Chapter 454

"I understand. There's no need to say more."

Kuonji gently stepped aside and walked outside. "I won't force you."

To be honest, Chizuru Misasagi and Aoko Aozaki didn't meet very often. After the New Era, Aoko Aozaki stayed in the Kuonji Estate outside the City, having her Familiar use Life Detector and Wireless Camera to observe and explore the reason for the 'imprisonment' of the sky. They basically didn't have many opportunities to meet.

As for why, Manazuru Chitose remembered it was because of a friend of Kuonji's, since she was also present at the time.

"According to you Manazuru... there can no longer be airplanes or other flying machines in the skies of this New Era? Not even birds? Ah, then it really has reached its end in every sense of the word. After all, there are no more small fish in the sea, not many people left, and even the mystery has been revealed to the public."

The chestnut-haired girl strummed her Guitar, which bore the marks of time, and said with a smile.

"But I think it's more exciting to start from the starting point than to reach the destination, don't you think, Alice?"

This is precisely why the Black-Haired Girl has been exploring the 'imprisoned sky' outside the City for years on end.

Chapter 474 Hey? Please smile!

In the basement of the Shinjuku Borgia store, a holographic projection plays a slow-motion replay of Erice defeating Jack.

The sound of Gears meshing echoed through the Bronze Pipes as Cesare stirred his Black Tea with Revolver, the inscriptions on the barrel appearing and disappearing in the rising steam.

"A bet with odds of 1:3000."

Lucrezia's Projection was Synchronization displaying sixteen split screens—each showing a gambling game being wagered wildly at Borgia branches throughout Shinjuku; "QB circulation has already exceeded twelve times the total of last year."

"It's all thanks to our advance warning that our opponent was Jack the Ripper that we were able to earn so many Q coins."

Qb, which is essentially a fragment of quantum mechanics, contains various possible variations of Spiritrons. It is used as fuel in various forms of Magecraft and is also the currency of the New Era, which is also used in Chaldea.

"It's all thanks to Dad's advice. Otherwise, with the normal 1:5 odds, even though Jack is a female special forces fighter, his strength is still too low. If we lost the bet, we wouldn't be able to pay back even if we emptied the Holy See's treasury."

Just as the Leidenfrost Family set up the Holy Grail Elimination Tournament with the aim of extracting Od from the audience, there are also 'betting' events among New Humanity and Servant for this purpose. Large-scale events are always inseparable from these, after all, the Root of human nature has no distinction between good and evil.

Ultimately, unlike the New Humanity of children born after the war who are kind and gentle and do not bully others, because they have been happy and carefree since birth and have no need to specifically use that drug called "superiority, "the Old Humanity who have survived to this day are different. Having come from the old era, their Desire are inherently strong.

Moreover, the Holy Grail is not omnipotent; it is only the best Servant for an individual and cannot grant wishes. This is why the dark side of City, such as Underground Casino and Underground Routes, has flourished.

Suddenly, the basement floor shook, revealing an elevator that led directly to the basement from behind the two people. The elevator doors were slowly opening.

"Your father, who's been making you a fortune, is here!"

Alexander VI stepped out of the elevator, arms outstretched, a giant Bluetooth symbol woven from Qb appearing in his mouth, and declared, "Let us offer a mass of blood and gold for the lambs who have placed their bets!"

The two stared in disbelief at Alexander VI, not at the sudden display of wealth, but at the words "Utsumi Erice the best in the world" emblazoned on the old man's white robes.

"Dad, you..."

Before Cesare could finish speaking, Borgia silenced him with his Was Scepter, the tip of which continuously spewed out grains imprinted with Erice's chibi image. "As long as it makes money, it doesn't matter. Don't miss this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. What, have you shrunk and even your brains become childish? I've already transferred the money to Erice, and you two are still here flirting."

Lucrezia was taken aback, never expecting that her old man had already taken the lead in creating a fan brand for Erice, while she had completely forgotten about it.

So, belatedly realizing what was happening, she skillfully searched for information about Erice on the City's Information Network. The last message that popped up was from Treta Yuga ago. "Outside the Arena, the defeated Jack the Ripper is chasing Utsumi's daughter..."

Ten minutes ago, outside the Rome Colosseum, many shops were open, and there were a few scattered citizens inside.

Some people also watched the live broadcast of the game in the store as snacks with their drinks, chatting and laughing as they drank.

Although Erice and Jack's match was the first one, the Arena was big enough to hold dozens of matches at the same time. The so-called first match was just to attract attention by starting the match Treta Yuga early. Even so, Novia defeated Jack in just Treta Yuga.

However, now that her Erice is looking at Jack, who is gazing at her expectantly, with a deadpan expression.

Let's add each other as friends!

Jack stood on tiptoe and held the tablet high in his hand.

Because the tablet completely covered her head, Erice could see everything on her messaging app. A group chat at the top, called 'Global Jack Collective,' was flooded with red notification dots.

JackJack: To lose the very first match? Poor Shinjuku Jack, he should at least have made it to the middle of the course.

Paris Jack: Utsumi, fighting is so romantic!

Berlin Jack: Yeah, yeah, that's German, right? I saw lots of people cheering in Berlin, saying Goethe had gone to that place and they were demanding his extradition.

Super Jack: But our City of Fog is really cool too! It appeared many times, but it was still great!

"Forehead..."

Erice looked at the rapidly scrolling messages with a somewhat bewildered expression. "What is this?"

"These are all Jack! I'm Jack from Shinjuku!"

Jack explained cheerfully, "We're all the same, so there are Jack City all over the world in this group! We all help each other out! So let's add each other as friends! Please! Don't worry, besides Jack, there are many other kind people here!"

"It's not impossible..."

After realizing that her messaging app only contained Lucius and Chizuru Misasagi, who hadn't been online for tens of thousands of years, Erice readily agreed.

"But why do you insist on adding me as a friend?"

Jack the Ripper, bouncing around, pointed at the bewildered Erice and replied, "Because the Od you use smells like Mom!"

"I remember you used to see everyone as your mother..."

Erice said helplessly.

"Yes, but you smell more like your mother than anyone else."

Jack replied matter-of-factly, "Anyway, do your best in the upcoming matches, and I'll get everyone in the group to cheer you on."

Then, watching Jack skip and hop away, Erice sighed subtly, "This Jack, isn't he afraid of me at all...?"

This isn't referring to the battle just now, but rather that Erice can use the power of Evil Spirit to threaten the Servant Spirit Core in Marseille Mosaic City. Therefore, any Servant encounters her will instinctively become cautious.

"After all, it's Jack, even if he's a possession-type Servant."

Novia's voice suddenly echoed in Erice's mind, "But they're actually just a group of children around your age."

"Demon King, you say..."

Erice opened her tablet, staring at the constantly refreshing red dot on her messaging app. "Do I look human?"

"That's strange. Do you mean you want to be human? Don't you feel like you're not human?"

"Perhaps... it's not."

"That's true, after all, all humans have Servant, but you don't."

Novia possessed the girl and pinched her face hard with her hand. "Even your expression is so cold. Considering you're surrounded by Evil Spirit all the time, it's not surprising that you're not human."

"Don't pinch my face while touching my body... I just don't know how to express my feelings. I'm not sure when to laugh or when to cry. Maybe I can't even cry..."

Erice watched her silver-haired self raking in snacks outside the Arena and displaying her terrifying social skills. She thought that given time, even without participating in the Holy Grail Elimination Tournament, the Demon King could become a star in the entire Marseille Mosaic City of the Japan just through her words... Truly befitting Demon King who kidnaps children?

However, it was precisely for this reason that Erice couldn't help but tell Novia about some things that happened before she Future—

"Oh, right, let me tell you something trivial, it's just me rambling anyway, it doesn't matter whether you listen or not..."

Erice paused, then, with a touch of Shame, recounted her past story, "For me, school was like a hospital, a lifelong hospital that gently embraced me with kindness and care. Because my classmates had all been born into privilege, they didn't bully me out of a sense of superiority, but genuinely helped me from the bottom of their hearts."

Upon hearing this, the silver-haired Erice, also known as Novia, stopped and leaned against the railing, eating nuts. "So, a conflict still occurred, didn't it?"

"Well, there was a time when a misunderstanding caused a dispute. I got into an argument with a classmate and even caused him to suffer minor injuries. At the time, his Servant went against the rule that he couldn't show up on campus and tried his best to clear up the misunderstanding between us. Afterwards, I wasn't blamed at all, and the people around me were willing to accept the outcome. After all, I'm quite 'special'."

Novia didn't interrupt this time, but simply continued to listen quietly.

To some extent, Erice could now somewhat understand the feelings of Yagai Yukinobu. After all, both of them were 'special' in their respective living environments, except that one was so special that people around her looked up to her for her entire life, while the other was so special that people around her offered help.

"That classmate was clearly the victim, yet he still sincerely bowed his head and apologized to me, saying that he hadn't thought things through. I didn't even have a chance to come up with an embarrassing reason to defend myself. At that moment, I really felt like I had been hit hard by some imaginary hammer... Even though I was the one who was wrong."

Novia didn't reply immediately. Instead, she leaned against the railing, eating nuts and scrolling through her tablet, sending a "Hi" emoji to her newly added friend Jack and the group chat.

This leisurely demeanor made Erice feel completely ignored, and she secretly thought to herself that she shouldn't have said it; saying it would only make her a laughingstock...

Suddenly, Novia spoke:

"Since you know it's your fault, why don't you apologize privately afterwards?"

Erice didn't know what to say in response, so she remained silent.

"It's good to be able to reflect. No one is perfect. We can only do our best within our own limits. Of course, I understand why you didn't go. You probably felt embarrassed and Shame, so you couldn't bring yourself to say it."

It's actually a good thing that Erice feels guilty even when she knows she's in the wrong. What's worrying is someone who knows they're wrong but becomes even more reckless because of how they're treated. This shows that the girl is kind at heart, but her environment has made her feel somewhat repressed, as if anyone who helps her is trampling on her self-esteem.

"Speaking of which, how did you two get into a conflict?"

"She wanted to help me clean, but somehow we ended up arguing, and then I started hitting her..."

"This kind of behavior is quite suitable for your age."

"Yes, looking back, I was really naive and foolish back then."

In response to Erice's dejected speech, Novia pinched her own cheek again.

"Maybe it is now, but emotions can only be expressed through actions. Just thinking about it in your heart, no matter how many times or how many years, won't make your true wishes come true on their own."

"... That sounds nice, but you're just talking without Back Pain."

Even so, Erice still subconsciously looked at the back of her hand to see if she had any Command Spell. Unfortunately, as before, she still didn't have Command Spell. In other words, this Demon King was ultimately not her Servant; he was just... a slightly more familiar Wicked Spirit.

The girl always felt that the Servant of Marseille Mosaic City were the Master's most loyal partners. They would protect the Master's safety and help the Master achieve self-realization in this complex society... Although the Demon King was also helping her in this way, it still felt unreal.

She probably doesn't believe in the relationship Servant and their Master without Command Spell.

"Alright, then I've made my decision again."

"Another decision?"

Erice didn't quite understand the meaning of that sentence.

"When you and I win the Holy Grail Elimination Tournament, I will publicly apologize to the classmate you misunderstood in a video broadcast to Shinjuku."

For a fleeting moment, Erice felt as if this Demon King was about to throw some kind of humiliation contest at her, so she instinctively blurted out:

"Are you kidding me...?"

Did he really do that back then? I shouldn't have said it. He said so much just to humiliate me, without caring about my feelings at all.

"Servant also have their own desires."

Novia continued, "You saw it in the Elimination Tournament, right? Master and Servant each have their own desires. Servant aren't completely dependent on their Master; they live their own lives in this New Era."

This was indeed the reality that had just been revealed, so Erice had no choice but to nod.

"As for me, what I just said is also one of my wishes."

"But you're not Servant."

"If I say so, then so be it."

"..."

Erice was silent for a moment, then sighed, "Whatever you want. I don't really have the right to refuse anyway. You can say 'one of my wishes' whenever you want."

"I also hope that Erice can grow up well."

Upon hearing this, Erice's lips twitched. "Please stop saying such sentimental and cheesy things. Are you waiting for me to grow up so you can take my body? If so, I'd rather just die like the child in the Narrative Poem."

However, the silver-haired Erice simply stared at the bustling street below and did not answer.

Seeing the Demon King's previously enthusiastic demeanor, Erice felt a little strange. After all, this guy was always arguing with her; surely he wouldn't be so easily discouraged by something he said? To be honest, I really wanted to hear him say a little more...

The Black-Haired Girl tried to bring her thoughts back to the earlier argument, but something else lingered in her mind.

This guy probably doesn't really think that way... No, he shouldn't, I'm just overthinking it. It should be fine in a little while...

Despite thinking this, Erice couldn't help but call out, "Um, smile, please? Hey? Please smile!"

The girl herself didn't know how she truly viewed her complex yet simple relationship with the Demon King.

"Huh? Erice, have you misunderstood something?"

Just as Erice was at a loss, Novia looked up, picked up the nuts again, and started eating them.

"But the way you were just now..."

"I'm just wondering if this kind of rhetoric is no longer effective for Erice now. Am I falling behind the times?"

Novia smiled. "But it doesn't seem outdated at all now, does it? Erice, you're still as innocent as ever. And let me tell you, the children in the Narrative Poem who die are actually taken away by the Demon King."

This angered Erice to the point that her lips trembled, and she couldn't utter a single coherent word.

He could only curse inwardly, 'Damn Demon King, I'll kill you sooner or later.'