This was the best night's rest Ian had since arriving at the Singularity.
After all, Tamamo-no-Mae's skill in service was truly exceptional, and all the stress accumulated on the man had been completely released during their contact last night.
However, Ian knew this didn't mean he could relax completely.
He remembered he came here not to enjoy his girlfriends' service but to help Chaldea repair the Singularity created by Lev.
The man slowly opened his eyes and found Tamamo-no-Mae looking at him with a docile expression, looking just like an adorable pet little fox.
"Mr. Abe, you're awake?" The fox demon's voice was gentle and thoughtful, sounding like a wife diligently attending to her husband.
No, it should be said that she was that kind of wife.
"Mhm," Ian nodded. "Koyama, it seems you woke up earlier than I did."
"Yes," Tamamo-no-Mae hooked her arm around the man's and then gently rubbed her chest against him.
"Since I finally have this rare chance to be alone with you like this, Mr. Abe, I wanted to look at your face a few more times."
"That is more important than resting."
"Koyama..."
Ian gently stroked Tamamo-no-Mae's incredibly docile, cherry-pink long hair, pulling her into his embrace and caressing her.
"To be able to meet you again is truly a blessing for me."
"I feel the same way..."
After a simple moment of intimacy like this, Ian let go of Tamamo-no-Mae, and she began to attend to her husband, helping him put on his clothes.
Soon, Ian and Tamamo-no-Mae got up together, preparing to leave the room.
The man, however, did not expect that the moment he opened the door, Mash, Boudica, and Jing Ke outside the door nearly tumbled in.
"What are you all doing..."
Ian looked at the girls outside the room with a puzzled expression.
"Why are you all standing here?"
"This..."
Mash lowered her head, but her intentions were the easiest to guess—she wanted to hear if her Senpai and Tamamo-no-Mae had done anything affectionate in the room.
Of course, even if she had heard something, Mash wouldn't have complained but would only secretly envy Tamamo-no-Mae.
"I was just passing by!" Jing Ke responded self-righteously to Ian. "When I saw those two stopping here, I followed to see what was going on."
What she said should be the truth—Ian didn't think Jing Ke would be listening in like Mash.
"And what about you, Boudica? Why are you standing here?"
"This..."
The Queen of Britannia was momentarily unsure how to answer Ian's question, so she could only stammer an excuse.
"I wasn't doing anything... I was just worried that knocking casually would disturb your rest with Tamamo-no-Mae."
"I kept debating, and ended up just standing here."
"..."
This, of course, was not the truth.
But seeing Boudica's troubled look, Ian knew there was no need to dwell on the matter.
"Alright, I understand what you mean."
"Let's let it go this time—but next time, please don't do this again. It's a little startling to open the door and see you all first thing in the morning."
"Everyone," the man's gaze swept over everyone present. "Let's continue our discussion from yesterday."
A little over ten minutes later, in the hall where they exchanged information yesterday.
The five people, including Ian, gathered here again.
However, compared to yesterday's simple exchange of information, today's conversation was clearly more focused.
"Regarding our next course of action, does anyone have any ideas?" Ian, who had been naturally designated as the leader, opened the discussion.
"That would naturally be to find that thing called the Holy Grail, right?"
Jing Ke was the first to answer Ian's question. She had been quite frustrated at not being able to say anything yesterday.
"After all, according to Tamamo-no-Mae's theory yesterday—this place called a Singularity only appeared because of that strange Holy Grail, didn't it?"
Although Jing Ke's remark didn't offer much new information, Ian still nodded, indicating he agreed with her statement.
"You're absolutely right. We should definitely retrieve the Holy Grail."
"But the problem now is where to look?"
"Koyama?" Ian looked at the fox demon who had served him all night. "You should have some expertise in this area—do you have any suggestions?"
"Well... if Master is asking about that," Tamamo-no-Mae took out her mirror again. "Actually, for me, being able to sense the will hidden within the Holy Grail is pretty much the limit of what my mirror can do."
"Until I understand something more deeply, I can only go so far."
The implication was that Tamamo-no-Mae also didn't have a good solution right now.
"Um—"
Mash raised her hand at this moment, but then realized it might seem too forward and quickly retracted it.
But Ian naturally wouldn't miss an opportunity for her to speak.
After all, a proactively raising Mash was quite rare.
"Mash, what is it? Do you have something you want to say?"
"It's just..."
Mash looked at the communication device on her wrist.
That was a new gadget that BB, the super AI, had engineered using the little remaining capacity after joining Chaldea.
It was more stable than the original device and wouldn't frequently lose connection with Chaldea anymore.
"Senpai, I was thinking, maybe we could try to contact BB and ask her to help us locate any traces the Holy Grail of this Singularity might have left behind?"
"That's a good idea, but unfortunately, it's not feasible," Ian expressed his thoughts very diplomatically. "I've already asked BB about this previously—she answered that she can't do it."
"After all, the Holy Grail is not a simple program. It's impossible to determine its movement trajectory simply through calculation."
"..."
The atmosphere suddenly fell silent.
Everyone realized one thing: the black shadows outside Hadrian's Wall were just the beginning. The truly thorny part was still ahead.
And just at this moment, a knock came from the door.
It was a soldier of Britannia, and he spoke in a very anxious tone:
"Your Majesty, are you there?"
Boudica was never one to put on airs. Hearing her soldier's urgency, she immediately responded:
"What is it? If the matter is urgent, just report it directly! I permit you to do so."
"Your Majesty, we found an injured person outside the city gate. She seems quite distressed and keeps saying she needs to see you. We were wondering what your opinion is..."
"This..."
Boudica subconsciously looked back at Ian—he had become a factor the Queen needed to consider in her decisions.
After he nodded in confirmation, she immediately responded to her soldier.
"Where is she now?"
"In the main hall. We just provided her with some emergency treatment."
"I understand. I'll be there now."
A few minutes later, led by Boudica, the group arrived in the main hall.
The moment Ian saw the person the soldier mentioned, he froze.
Because it was none other than Locusta, the poisoner, one of Nero's most trusted retainers besides himself!
Why would she be here at this time?
"..."
Tamamo-no-Mae quickly and keenly noticed the change in her husband's expression and realized this might be someone he knew from before.
However, she didn't say a word, instead silently preparing to provide him with necessary cover at any moment.
"You are..."
Boudica, completely unaware of Ian's thoughts, immediately voiced her confusion to the uninvited guest.
"I am Locusta!" the blue-haired girl cried out excitedly. "You already surrendered to Rome, didn't you—then quickly find a way to save the Emperor!"
"Save the Emperor? Are you referring to Nero?" Boudica continued to ask.
"Yes! Who else is worthy of being the Emperor of Rome? You must know that the Emperor is..."
Mid-sentence, Locusta stopped, as she noticed Ian nearby.
Instantly, her eyes, which had been dull as if from some trauma, suddenly lit up again.
"So you are here—what are you waiting for, hurry back and save the Emperor!"
Hearing Locusta's words, the eyes of all the girls, except Tamamo-no-Mae, once again focused on Ian.
Locusta was not a Servant, which meant she was a "native" based on the Singularity itself.
And for such a "native" to instinctively seek Ian's help the moment she saw him was quite perplexing.
However—
Before Ian could say anything, Tamamo-no-Mae quickly provided cover for him.
She smiled slightly, and said with a touch of pride:
"Master, your aura is truly impressive—even on a first meeting, you can make others feel the urge to ask you for help."
"I truly married an extraordinary man."
Hearing these words, Boudica frowned slightly.
She felt that the situation seemed a little off—did something else happen between them last night besides that?
However—
Tamamo-no-Mae's cover did not work as she had hoped.
Because she didn't know that Locusta had personally witnessed Ian and Nero's wedding.
So, the moment she heard that sentence, the diminutive poisoner instantly erupted.
"No!" Locusta waved her arm. "How dare you marry another girl when you are already married to the Emperor?"
"This is disloyalty to the Emperor!"
"Um—"
Jing Ke very opportunely interjected with a further blow.
"He's not marrying just one. He's marrying three."
"And two are already married, the remaining one is a fiancée."
"What??!!"
Locusta was so angry that she stomped her foot.
"How could you treat the Emperor like this—she will be so sad and hurt! This is outrageous!"
"..."
After a moment's thought, Boudica decided to speak up:
"Although I don't want to say this, based on your words just now—shouldn't your concern at this moment be for Nero's safety, rather than this issue?"
"Did you... not experience something with her and then flee to Britannia in this state?"
"Eh, that—"
Boudica's words jolted Locusta.
Although the small poisoner's mental state wasn't good, her loyalty to Nero was beyond doubt.
She quickly recalled the reason for her escape all the way here and then reverted to her initial plea for help.
"Quickly, come back to Rome with me! And save the Emperor!"
The same statement as before.
Realizing that Ian might not be the best person to speak at this moment, Boudica quickly took on the role of communicator.
"Don't panic. We need you to explain the situation clearly so we can decide what to do next, right?"
"Otherwise, if you just tell us to return to Rome, we won't know what preparations to make."
Boudica's words had some effect.
After taking several deep breaths, Locusta temporarily calmed down.
Although she still looked quite distressed, at least she seemed to know what she needed to express now.
"Starting a few days ago... no, it should be over ten days ago, the Great Fire of Rome started burning."
"It's a flame that consumes everything it touches. Many people died, and many things were burned during this process."
"But... the Emperor is still dancing there."
"No matter how much I begged her, she refused to leave the city of Rome."
"The fire kept burning. I had no choice but to escape alone."
"You all—" Locusta looked at the people in front of her.
"You are also citizens of Rome, aren't you? Quick, find a way to save the Emperor!"
"..."
Locusta's incredible description plunged most of the people present into silence.
This was clearly not something that could be accepted immediately, yet the small poisoner's expression did not look fake.
But Ian was different. With an extra memory, he could already picture the scene Locusta described.
In the Great Fire sweeping across Rome, Nero was dancing alone, singing a sad tune, savoring a loneliness only she could understand.
No... it cannot be this way.
That was not what she should endure. Wasn't that exactly what he had always tried to avoid?
Ian decided on the next course of action at this moment.
"Everyone, I believe she is telling the truth."
The man's gaze swept over everyone present.
"So—"
"Are you willing to return to Rome with me?"