After intimidating Alice, Ren's indifferent expression vanished. He returned to the aura of an ordinary high school student—relaxed and as if nothing had just happened.
Alice, who was still trembling slightly from the earlier threat, now began to regain her elegant composure. She smiled lightly, a smile that remained etched on her face even though she had just been threatened by a Campione.
"You should know why I'm here." Ren asked casually.
Alice looked at him for a moment, then guessed cautiously, "Of course, King Ren. I can guess. Campiones only seek Hime-Miko or witches like me if they want to summon a Heretic God or search for something using Spirit Vision. So... Does King Ren wish to perform a summoning ritual like Marquis Voban?"
"...?!"
Hayasaka, who stood behind Ren, tensed up.
'A Heretic God Summoning Ritual?!'
Although she had only recently become involved in the mystical world, she knew how insane that idea was.
"..."
Ren didn't answer immediately. He simply stared at Alice with an unreadable expression.
Seeing this, Alice let out a small sigh.
"If that's the case, then I must apologize for letting you come here without results. In my current physical condition, it's impossible for me to leave this place... In fact, I'm afraid I might die before the ritual could even be performed."
Her tone sounded calm, but there was a hint of bitterness in it.
Hayasaka observed Alice more carefully. Only now did she realize that this woman was truly frail. Despite her perfect, elegant, and captivating appearance, her body was so fragile that even participating in a magical ritual could endanger her life.
Alice smiled faintly at the gaze. "Miss, don't look at me like that. If you show such a sympathetic expression... I'll only feel sadder."
Hearing this, Hayasaka snapped out of it and quickly bowed her head. "I apologize for my rudeness, Princess Alice."
Ren simply listened to their conversation without saying a word. He knew everything Alice said was true. However, considering the cunning nature of this girl, he decided to tease her a little.
"Then... How about you become my woman?"
"...?!?!"
Silence immediately enveloped the room.
Alice, who could usually remain calm in any situation, was now completely shocked. She froze for a moment before a blush appeared on her cheeks.
'What did he just say?!'
Alice hadn't expected the least likely assumption to actually come true. Unsurprisingly, her face turned red with embarrassment. After all, no matter how great she was as a strategist who had faced the Black Prince Alec, she was still a 22-year-old girl with no romantic experience.
Previously, many men had proposed to her—from nobles to geniuses in the mystical world. However, none had made her panic like this.
Why?
Because the man before her wasn't an ordinary man—he was a Campione!
If an ordinary man proposed to her, Alice could reject him with various reasons. But rejecting a Campione? That could end with very dire consequences!
"Gulp."
Alice swallowed hard. She had to think of a way to reject him without offending his pride.
Trying to calm her racing heartbeat, Alice gracefully raised her hand and spoke in a soft tone, "King Ren, I am unworthy of being part of your harem."
"Oh? Why do you think so?" Ren smiled faintly.
"If a Campione openly declares that they are forming a harem, there will be many women in this world who would gladly come forward. From Asia to Europe, many women would willingly offer themselves just to bear a child of a Campione." Alice stated the facts.
Beside Ren, Hayasaka's eyes widened.
'Wait... What did she just say?! Campiones can openly recruit harems?! And women would willingly offer themselves just like that?!'
Hayasaka felt her brain almost couldn't process this information.
'A Campione isn't just strong like a monster, but they also have a status that allows them to claim as many women as they want. Isn't this something only kings and emperors could do in ancient times?'
'Never mind, don't think too much. From the start, I knew Ren-sama was a flamboyant man who would never settle for monogamy.'
Hayasaka glanced at Ren. The young man simply smiled casually, as if this wasn't a big deal to him.
"Alright, let's move on to more serious topics."
"Mmm... King Ren, what about the earlier conversation?"
"Of course, that was just a joke. Or what? Do you really want to be my woman?"
Alice gasped, her cheeks slightly red from the shock. However, she quickly retorted, worried that Ren might change his mind.
"My frail physique wouldn't be able to satisfy a man like you."
"That's true. You might faint just a few minutes into bed."
"Ugh..."
Alice felt insulted but couldn't retort. As a noblewoman, she had been trained to maintain her dignity and composure in any situation. However, in front of this shameless Campione, her pride was being tested cruelly.
Ignoring the girl's slightly trembling expression as she suppressed her anger, Ren got straight to the point.
"I want you to create a magic for me."
Alice blinked a few times, calming her mind. "What kind of magic do you want, King Ren?"
Ren smiled contentedly, seeing Alice finally getting serious.
"Unlike the Heretic God Summoning Ritual performed by Marquis Voban, which requires dozens of Hime-Miko, I want a method to summon a Heretic God using a special medium—the Holy Grail."
Then, Ren explained the mechanics of the Summoning Ritual in the Holy Grail War. Of course, he only focused on the aspect of summoning Heroic Spirits as Servants.
As someone who had been a fan of the Type-Moon franchise in his previous life, he understood the concept of the Throne of Heroes and Servants.
However, this world had something similar to the Throne of Heroes, though fundamentally different—Domain of Immortality.
Domain of Immortality is where gods, heroes, and divine beasts from myths reside. Once they leave Domain of Immortality and manifest in the mortal world, they become Heretic Gods, bringing disaster with them.
They are truly living, moving natural disasters. Even if they were benevolent gods in mythology, when they become Heretic Gods on Earth, every action they take brings calamity and death to humanity.
Therefore, even if Heretic Gods are killed and return to Domain of Immortality, they never truly die. So, even if they are killed, they can reappear.
"..."
After Ren finished, Alice fell silent for a moment, processing all the information she had just heard.
"I can do it. Creating a summoning formula isn't a big deal for me. However, there's one major obstacle—the existence of the Holy Grail itself. Even Alexander Gascoigne, who has spent decades searching for it, still hasn't found any concrete clues."
Hearing that she could realize his idea, Ren knew Alice was the right person to help him.
"I know who has it."
"Really?"
"Alice, your task is to find the location of the Holy Grail's owner using Spirit Vision. I'll take care of the rest."
Alice stared at Ren with disbelief. How could Ren know the location of the Holy Grail, something Alec had been chasing for decades?
"King Ren, who has the Holy Grail?"
"The Divine Ancestor Guinevere."