The blue-haired magus took a deep breath. His current body and his current method of prolonging his life simply could not last much longer. If he could not achieve final victory in this Holy Grail War and grant his wish, he would have no time to participate in the next one.
By the time the next Holy Grail War began, the grass on his grave would likely be over three meters tall.
Therefore, facing this non-human monster wearing a human shell before him, even if what was offered was a poisoned wine that would kill him shortly after drinking, he still needed to use it to quench his thirst. After all, in the time between drinking the wine and the poison taking effect, he still had a chance. If he didn't drink... he would simply be sitting here waiting to die.
Magi were all lunatics. Since this adjective could be applied to other magi, it could naturally be applied to him as well. Rather than sitting and waiting for death, it was better to fight to the death.
"What kind of help can you offer me? And what kind of benefits do you want to obtain from me?"
The blue-haired magus narrowed his eyes. He needed to evaluate whether the help this person offered was worth accepting. If the magnitude of the help was too small, while the remuneration required by this entity in human skin was too large, then he would refuse no matter what.
Magi had selfish motives, especially if the reward this fellow demanded involved his soul or his life; in that case, he absolutely could not agree.
The monster wearing a green suit and a smile on his face nodded gently, indicating that he knew exactly what the blue-haired magus was thinking. "Rest assured. Regarding achieving victory in the Holy Grail War, there is no conflict between you and me. I simply wish to use the Holy Grail to realize a tiny wish."
The entity wearing human skin opened his eyes. Those eyes carried a bloody ferocity, but he quickly concealed that viciousness.
"We know that the wish you want to realize requires most of the Holy Grail's magical energy. We assure you, we only want to retrieve a certain person's body from the endless universe. Because that existence's body can help us realize our long-cherished wish!"
The entity wearing human skin raised his hand, then placed his gaze on the face of the Heroic Spirit who was still vigilant nearby. He then revealed a smile. "Could you trouble yourself to give me a cup of black tea? Finding a suitable partner is very troublesome. We have run for a long time, and now we are truly a bit thirsty."
The Heroic Spirit clenched her fist, then looked at the blue-haired magus. The magus had already fallen into deep thought. If it was just such a small wish, then they indeed had an opportunity to cooperate. So, he nodded slightly. The Heroic Spirit could only curl her lips in displeasure and turn to brew the black tea.
The blue-haired magus naturally would not agree to cooperate with the entity before him immediately. He wasn't stupid, so he naturally detected some matters that hadn't been brought to the table. "If it's just about obtaining victory in the Holy Grail War, I don't think you would need to find me for cooperation. After all, 'the mantis stalks the cicada, unaware of the oriole behind.' You could perfectly well play the role of the oriole."
The entity wearing human skin quirked the corner of his mouth. Then, the cane in his hand spun quickly and pressed directly against the magus's throat. The smile on his face became eerie, and that curved grin actually looked somewhat terrifying.
This sudden attack caused the Heroic Spirit to raise the short sword in her hand. The atmosphere inside the cabin became oppressive again. However, after a moment, the entity wearing human skin sighed. The smile on his face returned to humility, and he slowly retracted the cane, tapping it lightly on the ground as he did so.
"You are indeed a very smart magus. I can only tell you that it is inconvenient for us to show our faces. As for anything deeper, I cannot say more. When cooperating with the abyss, do not stare into the abyss. Otherwise... only being swallowed by the abyss awaits you."
The blue-haired magus took a sip of black tea. Finally, looking at the entity wearing human skin before him, he realized the aura spreading from this guy was indeed unsuitable for public exposure. So, he needs me to stand at the front and act as a substitute?
I might be asking a tiger for its skin... but I could also make a profit.The greater the danger, the greater the return. This was what the magus had always firmly believed. There was just a small problem: once his cooperation with these guys was exposed, he would become a target for everyone. There was no guarantee that this fellow cooperating with him would save him at that time.
But the bold die of gluttony, while the timid die of starvation. He had always been a very bold guy.
The blue-haired magus extended his hand and shook hands with the non-human entity before him. "In that case, happy cooperation."
The smile on the face of the entity wearing human skin became even brighter. "In that case, I wish us a happy cooperation. We conclude this contract in the name of Solomon."
The blue-haired magus felt tentacles, seemingly sprouting eyes, grow from the palm of the non-human entity before him. The next moment, joy, sorrow, gratitude, hatred—various contradictory and intertwined emotions—impacted his brain.
His soul felt as if it were wrapped by these tentacles and swallowed into an endless abyss. At the same time, fragmented clips flashed before his eyes. They seemed to be the memories of the non-human entity before him. On a high platform, a man wearing white robes with tan skin, hair like wool, and black tattoos flashed by.
Like someone who had peeked at an existence that absolutely should not be peeked at, the blue-haired magus's wandering spirit was quickly thrown into a darkness and returned to his body. Everything he had just seen turned to nothingness. He only felt as if his soul had been thoroughly played with by tentacles in the darkness.
The non-human entity, after confirming that the magus before him hadn't remembered anything he shouldn't have, gradually relaxed his expression, which had been held tight. To be honest, it wasn't necessary; he didn't want to silence this guy.
After all, the other participants in the Holy Grail War were not suitable to cooperate with them.