Walking in the Question and Answer System of Heroic Spirits

"The possibility your brother just hinted at is far more despicable and base than you imagine. It's roundabout, useless, and bordering on insane. I think this will give you a correct understanding of the Clock Tower, while also utterly shattering your illusions. Although it's somewhat regrettable, I believe it's to be so."

Rin Tohsaka: "What do you mean?"

Tokiomi Tohsaka: "...I see, he really has a lot of patience."

Lion Jie Li: "No, it's less about having patience and more about doing things on a whim. As for whether it will succeed or not, it doesn't matter. Just treat it as an investment."

Weber: "That's a really simple method."

Rin Tohsaka: "What are you talking about?"

Feng Xi: "Alright, just watch closely, the answer will be revealed soon."

Grey had a bad feeling and asked, "What does that mean...?"

"You're wrong to think that only Karlger and Jorek happened to have this intention."

The Second interrupted her, saying, "Speaking of which, how do we know that Karlger and Jorek were truly unaffiliated magicians before entering Albion? The benefits an individual could gain from smuggling information from the Bureau of Unearthed Relics wouldn't be significant. It's more natural to assume that other organizations wanted that information and ordered them to become spies within the Bureau of Unearthed Relics."

[“Given this assumption, it’s strange to think that only Karlger and Jorek were involved in espionage. Their survival was purely by sheer luck. Had they died accidentally in Albion, it would have been the end of them.”]

"Without achieving much, it's useless to lose the favor of the Secret Corpse Dissection Bureau. Operations require patience, but the plan is too unstable."

["In other words, the Clock Tower faction sent dozens, and possibly more, people into Albion, the Tomb of the Dead, from the very beginning to use them as expendable spies."]

"The primary purpose is likely to evade the surveillance of the Bureau of Corpse Dissection in Albion. After all, to gain official access to Albion, one must go through the Bureau of Corpse Dissection, which limits the scope and content of investigations. It's perfectly normal to want to send spies from within their sphere of influence to bypass surveillance, even if it takes a spy a decade or two, or even a lifetime."

"Among Hartles' disciples, the brothers Karl and Jorek—no, perhaps among the other disciples—were spies sent into Albion by the Clock Tower faction."

"Anyway, it's very likely, isn't it, Reines?"

"Yes, there's a strong possibility."

Reines nodded and said, "Now that you mention it, I should indeed be thinking about that."

"Although the El-Melloi faction has rarely been involved in Albion's affairs since their decline and lacks information in this area, this should be attributed to my incompetence."

"Ah, it's so frustrating. Although I don't know when they started sending out these spies, the scale of their schemes is on a completely different level."

Rin Tohsaka: "So that's how it is..."

Rin Tohsaka: "But isn't the Secret Corpse Dissection Bureau an organization of the Mage's Association? Why would they do something so troublesome?"

Feng Xi: "Idiot, to put it bluntly, it's all about interests, interests."

Feng Xi: "Although the Bureau of Mysterious Remains Dissection is an organization of the Mage Association, it is not under their control, is it? If we explore Albion through the Bureau of Mysterious Remains Dissection, regardless of the restrictions, whatever we find will be reported and made public."

Feng Xi: "People are selfish, especially these self-proclaimed ancient families."

Feng Xi: "In ZG, we call such people 'aristocratic families,' and they take selfishness to the extreme."

Zhang Jiao: "Powerful clans are a cancer on the nation."

Rin Tohsaka: "..."

"Please, please wait a moment!"

"Grey asked, puzzled, "Did everyone accept that order? It's not just about danger, is it? They can't leave Albion until the conditions are met! In that case, they might never be able to go back!"

"Of course we'll accept it; after all, magicians have convenient and easy-to-use branches."

Reines picked up her teacup, took a sip, and said, "The division of the family is something they can't resist. After all, in modern times, if they're left unattended, they'll slowly decline and perish."

"Families connected to the three noble families are capable of something as simple as using delicious bait to coerce a child with a bleak future into prostitution. If they couldn't do that, they wouldn't be able to survive in the Clock Tower."

"They would indifferently order people to stay in Albion for ten years, depending on the circumstances, and even order them to settle there until their children's or grandchildren's generation."

"That's right, not surprising at all. Basically, a very high percentage of magus families are assigned to settle in remote places far from the main family after branching out."

Reines calmly revealed the cruel truth about the Clock Tower, which is also the cruel truth about the world of magicians.

Unlike ordinary families, members of a magician's family who have branched out never have a chance to rise again.

Rin Tohsaka: "How could this happen..."

Tokiomi Tohsaka: "...This is reality, Rin."

Because magic markings can only be passed down through a single lineage.

If he could pass on the inheritance to more people, he wouldn't have to worry about giving Sakura away to another family.

[Grey: "So, Miss Ashira and Mr. Kuro are also?"]

"As I just said, there is every possibility."

Reines nodded. "Even if they've lived in Albion since birth, it's impossible to guarantee they're immune to the Clock Tower's machinations."

[Grey: "This is... the motive for the crime."]

[Second Generation: "That's right, this is the motive behind the crimes committed by those around Hartrace. At least Aozaki Touko should have already reached this conclusion."]

"That's right. They've really given up!"

Reines recalled the conversation between Aozaki Touko and Hartres, saying, "That's why Aozaki Touko asked Hartres, 'Whose disciple was your actual disciple?' Damn it, I should have understood the meaning of the question at that time."

"If that's the case, the significance of the missing persons case will become entirely different."

The Second Prince said seriously, "What if the disappearances aren't targeting the disciples, but rather signaling to the people behind them?"

[Grey: "A signal?"]

[Second King: "Before that murder, Hartles was likely trying to commit the crime in secret."]

[Reines: "That's exactly it. If that's the case, leaving as little evidence as possible and putting pressure on the other side by having relevant people disappear one after another is a very clever tactic. In fact, isn't this exactly a method commonly used by criminal organizations?"]

"No, wait a minute. Does this mean this attack is one of them?"

[Grey: "But if it's just about going to Albion, after killing Karl at the Department of Dissection, he can just take the elevator directly to Albion."]

[Second Generation: "Of course, it's also highly possible that he simply couldn't deceive the defenses to that extent, but the fact that he committed crimes repeatedly suggests that this is closer to a plan that was set up from the very beginning."]

"From Hartles' perspective, attacking Sla was convenient. It served as a way to settle a series of disappearances, simultaneously allowing him to travel to Albion and put pressure on the mastermind behind his disciple."

Weber: "Either Hartrace felt the plan was almost complete, so he stopped hiding it. Or something went wrong when he killed Karg, so he had no choice but to come out into the open."

Lion's Robbery: "I think the former is more likely."

Weber: "Yes, since he dared to break into the Secret Corpse Dissection Bureau and kill people, it means that he probably doesn't intend to hide anymore."

【"..."】

After hearing all this, Grey fell into a deep silence.

Reines teased, "What, are you starting to hate me?"

Grey quickly shook her head and said, "No, no, how could I possibly hate Miss Reines?"

"Really? That's good."

After finishing her cold tea, Reines took the gold coin from the drawer and tossed it to the Second Prince.

"Oh right, I forgot to give this to you."

The Second Prince took it and asked curiously, "Gold coins?"

Reines: "This is something that fell off Faker's vehicle during the final battle underground. If you're my brother, you should be able to tell what it is, right?"

Upon hearing its origin, the Second Prince immediately became interested and carefully examined it after putting on gloves.

"This is... a Start gold coin, and the portrait on it is... Iskandar?"

Chapter 344 Atram's True Gift

[Grey: "Iskandar's gold coins?"]

[The Second Prince seemed to have been switched on, and immediately began to speak at length.]

"In the regions surrounding ancient Greece, there was a custom of minting coins with portraits of the king or hero of the time. The Iskandar version was particularly popular; this single gold coin must be worth quite a bit. After all, it was overwhelmingly popular, and there were many different styles of the coins."

"This coin is based on the profile of Hercules previously engraved on coins, and incorporates the image of Iskandar. Some believe Iskandar is the reincarnation of the god Amun, depicted with horns, and also wearing elephant skin as a symbol of his chariot."

"The coins were issued over a period of more than two hundred years, and the extent of their distribution was particularly remarkable for that time. A discussion of Iskandar's coins alone could fill a book. This is also an example of how that great king was widely worshipped and loved by the people as a legendary hero for so long..."

Rin Tohsaka: "...The Second Prince is really knowledgeable."

Koles: "It's a bit like a fan introducing their idol."

Weber: “(△|||)”

The Conqueror King: "Hahaha, even I didn't understand it that clearly."

Lion's Roar: "Is this what they call 'bragging' these days?"

[“Ahem…”]

Reines interrupted the second prince, saying, "Brother's knowledge is indeed vast, but let's leave that for today. Do you see the significance of Faker carrying this gold coin?"

[Second Generation: "Hmm... I'm not sure about that. Is it alright if I keep the gold coins for now?"]

Reines: "Of course."

The Second Prince wrapped the gold coins in a handkerchief and tucked them into his pocket, saying, "Regardless, I must thank you. Although things are still unclear, I have a certain grasp of the case's direction."

Reines: "That's good, but do you have a way to turn things around?"

[Second Generation: "Although I don't know if we can turn the tide, as things develop, there's something I need to investigate."]

"Sigh, it's all because of Atram's letter that I have to leave Sla. I checked the time beforehand, and it will take more than half a day just to go there and back. I'll have to leave you in the meantime."