Hello everybody and welcome back to the start of chapter 113 of the story!
Actually, if we're being honest, it's more of a chapter 112.5 of chapter 112-2. But that just would sound kind of weird since all of the chapters numbers have always been normal to just change slightly the numbers of some specific chapters. Like, imagine if I started putting chapters as they do FGO: Chapter 112:Section 2, Chapter 112: Section 3, and so on and on.
But nah, I prefer to keep it as it is even if a chapter is the second part of the previous one that had beeen split in two due to how big it was.
Bt anyways, with that out of the way, let's start it!
DISCLAIMER: All of 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
"Fou?!"
"Only three questions?" Peko said in a bad surprise.
"But then we won't get to ask every question we wanted to TRI-HERMES." Mash said with dissapointed. "Some will have the be left out."
"Then the first question needs to be one we all agree to be equally important." Nala speaked. "The thing is...who's gonna say it?"
Looking with some hesitance and uncertainty at each other, the group couldn't decide on what first question they should do to Sherlock Holmes and TRI-HERMES. It came to the point where Mash, Peko and Nala stared all at Ritsuka.
"Hum? You guys want me to..." Not sure if he should accept it, Ritsuka gave a look at Bedivere. "What about you, Bedivere? Isn't there a question you also want to ask?"
"I appreciate giving me the opportunity, Fujimaru." Bedivere replied with a gentle smile. "However, as you are very much the leader of your team and this party, I'd say the honor of making the first should to you." The Knight of Loyalty offered.
"You sure?" Ritsuka asked to Bedivere who happily nodded. "Fine then..." Seeing that he was given the benefict of being the leader, Ritsuka stepped forward and looked at Holmes, his mind thinking on a question they all wanted an answer to. "I want to know about...the Incineration of Humanity. Solomon's plan. What led to it."
Holmes smiled a bit. "A good starting question." Configuring TRI-HERMES, Holmes programmed it to search for answers to Ritsuka's question, beggining the calculus. "First, we shall analyze one of the possible origins for Solomon's plan to have entered in action: The Fuyuki Holy Grail War of 2004."
"Eh? But that's the Holy Grail War the founder of Chaldea participated in and won!" Mash commented, seeing some images appear.
"As well as the place to Singularity F!"Peko added, remembering of the city in flames. "What link could it have with Solomon?"
"All in due time. Have patience." Holmes requested. "As you've already known, Marisbury Animusphere, the founder of the Chaldea Organization, once it had won the Holy Grail, decided to spend his wish on obtaining enormous fortune, using it in order to build the Chaldea base of operations in Antarctica with all of the most advanced and latest technologies. A means to an end. And in doing it so, it would result in attracting th attention of one of Solomon's subordinates to join Chaldea: Lev Lainur."
"Flauros..." Ritsuka's eyes narrowed.
"We never saw that jerk anymore. And I hope it stays like that!" Nala said, remembering of how dispicable Lev Lainur Flauros was.
"The one who sabotaged what would be Chaldea's ever first Rayshift mission. The original order." Mash said, also not remembering kindly of the enemy.
"That seemed to have been Lev Lainur's goal ever since he joined Chaldea. Maybe even the one behind the original director's death." Holmes pondered, fingers on the chin. "Marisbury bond of trust and friendship with the one who was secretly his enemy might have been the cause for his assassination, being oblivious of the danger of the disguised Flauros. But eitherway, since he was an agent of Solomon, Flauros infiltration and following his undermining on Chaldea right before their first mission was the most likely event to kickstart the final stages of the King of Magecraft plans, the Incineration of Humanity being present ever since then."
"But we also wanted to know what made Solomon do such thing in the first place!" Ritsuka said, having expected more. "We really wanted to know the entire story behind it!"
"Alas, TRI-HERMES does not seem to have been able to find informations about Solomon's plan origins that could have given us crucial clues about the Incineration of Humanity." Holmes said regrettably. "This is all it got to musture for a possible answer to your question. That, and a curious detail you might want to know."
"What curious detail exactly?" Peko asked the detective.
"During the war, Marisbury, did not worked solely alone. He had an assistant which supported him during the Holy Grail war." Holmes speaked. "An assistant that would later be invited to join Chaldea as chief of the medical department: Romani Ackerman."
"No way..." Ritsuka's eyes widened.
"Romani and the first director worked together during the war?" Nala said in shock.
"I've already knew the doctor and director Marisbury were very good friends, but to think the doctor was also helping him actively during the Holy Grail War..." Mash said, Romani having never told her about it.
"How old does their friendship goes back?" Peko wondered, asking to Mash.
"I don't know. It was one of those things Doctor never told me." Mash replied, having quite the good questions about it. "Perhaps I should contact him-"
"I advise you to not do it, miss Kyrielight." Holmes told her, stopping from thinking about it.
"Huh? Why?" Ritsuka asked the detective.
"Doctor Romani was already told about your meeting with First Hassan and the existence of the Atlas Institute, wasn't he?" Holmes questioned the group.
"Yes, he was." Ritsuka admitted despite the fact the conversation they had with the Old Man of the Mountain was supposed to be secret.
"Then you better not do the same and tell him what you saw and discovered here in the Atlas Institute. Not a single a thing about me and what you've learned here. Understood?" Holmes requested to the chaldeans, wanting Romani to know as less possible from their visit.
"Do you have something against him?" Nala asked, not comprehending why Holmes seemed to want to keep those revelations and topics secret to Romani.
"Because as much of a good person Romani Ackerman is, some things should just be concealed from certain people." Holmes explained, being pragmatic.
"Is there something wrong with the doctor?" Mash asked, thinking why Holmes would say that about Romani.
"Not at all. He is a fine man. Let's just proceed to the next question, shall we?" Holmes swept the topic under the rug. "Now, what question do you want to make?"
Ritsuka proceeded to look at his companions and Bedivere. "Is up to you now." He said, having already made the first question.
Once again, they were all indecisive, each of them having their questions wanting to be answered. But with only two more searches available, it wouldn't be enough for all of them.
"Bedivere-san...I think you should make your question to TRI-HERMES." Mash proposed to the knight.
Obviously, Bedivere tried to refuse. "No, I should not. I'd say you deser-"
"It's alright. You want to get answers as much as us." Peko told him.
"Plus, the gramps we visited on the mountain said we would find the truth about the Lion King here." Nala added. "If there is anyone more fitting to make that question is you, Bedivere."
Taking that into account as well as that finding more information about the Lion king would be crucial for them, Bedivere accepted. "Okay. I shall do it." The knight said before approaching Holmes. He knew what he wanted to ask. About his king. The truth behind his king. "I want to know more about the Lion king. What she's possibly hiding and her end goal. Her true nature."
"It would only be expected." Heading to TRI-HERMES, Holmes configured to search all the possible details about the Lion King in order to form an answer. "Well, let's see what we have here." The detective speaked as the results came in. "It would seem that the Lion King's nature is deeply connected with her sacred lance, Rhongomyniad."
"The Tower at the Ends of the World?" Mash replied, the name of the weapon being familiar.
"The one I used to kill Mordred in our fatal battle." Arthur said, having also used the lance at the end point of his myth. "A weapon whose power can easily rival to that of Excalibur."
"But it would seem the one that the Lion King uses is being used much more to just simple battle." Holmes said, giving a look at the notes. "The Lion King is using her Rhongomyniad as the great tower of light piercing the texture of the planet to its surface! Putting it rather sumply, the Lion King is keeping this entire Singularity temporarily connected to the world's layer through Rhongomyniad!"
"That explains why CHALDEAS was unable to detect it on its surface back when we were about to Rayshift!" Mash exclaimed, her mind going back to the whole coversation about the weirdness of this Singularity's location when she and the rest were discussing about it with Romani.
"No wonder why the area in it was hollow! It is really a big chunk of land leaving the planet!" Peko expressed, thinking how he never figured that out during his time as captive. "Then, the Rhongomyniad on her hand is not the actual lance?"
"Indeed it isn't." Holmes replied. "The Rhongomyniad the Lion King uses as a weapon is merely but a shadow of the true giant tower built way up high in the Holy City as her castle, which leads us to another important aspect about her kingdom: the magically crafted city she constructed isn't actually a new Camelot. In reality, it's the outershell of her sacred lance, giant enough to harbour at least 500 souls."
"Wha- Her entire kingdom is her sacred spear?" Nala said in surprise.
"Rhongomyniad is not only known as being the tower that anchors the end of the world, it is also one containing layers upon layers of it" Arthur was well aware of what he speaked. "The Holy City is merely but the base of the sacred lance."
Bedivere could not believe it. "That's madness! Why would the Lion King go to such lenghts of performing that? What's exactly her goal by doing it?"
"I can answer to that! A response directly from the Lion King's mouth!" Peko stated, having been told what the objective of the enemy was by being told about it by none other than Artoria Pendragon herself. "She said that she plans to store the purest of humans and their souls inside the Holy City for when the time is right and the preparations are done, she will reach to her dreamed 'utopia' with that group of inhabitants, saving them from humanity's extinction. But as dreaded, it won't be as 'utopic' as she wants to believe. There, all of the pure humans will be perserved and live forever, with no form to die even after the bodies perish! They will become nothiing but mere spirits roaming around and praying every day! In other words, the Lion King wants to keep the remaining percentage of humans as mere specimen samples with no will of their own, seeing that as 'protection'!"
"She...she wants that?" Bedivere was devastated as he heard the boy share the Lion King's plans. Never he thought his king had truly lost it more than ever now. This was not being cold or stoic, but rather, outright inhumane under the delusion of saving the humans when in reality, the Lion King would only just extend their torments and suffering eternally. The true epitome of her never understanding human emotions.
"When me and Holmes discovered her true intentions, I couldn't be the more unsettled!" Arthur said, showing he really was not happy at all. "Using Rhongomyniad for such end is sacrilege! Altough the Lion King might wish to protect them, humans should never be meant to live forever with no freedom at all! A King Arthur who acts like that isn't a benevolent ruler!"
"Not only that, but once the Lion King's final stage of her plan begins, the tower that is Rhongomyniad will be disconnected from the planet's layer as well of the Singularity. Since the Holy City is part of the sacred lance, it will ascend the heavens and abandon the Singularity's territory, meaning that the source that keeps this huge chunk of land will dissapear and all of the teritory around the Holy City will fade away." Holmes revealed the effects the Lion King's goal would have on the Singularity. "So all the people that are outside of the Holy City will die alongside the Singularity as she gets to go to her own utopia with the pure souls, in a micro, peaceful kingdom that is set beyind the barriers of time and space. The reason for it? To avoid the Incineration of Solomon while also destroying the Foundations of Humanity herself in order to preserve a small quantity of it."
"I can attest to that. The land must have started to dissapear as we speak right now." Sanzang told the group. "After the egyptian desert, I can no longer feel the west, meaning there is no more land after this desert. This Singularity is being erased little by little."
"So this was the king's plan all along." Bedivere closed his hands in frustration. "Would my liege really do something like this if given the power? If so, I need to confront her and remind the king of her limits!"
"You said it!" Nala replied, the stakes of their mission having increased. "We should head to the Holy City and put a stop to her as soon as possible!"
"Wait! You still have one more question left for TRI-HERMES." Holmes reminded them. "While the Lion King is truly 'something', I'm sure there's at least a few more things you want to know, no?" The detective glared over at Mash, Peko and Nala. "Specially you three."
The trio ended up going silent and hesitant for the third time. Both Mash and the siblings had very equal questions in nature: to know more about their own identities. Mash wanting to discover whose Heroic Spirit inhabited inside her and Peko and Nala wanting to see if TRI-HERMES could give them any major clues about their forgotten past if not all of it. An impasse, as they were aware that whoever got to make the last question, the other one would remain with important things to themselves left to answer.
"This is no easy choice at all." Ritsuka thought as he stared to his companions, irresolute on who should get the final question.
They all wanted to know more about themselves, but also didn't want to deprive the other one of it as well.
"Mash..." Nala looked at her friend, feeling a bit reluctant. "You...You can-"
"Go ahead. The final question getting answers should be yours." Mash said all of a sudden, smiling at the twins, surprising them.
"Wha-B-But Mash! Don't you want to know who's the Heroic Spirit residing within you?" Peko asked her, thinking she shouldn't sacrifice her opportunity to know it because of him and Nala.
"I do. But, there's a difference between you and me that separates our questions." Mash said deeply. "Unlike you, I know how I was born, where I lived, the people who took care of me. My whole childhood. Altough not a normal one, I do have a past that I remember." The shielder put a hand on her own chest, smiling. "I do know who I am and where I came from, while your past is shrudded in mystery. And despite that I'd like to know what is this knight that has been with me ever since years ago, I feel like I can reach to that answer without the help of TRI-HERMES, the same not being said for you."
"Mash..." Nala whispered, a part of hers astonished by the shielder's incredible selfless nature. But guess Mash wouldn't be Mash if she wasn't like that.
"So please, do ask anything you want to know about your past. Anything that you wanted so hard to figure out." Mash incentivated Peko and Nala, putting her wish aside for them. "You have way more to unpack than me, so go ahead and make your question."
"..." Seeing how genuine and untroubled Mash speaked, Peko, despite the minor reluctancy, ended up accepting Mash's offering them the final question to TRI-HERMES. "...Okay." He said, now both he and Nala anticipating for what they could possibly discover about themselves, Mash and Ritsuka also expecting as well.
Holmes saw Peko approach him. "So, young lad. What shall be thw final question?"
Opening his lips, Peko was about to say it before he suddenly stopped fro a moment. "Wait!" He said, getting the party a bit surprised and Holmes to raise an eyebrow. "I remember...I remember of mister Holmes telling me earlier this day there was a thing about me and Nala you wanted to specifically show us."
"Huh? Really?" Nala asked.
Holmes kept a face of composure. "And so?"
"So now I'm realizing something: You are a detective. Yesterday, when we first met, I told you and Arthur about my name, my family's name, Chaldea, my team and mentioned how neither me and my sister could remember a thing about our past." Peko told him about their first meeting.
"You did told us all that indeed." Arthur confirmed it, having also been there to hear it.
"And as a detective, I'm sure you just cannot ingonre the curious and intriguing case of a blank background and past of two siblings that cannot recall it." Peko begun drawing nearer to the conclusion, staring at Holmes in the eyes "Hence why...You've already made TRI-HERMES search about me and my sister, haven't you?"
"..." Silent, Holmes stared normally at Peko for a couple of seconds. And a few more before a simple smile appeared on the detective's lips, beggining to clap, gaining a look of surprise from Peko. "Bravo, young lad! You figured it out!" Holmes said with a quiet laughter. "Quite a keen mind you have! It shows you don't forget the details with ease, using them to uncover new possibilities. Truly, I had already searched you and your sister's past on TRI-HERMES yesterday, meaning that miss Mash can still be able to make her own question to the system as the last one."
"Then you already got the information of their past?" Ritsuka questioned Holmes.
"Do spill it out so!" Nala said, being quick to get closer to Holmes, wanting to hear it. "We need so much of this information! Please!"
Peko also seemed on edge. "Our home, country, parents, lives, everything that we forgot about! I need you to tell us! We have to know!" The boy said. This could be it. One of the main reason if not the one that made him and Nala want to embark on this long journey, be a part of Chaldea, surpass great adversaries and enemies and go through each adventure.
Yet, Holmes face told something else. An expression that would only bring dissapointment.
Ritsuka seemed to notice it. "Don't tell me..."
"Unfortunately, I hate to say it, but TRI-HERMES, despite having a countless information that can measure ages, it isn't perfect, with some details and cases being unknown even to its system." The detective said, a bit despondent. "The search for your past ended up having no results."
"..."
"..."
Both Peko and Nala's anticipation turned into a huge pit of dismay, their eyes losing hope inside.
"It can't be..." Mash murmured, sensing how must of an heavy hit it this was for the twins.
"I searched your names, I searched Finsternis, anything that could show any intel of your past." Holmes stared to the monoliths behind. "Sadly, TRI-HERMES was unable to find anything about your past, being as a mystery to it as it is for us."
"Then it won't be this time yet..." Nala lowered her head in dissapointment, having decepted herself for a moment.
Peko for his own part was hugely discontent. "No. This cannot be it..." The boy closed his fists, not wanting to accept that there wouldn't be nothing for them to find in here. "If Holmes was unable to find anything, then what exactly do you want to show to us?" He asked to the detective.
"Well, one of my mottos is that there never is an impossible case to resolve." Holmes said as he moved his right arms, looking like to grab something that was stored within his coat. "Even those who become cold eventually are resolved as well. Maybe not by me, but by others instead." He ended up taking out an item, showing it to the twins as well to Ritsuka and Mash.
"That's...a letter?" Ritsuka said as he gave it a closer look, seeing the ancient looking piece of paper that Holmed held, all written in nerver seen before letters and symbols, an unique spelling.
"No. It's more like a document." Mash said, spotting a thing on the bottom right corner of the paper. "It looks to have a stamp signatu-wait! That insignia!" Mash noticed the symbol of the stamp. A crown formed by three vertical and pointy dark lines alongside a single horizontal line beneath it. A dark circle surrounding that crown with four dark pointers sticking out of it, looking like a compass.
"It's the same crown as the one tattooed in our backs!" Nala exclaimed, finding the crown in the document to be an exact copy of the one in her and Peko's back, being their magical crests.
"It can't be mere coincidence! It has to be related to us!" Peko said, having regaining all the hope he had lost seconds ago. "H-How did you find it?" He asked to Holmes.
The detective for his own part was honest. "Sincerely, I do not know." Holmes replied, as if he was truly oblivious and unsure on how it came to appear to him. "That document appeared to be within my coat ever since I was summoned. The reason why? I cannot be sure. The only reason it made me notice there was something in my clothing was due the slight heat coming from the fabric of the paper. It seems to be highly inflammable." The detective handed the document to Peko. "So I do advice to keep it off any source of fire if possible."
Once Peko's hands touched it, the boy could truly feel the heat coming from the paper. Despite the antique look, it seemed well perserved, the writting of the letters in it all intact. He, Nala, Ritsuka and Mash all gave a through look. "It's right here." Peko said. "The biggest clue to our past."
"A shame that I cannot understand a thing of what's written in it." Ritsuka commented. "Can you, Mash?"
"I can't, master." Mash replied.
"None of us can, exactly. Isn't there a decryptor thingy that lying around here to help us?" Nala said, wanting to know what was the content of the document.
"Do you know what it means, Holmes?" Peko asked to the detective.
"I do not. It is of a caligraphy that I never witnessed before, looking extremely different from celtic and nordic runes or egyptian hieroglyphs." Holmes told them. "But if I had to guess, I'd say it is a writting that strikes me as a bit similar to sumerian. Or akkadian perhaps."
"The world's first written languages. From Mesopotamia." Mash replied, having heard and studied those two languages before. "Then this document must have quite the thousanf of ages."
"Do you know if Ozymandias could give it a look into it?" Ritsuka asked to his demi-servant. "You know, since Ancient Egypt and Mesopotamia are kinda in the same time period."
"Hmm, that wouldn't be a bad idea." Mash replied, liking the sound of it. "Maybe a pharaoh like him can be familiar with these type of languages."
"So it implies this document is as old as Ozymandias, if not older?" Peko wondered, looking at the paper, his mind realizing something even more wild. "But then, that could mean me and Nala are..."
"Way older than we appear to be." Nala completed, shrugging a bit. "Eugh! I don't like being a granny with thousand years old." But thinking on the other side, she smirked. "But on the positive, it means I am actually the Big Sis here!" She said, glaring at Ritsuka. "You heard that, Ritsuka? From now on, treat me as your reliable and dependable Big Sis!" She said with a proud smug.
Ritsuka immediatly made a radiant thumbs up, winking his eye "You got it, Big Sis Nala!"
"That would feel all types of weird..." Mash said from behind, embaressed. "Still, the document really puts in question your real age."
"Well, with all things that happened before alongside the journey, I too begun to doubt it." Peko replied, checking more of the paper. "Like, has our bodies stopped growing and aging at a certain point? Do we suffer from some type of eternal youth?...Are we dwarves?" Peko gave a comical doubting look.
"Nah! Pretty sure those guys are shorter than us!" Nala replied. "But hey! Think about it: if we really are way older than we appear to be, it's a luck that our bones didn't yet begun to feel rusty!"
Ritsuka also thought of other implication connected with that. "That could also mean that you two aren't normal humans."
"Have you never figured that out until now?" Holmes said, surprised that it took this long for the chealdeans to come to that conclusion.
"No. We pretty much suspected of it almost since the beggining." Ritsuka replied. "It just became gradually more possible as we progressed further on our journey. Now we are almost certain that must be case."
"But until there isn't a one-hundred percent confirmation, we cannot take it for granted." Mash added. "We will continue investigating it until we can have a definitive answer. But for now, this document right here can be the biggest clue we have of Peko and Nala's past yet."
Holmes smiled. "Then I'm sure you can resolve that mystery by yourselves." Clearing his throat, he went to specifically glare at Mash. "Now, there still is one last question that can be made to TRI-HERMES. Want to do it, miss Mash?"
Taking a deep breath, Mash decided. "Yes. It's time to know who resides within me."
Bedivere stepped up. "You sure you want to do this? Remember, once you get the Heroic Spirit's identity, we are not sure of what may happen next. Think of this well." The knight advised her.
"I say we should let her, Sir Bedivere." Arthur approached. "Do you not see the look on her face? It is a desire she has been craving to know for so long. You can tell Lady Mash has gone through a lot of obstacles to obtain this answer. We should not infrige ourselves on her wish." The King of Knights gave a look at her, smiling "You look like a knight, fight like a knight and are prepared like a knight. Therefore, it is your right to discover that knight who has been alongside you this entire time. Do go for it, Mash Kyrielight."
Paying attention to the words of the king, Bedivere rethinked a bit, the concern slightly going down. "Hm, maybe you're right. Perhaps I am all worried for nothing." The Knight of Loyalty stared at Mash. "Get what it belongs to you, Lady Mash."
A bit surprised by Arthur's words, Mash smiled back at him. "Thanks, King Arthur."
Ritsuka put a hand in her shoulder. "Remember, if something goes wrong, we are here to pull you out!"
Peko nodded. "You can count on us, Mash!"
"So go now and get your answer! Whatever happens next, I'll still be your friend!" Nala also incentivated the shielder to go forward and ask.
"Fou fou!"
Mash smiled warmly, her heart metling a bit with all those words. "Eh. Thank you. All of you." And so, the shielder went torwards Holmes.
"And the final question is...?" Holmes awaited for it.
Mash gave it. "The Heroic Spirit inside me, sharing the Saint Graph. Who are they?"
.
.
.
Fate Grand Order OST- A Day of Raining Tears
"Hmmmm..."
"It appears you finally got what you wanted."
Inside the blank void of her own soul, Mash opened her eyes to encounter the knight that had been there with her for almost as long as she had lived.
"Are you satisfied with what you got?" The knight asked her, his back still turned on her.
Smilling affectionately, Mash walked torwards him. "So that is your name. What a beautiful one." Her steps softly touching the blank ground as she approached. "To think I would never know, the one who gave me the energy to continue living."
"I just took pity. Nothing else." The knight replied, sounding slightly distant.
Mash giggled. "I think otherwise. After all, I've read your tales and deeds. You are much more noble than you think yourself to be."
"Hm, is that so?" The knight replied. "I dismiss the gratitude. I only thought that such feeble being like you, should be allowed to live more."
"And in return, you gave me way more beyond an extended life."
"I was forcefully infused to you. Did you never feared or dispised that thinking? That you could ever lose your body to me?"
"Not at all. Because I knew that whoever servant shared his traits and strenght with me, did it for my survival. And now that I know your name, I'm even surer of it!"
"You speak like we knew each other for ages."
"Well, from my point of view, you were there for almost my entire life despite I never got the chance of meeting you. So I hope that sometime, even in an impossibility of a scenario, we get to see each other properly."
"You really think that?" The knight slightly lifted his head. "If so..." Turning his head around, the knight showed his face to Mash. The face of a young knight, not much older than her. The soft and pale purple of his hair covering his left eye, leaving only the amber gleam of his right eye as he stared to Mash. "What will be the first thing you'll say to me?"
Smilling purely and joyous, Mash responded to the Heroic Spirit that had saved her. "I'll say..."
.
.
.
"Thank you, Galahad."
Mash said deeply within her heart as she opened up her eyes, having finally got the answer of the Heroic Spirit's identity that was within her."Thank you for having saved my life."
"Galahad..." Ritsuka said, everyone else haivng heard the name alongside the shielder. "So that's who was within Mash all this time."
"Yes. The knight of the Round Table Galahad." Bedivere replied. "Known as the Knight of Heaven. A title attributed to him due to his purity, selflessness and compassion for others. One could say he was flawless and the very best of the Round Table when it came to uphold the values of a true knight alongside Percival. Never weak or a coward." The Knight of Loyalty said, remembering foundly of his companion. "And when I look at Lady Mash, I see those same values that exuberated around Sir Galahad so much. It might could be his influence but, I believe that its more of Lady Mash being as compassionate as him."
"Exactly. Sir Galahad is one that I always remembered fondly and in high regard." Arthur also commented. "Every knight of the Table did. To think that now I see this young maiden having the same traits as him, sharing the same kindness and benevolence he ever had... It feels as if he had a twin sister all along." The King of Knights lowered his head with a sad smile. "If only he didn't had departed, Camelot would be in such safe hands."
"To be praised by the king and all knights, Galahad surely must have been a legendary knight." Peko commented.
"He sure was." Bedivere said, staring at Mash. "And now, he fights alongside Lady Mash as her shield."
"The Round Table's shield." Arthur added. "The one I entrusted him in order to keep the kingdom safe: Lord Camelot."
"And with that, TRI-HERMES has reached it's limit of searches." Holmes announced. "I hope all of you got satisfied with the answers you were looking for or got nearer to it. Were you, miss Mash?"
"Hehe, I surely was, Holmes-san." Mash replied with glee to the detective. "With it, a part of me now feels more complete." She put a hand close to her chest. Yet, two seconds after, the smile dissapeared from her face, replaced by a sense of guilt and sorrow.
"Eh? What's wrong Mash?" Ritsuka asked as he saw the sudden discontent on the shielder's face.
"Yeah. What's that face for?" Nala told her. "Isn't getting the Heroic Spirit identity a thing that you always wanted?"
"Yes, it was." Mash replied, the sense of blame still in her. "It's just I've hidden so much thing from you about me. That I actively lied to all of you while making promises. How much I feared you hating me for it. I realized, I was afraid of facing myself. Of facing the truth about my life and telling it to you. I was dishonest, saying that I would be there after the ending to enjoy life with all of you. When I much likely won't get a month on the outside world after we clear our order." Mash voice begun to tremble, an agony forming on her throat. "I saw how I did all of those lies...just to make myself feel better! That I was never fully honest with you!"
Ritsuka immediatly try to tell otherwise. "That does not matter, Ma-"
"So, I'll give you a choice..." Mash said, calming down her sorrow as she looked to her companions with regret. "If after this moment, after we leave Atlas Institute, you decide to never speak with me again, acknowledge me, not even a single glance...If you opt to ignore this artificial human, for every lie she had gave you in order to not become painful once her life ends..." Quivering her limbs, Mash mustered the courage to look at her teammates in the eye. "Then I und-"
"I forgive you!"
"?!" Catching Mash off guard, the shielder looked down as she saw Nala hug her tightly out of nowhere, surprising her. "N-Nala?"
"Shut up already about that!" Nala shouted staring intensely at Mash "You are my friend and will always be despite that! So stop with the pity and know that I'll always be there for you!"
"...Y-"
Dazed, before Mash could say a word, Ritsuka and Peko also went torwards her to hug their friend.
"That's right! You think that after all we've been through, we would simply abandon you?" Peko told her. "You are as important as anyone else from this group, Mash! It won't be some lies like that that will ruin it! We understood your fear! We understood it and decided to forgive you!"
"G...Guys..." Mash was beggining to get emotional, tears appearing on her eyes.
"See?" Ritsuka gave a friendly smile to the shielder, kindly brushing away her tears. "I told you were not alone, Mash. Even if we won't have you forever, you will always, always have us."
"Fou! Fou!"
"S-Senpai..." Mash gave an happy smile throguh her tears, giving the last master of humanity a big hug in return, shoving her face between his chest and shoulder. "Thank you! Thank you all so much!"
"Eh, you're welcome." Nala smiled kindly alongside Peko, all of the servants in the room also finding the moment of union beautiful.
Mash's companions had accepted her back.
"Now, wipe off those tears, Mash." Ritsuka told as Mash took her face away from him. "We still have a Singularity to deal with!"
Doing it so, Mash nodded at him. "Understood, master!" She said, proceeding to also look at Peko and Nala. "We shall reach the end together!"
"Hm, I suppose you have seen enough here." Holmes commented, smoking his pipe. "With that said, you shall now leave the Atlas Institute and ger ready for the final battle against the Lion King."
"And better be fast!" Touta speaked. "If what we just discovered is true, then there will be nothing left of the Singularity in the space of a few days!"
"That's the spirit my disciple!" Sanzang told him. "Long breaks and intervals can be prejudicial to one's journey! Time to hit the road again!"
"Will you really be staying here?" Bedivere asked to Holmes.
"Pretty much. As long as I still have Babbage's current case to resolve, I won't be able to go with you for the final clash." Holmes said. "However, Atlas Institute is currently deserted, its researches having also been caught by the Incineration of Humanity. No sign, of the its director, Zepia Eltnam Atlasia, nor his successor. I wonder if they escaped or also got caught." The detective wondered. "Otherwise, all this chambers of valuable secrets, taboos, curses and much more will be left for me to explore and search. I'll be fine."
"Luckly, unlike Holmes, my objective of slaying a Beast does not chain me to this location." Arthur speaked to Bedivere and the rest. "I can accompany you and lend my strenght to you on the final battle against the Lion King. You never know when one of the three Beasts will strike again." The King of Knights said, offering to join the party during his search for the Beast, thinking it could eventually show up.
"Really? That's an honour my kin-hum! I mean, yes, it will be an honour to have a King Arthur helping us." Bedivere said, calming down his happiness for a bit.
"So we will get to have the mythical Arthur Pendragon to help us on the battle. That is quite the addition to our side!"
"Yeah! With Arthur fighting with us, the chances of defeating the Lion King and her knights must have sky-rocketed!" Peko added.
"The number of servants we have at our side, with First Hassan and Arthur also helping us? I think we aren't the underdogs here anymore!" Nala commented, the servants they were going to have being a good counter force for the Lion King's knight and her army.
Ritsuka extended his arm to Arthur. "Welcome then, King Arthur! Glad you're helping us!"
Arthur accepted the handshake. "The pleasure is all mine, master of Chaldea."
"Okay. I think it's all." Ritsuka said as he saw the entire party ready to leave the Atlas Institute, having got what the secrets they were told to discover and some more. "Everyone, we-"
"Ah, crap! Almost forgot!" Peko exclaimed, looking to have remembered something.
"Hm? What were you about to forget, airhead?" Nala asked him.
"Well, now it's of little use since TRI-HERMES can't be used to search answers but..." Looking at Holmes, Peko wanted to make him one last question before leaving. "Man of Sin? Who is he? Do you know a thing about him?
Hearing that name also made the rest of the thing remember of the topic.
"I can't believe we were forgetting of the Man of Sin! Since we have yet to run into him as another possible enemy, this could have been a good opportunity to get to know more about him." Mash lamented. "We should have took some more time to consider other possible questions."
"A shame really. Because while I have little knowledge and evidence of the Man of Sin's identity on who or what he is, TRI-HERMES might could've known." Holmes sighed, accepting the fact. "Guess it's a mystery for later. Altough, I do have an hypothesis on what exactly the Man of Sin might be."
Suddenly, that picked the chaldeans interests.
"And what Man of Sin might be?" Ritsuka asked to Holmes.
"A Beast." Holmes answered, giving them his guess about the mysterious identity true nature. "Be it Beast VI/R, Beast VI/L, Beast 0/XIII or another one that isn't currently present within the Singularity."
"Man of Sin...being a Beast?" Mash reacted with some interest.
"Humm, I guess it would make sense." Peko replied, thinking. "If what we heard from the Beast Class is true, then Beasts really are identities originated from humanity's evils and sins. And someone that goes by as 'Man of Sin' would not be too hard to imagine being a Beast that causes chaos then. Maybe...Maybe The Blight is work of him!" Peko exclaimed, imagining the link.
"Hmm, a magic that can corrupt someone's souls with sin, belonging to a man with nothing but sin. A mostly safe assumption to make." Holmes closed his eyes fro a brief moment, analysing the theory before opening his eyes again. "There's a good chance of that being the case when putting in perspective."
"Then Man of Sin is here as one of the three Beasts?" Ritsuka pondered.
"Perhaps. But which one of them?" Mash replied.
"I believe that's one of the things we will eventually find out." Nala said. "Or we stumble into Man of Sin, or Man of Sin stumble into us."
Being on that topic, Ritsuka remembered of one more thing. "Also, do you think Solomon and him are working together?" He asked to Holmes.
The detective rubbing his chin. "Hmm, Solomon, a Grand Caster, working with Man of Sin, a Beast. That in any other scenario would be highly unlikely. But, given the fact that it appears the King of Magecraft has betrayed humanity, perhaps there is a possibility that the two are indeed working together." Holmes then gave them a warning. "Still, whoever appears now, be it Solomon, Man of Sin, one of the three Beasts, I advice you to not engage in battle with them. Instead, avoid the unnecessary conflict as long as the Lion King remains your top priority. But of all to avoid, Man of Sin is the one you have to be more careful with, as we are not sure of what kind of malevolence he plans to inflict on the world."
Ritsuka and the rest took the detective's warning seriously. Having encountered with the identity, even if it was in a dream, the master of humanity knew the danger it posed. "We will!"
"And if one of them does appear to attack us, I'll make sure to fight them off as a grand candidate." Arthur speaked, prepared if such scenario happened. "I won't let the Beasts destroy the only hope humanity has!"
"And also, before you go, I want to tell you one more thing." Holmes said to the party before they left the room and exit Atlas Institute. "A curious detail about Solomon and the execution of his plan."
"What is it about it?" Peko asked to the detective.
"Being the Grand Caster, Solomon has the skill of Clairvoyance beyond all means, able to see ages and ages into the future." Holmes told them of Solomon's capabilities. "Which makes me wonder: Why exactly did he opted to execute the Incineration of Humanity in the year of 2016, aware that Chaldea Organization already existed by then and would more than likely try and stop him from achieving his goal? Why didn't Solomon planned the Incineration of Humanity to more years into the future, to a time where perhaps there wouldn't be a significant opposition to make a stand against him?" Saying all that, Holmes gave an absorbed look to the party. "Could it be that Solomon was unable to gaze beyond the year of 2016?"
Such theory and thought made the chaldeans heads and of everyone else really think for a bit and question it as well.
"Beats me..." Nala said, not knowing why.
"Perhaps he felt impatient to wait for that long?" Ritsuka thought. "But that wouldn't make much sense."
"When we met Solomon, he appeared arrogant and boastful, but he surely didn't seemed the type of person that would put such meticulous and long plan by wanting to start it faster." Peko said. "Perhaps, beggining the Incineration of Humanity in 2016 was the best choice available for him."
"The King of Magecraft did not chose the year out of free will, but of necessity." Holmes said. "Even with Clairvoyance, how could the one behind such great and grandious magic spells was unable to see the future beyong 2016? Did he not liked of what he saw? Or he couldn't see it at all?" Putting questions and more questions, Holmes just decided that the best would be putting that apart from now. "Hmm, I think it's for the best of both our concentrations to just leave that case for another time or else we will stay in here forever. Wether will it be a case for you, I or either both of us to resolve, we shall see."
"Is Holmes-san implying that we will meet again in the future?" Mash asked the detective.
"Who knows?" Holmes replied with a smile. "There are many paths and possibilities for the future. If our fates do converge again, so be it. Until there's a case that results in that, we both will be following each of our own separate paths for now." Holding his pipe, Holmes gave a goodbye to the chaldeans, standing right in front of TRI-HERMES. "As for in the present, we shall go on our own different paths! But you know what they say, the future is a promising box of surprises, so do not count this as the last time we meet one another chaldeans."
"Humm, just a quick question! Which book does Holmes-san recommends to read?" Mash asked the detective one true final question.
"Hmm, The Seven Pillars of Wisdom by T.E Lawrence." Holmes responded with a smile. "Every british that worths themselves should read it once at least in their lives." The detective recommended the book to Mash and smoked a bit from his pipe. "With that said, until a next time, people of Chaldea! Go forward in search of more answers and save humanity!"
"Well, we all got what we came looking for. One way or another." Ritsuka said happily as he and the entire party were now exiting the Atlas Institute.
"We sure do!" Peko replied happily, looking at the ancient document in his hands. "With this, I feel that we are closer to our past than ever before!" The boy told to Nala.
"Too bad none of us know how to read it." The girl responded to her brother. "Also, can I be the one guarding it, please?"
"No." Peko refused.
"Ah, c'mon now! I said with 'please' and everything!" Nala protested.
"No. You're too clumsy to be trusted with this!" Peko told her, denying his sister's request.
"Bah! Nonsense! When was the last time I ever lost anything?" Nala argued with her brother, trying to grab the document.
"Well, I don't remember because you must have lost a lot of things by now!" Peko said, keeping the document away from Nala's hands.
"Tsk! You're such a meanie! And to think I was worried about you!" Nala pouted. "Next time you go missing or captured, I won't even think a second of you!"
"Fine by me! It was quite peaceful to not having to endure your antics!" Peko teased her.
"Oh you- give it to me!" Nala said as both she and Peko begun to have a dispute over the document, not being truly a fight but instead just two siblings playfully bickering with each other.
"Heh, I already missed of seeing them like that." Mash smiled softly to the sight of Peko and Nala together, with Fou coming in to join.
"It was about time." Ritsuka added, staring to Mash on her side. "What does Galahad says about this?"
Mash giggled. "He is a quite shy and silent, so I think he has nothing to say for majority of the time." Mash stared down to her own chest. "Still, I appreciate what he did for me. As well as I appreciate everything you three and Chaldea also done for me, master." She stared back to Ritsuka.
"You know it, Mash." Ritsuka chuckled at her, happy to see that now the group was all back together and everyone was happy. A clear contrast from two weeks ago.
"You seem to have a very close and tied group by your side." Arthur told Ritsuka, walking just slightly ahead of him. "It makes me see how you were able to reach this far. Your group sure must have an impecable teamwork."
"Thanks. It isn't always easy but we end up managing to turn the situation around." Ritsuka said. "Also, why exactly are you helping us, King Arthur? As far as I know, this isn't your timeline, meaning that humanity in your own universe must be alive I assume. So why do the effort of saving an humanity that basically isn't yours?"
"Good people don't need any justifications to do good." Arthur replied to Ritsuka. "If I can help to avoid an entire timeline from being pruned while on my quest, I'll do it without question. You and your efforts, chaldeans, are captivating to say the least."
"King Arthur-san is really an ideal potrayal of the noble Arthur Pendragon. I'm glad we ended up finding you here." Mash said to Arthur.
"I agree." Bedivere replied. "King Arthur has the right qualities of a king from our myths. It really reminds me of my own king during the period of old Camelot. I fantasize how a talk between the two king Arthurs would go."
"Hmm, I myself wouldn't oppose to that idea." Arthur said, also imagining it. "I'm sure your own Arthur Pendragon also used to be a fair ruler before all of these events of the Singularity happened and she became the Lion King. And repeating what i said before, just call me Arthur. We aren't in my kingdom nor you are my subordinates to adress me as such." The King of Knights told them with a benign smile.
"Then do pardon us! It seems it just a force of habit and resemblances at this point." Bedivere apologized. "By the way, can I ask you something?"
"Proceed." Arthur authorised to Bedivere.
"I've heard some rumours before while here that there was a certain someone pretending themselves to be Arthur Pendragon. A kind of imposter, as the soldier knights would call it. But when you arrived here, you usually disguised yourself in order to not let anyone see your identity, correct?" The Knight of Loyalty made the question.
"Yes. I would always disguise myself while going out to explore more of the Singularity as well as obtain intel of its current scenario." Arthur responded, knowing that this wasn't really the question Bedivere had for him.
"Then how can there ever had been this theory of an imposter in the first place?" Bedivere asked. looking at Arthur with a bit of an incredulous face. "You weren't going around telling random people your name, were you?"
"..." Arthur went silent for a bit before speaking. "Oh, that?" He then turned his face into one of distaste and mild annoyance. "It wasn't necessarily me who went around telling people my actual name..."
"Fou fou! (It was a mage of flowers shennanigans, was it)"
Meanwhile, Mash and Ritsuka were talking to one another. "Master. Are you still wondering about what Holmes said?"
"Holmes said quite a lot of things that left me wondering, Mash." Ritsuka replied, wondering which topic Mash was referring to.
"The one about Solomon being unable to see a future past 2016." Mash clarified. "As well as he and the Man of Sin possibly working together. Do you think that's true?"
"Hmm, can't be sure as of now." Ritsuka replied, thinking about it. "We got answers and were given more questions. Wether we find those questions answers sooner or later, we shall see." And just as he had finished saying that, it seemed problems begun to happen as they wer eon the exit to the exterior of Atlas Institute.
"Great Shakyamuni Almighty! Where did you lot came from?"
The rest of the party heared the two voices up ahead, gaining everyone's attention.
"It looks like Sanzang and Touta are in trouble up front!" Peko exclaimed, he and Nala having stopped their dispute for the document.
"We must aid them immediatly!" Nala added.
"Let's see what's going on!" Ritsuka told the entire party, all rushing torwards the exit to help Sanzang and Touta with whatever had appeared before the two.
Reaching to the outside in the open desert, the group was quick to join the other two servant that were more ahead.
"Sanzang-san! Touta-san! We're-!" Mash stopped talking once she and the rest of the group all saw the problem the duo seemed to have encountered.
Cornering them and the entire ruin temple that was the entrance of the Atlas Institute, the heroes saw an entire formation batallion of soldier knights surrounding them and the perimeter, having awaited for the party to finally come out, antecipating for that moment. In other words, they were ambushed.
"I got you where I wanted you!" The knight and leader of the batallion speaked, stepping forward and standing right in front of the group, revealing to be none other but the Knight of the Lake, Lancelot. "This time, I shall fulfill my duty!"
To be continued...
And that was it for chapter 113!
Oh boy you don't even wanna know the word count that this chapter would be originally if ch112 and this one were released as one. Hence why it was important to split it up.
But yeah, we got to know more and finally discover the Heroic Spirit within Mash's soul (It's Galahad! What a surprise!) as well as a very important ancient and enigmatic document that is somehow connected with Peko and Nala's past as well as that it was in Holmes posession. What's the content of it? Cannot tell. Only that *smirk* 'the plot thickens'.
So yeah, our team of heroes got to know quite a lot from this visit to Atlas Institute. I won't mention about the topics of Solomon's Incineration of Humanity or the Lion King's goal because they are original from the game, so I think that it is at least expected that it didn't came as much as a surprise to you as the document or the information of the three Beasts did. And possibly even a guess on what Man of Sin might be?
Anwyas, I'm tired at the moment of writting this, so I'm ending here. See you all back for chapter 114! Peace!
P.S:
Peko: It's so over! I have been fired yet again! How many more jobs must I take until I find a stable one that will give me the peace that I want?
Chole (approaching him): Having a rough time trying to make money to yourself?
Peko: Yeah, pretty much."
Chole (giggles mischiveously): Well, there is a way I can make you gain a lot more money in just a few days, you know?
Peko (Hope coming back): Wait? Really?
Chloe: Realistically real! And all you need to do is a simple thing.
Peko (excited): Then what is it?"
Chloe (Approaching Peko with a sassy smirk): Hehehe, well, all you need to do is-
(Illya and Miyu immediatly burst in)
Illya: Stop it right there!
Miyu: You're under arrest!
Chole: Crap! You won't ever stop me!
(Chloe exclaims as she starts fleeing with the two girlsgoing after her, leaving a clueless Peko behind)
Peko:...What the hell...just happened?
