After a quick glance at his Servant list, Adam already knew exactly which one to summon based on what Elizabeth Bathory had just said about him.
He turned to her and spoke calmly. "Elizabeth, since you feel a Master like me isn't suitable and doesn't deserve to be your Master, tell me—what does your ideal Master look like?"
Elizabeth shot a nervous glance at Kiyohime, who was glaring daggers at her. Despite her fear, she still answered defiantly. "O-Of course it would be a Master who is my type… someone who loves me deeply, like a cute little piglet."
"Tch. You were obviously burning with envy and jealousy when you saw me standing next to Master earlier."
Kiyohime scoffed disdainfully. In her memories, Elizabeth had constantly pestered Adam to act as her manager whenever she saw him. Kiyohime knew very well that "manager" was just Elizabeth's code word for "boyfriend."
"So what exactly is this 'type' you like in a Master?" Adam asked, barely suppressing the smile tugging at his lips as he continued to press her.
"Hmm… let me think…" Elizabeth fell into deep thought, struggling to articulate it.
Unable to hold back any longer, Adam spoke with clear teasing. "Let me guess. Would it be a brown-haired, brown-eyed Master who holds the Authority of the Moon and emerged as the victor of the Moon Holy Grail War?"
"Huh?"
"What kind of confusing nonsense is that? I didn't understand any of it."
Elizabeth stood there stunned, repeating his words in her head, still completely lost.
Yet for some strange reason, those specific traits stirred an odd, unexplainable feeling inside her.
Before she could figure it out, Adam suddenly changed the subject. "Elizabeth, let me ask you something—would you like to join our team?"
The moment she heard the invitation, Elizabeth looked at Adam and felt that same mysterious pull again, as if he truly resembled the person he had just described.
She felt strangely tempted to accept. However, remembering how she had previously declared Adam unworthy of being her Master—and still embarrassed about losing face in front of Kiyohime—her pride flared and she turned tsundere.
"I-I don't want to join your team!"
"Hmph~"
Adam chuckled softly at her reaction. "Hmph, looks like I'm not enough to convince you by myself. In that case…"
He opened his Servant list once more and scrolled through until he found the brown-haired, brown-eyed Master. Technically speaking, this person was his senior.
His eyes settled on the Master-type Servant whose bond with him sat at around level 9.
Kishinami Hakuno (Female)
The moment Adam selected Deploy, a girl wearing a school uniform appeared before everyone.
She had brown hair and brown eyes. Her expression was mostly blank—a classic three-no's girl—but her natural looks were outstanding. She could easily debut as an idol if she wanted.
"?"
Kishinami Hakuno blinked in brief confusion after materializing. She quickly scanned her surroundings before her gaze locked firmly onto Adam.
She tilted her head adorably, and a faint smile appeared on her normally expressionless face.
"Junior? Have you already reached the point where you can summon Servants centered around yourself, just like me?"
Adam was slightly surprised. He hadn't expected her to understand the situation so instantly.
"You're correct, Hakuno-senpai. I can now summon Servants directly to my side."
Hakuno smiled warmly, genuinely pleased by his growth. Her usual blank expression melted away.
"As expected of my junior. You've already come this far?"
"Well~ I was just lucky."
Praised by Hakuno, Adam scratched his head shyly—a rare sight.
Hakuno didn't seem to realize how much her words had gently stirred his heartstrings.
[Mash], however, felt a surge of dissatisfaction when she heard Hakuno refer to Adam as "my junior" so intimately, as if she alone held that title.
What bothered her more was the expression on Adam's face—one she had never seen him make toward her. A complicated mix of envy filled her chest.
When Adam had first summoned Hakuno, their relationship hadn't been this flirtatious.
The shift became obvious as their bond deepened.
At Bond Level 1:
After commanding Hakuno through a battle, they reviewed the fight together.
Adam had praised her sincerely.
"As expected of Hakuno-senpai. You handled commanding the Servants so skillfully."
Hakuno's cheeks had flushed as she looked at him with clear interest.
At a much higher Bond Level:
After another battle and review, the dynamic completely reversed.
"As expected of my junior. You looked really cool issuing commands from the backline~"
Hakuno had flashed him a perfect smile and given him a charming wink.
Normally stoic and expressionless, the sudden loving smile created an overwhelming contrast.
This time, it was Adam's turn to blush and clutch his chest.
They were evenly matched, both subtly trying to win each other over.
Even after Adam came to this Chaldea, their relationship had never been made official. They continued this mutual game of courtship.
At least on the surface.
However, in Adam's memory, although they hadn't had any deep public interactions, there were several times when "Morgan" had left him suspicious.
He clearly remembered one occasion when Morgan suddenly called him, saying she missed him and asking him to meet in a certain room for "deep conversation."
That room was one of the suspicious points. Adam knew every inch of Chaldea's layout, yet he had no memory of this particular room. It felt like a forgotten space created for a very specific purpose.
When he arrived, the room was pitch black, as if shrouded in powerful magecraft. He couldn't see a thing.
Just as he wondered why Morgan had brought him there, a voice came from the bed.
"Hu… My husband, why are you just standing there?"
"Could it be that I no longer interest you?"
The voice was unmistakably Morgan's.
But that was the second suspicious point—her tone was far too eager right from the start.
Normally, Morgan would first act reserved and proud, only letting go after Adam broke through her defenses. Yet this "Morgan" had been extremely forward immediately.
The third and deciding factor was the change in "Morgan's" body—in every sense.
Her chest seemed slightly smaller, her hair felt different—more brown than white. Most importantly, the internal sensations were noticeably different in length, tightness, and moisture. Even her stamina had changed.
After that incident, Hakuno's attitude toward Adam became noticeably more affectionate.
It was truly puzzling.
How very difficult to figure out.
Afterward, whether she had gotten addicted or not, "Morgan" invited him back several more times.
...
Kiyohime clung tightly to Adam's arm, watching Hakuno with open wariness, afraid another rival had appeared.
"Miss Kiyohime is here too. Junior is as popular as ever, I see."
Hakuno smiled gently at Kiyohime's vigilance, as if seeing her former self.
She then spoke with full confidence. "Don't worry, Miss Kiyohime. Junior and I are still maintaining a perfectly healthy senior-junior relationship."
In a certain sense, that was technically true.
Adam simply pressed his lips together and remained silent.
Kiyohime, however, clearly didn't believe a word and continued staring at Hakuno like she was an extremely dangerous opponent.
"You are…"
Elizabeth stared blankly at Hakuno standing beside Adam.
She felt the same inexplicable sense of familiarity from Hakuno that she felt from Adam.
She couldn't quite explain it.
Watching the close, intimate interaction between the two filled her with strange envy—not just toward one of them, but both. She envied Adam and envied Hakuno at the same time.
Elizabeth shook her head hard, trying to clear the confusing thoughts.
"Ah~ What's wrong with my head! Stop thinking weird stuff!"
Even with her eyes closed, all she could picture were the intimate moments between Adam and Hakuno.
Hearing Elizabeth's voice, Hakuno turned and finally noticed her.
"You're here too, Elizabeth. What are you standing over there for?"
"Why don't you come over?"
Elizabeth blinked, looking between Adam and Hakuno. "Eh? Ah… Oh~"
As if under a spell, she obediently walked over and joined the group.
She stood beside them in a daze for nearly half a minute before suddenly questioning her own actions.
"Wait… Why did I just join the team?"
In the end, Adam successfully recruited both Kiyohime and Elizabeth Bathory.
"I wonder how Ritsuka's side is doing?"
Adam opened a comms channel with Ritsuka. It connected quickly.
Ritsuka's face appeared on screen.
"Ritsuka, how are things on your end?"
"I've already secured Kiyohime and Elizabeth. Did you manage to recruit Saint George?"
Ritsuka replied cheerfully, "What a coincidence, Adam. We just got Saint George to join us too."
She turned the camera, showing Saint George standing with their group.
He had clearly joined Ritsuka's team.
After showing him, she turned the camera back to herself, a slightly troubled expression on her face.
"It was actually pretty dangerous at first. When we first encountered Saint George, he nearly mistook us for Berserk Servants. We almost ended up fighting."
"Luckily Jeanne was with us. After she explained everything, he agreed to join."
It seemed Ritsuka's group hadn't had an easy time either, but the outcome was good.
"Good work, Ritsuka. Since you've succeeded too, our plan can move into the final stage."
"We've gathered all the recruitable combat forces in this Singularity. The next step is the decisive battle against Jeanne Alter."
***
If you want to read up to 25 chapters ahead, don't hesitate to visit our patron: pat reon . com / XElenea (remove space)