Queen's High School II

Heeey, you there, Fujimaru?

Would you mind turning off the space stove inside the house, pleeease? I'd do it myself, but I've reeeally got my hands full right now!

？！

？！

I'm sorry, Ishtar. I know this is supposed to be a happy day, but first, I must apologize.

If you're watching this now, then I am almost certainly dead.

I know I promised to reveal something spectacular to you on your fourteenth birthday, and I had been so excited to do so...

...but it seems I won't be able to make good on that promise anymore. Again, I'm sorry.

？！

I'm afraid I don't have a lot of time. It won't be long before he gets here.

As I suspected, it seems he wasn't funding my research out of appreciation for the arts after all.

So I want you to listen to me closely, without going off on the wild flights of fancy that most teenagers fall prey to.

The truth is, I'm not your real father, and you are no ordinary Servant.

I know I told you that you were a Divine Spirit Servant, but you aren't.

You may think you're a normal person, but you're actually a goddess. A real, honest to goodness goddess.

You're what he's coming for, Ishtar. You are one half of a goddess divided into her good and evil sides.

So I want you to leave this planet, hide your name, and live a good, simple life.

Oh, and one last thing... Happy fourteenth birthday, Rin.

For your present, I'm giving you something you've always wanted: the Maanna.

Once this has all blown over, I hope you'll go on to explore the universe as an academic, just like you told me you would.

Gaaah! Khh... So it was you, Munenori!

This is not what we agreed upon, Professor Tokiomi.

As I recall, our funding was contingent upon you turning all that you discovered in the ancient ruins over to us.

But it seems not only did you fail to disclose all your findings, you also wasted a considerable amount of my time.

The punishment for breaking a contract with us is death. Now, if you'll excuse us, we'll collect the goddess's legacy and be on our way.

Ghh... You lot have no idea what you're messing with.

You can't let her wake up. If you do, she'll send this universe back to the stone age!

Come now, is that a joke? You say that as though you yourself haven't kept her awake all this time.

No matter. If the legend does turn out to be true, well, that will be most gratifying in its own right.

Space Shinkageryu has long wished for nothing more than to attain a state of nothingness.

But, if we cannot reach it now, we should be able to see where it lies once we have reduced the rest of the universe to nothingness.

That's horrible... You'll destroy the whole universe to make up for your own deficiencies!?

Indeed it is. When you get right down to it, this world is nothing more than all of us foisting our own ugly natures upon one another.

Commander, we found the vessel in question in a hidden basement chamber.

Good. Carry her carefully. Remember, she will one day surpass me and become our new leader.

...Heh. Indeed, she must surpass me. No normal sword would serve to cut the universe itself.

？！

Welcome baaack☆ Hope you didn't feel like I was treating you like a maid or something☆

Anyway, thanks to you taking care of that for me, I was able to finish tuning up Maanna's new engine perfectly.

Now we can go after Space Shinkageryu's fortress anytime we like.

But first, I need to take care of this little problem in my hometown!

You'll help me out with that too, right, Fujimaru?

What, not exciting enough for you? C'mon, you can deal with it. It's not like it'll take long.

Or what, are you disappointed to find out what really goes on in prestigious schools for young ladies? Well, ex-CUSE me for not being all frail and dainty♡

Wh-what's wrong? Are you getting sick or something? You know you can always rest if you need to, right!?

？！

？！

Hm? What's up?

？！

My father? Where'd that come from?

Oh, I get it. You got curious about my homelife now that you've been in my old house, huh?

Well, Father's name was Tokiomi, and from what I can tell, his fellow professors all thought he was kind of eccentric.

He loved fieldwork more than anything, and he spent pretty much half his life exploring old ruins.

He was a meritocrat with very high standards, both for himself and for others, and he could come off as kind of a hard-ass...

...but deep down, he was really just a big softiea lifelong bachelor who valued peace over profits.

？！

Nope. I'm Professor Tokiomi's one and only daughter, no matter what anyone says.

Wait. Is the sudden interest 'cause you want to introduce yourself to him?

Followed by, say, asking his permission to marry me?

Aww, too bad☆

But seriously, I do think he would have liked you.

Not that you'll ever get the chance to find out now, unfortunately.

Ooh, are we talking about Tokiomi? Let me get in on this! Oh, right, it'll have to wait!

I just got a message from X saying she found the dean's office.

Huh? You're serious!? You don't look like you're kidding... P-please tell me you're just a really good actor!

There you guys are. I was wondering where you were taking a break. And what's this? Gazing longingly into each others eyes, are we? I smell hanky-pankyyy☆

But I'm afraid it'll have to wait! X just sent a message saying she found the dean's office!

？！

I swear, this school is the worst.

I'm sure you already realized this yourself, Fujimaru, since you helped me out with the decoy stuff...

...but it turns out all the teachers here have been replaced with machines pretending to be Servants!

？！

Gotcha. Ms. Jaguar must've just instinctively noticed that or something.

She really is the last bastion of the school I remember. This place is lucky to have her.

So, does this mean the dean's a robot too? Like Master Babbagen?

I can imagine him saying "According. To my. Calculations. The only ones. Who can be. Called Sabers. Are those. Originally belonging. To the Saber class."

Babbagen would never say something like that!

Never mind what he would or wouldn't say! The important thing is that once we get to the dean's office, we can settle this once and for all!

？！

Good day, Mr. Dean! Is now a good time to discuss your educational policies!?

Very well. You're not on my appointment schedule for today, but I've still been expecting you.

？！

Student ID: XXXX-XXXXX-XXXX, Ishtar. Truant. Numerous unsubmitted assignments.

Noted problem child, but still officially enrolled. I therefore recognize you as one of our students. Good morning.

I have no record of summoning you here, so it would seem this is an unplanned visit. State your business.

Well, sir, I have some questions I was hoping you could answer.

Permission to ask questions, granted.

Why did you make such drastic changes to Queens' traditions?

I expect what you consider to be traditions...

...are actually customs such as spending one's youth running around aimlessly...

...and expending one's excess energy in the violent athletic competitions commonly known as sports.

I excised those "traditions" because I deemed them to be irrational, detrimental behaviors. In keeping with this, I fired the former faculty for their incurable need to adhere to these outmoded "traditions."

All right then, what about the girls you took away on some so-called summer school program? Where are they?

Our students agreed to abide by this school's policies when they enrolled. In spite of their agreement to do so, some students have failed to abide by our rules.

Specifically, they refused to wear their Saber Badges in accordance with our dress code.

I therefore determined they required remedial education, and compelled them to go to an appropriate training ground.

And where is it!?

We have many such training grounds, so it will take some time to answer that question.

As for the curriculum they are studying at their training ground, I have entrusted the matter entirely to the charity organization Space☆Shinkageryu.

I knew it! Space Shinkageryu WAS behind all this!

All right, last question. Are you a member of Space Shinkageryu too?

Yes. I am one of the Six Blades, and a gear in the machine that is institutional education.

I am the Monstrous Sword of overwhelming vitality. I am Xiang Yu.

Student ID: XXXX-XXXXX-XXXX, Ishtar. I have been ordered to capture and transport your companion.

As head of this school, I demand that you submit your companion to me in a swift and timely manner.

Sorry, Dean, that'll just have to be one more assignment I never turn in!

I'm sorry to hear that, Student ID: XXXX-XXXXX-XXXX, Ishtar. Very well then, I hereby suspend you indefinitely for refusing to comply with the dean.

You will also be turning in a twenty page essay on your rule breaking after surrendering the catalyst.

Fine by me. Though I'd hate to get expelled for punching the dean in his stupid mechanical face!

Hold it!!!

!?

？！

I heard the whole thing!

Ms. Jaguar!?

You're Faculty ID

Will you shut up already, you overgrown bucket of bolts!?

Bucket of bolts?

I was willing to chalk up your new, harsher policies to a simple difference of opinion...

...but how dare you ship my precious cadets off for unreasonably harsh training sessions at some outsider's hands!?

I don't care if the board of education gave you a free pass to handle student discipline how you like! Nobody does that to my students and gets away with it!

So what I'm trying to say here is...

Die, robot man! Die!!!

Booyah!

...All functions shutting down. Sending final report to headquarters.

If the ritual at the ancient shrine succeeds, and Space Shinkageryu will assume control of the Servantverse...

...I foresaw that having my students change their class to Saber would be the best way to ensure their futures.

But I see now that I was being narrow-minded and failed to account for individual freedom. I can only conclude that my predictive capabilities had flaws of which I was unaware.

I guess he was just trying to do what he thought was right.

I certainly didn't care for his plan to turn all Servants into Sabers, but it's nice to see at least one normal swordfighter among the Six Blades.

Hmm. I don't know if I'd call a giant, mechanical, half-man, half-horse guy with six arms "normal..."

Anyway, this ought to get Queens back to normal, so that's that little detour taken care of.

Come on, Fujimaru. We still have a good way to go before we reach Space Shinkageryu's home base.

As you are all going to die right here, there will be no further need to concern yourselves with your trip.

Huh!? A distortion in space-time!? The kind you only see for individual warps!?

Get back, Fujimaru! Something's headed our way!

How dare you speak about me that way. I am not some "thing."

I am Ashtart, the three hundred and seventy-sixth leader of the Space Shinkageryu. Remember that, you barbaric bounty hunter!

...

So that's the leader of Space Shinkageryu... She really does look just like Ishtar!

You have it backwards, cretin. She's the one who looks like me.

Go on then, Ishtar. That katana of yours isn't just for show, right? So draw it.

Though of course...

...I can't imagine you know how to use it, seeing how you grew up in a pathetic backwater school like this.

That katana... That's...

That's the Space Shinkageryu katana that killed Father!!!

Ghh...! (I hate to admit it...but I can't hold a candle to her!)

...What a joke. And here I thought you would at least put up a halfway decent fight.

But I suppose that's the best my good half can do. Being the evil half, my drive, skill, and training all wildly surpass yours.

I am frankly embarrassed that you and I are two halves of a whole.

Huh? I don't have any idea what you're taking about!

I don't even know who the hell you are!

Oh, don't worry. I'm in the same boat. If I'd known you existed, I'd have ended you ages ago.

Only one of us can become the Primordial Goddess, and you better believe it's gonna be me.

Now then. Long time no see, Master of Earth.

I commend you for managing to escape from Dark Maanna. It was very clever of you, thinking on your feet like that.

？！

But this little adventure of yours ends now. This time, I'm going to ensure you become my catalyst.

All right, come along. I'm willing to return you to your own world once I'm done with you.

Though of course, I can't promise I'll be able to return you in the same state you are now. If you're lucky, you won't be sucked so dry people could mistake you for a mummy.

Why you...!

Who do you think you are, saying shit like that with my face!?

Why do you keep calling Fujimaru a catalyst!? What're you planning to do with him!?

Exactly what I said. That earthling is going to be the stepping stone I need to reach my true form.

Or perhaps I should say, our true form, since I'm sure some part of you understands just as well as I do.

You didn't want to let him go because even you sensed you needed him.

I-it's not like that at all! We just kind of wound up traveling together!

The Masters who once existed in this universe served to summon beings far greater than themselves.

Their blood, their soul, their very existence is meant to bring back what was lost.

And weak and powerless as he may be, that boy from Earth is still a Master.

His life will be the catalyst that awakens the Primordial Goddess from her long slumber.

Cut the crap! The long and short of it is that you're going to kill him, aren't you!?

Now that's a bit more like it. Not a bad step-in for someone on her last legs.

But unfortunately for you, that's the best you can do. Now then, I think now's as good a time as any to reduce my good half to good quarters. Heh.

Back up! What did you say Fujimaru was? Weak and powerless? Ugh, if there's one thing I can't stand, it's stuck-up, arrogant bitches like you!

Go on, Master! Show this bitch how amazing you really are!

？！

Now take THIS!

!

What just... You really are a Master, aren't you...?

...What am I saying? Of course you are. That's the whole reason I brought you here.

...Looks like I'm out of time. Right now, cheating the laws of the Shining Blue Galaxy like this is the best we can do.

All right. I'll let you take care of the catalyst for me just a while longer.

Besides, he'll never be able to return to his original world as long as I'm around.

Whether the Space Shinkageryu captures you, or whether you make your way to me...it'll all be the same in the end.

I just hope you're able to put up a little more fight next time.

Who was that girl with the katana? Your little sister or something? Whoever she was, she scared the bejeezus out of me...

But anyway, my potential lingering trauma aside, the good news is that this closes the case once and for all. Thanks for all your help, everyone.

Now Queens can go back to the way it was...or maybe it's gotten rid of the old ways for good.

Either way, times change. That's just the way it is.

All I can do is keep whipping my cadets into shape until they graduate as proper Servants.

That goes for you too, Ishtar.

Me? But, I just got suspended indefinitely, even before I assaulted the dean...

That never happened! You're an innocent woman!

!

Plus, I distinctly remember it was Ms. Jaguar who dealt the finishing blow anyway.

？！

If you ever want to come back, there'll always be a seat open for you in my classroom.

It's just not the same without the Red Devil there to liven things up!

I could especially use your help whipping the cadets into shape in time for the next exhibition matches with our rival school!

What's this, Ishtarin? Does this mean you were a rough-and-tumble gal even when you went to Queens?

And here I remember you complaining all the time about how...

...you'd never had to carry anything heavier than gemstones before when you first started bounty hunting!

It wasn't a big deal! They were just some friendly games. I used to play for some of Queens' sports teams, like space tennis and space karuta, that's all!

Anyway, thank you for the kind words, Ms. Jaguar. I really appreciate that.

I can't promise I'll come back soon, since there's something I have to do right now, but someday...I'd like that.

I see... Well, whatever it is, I can see it must be really important to you.

All right then, off with you, seventy-sixth Queen Devil (read: student council president)!

I don't know who you're after or what you're planning to do, but whoever it is, give them Zenjou hell!

？！

Okay, Maanna's back up and running, so we're nearly ready to infiltrate Space Shinkageryu's base...

But before that, I thought we should have a little heart-to-heart, since I'm sure you have some questions for me.

？！

You and me both. That said... At this point, I can kind of piece things together.

It seems pretty clear that we're kind of like sisters. Never mind that we only just met.

Anyway, I grew up here, and she was brought up by the Space Shinkageryu.

I'm pretty sure that's all there is to it.

？！

Kind of. I've always been able to sense a kind of wall between me and everyone else since I was little.

I thought I'd be pretty shocked when Father confessed to me that I wasn't really his daughter...

...but I ended up just rolling with it, like it was happening to someone else.

When he told me...

I'm home, Father! And more beautiful than ever☆

So hey, now that it's my fourteenth birthday and all, what's this big secret you've got to tell me?

Ish...tar... Thank goodness...you're okay...

Huh? Father...? What happened!? Are you okay!?

Please... I need you to calm down and listen to me. I have so much to tell you, and precious little time.

...The truth is, I'm not your real father. You...

...You are half of the goddess core I found in an ancient shrine. A core which had been divided into good and evil.

You're not a Divine Spirit Servant. You are, in truth, one half of a genuine goddess...

...Come on, Father, don't be ridiculous. You're, well, my father. I'm going to take over for you when

Yes. That remains still just as true as ever. Even if you are the reincarnation of the Primordial Goddess...

...as long as you consider me your father, you will always be my daughter.

...No matter what sort of impenetrable barriers our pastour historymay hold.

Those aren't for you to worry about. You're my daughter... And you have your whole life ahead of you.

...

Unfortunately, I don't think the... Space Shinkageryu...is going to see it that way...

There's no telling what the man who wounded me with his katana would do if he found you.

...So you need to leave this planet, and hide where he'll never find you.

And...if the day should come when this universe turns red...I want you to do what you know to be right...

...for I believe in you, and I know that you will make the right choice.

Oh, yes... There's still one more thing... I need to tell you...

...It's been wonderful...being your father... Happy...birthday...Rin...

C-come on, Father, wake up... Please, open your eyes again! Father!!!

......

...Anyway, it doesn't really matter who I am, right?

Father once told me the only thing that determines whether I'm a god or a human is how I feel about it.

So yes, I might be one half of a goddess, but I'm also Professor Tokiomi's daughtera good Ishtar.

The important thing is that I'm a Pseudo-Servant who really, truly believes herself to be a real Servant.

All that said, I'm not about to give up on avenging my father anytime soon!

It's the whole reason I learned how to use a katana.

I knew that if I used the same weapon my father's killer did, I'd be sure to run into him someday.

The main reason I volunteered to be your bodyguard back on Texas Beyond is because the Space Shinkageryu were after you.

I figured that if I stuck with you, I'd finally be able to avenge him.

And yes, that's still true...

But now, the most important reason I'm staying with you is because I want to help you get back home.

I feel like it's my responsibility.

Of course, part of that is because I despise Ashtart with every fiber of my being, and I refuse to let her get her way.

So...I guess what I'm trying to say is, will you continue to travel with me, just like we have been?

I won't deny that I've been taking advantage of you all this time. Hell, I have every intention of doing so again in the future.

But even so...will you trust me? Will you protect me until this is all over, Master?

？！

I-I see. Once again, not a moment's hesitation, huh. Well, I'm glad to see you understand your position so well.

You really would be hopeless without me, wouldn't you? I don't know why I even bothered asking.

Oh Ishtarin, why can't you just say "thank you"? If you keep that up, you're not gonna get the ending you really want, you know.

Never mind that! Anyway, I trust you and X are good with that too?

Of course! I'm not gonna bail now that the final battle's almost here!

You're getting a little ahead of yourself, Jane. We still have a long way to go before we reach Space Shinkageryu's home base.

Okay! Now that we've got all that off our chests, all that's left is to kick Maanna into high gear!

Come on, guys, let's get going!

We're off to the forbidden zone, and the Space Shinkageryu's home base!