Several weeks had passed — and honestly, Arthur could barely believe how much had changed in such a short period.
It was impressive how time sometimes seemed to toy with fate. A simple detour, a single decision, and suddenly… there he was.
King.
Yes, king. The word still sounded a little strange, even to him, who had already been a king once. But that was the reality.
It had all begun almost accidentally, a sequence of events that gradually placed him at the center of all power. When he finally realized it, Arthur was no longer just an improvised leader or a source of motivation, but the absolute sovereign of all androids. And, to his own surprise, it felt… very natural.
With the new title came an unexpected — and powerful — consequence.
The complete awakening of all his past memories.
The entirety of his first life, from when he had been Gilgamesh, the King of Heroes, now flowed freely through his veins. The radiance of his power had become a constant presence, forming a majestic aura that even the most skeptical androids revered.
But Arthur knew that being a king did not mean ruling alone.
White, with her analytical mind and extensive experience in leading androids, had become his personal assistant. She was the king's right and left hand, coordinating all troops, managing supplies, and keeping the army's structure functioning with flawless precision.
A2, 2B, and 9S, on the other hand, had become his small circle of trust — the pillars of his new reign.
A2, now fully repaired, had recovered her strength and serenity. She went out on expeditions almost every day with a small group of YoRHa androids she had assembled, annihilating machine lifeforms that dared approach the borders or providing protective support to S-type androids.
Curiously, after the repairs, she and 2B had become almost identical — as if they were twin sisters designed in parallel.
Of course, except for the fact that A2 stubbornly refused to wear YoRHa bands and had decided to keep her hair long.
2B, in turn, had assumed the role of his bodyguard. Although she claimed she was merely fulfilling her duty, it was evident that she made a point of staying close — sometimes a little too close. The official excuse was "protecting the king," but Arthur had already noticed that, for her, there was something more to it. Even if he still didn't know exactly why she insisted on staying near him, Arthur did not turn her away.
It certainly didn't hurt having that eye candy known as 2B nearby.
9S, as always, was the technical brain of the group — and also the most excited. While many would have collapsed from exhaustion, he seemed powered by pure scientific curiosity, practically glowing with excitement as he analyzed every fragment of that mysterious technological sphere.
After countless hours of studies, calculations, theories, and three cups of coffee Arthur barely remembered drinking, they finally reached an extraordinary conclusion:
the sphere's core contained the blueprint for a bracelet capable of bending space-time.
It wasn't teleportation.
It was something that could theoretically open a path back to Arthur's original world.
But, as with anything that seemed too good to be true, there was a problem.
A gigantic one.
The bracelet replicated, in an extremely peculiar way, the Second Magic — Kaleidoscope — something that was nearly impossible on its own. And because of that, it required a colossal amount of magical energy, far beyond what Arthur could currently provide.
Furthermore, according to the documents displayed on the sphere's internal hologram, the bracelet wouldn't function without a second requirement:
coordinates.
Exact coordinates of the destination world.
Without them, it would be like trying to shoot an arrow into the chaos of the multiverse… blindfolded.
And that was where, by pure cosmic irony, the only salvation lay:
The letter.
The letter that had come attached to the sphere when Saeko delivered it.
The letter Arthur had set aside "to read later."
And which, of course, had been forgotten until now.
Arthur sighed once again when he realized the absurd synchronicity of the situation.
If there was an answer, it was there — in that apparently idiotic letter he had tossed into a drawer.
"Did you remember something important?" 9S suddenly asked.
Arthur didn't reply immediately. He stood up, opened the drawer beside the desk, and took out the envelope.
"This letter that came with the sphere… it might be the key to our problem," Arthur said.
9S practically jumped out of his chair from sheer excitement.
"OPEN IT! NOW! THIS IS EXTREMELY IMPORTANT!"
Arthur laughed softly and carefully opened the envelope.
Inside were two sheets of paper.
The first…
Was unbelievably…
Idiotic.
A joke written in large, crooked letters:
"Why travel between dimensions when you can travel… to the MARKET?"
(underneath, someone had drawn a stick figure walking through a portal labeled "sale".)
Arthur rubbed his forehead, feeling as though his future self had decided to mock him.
"I… am going to pretend I didn't read that," Arthur grumbled.
9S approached, curious.
"Hmm… is that supposed to be humor?"
"In theory." Arthur tossed the joke aside.
The second paper was completely different.
A complex anagram covered almost the entire sheet: circles, letters, numbers, encrypted combinations, and what seemed to be a list of coordinates. It looked like something written by a genius… or an extremely organized madman.
Among dozens of lines, symbols, and vectors, there was only one highlighted word.
A single coordinate had a thick circle around it.
And above it, written with messy, almost childish handwriting, was:
"Home."
"That's it… this is…" 9S stammered. "This must be the PRIMARY COORDINATE! The return point!"
"Exactly what I thought…" Arthur sighed.
9S was already analyzing the information frantically.
"With this… with this we can program the destination of the journey! NOW it's possible! We still need energy, but… but this is already half the problem solved!"
"You're right. Very well done, 9S," Arthur said.
---xXx---
A few hours had passed since then. Arthur had ordered 9S to gather a small team of YoRHa scanner units to examine every detail, catalog every component, and prepare a complete list of the materials necessary to construct the device.
---xXx---
"Master, the Commander asked me to bring you this."
2B's voice broke the silence of the office. She entered with soft steps, carrying a small stack of neatly organized papers.
"Thank you, 2B." Arthur smiled, taking the documents. "You can leave the rest there."
But instead of just accepting the papers, he gave in to temptation and reached out, gently ruffling her silver hair.
The strands slid through his fingers like silk. 2B tilted her head slightly, confused, watching him with a puzzled expression.
A2, observing everything from the sofa, raised an eyebrow. "What's in the papers?" she asked, crossing her legs.
"They're the plans for our next offensive," Arthur replied, calmly flipping through them. "White and I decided to attack the machine lifeforms' main network directly. She will coordinate the troops and divide the units. Meanwhile, I intend to locate and destroy the central points of the enemy network."
"And what about the scanner units?" — A2 asked with interest. — "I saw a group of them being deployed earlier."
"They have a parallel mission," Arthur answered, without lifting his eyes from the documents. "They're supposed to infiltrate and hack key machine systems. There's something those lifeforms are building… something we need to destroy before they complete it."
He remembered perfectly what he had seen in Sha Naqba Imuru. Two machine lifeforms identical to androids — but… different. Almost human.
"I see," A2 said, resting her chin on her hand. "The sooner we end this war, the better."
Her loyalty to him was already unshakable. Not by obligation, but by genuine respect.
Meanwhile, 2B remained still, her gaze distant.
Arthur noticed. — "Is something bothering you, 2B?"
She hesitated, then slowly nodded. "There is something that intrigues me."
"And what would that be?" he asked, lifting the teacup from the desk and bringing it to his lips.
"Sometimes…" she began, voice barely a whisper. "When you look at me… or when you touch my hair… I feel… my heart beat faster. For no apparent reason."
"PFFFFFT!!"
Arthur immediately spat out the tea, coughing between laughter and shock. 2B blinked, confused, not understanding why he reacted that way.
A2 let out a short laugh. — "Looks like someone just discovered the concept of love."
Arthur, still recovering, wiped his mouth with a handkerchief and muttered under his breath:
"This is going to be complicated..."
Arthur intended to explain things to 2B, however, the moment he opened his mouth, an alarm echoed throughout the aircraft carrier.
Yes, he was currently on the deck of an aircraft carrier, where a large number of flight units were stationed.
And there were also warships surrounding it.
The location this fleet was heading to was the target of the current mission.
A colossal machine lifeform.
(End of chapter)