Chapter 16

Upon returning to the hotel, everyone was still silent. They all had a lot of information to separately process, and two new quest were with them. The real Caules and his sister, Fiore, were still unconcious. They had woken up after the false Caules went to another world, but El Melloi II put them back asleep to avoid having to immediately explain anything to them.

"I will see to it that they are sent somewhere safe," Melloi II spoke up. "I have connections that will allow me to ensure that they remain safe."

"See that it be done," Gilgamesh spoke, not bothering to look in Melloi II's direction. (Y/n) noticed that the tension between them had dwindled down now.

"Well, I don't think Caules has anything to do with the reason I am here. While I hate to fail a mission, I also don't like talking people's lives without a just cause," (y/n) said to keep them from falling into another moment of quiet. "I don't even know what's considered just anymore," he thought to himself. "I will be in town for the rest of this week. I guess the only thing left to do is investigate Masuda's master."

Upon hearing his name, Masuda perked up. "Would it be possible for you to send me directly to her with that contraption of yours?" He was referring to the necklace that Gilgamesh had returned to the treasury. "If it's capable of travel between worlds, then taking us across the globe should be easy, right?"

"I won't be going. I have my responsibilities here at the Clock Tower, and I would much rather not put my life on the line." Melloi instinctively took out a cigarette which once again exploded in his hand. He shot (y/n) an annoyed look before continuing. "The Holy Church and the Mage's Association are sworn enemies. Attacking one another in designated safe zones is prohibited, but should I leave these zones, I could be killed."

"I want to go with them," Gray spoke up before anyone else could speak. Her mentor looked at her in surprise. "The Holy Church is a dangerous organization that poses a threat to all mages. It would be best for them to have as many allies as possible, right?" Gray looked to her mentor in hopes of receiving his approval.

Melloi II looked away from Gray's expectant stare with a sigh. "That is for them to decide, not me."

"You still never told Masuda where his master is located. Caren Hortensia was her name, right?" (Y/n) looked to look at Masuda. "She could give us valuable information about the Holy Church if it turns out that she is a possible ally." His friend's expression morphed into visible concern.

"Hopefully." Masuda seemed a bit skeptical. "It's still strange to know that she is with the Holy Church. I makes me wonder why she summoned me here to this world knowing that it was against he organization's rules." The boy looked away from everyone. "Don't worry. My resolve for finding my master is absolute, but my allies are here. I don't doubt that I'd be sent back to the Throne of Heroes immediately if anyone else affiliated with the Holy Church was to learn of my existence." He looked back to (y/n). "That's why I need to go. I need to know what my purpose is, and whether or not I can fulfill it."

Melloi II began to sarcastically clap his hands. "Nice speech, but you won't get anywhere if you don't know where she is." Masuda lightly laughed at him having forgotten to let Melloi II give out the location. "It's somewhat ironic if you think about it, but you'll want to go to France. Dijon, France. The abbey that she's assigned ro is located south of there. It's best if you find a way to get into the place rather than teleporting right in. I can't guarantee that she's there, but that is the best place to look."

"You still didn't give us the name of the abbey," (y/n) noted.

Melloi II looked surprised with himself for a moment and muttered a quick apology. "Citeaux Abbey. It's not hard to find, I assume."

"Thank you," Masuda said to the professor. "I owe both you and (y/n) a great deal once this is over."

"Right, right," Gilgamesh finally spoke. He had been getting irritated by how long it was taking to conclude the discussion. "We will leave tomorrow morning. Whatever any of you have left to say can be said then. I've lost my patience," the king grumbled. He pointed at the door. "Out you go, mongrels."

"Where will we meet tomorrow?" Gray spoke up as quickly as she could. El Melloi II was already guiding her towards the door.

"Here of course. Where else," Gilgamesh snapped. "No go on." He hastily closed the door behind them as they left. With a sigh, he turned around and froze when he realized that Masuda was still there. (Y/n) could tell he was close to losing his cool. "You."

"Yes, me? What about me?" Masuda sat in a chair with a smile of innocence.

"Can you do a quick perimeter check with Hessian?" (Y/n) offered. Masuda easily got the message.

"Sure, I don't see why not. There could be any number of dangers trying to find their way to you." The white haired boy got up and flipped his hood over his head. "I won't be gone too long though," he said as a sort of warning to Gilgamesh as he also left the room.

Finally, Gilgamesh could say what he wished to. "You'll want to sit down. This is not information I think you can handle with ease." (Y/n) knew what this was about. He had completed his mission early, and his servant always kept his promises. Once (y/n) was sitting down again, Archer began to relay the information he had been holding on to. "You are not a homunculi. You are not human either. You are similar to someone I once knew. Like them, you are your own existence with a different set of laws defining how you are meant to function." Gilgamesh watched him carefully to make sure he was keeping up. "With the time I had to research, I found the replacement within Tokugawa. It was not hard to reach thanks to that contraption of galaxies. The replacement is an exact replica of you when you were a child. During the time of your first summoning, I should say. That thing in that caplse hidden in Tokugawa is certainly a homunculi without question. I know this because I questioned your fake mother about it."

"Wait." (Y/n)'s head was starting to hurt. "Are you trying to say that there's been some sort of mistake?" Gilgamesh nodded.

"I've taught you well. Good to see that you catch on quickly. That woman, Sakura, slipped up and said that you were the real one. That sadistic smile that showed up on her face for that brief moment was concerning, but it doesn't matter. The Tokugawa project was supposed to be done with the homunculus replica of whoever you are. Sakura must have had something to do with switching out the bodies. It would appear that even the director is unaware of this swap. The woman calling herself your mother knows far more than she's telling you." Gilgamesh's eyes narrowed in frustration. "What I cannot seem to understand is what your true importance is. The state of Sakura's mind is fragile. I wasn't able to get much from her before she started to keep silent entirely despite my threats. If she wasn't your self proclaimed mother I'd have-"

"That's enough, Archer," (y/n) mumbled. "I think...I think I'm going to go to bed." His vision was growing hazy. He made his way to his bag to take some of the medicine that was packed for his usual side-effects. "I don't feel very well right now. I don't think I want to know anything else right now. Please try and get along with Masuda until morning."

Gilgamesh watched (y/n) drag himself to bed and curl up on top of it. "Your insolence to your king has been pardoned. See to it that you not speak to me that way again." Despite his words, Gilgamesh dropped a lion's fur blanket over (y/n) through a portal from his treasury without even batting an eye.
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I can finally get on to the explaination of this entire thing. We'll be seeing some new faces soon. Until next time you epic readers!

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