Scathach didn't quite understand why she had suddenly arrived at this point.
She had initially intended to have a proper discussion with Ian after taking a bath.
However, the moment she took the underwear he had found, that idea twisted in an instant.
"The bathroom is a more suitable place to talk than the sofa," Scathach suddenly thought.
She was inherently a person of strong action; if she felt something was suitable to do, she would do it immediately.
And so, the incident with the stuck underwear clasp followed.
Of course, it truly was a problem she was facing. It just happened to coincide with this particular timing. And even without that troublesome clasp, Scathach knew she would certainly have found other ways to accomplish this.
Returning to the question itself, Scathach toyed with the interesting object in her hand, recalling what Ian had said to her on the rooftop last night.
He wasn't like the students in the Spearmanship club who thought she was some strange old woman. Thinking about it from this perspective, she should still hold a certain attraction for him. So, making such a request now should be a sure thing. The Queen of the Land of Shadows would absolutely not be defeated in such a matter.
However, just as Scathach was brimming with confidence, thinking she was destined to succeed, she heard an unexpected answer from behind her.
Ian, without any hesitation, responded to the Queen of the Land of Shadows' recent invitation.
"I'm sorry, Misaya," he said. "I... I cannot participate in any Holy Grail War with you."
The Servant's Dilemma
[A Servant is the embodiment of an Heroic Spirit's power.]
[And Heroic Spirits themselves are powerful beings formed after heroes draw power from the Pan-Human History.]
[This means they are essentially not much different from ordinary people; they also possess the full range of human emotions.]
[While the feeling of being touched intimately by Misaya was certainly pleasant,]
[You never forgot your identity.]
[You are the Saber summoned by Tohsaka Sakura with great effort.]
[By all accounts, it is absolutely impossible for you to become a Holy Grail War partner with Misaya.]
[This is a matter with no room for discussion.]
"..."
Scathach's pupils widened slightly. Clearly, at this moment, she refused to believe that what she had just heard was true.
Ian... rejected her?
In this situation, while he was being intimately touched, he refused her, the Queen of the Land of Shadows?
Scathach felt her confidence crack. As if an instinctive reaction, she began to search for other reasons to argue.
No! There must be another reason!
That's it! She hadn't clearly explained to him what the Holy Grail War was yet! As soon as he knew what it was for, he would definitely change his mind.
Thinking this, Scathach, as if grasping at a lifeline, leaned her body forward, displaying an intensely imposing presence.
"Ian, don't be so quick to refuse me," she told him. "You... you probably don't know what the Holy Grail War is about, do you?"
"..."
Ian couldn't answer that question. After all, his purpose for becoming a teacher at Homurahara Academy was to disguise his identity as a Holy Grail War Servant. If he were to discuss this with Misaya in a familiar manner now, everything would be turned upside down. So, he had no choice but to remain silent, and that's all he could do.
[But what you don't know is that your reaction was misunderstood by Misaya.]
[She thought she had guessed the reason you were unwilling to agree.]
A Matter of Desire
It was indeed because he didn't know the purpose of the Holy Grail War! Scathach "confirmed" this fact.
"Ian," the queen said, turning around, while holding up her bra, which was about to fall off because of the back clasp, and simultaneously gripping his vital spot, she explained very seriously, "The Holy Grail War is a war to grant wishes."
"If you can win it," she continued, "you can fulfill one of your wishes. Do you... do you not have anything you want to achieve?"
"..."
Ian looked at Misaya, who was blushing profusely but speaking very earnestly, and immediately realized that she was very sincerely inviting him to be her partner.
To be honest, if there were no other restrictions, faced with someone so persistent, even willing to sacrifice her own dignity, Ian felt he would most likely be very willing to agree to her. After all, sincerity is always the strongest killing move.
But now, Ian would absolutely not agree to this. Because he only had one Master—Tohsaka Sakura. All other possibilities were absolutely nonexistent.
"Thank you for your kind offer, Misaya," the knight politely refused her invitation, then expressed his apology. "But I'm very sorry, I cannot participate in any Holy Grail War with you."
"..."
She was refused again. Scathach felt her head buzzing. She couldn't tell if it was because of drinking too much or simply the indignation of being rejected. But one thing the Queen of the Land of Shadows could absolutely confirm at this moment was that she still hadn't gotten Ian's consent.
The Unspoken Bargain
Where did it go wrong? Was she not attractive to him? No, he had said she was cute. Did he dislike cute girls then? No, that couldn't be right either; if he truly disliked them, he wouldn't be standing here right now.
In that case, was it simply that this guy wasn't interested in the Holy Grail War? Yes, this was the only possibility.
Hiss... If that was the case, things would be troublesome. Because if there was no desire to be fulfilled, there would naturally be no underlying motivation. Scathach genuinely didn't know how to handle it for a moment.
And just then, Ian's slightly embarrassed voice came through. "Misaya," he said, "if you could, would you mind letting go of my hand? I think I should leave now."
"..."
A flash of lightning crossed Scathach's mind. The Queen of the Land of Shadows suddenly realized that she actually had a special solution. That was her own gender.
Yes. He might have no desire for the Holy Grail War. But, he couldn't possibly have no thoughts about the opposite sex, could he? Although the logic for solving problems with the two was definitely completely different, for the current situation, they had an equivalent effect.
"Let's try it!" Scathach convinced herself. After all, she had finally met an individual who matched her desires so well, and she naturally didn't want to give up easily.
"Not yet," she said. Facing the man's gaze, Scathach not only didn't remove her hand from his vital spot but also exerted stronger pressure. The wisdom of the Demonic Realm was fully displayed at this moment.
"I still need to use it," she declared.
"Still need to use it?!" he exclaimed.
"Yes," Scathach nodded. "This is... my bargaining chip."
The Queen of the Land of Shadows said this while acting on her own thoughts. Under Ian's gaze, she gently pulled down the disguise on his enormous object. And the moment she witnessed the truth, Scathach's throat subtly moved.
"So big..." she murmured.
Yes. It was a visual impact far clearer than when she had only touched it, to the point that a single glance would be unforgettable for a lifetime. Had she been sleeping with this thing as a pillow last night?!
"Misaya!" he protested.
"Don't interrupt me yet!" Scathach, blushing, cut him off. "Wait... wait until you've tried this, then decide whether or not to reject me!"
"..."
[You realize Misaya is going all-in.]
[She seems to believe that taking this aggressive approach will make you her Holy Grail War partner.]
[You know that if you don't let her try once, she will absolutely not give up.]
[So—]
[You no longer resisted her actions.]
[You decided to let the facts tell her the truth.]
A Master of the Lance
In all fairness, Scathach didn't actually know the best way to proceed. As the esteemed Queen of the Land of Shadows, she had never considered such matters. After all, merely guarding the passage between the inside and outside of the world already consumed most of her energy.
However, a first attempt did not equate to a poor performance. Having witnessed countless events, she already had various countermeasures. This was the wisdom of the Demonic Realm, a treasure trove of knowledge.
Scathach released the hand covering her upper body's bra; at this moment, she no longer cared about privacy. She needed to make him feel that kind of desire because of her gender!
Fortunately, Scathach quickly discovered that it wasn't as difficult as she had imagined. To be precise, she found a way to apply analogous experiences.
A spear shaft feels hard; and his object can also become hard. So, if she were to cherish it like a spear when it was hard, it would undoubtedly have a good effect.
And this seemingly absurd idea did indeed prove viable. Scathach cherished every spear—after all, in a sense, they all held the possibility of her breaking free from fate. Applying this theory to practice meant comfortable and gentle surface strokes.
Scathach's hand formed a circle, then moved up and down. She could feel the "spear" in her hand gradually heating up. This method allowed her to witness the second stage of the "spear."
So there was much more to it than met the eye! Scathach now felt even more confident.
The Queen of the Land of Shadows completely shed her inner restraints and began to polish the "spear" with one hand and "cast the projectile" with the other. Such a fierce offensive quickly yielded results. In the morning bathroom, a spring of life surged forth.
It was a breathtaking sight that made Scathach momentarily stunned. But she quickly recovered; after all, this was something that was bound to happen in her plan.
The Queen of the Land of Shadows gently pulled at the lingering traces with her hand, then held it up, displaying it to Ian.
"It should feel pretty good, right?" she asked.
"If," she continued, "you're willing to participate in the Holy Grail War with me, I'll do this for you every day. Will you agree now?"
This was a huge concession from Scathach. Before this, she had never made such an embarrassing promise to anyone.
However, Ian's answer was still negative. The man simply shook his head and gave his reply.
"I'm sorry, Misaya," he said, "I still cannot be your partner."
"..."
Ian's actions made Scathach realize that his current behavior was simply to prove that he wouldn't change his mind because of such stimulation. But this, in turn, ignited the Queen of the Land of Shadows' competitive spirit.
A simple invitation didn't work. Explaining the meaning of the Holy Grail War didn't work either. This level of shameful action still didn't work.
In that case, she could only offer a bigger bargaining chip to continue bidding.
Scathach, going all-in, knew there was no turning back at this point. She didn't believe that as a queen, she couldn't change Ian's mind!
Scathach reached out and took Ian's hand, which he had been trying to keep away. She took a deep breath, calming her frustrated emotions, then pulled his hand to the inner and outer passages of her own body.
"Then," she began, "if I allow you to use this place when we do that, would you still be unwilling?"
"Unwilling," Ian replied almost instantly.
"However," he added, "I'd like to compensate you for what just happened."
"What?" Scathach hadn't reacted yet when she felt a tremor run through her body.
She looked at him, realizing his fingers were performing some quite subtle movements.
"Ian, you..."
"Don't be surprised," the man's expression remained calm; he didn't seem to think he was doing anything strange. "I'm just—"
"Achieving an equivalent exchange of pleasure with you. Of course, considering other factors... I think I should compensate you a bit more."
The moment the man finished speaking, Scathach felt an incredibly comfortable sensation of pleasure rush straight to her head from below.
Ten years. Twenty years. No. She hadn't experienced this kind of whole-body tingling pleasure until now.
How was he so skilled?!
However, Scathach didn't have time to fully ponder this question before the sensation of pleasure seized control of her body. She had simply been lonely for too long. So much so that she had forgotten the primal pleasures that her "human" self should possess. Now, the moment she re-experienced it, the proud queen was naturally defenseless.
In an instant, the flower of life bloomed in the bathroom. This time, Scathach was the one who cultivated it.
The Queen of the Land of Shadows leaned into his embrace, looking at the flower painting newly drawn on the wall, and smelled the fragrance of her own body from it. Her heart was filled with shame, but also a rather exhilarating thrill.
This method of equivalent pleasure exchange intensified Scathach's desire to have his companionship. It had been so long since she had met someone who made her feel this way!
That's right. She couldn't give up. If a frontal assault wouldn't work, then she would use strategy. She would absolutely not concede defeat when it came to attracting the opposite sex!
The Queen of the Land of Shadows was going to prove one thing to this man who had stirred her heartstrings: that she could absolutely make him agree through her femininity!