True Magician

Chapter 96

Azazel's house.

I looked at the woman, and she looked at me.

After thinking about it for a bit, for the life of me, I can't say what Noble Phantasm has to do with this. There are certainly a few instances where he could be a complete living independent person, but I doubt this woman is one. Also, I don't feel a connection between her and the world, so it's safe to say she's not a product of my query.

Plus, it's immediately apparent that Azazel perceptibly relaxed as soon as I returned Nightingale to the Throne of Heroes. Given the mess in the lab, which is a common occurrence for someone like these two, it's been cleaned up for quite some time. Better that than seeing an incapacitated Azazel chained to a bed with a bunch of tubes in his body, though.

I shook my head and headed over to the table where the two geniuses were sleeping, then swung wide and slapped the back of Azazel's head so that the sound of his head hitting the table echoed throughout the lab, waking both him and Da Vinci-chan.

- "What the hell?!" The Fallen One shouted loudly and unhappily, and when he jumped up from his seat and saw me, he made an annoyed expression on his face, "Did you have to wake me up like that? Hell, I think I even got a concussion."

- "Oh, don't act like a couple of bottles won't fix it," I waved him off, watching him rub the spot where he'd been hit. "You want to tell me what you've got a living clone of Gabrielle doing in your lab?"

- "Well, we tried to create a Noble Phantasm like you asked, Master, but nothing worked. All we got were Mystic Codes and trinkets, but nothing really worthwhile, even with the samples and my experience." Da Vinci-chan explained.

- "Why do you need a homunculus?"

- "Since we couldn't do it the direct way, we decided to take a detour."

- "And since Noble Phantasm is directly tied to the legend, why not create it ourselves? Although, nothing like the Throne of Heroes exists in this world, it's worth a try." Azazel added.

Hmm... That makes sense. There's no Noble Phantasm without a Heroic Spirit, and if you create one already, you'll get something out of it.

- "I see."

- "I see. Why are you here, Master? Do you need my help?" Da Vinci-chan asked after making coffee in the coffee machine.

- "I just wanted to check in. I haven't heard from you in a while," I shrugged, "So, what's the bottom line? Any progress?"

- "No, not yet," Azazel shook his head, "I wanted to give the body as much power as possible, which Da Vinci-chan helped me do, but usually the homunculus didn't live very long. I even had to do some of my own work to remedy the situation."

- "So, this isn't your first attempt?"

- "Of course, it is. It's hard to do what Azazel wants," Da Vinci-chan shook her head, "Unfortunately, we don't know the secrets of the Einzbern homunculi, so it's just trial and error. But I have to say, I'm willing to accept the challenge."

It's pretty funny how the Einzberns outperform any local faction in creating quality homunculi. And it's not just durability, it's also functionality.

They managed to create homunculi capable of becoming a vessel for the Holy Grail, a receptacle of such an enormous amount of mana that it could grant the victor's wish on a global scale. And since that was the case, what was stopping them from adjusting the homunculus' body to suit their needs, whatever they might be? To some extent, they could create what Azazel and Da Vinci-chan are trying to do right now.

- "Well, anything," I shrugged and looked at Azazel, "I'd like to ask you something."

- "If it has to do with the homunculus' appearance, then..."