Fate: Esdeath Is My Servant?!

Reiji's eyes went wide as he stared at the woman standing over him.

'What the hell…'

[Congratulations!] A golden panel flashed in front of him, golden letters slowly changing into another sentence.

[You have summoned the heroine Esdeath!]

[+20 Legend Rating.]

Another smaller panel flashed in his face.

Then, a final panel opened in front of him.

[Esdeath]

Mana Pool: 16,589 / 86,400

Status: Healthy

Reiji stared at the panels, mind racing.

'Esdeath?' he thought, not willing to believe his eyes. 'She is no ancient hero…'

'She's an anime character… from my old world.'

''Answer me,'' Esdeath said coldly, her thin ice blade pressing against his neck.

Before Reiji could react, the blade dug deeper into his neck, drawing a thin cut of blood.

"If you don't speak," she said, eyes narrowed, "I'll assume you're useless."

''Hold on!'' Reiji said, forcing himself to remain calm.

He didn't dare move.

His mind raced, searching for something he could say.

''I summoned you here,'' he said carefully, voice low. ''This is a different world than the one you know.''

Esdeath's face remained stone cold as she pressed the blade deeper into his skin.

Reiji let out a soft groan, really starting to feel the cold invading his body.

All the blood around his neck had started freezing.

''I'm not lying,'' he said, maintaining his composure. ''This world isn't the one you were born in.''

''Take one step outside and you'll realize.''

She raised one of her eyebrows slightly, removing the blade from his neck without hesitation.

Reiji sat up, watching carefully as she walked towards his door.

Esdeath kicked through his sliding door and stepped outside into the cold night, her eyes scanning the street.

She glanced at the flickering streetlights, the cars and bicycles in the distance.

Her eyes widened slightly in suprise.

"…This is indeed not my world," she muttered, voice low with curiosity. 

As Esdeath stared outside, Reiji rolled up his sleeve slightly.

On his right hand sat three crimson tattoos shaped like a lion.

'Command Seals?' Reiji thought, raising an eyebrow.

Esdeath's eyes narrowed slightly, gaze hardening.

Behind her, Reiji lowered his sleeve again, the glow from the Command Seals fading slightly.

'So they really are seals,' he thought. 'Just like in the stories. I can force her to obey if it comes to that…'

Before he could finish that thought, Esdeath turned around.

Her eyes locked onto his hand, feeling the mana connected between them.

"You have control over me?" she asked flatly, stepping forward.

Reiji looked up, remaining calm. "Only if you try to kill me."

Slowly, a cold grin grew on her lips. ''I see.''

"I don't know what kind of ritual this is," she continued, voice sharp, "but if you try to use those seals to control me, I'll kill you before the command even leaves your lips."

Reiji exhaled slowly, mind racing. 'If I remember her right, she despises the weak,' he thought. 'Which means I can't afford to look weak either.'

''Then don't give me a reason to use them.''

Esdeath smirked, satisfied with that answer.

She stepped away, finally taking a moment to scan the room around her properly.

Her eyes drifted over the furniture, lingering on the television.

''This place is… strange,'' she muttered. ''Barely anyone has physical strength or mana. And there aren't any city walls to keep the beasts away.''

Seeing Esdeath busy with the surroundings, Reiji let out a sigh of relief and stood up.

'Doesn't seem like she knows anything about this era,' he thought, brushing the ice crystals off his pants.

His eyes fell on the system interface again.

All the smaller panels from the system had been closed except the addition in Legend Score.

Reiji pressed on the accept button without much thought, watching the score get added.

[Congratulations! You have passed the 10 and 20 point mark.][Please select your reward!]

His eyes widened as two screens appeared, each offering three options.

'What do we have here?' he thought, examining the first screen closely.

[Option 1: Increase Magic Circuit Capacity.]

[Option 2: Increase Physical Capabilities.]

[Random Option: Receive Basic Reinforcement Magic Manual.]

'The system gives rewards?' he thought, bewildered. 'How does that work?'

Reiji's gaze immediately hovered over the third option.

''Reinforcement magic, huh…'' he muttered, then his eyes fell on the first option again.

'The first option is more practical,' Reiji thought. 'Esdeath will burn through my mana in every battle. I need to make sure she can recover fast.'

But the advantage reinforcement magic gave him was too great.

'I remember Kuzuki could fight heroic spirits by himself, even managing to wound Saber.'

Right now, he had no way to protect himself if someone came after him.

After contemplating for a moment, Reiji decided to go with the first option.

'Esdeath is my primary defense,' he thought. 'If she isn't at her strongest when fighting a Servant, I'll die regardless.'

As for magic? That could be chosen later.

Reiji pressed on the first option.

As the golden screen vanished in front of him, he could feel a scorching heat course through his body.

Golden lines appeared across his body as mana from the outside air was sucked into him.

'Ugh,' he thought, gritting his teeth. 'The pain is intense… but bearable.'

A few seconds later, the golden lines on his body vanished.

Reiji collapsed on one knee, panting.

He glanced up at the system interface, his eyes fixed on his stats.

Stats:Physique: F rankMagic Circuit Capacity: (Old) 9 -> (New)13Mana Pool: 180/180 -> 260/260Regeneration rate: 3/s -> 5/s

''It worked,'' he said, a wide smile on his face. "Four additional circuits… no wonder it felt like my body was on fire."

Esdeath didn't speak.

Her eyes scanned him for a moment, calculating, before she simply turned away.

''This world is pathetic,'' she said coldly. ''I only sense pathetically weak humans here.''

Reiji looked up, forcing himself on his feet.

He raised an eyebrow, staring at her back.

''Where are the strongest people in this world?'' Esdeath asked, voice cold.

''What?'' Reiji asked, raising an eyebrow.

''The ones worth killing,'' she clarified, turning around. "Or was dragging me here just a joke?"

A thin ice rapier appeared in her hand again.

She didn't wait for a reply, pressing the blade to his throat.

''Speak.''