Before watching Aleister and the entire building fly off into space, Shen He had figured out quite a few things, such as the purpose of the Entertainment-Use All-Purpose Angel's departure.
Even though the artificial Celestial Realm had formed, there were still some powerful existences that could resist its invasion. Fiamma of the Right, who possessed the Qilin's right arm, was one of them. Iceblade Fenrir was just being tricked by Aleister to go and solve these problems.
In addition, a strange change had indeed occurred in this world a month ago.
According to the girl Aleister, one day, Aiwass suddenly disappeared. Then, the magic gods around the world disappeared as well, and then, even the traces of the Celestial Realm vanished.
The evidence was that some magic that required communication with the Celestial Realm completely failed.
A month ago was roughly when everything peculiar began. The Holy Grail appeared, Misaka Mikoto Alter was created. Shen He had every reason to believe that all of this was related to the changes in this world.
However, this also put his mind at ease. Without the magic gods and angels that would descend to cause trouble, he basically didn't have to worry about anything else happening in this world.
The only threat was Aleister, who couldn't be killed and would constantly split.
With Aleister's strength, even being banished into space wouldn't make it impossible for him to return.
So the real killing blow of the banishment relied on Kusuo Saiki.
Creating an area in outer space with an infinitely looping time flow, and then having Shen He summon Kusuo Saiki back. Aleister would then be forever locked within a time prison of infinite loops.
After completing all of this, Shen He received the clearance rewards from the system.
Three large golden treasure chests.
He could only randomly choose one to open.
"I feel like... it's a little too easy."
Shen He looked at the large golden treasure chests in his inventory, muttering to himself.
But he was just saying that. For it to be that simple, first, he needed Kusuo Saiki, then there couldn't be any Magic Gods, and finally, he needed a high-level Enhancement Card. Moreover, he benefited from the Servant's ability to solidify. The Toaru world had no resistance whatsoever to Time Reversal, a power that transcended its own rules.
"While we still have time for enhancement, Kusuo, let's take the opportunity to take care of Fiamma of the Right as well," Shen He said.
He wanted to experience how awesome it was to use Kusuo in his complete state.
The all-seeing eye that spanned the globe, teleportation that instantly reached every corner of the world, and powerful Psychic Divination and Telepathy made it not too difficult to find Fiamma of the Right when fully deployed. Shen He and the others even had time to go to the Church of England, where they met the not-so-honest Laura Stuart.
By the time they returned, they had resolved all the problems they could think of.
Shen He also breathed a long sigh of relief.
To sum up the gains, Accelerator and Misaka Mikoto were Servants drawn from the up Gacha Pool. Besides, he still had seven Beginner Enhancement Cards, two Intermediate Enhancement Cards, one Special Servant Contract Card, nineteen Summoning Stones, and his level had reached thirty-seven.
As for the Special Servant Contract Card, it had already been tested before and couldn't forcibly summon the girl Aleister.
This meant that this card was entirely and exclusively for Misaka Mikoto Alter.
Shen He thought for a moment and gathered all the members of their faction within Academy City whose memories hadn't been altered to meet at the hospital.
Except for Kanzaki Kaori and Fiamma of the Right, who were miles away, Kamijou Touma, Shokuhou Misaki, and others all came.
"This is the best solution we could come up with," Shen He said, the first words after the meeting. "The alteration of people's memories is permanent. Even Kusuo can't restore them, and even the world's rules have undergone certain changes. Therefore, the lives of the Misaka sisters are now guaranteed."
That last sentence was actually directed at the two Misaka Mikotos and Accelerator.
"That's enough," Accelerator said in a flat tone. "Turning everyone in the world into idiots is indeed the best way. They are suited to live in this kind of peaceful, idiotic environment... You've kept your promise, and I will, too. You can give me any dirty work you need done."
"If necessary, I won't hold back," Shen He shrugged, then looked at Misaka Mikoto Alter. "So, Misaka Mikoto Alter, what about you?"
"...What exactly is the Holy Grail that created me?"
Misaka Mikoto Alter stared intently at Shen He. She had already heard from Misaka Mikoto about the circumstances of her birth.
"It's something from another world. I don't know how to explain it either." Shen He thought for a moment and said, "You can think of yourself as being in the same situation as the Misaka sisters. Your memories of the past are merely forcibly instilled, and you shouldn't have any sense of identification with them. You should have already realized that."
"..." Misaka Mikoto Alter remained silent.
No matter how unwilling she was to believe it, this was still the truth.
Her existence, her hatred, was just like the Misaka sisters who volunteered for the suicide missions. Because they were forcibly given such orders, they believed that doing so was correct.
"If you have nowhere to go, I have an invitation for you." Shen He took the card from his backpack.
Although they had only spent a short time together, Shen He had roughly figured out the Avenger's personality. Unlike Misaka Mikoto's tsundere nature, she was, in fact, very straightforward.
If she liked something, she liked it; if she hated something, she hated it. She didn't dwell on small matters and didn't seem difficult to communicate with. Moreover, she cared about the people she cared about.
That was pretty much enough. With a little training, she could become a decent partner.
"What if I refuse?" Misaka Mikoto Alter asked directly, her cold brow furrowing slightly. She hated the feeling of being controlled right now.
"Then, I'm sorry, you don't have the right to refuse."
Shen He lightly tossed the card in his hand. It suddenly burst with light, and a piece of information was simultaneously transmitted into his and Misaka Mikoto Alter's minds.
The contract had been established.
This card was a compulsory contract.
"You bastard!"
Misaka Mikoto Alter's face flashed with anger, and a black lightning bolt suddenly erupted. But Shen He's eyes were quick, and he reached out to place his hand on her shoulder. All the lightning vanished in an instant, as if it had never appeared.
A Servant cannot harm their Master. That was an ironclad rule. Even if she took a bite, it would eventually turn into a lick.
"Relax," Shen He said with a gentle smile, speaking softly. "I'll give you a home, and in a strict sense, we're also helping you realize your wish, aren't we?"
"..."
The expression on Misaka Mikoto Alter's face gradually calmed.
Shen He was right. The fact that the sisters could get such an arrangement was something she could never have accomplished. On this point alone, she felt grateful.
As for a home...
"Understood," Misaka Mikoto Alter bit her lip lightly. "I do need a place to go, if you're willing to take me in."
That's the biggest difference between Misaka Mikoto Alter and Misaka Mikoto.
If it were Misaka Mikoto, she would probably cross her arms, turn her head, and say, "Hmph, I'm not staying because I want a home."
"Then, next, Frog-Faced Doctor." Shen He looked at Heaven Canceller standing at the door, also somewhat helpless, "I'll leave the aftercare for the Misaka sisters' bodies to you. As for the contract I mentioned earlier, we'll just have to see what fate brings."
Even though he would immediately have twenty Summoning Stones, there was no guarantee with gacha pulls.
"I'm just a doctor who helps patients." Heaven Canceller's tone was also different from his usual lightheartedness, becoming very serious. "I can only help patients, but you can save the entire world. Just based on that, I will do my best to help you. Although, besides helping patients, I can't do anything else."
"Hahaha." Shen He laughed heartily a few times. "That's enough. There are even more patients in the other world who need your help."
He was actually quite hoping to pull Frog-Faced Doctor now; a professional doctor's importance to a combat team was self-evident.
"Our time is almost up." Finally, Shen He glanced at his watch. "I'm now taking the place of an Academy City director, so there will still be opportunities to come back. Touma, help me say goodbye to Kanzaki Kaori and the others. If they need anything, just have Misaka and the others pass the message to me. Also, I've asked Kusuo to cure your illness."
"Sick? Come to think of it, I feel like I've shrunk a bit," Kamijou Touma scratched the back of his head.
What he didn't know was that, because of Shen He's special instructions, his body had been reverted by Kusuo Saiki to a year prior.
Shen He just smiled without saying anything.
Shokuhou Misaki, at his side, gave Shen He a look of gratitude and excitement.
The source of her suffering all along, the problem of not being able to leave any memories of herself in Kamijou Touma's heart, had been resolved.
Shen He could only silently mourn for Kamijou Touma in his heart, wondering if the "harem protagonist" would still be able to pick up girls now that he was being targeted by Queen Shokuhou Misaki.
After the final farewell, the time was up, and Shen He and the others were ejected from the A Certain Magical Index Dungeon.
And the Dungeon button on the system interface also displayed [Cleared].
However, the remaining Delay Cards automatically converted into corresponding Summoning Stones, along with some experience compensation, which Shen He hadn't expected.
He had always thought that these designated dungeon Delay Cards would become invalid after the event dungeon ended.
But in this case, he now had a total of thirty-two Summoning Stones.
Sure enough, the long-absent system notification sound appeared again.
"Ding, it has been detected that you have accumulated one hundred and fifty Summoning Stones. A new permanent dungeon is now open, a limited-time Double Dungeon Time Event is now active, and a Permanent Special Gacha Pool is now open."
Permanent Special Gacha Pool?
Shen He was stunned, then his face lit up with joy. He immediately looked at the system's dungeon center interface. Below the God Eater Dungeon, a brand new dungeon button appeared, with the name NieR:Automata (Variant).
It was actually a game's dungeon world.
The mechanical intelligence brought by the aliens conquered Earth. Humanity retreated to the moon, unwilling to accept defeat. They created artificial intelligence to fight for them on Earth. This was undoubtedly a post-apocalyptic world fitting the style of a daily dungeon.
Shen He's first thought was, can I meet the cool 2B?
Without much thought, Shen He turned to the summoning system. The original Frog-Faced Doctor up Gacha Pool was still there, and a third Gacha Pool appeared.
It was a Machine Lifeform Gacha Pool!
A look of joy spread across Shen He's face. He had already understood the meaning of this Gacha Pool through the text description on it. It contained artificial Machine Lifeform Servants, as well as a large number of mechanical equipment. Now, not only was there a chance to get 2B, but there was even hope of summoning the legendary Entertainment-Use All-Purpose Angel, and even cool mechs and spaceships...
The summoning branches of the Gacha Pools were becoming increasingly detailed.
Sure enough, the all-Servant Gacha Pool, a hodgepodge, would eventually be phased out.
"Master." At this moment, Jeanne d'Arc suddenly called out, blinking her big eyes at Shen He, "Why don't you try summoning Frog-Faced Doctor?"
"Alright, let's give it a shot."
Shen He nodded, rubbing his hands together.
He had thirty-two Summoning Stones, so the probability of getting Frog-Faced Doctor wasn't bad.
He directly initiated the first ten-pull summon, and one after another, the summons flew out from the system's virtual interface.
In the end, he only got a four-star equipment.
Name: Ascalon
From: A Certain Magical Index
Evaluation: A holy sword for slaying dragons. Because it matches the image of Saint George's legendary dragon-slaying weapon, it has a special attack effect against large objects. It is three and a half meters long and weighs two hundred kilograms, with a shield emblem cast at the base of the blade.
This was a ridiculously oversized greatsword, its massive form incorporating elements like an axe, a razor, a hook, and even a wire saw. However, it was useless to Shen He and the others. Violet, who preferred large weapons, had already found the perfect one for herself.
The first time he didn't get a draw, Shen He was relatively calm.
Of course, this was largely because the Frog-Faced Doctor wasn't a cute girl.
Even with a rational analysis, getting him would have been helpful, but there was absolutely no appeal. If a certain "waifu" game gave players characters like this, the game would definitely be doomed.
"Next."
Shen He continued to press the button for a second ten-pull with a calm expression.
This time, he wasn't disappointed. Accompanied by a pleasant notification sound, the Frog-Faced Doctor's frog face appeared before Shen He.
"Great!" Jeanne cheered excitedly.
She really hoped she could send Frog-Faced Doctor to other worlds because he would surely be able to help many people.
"Is this the contract you mentioned?" Frog-Faced Doctor was very calm. "I was a family doctor when I was young, and it's pretty much the same now. Summon me if you need me, but I still need to stay in my hospital most of the time."
"No problem." Shen He smiled and nodded. "This is what we agreed on."
Frog-Faced Doctor only stayed here for a short time; he had many patients in his hospital.