Metropolis Lostbelt (XI) Roman and Time...

"It's unbelievable, isn't it!" Fujimaru Ritsuka exclaimed, pulling Kadoc and Mash aside. "Suddenly it turned into a super crisis! The time from discovery to conquering the Lostbelt was definitely shorter than the Russian Lostbelt!"

"Hey, hey..." Kadoc smirked, pulled the overly excited Fujimaru Ritsuka back to her seat, and handed her a glass of water. "The person involved is still here, calm down."

"Oh, I'm so sorry!" Even though she said that, Ritsuka still couldn't calm down.

The current situation is equivalent to her finally finishing the seven crucial exam questions that were a matter of life and death, only to suddenly be given an additional bonus question before she could even rest for a while. And it was a timed question.

Even with her usually good composure, she's starting to lose her temper!

Seeing her senior's sullen expression, Mashu suppressed a laugh and looked at her with a serious expression, "Don't worry, senior, I will always be with you."

"Ahhh, you're so cute, Mashu!" Fujimaru Ritsuka pinched her adorable junior's cheek without any politeness.

While the younger generation was having fun, the reliable adults of Chaldea didn't look so happy. Holmes rubbed his temples, and out of the corner of his eye, he suddenly caught sight of a figure approaching him.

“Ah, Mr. Jason, it’s been a long time.” He turned his chair around, leaned back, and clasped his hands together under his chin. His eyes, as wise as ever, gazed at Jason. “Welcome to Chaldea.”

Actually, it's still different, Jason thought. The current Mr. Holmes... He thought for a long time before he could barely come up with a word: lively.

It's like being part of a large group; they're partners and family.

Jason looked around the control room of Chaldea. He saw Ritsuka chatting happily with her friends of the same age. The staff around her were handling matters of life and death in an orderly manner, but when their eyes fell on Ritsuka, they couldn't help but smile.

"Long time no see, Holmes," Jason said. "Even though there are only seven days left, you guys seem to be having a pretty good time."

“After all, we’re best at improvising,” Holmes shrugged. “Besides, some things should be discussed once everyone is here.”

“Hmm, a business consultant!” Goldruff interrupted Holmes, his tone revealing confusion and anxiety.

"How long will it take for the technical advisor to come back? With the countdown to the destruction of humanity underway, she's still trying to get people to chat privately!"

After Fujimaru Ritsuka and the others returned to Chaldea from the Shadow Border, and after the doctor was surrounded by all of Chaldea like a rare species, Little Da Vinci half-rescued and half-threatened the doctor and dragged him out of the control room.

Gilgamesh and Merlin exchanged a glance, signaling Dick to pull the two Batmen into a friendly conversation. Fujimaru Ritsuka glanced back at them, thinking, "Thank goodness he's a wise king; we should be able to have a friendly exchange...right?"

Debit and Sion whispered to each other, pulling up a world map and pointing at it.

“Please be understanding of her, Director.” Munir propped his head up with his hand. “If it weren’t for the urgency of the situation, Ritsuka, Mashu, or any of us would want to have a good talk with the doctor.”

"Hmm, why don't you guys throw a party?"

"Isn't this an emergency?"

"You really want to?!"

Dr. Roman himself, who was mentioned several times, still couldn't help but sneeze when he arrived at Leonardo da Vinci's workshop because of the itchy nose.

The moment he looked down, he was suddenly punched hard in the left shoulder. But it was nothing to the Servant's body. He looked up blankly and saw the culprit watching him leisurely.

"Eh?! We just met, right? I don't think I did anything wrong or made you angry!" Roman said indignantly. Despite being disguised as Solomon, he felt like he was still the one everyone was bullied!

"This is for my past self. Even an all-powerful genius would be exhausted from taking over the workload you left behind!" The beautiful Mona Lisa, without any hesitation, delivered another punch to Roman's right shoulder.

"...And this one?" Roman asked tentatively.

"A salute to Ritsuka, Mashu, and all the employees of Chaldea for abandoning you."

There's really no way around it; even the reason given by a genius is impeccable. Roman rubbed his shoulder, looking at the young Leonardo da Vinci's innocent face, and still couldn't help but ask with some hesitation, "Um, how's the situation at Chaldea now...?"

Leonardo da Vinci knew what he wanted to ask.

Two people who had never worked together before developed a tacit understanding because of a shared memory.

He wanted to know what had become of Chaldea in the past, why New Chaldea still needed to save the world, and about Fujimaru Ritsuka, the child he had watched grow up step by step—

Are you doing well?

“It’s complicated,” Leonardo da Vinci said, rummaging through the workshop. “But Romani,” she sighed softly, “you should have noticed Ritsuka’s current state.”

Too long a silence.

For Solomon, there was no need to pause on this issue, given the visibly thinness of the orange-haired girl; but for Dr. Roman, he subconsciously clenched his teeth, trying to convince himself that Ritsuka was still living a good life, instead of being exhausted.

In a daze, he saw the girl's pure smile when they first met in the dormitory. The next second, it changed to the resolute and composed expression he had when they reunited.

Da Vinci watched as countless emotions flashed across his face, then shook her head and slapped the thing she had finally found into his hand. "I never thought this thing would come in handy twice."

"...What?" Roman hadn't reacted yet, and he grabbed the thing in his hand in a daze.

"The records, from the subspecies singularity after you left to the seventh Lostbelt a few months ago, everything you want to know is here."

Da Vinci forgot the original purpose of her backup, which was perhaps to prevent forgetting, or something else... It certainly did not include tutoring the returning Dr. Roman.

However, looking at the records handed to her, which resembled a Pandora's box, she couldn't help but think—

In the blink of an eye, Ritsuka and the others have traveled a longer journey since Romani Archman left than he has spent with them.

—

"Ah, Leonardo da Vinci, you're finally back!" Fujimaru Ritsuka waved to Leonardo da Vinci as he slid in. "The director is about to transform into a fire-breathing dragon!"

"Oh dear, Merlin and the others went out with their men too." Little Da Vinci couldn't help but chuckle as she watched Fujimaru Ritsuka peering behind her.

"And Romani isn't participating in this operation. I took him out for extra lessons, and he won't be out for at least a month."

"Oh, is that so?" Fujimaru Ritsuka received a regretful look, but thinking that there would be plenty of time in the future, she became less regretful. "Then Leonardo da Vinci was the last one to arrive. Merlin arrived a minute earlier than you."

After saying this, Fujimaru Ritsuka unsurprisingly received a gaze from Merlin that wasn't exactly innocent. She loosened her grip slightly, and the beast, whose color matched Merlin's, leaped up and slapped him across the face.

Merlin's smile then shifted to Fujimaru Ritsuka's face.

Once everyone was present, it was time to get down to business. Chaldea, the otherworldly representative Bruce Wayne, and the resistance representative Batman gathered to discuss their next steps.

"The Imaginary Tree you're talking about is in the Arctic," Batman said. "It's where Superman lives and where his regime holds meetings."

The Arctic?! Fujimaru Ritsuka recalled the location shown by Sheba. It was clearly America, but the Imaginary Tree was in the Arctic. No wonder they hadn't seen the Imaginary Tree.

She had initially thought it was being hidden away.

"Because this is a complete world, does that mean the Imaginary Tree could be located anywhere on Earth?" Sion pondered. "The only saving grace is that the extreme cold equipment will come in handy."

"Hmm, um, it's not as good as the Lostbelt! At least the time flow is completely different there, but here we really only have seven days left to reach the Bad Ending!"

Goldruff offered a sharp critique, saying that having already traversed a dark path and endured loneliness and hardship, he would be utterly devastated if he failed on the bonus question!

"Um, barging into the enemy's lair without any strategy... I'm used to it, but I should still try to avoid it! Business consultant, do you have a plan?"

“Yes, we are pressed for time and cannot take them down one by one like the Greek Lostbelts,” Holmes replied. “It’s a bit troublesome, but not difficult to break through.”

"How so?" Da Vinci raised an eyebrow, very curious about the great detective's insight.

It's very simple. Currently, only two people are known to have significantly increased their strength: Lostbelt Superman and the bio-weapon he controls called Doomsday.

According to Batman, they are even immune to their nemesis, Kryptonite, but Holmes thinks there is another possibility: the damage may have been negated by dodging or invincibility.

Even if the other members of the regime are strengthened, the rebels plus the Justice League from the parallel world can still defeat them.

Therefore, Chaldea actually only has three people to deal with: Superman, Doomsday, and Kirshtalia Wodim.

If we can bring over the superhero from the parallel world and have him hold off at least one person, then Ritsuka can lead her Servants to fight two opponents simultaneously. Based on her past record, this should be no problem at all.

"...In the end, it's all up to Ritsuka to improvise," Da Vinci complained. "But with only seven days left, it seems like going all in is the only solution?"

"The Rebels want to dismantle Superman's rule. As long as the Imaginary Tree and Woodym are not around, the Superman from your parallel universe can handle the situation here."

Debit, acting as a bridge of communication, explained to those outside Chaldea, "They have already rescued Batman for you, so I suggest you cooperate with Chaldea's plan: cut down the tree first, then dismantle their rule."

“I have no objection to Mr. Holmes’s suggestion!” Dick stared at his idol’s face and nodded vigorously, looking completely indifferent.

Jason clicked his tongue. Chaldea's plan was indeed flawless, which was the main reason Dick agreed. But Holmes was definitely the reason for his enthusiasm!

“Okay, let’s bring Superman to this world first,” Bruce said, watching his counterpart’s every move after hearing Superman’s name. As he expected, Batman clearly resisted upon hearing Superman’s name.

But due to circumstances, or perhaps something else, Batman eventually agreed to it.