Kamen Rider Date A Live

Chapter 142 The Redemption of Kenneth?

"Hmph... Hahahahahahahaha!!! Well said! Bastards! Lackeys! I will remember your names! While you are thanking Zero Tears, prepare for your final battle! Don't die at the hands of other heroic spirits! Hahahahahahaha!!!!"

With Archer's arrogant laughter, his conspicuous figure transformed into golden particles of light and vanished from the spot, though his echo lingered there for a long time...

As the forest returned to peace, Shido and Shiori, who had been silent for a long time, looked at each other and spoke almost simultaneously.

"Are you alright?" ×2

The two were momentarily speechless when they heard each other ask the same question at the same time, but then Shido spoke with a smile.

"Let me go first, Shiori. Don't worry, everything is fine here. Although my master is a little timid, he's a good master, so there's no need to worry about his safety. Besides, we have three Servants on our side, giving us the advantage. We won't leave here easily. Just like I said, I will definitely be back!"

Shido clenched his semi-transparent hand into a fist, patted Shiori's shoulder, and said with a smile.

"We're all waiting for you, Shido. Although we almost broke down when we first heard the news, we've calmed down thanks to the comforting words of Ms. Evangeline and the others. But I still hope you can come back soon. After all, it's always uncomfortable for us to see Shido through the screen. He's so close, yet we can't reach him no matter what..."

With a slightly sorrowful smile, Shiori witnessed this scene, and Shido felt a pang of heartache. Hearing that Tohka and the others were on the verge of collapse, he wanted to rush in and wipe out all the Servants immediately. However, upon hearing Shiori's final words, he couldn't remain calm.

"Hey! Shiori! You haven't been watching everything that's happened to me since I got here, have you!?"

"Hehe! Shido, what do you say? See you next time! I'll be watching, and I'll come over when you have something important to do or when a crisis occurs. By the way, your companions can't hear what we're saying right now."

Shiori wiped away her sorrowful smile and spoke to Shido with a happy one. After she finished speaking, the "Millennium Puzzle" on her body emitted a dazzling light, and the translucent Shido disappeared. Under this light, Shido's body returned to normal.

"Damn it, you ran away at the crucial opportunity, Shiori! Saying that only adds more trouble to my life!? Tohka and the others are watching the situation here... Forget it, I won't think about this for now. There's no point in being pretentious. Let's just stick to our old ways. It's time to go home now."

Shido walked along talking to himself, simultaneously retrieving the jar of locusts he had hidden there. After collecting them all, he shouted at the sky.

"Hey~~ Rider~~ Take me back~~!"

The only response to Shido's voice was a series of flashes of lightning and thunder, along with the loud mooing of cattle.

..............................

Lancer is very distressed right now.

Lancer is really quite distressed right now.

Yes, Lancer is so distressed that he's almost contemplating suicide.

Lancer knew that he might be the only Heroic Spirit in this Holy Grail War who didn't have any desire for the Holy Grail. His wish was to offer the loyalty he had been unable to fulfill before to the Master who summoned him.

However, after Lancer told his master this, the master became even less trusting of him. This was exactly what Lancer had expected and was entirely reasonable. After all, how could anyone not be tempted by an omnipotent device that could grant any wish?

Although Lancer was a little saddened by Master's suspicions, he believed that as long as he performed well in the upcoming battles, he would surely gain Master's approval.

With this mindset, Lancer fought with almost all his might in the Holy Grail War, and in the first battle, he successfully inflicted an incurable cursed wound on Saber's left hand, preventing her from fully unleashing her power. This was supposed to be a great start, but fate seemed to be mocking Lancer, as the Servants who appeared afterward were increasingly devastating.

One is a black-clad Servant who already appears strong, but is amplified even more by the Berserker class; another is a wealthy Gold Pikachu who indiscriminately fires his Noble Phantasms and acts as if everyone owes him a fortune. There's also a Masked Servant who can change color and arbitrarily alter his stats. And a Conqueror King whose strength is unknown.

These alone were troublesome enough, but the Caster he encountered on the second day was a dark mage who could summon an infinite number of magical beasts given enough time! These troublesome heroic spirits came one after another, leaving Lancer feeling overwhelmed. Could he really defeat these monsters? Lancer couldn't help but wonder.

However, what happened next was even more unexpected for Lancer. After spending a long time with Saber and Agitω, he finally defeated Caster and realized that his master was in mortal danger! After saying goodbye to Saber and Agitω, he rushed over.

But when he arrived, he saw his master lying on the ground, coughing up blood, looking like he was about to die. When he saw the man with the gun in front of him, Lancer immediately understood everything and realized that the person in front of him was the real Saber's master.

However, because Saber had let him go, Lancer suppressed his murderous intent, let go of Saber's master, and quickly left the place with his own master in his arms.

Upon returning to his master's current residence, Lancer told his master's fiancée about his master's current situation. However, the emotion revealed in his master's fiancée's eyes after hearing the news almost subconsciously reminded Lancer of the past he didn't want to recall.

His former monarch's fiancée, who is now his wife, also looks at him with this kind of gaze...

Lancer, having thought this through, knew now was not the time to hesitate, even if he were to be humiliated by his master...

Now, without hesitation, Lancer crushed the sphere that agitω had given him.

Chapter 143 Kenneth's Doubts

Chapter 143 Kenneth's Doubts

"Hmm? It seems something really happened to Lancer's Master. But I forgot to ask Shiori why she made me help Lancer's Master like this... Anyway, since we made a promise, I should go."

After the chaotic battle of last night, the daytime finally brought some leisure time. Even Shido was lazily lying on the rooftop, basking in the sun and storing up magic power, while listening to music. He was quite content!

However, just now, Shido suddenly sensed that the notification ball he sent to Lancer had been crushed by Lancer. It was clear that Lancer's master had suffered some serious injury and needed his help.

With that thought in mind, Shido stepped off the roof, told Webber he was going outside for a stroll, and then left, speeding off on his motorcycle towards the signal spawn point.

Without violating the maximum time limit for traffic laws, Shido took about half an hour to reach an abandoned factory in the suburbs, from which the signal from the notification ball that Lancer crushed was also sent.

As soon as Shido arrived, Lancer immediately appeared, walking over with a happy expression.

"Great! agitω, you've arrived as promised! As expected, you're a chivalrous person too!"

"This isn't the time to talk about that. What kind of serious injury did your master suffer? Tell me in detail."

Seeing Lancer walking over with a happy expression put a lot of pressure on Shido, whose magic resistance is currently C-. After all, he's not gay, and it feels weird for a handsome guy to come over with a big smile.

"Lord Kenneth's entire magic circuitry was disrupted by Saber's true master in some unknown way. Now all his nerves are shattered, and he's almost... It's all my fault for not protecting Lord Kenneth!"

Seeing Lancer start blaming himself halfway through his story, Shido couldn't help but admire him a little. After all, he was a famous hero, yet he was so incredibly loyal to a magician... Yare yare.

However, while admiring him, Shido also noticed the hidden message in Lancer's words.

"Lancer, you just said that the one who injured your Master like this was Saber's real Master? So, so that white-haired lady was just a decoy..."

Shido felt a sense of unease, for he had never imagined that Saber's true Master was hiding in the shadows. Using the white-haired lady as a cover, Saber's true Master could easily use the opportunity to annihilate the other Masters! This tactic was incredibly ruthless against Masters with rigid thinking! And Kenneth, standing before him, was clearly a bloody lesson in this regard!

Shido, now more wary, knew that at least this trip hadn't been in vain. However, he wasn't here to gather information, but to treat Kenneth.

Not wanting to stay there too long, Shido planned to leave as soon as he finished, so he first patted Lancer, who was still regretting his actions, and then went straight inside.

Lancer, who was only brought back to his senses by Shido's slap, found that Shido had already walked straight in. He had no choice but to follow. However, as soon as Lancer entered, he noticed that Shido was looking at the scene in front of him with a subtle expression. Lancer looked over in confusion, but after seeing what was happening, his expression changed from confusion to anger, and he shouted loudly without any regard for his image.

"What are you doing! Lady Sora!! What do you intend to do to Lord Kenneth!!!"

The stunned red-haired woman (Sora) hurriedly released Kenneth's right hand, but the crisp sound of Kenneth's right hand fingers breaking had been clearly heard by the two Heroic Spirits present.

However, compared to Sora's panicked expression, Kenneth, whose right hand fingers were almost all broken, breathed a sigh of relief, and his almost-gone thoughts disappeared.

"La! La! Lancer!! No, it's not what you think! You, you've misread it!"

Seeing Sora's panicked expression, Lancer closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and then opened them, speaking with a resolute look.

“Miss Sora, I don’t think my eyesight is so bad that I would misread something so close. Since agitω is currently treating Lord Kenneth, although I’m a little reluctant, could you please leave for the time being?”

Although it was a question, faced with Lancer's resolute face and emotionless voice, Sora seemed to lose her soul, walking out of there with a look of pain and regret.

Meanwhile, Shido, who had witnessed this farce, watched Sora walk away dejectedly with a bit of pity, and secretly transmitted his voice to Lancer.

(Hey, Lancer, is this really a good idea? I can tell that woman likes you! Even though you're a bit ruthless, there's a saying that goes, "The most poisonous heart is a woman's.")

(...agitω, you know my real name, so you also know the origin of the mole on my face, right? My mole can make men fall intensely in love with me, completely disregarding women's original feelings... I've stolen the monarch's fiancée again! But...)

Hearing Lancer's extremely self-reproachful reply in the voice transmission, Shido frowned slightly. After thinking for a moment, he transmitted again.

(No, Lancer. I don't believe that woman named Sora fell for you simply because of your mole. You see, while your mole can bewitch the opposite sex, with enough magic power, one can completely ignore its allure. Although I didn't sense it carefully just now, that woman's magic power was considerable; she could basically resist your mole completely. Therefore, the reason she fell in love with you is probably not what you think.)

(…………)

Lancer was taken aback, clearly having not considered this carefully before.

(Is this woman merely seeking fleeting happiness during this Holy Grail War...? Lancer, this is your family matter, and I don't want to meddle too much. But can you tell me here why you answered the Holy Grail's call?)

(...it was simply to fulfill the knightly duty that I hadn't done well in my lifetime.)

(No wonder, but I don't know if your master believes you.)

(…………)

(It seems there isn't...)

Just as Shido was helplessly thinking about things, Kenneth, who had been cooling off for a long time, shouted loudly in his now shrill voice.

"Lanc! Lancer! How could you bring the enemy here?! Are you going to betray me too?!"

144 Kenneth

Article 144 Kenneth Archibald El-Melloi

"No! Lord Kenneth, please believe me! I haven't betrayed you! The reason I sought out agitω is to have agitω heal you, Lord Kenneth! Please believe me, Lord Kenneth!"

Despite Lancer's sincere reply, Kenneth, showing no appreciation whatsoever, shouted again in his now sharp and sarcastic voice.

"Believe?! How can I believe you! Lancer! You were no good in your previous life!! You eloped with the monarch's wife, and now you've stolen my fiancée!! I think this is your purpose in coming to the mortal world!! Lancer!!!"

Kenneth roared at Lancer with a ferocious expression, completely ignoring Lancer's sorrowful expression and Shido's disgusted look.

"Hahahahahahaha!!!! Lancer, are you happy now?! My fiancée was willing to cripple me to get you! Are you satisfied now?! You..."

*Smack!*

Before he could finish speaking, Kenneth received a hard slap across the face, forcing him to swallow back what he was about to say.

There are only three people here. Kenneth obviously couldn't have slapped himself, and the loyal Lancer was even less likely to do so. So it's quite obvious who did it.

"Ah, agitω! What are you doing! Don't do that to Lord Kenneth..."

"Lancer, shut up now!! Do you really want your master to treat you like this?! I know this is meddling, but I just want to meddle!"

As Shido spoke, he walked up to Kenneth, grabbed Kenneth by the collar, and pulled him up.

"Hey! Kenneth! If I remember correctly, you're my master's teacher, right? Do you know what kind of person you are in my master's eyes!?"

"Teacher Archibald... Teacher Archibald... Although Master always teases you in front of me whenever he has a spare moment, I can sense that although Master dislikes you, he also deeply respects you! He respects you, Kenneth Archibald El-Melloi! The head of the El-Melloi family, the mentor of the Clock Tower, the young man who is just one step away from becoming a Grand Magician, the universally recognized genius and prodigy in the magic world!"

"Am I right, Kenneth? But look at yourself now! Is this really the Kenneth Archibald El-Melloi, the universally acknowledged genius and prodigy of the magic world?!"

Faced with Shido's questioning, Kenneth seemed to be provoked by something. He abandoned his previous dejection, his eyes bulging with extreme anger, and his voice, sharp and sarcastic due to his injury, reappeared.

"A universally acknowledged genius in the magic world? A child prodigy? With all my magic circuits messed up, I can't even be a magician anymore!! And all of this, all of this..."

Kenneth's angry, bulging eyes stared straight at Shido, but Shido felt that although Kenneth was staring at him, he was definitely not really looking at him.

And Shido's guess was correct. Kenneth wasn't really looking at Shido at that moment. In Kenneth's eyes, he seemed to see Waver standing triumphantly in front of him through Shido!

"It's you... So it was you all along..."

Kenneth remembered.

Wasn't the source of all this the incident of the stolen relics?

If the relic hadn't been stolen, his servant wouldn't have been Diarmuid, the one who only knew how to sleep with other men's wives, but the renowned Alexander the Great...

"Weber Velvet!!! That rebellious disciple is the mastermind behind everything...!"

Kenneth's frantic roar not only made Shido frown, but also made Lancer, who had been silent to the side, look at Kenneth.