Walking in the Question and Answer System of Heroic Spirits

Rin Tohsaka: "I just hope this isn't like a lamb being led to the slaughter."

"Ha, that's really strong."

Kay shrugged, looked back, and said, "This is her wish. Do you accept it, Bersak Blackmore?"

"...There's really nothing I can do."

[Belsauk sighed and raised his wrinkled hand, pointing at Grey.]

"Grey, bring Ad to your eyes."

[Grey: "Huh? But Ad is asleep..."]

[Belsauk: "That's not a problem. What's needed isn't the personality of Ad, but the function of a Mystic Code. The magical crest transplanted onto you has been adjusted to be synchronized with the Mystic Code. Just entrust yourself to the scythe as usual."]

[Grey: "Yes."]

Just as she had during her training, she raised the large scythe according to Bersak's instructions.

The scythe's center of gravity is close to the body's center; concentrate your consciousness there. Eliminate the boundary between yourself and the scythe, and fill the "emptiness" as much as possible.

[Belsauk: "Stay focused. Shrink yourself to the limit, and you expand yourself to the limit. Compress yourself into a point, and at the same time expand your domain, so that you are aware of yourself filling the entire world."]

Grey slowly focused her consciousness, projecting it deeper into the still-slumbering body of Ad.

With a 'thud,' Gray's forehead pressed against the scythe handle. The icy sensation sent a shiver down her spine, and a faint feeling immediately spread throughout her body, permeating her entire being in a hazy, dreamlike state.

Light flickered in her mind, slowly connecting, several rays of light interlocking and spreading out like a galaxy above and below her head.

"I can see...the road."

[Grey murmured unconsciously.]

"What a surprise."

"If you couldn't do it, I was planning to send you back... I didn't expect you to succeed on the first try. What happened in just half a day?" Belsac exclaimed in surprise.

What is half a day for Bersak is half a year for me. That's the difference.

Weber: "In other words, Grey left the village about six months ago."

Kenneth: "She managed to synchronize herself with the Holy Lance on the first try. Her control is amazing."

Feng Xi: "After all, she has already been able to unleash the second stage of the Holy Lance."

[Grey: "What should we do next?"]

[Belsauk: "Ask the Path of Light where you want to go. I don't know the full extent of this underground space, nor do the villagers or the church; most of them, even King Arthur's spirit, are not familiar with the route. However, that guy is a different story. He is a lifeless sealed artifact, therefore he is qualified to know everything about this cemetery."]

The Second Emperor once said that the tomb is the smallest afterlife, and this underground space is probably the same.

[As the burial ground of Blackmore, this is a sacred place where the living are forbidden to enter. The sealing Mystic Code that formed Ad was designed to be synchronized with this sacred site.]

Grey realized that the guardian of Blackmore's graves referred not only to her and Belsack, but also to the dress itself.

[Focusing her consciousness on the mass of light, the sheer volume of light was overwhelming; therefore, Gray would need to actively manage it, extracting only the necessary information.]

Chapter 247: Ilumia VS Masked Girl

[As Gray processed the light, several paths were immediately revealed.]

[Second Generation: "Are you alright?"]

[Grey: "Yes, yes, teacher."]

【"?"】

The word "teacher" made Bersak frown instantly.

"Ah! It's nothing..."

Grey realized she had misspoke, but didn't have time to explain to Bersac.

"We come from the future. Whether Bersak would believe this answer is another matter; they don't have enough time right now, and saying it would only confuse Bersak."

[Grey: "I know the way, let's go."]

She immediately moved her unresponsive legs and hurriedly led the way towards a passage.

Weber: "Well, things from the future are really hard to explain, especially since they themselves don't even understand their own situation yet."

Shiki Jieli: "But this underground cave is really big. They must have been walking for a long time."

Rin Tohsaka: "Yeah, it must have been a few hours."

[Second King: "Thank you, Sir Kay."]

Kai: "Huh? What are you thanking me for?"

[Second Generation: "You said what I needed to say."]

[Kay: "...You've got it wrong. I just think it's better for her to make a decision quickly, at least better than wasting time on boring conversations."]

Although the group fell silent again, they quickened their pace to catch up.

Meanwhile, Ilumia was still quickly pursuing Gray and the others.

Because the paths crisscrossing the village were intricate and complex, they hadn't mastered all the routes and could only rely on the known ones, intending to get ahead of Grey and the others to the places they were likely to pass through.

[Fernand: "Ha... So, Grey really did enter this tunnel with that magician?"]

[Irumia: "That's right, priestess."]

[Fernand: "I really find it hard to judge. Wasn't she quite cooperative with the villagers? Although the villagers probably didn't explain the reasons to her, even if they had, given the girl's personality, wouldn't she have given up her life without a second thought? No, didn't they mold her into that kind of person?"]

Ilumia: "...Perhaps some event changed her mind."

[Fernand: "For example, the monarch of that clock tower?"]

"Hmph, you filthy magician!"

Illumia's expression was contorted, as if to say that the person deserved to be despised.

"However, he did a good job sending the El-Melloi princess back. I specifically advised her not to stay here any longer."

Fernando, wiping his sweat, frowned and said, "I think your strange sexual preferences are also a problem."

Illumia hardened her expression and declared, "Since they're all heretics anyway, isn't it important that their outward appearance is enough to soothe my soul? In any case, those who don't obey the Lord's orthodox doctrines can't be trusted."

Fernando: "You're that kind of person."

[Ilumia: "Priest, you're being too sympathetic to the heretics. There's absolutely no need for you to worry about them."]

[Fernand: "Well, as a local priest, I find it difficult to understand the thoughts of a core member like you."]

Irumia: "But I am an illegitimate child."

Illumia smiled smugly, and Fernand wiped his cheek with a handkerchief before following her.

Rin Tohsaka: "Does she mistakenly believe that the Second Prince used some kind of magic to bewitch Gray?"

Weber: "It's normal for her to think that way, after all, to them, the future me and Grey have only known each other for a day."

Kenneth: "So this Fernand really is a local, but he looks like he's already distanced himself from the villagers."

Sora: "Who knows if it's a pretense?"

Kenneth: "Yes, that's certainly possible."

Rin Tohsaka: "What did that fat priest mean when he said Illumia has strange sexual preferences?"

Tokiomi Tohsaka: "Ahem, Rin, don't focus on these strange things."

Lion's Tribulation: "But this is indeed another big scoop."

The two continued onward and soon arrived at the cave where the Second Generation had first reached, where they met the masked girl.

"We caught up!"

Illumia, mistaking the other person for Gray, couldn't help but smile. But upon closer inspection and recognizing the person, she blinked in surprise.

Although the other person's aura was very similar to Gray's, she could sense that they were completely different people.

The masked girl slowly turned her head and looked at Ilumia and the other girl.

Behind her stood several skeletal soldiers, their powerful aura causing astonishment even in this strange underground world.

Irumia: "Oh dear, oh dear, we've lived in the same village for so long, yet this is the first time we've ever met."

Weber: "It seems this is their first time seeing this masked girl."

Kiritsugu Emiya: "So, she was actually hiding herself all along, but why isn't she hiding herself now? Is it because of Gray?"

【"..."】

The masked girl remained silent, staring intently at Ilumia and Fernand.

[Illumia: "I've heard a lot about you, the spirit of King Arthur, and the mastermind behind this Blackmore Cemetery. Don't you even want to speak to the agents of the Holy Church?"]

"Clear them out."

After a brief moment of contemplation, the masked girl raised her hand to give the order, and the skeletal soldiers guarding her immediately swarmed forward.

[Two skeleton soldiers charged forward, spears at their waists, but Ilumia deflected them with perfect timing and angle. She then lunged into the skeleton soldiers' arms, smashing one's sternum with a hook punch, followed by a backhand punch that shattered the other's jaw.]

"So convenient, and just my taste!"

Illumia gave a cold look, and a flash of purple lightning streaked across the gray lock on her hand.