Otherwise, you can find another savior.

Kadoc muttered something.

If Shiomi were allowed to go, the problem would probably be solved more efficiently.

But this is a battle for them to prove their stance, and Shiomi cannot appear on the battlefield.

That would be meaningless.

"Victory isn't the only way to prove your stance," Shiomi quietly reminded him.

Kirshtalia couldn't help but laugh: "But I will prove our choice with victory. The loser must submit to the winner. Since you have won, it proves that the path of New Chaldea is more correct than mine."

Because of Kirshtalia's attitude, the atmosphere in the meeting room relaxed a bit. Shiomi was about to call Ritsuka and Mash over to discuss the next steps in the operation when Hinako Akuta, who had been silent all along, suddenly asked:

"Should we abandon our efforts to stop the Alien God from reclaiming the Imaginary Tree from the Chinese Lostbelt, and instead take this opportunity to sever India?"

Chapter 134 Direction

After being brought back to Storm Border, Hinako Akuta remained in a very silent state.

He will attend meetings, but he basically doesn't express any opinions, and his attitude is not very clear, even regarding whether he intends to participate in the removal of the Lostbelts.

tide Jian also planned to leave her alone; if she didn't intend to participate, she would just leave her as a mascot.

“No, I intend to handle it myself,” Shiomi said.

“...Is that so?” Hinako Akuta was taken aback, then understood.

Only Shiomi can fight the "Alien God" anytime, anywhere without being at a disadvantage.

If possible, I want to prevent the "Alien God" from absorbing any of the Lostbelt's Imaginary Trees.

Due to the unique nature of the South American Lostbelts, the "Alien God" chose to leave them for last, clearly fearing that Chaldea would remove the other two Lostbelts during this period.

"However, so far, apart from the information relayed through Kirshtalia, you haven't released any news about the Chinese Lostbelt," Shiomi asked. "In the end, you still don't intend to cooperate with us?"

"..." Hinako Akuta fell silent again.

“I am also heartbroken to have lost my loved ones and comrades. But once you step onto the battlefield, you should understand the outcome,” Shiomi said.

"Then why not kill me too?" Hinako frowned, her expression turning fierce. "With your abilities, killing me wouldn't be difficult."

The so-called immortality is not a difficult thing in the eyes of Chaldea now.

“You refuse to be etched in human history, so even if you die, you won’t be able to enter the throne,” Shiomi said. “After all, you really hate humans.”

“Even so—” Hinako Akuta tried to argue, but she knew that winning the argument was meaningless.

tide Jian doesn't really intend to win an argument with her here.

Prior to this, Morgan had met with her several times. As beings who were not human, fairies and elves had discussed this issue.

“Let’s discuss this when you’ve thought it through,” Shiomi shrugged. “Mary didn’t assign you to Group A, but she left you a spot to join the team at any time. There’s still time; you can change your mind before we leave.”

Peperonchino couldn't help but smile: "Shiomi-sensei is really a perfectionist. If Debit were here, the number of freshmen in Group A would exceed the original plan."

“It’s not perfect either.” Shio also smiled. “I told Kadoc and Ophelia before that I advocate hating the sin, not the person. You did commit the sin of participating in the whitewashing of human reason as Hidden Ones, but that’s not something you could choose.”

Since they are both willing to atone for their sins and have not committed any irreparable mistakes, it is more reasonable to give them a chance.

The ban is merely a means to ensure there are no future concerns.

Blindly giving trust will only lead to new crises.

Seeing that Hinako Akuta didn't have much to say, Shiomi stopped pursuing the matter and instead notified Ritsuka and the others to come over.

Soon, Ritsuka and Mashu arrived at the conference room, carrying freshly baked pastries.

"Oh dear, you even brought snacks! Is it alright to eat this kind of thing in the operations room?" Peperoncino exclaimed in surprise, reaching out to take the snack basket as if it were the most natural thing in the world. "Won't the director be angry?"

"This is the director's idea. Discussing combat matters is very tiring, and we need sugar to replenish our brainpower," Mashu replied earnestly.

"Liar, did the director cook it?" Peperoncino glanced at Ophelia and responded meaningfully.

Ophelia frowned slightly: "What do you mean by that, Peperoncino?"

"Did I say anything?" Peperoncino's expression turned comical, as if Ophelia was just overthinking things.

“This tastes unlike what the director made… I remember Professor Marisbury said she couldn’t cook?” Kirshtalia had already started eating.

Although he ate elegantly, the fact that he spoke with something in his mouth surprised people with his casual demeanor.

"At least swallow it first," Kadoc muttered, almost speechless.

Ritsuka placed the basket on the table: "These are sweets made by Sakura-senpai."

"Bringing food over at a time like this will turn the tactical meeting into a tea party," Shiomi sighed. "But it's better to relax a bit, since we'll be discussing some very demanding tactical matters later, followed by training exercises."

“Speaking of training, I consulted with Master Scáthach about runes again yesterday. Although I feel I gained a lot…” Ritsuka gave a troubled smile, “it seems like there are many things I can’t apply myself.”

Xi Jian was speechless for a long time before saying, "You are not a magician born in the Age of Gods, and you have just started learning. The things your master taught you are still a bit too early for you."

"I see." Ritsuka understood.

She wasn't impatient; she knew that learning magic required a down-to-earth approach.

Besides, everyone in Chaldea knows magic, so she can ask anyone for advice.

"But if that's the case, why was Shiomi-sensei able to learn the magic of the Age of Gods so easily?" Mashu followed up on the topic. "Sensei wasn't born in the Age of Gods, was she?"

"Well..." tide Jian was also stumped by the question. "Don't tell me, really, I don't know why either."

Peperoncino kept laughing: "The teacher is indeed no ordinary person. I was originally planning to use my real skills to block the teacher, but I couldn't even last one round."

“You’ve already lost, don’t you mind?” Kadoc asked.

“There’s no need to mind it,” Peperoncino said nonchalantly.

Even that exchange at the Grand Temple, which hardly counted as a fight, made Peperoncino realize a fact.

Having cultivated the Tengu Dao supernatural powers and lived for a thousand years, the difference in strength between himself and Shio was on a level that transcended dimensions.

Among the Hidden Ones, only Kirshtalia and Debit could fight Shiomi with their full strength.

This must be limited to him before his battle with Zeus.

“Back to the topic we were discussing, I couldn’t say this when we were at Chaldea, but now I think I might be able to,” Peperoncino said. “I felt a very strong sense of destiny in my teacher.”

“Everyone knows this now,” Kirshtalia said. “How can someone who is not destined become a god? Perhaps after humanity is restored, someone like Shiomi-sensei will truly be able to overturn… no, to change the world.”

"I'm more interested in overturning the clock tower than overturning the world," Shiomi joked.

“I really can’t take this as a joke, teacher,” Kirshtalia said. “Let’s enjoy your daughter’s cooking together and then discuss strategies for conquering the Lostbelts of India.”

Chapter 135 Leisure Time

After the meeting, Ophelia was invited by Mash and Ritsuka to participate in combat training.

The rest of Kirstalia and his group left one after another, and Kirstalia even invited Peperoncino and Cadoc to play chess.

Hinako Akuta went to the ship's library by herself.

Seeing that they had almost integrated into the new Chaldea, Shiomi knew she didn't need to worry too much, so she took the empty sweets basket back to the kitchen to wash it.

He saw that there were still some processed ingredients left in the refrigerator, and was considering whether to make some more himself when suddenly someone covered his eyes from behind.

Can you guess who I am?

"Who else could it be but Master... Ah, Master, let go! You're going to gouge your eyes out!"

Shiomi sighed helplessly, then playfully pushed away the hand covering her eyes from behind and turned around to see Scáthach in her everyday clothes.

“Really? I thought I did a pretty good job imitating her, but I didn’t expect that I couldn’t fool my beloved student at all.” Scáthach maintained her open-handed pose.

She was referring to mimicking Skadi's tone.

Because they were so similar, even in their voices, Scáthach saw Shiomi in the kitchen and quietly approached him from behind, trying to tease him.

“Because Master is Master, how could I not hear it?” Xi Jian pointed to her ears. “And don’t forget, I had seventeen years of blindness. When you can’t see, your remaining senses become more acute.”

“Oh…” Scáthach exclaimed softly, remembering that matter as well.

Because Shiomi suppressed the curse of Cornunos, her eyes were the first to be corrupted and damaged by the curse, and could not regenerate.

But before Scáthach could feel apologetic, he had already started complimenting her on other things:

"However, Master's ability to conceal his aura is becoming more and more sophisticated. Even though I was not on guard, I did not notice him until he touched me."

“That means you still have a lot to learn.” Scáthach smiled confidently, but her eyes immediately turned melancholy. “No, that’s not right… You don’t need me to teach you anymore; you’ve already graduated.”

As soon as she finished speaking, Shio took advantage of Scáthach's still outstretched arms and hugged her.

“I remember an old saying that goes, ‘A master doesn’t have to be better than his disciple, and a disciple doesn’t have to be worse than his master. To me, a master will always be a master,’” he gently comforted.

"Alright, alright, you're so good with words." Scáthach casually put her arm around his waist and responded with a smile.

The two hugged for a while until the refrigerator started sounding its door-closing alarm, at which point tide Jian had to free her hands to close the refrigerator door.

"So, Master, were you just passing by the kitchen?" tide Jian asked. "You seem to have nothing to do today?"

“There was nothing to do to begin with. It was just routinely helping to guard Storm Border. We’ll switch people when it’s time.” Scáthach squirmed in his arms. “My only chance to fight was taken by my beloved student. I guess if he rests for a few more days, he’ll be completely rusty.”

"Doesn't that mean Master is getting old—hmm!"

Shiomi instinctively laughed, and then, as expected, suffered Scáthach's punishment.

"How can you say such a thing? You've clearly aged even more than Master." Scáthach brought up something he had said before.

"Seems right." Shiomi chuckled as she slipped out of Scáthach's grasp.

With just a casual touch, she found Shio's weakness.

"Stop joking. I'll be going to the Lostbelt in China myself later. Morgan will definitely be coming with me, but I'll probably only be taking my master and Artoria with me," Shiomi said.

“A unified god…?” Scáthach looked at Shiomi. “How enviable. When will I ever receive such treatment?”

Even though it was a joke, Shio didn't brush it off; instead, she answered seriously:

“Master should also know that the risks and benefits of that form are both quite high. It may not be fair to say this, but Master may not be able to control my power very well.”

The implication is not that they cannot combine, but that the combined form would be unable to exert its full power and would even hinder each other.

“I know,” Scáthach shrugged. “The thousands of years in the Lostbelt have not been a waste of time for you. I’m just surprised that you could come up with this solution so quickly after we’ve come this far.”

"I can only say that after becoming a god, I have a deeper understanding of many things." tide Jian clutched her chest. "The Unity God is not just for greater power, but also a constraint I imposed on myself."

“Binding?” Scáthach raised an eyebrow. “The fear that having the perspective of a god might unknowingly make one arrogant and deaf to anyone’s opinions.”

"Yes." tide Jian nodded vigorously.

Becoming one with Morgan would allow him to access Morgan's inner world in the clearest way.

Let each other be a mirror, reflecting all the truth.

“Then there’s nothing more to say.” Scáthach patted Shiomi’s forehead as if scolding a wayward disciple. “She has the fairy eye that can see through falsehoods. For an immature god, that is indeed an indispensable element.”

“When the responsibility is too heavy, more unease arises without you even realizing it.” Shiomi recalled what Peperoncino had said during their casual conversation before the meeting: “It’s not impossible for a human to become a god, but… why me?”

A similar example is Sesshouin Kiara.

Although it is a beast of calamity, it is also a goddess who intends to bear the desires of all mankind.

Her "goddess transformation" was ultimately traceable.

“I can’t see where I came from, my master can’t see it, Morgan can’t see it, nobody can see it.” Shiomi looked into Scáthach’s eyes. “That’s why I need to be more careful. I want to use this transcendent power better and more correctly.”

“In fact, in my opinion, this is enough.” Scáthach’s eyes were gentle as water, eyes that belonged only to him. “You are my most beloved disciple, and I know your character very well. I believe that even if you become a god, you will definitely be a benevolent god who guides humanity correctly.”

“No, humanity doesn’t need guidance.” Shio shook her head. “Humanity already possesses the power to stand on its own on this planet. As a member of humanity, yet also separate from humanity’s existence. What I need to do is fight against those destructions that are beyond human power’s ability to resist, so that humanity can choose its own future. Humanity is the best guardian of its own destiny.”

“See, isn’t it clear?” Scáthach smiled. “Your wisdom may have already surpassed that of your master, and I’m very pleased.”

"Don't talk like I can leave Master." Shiomi hugged Scáthach tightly again. "I will try my best to make the world after the return of human reason able to accommodate someone like Master, so that you won't be alone in the Land of Shadows anymore."

Chapter 136 "Surprise Attack"

When she came to her senses, Scáthach was already being gently cradled by Shiomi's chin, and the two were embracing and kissing passionately.

"Let's go back to the room and talk about it. This is the kitchen, and someone might come over soon." Scáthach placed her hand on Shiomi's chest and gently pushed him away.

Then tide Jian looked completely innocent: "It was clearly Master who came up here."

"Oh, really?" Scáthach remembered that it seemed so, but she still looked nonchalant. "That won't do either. You didn't even try to stop them."

tide Jian slumped her shoulders: "Fine, it's my fault again anyway."

Just then, someone knocked symbolically on the cafeteria door, and Olga Marie, standing at the door, looked at them somewhat embarrassed.

"See, I told you so!" Scáthach criticized Shiomi as a matter of course.