106: Chapter 106 The Ten Commandments Return to One
Dr. Roman stopped in his tracks and turned around. On that face, which always carried a hint of exhaustion and weakness, there was now an unprecedented, reassuring, and composed smile.
He looked at the Master before him and gently raised his hand in greeting.
"Yo."
"You've fought very well, Fujimaru."
The doctor's voice was soft, yet it miraculously soothed the surrounding violent heat and despair. "Although it's a pity that I'll be stealing the spotlight at the end, it's my turn to take the stage for the time being."
"Doctor?! Are you crazy?!"
PD's eyes widened, and he shouted incredulously at the figure before him, "That's the front line! What is an ordinary person like you, with no spirit origin reaction, doing running over there?! Get out of the way!"
At the same time, Chu He's pupils, which had been bloodshot due to Mash's sacrifice, suddenly constricted to the limit.
As the most senior lore researcher, he had once confidently written tens of thousands of words of "conspiracy theory" analysis on the forums: Dr. Roman was hiding secrets, Dr. Roman was definitely a mole within Chaldea, Dr. Roman might even be the incarnation of the Demon God King Goetia!
But at this moment, looking at that slender figure that still firmly stepped past the Master to stand at the very front...
Chu He's heart skipped a beat.
There was no darkening, no villainous laughter tearing away a disguise, and no eruption of world-shaking magical power. That man, like the most ordinary and powerless mortal, walked towards the light of destruction that could pierce even a planet.
"Wait... if he isn't a mole..."
Chu He's breathing stopped completely. A "bad omen" deeper and more suffocating than before gripped his heart tightly, making his whole body run cold. He even felt a strong sense of shame and panic in his heart, thinking, "I'm really just an attention-seeking clown."
"This ordinary person who doesn't even have Magic Circuits, standing up now... what is he trying to do?! Could it be... no, absolutely not!"
Not just PD and Chu He, but all the players, the moment they saw Roman appear, their first reaction wasn't "we're saved," but a deeper shock and confusion.
Even the strongest shield had been reduced to ashes. What use was there for a doctor who only knew how to treat patients and type on a keyboard to stand up?
"How pathetic. Having lost even your final shield, can you now only send out a mortal without any magical power to die?"
From atop the throne, the Demon God King Goetia looked down at Roman as if looking at a worthless insect, his voice filled with arrogance and disdain.
However, facing the mockery of Beast I, Dr. Roman did not shrink back, nor did he tremble with fear as he usually did.
He took a deep breath, as if recalling a very distant past, and began to speak slowly in the empty temple with that calm and gentle voice.
"Do you know, Goetia? In 2004, in Japan's Fuyuki City, an unknown Holy Grail War took place."
"The former director of Chaldea at the time, Marisbury Animusphere, summoned a Heroic Spirit of the Caster class and eventually won that war."
PD was stunned, Chu He was stunned, and all the players fell silent.
They didn't understand why, at this moment of life and death, the doctor would suddenly talk about an old story no one had heard before.
"Marisbury made a wish to the Holy Grail and obtained the vast wealth needed to establish Chaldea."
As Dr. Roman spoke, he slowly raised his hand and placed it on the white medical glove he wore year-round.
"And the Heroic Spirit who helped him win the war, the Caster known as the King of Mages... the wish he made to the Holy Grail was 'to become an ordinary human'."
In Goetia's dark-gold vertical pupils, Dr. Roman's movements were reflected.
At first, there was only contempt, but as that history was unveiled, an indescribable sense of horror began to spread wildly within the Demon God King's spirit origin.
"I've always been a coward. Facing tragedy, I habitually escape; facing responsibility, I always want to shirk it. So I've always hidden it, kept it in the deepest depths as my final trump card."
Under the bated breath of all the players, Dr. Roman slowly and very solemnly took off his glove.
The moment the glove fell off, a mysterious, ancient golden ring containing unimaginable, terrifying magical power was exposed to the air!
After seeing that ring clearly, Goetia's massive, terrifying, alien body actually jerked violently!
In his dark-gold vertical pupils, for the first time, a nearly human-like, extremely intense shock and loathing erupted! That absolute pride was completely torn apart, replaced by an unbelievable fury.
"—You."
Goetia's voice was no longer that high-and-mighty steadiness, but like a beast that had its tail stepped on, he let out a roar that shattered the void: "That's the Tenth Ring?! How can it be here?! Why?! You, how on earth did you get here?!"
Facing Goetia's fury, Dr. Roman only sighed softly.
He turned his head and looked at the Great Cross Shield beside him that had lost its owner. In those eyes that always carried fatigue and dark circles, a flash of deep sadness appeared.
"Of course I had to come..."
Dr. Roman turned around and faced the Demon God King on the throne, his voice so calm it was heartbreaking.
"Because, I am the one who must take responsibility for all of this."
"Since that child (Mash) has already proven the value of humanity with her life, since the Master has already fought so hard to get here..."
Dr. Roman closed his eyes and took a deep breath.
"Then, I can no longer continue to run away."
When he opened his eyes again, the mildness and cowardice belonging to an "ordinary person" had completely vanished.
In its place were the eyes of a King, which saw through the past and future and embraced all the joys and sorrows of the entire world!
That golden ring also suddenly erupted with a brilliant pillar of light that pierced through the void!
"This is... the Tenth Ring bestowed by God."
Along with his calm declaration, the nine massive rings of light that originally belonged above Goetia's throne seemed to receive some irresistible summons, vibrating violently before crashing towards Roman's position!
The Ten Rings Return to One.
In the blinding light, dazzling silver hair danced wildly in the starry sky, and that wrinkled white lab coat turned into light particles that scattered with the wind.
In its place was a magnificent, solemn robe of the King of Mages, radiating an endless divine aura!
A narration, as heavy and mournful as an ancient epic, rang softly in the ears of all players:
"The legend goes."
"Although King Solomon possessed the omnipotent rings, he only used them once."
"And, finally, by his own will, he returned the rings to heaven."
"It was as if declaring that from now on, fate would not be handed to an almighty God, but that an era where humans live by their own will had arrived."
In the light, the man known as the King of Mages calmly gazed at Goetia:
"I will be extinguished by my own Noble Phantasm. Because that is the end of King Solomon."