Thanks for the invitation. I'm in Type-Moon, inheriting the legacy of Zi-O.

"Goodbye, Your Majesty." Though reluctant, Ritsuka smiled and said goodbye, "We must go."

“…I had a vague premonition about this, and my intuition is usually very sharp!” Nero said proudly, then her expression darkened. “But I’d rather not be so perceptive now…”

"I guessed that you would disappear like your uncle, the ancestor of the gods, and Attila. Boudica has already disappeared, as have Jing Ke, Lü Bu, and Spartacus."

“…Yes.” Mash also felt a pang of reluctance. “This era will be corrected, and in that case, the memories of fighting against the United Empire will also be lost.”

"I'm a little reluctant to part with it." He rubbed his eyes. This was probably the first time Emperor Nero hadn't worn his confident smile in front of everyone.

"Yes..." Who isn't like that? Every journey eventually comes to an end. All we need to remember is the scenery along the way and the important people.

“I no longer doubt you, I believe your words. But this makes things difficult.” Nero was somewhat troubled, or perhaps ashamed. “To be honest, it’s regrettable, I’m unwilling. I haven’t given you any reward yet.”

“If you stay, you will not only be my subjects, but also—” Nero wanted to say something more, but suddenly stopped speaking.

“No, I’d better not say it.” Her gaze shifted to Nianzhuo. “My musician, Nianzhuo, Rome must be one of your destinations. Rome is the world. Yes, both the Divine Ancestor and I have clearly stated this.”

Therefore, I will not say goodbye; I will only thank you.

"—Thank you!" he said loudly, as the figures of the three people in front of him began to become more and more transparent.

"I offer my heartfelt thanks and roses to you all for your achievements!" With a smile and a wave, the figures of the three people in front of me completely turned transparent.

“…Ugh.” Nero’s back was trembling, his shoulders were twitching, as if he was enduring something.

The rain wet the ground, but the sun was still shining on it.

“One day, I will meet you again, Musician.” Nero pulled up the primordial fire standing on the ground and touched the back of his head. “At that time, I will do everything I can to make Musician fall in love with me.”

The bright red hair tie lay in Nianzhuo's palm that night.

The three people's consciousness passed through the crystal blue vortex, and the physical sensations made them slightly open their eyes.

The highly technological CD-ROM features familiar faces peering into it from the outside of the case.

"Ah! Mash Ritsuka, they're awake!" Dr. Romani was so happy he almost jumped for joy when he saw the two people in the basket open their eyes.

Nian Zhuo's figure gradually solidified beneath Chaldea, and he gently pinched his own face as if he were unfamiliar with it.

What's different is that the third singularity on Chaldea suddenly emitted a small blue light.

An endless expanse of ocean, and a solitary sandy island.

A huge parasol, and a magenta beach chair.

A brown-haired man wearing sunglasses is holding a coconut with a straw in his hand.

He picked up the camera from the small table next to him and aimed it at the vast ocean in front of him.

"Click—" The magenta camera slowly ejected a photograph.

"Roar—Is this the world of Fate?"

"I have a general understanding of the situation."

The Second Singularity: The Finale

Putting aside the anomalies of the third singularity, Nianzhuo and the others really want to get some rest right now.

"Ah~ I'm back without even realizing it." Ritsuka stretched as she climbed out of the basket, then helped Mash, who was still getting used to the Chaldea mechanical ground. "But, is that alright?"

This refers, of course, to leaving Nero alone to walk back to the capital, Rome, or something like that.

"Hey hey~ Let me explain this." Da Vinci, who had been offline—no, buried in his research for so long—finally came online. "The Holy Grail is the law that determines how magic is used in that space. You can think of it as the rules of the world. Although rules have no physical form, Lef crystallized them and claimed them for himself. While we cannot analyze the underlying principles, we can at least seal them."

Da Vinci patted the shield that Mashu was still holding, and snorted proudly, his nose twitching high.

“I made some modifications to Mash’s shield, creating a space that can hold the Holy Grail.”

"Huh...?" Mashu looked at me with an expression that said, "I had no idea either," and tapped her shield. "My shield has this function...?"

“Yeah, right, artifacts should be kept inside artifacts.” Da Vinci said matter-of-factly, while rolling up his sleeves like a boy. “Because there can only be one, I have to take it out every time… Heh!”

Using brute force, they pried open the circular decoration on the outside of Mash's shield.

"Awaaaaaah...!" Mashu exclaimed in surprise, completely disregarding her image.

"Alright~ Delivery complete~" Playing with the Holy Grail in his hand, Leonardo da Vinci closed one eye and stuck out his tongue. "Next time, let's keep up the good work and continue exploring!!"

"In any case, we've obtained the second Holy Grail." Dr. Roman, pushing Leonardo da Vinci aside with a forced smile, looked at the three people before him. "We've also achieved our initial goal of tracking down Rafe."

"Hmm~ But, we didn't get anything out of Rafe?" Curious Ritsuka raised her hand again.

“Yes…” Romani looked troubled and touched his hair. “Before he could tell us his intentions and purpose, he was killed by Attila himself.”

"...Why did Professor Rafe betray humanity? Why did he have the idea of ​​destroying humanity...? These are the questions, aren't they?" Mash also recalled Rafe's previous words and looked troubled.

"Yes. Everything is unclear now. But there are still five singularities left." While comforting the two who were in low spirits, Dr. Roman himself was also a little worried. "Lev mentioned 'We, the Pillars.' That is to say, there are enemies who share the same responsibility as Lev. At this stage, we don't know what kind of beings they are. All we can do now is to retrieve the Holy Grail one by one and repair the singularities."

"The road ahead is long!" Ritsuka said confidently, waving her little fist. "So leave it to me!"

"Yes, well done!" Roman nodded proudly. "It's all up to you, Ritsuka. Although time is tight, you two should get some rest tonight. You both walked a long way last time and this time. If you don't get a good massage, you'll feel terrible later."

On the other side, Nianzhuo naturally saw Mary rushing over.

She even had dark circles under her eyes, it seems the analysis of the Holy Grail has kept her up for several nights.

"How is it? Did it go smoothly? Is everything alright?" As soon as she arrived beside Nian Zhuo, Director Mary bombarded him with questions like a machine gun, constantly circling around Nian Zhuo to scan him for any obvious injuries. "Has the Holy Grail been retrieved? Is everything alright?"

"Alright, alright..." Nian Zhuo affectionately stroked Mary's silver hair. Every time he saw Mary's blushing face, he felt that choosing to save her back then was the best decision he could have made. "Everything is fine. Ritsuka and Mashu are back too. The Holy Grail has also been retrieved."

"Ah... I see, thank you for your hard work..." Feeling the warmth from the hand above her head, Mary lowered her head shyly and whispered, "It's so good that you're back safe and sound..." After saying that, Mary's body swayed and was about to fall down.

"Yes. I'm back." Nianzhuo hugged Mary tightly, catching her leg in time. "You've really worked hard..." He smoothed her slightly messy silver hair and walked out of the control room.

They happened to run into Mash, who was leaving with Ritsuka in the corridor.

"What's going on? What are you saying now?" Holding Mary in her arms, Nianzhuo caught up with the two of them in a few quick steps.

"..." Mashu just kept her head down, seemingly lost in thought. When she heard Nianzhuo's voice, she looked up and saw Nianzhuo holding Mary in his arms. So she lowered her head even further.

"Hmm...you don't seem very energetic. Are you thinking about Nero, Mash?" Raising an eyebrow, Nianzhuo couldn't help but be curious about what could make Mash so down.

“…Yes.” Mashu glanced almost imperceptibly at Nianzhuo, then sighed. “Because of the sudden separation from Nero, I feel a little guilty for leaving her alone in that world… Even though everything we experienced will disappear, in the final moment, she was all alone. She defeated the revered ancestors and bid farewell once more to her former rivals who had died with her…”

"...In that vast empire, she was left all alone as the emperor. ...From now on, she could no longer rely on anyone and could only move forward alone."

"...This battle looks like it was very painful for you, Mashu." Nianzhuo wanted to scratch his cheek, but with both hands holding Mary, he had to give up the idea. "...Do you think Nero also feels lonely?"

"...No, no, that's not it." Suddenly, as if she had a sudden realization, Mash shook her head violently. "...It's definitely not like that. This battle was indeed very intense, and I was on the verge of death several times. Although Mr. Nencho saved me, no matter how many times I experience it, I will still be afraid of fighting."

“But—” Mashu suddenly clenched her hands. “But, this trip was very enjoyable. And thanks to the always lively Nero-san… I had a great time.”

"That's right. I think Nero would definitely think the same way, wouldn't he?" Ritsuka proudly stated her opinion. "The Empire is very much in Nero's style; it's bound to be quite lively!"

“…Yes, I will never forget that sky and that land.” Mashu agreed wholeheartedly when she thought of that beautiful sky and city.

"...Perhaps. If she's lonely, she'll definitely feel lonely." Nianzhuo murmured to himself, "After all—"

"She is the queen [emperor]. So she must look forward and experience loneliness."

"Speaking of which, senior. And Mr. Nianzhuo. Regarding what Dr. Roman just said..." Mashu glanced at Director Mary, who was lying in Nianzhuo's arms, from time to time, as if she wanted to say something. But in the end, she changed her mind.

"Dr. Roman? Which sentence?" If Dr. Roman heard Ritsuka's words, his heart would surely bleed again. "A massage?"

"Hmm. For relieving fatigue, shall I give Mr. Nianzhuo and Senior a massage?" To everyone's surprise, Mashu actually agreed. "I have learned effective massage techniques and I also know a little about that thing called acupoints from the East."

"Then I'll have to trouble you, Mashu." He wanted to pat Mashu's head, but his two hands were too full to reach her.

"Really?!" Surprisingly, Mashu seemed excited after receiving confirmation from Nianzhuo, then coughed lightly as if realizing her lapse in composure.

"...Ahem. I just wanted to try it. Yeah, just wanted to try it. No, that..." As if she were talking about her embarrassing past, Mashu closed her eyes, "Actually, I tried it before, and the other person kept screaming in pain... Ah!"

Realizing she had let something slip, Mashu quickly explained as she saw the growing fear in the eyes of the two people in front of her.

"Really... really, that kind of thing shouldn't happen. I practiced afterward, practicing by imagining it." He said something that made people even more uneasy.

"Huh? Mr. Nianzhuo?" Seeing Nianzhuo suddenly quicken his pace, Mashu seemed to understand something. "Where are you going? Ah! You want to quickly put Director Mary down and then get a massage in your room, right?"

Without slowing down in the slightest, Nian Zhuo even considered taking out the Zi-O basic armor.

"Mr. Nianzhuo...? And a senior too...?" Ritsuka hurriedly chased after him, calling out to Nianzhuo as he ran away.

"Mr. Nianzhuo...! Help me!!!"

A burst of laughter echoed through Chaldea.

As for who Mashu massaged first... well.

"Snap, snap." Dr. Roman rubbed his sore neck. "Ahhh~ I'm so tired. I wish a cute nurse could give me a massage!"

"You're a psychologist yourself, yet you're waiting for a nurse to massage you. Why don't you have Mashu massage you again?" Da Vinci slyly popped his head out from above the chair. "Ever since I massaged you last time, that child has been saying she wants to massage you again!"

"Hahaha... Well, let's forget about it then." Dr. Roman's eyebrows twitched involuntarily, and he looked terrified.

Then, a pair of soft, boneless hands kneaded her shoulders.

"Huh...?" He tried to turn around, but Da Vinci leaned close to his ear.

"This is a reward for your hard work, don't look back~" Her breath was sweet as orchids.

"..." Roman relaxed completely and couldn't help but immerse himself in the unique massage. "Ah... thank you, Da Vinci."

"You're welcome~" With a slight smile, the two fell into a beautiful balance.

The Everlasting Mad Empire: City of Seven Hills.

The Emperor of Roses.

Foundation laying and restoration.

A passionate young man yearning for friendship meets the person who controls time.

I opened my room door, and everything was still the same.

Although I spent a long time in the Second Singularity, it seems that I haven't been away from Chaldea for very long either.

After escorting Mary back to her room and finally escaping Mashu's massage, which was supposed to be painless, Nianzhuo could finally lie in bed and rest without any burden...

“However…” As if suddenly remembering something, Nian Zhuo took out the bright red hair tie from his pocket. “What does Nero mean by giving me this…?” Well, it seems that when it comes to emotional intelligence, this guy is truly hopeless.

“…Hmm.” Nianzhuo then took out the chain that Jeanne Alter had given him, staring intently at the two items, trying to glean something from them—

—Ten seconds, twenty seconds, one minute.