Bab 221: -218- Disappear for a while?
If you could still see the outside world from Chaldea, you should be able to witness the approaching night, right?
After the successful repair of the first Singularity, the personnel within Chaldea could finally let out a sigh of relief, feeling as if a chapter had come to an end, making time seem to pass quickly.
Unfortunately, the world outside Chaldea had already been completely incinerated, much like Fuyuki City once was, engulfed in flames and reduced to ruins.
Thus, even when looking outside from within Chaldea, all that could be seen was a hazy sky and empty space, with nothing else visible.
This easily led to a sense of time distortion, making it difficult to distinguish between day and night.
Fortunately, the working hours within Chaldea remained unchanged, following the same schedule as before—working during the day and resting at night.
Of course, if necessary, the owl director hidden in the shadows might cruelly arrange overtime and late-night work, causing the Chaldea staff to lament and direct their grievances towards the visible authority figure, Romani.
"I'm innocent!!!"
Romani often found himself crying out amidst such misery.
However, at least for today, there were no plans for overtime or staying up late in Chaldea.
To celebrate the successful repair of the first Singularity, Olga Marie displayed an unusual burst of generosity and allowed Romani to arrange a celebratory banquet.
Naturally, the attendees included all the surviving personnel within Chaldea.
Even Da Vinci was invited; she commented, "Well, there's no helping it. If we need a beautiful big sister to liven up the atmosphere, then I guess I can consider it," and happily agreed to attend.
Of course, as the biggest contributors, Rozen and Mash were the main stars of the celebration.
However, not long after, Rozen slipped away from the banquet.
"I don't fit in with that kind of festive atmosphere."
Complaining like this, he scratched his head as he made his way back to his room.
"Fou! Fou!"
Fou, with its playful and carefree demeanor, trotted alongside Rozen, moving with light and nimble steps.
Seeing this little creature, Rozen rolled his eyes.
"You've become quite snobbish too. You used to never show up in front of people, but now you're running around the banquet venue during the celebration, making female staff members scream. Where did the old unsociable Fou go?"
Rozen scolded the small creature by his side.
"Fou! Fou!"
Unfortunately, Fou didn't seem to care, and it continued to move with its leisurely pace, letting out a few calls of protest before ignoring Rozen.
"Show off."
Rozen rolled his eyes again.
"Fou!"
At that moment, Fou suddenly seemed to discover something and dashed off.
Rozen blinked and followed Fou's line of sight.
Soon, he spotted it.
In the direction Fou was heading, there was a young girl standing in front of a large reinforced glass window, gazing at the world outside Chaldea.
"Fou? Did you come too?"
With a hint of surprise and realization, the girl seemed to notice the approaching Fou. She squatted down and embraced the creature as she also noticed Rozen's presence.
"Senpai?"
Mash blinked and looked toward Rozen.
At this moment, the girl's armor had been removed, replaced by the standard Chaldea uniform. She had transitioned from a resolute Shielder to the intelligent and enigmatic atmosphere that surrounded her in everyday life.
Rozen felt a wave of nostalgia for this atmosphere and approached Mash.
"I thought you were staying back at the venue. So, you came out here as well?"
Rozen shrugged his shoulders as he said so.
In response, Mash simply nodded.
"Everyone has been very enthusiastic, and I've received a lot of gratitude and praise, but I still feel a bit uncomfortable. That's why I unconsciously..."
Mash admitted a bit embarrassedly.
This girl seemed innocent and naive, but before the incineration of human history occurred, she was quite introverted. She had mostly close interactions only with Rozen and at best exchanged nods with the rest of the people, not to mention she had merely casual interactions with Romani and Olga Marie.
Now, suddenly being surrounded by so many people, receiving thanks and praise, it wasn't surprising that she felt awkward.
"Senpai, did you also come out for the same reason?"
Mash said this as if she had read Rozen's mind.
Rozen, however, refuted her.
"I didn't feel embarrassed, I just simply thought I don't fit in."
It's worth noting that compared to Mash, Rozen was even more reclusive, even borderline eccentric, within Chaldea. He had previously been subject to disdain from quite a few people.
Now, with these people suddenly crowding around him, Rozen naturally felt uncomfortable.
As for feeling embarrassed, there was none of that.
Hmm... Really?
Rozen consoled and deceived himself inwardly.
"Is that so?"
Whether Mash had picked up on this or simply chose to believe Rozen outright, the adorable junior only smiled slightly. She then focused her attention back on the window, where she held Fou snugly in her arms.
Rozen did the same and looked outside as well.
What they saw was just a hazy sky and a silent wasteland.
"I feel happy."
Suddenly, Mash expressed this sentiment.
"Although many things happened in France, I still saw a blue sky there."
The blue sky.
It was a sight Mash had always wanted to see in person.
Due to being experimented on as a subject for Heroic Spirit fusion, Mash had never left Chaldea.
However, Chaldea was located on a mountain at an altitude of 6,000 meters, where snowstorms were present year-round, and blue skies were a rarity.
Thus, being able to see a blue sky in France, for Mash, was indeed a wish fulfilled, something that couldn't help but make her happy.
But...
"There's something about that sky that doesn't sit right with me."
Rozen casually brought up this point.
Mash's expression turned worried.
"According to the doctor, the analysis of the 'Ring' in the sky of the first Singularity hasn't been successful yet. We can only observe an abnormal concentration of magical energy and heat different from ordinary occurrences. Nothing else has been discovered. Even Da Vinci is still investigating, and the director can't do much."
Mash inquired cautiously towards Rozen.
"Senpai, you're not feeling uncomfortable again, are you?"
Hearing this, Rozen shook his head.
"I no longer feel physically uncomfortable. I don't know if it's thanks to this little guy." Rozen patted Fou, who was lying contentedly in Mash's embrace, and nonchalantly continued, "I had already guessed this would be the result. That 'Ring' isn't something that can be easily traced back to its source. We'll have to explore it slowly."
Looking at Rozen's seemingly carefree demeanor, Mash couldn't help but feel worried.
Even though he appeared casual, Mash knew that her senpai had something on his mind. He wouldn't just ignore such an obvious anomaly.
Certainly, Rozen wouldn't be at ease.
If not, Rozen wouldn't have reveal his thought in Olga Marie's room.
"I'll probably disappear from Chaldea for a while, just like last time."
In Olga Marie's room, Rozen stated this like a matter of fact.
Status Power Mingguan
-- Peringkat
Power 
-- Power
stone