On the way to the meteor crater caused by Moon Fall.
*THUD!*
With her shield, Mash smashed a low-level monster formed from residual magic in front of her, panting slightly. "It's all taken care of now, Master."
"Good job, Mash."
"Your movements are much cleaner and smoother than before. It seems you haven't slacked on training."
Like Ritsuka, Naoki, floating in the air, commented with a smile.
Since Gray had to stay at the fortress to assist Artoria, and Mordred wanted to bond with her former comrades, only Naoki, Ritsuka, and Mash went to retrieve the Holy Grail.
Receiving Naoki's praise, Mash was a bit delighted. "Yes. During downtime after completing Singularities, besides accompanying Master back to Mifune City, I spent the rest of my time training in combat with Miss Atalanta and Miss Rei. Occasionally, Senior Gray trained me too."
As a Demi-Servant, Mash had only existed for about six months. Though she possessed the strength and combat skills left by Galahad, mastering them wasn't easy.
Through training from Atalanta and Rei, Mash significantly shortened this process—though, given Rei's situation, Mash likely endured quite a bit of hardship.
"I've been training too." Ritsuka puffed out her chest. "I can now activate my magic circuits and use some simple Magecraft. The Director taught me."
Olga Marie had been teaching Ritsuka Magecraft over the past six months.
Naoki raised an eyebrow. "That's impressive. You got started in just six months? What specific Magecraft have you mastered?"
"Simple reinforcement Magecraft and Gandr magic bullets. The Director said my magic circuits are very unconventional, so I can only learn simple stuff like this."
Like Naoki, Ritsuka was a first-generation Magus, naturally endowed with complete magic circuits in her body.
However, compared to a first-generation Magus like Naoki, Ritsuka's talent was at the lowest tier. At the Clock Tower, she'd likely be labeled mediocre—but even so, she was still better than Waver, placing her at an average level among Magi.
"Also, Touko-san actually taught me runes, but I'm still learning and can only use one or two, like igniting fire or creating light."
"That's already pretty good." Naoki laughed. "Learning Magecraft isn't something you can rush. Except for a handful of geniuses, long-term research is unavoidable to become a good Magus."
"Like the Department Head?"
"No, I'm an exception. Honestly, as a Magus, I'm only third-rate. If you asked me to fight another Magus using Magecraft, I'd probably get crushed."
That was Naoki's reality.
In terms of Magecraft skill alone, he was roughly third-rate by Clock Tower standards, and that was based on the Summoning Magecraft granted to him. Without it, his level would be even lower.
"But Magecraft itself isn't a technique for fighting. No matter the Magecraft, its ultimate goal is to reach the Root. Offensive Magecraft is just something that comes along in the process."
"By the way, Fujimaru, if you're interested in becoming a Magus after all this is over, I can introduce you to a teacher. Though he's terrible as a Magus, his talent for teaching others is unmatched. He taught me back then too."
The teacher who taught the Department Head?
Ritsuka thought for a moment. "I'll think about it…"
"Well, it's fine if you don't want to be a Magus. Personally, I don't recommend it either."
Besides, Ritsuka wasn't suited to be a Magus. By nature, she was better suited to be a Magician.
◆━⊰✧⊱━◆
Time passed as the three chatted occasionally and dealt with incidental battles.
After walking (while Naoki floated) for about an hour, they finally arrived at the massive crater created by Moon Fall.
Standing at the edge and looking down, Ritsuka shivered slightly in fear. "Even though I saw it from afar yesterday, seeing it up close like this is still… Department Head, you're incredible. You can drop a moon that big in an instant. That's your super ultimate move."
"Huh? No, I can use it multiple times." Naoki calmly uttered terrifying words. "Basically, among all my current abilities, only the release of the Holy Sword counts as an ultimate move. I can use the others as regular attacks in succession; the only difference is the preparation time."
"…"
The faint smiles on Ritsuka and Mash's faces froze.
(Yesterday's attack counts as a regular attack?! Just how dangerous is the Department Head?! He's too strong!)
(As long as Brother wants, he could destroy the world anytime… Thank goodness he's a good person.)
"But with such incredible abilities, hasn't the Department Head ever faced unfair treatment? I often see similar plots in movies and light novels, where protagonists who are too powerful are treated as terrorists because people fear them…"
"It's happened, but that was in a parallel world, and it was quite a while ago."
After all, it was something from fourteen years ago. After leaving that parallel world once, Naoki never returned. He also didn't know how the people he knew there were doing.
Ayaka was doing fine in this world.
"I'll tell you about my past in detail when we have time, maybe over afternoon tea or something. For now, let's deal with the important matter—wait here. I'll go down and find the Holy Grail. Once I have it, I'll teleport back instantly."
The next moment, Naoki vanished from his spot and reappeared at the deepest part of the meteor crater.
Due to Moon Fall's single strike, there was essentially nothing left in the crater. Everything had been obliterated by Moon Fall, including Vortigern's body—at least, that's how it should've been.
But when Naoki arrived, he saw a strange [object].
*BA-DUMP!* *BA-DUMP!* *BA-DUMP!*
A sound like a heartbeat continuously emanated from the strange object.
Looking at it, Naoki narrowed his eyes. "It has the same Mana reaction as Vortigern. Is that… his egg?"
In shape, the object before him closely resembled an egg. It was enveloped in black magical mist, with a swirling vortex of pitch-black water on its surface.
A jet-black egg—that was the most fitting description Naoki could think of.
(The Holy Grail is inside this… Though I'm a bit curious about what this thing is, it should be fine if I just retrieve the Holy Grail.)
(No, better to cut it.)
Touching it directly might trigger something. As a precaution, Naoki drew his Holy Sword, preparing to destroy the jet-black egg with a single strike.
But the moment Naoki drew his Holy Sword—
The mist enveloping the egg's surface suddenly expanded and spread, transforming into an unrivaled sea of fog that swept across the entire area. Naoki, standing nearby, was instantly engulfed in the sea of mist!
(Damn it.)
That was Naoki's last thought.