Starting in Type-Moon, but a Magician from A Certain Magical Index

A dangerous glint flashed through Lev's eyes as he silently waited for the plan to unfold.

"Just a little longer. Once all these people have entered the pods, I can detonate the bombs and reduce this place to ruins!

"Please wait, my king. Your grand ambition will surely be realized!"

Medea

Just then, Mash Kyrielight, who had seen Ritsuka Fujimaru off, returned. She stood beside Lev without choosing a seat.

Lev looked over the people present. These young people were all remarkably gifted magi, each possessing excellent bloodlines. It could be said that at least twenty percent of the future of magecraft had gathered in this place.

If they were all eliminated, it would deal the magi an enormous blow in an instant.

But that did not really matter. So long as the plan succeeded, the future would belong to his king, the great Solomon.

"Everything is for the world of my dreams, that great utopia!"

Thinking this, Lev said to Olga Marie beside him, "You may begin the experiment."

Olga Marie nodded lightly. "All right. Prepare the Spiritron Transfer experiment."

As the mobilization was completed, everyone rose to their feet. The seats on the floor sank underground, replaced by pod-like structures resembling nutrient tanks.

Lev also headed toward the elevated control console. As the second most powerful person here, he naturally served as one of the experiment's commanders.

At that moment, Lev activated the communicator and began greeting someone.

"Romani, the Spiritron Transfer is about to begin. Just in case, could you come over?

"Group A is in good condition, but several abnormal phenomena have appeared among those in the other groups, including Group B, who have yet to adapt."

Romani's voice came through the communicator.

"Then I'll go administer anesthetics to them."

Though nothing had happened at all, Lev spoke a false lie, forcing Romani, as a doctor, to come here.

Lev said, "Please hurry. You're in the infirmary right now, aren't you? You should be able to arrive within two minutes from there."

"Okay."

At Romani's reply, Lev revealed an inscrutable smile. "Don't be late."

As long as Romani dies too, nothing in the future will stand in the way of our great undertaking! Lev thought to himself. His heart began to race with excitement. He was so thrilled, especially when he thought of Mephistopheles, whom he had imprisoned in another dimension.

So what if he was a legendary magus? Didn't he still fall into my hands?

By then, the candidates had all donned their Mystic Codes and entered the pods one after another. As the pods sealed shut, the anomaly finally occurred!

The floor beneath Olga Marie's feet began to bulge, then split apart. Rubble and shattered stone burst upward from below as violent power erupted, ready to swallow everything standing above it!

Light enveloped Lev. Almost at the same moment, he cast his Imaginary Number Magecraft and hid himself within another dimension. In that space, he could evade any attack occurring in this one!

There was no need to look. Lev could fully imagine what would happen next. The bomb he had "kindly" planted beneath Olga Marie's feet would consume his esteemed director first, then destroy everything in this room.

This development was simply too wonderful. Especially when he thought of that arrogant young lady being torn apart, the idea made him let out a sickening moan. It felt utterly exhilarating!

The sudden explosion was terrifying. Every pod was swept into it, while Olga Marie's body was completely devoured by that violent power, leaving her with no hope of survival.

At that moment, Olga Marie's soul was drawn in by an overwhelmingly powerful force and fell toward an abyss.

It was the force of the Spiritron Transfer experiment already underway. Her soul was flying toward an unknowable age!

"By God's decree, Sariel guards the purity of souls and shall never allow any filth to taint them."

The sudden voice seemed almost like an illusion. A surge of magical power appeared instantly, and a spell invisible to the naked eye shot into that crack in space-time, enveloping Olga Marie's still-unconscious soul.

At the same time, the door opened. Ritsuka Fujimaru rushed in, staring in shock at the tragic scene before her, unable to understand what had happened.

Within the turbulent flow of space-time, Mephistopheles was puzzled by his situation. By the time he had broken free of the other dimension that had confined him and rushed to the scene, the explosion had already occurred. He had only managed to cast a spell protecting souls.

According to the Book of Enoch, Sariel was an angel who protected souls. Using Sariel's power, Mephistopheles had shielded Olga Marie's soul—the greatest victim of this explosion—so that the poor girl would not lose all hope of resurrection.

However, because the Spiritron Transfer apparatus at the scene had already activated, space-time in the area had become chaotic. Having just cast his spell, he was swept into the turbulent flow of space-time as well. He could not even determine where he was headed.

"Don't get too nervous. In this situation, I should end up at the very beginning of FGO, in Fuyuki City. Then I might encounter Servants like Archer and Artoria. I can exchange a few blows with them, take Olga Marie's soul away, and find a chance to reincarnate her later.

"Or perhaps I could stuff her soul into a doll? That seems like a decent option too. After all, the dolls in this world are rather good."

With those thoughts, Mephistopheles allowed himself to continue passing through the turbulent flow of space-time.

Then, he suddenly felt a power arise within his body. It appeared without warning, and it was immensely powerful. With the slightest movement, it caused the surrounding turbulence of space-time to stir again.

Time became even more chaotic, and space grew even stranger.

Doors began to appear one after another, opening and closing in succession. Mephistopheles passed endlessly through those countless doors. He felt as though he had crossed numerous worlds, yet he could not make himself stop.

"What is this?! The effect of Spiritron Transfer? No, this isn't the effect of Spiritron Transfer. This magical power, this spell—I know what it is!"

Feeling the familiar magic, Mephistopheles's expression changed.

This was actually the magic generated by the ritual of the cult he had wiped out in the world of A Certain Magical Index, the cult that had tried to summon Yog-Sothoth!

That ritual had been what sent him into this world in the first place. It had not appeared for over a decade, and he had thought everything was fine. Yet now it had surfaced again!

"Damn it, don't tell me I've been sent to another world?"

Just as Mephistopheles considered whether he should find a way to save himself, space tore apart, and he was flung straight out.

Blue skies, white clouds, and vast earth.

He crashed heavily onto the ground. Staring up at the sky, Mephistopheles fell into deep thought.

"Should I be glad I wasn't thrown directly into the vacuum of space?"

Though he did not think vacuum could kill him, being unable to find Earth would still be troublesome.

"You fell so hard that you made such a huge crater in the ground. Doesn't that hurt?"

A timid voice came from nearby. Mephistopheles gathered his thoughts and turned toward its owner.

She was a petite, adorable girl with blue hair. Her blue eyes watched him curiously.

Mephistopheles looked at the girl. She wore a pale blue dress with rather revealing cuts. Its front slit began as high as her chest.

Though blue triangular fabric draped down from the middle to conceal part of her body, the entire outfit looked like a flower about to bloom, clearly exposing her slender legs beneath.

If she had not worn a tiny skirt underneath that barely covered her backside, merely walking around might have exposed everything.

The instant he saw her, a thought arose in Mephistopheles's mind.

The person who designed this girl was definitely a total pervert. And this outfit—was it based on the Japanese stereotype of fairies or elves?

A small, delicate hand waved in front of Mephistopheles's eyes. Concern surfaced in the girl's gaze. "You didn't hit your head too hard, did you?"

She was speaking Ancient Greek.

As a magician, one would be too embarrassed to go outside without knowing several modern languages and several ancient ones. Ancient Greek happened to be among the languages Mephistopheles had learned. Hearing her words, he smiled.

"Do not worry. I was merely captivated by the beautiful scenery before me and forgot to answer for a moment."

At those words, the girl's cheeks flushed slightly, which made Mephistopheles even more puzzled.

She seemed like such an innocent girl. I should restrain myself a little later. Yes, just a little. Right now, the most important thing is figuring out where I am and what this place is!

Thinking that, Mephistopheles propped himself up, dusted off dirt that had not actually stuck to him, and asked the girl in a gentle voice, "Beautiful miss, I arrived here due to an accident. Could you tell me where this is?"

"This is the site of the Temple of Hecate. I saw you suddenly fall from the sky, so I came over to take a look." The girl carefully inspected his body. After confirming that he was not injured anywhere, she revealed a surprised expression. "Your body is so sturdy!"

Hearing the place she mentioned, vast amounts of information flashed through Mephistopheles's mind.

"Hecate? Does she mean Hecate the Triple Goddess, or Hecate the goddess of the underworld? Though the former includes the latter, different definitions would mean different powers and so on... And that still doesn't tell me which world I'm in...

"But since this is the site of Hecate's temple, and she speaks Ancient Greek, this means I'm in Greece?

"I should keep probing. Hopefully, I can figure out exactly what era I'm in. Surely it isn't during Persia's invasion of Greece..."

Mephistopheles maintained his smile and decided to first make small talk with the girl.

"My name is Mephistopheles. May I ask what a beautiful miss like you is called?"

The girl wore an embarrassed smile as she gave a name that astonished Mephistopheles.

"My name is Medea. I am a priestess of Hecate's temple."

"Medea?!" His eyes nearly widened beyond control, but fortunately, Mephistopheles had experienced enough to hold himself back.

Even so, that name still left him utterly shocked.

The girl before him was actually Medea?! And judging by her appearance, she had yet to grow up—the Medea of the Type-Moon World!

"Good grief, I was thrown into the Age of Gods?! And it's the era when the Greek gods were still around!"

A Girl's Little Schemes

Medea arrived outside a simple hut built from wood, straw, and a few stones. She nervously took a deep breath, then gently knocked on the door.

"Knock, knock, knock." After three knocks, she called out, "Mephistopheles, are you inside?"

No one answered.

After hesitating for a moment, Medea reached out. Her delicate fingers touched the crudely woven wooden door, and her movement stopped.

"If I push the door open now, will I see Mephistopheles sleeping?

"Ah, would he not be wearing clothes while he sleeps? Wouldn't it be too impulsive for me to go in? What if I see all of him?

"But the sun is already up. If he still hasn't gotten up, isn't he far too lazy? Didn't he say he would go to the Temple of Hecate with me today? If he still isn't up, he has no reverence at all!"

The girl struggled inwardly, searching for reasons to justify herself. Buried beneath those reasons were her own private thoughts.

"Mephistopheles is so handsome. I wonder what his body looks like beneath his clothes. The clothes he wore yesterday were far too thick, and their style was so strange. They covered his entire body!

"This should be my chance, right? If I go in now, I can see what his body looks like. Yes, that's right, this is an opportunity. A rare opportunity. I have to seize it!"

The battle in her heart was fierce. In the end, the girl made her decision. Once she pushed the door open, everything would be revealed before her.

"Sorry, I went out to take care of something just now. I kept you waiting here for so long."

A gentle voice suddenly came from behind Medea, carrying an apologetic tone.

That voice shattered all of Medea's inner resolve and instantly made her nervous, as though she had been caught red-handed while trying to do something bad.

Medea was at a complete loss. Her eyes darted wildly left and right. After several tense seconds, she forced a smile onto her face and said in an overly casual tone, "Mephistopheles, you're already up! I thought you were sleeping, but I only just arrived too, so there's no need to apologize!"

"You seem a little nervous, Miss Medea. I think you can relax a little." Mephistopheles smiled and raised his hand. He was holding a plump sea fish.

Not only that, he held a clay jar and several heads of lettuce in his other hand. Medea recognized that sort of jar; nearby villagers used it to hold wine.

Clearly, these were what he had meant by "taking care of something."

"I was fairly lucky. I traded the fish I caught for some vegetables and drinks. They said this wine was only recently brewed. I took a sip, and it was very fresh."

As Medea listened to Mephistopheles, the awkwardness in her heart dissipated. She finally recovered from her nervous state and smiled. "Sorry, that was my fault. I should have thought to prepare breakfast in advance."

"No, aside from preparing breakfast, I went out because I wanted to look around. I must say, this is a beautiful place." Mephistopheles sighed. Though his tone remained gentle, it concealed helplessness.

That helplessness puzzled Medea and stirred her curiosity. She wanted to ask why he felt that way, but when she remembered that they were not yet very familiar with each other, she ultimately held herself back.

"I'll ask after we become truly acquainted. There will always be a chance." Medea thought silently.

"I'm in Ancient Greece now, and just as I expected, this world truly is the Ancient Greece of the Fate series. That means the mythological knowledge I know is no longer very useful here.

"But the situation here does not overlap with the game content I had seen, such as the Greek Lostbelt. In other words, the world I'm in should be Ancient Greece from Pan-Human History. The only thing I can't determine is whether this is the Pan-Human History of FGO or that of another Fate series.

"The situation within my body is somewhat unusual. Because of the accident that caused me to resonate with Yog-Sothoth's ritual, I seem to have gained some ability to influence space-time. In other words, I can freely study magic that travels between worlds.

"As long as I return to the moment Chaldea falls into crisis, I can resolve every problem. As for now, I'll explore the mysteries of magic while treating this as a trip."

Mephistopheles thought silently, then bowed slightly to the girl like a true gentleman.

"Then, my lady, may I have the honor of inviting you to breakfast?"

Medea had never seen anyone speak to her in such a manner. It was not reverence, but courtesy. Beyond that courtesy, there was kindness, and his bearing made her curious as well.

When she heard his invitation, she could not help feeling delighted. But once she remembered that she had already eaten breakfast, she began blaming herself for having eaten.

"Why did you eat so early? If you had eaten later, or thought of coming to call Mephistopheles to breakfast first, wouldn't you have been able to eat together?"

As Medea thought this, Mephistopheles across from her seemed to see through the girl. "I think tasting a little shouldn't leave you too full."

Grilled fish and fresh lettuce. The crisp fish was wrapped in lettuce leaves and placed into one's mouth, where the sweet freshness of the lettuce blended with the tender, oily richness of the grilled fish. It was nothing less than a double feast for the taste buds.