Why bother with the Holy Grail War? Let's play cards!

The little black loli headbutted Bazett into her arms, causing her stomach to churn.

Bazett LP1800→LP1300

“So, in Main Phase 2, I activate [Hundred-Man Library], release [Madman] to draw a card, and then set two cards face down in the back row. End my turn.” Jiang You held his last card and handed his turn to Bazett.

"My turn, draw a card!" The moment Bazett drew the card, a wail from the dead emanated from it, and the aura of death enveloped it.

[Cú Chulainn] Attack Power 2500

"So, thanks to my own effect, I'm back!" Cú Chulainn leaped onto the battlefield, explaining to his astonished Master. "Master, snap out of it! You drew a good card, didn't you!"

Bazette finally came to his senses and slapped the card onto the field area.

"Activate the Field Spell Card [Shadow Kingdom]! When this card is activated, you can banish all cards from your Graveyard and Special Summon the Queen of Shadow Kingdom [Scathach] from your Deck!"

A gray-black barren rock ridge replaced the scene of the duel space. A solemn and desolate gray-black castle was located in the mountains. Then a pair of red lights shot out from the castle, and two red spears with bright red lightning pierced into the ground.

Then the queen in black veil fell from the sky like a meteor.

[Scáthach] Lancer 10-star, Attack Power 3250

"Furthermore, as long as the card 'Shadow Kingdom' is on the field, cards sent to the Graveyard are banished from the game without going to the Graveyard." The seven walls of the Shadow Kingdom, the territory ruled by Scáthach, represent the meaning that the dead will not be resurrected. It is a dark place where sunlight cannot reach, a world of death.

"Haha, Master's here! Black Caster, it's too late for you to beg for mercy now!" Cú Chulainn carried his magic spear in an extremely relaxed posture. Jiang You's Noble Phantasms are composed of cards based on deeds and legends, so Scáthach's strength is naturally not weak.

"Lady Scáthach." As a descendant of the Red Branch Knights, Bazett had grown up listening to the legends of Scáthach, and she gave a slight bow, using the honorific title.

Jiang You carefully read Scáthach's effect: It cannot be destroyed by battle. It cannot be targeted by card effects. Once per turn, destroy one follower on the field. This card can attack each of your opponent's monsters once.

"Master, you seem to have gotten stronger? No, what is this! You've actually survived all this time?!" Cú Chulainn realized that Scáthach's strength had increased again, and he also knew Scáthach's wish, so he quickly got the answer.

“Thousands of years have passed, and you’ve become more and more relaxed.” Scáthach looked at Cú Chulainn with a scrutinizing gaze, causing Cú Chulainn to subconsciously tense up.

"The main problem is that the opposing team only has a bunch of low-tier Servants... It's so boring!" Cú Chulainn looked at Jiang You's field of Hassans, all with less than 1000 attack power, and felt victory was already assured. "Master, let's enter the battle phase!"

Bazette nodded. "My dear Queen of the Kingdom of Shadows, I'm sorry! Scathach's effect: select a [Hundred Faces] on the field and destroy it! Pierce the Spear of Death!"

Scathach immediately began her own action. Her movements were so swift that they surpassed everyone's reaction time. She almost flashed to Baimao's side and pierced Baimao's heart with the long barrel of her spear, which was a sure hit, sending her into the exclusion zone.

"Enter battle phase!" Bazett then issued the attack command: "Scáthach attacks Morning Glory!"

Facing the young girl, Scathach showed no intention of holding back. The pistol in her hand shot directly at the little morning glory like a meteor. If it hit, it would be a huge damage of 3250 points!

"Useless! Quick-Play Spell Card [Dive Transformation]! Return a card to your hand, then Special Summon a card in your hand with the same class and a star rating no higher than 1."

A cloud of smoke exploded around the little morning glory. After the smoke dissipated, Jingmi appeared where the little morning glory should have been.

[Tranquility] Attack Power 1500

"Since she's lost her target, Scathach has to choose a new one. Should she continue attacking Serenity? She only has 1500 attack power!"

Although Bazett didn't know the effect of Tranquility, she knew Jiang You had summoned her specifically, so it couldn't directly change the outcome; he must have had another purpose. She decided to attack the other Hassans first. "I won't fall into your trap! I'm going to attack the leftmost [Hundred Faces]!"

Scathach could win by just launching two attacks on the Hundred Majesties, so there's no need to take the risk.

“That’s true, a smart choice. But you have to fight whether you like it or not! I’m activating the Trap Card [Confusion Master]!” This was the first time Jiang You had used this Trap Card to target a Servant instead of attacking himself. “Scáthach, attack [Tranquility]!”

The moment the red short gun barrel pierced Baimao, Baimao turned into a quiet appearance. When the long spear stained with poisonous blood returned to Scathach's hand, a large amount of blood with a poisonous smell splashed all over Scathach.

Jiangyou LP4000→2250

"Is this death?" Under the influence of the rules, the tranquil poisonous blood had a great effect on Scáthach. She felt her life slipping away, and seemed somewhat happy. "Although it was only for a moment, it was... not bad."

"Master, defeated just like that?" Cú Chulainn smacked his eyes in disbelief. His master, the Queen of the Land of Shadows who had always sought death, had actually made such a hasty exit from the stage.

"Don't just stand there, your attack is coming!"

Chapter 81 Hello, Ex-Wife

"In that case, your backline is also exhausted!" Cú Chulainn assumed a sprinting stance, looking at Bazett. "We need to at least reduce the number of Assassins. Don't back down just because Master is leaving the field, Master!"

"Since it's a battle, we must fight with all our might until the very last moment!" Bazett pointed forward. "[Cú Chulainn] attacks [Hyakuma]!"

At this moment, Jiang You only had two Hundred-Faced Beasts left on the field. Jiang You discarded the [Morning Glory] in his hand and activated its effect. "If I continue to lose units, I'll be in serious trouble!"

Cu Chulainn was forced into defense position.

[Cú Chulainn] Defense 2400

Bazette could only end his turn helplessly.

“Then, two Hundred Faces will be just what you need!” Jiang You decisively activated his Destiny Draw, adding a card to his hand. “[Librarian of Hidden Knowledge] effect: I return [Madman] and [Pale Dance of Death] from my Graveyard to my Deck, and then add [Encyclopedia of Knowledge] to my hand.”

"Do you want to summon [Madman] again to break through Cú Chulainn?" Bazett saw the troublesome Madman return to Jiang You's extra deck and thought that Jiang You wanted to use a series of Delusional Minds to deal with Cú Chulainn again.

"Don't underestimate Assassin. Two Hundred Faces are enough! [Encyclopedia Mastery] applies the first two effects, increasing attack power by 500 and destroying a card on your field!"

[Hundred Appearances] Attack Power 800 → 1300

Cú Chulainn was immune to the destruction. But don't forget, Jiang You still has the Continuous Spell Card [Hundred-Man Library] in his back row. "[Hundred-Man Library] effect: Tribute one [Hundred Faces] to destroy Cú Chulainn!"

The liberated Hundred Faces transformed into a wriggling shadow, devouring Cu Chulainn, and both were sent into the exclusion zone.

"Bazett, this is the final blow!"

The 1300 attack power after the addition of Hundred Faces perfectly took away Bazette's last bit of health.

Bazett LP1300→LP0

Even if it wasn't a dark game where life and soul were at stake, it would still cause considerable damage to the loser. Bazette vomited blood and flew backwards. Cu Chulainn only felt that Bazette's magic power weakened instantly, and the magic supply he could receive was reduced to one tenth of what it was before.

Cu Chulainn rushed to Bazette and checked his vital signs. Fortunately, he was not seriously injured and would be able to recover after resting for a while.

"Now that I've achieved my goal, you can leave with your Master." Jiang You was ready to go all out and explore the open-world gameplay. He didn't want Bazett to leave so soon.

"Then we'll take our leave." Cú Chulainn remained wary and slowly retreated, wary of a sudden attack from Jiang You and the others. He was currently at a significant disadvantage, and he was actually prepared to fight to the death to take Bazett away. After reaching a safe distance, he vanished into the woods.

"Aren't we going to leave them here?" Medea stroked her Noble Phantasm, somewhat puzzled as to why Jiang You would give up such a great opportunity to increase their fighting strength.

"I think I forgot to tell you the details of the Holy Grail. Let's talk about it as we walk." Jiang You decided to bring all the people on the list into the capture range of his Noble Phantasm tonight, so that these "tickets" wouldn't run away after hearing the news when the game launches tomorrow.

"Everyone will have to work a little harder tonight. Mark these people. The only one we need to watch out for is Kirei Kotomine. If nothing unexpected happens, he's the only high-level combatant on this list." Jiang You instructed Hyakko to go directly to capture non-magicians and bring them to him to increase efficiency, while he would have to personally go to capture the magicians to prevent Hyakko from being instantly killed.

"What do you want to do to that fake priest?" The girl, slightly angry, blocked Jiang You's path alone.

"Seriously? Again?" Jiang You turned around and saw a girl with pigtails. She didn't know the true situation of Kirei Kotomine in this timeline yet. As her guardian for the past ten years, even if she couldn't say she was particularly close to Kirei Kotomine, she wouldn't let him get hurt so easily.

Toosaka Rin held the gem and stared at Jiang You with a nervous expression - she felt the presence of Atram from the box in Jiang You's hand.

"What have you done to your Master and the people here!?"

Seeing Rin Tohsaka and Bazett react the same way, Jiang You knew what Atram was up to. He tapped the suitcase: "Behave yourself, or I'll get you a smaller one."

Rin began to infuse the jewel in her hand with magical power. She would not allow such a Servant to act recklessly in the territory she managed. Jason also commanded the Heroic Spirits to prepare for battle.

“Instead of asking what I did, why not ask what they did?”

"What did they do?" Perhaps Tokiomi Tohsaka knew something about these things, but how could an eight-year-old girl who hastily inherited the family business be exposed to such dark aspects of society? If the profits here could have flowed into her hands, her family's fortunes would not have gradually declined after Tokiomi Tohsaka's death.

"You'll have to ask your father's good apprentice about that. I think if you question him tearfully, he'll be happy to tell you. If you're interested, you can also ask him how his own father died." Jiang You checked the time; it was already very late. If this continued, he probably wouldn't be able to get up tomorrow. He needed to hurry and make the necessary arrangements for the event. "Sorry, I don't have time to play with you right now. If you want to play cards with me, come join my event; I guarantee you'll be satisfied with the prizes."

Jiang You's step forward seemed to stimulate Jason who was hiding, and he quickly gave the order to attack.

In an instant, Jiang You felt a weight on his head, and a huge axe was coming down at him.

No, it was more like a smash than a chop. If Hercules' attack hit, it would be enough to smash Jiang You into a pulp!

A lamppost brushed against Jiang You's right ear and hit the axe and sword. This was the support from Lancelot.

"Uncle B?" Jiang You looked at the familiar servant and suddenly felt a little guilty, because he had promised someone he would be her servant. "Ilya is here too?"

Just as Jiang You was racking his brains for words to maintain goodwill, Medea appeared: "Hercules is not a Servant summoned in the usual way; he must be someone's Noble Phantasm."

Medea had already figured out the summoning pattern of the Holy Grail War, and she was now trying to find a way to cheat and summon herself normally in order to obtain the deck.

"So it was you who summoned this young lady." Medea fired several magical rays from the bushes to the side. "Don't hide, Jason!"

"Asclepius, you're a Caster too, right? At least help me block it!" The blond Servant scrambled out of the bushes, his still-smoking shoulder indicating that he hadn't managed to dodge completely.

“I have no interest in interfering in your love affairs.” Asclepius and Atalanta also emerged from their hiding place, arms crossed, showing no intention of helping Jason.

Facing the murderous Medea, Jason shakily raised his hand and managed a greeting: "Hello, my ex-wife."

Chapter 82 A Little Boy is Hidden Under the Church

Medea met Jason's full-strength attack.

Covered in dust and dirt, Jason stubbornly survived thanks to his B-rank magic resistance. He exhaled a puff of black smoke, his face full of grief and indignation: "So why is it that even though there are already other Casters, I can still run into you here!"

“Since you can summon your own crew, then I can manifest in this world in other ways as well. So, what are you afraid of that I'm not on your crew?” Medea removed her hood, revealing a gentle smile. “Besides, are we divorced? I'm just widowed!”

Medea once again unleashed her magic, and the surging magical power was ready to be unleashed.

"Who would dare summon you looking like that!" Jason took two steps back, then started running like the wind. He grabbed Rin Tohsaka and fled with his Master in a flash.

Seeing this, Medea used her levitation magic to catch up and take control of Jason from Rin Tohsaka, but was stopped by Atalanta with her arms outstretched.

"Atalanta, are you going to stop me too?" Medea understood Atalanta's meaning. If she truly wanted to help Jason, she wouldn't be acting this way; she would have directly fired an arrow to intercept him. So Medea temporarily stopped, wanting to hear her opinion. But she was still very displeased. "If you dare to help him, I'll kill you too!"

Atalanta shook her head. She and Medea had been very close during their time on the crew. She often combed Medea's long, smooth, lavender hair when she was still a young girl. She clearly understood that both Medea and Jason had issues, so she didn't take sides. Most of the crew shared the same view.

"We won't interfere in your affairs with Jason. However, we promised Jason's Master that we would rescue his sister, so let's postpone your feud for a few days. After this is over, he can do whatever he wants with you." Atalanta genuinely wanted to help Rin Tohsaka rescue her sister; she didn't really care whether Rin and Jason could win the Holy Grail.

“…For your sake, I'll let him off the hook today.” Medea pulled her hood back up. “But I have one condition…”

"Why are you running away!" Rin Tohsaka struggled, desperately trying to stop Jiang You's antics. An incident in her territory would damage the Tohsaka family's reputation. "We have the advantage in terms of Servant numbers, don't we?"

"Have you forgotten about Assassin?" Jason reminded Rin that besides Serenity, there was another Assassin present. He became increasingly certain that he shouldn't have entered this Holy Grail War; the other Servants had no intention of fighting honestly. "Plus, there's my ex-wife. Apart from Heracles, no one else will help me, and I'm too embarrassed to ask them to. Is there any other choice but to run away?"

"What's the use of running away? We'll run into each other sooner or later!" Rin Tohsaka elbowed Jason, who loosened his grip in pain, and she successfully escaped Jason's control.

However, Toosaka Rin also understood that she couldn't go back to deal with Jiang You's matter now. Jason's Noble Phantasm would soon be depleted, and Tamiao and the other three servants would soon return to the Throne of Heroes. It was not a wise move to fight against a Servant who had complete control over his Master when one of the Command Seals was missing.