In Britain, the Noble Phantasm: Divine Key

Mashu stood to the side, a hint of hesitation on her face, and whispered, "Senior, isn't this a bit much? Dr. Roman... is our most important support. Keeping this crucial information from him... won't that cause problems?"

"No, Mashu, I didn't hide anything from the doctor." Fujimaru Ritsuka shook her head, innocently spreading her palms. "Look, I've already told him the most important information, just a little bit in a simplified way, without telling him the process. That shouldn't be considered hiding anything, right?"

"Senior, you're clearly trying to pique the doctor's curiosity on purpose..." Mashu whispered.

"Haha, really?" Fujimaru Ritsuka chuckled and ran towards Anaun in a few steps.

Mashu shook her head helplessly as she watched Fujimaru Ritsuka's retreating figure.

"Senior, you're still as wicked as ever..."

Although the attack by Melusin caused some shock, people in this era generally had good mental fortitude and quickly recovered, continuing their march toward the Holy Roman Empire.

Seemingly because they had complete confidence in Melusin's strength, Camelot did not send any more Knights of the Round Table to try to intercept them. For the next thirty kilometers or so, Anan and his men encountered no further trouble and safely entered the Holy Roman Empire before evening.

Looking at the bustling scene in the town, almost everyone breathed a sigh of relief.

"I'm finally back," Fujimaru Ritsuka exclaimed. "These past few days have felt like years."

Mashu nodded. Their experiences over the past few days had been the strangest and most bizarre since they arrived at this singularity.

First came King Arthur, a Grand Heroic Spirit from another world, then came the Knights of the Round Table from Camelot who could transform into dragons. Even more absurdly, both of them eventually became their allies.

Just thinking about it made Mashu feel like it wasn't real.

It feels like a dream...

"Oh my, so you've returned! No wonder His Highness was so excited, personally traveling thirty kilometers out of the city to welcome you. Even Leonardo da Vinci never received such treatment." A mature woman in brightly colored clothes walked over from a distance, smiling.

"It's Leonardo da Vinci's relative!" Mashu and Fujimaru Ritsuka's eyes lit up at the same time.

“Well done, Ritsuka-chan, you managed to bring back so many refugees.” Da Vinci’s gaze swept over the villagers, then turned to Anan and Melusin, his smile deepening. “And more importantly, you seem to have brought us two remarkable guests.”

Her cane and prosthetic limbs were equipped with magic detection devices, which were now frantically weighing on the extraordinary nature of these two strangers.

“Alright, Leonardo da Vinci, now’s not the time for idle chatter. I’ll give you time later.” Nero waved his hand. “First, notify the army to lift the state of emergency, then arrange accommodation, food and water for these refugees. In a few days, I’ll arrange for people to assign them jobs.”

The Holy Roman Empire was extremely short of resources and could not support idle people at all. Therefore, from the beginning of its founding, Nero set a rule that all citizens of the Holy Roman Empire must engage in labor, and all resources would be distributed according to labor.

In the long run, this simple and crude policy will certainly have many drawbacks, but for the current situation, it is still quite effective.

"Oh dear, you've already assigned me a new job? If Your Highness Nero lived in modern times, you would definitely be a ruthless entrepreneur who loves to exploit his employees, right?" Leonardo da Vinci teased.

"Hmm, how can you say that? I am very considerate of my people, you know?" Nero laughed. "It was Da Vinci himself who said that you are an omnipotent 'all-powerful person,' so it's only right that you take on more work, isn't it?"

“I take back what I said earlier. Your Highness Nero, you are not only a heartless businessman, but also a sophist.” Da Vinci shook his head helplessly, then turned to look at Fujimaru Ritsuka and Mashu. “Then we’ll see you later.”

"Yes, Da Vinci, keep it up!" Mashu cheered, clenching her fist.

“Thank you very much, Mr. Yanan.” The village chief stepped forward and sincerely thanked Yanan. “Thank you for protecting us all this time. Our entire village will forever remember your kindness.”

“No need to be so polite, village chief. Consider this your way of repaying me for taking me in back then,” Yanan said with a smile. “I’m leaving the rest to you. Please make sure the villagers are settled in and adapt to the environment here as soon as possible.”

“Of course, this is my duty, Mr. Yanan, please rest assured,” the village chief said with a smile.

“Mr. Yanan, will we ever meet again?” Mira looked at Yanan with a face full of reluctance.

"Of course we'll meet again. I promised to bring your father back for you." Yanan bent down and gently rubbed Mira's little head.

Standing behind him, Melusine couldn't help but show a hint of envy in her eyes.

"Yes, I will always wait for you!" Mira tilted her head up and gave a bright smile.

When Leonardo da Vinci led the villagers to their settlement, Nero couldn't help but exclaim, "Thank goodness for Leonardo da Vinci, otherwise I would have been exhausted to death."

"Are the affairs of the Empire very heavy?" Yanan asked.

Nero scratched his head and said, "The rest is more tedious than arduous. There aren't many truly troublesome things. The main problem is that there are too few capable people. Those who can read are already considered rare talents. Even if I have a lot of energy, I can't possibly manage 10,000 people by myself, can I?"

"If it weren't for the arrival of Fujimaru and the others, Yu might have suddenly died in the palace one day," Nero remarked.

Yanan stroked his chin thoughtfully: "That's why you asked me earlier if I could handle government affairs..."

"Haha..." Nero chuckled and quickly changed the subject. "Well, let's go to the palace first. I've already instructed my subordinates to prepare a victory banquet. We're going to have a blast tonight!"

Chapter Thirty-One: Living with My Sister-in-Law

It turns out that when a Roman emperor enthusiastically invites you to a banquet, it's best to think twice before accepting.

To be honest, the atmosphere at the banquet was quite good at the beginning. Nero was very enthusiastic about anything related to celebration and enjoyment, and she was also very creative and proactive, just like how she would always build herself a palace with hot springs no matter where she was.

Due to limited resources, the Holy Roman Empire did not have a wide variety of ingredients, but she was able to use these simple ingredients to teach chefs to make all kinds of delicious and visually appealing dishes, and even Yanan couldn't help but take a few more bites.

But perhaps because he had been holding back for too long and was under too much pressure, or perhaps because he was genuinely happy, Nero suddenly announced halfway through the banquet that he would sing to welcome his two new comrades who had just joined the Empire.

"This is a performance by Yu himself, who is known as the 'Flower of Olympia' and whose artistic talent rivals that of Apollo, the god of music. You must listen carefully, as this may be the only opportunity you will ever have in your lives."

Having said that, she completely disregarded everyone's obstruction and opposition, stood up on the spot, and sang a classic ancient Roman song—"Für Apollo"—with great emotion.

"O Apollo, shine upon us!"

"Phobos, do not let disease and disaster harm us."

"Brilliant Phoebus, merciful Phoebus, stand on the sun and watch over us..."

First and foremost, it's certain that Nero's voice is indeed not a major problem. While it may not be heavenly, it's still very pleasant to listen to.

The key issue is that she is always tone-deaf when she sings, and almost not a single word is in tune. This makes it incredibly uncomfortable and awkward to listen to, as if a claw is constantly scratching at your heart.

If Nero's song were described as a Noble Phantasm, it would be at least A-rank or higher.

Some servants in the corners tried to sneak away, only to find in despair that the door could not be opened.

Nero disliked being disturbed while singing, so she would use her imperial privilege to lock all the doors before each performance.

"No... I can't take it anymore." Fujimaru Ritsuka clutched her heart, her face pale. "I can't hold on any longer, Mashu. Why don't you just knock me out?"

Mashu, who was sitting next to her, had long since stopped reacting, her eyes vacant, as if she were lost in thought.

Even though Yanan had prepared in advance, he was in a daze at this moment, his face clearly showing "Who am I? Where am I? Why did I do this to myself?"...

He shook his head and glanced to the side, only to find that Melusin seemed to be listening with great interest.

He asked with some surprise, "You actually managed to listen to that?"

“Hmm? I think she actually sang quite well.” Melusin blinked her big eyes, a hint of nostalgia on her face. “And this voice reminds me of the days when dragons ruled the world.”

Yanan: ......

Well, at least one thing can be proven: Prince Nero's singing skills have indeed reached an inhuman level.

He looked to the other side and found that Leonardo da Vinci was also completely unfazed, even taking a sip of wine from his glass.

What's going on here?

Seemingly noticing Yanan's gaze, Leonardo da Vinci turned his head, a charming smile on his face: "Curious?"

Yanan nodded calmly.

"Well, it's actually very simple."

Da Vinci reached into his ear and took out a small, earplug-like object. He smiled and said, "Ta-da! Da Vinci's special earplugs can block any noise below 200 decibels. Even if a dragon roars in your ear, you will not feel anything at all. Buy now for just one rune, and we'll also give you permanent after-sales service. We only replace, not repair!"

Yanan: ......

Sure enough, he knew that the unscrupulous merchant had no good intentions when he asked Fujimaru Ritsuka about him!

In the end, Anahn traded a rune to Da Vinci for a pair of special earplugs. No one knew how they were made, but although they looked exactly like ordinary earplugs, as soon as they were put in the ears, they immediately blocked out the howling and wailing sounds, as if the whole world had become quiet.

Yanan's expression immediately calmed down. He sipped his wine and ate his snacks, completely unaffected.

Nero sang for about half an hour until her attendant finally couldn't stand it anymore and said, "Your Majesty, you have a lot of official business to attend to tomorrow. Please get some rest." This finally pulled the emperor out of her reverie.

In an instant, all the survivors present cast grateful glances at the warrior.

Nero took a sip of wine, cleared his somewhat dry throat, and his face clearly showed that he still wanted more.

However, thinking about the official business she had to handle tomorrow, she immediately lost interest in continuing to sing. She sighed, waved her hand, and said, "Alright, let's stop here for tonight. We'll continue next time, umm."

Everyone breathed a sigh of relief, their faces showing the joy of surviving a disaster.

“I remember there should be some extra rooms in the palace. Why don’t you rest here from now on, Anahn? I won’t mind, hmm,” Nero suggested to Anahn. After all, Anahn was an emperor, and he deserved the respect he was due.

"No need, I'll build one myself." Yanan decisively refused the other party's invitation. He was joking; if the other party had a habit of practicing singing, he would be driven crazy.

Although Leonardo da Vinci's special earplugs worked very well, he couldn't possibly wear them all the time.

"Build one yourself?" Nero raised an eyebrow. "But it's so late now..."

“It’s alright, I can build a house very quickly, it will only take a few minutes,” Yanan said without hesitation.

Considering the strength of the other party's Grand Servant, building a house shouldn't be too difficult, so Nero nodded: "Do you need any materials?"

"No need, soil and stones are enough."

His house-building technique was an improvement on Morgan's puppet-making technique, and indeed, no other materials were needed besides mud and stone.

“Alright then, there’s plenty of open space here. Build wherever you like. I have no objections, hmm,” Nero said.

After the banquet, at Fujimaru Ritsuka's suggestion, Anaen decided to build the house next to her residence so that they could keep an eye on each other.

He originally planned to build two single rooms for him and Melusin to live in separately, but the little girl clung tightly to his clothes and refused to live apart from him no matter what.

Looking at the little girl's aggrieved yet stubborn eyes, Yanan sighed helplessly.

Hopefully... this won't cause any misunderstandings.

Chapter Thirty-Two: Conscripted

To Anan’s slight relief, although Melusin was very attached to him and wished she could be by his side at all times, she at least had some basic restraint and did not force him to sleep in the same room with her.

However, judging from her reluctant expression at the end, it seems she did indeed have this idea...

Of course, even if Melusin did bring it up, Anan would not hesitate to firmly refuse.

He's a married man; he absolutely cannot make this kind of fundamental mistake!

After saying goodnight to Melusin, Anan returned to his room. Although a Heroic Spirit does not need to rest, he had experienced two major battles in the past few days, which had indeed depleted his energy. Even if his body was not tired, the mental burden was still there.

He slept soundly and, unusually, had a dream in which he saw familiar faces: Artoria, Nidhogg, Morgan, Scáthach...

The next morning, the faint morning light shone through the window onto the ground. The dust particles in the air seemed to dance lightly like elves in the light. Yanan opened his eyes, propped himself up, and stretched. A series of popping sounds, like popping beans, came from his whole body.

He got out of bed, moved his body a little, and felt relaxed from the inside out, and his spirit was more refreshed than ever before.