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' Nice speech, Leo-tan.' Angra commented, standing watch with me in his Astral Form.

As I stood, vigilantly observing the dispersing crowd for any potential troublemaker under a mask of smiles and politeness, I quietly noted three names down in my mind and memorized their faces. These three were the very people whom I had personally seen incite the crowd to violence. They'd be the first to go… 'Nicholas Campbell, Harrison Leeson and Nolan Martin, I'll carve open your throats, put your heads in boxes and deliver them back to your fucking Masters.'

The Daemon's voice, seemingly touched by relief, resounded in my head. ' Oh-God, you're back to normal. I was worried, thought you were possessed or something. I mean, letting your enemies go and rewarding them with a discount to your products just didn't seem like a very Leo's thing to do.'

I rolled my eyes at his dramatic exclamation and explained. 'I might be reckless, vengeful, rude and frankly unnecessarily violent at times, but I'm not blind. Killing them here and now would satiate my desires, but it'd cause my reputation to plummet to a night irrecoverable level.'

If murdering one of the protesters was a warning, killing three more would be a Call of War, directly challenging the group of fifty-something people. Sure, I'd definitely win the battle, having broken my first set of Limiter and into the Realm of Servants, yet ultimately I'd lose the War. All my efforts thus far had been focused on building a fearsome reputation so none would dare to challenge, let alone touch me and it had worked to a certain degree.

But there came a point where fear must be accompanied by love and respect to be truly effective. A King could not rule through tyranny alone- it was a path which oftentimes led to the bloodiest of revolts. Yet, he also couldn't rule with naught but the love and respect of his subjects. Iskandar was right, a King must live to embody all the extremes. To be the most fearsome of everyone, yet simultaneously the most respected and beloved,

That's the way, and it rang true still, even in this day and age.

If I pushed too many buttons, upset too many people, inevitably the Magi dissatisfied with my ' Rule' would attempt to push back.

No… I had already earned their fear and horror, now I had to start earning their respect next.

My lips curved upwards to reveal a bloodthirsty grin as I glanced at the three who were clearly trying and failing miserably to blend in with the crowd, and added after a brief pause. 'Besides, I have their names, I know their faces, and I've heard their voices and even marked them with my Spells- (On the Map). Their lives have been forfeited the instance they agreed to play a part in this idiotic plot, they just haven't realized it yet.'

My hands itched to draw their blood,

My ears to hear the tearful pleas they'd say in an effort to redeem their lives,

And almost like an instinctual reaction, a Skill of mine responded in kind. Not [Hell King's Engine] or [Tyrannical Charisma, surprisingly. No, what reached out first and foremost was [Future Tragedy] and I, seeing no reason to deny the Skill satisfaction, allowed the idiots a glimpse into the horrific future that awaited them.

'This is for ruining my Chirstmas Night, motherfuckers!' Immediately, they dropped to the ground, screeching for someone- anyone- their parents, even their Gods to save them, but there was no reply. What idiocy, this was the Capital of the Moonlit World– Arguably the most heretical of shady Organizations, no God would hear them here, none who would care to listen at least.

And even if a God really heard their desperate pleas, what good would come out of it? I was far closer to them than God.

"WHA- What's wrong with them?" Seeing people converging in their locations, I averted my gaze. "Some- Somebody, help them!"

"What can we even do?!" One asked.

Another ' helpfully' quipped in. "I don't know, just do something!"

That's someone exited the elevator and shouted, his loud voice tearing through all the commotion as his round-glasses ominously reflected the light. "Can anybody tell me what's going on here? Lord Magnum, since you're back, can you provide an explanation for this mess?"

Wilson O'Connor, AKA– Mr. Hero's Descendant. His presence alone was enough to shut everyone up, not 'cause it's awe-inspiring or particularly threatening, but because of the gorgeous appearance of the man himself.

'Fucking showoff…'

Angra sassed. ' You're one to talk.'

I shrugged. "There were a few troublemakers at my stall, thankfully the situation has been peacefully resolved. As for those three, I'm not sure. Maybe they stubbed their toes on the way out?"

The Enforcer sent me a look that practically screamed he's tired of my bullshit, but he didn't call me out on the lie, instead turning to Harry, Nick and Nolan to scold, unsympathetic to their plights. "Get up, you worthless clowns. You're embarrassing yourself."

As it turned out, O'Connor was an asshole to any and everyone who's even the slightest bit weaker than him, granting the man this halo of a stoic and unfeeling King, but I had gotten a glimpse of what lied beneath, and it's honestly quite disappointing. While the culprits rose to their feet and started racing to the nearest exit, their crotches soiled by dripping, lukewarm piss due to the visions of their ends, I had already approached O'Connor, whispering to the guy. "Wilson, what are you doing here?"

I couldn't imagine Lorelei sending him to help me with the matter, so he must have come out of his own volition.

He replied, the same stone-cold expression still welded to his face. "I heard rumors about someone bribing people to make troubles for your stall so I came, but it seems my worries were for naught… When did you return anyway? I thought you're on a trip to the US?"

Wordlessly, I sighed- a sigh which contained countless emotions, the most prominent one being frustration as my cheeks twitched erratically. "Why does everybody know where I am 24/7? Did you guys chip me or what?! This is a gross violation of my privacy!"

"Please, if you know half the things the Factions do to keep track of you, you'd be begging to be chipped instead." He responded in what he must have thought was a joking manner, but to my ears, it just sounded like a warning. I grew too fast, stepped on too many toes and now had the entire Moonlit World watching my every move like vultures waiting to feast on my rotting carcass. "Well, since you have dealt with the situation, I suppose my presence is no longer required here. I'll take my leave."

If O'Connor had a hat, he would have surely tipped it towards me, instead he settled for a curt nod and turned the way he came, before stopping at my call. "Wait, may I have just a moment of your time, Lord O'Connor? Worry not, it will take but a minute."

After the draw we reached months ago, we had decided on a… Deal of sort. The gist of it was this, Wilson O'Connor was a battle-maniac with no distinctive moral value and an extremely skewed common sense, which meant the guy obviously wanted a rematch, while I was a new entrepreneur with far too much responsibilities to attend to. I couldn't fight whenever and wherever he wanted, but if he helped me with something, I'd be willing to schedule a match with him as soon as possible.

Thus, we signed a Geas and we were now… Friends? Sparring-partners?

I hadn't wanted to invoke the Contract, knowing full-well how much of a hassle the Tower's Prince Charming could be, but due to Alice's lack of progress in the investigation regarding the break-in of Enkidu's Temple, I had little choice in the matter. As the sole living Descendant of the Great Diarmuid and one of the rare few Wielders of a Noble Phantasm, perhaps O'Connor would have better luck searching for the culprit than my Vassal.

Plus, as Divinity itself was described as a burden to the Body and the Soul, maybe further contact with the man might grant me access to a side of Magecraft I had never seen before. Remember, [Sword God Style]- a Martial Art which relied almost entirely on instinct and comprehension had a God Rank… I already understood what a Sword was from my own observations of Shiro and research into the weapon history.

All I lacked now was the God part.

What made someone a God? Their Authority over natural phenomenon? Or maybe it's their personal prowess? But that wasn't right, history was ridden with humans who could go toe to toe against the Divines such as Scáthach, Cú Chulainn…etc. If that's the case, what made the Gods so special then? I was hoping the answer to this question would catapult my progression in the Style,

But even if it didn't, this was Divinity we're talking about, not that I'd ever attempt to implant Divinity into myself, but surely there were other, better uses for it? The creation of a Divine Construct perhaps? "My time isn't free, Lord Magnum. You understand, right?"

I nodded.

"Then you need only to lead the way." O'Connor chuckled.

—— [Fate: DML] ——

"So… What do you want?"

"Two things." I raised my fingers. "One: I want to wreck the property of a Lord and needed an alibi, implausible deniability you see. Second: I need to you gather information for me."

' Should you really be doing this now? Aren't there people waiting for you?' The Daemon reminded, and just like, I snapped out of my work-induced haze. 'Shit… I forgot, gotta hurry.'

' You were just opening gifts with them twenty minutes ago! How did you forget so quickly?!' Angra screeched loudly, forcing me to reply with a hastily made-up excuse. 'I'm old, my memory doesn't work the same and I'm easily absorbed in my work, stop shouting at me!'

"Leonis?" Shaken out of my quarrel with the Daemon, I glanced at the man before me and shook my head, an awkward smile tugging at the corners of my thin, pale lips. "Sorry, sorry. I was thinking of something. What were you saying?"

O'Connor glared at me. "About the second, what information do you require of me?"

"Right, so there's this Temple in the Middle-East, it's Enkidu's- a gift of Gilgamesh to her fallen friend- It's recently broken into…" He bobbed his head sagely, hand caressing an imaginary beard as he cut in. "And since I'm a Descendant, you think I might know who's responsible, is that right? Stereotype much? You think we have a pub where Descendants converge and go to trade tales or something?"

I gave him this deadpanned, thousand-yard stare, and he relented, throwing his arms up. "Fine, fine. We do have something similar set up, but not because we're the seeds of Heroes, alright? It's a private club for us Descendants, I'll try asking around, though I'm not making any promise. Now–"

With a motion, O'Connor quickly rid himself of the form-fitting dress suit on his torso, and in his hands two spears- one redder than blood, the other a sickly yellow- appeared. The table I had installed in my Workshop and enhanced through magical means immediately broke into countless splinters. "– Let's have at it, Leon–"

"Wait." Throwing a hand up, I put an end to his fanciful delusion with an eye roll. "Not today, it's December 24th you battle-addicted baboon. Don't you have better things to do than to bug me for a fight? People- Friends and loved ones you want to spend time with?"

At my words, O'Connor gave me the most innocent look and blinked owlishly. "What kind of Magus celebrate Christmas?"

"I do." I drawled.

"Really?" The man tilted his head, visibly perplexed at my casual admittance. "But why? It's a holiday often associated with our mortal enemy- the Holy Church and even those guys loath it to the core, the date itself doesn't even have anything to do with Christ or his birthday, it originated from Pagan culture."

"That's not the point, have you ever seen anyone celebrate Christmas for Christ? It's merely an occasion for us to show love, dress up and receive gifts." A loud sigh escaped my mouth as held my forehead. "Never mind, why am I explaining this to a blockhead like you anyway. Point is, I have plans for today, plans I am unable to cancel, but I promise I'll make up for you next Thursday."

I leaned in towards him, speaking in a singsong voice while my hands flailed around, as though weaving a beautiful dream. "Think about it, you can have me all to yourself the entire day. We can fight from morning 'till night. It's gonna epic, like a duel between Heroes of Old!"

We were shoulder to shoulder now, together gazing at the ceiling like we could see what lied beyond. Then, I tapped his forearm, "What do you say buddy?"

"You got yourself a deal!" Clasping hands, we grinned at each other. "Now, I've gotta to go, got places to blow up, people to meet."

Eyeing O'Connor, I patted the imaginary dust off my outfit and asked. "Run this back for me, if someone asks you where I was when those buildings blew up, you'll say…?"

The man threw me a death-glare as he countered. "What am I, five?!"

"Just humor me."

He rolled his eyes. "I'll say you were here with me."

See? O'Connor's not at all the stoic, complicated Ice King he's rumored to be. Guy's surprisingly simple. "That's a good boy."

Angry veins started popping up his forehead as he grinded his teeth. Seeing that, I immediately booked it, shouting. "See you later, Wilson! And don't wait up, papa's gonna be late!"

"You little–!" I vanished in a cloud of magical particles before he could finish, appearing within the walled-off section of London. My eyesight- sharp and piercing, peered at the bustling City. While it might have been quite late over in Japan, London had barely entered noon and with people ' patrolling' the street, I'd have to be careful not to be caught…

Alternatively, "Fire in the hole!"

Three Molotov cocktails were prepared and gasoline-dipped in an instance and launched towards the properties listed in Illaoi's diary.

Usually, I'd have to scout the landscape to do this accurately, but London streets had basically been carved deep into my mind, like an ever present Map just waiting to be pulled up at will. The moment the Molotov left my hands, I teleported away. There was no point waiting to see the result when I was doing this merely to attract the attention of the Crown and UK Government.

"An eye for an eye… You fucked with the wrong person, Malcolm."

—— [Fate: DML] ——

Unfortunately, by the time I returned, party had ended. The girls had gone back to their respective room, but not before leaving me a plate of foods and some rice. Seeing the cold dishes, I turned my gaze towards Gil's gift which laid undisturbed on my bed, "Foods can wait."

Excitedly, I carefully pried the wrapping open, peeling it off with care to find a set of black and gold bracelets. Their appearance's surprisingly modern with a golden crisscrossing pattern, similar to a bee hive. Other than that, I couldn't really find anything special about them. The materials were hard to obtain, maybe? Surely, this couldn't be it? They looked less like actual bracelets and more those stupidly expensive sport wrist-bands.

"She shouldn't have given me something useless…" Curious, I put them on and slowly began to inject Mana into the Mystic Codes. Even with [Observe] and [Structural Grasp] working in tandem, deciphering the Matrixes within them would take time, so why do it when I could simply take it for a test run?

"Now, let's see what these babies can do." Patterns lighting up with Mana, I watched as a shape formed over my forearms, creeping up all the way to my shoulders before enveloping me fully in a cocoon of light particles- particles which then proceeded to bond together to create an… "Armor?"

The whole thing was comprised of black and dark, rusty grey. My torso was covered back to front with two-pieces plates connected together at the waist and under the armpits. From the shoulders down to my hands, a cross of leather and spandex- at least that's what it appeared to be- cladded every inch of my skin.

Similar occurrence took place on my lower-half, only the pants were of a duller, matte black instead of the shiny look its counterparts had, seemingly sown to the leg-guards of the same color as the chest plate. Unexpectedly, the last parts to appear were the steel V-shaped knee-pads- sharpened and jagged so every hit would cause more damage. ' Kneeing people is gonna be a lot of fun in the future.'

Took the words right outta my mouth, Angra. "I'm a fucking magical boy, motherfucker!"

Of course, Shiro chose that exact moment to walk in on me. "Yes, yes you are, Leo-senpai."

Behind her stood Rin, Sakura and Taiga, who all looked at me, cheeks puffed up as they tried- and failed- to hold in laughter. "Hi… I'm back."

"""Uh-Huh."""

"… You guys saw nothing, you understand me? Absolutely nothing happened." I jokingly threatened.

"""Of course.""" They echoed in unison, though I had a feeling I was not going to live this down any time soon. "Anyone wants to help me test its durability?"

The girls poured into the room like ants.

"I do!" The tsundere shouted, hands already held in a gun-shape as she flung [Finn Shot]s at my torso, which splattered harmlessly over the material. "Okay… So it has excellent Magic Resistance."

"This is what she gives you for Christmas?! Gil sure is rich." Taiga muttered, Dawnbringer stabbing towards my stomach. I could tell she hadn't put her all into the strike, but the fact that the blade didn't even come close to penetrating the Mithril was surprisingly. "Try putting more force into it next."

And she did… This time, it carved up a line into the chest-plate, but didn't get deep enough to touch the skin. Taiga stepped back and we all watched in amazement as the plate mended itself back together- spotless except for the tiny scratches decorating its paint- a reminder of the passage of time. "And it provides… Decent protection against blades. Wouldn't want to test out a blunt weapon though."

Since I could still feel Taiga's first attack connecting, the Mystic Code shouldn't be Shock-Absorbent. "Now, can you try swinging at the arms and thighs? I want to know how tear-resistance they are…"

Turn out, they were basically impenetrable. We tried everything, I even brought out Invictus and I-I, but nothing worked. My guess was it would require a Noble Phantasm to cut through the material, though I couldn't be sure. Not all was good, there were downsides to the piece,

The biggest being its rather poor defense against blunt-damages. Since the… Sleeves(?) were so close they seemed painted over my arms, close enough to highlight my muscles, the force just seeped right through the fabric, leaving me pained and sored once we're done checking it out. The Mystic Code itself was also rather heavy and kind of bulky in its entirety, not nearly enough to hinder my movements, but if its Creator had not installed the plate-like section over the stomach, bending down would have been a challenge.

"You know, Leo-chan?"

"Know what?"

Taiga innocently said. "This would have looked way cooler if you aren't a brat."

"Yup." The sudden betrayal from Rin was as unexpected as it was hurtful, "You just don't really fill out the fit, is what I meant. Your arms are too lanky, and your legs too skinny…"

Did she just insult my calves?! I'd have you know I took leg-days very seriously! It's not my fault this damned body couldn't build proper muscles for shit! "I just haven't gone through that big growth-spurt yet, just you wait. Four, five more years and you'll be salivating at the mere sight of me."

I muttered resentfully.

"What happened anyway? You just took off all of a sudden."

"Somebody planned a straight up revolt and I had to stop it." I answered casually. "Speaking of which, I gotta make a call."

Wordlessly, I sent a command to Zolgen and the Demon, the obedient creature that it was, responded mere seconds later, spanning more and more of itself as flies, worms and every insect under the Heavens. This incident had shown me I could not stay reactive forever… There was only so much being one scary-ass motherfucker would do for you if you just let every enemy walk over you with minimum consequences.

With Zolgen's clones, I'd be able to learn every secret the Tower had to offer- big and small. I wanted to know everything, even the color of a Lord's underwear. Who knew? That shit might just come in handy one of these days. "While he's doing boring work, let's play a card game!"

I rolled my eyes at Taiga, scoffing. "This ' boring work', as you called it, is what funds this entire trip."

'Zolgen, do you copy?' Turning away, I pulled on the connection between the Demon and I. Each Demon had a specific set of abilities and limitations, Zolgen was no different. Compared to any other of its kind, its prowess in battles was completely laughable, but as a scout, the Demon was fairly efficient. It could camouflage its Mana fluctuations so others wouldn't notice it, and its beady eyes while creepy, could peer into the most complicated of Bounded Fields, allowing it to sneak into the most well-protected of places.

That's how it had managed to hide from Lorelei's and Ambrose's senses for this long, though in all honesty, I suspected the Queen of the Clock Tower had already noticed his presence and was in fact using it as a discreet method to pass messages and sensitive info to me. That's the only way her discussions with the Butler would make sense. Every time I asked Zolgen what's going on, he would say something more akin to a guide than actual info.

This was a theory of mine, but it wasn't baseless. I had even tried asking [Future Calculation] and the chances of her being aware of my ' agent' stood at a confusing fifty-fifty. But, back to the matter at hands, once Zolgen was finished with the distribution of his clones, I'd have a fully functional network of spies for practically no cost other than the bare minimum of Mana for the Demon to birth his soulless minions.

Doubly so considering I had the perfect Skill- [Energy Storage]- for the job. Mentally forwarding Zolgen my commands, a devious grin bloomed on my face. 'He-He… Alice's gonna like this gift for sure. Shit's gonna funny as fuck.'

—— [Fate: DML] ——

[Six-thousand miles away, in a certain Tower]

Zolgen, obeying its Master's commands, wiggled its way to Leo's desk, its destination? The locked drawer. The Demon made it there in no time, its slimy, fat and stumpy body converting the lake of Mana its Master was providing into uglier clones of itself. Then, it controlled the tentacles coming out of its bottom to retrieve the key and open the drawer with ease.

"Merry Christmas–!"

Happily, it started to write on the clean sheet of paper using its natural slime like a child. Its handwriting was absolutely terrible due to the limitations of its form, but that didn't deter the Demon at all. It merely tried harder than before and if it had had a mouth similar to that of a human, the innocent smile dancing on its lips would have shaken the toughest of men effortlessly- though whether it would be from pure disgust or cuteness remained to be seen.

Then, it pushed the postcard to one of its many clones, sending the creature to the woman its Master had told it about- Alice Quentin. At the same time, in a different section of the Clock Tower, said woman was having a late lunch after a whole day of being swarmed by works when a fly as big as half her fist slammed into her window. "What the bloody Hell is that?!"

While Alice had always been proud of her ability to keep her composure, but the sight of a thick, wiggly mass of boiled, blackened flesh suddenly appearing on her window proved to be too much, and she couldn't help but cursed in horror. Hands reaching for the wine-glass on her table, Lady Quentin didn't forget to reinforce the object as she slowly went forth, realizing the creature was someone's familiar.

Yet, she did not drop her guard, eyes remaining closely on the creature's every movement. "Whose… Familiar are you? And what are you doing here?"

As with all familiars, the creature should be capable of transmitting its Master's voice, but no one responded to her question. In that span of time, it had already begun to vomit up what looked like a letter, its meaty bottom-half coiling upwards to its gaping, toothy mouth to force the object out. Alice grimaced at the sight, nose scrunched in distaste as she cursed. "What the fuck…? Who actually uses such an ugly familiar?!"

It's way past her usual nap time, and instead of laying cozily in her own bed, she's being forced to deal with- with this, whatever it even was. Swallowing her indignation, the Judge dug into the slimy pile using a pair of chopsticks- feeling relieved that she had chosen to eat Chinese today. Then, she shook it in an effort to get rid of some of the slimes while the creature rose, shivering with excitement- a gesture which seemed disturbingly human to her eyes. "This is repugnant."

She did not make to open the letter immediately, not that it could be done when the paper was so wet and sticky anyway. After going through the usual procedures to ensure there was nothing dangerous about the situation, Alice sighed. "Damn this, I'll look at it later. Couldn't be urgent if its Master used this method."

As she went to exit the Office, the creature screeched loudly, banging on her table. "… Fine! I'll take a look at it, just SHUT YOUR FUCKING MOUTH ALREADY!"

Unable to keep her composure, Alice screamed to match the familiar. "What's this?

Merry Christmas, my beloved Vassal!

If you're reading this, then you've met my familiar- Zolgen! Please don't kill him, you'll need it later. I know, I know. This isn't the Christmas present you want, but it's all I've got so… On a side note, I need you to contact Malcolm's maid again, and bring Zolgen with you. Tell her to get it to Malcolm's Office, I'll handle the rest.

With love, your handsome Liege Lord- Leonis Magnum."

The handwriting definitely wasn't her Liege. She had seen his, and while it's nothing too amazing, it's not even close to being this ugly. It literally took Alice minutes to get through the first line. "Seriously…?! Why didn't he just call me? What the Hell are you even?!"

To her amazement, the creature bobbed its head, waving its tentacles around and dripping slimes everywhere. "STOP! I'm not in the mood to clean up your mess!"

She scowled, setting the letter down. "Can't this wait?"

Again, the creature nodded, its tentacles sloppily dragging on her desk to create words. ' Yes, it's very urgent.'

"But I can't contact Illaoi! She's with Malcolm right now, we'll blow her cover." For a moment, Alice could have sworn she saw the disgusting blob look thoughtful, as though it's talking to someone, then it slithered towards her… "Wait- Wait, you can't–!"

And leaped into her pocket, its flesh rippling with muscles as it decreased in size. It gave her a disdainful look, its eight beady eyes darting to the letter in her hand. Sensing the gaze, she turned the letter around.

" P/S: If you can't get into contact with the maid immediately, Zolgen is ordered to hide in your clothes. Don't worry, he might look ugly but he doesn't bite. Zolgen's a good boy!" She could not possibly comprehend how this thing could ever be good in any capacity, but since her Liege had commanded it… Alice sighed loudly, resigned to her fate. "Can you at least refrain from spilling slimes in my pocket please?"