Shinji's strange attitude caused Sakura to be a little suspicious—could her brother, a flirtatious guy, have been involved with another female Servant?
"Brother, did sothing happen between you and Rider?"
"If my mory serves right, I've never t Master's brother before, nor do I have any mory of him."
dusa, who had been silent since her appearance, finally spoke. Her voice was as cold and elegant as her appearance.
"Of course, you wouldn't have any mory of . Nothing ever happened between us. But—don't you think I look a little familiar?"
Hearing Shinji's question, dusa aid her blindfold at the young man in front of her—her blindfold, a Noble Phantasm similar to Mystic Eyes Killer, sealed her infamous petrifying Mystic Eyes, but did not impair her normal vision.
"It does seem... a little familiar."
"How about now?"
As Shinji spoke, he pushed back his bangs with one hand, casting a runic spell that turned his hair from blue to dark red.
"It's even more familiar now."
There was a slight tremor in her voice.
"And what about with these?"
As he spoke, Shinji manifested the Harpe in his left hand and the Shield of Athena in his right.
"This—this is—"
dusa's cold and elegant deanor finally shattered, as if an iceberg had turned into flas. Her body trembled uncontrollably.
"Brother, could there possibly be—?"
Sakura covered her mouth in disbelief. She knew her brother had many Noble Phantasms and was aware of dusa's legend, but she had never asked about the nas of those Noble Phantasms and never thought to connect the two.
"Yes, it's exactly what you think."
Shinji nodded with a bitter smile.
"The Harpe, the weapon that killed dusa. The Shield of Athena, the Noble Phantasm that blocks the petrifying Mystic Eyes. Later, the goddess Athena even embedded dusa's head into the shield—so you see why I don't know how to face you."
To be honest, he had never intended to summon dusa as an ally.
It wasn't a matter of her strength. Although her performance in Fate/Stay Night was subpar, dusa was quite powerful. Her attributes, enhanced by her monstrous nature, were impressive, but the true terror was her highest-level petrifying Mystic Eyes, Cybele, which was a deadly surprise attack, capable of instantly killing soone with insufficient knowledge.
It wasn't a matter of her personality either. On the contrary, dusa could be considered one of the easiest Servants to get along with. She had many endearing qualities. In Shinji's previous life, dusa not only had a large fan base but many fan creators made doujin works about her. At her peak, she even held the title of Doujin Queen in the Type-Moon fandom—a fact that was quite revealing.
In short, dusa was ideal as a Servant: powerful, reliable, and very obedient.
However, no matter how ideal a Servant she might be, it was difficult for anyone to stay calm when confronted with the weapons that killed them, especially when those weapons were the bane of their existence. That was what worried Shinji. He knew that dusa had long accepted her fate, but accepting her fate was one thing; having soone waving the tools of her demise in front of her was another matter entirely.
"Are you—Perseus? No, you're not him."
Seeing the red hair she had seen in her final monts, the sickle that severed her head, and the shield adorned with her head, dusa's voice beca dry, her body unconsciously leaning forward. She quickly began shaking her head, completely losing the composure she had as the Gorgon who slaughtered countless warriors.
"Indeed, I am not him. But you could think of as his successor. The Matou family's bloodline can be traced back to Perseus."
Shinji was Shinji—he was not anyone else, nor did he want to beco soone else. No matter what legacy or gifts he received from Perseus, that fact remained indisputable.
"When I was very young, I had an encounter with Perseus. He entrusted these Noble Phantasms to , and I was able to glimpse a part of his life. He asked to pass on an apology to two people if I ever had the chance. One of them was Acrisius, and the other was you."
Here, Shinji lied. Perseus had left such a request, but the sentint was genuine. If Perseus had the chance to et these people again, he would undoubtedly apologize, and Shinji, who had connected with Perseus on a soul level, could confirm this.
Acrisius, the king of Argos, was Perseus' grandfather, who died when Perseus accidentally hit him with a discus during a sporting event. Although a prophecy had foretold that Perseus would kill his grandfather even before he was born, leading Acrisius to exile his daughter and infant grandson, Perseus still felt sorrow over the incident.
As for dusa, when Perseus killed her, he didn't have many personal feelings—he just saw her as a monster that had devoured countless lives, a formidable enemy, a target he needed to defeat to save his mother. However, after learning about dusa's past, his mindset changed. He didn't regret killing her, but he couldn't help feeling a sense of guilt.
That's just the kind of person Perseus was. You could say he was honorable, or you could say he had a bleeding heart.
dusa clearly understood this, as her reaction showed.
"I see, that man did say such a thing. He was always a hero who acted out of goodwill. Though it's awkward, I bear no grudge or hatred towards him. I might even pity him, though that's not sothing I could say to his face."
"You pity him, but he likely felt the sa way about you. Anyone with half a brain knows it wasn't your fault; it was Athena's unreasonable curse."
That was Shinji's belief, and Sakura shared it as well.
"Exactly, exactly! When I read that legend, I thought it was unfair. Why should a goddess be allowed to curse soone like that?"
"Thank you, Master, and you too, Master's brother."
dusa smiled—a faint but beautiful smile. Perhaps this was her true nature, not as a Gorgon monster, but as dusa, the Perfect Idol.
"Matou Shinji. Just Shinji is fine,"
Shinji said, introducing himself.
"dusa—no, Rider—and Sakura. Whatever my plans were in the past, or who I intended to summon, that's all in the past. Now, you two are Master and Servant, you're comrades. I hope you can respect each other, understand each other, trust each other, and support each other. Don't let the shadows of the past affect how you treat each other now."
All the prior explanations were just for this one request. Whether it was the inertia of the tiline or the fact that Sakura and dusa were a perfect match, none of that mattered anymore. What mattered was their current Master-Servant relationship and the upcoming war.
"Understood, brother."
Sakura agreed imdiately, and dusa nodded silently. Their similarly long purple hair swayed slightly, making them look almost like sisters.
"Rider, tell about yourself. Is it true you have two sisters? And what about Perseus—was he as great as the legends say?"
"I do have two sisters, and they were both very kind to . As for Perseus... hehe... I'm not sure if he was that great, but in my eyes, he was a coward."
"A coward?"
"Yes, he was trembling all over when he approached ."
"Huh?"
As her voice grew softer, Shinji's mood lightened considerably.
Despite the unexpected events, this wasn't a bad start. Now it was ti to think about his issues.
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