To Become a King and a Magician 541-545

Title: 2015

The year 2015.

The outskirts of London, England.

Clock Tower, Department of Botany.

Under the afternoon sun, Aoko walked down a street that felt both familiar and foreign after so many years.

“It hasn’t changed much since the last time I came”—This thought crossed her mind.

Mineralogy was a department with a long history at the Clock Tower. Its origins could be traced back to a Magician who still lived today. Therefore, this deep-rooted history brought an environment resistant to change. The accumulation of thousands of years meant the Department of Botany wouldn’t undergo noticeable changes in just a few years.

Moreover, Aoko returned only once every two or three years. Within such a short interval, it was highly unlikely the Department of Botany would have changed in any way she’d notice.

Besides, if anything, her own appearance hadn’t changed much either, just like the Department of Botany.

A simple shirt and worn-out jeans, long black hair loosely flowing down her back, no makeup to emphasize femininity, nor any sense of adornment. Yet, she looked strikingly beautiful—perhaps due to her cool aura and flawless figure.

On the streets of the academic city, many magi living there glanced at her. After an initial surprise, they all wore expressions of “Oh, her again.”

The Fifth Magician, Aozaki Aoko, was a well-known figure at the Clock Tower. Not only because she had caused numerous incidents during her studies, but also because in recent years, besides traveling the world and doing various things that made the Clock Tower nervous, she frequently visited the Department of Botany.

Why did this Magician keep coming to the Department of Botany?

Over the years, many speculations had circulated throughout the Clock Tower. Some believed the Lord of the Department of Botany had reached an agreement with her. Others thought the Department had offended this Magician—some even speculated that Aoko had joined the Department of Botany and was preparing to help them seize power.

Of course, these speculations eventually faded on their own. Aoko never explained or interfered. She simply acted as she always did, following her own thoughts. Additionally, the Department of Botany itself never commented on her actions. Over time, the rumors about her behavior were no longer mentioned. Even now, although magi in the Department of Botany were still slightly surprised by Aoko’s arrival, to a certain extent, they had come to regard her as part of daily life.

As usual, after passing through the slightly averted gazes of the magi around her, Aoko arrived at her sole destination in this academic city.

Like returning to her own home, Aoko pulled a key from her pocket, smoothly unlocked the door, and stepped inside—

“You’ve arrived, the last and the slowest.”

The moment she entered, such a voice rang into her ears.

It was the voice of a woman she once deeply hated, though now she didn’t hate her quite as much.

“Think about where I came from. I bought a plane ticket straight from Nevada as soon as I got the message.”

Aoko looked toward the red-haired woman sitting on the sofa—her older sister by status. “Sister, when did you arrive?”

Touko extinguished the cigarette butt in her hand. “Yesterday. I was already in Italy, so the flight was quick. Since it’s a rare occasion where he asked us to come, we should be proactive.”

“So you came too… Then, where’s my husband?”

After tossing her suitcase onto the sofa, Aoko looked around for the figure of someone she hadn’t seen in a long time.

Hearing how she referred to him, Touko frowned. “You say that so naturally. You two aren’t even engaged, let alone married. How dare you call him that.”

“Why not? And where is he?”

“Your husband isn’t here.”

The one who answered Aoko wasn’t Touko, but another acquaintance descending from the stairs.

Holding the railing as she came down, Riddell smiled at Aoko. “He wasn’t here a year ago. Now he’s at Chaldea in Antarctica. Gray and Rei are with him.”

“He ran off there, huh. By the way, Riddell, why do you look younger?”

Aoko and Riddell were the same age, both forty-one years old. Aoko herself hadn’t aged due to her magic, but Riddell looked remarkably youthful.

“Did the youth elixir the Department of Mineralogy researched a few years ago finally get completed?”

“Almost. But I only made one dose for myself. Besides, you two don’t need it. Making more would be a waste.”

Sometimes, Riddell felt deeply envious of the people around her. They all remained unchanged for various reasons, while she, relatively normal, could only grow older day by day.

To avoid becoming an old hag unworthy of her husband, Riddell had tried every method. Fortunately, the youth elixir had finally succeeded.

After a brief moment of surprise, Aoko continued asking, “So it’s just the three of us? Where are the others? I thought they’d all arrived.”

“They’ve already left. We stayed behind just to wait for you. Who told you to be the last to arrive?”

“Hmm—sorry. But… left? Where to?”

“According to Merry, to the Reverse Side of the World.”

Riddell explained. Right after she finished, the entire room was instantly filled with countless flower petals. Fortunately, the three of them were already used to such sudden changes. They simply stood in place, waiting for the petals to disappear.

About a minute later—

When the petals vanished, Aoko and the others looked around carefully. They realized they were now standing on another platform, filled with fantastical colors. It resembled an observation deck atop a massive building.

And not far from there, several people they knew were already seated nearby.

Seeing the three of them arrive, Merry, who was closest, also stood up and waved at them. “Long time no see, Touko, Aoko. Welcome to the Reverse Side of the World, the Eternally Secluded Utopia, the Garden of Avalon. We’ve been waiting for you.”

“Avalon…”

Aoko looked around. “The tower where Merlin sealed himself in myth?”

“Yes, more or less. But my tower isn’t here. I borrowed this one.”

“Borrowed? Then who’s the original owner?”

In response to Touko’s question, Merry pointed toward the ceiling. At the top of the observation deck, something resembling a white human figure was hanging there.

“What is that?”

“Don’t worry about it. For now, that’s not an important person.”

-

Title: Merlin: I Don’t Dare to Resist

After greeting Artoria and the others she hadn’t seen in a long time, Aoko left her sister and went straight to Merry, who was sitting at the edge of the observation deck, gazing at the distant sea of flowers.

“This is a beautiful place.”

“Isn’t it? After all, it’s my own creation.” Merry said proudly.

The Sea of Stars was indeed a beautiful place, but this wasn’t it. The Avalon they were in wasn’t the true Sea of Stars, but rather its border.

Back then, when Merlin left Artoria and tried to enter the Sea of Stars—a place accessible only to the innocent—he might have been said to have intentionally fallen into a trap at its border, ensnared by Viviane, the Lady of the Lake, and imprisoned within this tower.

Merlin didn’t actually mind being imprisoned. He could leave anytime he wanted; one could even say he chose to be imprisoned. But despite that, living in such a barren place made him uncomfortable, so he transformed it into a sea of flowers.

Merry’s situation in Avalon in another world was roughly similar. Only, instead of being trapped by love, she was confined due to Viviane’s personal grudge against her. She was deeply disliked there.

Leaning against the edge of the observation deck and looking into the distance, Aoko asked, “So now you can tell me why you gathered us all here? Especially intentionally in the Sea of Stars. Judging by the others, they seem to already know. I’m the last to arrive, and I don’t know anything. And aren’t there still a few people missing?”

The people gathered within Avalon’s Tower were almost all women who had close relationships with Naoki.

Ayaka, Ciel, Riddell, Touko, Aoko, Artoria, Okita, Mordred—plus Merry.

Except for Morgan, Shiki, and Atalanta, they were all present.

“Don’t worry about Shiki and Atalanta. The reason you were all brought here is because I was worried you’d be affected by what’s about to happen next. But nothing will happen to Shiki. We don’t need to worry either. And Morgan has her own matters to attend to, so we don’t need to concern ourselves.”

“And there are two reasons why you were gathered.”

Merry raised two fingers.

“One reason is what I just mentioned—to keep you safe from the events about to unfold. Aoko, you’ve long known about the Burning of the Human Order. The time is drawing near. Here, no matter what happens on the surface world, we won’t be affected.”

“And the other reason—it’ll make it easier for us to join the King later.”

Join?

Aoko showed a rare expression of surprise. “Join? Do you mean… he’ll need our strength?”

“After all, this is a real attempt to save the world—and possibly twice over. The power of a single Holy Sword Bearer won’t be enough.” Merry smiled. “Well, think of this place as our base for now. Until the battle comes, we’ll stay here—you don’t mind, do you, my other self?”

Merlin, hanging from the ceiling, immediately rolled his eyes upon hearing Merry’s question.

You’ve all taken over his home—what good would his refusal do? Besides, the King was still watching from below, so he didn’t dare resist.

For years, Artoria’s allegiance had clearly leaned toward Naoki. Words from an obsolete character like himself were meaningless.

(Later, I’ll go to Romani to complain and curse him out.)

◆━⊰✧⊱━◆

At the same time, Chaldea.

“Achoo!”

Romani, working in the medical room, suddenly sneezed loudly.

“Uh… who’s talking about me?”

“Merlin?”

“Hahahaha, Naoki, you’re joking. He’s super disgusting, it gives me the creeps—anyway, why are you here again!”

Turning around and seeing Naoki sitting cross-legged on a patient’s bed, playing on his phone while drinking, Romani showed an expression of utter resignation.

“Naoki, as head of operations, you have your own private room and office. Do you really need to come here every time you have free time?”

“I’m worried you’ll die from overwork, you know? Besides, I don’t come empty-handed. Every time I come, don’t I bring you strawberry cake?” Naoki pointed to the half-eaten strawberry cake beside Romani’s hand.

Romani smiled bitterly. “I truly appreciate it. Thank you for going through the trouble of baking it yourself. Anyway, I won’t die from exhaustion. If I were going to, I’d have died long ago.”

“Yeah, I know. And I won’t let you die. If you do, I’ll immediately implant Avalon into your body.”

“Why won’t you let me die!”

Although they had worked together for quite some time and had known each other for ten years, Romani understood Naoki’s slightly excessive concern, but he still found it somewhat hard to accept.

After eating another piece of cake to calm himself, Romani continued, “Besides, Naoki, instead of wasting time here, you should think about the other Master. In the meeting earlier, you got scolded again by Director Olga.”

“Do you really think she scolded me because I haven’t given a list of another candidate?”

“Then why? Was it because you weren’t there for her birthday a while ago?”

“You know.” Naoki sighed resignedly. “My time can’t be divided. Marie’s birthday happened to coincide with my return to Japan…”

Hearing the hesitant tone in his voice, Romani, as an experienced man, said seriously, “Naoki, if you keep going like this, sooner or later you’ll really die.”

“Thanks for the advice, ‘senior’—by the way, I’m currently browsing Magical Merry’s blog. Want me to leave a comment for her: ‘Romani was once the King of the Sea’?”

“Stop it, you bastard!”

“Just kidding.”

“You’re…”

Romani looked at Naoki wearily and asked, “So, what will you do about the other Master? You’ve been delaying this for a long time. Even when someone with a particle transfer adaptation above ninety appeared, you still said no—do you really intend to wait for someone with one hundred percent adaptation to appear?”

Naoki nodded. “I have to.”

“Is there really such a person? The entire Clock Tower can’t find a magus with one hundred adaptation, let alone an ordinary person…”

“There is. And coincidentally, I just found her.”

Showing the screen of his phone to Romani, Naoki smiled. “From Japan—a high school girl named Fujimaru Ritsuka from Mifune City. Particle transfer adaptation—100 percent.”

-

Title: Hello, Fujimura Ritsuka

Fujimura Ritsuka felt like she was dreaming.

She remembered only seeing a blood donation van in Mifune City’s plaza and thinking to make a small contribution to the medical world. But how did she end up in this place?

Where exactly was this place called Chaldea?

Sitting on a bench in Chaldea’s corridor, Ritsuka propped her chin on her hand, her face filled with frustration: “Ah… I must be dreaming. Or maybe I’ve actually been kidnapped?”

“I don’t think it’s either, Senpai.”

Beside Ritsuka, a pink-haired girl with long hair covering half her face spoke as she handed a drink to Ritsuka. “Here, Senpai. This is for you. Drinking it might ease your discomfort a little.”

“Ah… thanks, Mash.”

Mash, Mash Kyrielight. That was the name of this pink-haired girl. Ritsuka had just met her a few minutes ago. After arriving at this mysterious organization called Chaldea, she had immediately undergone what Mash called a particle test. Afterward, her head had started to ache.

If she hadn’t met Mash in the hallway—who somehow came looking for her—she might have already fallen asleep right there in the corridor.

Quickly gulping down the drink, Ritsuka sighed in relief: “Fuh~~~ much better now.”

“You drank that really fast, Senpai.” Mash said, slightly surprised by Ritsuka’s action. “Do you always drink like this?”

“Eh? No. It’s just… you know, when someone is extremely thirsty or after intense exercise, they really want to drink water. Don’t you know that, Mash?”

“Hmm, my body isn’t very strong. My doctor and my older brother have warned me not to do strenuous exercise.”

“Doctor? Older brother?”

The two names Mash mentioned made Ritsuka a bit confused: “Mash, do you have an older brother?”

Mash nodded. “Yes, and an older sister too. But we’re not related by blood. Since they’ve taken care of me since I was little, I see them as my older brother and sister. The doctor is my older brother’s friend. He’s the chief physician responsible for improving my physical condition.”

“Are you interested in them, Senpai?”

“No, I’m just curious. By the way, Mash, what kind of place is Chaldea?”

Ritsuka now asked about her biggest uncertainty.

Although she had been persuaded and promised by staff to say goodbye to her family and come to this place called Chaldea, Ritsuka still knew nothing about it.

Could it really be a secret organization hidden behind the scenes of the world, like in the light novels she’d read?

Resting her chin on one hand, Mash answered after a moment of thought: “This question is a bit complicated because Chaldea has many functions and is responsible for various fields… Ah, that’s right. Right now, I can use my older brother’s words to explain it. Chaldea is—”

“[Chaldea is an organization dedicated to saving the world.]”

Before Mash could finish speaking, another woman’s gentle voice came from a distance. Ritsuka turned and saw a young woman with silver hair in her twenties walking toward them.

“Gray’s older sister.”

The one arriving was Gray, now twenty-five years old. However, despite being twenty-five, Gray hadn’t grown much. Her current appearance hadn’t changed much due to various reasons.

“Eh? Older sister? Mash’s older sister?”

Hearing Mash’s call, Ritsuka was slightly surprised. Even though Mash had said she wasn’t blood-related to her older brother and sister, the older sister named Gray standing before her…

(She looks my age!)

Ritsuka had expected the older sister to be an aunt-like figure nearly thirty years old.

“Gray, why are you here?”

“Of course to find you. Something happened to our older brother, and he’s calling for us now—who is she?”

“I’m Fujimura Ritsuka. Nice to meet you, Mash’s older sister.” Ritsuka quickly greeted.

Fujimura Ritsuka—upon hearing the name, Gray, who already knew a few things from Naoki, immediately showed a knowing expression: “I see. So you’re the one my older brother has been waiting for… Nice to meet you. I’m Mash’s older sister. Just call me Gray. By the way, come with us.”

“Eh? Come? Where to?”

“The control room.”

The path to the control room wasn’t far. With an elevator, moving from one area of Chaldea to another didn’t take much time.

While in the elevator, Gray briefly explained Chaldea’s situation to Ritsuka, as well as what would happen in the control room.

In short, Chaldea was a research organization founded by the UN and the Mage’s Association to ensure humanity’s future by continuously observing the Earth.

It wasn’t wrong to call it an [organization for saving the world].

The place they were heading to now was the control room, Chaldea’s central area. There, the current director would hold an emergency meeting said to be crucial for humanity’s future.

The director’s name was Olga Marie Animusphere. She was usually called Marie. She was the daughter of the previous director and had only taken over Chaldea’s operations from her father in the last two years. She was someone extremely strict with everyone.

“Strict person, huh? Uh… I don’t think I’ll get along with her.” Ritsuka’s face looked slightly troubled.

“Senpai, are you not good at getting along with strict people?”

“Because my teacher is a very strict person. From elementary to high school, I’ve suffered a lot under her.”

As if recalling bad memories, Ritsuka showed a nightmarish expression.

Seeing this, Gray smiled. “It’s okay. Even though Miss Marie is very strict, she’s actually quite nice to talk to. And if my older brother is there, she usually won’t get angry. Fujimura, you can relax.”

“I’ll try…”

*DING!*

Along with the chime, the descending elevator finally stopped. And as the doors opened, Ritsuka stepped into the control room, guided by Gray and Mash—

“It took you long enough! How much longer were you going to make me wait?!”

The sentence, spoken in a tone that felt all too familiar, instantly dampened Ritsuka’s mood.

After hearing that voice, the speaker was clearly the type of person she couldn’t handle.

-

Title: The Unreachable Director Olga

Time rewinds ten minutes ago.

Chaldea, in the control room.

As usual, Olga Marie today also wore a cold expression, sitting seriously in the head seat of the control room.

Her mood was terrible—not something that had just started one or two days ago. Ever since she was entrusted with managing Chaldea two years ago, her mood had been bad every single day. In her view: incompetent subordinates, inefficient staff, research with no progress, the awkward position between the Mage’s Association and the UN…

All of these weighed heavily on a young woman of twenty-three like herself. It would be strange if her mood ever improved.

Yet she persisted stubbornly—on one hand, driven by her desire to fulfill her father’s expectations. Her relationship with her father wasn’t good. After Chaldea was built, her father never returned home. But despite that, [From now on, Chaldea is in your hands]—for that one task her father had given her, Marie didn’t want to give up halfway.

On the other hand, for personal reasons.

When the previous director, Marisbury, retired and left Chaldea, he left behind three trusted individuals to support Marie: Professor Lev as head of technology, Romani as head of the medical department, and Naoki as head of operations.

Thanks to these three people, even though she faced various problems over the past two years, Marie had always managed to overcome them. She was deeply grateful to them—especially to Naoki, who had cared for her since childhood and had practically been her guardian for the past ten years.

Within Chaldea, she trusted him the most. Not just because of her father’s words, but also for her own emotional reasons. Therefore, whenever she faced something frustrating, she would immediately seek out this guardian to complain and vent.

Naoki was the one person who would never make her worry.

That’s what Marie always believed.

But this time… the person frustrating her was Naoki himself—the very person she trusted the most.

She didn’t even have a place to vent!

Marie glanced at her watch again, her face filled with anxiety, as she turned to Naoki beside her: “Still not here? The other Master you chose. Our time is running short. Didn’t you say they arrived at Chaldea an hour ago?”

“Yes, I think they’re on their way. Don’t worry, Olga. They won’t run away.”

Unlike Marie’s anxiety, Naoki looked relaxed, completely unbothered.

Even though she knew he was always like this, and had reasons for acting this way, the anxiety in Marie’s heart wouldn’t disappear: “Be a little more serious… CHALDEAS has gone dark. Doesn’t that prove humanity is in danger? Now is the time to be serious—uh!”

Marie’s words were cut short as a foreign object suddenly appeared in her mouth.

It was chocolate.

After tossing the wrapper into the trash, Naoki smiled: “Of course I know I should be serious, but it’s not time to be fully serious yet. I know what I’m doing, so Olga, you don’t need to be this tense. Eat some chocolate and rest.”

“This isn’t the time to—uh!”

Another chocolate was tossed into Marie’s mouth. Fed twice in a row, although she was happy Naoki was so close to her, there were many staff members around. Marie felt her authority as director was completely crumbling!

And below, watching their director being controlled by the head of operations, the staff analyzing the CHALDEAS situation all felt relieved.

(It’s such a relief Head Natsukawa is here. Otherwise, the entire control room would be filled with the director’s oppressive aura.)

(Though I’m grateful, as an unmarried person, watching their interactions is honestly infuriating.)

(What’s their relationship, really? Married or not, just give us clarity! If not, I still want to try getting closer to Head Natsukawa!)

(Who knows? But about marriage, for the head of operations’ age, it’s still too early. He looks barely twenty…)

(Why aren’t boy-faced young men better!)

Though not spoken at all, the staff managed to complete the above communication through eye contact alone. Due to Marie’s demanding work environment, the atmosphere in the control room was usually quite oppressive. To relax their minds, the staff had no choice but to learn this special skill.

Of course, fundamentally, it was all just guesswork and speculation.

As the staff below silently exchanged gossip through glances, the control room door suddenly opened. Two people stepped out of the elevator.

“Oh, you’ve arrived, Senior Akuta, Professor Lev. Thanks for going out of your way to call the senior.”

Seeing them, Naoki immediately waved.

The ones arriving were Yu Meiren, whom Naoki had tricked and brought to Chaldea years ago, and Professor Lev, who managed technology. Actually, Professor Lev had already been in the control room, but after confirming CHALDEAS had gone dark, Naoki had sent him to fetch Yu Meiren.

And as soon as she entered the control room, Yu Meiren quickly walked toward Naoki, unintentionally giving him a sharp glare.

“So it’s finally beginning?”

“Yes. I’m sorry, Senior, for making you wait all these years.”

“You still remember, huh.”

Looking at the situation on the large screen in front of the control room, Yu Meiren slightly frowned: “The light has gone out. Does this prove that humanity’s future no longer exists?”

“You could say that.”

CHALDEAS.

It was a Mystic Code replicating the soul of the Earth. Assuming the Earth itself also possessed a soul, by observing its condition, one could determine whether the planet’s future still existed. As long as CHALDEAS’s light remained on through the Near-Future Observation Lens, SHEBA, it meant human history would continue on Earth a hundred years from now.

But recently, CHALDEAS’s light had suddenly gone dark without warning. The meaning behind this scene was that human history would definitely end within a hundred years.

This was truly shocking and unbelievable news. No wonder Marie was so tense—after all, Naoki had never told her about something like the Burning of the Human Order.

*KLEK!*

At that moment, the control room door, which had just closed, opened again. When Marie saw Gray walking out, followed by Mash and Ritsuka, she immediately scolded them: “It took you long enough! How much longer were you going to make me wait!”


-

Title: I’ve Placed Myself Together with Myself

Time was critical. Every minute and second had to be used wisely. If Marie couldn’t quickly determine the reason for CHALDEAS going dark and re-observe human history a hundred years into the future, she didn’t dare imagine what the future would hold.

If Naoki, Professor Lev, or Romani were late, it wouldn’t matter. These three were people Marie trusted completely. She believed they would fulfill their duties 100%. This kind of delay wasn’t enough to make them fail.

But this newcomer in front of her didn’t have the privilege of such “double standards” from Marie.

With quick steps, she approached Ritsuka. Marie crossed her arms over her chest, looking down at the candidate Master who had been selected just two days ago.

“You’re Fujimura Ritsuka? The one Natsukawa reported has 100% particle transfer adaptation—the best choice?”

“Uh… particle transfer adaptation? What’s that?”

Suddenly questioned so arrogantly, Ritsuka grew slightly flustered. “But if it’s 100%… I think there was a section like that in the report I received when I arrived.”

“Then there’s no mistake—I am Chaldea’s Director, Olga Marie Animusphere. From now on, you’ll be working under me to observe and repair the Human Order. Don’t cause trouble, newcomer.”

Perhaps it was the arrogance of a magus toward an ordinary person, or perhaps she wanted to assert her authority as director. Though most people in Chaldea didn’t truly respect her, Marie acted extremely domineering toward this clueless newcomer who had just arrived.

And the effect was obvious. Ritsuka, fresh off the boat, was genuinely intimidated. From her face and eyes, a mix of emotions could be seen—shock, awe, and dissatisfaction. But it was understandable. Just arriving here, she was immediately scolded by someone who looked like a leader. Generally speaking, anyone would feel a bit upset.

At a moment like this, someone kind-hearted needed to step in to ease the tension.

After exchanging glances with Lev and catching his [I’ll leave it to you] look, Naoki smiled faintly. He stepped forward and patted Marie’s shoulder. “Alright, alright. Olga, don’t treat newcomers like this. What if you scare her? She’s your age and might interact with you a lot in the future. Try to be a bit more friendly.”

“Natsukawa, stop acting like this. For someone ordinary and clueless like her, it’s necessary to—”

“There’ll be time to explain that later. Right now, she needs to get to know all of us and learn some basic knowledge necessary for life in Chaldea.” Naoki said, turning to Ritsuka. “By the way, this isn’t a good place to talk… Lev, we still have time before the particle transfer begins.”

Professor Lev glanced at his watch. “Yes. After this, to ensure there are no issues, I’ll conduct a more detailed calibration—about an hour.”

“Okay. Then I’ll take the newcomer to get familiar with Chaldea and inform her of some things she needs to know. I’ll return fifteen minutes before it starts. Gray, Mash, stay here. Newcomer, come with me.”

After saying that, Naoki called Ritsuka and walked toward the elevator.

Seeing him act so independently, Marie, who had just been trying to establish an authoritative image, immediately flared up. “Natsukawa! Can you listen to me just once!”

“Don’t I listen to you every night? Oh, right. What flavor of cake do you want for dinner? I’ll prepare it while waiting for you to come.”

“Anything you make is fine… wait! That’s not what I’m talking about! Get out of that elevator now!”

As Marie shouted, her face flushed with embarrassment, Naoki had already led Ritsuka into the elevator.

And within the control room—

(So that’s their relationship?)

(I told you the department head and the director are dating!)

“But what about Deputy Head Gray? And Deputy Head Sajyou too?”

(The department head is so popular. I hope he can teach me some tricks…)

Seeing Marie embarrassed and angry, the staff once again began their eye-to-eye gossip.

◆━⊰✧⊱━◆

Inside the elevator, leaning against the door, Naoki looked at Ritsuka in front of him.

“Sorry, newcomer. Olga’s a bit image-conscious. She’s not a bad person. She was just in a bad mood earlier, so her tone was a bit harsh with you. Don’t take it to heart.”

“Ah… yes…”

Ritsuka nodded stiffly, glanced at the man in front of her, then as if realizing something, quickly turned around to face away from Naoki.

(Eh… eh?! What is this? Blond hair and blue eyes? A foreigner? And he’s so handsome… Eh? I’m in the same room as him?)

Ritsuka was certain that if she took a photo of this scene and uploaded it to Twitter, her close friends would flood her DMs!

[How can you be with such a handsome guy?!]

“Give me his phone number! Please, Ritsuka!”

[Same!]

Something like that. She knew her friends’ personalities. In some ways, she’d do the same—only she’d be much more restrained.

Meanwhile, Naoki was completely unaware of Ritsuka’s reaction. Though years had passed and he had grown in many ways, when it came to understanding women’s minds, Naoki hadn’t advanced at all. He was still stuck where he started.

After finally calming her nerves and feeling ready to face this mysterious, handsome man, Ritsuka finally turned back. “Uhm… where are we going? Didn’t Mash and Miss Gray say we were going to the control room?”

“That’s right, we will go there, but first, I need to show you where you’ll be staying. Also the cafeteria, store area, medical department… Although Chaldea is a research facility, essentially it’s a mini-city. All essential life facilities are available.”

“Oh, I haven’t introduced myself. I’m Natsukawa Naoki, head of operations. Well… your superior from now on. That said, you understand—Mash and Gray you mentioned earlier are my younger sisters.”

“Nice to meet you, Fujimura Ritsuka.”