A Villain's Journey Begins in the Type-Moon World

"What a wonderful power... But what price have I paid? To have my soul corrupted, is it my soul that I'm paying? Yet I don't feel my soul is bound too much... Oh well, since I've already made my choice, let me see what happens next. Will it truly be as they say, that I won't regret it?" Semiramis felt the power transforming her, her thoughts drifting for a moment before she immersed herself in it.

Wang Chong, naturally, also used the power of ruin to subtly and gradually build up Semiramis's trust and loyalty to him.

"Ding—You have successfully captured the Assyrian Empress Semiramis, and are rewarded with 300 villain points. Your current villain points are 6000." The system notification appeared.

"Hmm? System, why does Empress Semiramis also get 300 points for each of the three Heroic Spirits she captures? Shouldn't she get 100 points each, just like the three goddesses?" Wang Chong asked, feeling a bit strange.

"This is because the host used a different method to subdue them. Previously, the three Gorgon sisters were forcibly subdued by the host using purely domineering power of ruin. In addition, the power source that created the three sisters was the power of ruin, so they naturally had a good impression of you. The method was too simple and the difficulty was also relatively weak, so the points were not high."

"On the contrary, the Assyrian Queen was initially incompatible with you. You first demonstrated your formidable strength to gain her approval, and then you struck while the iron was hot, using words to pique her interest in you. She then willingly opened her heart and mind, allowing you to subdue her with your destructive power. This was more difficult in terms of difficulty and more skillful in terms of method, so naturally, the villain points were higher," the system said.

"I understand. In other words, every villain's actions have a certain evaluation standard behind them. The more mindless and uninteresting the villain's actions are, the fewer points they will receive. Conversely, the higher the evaluation will be, right?" Wang Chong asked.

That's it~

"Unexpectedly, because of my caution, I didn't use the forceful control method I used before, but instead I learned how to increase villain points. System, that's a bit unfair of you. You should have told me this earlier," Wang Chong said.

Chapter Thirty-Six: Competition Among Women

Wang Chong didn't choose to directly use the power of Ruin to forcibly control his opponent because he was no longer the Ruin King with his full strength and inexhaustible power of Ruin. He couldn't guarantee how much of his Ruin power he would expend to forcibly control a Heroic Spirit or living being, or whether it would disrupt his plans.

Therefore, being cautious, whether it was Kirei Kotomine, Kariya Matou, or the current Empress of Assyria, he would never use methods that deplete the power of destruction to forcibly control them. Instead, he would make them willingly accept his power, minimizing the loss of the power of destruction as much as possible.

"Host, I didn't mention this for your own sake," the system said. "I would prefer that you carry out any villainous acts in your own way. Be domineering when you want to be, or subtly and patiently guide when you want to. In short, everything should be done in accordance with your own heart. Be carefree and happy."

"On the contrary, I don't want the host to rack their brains to raise the score as much as possible just to pursue villain points. Just like what the host said to Kirei Kotomine before, don't become a slave to villain points in order to pursue villain points. Besides, even if I were a slave, it would have to be me. I am your lovely little slave system~" the system said with a grin.

"Hehe, I almost got carried away. You're right, Tongbao, I'll do it my way." Wang Chong nodded. He had to admit that his system was really good, and he felt that he had made the right choice in binding himself to this system.

"Assyrian Empress, how are you feeling?" Wang Chong shifted his attention to Semiramis. Semiramis, who was also unable to open her eyes at this moment, lifted her black dress with both hands and leaned slightly forward towards Wang Chong, saying, "Just as Master said before, I feel better than ever before. Also, Master, you can call me by my name directly."

At this moment, Semiramis understood the price she had paid. Although her soul was not completely bound, her mind was still affected by that power. Under this influence, Semiramis's respect and trust for Wang Chong would continue to grow.

However, Semiramis did not intend to resist, even though she knew she was powerless against this influence, she still chose to accept it. She believed it was a perfectly reasonable deal, a win-win situation where both sides got what they wanted: she gained the power she desired, and the other party gained her loyalty.

Semiramis knew that, if the other party wished, she, with her body and soul at her disposal, could be molded into any shape imaginable. For example, she could be transformed into a historically renowned and stunningly beautiful empress, reduced to a lowly slave and made her their captive. That sounded incredibly appealing.

However, this man didn't cross the line. He didn't need her physical appearance; he only needed her loyalty to trust her. This actually improved Semiramis's opinion of her as her Master even more. Although the growing emotions within her had already raised her opinion of him considerably.

If we were to use favorability as a measure, the Empress's favorability was already locked at the acceptable level of 60 due to the power of ruin, and now it has undoubtedly increased by 10 points from that level.

"Trust and loyalty? Heh, I, who have been plagued by suspicion and distrust all my life, actually feel this way. It's so strange and novel..." Accepting this stirring in her heart, Semiramis straightened up and awaited her Master's command.

“Yes, that’s what I call you when we’re alone. Semiramis, your first task is to set up the defenses here. As for your Noble Phantasm, Vanity’s Hanging Gardens… I’ll go and help you gather the materials first, that’s not urgent,” Wang Chong said.

“Yes. But even when setting up a magic array, I remind the host that the more expensive the materials I give you, the better the final effect will be,” Semiramis said.

Without hesitation, Wang Chong immediately took out all the assets he had previously obtained from Huangye Zonglian from his spatial storage and said, "That's all for now. I'll make up for it if needed later."

"It seems I'll have to do some regular-level draws myself. While regular draws won't give me anything that can immediately boost my strength, they will yield a large amount of valuable magic materials. Perfect, they'll put Semiramis to good use. After all, the EX-level base construction is here, I need to make the most of it," Wang Chong thought to himself.

……

After arranging for Semiramis, Wang Chong was finally able to get some rest.

"Master, you can't just let what happened today go by so easily, can you?"

"Hehe, Master, you were staring at that new guy for a long time just now. Do you really like women with big butts and big breasts that much?"

Watching his little brother being brutally trampled by the two goddesses, who were already wearing kind smiles, with their bare feet as pink as lotus roots, Wang Chong knew that if he wanted to rest, he would probably have to lean back further.

"Hmm? I originally thought my Master was a rather serious guy... Hmph, men are all the same." The Assyrian Empress, who was setting up a magic circle, naturally noticed what was happening in Wang Chong's room, snorted coldly, and glanced at the two "lumps of fat" on her chest.

"I never expected that Master's tastes were so unique, that she actually likes flat-chested women. Heh, this is the first time I've been outshone in terms of beauty in someone else's eyes." Unconsciously, a feeling called jealousy arose in Semiramis's heart.

"However... Master is quite manly. Hmph, let me enjoy this good show. Consider it a little treat for my busy work." Although she was secretly spying, Semiramis was openly and honestly appreciating everything.

“Stheno (me), that newcomer is spying on us. Shouldn’t we cover ourselves up?” However, Semiramis’s magical spying could not escape the notice of the goddess in the age of gods. Euryale spoke to Stheno in secret while her footwork continued without pausing.

"Hmph, lovely Euryale (me), isn't this perfect? ​​Let her see as much as she wants. Let her fully understand the gap between herself and us, and know her place. She only has a little bit of divine blood, how can she compare to a true goddess?" Stheno's lips curled up, and he watched all this with amusement.

"Speaking of which, how long is that silly little sister going to keep being so reserved? Does she really need us to order her around before she'll go?" Euryale frowned slightly, looking at the little Medusa who was obediently guarding the door beside her, and said.

"Hmph, my foolish sister has always been like this. She always realizes her mistake too late. Don't worry, once she sees the host having affairs with more women, she'll naturally realize how foolish her modesty was. Then we'll laugh at her mercilessly."

"Wait a minute? This guy still dares to steal food?"

“Eureka (me), my naive Euryale (me), men are such insatiable creatures, their desires are like Sisyphus's boulder, once it starts rolling, it's completely out of control. Blame it on us for not being able to squeeze all his desires out of him. But we must completely seize the throne, we can't let those other women ride on our heads.” A seductive glint flashed in Stheno's eyes, her mind already made up.

A war without gunfire has quietly begun.

……

While darkness fell over Japan, the sun shone brightly in France. Inside a church, a blonde girl was praying as usual. She was a devout believer; though her life was somewhat uncertain, her unwavering faith kept her going.

Today, during the girl's daily prayer, a white light inexplicably shone through the church's glass window and shone directly on her. A burning pain immediately shot through her back, and in an instant, the girl fainted. But as her consciousness faded into darkness, she vaguely heard some voices from "God."

[To correct this world, to judge...]

"Letitia!... Letitia, what's wrong?" The girl's fainting startled her godmother, who had watched the child grow up. She quickly helped her to a chair in the church and dialed the phone to call for a hospital.

Chapter Thirty-Seven: Leticia

Another week has passed in the blink of an eye, and there are only 7 or 8 days left until the official start of the Holy Grail War. Fuyuki City remains peaceful, except for one thing that bothers Wang Chong: he feels increasingly numb when leaving the Matou residence through the main gate.

The reason, in essence, is that since Caster's summoning, there have been more familiars monitoring his neighborhood. It's not that he, the Master, has been discovered, but rather that as time has passed, those paying attention to the Holy Grail War, especially the participating Masters, have begun making preparations. As one of the three founding families and a local power, the Matou and Tohsaka families are basically the first to be monitored by various parties.

For this reason, Wang Chong had to use various methods to enter and leave the Matou family home in order to avoid exposing himself. He even recently instructed Ryougi Shiki not to practice assassination techniques outside, lest the familiars notice something amiss. This made the little girl sulk for quite some time. It wasn't until Semiramis converted the basement into a suitable training ground for assassination techniques that Ryougi Shiki became much happier.

Right now, Wang Chong is in his study, reviewing the intelligence information Kirei Kotomine secretly passed to him, checking the current situation. So far, the Einzbern family has already summoned Saber, there's been no news from Kenjiro, and Tokiomi Tohsaka hasn't summoned Saiko Gian yet, seemingly still preparing something. Kariya's relic just arrived today, and he'll start trying it out later. As for Waver, he bumped into the Great Emperor yesterday at the Fuyuki Bridge, where he was showing off by summoning lightning.

Based on my judgment, Director Ken should be summoning his Heroic Spirits soon. After that, with Kariya summoned, only Tokiomi will be left. Once all the Servants are summoned, the Holy Grail War should begin around that time. I remember that according to Tokiomi Tohsaka's plan, he would first have Kirei Kotomine send a Hassan clone to a certain Gian, and then retreat to the background.

To be honest, Tokiomi Tohsaka's arrangement seemed useful, but it wasn't very effective. Hassan didn't play a substantial role at all, and later he was just a free experience booster for the Emperor. It can only be said that Tokiomi Tohsaka played too conservatively. If a hero like Hassan had been given to Kiritsugu Emiya, who would stop at nothing, the Holy Grail War would probably have been over in three days.

Incidentally, Wang Chong glanced at the tourist records for Fuyuki City today. It seemed that neither his wife, Kiritsugu, nor even Chief Ken had found the list.

"Wow, there are so many foreigners here. Guy Corey... Dulles Duke... Yawn... Nothing on the men's list, let's look at the women's list. Jenny... Angelia... Leticia... Eileen... Hmm?" As he was reading the names, Wang Chong suddenly heard a name that sounded familiar, so he quickly turned around to look at it again.

"Letitia... Letitia!? What? Could it be the Letitia I know?" Wang Chong immediately stood up, looking at the name, and an image of a blonde village girl appeared in his mind.

"This...this isn't right, could it be a case of the same name? It would be one thing to have the same name, but to appear in a place like the Holy Grail War by sheer coincidence? No, I have to investigate. Tsk, I was planning to have Kariya summon the Knight of the Yangtze River later. Now I'd better go check it out right away." Without saying another word, Wang Chong ran off to find Semiramis of the Matou family, who was having her familiar modify her.

Recently, I've been able to escape unnoticed by the familiars thanks largely to Semiramis's help. Of course, my own silent black mist and spider senses, which allow me to quickly pinpoint the familiars' locations, are also reasons for my safe escape.

"Going out again? Didn't you just go out to gather intelligence? I remember you were going to help that man summon a Servant later, Master?" Although Semiramis was puzzled by Wang Chong's haste to leave, she still used magic to allow him to escape the sight of the familiars and leave.

"Oh right, I almost forgot something. I've collected everything on the materials list you gave me." Wang Chong said, opening his system space and taking out some wood, stone, minerals, plants, and some magical materials.

"Look, is this what it is?"

“Sniff sniff… Hmm, this is indeed something from my homeland. This way, I can begin chanting my Noble Phantasm when the Holy Grail War begins. Heh heh, once the Hanging Gardens of Vanity is fully completed, victory will be firmly in my grasp.” Semiramis said with a confident smile.

"Yeah, yeah, whatever makes you happy." Wang Chong thought that Semiramis's statement was just that, if she were really that good, she wouldn't have lost to Black.

Moreover, this war involves the ancient Fat Tiger King; yours is just vanity, and who knows, he might pull out the real deal for you. Although Wang Chong was very curious, could Wang Cai really fit such a large architectural treasure inside?

As for those materials, Wang Chong obtained them all from the regular lottery pool. It seems his system is quite good, knowing what he needs most and feeding those things into the regular pool. However, he still spent 30 regular draws to get the required quantity, which means he's already spent 3000 villain points. He also managed to get another 1000 points, so his current villain points total are 4000.

Well, as for the freebies I got, I have to thank a certain cooperative Mrs. Tohsaka. Every time I see Mrs. Tohsaka sobbing and saying, "Toki... Waaah... I'm sorry...", it always makes me even more... unable to resist~

……

Wang Chong had already arrived near the bridge. It was daytime, so he wouldn't run into the Princess and Consort duo here for the time being. But even if he did, it wouldn't matter; he could just pretend to be a passerby and leave.

He needed to find Kirei Kotomine immediately and have him investigate Leticia's whereabouts. He hoped he was wrong, but Wang Chong had a bad feeling; she might really be that being. And it was very likely she had already been possessed by some village girl.

After all, Wang Chong examined his current situation and realized that the script he was currently in was way too damn similar to his own.

With a Servant roster exceeding seven, controlling multiple Servants, living during the Fourth Shinobi World War, having summoned the Empress, being the mastermind behind it all, and incidentally, having some powers similar to the effects of the Third Ability, and having some ambiguous ties with the Holy Church.

Who am I?

"Damn it, I'm getting the Amakusa script now. No wonder I got so many black keys in my 30 draws! Okay, okay, this is how you play it!" Wang Chong thought to himself.

Cars came and went, and Wang Chong waited at the intersection for the traffic light to change. Just as Wang Chong was lost in thought, he suddenly felt someone tugging at his sleeve.

"Um... hello, I'm sorry to bother you." A very familiar voice entered Wang Chong's ears, making him tremble all over, and then he turned around mechanically.

A blonde, long-braided girl from abroad bowed slightly to him with an apologetic expression and said, "Hello, I would like to know where the church in this city is located. Could you please tell me?"

"Wow, Joan of Arc!" Wang Chong almost blurted it out, but he pretended to be calm, smiled and nodded, saying, "That's quite a coincidence. I was also going to the church, so it's on my way."

"Huh? Really?"

"Really, even more real than Joan of Arc." Thinking this to himself, Wang Chong nodded and said, "If you don't believe me, you can go see for yourself. Just cross this bridge, and then..."

After giving the other party general directions, the blonde beauty nodded, then, as if she had thought of something, quickly said, "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to doubt you."

"It's alright. When traveling, you can't be too careful. Judging from your appearance, you must be a foreigner. Which country are you from and are you here for tourism?" Wang Chong asked.

"Yes, I'm from France..." Seemingly because her words had won over the other party, the blonde beauty opened up and started talking to Wang Chong.

The light turned green, and Wang Chong and the blonde girl headed towards the Fuyuki Church. They chatted amiably along the way. However, as Wang Chong talked, he began to mutter to himself, "I never expected to run into her directly. I'm certain now, she is the Leticia I know, the vessel of Ruler Jeanne d'Arc."

Chapter Thirty-Eight: A Second Chance

"Laetitia's presence here is definitely not a coincidence. She has most likely been chosen as the vessel for Jeanne d'Arc to participate in this Holy Grail War. But... why is there a Ruler?" Wang Chong began to ponder.

"First, let's rule out the FGO setting. If the Ruler were to appear in the Holy Grail War, there are generally only two possibilities: one is that the Holy Grail War is in a very special form and the outcome is unknown, meaning the Holy Grail determines that the Ruler is needed; the other is that the Holy Grail War's influence could distort the world."

"So far, is it because I summoned more Servants that the Holy Grail War has become special? Or is it that my appearance might distort the world's fortunes in this Holy Grail War?" Wang Chong pondered. Either way, it wasn't good news for Wang Chong. Because it meant the Counter Force had its eye on him.

That makes sense, though. These days, it would be strange if a transmigrator didn't attract the attention of the restraining force. Just how much of a variable is an existence completely unrecorded by the Root? Gaia and Alaya, those two brats, must know all too well about Du Ming.

“The only miscalculation was that I suddenly encountered Joan of Arc and let her see my true face. Now this is not easy to handle... Should I put in some effort to win her over?” Wang Chong’s eyes narrowed slightly.

"Ah! I see the church," Leticia said, pointing to the Fuyuki Church in the distance.

“Okay, then you can just go in. There’s a very kind priest here,” Wang Chong said.

"Hmm!" Leticia had only taken a few steps when she stopped, turned around, and asked, "Sir, aren't you coming in with me?"

"No, I'm just waiting for a friend here," Wang Chong said, shaking his head.

"Is that so... then thank you for showing me the way, sir." Leticia smiled, waved goodbye to Wang Chong, and walked into the church.

"I hope she'll just treat me like an ordinary passerby from now on," Wang Chong thought to himself as he walked toward Kirei Kotomine's residence and put on his mask.

……

"So, this girl is special?" Kirei Kotomine stared at Leticia, who was praying devoutly, through the dark crack in the confessional, and then asked Wang Chong.

“That’s right… she has the scent of a spirit possessing her. If I’m not mistaken, it should be a heroic spirit.” Wang Chong said slowly.

"A Heroic Spirit possession? Could she also be a Master of the Holy Grail War? And a Master and Servant merged into one?" Kirei Kotomine asked with some surprise.

"No, she wasn't on the side that participated in the war, otherwise your father would have noticed. The Heroic Spirit within her doesn't belong to any of the seven classes. If I'm not mistaken, it should be a Ruler."

"The adjudicator? That would mean..."

“That’s right, Kirei. She will take your father’s place to judge who the final victor of this Holy Grail War is. Your teacher’s plan is probably going to be ruined.” Wang Chong said, a dangerous smile playing on his lips.

"That's really... delightful." Kirei Kotomine smiled knowingly, finding the thought of his teacher losing his composure because of this extremely amusing.

"Should I have Hassan keep an eye on things?" Kirei Kotomine asked.

“No… The Adjudicator has the ability to find enemies that nullifies the Assassin’s ‘Scent Concealment,’ with a search limit of ten kilometers. Using Heroic Spirits to keep watch would be easily detected. It would be best to use some secular power to find her residence,” Wang Chong said.

"I understand." Kirei Kotomine nodded.

"How's things going with Shichen? Has he summoned the Heroic Spirit yet?" Wang Chong asked.

"The teacher should be summoning the Heroic Spirit tonight," Kirei Kotomine said.

"Looks like I'll have to stay away from the streetlights at night from now on."

"?"

……

After bidding farewell to Kirei Kotomine, Wang Chong went home first and had Kariya Matou begin summoning his original Berserker Lancelot. Although it was a bit of a pity that the Berserker form wasted Lancelot's abilities, Berserker Lancelot was still very useful overall, especially against a certain "Streetlight King," where he was particularly effective.

"A fragment of the Knights of the Round Table, huh? So that's what summoned Lancelot. But this relic is quite useful; maybe I can use it to summon other Knights of the Round Table in the future," Wang Chong thought to himself.

"Matou Kariya, you and Lancelot should spend these next few days getting to know each other better. Just follow the plan, and who knows, you might even be able to put a good strain on Tohsaka Tokiomi's arrogance," Wang Chong said.

"Thank you for this opportunity, Lord Wang Chong. I will certainly not let you down." Matou Kariya clenched his fists, knelt down in front of Wang Chong, and said.