Zongman: Evolution Paradise

Esdeath, who had been stabbed to death by the Lion King, somewhat toned down her excessive arrogance. Noticing Jolyne's high regard for Scáthach, she immediately agreed.

Although Esdeath's power is time stop, she actually has quite a few countermeasures if she has the information.

For example, suddenly appearing when Esdeath's time stop is on cooldown, predicting Esdeath's time stop and hiding in a space like a Reality Marble just before it's released to deal with those seven seconds, or launching a ranged attack without getting close to the time stop's range...

Leaving aside the feasibility for now, Jolyne, given the choice between prioritizing the enemy and underestimating them, would prefer the former.

Then you can say to the enemy, "I thought you could bring me more surprises."

Knowing the information, there are too many ways to deal with it, and it is obvious that Souichirou Kuzuki will definitely release this information about the time stop to prevent Jolyne from seizing the remaining three Servants of the Holy Grail War and expanding his strength once again.

Esdeath's time stop, the most effective part now is the "nuclear deterrent" it creates when it's held in the palm of your hand and never released.

"As long as you have a way to solve it."

Yukino Yukinoshita doesn't know how to express her feelings right now. On one hand, she's angry that Jolyne tricked her into eating that weird dish, and on the other hand, she has unlimited trust in Jolyne when it comes to serious matters.

Just now, when Jolyne said that Scáthach was a powerful Servant, Yukino Yukinoshita felt a pang of anxiety, but then she immediately relaxed when she saw that Jolyne had already found a solution.

The trust was so great that it made Yukino Yukinoshita feel a little ashamed.

Yukino Yukinoshita shook her head vigorously, dispelling all those strange thoughts, and continued, "The other side in the battle should be the assassins. Logically speaking and from the perspective of battlefield analysis, the destruction on the battlefield occurs from the inside out. If they were archers, it would be unlikely that they would be fighting spearmen in the narrow arcade, and the area of ​​destruction would not be so small..."

"That's because you don't know that archers in Fate prefer melee combat," Jolyne thought, recalling the named archers in Fate.

Chapter 217 When the Plot Returns to its Starting Point

[This chapter has been ordered to be revised. Please forgive any grammatical errors or awkward phrasing.]

"Whether the dog is the Master or not, or whether the other side in the battle is an assassin, it is still uncertain. We can only say that there is a high probability."

Jolyne recalls a version of the Holy Grail War where a chimera became a Master and even summoned Gilgamesh's close friend Enkidu.

Because Enkidu doesn't accept human summons, if it were Enkidu who appeared, it would confirm that the dog was a player. Unfortunately, it's now confirmed that Lancer is Scáthach.

Whether this dog is a player or not is highly probable. After all, ordinary players don't know that non-human players are allowed to enter this world, so wouldn't it be more attractive to other players to find a dog as their substitute?

As for the latter, Yukino Yukinoshita's analysis is correct. It can only be said that there are indeed too many archers in Fate who can engage in melee combat, such as the future protagonist, Shirou Emiya.

"Furthermore, I can't really think of many assassins who can make Scáthach suffer in close combat. It can't be that Grand Rank Hassan has already stepped down, can it?"

Jolyne, considering the existence of the players, reluctantly accepted the possibility that Scáthach might suffer a defeat at the hands of the Assassins, a class that has had virtually no presence in the Holy Grail War.

"Of course, it's impossible to be completely certain, after all, those players can do all sorts of bizarre things."

Yukino Yukinoshita refers to Makoto Itō, who can't even use Esdeath properly after summoning her.

"The main purpose of this trip was to prevent Steve Rogers from forming an alliance with other players. Apart from Scáthach, we searched for a long time in Fuyuki City but couldn't find where the other two went."

Given the players' vigilance and the fact that no one dared to intrude on the battle at Homurahara School, it's safe to assume that the remaining players had already clashed with Souichirou Kuzuki when they were fighting him.

Reviewing the details in her mind, Yukino Yukinoshita tucked her loose hair behind her ear and delivered the last piece of confirmed information.

“Scáthach said she did not agree to Steve Rogers’ alliance.”

“That’s definitely her personality,” Jolyne said, glancing at the movie that had started playing its end credits. Lily then stepped forward and changed the DVD to the second movie.

"Since Scáthach said that, we can believe that she is not cooperating with Souichirou Kuzuki for the time being."

Having finished reporting her findings from her trip, Yukino Yukinoshita glared angrily at Jolyne again, then, not wanting to talk to her anymore, walked towards Saber.

Because she wanted to take Saber away, Yukino Yukinoshita tried to build a good relationship with Saber. However, the friendless Yukinoshita was not good at this. Fortunately, Saber's personality was a good match for Yukino Yukinoshita, which made her plan to cultivate Saber's affection somewhat effective.

"The situation is a bit tense; I don't know how many days this Fate journey will last."

Jolyne gazed at them, her thoughts drifting away without her realizing it.

……

As the last rays of the setting sun fell upon Ryudouji Temple, perhaps waiting for an opportunity, the players quieted down, preventing any powerful magical fluctuations from erupting in Fuyuki City that day.

Medea and Esdeath continued their verbal sparring as usual, maintaining a fragile balance thanks to Master's presence. Saber wanted another shokugeki dish after dinner, but Yukino Yukinoshita tried to dissuade her.

What Jolyne didn't expect was that after witnessing the power of the Food Wars dishes at noon, apart from Yukino Yukinoshita, the other Servants actually quite enjoyed them.

What a peaceful day!

After locking the bathroom door, Jolyne took off her clothes and sank into the bathtub, feeling the warmth of the hot water enveloping her, intending to enjoy a moment of peace.

Hmm... for now.

Just by looking at the expressions on the faces of the Heroic Spirits outside, Jolyne already knew that tonight would definitely not be peaceful.

However, Jolyne did not intend to hide in the workshop. Such things can only be avoided for a while, not forever. It would be better to resolve them sooner rather than later, or rather, to let Medea and Esdeath get used to each other sooner.

"Master, would you like Lily to scrub your back?"

The door wouldn't budge, and Lily's soft voice finally came in from outside.

“That’s absolutely not necessary.”

Jolyne flatly refused, saying that if Lily were allowed to come in, it wouldn't just be a matter for Lily anymore; Medea and Esdeath would definitely come in together, turning the sweet and soft bath into a huge battleground.

"Oh, shall I go find Medea then?"

Lily's dejected voice rang out, followed by the clattering sound of slippers walking by.

Ryudong Temple is so big that it's impossible for it to only have one bathroom. The others must have already gone to wash up and prepare to rest for the night.

As Lily's footsteps faded into the distance, just when Jolyne thought the matter was over, another voice came from the bathroom.

Medusa, who had returned to physical form from her spiritual state, did not speak. In front of Jolyne, she began to remove her thigh-high boots. Jolyne felt that these were special relics that perverts could bring to auction houses.

"Ugh...it's so cold." Medusa couldn't help but say as her freed toes touched the icy floor.

"So, Medusa, why are you here?" Jolyne asked, shifting her gaze from Medusa's beautiful legs.

Jolyne thought of Lily and Medea, Esdeath, and even Saber, but she never expected that the first Servant to dare to enter would be Medusa.

"Huh, is that Master?"

"Because I was wearing a blindfold, I didn't notice that at all."

Medusa, who could accurately wield her chain blades to execute enemies even in battle, spoke in a calm tone.

After a perfunctory pretense, he showed no intention of leaving and began to untie the collar binding his neck and the sleeves covering his arms.

"Medusa, now you know."

"Okay, I came here on purpose. After all, there's an Assassin lurking in the shadows, so even in the bathroom, someone needs to protect Master."

Hmm... Protecting your Master is indeed very important.

Medusa stood in front of the bathtub for a moment, and in the difficult choice between facing her Master in front or behind, she chose to face him in front, which was more conducive to detecting danger.

Medusa tentatively tested the water temperature with her fingertips before getting into the bathtub and finding a comfortable spot.

"Master..."

Suddenly sensing something amiss, Medusa, who had been maintaining her composure, began to falter in her pretense.

She submerged her face in the water, concealing her neck, which was the same temperature as the water.

"Who do you think did it?"

Jolyne said helplessly.

Chapter 218 The Restless Bathtub

[This chapter has been ordered to be revised. Please forgive any grammatical errors or awkward phrasing.]

Could it be because of me?

Medusa teasedly asked, letting her master help her escape the dragon's attack range.

Jolyne retorted, "Otherwise what?"

Medusa did not reply. She lay motionless in her Master's arms, letting the warm water envelop her body. It seemed that her purpose in coming here was only this, and she simply wanted to take a bath with her Master.

However, Medusa's behavior made Jolyne a little impatient. "If you keep lying here without moving, what am I supposed to do to wash you? Besides, who knows when Medea and Esdeath might come looking for us?"

Medusa, are you alright?

Jolyne whispered in her ear, causing Medusa's ears to tremble.

Seeing that she didn't answer, Jolyne gently touched her lower back and asked again, "Medusa?"

Medusa tensed up instantly, feeling a warmth different from hot water, before pretending to come to her senses and asking, "What does Master want to do?"

"I want to leave as soon as possible."

Thinking this to himself, Jolyne rubbed his temples helplessly. Looking at Medusa's body, he had no idea where to put his hands, but in the end, he placed them on top of Medusa's head.

Ruffling Medusa's half-wet purple hair, Jolyne said earnestly, "You can confide in me about anything you want to say. As your master, I will take full responsibility for my dearest Medusa."

Aside from Lily, these other Servants all have some psychological issues. Jolyne, feeling rather helpless, decided to give Medusa some psychological counseling as her Master.

Well... without any theoretical support, it all relies on targeted treatment and sufficient goodwill.

Medusa remained silent for a long time. Initially, she sneaked into Jolyne's bathroom just because she thought of it, but when she took off her Mystic Code and was enveloped in water, while her master was quietly taking a bath, Medusa felt somewhat lost and didn't know what to do.

"As expected, I'm not likable at all..."

Hearing her master call her the cutest Medusa, Medusa asked emotionlessly, "Under normal circumstances, shouldn't Master pounce on me and then something happen?"

"...Are you really not afraid of Esdeath and Medea's mixed doubles attack?"

After a moment of internal grumbling, Jolyne ruffled Medusa's hair, whispered in her ear, and said, "I already answered seriously this morning that I really like Medusa. Medusa is very cute in my eyes. The reason I can control myself now is because I don't think Medusa would want to entrust herself to me in the bathroom."

Medusa leaned against Jolyne, her voice low and filled with inexplicable emotion as she retorted, "Does expressing affection to five women in a row count?"

Then, without waiting for Jolyne's reply, Medusa continued self-deprecatingly, "Master is clearly just placating me. How could someone as unlovable as me possibly be truly liked..."

"Well……"

Jolyne flicked Medusa on the back of the head. Medusa, struck hard, let out a soft groan and couldn't finish her self-destructive words.

Then, realizing her ears were being twisted and feeling the warmth of Jolyne's palm, Medusa blushed and raised her voice, "Master!"

"I said, Medusa, can you please listen to your Master?"

As he spoke, Jolyne released her ears and moved her hands forward to place them on either side of Medusa's blindfold, attempting to remove this final Noble Phantasm.

"No! Master! I can't fully control the power of the Mystic Eyes yet... No!"

Medusa, somewhat panicked, grabbed Jolyne's fingers, trying to stop him from removing his blindfold.

"At worst, I can have Lily help me recover later."

Jolyne forcefully removed the restraints and turned Medusa's face towards him.

"If you don't believe the feelings you had for others this morning, then now, in this place where it's just the two of us, I'm telling you clearly, I really like Medusa, because whether it's her personality, her appearance, or her abilities, Medusa is a very adorable Heroic Spirit."

Perhaps because of her interactions with Jolyne, and with a high level of affection for her, Medusa, who usually suppresses her inner thoughts, has become a little more cheerful. However, one thing has never changed, or rather, it has become even more pronounced.

That is, inferiority complex.

Indeed, despite her stunning beauty, Medusa was actually insecure. In her mind, only the "small and cute" appearance of a loli was beautiful, while her tall and mature appearance was considered unlovable.

Medusa was incredibly shy when her eyes were touched like that, and with Jolyne's constant and direct praise, her heart began to pound wildly.

"That's impossible." Even so, Medusa, panting heavily, still refused to accept it.

She won't go against her Master's opinion, but she's quite stubborn about her standards of cuteness.

"As a Servant, you don't even listen to your Master anymore? Hurry up and realize how cute you are."

In an instant, water splashed everywhere in the bathtub, making a sound as it hit the floor.

Forehead to forehead, Jolyne worked on the serpentine mark on Medusa's forehead, and through his attack, he finally made her open her eyes with a gasp.

"Don't."

Medusa wanted to close her eyes again, but Jolyne had already looked over. Their eyes met, and Medusa no longer wanted to close her magical eyes, which she had finally managed to open.

Looking into Medusa's beautiful purple eyes, Jolyne said earnestly once again, "Medusa is very cute, I like Medusa very much."

“But I,” Medusa wanted to say something more, but under the master’s gaze and hearing those repeated words, she ultimately said nothing more, and instead offered her own emotions.

"……I see."