Tokyo Singularity (14) The meaning lies in the act of saving...

"Hmm? Interesting!" Gojo Satoru peeked out, his six eyes clearly observing the energy fluctuations beneath Fujimaru Ritsuka's feet. "So Ritsuka has combat abilities?"

Jeanne Alter uttered a simple breath, as if mocking Gojo Satoru's narrow-minded view of Fujimaru Ritsuka, "She's not a vase hiding behind others, but a warrior who can stand on her own."

The dark light gradually condensed and took shape.

A being entirely black, wearing a hood, appeared before Fujimaru Ritsuka. Then, that being rapidly split into countless humanoid shadows, imperceptible to the naked eye, layer upon layer, blocking Fujimaru Ritsuka's path.

"Hey, this level of skill can't stop me." Jack chuckled, his dagger flashing, and a figure fell from the sky and vanished into thin air.

The second one, the third one...

As Jack the Ripper advanced, countless shadows fell from the sky, until the last one, Hassan the Hundred-Faced, recklessly charged into Jack the Ripper's dagger. Fujimaru Ritsuka was now left unguarded.

Gojo Satoru couldn't stand it any longer and was about to abandon his hiding place and go out to help. Jeanne Alter, however, noticed something and blocked the way with a flag, shouting, "Quiet!"

In this back-and-forth, Jack the Ripper had already closed in on Fujimaru Ritsuka, and even if Gojo Satoru went to rescue her now, there was no guarantee of her survival. Jeanne Alter remained motionless, blocking his way. His face hardened, and he glared angrily at Alter.

"What are you doing! Do you want her to die?!"

Before Jeanne Alter could speak, Fujimaru Ritsuka's voice answered for her: "What a pity." She raised the corners of her mouth, revealing a confident smile.

The body of Hyakko, pierced by the dagger, revealed a movement trajectory belonging to Jack the Ripper for Fujimaru Ritsuka, while her eyes were fixed on Jack the Ripper, who had already revealed his form.

"My goal has never been to block or defend!"

Even as Jack the Ripper's cold dagger reflected the silver light, Ritsuka could clearly see her own reflection in it. This dagger was about to pierce her chest.

The distance is sufficient.

Fujimaru Ritsuka remained unfazed, raising her hand with the Command Seal: "Medea!"

"All talismans will inevitably break the rules!"

The next moment, Jack the Ripper's body suddenly stopped in front of Fujimaru Ritsuka, and the dagger in his hand fell to the ground with a clatter less than a centimeter away from her heart.

A sharp pain shot through Jack's back, causing his pupils to shrink. He knelt on one knee and looked back blankly.

The woman in the purple cloak held a short knife and plunged it straight into her back.

This is a conceptual artifact derived from the life experiences of the witch Medea—a short sword capable of breaking all kinds of magic.

Although this Noble Phantasm is currently less than a tenth the strength of Medea herself, and its damage to Jack is only superficial, Fujimaru Ritsuka's goal is not to defeat a Servant in a one-on-one fight, but also to remove all of Jack the Ripper's enhanced states.

Then, justice prevailed and the mob attacked.

The sulfurous fog surrounding Jack the Ripper began to dissipate, the elusive white mist carried away by the wind. For the first time, the young girl was clearly exposed to the bright sunlight.

"Ugh... Mom, Mom, Mom!" Jack the Ripper murmured with his eyes closed, his magic power beginning to increase abnormally. She bent down, gripping the dagger tightly in both hands, and then slowly opened her blood-red eyes.

The surging magic around Jack the Ripper was like wind and mist. "Ahhh, this is hell..."

Despite the conditions not being nighttime, she forcibly activated her Noble Phantasm—did Jack's Master notice her unusual behavior?! Fujimaru Ritsuka immediately cast an invincibility spell on herself, panting and shouting as she moved away from Jack the Ripper:

"Alter, five lines, attack!"

"Ha, it's finally my turn. I've been holding back a lot of anger, so I'll let loose a little this time."

Gojo Satoru strode out from his hiding place and raised his hand. A terrifying surge of magical power whipped up a torrent of air, blowing the stray hairs from his forehead and revealing his azure eyes, which seemed to suppress the wind and snow.

"Domain Expansion—"

The sound of iron boots scraping against the ground grew clearer.

Jeanne Alter, clad in simple black armor, uttered no superfluous words. She fixed her gaze on her target, raising a sword high in her left hand, flames swirling around her.

"Come, this is the roar of my soul, forged by hatred."

The blazing flames quickly engulfed the entire area, growing ever more intense. The intense heat even caused the sun to temporarily retreat, and the clear sky was ablaze with crimson flames.

Joan of Arc Alter revealed a maniacal smile, and swung her raised sword down heavily, as if giving a command, pointing it directly at Jack the Ripper.

"...Disintegration of the Virgin Mary".

"Boundless emptiness!"

"Roar, my wrath!!"

The whole world seemed to freeze in that one second.

—

But outside the door, just a wall away.

Spurred on by his future self's words, Xia Youjie temporarily set aside all notions of righteousness and his non-sorcerer status. He suddenly remembered what Leonardo da Vinci of Chaldea had said: this world was about to be destroyed.

At the time, he was only shocked that the world that sorcerers had built and protected with their lives was about to be destroyed, but now... damn, could it be his future self who did it?

With more pressing issues looming, his own future seemed insignificant. Xia Youjie steadied himself, straightened his back, and faced his future self head-on. "Let me ask you this: how did you arrive at this point in time?"

He did not fall behind; in fact, he displayed a youthful spirit.

"You're quite rational, and your mental state is better than mine before." Master Xia stroked his chin, looking at Xia Youjie's face, which was free of dark circles, with newfound curiosity. Because of this newfound curiosity, he continued to answer patiently:

"How did I come to be? Was I summoned after I died as some kind of Servant?"

“Then someone told me to make a wish upon the golden cup,” he said. “So I wished for the destruction of humanity. The future is already bleak anyway; monkeys are disgusting, sorcerers are hopeless, even Satoru is dead—”

He paused for a moment, as if suddenly realizing something, and the rest of his words remained unspoken, only a low murmur: "Heh, why is it that only good people live in pain?"

"you……"

Xia Youjie couldn't help but take a step back, a strange, chilling feeling creeping up his spine. He couldn't even think about whether it was his ability to become a Servant that was frightening, or the news of Gojo Satoru's death that was more terrifying.

All the words he wanted to say stuck in his throat, and in the end he could only utter four words heavily:

"Are you crazy?!"

"Who knows?" A raging fire suddenly ignited in Xia Youjie's eyes. He moved closer to Xia Youjie, almost grabbing him by the collar, and said:

"When Fushiguro Jin killed Riko; when the disgusting applause of the Panxing Cult members rang out; when I realized that Gojo Satoru had become the strongest on his own; when the Haibara Yuu I knew should have died a few days ago, when sorcerers were tortured by ordinary people..."

He stared at his naive past self and demanded sharply, "After all this, shouldn't I be going crazy?"

"Shouldn't I be crazy?!"

Xia Youjie: "..."

"I am very sorry for what happened to you."

Unexpectedly, Xia Youjie brushed away his future self's hand, his voice trembling slightly, "But I can't understand you, and I don't believe my future will become you."

"You should be able to save Haibara, right?" He felt a lingering fear. "But if it weren't for Ritsuka, that child would have died too! How could you bear to do that?!"

Xia You, the cult leader, closed his eyes and then opened them again, concealing his outward emotions and revealing a detached smile.

Things really did turn out differently than he had expected. But he suddenly began to wonder if Xia Youjie would really follow the same path as him, agree with his goals, and cooperate with him?

He had only come to see who Jack was for failing to kill the sorcerer; he didn't recall the Zen family having such power.

Unexpectedly, he ran into his past self, so he decided to recruit him. Limbo had his own agenda; he was desperately short of manpower right now. But this Xia Youjie, compared to him…

That's a bit too lucky.

“I’ve already said it before, I’m here to destroy humanity, why bother?” The young cult leader couldn’t quite understand his younger self. “Besides, in the future you don’t know, Japan will experience a catastrophe, and sorcerers are destined to die a painful death.”

What's the point of saving people who are destined to die?

Xia Youjie opened his mouth, "What's the point?" He suddenly recalled the firm and deafening voice that Fujimaru Ritsuka had uttered in the quiet night.

Salvation itself is meaningful.

Sunlight pierced through the clouds, illuminating Xia Youjie's entire body. The fine dust particles reflected the brilliant light, as if adding a sacred halo to him.

Looking directly into the young cult leader's dark purple eyes, Xia Youjie retorted firmly, "You're wrong."

"Salvation itself is the meaning!"

For a moment, apart from the sound of the wind, the area in front of the Zen temple was eerily quiet.

For the first time, Xia You, the leader of the cult, revealed an expression that could be described as a mixture of surprise and bewilderment. His sharp, handsome but dull face suddenly came to life.

These are the words he could say when he was in the third grade?

“Hoo... Human emotions.” A deep voice broke the silence. “I think your dream of cooperating with your past self has probably come to nothing.”

Xia Youjie exclaimed warily, "Who is it!"

Xia You, the cult leader, scoffed, "Why are you here too?"

“This humble monk originally came to witness your past suffering and breakdown. But he is no longer the confused youth you described, but a warrior of unwavering will.”

A plain-looking, unremarkable black-haired man with no memorable features walked up to the young cult leader, but the intense malice emanating from him sent chills down Xia Youjie's spine.

Before the cult leader could speak, the man started complaining, "I thought you would say some seductive words to lure your past self onto the pirate ship. Instead, you're being blunt about your goal of destroying humanity."

He sighed inwardly. It was too straightforward. Was it really still a problem with the job system?

"I thought he would understand and agree to cooperate," the young cult leader said expressionlessly. Who doesn't understand themselves? Who would have thought he'd stumble at this point?

Listening to their idle chatter, Xia Youjie gave a wry smile and said, "I'm really sorry, but I never thought you had any intention of cooperating with me."

The cult leader waved his hand dismissively, casually straightened his cuffs, and gestured invitingly, "That's no longer important. I'll ask you one last time formally: do you want revenge against humanity for betraying us? Do you want to destroy humanity together?"

A note from the author:

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