Starting in Type-Moon, but a Magician from A Certain Magical Index Chapter 42

Still, Artoria did not truly let down her guard. She glanced at Rin Tohsaka, several thoughts flashing through her mind.

If they struck now, while the other side's Servant was absent, they could easily deal with that Archer.

However ruthless she might be, that Archer had stayed behind to cover the retreat of his companions. Artoria found it difficult to accept attacking him now.

After hesitating for a moment, she chose not to make a move for the time being.

"Let's go inside first. Since Mephistopheles said he would return, I'm sure he will," Rin Tohsaka said, looking toward Shirou Emiya. "Emiya, please open the gate."

"Ah, right, I'll open it!" Shirou Emiya finally came to his senses and hurried over to open the courtyard gate. Looking at the brightly lit house, he took a deep breath. Recalling everything that had just happened, he felt as though he were dreaming.

"What was that? I was suddenly attacked, and the person who attacked me was a child. I think I saw that little girl a few days ago... But why? Why was she a Master too? Was she also a mage?"

Unable to figure it out, Shirou Emiya could only look to Rin Tohsaka, hoping to get an answer from her.

"That little girl, she..."

"She's from the Einzbern family. She's also a mage, and her name is Illya. Don't underestimate her. She's very powerful," Rin Tohsaka warned him.

Rin Tohsaka did not know whether it was merely her imagination, but when she said the name Einzbern, the previously expressionless Saber showed a subtle change in expression.

Silently committing that change to memory, Rin Tohsaka continued, "The Servant by her side is also extremely powerful. His magical energy is immense—he could practically be called a monster. Even among Servants, he is a monster!"

Seeing how frightening Rin Tohsaka made it sound, Shirou Emiya could not help frowning. "Then why did you let us leave... Mephistopheles is alone..."

Rin Tohsaka took a deep breath and smiled faintly. "He'll be fine. I believe in him..."

Though she said that, Rin Tohsaka was still uncertain inside.

Mephistopheles has the blessings of the Greek gods, and his Noble Phantasm is powerful too, but the other side is incredibly strong. Will he really be all right?

I should have given him the Moonstone. If he had it, he could definitely wield even greater power. With the Moonstone's strength, even that monster could be easily suppressed...

But even if I had given it to him, he wouldn't have taken it. He let me leave alone because I have the Moonstone now. As a protective talisman, it can keep me safe...

Thinking of this, Rin Tohsaka could not help looking into the distance and silently praying.

Please don't let anything happen to him. Please come back safely!

It was not for victory in the Holy Grail War. She simply wanted that guy, who loved mocking her and making her angry, to come back.

That was all she was praying for.

At that moment, Artoria abruptly raised her head. Still clad in her armor, she charged out in a single burst!

In barely half a second, the two people inside heard a roar from outside!

It was the roar of that black giant!

Upon hearing it, both Rin Tohsaka and Shirou Emiya's expressions changed drastically, and they rushed outside together!

Then they saw a scene that left them somewhat speechless.

Mephistopheles held up the helpless, unconscious girl in his hand and said to the roaring giant in the distance, "Hey, Berserker, your tantrum-throwing days are over. If you don't want anything to happen to this little girl, stand still and behave!"

The giant known as Berserker should have been deprived of his mind by madness, yet he merely roared and did not dare move recklessly.

Seeing the giant too afraid to move, Mephistopheles actually burst into laughter.

No matter how they looked at it, Mephistopheles, dressed in his trench coat, seemed like the true villain, while the black giant looked like the victim.

Rin Tohsaka could not help raising a hand to cover her face. At that moment, she desperately wanted to say, "I don't know this guy."

Even Shirou Emiya, a man of justice, could no longer stand it. He shouted, "Mephistopheles, isn't this a little wrong?"

"Just watch for now. It's not like I'm a bad person." Mephistopheles called to Rin Tohsaka, "Rin, come over here!"

No matter how unwilling she was to acknowledge this man using such "despicable methods" as her Servant, Rin Tohsaka could only walk over. Then Mephistopheles handed her the girl in his arms. "Take her. Don't use this chance to grope her."

Rin Tohsaka's eyes widened. "I would never!"

"You never know." Mephistopheles looked at Heracles, who was eagerly waiting to snatch the girl back. He merely raised his hands slightly and smiled. "In the name of YHVH, I seal you here!"

In an instant, light rose from the ground and directly enveloped Heracles!

On-the-Spot Examination

It was a special circular structure, with an even larger triangle outside it. Around the triangle were the words "ANAPHAXETON," "TETRAGRAMMATON," and "PRIMEUMATON."①

At the same time, the three sections within the triangle divided by the circle were respectively marked "MI," "CHA," and "EL."

"Is this a summoning magic circle?" Rin Tohsaka looked at the magic circle on the ground in surprise, but then shook her head. "No, that's not right. This isn't for summoning!"

At that moment, Mephistopheles shouted, "Look carefully, Rin. Look carefully at what is written inside this magic circle. Tell me, what do the words appearing in this magic circle represent?!"

At this moment, both Shirou Emiya and Artoria were somewhat stunned. To them, Mephistopheles seemed like a teacher who had seized an opportunity during actual combat to test his student on the spot.

And that student was Rin Tohsaka!

Knowing that Mephistopheles was taking this opportunity to teach her, Rin Tohsaka immediately focused herself. Holding Illya in her arms, how could she possibly care about the little girl's delicate skin right now? All her attention was fixed on the question.

The black giant roared, attempting to break free, but no matter how hard he struggled, he could not escape.

The mysterious power released by the magic circle completely restrained the rampaging giant. Even strength beyond human limits, nearly approaching that of a god, was useless!

Yet no matter how the giant struggled, Rin Tohsaka had no intention of paying him any attention.

Mephistopheles's question was far more difficult than he was!

Finally, after desperately searching her memory and analyzing the structure of the magic circle, Rin Tohsaka gave her answer.

"ANAPHAXETON, TETRAGRAMMATON, and PRIMEUMATON are all names of God, sacred names. And the separately written MI, CHA, and EL should actually be connected. Together, they form Michael, representing Michael, leader of the four great angels!"

As if declaring her victory, she shouted the answer loudly at Mephistopheles.

Mephistopheles smiled at her answer.

"Very good. You were a little slow, but at least your answer wasn't wrong." As he spoke, Mephistopheles began chanting an incantation.

"In the name of the great, illustrious, incomprehensible omnipotent Lord, I bind you, spirit not of this world. In the sacred name, I trap you within this circle!"

As the incantation ended, the magic circle's power grew even stronger. Holy power compressed inward, sealing every possible opening through which a spirit body might escape!

Only then did Rin Tohsaka finally understand the magic circle's purpose. It was meant to seal Servants and prevent them from leaving!

Servants were spiritual entities from outside the present world, while this magic circle was specifically designed to bind spirit bodies!

Having once called upon Gabriel's power through the Moonstone, Rin Tohsaka knew very well how powerful angels were. Yet the circle did not merely bear the name of Michael, leader of the four great angels—it also bore three different titles of God around its perimeter!

What kind of magecraft was this, using God's name to seal an existence?!

"W-what kind of magecraft is this?" Rin Tohsaka did not even need to ask. Shirou Emiya, an ordinary person with a bit of supernatural power who had otherwise lived an ordinary life, had already raised the question.

"It's from demonology," Mephistopheles said calmly.

That name once again sent a chill through everyone present.

"D-demonology?!" Shirou Emiya cautiously asked, "The demons I'm thinking of?"

"Yes, that's right. It can indeed summon things like the Seven Demon Kings, but what I'm using is the Solomon Triangle. Strictly speaking, it should be better suited to the seventy-two demons of Solomon." As Mephistopheles spoke, he released the hypnosis he had placed on Illya.

As the hypnosis ended, Illya slowly woke up. The moment she did, she heard Shirou Emiya's cry of surprise beside her.

"The seventy-two demons of Solomon?! I know that! They show up all the time in novels and games!"

With hobbies much like those of an ordinary high school student, Shirou Emiya immediately understood what Mephistopheles meant, even if he was not a real mage.

At that moment, Illya finally opened her eyes completely. She saw Heracles trapped within the magic circle. Rather than struggling immediately, she cautiously manipulated her own power.

Within her body, her Magic Circuits reacted and generated an enormous amount of magical energy. The power appeared suddenly, and with it, Illya finally gave her command.

"Berserker, come to my side!"

This was the compulsory command of a Command Spell. It could force a Servant into spirit form and even teleport them directly—a miraculous power established by the Holy Grail!

"Damn it!" Rin Tohsaka was startled. She wanted to restrain Illya, but it was already too late. Illya's Command Spell had taken effect, and Heracles's physical body within the circle swiftly transformed into spirit form and vanished!

Artoria immediately drew her weapon and reached Shirou Emiya's side at once, intending to protect her Master.

If there was anyone present who remained entirely relaxed, it was Mephistopheles.

Just as nearly everyone was facing a formidable enemy and Illya waited with a cheerful smile for her Servant to come rescue her, another roar came from within the magic circle.

The Servant's body, which had transformed into spirit form to teleport, appeared once more. But he had not appeared beside Illya—he had reappeared inside the magic circle!

Despite consuming the power of a Command Spell, Heracles had still failed to escape the magic circle's seal!

"Berserker!"

Illya shouted again, consuming her own magical energy and activating the Command Spell's power, but it was useless. Heracles still could not escape the magic circle's restraints. No matter how he roared, he could not break free.

The stubborn girl's face was on the verge of tears, but Mephistopheles merely shrugged. "Now, can we have a proper talk?"

Illya gritted her teeth and did not answer.

Her body was extremely special. As the descendant of a human and a homunculus, she had undergone extensive modification herself. She possessed an abnormally high number of Magic Circuits, and every single one of them could be used as a Command Spell.

That was why she had attempted a second time without hesitation.

But even with such formidable strength, faced with her Servant being sealed, Illya knew very well that she could not fight the people here.

So she quieted down. Yet although she was silent, she carefully listened to the conversations around her, trying to figure out whether she had been kidnapped or something else.

Artoria looked at the sealed giant and asked, "Won't you kill him?"

"There are some things I need to prove." Mephistopheles looked toward his Master. "Rin, I told you before that I needed to make some preparations. This is the result of those preparations, and I've already placed the evidence in front of you."

"Evidence?" Rin Tohsaka looked puzzled. She looked at Berserker, trapped within the seal, then at Illya, who stood off to the side and seemed unclear on the current situation. Then she suddenly realized. "Wait, these past few days, when you said you were preparing, you meant..."

Mephistopheles nodded. "I looked around and felt this was the most suitable place. So these past few days, I've been secretly coming here to set things up in Mr. Emiya's home. This magic circle was prepared for this very moment."

Shirou Emiya was stunned as well, and he immediately shouted, "Wait! What are you doing messing around in someone else's house?!"

"Couldn't be helped. I roughly calculated that we would be attacked, then looked around for the safest area nearby that was suitable for sealing Berserker. This was the only place." Mephistopheles said without the slightest politeness, "I could have set it up at her house, but having to carefully avoid triggering the bounded field every time would have been annoying."

"Then, then this..." Shirou Emiya pointed at the black giant. "He... he's going to live here from now on?!"

"Just keep him in spirit form normally. I'm sure the beautiful and adorable Miss Einzbern will be willing to cooperate." As Mephistopheles spoke, he looked at Illya, who was trying her best to reduce her presence.

Seeing everyone looking at her, Illya smiled. "Why should I cooperate with you?"

Mephistopheles looked at the stubborn girl and suddenly said, "Let's talk alone."

Illya's smile brightened even further. "What could you possibly have to say that you need to hide even from your own Master?"

Those words made everyone turn to look at Mephistopheles. A little girl, and such an adorable one at that—and someone had just held her hostage. That line was indeed very easy to misunderstand.

However, Mephistopheles merely said calmly, "If you don't mind letting everyone here know some of the things you've hidden in your heart, I don't mind."

The expression of Illya, who had originally planned to mock Mephistopheles further, immediately stiffened. After a moment of silence, she looked at Heracles. "Berserker, stay here and behave. Don't make trouble."

After seeing the giant calm down, she said to Mephistopheles, "Since you want to speak with me alone, then let's speak alone, mister!"

She even emphasized the word "mister" at the end.

Mephistopheles glanced at the others present. Rin Tohsaka looked at him with some confusion, while Shirou Emiya seemed relatively calm. Clearly, this brother of justice still trusted Mephistopheles.

As for Artoria, seeing that she had obviously prepared to intervene, Mephistopheles rolled his eyes helplessly. "Why don't you come listen too?"

"I'm merely preventing you from doing anything you shouldn't."

"Really? Then why don't you stand guard at the door?" Mephistopheles snapped back at Artoria without hesitation. "Besides, among the people here, I think my moral standards might be T0."

At the same time, Mephistopheles kept another sentence buried in his heart and did not say it aloud.

You're protecting her so fiercely. Do you think you're her mother? Or are you in love with Illya's mother?

After all, during the Fourth Holy Grail War, Artoria's Master had been Kiritsugu Emiya. Besides being Shirou Emiya's adoptive father, he was also Illya's biological father!

Furthermore, Artoria and Illya's mother had cooperated quite often during the Fourth Holy Grail War.

But knowing those words would most likely make Artoria explode, Mephistopheles worked hard to restrain himself and did not say them.

Then he led Illya toward a small room ahead.

Though Shirou Emiya and the others were curious, they did not follow. Even the highly vigilant Artoria did not step forward. Instead, she stood there alone, staring at Heracles, completely locked within the seal, while her mind churned furiously.

If I were sealed, could I break free from this place?

She could not help contemplating it.

Self-Destructive Personality

Inside the room, there were only Illya and Mephistopheles. One was another person's Servant, while the other was another Servant's Master. In some respects, their positions made for a very peculiar arrangement.