Shirou's Return from the Fae Kingdom

"Understood. You may withdraw for now."

He ordered Hundred-Faced Hassan to continue her espionage work, specifically to scout for unknown Servants and their Masters.

Although he sensed the Servant's displeasure, Kirei Kotomine dismissively offered no words of comfort.

The reason was actually quite simple—

Kirei Kotomine was tired. Weary.

He had thought the Holy Grail War would reignite the passion within him, but it hadn't.

The Command Spells were not a divine salvation; instead, they deepened Kirei Kotomine's confusion.

After the true battle began tonight, he found his heart still consumed by pain and bewilderment.

Without the fated person (Kiritsugu Emiya) appearing, the Fourth Holy Grail War was still too uninteresting for this man.

After ending her communication with her Master, Hundred-Faced Hassan returned to her base in Miyama Town.

Among all eighty-eight individuals, she was the Hassan-i-Sabbah who existed as a leader, an overseer.

Therefore, she generally did not personally undertake reconnaissance missions, primarily being responsible for receiving and compiling intelligence and relaying the Master's orders.

Perhaps for the sake of convenience in communication, she was one of the few Hassan-i-Sabbah who had not had her face peeled away, retaining her appearance.

Assassin's base was located within a luxurious hotel in Miyama Town.

Hundred-Faced Hassan had no demands regarding her living environment.

In life, to become the leader (Old Man of the Mountain), she had undergone rigorous training unimaginable to ordinary people. After her death, she certainly wouldn't pursue material comforts.

The reason for choosing a luxurious hotel instead of a hidden place like a sewer had an unspeakable cause.

Hundred-Faced Hassan walked to the door of the hotel room being used as a temporary base.

Just then, she heard voices conversing from within the supposedly silent room.

"!?"

The woman's nerves immediately tensed.

My hiding spot has been discovered?

No, that's absolutely impossible!

Her pride as the leader of the Assassins' Order would not allow her to entertain such a thought.

However, the fact that there was noise coming from beyond the door was an undeniable truth.

Hundred-Faced Hassan frowned slightly: Could "that guy" be causing trouble in the room again?

"..."

To be cautious, she entered her Spiritualization state.

Silently passing through the wall, she entered the room.

Then, Hundred-Faced Hassan witnessed an unbelievably bizarre scene.

"That guy," whom Hundred-Faced Hassan had locked in the room—

A small, purple-haired, tan-skinned young girl was sitting side-by-side with an unfamiliar red-haired boy, watching a late-night magical girl anime.

"What's wrong?"

Shirou looked at the purple-haired, tan-skinned young girl.

Loli Hassan, who had been intently watching the anime, suddenly turned her head and stared wordlessly at a wall behind them.

There was clearly nothing there.

Shirou instantly reacted: "Ah... could Mr. Assassin have returned?"

Volume 1, Chapter 037: Assassin, You Don't Want To...

"Could Mr. Assassin have returned?"

"..."

The purple-haired, tan-skinned young girl nodded, confirming it.

Hey, don't go spilling my information to strangers so easily...

Hundred-Faced Hassan pressed her twitching forehead, utterly speechless, and dispelled her Spiritualization.

Shirou curiously examined Hundred-Faced Hassan from head to toe.

Excluding the overly suspicious Lady Avalon and the overly cute Loli Hassan, this was the first time he had seen a living Heroic Spirit up close.

Hundred-Faced Hassan crossed her arms, her eyes revealing vigilance, and questioned in a threatening tone:

"Who are you? How did you get in?"

Loli Hassan walked to Hundred-Faced Hassan's side and wordlessly tugged at her black robe.

"..."

She probably meant something like, "Don't fight," and Hundred-Faced Hassan clearly froze for a moment.

She furrowed her brow, then sighed as if admitting defeat.

"Ah, alright... I understand. Go to the next room and wait. Got it?"

Loli Hassan nodded and obediently went to the adjacent room, waving goodbye to Shirou as she left.

"You're good at taking care of children," Shirou said.

"What did you fill that child's head with?" Hundred-Faced Hassan asked.

"Nothing, really. We just watched magical girl anime all night. We've become great friends."

"……"

Hundred-Faced Hassan remained noncommittal, coldly stating, "You don't seem like an ordinary child... Are you involved in the Holy Grail War?"

For Hundred-Faced Hassan, who possessed nearly a hundred personalities, no one could understand the meaning of "never judge a book by its cover" better than she.

The red-haired boy before her was definitely not a normal person.

Shirou felt there was no need to hide anything and readily admitted, "That's right. I am one of the seven Masters in the Holy Grail War."

Hundred-Faced Hassan's eyebrows twitched, and she immediately asked the question that concerned her the most.

"How did you find me?"

Shirou explained, "Don't worry, Assassin. Your whereabouts haven't been exposed. I have my own intelligence network."

Shirou was the king of children in Miyama Town. By activating his intelligence network, he could gather information about sightings of foreigners in the vicinity.

Of course, this time he was quite lucky. A child had seen Hundred-Faced Hassan bringing Loli Hassan to check into this inn a few days prior.

Even in modern clothing, a woman with tanned skin and a young girl were too conspicuous in East Asian countries.

Tsk, I messed up.

As the leader of the organization, he had actually exposed his location just by bringing a child along.

If "that person" found out, his head would surely be on the chopping block again.

Hundred-Faced Hassan cursed her own carelessness in her mind, then asked, "Are you alone?"

"My Servant is rather shy and doesn't like meeting people. She won't bother us, so can we just talk like this?"

"Is that so... I really am being underestimated."

As soon as Hundred-Faced Hassan finished speaking, her figure vanished from Shirou's sight.

The next instant, she appeared behind Shirou, a sharp blade pressed against the boy's neck.

Hundred-Faced Hassan said coldly, "Just because I'm an Assassin class, you think I'm weak... It's quite unpleasant."

So fast, I couldn't even see... Shirou thought.

Putting aside what Shirou Amamiya was like at his peak, at 8 years old, he was completely unable to track Hundred-Faced Hassan's movements.

This is an Assassin...

Although their combat power was the weakest, in terms of speed alone, they wouldn't lose to any hero in history.

Even if a Magus had their Servant in Spiritualization form beside them, if they got close to her, they would probably be killed before they could even manifest to fight.

Shirou gained a new understanding of Heroic Spirit battles.

"I never thought you were weak."

Shirou tilted his head back 90 degrees, looking at the terrifying skull mask and said, "On the contrary, I sought you out precisely because I believe you are excellent.

'Assassins can't fight head-on; they are Servants who can only perform assassinations.'

This statement also carries another meaning—Assassin is a class that specializes in countering Magus.

After experiencing it firsthand, you haven't disappointed me.

Well? Aren't you going to put the knife down if you don't plan to kill me? It's dangerous.

Hundred-Faced Hassan frowned and lowered her dagger. I just wanted to intimidate him a little, and he saw through it?

No, that's impossible.

"What exactly do you want to say?"

Shirou said, "Assassin, let's cooperate."

Hundred-Faced Hassan's eyes flashed fiercely. "You want me to betray my Master?"

Shirou said, "Your Master doesn't seem to recognize your true value, actually sending you to your death. Is such a person truly worthy of your loyalty?"

Hundred-Faced Hassan was secretly shocked.

Less than 5 hours had passed since the battle at the Tohsaka Family's residence.

This brat not only found her whereabouts but also saw through the schemes of Tokiomi Tohsaka and the Kotomine father and son?

Is this even possible?

She faltered internally, "How on earth did you figure out that Kirei Kotomine and Tokiomi Tohsaka were secretly colluding?"

"I was just guessing... so it's true?"

Shirou tapped his chin, lost in thought. "I see, so tonight is a joint performance by Kirei Kotomine and Tokiomi Tohsaka."

"...Ugh!"

Hundred-Faced Hassan, having spoken carelessly, wore a very flustered expression. This brat...

Shirou said with a serious expression, "While the part about the Master deliberately sending you to your death was a guess, my desire to cooperate with Assassin is genuine."

Hundred-Faced Hassan let out a disdainful scoff. "As if you could understand my worth."

"Of course I can."

The boy replied with full confidence.

Though she knew he was saying it to curry favor, Hundred-Faced Hassan inexplicably felt quite pleased.

"The one who should have been killed tonight was another you. How many 'yous' like this are left? Ten, or twenty?"

Sorry, there are eighty-seven left.

Hundred-Faced Hassan, who had been on the defensive since entering the room, curled her lips. It seems this kid doesn't know everything.

Zabaniya was a divine art she had mastered over her lifetime, and the pride of her leadership of the cult.