[Kenji Sato (MC) POV]
Ten minutes and one very awkward towel-drying session later, I found myself sitting on a plush leather couch in the living room of the mansion.
I was wrapped in a thick, fluffy blanket, trying not to shiver. Across from me, sitting on a matching armchair, was Arthur Pendragon. He was leaning forward, his hands clasped together, looking at me with an expression of intense, polite curiosity. It was incredibly surreal to be stared at by my own face, especially when the original owner looked like a majestic knight and I currently looked like a drowned rat.
"So," Arthur began, his tone gentle but firm. "Let me ask you once more. Are you certain you don't remember how you came to be in that bathtub?"
I shook my head, keeping my expression as bewildered as possible. "I swear. I don't know anything. I just remember my name—Kenji Sato—and normal, everyday stuff. Like... how to cook, how to clean, basic medical knowledge. The next thing I knew, I woke up drowning in that black sludge, and then you pulled me out."
Arthur frowned, his bright green eyes scanning my face, likely looking for any trace of deceit. But honestly, I wasn't even lying that much. I didn't know how I got into that specific tub, just that a skeleton god threw me into this world.
Arthur let out a heavy sigh, his broad shoulders slumping slightly. The fierce aura of the King of Knights vanished, replaced by a deep, weary guilt.
"I am so sorry, Kenji," he said softly, bowing his head. "To think you were roped into this mess, and twisted to bear my likeness... It is a grave injustice."
"Hey, it's not your fault," I said quickly, waving a hand from under my blanket. "You didn't put me in there. You're the one who pulled me out."
"No, I must insist. It definitely is my fault," Arthur replied, his voice hardening with self-reproach. "Or, rather, a consequence of my past failures. You see, there was a magus in my previous Holy Grail War. Her name was Manaka Sajyou, and she..."
As Arthur started talking, his tone taking on the grim cadence of a man reciting a ghost story, I felt my eyes glaze over slightly.
'Yeah, yeah, I know,' I thought, completely tuning him out. Manaka Sajyou. The psychopathic yandere who was born connected to the Root, fell obsessively in love with Arthur, and tried to sacrifice the entire city of Tokyo to Beast VI just to grant his wish. I had read the wiki. I knew exactly how unhinged she was. I didn't need to hear the tragic recap.
While he talked, my mind started working on a different puzzle.
I looked closely at Arthur. I couldn't sense magic—I hadn't taken that Mana Awakening pill from my inventory yet—but I knew enough about Fate lore to realize something was off. Arthur was a Servant, a Heroic Spirit, but he didn't feel tied to a Master right now. He felt too solid, too independent.
'Wait a minute,' I thought. 'If he's here on his own, not in a Holy Grail War... is he a Grand Servant? Did the Counter Force or the Throne of Heroes summon him directly to defeat a Beast?'
It made sense. The Arthur from Fate/Grand Order was literally traveling the multiverse hunting down the two halves of Beast VI.
"...and so, I suspect her lingering malice or some remnant of her obsession might be what caused you to be forged in my image," Arthur finished, pulling my attention back to the present.
"Right," I nodded, pretending I had absorbed every word. "So, did someone summon you to fix this? Are you on a specific mission?"
Arthur blinked, looking slightly embarrassed. "Actually... no. I was summoned into this world with no clear directive. No Master, no voice guiding me. I simply awoke here with no idea what to do."
I stared at him. "You're just wandering around?"
"I have been following a trail," Arthur clarified, his expression turning serious again. "A trail of incredible malice. I have been chasing down Angra Mainyu. That black mud you were submerged in? That is its physical manifestation."
He leaned forward, launching into another explanation. "Angra Mainyu is the entity known as All the World's Evil. A curse born of human wishes that corrupts whatever it touches, twisting the soul and the mind. It is a calamity that—"
A sharp, throbbing pain spiked right between my eyes.
I pressed my fingers to my temples, groaning as a migraine hit me like a freight train.
"Are you alright?" Arthur asked, immediately standing up, his chivalrous instincts kicking in. "I shouldn't be burdening you with this right now. You've been through a traumatic ordeal."
"I'm fine," I muttered, rubbing my forehead. "Just... a lot to take in. Evil mud, crazy mages, being a clone of King Arthur. Standard Tuesday stuff."
Arthur gave me a sympathetic, gentle smile.
"You need rest," he said warmly. "You are innocent in all of this, Kenji. You have nowhere to go, and I cannot in good conscience leave you to fend for yourself while that mud is still out there."
He gestured to the grand, empty house around us. "You can stay here. I will protect you until we figure out how to restore your true self."
I let out a breath I didn't realize I was holding. A free, luxurious place to stay with the literal King of Knights acting as my personal bodyguard? That was probably the best-case scenario I could have possibly hoped for after waking up in evil goop.
"Wow. Thanks, Arthur. I really appreciate—"
"However," Arthur interrupted, his voice suddenly dropping an octave.
I froze. The warm, gentle aura around him vanished, replaced by the heavy, imposing presence of a monarch. His green eyes locked onto mine, dead serious and completely unreadable.
"You may stay on one condition," he said slowly.
My heart instantly started pounding again. I swallowed hard, anxiety twisting in my gut. A condition? What did he want? A blood pact? A magical Geass contract? Did he want me to act as bait for Angra Mainyu? I had no mana, no weapons, just a bunch of cooking and cleaning skills!
"W-What condition?" I stammered, pulling the fluffy blanket a little tighter around myself.
The heavy, suffocating tension held for one more agonizing second.
And then, Arthur's serious expression completely shattered into a bright, blindingly pure smile.
"You have to call me 'Big Brother'."
I stared at him. The silence stretched between us, thick and entirely devoid of the tension from a second ago, replaced by a profound, baffling awkwardness.
"...What?"
"Big brother," Arthur repeated, his smile widening. "Since you share my face, but look just a few years younger, it simply makes sense! It will serve as an excellent cover story if we need to go out in public, and honestly, it would make me very happy."
"I am absolutely not doing that," I said immediately, my deadpan reflex kicking in. I was technically nineteen before today! I wasn't going to start calling another grown man 'onii-chan' just because we matched.
Arthur's smile fell. The dignified King of Knights, the legendary hero of Britain, instantly dropped to his knees in front of the couch and grabbed both of my hands, pulling them to his chest.
"Please!" he begged, his green eyes wide and pleading like a golden retriever that had been left in the rain. "You have no idea how much I've wanted a normal, younger sibling! You look exactly like me, Kenji! It's fate!"
"Arthur, let go—"
"You don't understand!" Arthur cried, dramatically bowing his head over my hands. "My older sister was always so cruel to me! She was constantly plotting, scheming, making my life miserable, and trying to ruin my kingdom! I just want a younger brother of my own!"
'What are you summer jeanne?!'
I stared at the legendary hero groveling on the floor, rubbing my temples as another mild headache threatened to form.
"Alright..." I muttered, forcing the words out through gritted teeth. "...Big bro."
Arthur's head snapped up. His green eyes practically sparkled with a blinding, golden aura, and an incredibly wide, joyous smile broke out across his face. He looked like he had just drawn the Holy Sword from the stone all over again.
"Excellent! Thank you, Kenji!" Arthur cheered, springing to his feet with athletic grace. He clapped his hands together, his demeanor doing a complete 180. "To celebrate our new brotherhood, we should go out and eat! I heard about a new Mapo Tofu restaurant that opened up recently. I've been quite curious to try it. How does that sound?"
My stomach immediately tied itself into a knot. *Mapo Tofu? In the Nasuverse?* That was practically a death sentence for my tastebuds, and probably a sign that Kotomine Kirei was lurking somewhere nearby. But my stomach let out a loud, traitorous growl, reminding me that I hadn't eaten since before I died in my old world.
"Sure," I sighed. "Food sounds good."
——
Ten minutes later, we were walking down the sidewalk of what looked like a perfectly normal Japanese city. I was wearing a pair of sweatpants and a hoodie Arthur had scavenged from somewhere in the mansion, which were slightly too big for me.
As we walked under the streetlights, I looked over at my "older brother." He was dressed in casual, modern clothes, but the way he carried himself was unmistakable.
"So," I started, deciding to play the role of the ignorant civilian. "Back there, you said you were summoned. You've got super strength, and you look exactly like me but older. What exactly are you, Arthur?"
Arthur's cheerful expression sobered slightly, taking on a more dignified air. "I am a Heroic Spirit. To put it simply, I am not human. I am a legendary figure from the past, summoned into this era as a familiar known as a Servant."
He paused, looking down at his hands. "Though I am fully materialized right now, I am still a spirit. Without a proper anchor to this world—a Master to provide me with magical energy—I won't be able to remain here indefinitely."
A flash of guilt crossed his face, and he immediately turned to me, waving his hands apologetically. "Ah, forgive me, I shouldn't concern you with that. A Master is a magus chosen to command a Servant, usually through a contract that—"
"Whoa, hold on," I interrupted, raising a hand. I knew exactly what a Master was, but letting him jump around the lore would just confuse the cover story I was building. "Let's back up. Finish the Servant talk first. You're a ghost of a legendary hero?"
Arthur blinked, then smiled sheepishly. "Right, my apologies. Yes, essentially. The world records the souls of heroes who have achieved great deeds. In times of need, or during specific rituals, we are placed into class containers—like Saber, Archer, or Lancer—and summoned to fight. We are given the knowledge necessary to blend into the modern era, but our true strength comes from our legends."
He looked at me carefully. "Does that make sense?"
I nodded slowly, acting like I was processing it. "Yeah. Ghost heroes in class containers. Got it."
Arthur beamed, clearly relieved that I wasn't having a total mental breakdown over the existence of magic. Then, his eyes lit up with renewed, brotherly excitement.
"Oh! Since you're staying with me, we'll need to buy you proper clothes!" he declared, gesturing to my oversized hoodie. "And a toothbrush, and shoes that actually fit you, and perhaps some books or games for entertainment! We have a lot of shopping to do after dinner!"
"Yeah, about that," I said, pausing on the sidewalk and looking up at him. Something had been bothering me ever since we left the property. "If you don't have a Master, and that wasn't your house... whose house were we just in? And why did they have a bathtub full of cursed, evil mud?"
Arthur gave me a sheepish, slightly guilty look, rubbing the back of his neck.
"Ah. About that," he said. "I actually took care of the mud in the bathtub right after you went into the living room to dry off. As a Servant, I can use a bit of magical energy to burn away that kind of corruption. But to answer your question... I don't actually know whose house it is. When I first tracked the curse to that property a few days ago, the *entire* house was covered in that black mud."
I stared at him, thoroughly confused. "The whole house? And you just cleaned it and moved in?"
"It was abandoned!" Arthur defended himself with a bright smile. "Besides, finding shelter is an important part of a Servant's tactical assessment."
Before I could question the legality of King Arthur squatting in a magically irradiated mansion, we turned the corner and arrived at a brightly lit Chinese restaurant. The spicy, savory aroma of garlic and chili oil wafted out into the street.
We headed inside and grabbed a booth. When the waiter came over, Arthur confidently held up two fingers and ordered for both of us.
"Two bowls of mapo tofu, please. But absolutely no spice on either of them. Mild as possible."
I raised an eyebrow as the waiter nodded and walked away. "No spice? I thought mapo tofu was supposed to be fiery."
Arthur let out a soft sigh, resting his chin on his hand. "It usually is. But I have to admit, I don't like food that is too spicy. It overpowers the actual flavor of the ingredients. A good meal should be comforting."
I couldn't help but chuckle. The legendary hero who fought dragons and beasts couldn't handle chili peppers. "I hear you on that. Honestly, I'm a bit intimidated by it anyway."
When the food arrived, the sauce was still a vibrant, intimidating red, bubbling slightly in the ceramic bowls. I took a deep breath, scooped up a spoonful of the silken tofu and minced meat, and took a bite.
I blinked in surprise. It was actually my very first time eating tofu, and it wasn't bad at all. The texture was incredibly soft, melting in my mouth with a rich, savory umami flavor, completely devoid of the tongue-scorching heat I had been dreading.
"This is pretty decent," I admitted, taking another bite.
Arthur smiled warmly. "I'm glad you like it, little brother."
After finishing our meal and leaving a generous tip with some cash Arthur had mysteriously 'acquired', we hit the local stores. Arthur was relentlessly enthusiastic, practically dragging me through the aisles to buy a week's worth of casual clothes, pajamas, a new toothbrush, and some basic toiletries.
By the time we got back to the miraculously clean mansion, I was exhausted. Arthur directed me to a guest bedroom on the second floor, wished me a good night, and headed off to his own room.
I closed the bedroom door, dumped the shopping bags on the floor, and flopped onto the soft mattress.
"Finally, some alone time," I muttered to the empty room.
I swiped my hand through the air, summoning the blue system screen. I tapped the [Gacha] tab. My [Free 10x Gacha Pull Ticket] was sitting right there, waiting to be used. My heart started thumping with anticipation. If I could pull a good weapon, a solid skill, or maybe some form of defense, I wouldn't have to rely entirely on Arthur to survive this world.
I reached out, my finger hovering over the glowing 'Redeem' button.
BAM!
My bedroom door violently burst open, slamming against the wall.
I jumped out of my skin, my heart leaping into my throat. I immediately swiped the screen away.
"What's wrong?!" I yelled.
Arthur stood in the doorway, wearing his newly bought pajamas. He had a massive grin on his face. In his right hand, he was gripping a fluffy white pillow.
"Kenji!" Arthur announced, his green eyes sparkling with competitive fire. "Do you want to have a pillow fight?!"
Before I could even process the question, Arthur's arm whipped forward. The pillow launched from his hand like an absolute missile, hurtling toward my face at terrifying speeds.
My survival instincts flared. I threw myself to the side, rolling across the mattress as Arthur's pillow blew past me and slammed into the headboard with a loud thud.
"Oh, it's on," I muttered.
I scrambled to my feet on the mattress, snatched my own pillow off the bed, and instinctively dropped into a two-handed Kendo stance, glaring at the King of Knights.
Arthur let out a booming, joyous laugh as he ducked back into the hallway, instantly reappearing with a spare pillow from the linen closet.
"Prepare yourself!" he declared, charging back into the room.
For the next ten minutes, my bedroom turned into an absolute battlefield. But despite the chaos, I wasn't just throwing my pillow blindly. As I swung, parried, and dodged, my eyes stayed glued to Arthur's movements.
Even though he was holding back a terrifying amount of his Servant-level strength, his technique was flawless. I watched his footwork—light, balanced, and perfectly poised. Every swing of his pillow had the precision and arc of a master swordsman. There was no wasted motion, no blind spots in his defense.
I tried to mimic his stance, stepping into his guard to deliver an overhead strike, but Arthur effortlessly sidestepped. Before I could even blink, he swept his foot behind my ankle, sending me tumbling back onto the mattress, and lightly bonked me on the top of the head with his pillow.
"Checkmate!" Arthur announced cheerfully.
I laid spread-eagle on the bed, gasping for air. "Yeah... you got me."
Arthur chuckled, but as he lowered his makeshift weapon, he finally took a look around the room. The bedsheets were thrown everywhere, a lamp was knocked over on the nightstand, and a light dusting of white feathers covered the floor from where one of the pillows had burst a seam.
His victorious grin melted into an expression of profound guilt.
"Oh dear," Arthur murmured, rubbing the back of his neck. "I got a little carried away. I am so sorry for making a mess of your room, Kenji. I should let you rest."
I sat up, brushing a feather out of my hair. "No problem, Arthur. It was fun. I'll clean it up."
Arthur smiled warmly. "Goodnight, Kenji. Sleep well."
"Night."
He gently closed the door behind him, leaving me alone in the feather-strewn chaos. I let out a long sigh, stretching my sore arms. Hanging out with a heroic spirit was exhausting.
I settled back against the headboard, making sure the door was actually locked this time. With a quick wave of my hand, the blue system screen materialized in front of me again.
I navigated over to the [gacha] tab. The free ten-pull ticket was sitting right there in the center of the screen, waiting for me. No interruptions this time.
Taking a deep breath, I pressed the redeem button.
The screen flashed with ten distinct bursts of golden and silver light, scattering into a neat row of items and skill orbs. I leaned forward, eagerly scanning my haul. As I tapped each one, the system provided a brief description.
[Item: Mana Enhancement Pill] - A consumable pill that directly widens the user's magical circuits, permanently upgrading their mana capacity.
[Skill: Lightning God Form (Lv. 1)] - Envelops the user in concentrated lightning, vastly increasing speed and reflexes, and allowing for lightning manipulation.
[Skill: Evil Attraction (Lv. 1)] - Causes individuals with evil alignments, bad affinities, or deep corruption to become increasingly affectionate toward the user, without any upper limit.
[Skill: Photographic Memory (Max Level)] - Grants the user perfect recall of anything seen, read, or experienced.
[Skill: Danger Sense (Lv. 1)] - Alerts the user to imminent physical threats or malicious intent directed at them.
[Skill: Iron Stomach (Lv. 1)] - Grants high resistance to ingested poisons, toxins, and spoiled food.
[Skill: Night Vision (Lv. 1)] - Allows the user to see clearly in low-light and pitch-black conditions.
[Skill: Concealment (Lv. 1)] - Hides the user's physical presence, mana signature, and breathing from detection.
[Item: Minor Healing Potion] - Restores minor physical injuries.
[Item: Minor Stamina Potion] - Restores a small amount of physical fatigue.
The first thing that caught my eye was the [Item: Mana Enhancement Pill]. I popped it into my mouth without a second thought. It dissolved instantly, and a sudden, refreshing wave of cold energy washed through my veins. I could literally feel my internal reserves expanding, my magical circuits expanding.
Next, I tapped the orb for [Skill: Lightning God Form] and chose to activate the skill.
Immediately, a sharp crackle of static electricity filled the room. Brilliant blue sparks danced across my skin. I felt a surge of raw, kinetic energy flood my muscles, and the static charge made my hair slick back on its own.
I took a step forward, and before my foot even fully registered hitting the floor, I was suddenly standing on the opposite side of the room.
I blinked in shock, turning around to look at the bed I had just been standing next to. My reflexes and nervous system were completely supercharged.
"Whoa," I whispered. "This is exactly like Killua's Godspeed from Hunter x Hunter."
Or at least, that was how I was instinctively using it. Eager to test its limits, I focused my mind, trying to reign in the wild electricity bouncing off my body. I channeled the sparks down my arms, condensing the energy around my hands and forearms until it formed jagged, highly concentrated claws of pure lightning.
I smirked, admiring the crackling gauntlets. It was just like Luck Voltia's magic from Black Clover. Fast, lethal, and incredibly versatile.
I deactivated the form before I accidentally burned my house down or alerted Arthur. The electricity faded, my hair flopping back down to its normal messy state.
I turned my attention back to the screen to check the rest of the pulls. My eyes landed on the description for [Skill: Evil Attraction].
My face immediately scrunched up in disgust. "Ew, no thanks."
That was practically a cursed skill. In a universe filled with mentally unstable mages, corrupted Grail mud, and actual literal Beasts of humanity, having a passive skill that made evil things love me was just asking to deal with a yandere. I made a mental note to avoid anyone suspicious.
I pulled up my full status page to review everything I had now.
[Status]
[Name: Kenji Sato]
(Username: God's Chosen)
[Race: Human]
[Age: 16]
[Strength: Average]
[Endurance: Average]
[Mana: B]
I then moved to the [Skill] menu
- Diagnosis (Lv. 1)
- Pharmacology (Lv. 1)
- Surgery (Lv. 1)
- Cooking (Lv. 1)
- Cleaning (Lv. 1)
- Lightning God Form (Lv. 1)
- Evil Attraction (Lv. 1)
- Danger Sense (Lv. 1)
- Iron Stomach (Lv. 1)
- Night Vision (Lv. 1)
- Concealment (Lv. 1)
- Photographic Memory
Seeing it all laid out, I noticed a pattern. Most of my new abilities were sitting at Level 1, while utility passives like Photographic Memory didn't have a level attached to them at all.
I sat back down on the edge of my bed, letting exhaustion take me into her embrace.
[(Author here...and i have decided his servant will be jeanne Lancer (and not a Tsundere!!! CHEERS!!!) For those that want to know
Jeanne lancer was a servant that is the regular jeanne the willingly tool the burden from her master which didnt corrupt her to the extent of an actual alter rather influence her mind as she is still kind like her self...
Sorry if the explanation is shit just used some of my knowledge and wiki to inform yall 'and refresh myself hehe' but doesn't matter because WE GONNA GET A YANDERE (close enough) ALTER LOOKING JEANNE WHOOO
Zouken will die tomorrow when I rise from my slumber...that is a promise and yes jeanne will be summoned next chapter when I wake up.)]