You are very strong, but my painting style is better than yours!

Although the altitude was constantly increasing and it was theoretically necessary to pass through different small worlds, this thing was unusually stable. Iori could not feel the slightest vibration while riding inside, as if the inside and outside were completely separated.

The young man lay back on the sofa, relaxed, pondering his next move, but quickly shook his head in resignation.

There's too little information; we're completely clueless!

Even the idea that "taking the elevator to a higher floor and defeating the Lord will allow you to reclaim Mooncell" is just a guess, based on BB's "last words".

However, while Mooncell is processing previous data, it is unknown which specific parts it uses, how much of it remains unchanged, or whether any modifications have been made.

In theory, even a minor change could trigger a series of disastrous consequences.

For example, the most direct question:

Even if you reach the top, are you guaranteed to meet Mooncell and the mastermind behind it all? What if it's just a simple ladder climb with no real "peak"?

Besides these, the current situation of Chaldea's Master, Fujimaru Ritsuka, is also a matter that needs to be taken seriously.

After all, if this isn't a story about "Heroic Spirits," it's probably the story of Gudako, the Master (human).

If we think about it more deeply, when Iori arrives at the "reincarnation version of Chaldea," the story that originally belonged to Gudako has already changed, and she may no longer be the center of the story...

Right now, everything is uncertain!

The reason Iori took this elevator was simply because she had no other choice and was just taking it one step at a time.

Thinking of this, Iori lightly swiped her finger in the air, using storage magic to open her personal alternate dimension, from which she took out an irregularly shaped red iron greatsword, which originally belonged to Rama.

“I can no longer go on, but some kind of ‘fate’ that transcends worlds is calling me, so I am quite certain that Sita (Rama’s wife) has not been sent back to the Throne of Heroes and still exists in some fragment of the Chaldean world!”

"Please take this [Undying Blade] with you. Although it is not a mortal object, but a materialized Noble Phantasm, I have poured all my remaining magical power into it, enough to sustain it for a long time... If you have the chance to meet Sita, this sword can make her trust you. She is a wise and intelligent person, and perhaps she can be of help."

Rama, having finished giving his last words, vanished before Iori's eyes, leaving only this greatsword.

In theory, a Servant's body and weapons should disappear together after death, but there are some special cases, such as relics unearthed in the present world (Avalon), or Servants concentrating their magical energy to maintain only the activity of a part of their body (Red Archer's arm).

Rama kept his weapon, because the original form of the sword was the divine bow that accompanied Rama's birth, connected to his bloodline and equivalent to a part of his body... However, after being summoned as a Saber, the bow was forcibly transformed into a sword.

Iori is neither Rama himself, nor his bloodline descendant or reincarnation, so she should not be able to use this indestructible blade and can only keep it by her side as a simple keepsake.

However, he tried using "Usurper" on the sword, initially without much hope, since he and Rama weren't enemies. Previously, when conducting experiments with Yosuke, the Elf Girl, and others, Iori had always used them as "imaginary enemies" when activating the skill.

But now that Rama is gone, and there's no specific target, it doesn't seem to meet the conditions for activating the skill... but unexpectedly, he actually managed to take over ownership!

It seems that the "Undying Blade" itself can also be used as a target to activate the ability.

Whether it was breaking through the defenses of "Red Rose" before, or now plundering "Undying Blade," there have been developments and changes that have surprised Iori...

It seems that in addition to mastering new skills, it is also important to develop existing skills more deeply. Sometimes, you have to try more in order to accurately explore your own boundaries.

This is a pleasant surprise!

"A decent Noble Phantasm... It can be kept as a backup."

Even if the sword eventually disappears, it has at least added to Iori's fighting strength in this intricate labyrinth. So he nodded in satisfaction and put it back into his personal space.

He stayed in the "elevator" for about half an hour. After drinking his third iced cola, the indicator light on the door frame finally turned from red to green. At the same time, although he could no longer feel any vibration, the room had stopped ascending.

"Are you there?"

Iori put down her cup and stood up from the sofa.

He dislikes monotonous and repetitive monster-slaying levels, so he has little interest in "climbing" type missions and sincerely hopes to skip all the story and go straight to the final boss.

Of course, he also knew that challenging the Great Demon King before completing enough side quests, collecting all the key items, and understanding the important information was a suicidal move!

In *Kagemusha*, *Akame ga Kill!*, and *Uncle from Another World*, he could act without restraint, relying primarily on his overwhelming fighting power compared to the local inhabitants. However, in *Bleach* and *Type-Moon*, he needs to learn to assess the situation more carefully.

At the very least, Iori doesn't possess the ability to fold small worlds at will. In other words, the mastermind behind it all has methods that Iori is unaware of, and their combat power must be overestimated.

Iori can easily defeat ordinary Servants now, but he's definitely not invincible in Type-Moon. So even if you put a direct path to the boss room in front of Iori, he'll still obediently finish the side quests... Who knows what kind of person the final boss is? It's always better to be cautious.

Anyway, what he has in abundance is time and magic, doesn't he?

"call……"

He mobilized all his spiritual pressure, ready to activate [Instant Rage] to strengthen his physical defenses at any time.

I wonder what challenges await me?

With a mix of nervousness and anticipation, Iori slowly but firmly opened the door—

Hot!

"Out!"

Sweat!

"Safe!"

muscle!

"Rock, paper, scissors—"

boom!

Iori closed the door expressionlessly, remained silent for three seconds, rubbed her eyes with some doubt, then took a deep breath and pushed the door open again.

"rock-paper-scissors!"

A naked man! A naked man!

Behind the door was a group of muscular men wearing very little clothing!

A naked man, covered in sweat and muscular, looking like a radiant Buddha statue, is wrestling in the circle!

"What the heck is this?!"

The humid, hot air, carrying the smell of sweat and sulfur, rushed towards him, ruffling his dark hair. Iori, unusually, showed a wavering expression, but he kept his face tightly shut.

"...Wasn't it said that Chaldea had already fallen? This... doesn't seem like it!"

At first glance, this is an excessively large open-air hot spring with seven or eight large pools that can probably accommodate dozens of people. A typical resort hotel would consider it quite luxurious to have such a bathhouse, but it still feels a bit crowded here.

It's not a layout issue, but rather that the hot spring pools cater to a rather special group of guests—

It's too big! Too big in every sense of the word!

Sakata Kintoki, Musashibo Benkei, Spartacus, Leonidas I, Heracles, Asterius, Ivan the Terrible...

Two-meter-tall strongmen here are considered to be of youthful size. Giants of two, three, or even four meters are not uncommon. Moreover, everyone here has strong muscles forged from steel, and when they come ashore, they are like human tanks, exuding a strong sense of oppression!

Some of them were laughing and joking in the water, some were wrestling and grappling on the shore, and some were drinking and playing drinking games in a circle. The scene was so noisy that it was more like a battlefield!

Without exception, they were all male Servants, and all of them were full of masculine energy. Just looking at them made the air feel heavy and hot, and sweat would unknowingly trickle down one's forehead.

Even the world's top bodybuilding competitions are far less spectacular than this. It is a genuine "natural body" without any fakery, not just for show, but a steel body forged by martial artists through countless trials!

When Sakata Kintoki and Musashibo Benkei wrestled together, wearing only loincloths, their muscles trembled as if they were alive, stretching to their limit under their skin as they unleashed brute force.

Unlike modern sumo wrestling, which lacks visual appeal, the duel between these two ancient warriors is thrilling even without any commentary.

The onlookers, who were cheering, were all tall and robust male Servants. They were once famous figures in history or mythology, but at this moment they had become noisy children, waiting for the appearance of a new "king of the kids".

Neither Kintoki nor Kintoki used magic; it seems they intend to rely solely on brute force to seize everything.

On the other side, the group of Servants playing the finger-guessing game were having a great time. What was placed next to them were not wine cups, but super-large wine goblets that could be called wine barrels. Each of them had an enormous capacity for alcohol, and the way they drank with such a powerful and unrestrained manner was like that of demons and gods.

Just as things were getting lively and cheerful, Iori suddenly appeared in the "elevator". Her impressive magical energy attracted everyone's attention, but after seeing Iori's appearance, they went back to their own business without any tension.

Iori noticed that the steam emanating from the hot spring carried a faint aroma of sake, which made one feel intoxicated. In addition, it seemed to have some properties that could make people feel excited or even crazy.

Since ancient times, wine has been a symbol of madness. It is a good medicine to boost morale and increase courage, but it is also a deadly poison that destroys reason and sows the seeds of disaster. Ironically, the more masculine a hero is, the more easily he is captured by this thing.

"Where are the enemies of this class?"

Iori glanced around blankly, unable to find anyone who seemed hostile towards her.

Could it be that this small world hasn't been corrupted by the mastermind behind it all? Otherwise, based on the experience from the first level, there should also be a [Lord] here.

So the target is hidden among these big guys?

...That's not easy to find!

It's not that the people here are difficult to investigate or figure out; quite the opposite, they are extremely easy to see through!

These people don't wear layers of disguise or thick masks; they openly display everything for everyone to see!

Yes, this applies to both body and mind...

Putting aside their mental state, these people can't even afford to each have a loincloth, so to think they can pull off any kind of schemes or tricks is giving them too much credit.

"This is a bit tricky... Can this elevator continue going up?"

Not all the muscular men ignored Iori. Just as the young Shinigami was feeling lost, a man stepped out from the group playing rock-paper-scissors. He was shirtless, revealing a relatively slender but still very well-built physique.

What's most striking is that in this bathhouse where everyone is naked, he was wearing a proper pair of trousers!

He was a middle-aged man with long, dark chestnut hair and gentle features. His temperament was so outstanding that he remained calm and composed even in the midst of the lively atmosphere.

...Although being half-naked and holding a wine glass isn't exactly a great image, it's a breath of fresh air here.

Iori's eyes lit up when he saw this person, but the real-life appearance was naturally different from the game character, and this person wasn't the kind of Servant with very distinctive features. Iori couldn't recall the real name for a moment. Only after the person came over and greeted him did a name flash through his mind, and he blurted out:

"Teacher Qiao?!"

"……teacher?"

St. George laughed: "You called me teacher?"

Iori quickly said, "I'm sorry, Your Excellency St. George, I was just a little stunned."

"It's okay. Anyone would find this strange. You've been quite calm."

St. George smiled slightly, not caring.

Seeing that he was still rational, Iori quickly asked, "Do you know what's going on? What happened at Chaldea? Do you have any clue?"

"I don't know what happened either? Well, when I came to my senses, I was already here."

Saint George shook his head: "I know something has happened in Chaldea, but I'm trapped here and can't do anything but worry... If you have a way to save Chaldea, I will do my best to help."

"Thank you."

Iori breathed a sigh of relief: "Then can you tell me what exactly is going on here?"

The young man glanced around, his brows furrowing slightly, especially when he saw Hercules quietly soaking in the hot spring.

In my memory, this berserker was always in a very irritable state, so seeing him quiet now feels a bit strange.

St. George pondered for a moment and said, "I can only tell you what I know: this space is governed by a strange force. The air is filled not with heat but with the aroma of wine, and anyone who inhales the aroma will inexplicably become excited."

However, if someone is already a berserker, the impact is less noticeable.

"I see."

Iori nodded: "Then do you know where the Lord, the owner of this space, is?"

“I don’t know what ‘Lord’ is, but my intuition tells me that to unlock the secrets here, I must first satisfy these drunkards.”

St. George chuckled and said, "Or we could exhaust them."

"That's not difficult."

Iori looked around. "All I have to do is go along with their nonsense."

"Yes, I tried before you came, but I never succeeded."

St. George sighed: "After all, I have to be self-disciplined and can't indulge myself, so I can't drink like them. And if I can't fit into the circle, I can't even begin to understand their needs."

Can't drink heavily?

"Ok?"

Iori glanced sideways at the wine glass in St. George's hand, which contained amber-colored liquid, and quite a considerable amount of it.

"Oh, you mean this?"

St. George said nonchalantly, "You've got it wrong. This isn't wine; it's a beverage from the Far East."

"drinks?"

Iori raised an eyebrow.

"That's right, a beverage."

St. George said, “Although I am not a strict Puritan, the doctrine itself contains rules for self-discipline and abstinence, and as a knight of the apology, I should set an example.”

Iori nodded. If he remembered correctly, Catholics considered wine to be the blood of God, and therefore drank it on many occasions, which was not considered excessive drinking. But apart from wine, other types of alcohol should only be consumed in moderation.