177 The Tea Party After the Escape
Marie Antoinette was born in Vienna, a little princess beloved by the Empress of Austria, and the former Archduchess of Austria. At the age of 11, she accepted the French royal proposal, and at 14, she formally married the then-Crown Prince Louis XVI. In those first few years, she hadn't even fully mastered French.
At 18, she formally became the Queen of France, the noble of nobles, a glittering and charming presence in banquets and balls. Yet, due to France's ongoing and unresolved financial crisis, she was nicknamed "Madame Deficit" and was eventually executed during the French Revolution.
Now, debuting as a Servant, she is a brilliant, idol-like figure, and enjoys high popularity in the English server.
The reason is that when she speaks English, she involuntarily uses Black gang slang, with "homie" featuring in every sentence.
This kind of contrast makes her appealing. Some have even researched whether she might actually be a 'Godfather' of some sort.
However, the Marie here is different. She is wearing a black-themed gown and appears to be slightly older than the princess seen in the game.
"Wait! Queen? What are you doing? They are my invited guests!" King Louis asked Queen Marie.
"My dear, you are simply too kind, and that is why you are deceived by such people. Don't worry, just leave everything to me. As long as I am here, no one will ever be able to harm our family again." Queen Marie brushed the Emperor's face, and after that, the Emperor fell silent, as if hypnotized.
"Queen... please calm your anger. They are not villains!" D'Eon pleaded.
"D'Eon-chan, calm down. I won't be angry with you, so stand still here obediently! Do it! My homies!" The black-clad Queen waved her hand, and the large black men behind her, uniformly dressed in poker-themed cultural T-shirts, raised handguns and automatic machine guns, pointing the muzzles at Shirou, Tamamo Cat, and Jeanne.
Magic bullets?!
The moment the guns were produced, Shirou sensed the danger. He rushed forward and projected Rho Aias to shield the girls.
"Meow will eat anyone who tries to hurt Master! Nya!!!" Tamamo Cat's hands exposed the sharp claws she usually hid, and she let out a ferocious roar for the first time.
"Now I don't have to worry about the Emperor's kindness! I'll burn all of you!" Jeanne shouted, raising her flag.
The response to the two girls was another hail of bullets.
"Whether you're a cat or a panda, if you want to challenge the Queen's authority, you'll have to deal with the big bird between our legs first!" The large black men snapped their fingers and, with a strong sense of rhythm, sang a hip-hop chorus. The sound of a piano also came from the room inside, accompanying the large black men.
Behind the large black men, others were breakdancing, rapping while shooting and constantly spewing profanity.
"That settles it! I'll burn all of you directly!" Jeanne roared in a fit of rage.
"Meow can't hold back either! I'll take down all you hateful guys!" Tamamo Cat shouted, raising her sharp claws.
"Wait! Jeanne, Tamamo Cat! Just knock them out! Don't kill them! These people are likely humans who were dragged in from the outside world!" Shirou shouted.
"Tch! That Cake Queen must be crazy, for sure!" Jeanne was very annoyed but put away her sword and struck with her flag pole instead.
"Meow knows!" Tamamo Cat also retracted her sharp claws into her paw pads.
With Shirou helping to block the bullets, and Jeanne and Tamamo Cat seizing the opportunity to counterattack, things went smoothly. The rapping black gunmen were slowly scattered.
The Black Queen Marie yelled in dissatisfaction, "The Execution Squad, out! Off with their heads! Off with their heads! Capture these insolent commoners and throw them in prison! They will be beheaded another day!!!"
A dark shadow flashed, and a male Servant rushed out first, swinging the knife in his hand towards Jeanne.
Jeanne quickly raised her flag to block the attack. She then recognized the attacking Servant and cried out in surprise.
"Eh? So the Execution Squad is you!"
"Hmph, Dragon Witch, I was under your care back then," Sanson said coldly.
"You're an executioner, not an assassin, aren't you? What is this Execution Squad?" Jeanne asked.
"Well, there's someone worse off than me. The one playing the piano accompaniment inside is Mozart," Sanson said dismissively.
"Eh?!" Even Shirou was surprised this time.
Following Sanson, a group of nimble, tall, and slender black swordsmen also surrounded them, wielding magically reinforced swords and axes, and simultaneously slashed at the silver-haired girl and Tamamo Cat.
"Damn it! Shirou, this is no time to hold back!" Jeanne directly unleashed flames and charged towards the black-clad Queen Marie.
A flash of sword light streaked out, bringing a fierce sword wind that actually extinguished the flames.
D'Eon held up his sword vertically in front of him, extinguishing Jeanne's magical flames and deflecting Tamamo Cat's claw strike. He respectfully said to the person behind him, "Queen, please retreat to a safe place. If you wish to harm the Queen, then I will be your opponent!"
"Hmph, I'm leaving it to you, and Amadeus! You come out and fight too!" The Black Queen Marie led King Louis deeper into the Palace of Versailles.
"Yes, yes, Marie, you really know how to boss people around. I don't want to accompany these homies, but I also don't want to fight." At this moment, a slender, long-haired man walked out, playing a strange tune on his hands.
Under the magic of the music, Shirou felt the supply of magical energy in his body become chaotic, and his physical condition rapidly deteriorated. However, D'Eon and Sanson grew stronger with the music.
"Meow, meow!?" Tamamo Cat cried out in surprise.
"Shirou, stop. With the three of us here, you won't be able to win. If you stop now, although you'll have to spend some time in prison, I guarantee I will intercede for you. As soon as the Queen's anger subsides, we will release you immediately," D'Eon advised.
"Yes, as the collaborative alliance of the True Pervert Trio, we are, in a sense, an invincible combination. With D'Eon's defense, Sanson's assassination, and my containment and support, you are strong, but you have no chance," Mozart said with a smile.
"That strange music is annoying, nya! Glittering Midday Nap Palace, Wine Pond, and Meat Forest!!! Anyone who wants to harm Master will be slaughtered! Meow, meow, meow!!!" Tamamo Cat suddenly erupted with tremendous power, unleashing a savage, frenzied claw attack against all the enemies in front of her, whether they were the black gunmen, the swordsmen, or D'Eon, Sanson, and Mozart! It was as if she wanted to tear everything in sight to shreds.
The black men were directly flung away by the force of the claw wind, but Tamamo Cat still remembered her Master's command and spared their lives.
However, the powerful attack was blocked by D'Eon, who used his solid defensive swordsmanship. Sanson evaded the attack, and Mozart, at the very back, ran outside the range of Tamamo Cat's attack.
The three most troublesome Servants pursued them unscathed.
"Meow~ Master, Meow is out of energy. Meow wants to sleep, nya..." Tamamo Cat yawned and lay down on the ground, falling asleep.
"Don't fall asleep! No choice, Jeanne! Retreat!" Shirou ran forward, picked up Tamamo Cat with one arm, and ran outwards.
"Damn it! AHHHH! My anger!" Jeanne unleashed a scorching wall of fire to block the pursuit of D'Eon and the others, then followed Shirou and rushed out of the palace.
.
.
.
Shirou, with Jeanne and Tamamo Cat, escaped the palace. After leaving the outer garden, they arrived at an open space and encountered the Mad Hatter Elizabeth and the Dormouse Osakabehime, who were also having a tea party there today.
"Meow, meow? Is that Osakabehime, nya?!" Tamamo Cat, who was being carried in Shirou's arm, woke up.
"Ah, it's Tamamo Cat, one of the Alter-Ego-TAMAMO-NINE members." Osakabehime, slumped on the table, lazily lifted her head and spoke upon seeing the newcomers.
"She's the Miko's pen pal, and Meow's pen pal, too, for what it's worth, although Meow doesn't often use a mobile phone. A cat teaser, a ball of string, and a frisbee are better suited for me," Tamamo Cat reported to the young man.
"What is TAMAMO-NINE?" Shirou asked in confusion.
Tamamo Cat said seriously, "Tamamo Gucci, who is obsessed with luxury goods; Tamamo Model, who is egoistic and self-centered; Tamamo Bae, the talented and beautiful secretary; Tamamo Hime, who lives a princess-like life every day; Tamamo Aria, the mysterious type; and Tamamo-chan, the JK who is working hard to become an idol... seven of them, plus the Miko herself! They are all great enemies Meow must defeat! Although the Miko already has someone she's promised to be with for life, Master is so handsome. If they see him, they will definitely fall in love, nya!"
Tamamo Cat felt an unprecedented sense of crisis and rushed to the young man's front, saying, "Master, quickly stroke Meow's head, give Meow more love, let Meow grow up quickly, grow nine tails, and deal with them, nya!"
"Yes, yes," Shirou chuckled and stroked the cat's head. He didn't think much of it, guessing it was probably just a situation of sisters quarreling.
At this moment, the Mad Hatter—no, Elizabeth wearing a hat—couldn't resist the urge to sing a song in front of people. She walked directly onto the tea party table and said, "Um, welcome everyone to my concert here. It's rare to have so many guests, so I'll sing a song now to welcome everyone."
"Yes, yes, sing away!" Osakabehime responded casually and once again put on the soundproof headphones transformed from her Noble Phantasm, Himeji Castle, completely disregarding what was happening outside.
Although she was set as the Dormouse, besides catching up on sleep, she mostly just pretended to sleep on the table and buried herself in her phone. Because she was a hikikomori (shut-in), she didn't know what to say even at a tea party.
That annoying, normie-like rabbit hadn't come here either. Although she disliked him, they could surprisingly chat about topics related to life as a shut-in. However, after being suddenly grabbed by the woman who came running a few days ago, he never returned. He was probably killed with a cleaver.
But none of that mattered. Now, only the idol who wanted to sing every day was left. She had hoped for some peace and quiet, but one person left, and a whole group came.
'Hurry up and sing, Elizabeth! Use your destructive singing voice to drive away these people who are disturbing the Princess's peace!' Osakabehime thought to herself.
"Oh, leave it to your idol~!" Elizabeth flipped her tail, picked up the microphone transformed from her spear, and was about to start.
"Wait! Wait!" Shirou quickly shouted to stop her.
"What? You're dressed like a noble, so where did you, an ignorant little deer cub, come from?" Elizabeth scanned the young man and asked.
"Master, would you like some tea?" Tamamo Cat took a bamboo basket out of his pocket and asked.
"Yes, yes! Let's have some tea and snacks first!" Shirou quickly agreed, placing the basket on the table and lifting the lid.
"Hmm... That smells wonderful. Then the concert can wait a little longer." Elizabeth put away the microphone, returned to her seat, and said with a smile.
"Did you make this, Tamamo Cat?" Osakabehime was also drawn by the aroma. She looked up and suspiciously asked the cat girl in the apron.
"This is a tea snack Master and Meow made together. Master is so troublesome; he actually competes with Meow for cooking and cleaning duties," the carefree Tamamo Cat complained for once.
"What? Good at cooking and likes doing housework? Could this be the ideal man for a Princess like me? Someone who can take care of me in the castle for a lifetime, and I won't have to leave for hundreds of years~!" Osakabehime adjusted her glasses and carefully scrutinized the young man.
Finally, she made up her mind, took off her glasses, and her entire demeanor immediately changed. If she was a somewhat gloomy, otaku girl with a hat before, now she had become an elegant and noble Princess.
"Hey, hey, Tamamo Cat's Master, are you willing to retrieve things even from thousands of miles away and deliver them to the door for someone you care about?"
"I can do that," Shirou agreed in confusion, unable to figure out what the Servant girl meant by that question. 'Isn't that just picking up a delivery?'
"Then are you willing to cook in the middle of the night the food for someone hungry and deliver it to their door?"
"I can do that, but it's better to cultivate healthy lifestyle habits," Shirou said to the girl. 'In this kind of situation, wouldn't it be better to just order takeout?'
"In any case, please add this Princess as a friend and leave your contact information~!" Osakabehime mustered her courage, held up her phone with both hands, and requested.
"I can do that, but this is a dream world. Can you use a mobile phone here?" Shirou asked the demure, long-haired, black-haired girl, who claimed to be a Princess, as he wrote down his mobile phone number and chat software account and handed it to her.
"Yes, I was drawn in while sleeping, but with my Noble Phantasm, nothing is a problem. If anything, I couldn't survive without my mobile phone." Osakabehime took the slip of paper and quickly operated her phone.
"Hah," Shirou nodded. Although he didn't fully understand, it seemed this girl was also a very powerful Servant.
"You're Emiya-kun, right? I've already sent a friend request. Remember to add me, okay~!" Osakabehime said a little shyly. 'Let's start by exchanging messages, then develop an online relationship. Yes, then I can be satisfied for this lifetime.'
"Hmm, that's my online alias. You can call me Shirou here. If you don't mind, could you tell me your name?" Shirou asked the girl.
"Mr. Shirou? The Princess is Osakabehime, the Yōkai Princess who lives in Himeji Castle's keep, the guardian deity of Himeji Castle, the earth deity, and the personification of Himeji Castle! I was originally a fox girl, but since there are too many fox attributes here, I took my pen pal's advice and manifested in this world as a pink bat Yōkai! Please be gentle with me." The girl displayed the dignity of a Princess, or perhaps a deity.
"Ah, please be gentle with me, too. Himeji Castle? The ancient first castle of the Wakoku (Japan)? After the fox JK, the cat maid, and the dragon girl, now even a castle has appeared..." Shirou muttered.
"Speaking of which, Elizabeth, how did you get here?" Shirou asked.
"Me? Of course, wherever an idol is needed, I will break through all obstacles and fly there!" Elizabeth replied as a matter of course.
"But the Queen here is terrifying. She keeps talking about beheadings, so my concert hasn't been held yet. I kindly offered that if she would just lend me her musician, Mozart, as an accompanist, I could go on a concert tour for her country. But she just kicked me out and said she would behead me, behead me, if I dared to come near!"
"She herself has a gang of black soldiers who are rapping. She really doesn't understand music. To make the famous Mozart play the piano to accompany those hip-hop guys! That's surely inviting divine retribution!"
"No, I think you're both equally bad..." Shirou muttered under his breath.
"What did you say!?" Elizabeth puffed out her cheeks and glared at the young man.
"Honestly, I'm saying... I specialize in elegant court music and opera. Whether it's a tragedy where fate plays tricks and things can't be changed; a comedy where one is favored by God, defeats the Devil King, and achieves happiness; or a hymn to the Lord; I believe I can handle it all. I could even try to imitate my junior, Beethoven's, composition style. But hip-hop is just too demanding." At this moment, a complaining voice came from the woods. The rustling grass shook, and three Servant figures emerged from it.
"The Servants caught up? Why did we only notice them now!" Shirou asked.
"No, I'm sorry, Shirou-Senpai. Just now, when I saw Elizabeth about to sing, I accidentally rebooted my system..." Mash said, blushing and bowing her head in apology.
"Never mind. This is no time for that. Prepare to fight!" Shirou projected Kanshou and Bakuya into his hands and glared at the three newcomers, who seemed to mean trouble.
"Stop. The orders we received were only within the Imperial City. Now that you've run outside, it doesn't count. That's a wonderful smell. Can we join the tea party?" Mozart waved his hand and walked forward.
"I simply chose to serve the Queen in this world, but senseless killing is not in accordance with my beliefs." Sanson directly pulled up a chair and sat down.
"I swore that as long as you do not harm the Royal Family, I will not actively move against you," D'Eon said, putting away his sword.
Jeanne put away her weapon and asked the doubt in her heart: "If we're not fighting, then so be it, but explain to me what is going on with that black Queen Marie? She is completely different from the pure and kind Princess we know from Chaldea!"
"No, that is Queen Marie. She is actually very kind to us and the palace servants normally, but her emotions are very unstable. She is probably overcome by the anger in her heart. No, fundamentally, it's only natural for her to be angry," D'Eon said, lowering his head.
"Yes, the treatment of the Royal Family during the French Revolution was simply too unfair.
The angry people were led to look for a scapegoat for the country's poverty and backwardness in the Royal Family. The people, suppressed for too long and having suffered too much, needed an outlet for their frustration; they needed a public enemy.
The Queen was targeted and branded as the femme fatale who brought ruin to the country, and all sorts of dirt were thrown at her," Sanson said coldly.
"As for me, I don't care much about the French people. At that time, whether they were French lawyers or doctors, they were all being beheaded in turn. It made no difference to me. But Marie's current state truly saddens me," Mozart said, shrugging his hands.
"What nonsense! That kind of anger can never be dispelled! If she becomes an Avenger, she will never find salvation! Let her be free now! Besides, she attacked us, didn't she? She's already an enemy!" Jeanne snorted.
"Shirou, I want to hear your thoughts. At least your target isn't the Queen, is it?" D'Eon looked at the young man.
"Indeed, she doesn't possess a Holy Grail, nor is she a Black Mud Heroic Spirit," Shirou nodded. "I understand. We will investigate other places later and won't approach the palace until then."
D'Eon smiled upon hearing the young man's assurance, saying, "I know. When the Queen's anger subsides, she probably won't trouble you anymore."
Shirou shook his head and said, "No, D'Eon. In this dream world, not only Servants but also humans are involved!
They have no resistance, so they must be playing their respective roles in this world. Perhaps they are the talking small animals in this forest, or perhaps those people imprisoned by the Queen who could be executed at any moment. If they are dragged to the execution ground and risk being harmed, I will absolutely intervene."
"..." Sanson looked at the young man, seemingly trying to discern the truth of his words.
"I understand, Shirou. The next time we meet, we will be enemies. My sword will be used to protect the glory of the White Lily!" D'Eon raised his sword and declared, then turned and left resolutely.
"Thank you for the treat! Well, the next time we meet, I will welcome you with beautiful music." Mozart then threw a biscuit into his mouth, stood up, clapped the crumbs off his long hands, and showed a brilliant smile in thanks. But no one could tell if his smile was out of goodwill or a threat.
"Tch! Hypocrites! Hey! If you know she's wrong but don't do anything to change it, the one who suffers in the end will only be herself!" Jeanne shouted at the three as they left.
Important Announcement! New Fanfifction
Cote: Daily Intelligence System
Shimizu Akira unexpectedly transmigrated into the world of "Classroom of the Elite," becoming an ordinary student in Class D.
Relying on the advantage of foresight thanks to his daily intelligence system, Shimizu Akira navigates between the various factions.
Read ahead and Finish the Fanfction by supporting me on buymeacoffee com/varietl or ko-fi edwriting