Hello everyone and welcome back to the start of chapter 30 of the story! (Holy cow, this fic has already 30 chapters. How things go fast.) Now get on the positions you feel the most comfortable to read and let's start it! Because oh boy, this chapter is gonna be juicy. (Also I'm seeing now that this will be released on the International Women's Day, so to any woman that might be reading this today, I wish you a good and happy day.

DISCLAIMER: All the Nasuverse characters belong to Nasu and are property of Type-Moon, with the exception of the OC's that belong to me, the author.


Nero stood in a silent shock, paralyzed in total fear upon hearing the figure's words. Hearing such relaxed but menacing voice at the same time, was enough to freeze the emperor in the place. The feeling of dread and doom was increasing heavily on Nero's chest, with drops of sweat running down her face. Just the mere fact that she knew she wasn't alone now and with the company of a complete unknown mysterious figure rather than a familiar one, was making her heart beat faster. Gaining some courage, Nero reluctantly turned her head around, to spot the origin of the sinister voice she had just heard. Even at a full moon and it's shine, the appearence of the figure couldn't be seen very clearly apart from it's dark humanoid arms.

"W-who are you?" Nero asked, scared but trying to hide it. She was the emperor after all, and it was her own tought that a fitting roman emperor should be a fearless one even in the gloomiest of the moments.

Without saying nothing, the somber clothed figure stepped down from the balcony's barrier and walked in Nero's direction. It's steps were the only things it could be heard, echoing each time. It was if any other sound had dissapeard. No noturnal sounds or even the wind. Just the steps of the mysterious visitor of Nero Claudius.

Seeing that the figure was walking torwards her, Nero felt threatned. "W-what are you doing? Stay away from me or I'll make you pay! GUAR-Hugh?!" Nero's shouting for help was prematurely cut when she felt the figure's finger touching her chest, most pricely in the area of her heart. It made all of her muscles come to a stop. Not a single move could be moved. "W-what?" Nero said disbilief as the figure leaned over her shoulder. Looked like it was inspecting something inside her.

"Hmm. Greed." The figure said, taking the finger out.

"W-what the hell are you saying?" Nero asked as she looked at her own arms, going back to normal and no longer feeling her body restricted. The moment she looked in front to face the figure, it was no longer there. "H-huh? Where did that thing went?"

"This soul's stench, is a repugnant one." The figure said, this time behind Nero and at the balcony's entrance. It was now levitating a black and white ball with it's arm. The white seemed to be the natural texture of the ball, that was now overly stained by black cracks that would leave an opening from some type of black mud to exit from inside the ball. "Altough such predictable outcome could only come from someone such as thyself, O Emperor of Rome."

Nero was still trying to process what was happening. "Just...who are you?"

The figure lowered it's arm, Nero's soul vanishing with the movement. "Some questions, are just not worth the time." The figure said, before looking at Nero. "Not even at a larval state you are, yet the nature of your sins holds so much potential." The figure raised it's other arm. "Permit us to aid Your Imperial Highness on that."

"O-on what? What do you plan to do with me?" Nero asked, her voice trembling a bit.

"A revelation." The figure snapped it's fingers. The entrance to the door got overshadowed, being covered by a black wall. "If you will." And the figure dissapeard behind the dark curtain.

Despite of being scared, Nero would be lying to herself if she said she didn't desired to see what the figure wanted to show her. "W-Wait!" Nero stretched her arm, walking torwards the black wall in front of her. "What do you want to show-"

Out of nowhere, a giant monstrous arm appeared out of the black wall, and grabbed Nero's body in an instant, pulling her inside the darkness of the wall. "What's happening? What's the meaning of all this?" Nero wondered to herself as she kept being dragged into the dark void that seemed to have no end. Then a small light appeard in the distance, going progressively larger and brighter as Nero would approach of it, causing her to cover her eyes due to how bright it was. As her eyes were closed, Nero felt that her body had stopped from being dragged, now standing with her feet on the ground.

Opening slowly her eyes, Nero saw where she was. In the middle of Rome. The difference here however, was totally sinister. The city looked completely empty and in ruins, no light coming from any building that was still intact. The streets were also devoided of life, with no sign of live passing by. The glorious monuments and statues that the city used to be so proud of, were now reduced to dust, with it's only proof of existence being small broken pieces of it's original architeture. And the most macabre aspect of all, was the sky itself. No stars, no layers of deep blue, not even the full moon and it's shine. Just immense and vast darkness filling the sky. And just like before, the only sound it could be heard was of Nero's own steps as she would look in silent horror to the ghost town that was her beloved Rome.

"What happened here?" Nero said devastated.

"It collapsed. Fruit of thy own hubris, O Emperor." The voice of the figure sounded amidst the ruins altough the figure itself wasn't physically present.

"Collapsed?! N-no, it can't be!" Nero reacted in shock, not wanting to admit the city's fall, much more at her own hand.

"Every empire has it's end. Rome is no different. Even if the end was more dreadfully tragic than the rest." The voice of the figure responded. "Poor helpless and hapless public. Annihilated by the hand of their main star."

"You lie! I'd never do such thing to my own people! I love them as much as they love me!" Nero shouted in revolt to the sky, hoping that wherever te figure was, it was hearing her well. "Your falsehood and tricks won't affect me!" She said. "I-I can't be the downfall of Rome! There's no way that is true! I-It's all just a lie of course!"

"Ah, so sightless as well. Very well then." A door covered in total black appeard in front of Nero. "Brave what lies beyond this door if Your Majesty believes so wholeheartedly in thy own words." The voice requested to Nero.

Oblying, not because of fear but because she wanted to prove the figure wrong, Nero past through the door, ready for whatever monstrosity or opponent that she had to face. What came up instead, was something that she wasn't expecting at all.

The scenario had changed overall. Now the sky was a beautiful blue one with white clouds. In front of the emperor, was a small child with blonde hair and withe roman vestments playing in a field full of red roses. The imagery was enough to make Nero audibly gasp. "This day was-"

"Nero, come over here." The voice of a woman called the young child who immediatly went running torwards an young adult woman with dirty blond hair and green eyes.

"What is it mother?" The young Nero Claudius asked to her mother. Right next to Nero's mom, there was a tall adult man with short brown hair and brown eyes, carrying two long scrolls under his arm.

"This man here is a friend of mother's. His name is Lucius Annaeus Seneca. Say hello to him dear." Nero's mother, Agrippina, told the young girl.

"Hi! Pleasure to meet you Seneca-san!" The young Nero said cheerfully. "I'm Nero Claudius!" She then took a flower behind her back and showed to the man. "Would you like to have one?" She asked to Seneca, caughting him and Agrippina by surprise.

Agrippina chuckled at seeing Nero's act of good will. "Oh Nero you little idiot. Seneca isn't the type of man to-"

"No, it's all right Agrippina." Seneca interrupted the woman and crouched down to Nero. "I guess I can accept this beautiful gift of yours." The philosopher smiled as he took the flower out of the child's hand. "Thank you Nero."

The smile of the young Nero grew. "Glad that you liked it haha! That flower is such as beautiful as me, don't you think?"

"Yes you are Nero." Agrippina responded instead, patting her daughter on the head. "And I'm such a lucky mother to have a child like you." The woman smiled to Nero. A smile that the older Nero knew how false it was looking at it now.

"This was the day I first met Seneca. He would only become my tutor years later. This is during the reign of Uncle Caligula if I'm not mistaken. Life was really simpler that time." Nero looked at both her mother and Seneca with a apprehensive gaze. Now she knew that her mother would only do those smiles to fool her. To easily manipulate her will. All those praises, were nothing but empty words. But that wasn't what made the current Nero looked at this scene in a negative side. It was Seneca's smile. "Even his smile that day...looked devoid of any emotion. So empty as my mother's words. Seneca in the beggining wasn't the most expressive individual for what I knew. Even in the first days of serving as my tutor."

"The deception behind the mask of a maternal figure who never truly loved her child. Nothing but a ruse to the wicked woman's plans. Thy birth and existence were never for pure care and affection O Your Imperial Highness." The voice of the figure said out of nowhere, subtly taunting Nero's existence in the first place.

"T-That still means nothing! My mother may have never cared for me, but I know for sure that the same doesn't apply to everyone else!" Nero said, not wanting to give the satisfaction to the figure that she was wrong.

"Still preferring the delusion." The figure replied, summoning another dark door in front of Nero. "How long will that persist?"

Giving no reply to the figure, Nero walked to the dark door, entering into another scenario. The sky was the same as the previous one, with the only change being that now the young Nero was at the top of the palace, gazing down at the city of Rome from above in the shoulders of her uncle Caligula.

"U-Uncle Caligula!" Nero exclaimed, feeling happy to see such found memory of her with a person she always hold dear. That was until the appearence of the United Roman Empire.

"Hear me well Nero, my niece. Rome is way larger than this, but it's heart remains here, on this city. All that is mine will hopefully one day be yours too." He said to the young Nero. "Make sure that it can thrive even in the hardest of moments. That it's flame of splendor never extinguishes. For every joyfull roman citizen, it's a more joyfull emperor." Caligula told.

"Yes Uncle Caligula! I'll make sure that the smiles of the roman people are as bright as the glory of our ancestors! When I turn emperor, I'll make Rome the most beautiful and happiest place on earth!" The young Nero said, putting her arms in the air as she admired the view of the city.

"Then I guess I can rest peacefully if you indeed become the emperor." Caligula laughed with Nero shortly joining him. But the truth in fact was, he couldn't. He couldn't so much that his spirit had to appear years later after his death in order to make a stand against Nero's reign as the emperor.

"But the people are smilling. I made sure of that uncle!" Some tears appeard on her eyes as she frustrantly walked to the image of Caligula and the young Nero laughing together. "I did as I told I would do Uncle Caligula! I did what you asked me to! The people are smilling! I see their smiles every day! Rome is as beautiful as ever! Then why!? Why did you had to appear and try to ruin everything?!" In anger, Nero tried to punch the image of Caligula in the face, only for the fist pass through it and Caligula's image alongside of the young Nero dissolve into black paint.

"Because it was all a theatre." The voice of the figure came back. "The citizens smiles are as fake as thy mother. But, whereas Agrippina smile had a motive for it to exist, only covered behind an act of motherly love, the people's smiles do not exist at all. Created out of fear and trepidation."

"That's not true! They would never do that!" Nero said angrily. She didn't want to admit it. She didn't want to see nor accept it. "I turned Rome into a beautiful city where everyone can delight on it's grandeur!"

"Hmmm, but at what cost?" The figure asked her. "Is Rome appeasing to all or only just the Imperial Highness? What thy eyes want to see is the same as the population's eyes? And does the Praetor considers everyone a roman or only those that worship her? In the end, Rome is beautiful to who?"

"SHUT UP!" Nero yelled, not supporting to hear more the questions of the figure and covering her ears. "Shut up! Shut up! Shut up! Shut up! Shut up! Shut up! Shut up! Shut up! Shut up!"

"The ears hear what the mind fears." The figure simply responded. "Caligula's reappearence however, has probably made Your Imperial Highness think about those questions for quite some time now."

"No no no no! You are saying lies! It's lies!" Nero was saying to herself, desperately trying to forget what was being told to her.

"We'd wish that you could accept it at this moment." The figure said, with another dark door appearing. "Continuing past this point would only be torture."

Ignoring what was being said to her, Nero painfully walked to the door in front of her. "I-I won't accept it! I'll prove you wrong!" She said before entering the door. The scenario was now more different. The Nero from this memory was no longer the young child but an older one, some years younger than the present Nero tough. She wasn't alone as a now much older Seneca was next to her. The man was holding a long scroll on his lap as he pointed some words written on it, sitting on the same bench Nero was sitting. The two were on the exterior halls of the palace, spending the time in one of Seneca's lectures to the now young emperor.

"In these lines we can see how important Cicero was to the enrichment of our language and-" Seneca stopped his lecture when he noticed the young emperor Nero, covering her head in a white cloth due to the bright sun of that day, was looking to something else that wasn't the man practicing his teaching. "My Praetor, were you paying attention?"

"H-Hum?" Nero, who was in deep toughts that were interrupted by her tutor, returned her attention to Seneca. "N-Not really. Sorry Seneca." Nero smiled sheepishly, staring at the slight face of dissapointment of the old man.

Seneca cracked a small smile. "At least your honest My Praetor. That is already a good enough step."

"This happened some years ago, when I had recently became emperor. Seneca would spent majority of the days teaching and lecturing me about the empire's history, politics and economics. I sincerely found much of it boring. And Seneca probably knew it since he would never get angry at me for letting my attention slip." Nero felt a bit happy. "He was also a lot more expressive by this time. I can see it in his face."

"Now, what was the last thing you remembered me saying so that we can restart from there Nero?" Seneca told her, showing the text of the scroll.

"Hmmmm...here." Nero pointed to one of the first lines from the scroll, gaining a deadpan glare from Seneca.

"I-I'm sorry Seneca-san! I truly am! I-I saw some birds and all when you were talking and got distracted!" Nero tried to apologize, clumsly expressing her regret.

Seneca chuckled however. "No worries." He closed the scroll and put it back on his bag. "I admit it was turning tedious at this point. We'll end it for today."

Nero jumped torwards Seneca and hugged him. "Yay! Thanks Seneca, you're the best!" She told to the old man, before unmaking the hug and looking to the view of Rome outside. Beautiful as ever, just like that one time Caligula had shown her younger self.

"You really love seeing the city don't you, Praetor?" Seneca asked Nero, joining her in the view of the imperial capital. By this time, it was common to find Nero watching the city below majority of the time.

"Yeah I do." Nero rested her face on her hand. "Honestly, I could look at it every day and I think I would never grow bored of it." She told to Seneca. Seeing the buildings, the people, everything on it, was amusing to her. "And now that I became the emperor, Rome shall be embraced in it's true beauty by my arts!" She exclaimed happily.

"Your words are quite endearing to hear Nero. "Seneca touched her shoulder. "However, that's why an emperor should learn more about it's nation's history. You need to know Rome well in order to care for it in it's totality. No emperor could be called such title if they never knew a thing about it's nation in the first place. Learning these things are essential Nero." Seneca told her in a friendly tone.

"I know. I know it fully well. However, I also feel that as the emperor, I should shower my people with amazing gifts in the forms of my art works. I mean, don't you think that is a nice thing Seneca? Rome as now become my stage and I'll make sure to give my best performance as the leading role from now on. I want the city to become as culturally rich and beautiful as ever! I want it's people to cheer and applaud me as I give them the very best that I can offer!" Nero climbed to the top of the marble handrail, gazing on the enitre Rome as she opened her arms far wide. "I'll make Rome the most beautiful garden on existence!"

"That is a great desire you have there My Praetor. Can't wait to see you bemoce an artist." Seneca laughed, finding Nero's objective to be a nice one. "But let me tell you one important thing Nero." Seneca helped the young emperor to get down on the ground. "There will be hard times for this empire. Vile and greedful people who will wish to see you dead and take everything away from you. And the most important, not everyone will be pleased by the choices you will make. Try to do your best instead of trying to be perfect. It will be on the roughest of periods that the roman people will need their emperor the most. So make sure to always be present in order to help them."

"Umu! You can count me on that Seneca!" Nero nodded. "I promise to never let the empire down!"

"You two are still chatting?" Agrippina appeard from behind, looking at the two with a stoic face. "Weren't you supposed to be teaching my daughter right now, Seneca?"

"The lessons have already been delivered for today. I did what my schedule told me to do." Seneca told to Agrippina, staring at her with a slight bothered expression.

"If that is so, then come with me." The woman requested to the philosopher. "I want to have a talk with you."

Nero stared confused at her mother. She seemed to have grown more cold in relation to Seneca. Agrippina still continued to praise her daughter and show her 'affection'. Her mother was very happy during this period of Nero recently becoming the emperor of Rome.

"Hmm, unfortunately I'd say you will have to wait Agrippina." Seneca responded. "Nero had just invited me to witness her most recent painting." He smiled to the young emperor.

"O-Oh! You remembered! I tought you would have forgotten about it." Nero said in a mix of surprise and happiness.

"Hehe, my body might age but my mind does not." Seneca responded to her.

"Fine. I'll allow it." Agrippina replied, coldly and keeping her frustration in check. "Don't take it too long."

"Thank you mother!" Nero said before starting to push Seneca by his arm. "Now come Seneca! I've been working on this painting for quite the long time!"

"Coming right behind you My Praetor." Seneca responded, letting himself being dragged by the enthusiastic Nero.

"I would always show my paintings to Seneca, getting his praises. Mother on the other hand never looked to be intrested or willing in it." Nero tought to herself. "Seneca is, the only one I can trust now."

"And yet that trust will come to an end soon." The figure told Nero. "A promise shattered and broken by Your Imperial Highness. Even the old philosopher has grown displeased of thee. No one is left to support and like Nero Claudius. Not even thy most noble advisor."

"Stop saying those things! Seneca would never betray me just as I would never betray him!" Nero responded agressively.

"Thy arrogance truly blinds thee. The sins from thy soul must be very sharp in order to plunge so deep in this denial." The voice of the figure sighed as other dark door appear. "The next one may finally expand your vision O Emperor."

As the voice finished it's line, Nero stepped into the next scenario. "Show me your worst. Whatever it is, I'll endure it!"

Nero was now inside one of the many rooms of the palace. The room was large and tall, with a long table in the middle. It was the dinning room. As Nero was looking everywhere to spot herself from the past, she had found it. She was at the dinner table, eating and drinking with her mother besides her. The Nero from this scenario was with a tired and sick expression, doing slow movements to eat or drink anything as Agrippina would incitivate her to continue. The shock of the realization came to the current Nero who immediatly knew what day she was seeing.

"N-No! Please, not this one!"

"M-mother...I'm full..." Nero said, not feeling well as she tried to tell her mother that she couldn't keep eating nor drinking anymore.

"Oh you silly girl. You are just a bit stressed and queasy from all the work you had to do today." Agrippina said with a smile, ignoring the pleas from her own daughter. "Here, just drink a little more that it will pass soon enough." She told Nero, putting the cup from where Nero was drinking in front of the young emperor. "An emperor needs to stay hydrated after all."

"No. Please stop!"

"N-no thank...you mother...I'm-" Nero tried to say no to her mother who instantly put the cup in front of Nero's face.

"Come on now, it will make you feel better Nero. Mom knows best." Agrippina was approaching the cup to Nero's mouth, who weakly tried to get away from it. Her face was red and warm and she felt a hot temperature in her head. All she wanted at this time was to get fresh air instead.

"P-Please...Mom...I dont wan-hugh." Nero's begging came to a stop when Agrippina forced the cup to touch her daughter's lips, making Nero drink the liquid against her will. The young emperor tried to struggle but she was too weak to even get Agrippina's grip away from her face.

"I-I don't want to see this anymore!"

"Ssshhhh, relax dear." Agrippina told Nero, trying to pacify her as a sadistic smile appeard on her face. "You want to make Rome and mother proud, don't you? Then drink it. Obey your mother and drink all of it. Every. Single. Drop."

Nero was about to give up as more of the liquid would go down her throat and she was helpless to do anything against her mother. She was even confused why her own mother was forcing her to drink this cup when she was clearly not showing signs of good health at the moment. "Mother...please...I'm feeling awful..."

As it seemed no one would interrupt Agrippina's act to poison Nero, a voice was heard behind the door of the dinning room.

"My Praetor, are you there?" The voice from Seneca sounded from behind.

Agrippina's eyes immediatly widened as she wasn't expecting someone to interfere her, specially in a situation like this one where she would always made sure no one was nearby. "Crap!" The woman bluntly took out the cup from Nero's lips and put it on the top of the table again, holding Nero and putting her in a position that wouldn't make her fall from the chair.

Hearing no answer, Seneca entered the dinning room, spotting Agrippina and Nero in front of him. He could tell that something wasn't right here. "Is something wrong? Did I came in a bad hour?"

"Family bussiness! You shouldn't put your nose where you aren't called to!" Agrippina coldly and frustratingly told him, trying to remain calm and hope that the old man would go away and leave her alone with Nero.

"S-Seneca..." Nero weakly called his name, turning her body around to see him.

Seeing the clear bad and sick state she was in, Seneca got worried. "Are you alright Nero?" He started to walk to the table.

Agrippina tried to stop him. "There's nothing for you to see here. She's just drun-"

"...H-Help...me..." With all of her strenght gone and not a single trace of energy remaining, Nero fell from the chair and accidently dragged the cup to the floor as well, making a huge noise once she had hit the ground.

"NERO!" Seeing her body lying on the ground, Seneca shoved violently Agrippina to the side, who now was now cleenching her teeth in full anger. In no time, Seneca grabbed the sickening Nero on the ground. "Nero! Nero! Say something if you can hear me!" The man shaked her body a bit, in an attempt to see if Nero was conscious and the worst hadn't happen.

"S...Sen..." Nero said lowly but at least showing that she was alive. However, a touch on her forhead could tell Nero wasn't feeling great at all.

"W-what could have caused this to to you?" Seneca said before noticing a thread of liquid coming out from Nero's mouth. Seneca looked a bit to the side of Nero's body and saw the cup lying on the ground, spilling over the same liquid that appeard on Nero's mouth. The philosopher grabbed the cup and took a closer inspection. Smelling the scent of the cup that had been left by the liquid, Seneca connected the points and saw what had happened here.

From behind the old man, Agrippina was staring at him with a widened insane and tense eyes, trying to remain calm but mentally cursing and panicking. She had just been caught. Now there was only option left for her now. Slowly and almost sublty, she moved an arm behind her back.

"Agrippina..." Seneca, who was still holding the posioned Nero, turned his head around and looked with a terrified gaze to the woman above him. "How could you?"

Not giving an answer, Agrippina instead took a knife she had hidden on her back and tried to stab Seneca with it. "GRAAAAH!" She moved her arm in a fast manner, hoping that Seneca would be too slow to react. Unfortunately for her, Seneca was counting in that possibility and he grabbed the knife with one hand while the other grabbed Agrippina by the pulse.

"L-LET ME GO! UNHAND ME YOU FOOL!" Agrippina shouted crazily as she struggled to get await from Seneca's grip.

Resisting to the cut it was made on the hand he used to grab the knife and Agrippina's efforts, Seneca shouted as well. "GUARDS! HELP GUARDS! An attempt to assassinate our emperor has happened!" In a couple of seconds, a group of guards appeard at the doors of the dinning room, watching Seneca restraining Agrippina's arms.

Not wanting to give up like that, Agrippina tried to find her way out of this. "Don't listen to him! This old fuck of a senile was the one who tried to kill the emperor! Fortunately I appeard to stop him before things could get worse! Now arrest him!" The woman lied the best she could at the moment.

"Poison is a women's weapon. You were poisoning your own daughter this whole time weren't you?!" Seneca said in anger. He knew Agrippina was a sly and scheming woman, but he never would believe she could reach this low.

"What the hell are you talking about?! You're the one who did it!" Agrippina replied back, smiling afterwards. "I'm her mother you idiot! I would never do such vile thing to my own chil-"

"I-it was her..." Nero, reuniting her last of strenght she had, denounced the real culprit. Her own mother, much to the guards shock and Agrippina's rage. "...She's...the one w-who...did it..." She said before coughing and pucking the liquid that Agrippina had forced her to drink.

Not wanting to let Nero suffer alone any longer, Seneca pushed Agrippina torwards the guards arms. "Restrain and lock her. And one of you go call a medic. Quick before things get worse." He ordered and the guards did as they were told as Seneca went to check on Nero and try to comfort the pain she was feeling now.

"What's the meaning of this?!" Agrippina protested wildly as the guards forced her arms behind her back and restrained the woman's hands. "Do you know who I am!? Have you any idea of what you are doing?!" She screamed as the guards tried to move her outside the room.

"Nero, are you okay?" Seneca asked with concern for her well being, helping Nero to get up and lean her body on the chair.

The emperor was breathing heavily and trying to get a balance on her feet. "S-Seneca...I'm not feeling well...I-I..."

Noticing the growth in her voice, Seneca put an empty plate in front of Nero. "Here." He told her.

With no second to waste, Nero throw up everything she had digested of that dinner and liquid on the plate. Seneca gave her some small massages on her back in order to reduce the discomfort. Done with the vomit, Nero was feeling slightly better altough still feeling the pain across her whole body.

Watching it from the distance, Agrippina laughed like a maniac while the guards would take her outside. "How does it feel like hahahaha! To know that I never cared about you?! You were never the true emperor of Rome! I was! You were nothing more but a puppet for me to use Nero ahahahahahaha!" She mocked and taunted Nero. "I am your master! Your owner! And you are a pathetic creation of mine!"

Not facing her mother, Nero tried to ignore it but couldn't hold the tears. It was all a lie. All the praises and love that her mother gave her was fake. She wasn't loved, only used by the one she tought to be her mother. A mother that would poison her as a way to easily control and manipulate Nero. A scheme that had started already when she was younger. In Agrippina's eyes, Nero was just a tool. Seneca hugged closely as more tears would fall down from Nero's face, staring at Agrippina with a face of disgust. "You are wicked." He said to the woman.

"This is also your fault Seneca!" Agrippina screamed at him. "You could have stayed quiet and help me control this puppet even more! We both would end up winning! And you chose to soften your heart now of all the times?! Hahahahahahaha you are just as pathetic as her!" Agrippina looked at Nero one last time. "Hear me well Nero, you annoying bitch! Your reign as an emperor will accumulate to nothing! Do you hear me?! NOTHING! Stop living in your stupid fantasy and wake up to reality and see that you will most likely have the same fate as your fool uncle! You will bring nothing but the ruin of Rome! Because that's what you are and will always be! Not some wanna be failed artist but an arrogant, greedful and heinous girl turned into monster! HAHAHAHAHAHAHA-" And the doors closed, leaving Nero and Seneca alone.

"She's gone now. It's alright. Everything will be alright My Praetor." Seneca let Nero abudantly cry on his chest as the old man hold her tightly, trying to surppress his own tears. "Everything...will be alright."

In the background, the current Nero was watching it silently, with tears falling down from her eyes. "I was just...mother's puppet..." Her mind was breaking piece by piece, not being able to see the same traumatic experience again so vividly. And despite still having a good heart enough to spare Agrippina from execution after all this, something had changed inside her on that day. "I...was never loved...it was all a lie..."

"Does the Imperial Highness finally sees?" The figure spoken. In that moment the light from the dinner room faded and dissapeard into the darkness of the void, leaving only Nero and the cup that Agrippina used to poison her. Walking reluctantly torwards the cup, Nero picked it up and saw what actually was. The Holy Grail. "What thou hath become?"

Without warning, an unccountable amount of dark paint emerged from the Holy Grail, quickly filling the area and drown Nero inside it. As she desperatly tried to swim and find her way out of it, she felt her body hit the ground and the dark waters of the black paint she was emerged in dissapear. She was back. Back to the scenario of the destroyed Rome.

"The words of thy progenitor, told no untruth." The figure said, finally appearing in front of her.

Nero was trembling and shivering in dispair and fear now. "P-please, make it stop. I can't take this anymore!" She begged in horror. "Whatever you want I'll do it! Just please make this stop!"

The figure raised it's arm, showing Nero's soul again. This time with a lot more cracks and darkness around it. Almost no light could be spotted on it. "The beast of thy sins is awakening." The figure said. "Soon the Emperor will embrace it. Become one with it." The figure touched carefully Nero on her cheek. "Playing an important role on our plan."

Out of nowhere, corpses of undead civillians started to appear behind the wreckage, walking torwards Nero and the figure.

Fate/EXTRA Last Encore OST- Sneaky Plan

"N-Nerooooo...your bastard..."

"The tyrannt...Kill the tyrannt..."

"You made us suffer your murderer...Now it's our turn to make you suffer...monster..."

"Die you beast...Curse to every vile deed you did..."

"Rome rotted...because of you..."

Nero looked around in fright and dread, watching every undead corpse of roman people insulting and condemning her as they were reaching out to have their payback. Nero didn't want to believe this. It was a completely nightmarish scene and she wanted to get out.

"Please! I beg you! I will serve any purpose you have for me! Make them stop! I only ask you that!" Nero grabbed the figure's cloth. "Save me from this, please!"

"Nay." The figure simply denied. "Thy role consists of what thou are O Your Imperial Highness. A whore." The figure told her. "One that corrupts and depraves all the fruits a city can offer, leaving it to collapse in dry and rotted anguish as it's citizens are robbed from the goods thou harvests for a sinful and pleasurable banquet." The figure approached it's shadowed face to Nero. "That is what thou are, Nero Claudius."

"N-No..." Nero started to tear up at hearing the figure's words. "I...don't want to be left alone here."

"Do not fret." The figure said, laying a finger on Nero's forhead. "As the time to blossom into thy full wickedness is yet to arrive, we will concede the emperor this form of 'gift'" From the dark humanoid but at the same time monstrous finger, dark branches and lines started to crawl down on Nero's body.

"W-what is-Hrgh!" Nero felt a sudden sharp pain in her chest, contorting her body.

"Such a shame. Your Imperial Highness would be of a great addition to us. Unfortunately, all the ranks have been filled."

Not expecting it, all of Nero's body started to burn in pain, with every single nerve screaming from the inside. "HAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!" Nero didn't stopped scraming, jolting her entire body as the pain would have no end and the dark branches on her skin would grow larger. "It hurts! It hurts! It hurts! I can't stand this pain!"

"For now, focus on destroying what the Emperor sees as the most beautiful pleasure ever. Dive deep into thy darkness and cruel nature. Savour it! Enjoy it!" The figure opened it's arms. "Become what thy greedful thoughts tell you to be! Let the soul be eclipsed!"

Hearing to the figure's words in the middle of the excruciating pain, Nero tried to make the pain stop. "What I see as the most beautiful pleasure? Something...mine for the taking. A thing that I desire to have and savour. A thing...that should be mine and only mine."

Nero thought back on her entire life. Her years as a young child, her Uncle Caligula, Agrippina, Seneca, Rome...

"Rome..." Nero pictured the beautiful imagery of the city that she used to saw from her palace. "My beautiful, precious Rome." Nero went deeper into her mind. "Everything I did, was for you, my beloved. However..."

"Kill...Kill Nero Claudius!..."

"She has to pay!...She has to die!..."

"I despise the emperor!...We all do..."

"We must put an end...to this greedful demon!..."

The corpses of the roman people were getting closer to Nero, who now finally had it. The revelation that it was needed. "...none of these insulants deserve your glory as much as I do!" A black red pool appeard beneath Nero and expanded until all of the corpses were above it too. From the pool, huge debris of buildings emerged, obliterating all of the roman corpses that were present. Now, a broken Nero remained in the middle of it, with a new found purpose. She tried her best to make everyone happy under the roof of the capital of the empire before. But since she came to see that no one loved her, they also didn't loved Rome's beauty too.

The emperor opened her eyes, now shinning a vibrant red. "If no one can appreciate your beauty, then they aren't needed anymore! I am the only person you deserve! No one else!" Nero shouted to the dark sky above, smilling maliciously. "But first, I'll need to do some general cleansing. Hehehe, Hahahaha, HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!" Nero laughed psycothically, the one desiring to be an artist or emperor that would make her people smile gone. Instead, she would bring the greatest of sufferings imaginable to them.

Watching from the distance, the figure turned aound and started to walk away. "The job here is done. We proceed forward my friends." The figure said, resulting in both the fingers of it's two hands to move and crack in an unnatural and independent maner. The figure then looked to the dark sky above as it went away. "Whatever the cost may be, Armageddon needs to occur."


"Fu, fou..."

"Hmmm, not now Fou. I'm trying to sleep." A sleepy Ritsuka turned his body to the other way around, ignoring Fou's call.

"Fou! Fou!" The pet kept calling and poking Ritsuka's body, this time more louder and agressively.

Ritsuka growned in annoyance. "Did you wake up in a bad mood or something?"

Ritsuka started to hear some steps coming from the tent's entrance. As he looked to see who was coming, Mash appeard on the tent's entrance, breathing heavily and with a face of worridness, telling it easily that she couldn't possibly be here to bring good news. "M-Mash? What is it? Why do you look so agitated?"

"It's Boudica, Senpai! She is going on a rampage, attacking the people in the city!"

To be continued...


And that was it for chapter 30! A moderated lenght chapter this time. But man if it was an intresting one. This was one of the first moments from my fic I was waiting to reach and finally write it. You guys can't even imagine how excited and anxious I was to finally arrive to not only 30 chapters of my story but such chapter and scenario(s) that I had in the back of my mind for quite some time. Can't wait to reach to the other one.

And I announce right here that in the upcoming chapter, we will officialy have reached Septem's final stretch. Yes, that's right, we are reaching to the climax of the 2nd Singularity. Once again, expect it to end in the next 5-6 chapters and much probably by the end of March/beggining of April. I know that this AU of the Singularity still hasn't concluded but I would like to hear what have been your toughts about it until now.

And to clarify, they won't be fighting Beast VI/S a.k.a Whore of Babylon at the end of this Singularity. Like bros, this is only the 2nd Singularity so nothing of already fighting freaking beasts (Specially one that is stronger than Goetia himself). What happened at the end of the chapter is that Nero got a little (dark) power up from the figure and went batshit insane. She still hasn't become a fully fledged Beast but is taking slow steps to try and reach there. So Nero of this fic is like a little behind Draco in terms of developing into the Beast we know of the Arcade.

But anyways that's all I wanted to say and see you next time on chapter 31! Peace!

P.S: Goes outside today and after I am some good 300 meters away from home it starts to rain. Return back to my home later that day, and this time brings umbrella. Now it's not raining anymore. What a funny life :)