25 Setting Out

Over the course of their dinner, the Kazama Family has been talking about the various things they did over the day. How Kazuko ran around the city, Chris and Margit were sightseeing and souvenir shopping, Kazama mentioned he won a lottery in a shopping district and won a voucher for a hot spring vacation that can accommodate up to twelve people, Huang Luan and Wu Song also mentioned how they played Mahjong against the girls at Senriyama.

After some time, Gaguto who was sitting to the left of Huang Luan leaned over to her and whispered, "Did you get what I asked for?"

The people with sharper hearing like Margit and Wu Song overheard the question, while Wu Song is a little confused as to when Huang Luan and Gakuto come to an agreement.

"Of Course. Exclusive photos of the students of a Girls' Highschool, not even Yonpachi could get this kinda stuff. 15,000 yen apiece, non-negotiable," Huang Luan whispered.

"Fuck, that's expensive. I can't afford that," Gakuto exclaims.

"Are you sure," Huang Luan says as she pulls out her phone and reveals several photos of Senriyama students during their swim class.

"I really can't afford that price right now. Please, I'll do anything, just send me the pictures."

Meanwhile, Wu Song, who is seated to the right of Huang Luan, is looking over from the corner of her eye, wondering when Huang Luan found the time to take those photos.

"Hmm… I can bring the price down to 1,000 yen. But the price for this is… Erohim Essaim," Huang Luan says.

"You mean…"

"You need to tell me when the Virgin King will hold the next gathering. I want to go to the next Mouryou's Gathering. I know he's been hiding around taking photos. I don't care about mine, but Wu Song's photos will belong to me."

"..." Gakuto quickly takes a look around the room, to make sure no one else is paying attention. Of course, the few people listening obviously aren't looking directly at them and are focusing on other things while keeping one ear open, so Gakuto doesn't find anything out of the ordinary, "At the end of the month in the gym. But if anyone asks, you didn't hear it from me."

"Ok," Huang Luan says as she sends the questionable photos she took over to Gakuto.

As for the few people listening, they can't help but look at the two of them with disdain. But Wu Song instantly realises a problem, she hadn't noticed anyone taking her photos. 'I need to ask about this later,' Wu Song thinks.

Meanwhile, in the Chat Group, it has been split into two factions, each consisting of a single person while the rest, aside from Theresa and Satsuki who are busy preparing for the quest, are just eating melons on the side. One side is Konata claiming that Tsukihime is the superior series, while the other is Kazuma claiming that Fate is better.

Konakona: "You're objectively wrong."

Advocate of Gender Equality: "No you."

God-Emperor of Man: "You're both wrong, Angel Notes is better than Tsukihime and Fate."

Konakona: "Huh, What's that?"

Advocate of Gender Equality: "What're you talking about, old man?"

God-Emperor of Man: "... you claim to be fans of the Nasuverse, yet you're just as ignorant as my subjects. Angel Notes is a short story that predates both Tsukihime and Fate. In Notes, Gaia has died, killed by human pollution and warfare, yet humans still survive through means of enhancements and modifications, eventually splitting into the A-rays and the Liners. These two groups began to wage war against each other on the now dead planet, known as the Land of Steel."

Advocate of Gender Equality: "Oh, is this where the Land of Steel comes from?"

Konakona: "It doesn't sound like anything special beyond giving the origins of Land of Steel. And it's just a short story."

God-Emperor of Man: "It is indeed short. But it provides many details that would still be referenced in later stories. Such as the Aristoteles, also known as the Types. The war between the A-rays and the Liners was interrupted by the arrival of the Aristoteles who responded to the last cry of Gaia to wipe out the remnants of the human race that infest its corpse. You should know about Type Mercury the Ultimate one of Mercury, also known as ORT, ranked 5th amongst the Dead Apostle Ancestors. It has been mentioned in some works that ORT is awaiting the promised time, this refers to the Land of Steel and when the other Aristoteles arrive, it just came several thousand years too early."

Advocate of Gender Equality: "Fuck! Humans have to fight the Types in this!? Why haven't I heard about this until now!?"

Konakona: "So who wins? Humanity or the Types?"

God-Emperor of Man: "The mushroom never wrote a follow up so who knows. Perhaps only by going to the world of Notes will you find out. But from the current standpoint, Humanity seems to have stalled the ending but their final fate is unknown. This is all assuming we count the Liners and A-rays as humans. The final true human dies by the end of Notes. But ultimately, the people in this timeline are doomed, the Aristoteles can't truly be killed as they simply regenerate back on their original planet."

Witch of the Void: "I'm lost. What are Aristoteles or Types? And I thought the Dead Apostle Ancestors were Vampires, but this ORT doesn't sound like one."

Advocate of Gender Equality: "The Types are the Ultimate lifeforms of the planets and are the physical embodiment of the will of the planets. And they passively rewrite the world around them to be like their home planets."

Konakona: "Earth is notable for not having an Ultimate One. The closest there is to an Ultimate one of the Earth is Archetype Earth. As a side note, this is actually some Satsuki knows, Arcueid Brunestud. Regarding the Dead Apostle Ancestors, some are on the list only because they show vampiric properties. A clear example of this is the 1st of the Dead Apostle Ancestors, Primate Murder. It is the pet dog of Altrouge Brunestud who is ranked 9th of the Dead Apostle Ancestors. Primate Murder drinks blood just to copy Altrouge, this is why it is ranked amongst the Dead Apostle Ancestors. And in case you were wondering, the rankings of the Dead Apostle Ancestors are not really based on their strength, but on their threat to humanity. This is why Primate Murder is ranked 1st, as the Beast of Gaia, its very existence is to cull humans. Although the first ten of the Dead Apostle Ancestors are notably more difficult to deal with compared to the others."

Mr Fool: "The more I hear about this universe, or multiverse, the less I want to be there. I'm glad I didn't get selected for the Quest."

Black Star: "Don't worry, yours isn't any better."

Mr Fool: "..."

Black Star: "But actually, the three chosen for the Quest are very well suited for it and can work quite well with each other. In terms of skills and abilities. Haven't you guys noticed? The three of them are a bit similar in terms of what they can do. We've already talked about Satsuki's Reality Marble eliminating mana. Theresa has her weapon, the Oath of Judah, although its main purpose is to nullify Honkai energy, it can still restrict other forms of energy as well, like human bioelectricity. And Huang Luan can completely negate any supernatural phenomenon. Huang Luan and Satsuki are just massive middle fingers to magical lifeforms and can really only be fought with physical strength, while Theresa can stop what those two can't immediately eliminate. Honestly, with those three together, I don't see there being any problems with this mission. For them, it might be closer to having a vacation in another world."

Retired Loli Sovereign: "That's how I was treating it from the beginning. If this was a world with high tech levels with rules grounded in science, it might be a bit troublesome for me. But worlds, where the strongest are supernatural beings, are nothing more than a trip to the playground in my eyes."

Lightning Archpreistess: "Have you finished your dinner?"

Retired Loli Sovereign: "Yep, I've returned to the hotel and am ready to leave as soon as Theresa and Satsuki are."

Teriri: "I'm here. I just finished arranging matters at the school for the next few days."

Sacchin: "I also just got back and finished packing supplies."

Retired Loli Sovereign: "Then let's set out early. I want to see if there's anything fun to be had in this world."