FATE: Target of Grand Master

"I think that, given the current situation, even if we can only maintain a superficial peace, we must first maintain our relationship with those two Masters, otherwise we will have no chance of winning against Draco."

"Of course I understand."

Linghu Shi seemed to suddenly remember something and asked, "Xia Yan, do you have any Assassin-class Servants?"

Xia Yan smiled bitterly to himself. Forget about Assassin-class Servants, I don't even have a single Servant right now. No, to be precise, I have a Beast-class Servant who can be your final boss. Do you want to see her?

"no."

Xia Yan answered truthfully.

"So, which Servants do you have?"

Linghu Shi's question was so direct that Xia Yan didn't know how to answer it.

"Would you believe me if I said my servant got separated from me?"

Linghu Shi looked at the white clothes on Xia Yan's body in her line of sight and nodded, saying, "I believe you."

Xia Yan was quite surprised to hear Linghu Shi's answer, and the explanation he had prepared was no longer useful.

Fortunately, Xia Yan didn't use those excuses, otherwise Linghu Shi would have noticed his emotional fluctuations and discovered that he was lying.

"Staying here isn't a good idea. I've already told you about the risks of continuing to explore the palace. If you insist on going in, I won't stop you. However, please arrange for a servant to take me to the surface. I'd like to express my gratitude in advance."

Xia Yan bowed slightly in greeting.

"It's nothing, just a small favor. However, it's dangerous for you to evacuate alone, so it's better if we go together so we can look out for each other."

Xia Yan understood that Linghu Shi was preparing to give up exploring the palace.

"Not going?"

"We're not going. Since you said you got separated from your Servant, let's try to find your Servant first. That way, we can also improve our combat strength."

The idea is correct, but none of my Servants are in this trial, so I can't find them at all!

Even so, Xia Yan couldn't say it outright, so he could only awkwardly reply, "Okay, but I can't sense their exact location. I'll have to leave here first and then search for them slowly."

"Okay. Richard, you bring Xia Yan with us."

"Okay, Xiaoshi."

At Linghu Shi's command, Richard I, the Lionheart, appeared beside Xia Yan.

Richard I!

Seeing Xia Yan staring at him, Richard said, "What? You know me? It's strange, it seems like a lot of people here know me."

It seems that this Richard I is not the one I encountered before.

"The name of the Lionheart is very famous, so it is perfectly normal to know him."

"Haha, thank you for the compliment, but compared to King Arthur, I dare not say that I am famous."

Richard's answer was very humble.

Okay, okay, I can feel your joy at successfully meeting your idol.

"We'll talk about it later."

Linghu Shi urged them on, and the four of them immediately left the palace made of pure gold, moving along the outer walls of the towering buildings until they reached the outskirts of this city, which was indeed excessively prosperous.

That's enough for now.

Linghu Shi jumped down from Arthur's embrace and gave a look to her first contracted servant, which Arthur understood immediately.

Xia Yan, who had also moved here with the help of his assistant, sensed something strange as soon as his feet touched the ground.

At this moment, he was standing right in the center of Linghu Shi, Arthur, and Richard, who had taken two steps back, feeling as if he were being subtly surrounded by the three of them.

"Xia Yan, I don't like people lying to me, so I'd like you to explain why you were able to break into Draco's palace alone without any Servants."

Linghu Shi took off his glasses, his eyes were cold, and his temperament was completely different from when he was talking with Xia Yan. He was like a thousand-year-old iceberg exuding a chilling aura.

Throughout the entire process, Xia Yan's body was white, which proves that he was not lying. However, not lying does not mean that what he said is true. Linghu Shi has already learned that many humans can deceive themselves first and then deceive others. Therefore, in addition to relying on his emotional perception to see the magic eye, Linghu Shi also uses his brain to analyze logic.

So, I was noticed after all?

Xia Yan was aware that there was a loophole in his story that he couldn't cover up, but he couldn't very well say that he had been kidnapped and imprisoned by his own beast-transformed Nero and had only managed to escape with great difficulty. That would be tantamount to saying that he was Draco's Master, that he was Draco's enemy, and that Draco was completely unguarded and that this was the perfect opportunity to kill him, and that he should not miss it.

Seeing Xia Yan remain silent, Linghu Shi spoke again: "Don't try to cover it up with lies. I have ways to tell if you're lying. Confess honestly, are you hiding a Servant and unwilling to tell me, intending to attack me when I'm off guard, or are you actually Draco's Master?"

This "Ayaka Sajou" is just too smart!

Xia Yan cried out in his heart.

Indeed, there are only two possibilities that fit the current situation, but either way, I am destined to become an enemy of Linghu Shi.

But I don't have a single Servant by my side right now, so isn't this a complete dead end?

For a fleeting moment, Xia Yan even considered using a Command Spell to summon Draco, but if he did, he probably wouldn't be able to hold out until Morgan arrived.

"Still won't tell? Then I'll have to take action."

Linghu Shi raised his right hand, and several black ribbons extended from his feet, looking exactly like the imaginary number magic used by the corrupted Matou Sakura.

"Found you!"

Just as Linghu Shi was about to launch an attack, a petite figure descended from the sky and blocked Xia Yan's path.

She had a girlish, rosy face, and her pink eyes had distinct X-shaped pupils. Her light blue long hair was tied up at the back of her head, but was mostly covered by two 3-shaped hairpins on either side.

Isn't this the "Returning" Beast that I defeated in the previous Absolute Demonic Front trial—Tiamat?

"My little one, Mommy was only gone for a short while, how could you have been kidnapped? Mommy was so worried about you, do you know that!"

Tiamat pouted and put her hands on her hips, making a cute, angry face.

Xia Yan understood immediately, scratched his head, and pretended to be very familiar with the situation.

"I didn't want to either, but I ran into Draco. She forcibly took me to the palace and imprisoned me."

At this point, Xia Yan shook the chain on his wrist and continued, "I finally managed to escape, and luckily I met this kind person who brought me here."

"A kind person?"

Tiamat turned to look at Linghu Shi, who was still in an attack stance, and whispered to Xia Yan beside her, "Baby, she definitely wants to attack you, doesn't she?"

"It's all a misunderstanding, a misunderstanding."

Xia Yan didn't want to be enemies with Linghu Shi, mainly because Linghu Shi was quite strong. Not only was he quick-witted, but he also had excellent Servants like Arthur and Richard. If Xia Yan wanted to survive, he would eventually have to fight Draco, which would require Linghu Shi's combat strength.

The moment Xia Yan saw Tiamat, a story entirely constructed from the truth formed in his mind. He said to Linghu Shi, "I'm sorry, Linghu Shi, although I didn't lie to you, I did hide something from you. When I arrived at this trial, I was separated from my servant and subsequently kidnapped by Draco, imprisoned in the palace. I escaped while he was away, and that's how I met you."

The reason I didn't tell you the whole story before was because I was afraid that knowing my Servant was Tiamat would make her wary and hostile towards me, which wouldn't be helpful for passing this trial.