To become a king and a magician

How did he kill himself?

Her eyes seemed to be asking these questions.

“You really are a strange person.” Beo, carrying one leg, approached Natsukawa Torato and attached it to Arcueid’s remains like a puzzle piece. “Could it be that this dead person was someone you knew?”

"I wouldn't say we know each other, it's just that we have some connection."

He placed Arcueid's head back on her neck, stood up, and looked at the now reassembled Arcueid. Natsukawa Torama placed his hand on his chest, and the scabbard, radiating a divine light, reappeared from his body.

Avalon, a treasure capable of healing any injury or curse.

Although it's unknown how much it will help heal the injuries inflicted by the Mystic Eyes of Death Perception, implanting it into Arcueid's body should at least accelerate her self-repair process.

“That should solve the problem. Beo, could you please continue patrolling alone for the rest of the time? I'd like to take her back to the hotel first.”

"Okay, leave it to me."

————————————————————————

pain.

This is the only fact Arcueid can feel right now.

My whole body was in excruciating pain. One moment I was unconscious from the pain, and the next I was jolted awake by the pain. It felt like my whole body had been chopped into many pieces.

—Correction. It's not "seems," she was indeed ambushed from behind and killed, her body hacked into seventeen pieces. And strangely enough, her self-healing ability, which normally ignores even fatal wounds, had absolutely no effect on these cuts, showing no signs of healing whatsoever.

If she weren't a special case among the True Ancestors, she would surely be dead. That being said, as long as her consciousness is still awake, her body being killed can't really be considered alive.

Of course, if the body is brought together, it should be able to barely revive by using most of its power.

only--

(It hurts so much! It hurts so much that I can't concentrate on controlling my body at all. That unreasonable bastard, I'll definitely get him when I recover!)

Arcueid saw the person who killed her.

After finding out how he killed him, kill him hundreds of times over. You bastard who has no mercy!

“Buzz.......”

Just then, a soft sound mingled with the excruciating pain, seeping into Arcueid's consciousness. It was as if an endless blizzard had suddenly stopped, and she was once again bathed in warm sunlight. Accompanied by that fleeting sound, a comforting warmth that made her want to fall asleep gradually spread throughout her body.

Strange, her body should have been shattered, but Arcueid now felt a sense of "completeness".

Has anyone pieced themselves together?

—That should solve the problem.

Someone's voice rang in Arcueid's ears.

It was a man's voice, somewhat familiar, as if I had heard it somewhere before, but how could this be? In the past eight hundred years, she had almost no interaction with anyone, not even conversations, as she had been immersed in her own dreams.

(By the way... it was a dream...)

Arcueid managed to recall a fragment.

That happened recently. In the last part of my dream before I woke up, someone unexpectedly entered my dream due to various coincidences and chance encounters. That person's voice was somewhat similar to the one I had just heard.

I remember it was a man, with blond hair like mine, giving off a similar vibe.

His name is...

(Hmm...)

The intense pain and warmth, two almost contradictory feelings, completely overwhelmed Arcueid's consciousness before she could even recall the person's name.

20. Affirmation from Alaya

The moment Arcueid awoke, the blinding sunlight shone into her eyes.

(Is it noon?)

Judging from the time, Arcueid lay down and looked around at her surroundings.

It seemed that she was lying on a bed in a hotel, and there was no one else in the room besides her.

(I remember being attacked in the apartment I bought... Did someone bring me here?)

Although her memory is not very clear, Arcueid remembers that when she was still conscious last time, there was someone beside her, and it was someone she could say she knew.

Arcueid instinctively sat up in bed, and just as she was about to get off, she saw her seemingly unharmed body and froze on the spot.

"Huh? My body... has recovered?"

Arcueid could sense that he wasn't truly recovered; he was only outwardly unharmed, not completely healed internally. Even so, it was enough to surprise Arcueid.

Even though her own self-healing abilities were ineffective, her body actually recovered?

"Was it done by that person?"

That was the only possibility. In that situation, only he could help me, but how did he manage to do it?

click -

Just as Arcueid was wondering what was going on, the door opened.

It's Natsukawa Tora.

"Ah, you're awake?" Seeing Arcueid sitting on the bed, Natsukawa Tora tossed the things he was carrying onto the sofa and sat down next to her. "How are you feeling? Are you still in pain? Although I've given you Avalon for now, it's unclear whether it will work on the Mystic Eyes of Death Perception."

"..."

Arcueid did not answer.

It wasn't that she didn't want to answer Natsukawa Tora's question, but the moment Arcueid saw him, she instantly received information about him as a whole.

(What's going on? This person's body...)

This is too abnormal!

Although Arcueid's own body is quite unusual by normal standards, her abnormality is at least within an acceptable range and within the realm of imagination.

But the unusual behavior of Natsukawa Tora before them...

"Are you... really human?"

This was the first time Arcueid had spoken to anyone upon waking up, and she was so surprised that she couldn't help but ask a question.

It can assimilate with a Servant's Spirit Origin, be possessed by fairies or even elves, and even harbor a human evil. Is such a being truly human?

Completely surprised by Arcueid's question, Natsukawa Torama pondered for a moment before shrugging: "I guess I'm still human. Although I know I'm an anomalous being, if I may ask, does my human restraint qualify me as human?"

[Convey the message – affirmation]

Within Arcueid's mind, the [World]—Gaia—conveyed a message once again, and judging from its meaning, it seemed to be conveying the message from Alaya.

This guy is actually classified as human?!

"Alright, instead of worrying about me, take better care of yourself. How are you feeling?"

"You saved me?" Arcueid stretched his limbs. "My basic functions are mostly back to normal, but... how did you do that?"

"Didn't I just say that I gave you Avalon? I don't know if it will work on the Mystic Eyes of Death Perception, but it's a last resort."

"Avalon... Ah, is that the scabbard? Then—wait, what did you just say I was killed by?"

"Straight into the devil's eyes."

Varied--

"real or fake?"

“I have someone with the Mystic Eyes of Death Perception right next to me. She has examined your situation and she is right—of course, she wasn’t the one who killed you last night. She was sweeping around in a place almost completely opposite to where you are last night.”

"I know, after all, I saw who killed me last night. But..."

Arcueid ran her fingers along the cuts on her body, and the stinging pain made her sigh softly: "I never expected it to be the Mystic Eyes of Death Perception... A miracle that might not even exist in the age of mythology has actually happened. Well then, I have nothing to say about being divided into seventeen parts."

After saying that, Arcueid got out of bed and, completely ignoring the man, Natsukawa Tora, standing next to her, took off her pajamas and snapped her fingers before Natsukawa Tora could even get a good look at her. A white loungewear outfit and a black skirt appeared on her.

"Then, who are you?"

After changing his clothes, Arcueid went to the window and leaned against it, asking Natsukawa Tora a question.

"In my memory... no, you're the one who kept appearing in my dreams recently, right? Tell me your name."

"Xia Chuanhu. The surname is Xia Chuan and the first name is Tiger."

After keeping the name Natsukawa Torato in a corner of her memory, Arcueid smiled and said, "Well then, Torato, although I still have some questions about you, let me first express my gratitude to you. Thank you for saving me, Torato."

"You're welcome. I'd also find it a bit troublesome if you died."

"Okay, that's good then." Elquite nodded. "If you saved me out of kindness and goodwill, I would feel uneasy. It would be best if you didn't have any ulterior motives."

"If that's how you think, then so be it. Are you planning to leave?"

"I asked Natsukawa Tora, who was leaning against the window."

"Your body hasn't recovered yet, and because you died once, your strength is weaker than ever before. Going to see Roya in this state is tantamount to suicide."

"You seem to know quite a lot. Are you perhaps someone from the church?"

“No, I’m just a magician, to put it mildly. I know about your situation because I know someone at church,” Natsukawa Tora explained. “How much of your power do you have left? Half? Thirty percent? I think it’s probably less.”

"..."

They saw right through me.

With a helpless sigh, Arcueid left the window and sat down on the sofa: "You're right, I'm quite weak right now, although I'm still more than capable of killing Roya."

"What if we have to fight other Dead Apostles before that? For example, Nero Chaos, one of the Twenty-Seven Ancestors who has already arrived in this city."

"It's barely passable."

“Then let’s add another Twenty-Seventh Ancestor. According to the Church, at least two Twenty-Seventh Ancestors have already arrived in this city. Although we don’t know what they’re here for.”

No, they're all here to kill me.

Gaia has already told Arcueid about her current situation.

The remaining forces are more than enough to deal with one Zu, and two might be manageable, but if we then have to deal with Roya...

"This is just my suggestion. Until you've fully recovered and returned Avalon to me, why don't you temporarily find some outside help?"

"For example, another person with the Mystic Eyes of Death Perception."