Pepe signed the contract very straightforwardly because he knew that no matter how much he struggled, it would be meaningless in front of this woman. Even though he had lived for a thousand years, in front of a Magician—someone who transcended the limits of the world and humanity—he had no chance to refuse.
Moreover, the youngest Magician was also the big boss of Chaldea. There was no reason for him to offend such a superior just for the death of a guy he already disliked.
"Aiya aiya, I have a question. I wonder if Miss Aozaki would be willing to answer it for me?" After signing the contract, Pepe tossed the scroll of the self-enforcing document back to Aoko and spoke.
"Go ahead and ask," Aoko replied crisply, "But I suggest you keep it simple since there's still a lot to be done right now."
"How did you know my true name?" Pepe asked seriously. "Everyone who knew that name in the past has already..."
"Already been killed by you, right?" Aoko smiled slightly, staring into his eyes. "That's nothing you need to worry about. Indeed, aside from me, no one else in this world knows your true name. But I have my methods. Just take it as a privilege to be a Magician."
Hearing this, Pepe was stunned. He'd expected that Aoko, the shadowy boss of Chaldea, might know his true name, but he hadn't expected her to know about his past as well. This was truly...
"Well, I didn't expect that someone like me would have no secrets left before you..." Pepe smiled wryly. "So, what is your purpose in coming to this era alone, other than killing Beryl?"
"Killing that guy was just incidental," Aoko replied impatiently, waving her hand. "I came here with Artoria mainly for my good employee, Akuta Hinako."
As soon as Aoko finished speaking, Artoria, clad in armor and holding the holy sword, stepped out from the forest. Pepe's pupils shrank as he watched the King of Knights coolly flick the blood off her sword onto the ground, then sheath it back into that world-renowned scabbard.
"How's the situation?" Aoko asked. "Is everything taken care of?"
"All dealt with," Artoria nodded to Aoko. "But those creatures... are fairies. And not the kind I ever saw in Britain in the past. They seem to have captured many villagers nearby, and after dismembering them, made them into more humans."
This surprised not only Pepe but also made Aoko frown. Fairies? Killing people in Britain at this point in time?
"Any survivors?" Aoko asked. "Or any of their corpses?"
"No corpses, because after death, they all turn into minerals or wood or such," Artoria explained as she tossed a dying green little monster out of the imaginary-number pocket Aoko had given her. "But I made sure to keep one alive."
Aoko ignored Pepe and walked over to the little monster, squatting down to examine it closely. This thing looked exactly like a goblin from legend and literature—short and ugly, exuding a deep malice she could sense from far away.
"A pure-blooded fairy, huh..." Pepe approached with a complicated expression. "My telepathy tells me this thing is just like the fairy rumors say—its malice is pure. I suggest you kill it immediately after extracting the information; it's too dangerous for humans."
Aoko didn't reply. She extended her right hand, opened her palm, and grabbed the goblin by the forehead. With the chanting of her spell, dazzling magical light flashed, and the fairy began to convulse in pain, but Aoko had no intention of letting go.
As Aoko's spell took effect, the goblin's body quickly withered. Its once-vital green skin turned gray and wrinkled until it was nothing but a skinny, zombie-like husk.
"After fairies die, their nature as planetary fragments returns them to nature, turning them into natural substances found on this planet," Aoko explained as if talking to herself. "But I took a shortcut with a special method—while killing it, I kept part of its vitality, making the world believe it's still alive. That's what's called undead transformation."
After turning the goblin into a goblin zombie, Aoko cast the famous second-circle necromancy spell, "Command Undead," making the unfortunate goblin rise again.
"Its soul is still trapped inside," Aoko observed. "Looks like my experiment succeeded. I'm pretty lucky, seeing as my enchantment school isn't fully mastered yet..."
She muttered as she accessed the goblin zombie's memories through necromantic contract magic. Since the target was now undead, there was zero resistance, and she easily obtained the information she wanted.
"How is it?" Pepe asked with concern. "Any news of little Hinako?"
"There is," Aoko replied with a complicated expression, "But our workload might have just gotten bigger. This situation is a bit troublesome."
"Hm?" Pepe looked puzzled. "What do you mean?"
"It means these fairies' appearance displaced Akuta Hinako, who had previously arrived here. That's why Chaldea couldn't contact her—because she's no longer in this timeline," Aoko explained. "It's a hassle, but I can give you a choice: come with us, or if you don't want to, I'll send you back to Chaldea."
"She might not think so... but I quite like little Hinako," Pepe laughed freely. "Even though I've signed a self-binding contract, I know too much, so I think staying with you is the safest. Don't you agree, Miss Blue?"
"Alright then," Aoko shrugged. "Though it's a bit wordy, I'll remind you: the situation around here is now completely screened by me. Chaldeas and the Sheba lens can't observe what's happening, and you can't contact them. So, whether it's what just happened or what's about to happen, you can't tell anyone in Chaldea, especially Marisbury."
"Do you have some kind of grudge with Lord Animusphere?" Pepe asked curiously.
"No," Aoko replied simply. "I'm just using his Grand Order plan. The secrecy is because his ultimate goal differs from mine. To prevent any uncontrollable accidents, you're forbidden from leaking information to him."
Aoko's words were ambiguous, but Pepe was self-aware and nodded, choosing not to press further.
"Get ready," Aoko chuckled. Artoria, already sensing the mischief in her contractor's smile, sighed helplessly. "Next, I might let you witness a piece of Britain's failed history..."