"This pawn's got some nerve, thinking he could outsmart me!"
Samuel lounged on a sofa, legs propped on Nyarlathotep's back.
He held a crystal orb, typically a festive gift, sneering at the endless slaughter unfolding within.
Indeed, the clash between Kiritsugu Emiya and Kayneth was confined to this orb, not the "Matou residence." It had been so from the start.
Otherwise, they'd have noticed the cataclysmic god-slaying battle nearby.
"Ugh... not only do I deal with wolves daily, but now bugs want to suck my blood."
Samuel tossed the orb aside, a brazen grin spreading across his face.
The "wolves" were beings like Nyarlathotep and Cthulhu.
Though Nyarlathotep was tamed for now, her chaotic nature remained a headache.
As for Cthulhu...
The channel linking their worlds gave Cthulhu Samuel's coordinates, but Samuel gained Cthulhu's world's coordinates in return. That debt would be settled.
No one could invade Samuel's domain without paying a price.
Huff, huff, huff.
Nyarlathotep, on all fours like a beast, panted heavily. The odd sensation from her back delighted her.
She was a unique entity, more a rule than a creature, existing without a true body—her form a mere illusion.
Physical sensations were foreign to her.
In the fourfold worlds, she existed solely in the "Archetype World." Though tied to the "Earth" attribute, she was akin to a spirit of the "Material World," bodiless.
Pain, pressure, instinct—these were sensations of the flesh, known only to "noble" beings who'd descended to the Material Realm with physical forms.
Nyarlathotep, never having experienced them, was enthralled.
Her "body" was Samuel's gift—the concept of "human."
Only he could grant her these "novel" sensations, which would remain fresh for mere billions of years.
Humans tire of games in a day, persisting a month only for "love."
For ancient, eternal gods like Nyarlathotep, who'd lived countless "billions of billions," a billion years was like a human day.
Thus, she'd willingly kneel at Samuel's feet for a few "billions."
She felt no shame or humiliation—such notions were mortal conceits. For amusement, she'd do anything.
Like now—serving as a footrest, a role only slaves of ancient times would take. She didn't care.
Why heed the perceptions of a fleeting race, billions of times beneath her "billion"?
Meanwhile, Samuel pondered another matter.
"This Holy Grail War... is it even meaningful anymore?"
He'd refrained from sweeping the board due to his pact with Nyarlathotep. But with her subdued, was the war pointless?
As he mused...
Roman and Kingu arrived.
"Father..."
Kingu's face lit up at Samuel's sight but soured at his footrest.
"I see..."
Her presence confirmed Samuel's suspicions.
Kingu was a true "Heroic Spirit," not a living person contracted with Alaya, but a pure Heroic Spirit.
Like Roman...
They were their names. Kingu wasn't literally Samuel's "daughter," but her conceptual makeup included that trait.
Take Roman: at some future point, he achieved a great feat, his concept etched into the Throne of Heroes. He was that concept, not a future "Roman," but himself.
Kingu was the same!
A future Samuel might create a "child" with Tiamat—Kingu.
But this Kingu wasn't that child, merely a new projection of her concept, akin to Misaka Mikoto's Sisters, but more advanced—a conceptual replica, yet still Samuel's child.
Understanding this, Samuel shut off his "calculations," smiling. "Welcome back!"
"Yeah!"
Kingu threw herself into his arms, like a child home from school.
But... just her personality.
Her soft form and faint fragrance stirred Samuel's wandering thoughts.
"She's my daughter! But no blood relation... wait."
"..."
Roman glanced, sweating, at the terrifying Outer God serving as Samuel's footrest—a being even his seventy-two Demon Gods couldn't match. What had Samuel done?
But that wasn't the point. Samuel's next words were: "Roman, it's time to end this war!"
"Right! How do you want to wrap it up?"
With no checks on Samuel, the war's end depended on his whim.
He could crush everyone in a millisecond or orchestrate a grand drama.
"I'm planning a Holy Grail Q&A!"
"???"
"I'll question their wishes, using the Grail to make them work for me. After the war ends... there's much to do!"
"Hey, don't drag me into this!"
Roman sensed trouble.
"Want to return to the Throne of Heroes?"
"..."
"Don't we need an organization to protect our interests and help me achieve my goals?"
"The latter's the real point, isn't it!"
"Hmm... what to call this grand organization?"
"Hey, answer me!"
"Let's call it Chaldea!"
***
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