U TUBE
The video starts by showing the POV of someone waking up under a thatched roof.
A groan escaped from the figure who woke up, the sound revealing the POV to be from a small girl.
The little girl wiped her eyes with her tiny hands.
Suddenly the girl startled, and she looked around her room in a panic.
"Who's there?!"
The camera showed that the room was empty and devoid of sound aside from the morning songbirds singing outside.
Hesitantly, she got up from her bed, then walked outside the circular house.
The camera showed the girl walking past several men and women dressed in checkered clothing, all of them smiling and giving their good mornings to the girl. Finally, she arrived at the communal area, where a red-headed woman was helping several other women prepare breakfast.
The woman noticed the girl's approach and turned to look at her, a warm smile on her face.
"Good morning Mother." The girl said.
"Good morning sweetie, breakfast will be ready soon."
"Okay."
Suddenly the woman's smile turned into a concerned frown, "is everything alright?"
"Um… I felt like something was watching me sleep, And I can still feel their eyes lingering on me."
Boudica's face turned grim, then she narrowed her eyes and quickly scanned the little girl, as if searching for the person ogling her daughter; However, she found nothing.
She quickly schooled her features, and bent to the girl's eye level. She patted the girl's head lovingly, and reassuringly.
"Don't worry sweetie, Mother will handle it, go ahead and sit down, I will have your breakfast ready soon."
The camera bobbed up and down in affirmation before turning around and running towards a wooden table nearby, sat down, and waited patiently for her meal.
The camera turned to see the red-headed woman already up and continued to stir the contents in the pot for a few more minutes.
The woman took a sample of the meal, and nodded in satisfaction, then she dunked the ladle in the pot and scooped out a generous portion of porridge and poured it in a ceramic bowl.
She set the bowl aside on a platter, and walked to another section of the open kitchen and pulled a chunk of roasted meat from the fire.
The little girl, seeing the steak being cut into strips, started to make noises of excitement.
Her mother finally finished her preparations and walked over to her table. She placed a steaming bowl of porridge, alongside the sliced roasted meat, and a cup of extremely diluted ale in front of the girl.
The girl thanked her mother then politely dug into her meal with gusto.
…
"And if I find any of you leering at her, I swear upon the gods that I will geld you!! understood?!"
"Understood!!" The chorus of Iceni men said in unison, all of them looking in various states of fear.
The girl's mother humphed before turning her attention to the little girl, her anger whipping into motherly comfort in a matter of seconds, "ready to go for our morning ride?"
The little girl nods.
…
The camera is shown running towards a pair of white horses, who were tied to a chariot.
The horses noticed her approach and lowered their heads. The girl's small hands patted their heads and necks, and the horses let out snorts and neighs of content.
The girl ended her brief contact with the horses and rushed to climb on top of the chariot.
Once she reached her spot, her mother quickly got on the chariot as well.
"Ready to go?"
The girl responded to her mother's query with an excited: "Mhm!"
"Hiyah!!" the mother ushered the horses forward, and the chariot moved.
They slowly galloped down the grassy hills, past the dense, damp forests, until finally, the chariot arrived on a grassy, open field.
It was then that the girl's mother sped up her chariot's speed. The wind rushed past the girl's cheeks, causing her hair to flow in the wind.
The girl let out a breath of wonder at seeing the vast open blue sky and the seemingly endless green field stretched out before her.
A small hand reached out toward the sun in the horizon, hoping to keep it stationed in place so that the morning ride would never end. |
Through the Daughter's Eyes
By Gudao (subscribe)
Comments:
⇢ IliekQTthings: OMA, even though we could not see the little girl, she was sooo cute!! She deserves all the headpats after being spooked!! How could you do such a thing, Gudao Ch?!!
⇢ Woah, was that… Boudica? She looks so pretty when she's not dressed like a hoe.
| Ikr!? Like seriously! Boudica is so much more respectable here than when we met her in Fuyuki!! She was not being vulgar or even cruel! She was just being a caring mother!!
| Threatening to geld your men is pretty cruel though, especially since it wasn't actually her men at fault for making her daughter uncomfortable, but the camera's (AKA, us).
⤷ Oh shut up, it's a valid and justified punishment for perverts, especially perverts who like leering at little girls with evil intent.
⇢ CleftyCleffa: I love the first person POV we got in this video, but I feel horrible it came at the expense of a young girl's sense of security. Honestly, whoever is in charge of recording and uploading videos to Gudao Ch. should be ashamed of themselves for peeping into other people's lives, especially a child's, without consent!
⇢ Giraffigy: Btw, the girl's breakfast was basic af. Porridge, roasted meat, and water? Give that girl some fossil nuggies!
JoltTrick: She seemed really happy eating them though, so no need to give her that processed crap! Also, I think that wasn't water, but really watered down ale.
| ALE?!! BOUDICA GAVE HER YOUNG DAUGHTER ALCOHOL?! WTF?!!
| Junior_Researcher: *Rolls eyes* Beer and ale was a source of clean drinking water for many ancient civilizations that lacked ready access to water type Pokémon. Kids turned out fine, especially since the stuff they had was nowhere near as strong as the modern stuff.
⤷ JoltTrick: "Protect the children" folks showing, once again, how impulsively dumb and uneducated they are smh.
✦✧✦
Near dawn, Palmyra, Palmyrene Empire
Zenobia POV
Her eyes fluttered open, and she awoke to a room chilled by the cool, desert night. The freezing air attempted to strangle the heat away from her body, but its icy grip was easily abated by the warmth flushing to her cheeks.
She never expected Ritsuka would be complacent in allowing a deviant to kiss him and hold his hand in public. His willingness to express intimate forms of skin ship with a person of the opposite sex, away from parental supervision, was concerning.
She sighed, as much as she wanted to talk his ear off about engaging in such activities, she felt it would be inappropriate to scold him, as he was the one being led around by the true guilty party into committing such lewd acts. Maybe she should offer some gentle guidance on how to politely assert himself against women who wish to have their way with him?
Degeneracy aside, she cannot help but admire his patience and willingness to help someone who was clearly antagonistic towards him. So his relationship with that person was at the very least earned.
After seeing his willingness to fight a servant when he kept attacking Alexander the Great, on top of his drive to learn and teach, she truly believed he has the potential to make for a fine general under her command, and perhaps something more given time…
She halted her thoughts before they could go any further. A queen shouldn't think such things of someone she has only met, especially when they are already eloped with someone else.
She gave a small prayer to the gods before she got up from her warm, comfortable bed and into the embrace of the cold air, yet, even the chill couldn't shake these feelings off her. Seeing no other option, she decided to do what she always did when she needed to clear her head from stress and distractions.
She decided to take a stroll through her garden.
Closing the door behind her with a dull clunk, she was met by a silent, empty corridor. It was still very early in the morning and her servants were asleep by this hour. She could have demanded one of them show up to be at her beck and call, but she is not so cruel as to deprive her subjects of much-needed rest, so she walked by her lonesome towards her garden.
The flickering torches made her shadow dance to the rhythmic clinking of her golden chains as she walked towards her destination.
Normally, she would have slept until the sun had long come up from the sky, but, she couldn't afford to laze about today. She still had some more preparations to do with the leader of the new army before she could deploy them, but thankfully it shouldn't take more than a few hours; However, she would prefer being able to make such preparations without having to constantly fight off the lewd memories from her servant dream and the pleasant warm scent of citron that haunted her nose, even now awake as she was.
She stopped, and realized that the pleasant scent she was smelling was not in fact from her imagination, but that it was coming from the exit that led to her gardens.
To normal humans and even servants, the scent would be faint, but to her, she could easily trace the aroma of citron clearly, and it beckoned her toward it.
This aroma, she recognized it… it was Ritsuka's. She had caught a whiff of it when she saved him and Mash from falling to their deaths and when she embraced them after she defeated Alexander's army, but she could not properly appreciate the scent until now.
It was a warm, refreshing, and green scent, one so foreign and mysterious that its mere existence truly lent credit to the fact that Ritsuka was a stranger beyond strangers to these lands and this time.
So focused was she in her analysis of this scent, that she didn't notice that she had walked into her garden until the scent of her date palm trees and the various flowers planted around her snapped her out of her musings.
What's gotten into her? She came out here to clear her mind, not cloud it. Perhaps listening to the soothing sound of her fountain will bring back her focus. However, her plans went awry a moment later, as the scent of citron returned with more clarity the closer she got to her fountain.
There, sitting near the fountain's edge was Ritsuka, who was appreciating the night sky like one would admire jewelry.
He was wearing the black outfit he wore when they first met. Such clothing would be seen as barbaric by both the Romans and Greeks, but she actually found it looked quite good on him, although she did think he dressed amazingly last night when he arrived in men's traditional Palmyrene clothing.
The servants did a great job, and she made a mental note to pay them well for their service.
Deciding that she had spent enough time staring, she approached him. The clinking of her golden chains was loud enough that it drew his attention away from the night sky and onto her.
Hm, that's strange. His eyes aren't wandering around her body like they used to.
"Greetings Ritsuka, did you not sleep well?"
"Ah, good morning Queen Zenobia, and no need to worry about me, I just like waking up early enough so I can stargaze." Suddenly, his face turned red, "Um… chat told me about the greeting your people do for you, but I have to confirm, do I have to kiss you?"
She pondered it for a moment, before she shook her head, "perhaps in public, yes, but we are in private, so I will not force you to do it if it makes you uncomfortable. I know not all cultures share this kind of custom, so it would be insensitive for me to demand it from you outside formal greetings."
"Y-Yeah, thanks for letting me know."
"Well then, do would you mind if I join you?" Since she was already here, she might as well take the time to get to know him better.
Ritsuka shrugged his shoulders, "I don't mind, but it's your palace, so I can't stop you even if I wanted to."
He had a point, but she still had to be polite. Anyway, she walked closer and took a seat next to him.
Neither of them spoke another word as they both turned their gazes upwards and despite the massive ring obscuring part of the sky, they still managed to enjoy the view of the stars in silence.
After a few minutes of admiring the heavens, she finally decided to open a conversation, "you really do live up to the ancient Chaldean's namesake, Ritsuka. Not that I am criticizing you. It is a really beautiful pastime, to gaze at the stars and derive their meanings."
Ritsuka, hearing her words, merely shook her head, "I am nowhere qualified enough to claim myself a professional stargazer."
She raised one of her eyebrows at him, "why do you believe so?"
"Because unlike them, I have no idea what most of the constellations are named, or their meanings aside from the famous ones. In fact, I hadn't even seen the full night sky in its full glory until recently."
That was a surprise for her.
"Truly?"
"Yes. A night sky filled constellations and heavenly bodies, is a completely foreign sight to people in the future, especially to those who live in big cities due to heavy light pollution, like me. The city lights are so harsh that the entire sky appears completely dark, and the only constellations most people can see is Orion's belt and the big dipper." The melancholy in his voice was weary and heavy, and it made sense after he spoke such a grim tale.
"That is… awful. The night sky has guided mankind since its inception. The stars have always been our companions, guiding us through the wilderness when we were lost, providing light when the moon slept. So for the sky to be barren of most stars… it is hard for me to fathom."
Ritsuka, at hearing her words, nodded, "Yes, I agree, but it's one of those unintended consequences that come as a result of human progress."
She frowned at that information, "to think the future had such a sad fate, how tragic."
"Ah, sorry for bringing down the mood Queen Zenobia. If you want, I can talk about something else."
She shook her head, "it's alright Ritsuka, I asked you a question and you satisfied my curiosity. I have no right to be offended by the information you provided. That being said, if you're willing to entertain me a bit longer, I wanted to ask you something."
"I don't mind, ask away. I am an open book." He told her while pointing a thumb to his chest. A strange gesture, but she chalked it up to a quirky difference between their cultures.
"What do you think of my home, my Palmyra?" She had a feeling it was positive given how she had seen his awe when they entered the city, and the joy at eating the various foods at the feast last night.
But she didn't want to make assumptions, she wanted to hear it from him.
Ritsuka gained a warm expression, one which she had seen on people when they fondly remembered things, "it's been an unforgettable experience so far. The truth is, before coming here, I had already known about this place from the internet and from my aunt's second hand accounts."
"The internet? Oh wait, never mind, it seems the throne was kind enough to provide the concept of the Internet when I asked just now. How fascinating."
Hearing her answer her own question made Ritsuka pause, his face filled with shame.
"Right, sorry, I got carried away, and I forgot that the throne is selectively stingy with what information it gives servants."
"It's alright, do not fret over it. Now tell me more about this aunt on yours, it has piqued my interest."
"Well, aunt Sayaka is my mom's sister, and she is a historian that focuses on Japanese culture and history, but she also loves to travel and often likes to find similarities between our family's culture and other cultures from around the world."
He leaned back, using his arms to support his weight, "she's come to visit this place a few times as a tourist. It's actually one of her favorite places she visited abroad, partially due to its long history but mostly because of you."
She blushed at that, "M-Me?"
"Yes, you are one of her favorite western historical figures, because she admired your courage and bravery to stand up to and fight against the Roman Empire. She loved coming here when she could afford it, and would always send pictures to us, her family."
"I… didn't know people in the modern era cared so deeply for my Palmyra. "
"Care is an understatement. Palmyra is a UNESCO World Heritage Site in the future, and was one of the most visited tourist spots in the Middle East…" He hesitated to speak, and this caused her to furrow her brows. It was when he spoke again, that she realized why he held such reluctance.
"That was at least until that terrorist group came and destroyed it."
A boiling anger from deep within her and bubbled to the surface, and she clenched her fists at the reminder. She was having such a great night too, but it seems like no matter what, the world will always go out of its way to remind her of her people's fate.
"When my aunt heard what had happened, she was absolutely furious. So furious in fact, she was even entertaining the idea of signing up to join the fight,"
Her eyes widened, "really?"
"Yeah, she was, but she quickly gave up on the idea because she didn't want to leave my baby cousin Gudako motherless."
She agreed, such a reason would be foolish.
"As a mother, I understand. I hold no grudge against someone who decided to live for their children's sake."
"Well, while she might not have physically joined the fight, knowing her, she probably found alternative ways to help, though I am unsure how she could have done so."
Well, while he may not know, she had a few ideas, but they usually involved a lot of capital. She was unsure how his aunt could have afforded it, but it's possible.
"I was not happy to hear that my home was reduced to ruins in the future… but hearing that people still deeply care for it in spite of the efforts of the Romans and the barbarians that followed… It brings me joy."
A brief silence fell between the two, this time, it was more somber than the last pause. A stray thought came to her, one which made her feel rather embarrassed. She wanted to get to know him, and yet, even when he shared parts about his life, the conversation always looped back to her Palmyra.
She needed to fix this mistake.
"Do you miss your home?" Of course he does, what kind of questions are you asking Zenobia?
Unaware of her internal strife at asking such a redundant question, Ritsuka responded without hesitation, "I would be lying if I said I didn't feel a bit homesick. While I do enjoy seeing so many new and interesting places, and meeting different kinds of people, I still miss my home and my family every single day."
His eyes narrowed, not at her, or at the stars, but rather, at the massive ring that loomed over their heads.
"but I am the last Master of humanity, without me, all of my friends, my family, and my home will stay gone. So I bear with it and keep pushing forward, holding onto hope that everything will be back to normal when it's all over."
How admirable…
"I know what it's like… to lose family, friends, a lover… but I could never hope to know what it's like to have the literal future of humanity on my shoulders. I admire the flame of your resolve Ritsuka. Keep it burning bright, and I am sure you will achieve your goal."
"Thanks Queen Zenobia." His cheer returned, and it made her glad.
"Please, call me Zenobia. I see you and Mash as friends, so you need not keep up formalities in private."
"Oh, then, thank you, for your kind words Zenobia." Seeing his toothy smile under the moonlight, it brought warmth to her heart.
BA-DUM
Her eyes widened as her heart started to race in her chest.
No way… why was she feeling this way, when he only said her name?
She pursed her lips, and abruptly stood up from her seat, much to Ritsuka's confusion.
"I-I should be heading back now, as pleasant as our conversation has been, you are a man, and I am a woman, we should not be spending so much time in close contact. I do not wish to cause a rift between you and your wife."
"My wife?" Ritsuka seemed confused by her words.
"Xochitl."
That name caused Ritsuka to gape at her like a fish out of water, "s-she's not my wife!"
Those words caused her thoughts to halt, "pardon?"
"Xochitl and I are not married, in fact, we're not even together anymore."
She furrowed her brows, "but I saw you two express skinship in public. Such a thing is something only married couples would do."
"Uh… how much did you see in that servant dream you had?"
She crossed her arms, "I saw you two holding hands and kissing."
Hearing her words earned a sigh of relief from Ritsuka, which only caused her to raise a brow.
Why is he relieved at hearing that?
"Right, well, I'll apologize in advance for what you might see later. Anyway, Xochitl and I separated on good terms and went on with our lives. So we never really had the opportunity to exchange vows if we wanted to."
It seems she made a grave mistake.
"My mistake, I jumped to conclusions based on the fragments of memories in a servant's dream."
He waved off her concerns, "It's alright, while being single can be a bit rough after being with someone, but I got used to it."
"Single? Do you not have Mash with you?"
He scratched his cheek, "Um… Mash and I aren't like that.
While Chat likes to joke about us being a couple, we aren't, we are friends who were dragged into a dangerous adventure. And even if I wanted to, I don't want her to feel forced or pressured to enter a relationship based on what strangers say. It wouldn't be healthy."
Oh… what a relief.
"In any case, I apologize for prying into your love life, Ritsuka. I really did not mean to, but um, I really meant what I said earlier. It isn't appropriate for us to be in close contact unless we plan to be together, so I will depart for now."
"Oh, uh, okay, I will see you later then. It was nice talking to you, Zenobia."
[GudakoBot: Waifu Counter: 9 ]
[PerfectlySaneHex: bhuah? Already? The stream's barely started and already another hussy decides to set her claws on him? ]
[Damn, Rizzuka works fast. Zenobia has fallen, and the prophecy has been fulfilled. ]
[BattleMANIAC: Zenobia can show up pregnant the next day for all I care, I'm just waiting for the next fight to happen. Not a spar, a curbstomp, or a smash tournament, but an actual, real fight between servants!!
I've been itching to see everyone back in action. ]
[Best_Kohai-BB: Ooh, someone's bloodthirsty. Careful what you wish for, you might just get it. ]
[I just hope this singularity ends without a big fuss, I want to go back to Chaldea streams. Would it be too much to ask for the grail to fall on their lap? ]
✦✧✦
Northern Italia
Constantine POV
His features hardened as he beheld the sight before him. The once empty fields beyond his wall were now inhabited by an army of thousands.
"It seems those filthy barbarians have finally decided to make their move, eh Constantine?" the elderly mage next to him rhetorically asked with a grave look on his face.
This man is Simon Magus, a greedy, pompous, and arrogant man who believed he could purchase miracles and declare himself divine when in truth, he was simply using magecraft to fool mundane people.
None know this man like he does, and he's not just saying that because he's a servant from the future, but rather it's because Simon Magus was, unfortunately, his master.
The last emperor of Rome, Constantine the Eleventh, consorting with heretics and pagans.
His unborn father, and christian predecessors must be rolling in his graves.
But as much as he disliked the man who will be known as the first heretic, as a magus of the past, his magical energy and skills in magecraft were exemplary.
Honestly, if not for his master having the insight to hook him up to the leyline under their feet to supply his mana, Rome would have already fallen by now.
"Yes. Thanks to the efforts of Jing Ke, we were able to have enough time to prepare for their approaching force."
Simon hummed while stroking his gray beard, "It's truly a shame Emperor Nero had to leave so suddenly to reinforce the south. I could have shown off even more of my divine power for her via live demonstration against these savage barbarians. Alas, I will have to make do with the reports."
He rolled his eyes at the man's boastful lament before he focused back on the task at hand.
Among the sea of barbarians stood a lone figure on a horse-drawn chariot.
Her appearance made him pause.
The barbarian queen's red hair draped down to her hips. She was wearing a white tunic and skirt that exposed her generous bosom and thighs.
A crown adorned her head, one made of gold and simple jewels, and it completed the image of a regal queen that her long, billowing white cape would not have been able to do on its own.
This woman, this warrior queen, was Boudica, the fallen queen of the Iceni.
Except, that should be impossible since Boudica's Revolt was squashed earlier this year.
If she is here, seemingly alive and well, then that means that she survived the Battle of Watling Street. Or at least that was what he hoped, however, reality was not so kind.
The reality was that he could sense that this woman was a servant, which meant that Boudica was summoned shortly after her death.
She was flanked by her trusted warriors, who wore vibrant, colorful checkered tunics.
He could feel Boudica's intense gaze hyperfocus on him, and it became harsher as she raised her sword to the sky.
"DEATH TO ROME!!" Her voice was clear and audible to even the soldiers who stood on standby on the walls of his city-fort.
The tremendous chorus that followed from the hundreds of thousands of soldiers repeating their queen's words made his men gulp in fear.
"Steady your hearts, men. She is just trying to get a rise out of you. You are proud roman soldiers, stand tall and do not be afraid."
A bright light shone from Boudica's sword, one that got brighter by the second.
He scoffed and put his hand on the hilt of his blade.
Now his sword glowed, and it did so but with more intensity than hers, plus it came with a surprise.
He lifted his blade into the sky and a yellow light erupted from under him, and at the same time, massive chains of iron manifested and twirled around him with loud, dull clunks.
He swung the vortex of chains and light at the same time Boudica fired her sword beam.
The attacks crashed into each other, unfortunately for Boudica, his beam attack trounced hers with ease.
Seeing this, Boudica was forced to make an early charge to avoid the incoming attack.
BOOM
Even if he couldn't hear her from this far away, he could see Boudica click her tongue at her failure of an attack.
She looked back at her troops and pointed her blade at him.
"Don't just stand there, charge!!"
Spurred by their queen's order, thousands upon thousands of barbarian soldiers roared their respective war cries as they all raced toward his walls.
Like pigs to the slaughter house.
"Stand strong my fellow Romans! These barbarians might have an edge in numbers, but we are civilized men, and we have technology on our side!!"
The various men around the walls loaded the cannons like they had been trained to do, then they aimed their weapons at the enemy.
"Rome will not die, Rome will prevail! Now BRING THE FIRE of civilization to these barbarians!!"
He turned back just in time to see the look of horror on Boudica's face as dozens of thunderous booms cracked across the battlefield, mowing down her men by the droves.
He smirked.
No matter how many bodies the enemy throws at them, he will always have energy to spare and use to generate and fire endless artillery strikes at them.
Another volley of cannons fired, but just before they slammed into the barbarians, a slash of yellow light crashed into them, rendering the cannonballs into smoke.
He frowned as he saw the Barbarian Queen shield her men from the worst of the volley from her attack.
Then she charged, her intentions clear.
She was gunning towards him.
"To have the attention of our gorgeous emperor and now the beautiful Barbarian Queen, You are quite the lucky man Constantine." Simon said with an amused, but snivelling tone.
"The savage might be fixated on me, but my blade is more interested in meeting her neck."
He got on top of his castle wall, then let himself fall.
Due to his servant physiology, and using the wall as a way to cushion his landing, he arrived at the ground with little difficulty.
He manifested his horse and climbed on top of it, then he ushered his horse forward, to confront Boudica.
Boudica never stopped riding towards him, and he didn't bother slowing down either.
He wouldn't let the sudden halt in momentum stop him. So he stood on his horse and threw himself at the queen, who stared at him with shock in her eyes.
Their horses shrieked as they crashed into each other, his own steed not losing out to the Iceni Queen's twin mounts.
Unfortunately for Boudica, his sudden tackle proved too unexpected for her to avoid.
They both fell on the grass, rolling like stones down a hill.
Unfortunately, he was unable to pin her to the ground, and she managed to get on her feet rather quickly.
Not wanting to give his enemy an advantage, he got up at the same speed.
Now they both stood on opposing sides, both eyeing each other for weaknesses. Neither of them wanted to make the first move, and thus they were at an impasse.
He decided it was as best time as any to begin a conversation.
"To what do I owe the pleasure, Boudica of the Iceni? I doubt you would come to siege my castle without a good reason, would you care to enlighten me?"
She eyed him for a movement, wondering if it was a trap. When she saw he was being genuine, she spoke up in a diplomatic tone, "our goddess demands the destruction of Rome, your fort is an obstacle that she entrusted to me to bring down. But, she is a generous goddess, if you agree to stand down, then our attacks will cease and your fort will continue to stand. If not, your city will be sacked, and you will be made an example for all who oppose her."
She narrowed her eyes, "so what do you say?"
He let out a small chuckle, "what makes you think I would follow the threats of some false pagan goddess?"
"If that is what you believe, then why do you ally yourself with Nero in the first place? She is a pagan emperor that is infamous for having persecuted Christians. If anything, you should be fighting with us, not the beast who lives in extravagance."
He pursed his lips, "yes… yes she is. And at first, I did loathe the fact that I would have to protect her from dying. She was Emperor Nero, the emperor who the church warned us about and condemned as the anti-christ." He clenched his fists, "but I came to realize that despite that, without her, there is no Eastern Rome, or as history knows us as the Byzantine Empire. She is a necessary evil that must remain alive for the better of the world. "
"Is that what you believe, or are you lying to yourself to ease the guilt of rejecting the opportunity to improve the future for your people?"
"I believe I have heard enough. Your attempts to persuade me to your side have failed, not because you are right or wrong, but rather because you don't know me. I am Constantine the Eleventh, the last Emperor of Rome, I fought to my last breath to protect Rome against overwhelming odds, and lost."
He raised his sword to the sky, and once again, a pillar of light and chains erupted towards the sky, "and I will always choose this path no matter what! I will never betray Rome, my progenitor, nor the One True God!!"
"I see… What a shame." Her face hardened.
Her sword glowed with an intense light, yet they both knew she would not be able to match him.
Their attacks clashed once again.
No matter how hard she tries to evade his blade, by the end of the day, he vows he will have her head mounted on a spike!!
✦✧✦
Antioch, Palmyrene Empire
Mash POV
After the celebratory feast had concluded, the next day she, Senpai, and Queen Zenobia had left Palmyra to start their trip to the coast.
Turns out, she needed to head West as well, but she decided helping them and their mission took priority over what task she had to do.
The army that Queen Zenobia had recruited had joined them on their trip, but halfway through, they marched North, as Queen Zenobia needed them for an upcoming battle.
Their group was in a rush, so they ran through the desert at top servant speeds in short bursts, but it was mostly for Senpai's sake.
Chat was being chat as always, but due to Queen Zenobia's presence, and the boredom of travel, they just spammed pecha berry emotes, crude jokes and other lewd emotes during the whole trip.
Also, she is happy to report that after spending so much time with her, Mash Kirielight had gotten used to Queen Zenobia's state of undress without being ashamed!!
Although, she still found it hypocritical that Zenobia had issues with her servant form's dress when the Queen herself was almost naked, but she digressed.
It didn't take long for the scent of sea water to reach their senses, a sign that told them that they had arrived at their destination.
The city of Antioch was beautiful, filled with thousands of people going about their daily lives. Children played on the streets, housewives bartered with merchants on the price of the goods.
It was… overwhelming, but it was beautiful and fascinating to see a thriving civilization live out a normal day.
What wasn't normal, however, was Queen Zenobia buying an entire ship for their travels, complete with a crew and captain.
"Are you sure it's okay for us to have so much?" she tried to say, but Zenobia quickly silenced her attempts to decline.
"It's no issue, it is payment for providing aid to save Palmyra."
[Mash, you and Gudao's sugar mommy wants to give you a boat, so STOP LOOKING AT THE GIFT PONYTA IN THE MOUTH!! ]
"Um… okay, I suppose that does make me feel a bit better, but not by a lot, it still feels like you are overpaying us." She couldn't help but say, which caused Zenobia to put her hand on her chin.
"Think of it this way then, you can view it as an investment. I am paying you so that you can have an easier time finding the anomaly your organization is looking for that will prevent the incineration of humanity. How does that sound?"
"I guess that is fine." She turned to her Senpai, "Senpai, what do you think?"
"I think it's fine," he turned to Zenobia, "thank you again for your generosity."
Zenobia, upon hearing Senpai's words, smiled brighter.
"You are very welcome," Zenobia turned to the bald ship captain, who was still kneeling before her,"so how long until the ship is ready to sail to Mount Etna?"
The bald sea captain looked up and said, "It should be a week before the ship is ready to, and it should take a few days to reach that volcanic mountain thanks to the enchantments placed on this ship, My Queen."
"Excellent, thank you for your service."
Zenobia turned to face them once more, "I hope you don't mind if I stick around you two for a bit longer."
"Oh it's no issue at all Zen- I mean Queen Zenobia." Senpai managed to catch his tongue before it slipped out. Zenobia had given them permission to call them by name, but only in private.
Zenobia seemed to not mind the flub, "well, since we're going to be here a week, we're going to need a place to stay. So let's go explore the city a bit."
Senpai nodded and they both followed her lead, since she seemed to be familiar with this city.
She found it quite odd that Zenobia had a lot of spare time to hang out with them when she clearly sounds like she's made plans at doing something else.
She supposed that being a ruler of a nation was tough and she needed an excuse to take a quick vacation from her duties.
She just hoped she didn't become as bad as Romani.
✦✧✦
Constantine POV
Unfortunately, he was not able to claim Boudica's head. No matter how hard or fast he tried to be, her neck somehow always found a way to evade his decisive blow.
Well, it didn't matter as much, since his army had managed to make a sizable dent in her much larger force.
Boudica, seeing the battle turn against her, decided to call for a retreat.
Since that day, Boudica has not made a direct attack on his fort with her army. Instead, she's been throwing surprise attacks against his castle using her sword beams. The aftermath showed that she had targeted and destroyed the cannons on the walls.
Sadly for her, such a tactic will not work, as he could easily replace the broken cannons by just simply using magical energy to manifest more of them, magical energy which he had ample supply of.
Still, she never gave up and continued her sneaky assaults on random intervals throughout the day and night, and such attacks had become the norm.
However, it would seem Boudica has run out of patience, as today, she arrived before his fort once more. This time, she had even more men with her, but unlike her fellow countrymen, they all wore different clothing, from different clans that he recognized from the British Isles.
Reinforcements.
"Cheh, that barbarian whore doesn't learn, does she Constantine? Bringing more men means nothing before our cannons and our artillery. She's just giving more targets for our men!"
At first glance, his heretical master was right, such a tactic showed that Boudica was too stubborn to accept that her hordes of men mean nothing before the might of a cannon. But he failed to realize that they could only man so many cannons on the walls before they ran out of space.
However, something in his gut told him that wasn't it. Boudica was planning something, something that was going to change the direction of this siege in her favor.
Speaking of Boudica, she came riding in her chariot as always, but unlike last time, there was a passenger with her.
A small, dark-skinned little girl emerged from behind Boudica.
She jumped off the chariot and landed while facing away from them, her long white hair flowed in the wind, untethered and free.
Her hair was also covered in a transparent veil of the same white color.
"And she brings a scrawny child with her? These barbarians sure are desperate."
He ignored the mockings of his Master and focused on the new opponent.
The girl, as if knowing he was watching her, met his gaze.
A shiver ran down his spine as he stared into the young girl's red eyes.
She pulled out a tricolored rainbow sword that was larger than herself and brandished it for all to see.
The sheer pressure this little girl exuded caused a stray drop of sweat to fall down his cheek. This girl… she wasn't just any child… she was a servant, and a dangerous one at that.
She lifted her comically oversized sword and pointed it to the sky, albeit with some difficulty due to her small stature.
"Pah, look Constantine, she can barely lift that thing into the air! How adorable!" His Master said with a mocking tone, unaware of the dangerous enemy that just appeared before them.
The child servant seemed to have heard his master's voice, as she directed her glare at the man.
The three colors in her sword spun, a vortex of light erupted from the sword, climbed high into sky and passed through a large, floating magical circle that appeared in the sky.
This monstrous display of magical power proved to be what shut his cocky master's trap up, as he stared at the girl's raw power with trepidation. He would have taken joy in seeing his master proved wrong, if the attack were also not aimed directly in Rome's direction.
The girl, after showing off her power, finally decided to speak.
"DEATH TO BAD CIVILIZATION!!!!"
He gulped as he felt the intense magical energy build up into astronomical amounts.
He clenched his fists until they turned white.
Was this the end? Was this where he would die? God, please, do not let it be so…
Thankfully, it seemed like God had not abandoned him yet, as he blessed him with a miracle.
The girl's hands wavered as her sword in her hand began to shake.
Over, and over, and over.
The girl's fierce facade broke into incredulity as she stared at her sword, which seemed like it was rebelling against her.
"Marc you dummy!! Let go!! I have to use my noble phantasm!!" The girl's face turned to panic as the blade jerked to the left…
"Stop!! Don't you dare… No!!"
….and took the young menace with her.
"Aaaaaahhhh!!!!"
"ALTERA!!" Boudica cried out as the girl was carried off by her sword, until she crashed on the forest's edge….
KABOOM
…and levelled a good portion of it into a barren plain, without a single brick of his fort being damaged.
"...Dear God above, thank you for your mercy." For once, he agreed with his master.
______________________________________________________________________________
AN: Finally done, here is this week's chappie, late but here.
lol, you guys thought I was gonna have Altera show up much later huh? Surprise!!
Though as you can see, her cuteness comes at a cost, so Chaldea isn't completely fucked.
BTW, Canonically, Altera affectionally calls Mars "Marc" so its not a typo.
My Expert in explaining Bullshit with more bullshit: Flowerman (He helped me plan the outline of this arc).
Anyway, I hope you enjoyed this week's chapter and I'll see you next week