They've already fought their way through the Holy Grail War, and you still call them dragons?

Xia Mi's expression relaxed and she slumped to the ground, looking relieved as if she could finally have a break.

"The simulated real-life combat system created by Norton is still too realistic. Some of the pain and fatigue feedback are very real. Why don't you let your brother do it next time?" Nono responded with a sympathetic look.

Xia Mi waved her hand, saying, "Stop talking nonsense! Besides you, we also have Eri for daily training! Do you think I want to be beaten? This is all just Lord Emiya's order!"

After a short rest, she stood up again and looked at the other red-haired witch who was gradually approaching.

Eri nodded, her hair color gradually changing from red to black and white. "Please, my other self."

The power of the military god Kenshin Uesugi gradually emerged from his body.

Xia Mi's eyes gradually lost their luster. Yes, this guy is even more of a heavyweight!

Chapter 339 Avalon, your emperor is back!

“…Ah, I’m so tired. I can’t do it anymore.”

After the daily sparring with Eri finally ended, Xia Mi collapsed to the ground like a dead fish.

This scene was more or less familiar—not long ago, Helweil's performance was similar after completing a large number of imaginary number tests. The two could be said to be in the same boat.

"You're so weak," Nono said, folding his arms idly. "Rookie and the King of the Weak, why don't you give your throne to your brother? I think he's tough and should be able to handle it better than you. Isn't he more reliable than you, a Jörmungandr?"

After confirming that the drill was finally over, Nono walked over and straightened Eiry's clothes, which were a little messy during the battle, while she was adjusting her breathing. She breathed a sigh of relief when she found that Eiry's mental state was as healthy and perfect as usual.

"...Whatever you say, this isn't the first time you've seen me like this. But you, you keep saying I'm so weak, but in reality you want me to let go of this job and lighten the burden. Nono, are you really concerned about me or are you not?"

Xia Mi felt her skin had thickened considerably after being ridiculed so many times. Even casual words like Nuonuo's drifted into her ears like a gentle breeze, leaving no impact at all. She even managed to drop her Dragon King status and retort a few teasing remarks, completely acting like the unconventional Xia Mi herself...

Alas, has the cold and intelligent Queen of Jörmungandr turned into a phantom of the past that disappeared with the butterflies in just a few years?

"Who cares about you? I'm just worried that you'll be exhausted during these daily sparring sessions, and then you won't be able to do your job as head maid properly. You'll be caught between two things and lose sight of the big picture. How can that be okay?"

Nuonuo said as she helped pull Xia Mi, who was struggling to get up from the ground, up. Then, after stretching, the three of them left the simulation training room together.

The long corridor stretched in all directions, revealing the simple decor and bright, clean environment of a research institute. However, unlike Chaldea, the space beyond the corridor that Nono and the other two stepped into was much wider and more expansive.

The dark and cold hard stone surfaces surround it in all directions, and are stacked tightly in rows like the long arms of a giant leaning on each other, rising from the ground to form a series of smooth-surfaced peaks and high walls. Their breadth and height remind people of the three giant walls of Paradis Island in "Attack on Titan".

However, there are no super-large giants here. As the altitude increases, these mountain-like walls gather together and wrap around each other, and finally merge into one right above the building complex where Nono and others are located, forming a perfect and exquisite dome.

The bright and clear elements can cast light like a long-burning lamp, which is kept running by the circulating permanent alchemical matrix, so that this place can be brightly lit day and night, and the brightness and number of lights depend solely on the wishes of the people here - anyone with permission to use the alchemical matrix can control it remotely with their thoughts, and the operation is more convenient than the remote control of human technology.

"Let's be honest, Norton's professionalism is truly remarkable! If it were a human construction team, building a mountain-sized structure wouldn't be a problem, but this alchemical matrix, which combines adjustment and control, automatic defense, search and detection, and a variety of other functions, is beyond the reach of ordinary alchemists."

Xia Mi curled her lips at Nuonuo's statement, "I think you humans don't understand at all. For the King of Bronze and Fire, the level of this work isn't even the tip of the iceberg. After all, he's the Dragon King who's most proficient in alchemy. Give him enough time to develop, and his accumulated skills will become more and more terrifying—"

"I've heard of Norton. Emiya said he's the dean of Atlas Academy, but the alchemists under him haven't been in good mental shape."

Eiry asked from the side, while extending her hand and pointing to the area on her forehead.

There was a hint of worry in her eyes when she asked. Perhaps in Eiry's understanding, a poor mental state is equivalent to mental illness. Norton, the dean, seems to have become the dean of a mental hospital called Atlas Hospital.

"Uh... I don't know why he recruited a bunch of weird humans. Maybe they meet Norton's requirements and don't mind working with the Dragon King."

Since the reconstruction of these sites also relied on the help of the Atlas Academy, Xia Mi, like everyone else, had heard about the degree of insanity of those alchemists.

It has to be said that Norton's choice to hire them is at least far better than choosing some diehard secret party members who still regard slaying the dragon as their mission.

At least these people who originally belonged to the Equipment Department were the type who were powerless outside of research. They valued their lives above all other moral principles. Over the years they had worked together, even if Norton hadn't mentioned it, these researchers had guessed his true identity from his actions sooner or later.

But so what? They'd already fled the Secret Party anyway. Working for the Dragon King in a secluded place wasn't much safer than fleeing elsewhere. You could criticize them for being insane, but you had to admit they were practical and sensible.

"The current trajectory of the world is far different than it was before. The diehards clinging to outdated dragon-slaying ideologies are no longer as vocal as they once were."

Nono, who was in the front, led the two into the center of the vast building complex. After entering the building at the corner, they walked through the empty and bright lobby and came to the restaurant in the dining area. They took three glasses of ice-cold lemonade from the automatic beverage machine.

Floating in the clear liquid are neatly shaped fruit pieces and square ice cubes.

After Nono handed it to the two of them, he said:

"In recent years, the voices of these people have been largely drowned out by other major events, especially the Holy Grail War five years ago. The relevant intelligence was thoroughly studied by all factions. It's obvious that they were planning to 'create a second God Slayer,' but so far, they haven't managed to replicate it."

Eri listened quietly. She was a good listener most of the time. She held the drink in both hands and took small sips, her cheeks rising and falling slightly.

Xia Mi took a big sip of the iced drink the moment she got it. She was the most tired of the three, and the perfect sweetness seemed to soothe her spirit. She raised the corners of her mouth slightly and continued:

"It would be a miracle if they succeeded! Look at you! The White King is dead, and her dream of becoming a god has been shattered by Emiya. And as for the benefits, let's not talk about Emiya's, the rest have all been divided among you two sisters!"

"Unless they realize that only people like you are qualified to act as simulated Holy Grail, replicating the Holy Grail War will be a delusion in this lifetime." Master Xia Mi waved his hand with some pride.

When talking about the outside forces, Xia Mi's tone began to rise again. The secret party Clock Tower was nothing but a bunch of scum that was only fit to eat the farts behind the Emiya forces...

Nuonuo was a little amused. Why is there such a huge gap between you Dragon Kings? Both of you are first-generation species, but Norton is constantly breaking through technical bottlenecks and innovating alchemy, while you are just doing odd jobs and getting beaten up every day without any improvement... You are getting worse and worse.

"Speaking of the Holy Grail War, I have to talk about Yemu, who originally wanted to be the mastermind behind the war, but failed to deliver, forcing him to seek help from Emiya to turn the tide..."

"Hey, stop, stop, stop!" Xia Mi quickly stopped the other party from trying to bring up the "Jörmungandr Jokes". She felt that her dark history had been inexplicably known to a lot of people in the past few years.

"Can you please not bring this up? By the way, is Reggie Reeves still working at the Bureau of Anatomy? I heard she's been learning how to make magic props there lately, and she's learned a lot from the people in the Clock Tower."

Nono nodded. "Yes, she's still a young girl, but she's making progress. She's been very busy at the Secret Corpse Anatomy Bureau lately because Emiya and Su Enxi, who used to be in charge, have formed some kind of investigation team and gone to Chaldea in Antarctica. Su Enxi's people are reliable, but they can't do without our people watching over them, so Regirev can't leave for the time being."

"I see. It seems the tomb-digging business is still as prosperous as ever."

"Isn't that right? Otherwise, how could our 'Second Chaldea' built in Avalon be so large?"

Nuonuo raised his head and pouted.

The other two agreed in their hearts. Mining the Nidhogg Tomb was truly a lucrative business.

As the Holy Grail War became a craze, a new era of alchemy - magic - also rose to prominence. Now many people began to call themselves magicians, and among them, the Clock Tower, which was closest to the Tomb of the Souls, had the most influence.

This wasn't without reason. Magic was more liberal in form than traditional alchemy, but at the same time, the materials required for magical research also increased exponentially. Coincidentally, magicians discovered that the biological tissues excavated from the tomb of Nidhogg were active and elementally compatible, making them the best material for magical research.

This further sparked a craze for tomb mining, and the Secret Corpse Anatomy Bureau that operated the area took the opportunity to make a fortune. At the time, Su Enxi almost couldn't stop smiling - for her, making money in the financial field was already an easy game, but she never expected that there was an even easier way to "make money while lying down."

In short, with the help of this huge sum of money, Emiya brought a large amount of rare materials and a letter of commission, asking the Atlas Institute to significantly transform the island of Avalon into the multifunctional institution like the giant fortress in front of them.

"By the way...when will he come back?" Eiry's lips moved away from the straw of the ice drink and she suddenly asked.

Nuonuo and Xia Mi exchanged a glance, both knowing that they were asking about Emiya. Xia Mi said, "According to the rules, today is his last day of 'supervising' at the Atlas Institute. Once the modification of that imaginary submarine is completed, it should be—"

Before Xia Mi could utter the word "return", the three of them suddenly heard a noisy sound echoing from the restaurant's radio channel. At the same time, a huge public screen automatically lit up, and several figures appeared -

"Ahem... Microphone test, microphone test... This is the BB channel!"

BB was holding a large megaphone in his hand: "Hi, ladies and gentlemen of Avalon, your supreme Emperor Emiya is back!"

----

"...Yoshi, the report is over, Senior."

At the entrance to Avalon Island, BB lowered his speaker. "Senior? What's wrong? Can you smile?"

"?"

"Oh my, oh my, didn't you understand what a baby kiss means? It means to turn the corner of your mouth to the side and lift it up at the same time—"

"Why am I the Crooked-Mouthed Dragon King? No, the point is... BB, is it necessary to make such a big fuss?"

Emiya wondered why BB suddenly picked up the speaker, but it turned out that he was doing this specifically for the whole job.

He thought about it and realized that it wasn't like he hadn't been to Avalon for several years. The last time he came here was only a few weeks, less than a month. If it weren't for the emergency soul particle transfer, which required a temporary team to attack the Tokyo singularity, Emiya would have come back even faster.

"Huhu, this is a necessary little secret to maintaining a sense of ritual in life, Senior!"

BB, now in physical form, appeared beside Emiya. She raised a slender white finger and waved it, "A daily life that's free from boredom must have torturous little surprises, unexpected and illogical moments, and vibrant and twisted character interactions!"

"Speak human language!" Emiya's face darkened.

"In other words, hehe, make trouble!" BB stopped pretending and said in a tone of "see what you can do to me", making it clear that she would definitely not "let it go" next.

"Woman, you are playing with fire."

Emiya stretched out his hand, grabbed BB's head with an undying grip and lifted her up.

"Woo-"

For a moment, the hall was filled with the echoes of the female ghost's pleading after being humiliated and trained.

Leonardo da Vinci, who came with the two of them, originally wanted to visit the "Chaldea Division", a work by Master Norton, to see how valuable it was. After seeing BB's scene, he wondered whether he should try to dissuade him. It would not be good to use such direct and rough means on his own people, right?

But Helver and Orluen, who were standing on both sides, signaled to Da Vinci with their eyes that it was okay.

After all, this wasn't a big deal. BB, the AI ​​with a mental issue, had been getting scolded for a long time, and every time, she'd deserved it. She was completely oblivious to the punishments she received, and her principle was, "I was wrong, I'll do it again next time," so this was a minor incident. I'd gotten used to it after seeing it so often at Emiya's house.

pat pat pat.

Not long after, footsteps were finally heard in the distance. It was Nono and the other two who came running over after receiving BB's high-profile notification.

I have to say that this Chaldea branch is good in every way, except for its sheer size. Even getting from the center to the entrance (the edge of the island) is quite a distance, a journey no less than a long-distance run. Fortunately, the three of them are non-human, so this minor issue isn't a big deal.

"you are back!"

No one knew who said this first, but when Emiya heard it, he turned around and saw three girls running side by side, no one lagging behind the other.

Even more so, Nono and Eri were running swiftly with the undulating movements of the waves, while Xia Mi... was running without any fluctuations, muffledly, as if competing to reach the finish line first -

Uh, no, is this also a competition?

"Hey, hey! Don't run so fast."

When Emiya turned around, he subconsciously wanted to put down the object (BB:?) in his hand. As a result, Nono and Eri, who reacted faster among the three, also subconsciously reached out and caught it.

The two red-haired girls stopped at the same time after catching the baby, but the third one who followed didn't have time to stop.

thump!

Xia Mi pushed Emiya down.

Chapter 340: An Unexpected Path

"...Woo!"

Most afraid of the air suddenly quiet.

It was so quiet that their breathing overlapped so clearly, and their warm and fragrant breath fanned each other's faces.

What was even more coincidental was that today, Xia Mi had just practiced with two red-haired young ladies for a while, and the soreness and fatigue in her body had not actually eased much, and she had gulped down a few gulps of ice drinks.

The replenished water immediately entered the circulation, causing the originally dry and slippery skin to ooze out sweat and wet the clothes. As a result, Emiya himself fell backwards to the ground, and he also clearly and intuitively felt the flat, delicate and moist touch coming from Xia Mi.

hiss--

Emiya's gaze shifted slightly... Although Xia Mi's chest barely swayed, it was indeed very white.

Xia Mi was stunned for three full seconds before she finally came to her senses. She immediately turned away her increasingly red face and subconsciously wiped her mouth.

Because he and Emiya spend quite a bit of time together, and because of the close bond of the blood pact, they subconsciously have no defenses against each other... so when this unexpected event occurred, neither of them had any idea how to respond.

But when it comes to private matters, the window paper has not been broken.

Even when Emiya and the others were in bed, Xia Mi could only watch and deal with the aftermath... Well, although after that it was she who had to work hard, and she had to deal with not only the traces but also the reactions she had.

As for the way to calm down, there weren't many side dish options she had access to over the years... Xia Mi's eyes wandered and she couldn't help but glance at the man in front of her -

"How long are you going to sit on him?" a cold voice whispered in her ear. Xia Mi looked up, startled by the unfriendly gazes of the women around her. Even someone as innocent as Eri puffed up her cheeks.

Only BB, after noticing that the atmosphere was not right, had a smirk on his face as if his evil plan had succeeded. He was probably proud that his plan had been realized in an unexpected way, and completely forgot about the punishment that Emiya had just given him.

"Tink! Ladies and gentlemen, this is a surprise!"

BB once again raised the damn loud speaker and applauded and cheered loudly for the atmosphere of "unity and friendship" in front of him.

"Surprise, you big-headed ghost!" Nuonuo's eardrums were buzzing due to the sudden shout from the side. When BB was not prepared, he grabbed the trumpet prop that came from nowhere.

Feeling embarrassed, Xia Mi stood up and carefully retreated behind him. "Just now, I accidentally slipped... I don't know what happened, I didn't stop..."

"My feet are slipping?" Emiya wiped his mouth nonchalantly as he stood up. He looked down at the ground, which was originally normal, but now there were faint water stains on it.

"Avalon Island is surrounded by water, which results in a generally humid atmosphere. However, the interior of the building is colder, with a significant temperature difference from the outside. It's only natural that moisture would condense when we enter, right?"

BB whistled with a smile on his face and explained seriously that it was none of his business.

Da Vinci hesitated for a moment and ultimately did not speak. She felt that there was nothing wrong with the physical process, but... she controlled it just right to avoid other people, making the ground under Emiya and Xia Mi's feet particularly slippery for a moment. This operation was quite unusual.

Emiya was obviously suspicious. "BB, I remember you also have control over the Alchemy Matrix system of the Chaldea branch?"

"...Yeah!" BB stopped laughing and cautiously looked at Emiya's loosened fist to see if he was clenching it again. Suddenly, her legs felt weak, thinking that Emiya had suspected her little trick. She quickly replied, "What's wrong, senior?"

"Nothing, BB. I hope you'll use your authority for good purposes in the future."

Emiya tapped her head, deciding not to pursue the matter any further.