After capturing the Etruscan Way, we head straight for Mount Etna.
Since it's an area on an island across the sea, we spend a leisurely time on Nemo's Nautilus.
"The inside is cleaner than I thought?"
"Don't set up weird flags, Master."
Guided by Nemo, we enter the Nautilus... Isn't this better than Chaldea?
"It would be nice if I could bring the Storm Border, but it's a shame without Da Vinci."
"... If there's a Shadow Border, it evolves into the Storm Border?"
"Of course. Then it could fly in the sky and show off as the best ship."
I see... I was planning to summon her soon, but it makes me want to summon her even more.
"Stay in the dining room and have a snack. I need to go to the captain's bridge, so I'll leave you now."
"Safe sailing~"
Now, shall we go have a snack? Heading to the dining room, Baker greets us with a smile.
There are freshly baked breads by Baker, and I sit at a table with some of the Mariners and pick bread to eat. Yum, it's delicious.
"That bread is particularly high in calories, you know?"
"That's correct, Commander. Eating high-calorie food makes it easier to accumulate unnecessary white fat."
From the secretary to the head nurse, now I have to be stressed about eating too? Give me freedom, the freedom of an ordinary person...! I'm not an idol, do I have to eat while managing my weight...!
"Can't you just give me something like Golden Rule (Body) so I don't gain weight no matter how many calories I consume...?"
"There certainly is such a method. But..."
"But?"
"But if I do that, I can't actively manage Master, can I?"
"So you're saying you want to breed me."
You pet beast, you. I thought 'pet' in 'pet beast' didn't mean that kind of pet...?
"Calling me a beast is going too far. Of course, Master is fragile, a pitiful man who needs a strongest like me to protect him. Even so, he shouldn't fall into the category of breeding."
"That defense isn't a defense, Melusine."
"Is that so?"
Everyone's missing a screw somewhere. The Beasts' twisted love is like proof of why Beasts are twisted human evils... and the head nurse is a Berserker to begin with.
"Being too popular is troublesome too."
"Diarmuid also got obsessed over by Ishtar because of that point. A sad affair."
Manbun-kun and Enkidu watch me from a spectator's perspective. So mean...
"Here, eat this too."
"Didn't she say not to eat that?"
"It's fine. Even if you get chubby, Master is my child."
"Like a grandmother constantly feeding her grandchild. Mmm... it's tasty."
"Eating well is a good thing."
Since Tiamat feeds me directly, Nightingale and Koyanskaya can't say anything. A mother is strong, I guess.
"So we ultimately can't stop the eating... Very well. Even if you gain weight, it's possible to lose it and maintain health. Now, say 'ah~' Commander."
"Ahem! Master? Would you like to try this? This cake looks more delicious~?"
The two who eventually gave up just feed me dessert with the mindset of being by my side when I gain weight and have to lose it. How should I put it... I'm afraid of the aftermath.
"It's okay. I'll cut off the fat."
"You're planning to cut it...? Instead of fat, my stomach will be split open and my guts will spill out, right?"
"No way? Why would I make Master perform an organ show?"
"Haha... I don't want to become a handsome organ donor."
"Master's organs are already handsome, though?"
"Don't say things like that, Shiki..."
"Haha. But still, you should eat what you like without holding back, right? You shouldn't worry about things like calories."
Shiki smiles while eating a melon bread. That's just a sweet bun, though. Honestly, because of Japanese anime, I have strange expectations for melon bread... but when I actually eat it, I wonder why people like it so much.
"Kiara is the only one eating ohagi in the meantime."
"Because I like it the most. Would you like some?"
"I don't really like red bean paste."
"Is that so..."
Kiara looks disappointed and sulky. Seeing her like this, she's still cute.
A leisurely snack time. I unfold the map once. What's the current battle situation... Hmm?
"What is this."
My flag is white. BB's side is, of course, purple. Ritsuka's is orange, the Emperor Alliance's is red. But...
Florence has turned purple. Did Ritsuka's party suffer a complete defeat? What kind of opponent showed up? Hokusai was there, and the Alter Servants were there too. Why did they lose?
And the Emperor Alliance's capital is rapidly shrinking. All areas except the Alliance's capital have become BB's territory. What's happening? That BB, what kind of collaborators did she call?
She hasn't captured Rome yet, but it will be soon. The Etruscan Way will likely be taken too... Then it might become a 1-on-1 situation.
Unlike in a game, since we're moving by foot, it looks like everything will be taken. Isn't this just a fight then? What territory war, it's just like a Holy Grail War where the side that fights and wins, wins. By the time we arrive at Mount Etna and capture it, the Etruscan Way will probably already be taken.
We have to defeat all of BB's forces in Europe to go to the substantial island, right?
If it drags on like this, the event will become boring too...
First, we defeated Abigail, I wonder who else is an enemy... Koyanskaya won't answer even if it's a game, so this is really.
Kooong...!
At that moment, the Nautilus suddenly shakes and an impact sound is heard. What's that?
QnVhM0pZejVubTdBNk8yK0ZvQkc2VUJNYWluQmR5SmU1aDVKNXpjekZaSjJKeDdIaU0rUllxZ1pWZHk1Q01ERg
[Emergency!!! Someone has invaded the Nautilus! One Servant enemy! They made a hole in the wall and water is leaking in!]
A sudden intruder...? Reminds me of Part 2, Chapter 2.
"Let's go immediately."
I put down the snacks and quickly head to where the intruder appeared. The nearby corridor had water filled to a certain level, and three Mariners were knocked out.
"No wounds. Just knocked them unconscious?"
Should I call it gentlemanly? It definitely feels like a Servant for the game. A real enemy would have killed them.
The water makes it hard to run...
"Here, hold on tight."
Enkidu picks me up and flies, some look at Enkidu with jealous eyes, but Enkidu just smiles peacefully.
The place we arrive at is the Nautilus's navigation room. The navigation room is already devastated, and all the other Nemos are knocked out. The Captain, unlike the other Mariners and perhaps because she's the only one with combat ability, shows injuries.
"Captain!"
"Sorry... Master. I can fight, but I'm not a combatant... I just ended up losing."
"It's okay. Where's the opponent?"
"Over there..."
The enemy above where the helm is. Heading to the upper area Nemo points to, there she is, the culprit of this situation.
"You're late. And, you seem surprised. If it's the sea, you should have thought of me, right?"
"... I see, you're right. I was slow to realize. If BB is the enemy, then of course you'd appear."
The one sitting there, revealing her form in the devastated helm room.
Meltryllis.
Really... If it's the sea, it's her home stage. Can't be helped...
"Then, shall we dance, Master? The winner plans a date course──"
"I have no choice but to self-destruct...!!!"
"...?"
And I immediately press the self-destruct switch. Where is it? Of course I always carry something like this. The moment I said that, Koyanskaya handed it to me, and I immediately pressed the button.
"Art is an explosion, DA!!!"
"You madman!?"
Kwaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaang!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
A ship that can't be used is just to be discarded. Thanks to the all-powerful Shiki-sama's power, we safely transferred to the land, the Mount Etna island. Well, Melt is a liquid, so she'll be fine.
"Heh, even I think it was a cool strategy."
"It was a strategy that rivals Jingu's, indeed."
"Is that a compliment, Koyanskaya?"
"Of course~ Master is someone who has used me as a bullet multiple times to begin with..."
There's a hidden barb in those words. Should I see it as love-hate rather than just love? To begin with, there's no Master who has never used Stella or Gae Bolg...! If you haven't used it, you're unqualified as a Master!
"Our Nautilus..."
"It's okay, Nemo, I'll buy you a new one."
"As if it's a toy...!"
Sadly, a sinking ship must be abandoned.
Anyway, we've arrived at Mount Etna. Is Melt the enemy here? Heading upwards for now... How should I put it, the atmosphere changes drastically.
Something... a flower field? Merlin? No, no. It looks different from Avalon's flower field.
This is...
"You finally came. Welcome? Master. To my castle."
".... Why is the princess here?"