Hassan-i-Sabbah / Akame's Question

Night Raid was quite interested in these protective talismans, so they did not refuse Reimu's kindness.

Since they were all planning to be affiliated with Night Raid anyway. Reimu was merely cooperating with Night Raid and was not truly a member, but in their eyes, there was not much difference.

"That seems true, but don't you think this kind of leisurely life is wonderful? Drinking tea, eating snacks... Thinking about all sorts of pointless things all day just gives you a headache. Leisurely days are so nice..."

As she spoke, Reimu could not help sighing wistfully, a trace of nostalgia appearing on her face.

She vaguely remembered that back in Gensokyo, the days without incidents had been just like this. How wonderful they had been...

But now, Gensokyo had been destroyed. Although it had been rebuilt successfully, countless destructive possibilities had emerged. If they were not dealt with, they would cause trouble for her future self. She could only swiftly erase them before those possibilities had a chance to grow. However, her true body could not interfere with parallel worlds, so she could only resolve the matter in the state of a Servant.

"It sounds like life in Gensokyo was wonderful. If possible, I would like to go there and see the beautiful scenery myself."

Koizumi's eyes gleamed with envy. Reimu still had beautiful memories to look back on, while he had none...

Having lost his memories, he had nothing to reminisce about. It was sad, but from this moment onward, he could keep creating wonderful memories worth remembering. Perhaps that was a kind of fortune as well.

Losing his memories had made him understand that from now on, he could not casually forget any memory, no matter how small.

Reimu merely smiled faintly. "I wouldn't mind. If that Yukari agrees, Gensokyo will welcome you anytime. Gensokyo is very hospitable, after all. Of course, don't cause trouble for me!"

Reimu truly hated trouble. If Koizumi dared cause trouble for her, she definitely would not hold back.

Knowing Reimu's nature well, Koizumi only smiled slightly. He was not someone who caused trouble.

Still, now was not the time to go to Gensokyo. Too many matters remained unresolved. At the very least, they had to resolve these Singularities first, and he also needed Yakumo Yukari's approval. Although Yakumo Yukari gave people a gentle impression, there was actually a certain distance between her words and actions and Koizumi. That meant she had not acknowledged him.

Yakumo Yukari regarded Koizumi as a special existence who could resolve Singularities, yet for some particular reason, she seemed to want to maintain a certain distance from him. He could clearly sense intense emotions from her, yet she insisted on keeping her distance.

That feeling of forcing herself made Koizumi find her strange. He had never been able to understand Yakumo Yukari's thoughts.

Still, Koizumi was not in a hurry. Heroic Spirits had their own pride. He would strive to make her acknowledge him.

"I'll work hard to earn Yukari's approval. But for now, it's better to resolve the Singularities first."

Koizumi smiled faintly. He was extremely curious about Gensokyo. A place that had produced beings like Reimu, Hata no Kokoro, Remilia, and Yukari truly fascinated him. It would be nice if he could visit and have some fun there.

That place should be a good vacation spot. If he ever got tired, he could go there and relax for a while.

Reimu watched Koizumi before her, an odd feeling lingering in her heart.

Her intuition had always been accurate, but this feeling was not a good one.

Her intuition told her that Koizumi would never be able to go to Gensokyo. It could even be said that Koizumi himself was actually...

How could that be...? For the first time in her life, Reimu mocked her own intuition.

It could not be helped. This so-called intuition was simply too absurd, so absurd that even Reimu herself could not believe it.

"You're right. It's better to resolve the Singularities first. By the way... haven't you looked into those two Assassins?" As she spoke, Reimu's eyes turned toward Koizumi, filled with doubt.

The appearance of those two Assassins had indeed surprised both Reimu and Koizumi.

Koizumi and Reimu had been especially surprised by their abilities. One could continuously create clones. Although each clone was weaker, she was terrifying in a group fight!

The other was covered in deadly poison and could even spread toxins through the air.

Those two Assassins were not particularly strong, but their Noble Phantasms were outstanding. If one was careless, they could indeed catch an opponent off guard.

Koizumi had suffered precisely because he had underestimated them...

"No. I know one is called Hundred Personas and the other Serenity, but I honestly know nothing else! You know my memories are gone. I don't know much about figures from history or legends, except for the really famous ones..."

Koizumi rolled his eyes at Reimu, his tone full of speechlessness. Weren't Servants given the relevant knowledge when they were summoned? Shouldn't you know more than I do?

Reimu could not help pursing her lips, confusion flickering in her eyes.

Hundred Personas, Serenity... Honestly, she had no clue. Those names really were...

Hassan-i Sabbah

In truth, if they wanted to know their True Names, they only had to go ask them directly... That was exactly what Hata no Kokoro had done.

The process had been simple. Hata no Kokoro saw Serenity and Hundred Personas wearing skull masks, so she assumed they liked masks. She went to sell masks to them, and that was how she came to know the two Assassins, Hundred Personas and Serenity.

They did not refuse Hata no Kokoro's masks. Although they had no use for them, they could see her goodwill.

While selling masks, Hata no Kokoro also learned their names.

Hassan-i Sabbah was a collective title, and it was also the origin of the Assassin class. The word "Assassin" originated from the name "Hasan." Both of them were among the Old Men of the Mountain who served as leaders of the assassination cult. In life, they had been master assassins known respectively as "Hassan of the Hundred Personas" and "Hassan of Serenity."

Once the Old Man of the Mountain was mentioned, Reimu understood completely, since the name was quite famous.

He was a figure who appeared in Marco Polo's The Travels of Marco Polo.

As the leader of the assassination cult, he sought out promising young men and tempted them: he would give them wine, fine food, and beautiful women, but in return, they had to assassinate important figures. His legend began around the eleventh century. Its origins lay with the Nizari sect, a branch of the Ismaili sect, itself a branch of Shia Islam—a group of people famous for their radical extremism.

The founder of that Nizari sect was Hassan-i Sabbah. Hassan, who had deep ties with the fallen Fatimid dynasty, opposed the Seljuk Empire and repeatedly launched wars and assassinations against them. It was because of these deeds that he came to be called the leader of an assassination cult by later generations.

Furthermore, the martial arts novel master Jin Yong had also written about the Old Man of the Mountain. Not only was he introduced in The Heaven Sword and Dragon Saber, but he was also mentioned in The Legend of the Condor Heroes: the Old Man of the Mountain, Huo Shan, whose real name was Hassan bin Sabbah. It was said that he founded the Assassin Order and used tightly organized acts of terror against political enemies.

Koizumi was left dazed by Reimu's explanation of the Old Man of the Mountain.

So assassins could be this formidable too. The very word Assassin had actually originated from the name Hassan.

It seemed that nearly getting himself killed in battle against them was not so embarrassing after all, Koizumi thought.

After all, their record was impressive. That was why people tended to revere the past and disparage the present.

Just like Koizumi now, he truly had no accomplishments worthy of comparison with theirs.

And in truth, Hundred Personas and Serenity's abilities were indeed excellent. Koizumi had suffered at their hands before.

Hata no Kokoro sat quietly beside Koizumi, leaning against him intimately. This time, they had only learned the two Assassins' True Names thanks to her. Still, was it not a little careless for them to reveal their True Names so easily?

Koizumi had also read relevant books in Chaldea. He knew that Heroic Spirits in a Holy Grail War could not casually reveal their True Names. If their opponents learned their weaknesses, it would be troublesome. That was why Koizumi was grumbling internally.

Revealing their True Names so easily was indeed far too careless.

If it were Reimu and the others, it would not matter much. Reimu belonged to Gensokyo itself and was a Heroic Spirit that did not exist in normal human history. Gensokyo was a land loved by the gods and forgotten by the gods, so no one would know Reimu and the others' weaknesses.

"Perhaps they aren't very guarded around Hata no Kokoro... Could they be showing goodwill toward me too?"

Koizumi considered this inwardly. Were they showing him that they were not his enemies?

Koizumi felt that he needed to think this through. After all, if they became enemies, it would be troublesome.

Being enemies with Assassins was extremely troublesome. No one wanted an enemy lurking in the shadows.

"So... what are you planning to do next? Are you going to lay everything out with those two Assassins?"

Reimu looked at Koizumi. Koizumi was the Master, so she would ask him about practically everything. As long as he agreed, even if she had many objections, she would persuade herself to accept it.

As long as it did not violate her principles, Reimu would not refuse.

Compared with other Servants with strong personalities, Reimu was fairly easy to get along with.

Everything else was fine, except that keeping her was expensive. Reimu was too greedy for money for ordinary people to bear.

"That still needs some thought. Let's first see what those two Assassins do..."

Koizumi was good in every way, but he was overly cautious. He had to handle everything carefully to avoid accidents.

Reimu could understand Koizumi's caution, because everything within the Singularities was unknown.

One had to be cautious in the face of the unknown. Otherwise, it was easy to stumble in an unfamiliar world.

Of course, Koizumi could still be bold when the time called for it. If caution went too far, it was no longer caution, but cowardice.

Koizumi understood that point clearly, so he was not excessively cautious.

If he had been overly cautious, he would not have deliberately exposed a flaw to lure an Assassin into attempting to kill him.

"..." Suddenly, Reimu, Koizumi, and Hata no Kokoro seemed to sense something. Their brows furrowed slightly as they looked behind them, only to see a slender figure already standing there.

The three of them were slightly startled. Their opponent had appeared behind them, and they had only noticed now.

Her presence was incredibly faint... Akame... Reimu frowned slightly as she looked at Akame.

Setting aside her ability to conceal her presence, why did Akame give off such a familiar feeling?

It was not that her aura was familiar, but that this feeling was familiar... It was as though she had felt the same thing from someone else.

It had been in the Imperial Capital... That person who had unleashed lightning had given her the same feeling.

The one who used Thunder God Descent: Ademir had possessed an abnormally faint Servant aura.

Akame before them also faintly carried the aura of a Servant, except it was extremely weak.

After giving Akame a deep look, Reimu did not dwell on it. This Singularity itself was already problematic. Even if an even greater issue appeared, she could simply ignore it. The important thing was finding the root of the distortion.

Akame stared directly at Koizumi, making him realize what she wanted.

Koizumi gave Reimu and Hata no Kokoro a look. The two immediately understood and left one after another.

Although they were curious why Akame had come for Koizumi, she probably had something important to discuss.

Koizumi and the others had only just joined Night Raid, but they had already learned that Akame seemed to be looking for Koizumi. That was why Leone and the others had been watching the outsider who had just arrived in the Imperial Capital.

Of course, they had no idea why Akame was looking for Koizumi.

Akame's Question

"Do you know Kurome?"

That was the first thing Akame asked Koizumi, but he looked utterly confused by her question.

Kurome? Who was that... The name sounded somewhat familiar, but Koizumi was certain of one thing: he definitely did not know anyone named Kurome.

Only the name was familiar, but his memories of the past few days were quite clear. He had never met anyone called Kurome.

After all, he had never been to this Singularity before. During the past few days, he had been with Reimu almost the entire time. How could he have met Kurome?

However, why did the mention of Kurome make a face almost identical to Akame's appear in Koizumi's mind, except with a pair of black eyes... Strange. Was it just because her name was Kurome that he imagined black eyes?

Still, imagination aside, he needed to say what he had to say. Otherwise, she would misunderstand.

"I don't know her. The name Kurome sounds familiar, but I've been with Reimu these past few days, and I haven't met anyone named Kurome... But speaking of which, you're Akame, so Kurome is your..."

If his guess was correct, Kurome should be Akame's younger sister. Otherwise, Akame would not be reacting like this...

Only when speaking of her younger sister would she display such an unusual reaction.

Judging by Akame, she was normally very calm—so calm that Koizumi had nearly thought she was an expressionless girl.

But even someone as calm as Akame sounded somewhat different when she talked about her younger sister.

Could Kurome currently not be with the Revolutionary Army? Otherwise, why would Akame ask him about Kurome?

If she was not with the Revolutionary Army, did that mean she was with the Empire? Wait! If she was with the Empire, then the sisters were enemies.

That was truly tragic. Akame, the older sister, and Kurome, the younger sister, were actually enemies.

At that thought, Koizumi could not help feeling pity for Akame. Being enemies with one's younger sister...

"Kurome is my younger sister..." Akame nodded gently. Her expression did not change much, but a trace of sorrow entered her voice. She concealed it well, yet Koizumi, who possessed part of Hata no Kokoro's power, still heard it.

Hata no Kokoro's ability was truly useful. It had helped Koizumi greatly when it came to listening to emotions.

Even though Akame wanted to hide her feelings now, Koizumi had still noticed them.

An assassin like Akame could conceal her emotions very well if she wanted to.

If he accidentally said something wrong and struck a nerve, he would be in serious trouble.

But this ability allowed him to know exactly what emotions the other person was feeling at any given moment, so he did not need to worry about that.

"I see... Unfortunately, I haven't met her. I'm certain of that..."

A trace of apology appeared on Koizumi's face. This was not a time for a faint smile. Smiling while someone else was sad would be terribly rude. An apologetic expression was better.

Akame merely shook her head gently. She had only asked Koizumi with a certain degree of hope.

Even if Koizumi had said he knew Kurome, Akame would not have said much.

At most, she would have asked how Kurome had been doing. Akame would not ask anything else.

She did not expect Kurome's position to change much because of someone she knew.

Even Akame, her older sister, had been unable to resolve the situation. How could it be easily changed because of an acquaintance?

Still, Koizumi not knowing Kurome did not fall outside Akame's expectations. She merely had another question to ask.

Her second question was—"Did we know each other before?"

Confusion filled Akame's red eyes. Honestly, this question was rather foolish.

After all, how could Akame herself possibly not know whether she and Koizumi had known each other?