Chapter 11

"As you wish, Master. I am by your side," Altria's voice was laden with unwavering loyalty, and she asked no further questions, accepting my decisions with a calm that only true fealty could provide.

Meanwhile, the creature continued its excited commotion. "Fou! Fou!" The sounds were insistent, almost melodic, as it used its small, fluffy paws to rummage through my hair, turning it into an even more tangled nest.

"Stop that, I'm going out," my voice was firm, but not without affection, as I captured the small being in my hands. It struggled for freedom, writhing and twisting in an effort to escape, but I kept my grip secure and gentle.

"Fou! Fou!" The creature emitted another sound, an indecipherable mix of meow and bark. It calmed down, its large and expressive eyes fixed on me, as if there was a thread of hope that I might reconsider my decision.

"Go back to Mash, go. We'll see each other again later," I declared softly, placing the creature on the ground and giving it a light pat on the rump, encouraging it to move away. To my surprise, and relief, it obeyed, parting with one final look thrown over its shoulder.

"He seems quite attached to you, Master," Altria's observation broke the quiet that followed with a note of curiosity. She gently touched the horse's belly, which responded with a muffled protest before gracefully lowering itself, allowing me to mount.

"Yes, the reason is a mystery to me too," I replied, as I settled into the saddle, wrapping my arms around Altria's waist in a secure gesture. With a tacit command, she caressed the horse's belly again, and it promptly rose with our load.

"Aren't you going to say goodbye to them, Master?" Altria's question was soft, almost rhetorical, as she seemed to note my reluctance for long farewells.

"No, I will see them again soon. I'm not fond of goodbyes; they bring an uncomfortable feeling, a foreboding that I prefer to avoid," my confession was tinged with a melancholic tone, a shadow of past feelings I preferred to keep buried.

"Let's go, Altria." I commanded, and the horse began to move, carrying us away from that scene of the unspoken farewell. And so we continued.

Altria remained silent, perhaps interpreting my own silence as a clear sign that I wished to be alone with my thoughts, or perhaps her mind was occupied with something else, something beyond our exchange of words. Meanwhile, our horse, as if sensing the urgency of the moment, began to pick up pace decisively, its hooves striking the ground with a cadence that spoke of haste and determination. In no time, the landscape where we had been was just a memory, and I couldn't help but wonder if those we left behind had noticed our departure.

It was then that Altria's voice broke the silence, bringing me back to the present, to the mission that awaited us.

"Where do we go, master?" She asked, her voice filled with a curiosity that seemed to reflect more than mere interest; there was a need to understand, to know the path we were treading together.

The answer came from me almost instinctively, as if it were a truth I had always known but only now took shape in words.

"You must be feeling a concentration of mana, aren't you? A powerful convergence that seems to call for us?" I said, allowing her perception to find an echo in my description. "That's where we're heading."

Somewhere ahead, the great Grail awaited us, a vortex of power and possibility that was both the goal of our journey and the key to the exit from this singularity. But along with that knowledge, a persistent doubt took root in my mind, sprouting like a seed of uncertainty in fertile ground.

I knew I had nowhere to run. Fate had woven its web, and I was at the same time the weaver and the thread, intertwined in that great tapestry of causes and consequences. But the question that wouldn't be silenced was: should I really destroy this singularity?

"Master? Are you listening?" Altria's voice cut through the silence, a thread of concern interwoven in her words. I blinked, slowly emerging from the dense fog of my thoughts, as if returning from a distant journey to the depths of my own mind.

"Yes, what happened, Altria?" My voice sounded, somewhat hoarse, as my consciousness readjusted to the outside world. I raised my gaze, allowing it to follow the path ahead, and observed that we were approaching an imposing cave. The entrance to the grotto was like the open mouth of a titan from bygone ages, situated right at the pulsating heart of the ancient city. Even from afar, one could feel the mystical energy emanating from its interior, the air heavy with the weight of destiny and magic. We were already nearing where the great Grail summoned us with its mysterious allure.

"It was to warn that we were arriving," she continued, her voice revealing a serenity that contrasted with the slight tension in her gaze. "I called several times, you weren't answering. I thought you might have fallen asleep."

Altria spoke with a calm that was her signature, but behind the tranquility, I could feel a hint of concern. She was attentive, perhaps even a little anxious, noticing my tendency to get lost in deep reflections, especially when the imminence of such a momentous event hung in the air.

"I'm fine, Altria, thank you." The words came out accompanied by a genuine smile, a simple gesture but loaded with gratitude for the loyal companionship of that timeless warrior. She reciprocated with a subtle movement, a glance thrown over her shoulder, which allowed a glimpse of her pale yellow eyes to shine through the openings of her helmet.

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