The silence in the break room was barely interrupted by the constant hum of Chaldea's life support systems. Still with some bandages on his back and a feeling of spiritual fatigue, Leonel stared at the white ceiling, unable to stop thinking about that deep blue room.
"The Velvet Room"... Was that real... or not?
He had seen Igor, that man with the impossible nose, and the young Selene, with silver eyes and a lunar expression. But nothing had been explained. Only vague warnings, fleeting visions, and a promise:
"Your soul will awaken when the time demands it..."
Awaken to what, exactly? A Persona? An inner strength? He didn't know. He only felt that something within him was sealed... waiting.
His thoughts were interrupted when Mash entered with a timid smile, already dressed in her standard Chaldea uniform.
"Good morning, senpai. Doctor Romani said you should come to the control room. There's someone who wants to officially meet us."
"Someone important?"
Mash lowered her voice a little, as if she still didn't believe what she'd heard.
"They say it's... Da Vinci."
Leonel blinked.
"The Da Vinci?"
She nodded.
"Yes... but... well. You'd better see for yourself."
**Chaldea Control Room**
The room buzzed with the activity of technicians and medical staff. In the center, on a platform, a figure was slowly turning, admiring some kind of holographic projector.
She had wavy chestnut hair, lips painted wine-red, and bright, intelligent eyes. Her robe, adorned with gears, paintbrushes, and hidden mechanisms, looked like a mix between the Renaissance and magical engineering.
Leonel almost choked when he saw her.
"...That's not Da Vinci!" he blurted out without thinking.
The figure turned with a charming smile.
"Oh, but of course I am, young Master. Were you expecting a bearded old man in a dusty robe with ink-stained hands? Maybe a beard like Merlin's?"
Leonel stood there, mouth agape. Mash simply looked down, clearly accustomed to this reaction.
That's when Romani entered hurriedly, nervous.
"Ah! I see you've already met. Ahem... Well, yes. This requires... some context."
Da Vinci crossed her arms and raised an amused eyebrow.
"Come on, Roman, don't be shy. You say it. It amuses me to see you blush about this."
Romani sighed, defeated.
"Alright, alright... I'll explain. In short... Leonardo da Vinci, the universal genius, decided upon being summoned as a Servant... to reincarnate in the form of what he considered his most beautiful work: the Mona Lisa."
Leonel blinked.
"The genius of the Renaissance... chose to be a woman?"
"A beautiful, brilliant, and absolutely fabulous woman," Da Vinci interrupted with an elegant bow. "Beauty is part of genius, you know? And is there a better way to represent art than to embody it?"
Mash intervened, trying to soften the situation.
"It's a bit strange, I know... but she... he... well, Da Vinci has been a fundamental pillar in Chaldea's operations. Her knowledge of systems, magic, and quantum physics is irreplaceable."
Romani muttered under his breath:
"And her ego too..."
"I heard that, Roman!"
Leonel simply leaned against the wall, smiling, amused by the surreal situation.
"Well... I guess if Mash can summon a giant shield of magical energy, I can accept that Da Vinci is a flirtatious and brilliant woman."
"That's the spirit!" Da Vinci winked at him. "I like you, Leonel. Yes, I'll be watching you closely."
**Summoning Room**
The summoning chamber was filled with tension and magical light. Mash watched expectantly while Da Vinci had already prepared a glass of (virtual, of course) wine to celebrate the event.
"Alright, Leonel," said Romani over the communicator. "This is the important part: channel your energy, focus, and let fate decide which heroic spirit will answer your call."
Leonel took a deep breath. He'd had many emotions since Fuyuki, but this... this was special. It was his first summon. A spark ignited in his chest, and the magical circle lit up with a vibrant golden glow.
"The summoning begins!"
*"Let silver and steel be the essence.*
*Let stone and the archduke of contracts be the foundation.*
*Let my ancestor Schweinorg be the forebear.*
*Let rise a wall against the wind that shall fall.*
*Let the four cardinal gates close.*
*Let the three-forked road from the crown reaching unto the Kingdom rotate.*
*Fill. Fill. Fill. Fill. Fill.*
*Repeat five times.*
*But destroy each when filled.*
*I hereby propose.*
*My will creates your body, and your sword creates my destiny.*
*If you heed the Grail's call and obey my will and reason, then answer me.*
*I hereby swear that I shall be all the good in the world.*
*That I shall defeat all evil in the world.*
*From the Seventh Heaven, attended to by three great words of power,*
*Come forth from the ring of restraint, Protector of the Balance!"*
A whirlwind of light. A thunderclap. And then...
"Ufufufu! OH-HO-HO-HO-HO! So I have finally been summoned! The Empress of the Rose has arrived!"
From within the light emerged a young woman with blonde hair, bright green eyes, dressed in a version of an imperial toga crossed with a red dress that was far too flamboyant, with golden details shining like fireworks.
"Listen well, fortunate commoner! I am Nero Claudius Caesar Augustus Germanicus! But you may call me... Nero! Ufufu~!"
Leonel took a step back, dumbfounded.
"...What in the world did I just summon?"
Mash's eyes widened, visibly confused.
Da Vinci covered her mouth with an almost malicious smile.
Romani simply let out a long sigh over the communicator.
"What kind of empress greets like that?!" Leonel said out loud, unable to contain himself.
Nero pointed her sword (which had appeared out of nowhere, of course) at him.
"Silence, vulgar mortal! You should thank fate for granting you my glorious presence! Fear not, for from now on I shall fight for you! And you...!" She paused dramatically, twirling an imaginary flower in her hand. "You shall have the privilege of beholding my beauty and talent at all times!"
"...Is she joking?" Leonel asked Mash quietly.
"I don't think so..." she whispered, still confused.
Nero began to twirl in the center of the room, raising her arms as if she were in a theater.
"Ah, the stage of fate calls to me! What glorious tragedy, what sweet battle! Oh, roses, bear witness to my splendor!"
Leonel slowly turned to Da Vinci.
"Is this normal?"
Da Vinci raised her glass and smiled.
"For a Roman empress who believes every battle is an opera... yes, it's completely normal."
Nero finished her pose and pointed at Leonel again.
"Master! Where is my dressing room? And the royal bath? And the wine? And the fresh roses?"
Leonel could only sigh deeply.
"...I think I'm going to regret this."
The sun was beginning to set, bathing Chaldea's gardens in a warm orange light. Even though the place was still under reconstruction after the recent crises, the green spaces already looked well-kept, offering a respite from the clinical atmosphere inside.
On one of the stone benches, sitting with the grace of an empress awaiting her audience, was Nero Claudius, the first Servant officially summoned by the new Master... aside from Mash.
"Ufufu~! How glorious I am, even in lands so far from Rome!" she exclaimed, looking at the sky with a dreamy expression. "Summoned by fate itself, as the first of your glorious army. Naturally, the honor falls to me, Nero Claudius!"
"Are you talking to yourself or rehearsing a speech?" asked a male voice behind her.
Nero turned immediately, her surprised expression giving way to a smile of superiority upon recognizing the new Master, who had just approached with a drink in his hand.
"Ah! My dear Master! You have finally come to enjoy my company as you should! Of course, it's only natural that you seek the solace and inspiration only an empress can offer."
"Don't get too excited," he replied with an amused smile, sitting down beside her on the bench. "I just wanted to talk a bit. You're still the only Servant, aside from Mash, so I thought it would be good to get to know you better."
Nero blinked. For a moment, her smile faltered.
"Get to know me better...? Ohh, I see, I see. Yes, yes! You can't help but be drawn to my beauty, can you?" she said in a honeyed voice, leaning a little closer, confident in her assumption. "Come now, there's no need to hide it, you can tell me without shame. Confess that you're in love!"
The young man laughed softly, without any discomfort, but without blushing either.
"You are undoubtedly beautiful. I won't deny that. But no, I'm not in love with you. Nor interested in that way, to be honest."
The silence was brutal. Nero looked at him with wide, blinking eyes, as if she had just heard the most absurd thing in the world.
"What... what did you say?"
"That I'm not interested in you. Not like that. I like you, and I want to get along with you, but that's all. I'm trying to be fair to everyone, and I still don't know this place well. I don't have time for romantic dramas or complications."
Nero opened her mouth... and closed it again. The Empress of Rome, normally so eloquent, now just puffed out her cheeks, red as a tomato, making a visible pout.
"Hmph! How cold! How cruel! How insensitive! To reject me like that... and so directly! You're worse than the senators! At least they feared me!"
"Take it as a compliment," he said, standing up calmly. "I have no hidden intentions, no selfish motives. I just appreciate your company. See you later, Nero."
And with that, he walked away, calmly, without looking back.
...
Nero watched him leave with a furrowed brow, crossing her arms.
"Tch... rejecting me like that, as if I were just any Servant from the pile..." she murmured, as her lips curved into a slow, determined smile. "Very well, Master! You have challenged the pride of an empress! If you won't come to me willingly... then I will make you fall in love with every gram of my glorious presence!"
She rose from the bench with a dramatic air and raised a finger to the sky.
"I declare the conquest of your heart as my next imperial campaign! Prepare your soul, Master!"
**[Later: Chaldea Infirmary]**
Leonel entered carefully. The room was in semi-darkness, barely lit by the soft glow of the monitors. Olga Marie still lay unconscious, her peaceful expression a contrast to the tragedy that had befallen her.
"Quite a way to start all this..." Leonel whispered as he observed the sleeping Director.
He knew she had barely survived the command center explosion. Romani still wasn't clear on whether she would wake up soon, but her vitals were stable. Leonel couldn't do much, but the simple act of being there gave him a sense of purpose.
**[Later: Chaldea Cafeteria]**
With a tray in hand, he sat down opposite Mash, who was already eating quietly in a corner.
"How was your day, senpai?" she asked with a gentle smile.
"Interesting, I suppose. I had my first encounter with Nero."
Mash almost choked.
"The Roman empress? And how did it go?"
"Intense," he replied without thinking much. "She thinks I approached her because I'm in love. I told her no, and well... she threw a bit of a tantrum."
Mash let out a nervous laugh.
"That... sounds like her, from what I've read in the archives."
"I don't think she'll leave me alone that easily," Leonel said while having some soup. "I have a feeling I just unintentionally triggered a flag."
Mash blinked, confused.
"A flag?"
Leonel just smiled wryly.
"Nothing, just an expression."
And so they continued eating, with a new routine slowly forming in their new lives. Though he didn't say it out loud, Leonel knew the world depended on his actions. And that forced him to keep moving forward, step by step.