Xingyue, is Xiaokai also considered Kai?

Then Chitose's gaze fell on Erise, who was resting her chin on her hand, and she gave her a helpless look.

Then, the silver-haired woman, with a gentle nostalgia, softened her expression as if she were joking, moved closer to the disdainful Erise, and placed her pale fingertips on her shoulder: "I came here for a reason, it was Irisu who asked me to come."

"……Oh."

"Want to go to the Kuonji family's house together?"

"...I understand. Anyway, you'll force me to do it even if I don't agree, right?"

Eri's reply was full of dissatisfaction, to which Chitose simply shrugged slightly. When she thought of the message in which Yuzu said she would take Eri to Tokyo, she immediately guessed that, if nothing unexpected happened, Novia and Tiamat must have returned, otherwise, given Yuzu's personality, she wouldn't have done that.

Therefore, at this moment, Chisei was both happy and nervous.

important.

But who exactly is this for?

For Novia?

Or was it referring to 'Erise' back then?

Or--

Chitose Manatsu, dressed in a very traditional black sailor uniform, looked ahead at Eri, who was running as if fleeing a disaster.

"However, I'll assume that Novia is mine for now."

She murmured quietly.

……

Tokyo.

It is a city described in modern times as the capital of Japan, and also a 'underworld' in the new era, as if it were punished by the gods, causing the entire territory to become distorted and crooked.

“Izanami’s daughter…a woman imbued with the aura of the underworld…Utsumi Erise…she’s finally coming.”

Inside the equally distorted Tokyo Tower, a voice rang out—from a blue-haired woman with long, bright red fingernails.

"Although I don't quite believe it, she is indeed coming."

Then, the man standing next to him said this.

This was a man dressed in an artist's robe with drooping sleeves and slits, whose skin was fair, clear, and as white as milk; from a human perspective, he was an incredibly handsome man.

His name was John Dee, an alchemist and political advisor to Elizabeth I. He coined the term "British Empire" and is considered the prototype for James Bond.

"Yes, she shouldn't have come."

The blue-haired woman echoed.

The sound also seemed very distant.

The two should have been in the same space, but it was as if they were in a different world.

"Well, as a being who can swallow the 'Mind of the Lord' without any contradiction, Poimandros is very unconventional. The reason why people can maintain their identity is because the soul, body, and spirit are always the same."

Therefore, even with a lack of spirit, one can maintain identity; however, if excessive expansion is injected, maintaining identity is almost impossible. Even a foreign god's child with divine blood should not be able to do this; one of the three will become unbalanced.

John Dee spoke fluently and without hindrance.

"That is why she was born as a means to prevent the world from being destroyed, and is almost synonymous with a means to destroy the world."

As an alchemist, Dee was naturally a member of the Atlas Institute, as was the blue-haired woman beside him.

"So, the deity in the Himalayas is also nearing the end of his plan. What do you think?"

“Listen carefully, how can the power gained by using the concept of blocking humanity be fully utilized by the current primates? He cannot fully obtain the Himalayas, this is a fundamental difference, which determines that he will only fail, this is certain.”

Dee smiled happily, making an "O" shape with her index finger and thumb towards the Himalayas, like a mark of qualification. "How can the myths of the past, long since swept into the dustbin of history, compare with the glory of my Lord?"

The blue-haired woman did not refute his words.

As a 16th-century person, Dee was naturally a believer in the church, and the woman, as an alchemist, was also a believer.

The only difference is that one represents the New Testament and the other the Old Testament.

"You are truly supreme as an alchemist. To have honed your skills to this level is something I sincerely admire, even as one of the founders of alchemy. So I am very interested in how the Atlas Academy and the Holy Church view your condition."

"Hmm, I heard you almost became the seventh source creator within the academy, but you refused. Was it because of your faith in the Lord? So, is all of this the ultimate goal you're pursuing?"

In the church, they made a special exception for Dee, allowing him to complete all his ordinations, from baptism to priesthood, in a single day.

"Do you know Gerald Mocardano? He's my friend. Together we researched a so-called perpetual motion machine and a gem that supposedly has magical properties. After researching it, I discovered that the gem does indeed possess magical concepts. If I'm not mistaken, it should be something left behind by the Grand Marshal of the Magic Path."

Dee smiled and spoke again, slowly turning his head to take in the distorted Tokyo Tower as he continued.

"And so, I later came to see the sky—"

Suddenly, in an instant, the smiling man trembled as if swallowed by something unseen.

They looked bewildered, as if they had forgotten where their souls lay, and lost all semblance of composure.

The blue-haired woman knew.

She knew that expression very well.

That was the typical expression on an alchemist's face after encountering something completely unpredictable and unexpected. To a failed alchemist, it was the expression of having all the mysteries that had defined his life rendered meaningless, and having all the distant history and significance turned to ashes.

His expression resembled that of a vampire dragged into the sunlight.

"That man..."

John Dee has "stagnated".

This is not a physical cessation, but a cessation originating from the spiritual level.

He was born in the Tower district of London. His father was a merchant and also a gentleman court advisor to Henry VIII. Needless to say, his family was extremely well-off. The Tower district was a region where many industries were booming in London at that time, including shipbuilding and textiles.

So, by some chance, Dee, who couldn't stand being idle, secretly went to work in a factory there. One of the shipyards was particularly unforgettable. Even years later, he still felt that the silver-haired factory manager's movements when he was building parts of the ship were like a natural alchemy.

"what happened to you?"

"Sorry, I was thinking about something, it's not important."

Dee readily admitted it and then continued the topic she hadn't finished talking about earlier.

"I saw angels, then I created angels through alchemy, and finally I became an angel. This is the ultimate goal I have pursued all my life. Life is not about being born but about consciousness; change is about forgetting, not dying. We don't need to be the strongest, we only need to create the strongest. This is also the mission of the Atlas Institute."

"Turning mystical doctrines into a spell, alchemizing them, is to a certain extent a reconstruction of the foundation of magic, creating a complete magical system, even though it has a prototype of a church god—"

"No, no, no, you misunderstand. God is something that can never be imitated. There can only be one God in the world. If God can be imitated, then he can never be called God. It seems that you and I are both believers, but you are disrespectful to God."

"That's true, after all, you only survived as one of Novia's escapees."

Dee said firmly to the blue-haired woman.

"The Lord is the first God, Novia is the second, the world is the third, and mankind is the fourth. The Lord is the creator of the world and all things in it, Novia and mankind rule over all things together, and mankind rules over complex things."

Novia is responsible for all of this—his focus should be used in this way—so that he and the world may both be Lord; given humanity's sacred constitution, it is absolutely right to call his actions justice.

The blue-haired alchemist remained silent and did not respond.

"The alchemical mysticism I have studied all my life, 'Boimandros,' promises two things to mankind—not to any other mortal animal: the mind and thought-provoked words."

They are of equal value to immortality, and both reside within her. Consider this: such a monumental undertaking was not built to establish a magical system or ensure the continuation of the world, but rather for a single, once-in-a-lifetime miracle of salvation—”

The color in Dee's eyes deepened.

"Isn't that proof that the glory of the Lord has been revealed again in this hopeless world?"

After a moment's thought, the blue-haired woman spoke:

"In that case, there is one more thing I can say: Eri was accompanied by a servant who was suspected to be a demon king, probably her shepherd."

"...The Demon King? The one from the German region? What a strange connection."

But it doesn't matter; this plan is eternity itself: irresistible, immovable, indestructible. So that beings thus created may prove themselves worthy of the Lord while praising and worshiping the heavenly God, caring for and ruling over the creatures of the earth—”

Dee tilted her head and said.

Soon after.

"Let us guide her from the underworld of death to the pastures of humanity."

Dee said this in her usual relaxed voice.

"My friend, Cleopatra the Imposter."

Chapter 516: A mechanic-driven monster encounters a numerical monster.

The sky over Akihabara was unusually gloomy today.

The daily field exploration, as usual, came to a peaceful end.

As Yuzhu sat leisurely in the living room, sipping her black tea, she thought to herself. Then, looking at Tiamat, who was sitting upright, and Novia, who was just as relaxed as herself, she sighed wearily and reached out to touch the table.

"Now that you've informed Masuru through my communication system, it's time to take action. In any case, we can't take any action without first surveying the scene."

"Yes, I'm going to Tokyo."

'Tokyo...'

Yuzhu was only talking to herself, and she was thinking about this question in her heart.

In that sense, Tokyo, the newly reborn city of the abandoned gods, was also the first mosaic city to be abandoned. It seems that the Holy Grail War that took place there caused the local survivors to have a strong aversion to the mysterious and to only have a strong sense of trust in technology.

What are we going there for?

Although she could have simply asked Novia about this, Kuonji Yuju couldn't bring herself to say it.

She was already completely lost.

He had kept it from Eriel that Novia was the Demon King, but he hadn't done much afterward. If that was the case, why hadn't he just told Eriel the truth from the beginning? That way, she probably would have ended up like that with Tiamat...

Because such a scene easily comes to mind, I feel a little suffocated.

I still have his Command Seals.

The black-haired girl had a strange thought.

"Oh right, Mom, I haven't asked Youzhu if you want to come along! Let's go together, Mom, I really want to!"

Tiamat's words snapped Yuzhu back to her senses, but she didn't immediately fall silent. The light streaming through the window shone on her face, and after a few seconds, her speech returned, and she smiled faintly.

"Sorry, I won't be going."

"It's not bad to enjoy life once in a while," the new-age witch secretly adjusted her mood.

"What? Why don't you go, Yuju? Mom, I'm so sad."

"It's okay if we only go outside the vicinity of Akihabara. I don't really want to go anywhere else."

After speaking, Yuzhu fell silent, her eyes fixed on the ceiling. Novia knew the determination in those eyes.

"Is it because you're worried about the Kuonji residence?"

"Yes."

Yuzhu's sharp eyes turned to Novia. "I'm the kind of person who, once I own something, will never give it to someone else."

Novia understood Zhu's brief answer.

Kuonji Yuzu's obsession with her possessions can be attributed to her witch bloodline; she never lets go of what is hers—in other words, she doesn't tolerate betrayal. This is also proof of her girlish fastidiousness. And since she said so, Novia doesn't intend to force her.

Not long after, the doors of the Kuonji Mansion opened—

"I have come as promised. I am Eri's grandmother, Chitose Manazuru."

A bold smile appeared on Chitose Masuru's face.

Like the smile of lovers on a date, it's incredibly charming and refreshing.

It's hard to believe that the tyrant Chitose would actually show such a childlike expression... Could it be some old acquaintance? Well, if he's acquainted with Kuonji, he might also know her. Hmm, a friendship despite the age gap? But Novia looks quite young.

"Huh?! It's Eri! "

"I'm here, don't make such a fuss."

Seeing Tiamat's excited state, Erise collapsed onto the sofa.

Oh right, magic. Since Chitose, as my grandmother, is like this, then Novia is probably the same... Does that mean she's essentially an old woman?

"Ah, yes, Eri has been here all along. I'm really surprised, Mom..."

Tiamat covered the right side of her face with her small hand.