It was eleven at night.
"I didn't expect you'd actually agree to become my ally, Assassin-onee-san. That's great."
Shirou spoke while sipping his hot cocoa.
Little Hassan sat beside him, completely absorbed in a late-night magical girl anime.
As for Hassan of the Hundred Faces, her back was pressed against the wall, her entire body still radiating a guarded, hostile tension.
"Don't misunderstand. The only ones willing to cooperate with you are 'me' and that child. The other 'me's' won't accept you."
Unlike the previous Hassan-i-Sabbah, Hassan of the Hundred Faces had never undergone any physical modification, nor did she need to.
Her Noble Phantasm, Zabaniya: Delusional Illusion, was an ability born from splitting her soul into countless fragments.
Each fragment possessed its own independent thoughts and personality, totaling eighty-eight individuals.
With this ability, in life, Hassan of the Hundred Faces made use of the knowledge and skills of all eighty-eight selves, employing all kinds of methods to deceive enemies, break through layers of protection, and assassinate targets in ways no one could anticipate.
Since this wasn't a system where a superior "original body" created subordinate "clones," every Hassan of the Hundred Faces existed on equal footing.
If one of the split individuals died, it wouldn't return to the whole of Assassin, but would simply vanish.
Which meant that among the eighty-eight Hassans of the Hundred Faces, no one held absolute authority.
Even the purple-haired woman before him only served as the group's leader due to her abilities and personality.
She couldn't fully control the other eighty-odd "selves," which was why she said only she and that child were willing to cooperate with Shirou.
At the same time, since the individuals couldn't directly share thoughts or exchange information, the Hassans scattered throughout Fuyuki had no idea she was currently speaking with an enemy Master.
After hearing this, Shirou fell into thought. "So it's basically multiple personality disorder…"
"What?"
Seeing the confusion on her face, Shirou explained what multiple personality disorder was.
"I see… so it's considered a kind of illness…" Hassan of the Hundred Faces murmured blankly.
A long-standing doubt in her heart had just been resolved, and she suddenly felt a sense of relief.
"No, whether it's an illness depends on how you look at it. I don't think it counts as one.
If anything, Assassin-onee-san, your mental strength far surpasses that of ordinary people."
Hassan of the Hundred Faces didn't respond to the praise, instead turning her gaze toward Little Hassan in the room.
"Who is this child?" Shirou asked.
"She is a 'me' created to endure torture… a personality that is weak, powerless, and knows nothing."
"I see. If she knows nothing, then even if she's captured, there's no risk of leaking information.
And giving her the form of a young girl… that's quite a twisted choice."
Zabaniya: Delusional Illusion was a Noble Phantasm formed from the sublimation of Hassan of the Hundred Faces' life.
When she was alive, she didn't have the ability to create separate bodies. She was simply an exceptional Assassin with countless personalities.
So if she could switch to a personality that knew nothing when captured, it was undeniably useful.
But after becoming a Servant, Hassan of the Hundred Faces gained the ability to freely manifest physical forms, making Little Hassan effectively meaningless.
She couldn't do anything. Forget hiding her presence, she couldn't even take care of herself, and had become little more than dead weight within the group.
Shirou nodded. "Don't worry. I won't let her come to harm."
Hassan of the Hundred Faces snorted.
The reason she accepted Shirou's proposal was partly because she was dissatisfied with her current situation, and partly because of Little Hassan's attitude.
When she had entered the room earlier, Shirou had asked, "Is it Assassin who's back?"
Despite being a personality meant for interrogation and supposed to remain silent, the girl had easily admitted it.
Even in just a few short hours, Shirou had clearly earned Little Hassan's trust.
"So, next…"
Shirou turned toward Hassan of the Hundred Faces.
"Tell me everything you know, Assassin-onee-san.
What kind of person is your Master, Kirei Kotomine?
And what exactly is his relationship with Tokiomi Tohsaka?"
The red-haired boy paused briefly.
"If I'm not mistaken, the Fuyuki Church is on your side as well, isn't it?"
At this point, no matter how shocking Shirou's words were, Hassan of the Hundred Faces was no longer surprised.
…
Hassan of the Hundred Faces laid bare all the Tohsaka family's secrets.
Kirei Kotomine and Tokiomi Tohsaka had only gone their separate ways on the surface.
In reality, Kirei Kotomine and his father, Risei, had already joined the Tohsaka faction three years ago.
"That's just shameless! Tokiomi Tohsaka looks like such a proper gentleman, but who would've thought he'd be this underhanded behind the scenes!" Shirou said angrily.
Hassan of the Hundred Faces replied, "The Tohsaka Family not only controls the best spiritual land in Fuyuki, even the Overseers who are supposed to remain neutral are on his side.
Of course, my Master is nothing more than his puppet."
Hassan of the Hundred Faces understood this clearly. To the Tohsaka faction, both she and Kirei Kotomine were nothing more than pawns.
No matter what, Assassin could never become the final victor.
Was Zayd's sacrifice not in vain if it secured long-term benefits?
Yes, but those benefits would belong to Tokiomi Tohsaka, not to Assassin.
The one who made her realize this simple truth, who forced her to truly understand it, was none other than Shirou.
At the same time, she came to fully grasp that her Master was nothing more than a mediocre man who drifted along without the slightest desire for the Holy Grail.
"What about Kirei Kotomine?" Shirou asked.
Hassan of the Hundred Faces answered honestly, "In terms of ability, he may be exceptional, but he lacks passion. He's like a walking corpse. In this Holy Grail War, the ones truly worth paying attention to are still Tokiomi Tohsaka and Risei Kotomine."
She then went on to explain the situation of the other Masters and Servants, recounting everything she had investigated over the past few days.
"For example, Lancer's Master.
One of the Twelve Lords of the Clock Tower, Kayneth El-Melloi Archibald, came to Japan with his fiancée to participate in the Holy Grail War."
The female Assassin let out a sigh and said with a hint of self-mockery, "Now you should understand just how formidable your enemies are."
The Twelve Lords… are they really that impressive?
Shirou had no real sense of it. Makiri hadn't had the chance to teach him yet, so he could only nod along.
"Yeah. Good thing I've got Assassin-onee-san."
"......"
Beneath the mask, Hassan of the Hundred Faces' cheeks grew slightly warm.
"That's enough flattery."
"It's not flattery. I mean it," Shirou said seriously.
"…That's enough."
Hassan of the Hundred Faces brushed her long hair aside and turned her face away before continuing.
"But our greatest enemy is still the Tohsaka family.
If Tokiomi Tohsaka were only bending the rules, that would be one thing.
More importantly, they have Archer, the golden Heroic Spirit who appeared tonight.
His True Name is Gilgamesh, the King of Heroes, the demigod king who ruled over Mesopotamia in the Age of Gods.
He is both a hero who accomplished countless great feats and a tyrant whose arrogance and excess led to the destruction of his own nation.
It is said that in life, he gathered all the treasures of the world. His treasury contains every weapon and artifact created by humanity, all of which became the prototypes of the Noble Phantasms wielded by later heroes."
As she spoke, she clenched her trembling fists.
"I was there when Zayd was killed, watching the surroundings up close.
With just one look at that Archer, it was obvious…
That man is invincible. There is no Heroic Spirit in this world that can defeat him.
As an Archer-class Servant in this Holy Grail War, he can fight using an endless number of Noble Phantasms. No Servant can compare to him.
Unfortunately, just as he said, we are nothing more than lowly mongrels in his eyes."
"The one called Gilgamesh, the King of Heroes, is a tyrant from the Age of Gods who possesses an infinite number of Noble Phantasms and eyes that can see the future…"
The image of that golden Archer flashed through Shirou's mind, and he nodded in agreement.
"Yeah, he's definitely abnormal. There's probably no Heroic Spirit who can beat him. It wouldn't be surprising if he could take on the other six Servants by himself.
But there's no need to worry. I'll take responsibility for making sure he's eliminated."