Chapter 604

Chapter 604: Alice in Wonderland

"Why is a raven like a writing desk?"

The Sea of Three Moons was a phantasmagorical place, with corridors painted in riotous colors. Someone had used bright strokes to depict a child’s fantasies—crooked five-pointed stars, beaming little faces, stick-figure people holding hands—it was like a collage of childhood memories.

Unfortunately, magi were creatures who had long abandoned childish whimsy. The ingenuity of the Moon Cell might as well have been winking at the blind.

At least one certain magus would never admit that he was currently in an uncharacteristically good mood.

"Umu, is this a riddle?" The golden-haired emperor followed closely behind him. "We are quite skilled at solving riddles. We shall surely deduce the answer."

"You mean you can say what the answer is?"

"Precisely so."

"Then say what you think," Sakatsuki smiled.

"We are like this," Nero hastily replied. "At least—at least whatever we say is what we think—it’s the same thing, you know."

"It’s not the same thing at all," Sakatsuki said. "Then, would you say ’I see everything I eat’ and ’I eat everything I see’ are the same?"

Alice chimed in: "Then ’I like everything I own’ and ’I own everything I like’ would also be the same?"

"Could you say," Alice murmured, "’I always breathe when I sleep’ and ’I always sleep when I breathe’ are the same too?"

"For us, that would indeed be the same," Sakatsuki said to Alice and Alice.

The conversation halted there as Nero struggled to think about ravens and writing desks—though her knowledge of either subject couldn’t exactly be called extensive.

And Sakatsuki had no intention of letting the emperor understand his sweet nothings. He simply watched with amusement as Nero racked her brains, wondering when this foolish emperor would realize something was amiss.

"Wait." Nero suddenly realized. "That wasn’t what We meant to ask originally. Where’s Rin? Why didn’t you bring her along?"

Hopeless... Sakatsuki facepalmed. He stopped walking but answered seriously nonetheless.

"What do you think of Rin and Hakuno’s relationship?"

"Why, they’re friends, of course."

"But this is the Moon Cell. What we’re participating in is the Moon’s Holy Grail War."

"Umu, that’s precisely why such bonds are precious."

Sakatsuki didn’t smile. He stared at Nero—Hakuno’s original Servant, this wise and beautiful emperor—and repeated word by word:

"What we’re participating in is the Holy Grail War."

Thus, Nero understood his implication and fell silent.

"The more emotions you invest, the more inevitably you become entangled," Sakatsuki cut a small piece of cake and chewed it slowly. "If these entanglements continue, what will you do when you become opponents?"

"Will you swing the blade while weeping, or pretend to be carefree and say ’don’t mind me’?"

"That would be... too cruel," Nero murmured, watching Sakatsuki’s movements blankly. "Ah, where are we now?"

Hearing this, the two little girls in the aqua and black dresses exchanged glances, their faces breaking into mischievous smiles.

Sakatsuki shook his head with a wry chuckle, then picked up a piece of cream-filled bread and stuffed it into Nero’s small mouth.

"Alright, have something tasty."

Nero fell silent, instinctively chewing as her eyes narrowed in satisfaction, her slender legs swinging back and forth.

There might have been too much cream... but it didn’t matter. It was still delicious.

Wait, why did I come here again... Hmm, I forgot!

Might as well keep eating. Sakatsuki wouldn’t do anything to hurt me, anyway!

The young empress giggled foolishly, her innocent expression no different from that of a carefree child.

Sakatsuki rested his chin on his hand, quietly admiring the lovely sight before turning back to the two little girls holding hands and eyeing him curiously, his eyes shimmering with platinum hues.

"Alright, then. Let me hear your stories."

At this, Alice’s expression turned incredulous, as if she had finally understood something. "Big Brother... you’re not affected by the Nameless Forest?"

"You mean this Innate Barrier that makes people forget?" The young man lifted a tin teacup with graceful poise. "If you’re referring to how I rejected Rin Tohsaka, entered the Sea of Three Moons’ Thoughts with Nero, and was instantly trapped here by you two... I’m sorry to say, but I remember everything."

The black-dressed Alice tilted her head. "That does seem to be the case."

"Wow, you’re amazing, Big Brother!" Alice’s eyes widened, brimming with undisguised admiration, which only made Sakatsuki scratch his head in mild exasperation.

If he were facing someone like Robin Hood with his dead-fish stare, he would’ve already blasted him with a Noble Phantasm until he cried for mercy—in fact, he had done exactly that before.

But now, he was dealing with two little girls.

Innocent, pure, untouched by concepts of good and evil... pitiful souls with tragic pasts.

How could he possibly bring himself to raise a blade against them?

Sakatsuki pulled Nero—whose mind had regressed to a blank slate—into his lap, ruffling her golden hair and pinching her smooth cheeks as he fell into thought.

Should he let them pass on without regrets... or let them die without ever realizing it?

"Hey, Big Brother... you said you’d listen to my (Alice’s) story, right?"

Just then, Alice spoke up. Children were always willful—she didn’t wait for Sakatsuki’s response before continuing on her own.

"A long time ago, Alice lived in a country far, far away from here..."

As if dancing, the girl in the black dress twirled in a circle, murmuring softly, "But then, tanks and planes, iron helmets and iron guns... the black country came there. The sky turned red, and home became pitch black. When I woke up, I was already in a white room."

The girl in the aqua dress picked up the thread. "Every day was the same. No friends, no Mommy or Daddy."

The black-dressed girl nodded. "Even if I fell and got hurt, I’d bear it quietly. Because if I said it hurt, Daddy would get angry."

"But then, something happened that hurt so much I couldn’t stand it. When I woke up again... I was already here."

Sakatsuki remained silent. How could he explain to this pure child that the "white room" was a laboratory? That the pain she felt was because researchers had cut open her tiny body to study her Magic Circuits?

Alice. Alice.

Alice in Wonderland, Alice Through the Looking Glass.

Her nationality in life was British. The real her had been severely injured in an air raid during the final stages of World War II, left with little time to live. However, when magical circuits were discovered in her body, her life was forcibly prolonged for research purposes, and she ultimately died after years of suffering.

Yet her spirit lingered within the network she was connected to, surviving as a wraith. Since then, she had wandered across the digital expanse, unknowingly reaching the Moon Cell and forming a contract with a Servant, becoming a Master—all while remaining oblivious to the cruelty of this competition and the weight of taking another’s life.

Incidentally, she had never actively killed anyone; she merely used her Servant’s means to trap opponents in the Sea of Lunar Thought, preventing them from reaching the arena.

How unfortunate... and yet, how fortunate?

"Mmm, that hurts." Nero lifted her teary eyes, gazing at the young man who had pinched her cheek, her voice soft and pleading. "Be gentler, Sakatsuki..."

"Sorry." Sakatsuki snapped out of his thoughts and released her, only for Nero to squint happily and press even closer, nuzzling against him like a golden retriever.

Thank goodness Alice is still just a child... For some reason, that thought flashed through Sakatsuki’s mind, though the girls remained oblivious, still engrossed in their stories:

"But it’s okay now, because I’m really happy here."

"There are so many people here, and everyone treats me kindly."

"That’s right, here we can play as much as we want, right?"

"But if we play too roughly, we might break. Our heads or arms could fall off, and that would be terrible."

"If we break, we can just fix it. We have the needle and thread Mama gave us."

"As long as we reattach it, it’ll be fine, right?"

"It should be fine, right?"

The girl in the black dress smiled. The girl in the blue dress smiled. But Sakatsuki’s expression darkened. He paused, then drained his teacup in one gulp.

"I see. Understood."

The young man’s gaze swept across the nameless forest. The air grew heavy, the earth trembled, and even the vibrant fairy-tale world took on a shade of darkness. Yet under this silent pressure, the two girls only grew more excited, clasping hands and dancing merrily.

"Is the game starting? The game is starting!"

"Oh, let’s call that child over! Let that child play with big brother!"

As Alice spoke, she raised her hand.

BOOM!

In an instant, the earth, the sky, the very world of the nameless forest let out a wail—all because an existence beyond its rules had manifested, flesh and bone coalescing within this bounded field.

[It stood as tall as a dinosaur, with reptilian wings and a body covered in scales. Its claws were long and sharp, and it had two tails, one pointing upward, the other down. This vicious beast, forever hissing, was the Red Queen’s favorite weapon.]

The words from the story had taken form. But was this monster from a fairy tale truly just that—a mere fairy tale?

"GROOOOAAARR—!"

Had Rin Tohsaka or even Leo been present, their hair would have stood on end—for the sheer volume of magical energy radiating from this creature was enough to trigger alarms in the heart of any Master.

Run...

That thing must not be touched...

An absolute monster!

If the magical energy output of Masters was still constrained by the limits of the flesh, then Alice the undead was entirely different—she didn’t have to worry about excessive magical energy destroying her body at all. As long as her soul wasn’t completely burned out, she could release magical energy without limit!

And such extravagantly spent power gave birth to a super monster called the ’Jabberwock’—one that tore apart fairy tales!

"Sakatsuki!" Feeling the monstrous, rule-breaking ferocity of the creature, Nero immediately buried her head in the young man’s chest, her voice trembling with fear. "I’m scared!"

"Haha, isn’t it amazing? This child is my friend."

Alice smiled brightly, while Alice smiled calmly.

"Hey, big brother, won’t you play with this child?"

The Jabberwock let out a roar in response, its magical energy sending the forest’s tables and chairs flying. Cakes and fruits soared through the air, tea and milk splashed in unison, yet amidst this chaotic ’escape’ of objects, not a single thing entered the ten-meter radius around the young man and the girl in his arms.

Facing the puzzled gazes of the two little girls, Sakatsuki’s expression remained unreadable, but an astonishing cold light gathered in his hand.

"Come to think of it, there’s something I’ve wanted to tell you for a long time—"

Finally, he stood up, holding the adorable princess in his arms and gripping a sharp, radiant sword. His gallant posture was like that of a prince bravely setting out to slay an evil dragon.

Facing the terrifying monster, he swung his blade downward.

"No calling me ’big brother’!"

And so, under the horrified gazes of Alice and Alice, the Jabberwock let out a pitiful shriek, its overwhelming presence plummeting like a waterfall, before being pierced through by countless flashing blades of steel and collapsing with a thunderous crash.

Just like that, with effortless ease, he had slain a monster more terrifying than any Servant!