Upon hearing Dracula's demand, Alaya and Gaia hesitated only briefly before nodding.
"Just a few Heroic Spirits," Alaya said bluntly. "Human history has no shortage of heroes. Besides, with your luck stat, Lord Dracula, summoning one of our Grand Servants—like the Grand Seven—is practically impossible."
Dracula resisted the sudden urge to beat this insufferable collective consciousness into a pulp and leaned back into his seat.
"Alright then. Let's hear your request."
"It's like this." Alaya cleared her throat and began.
"In our world, there are people who study and use mysteries. They call themselves magi. Their ultimate goal is to bypass the surveillance of me and Gaia, reach the other side of the world, and seek the Root—the origin of all things. To accomplish this, they'll do anything. They're constantly trying to make headlines with some new stunt."
"Hm? That crazy?"
Dracula raised a brow.
"So why don't you just kill them? I would've done it ages ago."
"I can't," Alaya replied with a shrug. "I'm the Counter Force, not a demon king like you. I can only act if their actions threaten the survival of humanity. Same goes for Gaia—she only intervenes when the world itself is at risk. We still have to follow the laws of this world, after all."
"Fine. Go on," Dracula said.
"Well, among these Root-seeking magi, three families joined forces in Japan's Fuyuki City and stirred up a mess. They used their family magics and Fuyuki's leyline to create a massive magical construct—a Holy Grail. With it, they hoped to perform a ritual to reach the Root."
"This ritual uses the Grail's magic to summon avatars of Heroic Spirits—Servants—from the Throne of Heroes, which exists beyond the world. These Servants, powered by the Grail's mana, are made to obey their summoners using Command Seals. Then, seven Servants of different classes fight to the death. The energy from their deaths returns to the Grail to complete the ritual, opening a path through the Throne and into the Root."
"But then they discovered the Grail could only grant one person access to the Root. So the three families—Einzbern, Tohsaka, and Matou—turned on each other and decided the winner of the war would claim the prize. The ritual, now called the Holy Grail War, has been passed down. Every sixty years, a new one is held in Fuyuki."
"And?" Dracula said. "That sounds like a minor annoyance at best."
"If it were just the Holy Grail War, you'd be right." Alaya nodded.
"Even if someone reached the world's edge, we'd intercept them. But the problem is… during the third Grail War, the Grail was corrupted by human malice and became a vessel of evil. Now, for the upcoming war, someone is tampering with the summoning system—allowing not seven, but fourteen Servants to be summoned."
"If this ritual completes, and all that double-charged mana is poured into the corrupted Grail, then the 'Evil of This World' it contains could have catastrophic consequences for both humanity and the world."
"I see now."
Dracula nodded.
"You want me to destroy the Grail—or rather, the evil inside it, the so-called 'Evil of This World,' right?"
"Precisely."
Alaya replied, "We'll assign one Heroic Spirit to assist you, and you're also free to summon others using the ritual—though what you get depends on your luck."
"Fine. I'll take the deal."
Dracula stood up.
"I'll get rid of your Grail problem. In exchange, you release the Heroic Spirits I summon."
"Agreed," Alaya said. "A fair deal."
"Then next," she continued, "Gaia and I will transfer your castle to the Grail War's location—Fuyuki City. Please lower the energy barrier."
Dracula clapped his hands. The seal vanished. Alaya and Gaia floated into the air, and a powerful will enveloped Castlevania.
"Don't worry," Alaya added, "we've arranged your identity within local records."
At that moment, Dracula felt a conceptual shift in space—he knew his castle had been relocated to Fuyuki.
Suddenly, someone began knocking at the front door.
Thanks to the castle's internal control system, a floating projection appeared mid-air, revealing the image and voice of the visitor. He looked like a deliveryman.
Dracula and Kirie exchanged glances. He stood up first.
"Well, let's go see what this guy wants."
They arrived at the grand entrance of the castle and opened the door. Outside, the deliveryman was muttering to himself:
"Can't believe there's such a massive castle on the outskirts… These filthy rich folks are really something…"
Then he looked up—and saw the doors swing open, revealing Dracula and Kirie walking out side by side, staring right at him.
"Ahem."
The deliveryman turned red, tugged at his cap, and picked up a box.
"Excuse me, is this the residence of one Gabriel Belmont?"
Dracula figured the system must've fed his old aliases to the Counter Force.
"Yes," he replied. "I am Gabriel Belmont."
"Great. Here's your delivery."
The man handed him a clipboard and pen.
Dracula signed with a few practiced strokes and returned them. The man handed over a huge box, but couldn't resist glancing at Kirie.
"My, what a lovely lady. Is she your wife?"
Dracula, while curious, was far too lazy to entertain gossip. He said nothing and simply took the box.
Kirie, however, felt a secret joy in her heart.
After bidding the deliveryman goodbye, the two returned to the castle's grand hall and placed the box on the floor.
"So this is the legendary starter pack, huh?"
Dracula stood with hands on hips, eyeing the shipping label.
"Let's see… Looks like it was sent from France."
"Yeah… I wonder what's inside…"
Kirie replied absentmindedly, her cheeks slightly flushed.
"You look quite pleased with yourself, Kirie."
Dracula tilted his head and looked at her suspiciously.