Chapter 354

If everything goes according to the script, then everything will be perfect for the system.

However, reality God Race from the system's predictions. First, the system's support and racial advantages granted him an absolute advantage over the world's top combat forces. Therefore, he couldn't afford to fall into a predicament. Second, the sudden appearance of Kevin and Seele further indicated the system's plan had failed, as their presence meant that even if the God Race system collapsed, causing an interruption in additional energy, he would still have powerful external support.

Therefore, under such circumstances, the system will naturally re-plan. The first step is to get itself out of that world as soon as possible, the second step is to eliminate powerful support, and the third step is to re-plan.

Following this logic, Kevin and Seele would not have been able to return to their original world so easily.

"If that's the case," Seele added, "Could there be something even worse?"

"Of course there is," Li Pu said. "There's another possibility: when you enter the Sea of Quantum, I might encounter some unexpected situations and deviate from my coordinates. Or we might both enter different worlds."

As soon as Li Pu finished speaking, she noticed that the time tunnel in front of her seemed to have undergone some changes. The original blue time tunnel suddenly lost its color, leaving only strange purple lines and black patterns.

"Just as I expected!"

This must be the system messing around!

Deep within the world, a certain little girl sat restlessly, holding her teacup but showing no intention of drinking it. Even her favorite snacks seemed to have lost their appeal at this moment.

"This is your favorite strawberry pudding. It's afternoon tea time now, so we should relax and not be so tense."

Across from the little girl sat a mature woman with an impressive figure and elegant posture, deep blue hair, and a pair of rather ordinary-looking glasses. In some ways, she seemed to be similar to Mei, both of whom could make the little girl uneasy.

"I... um..." the little girl said nervously, "Um... according to the plan, she should have encountered the space storm by now, right?"

"Of course." The mature woman spoke with great confidence, as if she were recounting something that had already happened. "Everything is under control."

"What? You seem worried about my plans."

"I... I'm just worried..." the little girl whispered, "I have a feeling that Li Pu has probably already figured out our plan. It wouldn't be good if he found out. Will he do what you predict?"

"You noticed?" The mature woman put down her cup and adjusted her glasses.

That flash of cold light nearly scared the little girl out of her wits; having tea with this guy is always Alexander!

"If she didn't realize it by now, she wouldn't deserve the blessing of so many intelligent characters!" the older sister said. "Among the characters she drew, there are quite a few with outstanding intelligence, so she definitely could have noticed it."

"No! No! No!" the little girl said anxiously, "I don't want to..."

"If it were just you, you would eventually be completely devoured by her and left with nothing," the mature woman said coldly. "And don't worry, it's all an open conspiracy. Since she drew the Goddess, she naturally had to be connected to that system. We did our best to give her the coordinates, even giving her several extra ones, because she was willing to return to that world. As for the special nature of that passage, it's already a miracle that she survived and those two were able to return to the Sea of Quantum."

"What more could you want?" the mature woman said. "You're not letting her experience true despair."

"She won't even consider you a meal!"

"Even so..." the little girl still seemed a bit scared as she said, "I just wanted him to..."

"While you still have some advantage," the older woman interrupted the younger woman mercilessly, "You still have options: subdue him or, if you can't beat him, let him join you."

"When you no longer have an advantage, you will have no choice."

Chapter Two: Oh, My Dear Arthur

"Is this how you summon a hero?" a white-haired lady holding a golden sword sheath asked. "After all, it's about summoning Heroic Spirit."

"Indeed, to the average person, this is a very rudimentary summoning method. They think that summoning Heroic Spirit should require various summoning techniques." A middle-aged man, who seemed to be owed hundreds of thousands of dollars, said with great distress, "But in reality, it is not me who summons the Heroic Spirit, but the Holy Grail. I only provide magic power so that the Heroic Spirit can exist in this world. So it is the Holy Grail that summons the Heroic Spirit, and I have only become the Master of the Heroic Spirit."

"Irisviel placed the sacred relic on the altar," the uncle said, standing up to the white-haired woman.

The summoning began when the white-haired woman placed the golden scabbard she was holding onto the altar!

"I declare that you are beneath me, and that you entrust my destiny to your sword."

The uncle didn't seem particularly devout, and his tone was somewhat perfunctory, but as he spoke, the silver magic circle released a dazzling light. The frenzied magic released by the magic circle impacted the uncle and his wife like a storm, and the magic circle grew brighter and brighter with the uncle's voice.

"Hail the call of the Holy Grail. If you follow this will and the laws of nature, answer immediately and swear an oath here and now: I will do the good of the world and rid the world of all evil!"

As the incantation was recited, the light reached its zenith.

As the light faded... the figures of two girls appeared within the magic circle.

"I ask, are you my Master?"

A blonde girl uttered a question in a strong, assertive voice that didn't sound like a question at all. But instead of an answer, she was met with utter bewilderment.

At the same time, she heard a voice beside her say, sounding quite disappointed. "Should I ask you now, 'Are you my Master?'"

The blonde girl paused for a moment, then moved away from the person who had just spoken to her, adopting a wary posture.

"Who are you?" she demanded loudly.

"Don't be so loud," said another girl dressed in strange clothes and adorned with various gold ornaments. "I'm not your enemy... um, let me introduce myself first."

"My name is Belldandy," the girl said, lifting her skirt and bowing slightly. "I am the Goddess of Fate."

"The Goddess of Fate?" the blonde girl, the uncle who owed money, and the white-haired woman all said in unison.

"How is this possible?" the uncle who owed money said incredulously. "How could it be possible to summon the Goddess of Fate? The real... Goddess of Fate?"

Although it felt impossible, I was quite surprised to summon a new Heroic Spirit, in addition to the Heroic Spirit I wanted to summon. The Goddess of Fate Belldandy, Class: Foreigner, Name, Strength:??, Endurance:??, Agility:??, Mana:??, Luck: EX, Noble Phantasm:??.

"Why are they all question marks?" the uncle said. "Besides 'Super Lucky,' why are all the others question marks?"

I did indeed summon a real Goddess, but is it because she's Goddess that I can't see any data? All the data is unknown, and I don't even know what her Noble Phantasm is! What's going on?

"Why is a goddess summoned?" The white-haired lady asked doubtfully, "There should be no holy relics related to her."

"If you're going to ask that question," Belldandy said, as if she already knew the answer, her hand seemingly holding something extra, "Oh, my dear Arthur, don't you think I have something in my hand that looks familiar?"

The next second, a Holy Sword appeared out of thin air in Belldandy's hand!

"It's Excalibur!" The blonde girl immediately recognized the longsword in Belldandy's hand and exclaimed, "How do you have it!"

"In a special secret realm," Belldandy said, putting away Excalibur. "I defeated a group of... ah... never mind... anyway, I found it in a special secret realm."

"It seems that the old man summoned me along with the thing that summoned you."

Well, I guess that's probably the most credible reason.

Belldandy was, of course, Li Pu. After suddenly encountering that strange situation, she felt a peculiar energy pulling her towards another place. She didn't know where it was, but the force was so powerful that she had no way to resist and was thus brought here.

It seems that the reason for the Heroic Spirit Summoning is either because he drew the Saber character card or because of the Holy Sword in his possession.

The backlash seems to have entered the world of Fate/Zero. And it appears to be a fairly common opening sequence. Summoned alongside Saber to become Heroic Spirit.

'Ah... this is really troublesome...' Li Pu sighed.

Although it's a bit cliché, it seems like a good thing for her. She can take this opportunity to observe Saber up close.

After all, it's always better to have a living Saber standing in front of you than to try to figure her out yourself.

"So, it seems your Noble Phantasm Saber's?" The middle-aged man sized up Li Pu, then glanced at the blonde girl, and said, "I never imagined the legendary King Arthur was actually a girl, and so young at that..."

"Do you have a problem with me?" Saber asked, as if he had been touched on a sore spot.

"My Noble Phantasm isn't Excalibur," Li Pu said first. "My Noble Phantasm is my own ability. As the Goddess of Fate, my ability is to weave destiny. To put it more simply and perhaps more poetically, it's to make dreams come true."

"My ability is to fulfill other people's wishes; I can fulfill any wish."

"Any wish?" the middle-aged man suddenly asked, a little excited. "Really, any wish?"

"Of course," Li Pu said with a smile. "Any wish is possible, of course, that's in theory. Because others are responsible for making the wish, and I'm responsible for fulfilling it. But as the person responsible for fulfilling wishes, I have the right to refuse to fulfill other people's wishes."

"And more importantly, some wishes can only be fulfilled at a considerable price, and that price is often one that a person cannot afford."

"So, uncle, what price are you willing to pay to grant me one of your wishes?"

Chapter Three: Feeding the Saber

The snow is falling so deep, falling so earnestly—this isn't a song lyric.

This is the courtyard of the Einzbern family castle, covered in heavy snow. In this white, silvery world, only two sets of footprints, one large and one small, remain, along with carefree laughter as mere bells.

To the average person, this would be a picture of a happy family reunion.

But for Kiritsugu, all of this was not so harmonious. This was the last warmth before the expedition and the last tranquility before the storm.

He summoned two Heroic Spirit at once: one was the target he had summoned, and the other was Goddess summoned unexpectedly due to the connection with the Holy Relic. The Goddess of Fate Belldandy! Before summoning Belldandy, Kiritsugu didn't know much about this Goddess; he only knew Goddess name because, as Magecraft, he had some knowledge of mythology from various regions.

He never imagined that one day he would summon it to his side to become Heroic Spirit under his command and participate in the Holy Grail War.

In mythology, they are Goddess who govern destiny, weaving the fates of other deities. Among them, Belldandy is the one who determines destiny, representing the Goddess who holds the reins of power.

What Kiritsugu found even more incredible was that Belldandy, who determined destiny and controlled the 'present,' embodied this control over destiny and the 'present' in a very special way.

Desire!

She's like the Holy Grail he's about to fight for—possessing the power to grant others' wishes and rewrite reality. In that sense, he's essentially summoned the Holy Grail directly to his side.

While the Holy Grail can grant a person's wish, she has the right to decide whether or not to grant it, and granting a wish may require paying an equivalent price.

Sometimes, getting things too easily can cause inner conflict. Should one use the all-powerful wish-granting princess they summoned to fulfill their desires, or wait until they obtain the Holy Grail before doing so? Moreover, once a person has a second chance, they will inevitably have many selfish desires.

He also has some other wishes he wants to fulfill.

What if the Goddess is unwilling to grant his wish?

Kiritsugu looked at the back of his hand; the crimson Command Spell represented absolute control over Heroic Spirit. By using Command Spell, he could make Heroic Spirit do things against their will.

Should I use Command Spell?

He only has three Command Spell but two Heroic Spirit, meaning he needs to use three Command Spell to control both Heroic Spirit. Each Command Spell is more precious than those of other Master participating in the Holy Grail War.

After careful consideration, Kiritsugu to save his Command Spell and Wishes for later use when the war began.

Inside the towering castle, Saber stood at the window, looking out at Kiritsugu. This man who had summoned her—she never imagined that someone who seemed so cold and ruthless could possess such a tender side.

She chatted Alice with Alice, who was making tea, and Saber about Kiritsugu returning Saber to herself.

Just then, the cup of tea in front of the lady suddenly became agitated, with countless bubbles appearing in it.

The lady didn't find it strange; she simply stepped back slightly, as if avoiding the cup of tea. Immediately afterwards, a stream of water rose from that small cup of tea.

The water column suddenly appeared and then disappeared into thin air, and then a girl appeared floating in the air.

"Aaaaaah~ It's so hot! It's burning me!" the girl cried out in a panic. "Drinking hot tea at a time like this! What else can the Einzbern family drink besides hot tea?"

"I'm really sorry, my Goddess," the lady said, her tone neither humble nor arrogant, but with a hint of suppressed laughter. "But next time, if you use the door, you definitely won't get burned by the hot tea."

The person who emerged from the tea was naturally Li Pu.

She looked at her wife with a hint of anger, but couldn't show it, because the time tunnel had brought her to the world of the Holy Grail War. While it wasn't exactly a good thing, Li Pu also discovered that he had gone from only being able to travel using mirrors to being able to choose more mediums for travel.

Water, glass, and other similar materials can all serve as her mediums for travel.

So Li Pu chose something that is most common on this planet, something that will almost always be found wherever there are human settlements: water, which he used as his medium to travel.

Then she encountered this problem.

If the water boils, it will be very hot. This temperature won't harm her, but it will make Li Pu very uncomfortable. If he uses the water to travel back from outside, he will most likely find his wife making tea here.

This really left Li Pu speechless with frustration. He wondered if the lady had deliberately chosen to brew tea when he returned home.

"Ah..." Li Pu sighed and said, "Actually, the soda... ah... never mind, if I use any of those, I'll feel sticky all over, and I'll need to fix my hair."

"Let's not talk about that anymore." Li Pu showed the oiled paper strip in his hand and said, "Madam, and Artoria ~ would you like to try this?"

She glanced at the teacup on the table and said, "This is perfect for tea."

"What is this?" the wife asked curiously. "Is it something to eat?"

"Yes," Li Pu shook the bag, and after opening it, various colorful pastries floated out lightly. At the same time, several plates floated over and landed on the coffee table, and the pastries naturally landed on the plates.

"The Goddess's abilities are truly incredibly convenient," the wife said enviously.

"Hahaha~" Li Pu laughed and said, "This is a sweet from Fuyuki City, the place we're going to soon. It's a local traditional tea snack called 'Wagashi,' which is quite famous, but whether it tastes good or not is another matter."

"But it will look more refined."

Well, Li Pu won't comment on whether it will actually taste good. She doesn't eat desserts very often.

"Artoria, try this~" A pink dumpling floated up and floated right in front of Saber's face, as if it had no intention of falling into Saber's hands.

Saber looked at the ahoge (cowlick) and said, "What are you doing, Goddess of Fate?"

'Of course I'll feed her~' Li Pu thought to himself, but seeing Saber's face, which seemed about to break down, Li Pu still placed the snack in Saber's hand and said, 'Hunger is the greatest enemy~ Doesn't Artoria like to eat snacks?'

Hmm, it seems like Saber said that line, but it happened in Carnival Phantasm. The characters in Carnival Phantasm are all pretty eccentric.

"No." Saber took a bite of the pink dumpling and said, "This dessert tastes pretty good."

"But, Goddess of Fate, we're not very familiar with each other, are we?"