What is the Old Man of the Mountain?
To look into their historical origins, they began as followers of the Nizari branch, which split from Isma'ilism, itself a sect of Shia Islam.
Originally, they were a group that performed conversions and medical missions among Sunnis and Copts. However, once the Seljuk Empire began systematic persecution, they shifted their framework from moderate missionary work to full-scale armed struggle. And the starting point of that struggle, the man who was their leader... was none other than Hassan-i-Sabbah.
The reason they were called the 'Old Man of the Mountain' was that their headquarters was a massive fortress built deep within the mountains.
...Yes, even this brief explanation should be enough to understand.
A group that once practiced peaceful and inclusive proselytization shifted toward armed combat, choosing 'assassination'—the most radical method of all—as their primary tool.
There is no need to explain what happens to a group when fanaticism and radicalism merge... they were, quite literally, a collective of fanatics.
Their religious order came to be known as the Hashashin, and later, the Assassins. In a sense, they serve as the very origin of the Assassin Class of Heroic Spirits.
"Um... Master, like I said before, the Assassin order is..."
"I know! I know it’s a psychotic cult that maintains its faith through murder!"
At Ritsuka Suse's aggressive outburst, Mordred and Mash Kyrielight tried to cover her mouth simultaneously. However, Ritsuka stood her ground and stepped forward defiantly.
"What, am I wrong? If my words bother you, are you going to take my head too, just like you tried with that old man?"
[Communication is difficult. That 'old man' you speak of is an individual who has committed an indelible, ultimate crime—not just against our Human Order, but against the foundation of the Human Order in its entirety.]
"Then explain it! If he's a sinner, then we—who are working with him to restore the Human Order—must be sinners too, right? Does that mean our actions are wrong? If the Restoration of the Human Order is a sin, then are the actions of the King of Demon Gods, who seeks to incinerate it, actually a glorious achievement and a good deed?"
[That is likely a matter that cannot be explained through the simple concepts of good and evil.]
"AAAAAAAAAAGH!!!"
Ritsuka screamed in frustration.
What does it mean to try and converse with those beyond the reach of reason? Ritsuka was realizing it most poignantly now. She had heard endless warnings from the Aozaki sisters and Director Olga Marie about Magi who sprinted blindly toward the singular value of 'Mystery,' but these lunatics who placed 'Faith' as their supreme priority—sacrificing their lives and even their egos for it—seemed fundamentally incompatible.
'...But if that's the case, things don't add up...'
Ritsuka had committed the greatest blasphemy she could muster.
She called their deeds fanaticism and provoked them by mocking their history right to their faces. If they were truly mindless fanatics, the logical response would be to fall upon her and take her head... yet they did not harm her. In fact, she had heard that when Tristan first arrived with Karma Kirigaya, they had even extended hospitality to everyone except Karma.
Why? Why was he considered an enemy of the Human Order, a sinner?
"At least give me a reason. If he's a sinner, then either remove the factors that make him one, or just find a reason for your side to cooperate anyway!"
[As long as he exists as a living being, we can never coexist.]
"...Gah, listening to this is making me die of frustration! We can't restore the Human Order without that man!"
[Is that not merely the will of your King?]
A bandage-wrapped Assassin with a lithe, visible body-line appeared, replacing the grotesque Hassan of the Cursed Arm who possessed the long, mutated arm.
[Just as your King possesses a gaze that reaches into omniscience, our Ancestor possesses a sight that reaches the same heights, Knight of Treachery.]
[There is no way your King is unaware of what he knows.]
[To leave that wickedness unchecked is the height of self-indulgence and arrogance.]
[Black Knight, do you truly believe your leader sent you here to save him?]
"Agravain might be a total bastard, but he's no idiot. Unless his head is completely empty, there's no way he'd just leave that man to die. He's someone who ground his entire life down to protect the Human Order—calling a man like that an enemy of humanity? There's a limit to how much nonsense I'll take."
[Though a goal may be noble, it does not mean the means are holy.]
"...Whatever else you say, that doesn't sound like something you lot have the right to utter."
[Further dialogue is unnecessary.]
In that instant, dozens of shadows began to surge forth.
All wore similar skull masks and similar attire—the 'Old Men of the Mountain.'
"...It’s Hassan of the Hundred Faces."
"The Elders are likely mixed in among the hundred. Fighting an Assassin at their own base is an act of suicide."
Mordred, indifferent to the threat, roughly drew her sword, Clarent.
"Stop, Mordred."
"Hah?"
"...I'll ask one last time. As long as he is here, there is no room for negotiation?"
[Indeed.]
"Then that’s it. Let’s go back."
"Master?"
"There's no point in wasting any more time here. It'll be better to regroup with the old man at the coordinates Agravain gave us."
[We wish you luck in battle.]
Ritsuka didn't even bother to respond to the Assassins, who remained polite only toward her until the very end. She descended the mountain with Mash.
"So, where do we go now?"
"South-southeast. If we push any harder, the horses won't hold out... but if we go on foot, the Enforcement Knights won't be able to keep up. Strictly speaking, those guys are self-aware puppets, homunculi, so their output is limited."
"I feel like I just wasted a frustrating amount of time... but Mordred."
"Yeah?"
"The King of Knights... I mean, does the Lion King really know that truth? Is that why she said those things..."
"Hey! Why are you taking the babbling of those fanatics to heart?"
"But..."
Ritsuka swallowed her words.
The words of fanatics and the mad often turned out to be painful truths that circled back with startling accuracy... Spartacus, the Berserker who was easier to talk to than most because of his madness; Emperor Nero, whom she had personally convinced; Kiyohime, who loved her...
...And when it came to zealots like these, it was even more likely...
'...No, for now, focus on the Restoration of the Human Order. If the old man really wanted to, he could have abandoned this restoration long ago and moved to another point in time.'
Ritsuka, who already knew part of the Millennium Castle Project discussed with Archetype: Earth, could not fathom what they meant by an 'Enemy of the Human Order.' Just like someone currently dwelling within the Vampiric Forest.
Deep within the Vampiric Forest—a place already surrounded by dozens of Bounded Fields and anti-thaumaturgy fields—the area was being stained by a saturated barrage of fire and oil.
"I see they've used their heads to devise a tactic. Using iron and fire to deal with trees... I didn't think those bastards would apply the Five Elements to this, but they've picked the wrong opponent."
Ordinary trees would certainly be reduced to ash by the flames. However, the offspring of the Vampiric Forest were different... because this creature, which accumulated groundwater and the blood of living things while freely mimicking nearly every plant in existence, could even emulate the properties of a Baobab tree.
"But this is merely a temporary measure. It will be insufficient to deal with a Servant."
"That’s why we’re waiting. They know that too, which is why they're engaging in this tedious war of attrition... whether it's me sucking up the Leyline, Camelot, the Mountain, or even us simultaneously... it's all an endless battle of consumption. They have no choice but to deploy Servants eventually... and when they do, we'll hunt them."
"However, you must know this as well, Master. This is similar to the Bounded Field set up at the Hyatt Hotel. If we face an enemy capable of wide-range attacks that can blow away the entire forest... like yourself, the possibility exists that this entire forest will be destroyed."
"Then I’ll just have to stop them. Though it'll be difficult."
Deus Vult, Deus Vult, Deus Vult... That familiar phrase he had heard so many times he was sick of it whenever he encountered the Burial Agency was inflicting mental fatigue, despite having a body that barely required sleep or rest.
And in that moment... the two Servants felt it simultaneously.
"...They are coming, Master."
"Right... looks like those bastards used their brains a bit. This changes the story."
After saying this, Karma picked up a bright red fruit he had kept tightly wrapped in a clump of earth and began to slowly trace a magic circle.
Beyond the forest branches and the vision of his familiars, a Lancer with pale skin and white hair was approaching, holding a spear larger than his own height aloft.
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