Rice Flower Singularity (22): The Beginning of the End...
“No need.” Morofushi Hiromitsu’s voice was not loud, but it was strong enough. “As a police officer, I accept this ending, even if I die in the line of duty. My brother and Zero will understand me.”
"I'm already dead, so no matter how I die, it won't be worse than the first time." Matsuda clicked his tongue lightly, crossing his arms and unconsciously tapping the inside of his arms. "Using something that doesn't belong to this world to wish for resurrection... Ha, is it really as easy as you say?"
Anything that defies common sense will come at a price, a belief Matsuda Jinpei firmly held. What Fujimaru Ritsuka would go to such lengths, even across time, to retrieve, was no easy feat.
Not to mention, Fujimaru Ritsuka contributed the most along the way, so both morally and logically, she should be the one to decide the use of the Holy Grail, not him and Morofushi Kagemitsu.
...It's a pity that he didn't personally apprehend the bomber.
After watching the entire process through the surveillance footage, Fujimaru Ritsuka smiled slyly. She spread her hands, awaiting BB's reply, "Well, BB, how about you hand over the Holy Grail obediently?"
BB snorted, but still reluctantly took out the Holy Grail, which shone brightly. As she handed it to Ritsuka, she sighed, thinking how boring and easily fooled the humans of this world were.
Then, feeling defeated, BB chased Fujimaru Ritsuka out of the virtual world like a kitten, saying, "Alright, senpai should go back now. That guy who claims to be over fifty is nagging me in my ear every day, it's so annoying~".
"...Eh, so this singularity is over just like that?" Fujimaru Ritsuka was taken aback, and accepted the Holy Grail as if it were an ordinary water glass.
She thought to herself that she hadn't expected to get the Holy Grail so easily, and that no new boss had appeared. It felt strange.
"Hmm~, this is just the end anyway. We'll also stimulate your potential a bit more, so you probably won't encounter any more strange singularities after this, right?"
Before Fujimaru Ritsuka could discern anything amiss in her words, BB, realizing she had said too much, immediately shut her mouth, coughed, and ushered her out.
When Fujimaru Ritsuka opened her eyes again, she was back in the real world. The lights of the large instruments in the empty room had dimmed, and she easily walked out and returned to the ground.
She pulled back a corner of the curtains in the room's window, and the bright sunlight rushed into the dim room through that small opening.
Just then, footsteps approached from afar and stopped in front of her. Fujimaru Ritsuka looked up; the elegant mathematics professor had his right arm bent, as if he had been waiting for her for a long time.
She blinked, casually took Moriarty's arm, and walked in that direction. "Professor, are you having fun in this singularity?"
Moriarty didn't refute, "While I have no confidence in your evil nature, Master," he raised an eyebrow, "if you'd like to learn about the workings of an evil organization, I have a ready-made example here."
A slight twitch appeared at the corner of her mouth. Fujimaru Ritsuka knew without even thinking that the organization had been completely devoured by Moriarty. She shook her head and instead asked, "What's the situation outside?"
Moriarty was quite pleased with Fujimaru Ritsuka's unwavering trust. He raised the corners of his mouth, "For others, it will be a new world, but for you, it's a little surprise."
“Then I’ll wait and see,” Fujimaru Ritsuka said with a smile. “I need to contact Chaldea later to let them know I’m safe. Da Vinci and the others must be worried since we haven’t been in touch for the past two days.”
Meanwhile, Chaldea's normal routine was disrupted by a sudden alarm.
"Hey, what does this unprecedentedly glaring red rotating alarm light mean?! What happened? Sion, the technical advisor?!"
Goldruff was so startled that he instantly dropped the honey-coated pancake in his hand, staring in disbelief as he listened to the piercing alarm.
The next second, Kadoc and Mashu, who were resting in the dormitory, rushed into the control room one after the other. "What happened?!" they asked in unison.
Then, very quickly, all of Chaldea's core staff, except for Fujimaru Ritsuka, gathered in the control room amidst the alarm.
Sion adjusted his glasses, scanned everyone, and called out their names one by one.
"On-site investigator Ms. Kadoc, Ms. Mashu the Sub-Servant, Ms. Munir the Helmsman... Ms. Kawada the Operator, Ms. Octavia the Assistant to Ms. Da Vinci..."
She paused, looking at the stable vital signs being monitored on the large screen, "and the on-site investigator, Ms. Ritsuka, who is fighting a bloody battle at the singularity."
Upon hearing this, Goldruff opened his mouth, his trembling hand instinctively gripping the table. "You...you...your Egyptian over-the-knee socks opening line is giving me a bad feeling!"
"Hmm, I haven't even said anything yet, and the director is already starting to speak recklessly?" Xi Weng stroked his chin, seemingly lost in thought.
"No, is this the time to discuss this?" Kadoc tried to steer the conversation back on track. "What happened? Why did the alarm suddenly go off?"
“Since everyone is so full of fighting spirit,” Sion paused for a second, “then as you wish, my battle-hardened Chaldea brethren, the Earth has fallen into a new crisis.”
"—Just now, a new Lostbelt appeared."
"...!"
In the control room, almost everyone looked at the anomaly displayed on the large screen.
Goldrov nodded slowly. "Oh, Lostbelt, that sounds familiar..." He suddenly looked up, nearly hitting his head on the back of his chair. "What the hell, a Lostbelt!!!"
In the entire control room, the calmest man was wearing a British-style trench coat, his right hand supporting his chin, his elbow resting on the side of his right knee.
He stared at the Lostbelt locations on the map, and the scattered fragments of clues in his mind gradually pieced together, slowly forming a clear logical chain.
Looking at the expression on the face of the newly returned business consultant, the unspoken understanding they shared from traversing most of the Lostbelt made Little Da Vinci ask, "Holmes, any discoveries?"
The man whose name was called slowly raised his head, gestured to the location of the Lostbelt, and said, "I still need to confirm." But in fact, he was already 80% sure, since this Lostbelt was in a place he had just been to.
USA.
Fujimaru Ritsuka's communication was connected at that moment.
She was holding the cake when she was startled by Sion's serious expression as he suddenly appeared. "Hey! Sion, what's wrong?!"
Instead of explaining, Shion asked, "Ritsuka, how are things on your end?" She didn't want Ritsuka to force herself because of the new situation.
“We’ve already obtained the Holy Grail. We can come back once the professor finishes off his criminal organization,” Fujimaru Ritsuka said. As if sensing something amiss, she instinctively asked, “Another singularity?”
That can't be right, it's like they're rushing from one event to another.
"No, no, it's not a singularity."
Sion's words were like a reassuring pill, and Fujimaru Ritsuka's heart, which had been pounding, instantly calmed down. She knew it couldn't be this outrageous.
"It's a Lostbelt."
Fujimaru Ritsuka: "...?!!"
Her facial expression twisted slightly, and she couldn't help but raise her voice, "Losers?!"
Holmes picked up the conversation, turning to Moriarty, who was standing behind Fujimaru Ritsuka, and said bluntly, "The location is in America. Professor, do you have any leads?"
"Hahahaha! The world's number one consultant detective is absolutely laughing his head off."
Moriarty raised his chin dismissively and scoffed, "Heh, you wretched Holmes, have you stooped so low as to randomly suspect and pinpoint murderers?"
Ignoring the professor's provocation, Holmes calmly added, "In New York."
In an instant, silence spread between the two old rivals. Moriarty, like a screaming chicken with its neck being choked, opened his mouth but could not utter a sarcastic sound.
Fujimaru Ritsuka looked left and right, her suspicious gaze finally settling on Moriarty. Did she still remember BB saying everything was almost over? How could a Lostbelt suddenly appear?
Was it the professor's scheme... or did another Servant cause trouble but their base was raided?
"Given the current situation, there should only be one formula that both you and I can derive from calculations." Holmes tapped the armrest of his chair. "You really didn't leave anything that shouldn't be there?"
It's America again, and it's New York—such a coincidence, barring accident, suggests only deliberate intent. And both Moriarty and Holmes are among the least likely to believe in coincidences.
“I’m sure I’m not,” Moriarty said after thinking for a moment.
That's troublesome," Holmes frowned, leaning back in his chair without saying a word. This made everyone else in the control room hold their breath, afraid of disturbing the detective's train of thought.
Fujimaru Ritsuka cautiously asked, "Should I go back now?"
Sion and Captain Nemo exchanged a glance, then quickly finished reading the report that Leonardo da Vinci and several staff members had worked on together.
She then replied, "Not for now, Ms. Ritsuka. You should first supervise Ms. Moriarty to clean up the things at this singularity."
They didn't want to go through another Lostbelt; their hearts weren't strong enough to handle that.
Suddenly, someone knocked on Moriarty's door. Fujimaru Ritsuka quickly hung up the Chaldea communication and raised an eyebrow to ask the professor what was going on.
The professor snapped out of his reverie and shrugged at Fujimaru Ritsuka, indicating he didn't know either. He'd been too busy lately to predict the future and know why the people outside were there.
After being greeted with a "Please come in," the blond youth strode in with steady steps.
Out of the corner of her eye, Fujimaru Ritsuka glanced over and inadvertently saw four ghosts following behind the young man, walking in arm in arm, as if they were very close.
Upon closer inspection, weren't they all acquaintances?
"Oh, it's Mr. Amuro?"
Amuro Tooru then noticed Fujimaru Ritsuka sitting leisurely to the side, holding a cake, and nodded in greeting with slight surprise. He then looked at Moriarty, "I think, Advisor, you should be able to see the ghost behind me, right?"
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
