Consequences

After managing to evade an angry Martha, I quickly made my way into the Cafeteria where Cu Chulainn was already waiting, sitting on a table while being accompanied by two bickering Servants. Those two being Jeanne Alter and Saber Alter. The former put on a smile on her face that creeped me out, and that's saying something.

I took a cursory glance at the rest of the room. I noticed some staff members were there as well. They began murmuring when they saw me enter, and I bet they think I can't hear them. Surprisingly, there were no bad comments coming my way, aside from some that expressed a bit of fear, which I find extremely normal. I guess I left a good impression on them... or were they too trusting? Either way, it was wrong on so many levels, but who am I to judge when it works in my favor? The problem starts when they trust people they should not. I don't know if moving on from Lev's betrayal was a bad thing or not at this point.

Looking at the kitchen, I saw another duo of Servants, namely Boudica and Tamamo Cat. Boudica lightly waved at me with a smile on her face, in what I assumed to be relief that everything turned out okay. For the most part, at least. I acknowledged her by giving her a nod. Despite not knowing each other that well, it puts my mind at ease that she is enjoying her time here outside of the battlefield. I can't say I don't know the true horrors of war to find fault in her thinking.

Tamamo Cat was the other one. I felt the corners of my lip trying to curve upward, but I quickly pushed down that feeling. I know I often don't speak my mind, yet it is unquestionable that I find it hilarious seeing an avatar of an avatar...(?) of her dressing like that. If Ama were to see this sight she would probably burn down the whole timeline. I better take care of that... somehow.

Still... as painful as it is, it brings back some memories... memories that are best forgotten for now. I unconsciously remembered the recent event with Martha, causing me to grimace internally. Yeah... that would be fatal. There is too much to think with too little to go about. I better go ask Zhuge Liang for some cigarettes after this. I have to unwind one way or another.

Fortunately, or unfortunately, depending on the day I think about this, she still looked clueless as it was common in her. She titled her head to the side after noticing the weird gaze I sent her way, not understanding why I did it probably. Now... now it was not the time, though. And most likely never will be. She may be a part of her, but she won't ever be her. I won't even bother looking at it that way. We both... did some pretty stupid stuff. Even though she is not here, I can say with confidence that if we were to meet again, we won't look at the consequences of our actions. In her case, Tamamo-no-Mae and all of her forms, and in mine, well... a long list of people.

Shaking my head out of my depressing thoughts, I advanced to the table where my fri—where Setanta was waiting. I also gestured with my fingers to Boudica that I wanted something light. She immediately understood and went to work.

"I see that we have unneeded company." Those words escaped my mouth as soon as I sat down on the end of the table. From the corner of my eyes, I saw Saber's eyes twitch while Avenger looked smugly at her. She is obviously thinking I didn't include her in that statement.

While it's true that I prefer Jeanne Alter to her counterpart, that doesn't mean I tolerate her well. She is just more pleasant to the eyes than her vanilla version.

"You heard that, icy bitch queen? Your presence is no longer needed here." She doesn't have a better idea than to cling to my arm while sending a smug smile in Artoria's direction... I am this close to kicking these two out of here. The last thing I want is to have two girls fighting about nonsense in front of me. I didn't sign up for this.

"These two rabid lions aside, now it is the best time to tell me how things went there. I will be a bit busy helping out in the next few days, after all." I am sure Cu Chulainn would be dead a hundred times over if the looks of these two Servants could kill. He still disregarded it with his characteristical shrug, as if he was not afraid of the consequences. Still, he took one for the team, and for that, he has my thanks.

Seeing as the two Alter Servants were about to deploy their Noble Phantasms against him, I decided to start retelling the events from my perspective. As I expected, they immediately calmed down and started listening with rapt attention.

The more I spoke, the more I realized that this month-long trip had been packed with 'interesting' happenings. I obviously omitted some parts and the only one who seemed to have realized it was Cu Chulainn. He probably knows I will tell him anyway at a later date, so he didn't say anything. I still don't know how it is that he is able to tell when I lie or hide something, though...

Something to ask in the future.

When I got to the part where my identity got revealed as Seth, aka Satan, aka a bunch of evil stuff, Jalter took the spotlight. She is rubbing her hands like some kind of pervert with a 'dashing' smile to boot. It honestly is creeping me out. Was she not that type of woman... tsundere? Yes, I think that was the term I found while looking through Romani's tablet. Seeing her being so open with her feelings while being around me is puzzling, to say the least.

I get the feeling of her wanting to spite God and everything. I myself want that, and Baal would even go as far as to urinate on his corpse if he could, but is it enough to act like that? There are things even I do not understand...

Those eyes she is looking at me with don't help either. There is some deep and disturbing fanatism there. So much that I am beginning to wonder if Alter will take her counterpart's place in my "I don't want to deal with her" list.

"I never thought you were teacher material." Oh yeah, it made sense that that topic would appear now that I mentioned who was the one that revealed my identity. Still, I wouldn't refute Saber's words when even I myself don't think I am cut for it. How I turned Thutmose into such a monster will always elude me. I guess the kid's talent was that good.

"Knowing myself, I will have to agree with you." Not to mention that I placed a heavy burden upon him... which now that I think about it, it seems to be a common theme among those that impart their knowledge onto others. At least I wish he is now resting all and well... I should pay him a visit when this is over. It's been so long since I have seen his family.

For some reason, Jeanne is buttering up to me like there is no tomorrow. If she is this happy right now that she knows who I am, I can't — and don't want to — imagine how is the other Jeanne feeling right now, being her opposite and all that.

In consideration of my sanity, I decided to continue retelling the events. However, when I got to the part of my double K.O. against Thutmose, Avenger actually... laughed? I don't know the reason why, but following the pattern and what I know of her, she probably thinks I am being humble or something, as illogical as that sounds.

Funnily enough, the moment I mentioned David, her smirk turned into a scowl faster than I could blink. Heh... I wonder what she would do if I told her who Romani really is. Though I don't plan on doing that as long as he doesn't overstep his boundaries. He is going to have a dog with anger issues behind his back if he does, and I am not talking about me or Setanta.

Boudica then came with a tray of food, which I thanked her for. Although I do not exactly need food to survive, it's good to have some 'normalcy' in my life.

As I kept going, I eventually reached the part I least wanted to talk about. However, it is not a secret, and they will find out eventually even if I don't say anything. It doesn't mean that I like it, though. Much less when I see Jeanne Alter silently gloating. At least Saber has the decency to hide it.

I feel my eyes narrowing ever so slightly, and it seems Cu caught on to that movement because he kicked Avenger under the table, causing her to direct a scowl his way. I tactfully chose to pretend I saw nothing, as well as silently promise that I will go to the past to fetch Gáe Bolg for him when I have the ability... something that shouldn't take long.

Honestly, I am not one to talk, but I expected a bit more companionship if only to prioritize a better chance of succeeding with our mission... though I guess not everyone accepted to fight for the Human Order with the right reasons in mind. It is not like the pig can laugh at the hippopotamus anyway...

Seeing how things were going, I opted to quickly shift the tellings of my misadventures forward. They each gave their little inputs about things. Some mattered, some others didn't.

I am telling them about my fight with Herakles now, and Artoria is giving me a smug look that is pissing me off. There is no comparison between the Berserker from Fuyuki before being turned into a Shadow Servant with the Berserker of Okeanos. The one I fought recently was not someone that could be beaten while spamming Mana Burst. Not to mention that she didn't leave unscathed from her fight with him. But I guess this is the now-classic 'Let's see how can make fun of Seth more' contest.

The surprised expressions came when I told them about the conclusion... which was some giant monster bursting out from my chest... yeah, not a pleasant experience. I can't tell them much from there, since I was trapped inside Typhon, and I was sleeping as well. I only woke up a little to remind Baal of our objective.

We were doing some idle chat after I finished recounting the story from my perspective, while obviously hiding some details when a sudden pain assaulted my chest. Despite their disappointment, I stated that I had to go and that we would continue another time.

I then bolted out of the Cafeteria, not minding the weird looks sent my way. I quickly reached my room and inputted the password, opening the door and closing it immediately after.

My knees touch the floor as a black liquid escapes my mouth like a torrent of blood.

'Oh? It took longer than I expected~' Yes... of course. Whose fault other than him?

"Damn it, Baal. What were you thinking?!" This sensation is downright horrible. That stupid bastard bit more than he could chew, and he did it with my body to boot!

'Ahaha... Well, it is fine, is it not? We gained new Authorities, a new weapon, and we got revenge. Besides, would you leave a carcass of that piece of garbage right there? Who knows who could take advantage of it.' Yeah, keep talking lightly. It's not your body that feels like it's breaking apart.

"Strange... you forgot one thing we gained... what was it...? Oh right, Demon God Pillar Baal." Even if I can't physically see him, I know he is pissed. Let's see if you are all giggles now.

'Never. We will NEVER use that imitation. Are we clear?' As I expected, that touched on a sore spot within him. I completely ignored his low and menacing voice in favor of my next words.

"That will depend on you not going claiming Authorities left and right. The fact I can't passively go insane anymore doesn't mean I can't actively do so. My mind is already a mess for you to go and complicate things more." I should be expecting continuous headaches to assault me for at least a week. Just when I planned to take it easy and relax... How unfortunate, really.

'It was not up to debate, Seth. I wouldn't do something that you couldn't handle. Or did you forget that we share the same body? You go down, I go down as well. We are in this together regardless if we like it or not.' I will not disagree with him on that, but he is the type to poke things that should be better left sleeping with a stick.

'We have things inside us that we both hold disdain for... Even I would not use them. It is beneath me. It is best if we just use our Beast form as a last resource... or even that creepy creature of yours, Satan.' He must have sensed my emotions and that's why he decided to clarify. Even so, the last part was uncalled for, more so with the joking tone he used.

"I could use that name you hate so much, but I will pass for now. More importantly, how did it go? If you talk about us being Beasts then you have a way to become one." I honestly prefer to focus on the topic at hand. Although the idea of being one is kind of disgusting, I understand the need for an ace hidden up one's sleeve.

'Haha... I do, indeed I do. However, it is going to take some time. Your Beast form is already inside your inner world keeping that clown in check but to use it is another matter entirely. It's a fetus at most right now. A note of warning, though. That thing has a high level of Madness Enhancement. If you plan on using it, I would suggest doing it away from people you don't want to accidentally kill.' Great, just great. Can't something be simple for once?

"What about the Nega-Skill? If Typhon's was as powerful as that, then it may be a valuable asset. Speaking of which, why did you decide to trap him in a game of words? You could have negated Nega-Divine long ago without the need to use...that. Do you enjoy bullying the weak that much?" I know the Noble Phantasm's True Name is missing, but he could have chosen a better name...

'Hmm... At least your Nega-Skill is in conflict with Cath Palug's. You focus on solving that and I will focus on my own. I won't plan to do your work. As for your second question, I didn't want to use Naqada's final effect. That worm was an idiot, but others won't be so much as to relinquish what makes them having immunity. And one last thing, I don't enjoy bullying the weak, I enjoy bullying the strong as if they were weak. They are two different things.' I don't understand the need to be pleased with oneself like that, but we are fundamentally different, so I will not bother in finding an answer.

'Anyway, I have to go. Call me when there is a strong guy to fight, I am not interested in weaklings. And if possible, please avoid that guy being a parasite like Typhon was.' My eyes narrowed at what he said. I had to make sure of something.

"Do you consider myself one?"

'Oh? Now, why would I do that? I am afraid I do not quite get what you mean.' He knows, and he is playing with me. The urge to sigh is too strong to keep it repressed, so I do just that.

"I say it because you were supposed to be—"

'My, look at the time. Bye, enjoy your rest. I only let you do so for two hours, after all!' He didn't even let me finish, and he cut the connection right after he said his part. Ugh... I seriously hate this guy. Why did I even think it was a good idea to awaken him? I hope I do not make the same mistake in the future.

...And I just jinxed myself.