Walking in the Question and Answer System of Heroic Spirits

The boy was silent for a moment, then asked, "In that case, aren't you going to arrest me here? Using interrogation or other methods to investigate how I escaped the maze—that's the style of a magician, isn't it?"

Hartres sighed, "It seems I've caught Norigi's bad habit. Yes, it's this peculiar habit of wanting to see how someone will develop if I find something interesting. Although it's a family tradition, I used to find my mentor's habit quite ridiculous."

"I told you this was an upfront investment, didn't I? That check had a condition. That's right, if you return here, you'll become my disciple."

The boy was slightly startled, and after a moment's thought, he whispered, "May I ask your name, teacher?"

"I am Dr. Hartracey. Call me Dr. or Hartracey, whichever you prefer."

Weber: "This is... Hartres's apprentice?"

Kenneth: "Hmm—never heard of that..."

Rin Tohsaka: "Could it be that something happened to him and he's already dead, which is why Heartles is like this?"

Tokiomi Tohsaka: "Your guess... is indeed very likely."

Waver: "Well, after all, the fact that he was born in the labyrinth means that once the Mage's Association finds out, he won't be let off the hook."

[The scene shifts, and a woman opens her eyes.]

[The scene we just witnessed was actually a dream she had.]

This woman was Hephaestion.

The first thing she did upon waking was to pour herself a glass of red wine and drink it.

This was her hobby and habit; she was a follower of Dionysus, the Greek god of wine.

She was in a basement, and judging from the surrounding layout, it had originally been a wine cellar.

Rin Tohsaka: "This was... a dream?"

Rin Tohsaka: "But how could Hephaestion dream of Heartles' memories?"

Lion's Tribulation: "Is this so strange?"

Isn't this kind of thing quite common? Has he also dreamt of Xiao Mo's memories?

Rin Tohsaka: "Uh, those are you guys."

She never dreamed of Ishtar's past.

"...Ah, if only I could stay dead."

In truth, she harbored a deep aversion to appearing in the world as a Servant.

The reason for this was that she learned what her former comrade-in-arms had done after the king's death, and she felt ashamed of her and her brother's incompetence in failing to serve the emperor to the end.

Conqueror King: "Hahaha, this guy is even more stubborn than me."

Weber: "That also shows her loyalty to you."

Conqueror King: "...Yes, both of them are like that."

【"Um?"】

Noticing that Hartress was working on the other side, she directly raised the bottle and said, "Master, won't you have a drink?"

Hartres: "As I've said before, I don't drink."

["Oh, so it's not that your constitution prevents you from drinking, but that you simply don't drink? I just recommended such excellent wines; this is a strange argument."]

Hephaestion raised his cup again and drank it all in one gulp, muttering, "The servant isn't dreaming, is he?"

Hartles: "...It seems so."

Hephaestion: "For dreams are the privilege of the living. Wherever we go, we are but the remnants of heroes of the past, merely temporary recordings playing on the air."

"However, I just had a strange hallucination. Was it your memory?"

【"..."】

The room fell silent. After a long pause, Hartres whispered, "Which side is the living one?"

Hartley continued his work, drawing a map on the wall next to a map of London.

This image resembles a giant dragon that is constantly diving downwards, seemingly trying to devour the planet.

Kenneth: "This is Albion's map!"

Kenneth: "Is Hartres planning to make a move against Albion?!"

Shiki Jieli: "It was hand-drawn, and entirely from memory. It seems he's very familiar with Albion."

Weber: "He seems to be comparing maps of Albion and London. What is he trying to achieve?"

Chapter 323 Grand Order Decision

[The scene shifts to the clock tower.]

The Second Prince announced he would be taking a week off, with his classes temporarily being filled by the second-level lecturer, Mr. Charles, much to the displeasure of his group of young rascals.

The students were trying to find the Second Prince, but discovered he hadn't even returned home recently.

They also tried to follow Grey, but she easily shook them off each time.

[Sfin and Flat, the leaders of the monkey troop, had also disappeared two days earlier; otherwise, they wouldn't have gone to such lengths.]

Meanwhile, Grey, having evaded the students' pursuit, found Yvette and obtained a document from her.

[The document contains personnel information from the Clock Tower over the past hundred years or so. It was specifically commissioned by the Second Emperor to Yvette to collect, though the purpose of this task is unknown.]

During their conversation, the whereabouts of the Second Prince were also mentioned. He had been constantly changing his hiding place in a nearby inn, as if he were hiding from something.

[When Yvette asked why the Second Prince had suddenly changed, Grey said it was related to what happened a few days ago.]

Just a few days ago, Adashino Hishiri suddenly invited the second generation to her home.

The other party first made a lighthearted remark about the commotion the Second Prince and his group had caused in Wells, Grey's hometown, before quickly getting to the point.

[It's still about Hartres, of course.]

[Himeri Adashino questioned the Second Prince about the clues she found in Wells regarding Hartres.]

[Afterwards, Adano Hishiri handed the young prince an envelope as a reward for obtaining the clues, and mentioned the Fifth Holy Grail War.]

[The three participants have all summoned their Servants and have headed to Fuyuki. The whereabouts of the remaining four Servants are currently unknown.]

The Fifth Holy Grail War has begun and should be decided in about two weeks.

[Himeri Adashino stated that once the Holy Grail War ends, Faker will likely retire, so Hartres will probably take action soon.]

[The Second Prince responded, "You're being too conservative. The other side has probably already begun their actions."]

Tokiomi Tohsaka: "The Fifth Holy Grail War, huh—"

Kenneth: "The three participants should be Atram Gariasta and Bazett Fraga Macremis from the Magic Association, and the little girl from the Einzbern family."

Tokiomi Tohsaka: "In Fuyuki, based on the last video, Kiritsugu Emiya's son and Sakura have both become Masters, so the remaining two should be Kirei and Rin."

Rin Tohsaka: "According to the original timeline, I will indeed fulfill my father's last wish and participate in the Holy Grail War."

Kenneth: "In that case, all the participants in the original Holy Grail War are complete. As for the Servants, we only know that the Emiya kid, like his father, summoned King Arthur."

Kenneth: "Has the Emiya family tied King Arthur up?"

Emiya Kiritsugu: "Hmph."

"Why? It's not time yet!"

After opening the envelope and reading its contents, the Second Prince's brows furrowed deeply.

This letter contains the notification of the convening of the Grand Council.

[The Grand Council was the name of a meeting convened by the monarch and his representatives to deliberate on matters concerning the management of the Clock Tower, in order to transcend the boundaries of academic disciplines and factions.]

To put it simply, it's just the twelve monarchs gathering for a meeting to discuss all sorts of trivial matters.

After Kenneth's death, the El-Melloi family was removed from the Mineral Arts Department during the Grand Order decision, and it was also during the Grand Order decision that the El-Melloi II gained the authority to manage the Modern Magic Department.

The question is, why was the Grand Order decision convened ahead of schedule, and at such a sensitive time?

Moreover, Lord El-Melloi, one of the twelve lords, hadn't heard a single word from him. Was he planning to wait until he was close before telling him, forcing him into a corner?

What do the other monarchs want to do?

[To this, Hideo Adashino said she had no idea either.]

After all, the inner workings of those in power are things that ordinary working people like them can't possibly understand.

[From that day on, the Second Prince suddenly announced he was taking a break, stopped going home, and spent his days hiding and running away. He even commissioned Yvette to investigate these classified documents for him.]

Kenneth: "It's a Grand Slam decision! And they didn't even notify El Rome beforehand. Looks like they're up to no good."

Weber: "No, isn't this a notification?"

Kenneth: "—I see, those foxes."

Such an important matter as the Grand Prince Decision would not be easily leaked without the authorization of other monarchs, let alone Hideaki Adashino, who is just an employee of the Department of Law and Politics.

It seems that someone is trying to curry favor with the Ninth Prince by deliberately using Hishiro Adashino to pass on information to him.

Hmm, if it's the Department of Law and Politics, could it be Barthezmero?

With the information in hand, Grey quickly arrived at the hotel where the Second was currently staying, where she was greeted, naturally, by the two lovable clowns, Flat and Sven.

After what happened back home, Grey became much more cheerful, and she even laughed as she watched the two playfully bickering.