I want to just drift through life in Type-Moon.

Page 170

"—So it was all true after all." Orange looked at Ling and the others with a hint of excitement. "You really really did come from another timeline."

Only then did Orange realize that she was pinching Ling's face with her hand, while Olga next to Ling was holding Ling tightly with tears in her eyes, sobbing softly on his shoulder.

"Orange, what did you mean when you told Ling not to talk nonsense? And you looked really strange just now~" Beo didn't care much about what had just happened. Although He noticed that Ling seemed to have changed, it didn't really matter. But what was strange was that Orange's demeanor had also suddenly changed in those few seconds.

Suddenly, Orange reached up and touched her head, saying, "Ah, I really miss this feeling. When will Beo give me some more fur?"

Then he pinched and pulled Ling's face, saying, "Don't talk nonsense, or you'll be in big trouble."

After Beo recounted what had happened, Orange realized that the two versions of herself had indeed switched places for a few seconds. The older version of herself had grasped the situation instantly, but the other version of herself probably hadn't expected that the switch had only lasted a few seconds.

"Feels nice." Orange couldn't help but pinch Ling's cheek a few more times, then withdrew her hand under his stagnant gaze.

"That wasn't you just now, was it? That was Aozaki Touko from Chaldea, right?" He let Olga cry on him, because Olga's fear was coming from the Command Seals. Knowing that he had failed, he could only accept reality now.

“Yes, it really is amazing.” Orange took a step back. “She probably didn’t want you to talk about what will happen to me in the future.”

"Maybe." Ling's expression was incredibly calm, revealing that he wasn't in high spirits. He turned to the side and patted Olga's back with one hand. "Let's go back, Olga."

Olga nodded but showed no intention of letting go. Ling sighed helplessly, "I apologize this time. Let's talk about any problems when we get back."

Chengzi was very dissatisfied with Ling's attitude. It seemed that they hadn't even settled their issues yet, and Ling was already leaving like this. What happened to their agreement to discuss the cooperation in detail?

"Wait a minute, why don't you come in and have a seat?" Orange gestured to the building behind her. "Although there's no water or electricity, we can use magic to temporarily fix it. After all, you've come from afar, it would be too much to not even let you in."

Before Ling could respond, Olga looked up after hearing Orange's suggestion, wiped away her tears, and forcefully pulled Ling toward the building.

Ling glanced at Olga in surprise, then turned back as if remembering something, looking at Kiritsugu Emiya and his group who were still receiving emergency treatment. After thinking for a second, he asked Illya and the maids, "Illya, will you wait here with the maids or come up with us?"

"We'll stay by Lord Ling's side." The maids made the decision immediately. Although they didn't know what had just happened, they felt they couldn't let Ling out of their sight.

On the contrary, Ilya hesitated for a moment while looking at her parents in the distance, then ran after Ling, pulling his shank along closely.

As she stepped into the building, Irisviel looked towards her daughter as if sensing something. Watching her daughter's figure gradually recede into the darkness of the entrance, her maternal intuition told her that her daughter would inevitably walk a different path in the future. Although that path was full of unknowns, the ending would surely be happy.

After Olga and Ling entered the building that Orange had bought, the light on Olga's wrist turned yellow, the screen on Chaldea suddenly froze, and then started dropping frames. Although the sound seemed normal, the picture was choppy and eventually went completely black.

"Da Vinci, what happened?" Roman couldn't help but ask Da Vinci when he saw the monitoring system turn out like this.

"Is it because of the barrier, Da Vinci?" As the creator of the near-future observation lens, Sheba, Leif knew what this phenomenon was, and it was a miracle that it had only appeared now.

“Just as Professor Lefe said, it’s the effect of the magical barrier.” Da Vinci looked at the screen with the same distress. “Even a genius couldn’t completely observe things in another world across the Imaginary Sea. The current [Three Sages] system is actually a system that uses Professor Lefe’s Sheba with amplified power, plus data provided by the Atlas Institute, and barely works. Its advantage is that it can locate the director and the others using only what Chaldea has, but its disadvantages are also obvious. If it is exposed to strong magic, barriers, or excessive mystery, the image will become like this. In fact, if it is affected by electromagnetic radiation, we may not even be able to see the sound or the image. After all, what Director Olga has is actually a technological product.”

Leonardo da Vinci spread his hands to indicate that he had finished explaining.

"—Ms. Aozaki, could you explain what level of barrier is inside that building?" Ryori Adano asked, adjusting her glasses.

Orange looked at the screen strangely. If what Da Vinci said was true, then this "Three Sages" was really weak. But then she thought about it again. Being able to break through the limitations of world lines and observe other world lines was already a remarkable achievement. Moreover, the creation time of this thing should be very short, which means there is still a lot of room for improvement.

Although Orange didn't like Ryori Adashino, she knew this wasn't the time to argue, so she honestly replied, "That time was when I had just bought the property and started moving my things in. If I remember correctly, I only set up the very simplest barrier to keep people away at the beginning. As for the later barriers, they won't be set up until the renovations are finished. In other words, the current barriers are only used to keep out homeless people or other small animals."

Chapter 400 Oranges, Oranges, and More Oranges (Part 8)

The term "barrier" originated in Buddhism, referring to something that completely separates the outside world from a sacred realm. At some point, it came to be a general term for a magician's protective techniques. Low-level barriers are simply walls like glass, while high-level barriers are imbued with various spiritual suggestions, making their existence undetectable. The highest-level barriers can even obscure space itself.

Now, the barrier surrounding that building is at best just a layer of gauze.

"Is there a way to remove these interferences?" Ryori Adashino looked at Leonardo da Vinci and asked in a calm but urgent tone.

"Oh dear, that's something I created by working overtime to deal with you all. Even a genius like me can't improve it in a short time." Da Vinci spread his hands, looking completely helpless.

"If a barrier this simple is already so easily disrupted, what will happen if Director Olga and the others enter special spiritual lands or territories similar to those of magical families? Won't we be unable to hear anything at all?!" Goldef Mujik was initially overjoyed when he learned that Aozaki Touko from another timeline would be learning about artificial human technology from the Einzbern family. He thought that if Chaldea could see those things, he could try to get a glimpse of them too. Even obtaining just a small piece of information would be a huge gain for him. But this despicable Servant shattered his illusions.

"Can't you think of a way?! If we can't even see the footage, I can't admit that you've found Lord Animusfia!!" Goldef's thoughts were written all over his face, and his undisguised desire made Rafe frown.

“Can’t you even acknowledge what we just saw?” Rafe stepped forward. “What we heard wasn’t calculated in real time. The secrets and value it contained are enough to prove its existence. If you still can’t admit it, can I suspect that the members of the investigation team are denying our Chaldea?”

Seeing Leif's righteous and indignant demeanor, Roman couldn't help but say, "Yes, I think everyone saw what happened to Miss Aozaki just now. It's obvious that she's connected with another timeline. That 'Connection' used Miss Aozaki Touko's existence to do something. If this still doesn't convince you, then Chaldea will have no choice but to appeal to the Mage's Association, hoping they will send a more fair and impartial investigation team to Chaldea!"

“I think everyone in Chaldea has misunderstood me. I don’t doubt the truth of the matter, but Director Olga’s safety is currently beyond our control. We just want to see if she has the ability to protect herself and continue to manage Chaldea.” Ryori Adashino glanced at Lev and Roman respectively.

"—That's just sophistry, because what you want to see isn't Olga at all." As a Servant, Da Vinci didn't hesitate to expose this veil of pretense. "I'd like to remind you all that what Ling knows isn't exactly good. For humanity, the future only has value because it's unknown."

Da Vinci looked at Adashino Ryori with a serious gaze, "As a Heroic Spirit, I have the right to say this to everyone here—the more you know, the more unfortunate you become. Knowing the ending will make you lose the motivation to reach that ending! Put away your thoughts, magicians!"

After Leonardo da Vinci finished speaking, the control room was so quiet you could hear a pin drop. Everyone looked at this most brilliant genius in human history and couldn't help but ponder his words.

Ryori Adashino avoided Leonardo da Vinci's gaze and looked at Weber, seemingly wanting him to say a few words, since he was nominally the highest-ranking person in charge of this investigation team.

Webber's eye twitched, suppressing the urge to unleash a torrent of abuse: "You only remember me when you're in trouble! Am I some kind of janitor?!"

Although he was very unhappy, Weber still chose to fulfill his responsibility. He pondered for a moment and said, "Actually, both sides have their reasons. Our investigation team does need to understand Lrod. Animusfia's situation, so Ms. Adashino's request is reasonable. But—"

When she heard the first half, Ryori Adashino couldn't help but nod. She felt that Waver was on her side. However, when she heard the word "but", her heart sank.

"However, I also know that the issue with the visuals is unavoidable. It's a technical problem, and there's no way to fix it in a short time. So I think it's fine to just listen to the sounds. After all, they won't stay in the barrier forever. For now, we can just make do!"

At this point, Weber gave the rest of the investigation team a stern look, as if warning them not to go too far.

Ryori Adano silently looked at Weber, and finally nodded stiffly.

“Teacher.” Grey called out to Webber worriedly, and Webber returned her a look that said, “It’s okay.”

"Hahaha! Kid, I think you'll regret this later!" Yad suddenly burst out laughing, but Webber ignored him and turned his attention back to the big screen.

On the big screen, the image had been frozen for about twenty seconds. What they were seeing now was like a series of slides. Although the sound was continuous, the images were completely out of sync. However, these images changed about every twenty seconds, so the impact was not significant.

They had already entered the building. Like many unfinished buildings, it had the exterior of a building, but the interior was completely unfinished, with bare cement walls and floors.

The completed building should have been a six-story structure, but currently, the floors above the fourth floor do not exist. Generally, it is most efficient to start building high-rise buildings from the top floor, but this building should still be constructed using the old method. Since construction was abandoned halfway through, the five floors that had already been built became the roof.

Although the building is surrounded by high concrete walls, it wouldn't be difficult to break in. It's a miracle it hasn't been used as a secret base by nearby children. In short, this is a building that exudes an unusual aura.

Moreover, it's not just any ordinary ruin; it's a truly abandoned building that began construction a few years ago when the economy was booming, but was halted halfway through when the economy deteriorated. Although the building's exterior is mostly complete, the interior is completely undecorated, with the walls, floors, and building materials all exposed.

If completed, the building was expected to be six stories high, but only the fourth floor has been built so far. Since the project was abandoned halfway, the half-built fifth floor was used as the roof. In short, it seems that the building, which could not find a buyer, was eventually bought by Aozaki Touko.

"Let's go up to the fourth floor. The second and third floors are where I plan to use as workspaces. I'll only furnish the fourth floor." Orange, walking behind the three children, was thinking by the flickering light of the cigarette butt in her mouth and the bright moonlight through the stairwell window.

Ling's appearance disrupted her original plans. She originally wanted to open a kind of agency here to help herself relax and relieve her fatigue, but the sudden shock disrupted everything. After the two of her selves switched places, Chengzi knew that she might get more and more involved with this person named Ling.

This time, his visit was definitely not as simple as he claimed, just to ask her for help with that little girl from Einzbern, especially since she came from a time much further into the future and even knew what would happen to her in the future. Although she didn't want her future spoiled, the benefits of knowing the future were undeniable.

In particular, she became very interested in the story called "Kara no Kyoukai" (The Garden of Sinners). Since her counterpart from another timeline had personally issued a gag order, it meant that those things must be very significant.

Magicians are all driven by curiosity, and even knowing that this curiosity will lead to their demise, they will still pursue it like moths to a flame. Even Orange, who considers herself to have strong self-control, is not immune to it.

Boxes of miscellaneous items occupied a corner of the fourth floor. A large office desk was placed against the window, and in front of the desk was a coffee table and a sofa.

After entering, Orange snapped her fingers, and a flame appeared on her finger. Then she started rummaging through the pile of junk boxes. "I remember there was an alcohol lamp here. Ah, I found it."

She took the alcohol lamp and walked to the coffee table, then lit it. The flame illuminated the darkness, and the figures of each person slowly emerged clearly from the darkness.

Olga lowered her head, one hand still tightly gripping Ling, while Ling leaned weakly against the sofa, his head against the back of the sofa staring at the ceiling. Ilya leaned nervously next to Ling, tugging at his sleeve as she looked at the light from the alcohol lamp. Finally, Beo picked up the cold, spicy hamburger on the table, tore open the wrapper, and happily ate it.

Orange looked at the people opposite her; none of them seemed inclined to speak, and the room was completely silent except for Beo's swallowing.

After quickly finishing his hamburger, Beo licked his fingers and looked at everyone. "Why are you all so quiet? Are you too hungry to talk?"

Orange glanced at Beo, who seemed completely oblivious to the atmosphere, shook her head, and remained silent. Although she had suggested that Ling and the others come in, she hadn't yet decided how to start a conversation. She had many questions to ask, but she didn't know if those questions would become new triggers. She still vividly remembered Ling's near disappearance, and she didn't know what Olga would do if it happened again.

That's one of the twelve monarchs of the Clock Tower. No matter how harmless he may seem, if he were to unleash his power, even she wouldn't be able to withstand it. Orange wasn't sure if Beo would help her if a fight really broke out, so a battle had to be avoided.

She looked around. Two of the maids who had followed her stood at the door, while the other two stood behind Ling. They were dutiful and obedient. If Orange hadn't specifically confirmed their presence, she might have thought they were just decorations.

"Oh, right! Ling, you promised to tell me what that place calling me is. You almost sneaked over there just now, didn't you?" Seeing that Orange didn't want to talk to him, Beo had no choice but to turn his attention to Ling.

Upon hearing Beo's words, Olga reacted the most. Olga trembled all over, her fingertips turning white from the force. She slowly turned her head to look at Ling, her eyes completely devoid of any light.

Orange shuddered when she saw that look in the girl's eyes, feeling that this girl was going to do something earth-shattering in the future.

Ling remained the same, silently staring at the ceiling, as if she were completely oblivious to everything around her.

Beo was not in a hurry; He knew that Hearing would definitely answer Him.

"—Beo, that's a place that can bring absolute peace to life." Sure enough, after two minutes, Ling slowly spoke.

"This world is divided into three parts. The first part is the outer edge of the star, which is the surface of the planet, the world we live in now. Although it is the most abundant and widespread aspect, it is also the most profoundly influential. The surface of the planet is merely a layer covering it, a layer that cannot be fully explored. The fairy realm and the world of primates are both things that exist on this layer. Beneath the world of primates is a gap called the fairy realm, and below that is the surface of the planet. Living beings are built on the outer edge of the star, and after death, their souls return to the inner sea of ​​the star. This is the structure of the planet."

At this point, Ling withdrew her gaze from the ceiling. "The second part is the Sea within the Stars, the place that called you, and the place I was just heading to. However, it seems that something doesn't want me to go back, so it used Miss Orange's hand to interrupt this process."

Both Orange from different worlds raised their eyebrows simultaneously. Although Ling's tone was calm, there was a hint of resentment in her voice. As she spoke, neither of them knew what had just happened, and this unreasonable scapegoating made her very unhappy.

"I knew it! If you could have gone there earlier, I could have followed you into that place. Right now, I only feel that place calling to me, but I still have no idea how to get in!" The carefree Beo ignored Olga's resentful gaze.

Ling did not comment on Beo's words, but continued to introduce the place to Him, "The Inner Sea of ​​the Star is a place where the planet stores souls. Although it exists on the inner side of the planet, it has the same coordinates as the outer side. It has multiple dimensional deviations in the same space. The coordinates on the outer side may be inside Fairy Lake."

Orange perked up and listened intently to the secrets Ling was telling, which were explanations of the world's structure and would help her better understand the world.

On the Chaldea side, all the magicians fell silent, while the ordinary people found Ling Shuo's words to be very abstract.

Gordelf Mujik looked at the ordinary employees who were clearly not magicians. Although they were outstanding talents in the field of science, magic was a completely different system from science. Magic was like poison to them. So he turned to Roman, who was acting as the director, and asked in a low voice, "Hey! Didn't you exclude ordinary people? Magic is poison. If they are exposed to too much of it, their lives will be completely distorted!"

Roman looked at Goldelf in surprise. He hadn't expected this man to say such things to him. Although his tone wasn't good, he could tell from these words that Goldelf was different from ordinary magicians.

"—There's nothing we can do about it. These people in Chaldea were recruited from all over the world by the previous director, Marisbury Animusfia. Before entering here, each of them signed a contract that was almost equivalent to a national S-level confidentiality agreement. If nothing unexpected happens, they will have to work here for the rest of their lives. Even if they leave, they will live under the close surveillance of the government for the rest of their lives. Everyone here is a group of people full of awareness, so they already know their fate."

Roman's blunt honesty immediately dampened Gordelf Mujik's spirits. He said nothing more, but instead looked intently at everyone in the control room, as if trying to memorize their faces.

Rafe also heard what the fat man and Roman were saying. He looked at the fat man with some curiosity, but no matter how he looked at him, he just seemed like an ordinary magician. Da Vinci also looked at Gordelf Mujik. Magicians with a conscience would find it hard to survive in the harsh world of magicians, so this seemingly ordinary fat man must be something special.

Two cries from Fufu echoed in the control room. Da Vinci turned his attention back to Fufu. It turned out that he had just mentioned Fufu, which was why Fufu had reacted that way.

"The Inner Sea is a world that is unrelated to the constant decline and destruction of the surface world. It is a foreign land that is completely unrelated to human history, even though it is accompanied by it. The outer and inner sides of the world are not fixed. In fact, since the end of the Age of Gods in 1 AD, the mystery of the outer side of the world has been retreating into the inner side of the world. The point in time that represents the end is the era of King Arthur's Round Table, and Britain in that era is the geographical point."

"The Age of the Round Table was the last era in which the Fantasy Species stayed on the outer edge of the world. Because of its isolated location overseas, Britain retreated later than the mysteries on the European continent. The fall of Britain, or rather the fall of the ancient Britons, probably marked the end of this era, that is, the complete retreat of the elves and Fantasy Species on the outer edge of the world to the inner edge of the world. The other Fantasy Species I mentioned earlier, Fou, was brought into the Inner Sea of ​​the Stars at that time."

The screen now freezes on Ling looking up at the ceiling, but his calm voice continues to play, "The surface where humanity exists and the inner side of the world are both on the earth's surface, only one is on the front and the other on the back. And what holds the front and the back together are pillars of light."

When she heard this, Gray held down the violently trembling Yad. Although she had expected that the Servant knew something about them, she did not expect that the first person with whom he had a connection would be Yad.

Ade is the "Pillar of Light" mentioned by the Servant, or rather, Ade seals one of the Pillars of Light.

"That is the planetary anchor that holds the world's surface in place, the [Holy Anchor] that pins the primate world to the planet's surface. It is a planet-made anchor that stabilizes the two spaces, and it is what makes the planet stable. If you enter the inner sea of ​​the planet and see something that looks like a tall tower or a huge spear, it is best not to go near it."

Ling looked at Beo and said, "Those qualified to stay near the Star Anchor are not to be trifled with. Even in your complete form, you could be killed."

"I understand!" Beo nodded vigorously, though it was unclear whether he had actually listened.

"You've been to all those places?" Olga suddenly asked. Ling turned to look at her eyes, which had returned to normal, and her heavy mood finally eased a little.

"Don't joke around. I don't know exactly how many Star Anchors there are. I only know of two of them, and there's another one that I think there's one more." Ling shook his head. He knew that his previous actions had hurt Olga again, so to make amends, he decided to satisfy Olga's curiosity.

“I can confirm two things. The first is the place where I used to live, the farthest tower in Merlin’s territory.” Ling recalled the incredibly familiar tower, her face regaining a bit of spirit. “It was a tower surrounded by a sea of ​​flowers. Fufu and I often sunbathed on it, while Merlin would peek at the human world through a small window.”

When Olga heard Ling mention her past, she barely managed to perk up. Meanwhile, back at Chaldea, Leonardo da Vinci had recorded these words in their entirety and was analyzing their authenticity based on Ling's tone of voice.

When Leif learned that Ling had actually lived with Merlin before, he felt that he had finally solved a long-standing mystery. Since it was Merlin, it was not surprising that he knew about the existence of the demon gods.

"What is your relationship with Merlin?" Olga was a little curious about Ling's interpersonal relationships.

"—What kind of relationship? I've never thought about that before." Ling tilted her head, puzzled for a while, before answering uncertainly, "If Fufu and I are playmates, then Merlin should be friends?"

"My relationship with Merlin, if we were in Chaldea, would probably be like my relationship with Leonardo da Vinci, since Merlin also taught me. So to be precise, he was both a teacher and a friend. But facing that old lewd peeping tom, I really can't treat him as a teacher."

"Hey, he's the sage who taught King Arthur, how come you think it's shameful to admit he's your teacher?" Orange couldn't help but interject, because Merlin's reputation was too great, and the legend of King Arthur was one of the most widely circulated legends in the world.

“Miss Orange, the truth of history is always cruel, and these truths often make people laugh and cry.” Ling looked at Orange seriously. “Just like I’m telling you now, your sister Qingzi will smash the Secret Tribunal Observatory Carion for your sake in the future.”

After hearing Ling's words, Chengzi did not show any surprise, but her eyes became somewhat complicated.

“You don’t seem surprised at all,” Ling said, looking at her with surprise.

"Because the person next to you already mentioned it to me." As if all the bones in her body had been removed, Orange slumped on the sofa opposite Ling and the others like a dead fish.

Chapter 401 Oranges, Oranges, and More Oranges (Part 9)

"Because the person next to you already mentioned it to me." As if all the bones in her body had been removed, Orange slumped on the sofa opposite Ling and the others like a dead fish.

"Oh, really?" Ling's tone showed absolutely no surprise. "Then should I tell you something you don't know?"

"Whatever. Just thinking about owing that idiot such a huge favor in the future makes me feel like nothing matters anymore." Orange waved her hand weakly, as if she had been infected by Ling's lack of motivation.

"—How boring you are now." Seeing Orange's attitude, Ling also lost all interest. He looked at Olga beside him and continued the previous topic.

"The second Star Anchor is King Arthur's Holy Lance, the Spear of the Farthest Expansion. If Merlin's tower is called the Tower of Flowers, then if this Holy Lance were to be restored to its original form, it would be the Tower of Storms."

In Chaldea, Grey listened intently, afraid of missing a single detail. Although she knew that Ad's true identity was King Arthur's Holy Lance, she didn't actually know much about the true nature of this Holy Lance.

"Hey, hey, hey, you can use that kind of thing as a weapon?" Orange leaned against the armrest of the sofa, put her legs up on it, and chatted lazily with Ling.

"Yes, the Holy Lance Rungomminiad will maintain the 'Pillar of Light' binding the world's surface, the anchor of the storm that holds the stars. Its level and type will change upon release of its True Name, and it bears thirteen oaths imposed by different Knights of the Round Table. Because these thirteen bonds exist, it is barely maintaining its form as a Noble Phantasm. Strictly speaking, it cannot be completely removed; its power depends on the number of oaths released, depending on the enemy faced."

"Hey, hey, hey, in ancient Britain, what kind of enemy was King Arthur facing, using such random things so casually?" Listening to Ling's explanation, Orange couldn't help but let her imagination run wild. "If I could use something like that, could I defeat Aoko?"