To become a king and a magician

"Well, you don't need to feel pressured. It's just a holiday, so just relax. Also, I think that Halloween party that Ms. Lillian mentioned was actually just the four of us having a big meal at the apartment."

"I think so, after all, the location of our apartment... we don't have a single neighbor."

Natsukawa Tora smiled helplessly. But this was actually for the best. If there were too many people, Grey, who was quite shy, would probably be too scared to come out and would hide in her room. With just the four of them, the atmosphere would definitely be more relaxed.

“But speaking of Halloween, Tiger, you’d better be careful that night,” Webber suddenly said. “While Halloween is just an ordinary commemorative holiday for most people, it has an extraordinary significance for magicians.”

"There are two common theories about the origin of Halloween. One is that the ancient Celts celebrated the harvest and it became a fixed custom over the years. The other is that on Halloween Eve, all kinds of monsters and ghosts appear in the human world, and the dead also appear in the world of the living to wander around. Halloween is actually an activity to drive away ghosts."

Natsukawa Tora narrowed his eyes: "So, ghosts actually do come out on Halloween night?"

Weber nodded: "But calling them ghosts isn't quite accurate. To be precise, they should be all sorts of fairies. You should know about the Fairy Realm, right? It's another space located on the inner side of the planet. Around Halloween, the conceptual barrier between the Fairy Realm and the real world temporarily enters a fixed, fragile period, similar to the ebb and flow of the tide."

"And during this vulnerable period, some lost fairies from the Fairy Realm will come to the material world and cause trouble of varying degrees for all sorts of reasons. The Clock Tower gets busy every year around this time. Also, as you mentioned, ghosts... the undead and the like will indeed appear. After all, on Halloween, the line between life and death becomes somewhat blurred."

At this point, Waver sighed with ease: "But that has little to do with me. With my combat skills, it's still hundreds of years too early for me to deal with the trouble caused by the fairies."

"You really know your own position."

Natsukawa Tora chuckled, though he helped up the Mystic Eye Killer: "According to your logic, I'd better not run around too much lately. If something happens and the Mystic Eye Killer falls, it could cause quite a bit of trouble."

"Indeed, how about I give you a big assignment so that you won't have time to go out around Halloween?"

"Get out of here, you Spartan teacher!"

Xia Chuanhu immediately punched Webber on the head in annoyance.

While the two were discussing Halloween—

"Ring ring ring ring!"

A rapid, magical bell rang out inside the clock tower.

After a moment of surprise, Natsukawa Tora and Weber both stood up.

"Class is about to start. Seriously, can't the break between classes be a little longer?"

"Stop complaining, hurry up and go to class."

"Yes, yes, teacher."

--------------------------------

at the same time.

A street in London, at an intersection.

Dressed in a very modern outfit, making herself look like a young and beautiful girl, Morgan blended into the crowd and observed her surroundings.

"It's really quite magnificent. Compared to London, even Camelot at its peak couldn't compare to its current prosperity."

"If you saw such a prosperous Britain, would you still have such naive ideas, Artoria?"

Thinking of this, Morgan chuckled softly: "Forget it, it's too early to say goodbye to her. I'll just wait a few more years. What's more important now is the child."

As Morgan said this, the scene that flashed through his mind was that of Natsukawa Tora leaping off Vimana a year ago.

Although it was only for a moment, Morgan truly saw a similar brilliance in Natsukawa Torato as in Artoria—he could be a hero. If he had been born in the past instead of this era, he would have become a hero remembered in history.

It would be a great pity if someone with such talent were simply buried by the times, so Morgan wanted to give it a try.

Just as Merlin had done for Artoria in the past, Morgan wanted to try to see if she could mold Natsukawa Tora into a "hero," and make the naive heroic light she had seen a year ago fully mature.

"Speaking of which, Halloween is almost here... It's a really good time."

Thinking this, Morgan looked up at the large screen not far away, which was showing the weather forecast for the next few days—there would be thunderstorms for three or four days in the coming week.

"Halloween, thunderstorms, crossroads, fairies... Hehehe, it seems like we can set up some decorations. It'll also be a good opportunity to see how much that child has grown after what happened in Blackmorea."

33. Undeterred by wind and rain

It was 9 p.m.

Standing by the restaurant window, Grey looked out at the dim light, shrouded in thunderstorms and strong winds, and clenched her hands slightly.

Are you worried about the two of them?

Meryl came up behind her and asked.

"It really was just like the weather forecast said, a massive thunderstorm. If you ask me, this is more like a typhoon passing through. It was perfectly clear when they left at noon."

"It's really strange, though, that they haven't come back yet. Dinner's all cold."

Looking at the seafood curry on the table, which had gone cold, Mary sighed with regret: "This was a dish made by little Grey herself. Just wait and see how I teach them a lesson."

"My brother and Mr. Weber must have something important to discuss..."

Although she said that, Grey's face and eyes were full of unconcealed worry.

As planned, both Natsukawa Tora and Weber had classes all afternoon, ending at 6 PM. Including travel time, they should have been back at the apartment by 7:30 PM at the latest. But it's already 9 PM. If they were going to be late, Natsukawa Tora would definitely have called, given his personality, but there's been no word from him.

Of course, Mary wasn't worried about the two men's safety. Even though something seemed a little off, it was just an unexpected late return home, nothing serious.

But Grey is different.

She was brought to London by Xia Chuanhu. For her, Xia Chuanhu was her only connection to the world. The reason she, like a piece of duckweed, was able to survive in the pond of London was because Xia Chuanhu became her root.

If this root is lost...

"I'll go heat up dinner again."

"Grey".

Calling back Grey, who was trying to leave in a panic, Mary reached out and hugged her, gently patting her head: "Don't worry, those two will be fine, I promise you."

"But brother... I'm a little scared..."

"In that case, how about we go to his room?"

"Huh? Go to my brother's room?"

Mary nodded: "Yes, go to his room. That way you can feel more at ease, because no matter where he goes, he will eventually come back. As long as you wait there, you will definitely see him return."

Is...that's how it is?

"That's right, that's right. Also, I'll tell you a secret."

"secret?"

Leaning close to Grey's ear, Mary whispered, "Boys are always very happy when they come home and see a girl waiting for them, especially a cute girl like Grey."

"So, if I just stay in my brother's room, he'll be happy when he comes back?"

"Yes, yes, yes~~~~ Oh right, little Grey, come with your sister, I'll tell you a way to make him even happier."

After saying that, without waiting for Grey's response, Mary grabbed her and ran upstairs to the second floor.

——————————————————————————————————————

Meanwhile, on a street near the Clock Tower, Natsukawa Tora sat in a coffee shop with Webber, watching the massive thunderstorm outside. He slumped listlessly on the table: "I mailed it... How am I supposed to get back in this weather... Didn't the weather forecast say it would be sunny and clear today?"

"Weather forecasts are ultimately just speculation. Wind is the most unpredictable element, and it's not surprising that it can turn into anything."

Weber was also looking at the weather outside.

"But it's rare for it to turn out like this, and judging from the situation at noon, there's definitely not enough time for the wind element to become this violent; the speed at which the power accumulates can't keep up."

Speak like a human.

"Ha, then let's have an extracurricular lesson."

Weber took out paper and pen from his briefcase, drew several dots on them, and then let them extend into curves of different amplitudes.

"Let's assume this point is the wind element, and the wind element exists as a flowing line, sometimes a smooth curve, sometimes with large fluctuations, and occasionally a spiral-shaped line will also be generated."

"Generally speaking, these things happen naturally, and each one corresponds to certain weather conditions. For example, a stable situation usually means sunny days, while a fluctuating situation means strong winds, overcast skies, or cloudy days. For magicians, judging the upcoming weather by observing the activity of the elements is a basic skill. However, they can only predict it for about ten minutes."

"And most importantly, changes in elements will be inherited."

inherit?

Xia Chuanhu frowned: "What do you mean?"

“Let’s take this straight line as an example.” Weber drew a straight line on the paper. “This is the wind element. Suppose its current intensity is 1 and the variation range is 0.5. Then, without any external interference, after the change period, the wind element’s final intensity will be fixed between 0.5 and 1.5. And when it enters the next change period, its base intensity will be some value between 0.5 and 1.5.”

"To put it simply, the strength of an element will increase over time. Only after a long period of accumulation, when the power accumulated to its limit is released all at once, will the strength return to its original state. Rainy season and dry season, although modern science has given explanations for the laws of nature, to a magician, they are actually just changes in the strength of the elements."

"I see."

Xia Chuanhu tapped the table, then looked out the window: "So, does that mean the wind element has accumulated to its limit and is about to explode all at once?"

“No, it’s too early.” Weber shook his head. “Judging from the situation at noon, it should take at least another two months.”

"So, this is an abnormal situation?"

“Any phenomenon that does not conform to the laws of nature, if the cause cannot be determined based on the existing data, is a man-made phenomenon.” Weber took a sip of coffee. “Clearly, this is a planned storm, it seems that some monster magician is conducting some kind of experiment.”

"Where's the promised mystery and secrecy?"

"In this situation, the only thing we can do is to use abnormal weather as a cover-up."

Natsukawa Tora smacked his lips, picked up a cookie and popped it into his mouth, but at that very moment, his magic circuits twitched violently!

"Click!"

After biting into the cookie and swallowing it, Natsukawa Tora wiped the crumbs from the corner of his mouth.

"Weber".

“I know, my magic circuits reacted too—look outside.”

As if in response to Weber's voice, the moment his voice fell, it was as if the gates of an abyss had been opened, and endless darkness instantly swept over the entire crossroads, a feeling like jumping into a swimming pool passing through the two of them.

"Barrier..."

"This is really troublesome..."

34. Morgan: How come this isn't what we planned?

"Hey! Tiger!"

At the entrance of the coffee shop, clinging tightly to a telephone pole like a monkey to avoid being blown away by the strong wind, Weber shouted to Natsukawa Tora, who was walking forward, "Why did we come out?! It's super dangerous out here! We can just set up a barrier inside the shop!"

"But that's no different from waiting to die, isn't it?"