Red Dragon Heart

"Nice, I'm lucky ... .I actually drew the king of Knights!" Yuto's face lit up with uncontainable joy as he gazed at the card in his hand. The mysterious swordsman depicted slowly turned, his hooded figure cloaked in shadow, exuding an aura of legend. Arthur Pendragon, the iconic hero from Fragments of Blue Silver, was no ordinary draw. A male reimagining of Type-Moon's Saber, he stood as a beacon of kindness and justice, a knight in shining armor every child dreamed of. Known as the "Red Dragon of Britain" and the Holy Swordsman of the Stars, his legacy was unmatched.

[Do you choose to inherit the Spiritual Base of Arthur Pendragon?]

"Absolutely," Yuto replied, his voice trembling with excitement.

The moment he confirmed, a wave of unbearable pain crashed over him, as if his very soul were being reforged. He crumpled onto the bed, hands clawing at his chest where his heart thundered uncontrollably, threatening to burst free. Gritting his teeth he endured the torment for what felt like an eternity, though it was only ten agonizing seconds until the pain receded like a fading tide. His tense muscles relaxed, leaving him gasping for air.

"Whew… that was intense," he panted, wiping the sweat from his brow with a towel. Once he'd steadied himself, he pulled up his personal template to see the transformation.

.........

[Host: Yuto Arai]

[Age: 17]

[Constitution: Red Dragon Heart]

[Inherent Skills:]

[Intuition - A]: Sense the optimal moves in combat with uncanny precision.

[Mana Burst - A]: Unleash a torrent of raw magical energy.

[Giant Beast Slayer - A]: Gain a decisive edge against colossal enemies, honed from Arthur's triumphs over Britain's monstrous titans.

[Noble Phantasms:]

Magic Scabbard- Invisible Air (Wind King Barrier)

Starlight Sword - Excalibur (Sword of Promised Victory)

..........

"I scored the Red Dragon Heart on my first fusion, talk about luck!" Yuto grinned, feeling the newfound power coursing through him. This wasn't just any upgrade. The Red Dragon Heart, dubbed the 'Mana Furnace' by Merlin himself, churned out immense magical energy with every beat. Paired with Excalibur's regenerative properties, it rendered him nearly invincible much like Saber's 'Avalon.' A single swing of the holy sword could amplify its power tenfold, a feat proven when Arthur shattered Paracelsus's elemental blade in Fragments of Blue Silver.

But this was only a taste of its true might. The full Excalibur, a world-saving relic sealed by thirteen restraints, remained locked behind the system's gacha mechanics. Five more draws, and he'd unleash its planet-cleaving potential. Yuto couldn't help but smirk; unlike the original Arthur, bound by rigid chivalry, this version let him wield power freely, unburdened by outdated codes.

A sudden buzz interrupted his thoughts. "Spend to Ascend" flashed in his vision, accompanied by a tiny gauntlet tapping a recharge button.

"Pay to win, huh?" Yuto muttered, eyeing it warily before tapping the prompt.

[Gacha Panel: Slay aberrations to earn rewards. Value determined by system appraisal.]

"So, 'recharging' means hunting monsters for Saint Quartz," he reasoned. Risky, but fair effort for reward. He slipped his last talisman into his pocket, a holdover from his days as a resource-hoarding gamer, always saving for the perfect pull.

"Let's see what else I've got," he said, sifting through his remaining cards. Activating [Projection Magic], he felt a jolt as Shirou Emiya's skills and circuits melded into him, granting the ability to conjure weapons from thin air. The other cards weren't half-bad either:

[Gift: Sea of Reeds]: One evasion trigger and 5% debuff resistance : handy for dodging ambushes.

[Magic Meter]: Detects and locates powerful magic signatures.

[Motorcycle: Bmw M1000RR]: A sleek, white beast of a bike, faster than anything mundane.

He still had one more Volumen Hydrargyrum and a set of Black Keys—red for piercing, green for spirit-breaking, blue for swift throws. The fluid, a versatile tool from Kayneth's arsenal, could attack and defend but drained a hell of a lot of mana. With his boosted reserves from Arthur and Shirou, though, it felt more like an asset than a liability. "If I knew more magecraft, I could turn this into a combat maid, like Reines did," he mused.

Testing a theory, he fused two Volumen Hydrargyrum cards. A brilliant flash later, its speed and efficiency spiked. After the fusion, the Volumen Hydrargyrum circulates faster and consumes less mana, greatly increasing its practicality.

After that Yuto fused green black keys.

As the gift turned into white light and dissipated, a strange stream of information began to impact his mind.

"Well..."

Rubbing his aching temples,

This gift set did not bring him the method of making black keys.

Instead, it taught him the throwing skills and the blessing runes.

In Type-Moon, black keys are the most commonly used weapons by priests.

For example, in the final decisive battle, Kirei Kotomine relied on the red black keys to fight Emiya Kiritsugu.

In fact, this weapon itself does not have any physical destructive power.

But it has a strong inhibitory effect on spirits.

The reason is the 'blessing spell' attached to it by the user.

Although the keys are not ridiculously strong abilities, they can provide great help for the current situation.

The appearance of something as grotesque as the Spider Ghost means that the world is no longer as peaceful as it used to be.

Yuto needs strength to protect himself and the people that mattered most to him

The timely appearance of the FGO card-drawing system emerged like a beacon, injecting a surge of confidence into his unsteady heart,a lifeline for a boy grappling with newfound insecurity.

Suddenly Utaha's voice floated from the bathroom, rich and captivating, pulling him from his spiraling thoughts.

"Yuto-kun, I forgot my towel. Could you grab it for me?"

His pulse quickened. Without a second thought, he snatched a clean, dry towel and dashed to the door.

"Thanks," she said softly. A slender, pale arm slipped out from the steam-filled bathroom, accepting the towel. Yet the door stayed half-open, an unspoken invitation hanging in the air.

Tendrils of warm, humid steam drifted out, laced with the faint floral scent of her shower gel. Yuto's breath caught, the intimate moment wrapping around him like a spell.

"Heh, Yuto-kun, want to join me? The door's unlocked, you know," Utaha teased, her voice a playful murmur from beyond the threshold.

His blood surged, the Red Dragon Heart, freshly awakened within him thumping fiercely against his ribs. He was a heartbeat away from stepping inside when a light, teasing giggle halted him. Utaha emerged, clad only in a snow-white towel that clung to her damp skin. Her dark hair stuck to her shoulders, and her long, elegant legs left faint wet prints on the floor as she approached with a sly, knowing smile.

"Junior, you're not as innocent as you pretend," she said, her eyes glinting with mischief.

"You're the one stoking the flames, Senpai," Yuto replied, a mix of amusement and embarrassment ..

"Come here and help me dry my hair," she ordered, sitting onto the bed with effortless grace.

Yuto complied, settling beside her as she slid into his lap. Utaha's presence was magnetic—tall and curvaceous, with a figure that seemed sculpted to perfection. Her slender waist and full hips strained against the thin towel, and even without her usual black stockings, her legs were impossibly smooth, gleaming like polished ivory.

The low buzz of the hair dryer filled the room as Yuto carefully tended to her wet strands. Utaha tilted her head back, her gaze locking onto his face with a scrutiny that made him pause.

'He's….different,' she thought. In mere moments, Yuto had transformed—his aura sharper, more potent, as though he'd shed an old skin and emerged anew.

She didn't know it, but the spiritual essence of Arthur Pendragon had merged itself into Yuto's being. Beyond enhancing his physical strength, it gifted him the knight's charisma—a warmth and allure that could melt even the coldest hearts. In legends, Arthur's gentle smile had captivated even Sajyou Ayaka, a talented magician who dubbed him her 'ideal prince.' Now, Yuto carried a sliver of that same enchantment.

"Um… Senpai, still need me to dry it?" Yuto asked, switching off the hair dryer as her hair turned silky and smooth.

Utaha blinked, jolted from her reverie. "Dry it? Oh, no… I'm fine," she mumbled, a faint blush spreading across her cheeks. 'Pull yourself together, Utaha. You're acting like some starry-eyed heroine.'

Today's Yuto was unsettlingly different, and she needed to know why.

Though she penned romance novels, Utaha had never tasted love herself, not until Yuto's confession lifted her heart to the clouds. 

"Yuto-kun," she whispered, leaning into his warm embrace, her wine-red eyes misty with emotion. "What was that Spider monster? And the silver liquid that saved us?"

Yuto hesitated, then settled on a partial truth. "I… awakened my bloodline," he said cautiously. "My ancestors were demon-slayers, but as the world modernized, those powers faded. I never thought they'd surface in me."

"I believe you," she murmured, her arms tightening around him, though her voice quivered. "But please, what's the truth about this world? Will that thing come back?"

"I'm still piecing it together," Yuto admitted, running a soothing hand through her hair. "But here's what I know: if you encounter something strange, act like you can't see it. That might keep you safe."

He recalled a manga from his past life The Girl Who Can See where the heroine could see the spirits others couldn't. The Spider's taunts hinted at a similar rule: only those who noticed the strange were hunted. Why he and Utaha had been targeted remained a mystery, but for now, this advice was his best shield for her.