Chapter 250

In the system's inverted-cross pupil, a data stream more turbulent than usual flashed.

She remained silent for two seconds, then answered with that eternally calm electronic synthesized voice:

「Confirmation. Individual trait match: Black Tower, Genius Club #83 seat, Intellect Ling Shi. Summoning coordinates: Winterwood City, Fourth Holy Grail War, Caster's original Master summoning circle. Summoner: A Xing。」

Heimu slowly raised her hand, covering her face.

「Why...... 」

Her muffled voice came from between her fingers: 「A Xing will summon her out?! Black Tower shouldn't be in the middle of 'passionate interaction' with Fenfeng?! How did Aha instantly package and toss her from the Ling Shi-level Power clash scene to the summoning circle in Winterwood City?! Is this even reasonable?! 」.

System: 「According to energy tracking, Black Tower Lady was still in high-intensity energy entanglement with Extinction Great Lord Fenfeng 3.7 seconds ago. At the moment of her forced transfer, spatial coordinates exhibited an extremely brief 'fault jump'. This phenomenon matches known cases of high-position interference on the Pleasure Path. 」.

「So this is another of Aha's 'gift'? 」.

Heimu lowered her hand, her dark purple eyes fixed on the great Black Tower on the screen, wearing an expression of 「What the hell is this place? 」, feeling her Repair Degree progress bar throbbing faintly.

「Yes, ma'am. 」.

System confirmed, 「Based on interference characteristics and the event's abruptness, it can be judged as 'Pleasure's Gift·II'. 」.

Heimu took a deep breath, trying to calm her emotions.

Her biggest worry surfaced: 「What about her power? Black Tower is a genuine Intellect Ling Shi! If she could unleash her full power in this world, forget the Holy Grail War—whether Earth could still exist is a problem! 」.

System quickly scanned: 「Analyzing Black Tower Lady's current state……energy level scan……Path connection strength assessment……external restriction detection……」.

After a few seconds, the system reported: 「Confirmed. Black Tower Lady is currently in a high-intensity power suppression state. Her connection to the core of the Intellect Path is temporarily 'throttled' by an unknown rule, unable to mobilize Ling Shi-level Power. The currently observable energy level is roughly equivalent to a regular top-tier Servant in this world, and is limited by the Master's (A Xing) magic supply upper limit. 」.

Heimu let out a slight sigh: 「In other words, she's at most a formidable Servant, can't overturn the table? 」.

「That's the theory. 」.

System added, 「But its knowledge and technology have not declined. Even with power limited, its combat style and means' efficiency could far exceed common sense in this world. 」.

「That's a relief……at least the Holy Grail War won't be declared over in the first five minutes. 」.

Heimu rubbed her brow, then looked back at the screen: 「Now the problem is……how will A Xing explain things to her? Will Black Tower obediently act as a 'Servant'? Besides, she'll surely recognize that A Xing isn't the genuine Star; with her intellect, she'll definitely suspect us. 」.

She thought for a moment, then immediately sent a brief instruction via Spiritual Link to A Xing:

【Stay calm, speak little, listen much, adapt to circumstances. She is the Black Tower core, but her power is limited. Don't expose us; if necessary, you may acknowledge being a 'Star' replica, but don't mention me. First see what she intends to do.】.

Abandoned civilian house.

A Xing looked ahead, and a clear hint of bewilderment rarely appeared in her golden eyes.

(Black Tower?).

(I……I summoned her?).

A Xing's brain raced.

She knew who Black Tower was——Heimu Lady and the system had also provided data.

She also knew Black Tower's power level——a terrifying entity capable of playing with stars and even capturing Star God trajectories.

And now, such an entity stands before her as a 「Servant」.

A Xing felt a subtle unease.

She unconsciously tightened her grip on the bat.

Just then, Heimu Lady's instruction came through.

A Xing steadied herself.

The ripples in her golden eyes quickly settled, returning to that calm, waveless appearance.

She looked at Black Tower, silent, waiting for the other to speak first——this is 「speak little, listen much」.

The most bewildered, of course, is Black Tower herself.

One second ago, she was still in that star system, having locked Fenfeng in a spatial crease for 0.1 second, preparing to find time to analyze it.

The next second, her vision blurred, space shifted.

When she opened her eyes again, she found herself standing in a dirty, dilapidated room reeking of foul odor.

Beneath her feet was a crudely drawn summoning circle, and before her stood a girl who looked exactly like Star.

Black Tower's brow immediately furrowed, a flash of displeasure in her purple eyes.

(Forced spatial transfer? Not Fenfeng's doing……could it be that guy who interfered with the jump earlier?).

She quickly scanned the surroundings: a dilapidated civilian house, an unconscious man and a bound boy, the summoning circle on the ground, and before her this 「Star」.

(This isn't a train, nor any known star system coordinate.).

(Summoning circle? Holy Grail War?).

Almost the moment the thought arose, basic information about the Holy Grail War automatically surfaced in her mind—knowledge that the mechanism endows when one is summoned as a Servant.

Black Tower instantly understood its situation.

(I was forcibly turned into a summon for some Magic ritual? A Servant?)

(Heh.)

She sneered coldly in her heart.

This method, this twisted taste, this brutally forced arrangement that completely disregards her own will…

Just like that guy, it's the same.

(He really keeps finding trouble for me, unrelentingly.)

She redirected her gaze toward the "Star" before her.

This "Star" felt very strange to her.

The appearance is identical, but the aura is completely different.

Moreover, she could sense a faint yet real "connection" between herself and this "Star"—the contract link between Master and Servant.

At the same time, she could clearly perceive that her destiny power, vast as the Star Sea, was being tightly constrained by an extremely overbearing Rule, as if the ocean were forced into a tiny cup—its essence unchanged, but the amount of "water" she could draw was pitifully small.

(Power limitation… must be that guy's doing, right? To stop me from flipping the table outright?)

Black Tower squinted, suppressing the impulse in her heart to snatch out the Behind the Scenes Black Hand and break it into atoms.

She is now a Servant, her power limited, her situation unclear; she will first clarify the circumstances before proceeding.

She looked at A Xing and spoke.

"Where is this?"

A Xing looked at her, saying nothing.

Black Tower didn't mind, continued to ask, while pointing at the ground: "Is this rough formation diagram yours?"

A Xing shook his head.

"Then who are you?"

Black Tower's violet eyes stared directly at A Xing's golden eyes, as if trying to see the essence behind them, "You shouldn't be the 'Star' on the train, right? Even though you look exactly the same."

A Xing was silent for two seconds, then gave a very slight nod.

(As expected.)

Black Tower confirmed the suspicion in her mind.

Clone? Imitation? Or something else?

It doesn't matter; the point now is—

"So, I am now your Servant?"

A faint, temperatureless curve lifted the corner of Black Tower's mouth, "What an interesting arrangement. Then, Miss Master, you summoned me to this place; what do you want me to do for you? Clean up? Or deal with that comatose pervert over there?"

Her tone was clearly sarcastic, but A Xing seemed either not to notice, or didn't care even if they did.

A Xing thought for a moment, pointed at the Summoning Circle on the ground, then at the Command Spell on the back of his hand, and finally pointed toward the door, concisely stating:

"Holy Grail War. Win. Return."

Black Tower raised an eyebrow.

(Win the Holy Grail War? Then return?)

(This clone... the objective is very clear.)

She looked at A Xing with interest: "Win? How to win? Rely on that bat in your hand and this power‑restricted Servant?"

A Xing lowered his head to glance at his bat, then lifted his gaze to Black Tower, his golden eyes calm and still:

"You, clever. I, can strike."

She paused briefly, then added:

"Cooperate. Win. Quickly."