Chapter 185

"I shouldn't have acted on my own..."

At this moment, Ritsuka Fujimaru's face turned red with embarrassment. She didn't understand why, even though she thought Novia's approach was quite good, she still uncontrollably grabbed his hand and ran away.

"It's alright, it's just a strategy. After all, I don't have a 100% chance of successfully persuading them."

"Thank you very much, I'm so glad to hear you say that, Novia."

"Um."

"Again, I'm really happy," Ritsuka Fujimaru laughed. "I feel like this is the first time I've ever felt this way!"

Seeing her smile, Novia naturally laughed out loud as well.

Then came the moment of parting. Novia watched the girl's departing figure, thought for a moment, and called out to her:

"Consider this a gift for our first meeting, Fujimaru."

"Um--"

Upon hearing this, Ritsuka turned around and saw Novia, who was standing close by, hand her the Cross Pendant hanging around her neck. She instinctively took it and held it tightly.

"Well then, see you again sometime, Fujimaru."

After delivering the items Novia didn't say anything more, turned around, and left in the other direction from the girl.

The girl, staring blankly at the Cross Pendant, stood there in a daze. After what seemed like an eternity, Ritsuka finally hung it around her neck... Actually, in her daze, she was thinking how much better it would have been if Novia had put it on her herself.

What am I thinking...?

She shook her head sharply, calming herself down, and then walked home, still holding onto the burning passion in her heart.

At this moment, what Ritsuka Fujimaru wants to do most is to open a Bakery with the person she Issei. Even though it's an ordinary and unremarkable thing, it's what she truly wants to do. The girl longs for such a life.

The thought of being given the Pendant was probably a prelude to what I truly wanted.

The next day, Ritsuka Fujimaru suddenly woke up in her own house and discovered something truly astonishing—

She completely forgot to ask for Novia's contact information!

257: You can also call me 'Father' (4k)

In the warm breeze at the beginning of the year, the trees next to the Coffee Shop swayed, their slender Leaf brushing against the shop's signboard.

Novia, who had used Magecraft to conceal herself, Draco, and Kisshouin's presence, sat in the Coffee Shop and squinted her eyes slightly.

"Wow, there are so many people here. Is my Xiao Xiang working here?"

Kisshouin, being held by Novia, spoke in a coquettish tone, while Draco, standing to the side, gritted his teeth inwardly upon hearing this.

She was too proud to extend an invitation, which allowed Kisshouin to beat her to it, leaving her sitting on the sidelines, resentfully eating her Strawberry Pie.

"Yes, she works part-time at the Coffee shop 'Ahnenerbe' with her classmates."

"Wow, that's quite a grand undertaking! Was the Kischur Zelretch Schweinorg involved in building this Coffee Shop? Is it possible it could just disappear into another world in the blink of an eye?"

"Snort."

Hearing Kisshouin's affected voice again infuriated Draco, who could only continue eating his Strawberry Pie as if that was the only way to vent his anger.

"Actually, only other Parallel World can come over, but those here can't... You, who used the Holy Scripture to defeat the Kischur Zelretch Schweinorg back then, should know more about this than I do."

"Hehe." The girl smiled shyly. "That was Sesshouin. I'm Kisshouin now, Lady Novia."

"... that damned brat... I..."

Draco's eyes were practically contorted with murderous intent. If he hadn't been suppressed by Novia, he probably would have already taught Kisshouin a lesson for flaunting his lack of arrogance.

However, it's important to know that Draco, whose abilities were sealed by Novia yesterday, was only on par with Kisshouin and didn't have much of an advantage. After all, Draco doesn't possess the 'Primal Fire' that Novia once gave him, making it difficult for him to compete with Kisshouin, who has been training as Executor since childhood. But thanks to the abilities Novia taught him, Draco was able to barely manage a draw with Kisshouin.

The street where the Coffee Shop is located in a bustling area of Tokyo is crowded with people. Perhaps because the building was constructed with the help of Kischur Zelretch Schweinorg, most of the area around it is a degree or two warmer than other places, which is why most passersby are holding handkerchiefs and wiping their sweat.

Upon seeing Coffee Shop, I'd check if they had any cold drinks... In a way, Kischur Zelretch Schweinorg was quite supportive of George's business.

"Lord Novia, is that Xiao Xiang?"

Kisshouin raised his hand, gesturing towards the Orange Hair and Orange Eyes girl, who was then gesturing towards Novia.

"Hmm, Hibino Hibiki, she's Xiao Xiang, but..."

"But?"

"Xiao Xiang's personality shouldn't be like this..."

"Oh dear, perhaps it's one of the children from the courtyard. Oh, Miss Draco, please don't be angry~"

Kisshouin glanced at Draco, secretly chuckling to himself as if he were calculating something.

At this moment, she looked like a cunning villain from a TV series, or rather, she had the face of an evil person. This kind of appearance was not usually shown to Novia, but Melusine and Draco often saw it. However, Novia was well aware of this, but she did not care.

Draco suddenly spoke up upon seeing Kisshouin's appearance.

"That personality seems more like Sion's."

"It seems like Miss Sion doesn't have as much contact with Miss Draco as I do."

"That aloof personality doesn't seem like the warm and lively person Kouhaku at all, and he doesn't seem to have many thoughts on his mind. He doesn't seem like he really wants to see the Teacher."

"Yeah?"

"That's right, Nero is right."

"... Don't call me that stupid name..."

Indeed, according to her memories and Kouhaku's account, Novia did remember that the Holy Scripture, in human form, was a cheerful and energetic child who was popular with everyone, regardless of age or gender. In short, she had a friendly, puppy-like personality, and her mere presence could create a warm and harmonious atmosphere...

At this moment, Hibino Hibiki exuded a cold aura and did not show any bright and energetic appearance. She was as rigid as a Robot, and the people around her did not seem to find it strange.

Actually, this is a consequence of the battle between Hibino Hibiki and her 'younger sister', False Scripture- Symphony, a few days ago. Just as False Scripture- Symphony's personality corresponds to her cold and Hibino Hibiki, as the older sister, is energetic and cheerful. However, once they enter battle mode, their personalities transform.

The Holy Scripture is devoid of emotion and is predominantly white, while the False Scripture is very lively and predominantly black.

To be fair, the False Scripture is indeed no match for the Holy Scripture. It is merely a re-creation of the Holy Scripture only exists in the world. It is far inferior to Holy Scripture sacred scripture in both quality and quantity. However, the problem is that Xiao Xiang is unwilling to devour his sister, Marie Antoinette Muller, so he has no choice but to defeat her and let her escape. But in order to avoid being accidentally ambushed, he has kept the Holy Scripture Mode active.

Those who knew her well saw this as a consequence of Suhou Nao, the Acting Executor of the Holy Church.

"Alright, we've seen it all. Regardless of Xiao Xiang's personality, let's go to the Western-Style Mansion tonight to meet Xiao Xiang in person."

Novia got up, put Kisshouin down, and started walking towards the hotel.

Draco watched his retreating figure, then suddenly seemed to remember something and asked.

"Teacher, where's the Cross Pendant on your chest?"

When Novia returned last night, Draco noticed that the Cross Pendant he wore around his neck was gone, leaving only the Silver Key Pendant.

"... this..."

The silver-haired man touched the Silver Key with one hand as he spoke, then turned around to answer.

"I gave it away."

"Tsk, who did you give it to? It wasn't another girl, was it?"

Draco's words brought another slight smile to Kisshouin.

"Most of the people who catch Novia's attention are girls~ And Miss Draco, you're really strange, who else would I give it to if not a girl? Or would I give it to you, Miss Draco?"

"You brat, Yu Zaowan..."

"Although it was indeed given to a young girl, it was ultimately due to a special connection. Speaking of White Dove..."

Novia looked up at the sky visible between the buildings, a blue sky that connected Rome and the world.

"In a sense, one day she will face an event that is extremely important to the world itself, and I hope she will succeed."

Kisshouin and Draco listened to Novia's voice, both feeling displeased that someone else might be involved in the future.

But Kisshouin was much faster than Draco. Seemingly unconcerned, he let Novia take his hand and gave Draco a smug look. This made the already hesitant blonde girl take his hand without hesitation. However, judging from his size, it wouldn't be surprising if she thought he was a father with a child.

The three walked east from the Coffee Shop, casting heavy shadows on the Asphalt Road.

Despite the lazy, warm sunshine and the many eager glances directed at her, Novia's steps remained brisk.

It's a very strange sight. Even though Draco and Kisshouin are both very cute, everyone's attention is drawn to Novia, and they naturally feel happy inside. In other words, the man truly attracts everyone like the Sun.

At that moment, Novia was quietly contemplating.

The Human Order Incineration will begin shortly after Ritsuka Fujimaru enters Chaldea. Ritsuka Fujimaru was tricked and taken away by Chaldea personnel during her High School graduation vacation while donating blood. That was in May, and it is now January, which means that there are still four months before Goetia begins the Human Order Incineration.

However, if Goetia were left to its own devices, it would inevitably fail sooner or later.

The girl, humanity's last Master, embarks on this journey for her own survival and that of countless others.

Therefore--

It was this courage that allowed the man, who had been running away for years, to confront the 'evil' born within him, to bid farewell to his 'Coward' self, to end Goetia, and to reach a 'final destination' in a different direction from the only enlightened Savior among humanity.

Novia was very unhappy about this, not with Romani, but with the god who gave the Ten Commandments to the Sorcerer King.

The god foresaw this ending long ago, knowing the man's demise, yet let things unfold as they would. Although it was all meaningless to the god, Novia was not a god and therefore did not think so. He did not think it was good for the man who had reached another end, even though he had indeed accomplished a great feat, but he could never appear again because of it.

But no Human Order Incineration; Romani would continue to be a 'Coward,' and no one knew how he had managed to acquire so many wives during Solomon's time...

However, upon closer inspection, Novia's attitude towards the Human Order Incineration was actually quite simple: it could happen, but no one was allowed to die in it.

They completely reversed the outcome that the god had foreseen.

Even if this causes a year to pass on Earth, he will still pay a price to reverse time. However, for someone who is Sun UO, this is not a difficult task.

Magecraft is the Principle of the Star, True Magic is the Principle of the Cosmos. As the Sun UO, which is blessed by countless Star in the Galaxy, its power has already approached the Principle of the Cosmos.

The moment Novia saw and observed the Five Great Magics, she was able to instantly analyze the underlying principles.

Speaking of which, it seems that due to the great battle between Novia and ORT back then, the Otherworld was completely sealed off, so the Magecraft World has never been able to enter it until now. Only legends about ORT are circulating, and even the Kischur Zelretch Schweinorg thought that the Great Spider was actually still asleep.

At night, outside a Western-style Western-Style Mansion in Tokyo, the darkness brought by the setting Sun seemed to change the temperature and hue of the world.

It was an incredibly grand building located in the Suburbs outside of Tokyo City, blending seamlessly with the local atmosphere.

"It's clear that Mr. Kouhaku is quite concerned about Xiao Xiang's safety."

Kisshouin immediately recognized that this Western-Style Mansion was a remarkably strong Bounded Field, powerful enough to Protection a Small Kingdom.

It should be noted that there are various types of Bounded Field, including so-called Magecraft Bounded Field, as well as scientific barriers and psychological barriers that appeal to human psychology. This Western-Style Mansion, in particular, made a small contribution to the Leyline of Tokyo. After all, Kouhaku was Dead Apostle who created the Great Labyrinth, so it was no exception for him to be able to do this.

"If nothing unexpected happens, Tokyo is the Bounded Field itself."

"That's right. To destroy the defenses of this Western-Style Mansion, we need the power to completely annihilate Tokyo; otherwise, it will be difficult to open it."

Although Novia wasn't exactly a master at setting up Bounded Field, he could tell that it took a lot of effort and time to create such a Bounded Field. However, there was something that puzzled him: looking at it this way, Kouhaku shouldn't have been so terrified, especially since he hadn't been so easily startled during the Americas Holy Grail.

Novia was unsure why Kouhaku acted that way, thought she could ask Xiao Xiang later if something had happened to Kouhaku.

After a moment's thought, Novia used the key that Kouhaku had given him to open the Western-Style Mansion's Great Gate.

"My dearest sister, please let my existence be truly complete, let me truly become a father—"

The purple-haired girl, radiating such enthusiasm from inside the Western-Style Mansion, was about to do something to the person entering at the door. However, when she saw that the person was not Hibino Hibiki, but someone she didn't recognize... no, the light in her chest grew even stronger, and she instantly realized something.

Marie Antoinette Muller pointed tremblingly at Novia:

"Father, dear Father..."

The purple-haired girl, who was False Scripture, had a range of emotions flashing across her face.

From breathtaking passion and terrifying cold to flower-like resilience and pitifulness, nothing is false.

"No, don't look at me. I'm not Father's child yet. Only after I eat Hibino Hibiki, yes, only after I eat Hibino Hibiki will I be the real one..."

The False Scripture believes that it is merely a counterfeit created from the incompleteness of the Holy Scripture, and therefore cannot accept itself as it does, because it must devour the other to become whole; only by becoming whole can its world become beautiful.

Everyone can see that Marie Antoinette Muller and Hibino Hibiki look almost identical, but it's impossible for False Scripture to say that someone considered her father wouldn't look the same.

Regardless, the Holy Scripture were born because of him, and no matter what he does, as False Scripture, he is incomplete.

In this matter, Marie Antoinette Muller felt that this person could never be blind to it.

Indeed, that was the case. When Novia saw the girl who was different from Hibino Hibiki except for her hair and eye color, and the aura within her that resembled the Holy Scripture, she understood that this person was undoubtedly the False Scripture... Marie Antoinette Muller?

"That doesn't exist."