What Holy Grail War? Let's Play Cards! (Fate/Yugioh)

Cursed Arm Hassan was defeated without even making a move.

As the Shadow Game concluded, the black energy King Hassan had infused into the two Hassans dissipated, and their consciousness gradually returned. However, the combined strain of overtaxing their Spirit Origins and the Shadow Game had left them utterly drained.

"Since I declared that I would judge only the outcome, regardless of morality, this ritual has ended in your victory," King Hassan announced, his gaze sweeping over Jiang You. Adopting a formal, businesslike tone, he added, "State your request."

"Wow, the communication link is finally back!" Romani exclaimed, his voice crackling over the connection. As the ritual ended, King Hassan's communication blockade lifted, and Romani had completely missed the activation of Jiang You's Noble Phantasm. "Judging by this atmosphere, Ritsuka must have won! Well done, Ritsuka!"

"...Founder," Cursed Arm Hassan said, bowing deeply. As the Hassan most active in this era, he addressed King Hassan with utmost reverence, explaining their purpose: "These individuals intend to confront the Lion King. However, to challenge her majesty, they still lack the necessary strength. We implore you—"

In essence, Cursed Arm wanted King Hassan to join the fight against Artoria, now the Lion King, and help them overcome her triple-boosted Gawain under the influence of the sun.

King Hassan immediately saw through Gudako's true nature. "You remain as shortsighted as ever, Humanity's Last Master," he declared. "I ask you: Do you seek the head of the Lion King, who has fallen to godhood?"

Gudako had never harbored malice toward anyone; her sole desire was to save the world.

"To be honest, King Hassan, I don't know," she replied. "How could I possibly harbor murderous intent toward someone I've never met? At most, I'm dissatisfied with her current actions."

"Senpai, isn't it disrespectful to call King Hassan by that name?" Mash whispered cautiously, glancing at the old man. To her surprise, Hassan showed no sign of displeasure.

"It matters not," he replied. "Call me as you please. I am Nameless. Such formalities and rules hold no weight for me."

King Hassan's response relieved the other Heroic Spirits present. Jiang You, however, couldn't help but feel that Gudako was following a perfect guide, each step aligning with the servants' preferences. In truth, King Hassan seemed rather fond of the informal title.

Of course, if Jiang You weren't worried about displeasing King Hassan, he would have used a much shorter title. At least until he obtained the relevant card, Jiang You would continue to address him by his full name out of respect; he dared not risk King Hassan treating him as casually as he did Gudako.

"Very well, there are certain truths you must understand."

With only two of the seven Singularities remaining unconquered, King Hassan deemed it time to reveal part of the truth to Gudako.

"The Lion King's true intentions, the Sun King's absurd ravings, the flaws in Humanity's Foundation, and—the very beginning of it all."

"Venture into the otherworldly space at the heart of the desert. What you seek lies within: the Atlas Institute. Once your task is complete, I shall appear on the battlefield—as The Sword That Proclaims Fate. Now..."

Just as King Hassan was about to issue his command to Cursed Arm, Jiang You interjected.

"Lord Hassan, if that's all there is, I already know most of it."

Jiang You made it clear that there was no need for cryptic riddles. He had no desire to painstakingly retrace the entire plot.

"But let me warn you, even after hearing this, you'll still need to go. This is your chance to reunite with Da Vinci and persuade Lancelot to switch sides—"

"Speaking of which, Mash, you must know your True Name by now, right? Have you told Lancelot here about it?"

"The situation was urgent, so I didn't have time for a prolonged confrontation," Mash said apologetically, scratching her head. She hadn't yet heard Bedivere's analysis of Galahad's Noble Phantasm, so the one she unleashed wasn't at its full potential. That's why Lancelot hadn't recognized her. Moreover, this Lancelot was far more serious than she remembered, leaving her no opportunity for a proper conversation.

"Well, you'd better start calling him 'Father' more often," Jiang You teased. "That guy has absolutely no sense of restraint."

Jiang You had expected Mash's early knowledge of her True Name to trigger some kind of reaction, and he was slightly disappointed when nothing happened.

"Alright, let's continue," Jiang You said, immediately dropping a bombshell. "This all started with the Holy Grail War in 2004..." Since he'd already started dropping spoilers, he decided to go all in. Now that he had the chance, he planned to dump the entire plot of Part 1 on Gudako in one go. Part 2 was too long; he'd just cherry-pick the highlights later.

"Wait a minute, how can this possibly stretch back that far?" Dr. Romani interjected hastily. He was certain this Caster possessed a Skill similar to Clairvoyance EX, but shouldn't those with such abilities be cryptic riddle-tellers? And shouldn't they all know each other already? What was going on with this guy? "Let's focus on the present crisis. Didn't the founder say we had to complete our mission before the Lion King achieved her goals? We need to stay on topic."

"Dr. Romani, this is quite serious. How should I put it?" Jiang You grinned mischievously, Romani's weakness glaringly obvious.

"It's like the Magical☆Merry you're so fond of is actually just Merlin in a dress."

"You're lying!" Romani spat out his coffee, his pupils trembling violently. "That's impossible!"

"So, even with the human order destroyed, Magical☆Merry's blog is still being updated. Don't you find that a little suspicious? Or have you connected your network to another Singularity? I suggest Chaldea conduct a thorough investigation into the unauthorized use of public resources."

"That bastard!!!"

The furious roar was unlike anything the usually mild-mannered Dr. Romani had ever displayed.

"The doctor's still watching that stuff at his age?" Mash remarked with a disgusted look. "He's supposed to be Chaldea's most reliable adult, yet he secretly indulges in this kind of trash. And now that he's the acting Director, who can even hold him accountable?"

"Has Chaldea already fallen to such corruption?!"

Jiang You feigned utter shock. "If things continue like this, is there any hope for humanity? Damn it, we need to summon a Beast and hit it with everything we've got!"

King Hassan glanced at Jiang You but remained silent.

"Alright, now that the interruption is over, let's return to our previous topic. In short, you all need to know that Marisbury Animusphere, Chaldea's founder Director, won the Fuyuki Holy Grail War in 2004. And the Servant he summoned was none other than..."

Jiang You drew out his words, pronouncing each syllable deliberately.

"...Solomon."