'If something unexpected comes up, I'll also prioritize my own matters, and may even abandon the mission for that. This needs to be made clear in advance, to avoid conflicts later.'
Gudako could of course understand.
Who was she? She had cleared hell-level FGO dungeons hundreds of times, met all kinds of bizarre Servants imaginable, her tolerance and affinity were maxed out.
She could even get along perfectly fine with someone like Kiara Sessyoin, so how could she possibly have any issue with Iori?
So even though Iori's identity as a "Phantasmal Spirit" was highly suspicious, Gudako was still willing to believe him, she'd turned no one knew how many suspicious characters into max Bond already, one more didn't make a difference.
Thus, she very seriously thanked Iori, happily said that she had gained another companion, an increasingly rare, orthodox-style handsome guy in Chaldea, and felt extremely pleased inside, then went back to her room to sleep.
She seemed to have some small problem with her body. Every day she needed to sleep deeply for a very long time, and couldn't explain things further to Iori, so she felt quite apologetic.
"…Lalala, Master's sleep time is getting longer and longer. It's really worrying."
Moriarty watched Gudako leave. Only after the door closed did he ask Merlin, "Mr. Magus, you're the one responsible for taking care of her in her dreams, right? Have you actually fulfilled your duties or not?"
"You may not believe it, but I really am trying my hardest… There's nothing I can do. Even though I'm a 'dream incubus,' I'm not omnipotent within dreams, let alone when it's the Master's dreamscape… In the end, it still depends on her herself. I'm only playing a supporting role."
Merlin glanced at Iori and didn't continue the topic, and Iori, sensing the atmosphere, also wisely refrained from asking further questions.
"Alright. Although Iori-kun has many concerns, since you've already joined our big family, I should still introduce the specifics to you."
"Thank you. To be able to work alongside all of you heroes and sages, I also feel deeply honored," Iori replied seriously and humbly.
Merlin said with a cheerful smile, "We're still called 'Chaldea' for now. The main members are all Servants. There are many of them, but they don't usually gather together. They each have their own activity areas, and some are even distributed across different space-times."
"Only when we need to 'continue' a certain worldline do we select suitable Servants to interfere there, creating more possibilities, of course, all on a voluntary basis."
"We're a company with a conscience. We absolutely won't do things like forced labor..."
Clang! Clang! Clang!
On top of the kotatsu table, a dial-type landline telephone commonly seen in old anime suddenly rang, interrupting Merlin.
The Magus of Flowers gave Iori an apologetic look, then picked up the phone.
"Hello… Mm… Mm… I understand. Leave this matter to Lord El-Melloi II. He's very familiar with this Singularity.
"Hm? What? II doesn't want to go? And he wants to invoke the Heroic Spirit Labor Act?
"This is no longer an ordinary Caster, we must strike hard!"
"Go, call Iskandar over and have him tell II, 'I love you, I need you, you're my best retainer, far surpassing Hephaestion'..."
"And then send II a gift basket of golden apples!"
Click…
Merlin hung up the phone and smiled brightly. "Please rest assured, we are absolutely not a black-hearted enterprise. We never force Servants to work, we only encourage them to voluntarily work overtime."
Iori, "????????"
'This kind of 'voluntary' method… Oh right, you bastard don't even have a weakness!'
'So the 'voluntary' part never applies to you, huh?'
'Merlin the 'Conscience,' does Gudako know you do stuff like this?!'
———
After getting a brief understanding of the situation from Merlin, the Magus of Flowers said they weren't short on manpower for now and told Iori not to worry about these things yet.
He should focus on improving himself, Phantasmal Spirits could also ascend to the Throne of Heroes by accumulating achievements, and Chaldea had encountered such cases before.
Iori casually responded with a couple of remarks, then said he was going to train. In reality, he returned to Akame ga Kill.
Plop~
Lying on the inn's bed, staring blankly at the ceiling, although he had only spent about half an hour in the Nasuverse at most, the massive amount of information was like a meteor strike to his inner world. He needed time to sort through all the thoughts in his head.
There was awe at that vast worldview, and restless eagerness to try; admiration and sympathy for Gudako, along with various hidden guesses and unease… But overall, he could be certain that this was a rare opportunity. It just had to be handled carefully, one misstep and he'd get burned.
And if he wanted to reduce the risk, the method was very simple, get stronger.
If he had Gilgamesh-level strength, then in an ordinary Holy Grail War he could run rampant; if he could rival a Grand Servant, then even Singularities would be a walk in the park; if he obtained the authority of a [Beast], then he'd be approaching the ceiling.
Although the Nasuverse has complex settings and a vast worldview, it still follows the basic law of "strong and weak." If you want a say, then make yourself stronger!
Whether it's Bleach, Akame ga Kill, the Nasuverse, or even other worlds he might encounter in the future, none of them are exceptions.
For now it was still difficult to stir up trouble in the Nasuverse, but that was fine, he was full of possibilities.
Cutting off distracting thoughts and reaffirming his resolve, Iori raised his hand and examined it carefully.
'It's still a magical-energy construct… Is it because Akame ga Kill doesn't have restrictions in this regard? Looks like I'll only revert to a Shinigami spirit body once I return to Soul Society.'
'But speaking of which, I should first wrap up the Empire's business!'
Analyze the current situation, establish his advantages, and then make a choice... for Iori, the most efficient way to improve was to establish legends and constantly refresh the art-style CGs.
And whether it was the Nasuverse or Soul Society, it was very difficult to do that there. Only the Empire in Akame ga Kill met the conditions.
General Budo and Esdeath were problems, but not insurmountable obstacles. As long as he overthrew the Empire, Iori could naturally gain enormous prestige…
'No, wait, why be so conservative?'
'The Revolutionary Army isn't good either!'
'No problem, I'll screw both of them at the same time, damn it!'
Although both had to be screwed, specifics still required specific analysis. No matter how bad the Revolutionary Army was, overthrowing the Empire was still the top priority.
If Iori wanted to make a name for himself and expand his influence, in theory the most efficient method would be to escalate and intensify the war between both sides, even turning it into a prolonged age of chaos.
That way, the masses would yearn even more for the emergence of a hero, giving him more opportunities.
In his previous life he possessed a simple sense of justice, he absolutely could not bring himself to do something like that.
He had his own plans. Although they might require more effort, they would allow him to intervene in, and even take the lead of, this great era of transition between old and new.
In short, he first found Najenda and presented a condition to the Revolutionary Army behind her. After listening, the valiant female general looked extremely stunned, "Syura? He's still alive, sure, but he's basically useless now. What do you want him for?"
Najenda had thought Iori wanted to discuss treatment with the Revolutionary Army. To recruit this rather powerful bounty hunter, she had been prepared to pay a heavy price, but who knew that what Iori wanted was actually the Minister's son, Syura.
'Yes, that one who doesn't eat beef~'
'What's the use of wanting this thing anyway?'
"We already contacted the Minister in secret half a year ago. He was only willing to pay money to ransom Syura, but refused to release our imprisoned companions, and was unwilling to make any political or military concessions… It seems this son isn't that important to him."
"Headquarters has already decided that on the day of the large-scale uprising, Syura will be killed as a banner sacrifice. Before that, we'll let him cling to life for now."
"Honestly, I don't think the current Syura has any remaining value."
"In that case, just give him to me."
Iori said with a smiling expression, "I plan to use him to exchange for a bounty with the Minister. A living person is definitely worth more than a corpse."
"I think that if both sides want to cooperate, sincerity is a very important point," Najenda stared at the white mask, as if trying to see Iori's expression through it.
"What exactly are you planning?"
"Sincerity is important, but mutual respect is also important. You just need to answer whether you can or not."
Iori coolly rejected Najenda's probing. "Hand Syura over to me, and I'm willing to handle some high-difficulty targets for the Revolutionary Army. That should be a very fair trade. After all, this world doesn't lack beasts suitable for banner sacrifices, does it?"
'That's true!'
Najenda raised an eyebrow and began to seriously consider it.
As the Minister's son, Syura had a very special status, and was notorious even in the Imperial Capital. Using him as a banner sacrifice would undoubtedly help win over public sentiment there.
But correspondingly, Iori was also right, the Empire truly didn't lack high-ranking individuals who committed countless evils… alternative 'beasts' were easy to find.
Moreover, for the Revolutionary Army, winning the hearts of the Imperial Capital's people wasn't the most important thing. Because if they really fought their way into the capital, the war would basically be nearing its end.
"We can give him to you, as a sign of our sincerity," Najenda said solemnly. "But in exchange, we may need to use [Dimensional Formation: Shambhala] in the future. When the time comes, I hope you can help."
"Oh?"
Iori looked her over. As expected of a woman who held high positions in both the Empire and the Revolutionary Army, she really knew how to grasp the key interests.
This request wasn't excessive, and Iori readily agreed, after all, whether he actually let them use it later would still be up to him.
"Oh right, where is Akame now?"
Iori suddenly said, "I have some things stored with her. It's time to take them back."
———
Five days later, the Imperial Capital. Inside a massive estate with vast grounds, grand architecture, and lavish decoration, countless servants, maids, and guards bustled about like ants on a cloudy day. Everyone was flustered and at a loss, as if preparing to welcome some great figure.
No, strictly speaking, they had already received him, and he was indeed one of the few truly great figures in the entire Empire. To these servants, he was an existence whose single word could decide life or death,
Because the master they served, the sole son of Minister Honest, the long-absent Young Master Syura, had suddenly returned to this estate today.
To avoid being faulted by the famously temperamental Lord Syura, everyone worked in fear and panic, making the entire estate boil with activity.
Unlike these ignorant servants, Minister Honest himself knew very well that Syura had been captured by the Revolutionary Army over half a year ago, and negotiations between the two sides had long since collapsed.
By all logic, his precious son should either have been cut down with a single stroke or still be miserably locked in a cage… How could he suddenly return?
When something is abnormal, there must be a monster behind it.
So even when meeting his own son whom he hadn't seen in a long time and who had narrowly escaped death, the Minister still kept his strongest guards by his side, and maintained quite a distance from him.
"Tch! What are you trying to do? Your own son comes back and you put on this kind of show?"
Syura sat in a wheelchair, both hands stiffly pressed against the armrests. His limbs were already completely useless, only his mouth remained arrogant and unrestrained.
"There's a guy in the Empire's scientific research division called 'Stylish,' right? Hurry up and call him over. Replace all my limbs with prosthetics. I don't want to lie in bed or sit in a wheelchair anymore!"
"Hmm… seems it really is him."
The Minister stroked his beard. He was very familiar with Syura's appearance and true personality, so he could be sure this was indeed Syura himself.
But just in case, he still didn't approach, after all, the Revolutionary Army's assassins were formidable.
Thinking of this, the obese Minister, whose eyes were full of cunning and coldness, glanced around him. The four guards known as the "Four Rakshasa Demons" had strength comparable to Imperial Arm users.
Under their protection, he was practically invincible. What's more, he himself wasn't weak either, don't be fooled by his bloated figure, his martial skills were quite formidable.
Honest calmly continued to ask Syura several questions that only father and son would know. After confirming everything was correct, he was both shocked and overjoyed, and suddenly burst into loud sobbing.
"Oh, my son! You've really suffered so much!!!"
"Waaah, Daddy, I missed you so much!"
"..."
Including the Four Rakshasa Demons and the masked man pushing Syura's wheelchair, everyone fell silent at this father-son performance.
Especially since although Honest cried very hard, his feet didn't move at all… clearly cautious to an extreme, and not truly that concerned about his son.
"By the way, how exactly did you escape? The Revolutionary Army's prison guards must have been very strict, right?"
The Minister suddenly stopped crying and looked deeply at Iori, who was wearing a black mask.
"And who is he?"
"You've got the nerve to ask!"
Syura was furious. "I know exactly how you negotiated with the Revolutionary Army… But that's all in the past now. Since I came back alive, you're still my dearest, most beloved father."
"As for how I got out? Of course I relied on myself! What, was I supposed to wait for you to rescue me?"
"This guy is a subordinate I recruited while wandering through various countries, a ronin samurai from an eastern island nation, Izo!"
"Hmph! After I was captured, my subordinates either fled or betrayed me. Only this guy secretly went into hiding, destroyed his own appearance, infiltrated the Revolutionary Army, and waited for over half a year before rescuing me!"
"This guy's skills are no joke, and he saved me again this time. No matter what, Dad, you have to give him a general's position!"
"No, no, no. I have no such ambitions."
The black-masked samurai patted the katana at his waist. "As long as I can follow Lord Syura's side and constantly find people to blood-sacrifice to this blade, 'Kosetsu,' that's enough.
"My life exists for the sake of offering sacrifices to the sword. As for fame and fortune, those are trivial matters."
"A samurai from an eastern island nation, huh?"
The Minister glanced at the tachi at Iori's waist and nodded.