"Hah, hah, hah…!" Jeanne Alter panted.
"Zee, hah, zee…" Jeanne gasped.
(Why am I fist-fighting for girl power training…?!)
"The girl power I know is refined, pure, virtuous… ow…" Jeanne Alter groaned.
"…Hehe, hahaha!" Jeanne laughed.
"What's so funny?!" Jeanne Alter snapped.
"It's not funny—it's fun!" Jeanne said.
"What's the difference?!" Jeanne Alter retorted.
"Fighting like this, praying together, acknowledging each other—isn't it wonderful?" Jeanne said.
"Don't drag me into your shonen manga world!" Jeanne Alter protested. "I want to live in the Ciao or Comic Kirara world! Confirming friendship by brawling at the riverbank? Hard pass!!"
"Shonen manga's great, you know?" Jeanne said.
"You're too corrupted!" Jeanne Alter said. "Your fists are insanely heavy… ow…"
"Your hair," Jeanne said.
"Huh?"
"Why not grow it out?" Jeanne suggested. "It'd suit you. Emiya said flowing hair is beautiful."
"…Hair…" Jeanne Alter murmured.
"Yes," Jeanne said. "They say hair is a woman's life. I wanted to tell you that…"
"Then SAY it!!" Jeanne Alter shouted. "Why rely on fists?! Why throw away humanity's civilization?!"
"I had to convey my prayers," Jeanne said.
"Prayers are clasping hands, kneeling devoutly, and—Nnnnngh!!"
Thud.
"…Hey," Jeanne Alter said.
"Yes?" Jeanne replied.
"Will Master be happy?" Jeanne Alter asked.
"Absolutely," Jeanne said.
"…Hmph. Hey," Jeanne Alter said again.
"Yes?"
"Help me gather embers," Jeanne Alter said.
"—Yes," Jeanne agreed.
"Are you okay, Jeanne?!" a voice boomed. "What a tragic yet refreshing sight! Truly, you're like delinquent bosses brawling at the riverbank to confirm friendship—"
"Me!" Jeanne Alter shouted.
"I get it!" Jeanne said.
"Wha—?!" the voice yelped.
""It's sukeban, not boss!!"" they yelled in unison.
'Eye Gouge'
"HOAAAAAHH—!!" the voice screamed.
Fran's Resolve
"—Hear me, hear me. My name is the Steam King," Charles Babbage declared.
Having shaken off her doubts, Fran led the group with firm steps to confront him.
"So close to the apartment, huh?" Mordred said. "Talk about the lighthouse under your nose."
"Those with Intuition need to reflect…" Artoria sighed.
"C'mon, it's not my fault!" Mordred protested. "This fog's to blame!"
"Sure, sure, fog's fault," Rikka teased.
(So dismissive—!)
A gray mechanical body, an ornate mechanical club in its right hand, and a glowing red mono-eye.
"Okita-san, Okita-san!! Look!" Rikka exclaimed. "It's like something from Sakura Wars!"
"Yes! Makes me want to hop in and show my sincerity!!" Okita chirped.
"London Opera Troupe…" Rikka mused. "Mash as the heroine, Gil as the lead…"
"A Golden Theater?" the King said. "No, let's avoid that name. It reeks of a flop."
"What's that mean, Hero King?!" Okita demanded.
"Run—sonic speed! (In a Shukuchi sense)!" Rikka shouted.
"Sincere Okita-san! Heroine Okita-san! Big win, yay!" Okita cheered.
"Don't think you can escape with mysterious teleports," Artoria said. "Once I know you teleport, I'll cut you down accordingly."
"You're saying the same thing as Saito-san?!" Okita exclaimed.
"I want my own opera troupe!" another voice added. "Me starring! Rikka-tan as the heroine!"
"Heroine—!!" Rikka gasped.
"Everyone, quiet! Quiet!" Mash scolded.
The King's eyes see that armor as a Reality Marble given form.
"I see," the King said. "Nursery Rhyme drained mana by inducing sleep. You establish yourself through military force, don't you, Steam King?"
"—Those eyes, bearing divinity," Babbage said. "I recognize you as Gilgamesh, the king who led humanity at dawn."
"Indeed," the King replied. "Listen well. I am the Hero King, Gilgamesh! The great and gorgeous who severed humanity from the gods!!"
"You side with the virtuous, Hero King," Babbage said.
"Hmph, surprised?" the King said. "No surprise there—I'm shocked myself!"
Even facing a non-human machine, the King showed no hint of unease.
His absolute self-belief is a reliable anchor for someone nameless like me. His unyielding body and mind let him select treasures with confidence.
"You've come to defeat me," Babbage said. "The king of a fantasy world that never came to be, a fleeting dream. I, a Servant summoned by the fog, one of the masterminds behind the 'Demon Fog Plan' enveloping this city."
"Of course," the King said. "Those who stand against me with hostility face only one judgment: execution. No exceptions. —But…"
He signaled to Rikka.
"I'll grant you one keepsake for the underworld. Make it worth their appraisal."
"Got it! …Fran!" Rikka called.
Fran stepped forward to face Charles Babbage.
"Babbage-sensei!" she cried.
"!? —Victor's daughter…!?" Babbage exclaimed.
"Her father's long gone," the King said. "Without one to awaken her, we did. Gave her body and intellect. …Her mind, well, had some hiccups."
"Mordred…" Artoria muttered.
"Shut it!" Mordred snapped. "I ain't at fault! Hey, big shot! Talk to Fran!"
She slammed Clarent into the ground.
"Your friend's daughter's here to stop you!" Mordred said. "Hear her out! Save your ideals and speeches for after! Then decide what to do!"
She signaled Fran.
"Yes! Babbage-sensei!" Fran said. "I want to stop you!"
"Oh… Victor's daughter, you speak…" Babbage said, awe in his voice.
"Sensei's a great scholar!" Fran said. "Always thinking of the future, of humanity, of what he can do—a noble person! He called me Victor's daughter, a kind professor!"
"…"
"I believe in you!" Fran continued. "Sensei's a good person! A good professor who watches over humanity! And everyone here believes it too!"
Her halting but earnest persuasion echoed.
"Please stop!" she pleaded. "The real Sensei wouldn't think of 'destruction'! I believe in you! You built engines essential to humanity! A great scholar!"
"Oh, Victor's daughter, unforgettable," Babbage said. "Your words, your being, move me."
"Sensei!" Fran cried.
(Keep it up, Fran!)
(If this goes well, it'll save us trouble.)
"Artoria, don't let go of your hilt," the King warned. "If my treasures are the bait, then likely…"
"Yes," Artoria said. "It's sad, but…"
"Right—" Babbage began.
His mechanical body rumbled with a dignified hum.
"I, we, must fulfill our duty as scholars," he said. "We exist for people and civilization. Thus, I sought a fantasy world, a dream, a new era."
"Yes!" Fran said. "For 'everyone's happiness'!"
"Indeed," Babbage said. "I told you of civilization's meaning, of the value of people's happiness. Yes, Victor's daughter."
His mechanical gaze softened on Fran.
"I am Charles Babbage," he declared. "In steel, I sought to guide civilization. In thought, I wished for people's happiness."
"And wished for the world's and future's progress!" Fran added.
"—Exactly…" Babbage said. "That's why we, heroes, exist…"
Fran's plea pierced his steel heart—
In that moment—
"Guh…!?" Babbage froze.
"!?" Fran gasped.
"Tch," the King spat. "Quick response for mere rabble."
"Rikka! Protect Fran!" Romani shouted.
"Huh?!" Rikka said.
"Massive interference from another location!" Romani said. "This is—"
"The Grail," the King said. "A delusional apostle, consumed by my treasures woven into their plan."
Babbage's body trembled in response to the King's words.
"This—is Angrboda's interference!" Babbage groaned. "Binding me, driving me…! For the plan…!"
"Sensei!!" Fran cried.
Angrboda!? Could that be what's creating the fog…?
"So, 'M'… even me…!!" Babbage said.
His club rose—!
"Victor's daughter—flee…! No…! 'Stop me'…!" Babbage pleaded.
"Sensei—" Fran began.
Artoria blocked the descending club.
"Mordred!" she called.
"Got it!" Mordred said, grabbing Fran and pulling her to Rikka's side.
"Professor—!" Fran shouted.
"Operational efficiency in overdrive!" Romani warned. "He's lost his will! The Grail's force has stripped his agency as a Servant!"
Then…!
"We have no choice… but to defeat him!" Romani said.
"Hmph," the King said. "Clinging to my treasures for unity? Truly a pathetic rabble."
"…" Fran was silent.
"…Fran…" Rikka murmured.
"What now?" the King asked. "If it's too heavy, I can strike him down for you—"
In that instant—
"—Ugh!" Fran growled.
"Huh?" Rikka said.
Oh no!
The King distributed the 'Soundproof' treasure, vibration-blocking earplugs, to protect their hearing.
"The sound—" Rikka started.
The distribution and 'it' happened simultaneously.
"—WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA—!!"
A scream. A wail.
A thunderous, hellish shout shook London. The sound pressure shattered streetlights, cracked windows, and made the air scream.
It was Fran's reenactment of the 'lament' from her legend.
"—Yes! Resolve declared!" Fran said, striking a gutsy pose.
"I'll stop Babbage-sensei!" she declared.
"Let me ask again," the King said. "Can you do it, Fran?"
"I will!" Fran said. "Sensei's mine to stop! He's still a good person! I talked to him! So—"
Clang. Fran readied an iron sword-like weapon, her eyes free of doubt.
"If I don't stop him here, I'd shame my womanhood! Right, Master?!"
"—Yeah!!" Rikka cheered.
"You spoke well, and he answered," the King said. "Well done. But—"
"Feelings aren't easily conveyed," he continued. "Even with mutual understanding, blades may clash. That's dialogue, the uncertainty of the heart."
"Ugh…" Fran faltered.
"But you're fortunate," the King said. "You understand and respect each other, entrusted with mutual mercy. Countless lovers, denied such a chance, curse and regret, falling together in hatred and sorrow—tragedies dismissed as mere stories. You wouldn't join them, would you, Victor's daughter?"
"…King's words are hard," Fran said. "Should be simpler, smarter. Like, zap and connect."
The King's language is philosophy. Listening alone teaches me, though I spend ninety percent ruminating on it.
"Fuhaha! Forgive and laugh!" the King said. "Kings love to pontificate!"
"Right! Keep it simple!" Rikka said. "Let's go, Fran!"
"Yes!" Fran said. "With max power, I'll stop Sensei! Give me time to charge!"
Not to defeat, but to stop.
"Good!" the King said. "You're not just a fumbler! Show the critical strength of a Servant's battle-ready body!"
"Ugh!! Smash and break—go for broke!!" Fran roared.
"Don't break!" Rikka shouted.
The girl called a monster took up her weapon!
"Ugh, what a mess…" Jeanne Alter groaned.
(… looking around)
My Room
'Disk: World's Cats and Dogs'
"Play it…" Jeanne Alter muttered.
Meow, yip, woof woof.
"…(´ω｀)" Jeanne Alter melted.
One hour later
"…Animal therapy's the cure for a stormy heart," she said. "One more disc…"
"Et tu, you're a failure as a scholar!"
"!?"
"Catgirl!! CATGIRL, YEAH!!"
"What the—?!" Jeanne Alter yelped. "My… my animal therapy…!"
'To Rikka-tan: Busy People's Tennis Musical – Blackbeard'
"—I'll burn that beard!!" Jeanne Alter roared.
-------------------------------
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