Shinji Matou At Your Service

Chapter 416: I Want to Meet Your Master

Class Skill: True Name Discernment Activated.

Jack's information is fully revealed.

Class: None

Alignment: Black

True Name: Jack the Ripper

Gender: Female

Height/Weight: 150 cm / 45 kg

Attribute: Chaotic Evil

Strength: E

Endurance: E

Agility: D

Mana: E

Luck: E

Noble Phantasm: C

The eighth Servant of the Black faction? How is that possible?

Surprised, various speculations flooded Jeanne's mind.

Could someone from the Black faction have violated the rules? Jeanne's first reaction was exactly this.

Her second reaction was to enter the Millennia Castle and investigate. If there was indeed a violation, she would exercise her authority as the adjudicator to administer punishment.

However, she soon suppressed this impulse. As Artoria had said, "An empty stomach is the enemy," and in her current state, a long journey was not advisable. Moreover, she noticed anomalies in Jack's profile.

First, Jack's attributes were extremely low, so low that any known Servant could easily crush her.

Second, she had no class. If it weren't for the alignment marked as Black, Jeanne would have thought she was a Servant summoned through a ritual outside the Holy Grail—according to the knowledge granted by the Grail, every Servant summoned by it should have a corresponding class.

Unless Jack wasn't using a Holy Grail-created catalyst.

Thinking along these lines, Jeanne felt she had found the answer. Over the millennia of human history, countless heroes have been summoned, and the legends related to them are extremely diverse. It wasn't impossible for a Noble Phantasm or skill to independently summon a Servant. This would also explain why Jack had no class and such low attributes.

However, Jack the Ripper wasn't a positive Heroic Spirit, so why was Artoria so accepting of her?

Jeanne thought this and asked aloud.

"Although there are many legends about Jack the Ripper, in reality, they were just a group of pitiful children," Artoria sighed and then recounted what she had heard from Shinji about the true nature of Jack.

Indeed, Jack committed murders, but was it truly Jack's fault?

The noble King of Knights couldn't find an answer, and neither could the resolute Saint.

The children who were stifled before birth simply wanted to come into this world, which led to the birth of Jack.

The unborn children just wanted to return to their mother's womb, which fueled Jack's killings.

Whether it was being born or wanting to be fully nurtured, these were basic instincts and wishes of life. Jack had never received a day of education; she was still a blank slate, acting purely on instinct.

Using human concepts of right and wrong to judge these nascent, or rather, unborn children was inappropriate.

If one had to say something, it could only be Shinji's conclusion: "It's not Jack who is wrong, it's the world!"

Without that kind of social environment, Jack would never have been born; this is the root of the problem. After Jack was summoned, although she lacked some common sense, under Reika's guidance, she did not cause any negative impact on society. This further corroborated Shinji's view.

"She will no longer cause any killings. Now, she is just Reika's daughter, nothing more. Reika and I will teach her and protect her. I swear by the name of a knight, I will not let anyone harm such a child."

Though she did not wear armor or wield a sword, this did not diminish Artoria's demeanor. No matter the time, place, or circumstance, she was always a knight.

"I trust your judgment and your promise."

"Revelation" told Jeanne that Artoria was serious and trustworthy.

"If you and Miss Reika need to fight, I can take care of Jack."

Jack belongs to the Black faction, and having her not participate in the battle weakens their strength. Assuming it is voluntary, this does not constitute a violation.

Upon hearing Jeanne's offer, Artoria smiled knowingly: "Then I'll leave her in your care. With Jeanne Mama looking after her, I think Jack will be very happy."

"Please don't use that title." Jeanne's face was full of helplessness; she still couldn't accept it.

"I can refrain, but Jack definitely will use it."

"Ugh... I will correct her." Though she said this, Jeanne had no confidence. "I want to confirm something. Was Jack summoned by you?"

Jeanne had already used her "True Name Discernment" skill to scan all the Black faction's Servants. In her view, there were only two people who could have summoned Jack: one was the Assassin, and the other was Artoria. The former represented the unknown, while the latter was the most famous king of England, so possessing a skill or Noble Phantasm to summon British Heroic Spirits was not surprising.

Such a skill or Noble Phantasm must have some significant limitations, like being able to summon only once, summoning only one person at a time, or summoning characters randomly. This would perfectly explain the current situation and Artoria's attitude—otherwise, Artoria could have summoned a much stronger Heroic Spirit. To say nothing of others, her Round Table knights would have been excellent choices.

"No, it wasn't me. It was my Master."

This answer completely surprised Jeanne.

"Your Master? Miss Reika? How could she—?"

Could it be an illegal summoning? This thought had just arisen when it was interrupted by an even more unexpected fact.

"Reika? You're mistaken; she is not my Master. She, well, should be considered a proxy Master."

Having experienced the previous Holy Grail War, Artoria naturally applied the example of Kiritsugu and Irisviel.

"Proxy Master? Then who is your real Master—?"

"Him, he is as special as I am and is my confidant and collaborator."

"Special? Confidant? Collaborator? What do you mean?" Jeanne was increasingly confused.

"You'll understand when you meet him."

Artoria didn't elaborate further; she didn't want to disrupt Shinji's plans.

"Jeanne, let's continue last night's unfinished conversation. I'll tell you about my situation, and I hope for your assistance—the current Holy Grail War involves very complex circumstances..."

What followed was straightforward. Artoria told Jeanne everything about her situation, the mission she bore, and her speculations about the current Holy Grail War.

As a saint who has heard the voice of God and as someone possessing "Revelation," Jeanne knew that Artoria was telling the truth. Considering what Artoria had said, Jeanne became even more convinced that her summoning was not merely to adjudicate the fourteen-knight battle between the Red and Black factions but for a deeper reason. This reason also explains the unusual nature of her summoning.

Having confirmed this, Jeanne did not hesitate any longer and informed Artoria of her special circumstances, responding to her request for assistance.

"I agree to provide you with assistance, but I must make it clear that I will not interfere in any way with the Red and Black factions' struggle over the Holy Grail."

"I understand." Artoria was not surprised by this stipulation.

"In addition, I would like to meet your Master."

Whether as a collaborator or regarding the matter of summoning Jack, I need to understand everything clearly.

P.S.: It's not Jack's fault, nor is it the world's; it's Tohsaka Tokiomi's fault—this world's Tokiomi is still alive, so he continues to take the blame.