Disclaimer: All characters and settings belong to their respective franchises.

"Incredible," Kirschtaria mused as he stood in the center of the control room, now dressed in a white coat under a gray sweater, the light of CHALDEAS bathing him in a serene blue ambiance. "And you're telling me that just one of these will be able to sustain those who consume it for over ten days?"

Those with him were the main group, consisting of Romani, Caster, Pepe, Hinako, Mash, and finally Gohan, who was facing the true Director of Chaldea. The boy studied the blonde carefully, reading his energy, and could not sense any hint of what might prove troublesome. If anything, he seemed far more intrigued, fascinated by the Senzu he held between his gloved thumb and forefinger, eyeing the legume as if it were a particularly rare classification of jewel that had been lost to time.

"Unless you have an incredibly fast metabolism, then yes," Gohan answered truthfully. "The supply I have with me, however, is limited. I'd wager that if I rationed well enough, it would last me about five months at best."

"Five months?" Romani repeated with a baffled raise of his brow.

Kirschtaria hummed as he mulled over that detail. "They could last you much longer than that."

"Hm?"

He turned to the boy with a stern look in his eyes. Not that of authority, but of entreaty. "Would you be willing to provide us with samples?"

Gohan blinked, his mouth open as if to answer, and Kirschtaria feared it would be a refusal, but instead, "Uh, sure," the Half-Saiyan replied with a palpable reluctance, perhaps expecting it but still harboring a certain amount of doubt, even suspicion. "You…wish to cultivate it?"

Kirschtaria replied with a determined nod. "If it would give Chaldea an advantage, then yes. It would also go a long way toward alleviating the suffering of those who are still currently infirmed."

Gohan stared at the blonde, blinking twice before hanging his head with a thoughtful expression. "Truth be told, sir, but even I don't quite know how Master Karin grows Senzu. He never discloses it to anyone."

That made sense. Considering the amount of Mystery the beans alone might hold, learning their integral composition might just make it less effective than if it remained obscure. "Can you at least give us some clues? Anything at all that might help," Kirschtaria insisted, determined to find a way to harness these wondrous legumes for Chaldea's future exploits. After all, if this timeline was going to be anything like the simulations he had experienced, and the dangers of the Lostbelts, then they'd need all the advantages they could get their hands on.

A frown appeared on Gohan's face, mirroring that of the blonde. "I don't really have a problem with that, sir. In fact, I would jump at the chance to grow more Senzu for you if I could, but the only clue I can offer is that it might have something to do with the high altitude of Master Karin's tower. That's the only place he could grow his beans. Other than that, it might even require a special kind of soil or other methods that differ heavily from what might be considered common."

Expecting the man to be discouraged, Kirschtaria instead appeared even more determined, perhaps even riled by the challenge. "Caster."

"Yes, sir," the Uomo Universale stepped forward.

"Have you already made the preparations in your workshop?" It wasn't quite a question, for the man just knew that the renaissance woman would have already jumped at the chance, to which she merely smiled in confirmation.

"Of course," Caster answered with a flip of her hair. "As if the great Leonardo Da Vinci would ever pass up on such an opportunity, or allow myself to be dissuaded by any such roadblocks."

Despite himself, Kirschtaria grinned, satisfied with her answer. "I'll leave it to you." He then turned his attention back to the boy. "How many do you have now?" Gohan was about to answer when Da Vinci would be the one to do so.

"97 total." She had taken the liberty of counting the contents of the bag when she first found it, and since two of them had already been used since the first one, the amount was now down from the once solid 100, which somewhat impressed Gohan that Karin had actually taken the time to collect so many for him.

"97," Kirschtaria repeated thoughtfully. "How many can you work with?"

"Five," Caster offered. "At most. Any more and we risk depleting an already finite resource."

Kirschtaria nodded. "These beans would be the most invaluable asset to our mission. Their necessity cannot be understated. As a matter of policy, each of our personnel should have at least two with them at all times."

"Not to mention," Pepe chimed in, "we could save an enormous amount on rations. Not needing to eat for over ten days? I mean, talk about the ultimate dietary supplement."

A harsh silence abruptly fell over them.

"You just had to say it," Hinako seethed in an admonishing tone. Then the floor began to rumble beneath their feet, warning them of danger, but Gohan would be the first to detect a large number of energy signatures converging on the control room. The door soon slid open and a flood of personnel and some of the surviving Masters, still in their patient robes, entered. One common detail stood out among the group. They were all female.

"Director," one of them who had taken the lead said as she stepped forward, "what is this we've been hearing about a 'dietary supplement'?" She was a slender woman who looked about Kirshctaria's age in the standard personnel uniform, perhaps a year younger. Her wavy, beige hair came down to her neck. The only piece of jewelry she wore was a single gold earring inscribed with tiny runes for spellcasting.

All of Kirschtaria's entourage, including the man himself, blinked in unison before he addressed the group. "Uh, erm, d-dietary supplement? Wh-Whatever do you mean, Ms. Norwich?"

"Don't even try to play dumb here, Kirschtaria," Norwich archly shot back at her superior, addressing him like they were back in their school days. "We sensed it no matter where we were in the facility." This little detail earned her odd looks and sweatdrops from Gohan and the rest. "Even before that, there was already talk spreading of a miraculous drug that had instantly rejuvenated one of the masters." She glanced subtly at the group behind the blonde, perhaps hoping to find if this alleged patient might be one of them. "Well?"

Kirschtaria, whose only sign of breaking composure was a twitch of his left eye, cleared his throat and said, "Whatever you may have heard, Ms. Norwich, all I can tell you for now is that this 'miracle drug' is still in the testing phase. But you can be assured that it will be made available no later than the completion of all preliminary and supplemental stages."

Norwich raised an unimpressed brow, knowing a canned response when she heard it. "Very well. We will all hold you to that, Director Wodime." She took a sharp breath and concluded, "You understand, of course, that as generous as the Norwich family has been with our investment in Chaldea, we still naturally expect results. That not even a penny of it be wasted."

Kirschtaria didn't even deign to grant the young woman so much as a grin for that final jab. "It will not, Ms. Norwich. Thank you for your concern." He and Marisbury had known that accepting financial aid from the Norwich family would come with its own pros and cons, but the Animusphere head had long courted them before the founding of Chaldea, and after the First Fuyuki Grail War, their support was practically secured.

Once the group departed, along with an apologetic Sylvia being part of them, the control room was locked for all intents and purposes until Kirschtaria was in a more agreeable mood. "I can only spare five, right?" Gohan inquired, having had his belongings returned to him between the time of his questioning and the immediate present.

Caster concurred, stating, "Indeed. I have already formulated a preliminary plan for the procedure, albeit it remains in the conceptual stage. I would require a comprehensive analysis of the samples, along with the establishment of control specimens, the testing of diverse soil and water samples, and environmental assessments." She turned to Kirschtaria. "The magnitude of the endeavor necessitates its own prioritization, with only the repairs to the facility being of more importance."

Kirschtaria acknowledged this, concurring with a nod. He then addressed the boy again, "Sūn Wùfàn, could you elaborate on the potency of the Senzu bean's regenerative capabilities?"

Gohan nodded, stating, "Provided it hasn't healed over yet, the Senzu bean can effectively mend virtually any injury." This single revelation drew no shortage of astonishment from the others. "It can restore lost limbs, missing teeth, and even eyes, so long as it's consumed as soon as possible. Moreover, it can purge toxins from the body. The only glaring limitation is that Senzu beans cannot cure chronic illnesses."

Floored could not even begin to describe the reactions he received, and Kirshtaria was already hypothesizing that his magical circuits had never truly 'healed over' for the beans to repair them, when he would have had to seek out someone of the Ashborn bloodline, but much of the knowledge of how to restore crests and circuits had been lost with the death of the last head and his family. This was despite the fact that there was nothing truly physical about magical circuits, as they were more firmly rooted in the soul. The only conclusion he could come to was that the mystical properties of these beans were simply that effective.

"Caster," Kirschtaria began, urgency undercutting his tone, "I want you to give this project the utmost priority. Our engineers should already have everything else covered. Doctor?"

Romani nodded in affirmation. "I can handle the rest, don't worry."

Kirschtaria nodded in agreement. "We each have our own roles to play. Sūn Wùfàn."

"Uh, yes?" Gohan stood at attention.

"Your education starts now."

The Half-Saiyan blinked. "Education?"

Chaldea Library…

"Here you go!" An audible thump echoed throughout the vast library of Chaldea, which housed a virtual cornucopia of books and tomes on all manner of topics such as history, biology, zoology, chemistry, esoteric knowledge both lost and found, and of course, magecraft. Not even a mere fraction of these books covered the entire length of the table Gohan was sitting in front of, which had to be at least ten feet in length.

"I... have never seen so many books in my life," Gohan finally commented in awe as he eyed his immediate surroundings, indeed never having seen so many because of how remote Mt. Paozu could be and because the local library in West City was only so big. As soon as he passed through those wooden double doors, the first thing that flooded his vision were rows upon rows of shelves that seemed to reach up the ceiling, each one filled to bursting.

"Yep," Pepe agreed, patting the stack of books he had just placed down, while Hinako sat next to him reading her own. He rested his elbow on the top and added, "It's even bigger than the Library of Congress in Washington. You'd probably need a compass just to not get lost here."

"I wouldn't mind," Hinako commented idly.

"I'm sure you wouldn't," Pepe agreed coyly. "Now, boya, to become a functional Master here in Chaldea, you must have at least a rudimentary inkling of history. Our world's history, that is, since much of the time you'll be rubbing shoulders with Servants, who are, in actuality, heroes and significant figures of varying eras."

"Y-Yeah," Gohan nodded. "Caster already briefed me on that, but all I'm really missing is the more intricate details."

"Quite right," Pepe nodded. "You'll also be required to brush up on actual history to better understand what discrepancies in the past need to be corrected. If you can identify what doesn't belong, or something doesn't follow how events are supposed to, then you'll know it's a Singularity."

"Right," Gohan nodded. "Uh, how or where do I start?"

Pepe stared at the boy before sliding a glance at Hinako, who let out a sigh. She rose from her chair and shot him a look, which he returned with an all too impish smile and a reminder, "Boss's orders."

The ancient Xian tilted her head back, eyes closed as if wrestling with the order, before releasing the breath she had been holding in another, much more exasperated sigh. "Fine."

Gohan watched the exchange quietly as the girl, Hinako as he had come to know her, approached him with a stern look in her eyes. Once she was close enough, they stared at each other without saying a word, as if waiting for the other to break the ice. Gohan, for his part, suppressed the urge to speak or comment on the... unusual quality of her Ki. The only reason he had not acted on his instinct to confront her was that she had not expressed any overt hostility other than what he could only describe as annoyance or perhaps even irritation. It would have been another matter entirely if she had harbored a degree of malice comparable to Flauros', but since they had begun to consciously observe each other (for it was impossible not to), neither had found any real reason for conflict.

"First," Hinako began, breaking the stalemate, "for a proper introduction to your lesson, let's compare each other's history."

"R-Right," Gohan nodded, then bowed his head and ended with, "Please take care of-"

"Focus," she cut him off with an indifferent tone. She looked at the pile of books and grabbed one, taking the time to read the cover and nodding in satisfaction. "Let us begin."

By the time they had finished the prehistoric period, Pepe, who had chosen to linger for their little study session, worked up the urge for a smoke. "Dinosaurs still roam your Earth?"

"Yes," Gohan confirmed, nodding. "They mostly live in mountains and forests, but there are some that are put on display in zoos."

To Gohan's confusion, Pepe slammed his forehead on the wood of the table. "Brace yourself," he mumbled.

The Half-Saiyan's brow furrowed, wondering what the man could have meant, when he suddenly picked up a familiar energy moving quickly toward their location. The door of the library slammed open as Caster kicked it, then sprinted down from the gallery at top speed until she was close enough to the boy that their noses almost touched.

"Dinosaurs!" Caster exclaimed, a mad gleam in her eyes. "Dinosaurs?!"

Gohan, leaning back uncomfortably from both the position and the woman looming over him, managed a quick nod. "Y-Yes, dinosaurs still live on my Earth."

"Dinosaurs!" Da Vinci repeated, as if that was the only word she could say now. "Please tell me more! Their effect on the ecosystem, how humanity coexists with them." She gasped. "Are they treated like a delicacy?"

"Pfft," Pepe scoffed. "As if anyone would actually-"

"Yes."

Pepe closed his eyes to endure another round of chatter from the renaissance woman. "Are you saying you actually ate a dinosaur?!" Caster asked, the woman wearing a wide, crazed smile, her right eye twitching from the overload of excitement.

Now this was something Gohan could actually talk about more casually. "Yes. There are a lot of them on Mt. Paozu. Sometimes they wander near our house and I have to either chase them away or kill them for food.

Pepe and Hinako's expressions became pallid, the former asking, "You…actually hunt dinosaurs?"

"Yes," Gohan replied with a shrug. "They're pretty good, too. Great source of protein."

"With your bare hands," Pepe ventured flatly.

"Yep. A good punch or two and they go down easy."

There was a very long stretch of silence before Pepe asked, "...What do they taste like?"

Hinako sighed, her shoulders sagging. "Pepe…"

"No, no, really, I'm serious," Pepe insisted. "Haven't you always wondered what actual dinosaurs tasted like? I mean, I could probably go for some Tagliata with Triceratops meat."

"Ooh, Triceratops are really good," Gohan remarked, his mouth beginning to water. "They really melt in your mouth if you know how to prepare them. Fair bit of warning in case you ever want to try T-Rexes, they tend to be really tough and gamey."

"What about Pterosaurs?"

"Hm, a fairly similar texture to bird meat," Gohan admitted. "But I don't really have a preference for them."

"Then, what about-"

"Okay!" Hinako interrupted sharply. "Can we please continue? I already want to get this over and done with because, in case any of you just so happen to be curious, I still have my own shit to do!"

"Alright, fine," Pepe snorted. "Now, Ca…Caster?" He darted his gaze left and right searchingly. He looked to the boy sitting across from him, only for the young man to glance down his left leg, which a mesmerized Caster was hugging tightly.

"Please!" A starstruck Da Vinci pleaded. "If you ever feel like going home, take me with you!"

Much later, after a terribly apologetic Romani came to fetch the rather clingy renaissance woman (and had little choice but to douse her with a spray bottle he was armed with), Gohan and Hinako resumed their studies. Hours later, and with Pepe having left in the middle of it all, the Xian was quite impressed with how attentive the young man was and how quickly he absorbed the material. By the next day, they had weathered through half the collection.

"I can't say that I find your progress to be disappointing," Hinako confessed with only a hint of begrudging acceptance. "You're actually on the right track." As wary as she still was of the boy, she could appreciate when someone took academics seriously.

"Thank you," Gohan said gratefully, stacking a few books in an orderly fashion. "Even before I came here, I was already studying for a scholarship."

Hinako raised an intrigued eyebrow. "A scholarship?"

"Yes," Gohan nodded. "Martial arts aside, I actually want to pursue an academic career one day."

Hinako blinked, still looking at the boy with a sliver of suspicion, couldn't hold back her intrigue. "Like what?"

"Hm," Gohan tilted his head, chewing on the thought. "Maybe a scholar or professor."

Hinako tapped her finger against a book she held. "What study would you wish to pursue?"

Gohan actually knew what to answer, "I suppose I could base a thesis around Ki."

"Od?" Hinako thought strangely. "You want to establish a study on Od?"

"Uh," Gohan blinked, remembering the terminology. "Yes. I suppose."

Hinako scoffed. "Then I'm afraid you're way too late to the party. A veritable number of mages have already made extensive breakthroughs regarding Od. If you truly wish to delve into the subject, I suggest you simply enroll in the Clock Tower." She grinned as she added, "I'm sure they'll just love you."

Gohan knew the underlying jab behind the girl's words. "They'll probably just cut me open first."

"Not probably," Hinako countered. "Definitely. You're quite possibly the most valuable piece of research material a magus could ever get their grubby little hands on, and that's already with your incredible reserves of Od. You're practically..." She trailed off, her eyes darting to the side, with Gohan subtly following her gaze, the two of them then vanishing from their seats in unison. The silence was soon followed by a strangled cry from an unseen corner of the library.

Standing between a row of shelves, Hinako watched as Gohan held their mysterious voyeur in a headlock, the man's breathing constricted so that whatever words he would have used to plead for his life came out gurgled. With her sharp eyes in what limited light this side had, she could see how stocky his figure was under the all-black ensemble. Black tactical jacket, black gloves, black fatigues, even his face was covered by a black ski mask.

Gohan released his grip to let the man catch his breath. "W-W-Wait! Wait! I-"

"Who are you?"

Underneath his mask, the man seemed...puzzled by the question, to Hinako's own confusion. "Wait...you...know who I am, right?"

"Not really, no," Hinako replied with calm indifference. "Break his neck."

"Wait!" The man practically screamed, causing Gohan to wince and his ears to ring a bit. "G-G-G-Go get Fujimaru, D-D-Da Vinci, a-a-a-a-anyone!"

"... Oh boy," Hinako groaned, throwing her head back, while Gohan was cringing heavily from how loud the mysterious intruder was. A consequence of having sensitive hearing even without the use of Ki.

Later…

"Goredolf Musik," Kirshtaria said the name like a bitter aftertaste, pacing the interrogation room as a handcuffed Goredolf sat at the table, his ski mask discarded and laid out in front of the man. "To what do we owe this rather...impromptu visit?"

Goredolf bit his lip, struggling for the right words to answer. "I...well, there... seems to be some... misunderstanding. I, uh..."

Kirschtaria rolled his eyes inwardly. "You infiltrating a top-secret facility in the middle of the Antarctic is considered a 'misunderstanding'?" He trailed off, tapping the tip of his cane on the ground and pausing in his stride. "Come now, my good man, I'm sure you can do better."

"Look!" Goredolf snapped, pounding his fists on the table, only to shy away from Kirshtaria's subsequent glare. "Kirshtaria, I... can explain, really, I..." He slumped in his seat and hung his head in silence for a long moment. "I just had to come here."

The director studied the man carefully, looking for the slightest hint of deception or enchantment. Hypnosis, charms, he had been thoroughly searched short of a full body cavity before being brought here, and even then the man had been quite compliant. He had been forbidden to speak until the time of interrogation, when he would be within the secure bounded field to suppress his magical circuits. He wasn't a fighter, Kirschtaria believed, but one could never be too careful when dealing with fellow mages.

The slightly younger blonde made his way slowly to the table, pausing until he was standing at his full height across from the other man that was two years his senior. He then bent down until their faces were a mere two feet apart. "Do you remember?"

Goredolf, to his credit, kept his expression even, but there was a glint in his eyes. Something that could be recognition, but also fear, vigilance. "How could I forget?" His tone was haunting, deliberate, like a man who had seen it all.

Kirschtaria held Goredolf's gaze for what must have felt like forever, but eventually broke contact, closing his eyes. He pulled back, cleared his throat, and asked, "For how long?"

This seemed to snap the portly man out of his own stupor. "I…what?"

Kirschtaria sighed. "When did you…awaken?"

"I..." Goredolf seemed lost in deep thought for a moment, his mouth working as if sifting through his jumbled memories. Memories that, by all logic, were not his own, but those of his alternate timeline self. "I... just woke up one day," he paused to lick his lips, still seeming a bit lost, "I thought... I thought I was still in the base."

Kirschtaria cocked a brow. "Base?"

"Novum Chaldea," Goredolf murmured. "Y-You remember, right?" He looked a bit panicked now, perhaps trying to come to terms with the fact that he was back in the past for whatever reason. A past he might not even be aware of was not his own, and finding the man who had once been an enemy now leading the old Chaldea.

"…I do," Kirschtaria replied after a moment. "But you haven't yet answered the entire question. For how long?"

Goredolf shifted uncomfortably, his brow furrowed before squeezing his eyes shut. "A... about... a month b-before…all this." That would have been plenty of time for the man to get his bearings in order. Or at least, as much as he could manage.

There was only one crucial question left to ask, and the absolutely murderous glint in the other man's eyes sent a shiver down Goredolf's spine. "Have you told anyone?"

The lengths he and Marisbury had gone to in order to keep the Association in the dark of the phenomena had been admirable, even draconian. Not a single detail, not even the tiniest hint of it, was ever to reach their eyes and ears. They might have made sacrifices, compromised here and there, but all of their hard work had ensured that absolutely none of the lords knew. "N-No," Goredolf replied quietly. "I-I didn't."

Kirschtaria would have rather not believed the man, that he'd stumbled and blurted it out to a maid, or even that damned secretary of his. Speaking of which. "What of Ms. Koyanskaya?"

Hearing the name, Goredolf's features grew pale, the memory of the woman alone looming over him like a haunting shadow. "Sh-She has not come into my life...yet."

The corner of Kirschtaria's lips curled, more out of pity for the man than frustration. Without another word, he vacated the interrogation room and met with Pepe outside the door. As the two walked down the corridor, the blonde asked his fellow Crypter, "Well?"

Pepe shook his head. "Hard to say, what with the facility in its current state. If anything, he couldn't have picked a better time. And we can't exactly delay repairs to conduct a full-on investigation. He might have snuck in during all the commotion, or he could have already been here before that. I'm afraid the only one who has any real idea at all is Musik himself."

Kirschtaria rubbed his temple. "Hinako and Wùfàn found him hiding in the library?"

Pepe nodded. "You have to admit it's rather comical," he remarked with a snort.

Kirschtaria paused to collect his thoughts. "Maybe I should have just stayed in bed," he muttered with a sigh.

"You could have," Pepe agreed in a sly tone, "but then we would have just had Caster design an exoskeleton for you to at least do the paperwork."

"Damn you," Kirschtaria shot back at his friend with a smirk. "We're keeping him on ice for now. At least until we're sure he's clean."

"You don't want to..." Pepe gestured with his thumb across his neck. Kirschtaria shook his head.

"No. However he may have found himself here, the fact that he had even accomplished such a daunting task seemingly on his own is, quite frankly, impressive." And if he did so during the absolutely perilous battle for Chaldea, that alone was commendable. "And in case either of us had forgotten, the man had established himself as a valued ally to Fujimaru and his group," Kirschtaria admitted, his smirk widening into a grin. "On top of that, Caenis had spoken quite highly of his culinary skills."

Four days later…

In the harsh silence of the library, Hinako had deemed it acceptable for her young charge to be left on his own. The Xian, who had lived and experienced an insurmountably long life, had expected the boy to be at least hesitant or slow, considering his young age and the strongly divergent paths of their Worlds, but she could safely admit that his aptitude was almost on par with some of the finest scholars she had known, some of them dating back to the time when she had been with her beloved Xiang Yu. A young prodigy if she's ever seen one.

The two had enjoyed a relative lull in the proceeding days, with Gohan asking her questions only when it was relevant and on certain instances when he needed clarification, but otherwise the boy had proven to be a quick study. Very quick. They would burn through hours of these cramming sessions, going over one topic and moving on to the next, stopping only for breaks. By the time she left him alone, he had already comprehended and committed to memory nearly all of this Earth's history, geography, sciences, and many other topics meant to serve him well in Chaldea.

He was currently in the Myths and Legends section, which was the task Hinako had assigned him, with the usual routine of quizzing him later. He sat on the lower steps of the rolling ladder, a stack of books beside him, each one filled with stories and accounts of not only heroes of the past, but also other figures in myths that might be related to a heroic spirit. Any tidbit, any detail, no matter how small or obscure, would help provide a framework for how their legend influenced their parameters, their strengths and weaknesses, and how they might fare against one another in battle.

He had already finished the books on Greek mythology, then Indian, European, Southeast Asian, Japanese, but when it finally came to the Chinese, he would come across one story that would arrest his full attention.

Journey to the West.

The title alone gave him pause, invoking a sense of... familiarity he couldn't quite place his finger on. It was only when he began to immerse himself in the novel that the entire world around him seemed to fade into nothingness, his mind grinding to a halt as soon as his eyes passed a certain set of characters. It left him completely stunned, but even in such a confused state of mind, he was certain that it shouldn't be possible. That it could only be a coincidence to end all coincidences.

"Sun...Wukong..." It shouldn't have been possible for him to simply stumble upon a story with a character the same name to his father's, but after eagerly poring over one of the most famous novels in the history of mankind, the similarities could not be denied. "They're... they're all here..." Well, not nearly everyone. There was his father, of course, then Bulma, Oolong, Yamcha, even his grandfather, the Ox King. It was, well, both uncanny and unnerving how similar the story was. "No way…"

"What's wrong?"

He jumped at the voice with a cry, nearly dropping the book between his hands and startling the one who had spoken to him. "I-I'm so sorry!" Mash Kyrielight stood just before entering the aisle of shelves he was occupying, holding something between her hands as he calmed himself from the shock. "Sūn-kun?"

Gohan stared at the girl for a long moment, recollecting his thoughts as his brain restarted. "K-Kyrielight-san?"

Mash nodded, looking remorseful. "I'm really sorry…"

Gohan released a breath before shaking his head, both to help him gather his bearings and to convey to the girl that there was nothing for her to be sorry about. "It's alright, Kyrielight-san." He carefully closed the book he still held and jumped down to his feet. "I was…just reading up on the myths and legends of this Earth."

Mash nodded. "In order for you to pass as a proper Master."

"Yeah," Gohan agreed as he stared at the cover of the book, reading the characters a few times for no particular reason. "It's…strange."

"Hm?" Mash blinked. "What is?"

"There are... so many things that are similar between this Earth and mine, but at the same time, there aren't," Gohan thought. "Ever since I started, I have not been able to stop. Not because I couldn't, but because the more I absorbed, the more I became fascinated and wanted to know more."

Mash listened intently to the boy's musings, and asked, "Sūn-kun…do you…miss your home?"

"Eh?" Gohan shot a glance at the girl, when his eyes lowered when his peripheral caught something held between her arms tenderly. It looked to be a…ball of fur?

Fou~!

"Eh?"

"Oh!" Mash perked up, as if she remembered something. She looked down at the strange bundle she was carrying as it began to move and shift, while Gohan examined the... creature with a sense of caution. It puzzled him because he could not sense anything or anyone but Mash at close range. Well, except maybe...

"Sūn-kun, this is..." Before Mash could finish her sentence, the bundle in her hand finally unfolded, revealing a small animal, about the size of a small dog by Gohan's estimation, with white, fluffy fur that had the quality of down feathers. Its tail, however, seemed to shimmer with a multitude of colors, and its long ears, so similar to those of a rabbit, had a cascading blue hue. When its eyes opened into slits, Gohan could see lavender irises looking back up at him, with the sclera a much softer purple. Never in his life had Gohan seen such an animal, nor had he found such a specimen in any of the books he had read, as he had not yet begun the Compendium of Phantasmal Species that Hinako had recommended to him for tomorrow.

Mash seemed to take in his confusion and said, "This is Fou." She gently grabbed the small creature by the armpits like an infant, careful not to be too forceful as it still seemed to be in the throes of sleep. Gohan continued to study this...'Fou', and aside from not being able to sense his energy, the adorable little ball of fluff only seemed to stare back at him once he seemed to get his bearings, seemingly studying him in return.

"Fou..." the creature breathed, almost like a yawn. Gohan was still observant, his features neutral and even, but inside he was curious and maybe a little suspicious for some unknown reason.

Deciding to put aside his misgivings for now, he held out his hand, careful not to appear hostile. "Hello, Fou," he greeted, waiting for a response. The small creature only looked at him, with only his left ear drooping being a change. "I... guess he doesn't like me," Gohan joked, rubbing the back of his head.

Mash smiled. "No, he just woke up." She looked down at the creature and began to gently rock him. "He's actually really friendly."

A smile danced slowly on Gohan's own lips. "I'm sure he is. I have a pet back home, too."

This seemed to pique the girl's interest, and she looked up at the boy with a fascinated expression. "You do? What?"

"A dragon," Gohan answered, causing Mash's and even Fou's eyes to widen. "I named him Haiya."

A small sound followed, which Gohan decided to ignore for now as he took out his phone. Why he hadn't done so days ago would have been an oversight on his part, but he decided that with the warning Hinako had given him that there were already plenty of mages in Chaldea who would surely be interested in studying him, it might as well have been a prudent kind of negligence.

His smartphone, which he had had the foresight to leave behind with his belongings before the battle with Flauros, was without a charger when he arrived in Chaldea, but Pepe, one of Kirschtaria's contemporaries, had lent him a spare one he had lying around, noting that he could keep it. When he had expressed his gratitude, the effeminate mage had merely gushed about how adorable he was, but the boy knew better. That Pepe had never once stopped analyzing him, studying every part of him that might be vulnerable or an opening.

They all had the right to be wary, which Gohan didn't blame them for.

He had checked before if all his data was there, and indeed, his photo gallery, files with all the relevant material from the curriculum of the online classes he was taking, as well as videos he had taken and what Bulma had shared were all present as well. A treasure trove of information that he had no doubt Da Vinci would be eagerly vying for.

"Here," Gohan said, lifting the phone so that Mash could lean in and see the screen showing a picture of the young Half-Saiyan standing next to a much larger European dragon with purple scales, a cream-colored underside, and wings that hung down, with four horns protruding from the sides of its head. Instead of an intense visage, the creature's eyes were a surprisingly innocent blue, staring back at the camera with an almost bemused expression. "We took this a few weeks ago after I was given this phone."

"An...actual dragon," Mash murmured more to herself, while an equally curious Fou pawed at the phone as if to actually touch the creature. "You...have a dragon as an actual pet?"

"Well, Haiya is more of a friend than a pet," Gohan corrected. "We'd fly around Mt. Paozu, spend all day together whenever I'm free from training or studying. We'd even camp out in the wilderness and just... sleep under the stars." His tone became wistful, remembering all the good memories they had together, as well as the more recent ones. "Instead of living with us, he has his own nest to return to in the mountains."

He tapped a finger on the screen and scrolled to another photo, one of a much younger Gohan that Bulma had shared from her phone, the boy together with a visibly shorter Haiya, give or take a few inches. But instead of just the two of them, there was another, the three of them standing in front of a quaint domed house. It was a man who could only be Gohan's father, as he had a hand patting his son's head when the photo was taken. He was tall, only slightly taller than Hiaya from his recent photo, wearing an orange Gi under a blue undershirt, with matching orange pants held together by a blue obi. His build was quite muscular, but not to an overt degree, appearing more well defined like that of an athlete or martial artist, which the man could only be.

"Sūn-kun," Mash started, "could this be…?"

"Yeah," Gohan nodded, "this is my father."

Mash leaned in a little closer to examine the man's appearance, the most striking feature she first noticed being his spiky black hair, so unlike his son's, which at the time was in a bowl cut. A smile danced across his friendly face. "You, uh, look a lot like him," she commented softly.

"Everyone says that," Gohan said in a familiar tone, but Mash could swear she heard a bit of apprehension behind it.

"Everyone?"

"Yes," Gohan nodded and scrolled through more photos to show the girl the rest of his family and friends. "This is my mother. Her name is Chi-Chi." The screen showed a middle-aged woman wearing what appeared to be a yellow cheongsam with a purple cloth tied around her shoulders, held in place by a light purple obi. The rest of her clothing consisted of white pants and black hanfu shoes. Her black hair was held back and tied in a neat bun, with only small strands allowed to dangle from the sides. In her arms was a sleeping infant in white swaddling clothes. "And this is my younger brother, Wutian." He could have used his real name in their world, but he decided to stick with Pinyin for consistency.

"And your father's name?" Mash asked, causing Gohan to pause, wondering if he could really use his father's alternate name to introduce him. With a shrug, since he had come this far with himself and now his brother, he might as well keep at it.

"Sun Wukong."

A pair of hands wrapped in blue gloves shot out of the nearest shelf, causing Gohan to casually dodge the woman's attempt to grab his phone. "Uh, hello, Da Vinci-san..." he greeted awkwardly, the Caster Servant soon poking her head out between some books that had fallen to the floor, adding to the pile that had dropped earlier.

"Pet dragon, family, Sun Wukong," Caster rattled off hoarsely in the same crazed manner, wiggling her hands for emphasis. "Phone! Gimme!"

"D...Da Vinci-san," Mash mumbled, embarrassed for the poor woman, with an equally unimpressed Fou merely looking on.

Elsewhere…

Hinako was the kind of girl who preferred solitude, alone with her thoughts where she didn't have to talk to another human being for as long as possible. Not because she disliked them. Oh, she tended to find the species annoying, a belligerently ignorant bunch who wouldn't know how to tie their own shoes without someone else showing them. Still, she understood that such fundamentally weak creatures had every right to be wary of her, to fear her, not only because of her inherent 'weakness', but because of what she represented. As a being whose existence was intimately tied to Gaia, the compulsion ingrained in her from birth caused her to view humanity as an unwanted plague on the planet, a poison that would eventually leave Earth little more than a barren husk if nothing was done to keep the species in check.

That was her role as a true immortal, to serve as the planet's antibody against the viral existence of humanity. And all of this didn't even take into account how much she despised humans on a deeply personal level that was separate from her nature. So much so that she would have gladly declined Marisbury's offer, kicked back with a good book, and witnessed the incineration for herself. Alas, all Kirshctaria had to do was step forward and offer her the one thing, the only thing, that still held a place in her weathered heart, no matter how much the years had taken their toll.

"Damn," Hinako muttered after taking a drag from the cigarette Pepe had provided her with. Normally, she was not a fan, but the added stress of having to oversee the upbringing of a half-alien brat was not something she had expected or needed. "At least he's not an idiot."

That was one advantage she was willing to work with, and it made her job a lot easier. If the boy had been dumber than a brick, she probably wouldn't have been able to resist splitting his head open to see if there was a functioning brain under all that excess Od. She was relaxing in a section of the lounge where smoking was allowed, the walls inscribed with special runes that constantly purified the air to keep the atmosphere breathable. Just one of the precautions Kirshctaria had taken in case of a gas attack.

She took one last drag before flicking the butt into the bin next to her, having leaned against the wall and idly watched some of the staff mind their own business, and she would have made sure they did if it meant ignoring her. The last thing she wanted was the attention of a mage. Just because she had allowed herself to be a part of Chaldea didn't mean she couldn't bail at any time. Kirschtaria had formally declared that any magus who had the nerve to disobey his order or risk the safety of their fellows would face the appropriate consequences. If one managed to prove themselves particularly difficult or bullheaded, Hinako had free reign to do as she pleased with them.

She moved away from the wall and was about to head for the library when she stopped herself from glancing in the direction where she could feel someone's eyes on her. Quite a few of them had stolen a peek or two, more out of curiosity or to see that she was present, but this one would linger the longest. She had resisted the urge to just jump at the fool and crush their skull, but she had a plan brewing, and it might just involve the brat.

Library…

"Hey, Gohan," A man with long and unruly black hair could be heard before coming into view, "here." A video played on Gohan's phone, taken half a month ago after Yamcha was signed to a baseball team in Satan City. The video showed who Caster could identify as Sha Wujing handing a bemused Gohan a jersey with the words 'Titans' emblazoned on it. "I even signed it. When I finally make it big, this thing is gonna be a collector's item. You better not put it on GBay."

"Uh..." Gohan, who was wearing a sleeveless red shirt that he much preferred to the would-be collectible, simply accepted the gift with an awkward grin, "Sure, Mr. Yamcha. I'll...keep it."

Mash couldn't quite figure out why she found the whole exchange uncomfortable to watch, because just by looking at the expression on Gohan's face, she could clearly see that he was anything but enthusiastic about the gift.

"Huh? Oh, Mr. Oolong!" Gohan could now be heard recording a video as he seemed to wander through a courtyard, navigating through some tables before coming across a small demihuman with a pig's head sitting across from an old man with whom he was talking. He was wearing a white shirt and tie with red and blue stripes, a Capsule Corp ID dangling just behind it, and blue trousers. "How have you been?"

Oolong, or Zhu Bajie, looked up at the boy, a smile on his lips as he greeted him, "I'm fine, Gohan. You?"

"Fine," Gohan replied before turning to the old man, who was drinking from a glass filled with what could only be wine, his cheeks flushed with inebriation. "Hey, Master Roshi."

The old man, who was bald and wore sunglasses, let out a loud belch after taking a hearty gulp of his wine, then licked his lips to relish the alcohol, his white beard stained with the drink. He was wearing a pink floral shirt and white shorts. "Yo, Gohan!" Roshi replied drunkenly, his words slurred. "Do you know where a fella can find a pichi-pichi girl in this outfit?"

Mash's expression recoiled in disgust, finding the older man's demeanor and mannerisms egregiously unappealing. Fou, on the other hand, could understand a man in need of a good woman, so he didn't comment on it.

"So this is the Master Roshi you were talking about?" Caster asked, holding the phone as she sat at a table the three of them (four if you counted Fou) shared.

"Yes," Gohan nodded, standing just over Da Vinci's shoulder. "I know he doesn't look like much, but he's the grandmaster of the Kamesenryū, the Turtle School of Martial Arts, where my father and most of his friends trained."

"Did you train under him as well, Sūn-kun?" Mash asked carefully, inwardly horrified at the thought that a boy like Gohan would be taught by such an uncouth old man. Fortunately, Gohan shook his head in the negative.

"Just some of the techniques," Gohan revealed. "I sometimes do training at Master Roshi's island, but I'm not really a part of the Turtle School."

"Then, your father?"

"No," Gohan again shook his head. "I trained under the Demon School."

"D-Demon…School?" Mash stammered out.

Gohan nodded. "I was only ever trained by Mr. Piccolo, who taught me everything I know."

When the video ended, Caster swiped the screen for the next one, not that she hadn't been listening to their conversation. As the new video played, she could see that it was the same courtyard at the same party, attended by a group of people who could only be Gohan's friends and family. His mother and newborn younger brother could be seen sitting at a table, the woman wearing an open shirt over a pink one-piece as the camera panned past them. On her head was a wide-brimmed hat. Then came a man with three eyes wearing traditional Chinese formal wear, and Caster was already running through the possibilities of whether it could be a genetic mutation or a racial trait. Floating next to him was a child-like being with features that made it resemble a Jiangshi, but whether the boy was actually a vampire or undead, she decided to leave it up in the air. Next was a woman standing in the middle, who the camera now focused on, with short purple hair that fell just above her shoulders as she spoke into a microphone and addressed the guests.

"Thank you all for coming. As many of you already know, this private event is to celebrate not only our - I mean, Mr. Satan's - success against Cell, but also my son's birthday." Sitting next to the woman in a booster seat was a young infant with purple hair like his mother's, clapping his hands happily at the festivities going on around him. The guests all raised their glasses in a toast.

"This is Bulma," Gohan explained. "She is the president of the Capsule Corporation."

"Capsule Corporation," Da Vinci repeated thoughtfully. "Then she was the one who created those wondrous capsules?"

"Well, she inherited the company from her father," Gohan clarified, pointing to a part of the video where a couple could be seen seated at a table from around the corner. "That's them. That man is Dr. Brief. He's the one who founded the company and originally developed the technology for the capsules."

"I see," Caster mused, stroking her chin with a finger. Even from the video, she could see through the man's unassuming appearance to the genius he was. A fellow pioneer if she'd ever seen one. "And the woman is his wife?"

"Yeah, that's Mrs. Panchy," Gohan answered, which earned him looks from them. "No, really. That's her name."

"Bulma, Brief, Panchy," Caster listed the odd naming theme of this family. "Your universe is coming to be more and more bizarre, ragazzo."

Gohan chuckled awkwardly at the comment. "Sorry, but that's just how things are in my world, I guess."

"Oh, don't take it personally, my boy," Caster waved off. "It could always be-no, hm. I suppose one can never judge another's universe to their own standards."

Gohan considered the woman's words with a nod, finding some things of this world strange to him as well. Technologically, they were a bit behind his own, what with the lack of flying vehicles and capsules, but all in all, the similarities were almost uncanny. Another was the seemingly complete absence of animal-type humanoids or Beastmen. According to Hinako, such beings were considered demihumans on this Earth, and thus could be classified as a Phantasmal Species. There still existed an isolated village of werewolves, and last she checked, the population was on the brink of extinction due to the females rarely having successful pregnancies. In the present day, unusual animals, creatures, and the like were now relegated to rare sightings, photobombs, or doctored evidence. Many of the actual cryptids had disappeared from the plane of reality where humanity had dismissed them as mere fantasy, where they now made their home on the Reverse Side of the World.

"Is that..." Mash was watching a saved video of what appeared to be a press conference. Two people were standing on the podium, both bombarded by camera flashes. The one speaking into the microphone was what appeared to be a blue-dog demihuman in a black suit, with a pair of glasses perched on top of his snout. The man next to him was much taller, standing at his full height with his hands clenched on his hips and looking a little too smug if she was to be blunt. He had a rather muscular build, an afro, a well trimmed mustache, and wore a far too ostentatious rendition of a Gi and a white cape. "The king of your Earth is... a demihuman?" Though she did not have a particular taste for her political studies, she nonetheless found the concept of an entire planet under a single monarchical rule rather absurd. Gohan then explained that the countries of his Earth still had democratically elected officials, comparing it to the structure of the British House of Lords and Commons.

"Well, King Furry wasn't originally a Beastman, although there are those who are naturally born," Gohan began to explain. "He took Animorphaline, which was a fad drug back in the day in my world. Those who took the drug would gain Beastmen traits, but only temporarily."

"There's-!" Both Mash and Fou gaped at the boy. "A drug that actually turns humans into demihumans?"

"Yes," Gohan nodded. "It was all the rage when Bulma was a kid." He took both of their reactions in stride before his expression darkened when he noticed that Caster had gone silent. Eerily silent.

Which was not a good sign.

"A drug..." Caster began to mutter, breaking her silence, her hair shading her eyes. "A drug... that turns... people..."

Gohan slowly backed away from the woman, as did Mash. Fou, with no intention of leaving the safety of the latter's tender ministrations, pricked up his ears for the inevitable that was to come. Soon, mad laughter erupted from the Uomo Universale, rising in pitch until it seemed to bounce off the walls of the entire library. Her neck snapped as she craned her head to look at the boy, before the realization of how completely insane she had become set in. Shaking herself out of the episode, she cleared her throat and said in an apologetic tone, "Sorry about that, Sūn-kun, Mash."

"Fou!"

"Yes," Da Vinci added with a chuckle, now calmer as she patted the creature gently on the head. "Sorry to you too, Fou."

After everything calmed down, Gohan motioned for Caster to return his phone, and the renaissance woman willingly handed it over as a sign of reconciliation. The screen was still on, however, so Gohan's finger accidentally swiped to another video.

"Look over here, Gohan!"

Gohan froze.

"Aw, you're so cute! Goku, pick him up. "

"Sure. "

Mash, Fou and Caster exchanged glances as Gohan slowly retrieved his phone, but let the rest of the video play, seeing the scene of his four-year-old self being picked up by his father, which was taken from Bulma's phone at the time. "There! That's it, perfect!"

Caster leaned in close, her eyes widening as she saw the man who could only be, "Sun Wukong".

Mash and Fou also leaned in close to watch the scene, and when she saw Gohan at such a young age with his tail wagging freely, she couldn't help but think how adorable he looked. He was wearing a yellow hanfu with green sleeves, with a character etched in the middle that couldn't be fully seen from the angle of his body. He kept shyly turning away from the camera, which only elicited cooing sounds from the one taking the video, his red hat nearly falling off as he buried his head in his father's neck.

"Is that... your father?" Mash asked, seeing that the man roughly matched the profile Gohan had given her days before. He had spiky black hair, was tall and muscular, and had a friendly face.

"Yes," Gohan answered in an indecipherable tone, as the video was taken on the day of…

Caster cupped her chin as she studied this version of Sun Wukong. "So this is what a full-blooded Saiyan looks like." She had expected more anomalous features, but they truly were indistinguishable from normal humans. "Er, where... is his tail?"

"He had it cut off," Gohan replied, focusing most of his attention on the video, for it had been a while since he had seen himself that young except in photographs.

This earned surprise from both Caster and Mash. "Why?" Da Vinci asked with a start.

Gohan pressed his lips into a thin line. "Well-"

"Slacking off, are we?"

"Ah!" All four jumped at the sudden voice and turned to see Hinako standing with her arms crossed.

She rolled her eyes at their reactions, though she probably shouldn't blame them for sneaking in with such practiced ease, even though the half-alien should have sensed her approach. "So, what brings you here, Caster?" Hinako asked as she began to march towards the group.

The Servant stood up and turned to the ancient Xian. "I just stopped by to acquire a book I need for the project." As proof, she lifted up a book that she had placed on the table earlier, authored by an old acquaintance she once collaborated with back at the Clock Tower's Department of Botany, back when she was still alive.

"I see," Hinako said in a dismissive tone. "Do me a favor and tell Kirschtaria that Wùfàn's 'education' is almost done with."

Caster's expression fell from reading into the girl's tone. "Hinako...Yu-"

"Can you please leave already?" Hinako sniped in annoyance. "And take these two with you." She trailed off, referring to Mash and Fou, the latter in turn scowling back at her.

Gohan remained silent, choosing not to intervene for fear of escalating tensions. "Very well," Caster conceded. She then turned back to him with a smile. "I wish you well in your studies, ragazzo."

Gohan nodded. "Maybe I'll see you later, Da Vinci-san, Kyrielight-san."

"Fou!"

"Yes, you too, Fou."

Mash smiled, then bowed to Hinako before leaving with Da Vinci without a word. Once they were at the door, she took one last look in their direction, hoping for the young man's success.

"Akuta-san," Gohan started, "they were just-"

"Enough," Hinako cut him off dryly, "there will be no room for distractions if you want to make up for time. Sooner or later, a Singularity will be detected, and we may need someone like you to serve as a combat specialist in case they prove dangerous."

"Uh, I-I see," Gohan conceded, walking alongside the young woman back to their table. "But still, they didn't do anything wrong. Kyrielight-san was just checking up on me. And Da Vinci-san was…doing the same."

"Uh-huh, sure," Hinako remarked, sending a side glare at the boy. "Let's just finish up so that I can finally quiz you."

"Y-Yes," Gohan nodded, deciding to follow his tutor. When they were finally done, Gohan gathered some of the books for him to review back at his room. He looked to Hinako, who was now preoccupied with one of her own from her personal collection. "Until tomorrow, Akuta-san."

"Right," Hinako replied noncommittally, turning a page. "By the way, I'm gonna need you to do me one last favor."

Gohan blinked. "What?"

"When you go outside…"

Later…

Dinner was a largely uneventful affair, except for the usual stares as he ate his meal. Or meals, his personal order to the cooking bots amounting to at least ten to eleven servings. He ignored the mages who kept stealing glances at him, probably their only means of studying what they considered to be a prime specimen, with some of the first few days being nothing more than him politely waving away those who were just brave enough to approach him.

In just a few of these memorable interactions, they asked for hair samples, skin samples, and even bodily fluids. More than a little taken aback, he just kept quiet the first few times, shaking his head in refusal before having to actually say he was not interested. Things came to a head when he found a handful of them waiting outside his door. Of course, Kirschtaria got wind of it, which prompted him to send out a warning. After that, the harassment stopped, but in an ironic twist, he now found their distancing from him even more awkward. It left a sort of impression that it was merely the calm before the storm.

It certainly didn't help that some of them had notepads hidden under their tables, furiously scribbling down how he could eat so much, no doubt. As he finished his seventh helping and second steak, he felt someone's eyes on him. It wasn't the first time. It was the same presence he had sensed for the past few days, watching him longer than anyone else, following him wherever he went, only avoiding the library where he and Hinako were together.

It wasn't hostile as Hinako had mentioned, although it was getting a little uncomfortable even for him. Maybe he could - no, that would just escalate things. Back them into a corner? It might work, but he had a feeling they were smart enough not to be led that way. What if-

"Hey, boya!" Jolted from his thoughts, he looked up to see none other than Pepe standing next to him, who had snuck up on him without him noticing. First Hinako, now this guy? Well, they were good, he had to give them that.

"Hello, Pepperoncino-senpai," Gohan replied, causing Pepe to pout.

"Oh, not you too," the effeminate magus bemoaned. "Pepe is fine, Sūn-kun." Pepe was now dressed in the standard Chaldean Mystic Code uniform.

"Um, alright," Gohan relented. "So, what can I do for you, Pepe-san?"

Pepe hummed to himself, a finger poking at his chin as a smile floated over his face. "Hm, now what was it," he mused as if in recollection, "ah, right. Kirchtaria wants you to report to the Simulator tomorrow, first thing in the morning. It seems he has requested a demonstration of your martial prowess."

"A…demonstration?" Gohan repeated questioningly. "Well…"

"Hm?"

Gohan mulled over the matter. "I'll...come. Might as well."

"He's not forcing you, in case you're wondering," Pepe added. "But with your power, you're naturally going to end up on the front lines. He would want you to be ready and for us to have a proper measure of what you're capable of."

"I see," Gohan understood. "Will it be a spar, or…?"

"A little bit of everything," Pepe imparted cryptically. "Just report to the Simulator bright and early. You'll be briefed by then."

Gohan nodded quietly to a satisfied Pepe, who then peered down at the empty plates. "Should you really be eating that much?"

"When you have a metabolism as fast as mine, you actually have to," Gohan answered. "I can get full from just a Senzu, but it'd just last me a good 24 hours at best."

"That bad, huh?" Pepe sympathized, though his diet certainly wasn't to such extremes.

"Not nearly as bad as it can get, but I manage," Gohan shrugged. "I'll be sure to come tomorrow, Pepe-san."

Pepe nodded and left. Gohan watched him go, noting that his mysterious voyeur had stopped spying on him. Whoever it was would have to reveal themselves to him eventually, but until then, he'd probably have plenty of other mages whose advances he'd be busy fending off.

Elsewhere…

Never in a million years did he think he would end up in this situation. A shitshow if ever he'd seen one. He had insisted on being left alone to do his research before all this started, but he just had to confute him at every turn. How he'd ended up in this timeline in the first place was something he'd never quite come to terms with. It was bad enough that things were out of whack with Lev going crazy, but then this... freak of nature just showed up and started turning everything upside down. Who or what the hell was he anyway? God, it was like every time he thought he could relax, something would manage to come along and give him one hell of a bad day.

Still, with the FATE system all but guaranteeing the summoning of a Servant, there was a chance that he might end up seeing...her again. In all likelihood, she might not even remember him, but stranger things have happened. He had entertained the idea of contacting his family here, especially his sister, to see how she was doing, since he never had a chance to do so when he moved to Chaldea to avoid suspicion. Could she still be in a wheelchair? Or had she decided to have their family Crest removed? Well, until shit was to hit the fan, he could always keep an eye on that crazy powerful mage or whatever he was.

Only time will tell. For now, he'll just watch quietly and maybe work up the guts to actually talk to the kid.

A/N: Thanks for your feedback last chapter. I suppose when it comes to Servant Classes, the closest Gohan would come to is Pretender, since as one reviewer put it, he doesn't have an actual history in the Nasuverse. This is reinforced with his pseudo connection to Journey to the West, as he's essentially taking up a role that should have belonged to the actual Sun Wukong.

Question for the day: Who or what would be the ideal Servant for Gohan. He's only allowed to have one because of his limited circuits. Xuanzang Sanzang is an obvious one, but what of others?