IBHJ Chapter 993

The boy turned back to Mordred with a smile. "Why don't you join us, Mordred? This is going to be quite the adventure."

"I'm not going. I have no interest in saving that man, and he doesn't need my help," Mordred said coldly.

"Don't be like that. No one's always strong enough to handle everything alone, not even future me. And you know..." The boy looked at her back, his smile widening. "He's in Artoria's body right now. The person who captured him is a real deviant. Just imagine what she might do to her body. Will she be licking her all over? Who knows how messed up it could get?"

Mordred's body tensed, and she turned to glare at the boy, embarrassed and angry. "You're insufferable! Fine, I'll go! But don't misunderstand - I'm doing this to protect her body, not for him!"

"As long as you're coming, the rest doesn't matter," the boy said, still smiling.

Gilgamesh, standing nearby, suddenly spoke up. "Your attitude has changed quite a bit. You were pulled into the Holy Grail War but didn't participate, and now you're so eager about this. What are you really up to?"

He had to admit, sometimes even he couldn't figure out the boy.

"This is different," the boy replied simply.

Misaya glared at Cu Chulainn, then turned her angry gaze on the boy. "We need to figure out what to do about Manaka Sajou."

The mood turned serious. Dealing with Manaka was no laughing matter. Even Gilgamesh's expression grew serious. He'd felt the black mud's power firsthand. Even his white lotus, capable of dealing with Beast's authority, couldn't stand against it.

"Relax, everyone. Just enjoy the ride," the boy said with a casual smile.

Kiara's eyes sparkled as she gazed at the boy with admiration. As expected of Mr. Shirou, even his younger self was so resourceful. He must have come up with a brilliant plan to save everyone.

"By the way, where's Nero?" the boy asked Kiara. "Where did she go?"

Kiara was confused. "Lady Nero? She didn't come."

The boy chuckled. "You're kidding, Kiara. You all said you're from Chaldea, with lots of Heroic Spirits. I specifically mentioned Nero before, and you said she was there. How could my future self come here without Nero? You must be joking."

Kiara and Mordred exchanged puzzled glances. "We really didn't bring Nero."

The boy's face froze. He looked at Kiara's confused expression, swallowed, and asked, "You really didn't bring Nero?"

They nodded.

"That's too strange!" The boy grabbed Kiara's shoulders, shaking her back and forth. "I understand why I can't, but him? He's from the future, right? He's lived through all this! Coming to Shinjuku, this Holy Grail War, facing Manaka - and he doesn't bring Nero? What was he thinking?!"

"Mr. Shi-Shirou?" Kiara stammered

"Forget it... I'm going back to study," the boy muttered. He was disheartened.

Hearing this, Misaya's face turned red, a vein throbbing on her forehead. She grabbed the boy as he tried to slip away. "You got me into this mess, and now you're trying to run away?"

"I'm not running," the boy protested. "I have a thesis defense soon, I need to prepare. I'm a student, my studies come first. There's no other way."

"Pfft," Gilgamesh cracked up, pointing at the boy. "What a joke! Now I see why this clown changed his tune. So you thought you had some kind of backup?"

"Say what you want, I'm not going," the boy insisted.

He turned to leave, but Mordred's sword was suddenly at his throat, its cold steel pressing against his skin. Her voice was even colder. "Try to run, and I'll kill you."

There was a deadly seriousness in her voice, a chilling killing intent. The boy knew she wasn't bluffing.

He looked at his Servant. "Archer..."

"Archer's busy admiring his perfect fingers," Gilgamesh smirked, checking out his nails.

"..."

The boy's voice was desperate. "You don't understand how terrifying Manaka is! She's naturally connected to the Root, someone who could easily destroy everything. The strongest human magus, beyond even the 'Law'!"

Just how terrifying was Manaka? She was one of only two beings naturally connected to the Root, the other being Shiki. But Manaka's connection was even deeper, more complete.

This gave her abilities that defied the Law, allowing her to easily perform magecraft from the Age of Gods and wield various Authorities of the Evils of Humanity, even Tiamat's Sea of Life.

Most importantly, from another perspective, Manaka was the prototype for all villains in the Type-Moon universe. Every villain that came after, including the Demonic Bodhisattva, All the World's Evils, Tiamat, even Crimson Moon, was created by taking just one of her abilities.

How could such a monster be opposed?

"The Root..." Even Gilgamesh frowned. "A troublesome anomaly indeed."

As the Wedge of Heaven, he understood the Root, and even more so, how unnatural beings connected to it were.

"Without Nero, we have no chance against her," the boy lamented.

Manaka's abilities are overwhelming. Aside from enlightened beings who have reached the other side, and high-ranking evil gods from outer space, only two people could handle her.

One is Arthur, who infected Manaka with the "virus" of love, leading to her perverted tendencies. The other is Nero.

Why? Because Nero is a pervert that even Manaka fears. And strangely, while Nero's Golden Theater is generally unremarkable, it can nullify Manaka's connection to the Root. Nero would then treat her as a maid and add her to the harem.

No one knew the reason why. Perhaps even the Root despises Nero's singing voice, thus severing the connection? Of course, that's speculation. They'll only know if Nero can really hold her own against Manaka when they meet.

However, the boy thought that when Shirou came to Shinjuku, he should have brought Nero along, but he didn't. This was understandable, as Shirou had also been mysteriously intercepted and trapped in the past. Otherwise, he would have definitely asked Gray to bring Nero over.

When dealing with Manaka, Nero was absolutely essential. This was common knowledge.

"Please let me go, I can't do it," the boy sighed, raising his hands above his head and looking at Mordred's sword edge with distress.

She glared at him, "You're Shirou, is there anything you can't do?"

"Well, I..." The boy faltered, caught in a dilemma.

Suddenly, Gilgamesh drew his sword, knocking her blade aside. The boy's face lit up with relief. "Archer! Thank you."

"That Manaka connected to the Root is special, but so are you, Fujimaru Shirou. You were chosen by that fairy. After causality returns to normal, it'll be like the relationship between a Servant and a Heroic Spirit. A beautiful dream you won't remember. You're in a not-so-pleasant dream right now. Are you really not going?" Gilgamesh asked, closing his eyes.

The boy was quiet for a moment, then looked up at Gilgamesh. "If causality returns to normal... will I remember any of this dream?"

"Heroic Spirits don't remember their time as Servants. After I return to the Throne of Heroes, I won't remember you either. If you summon me next time, I might just kill you outright," Gilgamesh's tone was calm. After a pause, he added, "However, there might be a sense of déjà vu, like we've met somewhere before. But why are you asking this?"

"Because it looks like I'll have to fight Manaka in the future," the boy said with a bitter smile. He pushed up his glasses. "So let's at least have a rehearsal first!"

Mordred's expression softened, and Kiara's lips curved into a smile. "Mr. Shirou, does this mean you've agreed?"

Misaya nearby pursed her lips and said, "Why do you care so much about this bookworm? Without Archer, he's just a helpless paramecium! No, calling him a paramecium would be an insult to paramecia!"

Instead of getting upset, the boy chuckled. "But even paramecia have their uses, right? At least they can purify polluted water. I may be physically weak, but I have my uses too!"

He pushed up his glasses.