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At the very peak of the Red Line, in the Holy Land Mary Geoise—
"Esdeath, huh?"
Standing there was a girl with long blue hair and strikingly sharp features. Her icy blue eyes were deep and piercing, resting on a delicate, heart-shaped face.
Smiling warmly, Merlin introduced herself, "Name's Merlin. In the chat group, I go by 'Lady Avalon.' Nice to meet you."
"I'm Esdeath... Nice to meet you, too."
Esdeath gave a slight nod, her expression tight but polite.
"I have a feeling you and Lily might get along pretty well," Merlin said, already forming an impression of the girl from her earlier chats and now their face-to-face meeting. "Come with me. I'll take you to meet her."
She led Esdeath into a grand, castle-like structure—ornate, golden, and as if suspended in the clouds.
Eventually, they arrived in the central hall.
Merlin looked at the blonde girl sitting on the long sofa. The girl was reading a document, with neatly stacked files on the low table in front of her.
"Getting used to things here?" Merlin asked casually.
Ever since the chat group's public space was opened, members could not only move in and out themselves, but also bring others from the group into the space.
After some testing by Veyron and the others, they confirmed that as long as the world's 'chat member' gave permission, lifeforms from one world could travel to another using the shared space as a sort of hub.
So, when Veyron had left to visit Esdeath's world, Merlin had returned to hers to bring over Artoria's real body—not just a spirit projection like before.
Back then, she had only managed to sneak in Artoria's 'Heroic Spirit' by exploiting a bug in the chat group and her world laws. It was the only way she could think of to get Artoria into Hancock's world.
But now that it was possible to bring the real little Artoria across worlds? Of course she would go that route.
Besides, with Merlin by her side the entire time, safety wasn't an issue.
What? You're worried about the end of the Age of Gods on the Isle of Britain? That taking the "King of Knights" away during such a critical moment might mess something up?
Merlin's stance was simple: if anyone had a problem with it, don't even bother with the Counter Force—go argue with the Root itself.
For the Root, as long as Artoria could pull the Sword of Selection, the Caliburn, from the stone at 15 like the prophecy said, everything else was fair game.
"Easy to handle," Artoria replied, setting down the document in her hands. "Sure, there's no mana in this world, but as you mentioned, the Red Dragon's bloodline grants me more than enough regeneration to make up for any losses in training or combat. Not to mention, the boost I've received from that 'Almighty Serum' you gave me."
She looked toward the blue-haired girl who had entered with Merlin. "So who is this?"
"Esdeath," Merlin answered. "Just like the others you've met—she's a friend of mine."
Artoria mentally flashed through the faces: Hancock, Chika Fujiwara, Fubuki, Gwen, Selena... and of course, Veyron—the one who had gifted her the miraculous power of the "Gene Lock."
Another one of those kinds of friends, then?
Rising gracefully from the couch, the blonde girl extended her hand toward Esdeath.
"Nice to meet you. I'm Artoria Pendragon—Merlin's sort-of student."
"Nice to meet you. I'm Esdeath."
Esdeath mirrored Artoria's gesture, reaching out to shake her hand.
Once the brief exchange of introductions was done, Merlin finally got to the point.
"Over the next little while, you'll continue shadowing the Five Elders, managing a world government. But I've added something new to your responsibilities, Lily—think of it as practical review. I want you to guide Esdeath, help her get familiar with this world and this government. It'll be a good way for you to revisit everything you've learned over the past few months."
Artoria tilted her head. "Are you also a future 'king'?"
Esdeath shook her head. "No. My tribe was wiped out a few months ago by a northern barbarian invasion. I only survived because I happened to be out hunting when they attacked."
"Ahem.... even if she's not destined to be a king," Merlin added with a wry smile, "according to Veyron, her world does have a group of elites just as vile and privileged as the Celestial Dragons."
"The Celestial Dragons?" Artoria's brow instantly furrowed.
At first, she'd only felt sympathy after hearing about Esdeath's tragic past. It reminded her of her own fate—how foreign invaders had been lured to Britannia for political conquest. But now hearing that Esdeath's enemies also included a ruling class comparable to these things? That hit a nerve.
After everything she'd seen and experienced in Mary Geoise—the cruelty, the decadence, the unspeakable things that couldn't be imagined—Artoria looked Esdeath in the eyes and made a solemn vow.
"If you ever decide to go after those people… and you need help—don't hesitate to call me."
While Merlin was introducing Esdeath to Artoria, the chat group was still buzzing with activity.
And the conversation had returned to a previous topic.
---
『Shiroyasha』: Since there wasn't much to gain in Esdeath's world, how about checking out mine next, Admin-san? @Veyron
『Shiroyasha』: If I'm not mistaken, the "power seeds" you're looking for should be things like battle aura, mana, divine energy, right?
『Shiroyasha』: Well, we've got all that over here~
『Hellish Blizzard』: All of it?
『Shiroyasha』: Yep~!
『Earth's Cancer』: Not trying to be rude or anything, but… aren't you being a little too eager with Veyron?
『Catwoman』: So sus
『Shiroyasha』: Oi, oi! Even if I did have questionable intentions, do you really think I'd be dumb enough to try anything against the admin right after getting pulled into this chat group—without any warning beforehand and no way of even detecting it afterward?
『Earth's Cancer』: ...Okay, fair point.
『Earth's Cancer』: Sorry! I'm just being paranoid again! (hiding in fear.jpg)
『Ghost Spider』: By the way, if you're looking for power seeds that can form a whole system like magic, wouldn't my world qualify too?
『Ghost Spider』: The intel collected by the Web has records of individuals who've obtained powers like that.
『Ghost Spider』: And even if those are just isolated cases, there's still the whole formal magical tradition led by the Ancient One. I saw some of this magic.
『Snake Empress』: Wait, Gwen, you already used your chance to summon the Ancient One? When did that happen?
『Ghost Spider』: Nah, not yet. But the Web has picked up signs of other sorcerers in our New York and Nepal branches. A few of our people even talked with them. They confirmed that the Ancient One is their Sorcerer Supreme.
『(Admin) Veyron』:@GhostSpider
『(Admin) Veyron』: In theory, yeah, your world might qualify. But... the situation there's a bit tricky. I'm not 100% sure yet.
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