Chaldea could no longer truly be called Chaldea. While its name hadn't officially changed, the name Temple of Time had already spread among its internal staff.
Currently, Chaldea had fewer employees, not more. Most of the Masters who had been revived from cryogenic sleep, particularly those with powerful family backgrounds, had been sent back home.
Only six Masters from ordinary backgrounds remained.
However, even though these six ordinary Masters stayed, they also possessed the least aptitude for being a Master. It was uncertain if they could even successfully summon Servants.
Moreover, the recent Singularity battles had become more intense, and these Masters understood that going to the battlefield would likely mean their demise. Thus, they voluntarily transferred to other departments, continuing to serve Chaldea.
When Mo Shuying returned, Romani personally led the welcoming party. He was initially surprised to see the two Servants following Mo Shuying, especially Tomoe Gozen, whose face was adorned with various patterns. Romani couldn't immediately grasp which country these Servants originated from.
But Romani quickly understood what was going on and couldn't help but give Mo Shuying a thumbs-up. Impressive, daring to draw on a woman's face.
"You're finally back!"
Ignoring the issue with Tomoe Gozen for a moment, Romani stepped forward, tears in his eyes, and vigorously shook Mo Shuying's hand.
"What's wrong? What happened?"
Mo Shuying saw that the situation wasn't right. Everything had been fine yesterday. What was it? Had something bad happened?
"No, nothing bad happened. Oh, I mean, if you had returned any later, Fujimaru Ritsuka and the others would have already been back."
"..."
Mo Shuying was speechless. Romani was complaining that he was late, but could he be blamed? He had already tried his best to speed up his return.
Just then,
"Engineering team, please report to the Spiritron Conversion Chamber immediately. Prepare the capsules to welcome Fujimaru Ritsuka and Mash back!"
Da Vinci's voice echoed through the broadcast.
Romani pointed a finger.
"See? They're back."
"..."
Mo Shuying suddenly felt that his rushed return had been unnecessary. Hadn't Fujimaru Ritsuka already solved the problem?
"Let's go, let's see!"
Romani was busy, having just welcomed Mo Shuying and now preparing to welcome Fujimaru Ritsuka and Mash.
Mo Shuying followed Romani to the Spiritron Conversion Chamber, while Shuten Doji and Tomoe Gozen trailed behind Mo Shuying.
Shuten Doji couldn't help but glance at Romani multiple times from the moment she saw him. She felt Romani was quite extraordinary. Although he appeared to be an ordinary mortal, there was an elusive sense of mystery about him, as if... he could take a lot of punishment.
Soon, everyone arrived at the Spiritron Conversion Chamber.
As soon as Mo Shuying entered, he saw Fujimaru Ritsuka and Mash stepping out of the capsules. The two girls looked a little weary, but their faces were beaming with confident smiles.
Seeing the two girls in this state, Mo Shuying smiled. It was the proud smile of an old father.
"Mash! Ritsuka! Congratulations! You completed this Singularity repair work with your own perseverance and strength!"
Dr. Romani stepped forward, showering them with praise.
Then he saw Fujimaru Ritsuka happily running towards him, looking as if they were about to throw themselves into his arms.
Romani froze, then felt a pang of guilt. Da Vinci was right there! Should he accept this hug or not?
If I don't hug them... what if I hurt Fujimaru Ritsuka's feelings? But if I do hug them... what might get hurt is my own body.
Struggling with indecision, while Romani was still deliberating, Fujimaru Ritsuka bypassed Romani and ran to Mo Shuying's side, looking up at him with immense excitement in their eyes.
"We did it!" Fujimaru Ritsuka proudly declared.
"Yes, you did it." Mo Shuying smiled and nodded. Unconsciously, Fujimaru Ritsuka can already stand on their own.
"Hehe~ It wasn't that hard after all~ With Mash and our new friends, even the strongest opponents will be defeated by us."
Fujimaru Ritsuka said, hands on their hips, their nose practically turned up in the air.
Mo Shuying could tell that Fujimaru Ritsuka was like a child wanting praise. Mo Shuying reached out and placed his hand on Fujimaru Ritsuka's head, gently stroking it and saying,
"You did very well. I'm proud of you."
*Puff~*
With a "puff," Fujimaru Ritsuka turned completely red, visible steam emanating from their body, as if they were fully cooked.
Watching the close interaction between the two, Shuten Doji nudged Tomoe Gozen's waist with her elbow and whispered,
"See? I told you he came back for a girl. Sure enough, they're not just friends, this is a confidante! Little Tomoe, your path to becoming the official wife is long and arduous."
"..."
Tomoe Gozen wore a helpless expression, wanting to say that "official wife" had nothing to do with her, but deep down, she felt a strange emotion. This feeling... she had experienced it before when her Lord Yoshinaka took another wife.
Just then,
"Ahem... this. Ritsuka and Mash, you've done an excellent job on this mission, truly wonderful. We'll hold a celebration banquet later to honor you. And Mo Shuying, you've just arrived, so consider it a welcome party for all of you. As for these two Servants..."
Romani looked at the two people behind Mo Shuying.
Shuten Doji immediately stepped forward.
"A party? Is there alcohol?"
Romani was startled, then smiled.
"Normally, I don't allow staff to drink, but today is a special circumstance. A little bit is fine."
"Yay! You're a pretty good guy! My name is Shuten Doji, can we have a drink together later?"
Shuten Doji was naturally outgoing and very careless when it came to drinking, which is why she was tricked by Minamoto-no-Raikou into drinking poisoned sake and then beheaded.
"Shuten Doji?"
Romani was a little surprised; Shuten Doji's name was still quite famous.
"Shuten Doji! The strongest yokai of the Heian period! Oh my god!"
As a Japanese person, Fujimaru Ritsuka naturally grew up familiar with these supernatural tales. Hearing that it was the Oni King, Shuten Doji, they were also very curious.
"Hehehe~ Looks like I'm pretty famous~ Not bad, not bad~ Look up to me~"
Shuten Doji lifted her chin and said proudly.
At this moment, Tomoe Gozen stepped forward.
"My name is Tomoe. People used to call me Tomoe Gozen. For now, I am accompanying Mr. Mo. Please guide me."
Tomoe Gozen greeted them very formally. Hearing Tomoe Gozen's self-introduction, Fujimaru Ritsuka was stunned.
"Tomoe Gozen! Is that the female general from Japanese history! The books say she was a beautiful, fair-skinned heroine, but your face…"
Fujimaru Ritsuka said with a strange expression.
Tomoe Gozen was taken aback. What was wrong with her face?
She turned her head. Spiritron Conversion had no shortage of glass, and as soon as she turned, she saw that there was almost no part of her face that wasn't black, covered in black patterns!
"(▼ヘ▼#)#!!"
Tomoe Gozen's face darkened! She turned to look at Mo Shuying and Shuten Doji, but found that the two had already retreated to the doorway at some point.
"You two adults!!"
Tomoe Gozen shouted through gritted teeth. Mo Shuying and Shuten Doji exchanged a look, then took off running!
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