"So... so uncomfortable..."
For the first time, Jalter experienced what it felt like to be a water bag. With every movement, the soup sloshed around inside her; even a servant's body could barely handle it. But she finally managed to pull through...
"How can a child like you not even know how to refuse?"
Tiamat wasn't some unreasonable servant. If Jalter had just refused, she would have stopped this affection that bordered on torture. It wasn't like she was a certain Mommy-type servant with Mad Enhancement EX who wouldn't listen to a single word.
"With that look in her eyes, I couldn't bring myself to say it."
Normally, you couldn't even tell her alignment was Chaos Evil, which was quite bizarre.
"Then you'll just have to endure it."
Jiang You gloated and threw his hands up. To be honest, Jalter's behavior was actually quite cute. Since this little interlude was over, it was time to figure out Jalter's future arrangements. "So, what do you plan to do next?"
"What am I going to do next?"
Jalter truly hadn't thought about this yet. Previously, she was driven by revenge, but after being defeated by Chaldea, she had given up on that meaningless goal. She hadn't actively responded to a summons this time either; her appearance in The Mortal Realm this time was genuinely an accident.
"I've been wanting to ask this for a while now... you and Tia... Tiamat."
After much hesitation, Jalter finally referred to Tiamat in the same way Jiang You did. Calling her "Mommy" felt too embarrassing.
"Neither of you seem like the 'good guys,' do you? What do you usually do?"
Tiamat's massive horns were strikingly different from human ones, and Jiang You's aura transcended even the word "evil." Jalter felt like she had stumbled into a gathering place for villains. Given her own nature, it seemed like fate had brought her here.
"Tiamat used to be the final boss, but she's reformed now. As for me..."
Jiang You thought for a moment. He seemed to have almost become someone who just looked for fun lately. Originally, it was saving the world (Script) while looking for some fun, but now it was looking for fun while being careful not to destroy the world.
"I'm currently transitioning from a 'good guy' to the final boss. I usually just look for some fun, while Tiamat is focused on observing humanity's development."
"This... What even is this?"
This answer threw Jalter for a loop for a moment. Logically, the appearance of a powerful villainous servant was usually accompanied by conspiracies and danger, so why did it seem like she had arrived at a retirement home? Jalter gestured at the surrounding scenery and pointed to the starry sky above. "One look at this place and it's clearly somewhere like a Demon King's Castle, right? Do you really have no ambition?"
"If you put it that way... I suppose so."
Bubble's aesthetics were undeniably excellent, but the overall atmosphere indeed had a strong dark Gothic vibe, giving off a gloomy and mysterious beauty.
"But at the end of the day, this is just a Library. Besides, what do you think we should be doing—conquering the world?"
"..."
Jalter, who styled herself as a villain, thought about it but really couldn't come up with any grander goals. In the past, all she had wanted to do was destroy France.
"You can't think of anything either, right? So, let's aim for a slightly more normal goal, like drawing doujinshi?"
Jiang You wasn't sure about her hobbies either. Aside from seeming very easy to coax, Jalter was usually treated as a comic relief character, so her specific interests weren't exactly clear. Jiang You could only use her behavior during the Swimsuit Event as a reference.
"Doujinshi? Am I... am I, as the Dragon Witch, really that cheap?"
Jalter expressed that she wouldn't do such a thing even if it killed her; why was she being made out to be some kind of gag character?
Jiang You stroked his chin. Since she hadn't yet experienced the baptism of Chaldea, she still harbored unnecessary fantasies about things like Heroic Spirits. In her eyes, Heroes, villains, and ordinary people had fundamental differences. He couldn't force her to change her mindset right now; taking her out to have fun for a few more days would probably be enough.
"Then what do you want to do?"
Jiang You genuinely wanted to hear Jalter's own thoughts. All her actions over in Chaldea had been for her Master. If she were to focus entirely on herself, what would she do? "Tell me."
"I... I don't know."
Jalter's tone softened. Right now, she was like a college student who had suddenly graduated and entered society. Most people in that position didn't even realize that they had to start being independent from then on, and were filled with confusion and anxiety about the future.
Jiang You hadn't expected Jalter to give him an immediate answer. Her reaction reminded him of his own early days after graduation—a mixture of naive optimism and utter cluelessness.
"No rush," he said. "You have plenty of time to think. Having another mouth to feed here isn't a problem at all. Speaking of which, would you like to meet your original self?"
Jiang You could release Tiamat's summon, allowing her to return to the Fate/Apocrypha Worldline. Tiamat could then reverse-summon Jiang You, successfully adding another Script to his collection. Moreover, Tiamat's appearance had made Jeanne the target of all the Servants, so he couldn't simply ignore the situation.
"You still know that woman?" Jalter asked. She didn't exactly hate Jeanne, but she wasn't sure if she wanted to see her again. Instead of answering directly, she asked, "Where is she?"
"In another world."
"Another world? Did you kill her?" Jalter's immediate thought was that Jiang You wanted her to see the corpse of that white-robed fool. "I don't have such morbid tastes. If she's dead, let's just pretend she never existed."
"What are you thinking? I meant it literally, we have to go to another world to see her. I didn't clearly explain the reason for your birth before, but anyway..."
Next, Jiang You explained the general situation over in Fate/Apocrypha to Jalter.
"Hahahahaha!"
When she heard that Jeanne was treated as an enemy and jointly attacked by all the servants, Jalter clutched her stomach and burst out laughing. Evidently forgetting that her stomach was still full of soup, she hastily covered her throat, almost throwing up.
"The Saintess, how pathetic! Those servants who style themselves as Heroes are also showing an ugly side, launching attacks on their own without asking any questions. And Amakusa Shirou Tokisada? What a mouthful of a name. Calling himself a saint yet plotting to murder the Saintess, is this a grand and righteous saint? Disgusting! Since it's like this, of course I have to go see her pathetic state."
"Oh? Going to kick her while she's down?"
Jiang You felt that Jalter probably wouldn't actually do such a thing.
Sure enough, Jalter gave a fitting answer.
"That would be too boring. They attacked Tiamat, so naturally I have to go back and settle the score. And while I'm at it, I'll let that white idiot see what a so-called Saint really is!"
Jiang You knew she wanted to help, she was just being stubborn. He just didn't expect her to accept Tiamat so quickly; perhaps it was partly because she crawled out of the Black Mud.
"No problem, we'll set off in a bit. Before that, I need to find someone. Just wait here for Tiamat to come back. Once I'm done with my business, we'll go back to your main body together to settle the score."
Having sorted out Jalter's matters, Jiang You continued to distribute the remaining invitation letters. There was only one place left to go now.
Saying that, Jiang You waved his hand, and a Gate appeared out of thin air in front of him. As the Gate was pushed open, a world completely different from the surrounding environment was revealed before Jalter.
"Is this... another world?"
Jalter knew Jiang You was strong, but she didn't expect his abilities to be so absurd—opening a passage to another world just like that.
"It's not your destination; it's a Fairy World."
Jiang You explained. This was a world that only he could enter and exit normally, as servants from Pan-Human History were not welcome here.
"Someone from Pan-Human History... wait, I guess you don't count?"
Theoretically, Jalter did not exist in Pan-Human History, so the effect theoretically wouldn't cover her.
"...Do you want to come take a look around?"
"Since you're begging me, I suppose I can reluctantly come along."
Jalter was indeed quite curious, but she didn't want to show it.
"No, I didn't beg you."
Jiang You gave her a deadpan look, not intending to humor her pride at all.
"!"
Jalter wanted to get angry, but then she realized she couldn't beat Jiang You and they weren't that familiar yet, so she could only suppress her temper (similar to her attitude towards Swimsuit Jeanne d'Arc).
Ultimately, Jalter still followed Jiang You and stepped through the Gate.
Camelot, the Throne Room.
"This is...?"
Morgan looked at the envelope Jiang You handed over, appearing somewhat puzzled. She couldn't figure out what Jiang You was trying to do.
"Also, who is this?"
"My sister, probably."
Jiang You made a little joke, though based on Tiamat's words, she could indeed be called that.
"This is an invitation, inviting you to participate in the Duel Tournament."
"I see."
Morgan nodded, believing it just like that. She didn't really care much about Jalter's identity anyway, as in her eyes, Jalter was incredibly weak. Among the Three Fairy Knights, even the current Baobhan Sith could easily take her down. As long as Jiang You gave a response, that was enough. Right now, she was much more concerned with the changes in Jiang You. The magical power radiating from Jiang You was still chaotic, but the way it manifested was completely different from before. The current disorder was not just simply a mess, but contained a certain inexplicable sense of profundity that could probably only be described as Chaos.
The current Jiang You made even her feel a slight sense of threat, as if a giant god was staring back at her. But looking closely, it seemed as though nothing had happened at all.
She couldn't beat him.
This was the first time in over 2000 years that Morgan had felt so powerless. Something must have happened to Jiang You.
"The magical power within you is quite terrifying."
Morgan's implication was that she wanted Jiang You to give her an explanation; he was now ten times more terrifying than a Calamity.
"Oh, you mean this."
Jiang You's changes could be seen at a glance by powerful servants, which made him quite satisfied. Now he could finally show off a bit too. "Actually, I recovered my True Name."
Judging from Tiamat's attitude, it probably went far beyond just a True Name. However, Bubble had also authenticated it, so it didn't really matter whether it was true or not—the Authority was real, regardless.
"Jiang You... is not your True Name? I see."
Morgan nodded. Now Jiang You truly had a status equal to hers. "Then, would it be convenient for you to tell me your True Name?"
Morgan didn't speak as bluntly now. She considered whether Jiang You might have an obvious weakness like Siegfried, and was hiding his True Name because of it.
Jiang You, after all, wasn't Cthulhu, who could be killed by a boat ramming into him, so naturally there was no need to hide his name. Therefore, he stated it directly, "Azathoth. You probably don't possess knowledge of it. This name didn't appear in proper history, but is recorded in a sci-fi novel."
"If it's just that, it wouldn't possess such immense power."
"Because the novel is not the entirety of its vessel."
Referencing the situations of Swimsuit B.B, Abigail, and the other Foreigners, the Cthulhu pantheon genuinely existed within the Type-Moon World. "I am a real existence. If I had to be classified, I should be considered a Great God."
"Doubting yourself doesn't sound like something a Great God would say."
Morgan stared at Jiang You. She could sense the detachment between this name and Jiang You. This True Name of his was likely not his actual True Name either; it was somewhat akin to her own practice of bestowing names upon the Three Fairy Knights. However, Jiang You's situation seemed more like he had bestowed a name upon himself.
The act of bestowing a name was essentially a superior granting power to a subordinate. Jiang You's action of supplying power to himself completely violated the law of conservation of energy. Even Spells and spells could not escape the fundamental rules of this universe. Just like how Kaleidoscope appeared to have endless magical power, but in reality, he was drawing magical power from Parallel Worlds; it was not generated out of thin air.
"This is still not your True Name, right?"
Morgan questioned, "The fact that you can draw power from this name means you are a nobler existence than it. Jiang You, just what kind of existence are you?"
The abrupt question caught Jiang You off guard, leaving him at a loss for how to answer. The apex of the Type-Moon World consisted of the Great Gods, and even ORT and the Alien God. By classification, Azathoth should indeed be the apex of all things. So the question was, why would Morgan say he was even nobler than Azathoth? Although it was true that this wasn't his True Name, how could a player have a True Name? His name was indeed simply Jiang You.
It couldn't be that the existence known as Jiang You was nobler than Azathoth, right?
In a certain sense, it actually was. As consumers, players were the ones the game served. Ultimately, all the characters were just the players' toys, and the Type-Moon World was merely the players' playground.
"Your expression right now is quite strange."
Morgan had been observing the changes in Jiang You's expression. "You give me the feeling that you don't know the truth yourself, but you have roughly guessed the reason. If there is no answer, I don't necessarily have to know the truth right now. As for the invitation, I will attend."
Morgan had already determined that Jiang You was an incredibly absurd existence, even nobler than a Great God. If such an existence issued an invitation, she definitely had to attend. She had to win the Duel, so that she could use her wish to seek help from Jiang You, regardless of what aspect it was. When the moment came for Jiang You's identity to be revealed, this wish would definitely come in handy.