Chapter 321: I Should Have Known You'd Be Here! (2)
—
The kid and the woman Neji met in the street of Jerusalem. The boy was Rushd, and the woman, who was his mother, was called Salia.
They were both extremely hungry, with the boy on the verge of dying. Thankfully for them, Neji had more than enough food to make their hunger go away.
On top of the upper layer of Jerusalem city, this pair of mother and son had made a tent just like many others. Neji was standing outside the tent while the two were eating inside, he stood beside a railing and looked down on the city below.
'Sisty, you are doing a great job.' Neji said while watching her preach with his Jogan.
Sisty thanked him with a gentle tone as Neji began to chat with her for a bit, burning time until Salia returned from within the tent.
"Thank you, sir. I don't know how to repay you for those delicacies." She lowered her head a little, her hands clasped together between her knees and thanked him.
"It's fine." Neji smiled it off.
This woman, Salia, died in the canon story, though her son lived. Just the fact that she was a canon character made it worth it to help her out. As a bonus, who would hate a hot mother possibly becoming his worshiper? Neji reckoned, not him.
"Your son isn't done eating?" Neji asked as he peeked over to the tent, making Salia smile.
"He is. It's just, this is the first time he ate a fill. So he fell asleep. I will wake him up when it's time for us to leave for the sel- Ah, you are going to try the selection too, right?" Salia said while Neji leaned back on the railing.
"That's the plan, yes."
"May I ask why?" the woman moved to his side, maintaining a respectful distance. "You see, I mostly saw the poor attend it. Rich people usually avoid it due to the bad rumors around it."
"Maybe I am one of the many fools who think they're so great, and will obviously get chosen?" Neji asked with a chuckle.
"An f-fool? You, sir? No way! You are indeed great, and kind, but not a fool! I am sure you will get chosen!"
"Kind… Right." Neji looked up at the clear blue sky, where small chunks of clouds were striding from one side to another. "Anyhow, you should get some sleep too, you haven't slept in 4 days."
"Huh- how did you-"
"Rich people's intuition." Neji tapped his temple, making her pause when she realized he was joking.
Salia smiled. "It's fine. If we indeed get selected, I will get plenty of time to sleep. I am too anxious to fall asleep at this moment."
Salia's shoulder slumped down a little as she sighed, realizing all of this depended on one big 'if'. As she lamented, Neji looked at her from the side.
….
Nearly two hours passed. The guards outside the Holy City's gate finally announced for people to enter for the Holy Selection.
Salia woke up her son, Rushd, and then led the group toward the gate. One of her arms tightly held onto her son, to keep him from saying anything weird to Neji, while she explained her joy for this day.
"I am nervous, to be honest. People who entered never returned." She said, "It's called a selection, you know? Meaning while some would be selected, many wouldn't be. What happened to them? Why did they never return? That fear held me back from entering this until today. I just hope…. Haah."
"Don't worry, mom!" Rushd cheered after she sighed. "We are obviously going to get selected!"
Salia winced hearing him say that, recalling how Neji referred to people as fools when they think this way. She calmed down a little hearing him chuckle, though.
"Don't worry, it's going to be fine." Neji waved his hand as they reached the staircase that led to the entrance. "Just make sure to cling close to me."
Salia nodded nervously. "Alright."
Then, they entered the hell that was ironically called the Holy Selection.
* * *
The interior was dark, but not too dark. Candle lamps were hung on the wall to light up the hall.
Countless people littered the place, leaving not even an inch free, while they had their eyes locked on the door that was a staircase above them.
The door was closed and was being guarded by two normal guards, but between them stood one of the Knights of the Round Table.
[Sir Gawain – Heroic Spirit – Tier 9]
People were still entering, and so the Knight hadn't begun speaking. He stood in front of the gate, his sword poked to the ground as he rested his hands above the hilt.
"I am so nervous…"
"It's fine, mom…"
"...."
Neji stayed silent as was in the middle of the crowd, beside him were Salia and Rushd, with the former having grabbed his hand some time ago.
– Thud!
With a loud bam, the huge door behind them closed, indicating everyone had entered, as Sir Gawain smiled.
"Welcome, participants of the Holy Selection." He said. "Our Holy City, Camelot is perfect. It's a white city of peace and happiness, a magical paradise that awaits behind these doors. Only for the ones chosen tonight."
As the word paradise was said, the people cheered like children in expectation.
Sir Gawain slowly smiled and raised his head upwards. There was a platform near the ceiling, a path connecting to the inner city.
"Now," Gawain said. "Let us appeal to the magnanimity of our ruler, the Lion King."
Everybody went silent in nervousness. Footsteps sounded from behind the platform, and they slowly came close. To reveal a blonde beauty wearing a purple crown, along with a purple-black armor.
The fire from the lamps flickering on her face as this stunningly gorgeous person made Neji's eyes widen when he saw her Tier… before something else caught his eye and his eyes trembled greatly.
"Those who can be led to the furthest end are few," the blonde queen with slitted eyes began speaking, without caring for any greetings. "As humans are bound by the chains of fate. Thus, I shall make a selection for those who I detect holy."
She wore a cold expression on her face, and that didn't change when she raised her hand in the air. Her hand began to shine gently before light shot out to touch people.
"Souls that have not been tainted." the light from her hand touched a person, as a pillar of light sprung up from him. "Souls uncorrupted by any and all wickedness." another pillar of light sprung up. "Humans born of internal and immutable purity." the queen said as the last pillar of light illuminated the hall.
The last pillar that sprung up from the woman beside Neji, Salia.
"I choose you three, and only you three shall come inside." The Lion King finished and put her hand down.
Salia looked around and realized neither her son nor Neji had received a pillar. A complicated expression formed on her face. She hesitated for a split second, and then pulled her son to her embrace, immediately doing the same with Neji, pulling them both within the pillar of light.
However, Neji wasn't in any state to react. Even as Salia hugged him, his eyes were wide and he was looking at the Queen.
Goddess Rhongomyniad Artoria, or the person who was supposed to be her.
Her expression was cold, and with the light in her eyes gone, this woman certainly resembled Artoria. But she resembled someone else, someone Neji was too familiar with.
Why didn't he think of her, when Fate/Grand Order was brought up by Lady Luck? Artoria, the person with a dragon mana core, who resembled so much…
"For those who haven't been chosen," The False Queen who Neji was so familiar with spoke with an expression that didn't suit her. "Shall be eliminated."
Guards poked their heads out from many more windows in the wall, and many secret doors opened to let many other armed guards enter. They moved their feet, loading up their bows while some approached the humans with their swords.
Salia screamed with her son, as blood began to flow around the hall, all the whilst Neji stared at the golden text hovering over the Lion King.
[Ryuko Tatsuma – Dragon Goddess – Tier 25]
"Ryuko!" A yell that shook the halls. Neji freed himself from Salia and jumped up to float in the air.
The Lion King stopped in her path and slowly turned around.
"It's me, Neji!"
"A Divine Spirit," as if she couldn't hear him, or couldn't be bothered by his call, the woman muttered with the same cold expression. "How did I miss you?"
Ryuko, his Ryukyu, who looked so distant and unknown, slowly raised her hand and pointed at him.
"Ryuko? Is this some memory-lost bullshit, or are you just messing with me? Ryu-"
Neji's words got cut when the woman shot a yellow bolt of mana, a bolt that became huge like a pillar and washed over Neji like a tsunami.
Immediately, the wood-clone ceased to exist.
**
**
**
Master4thWall Note: Well, Ryuko is officially Milf Artoria now. Also, we are starting fast in this world, we already know who the girl who ended up here is. It was easy to guess if you followed the Story Cover pics from a few months ago.
If you wish to read the next 20 chapters ASAP, don't forget to visit here!
Link: Patreøn.com/Master4thWall