Chapter 95. Another Member of Team A — Ophelia Phamrsolone
In front of Ian stood a girl with long, brown hair.
In terms of height, she was slightly taller than Mashu.
Her tall, slender figure was accentuated by a black-and-white uniform, exuding confidence from within.
Even with the blade of Excalibur Galatine pressed against her throat, she remained remarkably calm, showing not a hint of panic.
While her chest was less prominent compared to Mashu's, her well-proportioned waist and hips more than compensated for it.
If not for the eyepatch covering her right eye, she could be considered an absolute beauty.
Despite the sword threatening her life, she showed no fear, her remaining blue eye fixed on Ian.
Then, slowly, she raised her hands in what appeared to be a gesture of surrender.
"I'm just a passerby."
"I had no intention of spying; I just happened to pass by."
"..."
To be fair, her reaction was the best possible choice under the circumstances.
While outwardly it looked like the Excalibur Galatine at her neck was a life-threatening situation, upon closer thought, it didn't make sense.
This was Antarctica, in Chaldea.
All necessary supplies had to be transported by helicopter.
Even if he acted now, there was no chance him could escape unharmed and intact.
Clearly, the woman had considered all these factors, which is why she opted for a surrender that seemed like a casual concession.
This was no ordinary individual.
But—
Ian wasn't one to be underestimated either.
Feeling the condition of the "Excalibur Galatine: Sword of Revolving Victory" in his hand, Ian knew it was about to disappear.
This was something pulled from memory, incapable of being retained in physical form for long.
Three.
Two.
One.
In the final seconds before it vanished, Ian lowered the sword and casually tossed the "Excalibur Galatine: Sword of Revolving Victory" to the ground.
The moment it touched the ground, its power reached its limit.
The "Excalibur Galatine: Sword of Revolving Victory" disintegrated into dust, shattering into particles and dispersing.
It now appeared as though Ian had willingly dispelled the weapon.
Seeing the surprise in the woman's gaze, Ian offered a faint smile and feigned an apology.
"Sorry, it seems I misunderstood your actions."
"Well then—"
"Let's part ways here."
Taking risks wasn't a privilege exclusive to her.
If she could feign ignorance, so could he.
After all, he had no intention of engaging further with her; parting ways like this was no loss.
As Ian turned to leave, the strange woman couldn't seem to stay quiet.
She immediately called out:
"Wait."
"What is it?" Ian turned back.
"Hasn't the misunderstanding been resolved?"
"That's true, but..."
The woman's throat moved slightly as if she were choosing her words.
"Actually, there's something else I wanted to discuss with you."
"Can we talk for a bit?"
"..."
"Alright."
Ian was never one to shy away from trouble knocking on his door.
Moreover, his instincts told him:
This woman might have an aggressive side, but it wasn't particularly strong.
.....
In a certain corridor of Chaldea, on two long benches—
"Here."
The woman had purchased two bottles of water and tossed one toward Ian.
The bottle traced a parabolic arc through the air before landing gently in Ian's hand.
"What's your name?"
The brown-haired girl unscrewed the cap of her bottle and sat down next to Ian.
"..."
Ian hesitated for a moment but decided there was no need to hide this.
"Ian Pendragon."
"Huh?"
The girl coughed lightly.
"Are you a descendant of the legendary King Arthur?"
"Before asking me that—"
Ian looked at her with a slightly surprised expression.
"I think you should introduce yourself first, don't you?"
"..."
Perhaps realizing Ian had a point, the girl didn't hesitate this time and directly stated her name.
"Ophelia Phamrsolone."
"Now, can you answer my question?"
"Are you truly a descendant of the legendary King Arthur?"
Ian didn't answer. He merely smiled.
Still, that was enough to give the self-proclaimed Ophelia an impression.
"I can't believe someone like that actually exists..." Ophelia murmured. "I thought the Pendragon lineage had disappeared from this world."
"Maybe so."
"But I only want to know one thing."
Ian steered the conversation back to the main point.
"Why are you looking for me? Surely it's not just to ask my name, right?"
"Wouldn't that be a bit dull?"
"Of course not."
Ophelia shook her head.
"Ian," she said, her tone colder, her single visible eye fixing on him.
"What exactly is your relationship with Mashu?"
So it was just as he suspected.
From the very beginning, Ian had felt it.
What Ophelia was truly interested in was Mashu, not him.
Everything was going according to expectations.
Ian didn't rush; he replied calmly.
"Ophelia, before I answer that, shouldn't you first tell me your relationship with Mashu?"
"Of course."
Ophelia didn't shy away.
She placed her hands on her hips, her expression tinged with arrogance as she began explaining.
"I am Ophelia Phamrsolone, formerly a member of the Spiritual Evocation Faculty at the Clock Tower."
"Currently, I am one of the 49 Master candidates of Team A in Chaldea."
"And Mashu—"
Ophelia glanced at Ian.
"She's like me, also a Master candidate in Team A."
"In theory, I feel it's necessary to confirm her safety since she's my teammate."
"So, please answer my question."
Her voice wasn't loud but carried a restrained urgency—she seemed genuinely eager for Ian's answer.
But Ian wasn't one to be easily dealt with.
The more someone wanted an answer from him, the less likely he was to provide it immediately.
"Ophelia, that reasoning doesn't seem very convincing."
Ian showed no appreciation for her explanation.
"If this reason truly mattered to you, then why didn't you come earlier when Mashu was present?"
"Furthermore—"
"Mashu never mentioned your name to me."
He bluntly pointed out the supposed "closeness" of his relationship with Mashu.
This made Ophelia realize that trying to deceive him about her identity wouldn't work.
"..."
Ophelia suddenly realized that Ian wasn't accepting her explanation.
She scrutinized him from head to toe, her only visible green eye seemingly weighing the pros and cons.
After a while, Ophelia spoke again.
"Alright, there's no real justification for it."
"I just thought you shouldn't get involved with Mashu."
"Then there must be a real reason behind it."
Ian smiled, but his words held no warmth.
"If you think I'll blindly believe that reason, perhaps you're underestimating me."
Realizing that Ian wasn't easily deceived, Ophelia continued her explanation.
"Don't you know? Mashu has a very special status here."
"Very special?"
Ophelia nodded. "It seems you really don't know."
"I don't want to explain unnecessary things."
"Anyway, I advise you not to get involved with her anymore. It would be better for both of you."
"Is that so——"
Seeing Ian's contemplative expression, Ophelia thought he had understood her words, but to her surprise, he soon responded with a contradictory answer.
"Well then——"
"Maybe I'll have to get even closer to her."
"You!"
Ophelia was a little flustered.
"Don't you understand what I just said?!"
"I understand."
Ian didn't avoid Ophelia's gaze.
"But I have my own thoughts, so I can't do what you expect."
"Just as I thought, you have other motives."
"Of course I have other motives." Ian smiled lightly.
"I want to trick her into my bed, understand?"
Of course, this wasn't Ian's real intention.
If he had actually planned that, he would have already taken the opportunity.
The real reason was—
In this situation, he absolutely couldn't let Mashu, who was pretending to hide the simulation battle situation from her superiors, dislike him.
At least not until he clarified Mordred's situation.
Moreover,
Ophelia's reproachful tone, like that of a model student, irritated him.
Only Morgan had the right to order him around like this.
So——
He would answer in the way that Ophelia hated the most.
Sure enough,
After hearing Ian's response, Ophelia, who had been trying to stay calm, suddenly became agitated.
"What did you say?!"
"Ian, why do you think like that? You're hurting Mashu!"
"So what——?"
Ian didn't accept Ophelia's criticism.
"What about you?"
"She's clearly a candidate for A-team, but she only has Fou with her."
"When meeting someone like me, who's willing to listen to her, she could talk all day, but worries if she's bothering me too much."
"Even when eating, she's worried if she's bothering me by sitting too close."
"And you——"
Ian looked at Ophelia, his gaze cold.
"Now you're here, scolding me for tricking her into my bed and instead avoiding her, but you have no intention of doing anything after to change things."
"So I want to ask, isn't your behavior just as hypocritical?"
"Because if it's hypocrisy, then how does it differ from my shameless actions?"
"At least, compared to that, I could make her happy, right?"
"..."
Ophelia hadn't expected Ian to directly and bluntly counter her like that.
When she had been observing him secretly, she thought he seemed gentle and assumed he would be easy to talk to.
But now, it seemed that was just a facade he put on in front of Mashu.
"Ian, you're a bad person," Ophelia couldn't help but say.
"Thank you for the compliment," Ian responded without any hesitation, accepting her attack.
"To hear someone like you, another member of Team A, say something like that—it's truly an honor for me."
Upon hearing this reply, Ophelia first froze in shock, then showed an expression of disbelief.
"Another member of Team A?"
"Yes." Ian nodded.
He purposely revealed his identity at this moment.
"Miss Ophelia, it seems you didn't expect a bad guy like me to be a candidate master of Team A alongside you."
"The world is strange, isn't it?"
Ian thought that after revealing this, Ophelia would get even angrier, at which point it would be his revenge for her previous attitude.
But things didn't unfold the way he thought.
As soon as Ophelia heard Ian's true identity, her attitude shifted immediately.
"Why didn't you say so earlier?"
"Honestly, I thought you were a member of Team B who crossed the line."
"..."
This sudden change made Ian feel a bit awkward.
He wasn't afraid of a direct confrontation.
But when the other party backed down, he didn't know how to respond.
"Is being a member of Team B that bad?" Ian asked.
"It's not bad," Ophelia sipped her drink and looked at Ian.
"But each person has their own job to do."
"Having someone who turns screws controlling design, and having someone who designs controlling screws."
"First, it makes things difficult for others, and second, it misuses people's talents."
"Ian—"
"If we're 'monsters', then we must take on the responsibilities of 'monsters', understand?"
Ian wasn't bothered by Ophelia's words.
His mind was sharp.
"So you're saying I have the qualifications to take responsibility for Mashu?"
"Even if I want to sleep with her?"
"..."
Ophelia turned her face away.
"So if Mashu agrees, can I stop her?"
"I just hope the person who takes on this responsibility is a little stronger—if you're a member of Team A, you'd be far more reliable."
Ophelia wasn't joking.
She truly thought this way.
"So, what exactly is this responsibility that's so important?" Ian couldn't help but ask.
"Then you need to answer one question first."
Ophelia stared at Ian.
"Which organization are you a Magus of?"
"Clock Tower? Wandering Sea? Or Atlas?"
Ophelia mentioned several organizations Ian had never heard of.
"No, none of those."
Ian shook his head directly.
"In fact, I haven't become a Magus yet."
"What?!"
Ophelia became even more agitated.
"You haven't become a Magus, yet you're a candidate master in Chaldea?!"
"How is that possible?"
In her green eyes, a strange desire for victory flared up.
She grabbed Ian's arm.
"You can't!"
"You have to come with me to my room right now."
"Let me see what kind of person you really are!"