Chapter 269: Not a pleasant return!
Hiss—!
A sharp sound of the airlock depressurizing broke the silence, and the coffin-like container opened amidst white mist, completing its return.
"Spiritron reaction monitoring complete! Return procedure confirmed!"
"Vital signs stable! Mental contamination coefficient zeroed!"
"Report! Sixth Singularity, repair complete!"
Inside the control room, excited reports rose and fell.
The staff's faces were filled with the ecstasy of surviving a catastrophe; Chaldea had once again pulled human history back from the brink of destruction.
Ritsuka climbed out of the Spiritron Transfer device, letting out a long sigh as her taut nerves finally relaxed.
"We're back~ Thanks to Captain's help, this time was much easier than before."
Ritsuka looked at Mash beside her; the girl also smiled, but her beautiful purple eyes immediately looked towards the empty space beside her.
"My brother, he..."
"Don't worry, Mash."
Da Vinci's voice sounded at just the right moment, and the versatile genius pointed to a deeper part of the central control room.
"He even arrived a step before us."
Following Da Vinci's direction, the two stood on tiptoe to peer into the distance, their gazes finally converging on that familiar figure.
At this moment, Arthur stood quietly before a giant, floating globe.
The surface of the azure sphere glowed, and it was the pseudo-Earth environment model—the Chaldeas.
It, along with the near-future observation lens Sheba and the Spiritron calculation device Trismegistus, jointly formed Chaldea's core for observing and safeguarding human history.
"Only one left, huh..."
Arthur's murmur was as light as a sigh; he no longer looked at the Chaldeas, turning instead to Mash and Ritsuka, who were walking quickly towards him.
The two were wearing Chaldea's specially made combat suits, giving them a somewhat futuristic warrior sci-fi look.
At the same time, Roman, along with the technical staff, rushed into the control room, his voice a mix of awe and undisguised exhaustion.
"Being able to traverse time and space without relying on the Spiritron Transfer device... This truly is a Miracle beyond existing theories."
Arthur merely nodded indifferently, his gaze passing over Roman to land on the tense-looking staff behind him.
Just then, the once lively control room's atmosphere solidified invisibly.
The staff, who had just been laughing in victory, now had eyes mixed with awe and an undeniable sense of distance.
Roman immediately felt this heavy pressure, and his smile subconsciously receded, his eyes becoming complex.
"...I just feel like everyone's expressions are so strange..."
Ritsuka finally noticed the subtle atmosphere; she leaned close to Da Vinci and asked in a hushed voice.
"Da Vinci-chan, what's going on? Is everyone... afraid of Captain Arthur?"
The girl's deliberately lowered voice, in this dead silence, was exceptionally clear, reaching everyone's ears.
Arthur's pale eyes were calm and unperturbed as he faintly scanned the crowd, finally resting on Fujimaru Ritsuka's face, which was filled with confusion.
He suddenly lowered his head and chuckled softly, breaking the silence.
"Although I had a very strained relationship with the previous Director, I am, after all, an Arthur."
Mash's eyes flickered for a moment, and she softly called out, "Brother..."
"Oh, this..."
Ritsuka scratched her head, bewildered, and looked to Roman for help.
Stared at by those clear eyes, Doctor Roman had no choice but to step forward, clearing his throat as he explained.
"Ritsuka, Chaldea is a magic base built with all the wealth of the Lord of Celestial Bodies—the Arthur family."
"From the first Director, Marisbilly, to Director Olga Marie... everything here, theoretically, belongs to the Arthur family."
His voice grew softer and softer, carrying an indescribable awkwardness.
"My position as acting Director... is merely a temporary measure in an emergency, as no one with higher authority could be found. So..."
So, by both sentiment and reason, Arthur, who bore this surname, was the most legitimate heir and ruler of Chaldea now.
Ritsuka finally understood, and finally realized why everyone's eyes were so complex.
The once cold, powerful man who rarely confided in anyone could now take over everything here at any moment.
And she was certainly not the only one who held this stereotypical impression of Arthur.
For a moment, no one dared to speak.
"Don't worry, I have no interest in the Director's position."
Arthur spoke proactively, his words still simple and direct, yet they instantly shattered the solidified air.
He looked around at Roman and the others, his gaze not lingering on anyone.
"Once the Human Incineration incident is completely over, I won't even stay in Chaldea."
Ritsuka was startled and quickly looked at Mash beside her, who, on the other hand, showed a calm expression of no surprise.
In any case, because of Arthur's words, the suffocating atmosphere in the control room suddenly eased.
"Cough, cough!"
Da Vinci immediately seized the opportunity, smiling as she walked to the center of the crowd, changing the subject.
"Since Arthur isn't interested in managing Chaldea, let's talk about serious matters! Roman, what's the observation status of the Seventh Singularity?"
At the mention of serious matters, Roman's expression immediately became grave.
"Actually, from the moment Arthur defeated Lev, the Chaldeas has continuously observed reactions from the Seventh Singularity."
This statement cast a shadow over everyone's hearts.
It was as if the mastermind, with a pawn destroyed, was eager to step into the fray personally.
Roman lowered his head, swiping on his tablet to pull up a series of complex and dazzling data.
"The era of the Singularity has been initially confirmed—2600 BC, Mesopotamia, the birthplace of Sumerian civilization."
Arthur's eyebrow raised slightly: "King Solomon was a figure from around 1000 BC. He dares to send a Holy Grail to an era much earlier than his own existence to create a Singularity?"
Da Vinci leaned next to Roman, and after carefully observing the data, her expression also became solemn.
"As it stands, that's what's happening. The last Singularity is in the Age of Gods, where humans and gods had not yet separated and lived together on Earth."
Age of Gods.
These four words seemed to carry immense weight, making the air in the control room a hundred times heavier than before!
Previous Singularities, whether the Hundred Years' War or the City of Mist, were still within the scope of "human" history.
Even the Lion King was the deified King Arthur, who was once human.
But this time, they were going to face true, genuine Gods.
Amidst everyone's solemn or fearful gazes, Arthur calmly looked at the azure planetary model and spoke directly.
"Can we depart now?"