Strategy.
Kwaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaang!!!!!!!!!!
Rome has perished.
"Kingprotea sure is strong."
To summarize, I was tired of using Sefar's Temple, so I ended everything with Kingprotea's powerful punch. The Emperor Alliance? What are you talking about? Did such a thing not exist to begin with?
"Finally, the long tale of Rome has come to an end."
[We've only been in Rome for two days?]
"It felt way too long..."
This isn't Dressrosa, how long was it supposed to go on?
"Anyway, they say everyone lived happily ever after."
[I wonder if this is really okay...]
"Doctor. That's just how the world works."
Ah, I can finally leave this shitty Rome. We seem to be able to finish without any regrets.
But I wonder why Ritsuka went to Rome, saying she had some business.
=================================
A woman imprisoned secretly in the dungeons beneath Rome's castle.
Emperor Nero. She was staving off her hunger by eating the mint dumplings that Gudako left out of mercy.
"What is it... Have you come to mock me? Defeated specter."
"Mock you... I wonder? I don't know what part to laugh at."
Appearing from beyond the iron bars was Boudica, who had been killed by Nero's armies in the same year.
"The other emperors too, and even you have come back to life. How laughable? What, have you come to take my head? Well, I do think dying is better than receiving such treatment, frankly..."
"An interesting story. They say that child tortured you, but what kind of torture did she do to make someone as proud as you say such things."
Screeeak...!
Boudica bends the iron bars by force and steps inside. Nero scoffs and throws a dumpling at her. Of course, Boudica dodges without even looking, and the dumpling falls to the floor.
"Really... To think the nemesis I so longed to see would end up like this. For someone who looks like a pretty girl, your insides are rotten, aren't they? I heard you were tortured, yet you haven't repented at all."
"Hmph, what repentance are you talking about? To begin with, what do I owe to barbarians like you?"
"... You know what? I was sincere. I sincerely hid these feelings and moved to save the world. But... you show up like this?"
"What a fine hero you are, Boudica. So? What can you do about it? It would have been more entertaining if you had raged about taking revenge instead?"
Wham...!
"What do you know... This feeling of having your nemesis right before your eyes yet being unable to kill them... Do you know it...?"
"I do. I also wanted to kill my mother. I was so frustrated at being unable to do so that I ended up killing her."
"You're truly hopeless... You are, from the start, not human. Why was someone like you the Emperor of Rome? If it had been Claudius, such tragedy wouldn't have happened..."
"Ha... Did you think I would treat barbarians from an island nation like you as human...? A loser of history who couldn't even protect her own child right before her eyes."
"...."
"What's wrong? Can't muster the strength in your hand...?"
"You know it all, don't you...? The fact that if I kill you, I'm the one who loses in the end... How far do you intend to make a person miserable...?"
"I wonder? Perhaps because you're a beauty, even if a barbarian, you're worth looking at. The sight of you so angry and sorrowful is truly beautiful, isn't it?"
"... I won't kill you. You weren't even worth killing. Even though I am one who killed all the foreign merchants doing business in Rome's colonies... You are trash not even worth killing. No, to begin with, I know your future, Nero... Because that will be even more wretched for you."
"What...?"
"You'll forget anyway, so I'll tell you. You will be betrayed and killed by the Rome you are so proud of and love. Someone like you, even Rome won't love. Who could possibly like you? You seem to hate your parents... From what I see, you and your parents are no different, unrecyclable trash. Now I even feel pity for you. Pitiful Nero... Forever, not knowing that you were only hated and despised, that you were never loved by anyone. How pitiful, Nero."
"Speak... What, what does that mean, speak now!"
"I won't tell you. You are, after all, destined for ruin. So, struggle hard. Perish along with the resentment of those who suffered because of you, Nero."
Boudica leaves the prison with a bitter smile. Nero powerlessly slumps down, merely watching Boudica's retreating back.
"... You were watching, weren't you?"
"You seemed to be hiding something, so I wondered what you were up to."
Ritsuka had been watching Boudica from the prison entrance, and Boudica forced a bittersweet smile.
"Did I disappoint you a bit?"
"Not particularly. It's just that to someone who deserves punishment, so why be disappointed?"
"I see... Sorry. I'm not that good of an adult. I'm a murderer who, blinded by revenge, slaughtered even innocent people, killing children and even pregnant women just for being Roman. In the future, they call me the Queen of Victory and praise me... But I'm not a person of that caliber. Being queen was only for a very short time. Rather, because of me, many citizens of Britannia died."
"... That too was for freedom's sake, wasn't it? It wasn't wrong."
"... Is that how it looks to you."
"Boudica. Come to Chaldea with me. Boudica, you are definitely a good adult. I want Boudica to come with me."
"A good adult, you say...."
"... I'm used to dealing with children. I don't know if I can guide them well, but is that okay?"
"Yes. Our Chaldea has many peculiar people too."
"I see. If someone like me is fine, then I'll go."
==============================
Well... Did it wrap up nicely?
I tailed Ritsuka, and it seems things went well with Boudica. I don't know if it's a happy ending for Boudica... But still, I think it turned out fairly well.
Sometimes this serious atmosphere is good too. On the contrary, things have been too chaotic lately.
After that, we returned to Chaldea. It feels like a lot was skipped? That's just how these mass-produced novels are...
"... Master."
"I didn't call you."
"... Sigh, fine. What do I expect from you, Master."
"Harsh words. Stop hitting me with facts."
"Forget it~ I don't know anymore~ You and Mash-san go be lovey-dovey. Yeah~"
"She's sulking..."
Caster of Fuyuki immediately started sulking. With Koyan as support and Mash being fundamental, she's in a very sulky state because she was left behind. Well, she'll get over it soon.
Shiki, surprisingly, headed elsewhere without any particular obsession. She seemed to be plotting something... Since there's nothing I can do, I'll let it pass for now.
After that, peaceful daily life continued, and night fell. Today, I lay down on the bed to sleep comfortably alone, but...
"Master..."
"I was wondering why you weren't coming."
Caster of Fuyuki appeared sneakily by my bedside.
"You didn't even offer a little apology to me..."
"That's always the case anyway."
"So mean."
"For your information, if it's a night of fun, I won't do it. If you try to force me, I'd rather get castrated."
"Sigh... I won't do it, I said I won't. Do you think I'm some kind of sexual desire monster? I just came to sleep next to you."
"Hmm... Well, fine."
Caster of Fuyuki quietly lay down next to me. She's more well-behaved than I thought today.
"... Master."
"What?"
"Probably, it'll soon be the time for an event."
"... We finished the Singularity today though?"
"Yes, that's right. But in terms of how it felt, it must have been over 10 times."
"Don't break the fourth wall."
"The power of Bond 15. Anyway... Probably, Master will be kidnapped into a dream today."
"Eeeh..."
"Of course, it's not something the others are planning."
"So there *is* something happening?"
"It'll happen quite a bit later. But don't worry. Even if Master gets kidnapped, I'll help you."
"Alright, thanks for that."
Kidnapped into a dream... If it's a dream, is it the Prison Tower? Or a Holy Grail War? Whatever it is, I have a feeling I'll get involved in something troublesome.
Let's just sleep. Meanwhile, she hugs me and fondles my crotch. She said she wouldn't *do* it, but that didn't mean she wouldn't *touch*... What am I to do with this wild boar.
And so, I still managed to fall asleep...
"Where is this place."
"Welcome to Fuyuki of 1994, Master. I've never been here either, but it's an event you did before, right? Here."
Damn it, of all things, it's a Zero event...!
"Can I summon the others as a Master..."
"Since it's a dream, that's impossible~ Just trust me, Master!"
I'm uneasy... Caster of Fuyuki is strong, but she's a bit clumsy, you know.
First, I try opening the status window... What the, why does it show I have zero Saint Quartz? Did the Quartz I saved up get used up because the others came out on their own? It wasn't like that last time I checked? What's going on?
Hmm... Is it because it's a dream? Or...
Anyway, I have one Summoning Ticket. One ticket Koyanskaya gave me. Of course, I refused and put it away, but she secretly slipped it into my pocket when she attacked me at night before. After that, Mash came and Koyanskaya left, but...
Should I try summoning someone with the ticket?
I press the standard summon, and...
What's this now... So it's like doing a gacha? Ah, whatever. For now, I'll ask for anyone to come.
And so, the light of summoning shines.
"Master, I told you to just trust me..."
"Hold on. It's not that I don't trust you."
And so, a Servant appears.... Huh?
"You probably couldn't trust the Wild Boar of Tintagel. Being unqualified as a fairy of paradise. So, you called me, didn't you?"
"Y-you are...!"
"Your savior, Tonelico. I have answered your summons."