Boyzilla: The end of Music of the Spheres is approaching, there are only three Servants still alive and of course, as this Grail War is also a world war involving multiple countries (Japan, USA, France, Neo-Babylon, the countries of the Arabian Gulf, England and Egypt) the result of conflicts between Servants causes the fall of Plutocrats and governments.
On second thought, I somewhat created a unique Grail War concept. Instead of a clash between known Masters using unknown Servants and clashing beyond the limit of a city, we have a global confrontation with Masters who know each other because this Grail War's system was their common creation and therefore all the Servants was known by the Masters. All the Servants? Not Blue Caster but the presence of Hakuno was the first anomaly of this Grail War, she was not a Master from THIS Grail War, and Tamamo was not one of the original Servants. If we add a more classic war in the background, but also the intervention of the deities of the Chtulhu cycle, seven Servant (classic) but no Saber and TWO Caster-class Servants... we have a really strange Grail War. What would you call this Grail War guy? Tamamo thinks the appropriate name would be "Unspeakable Creatures from Outerspace with Gooey Tentacles Grail War"... yes very Tamamo-like ( Nyaa, a good proposition Isn't it?).
For the Head Tilt comment, there's no need to feel guilty. I don't force myself to use it. I have silly humor inherited from my dad (thank you dad!) and Tex Avery (Looney Toons) so I treat the Head Tilt like a Running Gag.
Author Note: Once and it's not a habit, I will talk about a news event. On Monday, March 7, 2022, a walker found the Sessho-Seki stone broken in two! I mean the stone that was used to imprison Tamamo-no-Mae. I must say that this event made me quite uncomfortable... reread the beginning of this Fanfiction... yes, that's what I told, Tammao's return in her prison-stone, then Hakuno used a Command Mark and delivered Casko. I really hope for the sake of Japanese peoples that it's our adorable Caster who came out of the Sessho-Seki... and not some ancient bloodthirsty demon-fox.
Night at the Museum
In a beautiful mansion in London, a meeting had just begun. Two Magi, a Spritron Hacker, and a Servant participated. Professor Petrie-Smith took the floor again, looking at Hakuno.
"To change the subject, I wanted to thank you for saving Siân."
The young Master blinked, her face was impassive - as always- but she had to be surprised.
"Siân?"
"My granddaughter, my daughter's eldest daughter to be exact, she was abducted two weeks ago. Originally, Pierce was holding her hostage, so I wouldn't interfere with her scheming... Then, when he invoked Shub-Niggurath, it ceased to be useful to him, if not as a necessary sacrifice for the opening of the Gate."
"Oh?!"
It was Tamamo who had just uttered this cry of surprise, her fox ears stirred up in a cute way:
"The teenage girl with long blond hair!"
Caster remembered her well, this teenager looked like a wood nymph.
"Now that I think about it, Pierce sound like have a (bad) taste to neutralize his opponents rather than fight them directly. When we met him, he had around his neck the Heart of Tammuz, a Noble Phantasm that my Master used to defeat Nabonassar, this Grail War's Rider. I suppose that explains why Saad al-Adouhi left the US so hastily after defeating Lancer. Pierce must have threatened to use the Heart against his Servant. "
Caster only cared about the Servants who attacked her adorable husband... it was normal, besides they had to be really blind to the true beauty to want to harm her so adorable husband with her hair and eyes chocolate milk color, her beautiful skin, her... Tamamo blushed and simultaneously hit both cheeks shaking her head. Focus Tamamo, focus...
Anyway, the other masters were attacking her husband, but they were also fighting each other. She had already witnessed two clashes between Servants, but there must have been many more. From this point of view, it was surprising that Rider was the only Servant to have eliminated another except herself.
Llewelyn Petrie-Smith acquiesced and began to stuff her pipe with tobacco, before lighting a match. He smelled the fragrant smoke and then breathed a sigh.
"Aside from you and your Master, Pierce and Charles VII have been the most active Master-Servant duo of this war."
Tamamo leaps, surrounding Hakuno with her arms, and starts purring like a cat.
"This is true. Our first encounter with Berserker was in the Sioux Reservation (1). At the time, my lovely husband, mine and mine alone, and his perfect and devoted wife (that's me I'm talking about) intervened in a fight between Berserker and Rider. But you will not deceive me with nice words. You too have been very active. When we first met, you were looking for Cibola... like Pierce's agents."
Caster's eyes narrowed.
"And you manipulated us... for your own sake."
The humor and sensuality had disappeared in Tamamo's voice. Her tone had become so cold that the room seemed to become icy.
Petrie-Smith cross-swallow and coughed, his face had lost all color. He hesitated before speaking, choosing his words carefully.
"I have already told you... my Servant is not qualified for direct confrontation, especially against a Servant like Berserker. I needed your help... I still need it. From the beginning, I've been trying to keep the Tablets of the Gods from being used! I was in the Superstitions Mountains for fighting Pierce. Thanks to you, we succeeded... but... I was as surprised as you by Ausblach's intervention. I had no idea he was there, I swear."
"Did you know at the time who Ausblach was?"
"Yes... and thankfully I didn't say anything. You have forgotten? At this time, I saved your life, and the life of the beloved master of yours."
Tamamo frowned and had a bitter pout remembering the ease with which Archer - Ramses III- had defeated her. It is true that she was already exhausted by a long fight against The Mighty Ones. Archer had attacked from afar, by surprise and using all the speed of his war wagon to stay out of the reach of her curses. But it was Ruler who saved her, not... Ah! Tamamo now remembered. She had convinced Ruler to protect Hakuno. Except her argumentation was based on the idea that Ausblach would be unable to use the Tablets of the Gods because he was a mortal...
The magical foxgirl's ears lay on her head.
"If you had told Ruler who Ausblash was, she would have refused to let him go with the tablet."
Professor Petrie-Smith agreed.
"And we would all be dead. Ruler had fought long, she could never have defeated Archer in this state of exhaustion."
There was a moment of silence, all of them thinking about the recent events. Finally...
"Why now?"
All eyes turned to Hakuno.
"Sorry?"
"Why does Ausblach only act now?"
Petrie-Smith took a moment to reflect on his answer.
"Well, first he had to gather the objects of the ritual of the opening of the mouth, necessary for the journey in the Hereafter. Then... well, I guess he was afraid to face Berserker. The CFRT, a French company specialized in tunnel drilling and mining equipment rental owned by Pierce, dug a tunnel leading to a ruin dating back to the time when the Old Ones lived on Earth. With an ancient ritual, Pierce binds to him some of the creatures the Elder Ones had imprisoned (2). And he uses them against Ausblach... Oh, Archer managed to defeat them. But that made his Master more discreet."
Petrie-Smith took a brief pause to reflect.
"He was also afraid that Ruler would interrupt his ritual. But she is dead now. The only Servants left are Caster -which Archer has already defeated- and Assassin who is not really a fighter."
Tomoko Tohsaka sighed. It was the first time she spoke.
"I feel powerless... There's nothing I can do. I don't even have an idea that can help you."
Tamamo looked at Tomoko with a little mistrust. But it was typical of Caster... She was always wary of women a little too pretty, men too enterprising, gods and demons... They all died of jealousy but she had seen Hakuno first!
In a possessive gesture, Casko took Hakuno in her arms:
"Mikon! My lovely Master will find a way to defeat Archer."
Hakuno had a stained smile.
Of course, the Last Master of the Moon was happy that Tamamo-no-Mae trusted her but... she didn't know how to fight Ramses III? His war wagon allowed him to stay out of the reach of Caster's spells. Moreover, he knew her Servant's Noble Phantasm, while Kishinami could only make assumptions about Archer's abilities. The Noble Phantasm of a Servant reflected his greatest feat, the very reason that made him a Hero. What could the Noble Phantasm of Ramses III be? His greatest feat was defeating the Peoples of the Sea in one of the oldest naval battles in history. Because of that, historians nicknamed him the 'Warrior Pharaoh'...
But he was especially famous for having built the temple of Medinet Habu, one of the largest in ancient Egypt.
All the assets were on Ausblach's side. Especially since this Master can use some sort of True Magic.
But Hakuno could not continue this gloomy reflection because of Caster's strange behavior.
Suddenly, Tamamo straightened up and turned to the window. Her face first showed surprise, quickly replaced by an expression of panic. She materialized her mirror and jumped in front of the chair occupied by her Master...
There was a blast and the windows broke into a thousand pieces.
Casko had reacted with the liveliness that could be expected of a Servant. Her mirror blocked an arrow, then two, then ten.
In the street, we heard a whinny and then the sound of wheels circled with bronze on the asphalt.
Having failed to kill Hakuno, Archer fled.
The night in London, in winter, is the domain of the famous London smog. An opaque fog fed by the smoke of chimneys. With the depletion of domestic fuel oil, the inhabitants had returned to wood and coal, as in the 19th century.
We couldn't see at five paces.
Plus, the fog was sticky with moisture and as cold as your banker's heart.
In this pea soup, the cars were moving slowly, all the headlights on. Despite this, the drivers were attentive fearing an accident. It was one of those nights when the imaginable could happen.
This was exactly what the driver of one of the famous double-decker buses thought as he crossed the deserted streets. The bus was almost empty but, despite the bad weather, it still had to serve the stops of its circuit.
The man yawned and forced himself to concentrate.
And suddenly his eyes suddenly widened.
An ancient war chariot had just emerged from the fog. Two small horses - only a little higher than ponies- were hitting the ground with their hooves... but the worst was the driver. Brass chainmail with a kind of blue helmet...
Gaping, the driver braked and desperately turned the wheel to avoid the collision, finishing his race against a lamppost, stopping in noise of crushed metal.
Despite the shock, the driver leaned out the window, watching the wagon move away.
At that moment, something almost as strange came out of the fog, chasing the war wagon... a woman in kimono with pink hair and... animal ears and a foxtail. She was holding a teenage girl.
They disappeared in the fog.
Still his mouth wide open, the driver turned towards his passengers. They were all face to the windows, and eyes enlarged by stupor.
"Did you see that?"
Some nodded their heads.
A teenager in a school uniform began to speak in an overexcited tone:
"This chariot is an Egyptian one. I recognized the two side quivers and the harnesses of the horses!"
An old gentleman with a mustache, an umbrella, and a bowler hat nodded thoughtfully:
"In that case, I think I know where this pharaoh is going."
Everyone turned towards him, he showed the map of the bus lines, above the door.
"We are on line 8, if we go down to Tottenham Court Road or Holborn, we are a five-minute walk from the British Museum... famous all over the world for its gallery dedicated to Pharaonic Egypt (British Museum Department of Ancient Egypt and Sudan). Pluralitas non est ponenda sine necessitate (3)"
A fat hysterical woman started screaming:
"We must call the authorities!"
"Oh yes? Call who? The police? The army?... Ghostbuster?"
It was the old Gentleman who had the last word:
"In any case, I am disappointed by the attitude of this pharaoh. He was driving against the direction... even the Egyptians were rolling to the right?... So unrefined, all civilized people know you have to drive left (4)!"
"Goshujin-sama, this door has been forced."
Hakuno stopped in front of the door designated by Tamamo. It was a side entrance to the British Museum. Next to the door, there was a sign "No entrance, reserved for museum staff."
Indeed, the lock was broken... by an impact on the inside. It was not someone who sought to enter the museum but to leave it. And it couldn't have been Archer, Astralized, he was going through the walls with no problem.
Even more surprising... Hakuno looked around and listened. No police car, no sirens? However, she looked up into the hallway and spotted a small white plastic object (a bi-volumetric alarm) a black half-sphere (a 360° surveillance camera), and discreet cables running along with the door frame (feeding an anti-opening alarm). Of course, all museum entrances were protected by alarms.
"Code Cast: Hack!"
It was the only Code Cast that Hakuno could use in the real world, it allowed her to interact with any computer system... and also to infiltrate it in the form of her cyberworld avatar.
This time, however, Hakuno was content with a superficial contact and discovered that the alarms were disconnected! Finally not simply 'disconnected' which would have alerted all the police stations of the city. An expert hacker had 'convinced' the computer that everything was fine. The alarms wouldn't go off no matter whatever happens and the screens of the guards broadcast in a loop a recording of the video surveillance.
Followed by Caster, Hakuno walked down the hall.
Two stairs went up to the upper floor. They looked alike and -at random- Hakuno chose the one on the left.
They arrived... at the Chinese collection.
[Goshujin-sama, my intuition tells me that we should rather look at the Egyptian collection of the Museum.]
Kishinami nodded and looked around for a plan or arrow panels indicating the Egyptian collection. At random, she went to the right and ended up at the administrative premises... no, it wasn't there. Always followed by the magical foxgirl, she crossed the Chinese collection and (finally) after one or two more detours arrived at the entrance of the Egyptian collection.
The silence of the museum was disturbed by stealth noises. Someone was moving nearby.
However, visibility was reduced. Large and small displays cases filled the museum rooms. The most famous object in this collection was the famous Rosetta Stone, but there was also a damaged statue of Ramses II and displays covered with amulets. In fact, exhibiting grouped by eras, she can see all kinds of objects from the funerary jar to statues, including mummies wrapped in strips.
It was in front of a sarcophagus in the room dedicated to the New Kingdom (1570BC to 1065BC) that Hakuno discovered Ausblach. The undead Egyptian prince had broken the showcase and put his hands on the painted coffin as plunged into deep meditation. In fact, he was whispering in a strange language... probably ancient Egyptian, while making mystical gestures:
"Au aqhu khartt tchefu Setesh hau qes thenu Setesh tekit ap besqt sp mekerr Setesh tau as qes tau."
Hakuno did not know what he was doing, but - instinctively - she understood that he should not be allowed to finish.
[Caster, Attack!]
Obeying the mental order of her Master, Tamamo-no-Mae materialized her mirror and leaped forward.
But Archer suddenly appeared in a prana whirlwind and blocked the attack with a small ogival shield, he counter-attacked with a bonze axe adorned with hieroglyphs.
[Caster, Breack!]
Tamamo attacked with a spin kick. Despite having managed to block the shot, Archer staggered and retreated, losing the initiative.
[Caster, Guard!]
The magical foxgirl lifted her mirror, using it as a shield, and parried the attack of Ramses III. She immediately counters:
"Hyaa!"
Struck on the arm by a karate chop, Archer seemed surprised and furious.
"It's a little less easy when I'm not attacked from afar and by surprise, isn't it?"
Tamamo's mockery did not seem to please the pharaoh very much...
However, Ausblach continued his ritual without dealing with the battle of the two Servants. Suddenly he threw the lid of the sarcophagus on the ground and went inside and... disappeared!
As for Archer, he Astralized. Tamamo jumped on the spot overexcited:
"Oh, he is the new Harry Houdini! (5)"
Hakuno looked at her Servant without appearing to be amused in the least.
Now alone in the room, they examined the sarcophagus. At first sight - none of them were Egyptologists- it was a classical Egyptian's sarcophagus covered with a painting that had become pale because of the passage of the centuries. There were hieroglyphs - passages from the Book of the Dead according to Caster- and the lid was carved in the likeness of a body with joined hands.
Caster carefully inspected the interior. There were also some painted hieroglyphics, but besides this, the wood had been left natural.
"This is strange," she said.
Hakuno bent over and Tamamo showed a glyph depicting a snake biting its tail in the middle of the hieroglyphs adorning the interior of the sarcophagus. The Magical foxgirl spoke in a professorial tone.
"This is the Ouroboros, a representation of the mortal and living water, which devours itself and generates itself, a symbol of eternity."
"Isn't that an Egyptian symbol?"
'Yes, even if its usual name is in Greek. In fact, it's a symbol from Egypt, although other cultures have used it afterward. For the Egyptians, the Ouroboros represents the link between the Noun (the primordial ocean) and the world ordered by the gods. The Ouroboros thus represents the totality of the world, but also the cycle of time, creation, then destruction, death, and resurrection. He is therefore perfectly in his place in a sarcophagus."
Like Hakuno Make a Head Tilt, Caster struggled not to throw herself at the neck of her cutie Master. She coughed:
"I mean, yes it is an Egyptian symbol, yes, it is often engraved in sarcophagi... but the weird is the text that accompanies this symbol..."
The kitsune frowned, pointing to a group of hieroglyphs that looked identical to the others.
"This text is not the Text of the Pyramids or an excerpt from the Egyptian Book of the Dead. This text is a ritual dedicated to Set."
"Set?"
"Also spelled Sethesh, Setekh, Zetesh, Souty, etc... he has many names. He is an Egyptian god not very sympathetic, the Red God, the god of deserts and evil, sickness, anger, storms, and all sorts of unpleasant things. He is sometimes depicted as a man with an Orycterus head or a snake head. I translate what is written inside the sarcophagus: «I am a man of a million cubits, whose name is «day of misfortune». On the day of birth or conception, there is no birth, and the trees will not bear fruit. » This text tells of the non-birth of Set, the untouched god. This text is not really in its place in a sarcophagus... especially since hieroglyphs surround the Ouroboros, a symbol of the repetitive nature of the creation/destruction cycle in the universe... a universe where Set is an anomaly."
After a few seconds of reflection, Caster raised her hand above the Ouroboros.
"If he who engraved this symbol would have drawn attention, he would not have taken otherwise."
The magical foxgirl murmured an incantation. The symbol began to radiate and... the bottom of the sarcophagus changed into a kind of puddle of liquid bitumen.
"Well the mystery of Ausblach's disappearance is solved... this sarcophagus is a gateway to the world of the dead."
The servant sighed.
"Ausblach can survive in this other world because he is a living dead, I could follow him because a Servant is not a living one either. But you are alive and you could not stay in the Otherworld. The pursuit ends here."
Suddenly the sound of an alarm sounded and footsteps were heard.
Caster looked around her, the broken display case of the sarcophagus, the lid thrown to the ground, and the other showcase ravaged during her brief battle with Archer.
"Mikon! We'd better not stay here. I wouldn't want to have to pay the repair bill."
Back in Petrie-Smith's mansion, they recounted their stay at the museum. While the archaeologist was phoning some of his 'friends' well placed in the British government, Hakuno turned to Caster:
"Ausblach wants to perform a ritual that would allow him to bring back to Earth an Egyptian god?"
Tamamo crossed her arms and glanced at Petrie-Smith on the phone:
"That's the professor's theory."
"This is also what Ramses III said" Tomoko intervened.
As the Master and the Servant turned to her, the young Magus shrugged:
"You forgot, during your first meeting he said: "For the return of the Neterou" by taking the Tablet of the Ancient Gods. The Neterou is the name that the Egyptians gave to their gods."
Hakuno nodded:
"But he is already able to travel in the Otherworld. Why does he gather the objects necessary for the 'Opening of the Mouth' ritual if he can already travel as he pleases between this world and ours?"
The question seemed to please Caster.
"Goshujin-sama, what do you know about Egyptian mythology?"
Kishinami replied immediately:
"... Nothing?"
Tamamo suddenly transformed. Her usual miko outfit was replaced by a strict business suit, but the collar buttons were left open in a risky neckline and the skirt was very low cut, her hair was now tied in a bun and she wearing glasses. A sexy incarnation of a female teacher, she made a blackboard appear.
"Exactly what I was hoping to hear you say, teachers love students who don't have preconceived ideas."
With chalk, she drew a sun in the middle of the blackboard.
"The supreme god of the Egyptian pantheon is Ra, the sun god. He has the peculiarity of having a very brief life. He was born every morning and dies every night. So his life spans twelve hours between sunrise and sunset. However, death is another life for the Egyptians and, as a dead god, Ra goes down into the Underworld."
"The Underworld?"
"I have nothing against Kishinami-san questions, but before you speak, you must raise your hand and call me 'sensei'."
While Tomoko applied her hand on her face in a classic facepalm, Hakuno obligingly raised her hand.
"Sensei, what is the Underworld?"
Tamamo quickly drew the path of the sun in the sky (from East to West), writing "morning" on one side and "evening" on the other while continuing to speak:
"At dusk, Ra dies. And the solar boat he leads enters the Underground Nile (or Dark Nile) through an opening located under Mount Manu. The Underworld is another name of the Otherworld, the Egyptians also called it The Twelve Hours of the Night."
Under the path of the sun in the sky, Casko drew an underground canal where a river flowed.
"Death, Ra guides the solar boat in the Underworld from west to east, accompanied by Anubis, the psychopomp's god, and Set. They must cross this channel divided into twelve sections by as many doors, sections that correspond to the hours of the night. Then exit through Mount Bakhau to the east... This is the sunrise and the resurrection of Ra. Of course, this is not a leisure trip. Ra, Anubis, and Set face many trials, the most important is Apophis the great serpent demon. He tries to prevent Ra from being reborn and thus plunge the universe into an eternal night. Do you understand?"
Hakuno nodded her head.
"Yes, Sensei."
"Let's go back to your original question, KIshinami-san. Since Ausblash can travel between life and death, why can't he bring back an Egyptian god?"
Hakuno made a Head Tilt:
"I don't know."
"Yet I have already answered this question. The ritual he sought to perform is a ritual that allows crossing the door of Mount Bakhau... It is a ritual intended for the Ba - the soul- of a mortal. But that's not what he wants. He wants to physically manifest a dead divinity... so make him go through the Twelve Hours of the Night. Even for Ra, helped by Anubis and set, it's a feat."
"That's why he needed the Tablet of the Old Gods," Tomoko asked.
Tamamo pointed her out with her professor stick:
"Exactly, student Tomoko. This tablet dates from a world that preceded ours, before the Big Bang. The secrets in it allow its user to do things we can't even imagine.
Hakuno was thinking.
"A dead god?"
"Many Egyptian gods are not alive. Osiris, for example, is an undead god, a mummy exactly. Killed by his brother Set, he was partially brought back to life by the care of his wife Isis, goddess of the dead, and Anubis the god of the pharmacy... who became because of this accomplishment the god of the embalmers, and therefore the god who guides mortals to the Otherworld."
Hakuno blinked:
"Ausblach wants to bring Osiris back to life?"
"If Ausblach wanted to bring Osiris back to life, we had better not stop him. Osiris is the god of vegetation, renewal, and resurrection. But, he is not the only dead god. Like I say, as we are in the middle of the night, Ra is dead - for now- and he will not come back to life until the morning."
Tamamo-no-Mae nodded thoughtfully.
"My feminine intuition tells me that Ausblach does not want to bring back a god that we would be happy to see..."
"Since he was killed by Thoth, he must probably want to get back at him," remarked Tomoko.
"That's right, Student Tomoko."
"He wants to bring back to life a god who will allow him to take revenge on Thoth," Hakuno concluded.
The three women exchanged a glance. The idea was quite terrifying. A mortal wanted to get revenge on a god by using knowledge older than the gods themselves.
Hakuno had a talent for solving puzzles but she had just said, she knew nothing of Egyptian mythology. She lacked too many puzzle pieces to come to a conclusion.
"A dead god... an enemy of Thoth..."
Luckily, there was a specialist in the room.
"Are you talking about Set?"
The three women turned to Petrie-Smith, who had just hung up.
"Sorry?"
The archaeologist approached them.
"You were talking about a dead Egyptian god who was Thoth's enemy. Well, I immediately think of Set. Horus killed Set to avenge the death of his father Osiris, murdered by the Red God. According to the Hymn to Osiris in the Louvre's Museum, Horus' action was approved in retrospect by a court of law bringing together the most important Egyptian gods - including Thoth- and they sentenced Set for murder. According to the Pyramids Text - on the contrary- Set appeared before his peers and was able to present his defense. This did not prevent him from being sentenced to death. In any case, Egyptian priests have for centuries ritualized the execution of Set by sacrificing a bull. So he's not dead once... but thousands of times... the Formalcraft killing him, again and again, to make sure he stays dead. If Ausblach wants to bring Set back to life and succeed... he will free a god who has been condemned by his peers and killed thousands of times by their human priests. You don't think he'd want revenge on his judges as well as his torturers? In addition, in the ritual of the Opening of the Mouth, there is mention of the Sacrifice of the Bull, a rite-reminiscent of Set's death sentence, these are two complementary rites."
Petrie-Smith took a book from his library and turned a few pages:
"The priest Shem: reaching out to the bull-nag of Upper Egypt.
The butcher: climb on him, cut his thigh, extract his heart.
Words spoken by the Great Djeret in his ear:
It is your lips that have done this against you. Will your mouth open?
Bring a goat, cut off his head. Bring a Nile goose, cut off his head.
Words spoken by the Ceremonial:
I have taken him for you, and I bring you your enemy so that he may be under you, your arms above him.
I killed him for you! Do not approach this god!"
Llewellyn Petrie-smith closed the book and nodded his head in a thoughtful manner.
"It is quite common in Formalcraft to use a related rite to nullify another rite."
Tamamo nodded.
"All indications suggest that Ausblach wants to bring Set back to life."
(1) Chapter 20 to 23.
(2) See chapter 10 "Ancient Ruins".
(3) "Multiples should not be used without necessity", it's a literal translation. This principle of rationality is known as the Ockham razor. To translate this sentence less literally: "The simplest solution must be considered first."
(4)... and he is right. Most people are right-handed. Driving on the left is having the steering wheel on the right and therefore taking the right arm out of the window when you are interacting with - for example- a parking entry point or a road toll. It's way more efficient and logical, isn't it?
(5) Harry Houdini was a famous illusionist at the beginning of the 20th century, but the utilization of his name was above all a private joke, Lovecraft wrote a short story for Houdini called "Prisoner of the Pharaohs", and this story was one of my inspirations for this Arc.