Shinji Matou at Your Service-Chapter 969: Merlin, Go to Hell!

Fou and Primate Murder were names given to the White Beast later on. Originally, it did not go by these names. During the time of King Arthur, its name was Cath Palug, the Beast of Misfortune from Arthurian legend, a three-eyed cat demon (though it looked more like a dog) left over from the pig demon. It was Merlin's familiar and had once fought against Artoria's foster brother, Sir Kay.

Later, to escape the persistent advances of the Lady of the Lake, Viviane, Merlin hid in the legendary paradise Avalon. Cath Palug followed its master into the Avalon. The two were supposed to remain confined together in the tiny tower, a prison as distant from the world as it was beautiful, waiting for the end of the planet.

However, after Merlin witnessed Artoria accepting her fated end by her own will, finding peace as she descended from the Hill of Swords, his heart—which was driven solely by human emotions—experienced an unprecedented sense of fulfillment, and from this arose new thoughts that he had never considered.

He had seen enough beautiful things.

His time wandering the world like a drifting leaf should come to an end.

The things she had aspired to.

The things she had left behind.

The things she had given to him.

All of those were his rewards, more than enough to adorn this tiny box garden.

But this confinement—he would endure it alone. Though it was somewhat lonely being the last non-human left, he couldn't deprive Cath Palu of its freedom just to satisfy himself. After all, it had not yet seen true beauty.

And so, with no sentiment, he threw his last companion, his familiar, out of the only window, saying:

"Go, Cath Palug. I'll stay here. You, on the other hand, are free to go and encounter true beauty."

At first glance, this might seem like a rather lovely, heartwarming story—this is what Altrouge thought when she first heard it from Fou.

Then, Fou started howling: "Fou Fou—!" and began accusing Merlin of his cruelty.

The Tower of Stone in Avalon was a very tall structure, equivalent to a modern twenty-story building. Merlin and Cath Palug lived on the top floor, which meant Merlin threw it down from a height of around fifty meters and directly out of Avalon.

At that time, Cath Palug was still just an innocent magical cat, not the near-invincible Primate Murder it had become. The journey was a nightmare, severely scarring its young heart.

Because of this, every time it saw Merlin, Cath Palug wanted to ram into him, hoping to make him feel the impact of a 20-story fall.

This time was no exception. Originally, it had been lounging by the riverside with Len, enjoying the night breeze, when it suddenly sensed a familiar presence nearby.

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Though weak, almost imperceptible, it had spent enough time with Merlin and harbored such deep-seated resentment that it recognized him immediately and began to howl.

Len possessed by Merlin immediately bolted.

There was no way Fou would let it get away. This was Len's body, after all, and if it lost it, the two princesses would likely beat it to death when they returned. Plus, it might never again enjoy the softness of Len's body—after all, pets tend to take after their masters, and after spending so much time with the old pervert Merlin, Fou had also developed a fondness for snuggling into soft, full places.

Ever since Altrouge had been severely injured by Arcueid and reverted to a loli form, it hadn't enjoyed the feeling of being squashed between peaks for a long time—until it encountered Arcueid.

So, whether it was for its enjoyment or revenge, it wasn't about letting Merlin escape. Since Len's body was weak, it couldn't use its full strength and had to revert to its original magical cat (or dog) form, engaging in a cute cat-dog battle—which, truth be told, was far more exhausting than fighting an actual enemy with full power. Luckily, the two princesses arrived just in time.

With a casual wave, Altrouge grabbed the magical cat version of Fou in her hand.

"No matter what Merlin's intentions are, using such means is unacceptable. Please leave Len's body."

Unlike Arcueid, Altrouge knew who Merlin was and was aware of his legend, so her tone was somewhat calm. However, her stance remained unchanged—as an ancient being herself, standing at the pinnacle of the world of mystery, she had no reason to fear him.

"Ahahaha, that might be a little difficult for now."

Merlin's illusion scratched the back of his head, letting out an awkward laugh. Seeing the Crimson Sisters' expressions darken simultaneously, he hurried to explain.

"Because of the restrictions of Avalon, it's difficult for me to interfere with the present world. Without this little one's help, I wouldn't even be able to talk to you two. I assure you, ladies, I didn't force anything. Everything was done voluntarily by this little one."

"Fou—Fou—"

"Merlin is untrustworthy—that's what it said."

Altroufe translated with a mocking expression as she glanced at Merlin.

"You ungrateful beast."

Merlin cursed his former familiar directly, "Have you forgotten how I cared for you all those years? You idiot! You fool!"

"Fou—Fou—(Merlin is the fool)!"

Fou retorted, not willing to back down. Merlin, also unwilling to lose, fired back. The two began bickering like old companions, making it clear that Merlin could understand Fou's speech.

"Ah, I should never have adopted you, you cursed disaster cat!"

"Fou—Fou—(Merlin is worse)!"

"Your deceptively cute appearance has charmed so many paw-loving fans. You were adored by countless noblewomen..."

"Fou—Fou—(You were the one who carried me around to meet the noblewomen every day)!"

"Looking at it now, all my hard work preparing every day made me look like a fool. Was it wrong for me to use sweet words, or even sacrifice my good looks, to win their favor?"

"Fuou—Fou—(Nope, it's all Merlin's fault)!"

"You ungrateful magical cat!"

"Fou—(Idiot Merlin)!"

Altroufe let out a heavy sigh at this scene.

Her naturally airheaded sister Arcueid, the pretty-boy-obsessed White Knight Blood, was already giving her enough headaches. She had thought her pet was at least reliable, but now that it had encountered its former master Merlin, it had turned into a fool. And her last bastion of sanity, the ever-loyal Black Knight Strout, wasn't around because he was guarding their base.

Was it a mistake to come to Fuyuki under her mother's orders?

At that moment, Altroufe finally understood the pain of another Faker from a different world on November 6, 2017.

It wasn't that she wasn't trying hard enough—it was just that all these people around her were so unreliable. No matter how talented she was, there was no way she could carry them all by herself.

PS: The Primate Murder Fou corresponds to the Tsukihime timeline, where Cath Palug was thrown out of the Avalon and met Altrouge, learning from her and becoming a vampire, eventually becoming the First of the Twenty-Seven Dead Apostle Ancestors. In the FGO timeline, it wandered around for a long time before arriving at Chaldea, where it was adopted by Mash. Note that Merlin threw Fou out when King Arthur "died." In the FGO timeline, it likely wandered the inner side of the world, where divine beasts lived, for thousands of years before arriving at Chaldea, a place devoid of humans, which is why Fou did not grow stronger.