[Understood. Akeno, your input is required to complete the system's integration.]

[Is this about choosing the Yin path and Yang Path like Noah did?]

[Affirmative.]

A large blue window appeared in Akeno's vision, showing her several options.

"Yin Path of the Healer: Cure and Heal the ill and injured to earn Yin points. Starting ability: Lesser Heal."

"Yin path of the Guardian: Save and protect people to earn Yin points. Starting ability: Switch Position."

"Yin path of the Avenger: Capture or kill evildoers to earn Yin points. The target must at least be a violent criminal, or someone having done significant evil to provide any reward. Starting ability: Hide Presence."

"Yang path of the Succubus: Enslave people and dominate them to earn Yang points. Enslaving notable people will give a higher reward. Starting ability: Hands of Nirvana. Charming beauty."

[System, wasn't there supposed to be three options for the Yang path?]

[As the subordinate of a Champion who already chose the Yang path of the Incubus, your own Yang Path is limited to Yang Path of the Succubus. You already have the default starting ability, so Lilith replaced it by the Charming Beauty ability, passively increasing the effect of your charisma by thirty percent.]

[I see. Well, it's fine like this, I would have chosen that path anyway. And the new skill is a nice bonus. And I'll thank Lilith-sama the next time I see her for being so thoughtful.]

Akeno considered for a moment, before she made her decision.

[I already have most of the skills related to the Healer Path, and if I need someone resurrected, Noah can always do it later. It's a choice between protecting my allies while I deal with bad guys, or dealing with bad guys before they can harm my allies, and my temperament is definitely leaning toward the later. I'll take the Path of the Avenger.]

[Acknowledged. Resuming System integration… Integration completed.]

[The Status window is available. The Quest window is available. The Inventory window is available. The Yin-Yang store is available.]

[Skills unlocked: Hide Presence, Charming Beauty. Emissary]

With a grin, Akeno opened her status.

Name: Akeno Himejima

Age: 18

Level: 1

Exp: 0 / 1 000

STR: 50 (+48)

AGI: 50 (+62)

END: 50 (+46)

MAG: 50 (+57)

CHA: 20 (+15)

Unattributed: 0

Personal Skills:

Inherited skills: Cooking, Martial Arts

Sharable skills: Charming Beauty, Hide Presence, Holy Lightning.

Shared skills: Automated Translation, Greater Healing, Hands of Nirvana, Improved Rest, Greater Cure, Negative Effects Immunity, Item Creation, Regeneration, Lie Detection, Night Vision, Teleportation (sealed), Augment, Shunpo, Fertility Control, Shared Infinite Lifespan, Hard Light Arsenal.

Slaves: 0.

Little sisters: 0.

Sacred Gear: Divine Dividing

Yin Points: 212 526

Yang Points: 4 650

[So, the extra attribute numbers obviously come from my bond with Noah. As for the skills… What's this Emissary thing?]

[You cannot buy skills from the Yin-Yang store that Noah already possesses. Emissary is a sub-skill from Soul Magic, allowing you only to create Soul Contracts, with the other part temporarily binding their soul to your own. After Noah is allowed to come to this world, the contracts will automatically be transferred to Noah's soul.]

[What are those Inherited skills?]

[They are skills that Noah possesses, and Lilith decided to grant you in addition to the System. Cooking is a variant of Item Creation and will let you convert energy into food, as Noah does daily. And Martial Arts Mastery will give you a high degree of proficiency in unarmed battle and with any weapon, while not being comparable to that of a true master, such as most Servants.]

[And, if I understand correctly, the shareable skills are those that will be shared with the people that bond their souls to mine, while the shared skills are those I get from Noah, but will not be shared with them.]

[This is correct. Only half of your base attributes will be shared as well, not those you get from Noah. Your high starting attributes are taking into account your nature as a half fallen angel and mid-class reincarnated devil, as well as your Queen Evil Piece.]

[Thanks for the information. And speaking about him…]

Akeno tried to open her inventory, and the knowledge of what was inside instantly popped in her mind. She took the new smartphone that was inside. Akeno somehow already knew the pin code to unlock it, and checked the contact list. All the numbers from her previous smartphone had been copied, and she called Noah.

"Hello?"

"Hi, Noah. It's Akeno. I've got a new phone."

"That's great. I'm putting you on speaker and activating the video, we were all waiting to hear from you."

Akeno activated the video from her side, and held the smartphone in front of her. She could see Noah's face, with her mom beside him and a few of the other girls.

"So, how are things over there? What is the world like?"

"First, I have met the six other candidates. Four girls, two men, and they all seem to be fairly decent people. Well, except for one who is clearly a hardcore masochist. She makes Raynare look like a prime and proper lady.

"Hey, I resent that! And you're quite masochistic yourself!" said the muffled voice of Raynare through the speaker.

"Anyway, the world looks like modern Japan, and I've been sent to a place called Fuyuki City. I have been given a catalyst to summon what is called a Heroic Spirit, and I have to defeat the six other candidates as well as seven local Masters to stop something very bad from happening."

Akeno carefully observed Noah's expression as she said that, and she felt almost certain that he knew something about the Holy Grail War. He didn't look surprised enough.

"There's not much more to say so far. But, Noah, can we continue this conversation in private?"

"Eheh, my baby is already missing her man and wants to have a sexy talk." grinned Shuri.

"Mom, don't embarrass me like that… But, yeah. See you later, everyone."

After the girls replied, Noah left the living room, smartphone in hand. He entered his bedroom and sat on the bed, smiling. But his smile slowly faded when he saw Akeno's expression.

"Is there something wrong, Akeno?"

"You could say that, yes." flatly replied Akeno. "Do you have anything you wish to confess to me?"

"Confess?" Noah frowned as he searched his memories for anything that might have made Akeno displeased. There was that one thing, of course, but he fervently hoped it wasn't what this was about.

"Should I point it out? Tell me, oh dear Master of mine, how is it possible that one of the candidates blurted out something about me being half fallen angel the instant I said my name, and that I was close to someone called Rias Gremory?"

Noah paled and sighed.

"...Crap. I'm really sorry, Akeno. But this secret is something too big. It is the kind of thing that destroys relationships and can push people to self-harm or depression. I can't just tell this to others, especially those I care about."

"…"

Akeno considered him in silence for long seconds, then asked, in a barely audible voice.

"…My mom. Is she really my mom?"

"…That is for you to decide, Akeno. She had never lived until I 'resurrected' her, but, she wishes to be, if you'll let her. And she loves you just as much as a real one would."

"…Satan, this is so messed up! I wish I never learned about that." sighed Akeno.

"Yes, this is messed up. And that's exactly why I didn't tell anyone."

"…Noah, I'll forgive you for hiding this from us, and I won't peep a word about it to the girls. In your place, I'd have done the same anyway. But, pamper me plenty when we reunite again."

"Thank you, Akeno. And how is Albion taking the news?"

[Not very well. I need time to digest it.] replied Albion in her head.

"She says she needs time to process it. Still, since worlds are apparently based on fictions, maybe you can give me some information about the other candidates. If some of them know about me, it's only fair that I know about them as well."

"Sure. Have they given you their names?"

"Yes. The masochist I mentioned earlier called herself Darkness…"

"Darkness? long blonde hair in a ponytail, blue eyes and paladin armor?"

"It seems you know her."

"She's from a comedic fiction, as you can likely guess from her behavior. Very resilient to injuries, but she couldn't hit the door of a barn. Her Agi attribute must be in the negatives. At least it would be if she followed the fiction. Keep in mind that the fiction is only a source of inspiration, not necessarily fact, and that being the subordinate of a Champion may have changed a lot of things."

"From a comedy? So, she's an idiot."

"Yes. She had her reliable moments, but she's also the kind that would chain herself up and place the end of the chain into your hand, while also loudly proclaiming she will never submit to you, no matter how badly you torture, rape or disgrace her, you degenerate brute!"

"Surely you exaggerate." snorted Akeno.

"She tried to do just that when a minor evil boss came to a city to complain about being harassed by some of her equally idiotic friends. She justified it by claiming she was using herself as a sacrifice to protect her friends, but, well, you've seen her. She's not exactly subtle. The evil boss ran away from her craziness with his reputation in ruins."

"…I need brain bleach. It seems like she won't be too hard to defeat, at least. I'll just promise to treat her badly. The catalyst she took was a riding crop, belonging to the Rider class. Do you know what Servant this catalyst belongs to?"

"I do not know every single Servant from the Fate Franchise, but in the Rider class... The odds are pretty good that it would be the Celtic Queen Medb. She's a dominatrix in all but name and becomes more powerful when she fights males."

"Okay. Since we're speaking about Servants, I guess I should show you my own catalyst. Do you recognize it? The servant is a Lancer."

Akeno took from her inventory the dress and showed it to him.

"Ohoh, that's an interesting one you got there." chuckled Noah.

"A strong servant?"

"I'd say middle ranked. Not weak, but not comparable to the strongest Lancers like the Celtic Queen of the Underworld Scathach or Faerie Knight Melusine. But that's an interesting Servant alright, a Lancer who doesn't use a spear. On the plus side, that Servant doesn't have a problematic attitude."

"Yes, I've heard about Berserkers being hard to control."

Noah only snorted.

"If only it were just the Berserkers. There's that golden mass of arrogance, Gilgamesh, who will call everyone else mongrels and throw a tantrum if you don't bow to him and flatter him. He would only be ridiculous, if not for him also being one of the very strongest Heroic Spirits. He's an Archer because he throws swords and other weapons at, well, just about anyone. And he has a lot of weapons to throw. And he does appear in one of the two Holy Grails war I know about that happen in Fuyuki."

"Then there's the evil perverts, Caster Gilles de Rais, who loves torturing children, Assassin Jack the Reaper, Rider Blackbeard who's a rapist, Saber Jason who's an evil narcissist, and so on. Not every Heroic Spirit is good natured."

"Okayyy. And you still haven't told me much about my future Servant. Is she female, at least?" said Akeno with a deadpan expression.

"I won't spoil the surprise. I just wish I could be a fly on the wall when you summon your Servant."

"Fine. let's speak about another candidate, then. There's one who wore a futuristic red bodysuit, with a 02 engraved on it. Long burnt-orange hair and… you've recognized her already." observed Akeno, seeing Noah's expression grow serious.

"Yeah. Asuka Shinigami." said Noah with a softer voice.

"She seemed quite confident and arrogant."

"Yes. Akeno, please make her part of our family, but do it gently if you can."

"…That unusual for you to react like this. Yes, she's cute, but she's also bratty."

"Yes... What do you think about the color of her suit, Akeno? The creators of this fiction used red for a specific reason."

"It's flashy. It seems to be on par with her temperament. In Japan, Red is also the color of passion and good fortune."

"In her case, red, is the color of pain." softly said Noah.

"…Pain?"

"I guess you need some context. The world Asuka comes from has been partially devastated by Angels. Not the cute Angels like Michael or Gabriel, but rather alien-like beings with terrifying abilities, generally on the gigantic size, and immune to conventional and nuclear weapons. To defend themselves and kill the Angels when they show up, humanity has created a handful of hundred meters tall robots called EVAs, and Asuka is the pilot of EVA 02."

"That explains the bodysuit." nodded Akeno. "She mentioned having something called the Red Empress. Am I going to have to fight a hundred meters tall robot?"

"That's doubtful. EVAs are too powerful to be unleashed on other worlds. But here's the kicker, Akeno. The giant robots? They're not actually robots. They are Angels in a larval form, and the armor surrounding their biological body is not armor, but a restraint preventing them from evolving."

"And the pilots go inside to pilot them? It sounds disgusting."

"It is. Although the pilots are in a capsule and do not make contact or even see any of the fleshy bits. They are not aware of the EVA's nature until late in the show. But back to Asuka. In her world, EVAs are a brand new technology, and that means a lot of testing has been done before, and done in a rush, for obvious reasons. In one of those previous tests, Asuka's mother, Kyouko, I think her name was, did a test with EVA 02. And the test ended, badly. Some kind of mental contamination happened."

"They recovered Kyouko and got her out, but parts of her soul remained inside EVA 02. With parts of her soul missing, Asuka's mother became mad. She started treating a doll as her daughter, and completely ignored Asuka. Asuka was maybe five years old at the time."

"That's terrible." muttered Akeno.

"It gets worse. After some time, when Asuka was maybe eight or so, her mother… hung herself. And Asuka is the one who found her."

"Oh!... But what about Auska's father? Was he not there to help Asuka?"

"He remarried and stopped paying attention to her."

"That piece of shit!"

"Yes. Anyway, that explains Asuka's behavior. Deprived of love, and realizing that her skill as an EVA pilot was the only thing giving her value, she became short-tempered and prideful. She didn't want to be a good EVA pilot, she NEEDED to be the best, because that was what she received attention and praises for. But deep inside, she craves to be acknowledged and loved. Not just for her talent, but for herself. And the thing she dreads the most is to be alone and forgotten."

"…I understand. I'll treat her with care. Do you know about her catalyst? It was a broken spear head, with a veiny shaft."

"Veiny shaft? Like, this?" Noah used light magic to create a mirage of a gorgeous women with long purple hair and red eyes, wearing a black and dark gray bodysuit, and holding in her right hand a red spear made of a single piece, with a narrow blade and veiny shaft.

"Who's this?"

"Scathach, the Queen of the Underworld, and one of the strongest Heroic Spirits. She can appear as Lancer, Assassin, Caster or even Ruler."

"Ruler?"

"One of the extra classes. Rulers generally appear when something really bad in about to happen, and the Counter Force decides to send an agent to deal with it. I don't think you need to concern yourself with them."

"Counter Force?"

"I'm not sure I can explain that without going on a long tangent. Ask any local Magus, and they'll tell you."

"Fine. Anyway, the spear fragment Asuka took looks very similar to that red spear, but it was cobalt blue, not red."

"Ah?" Noah frowned, searching his memories.

"…I don't know of any servant using a blue spear. But if it looks that much like the red one, this may be some Gae Bolg variant. The Servant is likely another Heroic Spirit from the Celtic region."

"Gae bolg, as in, the spear that always pierce the heart no matter what?"

"Yes. A good thing you can heal from that kind of injury." grinned Noah.

"I'd rather not have to heal an injury like that in the first place!"

"I can understand. Been there, done that, would not recommend."

"What about the next candidate?"

"A blonde girl named Chisato Nishikigi. I'm already fond of her." smiled Akeno.

"Eheh, I know her." grinned Noah. "An adorable bubble of chaos. Never accept doing Janken with her. You'll lose every time."

"She's a cheater?"

"Not really. She just has acute senses and reflexes that border on the supernatural. She'll adapt to your move instantly. In her fiction, she managed to evade bullets at near point-blank range simply by starting to evade before the bad guys pressed the trigger. She's also an excellent shot, and there's no reason that kind of expertise can't also apply to other kinds of weapons. She was trained as a ruthless killer as a child, but she reformed and became a pacifist, using only non-lethal bullets to neutralize bad guys. Don't underestimate her."

"I won't. her catalyst was a book with a strange title, about someone named Tamamo and housewife training."

"That servant must be Tamamo-no-Mae. She's a specialist in ice, fire and air magic. A strong magician, with a playful personality."

"The last girl is someone named Miwa Kasumi. Long light blue hair. And I see you know her as well. You're an otaku, Noah." laughed Akeno.

"Possibly. Miwa's a kind girl, risking her life as an exorcist to feed her two younger brothers. For that reason, she cares a lot about saving money. In the fiction, she's a very good swordswoman, but that's about it."

"She took a gold coin as a catalyst, but I didn't see it clearly."

"I won't be able to guess from just that." shrugged Noah.

"That's it for the four girls. The next one is a young man with prosthetics named Genos. Do you know him as well?"

"Yes."

"Otaku!"

"Genos isn't a man with prosthetics, he's a cyborg, or maybe an android, I'm not sure. He's fast and strong, and there are many overpowered weapons hidden in his body. Never assume he's unarmed just because his hands are empty."

"I'll be careful. his catalyst was a set of one naginata and one katana. Strange, for an Archer Class servant.

"Tomoe Gozen, that's the name of the only Archer Servant that uses multiple weapons, one of them being a naginata. One of my favorite Heroic Spirits."

"Hum, the famous Japanese female general. I look forward to meeting her… And the last one is a young man with red eyes and short white hair…"

"Bell Cranel?" guessed Noah.

"You Otaku!"

"That guy is the stereotypical good natured, hard-working hero. But he easily becomes flustered where the opposite sex is concerned. Try to not kill him, please."

"I don't intend to kill any of them. He chose a painting of a dragon sitting on a pile of treasures."

"…I don't have a clue, sorry."

"Well, that's already good enough. I know a lot more about my competitors now. What can you tell me about the locals?"

"I'm not sure. I know about two different Holy Grail Wars happening in Fuyuki, with different participants, and there's no telling what the gods may have changed… I see daylight from the window. How about you summon your servant and take a trip outside? If you use the glasses, I may be able to tell you more."

"Yes. I'll call you back soon."

"See you later, Akeno. I'm wishing you success."

Akeno nodded and ended the call. Stretching again, she left the room to explore the small house she was in. In the basement, a large magic array for Hero summoning was already traced on the ground. And the knowledge of the incantation was in her memories.

Akeno took the dress from her inventory, folded it, and placed it in the center of the formation.

Taking a deep breath, and placing her right arm over the array, she started the incantation.

"Set.

For the elements, Silver and Iron.

For the foundation, stone and the Archduke of Pacts.

Raise a wall for the wind that shall fall.

Close the gates of the four directions. Come forth from the crown.

And follow the forked road leading to the Kingdom."

Massive amounts of energy were leaving her body to feed the array. The magic array shone with a yellow light.

"Fill, fill, fill, fill, fill!

Repeat every five times.

Simply, shatter once filled."

The light coming from the array was much more intense, and the air within the basement was agitated by wind. Pain came from the back of her right hand. She knew the three command seals were being engraved on her skin, but she couldn't stop.

"I announce.

Your self is under me, my fate is in your sword.

In accordance with the approach of the Holy Grail, if you abide by this covenant, then answer.

Here is my oath. I am the one who will become all the good of the world.

I am the one who will slay all the evil of the world.

You, seven heavens clad in three words of power, come forth from the circle of binding, O guardian of the Scales!"

Arcs of lightning burst from parts of the array to connect to other parts, and sudden smoke emerged from the center, blinding her.

Then the wind died down, the array stopped emitting arcs of lightning, the smoke dissipated, and the light coming from it dimmed into nothingness.

Standing over the dress in the center of the array was a massive silhouette, easily three meters tall. A huge figure clad in a blue armor so dark that it almost seemed black. Orange accents on the armor gave it some color.

The being held a massive sword in its right hand that was longer than Akeno herself, but she didn't pay attention to it. Her gaze was fixed on the visor of the armored Servant, emitting an orange glow.

This servant was massive, and she couldn't say for certain if this was a mecha modeled to look like the fantasy version of a dark warrior, or an armor made to look like a mecha.

Shaking herself, Akeno glanced at the delicate red dress between the feet of the monster whose horned helmet scrapped the ceiling. The contrast was so great that she giggled nervously.

Akeno's servant: https://fategrandorder.fandom.com/wiki/Britomart?so=search&file=S368+Stage1.webp

AN: This isn't the first chapter where I mention Janken. For those who aren't aware, is is simply the Japanese name for Rock-Paper-Scissors. It is used a lot more by Japanese people to settle differents than Westerners might assume.