Extra Act: Sea of the Foreign Deities (4/5)

Welcome to my otherwordly inner palace, my beloved Emperor...

I must say, I never expected you to defeat the other dancers and make your way straight to me so quickly...

Hehehe, you have made me so very happy... I fear the sheer bliss may drive me to delirium...

Lady...Yang Guifei...

I don't think she even sees me... She's just looking at Master through the camera...

Sorry, Ma-chan, but can you let me have a turn? I promise I'll be real quick!

Yu-Yu! It's me, Batty! Do you really not recognize me!?

Or were you only using the bare minimum of your Madness Enhanced mind to act like we were friends!?

Oh gods, that's totally what it was, wasn't it!? I'm such a baka! I should've known I could never be friends with a genuine princess like you!

But as embarrassing as it is to realize our whole nakama thing was a sham, there's still one thing I know from spending all that time with you!

The way you smiled whenever we ate lychees, or when you were playing with the marines?

I'm positive that was the real Yu-Yu!

So even if they might be a little broken, there's no way my Ma-chan will let any Servant with redeeming qualities like that get away!

A-and, um...that of course goes for me, too...

Okay, that's all I had to say! Get her, Ma-chan!!!

？！

...

...What are you talking about? I don't...understand...

After all...my beloved emperor was sealed away...in the far reaches of Fomalhaut... No, wait... Was he put to rest in the Tailing Mausoleum...? Huh...?

...Ahh, there you are...

Damn! Just when I thought we might have gotten through to her!

Oh Emperor, my beloved emperor... Please don't leave me again...

All I want in this life is to stay by your side...until the flame of my life goes out...

What's that? I must be terribly cramped in this tiny body?

Why yes, I am! That is why I created hellfire from your favorite star while I awaited your arrival!

Now, I will use this frail vessel to kindle a flame on the seventh night of the seventh month, just like in "The Palace of Eternal Life"!

Oh, to be lovebirds in the sky, entwined branches on the earth, and to never again be separated from one another!

I will become one with the emperor. Now, to make that dream come true, I shall become a living flame to consume this world, and all other worlds beyond the stars!!!

Imperial edict. The Taoist nun of Penglai, Yang Taizhen, declares

...Uh-oh! Her Noble Phantasm is about to engulf the entire sea!

？！

Ehehehehe! Of course!

Lady Yang Guifei, you recognized me as one of your class... You said you didn't want to hurt me. That you even liked me!

I can't imagine it was all an act, but even if it was...I still need to pay you back for your kindness. That's what it means to be human, right!?

And since neither me, nor Nemo, nor Master are your emperor...

...I'm going to show you what it's like to have your proposal met with "Nooit, neen, nimmer"! Ehehe!

Ah, ah, ah

Aaaaaah! Why? Why, why, why!?

Tell me, Emperor! Tell me, tell me, tell me! Why do you refuse my flame!?

？！

Yes! Here it comes! De Sterrennacht!!!

...Oh no. I was afraid of this!

What's wrong, Van Gogh!?

Now I know why something felt off when I used my Noble Phantasm on Lady Yang Guifei before!

I just ran a deep scan on her Foreigner Spirit Origin, and almost ninety percent of its capacity is occupied by the evil god's terminal!

？！

Yes... So if you try to tear the two apart, her Spirit Origin won't survive!

According to my database, in life, Yang Yuhuan had no inclination for madness that would make her an attractive target for an outer universe divinity.

However, we cannot ignore the fact that it also says her body went missing after her death.

As this took place in the past, I cannot use my prognosticative abilities to say for certain, but to speculate on what may have happened...

I would guess that an outer universe faction caught wind of her keen mind and devout love for her emperor, and used her body as the base upon which to build the Heroic Spirit we see now.

As a result, most of her Spirit Origin is flooded with reverence for the outer universe, despite having no connection to it in her lifetime...

It is truly a tragedy. All Yang ever wanted was to make Bai Juyi's poem a reality...

So these evil gods have been using her, toying with her, all for their own twisted ends...

That's just like what they did to me! Lady Yang Guifei!

Why!? Why do you look so sad, my beloved emperor!? All I want is to serve you faithfully!

Ahh... It seems my spirit body has met its end...

Does this mean...you no longer have need of me?

Hehehe... As much as it pains me, if you wish for me to disappear...then so be it...

Ah! No! Don't!

Huh?

Lightning deployment team here. Do you read me, Van Gogh?

With some help from Nemo Nurse, we created a torpedo loaded with a liberation spell, similar to what we did in our final battle against you. I just fired it!

Oh, I'm also told it includes a binding spell. Yang Guifei should no longer be able to move!

Ghh! Wh-what is this?

So she's still trying to fight back!? The impudence! What are the rest of you waiting for!? Off you go, hurry along!

Oh shut up! We're here now, aren't we!? All right, you two, get going!

Hi ho, Van Gogh.

I have come, too! Keh heh heh!

Fran? Wait... What about your swimsuit, Lady Wu Zetian!?

Hmph. I commanded Scáthach-Skadi to hurry and fashion me an appropriate outfit, but she said she did not have the time.

So instead, I had her slap one of those void chip whatsits directly onto my Spirit Origin. It worked, but my spirit form is all messed up, so I am in no shape to aid in battle.

Th-that sounds so amazI mean, painful... Why did you go to such lengths, Lady Wu?

Lady Wu? How uncouth! You may address me either as "Your Imperial Highness," or "Nite-Brite."

As for why I went to such lengths, well, it is only right that I snuff out a fire that came from my country, no?

At any rate! You there, Yang Yuhuan! You may do so while knocking your knees together if you wish, but you WILL listen to me!

I am Wu Zetian, also known as Holy Empress Zetian, and I am your grandmother-in-law! Do not even think of claiming you haven't heard of me!

...!!!

I must say, it is quite an odd twist of fate that we should meet in a strange and foreign land like this a thousand years after our deaths, but never mind that now.

Suffice to say, I know all about how my Zhou dynasty was rolled back in favor of Tang, only for the entire nation to be thrown into chaos because he chose you for his consort, you temptress!

Oh yes, I have quite the bone to pick with both you and your beloved emperor! Perhaps I'll make you pay for your crimes with one of my wine barrel executions!

Eek...!!!

？！

Um, Lady Nite-Brite, maybe threatening her isn't the best way to go here...

"Lady Nite-Brite"? That does not sound right, either... Eh, no matter. Van Gogh, was it? Lend me your Noble Phantasm for a moment!

Huh!? Is that even possible...?

Goddess here. Ordinarily, it would not be, but thanks to a backdoor in the void chip, we can indeed link your and Wu Zetian's Spirit Origins now.

B-b-but, we've only just met, and that sounds so...intimate...

Wh-what in the world are you talking about!? This will be a purely tactical collaboration, nothing more!

But, won't connecting to a Foreigner's Spirit Origin drive you mad?

That is where this electric girl comes in! Trust me, I have thought of everything!

I'm a monster. I can handle fear and madness.

There you have it. We will connect both of you in tandem, with Fran acting as an intermediary. Now hurry up, before the binding spell fades!

But, um, are you going to do something mean to her...?

Enough! I wanted to, believe me, but Master was dead set against it! Worry not! Loath though I am to enact it, I do have a peaceful plan in mind!

G-g-g-got it!

Connecting.

Gah! What happened to this Spirit Origin!? I knew this would be difficult, but this is far more painful than I expected! And laggy! Can't you stabilize the connection speed!?

W-w-well, no matter. I suppose this will suffice. All right, here goes...!

Xīngyè!!!

Ah...

Disconnecting.

Phew, there we go. Keh heh heh, nailed it! First try! Just another example of how amazing I truly am!

All right, Van Gogh, you can take her into custody.

Ack! L-Lady Yang Guifei!?

...

What did you do to her?

Oh, nothing, really. I merely outfitted her Spirit Origin's primary Spiritrons with horrifically strict and complicated operating restrictions.

If destroying her is not an option, we need merely bind her with rules. Just the sort of solution you would expect from me, no, Master?

？！

Keh heh heh, stop, before you make me blush! Now, as for what this Yang Yuhuan girl will be like going forward...

Her essence will remain unchanged. Underneath her innocent exterior, she will continue to think of nothing but her beloved emperor.

No doubt she will still wish to marry said emperor, but worry not; one of the restrictions I placed on her requires her to grow to a point where she is ready for marriage.

She may not be as diligent as me, but she is enough of a hard worker that she should soon learn how to control herself in order to achieve that growth.

And if, Master, you were to take advantage of this opportunity to help her truly grow as a person, so that she becomes the person she merely behaves like...

...perhaps in time, you may even be able to completely remove the terminal connecting her to this outer universe.

So I suggest you think of her as a newborn babe, even more so than the three stars of Chaldea's prized lava swimming team, and raise her accordingly, with warmth and compassion.

Of course, infants require education. If you like, I would be willing to personally teach her how to be a proper lady.

？！

Keh heh heh! No need to be so modest! Though I must say, I never would have let her off the hook so easily before. It seems being a Servant has mellowed even me out!

Thank you, Lady Nite-Brite!

No need to thank me! All I ask in return is that you teach me the ways of Western painting! What a grand opportunity to further enhance my artistic prowess!

Y-yes, of course! Ehehehe, me, teaching an empress how to paint... It's like a dream job!

That takes care of that. I'm tired. Gonna go be lazy.