Xingyue, is Xiaokai also considered Kai?

At this moment, Erise had a strong premonition that if she continued talking, the topic would be led astray. Therefore, she turned her gaze from Euclid, who was bowing his head with tears in his eyes, to Novia.

...That's right, I am Death—and after Death has finished his work, the person involved will never give him praise.

Even so, Novia's gentle smile remained unchanged.

His smile seemed to carry both helplessness and affection, as if he were looking at his incompetent apprentice or child.

"Speaking of which, I do know a little. The Champs-Élysées, the most beautiful street in Paris, originally means the paradise in the underworld where the souls of saints and heroes reside in Greek mythology. The poet Hesiod said that the ruler there was Keronus, the second generation of Greek gods, while Homer said that the ruler there was Rhadamanthus, the judge of the underworld and son of Zeus and Europa."

“The concept of Bliss may have been a continuation of the ancient Greek religion of Minoanism, which was a polytheistic religion with a mother goddess as the main deity. Later Orphic religions used this concept to teach believers how to perform the ‘Dionysian Mystery’ to be reborn in Bliss.”

Why……

How does Novia know even this so much?! Damn it...

Looking at Novia who was speaking, Eri felt a surge of anger rising within her, and the vague anxiety she had felt when she first arrived in Tokyo resurfaced.

Although she rationally knew that Chitose and Arisu's friend couldn't possibly do anything bad to her, she still couldn't help it.

"The historian Theodorus, who wrote the Outline of Greek History, believed that the paradise praised in all Greek poetry was the capital of Egypt. According to the Ptolemaic dynasty at the time, the capital of Egypt was Alexandria, which was the so-called paradise."

"In comparative theology, the Pure Land of Bliss is regarded as the Buddhist Pure Land."

At this point, Novia stared intently at Rusena, who was staring at her with wide eyes.

“The Pure Lands of Vairocana Buddha, such as the Vajrasattva World and the Lotus Treasury World, and the Tusita Heaven and Saha World of Maitreya Buddha, are also regarded as Pure Lands.”

"Wow, Novia, you know so much... You're not Euclidean at all..."

Euclid sighed twice, and finally could only say this to Eri, who was biting her lip tightly:

"--But Eri, that Demon King you mentioned, since you said he's long dead or has already returned to the Throne of Heroes, right? If you ever meet him in the future, please give him my regards. He actually managed to answer your questions before I did, so he might be a very talented mathematician or a promising future talent."

……OK.

Eri didn't say it aloud, but replied in her heart.

Even if that guy might want my body and become my enemy.

The most unbearable feeling is when you can't see the person you want to see.

……

The Tokyo TV headquarters in Tokyo, the underworld.

One office not only had several desks with computers on them, but also air conditioning installed on the ceiling. All these decorations made people forget that this place was also part of the ruins.

“‘It is precisely because of the remaining maple leaves in autumn that there is resentment in the autumn wind scattering flowers in spring. My heart is like the autumn evening wind that blows away the clouds and reveals the bright moon.’”

The man who said this was a punk with five-colored hair.

"That Ujimasa guy doesn't even know how many bowls of ochazuke he can eat, but he talks a very poetic game. But the Hojo clan really did fall at his hands. I guess my words really came true..."

He then placed the game controller on the table, which had several bowls of tea-soaked rice on it, and leaned back in his gaming chair.

A holographic projection screen floated in front of me, displaying gameplay footage from the role-playing game "The Elder Scrolls: Skyrim".

Afterwards, the punk man stared at the gray landscape outside.

Upon closer inspection, the rust-colored waves suddenly surged unhappily towards Tokyo, the underworld protected by the remnants of urban AI, before receding abruptly, everything dissolving into a gloomy blue, as if the waves were surging from the ends of the earth.

A few seconds later, a man with long, straight hair, wearing a black hat and a brown coat, opened the office door carrying a brown leather suitcase.

The man with long, straight hair didn't say anything, but it was as if he was already speaking just by looking at him.

"Then, may those foolish people outside Tokyo, under the peaceful witness of the Great Bodhisattva Myoken, await the day the moon opens its eyes and Ni tears apart the corpse of Suzaku—"

The expressions on the faces of the "Shamate" men showed neither a smile nor any sense of ease.

"The immortal... new emperor."

Chapter 520 The New Holy Grail War.

After saying goodbye to Euclid, Eri and the others returned to the hotel arranged by Tokyo night watchman John to rest.

Since Tokyo was reduced to ruins, John said he had to rush to build this hotel, so there were only three rooms: one for Chitose, one for Novia and Tiamat, and one for Eri and Lushena. As for why it wasn't Chitose and Tiamat in one room, that was Tiamat's request.

So the next morning, the smell of the sea and the cold air seeped into the hotel room through the cracks in the window, making the hotel look as if it had been blackened with charcoal.

While she was asleep, Eri felt that she heard a faint whooshing sound.

Is that the sound of the wind from afar? That incredibly desolate and lonely sound seems to come from the ends of the earth, blowing towards the land of the dead.

Suddenly, Eri woke up from her terrifying dream. Incredibly, she didn't find it strange at all. She just subconsciously looked at the back of her right hand. Although she still didn't have a Command Seal, she felt three warm sensations. She could tell that they were the lingering effects of the magic flow.

Eri quickly picked up the information terminal on the small table beside her bed and recorded the contents of her dream in as much detail as possible.

Although she really wanted to log on to the city information network to see if anyone else had a similar revelatory dream, unfortunately, she couldn't log on because of the situation in Tokyo. She could only leave the city by train.

Anyway... that dream I just had must have been about that... could it be a revelation from the 'Holy Grail'...?

Thinking this, Erise glanced at the single bed next door, where Lushena was still wrapped in a sheet, curled up like a puppy, sleeping.

In Erise's eyes, the dream she had was undoubtedly a signal that the Holy Grail War was about to begin.

She pressed her hand against the glass window, through which stretched an endless, unreal Tokyo, a scene of utter darkness.

It was a strange sight, devoid of any color, yet not unpleasant. Eri felt that across this wetland lay another world, a place she had frequented before she was four years old, on the other side of the world, in the deepest darkness.

At the same time, Erise also tried her best to imprint the impressions from the dream into her mind—

In the dream, a somewhat familiar voice spoke to the black-haired girl:

The seven Servants finally gathered on the battlefield.

The moon behind him radiated a light similar to that of Buddha, and at the same time, it seemed to open its eyes and shed tears of blood. Its size was comparable to that of a giant humanoid demon in a movie; it seemed to be a snake that could be seen endlessly on an endless sea; it was humanoid, but it was raining, conspicuously standing on the top of a dark snow mountain.

In contrast, each of them has a different creature on their shoulder. The demon has a person with colorful, punk-style hair on his shoulder, the snake has a person with skin as white as milk on its back, and the man has a blond old man on his back.

It's as if they were combined in pairs.

If Eri also joins the battle as a Master to seize the Holy Grail, then she must mercilessly defeat all enemies, using their lives as sacrifices to the Holy Grail. If any Servants stand in her way, she must kill them all, leaving none alive...

Especially that giant demon, and most importantly, the Buddha's light that protected the demon. That thing stripped away everything that created the Japanese archipelago, so it had to be killed.

The voice in the dream also told Erise that the Demon King was a Servant who appeared in this new Holy Grail War, and his class name was "Novia".

Wait a minute... is this for real...?

In the past Holy Grail Wars, Eri had never heard of a Servant of this class.

In addition to the name Novia being associated with the first pope of the Church, the name Novia was also used by a 20th-century Danish linguist to commemorate the legends surrounding the pope's disappearance. Novia was created as an international auxiliary language, and perhaps for this reason, there is a university in Finland called Novia.

The Demon King? Novia?

This... Could it be that Lucius didn't say anything? Could it be for some other reason that he specifically gave the Demon King a new class? Could it be because yesterday I listened to Euclid's nonsense and Novia's sweet talk, and presumptuously believed that he and the Demon King were similar despite being different, so I misinterpreted the memories of the dream? This is truly the most ridiculous thing ever.

And then there was that voice in my dream… I didn’t see the face… but that voice… it was definitely Qian Sui…

As time ticked by, Eri became increasingly uncertain about the vague 'revelation' she was receiving.

Could it be that someone a thousand years ago also had such a revelation dream?

That being the case.

Eri felt she had to be on high alert and always be ready for battle. The Tokyo ruins, now transformed into a hellscape, were full of problems, and she had to do her best to avoid being influenced by her preconceived notions.

then.

As Eri staggered out of the room and downstairs, she saw Novia staring at a tall man wearing a black hat and a brown coat. The man was sturdy and looked to be in his thirties, with deep-set, light gray eyes that made him seem unapproachable.

Basically, it's a completely incompatible entity with Novia.

For some reason, Eri didn't go out directly, but subconsciously hid, wanting to eavesdrop on what the two were saying.

There was nothing moving around them, not even Novia and the man's backs, which made Eri wonder if the two were automatons, or if she was hallucinating, or if she was still dreaming.

After a while, the tall man who had been looking at Novia turned around and looked at Eri with his gray eyes at her hiding to the side, which startled her.

"The girl over there doesn't need to hide from me."

After being told this, Eri Se saw no need to hide anymore and walked to Novia's side, cautiously meeting the man's gaze.

Looking at the man whose posture resembled a black tombstone, Eri couldn't help but gaze at the gray ruins of Tokyo behind him. A buzzing sound echoed from the deep sea, like the sound of a whirlpool, a strange sound that seemed to evoke distant memories.

"You must feel like you've entered another world, right?"

The man seemed to know what Eri was thinking. "However, the ecosystem around Tokyo, which is covered by seawater, is not biological, but rather mimicry created by drones. Nevertheless, it's quite lively, and the scenery is unlike other mosaic cities that remain unchanged every day."

"Will it remain unchanged?"

"Yes, it blooms in spring and insects chirp in summer. It happens every four months."

As they were talking, the man with long, straight hair took out a tiny, black, motionless insect, smaller than a fingernail, from his brown leather suitcase and gave it to Eri. "Your name is Utsumi Eri, right? If so, this is for you."

"...Why should I have it?"

"You should accept it, Eri."

"Yes, as you said, please accept it, because you will definitely need it."

The man bowed to Novia. “Now that the goods have been delivered, I will take my leave… By the way, Eri, there is something I still want to tell you now. The reason you cannot leave Mosaic City is because you yourself are a miracle. You have no father, but your mother is a Servant. Yet you are still human, a living human being, I assure you.”

After saying that, the man slowly walked towards the gray, canvas-like streets of Tokyo.

Eri was confused by this.

What am I? I have no father? Am I a follower? How was I born? What is this...? I can't understand what he's saying...

At the same time, looking at the lifeless insect in her palm, Erise suddenly shivered. She felt as if the insect was staring into her eyes, so she asked Novia with slight irritation:

"Speaking of which, who is that person?"

"Him,"

Novia said calmly, "Taiba Masakado, the number one vengeful spirit in Japan."

"……ha?!"

The Undying Demon, or the New Emperor, are both titles given to Taira no Masakado in the Type-Moon universe.

According to the Genpei Benjuroku, Taira no Masakado was protected by Myoken Bodhisattva and conquered the eight provinces of Bando. However, because of his ruthlessness, he was not tolerated by the Bodhisattva and was not afraid of the emperor's majesty. Therefore, Myoken Bodhisattva entrusted Taira no Masakado to his uncle, Taira no Yoshifumi. This legend has been passed down by the descendants of the Chiba clan.

During the Sengoku period, the daughter of the Chiba family was with Hojo Ujiyasu, the Lion of Sagami, and thus began a marriage alliance.

Originally, the Sonko-in Temple of the Chiba family enshrined Myoken Bosatsu. After the separation of Shinto and Buddhism was ordered during the Meiji period, it was converted into the Chiba Shrine, and the deity enshrined was changed from Myoken Bosatsu to Amanomiminakanushi. This was because Myoken Bosatsu and Amanomiminakanushi had long been regarded as the same deity and were enshrined together as Shinto and Buddhism.

Hastur, Zhenwu the Great, Myoken Bodhisattva, and Ame no Minaka no Kami—these beings from different systems became one in a certain moment and in a certain country. This is either a power created by humankind or a legend.

That is why, when Novia, who had gotten up early in the morning and gotten rid of Tiamat's baby limbs, arrived at the hotel entrance, she became interested in Taira no Masakado's sudden visit.

After all, he seems to have encountered quite a few people like this lately: Euclid, who is related to Hastur; Taira no Masakado, who is protected by Myoken Bosatsu; Vairocana of the esoteric religion; and Amanokinushi, who, according to Tiamat, is currently hiding somewhere...

Let's go back to this morning, to the moment when Novia and the peace manager met.

"You must be tired from coming all this way? Would you like to have a seat?"

Taira no Masakado stared blankly at Novia sitting by the door for a long while before suddenly snapping back to reality. Just that alone made him feel a dizzying tension rising from the soles of his feet.

"...I am Taira no Masakado."

Taira no Masakado's usually hearty and slightly hoarse voice sounded somewhat hesitant at this moment.

"It doesn't matter who it is."

Novia simply waved her hand dismissively, as if it were no big deal. "My name is Novia."

To Taira no Masakado, the man he was meeting for the first time exuded an indescribable sense of oppression from head to toe—his breath, his eyes, his every move, and even his appearance—making it impossible for him to relax. Thus, he simply stood at the door like a tombstone.

When Novia pulled out his chair and stood up, Hiramasaka couldn't help but squat down so that he, who was three meters tall, could look him in the eye.

Then, Taira no Masakado was bombarded with questions from Novia: what his class was, who he liked, his strengths, his Noble Phantasm and skills, his thoughts on the present, and his purpose in coming here...

The two exchanged questions and answers, with Novia nodding slightly at times, listening attentively, and then throwing out the next question.

Taira no Masakado was puzzled by his honest answer, despite his usually short temper.

"Then what is your wish?"

Taira nods.

I don't need any famous swords, nor do I want any famous bows.

Weapons and the like can be replaced with clotheslines.

But that one thing, that one thing I really want, I want it no matter what—