Chapter 143: A Choice

The brief period of leisure had come to an end. What followed was a time of hard study. By observing the state of the Greater Grail, Medea could determine that there were still two Servants yet to be summoned. Even the qualification for the sixth Master had not yet been granted.

The situation was clear: five Servants were already present in Fuyuki City. The sixth Master had not yet summoned their Servant, and the seventh Master's qualification was still pending in the Holy Grail War.

Even though **Assassin** had been irregularly summoned, it still occupied one of the slots.

From this information, it was clear that the Holy Grail War would not officially begin for several more days.

In the hidden cave on Mount Enzou, Li Mo sat on a folding stool, holding the mask left behind by **Hanachirusato**. Inside the mask was Hanachirusato's consciousness, but it had fallen into a deep slumber. No matter how Li Mo called out or tried to stimulate it, there was no response.

What a terrible situation.

**Yae Miko** had entrusted this matter to him, placing her hopes on him, an outsider, to find a glimmer of hope among the infinite possibilities of other worlds. Yae Miko herself could not handle this situation.

That's right. Compared to **Raiden Shogun** and others, Yae Miko was just a junior. Yet, it was this junior who had to hold up the reputation of Inazuma.

Tsk…

"Master, is the consciousness inside the mask very important to you? Why are you sighing like this?"

The one asking was **Koyanskaya**. She was a woman who changed her outfit almost every day. According to her, she didn't know what kind of woman her Master liked, so she was trying out everything.

If it were anyone else, Li Mo would have scoffed. Each type of clothing required a corresponding temperament to match. A sailor uniform for a high school girl needed a youthful vibe, a cheongsam required an elegant demeanor, and an office lady's OL outfit demanded a professional, elite aura.

—However, Koyanskaya was an exception.

**「Transformation」**.

With this skill, she could perfectly embody the desired temperament. She had once used this skill to work as a spy.

Aside from being a mercenary, she had also worked as a spy?

This was all part of the stories Li Mo had learned during his conversations with Koyanskaya.

Now, Li Mo pulled himself out of his contemplative mood and slowly said, "She's a very important friend. I want to bring her back to life."

Over time, Li Mo had come to trust Koyanskaya, just as he trusted Medea. The only thing that puzzled him was her inexplicable affection for him.

It was as if she naturally had a high level of favorability toward him.

After putting the mask away, Li Mo began to examine Koyanskaya's outfit for the day.

She wasn't wearing her usual black bodysuit but had instead chosen a pure white shrine maiden outfit. Even though such an outfit would easily get dirty in the wild, she still chose to wear it.

Just a few days ago, she had been a femme fatale capable of ruining nations, but now, dressed as a shrine maiden, she exuded a sacred aura.

Li Mo frowned. In his eyes, Koyanskaya's recent behavior was all about showcasing her charm. Men were always fickle, but if one's wife could transform into countless forms, the concept of "growing tired of the old" would never apply.

Being liked by a beautiful girl was a good thing. But… there had to be a reason for that affection, right?

"Oh? Is Master still troubled by the earlier question? If it gets dirty, it gets dirty. Besides, doesn't Master feel a certain thrill when a holy figure is defiled?" Koyanskaya seemed to misinterpret his frown and asked.

"I don't think getting clothes dirty counts as defilement," Li Mo retorted.

"I wouldn't mind if Master personally dirtied my clothes. Even if they were ruined, it wouldn't matter." Her saintly smile contrasted sharply with her lewd words. The gods would surely be pained to have a shrine maiden like you!

Oh, wait. Koyanskaya had her own "shrine," so maybe it was fine?

"Do I seem like such a vulgar person?" Li Mo flicked her forehead.

She stuck out her tongue playfully. It had to be said that without her glasses, she radiated a youthful beauty. Combined with her playful gesture, she exuded a strong sense of girlish charm, creating a stark contrast with her earlier sacred shrine maiden persona…

A true femme fatale.

Li Mo remained expressionless. Back at the Grand Narukami Shrine, Yae Miko had often teased him like this, so he was practically immune by now.

The same tricks didn't work a second time.

"Oh? Master isn't that kind of person. This is my invitation to you. If it's consensual, who can say anything about it?"

"That's sophistry… Let's stop here. Miss Koyanskaya, I want to know why your initial favorability toward me is so high?" Li Mo asked.

His combat ability was inferior to that of a Servant. With Medea's reinforcement magecraft, he might be able to hold his own against a Servant, and with his trump card, **「Secret Sword: Swallow Reversal」**, he might even be able to kill a careless Servant of average strength. Combined with the **「Authority of the Beast」**, he could trade blows with most Servants.

But doing so would be a huge loss for him.

Servants, or rather, **「Heroic Spirits」**, were essentially familiars. They were powerful and possessed their own rationality. As long as the **「Throne of Heroes」** existed, they could be summoned repeatedly. But Li Mo only had one life.

Therefore, he needed to grow stronger.

The limitations of a human body restricted him. The process of stepping onto the path of transcendence needed to be expedited. The path to becoming a **「Beast」** that Koyanskaya offered was clear. She had provided a method, with each step explained in detail. In contrast, the secrets of the **「Vision」** were too numerous. Why could a Vision enhance a person's physique and connect them to elemental energy?

The path to transcendence offered by the system was also just Li Mo's conjecture. The experience required for subsequent upgrades was too much, and there wasn't enough time.

"Does a Servant need a reason to like their Master?"

"Is that so? Then, Miss Koyanskaya, can I trust you?"

"Master, you can trust your Servant one hundred percent," Koyanskaya said.

She wasn't lying. Li Mo could sense that. With her **「Transformation」** skill, Koyanskaya could change into countless forms, but she could also reveal her truest self at the most appropriate moments.

But was that inner self genuine?

It might need to be taken with a grain of salt. But ultimately, Li Mo was special.

As for **Command Seals**, neither of them brought it up. They were the last safety net for every Master, the most important trump card a magus had when facing a Servant. A Master who lost this trump card would be like a lamb waiting to be slaughtered before their Servant.

Servants should be treated as partners, not as familiars to be dominated like magi.

"I want to know… why is your favorability toward me so high? Did we meet in the future?" Li Mo asked.

Koyanskaya was a bad woman.