86: Sometimes, the trick is to try the same thing twice.
"There are four primary obstacles facing us, now that the Count has changed sides - that will persist into the next loop, yes?" The Professor said.
"The madness will likely return, but even in that state I possessed enough awareness to restrain myself if I had reason." Dantes replied. "I do not know if I will be capable of truly working with you directly, however."
"That's fine. I've got a different job for you, anyway." Professor Velvet said. "Returning to the four obstacles.-"
I raised my hand. "Professor, I'm counting more than four here. Batenkaitos, Prelati, Dark Jeanne, the seven berserk servants-"
"Primary obstacles, Subaru. I mean the enemies who can actually stop you outright, on their own. Berserk Lancer, Berserk Assassin, Berserk Rider - those three may be strong, but considering the False Jeanne's total inability to position her forces correctly so far, I'd anticipate her throwing them away one or two at a time the same way she did with Berserk Saber. Without Monsieur Dantes-"
"That man is dead." The Avenger snapped.
"-Sorry, without the Count of Monte Cristo - without him, pulling her forces together is likely beyond that Tsukumogami." The Professor said, "Berserk Caster, Gilles de Rais - if Prelati really took his spellbook back from the man, then it will have disappeared with him."
"Indeed." The Count nodded. "Gilles de Rais is completely useless beyond his role as a moral support for my so-called Master. He has no secret trump cards. He can be ignored entirely."
"I really can't help but feel like you're foreshadowing something there…" I muttered.
"You're imagining things." The Count said. "He really is useless."
"...Moving on." The Professor said - hey, your cigar burned down quite a bit there! Are you really, really sure this Gilles guy doesn't have a secret trump card!? "Berserk Archer and the true Fafnir - it's not clear what became of their comatose bodies, but I'd wager that Prelati used them as material for that abomination he summoned. I doubt he'd leave useful stuff lying around - so we'll forget about them for now. That leaves our four primary obstacles.
Ley Batenkaitos. Lancelot du Lac. Chlodovech. Prelati's Sea Monster. Those are the ones that we need to take special measures for. The rest won't be easy by any means, but they should be beatable. With that in mind, let's tackle them in order…"
I wake up in the upper room of the mayor's house in Lyon. It's not really confusing; this is more or less where the Professor expected my reset point to be. From downstairs, I can smell the gently wafting scent of Merry's quenelle cooking in the oven. That's right, it's time for my first heroic act of this final loop-!
I walk down the stairs, past Siegfried, into the kitchen, and calmly extract the dish before it burns.
"Hah! Take that, fate!" I say triumphantly, examining the dish - yeah, any way I look at this it's way better than what she served for dinner tonight.
"Are you… really a hero from the future?" Merry asks, staring at me from the door to the kitchen.
"Better than that! I'm a butler from the future!" I say with a wink, and watch as her eyes fill with stars. Yeah, this is what this girl should be like. That whole heroic sacrifice thing from last time isn't her style at all. "Well, that being said, I'm feeling pretty invincible right now, so we'll see if you end up thinking I'm some kind of hero by the end." I continue as I ready the dish to serve. "Can you call Siegfried in? I'll see if I can get rid of that curse on him."
"Can you seriously do that, monsieur…?" She asks.
"Probably." I reply, extracting a jug of water from the pantry. Alright, mix a little ale to sterilize, and… "By the way, call me Subaru. We're fellow Masters, so no need to be too respectful."
"Um, the title 'Master' is-" She starts.
"We'll be dedicated back-watchers then." I say easily.
"Th-that's so on the nose!" she laughs. Yeah, that's the kind of sound she should be making.
"Excuse me." Says Siegfried, entering the room.
"Ah, good timing." I say, touching him with my left hand. "She's not the real one, but the name given to her is still 'Jeanne d'Arc' - thanks for the meal."
I swallow, and the sensation of being burned wracks my body. But it's trivial to digest, compared to Ahab's harpoon. Her grudge is fake, after all, the same as her. And in a moment, the pain is gone, and I open my eyes. "How's that?"
"...My wounds are healing. My thanks, mage from the future." Siegfried says.
"Great. Now let's-" I start.
"Wait, hang on Natsuki! Was that a new ability!?" The Director starts to shout - oh, the bags under her eyes are back.
"Yeah. It's not really important for now, though." I reply. "You can read about it in my report later, so go get some sleep."
"What do you mean, your report!? If you have a new tool it's important to know about it so we can plan-!" She starts.
"No, I'm not going to need [Filth Eater] for the rest of the singularity." I say, and then I pause. "Hm, that name is a bit too gross. [Sin Eater], maybe? Anyway, the curse on Siegfried is all I need to eat for now."
"...Natsuki, you're suddenly acting way too confident." She deadpans. "What kind of stupid joke are you setting up now?"
"It's not a joke. I've just had about enough of running around like an idiot. Natsuki Subaru has engaged full flag-crusher mode now." I grin as I slide past Siegfried and out into the desolate streets of Lyon. "Tell Mash's group to pick up the pace, Director. We're ending this mess in the next six days."
"You've been completely outmatched this whole time! What do you even think-!?" She starts to shout.
"That's what the summoning ritual is for, Director." I say, removing my earpiece and holding it further from my head.
"What are you going to… that holy shroud? I guess you might summon Saint George…" She mumbles.
"Nah, he's in Paris right now." I reply. "Besides, this shroud was generated in this singularity. All it will do is prevent anything else from serving as a catalyst. Seriously, Director, you'd be able to figure that out if you weren't so tired."
"Don't you condescend to me, you impossible moron!" She screams. "There's no way you figured that out on your own! Who's passing you notes? Romani?"
I groan. She's not wrong, but… well, there's no way I'm getting through to her like this. "Siegfried, can I leave her with you? Maybe you can sing her a lullaby or something."
"Do you think I'm-!" She starts to yell, but I've already tossed the communicator.
"I was never a particularly good singer." The Dragonslayer mutters.
"I was mostly joking, but… you're associated with an Opera now, so maybe that changed?" I ask.
He gives a slow, tentative nod, and I turn to continue on my way outside.
"M-monsieur-!" Merry shouts, running after me.
"Call me Subaru." I say with a wink.
"Monsieur Subaru! Where are you going!?" She says.
"The Leyline. I've got an airhead to summon." I say. "Oh, you can stay back if you want, Merry. I know seeing the city like this is hard for you."
"D-did I tell you my name?" She mumbles.
"You sure did!" I'm telling the truth, technically.
She doesn't follow me, so I wave goodbye as I stroll deeper into the city.
"[Chu Shi Biao] won't be as effective as before." The Professor said. "In all likelihood, I'll only be able to guarantee the summoning of one servant this time. Things just aren't as desperate as they were the previous time I used it, if only because we know it will work."
"Hmph. So you must bet everything on a single hope, then?" The Count of Monte Cristo said.
"So what kind of ridiculously powerful Servant do we need to summon?" I asked.
"I've got an idea of what to do about Chlodovech and Prelati's sea monster, so what we need most is the servant best suited to defeat Batenkaitos and Lancelot." He said, smirking. "In other words…"
"-Come forth from the ring of restraint, protector of the holy balance!" I shout, and the magic circle flares to life, gleaming blue light giving way to a familiar armored form.
"By your call I come! Seventh seat of the Round Table," She shouts, and I grin. "Lancer, Gareth Beumains, reporting for duty!"
"Yo, welcome aboard, Gareth!" I reply. "By the way, we actually summoned Mordred earlier, so I'm counting on you to measure up!"
"Huh? Sir Mordred is here too? Where?" She gazes around, eyes sparkling.
"We got separated." I turn and start walking, and she quickly starts trotting after me. Might as well address the reason I left the communicator behind, too. "By the way, we've also got a Demi-Servant - you know what that is?"
"Hmph! O-of course I do! But how about you explain it so I can be sure you know what it is?" She says.
"Well, it's like a Pseudo-Servant, but the spirit is summoned into a provided vessel instead of the vessel being summoned as well." I say, smirking.
"O-oh… an excellent explanation, Master! But, just in case, why don't you explain what a Pseudo-Servant is too?" She asks.
"It's like the Living Servants created by the Watcher Class-" I start, grin widening.
"There's no way that's real! You're making fun of me!"
"Anyway, the gist of Mash-tan's situation is that Galahad got summoned into her body. She's got most of his power, but until she's got a stable self-image it's not really safe for her to know the one summoned into her body is Galahad." I explain. "...Seriously, this is really important, Gareth. I'll use a Command Spell if I have to."
"No sir! I understand completely! My lips are sealed!" She says, saluting.
Well, I'm still going to use one once things have settled down. Just in case.