The voices gradually drew closer. BB didn't know who it was, but Ian knew perfectly well. It was Mordred, the first Servant he had summoned in Chaldea, and also his daughter. Despite this, Ian wouldn't overly restrict her actions, nor would he often put on a fatherly air in front of her. Because of this, Mordred really liked her father. In the eyes of those unaware, when she was with Ian, she was practically like a clingy little girlfriend. This was one of the reasons why Da Vinci thought Mordred would surely be happy to learn Ian was here.
Of course, Mordred wasn't here by chance. After living in Chaldea for a while, she found she quite liked the place. Unfortunately, Mordred wasn't quite sure how to handle her father's complicated interpersonal relationships. In contrast, Da Vinci's side was much easier to understand. It was simply about moving things or relaying information. She could occasionally find interesting books here—which was very similar to how things were in Camelot. Naturally, Mordred often came here.
However—while she loved coming to Da Vinci's place, Mordred, who hadn't seen her father since childhood, still preferred being with Ian. So, the moment she heard he was here, her first reaction was to cling to him!
"Master—!" Mordred called out, running directly towards the room where Ian and BB were. At this moment, she had no idea what kind of scene was inside. But the desire to see her father was genuinely burning.
As the voices grew closer, BB also realized that something was amiss. With her eyes covered, her movements, uncharacteristically, showed a hint of panic. For BB, she certainly didn't dislike being alone with Ian. But that didn't mean the girl was willing to be seen by others in such a submissive state beside him. As a Super AI, such a thing was simply too embarrassing!
However—in stark contrast to BB's slightly panicked expression, Ian remained as calm as ever. Having recognized Mordred long ago, he now soothed the Super AI. He looked at her flushed face and quickly spoke gently into her ear. "Don't worry. With me here... you won't be embarrassed."
"..." Despite being just a few simple words, BB felt an indescribable sense of relief. It was the solid feeling that as long as he was there, nothing would go wrong. The girl nodded, calming down.
Having temporarily managed the Super AI, Ian shifted his attention back to Mordred. Just before she was about to push open the door, he, still in his "date" state with BB, spoke in a very serious tone: "Mo-chan, don't come in yet."
"Eh?" Mordred, who was about to push the door, stopped. If it were anyone else, she might have to think about whether to listen. But when it came to Ian, she always trusted him implicitly—he was her father, after all.
"What's wrong?" Mo-chan asked, holding the doorknob, a hint of worry in her voice. "Why can't I come in—?"
"I'm using Da Vinci's Noble Phantasm. If you come in now, it will affect it." In a sense, Ian's words were indeed true—after all, BB's current body was created through Uomo Universale, and she herself was making good use of it.
"..." "Alright," Mordred sounded a little dejected. For her, not being able to see her father immediately was simply unacceptable. However, Mordred didn't want to be a spoiled brat. "I'll wait for you outside—Master, hurry up!"
"Mm, just wait for me."
A crisis concerning reputation was thus easily resolved by Ian. The passive BB was somewhat surprised. She realized that the man in front of her possessed an extremely strong ability to handle situations on the fly. That was definitely not a quality that could be developed overnight—this guy was far from simple!
However, BB also knew that now was not the time for her to think about such things. The immediate priority was to resolve the current crisis. "Let's end the test first!" BB offered her opinion. "If this continues, things will get troublesome."
However—the man's tone suddenly became serious. "Hmm? Why stop the test?"
"Someone's waiting outside!" BB responded anxiously. "Don't you understand that?"
"But she won't come in now," Ian replied. "So there's no need to stop, is there?"
"Are you crazy?!" BB couldn't believe what she had just heard. "So you're not going to stop the test?!"
"Of course, I'll stop the test," Ian reached out and pinched BB's chin. "But not now. My dear Miss BB, this is a war you started. If you want to end it just like that, isn't that a bit too much?"
"And—" the man's words made BB feel an intense pressure. "You didn't think what I said earlier was a joke, did you? This isn't just your devil's game; it's my devil's game too. If you don't complete it according to our initial agreement, I will absolutely not let you off."
"What?!" BB realized she had provoked a formidable opponent. She had initially thought Ian captured so many girls because of his gentleness—after all, when he perceived her thoughts, it was indeed very touching. But now, it seemed that was not the case at all. He possessed both the gentleness to perceive others' worries and a wild, ruthless side. This guy... was a demon in the true sense of the word!
"Alright," Ian gently patted BB's cheek. "The chitchat ends here. Miss BB, if you don't want to be seen like this by others, then you'll have to cooperate with me to complete this test from now on."
"..." BB was completely at her wit's end—but she knew she only had one path to choose now. "Y-yes, I understand." The girl nodded, showing her sincerity to the man in front of her. Yes, at this moment, she was completely under Ian's control—there was no possibility of resistance. The fake demon was now completely suppressed by the true demon. In a sense, they were from the same origin, enemies and allies alike.
BB's Defeat and Little Devil's Revenge
More than an hour later, BB, who had finally completed the LV2 devil's game, was utterly defeated. Completely vanquished by Ian, she almost forgot for a moment that she was a Super AI.
"Will you dare to play again next time?" Ian asked the thoroughly defeated BB, speaking like a victor's declaration.
However—to the man's surprise, although her body was indeed completely defeated, BB's mouth didn't soften because of this failure.
"Play!"
"Definitely play!"
"You don't think winning just once will completely defeat BB, do you?" The Super AI, speaking thus, showed an unyielding expression. "Next time, it'll be a LV3 devil's game—and then, BB will definitely win against you! Just you wait! You stinky pig~☆"
"..." "Heh," Ian chuckled.
"Hey! What are you laughing at!" BB sat up and pushed the man. "Are BB's words funny?!"
"Not funny," Ian reached out and gently stroked BB's slightly flushed cheek. "I just simply think you're very cute like this."
"C-cute?" BB was a little flustered by Ian's change of attack. "What are you saying... how can you casually use the word 'cute' to describe a Super AI?"
"But you don't mind, do you?" Ian directly exposed the truth. "You don't even resist me touching your face like this. BB, it seems you are indeed willing to become my personal Super AI."
"..." BB turned her face away and nodded. "Reluctantly, I suppose. After all—you did complete the LV2 devil's game, so as a Super AI, BB naturally has to keep her word."
"Very good," Ian left a kiss on BB's forehead, a mark of his ownership. "Now, use your abilities to clean this place up—we need to go out and see them."
"Got it, you pig... don't order me around!" BB's words were sharp, but her body was very obedient, transforming with pixelation effects and quickly changing into suitable clothes for the moment.
After cleanly tidying up the traces left by the twenty tests, the two left the room.
Outside the room, Mordred was waiting, quite impatiently. The moment the door opened, she showed an expression of immense joy. However—this emotion lasted less than a second before it completely vanished when Mordred saw BB beside Ian.
"W-who is that?!" Mordred pointed at BB, asking nervously. "Why is there suddenly another girl?!"
Before Ian could even offer his explanation, BB acted first. She linked her arm with Ian's, pressed her body closer to the man, and then naturally leaned on his shoulder, putting on a very clingy act.
"Hello. I'm Bottom Black—if you think the name is too long, you can just call me BB. Currently, I'm a Servant summoned by Mr. Ian. Oh... and by the way, he summoned me with romance as a prerequisite~?"
This was, of course, not true. BB, born from Sakura Tohsaka's wish, had no magical energy supply relationship with Ian and was naturally not a Master and Servant. Summoning her with romance as a prerequisite could perhaps be considered a reason, but it was clearly quite far from the truth.
That's right. This was BB "retaliating" against Ian. She turned her back and made a face at him, looking very smug.
And upon hearing this explanation, Mordred's fur immediately bristled. "Master!" She grabbed Ian's other hand. "Why did you summon BB for that?! Don't you already have...?" Halfway through her sentence, Mordred felt it was inappropriate and quickly corrected herself. "What is that 'romance guidance object' thing?!"
Seeing Mordred cornering Ian, BB secretly rejoiced—she liked seeing him in a predicament. A Super AI should be able to control humans, after all!
However, BB soon realized she had underestimated this man. Ian, while smiling at the anxious Mordred, subtly commanded BB beside him. "Explain yourself immediately. Otherwise—I promise you'll never get what you want from me again."
"Hm?!" BB looked up at the smiling Ian. She realized he had already discovered that she was enjoying the sensation of this test. This guy... how does he know everything?
But one thing was certain—he kept his word. If she didn't agree now, would she really...? Thinking this, BB dared not neglect Ian's demand. She released Ian's hand and replied with a smile: "BB was just joking~? Master would never summon BB for such a strange reason—he did it because he wants me to assist Chaldea. I admire that intention very much, so now I especially like him."
"..." This explanation fit Mordred's image of her father. She no longer questioned it. "I see." Mordred nodded, then extended her hand towards BB. "Hello, BB, I'm Mordred—Master's first Servant."
"..." Looking at the extended hand, BB hesitated for a moment, then grasped it. "Mm, hello, Mordred."
"Ian, you didn't use the Heroic Spirit Summoning System this time either?" Da Vinci muttered softly.
"Sorry," the man quickly admitted his mistake. "It was an emergency; I didn't have time to tell you."
"That's fine," Da Vinci smiled faintly. "We all trust your judgment. It's just—" Da Vinci looked at BB. "Will she be able to help us?"
"..." BB disliked being questioned the most. She crossed her arms and retorted: "So what's the problem?"
"Hmm..." Da Vinci sighed. "The Rayshift system was too severely damaged by Lev. Even Uomo Universale struggles to repair it—not to mention the current lack of magical energy. If this continues, it might not be possible to support both Ian-chan and Ritsuka-chan in traveling to different Singularities simultaneously."
"I see," BB chuckled confidently. "I understand. If you can't do it—then let me try."