Chapter 240
The moment Xia Yu finished speaking, she saw Ishtar nod her head down. When she raised her eyes again, someone else had already taken over the gaze in her eyes.
"Tell me, do you think she'll like the gift I found for her?" Xia Yu asked with a smile, looking at the Ereshkigal in front of her.
"A gift... what gift..." Ereshkigal's gaze was somewhat drifting.
"When I left the Underworld last time, I promised to bring her a flower that never fades as a gift," Xia Yu sighed. "Although I already have a clue as to where to look for the flower."
"But... I'm still not sure if she'll like it."
"Ishtar, do you like flowers?"
"How could she... No, how could I like flowers?" Ereshkigal looked away. "Compared to flowers, brilliant and colorful gems are my true love."
"Is that so?" Hearing this, Xia Yu held out her hand, and a golden rose appeared in her palm. "Then do you like this?"
"This is..." Ereshkigal instinctively took the rose into her hands. "What a beautiful flower..."
'Too bad it's not a gift for me.'
"It is beautiful, isn't it?" The rose only lasted for a brief few minutes in Ereshkigal's hands before turning into a patch of fireflies and disappearing. Xia Yu sighed, "As expected, I still need to practice."
"Why are you so obsessed with her?" Ereshkigal had never been able to figure out this question.
"Why, indeed..." Xia Yu raised her eyes and smiled. "Actually... I don't know either."
"Perhaps, it's a way of yearning for my past self."
"Senpai, can't you sleep?"
In Uruk, at the Heroic Spirit Base, Mash looked at Fujimaru Ritsuka, who was sitting on the roof sighing. She walked up to her side and sat down.
"Oh, Mash..." Fujimaru Ritsuka looked up at the moon in the sky. "You've worked hard today, go get some rest quickly."
"I want to keep Senpai company," Mash raised her head, a stubborn look in her eyes. "Are you in a bad mood?"
"I wouldn't say it's bad," Fujimaru Ritsuka shook her head and explained, "Mainly, I'm just a little worried."
"Hmm? What are you worried about?" Mash was somewhat puzzled.
"Do you think Kiana... could be her?" Fujimaru Ritsuka suddenly spoke up and asked.
"This..." Hearing this, Mash hesitated. Mainly, the impression Firefly had left on them back then was simply too deep; she didn't seem like the type of person who would get handsy with girls.
At most, she liked to pet lolis, but that was just the fondness one had for children.
If it were really her, Anna should have been targeted by now. Yet Kiana's target seemed completely fixed on the goddess Ishtar.
Compared to Firefly, she was a bit more wanton.
"Speaking of which," just then, Chaldea's communication rang. The Doctor's tone was somewhat grave, "That young girl calling herself Kiana... has absolutely nothing to do with Heroic Spirits."
"Chaldea cannot monitor her Saint Graph; she is completely a living human being, but we can detect her Energy Level."
"Ritsuka, actually we've been wanting to remind you," Dr. Roman's tone carried a hint of warning. "Just her baseline Energy Level is comparable to the fluctuations of the goddess Ishtar when she's fighting."
"If a fight really breaks out... even if she isn't as strong as Miss Firefly, destroying Mesopotamia is not an impossible task for her."
"Ritsuka, you are the ones who have had face-to-face contact with Miss Firefly," Da Vinci-chan narrowed her eyes and spoke up to ask, "Do you really think they are not the same person?"
Under normal circumstances, she could certainly make a judgment facing this kind of situation, but back in Fuyuki City, that person had thoroughly fooled Chaldea.
Firefly was a Servant, without a doubt, but that lady calling herself Furina was completely a living human, so Chaldea didn't suspect her at all in the beginning.
It wasn't until she exposed herself that they realized something was wrong.
Da Vinci-chan had a hypothesis: even that Firefly who could tear a Beast apart with her bare hands in ten minutes... was probably not that person's true body.
Meanwhile, the Fujimaru Ritsuka before her and the others were clearly comparing Kiana to Firefly in everything because they had interacted with Firefly too much, creating a preconceived notion, which made them repeatedly indecisive.
But they couldn't be blamed. It was mainly because Firefly's strength was too powerful, bringing them too much shock. Who could have imagined that such a powerful expert would actually be an identity faked by someone else?
"Don't talk to me about clues or evidence," Da Vinci-chan said. "I only want your feeling. Do you feel they are the same person?"
"My feeling... Yes, I feel they are the same person!" Hearing this, Fujimaru Ritsuka closed her eyes and answered.
Yes, her intuition told her exactly that.
"Very well, then we will base our next contact protocol on the assumption that they are the same person," Da Vinci-chan finalized the direction directly. "I trust your intuition, Ritsuka."
"Don't worry about failure. Either way, we profit. If they are the same person, that's for the best, as it means we have a chance to win over a powerful expert who can handle a Beast alone."
"And even if they aren't, Kiana's own combat capability makes her worth winning over, doesn't it?"
"That's not what I'm worried about," hearing this, Fujimaru Ritsuka shook her head. "What I'm worried about is... when Miss Firefly appeared in Fuyuki, everyone thought it was just a Holy Grail War, where we only needed to defeat the other Servants."
"As it turned out, the subsequent developments completely spiraled out of control, and even something like an Evil of Humanity appeared."
Fujimaru Ritsuka sighed, "Now, Kiana has appeared in Mesopotamia... Heaven knows what surprise is waiting for us here. You have to understand, back in the North American Singularity, when we faced enemies like the Demon God Pillars, she didn't appear. In the last Singularity, when we stood directly before a goddess, she didn't appear either."
"Those two Singularities could be described as filled with narrow escapes, yet they couldn't attract her. The thing that could make her appear... last time, it was a Beast."
"Uh, that's true," the Doctor said somewhat helplessly upon hearing this. "Don't tell me there's also a Beast present in Mesopotamia."
"That's why I hope even more that she is Miss Firefly," Fujimaru Ritsuka's expression was somewhat aggrieved. "If she is, then we won't have to fear anything next."
"But what if she doesn't stand on our side?" Mash asked worriedly, "After all... she told King Gilgamesh and the others about her identity as a Herrscher right from the start."
"Then we can only start struggling," Fujimaru Ritsuka shrugged. "At least we can die a bit more gracefully, can't we?"
"Don't be so pessimistic," hearing this, Da Vinci-chan smiled. "Actually, things aren't that bad, are they? These are still just our speculations."
"Instead of being anxious here, Ritsuka, why don't you take the initiative? As long as you win her over, won't you have everything!"
"Win her over?" Hearing this, Fujimaru Ritsuka's face stiffened. "You want me to win her over?"
Recalling Kiana's overly dominant behavior, she began to beat a retreat, "Is this winning her over, or is it a sheep walking into the tiger's den?"
Although in terms of looks alone, if she succeeded, she would definitely be getting a massive bargain.
But this kind of thing...
"Senpai!" Hearing this, Mash looked at her senpai pitifully.
"Oh, it's just a joke," Da Vinci-chan's voice came from the other side of the communication, her tone teasing, "How about it, do you feel more relaxed now?"
"Don't think too much, just let nature take its course. Go back and rest now, don't stay up too late, you still have a mission tomorrow."
Sigh, this Gilgamesh really doesn't do human things, truly treating people like donkeys.
"Alright, then we'll head back first," Fujimaru Ritsuka took Mash's hand and walked toward the room. "Goodnight, everyone at Chaldea."
Even after the communication was disconnected, there was still someone working overtime in Chaldea's command room.
"What do you think, Romani?" Da Vinci-chan held a cup of coffee, her gaze toward the Doctor full of scrutiny. "Do you think they are the same person?"
"Probably... yes," the Doctor hesitated for two seconds and then gave up completely, saying, "Who knows about this kind of thing."
"Yeah, who knows..." Da Vinci-chan gave him a meaningful look.
Regarding this colleague she had worked with for the longest time, Da Vinci-chan had always been highly curious.
His official position was the head of the Medical Department of the Human Order Continuation Security Organization, Chaldea, primarily responsible for managing the health conditions of the 48 Master candidates within the organization.
The only reason he could become the acting director was because everyone with a higher rank than him had died.
Others might feel that this lazy, somewhat cowardly man had no great capabilities, but Da Vinci wouldn't think so.
Romani Archaman—the meaning of this name was anything but ordinary. His surname was written as Archaman. "Archa" in Czech is equivalent to the English "Ark" and the Latin "Arka." This word can simultaneously refer to the "Ark of the Covenant" and "Noah's Ark." Adding the suffix "man," it becomes "the person who holds the Ark."
In the Third Singularity, when the Servant David (Solomon's father) called his own son a cruel and tasteless failure, Roman was deeply hurt. And when faced with King David's questioning, "Why do you think the Demon God Pillar in the Singularity ahead is not a real Demon God Pillar?" Roman could only stammer and gloss over it, leaving Da Vinci to step in and bail him out.
His relationship with Mash was very good. Mash had noticed a ring on Roman's hand when he was washing his hands once, leading her to infer that he had once been married, and she had even come to Da Vinci to ask about it. When Da Vinci found out, she knew that the ring... was not that simple.
And during the Sixth Singularity—actually, this Singularity had been detected long before the Fifth Singularity, but due to its excessively anomalous values and characteristics, it had reached an EX (unpredictable) rank. For the sake of a safe transfer, Chaldea allowed the protagonist Fujimaru Ritsuka to prioritize resolving the Fifth Singularity first.
The Sixth Singularity was an area where even support could not be provided. Therefore, Da Vinci decided to go out to battle along with the main group to support the protagonist instead of Romani Archaman. Dr. Roman passionately objected and stated that if they lost Da Vinci-chan, Chaldea could not possibly operate normally.
Da Vinci herself replied that the person truly supporting Chaldea was not herself as a Servant, but Roman.
In truth, since the start of Grand Order, Roman had barely slept. Setting aside his original duties as a doctor to "manage the physical and mental health of all Chaldea personnel," the operation of the remaining equipment, the maintenance of Sheba, the control of the Chaldea Trismegistus, the formulation of combat strategies, and the application of Leathershift were all the responsibilities of Roman as the acting director.
Singularities were reality, yet also hypothetical worlds. As long as one was inside a Singularity, a Master's existence would become ambiguous. In order to ensure that the Master would not experience a 'meaning vanish,' her existence had to be constantly proven at Chaldea.
Otherwise, if the values of the universe shifted due to certain situations, that hypothetical protagonist would be projected onto CHALDEAS, thereby preventing her from returning to the reality of 2016. Therefore, the control room monitored the protagonist's status at every single moment, verifying various values, and if there was even the slightest "deviation," they had to adjust it back to the "normal value" immediately.
This was a task that allowed for no errors or any symptoms whatsoever. In Chaldea's heyday, there were over a hundred staff members responsible for this task, but now Chaldea's manpower was stretched thin, and these Singularities were being sustained entirely by Roman pushing himself to his absolute limit.
This could not possibly be something a plain and ordinary head of the Medical Department could accomplish.
Da Vinci-chan took a deep look at the Doctor, making his skin crawl, before she finally averted her gaze.
As for his identity, Da Vinci already had her own guess.
Even though this guess was far too shocking, even connecting him to the mastermind behind the Incineration of Humanity.
So... Romani, what choice will you make?
"Actually... the Underworld has its own advantages."
Ereshkigal rubbed her hands and said with her head lowered, "For instance, it's quiet, no one disturbs you, and you can give peace to your mind..."
"Aren't those all the same meaning?" Xia Yu gave a dumbfounded laugh.
"So... that..." Ereshkigal raised her head to look at Xia Yu, asking hesitantly, "If Ereshkigal agrees... would you be willing to live in the Underworld?"
"As an attendant to the Mistress of the Underworld."
"Uh, why are you asking this question?" Xia Yu blinked upon hearing this.
"You... don't you admire her?" Ereshkigal lowered her head.
"But didn't we just talk about this?" Xia Yu smiled with a mischievous intent. "I won't stay in your temple to be your attendant, and of course I won't stay in Mesopotamia either."
"My homeland is still waiting for me to save it. Interacting with Ereshkigal is because of my own selfishness; her situation reminds me of a former friend, but actually... I also know I can't stay."
"I just want to bring her a bouquet of flowers, bring her to the surface, let her look at the sunlight, and feel the breeze, the rain, and the dew..."
Xia Yu smiled and said, "Perhaps the perspectives of humans and gods do not align. A human's life is limited, so they must do more things within this limited time."
"While you gods always take eternity for granted, a single person cannot accompany a god forever."
"But..." Ereshkigal opened her mouth upon hearing this, but didn't know what to say.
Yes, she herself should be the god most sensitive to these things, since humans would all come to her Underworld after dying.
"Will a powerful person like you also have a day when you grow old?"
"Who knows," Xia Yu smiled upon hearing this. "There is no example to refer to. After all, my predecessors... basically all died in battle. Where would they find the time to grow old?"
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T/N: If you spot mistranslation, do tell me.
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