Amber wasn't one to ignore advice—in fact, she took it quite seriously, especially when it came from her two-dimensional wife and master.
She understood the principle well; she didn't even need Fu Hua to remind her that she shouldn't grow complacent. But when it actually happened, she hadn't even realized she'd started getting carried away.
"I understand," Amber nodded. "I'll be more careful from now on."
Fu Hua hadn't taught many disciples, but she'd raised quite a few from youth.
Among them, Amber was relatively obedient and well-behaved.
Changing someone's nature wasn't something that could be done overnight, so she wasn't in a hurry to force an immediate shift in Amber.
With Amber's speed, the outline of Kutha soon appeared before her eyes, and she took in the city's situation at a glance.
Her first impression of the scene inside the city was… strange.
It was just too strange. For a fairly large city, it was completely empty—only Chaldea's members were visible.
For some reason, the Chaldea team had split up, but oddly enough, Fujimaru Ritsuka, who had no combat ability, wasn't with Mashu. In fact, his presence couldn't be felt anywhere in the city.
After a moment's thought, Amber decided to land beside Merlin.
"To think the Phoenix Celestial has come as well. Don't tell me that inconsiderate king asked you to keep an eye on me?" Merlin noticed Amber's approach and offered a feigned smile as she touched down.
"Not at all." Amber was already well-acquainted with Merlin's penchant for stirring up trouble. She brushed off his teasing and cut straight to the point. "Where is Fujimaru Ritsuka?"
"Fujimaru Ritsuka…?" Merlin initially assumed she needed him for something, but quickly realized that wasn't the case.
Just as she had spotted him immediately from the sky, if the Phoenix Celestial—who could easily sense anyone's presence—wanted to find someone in the city, she wouldn't need to ask around.
The moment that thought crossed his mind, Merlin activated his Clairvoyance.
"This is bad…!" Frowning, he swung his staff, sending two petal-laden spells flying out. Already on the move, he called out, "Fujimaru Ritsuka is over at the plaza!"
At the plaza? Had he collapsed?
Amber followed closely.
Since the search was centered around the plaza, the three parties converged almost simultaneously.
Seeing Ritsuka lying unconscious in the center of the square, Mashu rushed over, hoping to wake him. But both Amber and Ana could tell—Fujimaru Ritsuka wasn't just unconscious. He showed no signs of life; he was already dead.
Through the special wrist device linking them to Chaldea, Roman's voice immediately rang out, "Mashu! Fujimaru Ritsuka's vital signs have disappeared! What's going on!?"
"What…? Mr. Merlin!? Senpai, he—!" Hearing this, Mashu turned a stunned gaze toward Merlin, who had gathered everyone.
"…" Merlin's expression was grim. He had an inkling of what might be happening, but couldn't quite grasp the full picture.
After checking Ritsuka's body, Amber relayed Fu Hua's words: "There's no consciousness within him, yet his organs are strangely intact. It's as though he died suddenly, without any warning. This isn't a case of sudden organ failure or a fatal shock—it's a perfectly intact death."
Hearing this, Mashu stared in disbelief at Fujimaru Ritsuka's body.
"No, wait… This might not be death… Or rather, if it is that, then it's even more troublesome…"
Merlin's face suddenly darkened, and he began speaking in riddles.
"Mr. Merlin? What exactly is going on?" Mashu pressed urgently.
"In most myths, the sky, the earth, and the underworld are separate realms. But in this age where gods and humans coexist, that's not the case," Merlin explained. "Walking to the underworld on foot is entirely possible in this era."
Mashu was no fool. Understanding dawned on her. "So Senpai is in the underworld now? Then if we just bring his soul back…"
"Bringing a soul back is an extremely difficult task."
Merlin's expression tightened, once again feeling that things were slipping beyond his control.
"A difficult task…?" Mashu's face filled with dread, and she turned to Amber, whom she also saw as reliable.
Being stared at with such a vulnerable, almost breaking expression by a beautiful girl made Amber's heart ache with urgency. But when she checked the mission guidance on her navigator, there was no task like "Bring Ritsuka Back," nor any prompts to that effect.
"If you know of a way, please speak plainly," she said, turning helplessly to Merlin.
Merlin opened his mouth, about to explain the matters of the underworld and its goddess, when a low groan cut him off.
The familiar voice drew everyone's attention.
The lifeless Fujimaru Ritsuka slowly opened his eyes, his face still clouded with confusion.
"Fujimaru Ritsuka's vital signs have been restored…!" Roman's voice rang out again.
"Senpai!?" At the sight, Mashu could no longer hold back her emotions—tears streamed from her eyes. Even Ana, who had remained silent until now, breathed a quiet sigh of relief.
Surrounded by everyone, Ritsuka was still somewhat disoriented, but the sight of Mashu's tears snapped him back to awareness.
He quickly comforted her, then began explaining how he had accidentally wandered into the underworld and was saved by an old man named Ziusudra.
Merlin pointed at the clay tablet under Ritsuka's hand. "That clay tablet in your hand must be the Tablet of Destinies, right? Did that self-proclaimed Ziusudra give it to you?"
"Uh… yeah, I think so?" Ritsuka scratched his head, then asked, "Self-proclaimed?"
"In Sumerian myth, Ziusudra symbolizes the guardian of the abyss, the bell-ringer, and the witness to all things' deaths. He was the only one to survive the Great Flood—equivalent to Noah in the Bible," Roman explained.
"Like Merlin, I find it hard to believe it was really him… but then again, with Ishtar and Enkidu appearing, maybe it's not impossible…"
"It's probably someone with a similar role. After all, that's not a name one would casually impersonate," Merlin said, then frowned and lowered his head.
"But still… the underworld is intact as well… meaning the Goddess of the Underworld has manifested here… In that case, what about Ishtar of the Three Goddess Alliance…?"
His muttering caught everyone's attention, but only Fu Hua caught every word.
Just then, Amber suddenly sensed Ishtar's presence approaching rapidly.
Roman also issued an alert through the wrist device: "A large magical energy response is approaching fast!"
The next moment, hundreds of golden beams rained down from the sky. Mashu hurriedly moved in front of everyone to block, nearly getting sent flying by the impact.
Seeing this, Amber steadied Mashu with one hand while raising her other, summoning dark flames to deflect the remaining attacks.
"Found you!" Ishtar's figure appeared mid-air, her expression displeased. "I only came back to my city on a whim, and look who I find here. Don't you know how reckless it is to investigate a goddess's affairs?"
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T/N: While I am an inexperienced Translator, I have a Patreon! While it may seem empty as of now, webnovel will get 3 Chapters Every Day, and advanced chapters will be uploaded on Patreon.
It may not seem worth it now, but maybe in the future. Who knows!
[email protected]/AspenTL
If you guys wanna check it out.