Alright boys and girls... I have returned once more.
Just a few things before we begin: This is a Sequel to another story I have written, called "The Illegal Grail War," those who haven't read that probably should, otherwise there is going to be a lot of confusion here.
Second; some may have gotten used to my upload schedule of One chapter every Two days, but this won't be following that structure... mostly because unlike previous works, this one is still under production/being written, but since I am 2/3rds of the way finished, I felt it was safe to start uploading. The upload schedule will vary, but may speed up when the story is fully written and proofread properly.
Third, this one may take a bit longer to get going than before, and I apologize for that. Some people may cry foul when certain elements for causing the situation at hand is reused here, but I hope that the things that have changed will be enough to warrant it or at least make-up for it.
Alright, that's really it. For those curious about when this story takes place, It is still Post-Unlimited Blade Works, as before, but for the Index timeline, it is right after NT 15, but before the Element attack of NT 16. I like putting my works in reasonable places in the Index timeline, as I'm sure you've noticed by now.
That's enough from me... you folks are here for a story, right!? Let's get this party started! Enjoy!
"No matter how many times stuff like this happens… Nothing ever changes… Such misfortune…" A boy muttered to himself as he lay down on a bed. He looked up at the grey ceiling and sighed deeply. A normal person would be losing their mind right now, but the unlucky boy known as Kamijou Touma is more than used to situations like this.
His entire life has been nothing but an endless cycle of misfortune. Not even after an Illegal Holy Grail War, the St. Germain attack, a Magic God Invasion, and a series of events following the World Rejecter, has this changed. Though he doubted he had seen the last of Kamisato Kakeru, at the moment, especially when Kakeru was still missing his own right hand, things seemed to have returned to some form of normalcy in this cold month of December. But even in these calmer times, Touma's life remains riddled with hardship.
And this situation is no different.
For he is currently locked away inside an Anti-Skill jail-cell, under arrest over an incident that he had little to do with, at least unless you count some unintended human contact.
"Wonder if I used this, if he'd bust me out…?" Touma held up his left hand and looked at a mark on it. It was red, but part of it was faded away. It was a Command Seal he acquired through unknown means from a Holy Grail War he was involved with awhile back. It tied him to a certain eccentric Heroic Spirit dressed in gold, and he could use it to forcefully recall that spirit to his side if he wanted. It had two uses left before the seal would fade completely.
"…Yeah right; knowing him he would just skewer me for interrupting whatever it is he's doing. And even if he did let me out, Anti-Skill would be all over me… yeah; that wouldn't work out either way." Touma rejected the idea and put his hand back down. He looked back up at the ceiling above him and let his mind wander a bit, reflecting on the events that transpired just an hour or so go.
-Underground Mall, 1 Hour and 13 Minutes Ago-
"So it releases today, right!?" Aogami shouted in an excited tone. Kamijou Touma, Tsuchimikado Motoharu, and Aogami Pierce walked down the somewhat busy mall at a casual pace.
"Yes sir! Limited Special Edition! Only five-hundred copies in existence… and me and you both got it!" Tsuchimikado replied high-fiving Aogami cheerfully, while Touma seemed to carry a sullen expression.
"Have fun you two… I couldn't even afford the standard version… I'm basically here for moral support…" Touma moaned.
"Don't worry, Kami-yan! I'll keep you posted about how great it is, so it'll feel like you're actually playing it!" Tsuchimikado chimed in. Touma glared at him.
"For some reason, that doesn't help me feel any better, jerk." Touma replied, putting his hands into his pockets while Tsuchimikado snickered. "Why the Underground Mall though? Any of the above ground stores would have been closer."
"Ah! But thanks to a special promotion, the chain down here is releasing the game twelve hours early! Waiting until noon instead of midnight is much easier for us losers who wind-up in the remedial classes during winter break just because the game launches officially on a Monday!" Aogami replied. "…That reminds me; winter break is happening now… but I don't recall seeing you in for your lessons!"
"…Komoe-sensei made me a special offer…" Touma rubbed the back of his head. "She said that if I finished all the homework I missed during my absences, she's look the other way on my attendance…" Touma replied.
"…Oh, so you sweet-talked her, eh?" Tsuchimikado smirked again.
"I'm not proud of it…" Touma sighed. "Had to call in a bunch of favors to get it all done too… I'm fairly certain so many people helped me out, I'm probably in debt. Such misfortune…"
"Hey! You already have an army of women under your command! Leave Komoe-sensei alone you bastard!" Aogami shouted.
"Says the guy who stalks her every day after class! I remember you saying that you fail-out on purpose so you can get extra lessons from her too! You can't call yourself a loser if you're intentionally flunking out!" Touma shouted back.
"You take that back!" Aogami shouted back. The two looked ready to fight, but Tsuchimikado kept them separated.
"Guys, guys… calm yourself… there is something much more important to discuss…" Tsuchimikado stated. "Fukiyose is nowhere in sight… No one to stop us…"
"…We really haven't settled it yet, have we? Especially with Fukiyose stopping us at every turn…" Touma replied. All three of them cracked their knuckles as if they were getting ready to fight. An odd silence filled the area, only to be broken by the confident statement of Aogami Pierce.
"…Red bunny girls are still the best."
"You bastard! I explained it to you before; black is best! The black coloring makes her seem dangerous but still alluring enough to seek her out! The constant war between the allure of their curves and the aura of the darkness makes it perfect!" Touma shouted.
"But red is racy as hell! Sure you want her because of how sexy she is, but the red addition makes you believe that she knows what you want and hungers for it too! You can argue the dangerous side of things all you want, but if a girl wears a red bunny outfit for you, it guarantees a good time for you both!" Aogami barked back.
"Black!"
"Red!"
"Black!"
"Red!"
"I still prefer white loli bunny girls myself… Especially if she calls me onii-chan!" Tsuchimikado interrupted.
"You just say that because you want a loli!" Touma and Aogami shouted in unison.
"Honestly, I'm surprised we're still arguing this. Loli maids are clearly superior." Tsuchimikado added.
"THAT'S NOT AN OPTION HERE YOU BASTARD!" Touma and Aogami shouted louder.
"Hold on, hold on… I have an idea to satisfy everyone here…" Tsuchimikado said. The two members of the Delta Force glared at Tsuchimikado for a moment. "Ok. How about a red bunny girl…but over the bunny suit, she's wearing a black maid uniform?"
"…The leggings wouldn't feel off." Touma put his hand to his chin. "She loses the dangerous side because it's a maid uniform, but at the same time she gains a special kind of innocence because it IS a maid uniform."
"Super sweet on the outside, but hiding a dangerously sexy side underneath…" Aogami commented. "She should be busty, but the outfit should only show enough of her chest to just get the little bit of a hint of the bunny suit to make you think she's just wearing red underwear, letting you discover the surprise yourself..."
"What do you do about the ears though?" Touma asked.
"Maybe the maid's cap is magic, and when you remove it, her real ears come out!" Aogami suggested.
"…That may be crossing into a different genre territory, but in this case I really don't mind. I think it works." Touma nodded in agreement.
"Now if only I could get you to agree to let her be a loli- oww! Why Kami-yan, why!?" Tsuchimikado cried out in pain as Touma slugged him in the arm.
"Because you won't drop the loli thing! Are you trying to get arrested!? If I find you abusing little girls, I won't hesitate to call Anti-Skill on you!" Touma replied.
"…That's rude. Rude and hurtful." Tsuchimikado whined.
"The truth hurts you sis-con! Now wise-" Touma was cut off when he suddenly collided with another male close to his age. Touma took a few steps back quickly. "H-hey! Sorry about that! I wasn't-"
"…Holy hell, what do we have here!?" The thug replied. Touma failed to notice that the person in particular had two friends. He couldn't place it, but the trio seemed familiar somehow.
"Um… Have we met…?" Touma asked.
"You ask that after that red-eyed blond attacked us!?" The thug on the left replied.
"Red-eyed… blond…?" Touma asked in a confused tone.
"Yeah! Awhile back you kept running into us and bailing! The last time we met, that blond jackass attacked us!" The one on the right added.
"…Wait a second…"
"You must feel really special to have a guy like that around huh…? Able to open up portals and fire stuff out of them; he must be a really powerful teleporter… but I don't see him anywhere near you today…!" The middle thug grinned wide as Touma's eyes widened in realization.
"R-really!? What did he do!? Tell me, what did he do!? He didn't hurt you guys or anything, right!?" Touma shouted, recalling the trio in question as the thugs he would occasionally run into during the Holy Grail War that took place. To put a time-stamp on it, the Grail War ended about a week before the St. Germain incident.
"…N-no… we were fine… we ran and the guy backed off…" The middle thug replied in a confused tone.
"Oh… thank god… was worried for a second…" Touma rubbed the back of his head.
"But you're not going to be so lucky…!" The middle thug grabbed Touma by his shirt and lifted him up. "Payback is a bitch, you know…!? Allow us to teach you; we'll even do it for free…!"
"U-um… guys… a little help?" Touma called out.
"If Maika catches me coming back with a black-eye, she won't let me live it down." Tsuchimikado answered.
"I have to look my best for Komoe-sensei's lesson tomorrow, good luck Kami-yan!" Aogami waved.
"I've been abandoned already!?" Touma shouted.
"Tough luck kid!" The thug chambered his fist, but before he could attack, a bottle flew through the air and smashed into his face. Touma stumbled back and landed on his butt when a voice called out to him.
"Hey, you ok over there?" A thin teenager around his age was the one trying to get his attention. He wore a black cross-patterned cap and a cross-patterned shirt under a black sleeveless coat, black pants, and boots.
This teenager was Hattori Hanzou; he was the leader of the Skill-Out gang in Academy City. His reason for getting involved in this incident was simple.
He had seen Hamazura Shiage, his close friend, with Kamijou Touma on more than one occasion, enough to tell that the two were friends. While he couldn't tell how close the two were, he could see that Touma was someone Hamazura valued. His reason for getting involved isn't simply the concept of, "A friend of Hamazura's is a friend of mine," but rather, "I will play that supportive role of keeping Hamazura on the honest path he decided to walk," and if he had to keep a friend of Hamazura's out of trouble to help do that, he would jump at the chance.
"I'm fine… thanks." Touma replied as he pushed himself to his feet. He didn't even want to question where his savior got that bottle.
"Who the hell are you!? That hurt you bastard!" The thug climbed to his feet shouting all the while. "Are you trying to pick a fight or something?"
"I chucked glass at your head and you're asking that? Guess you're not as smart as you look, and you look really fucking stupid." Hanzou replied.
"H-hold on… w-we can make a clean escape now… no need to escalate the situation!" Touma nervously advised.
"You're going to pay for that…!" The right thug shouted.
"I won't be able to use anything special since I'm out in public… but I'm more than good enough to kick the crap out of a few losers here and there…" Hanzou replied.
"H-hold on! Didn't you hear me!? I said not to escalate the situaaaaatttiiioooonnnn!" Touma shouted as the thugs and Hanzou charged at each other. Touma tried to escape but one of the thugs charged at him while he was trying to reason with Hanzou, and was forced to defend himself. The fighting intensified as members of Skill-Out recognizing Hanzou fighting joined the fray, and more of the thug's friends came out of the woodwork. What was a simple scuff was quickly becoming a brawl.
It lasted a good ten minutes before Anti-Skill arrived. Both the thugs and Skill-Out quickly vanished and a few of the thugs ending up running straight into Anti-Skill. Hanzou vanished without a trace, but he could have sworn at some point he asked Touma to greet Hamazura for him before disappearing. Touma let out a sigh, relieved that the fight was over.
At least he was before he found himself in hand-cuffs.
"H-hey! Why me!? I didn't start anything! It was self-defense, they attacked me!" Touma replied.
"We have to work with what we got… and all we have is this…" An officer held out a tablet and played a video. It was surveillance and it showed him slugging Tsuchimikado's shoulder before cutting out to static. The officer fast-forwarded the footage until the static came back in, and it only showed the brawl that had developed, with him in the middle of it. "Something happened and the footage cut-off after that… we have to assume you're the one who started it."
"B-but I didn't! Guys, tell him!" Touma quickly looked around, but he quickly realized that Aogami and Tsuchimikado left him behind, and the only other person he could think of was Hanzou, and he was gone too.
Touma did the only thing he could do in his current situation.
"…Such misfortune…" He surrendered peacefully.
-Present Time-
"…I'm going to pay Aogami and Tsuchimikado back for ditching me to go buy a dating sim RPG…" Touma cursed their names. He glanced at his left hand once more. "…That guy better be enjoying himself. I bet he has no idea how hard it is to wash my hands without touching this Command Seal with Imagine Breaker…"
Someone opened the door down the corridor where Touma's cell was located, and started walking down the hall. The footsteps didn't stop until they were in front of his cell, and he heard someone tap the bars lightly with a police baton.
It was the officer from before.
"I guess… it's time for questioning, huh?" Touma looked up at the Anti-Skill officer, who smiled warmly back at him.
"Won't need it; we got everything we wanted." The officer opened the door and stood aside. "You're free to go."
"B-but… why?" Touma asked, confused.
"You're lucky; someone recorded the entire thing on their phone. They just came in and turned in the video as evidence" The officer replied. "I think we got most of your side as we drove up here, so there shouldn't be any reason to hold you any longer. Take it easy and stay safe."
Touma was stunned. He quickly shot up and thanked the officer. He had to reclaim his personal belongings from someone else inside the precinct, but other than that he was completely off the hook. All things considered, he was actually excited. As he exited, the thought about what he was going to do with his new-found freedom, but his dreams of a peaceful night at home after such an ordeal were quickly shattered.
"Took you long enough; were the cells really that accommodating?' A female voice called out. The owner of the voice appeared to be a twelve-year-old girl with short blonde hair, blue eyes and a petite figure and was wearing a white frilled dress with black leggings. She called out to him from a bench just outside the Anti-Skill station, and next to her was a tall blond man who wore a clean black formal suit, and was sitting with one leg crossed over the other. Touma turned to the voice, and immediately his expression turned grim.
The girl was Leivinia Birdway, the leader of a magic cabal, the Dawn-Colored Sunlight, the largest magic cabal in the United Kingdom. The man next to her was Mark Space, the second in command of the very same cabal.
Without a doubt, Leivinia would only be here if she was seeking him out purposefully; the reason for the downturn of his mood was that very simple fact.
For any situation she was involved with would easily be riddled with at least three times as much misfortune as usual.
"What's with that look? Does seeing me displease you or something…?" Leivinia asked in what could only be described as a dangerous tone. The wrong response would lead to certain death.
"N-No! O-Of course not!" Touma quickly snapped out of his trance. "Y-you just surprised me is all! What are you doing here?"
"Enjoying the cold winter air, what do you think?" She replied in a sarcastic tone. "The least you could do is thank me; otherwise you'd be rotting away in here while the legal system kicks the shit out of you."
"Thank… you…?" Touma sounded confused, but it made sense after a moment. More than likely she had seen the scene and recorded it, probably to use as some form of blackmail later knowing her, but that plan must have changed when he was arrested. He wanted to question why she didn't get involved, but it was probably a good thing she didn't either way, so he decided not to bring it up. "Ah, so you're the one who saved me…!"
"Y-yes! Very much so! Bow before me as the creator of your freedom!" Leivinia stood up on the bench with one foot on the armrest, pointing at Touma.
"Ooohhh! Of course!" Touma replied, bowing. He decided to play along to avoid angering the cabal boss. "Thank you oh so very much, great Birdway-sama! I am unworthy of the mercy you have bestowed upon me this day!"
"You are quite welcome, haha!" Leivinia laughed in her position of supposed superiority, not even noticing that Touma was acting. Mark's eyebrow twitched; the act was more than obvious to him.
"This can't be good for her ego…" Mark sighed.
"Now… if I may ask a question milady… what are you still doing in Academy City?" Touma asked. "I figured that with your sister recovering in a stable condition, that you'd be off back to the UK?"
"…She couldn't leave her sister alone without dotting on her." Mark spoke. Leivinia's head snapped around and glared at him, but Mark simply looked the other way, pretending to not be involved. The young blond thought for a moment, trying to figure out how to play this off.
"…That's not entirely incorrect, I must admit." Leivinia turned back around and flipped some of her hair over her shoulder. "She is MY sister, after all. I promised that I would not leave her side until the doctors were absolutely certain she would make a full recovery. I was simply told as such today and figured I would leave a fitting goodbye present for her."
"Ah… so that's why you were in the Underground Mall. Makes sense." Touma nodded.
"Don't forget the important part, boss." Mark reminded.
"Oh… I suppose there is some violence happening back in the UK related to my late departure… but it is mostly my sister." Leivinia confirmed.
"Huh? What's going on? And why does that mean you had to stay behind?" Touma asked.
"How convenient it is that you asked that…!" Leivinia grinned as she spoke. An unsettling feeling washed over Touma as she spoke those words. He knew what was coming next and there was only one way to stop it.
Do everything within his power to completely distract her from the subject.
"H-hey! T-that night when we were dealing with your sister's situation, I-I was trying to get a hotpot together! I kind-of still want to do one, w-would you want to join me!?" Touma asked. Leivinia paused for a moment, with a surprised look, and then flushed red.
"A-a h-hotpot?" She asked, to which Touma nodded. After a moment she regained her composure, but the blush on her face persisted through her haughty antics. "R-remember! I do not like anything spicy… but knowing you you'll probably forget that… I suppose there is no choice but to join you in shopping for ingredients!" She hastily agreed to the proposition without a care in the world.
"Boss," Mark poked Leivinia's cheek, and started speaking in English to hide what he was saying from Touma. "I don't like the route you're picking to deal with the situation at hand back home, but if you really are going to choose him, at least stick to the script; don't go off into another world just because you want to spend time with your, "big brother," understand?" Leivinia's blushed faded as she spoke
"…Oh, right… lost it a bit there… HEY!" Leivinia suddenly turned and stomped on Mark's foot, causing him to howl in pain. Touma had no idea what Mark said, but he couldn't help but feel sorry for him, but felt like punching him for ruining his plan at the same time. He cursed himself for not being able to understand English. Leivinia coughed a bit before she resumed speaking.
"Sorry about that, important thing he needed to remind me of is all." Leivinia returned to speaking Japanese.
"…I see…" Touma sighed.
"It's been awhile since we've really worked together, hasn't it? I don't really count you helping me with my sister though… but I heard you've been having fun recently with a sudden appearance of more magic gods… and with that other boy, World Rejecter, wasn't it? I've also heard through the grape-vine that you had a lot of fun ending a Grail War awhile back… How would you like to help me end another one?"
"H-how'd you hear about that…?" Touma asked nervously.
"I have a lot of people in a lot of places; don't underestimate me!" Leivinia proclaimed. "So what do you say… hmm?"
"I can't really… its winter break… and-" He stopped when he could practically feel the glare focused on him; it felt like it was roasting him alive despite the below freezing temperatures.
"I know; that means it'd be perfect for you… right…?" Leivinia asked in a dark tone as she hopped off the bench and approached him. Touma gulped, but decided to press forward.
"Look… I understand that you're asking for help, I really do. But with everything going on recently, I need some time to myself… it's been non-stop since the Gremlin incident, and I'm getting worn down… if much more happens I'll break, and if that happens, I can't help anyone…" Touma said.
Leivinia's stance didn't seem to change. Faced with the challenge ahead, Touma continued.
"…And besides, you're Leivinia Birdway! The one in charge of the largest magic cabal in the UK! While I'm just a typical high school boy! Sure, I have Imagine Breaker, but that can't do much against a Servant! You'd more than likely have to be the one to save me; I'd be a burden to you, and I wouldn't be able to stand that!"
Leivinia's gaze softened a little.
"While you're one of the best magicians I know, if you came at me seriously, I wouldn't be able to stand a chance! If you can take me out so easily, then what would I be able to do to enemies that challenge you? And even then, you're really powerful! I bet not even a Servant would be able to stand up against you for long!"
"…So you really don't want to go then…?" Leivinia asked.
"I'm sorry… I honestly think I would just be a burden to you… there is only so much this unlucky Kamijou-san can do…" Touma sighed. "If you want, I was serious about that hotpot idea; it's probably not as good as what you were hoping for, but it's the least I can do to thank you."
"…Thank me?" The young blonde was taken aback at the sudden grace given to her.
"Yeah; for having confidence in me." Touma replied. "It must be hard to come asking for help, especially with the problems you deal with, so I am more than honored that you came to me first… So thanks for believing in me. Not just for now, but back then too." Leivinia knew what he was referring to.
The day that Othinus destroyed the world.
"…I see." Leivinia replied. She turned around and took a few steps ahead of her. "…Mark."
"Yes, boss?" the well-dressed subordinate responded.
"Grab his arms." She simply stated.
"…Eh?" Touma took a few steps back as Mark approached him. "H-hold on a second-" He was cut off as Leivinia suddenly broke into a full speed run, and then shifted into a two-leg jump-kick into his chest. The momentum, even from a small girl, was enough to stagger Touma and knock him over. As Touma coughed while he dealt with the air being knocked out of him, Mark lifted him up by his arms and held him at bay while Leivinia grabbed and held him up by his legs. "H-hey! We can talk about this!"
"What's there to talk about? You really think that I could let you get away after a speech like that!?" Leivinia smiled at him despite the fact she was in the process of kidnapping him.
"D-did I take it too far!?" Touma lamented as he struggled.
"Now I'm MORE than certain that you're perfect for this! You understand your place perfectly!" Leivinia's smile turned into a grin. "But do you really think you're useless here? I disagree; you forget that I am the leader of the Dawn-Colored Sunlight! I am a strategist without compare!" Leivinia leaned in a bit, making sure that Touma's eyes met hers. "If you really think you're useless to me, then I'll just have to shatter that illusion of yours!"
"D-did I do something wrong!? Is this karma, irony, or some kind of hostile amalgamation!? What did I do; please tell me!" Touma cried out.
"Boss; we should get going before he alerts the authorities to our current activities." Mark commented.
"Right; don't worry. We won't get caught. Let's take him back to his place so everything feels right in place." Leivinia said as the two magicians began to move their constantly fidgeting and shouting cargo.
And with that, Kamijou Touma was dragged kicking and screaming into another incident in the world of magic.
And here is where our next adventure begins my friends! I hope you enjoyed!
Keep in mind that the upload schedule with this one will be a little infrequent than previous, but I will be seeing this through to it's completion, barring some kind of horrible accident.
For now this is where we part ways. Take it easy my friends!
Sincerely,
ArmoredCoreNineBall, your friendly (not)robotic (not)overlord (possibly)person who occasionally writes things.