Chapter 62: Fifth Servant

Rin sauntered up to Haruki and gave him a stare full of doubts. “Are you sure about this? It might destroy your body...”

She didn’t imagine how any magus of her age could possibly take on the burden of three servants. It might be possible if they were born with the magic circuits of high quality and quantity.

Haruki could see the concern hidden in her eyes. As always, she wasn’t good at conveying her emotions. Instead of giving a useless retort, he grabbed the Rule Breaker from Medea and thrust it into Medusa’s chest.

Sakura felt her connection with Rider dwindling. A prickly sensation overtook her hand, the same spot where her Command Spells used to be. Two more Command Spells were added to his right hand. When added with the three on his left hand, the total number came to a whopping nine.

Task completed. Well done!

1 x High-Rank Gacha coupon rewarded.

He had collected a total of fifteen coupons, which he was going to redeem after taking care of Zouken.

Meanwhile, Rin stared at Medusa, whose entire presence changed after the contract. Her magical energy wasn’t any weaker than Archer.

‘He brought out the full strength of three servants?’

On top of that, he didn’t show any hint of exhaustion.

‘What is he, a demon?

She couldn’t find any evidence to deny her claim.

‘One thing in concrete. Hayashi-kun isn’t a normal person.’

Archer, on the other hand, felt his instincts tingle. The change in Master boosted Medusa’s strength by several times. She went from a non-threatening servant to a massive threat to him.

Well, nobody sensed these changes better than Medusa herself.

‘I can defeat him now.’

She lightly chuckled at everyone’s surprised expression. Everyone severely underestimated her due to her crippled parameters under a Master without any magic circuits. Before she posed no threat to most of the Servants, but now…

‘I can bring out my full strength.’

The never stopping flow of magical energy coming from Haruki gave her the confidence to summon Bellerophon right here and now.

“Master,” she said and kneeled before Haruki like a knight would do. “I may be a monster with snakes for hair and a petrifying gaze… you still saved me from my fate. I swear everything to you as your servant, so feel free to command me as you please.”

She indirectly revealed her identity to everyone. After all, only one figure shared the legend of petrifying gaze alongside snakes for hair.

“Someone is pretty talkative today,” Haruki said with a smile. “Very well. Lend me your strength in the battles to come.”

[Medusa is added to the 'Potential Partners' list.]

“You have strange preferences, Master,” Medusa muttered to herself before she got on her feet. “I look forward to working with you.”

Medusa gave a nod to Sakura. The aroma of blood lingering in the air left her with no choice but to return to her spiritual form. She couldn’t show her ‘monstrous’ or ‘bloodthirsty’ side to Sakura.

“That is settled now. Sakura, come with me.”

Haruki pulled Sakura behind a tree. The young lady found her heart racing as she stood with her back against the tree. Eyes brimming with unshed tears, she looked up at him. “S-Senpai.”

“Silly girl, get your head out of the gutter.” He flicked her forehead. “How are you feeling?”

“I’m feeling better than ever… Senpai, what happened to Shinji?”

“You won’t see him again.” Haruki shrugged off Shinji’s fate and pressed his hand on her cheek. “Medea will remove your worm crests with another helper. Go with her.”

Sakura swallowed her anxiety and timidly nodded. “Will it be alr—”

Haruki shut her mouth with a brief kiss. “Remember, you endured this for ten years. No second guessing yourself now.”

To further prove his point, he kissed her once again. A long, drawn out kiss that sparkled a light in Sakura’s eyes. She reached out and clung onto his neck, showing her fierce desires through the vigorous clash of their tongues. He stopped her before things escalated into another territory.

Sakura blushed as she slammed her head in his chest. “I can’t lose now... Senpai, what about you?”

“I’ll finish the old man.”

“Please, take care… Zouken is very cunning. He’ll do everything to survive.”

“Don’t worry about my side. I’ll take Rin, Archer, Lancer, and Rider with me. He can’t possibly contend against three servants.”

“Senpai, I-I’ll be waiting.”

She couldn’t wipe the worries off of her face. Haruki hugged her and made her relaxed by stroking her hair. In the matter of moments, she was more than ready to face the biggest test of her life.

Haruki took Sakura’s hand and guided her to Medea. The sorceress saw everything that happened between him and Sakura, but she didn’t point out anything.

“I’ll leave the rest to you,” Haruki said and pushed Sakura toward Medea. “Off you go.”

“Haruki-sama, I’ll be in touch.” Medea gave a nod to Haruki before she wrapped Sakura in her robe and vanished.

Lancer approached Haruki with a playful smirk. “Master, don’t ride on two boats simultaneously. Things can get really messy.”

“I got it handled. Thanks for your wisdom though.”

“I did nothing special.”

Rin, who was busy discussing Haruki’s magical energy with Archer, finally noticed Sakura and Medea had disappeared. “Wait! Hayashi-kun, where did they go?”

“Sakura wasn’t feeling alright, so I sent her home.”

“She was alright until now. What did you do behind that tree?”

“I’ll explain later—”

Haruki paused and looked toward the sky. A black dot loomed over them, getting bigger with each second. His excellent eyesight captured everything in great detail. A massive black titan with a white-haired girl on his shoulder. The unexpected visitor was none other than the duo of Illyasviel and Heracles.

“Fuck. Why now?”