FATE/LÚNASA FÓMHAR

"August Harvest"

Chapter 27: Farewells and Welcomes

Half a day had passed since Mata Hari and Boudica left the main island to go search for their allies. The majority of Chaldea's Servants were busy helping the people recover from their ordeals inside Aspidochelone. Romani and Da Vinci also offered to arrange for new sailing vessels to take the humans away from Okeanos to their home countries. This meant that three separate fleets were being organized to carry the civilians either to Italy, India or China, depending on which faction they belonged to. It would take about a month for preparations to be complete, and since it was the first day of August, it gave everyone plenty of time to enjoy the rest of summer on Okeanos. It also presented an opportunity for those formerly trapped inside the Phantasmal to realize that they truly were in the 'mythical realm' of blue skies and sunshine that was the outside world.

At the moment though, one Servant stepped away from this pell-mell and sat at the edge of the old pier cross-legged and with his arms folded. Gilgamesh panned his crimson eyes along the vast stretch of ocean, while a series of shimmering gold portals opened up and cast a variety of fishing rods on his behalf. He wasn't really fishing because there was a need for food, though he wouldn't complain about eating freshly caught fish for himself. It was more to pass the time as he waited for Mata Hari and Boudica to return with Cuchulainn Alter and Connla.

Since neither Connla nor Mata Hari were around to cater to his every whims, and everyone else was too busy taking care of the survivors, he was forced to fend for himself. He wasn't too interested in assisting with the efforts, even so much as ignoring all of the treasure still lying inside Aspidochelone's stomach. He had plenty of time to investigate that later. It was more important to him that he made sure every last one of his vassals returned home.

Gilgamesh remained quiet this whole time, hardly celebrating when he reeled in another large trout. As he hooked another piece of bait on the line, he noticed something white moving along the blue horizon. It grew larger by each minute, and he used a pair of binoculars to observe. Indeed, it was the boat carrying the four Servants, who were now returning to base camp. He stood up and glared as Mata Hari drove closer to the pier, then moored the boat and hopped off with a flighty step.

"We're baa~aack!" she chirped merrily. "We managed to find them safe and sound!"

"Is everything else fine back here?" Boudica asked.

"… Yeah," Gilgamesh muttered, clearly disinterested in the conversation. He instead stared at Cuchulainn as he stepped onto the pier carrying the exhausted Connla. Although she wasn't asleep, she was obviously teetering between staying awake and passing out. The Sumerian king approached them and asked, "How fares the runt, Mad Mongrel?"

"She's a little out of it, but still alive," Cuchulainn said. "If you're thinking of barking orders at her, then save it for another time. She may need a full week before she's back to normal."

"I see…"

"Hm? What's wrong with you? Getting fed up that everyone's too busy to be bossed around by you?"

"Still your tongue, beast. I'm not so incapable that I cannot manage my own affairs. I simply needed to ensure that every last one of my retainers are still fit to serve me, if not now, then at a more appropriate time. Now that it is no longer a concern, I can concentrate on investigating Aspidochelone's innards and adding anything of value to my collection. Not that I have much faith I'll find much, considering that Crom Cruach would take even garbage as a suitable proffering for his sordid services."

"So what you're saying is that you missed having the kid around."

Gilgamesh's cheeks flushed red, and he angrily snapped, "Imbecile! To imply such an outrageous thing means you think she is a friend of mine! Preposterous! There is only one I consider my friend and equal, and I lost him all those millennia ago! The runt is just my replacement for Siduri! Nothing more, nothing less!"

"Is that right?" Cuchulainn smirked lightly. He calmly walked past the irate king and muttered, "Suit yourself then. I'm gonna be taking care of the kid for a few days. Don't think about trying to order her to do something unreasonable for you, or things might get a little… unpleasant, if you know what I mean."

"Hmph. You make it sound like I have zero common sense…"

As Gilgamesh watched the Celtic hero leave, he heard Mata Hari and Boudica giggling behind him. He glared back and snapped, "What are you mongrels laughing about!?"

Boudica held the camera up and replied, "We got your blushing face on film! You really missed Connla that much, didn't you!?"

"We can't wait to show it to everyone else!" Mata Hari exclaimed.

"Wha-!?" Gilgamesh reeled in total shock, then lividly pointed at them. "If you fools have time to be playing around, then bring that fish back to the cabin this instant! And prepare me a gourmet paella with Chardonnay while you're at it!"

The next time Connla opened her eyes, she found herself sitting atop a tree stump situated inside an overly familiar apple orchard. The sky continuously painted itself an assortment of pastel colors, and the air felt unusually heavy around her. She sat up and looked around, realizing she had returned to the Kaleidoscope by accident. If she was here, then it meant her otherworldly counterpart had to be nearby as well.

"Geal!" she heard her own voice call out.

Connla found her friend, Connla Cliste, running toward her from the orchard. She set the basket of apples down and sat next to her. Cliste asked worriedly, "Are you okay? Does it hurt anywhere?"

"No, I'm fine," Connla Geal replied, then gazed at the multicolored sky. "Why am I back here?"

"You must have been so exhausted from your fight against Crom Cruach that you triggered another Imbas Forosnai dream. But I thought it would be a shame if you slept through the rest of your summer vacation, so I caught you before you could make contact with another one of our selves. I've been waiting for you to regain consciousness before sending you back to your world."

"So you saw that battle against him?"

"Not just that. I witnessed your entire adventure, just as I promised before."

"Right…" Geal murmured. Cliste had saved her back when Aspidochelone swallowed her, Jack and Nursery. It had slipped her mind this entire time, and only now was she remembering that conversation. She completely forgot that Connla Cliste had watched everything unfold through her eyes.

"What a harrowing experience that was," Cliste said. "I was getting worried there for a while, but I knew you would pull through. If there's one thing we all have in common, it's that we inherited Father's stubbornness. Still, it's kind of hard to believe you defeated one of the most dangerous Celtic gods, and that you managed to obtain a catalyst for your Master to summon him."

"I'm not sure I can comprehend it either…"

"Say, why did you make that bargain with Crom Cruach anyway? What were you thinking, trying to turn your enemy into an ally for Chaldea?"

"Huh? Well…" Geal twiddled her fingers. "Let's just say I had a passing idea and wanted to give it a try."

"What is that supposed to mean?"

"Just wait and see. I don't want to ruin all of the surprises right now."

"Oh, that's nice. Trying to play coy with your two-time savior, are you? He he he he!" Cliste playfully giggled.

"Then just keep observing through my eyes. You'll find out eventually."

"I think I will. And be sure to thoroughly enjoy your summer, you hear? I haven't been able to go outside for almost five decades, you know. It'd be nice to experience the beach just this one time."

Geal widened her eyes in concern. "Five decades…?"

"Don't worry about it. Just get going already. You don't wanna sit around here all day, do you? Come on, let's go!"

Cliste pulled Geal off the tree stump and brought her to the area where the latter felt the presence of her sleeping body the strongest. Her feet lifted off the grass, and she stared back at Cliste as her hooded counterpart waved good-bye. Soon, the orchard vanished from Geal's view as her mind returned to her proper body. As she departed though, one thought kept bothering her very deeply:

Unable to go outside for 50 years?

She thought of Cliste and her warm smile. It was difficult to imagine that she could be so pleasant when she was in such a mysterious circumstance.

Just what is going on with you in your world?

Back in her world, Connla gradually woke up. The first thing she felt was some kind of cool sensation wrapped around her body. Although the air was hot and dry, the ice-cold towel covering her like a blanket felt very refreshing. She laid in a reclined position, which meant she was relaxing outside on a beach chair. Next came the sounds of playing children, chatting adults, sizzling meat on the grill, and splashing water. She opened her eyes and saw a large beach parasol blocking out the sun's oppressively bright rays. She looked around and saw sand and ocean everywhere.

Sitting next to her on a folding chair was Cuchulainn Alter, who guzzled down another can of beer while keeping an eye on the barbecue. The smell of cooked meat wafted Connla's nostrils, and only now did she realize how awfully hungry she was. Her stomach rumbled, and she murmured in embarrassment, "Uh…"

"Hm?" Cuchulainn finally noticed that his daughter was awake. He leaned in and muttered, "'Bout time you came to."

"What do you mean? How long was I out this time?"

"Just a couple of days. We thought you'd be having another one of those dreams, but Sigurd and Zhuge Liang inspected you and believed that wasn't the case."

"Well… I kind of was close to having one, but Cliste…"

"Cliste?"

"Uh, I mean… I managed to find my way back."

"So you have a little more control of yourself while in that state?"

"Not quite, but it's getting there."

"Good. You couldn't have woken up at a better time. Emiya told me to keep an eye on lunch, and it looks to be ready," Cuchulainn said as he brought the plate of steaks over to the table. He then helped Connla up and brought her over as he said, "I also got some more good news. Master's going to be coming here with additional Servants in the next hour or so."

"Really?" she wondered. "What for? Hasn't everything been resolved by now?"

"We still gotta sort things out with the survivors. The kids might be having fun, but the adults are hopelessly lost about what to do next. Everyone in Chaldea is doing what they can to help out."

"Sounds like quite the mess. I should do something to hel-"

"No, you're not. Killing Crom Cruach is more than enough for you. Your job is to rest for the remainder of the month. You need to be in top shape for when the Seventh Singularity is discovered."

"Oh… I suppose so…"

Although Connla sounded dejected about not being able to assist with the others' efforts, she knew that Cuchulainn would be angry if she tried to overstep her bounds, especially when she was still very tired from her battle. She needed to learn to pace herself and wait until he was satisfied before going back to her usual routine. She thus sat at the table and ate plenty of meat and grilled vegetables that Emiya prepared. She was particularly happy about getting to devour her favorite meal of all – roasted and lightly seasoned Brussel sprouts. Of course, many of the other Servants couldn't understand how she liked them so much, but she didn't care.

During lunch, Connla was welcomed back by all of the Chaldean Servants who were worried about her condition over the last 48 hours, and were collectively relieved to see her up and about. She took this time to explain everything that happened when she met Crom Cruach and fought him, detailing everything from his motives, how he was a Pseudo-Servant of Kuzuki Soichirou, and how she temporarily Ascended into an adult to fight him more effectively.

"You became an adult!?" Cuchulainn snapped. This last revelation was what astonished him the most. He slammed his palm on the table and shouted, "How, when, and why did that happen!?"

"Like I said, Grandfather used his power to perform a short-term Ascension on me…"

"Why didn't you tell me that earlier!? If I had known, I would have made you sleep for even longer! Who knows what kind of strain that kind of transformation put you through!"

"Really, I'm all right. I think Grandfather was taking on most of the burden so I didn't have to."

"Shit… Shit, shit, shit, shit! Goddamn it, old man! First you turn her into your Pseudo-Servant, and then you forcefully age her into an adult!? If I ever run into that bastard, I'll chop him into pieces if it's the last thing I do!"

"Please calm down," Connla implored. "He might have acted hastily, but that's because he needed to settle his feud with Crom Cruach before he could potentially destroy the Vatican as his revenge. Besides, I'm happy that I got to know Grandfather, even if it's just a little bit. He really did everything he could to make sure I was okay, and that I developed my abilities as a Saber along the way. It's not like he just changed my Spirit Origin and left me to figure it out by myself."

"Ghhh… Are you sure about this? Lugh basically used you as a pawn for his game against Crom Cruach."

"I'm used to it."

Cuchulainn paused. He couldn't believe she would say something so grave like it was a typical thing for her. He sighed and shook his head in dismay. It was only becoming apparent now that he had a lot of work ahead of him if he wanted to break her habit of being so self-depreciative. He took her hand and made her walk along the beach with him, then said, "Fine. I won't be upset about it anymore. Just one thing though."

"Yeah?"

"You're not a pawn anymore. You're free and independent from Aife's control. Don't go thinking you need to act prim and humble all the time because of her influence. And for the love of god, stop saying shit like you're used to being treated as a pawn, or that you only find your self-worth in working yourself to death. It infuriates me to no end."

"Oh. I'm sorry. I'll be more careful of what I say around you."

"Ugh… No need to apologize. It's just a habit of yours," Cuchulainn grunted.

They continued walking for a while, wanting to get away from the noise and insanity of so many people running around them. As they were about to reach the end of the beach and go back though, they thought they heard some kind of peculiar sound. They thought it was a dolphin at first, but dismissed it since they couldn't see any marine life swimming around nearby.

"…iiie!"

"Hm?" Connla looked around, thinking that someone was calling her name. That was when she discovered a crowd of new people rounding the bend, and she immediately recognized Ritsuka and Mash in their swimsuits. The one who was shouting in the distance however was Medb, who now wore a layered white and black bikini and did her hair up in twin pigtails.

"Cuchulainn! Connla!" Ritsuka shouted happily. "Boy, am I glad to see you guys!"

Mash added, "We heard what happened! I'm so sorry we couldn't have come to help you guys! We were busy dealing with another incident of our own with Mordred, Anne, Mary, Tamamo and the others."

"Nah, don't worry about it," Cuchulainn replied.

The overly giddy Medb ran towards Connla and threw her arms out while squealing, "Oh Connie, my sweet, sweet little knight! I missed you SOOO much! Come here and give Auntie Medb a big kiss on the cheek!"

The child Servant would have obliged, but suddenly found herself suspended high in the air for some reason. Cuchulainn's large tail had coiled around her petite torso and lifted her before Medb could jump in and joyfully tackle her down. The pink-haired lady instead crashed face-first into the sand, which made the others cringe from how painful it must have been for her.

"Give the kid a break, Medb," he grunted bitterly. "She's still tired from her ordeal."

Medb practically yanked her face out of the sand, quickly wiped herself clean, then pouted, "Hey, no fair, Cu! I wanna snuggle Connie all day long until she's blue in the face!"

"Not happening."

"Just a little bit! Oh me, oh my, the poor baby must have been so scared without me around! She'll feel much better if she got some cuddles from her surrogate mom!"

"I doubt you even crossed her mind at any point."

"Come on, put her down already, you big bully!"

She tried to reach up to snatch Connla's legs, but Cuchulainn kept swaying his bewildered catch back and forth so the queen wouldn't be able to touch her. He folded his arms and said, "No means no, woman. Get lost already. Go do your stupid photo shoots or whatever."

"Boo. If that's how you're going to be, then I'll do just that! I'll have my Good-Looking Braves shoot the best photos in the world! Then I'll coat them in my special White Honey Eau de Toilette and make copies for you and the other Cus! Hee hee! Just you wait! It won't be long before you are intoxicated by my celebrity charm, my king!"

"Keep dreaming."

Medb gave up on catching Connla and ran off to look for any men whom she could convert into her latest admirers with her enhanced Charm abilities. Cuchulainn huffed deeply and growled, "That wench… If she's not bad enough as a Rider, her Saber variation is even more airheaded than usual."

"Um, Father?" Connla whimpered quietly.

"Huh?"

"I don't mean to interrupt, but, um… Could you, uh… put me down already?"

"…"

"…"

"…"

"…?"

"… Nah."

"Ehhh!?" she cried out, her cheeks flush with embarrassment. He began to walk along the beach away from where Medb took off, all while still carrying Connla with his tail. The little girl struggled to break free and shouted, "You're kidding, right!? Everyone's laughing at me! Come on, let me go! This is so embarrassing!"

Ritsuka, Mash, and several Servants who saw them were indeed chuckling at the bizarre sight. Cuchulainn remained perfectly stoic despite the cheerful atmosphere as he grunted, "You're still tired. Let's take a dip in the hot spring so you can relax."

"I don't need to! I've rested plenty enough!"

"I'm the one calling the shots with your health, not you. You're coming with me, whether you like it or not."

"Give me a break!"

"That reminds me, I should find you an inner tube. Wouldn't want you to drown, after all."

Connla pouted, "Seriously, Father. I don't need one."

He grinned, stared her directly in the eye, and remarked, "Then you don't mind if I keep on using my tail as a substitute?"

"Uuuh… Fine, I'll use one…"

Two days later, Connla woke up from another power nap and decided to take a short walk. Of course she was going to take Mini-Cu with her – Cuchulainn Alter demanded that she keep the plushie with her at all times so she could summon him at a moment's notice. Other than that, he promised not to hover over her too much so that she could relax without worrying about him. Mini-Cu hugged Connla's arm like a koala grabbing onto a tree as she stepped outside and looked around.

Moored to the pier in the distance were three large ships, each adorned with flags and imagery of Italy, China and India respectively. Connla murmured, "Boy, Ms. Da Vinci sure didn't waste time getting things ready."

"I'll say," Mini-Cu grumbled. "I heard that the Servants who led the factions are going to depart with their citizens to make sure they reach their homes safely."

"So we'll have to say good-bye to Emperor Nero, Lady Wu, Lady Parvati and their followers soon," the child Servant said, then tilted her head curiously. "But that still kind of leaves Lord Lucius, Miss X and Sir Beowulf. I wonder what they plan on doing afterwards."

"Wanna go find out? I think they're busy hauling treasure out of Aspidochelone."

"Mm."

She strode along the beach at a brisk pace, making sure not to tire herself out. The gigantic Phantasmal's corpse was impossible to miss. Its headless corpse remained splayed all over the opposite end of the shore, and there were ramps constructed at the base of its exposed neck so that the treasures inside its stomach could be transported out more easily. It would take some time before Aspidochelone lost its form and disintegrated into pure mana, so everyone wanted to work fast to claim the riches. Connla wasn't really interested in the treasure, although she was somewhat delighted to see everyone's smiling faces as they brought out gems, coins, and other valuables. She spotted Lucius barking at Beowulf and Ashwatthama, accusing them of trying to steal what he thought was rightfully his, and the trio got into a severely heated argument. She opted not to bother them for now and looked around for Heroine X.

"Well, well," she heard a familiar voice call out to her. "Good to see you're not lazing about like the other mongrels. What brings you here, runt? Has the appeal of easy treasure tickled even your immature fancy?"

"Hm?" she glanced over and spotted Gilgamesh approaching her. She shook her head and said, "Not really. I just wanted to talk with Lord Lucius and the others to see what their future plans were. I guess they're too busy to waste time with me though. I'll try again some other time."

"Ah, so you haven't heard yet?"

"About what?"

He grinned. "The Magus whom we're contracted with agreed to allow those three mongrels to join Chaldea."

"Really!?" Connla yelped. "So Lord Lucius, Sir Beowulf and Miss X are all going to stay with us!?"

"They have already made their contracts with the Magus. Although I am not keen on adding such rambunctious Rogue Servants to my roster, the one called Lucius seems quite insistent on hoarding all of Aspidochelone's bounty for himself. Since he has graciously agreed to conscript himself as part of my kingdom within Chaldea, it thus means the goods he procures are likewise mine by default."

"That's strange. I thought you'd be the first to be rushing inside and personally adding everything you could to your coffers."

Gilgamesh snorted in disgust, waved his hand dismissively, and grumbled, "I didn't want it."

Connla blinked. "Eh?"

"I have no interest in sullying my treasury with anything that has made contact with that foul demon's innards. You may as well tell me to turn my storehouse into a garbage dump. For that reason, I will allow Lucius to lay claim to it – his tastes are obviously far inferior to mine."

"But I thought you were eager to collect as many treasures as you can."

"Don't be ridiculous. Just because something is labeled a 'treasure' doesn't always mean I will seek it out."

She mumbled to herself, then said, "I guess I have a long way to go before understanding how you think, Lord Gilgamesh."

"That goes without saying," he replied with a grin. "A bumpkin who grew up in the rural mountains has no place to judge how the world's oldest king manages his immeasurable wealth. Well, I will give you points for trying. There were some things that caught my attention, but in the end I only took one object of interest."

"Which one?"

He opened a golden portal, and a heavily jeweled regalia dropped onto his palm. He showed it to her, and she cried out in amazement, "Oh! These are the Irish Crown Jewels!"

"They need some polishing up, but I'm sure they'll be in good hands with you."

"W-What do you mean?"

Gilgamesh rested the medal in her hands, then turned away and muttered, "It's your reward for all of your efforts."

"You're… giving it to me? Oh, I can't take this! They're way too precious!"

"Don't get so excited. It's just a worthless bauble to me."

"You don't understand! Everyone in Ireland will be overjoyed if I brought this back to Dublin Castle!"

The King of Heroes grew more displeased, and he snapped, "Gah! Just how clueless are you, runt!? I did not bequeath them to you just so you could go play errand girl for your country! They belong to you, and only to you!"

"But… I couldn't…"

"Then think of it this way. If you rushed to Ireland and returned them, then the course of human history would change. Though it may be but the flapping of a butterfly's wings to you, any slight alteration in Proper Human History may wind up having potentially disastrous consequences. As we are Servants of Chaldea, our prerogative is to protect humanity from any alterations in history. We are thus mandated not to cause such disruptions in the first place."

Connla tilted her head curiously. "You think so?"

"I know it for a fact. As we are currently in an aberrant timeline, you could say that those crown jewels are a replica of the real ones that are still currently missing."

"Hmm… You have a point…"

"Thus, since you displayed such an interest in them earlier, I decided to allow you to be their rightful owner. Those mongrels can fight over the rest of the junk as they please, but if they attempt to take your prize away, inform me immediately so that I can punish them for their insolence."

"Okay. I'll make sure they're safe," she nodded. "But it must be disappointing for you, having to contend with this incident without taking any of the treasure for yourself."

Gilgamesh shrugged. "The entertainment was enough for me. It's not every day I get to have this much fun eliminating a threat to humanity. Hoarding mountains of treasure is easy, but it is worthless if I am bored doing so."

"I see. I'll have to make a note of that."

"Now then, once I have had my fill of laughs at those mongrels' expense, I will return to my chambers. Be a good steward and prepare me a bottle of wine ahead of time. You should at least be well enough to do that."

"Is there a particular kind you want?" Connla asked.

"Hmm… A Screaming Eagle Sauvignon Blanc paired with roasted sole sounds delectable about now."

"I'll see what I can do. If you'll excuse me."

The young Servant returned to the cottage, and the king watched her leave. He then heard two females arguing with each other, and looked over to find Nero ordering some soldiers to haul out the remains of Heroine X's spaceship, which had been repurposed as Nero's Noble Phantasm. X shouted demands at Nero to fix her ship, and the emperor berated her for being so impatient and not understanding her aesthetics, or something to that effect. Complicating matters was how Nero's Noble Phantasm wound up expending all of the precious Altrium that X had spent so many years collecting, and the Assassin was not in a good mood about it.

"Fwa ha ha ha," Gilgamesh laughed to himself as he watched Lucius, Beowulf and Ashwatthama struggle to keep the two women from killing each other. He took notice of how X looked exactly like Artoria Pendragon – or at least her default Saber variant – and he remarked, "Well, it's not that much of a total waste. At least I have a new Saber to pick on for a while."

The final week of August soon arrived, and all preparations for the survivors' journeys were complete. Each sailing vessel's crew were all taught about seafaring techniques by Chaldea's experienced pirate Servants, so there was no worry of anyone being lost during the voyage. Nero and Elizabeth would personally guard the Italian ship; likewise with Wu Zetian and Li Shuwen with the Chinese ship; and the same with Parvati, Ashwatthama and Medusa with the Indian ship. There would be no accidents or further threats to the civilians so long as the Servants were around to protect them.

Now, it was time for them to leave. Mash gazed intently at the Italian ship as Nero and Elizabeth boarded, then wondered to Ritsuka, "I hope they're going to be okay. If I've learned anything from my travels with you, it's that those two aren't exactly the best Servants to pair with each other."

"I'm sure everything will be fine. All we can do is pray for everyone's safety… and their eardrums," the young Mage uttered sheepishly.

With that said, the Indian ship had already taken sail and gradually vanished into the western distance. Parvati waved to everyone for as long as she could until Okeanos was out of sight. The Italian ship was next, shoving off the pier about an hour later. The Chinese ship would depart last, but there was something Wu Zetian wanted to take care of first.

As her summoned Kuli carried her in a palanquin covered in elegant silk curtains, she commanded them to stop so she could step out for a moment. The empress found Connla standing in the crowd and approached her, then said, "You there."

"Hm? Is there something you need?" the little girl wondered.

"Just so we are clear… well, we… We are not allowing your little stunt against us to slide…"

"What do you mean?"

"Are you seriously that daft? We refer to when you slapped our cheek!"

"Oh, that… I'm sorry. I guess I was so frustrated that I got carried away. I really did want you to understand the truth though, so…"

"Well, we might forgive you if you decide to leave this Chaldea organization behind and join us as our personal retainer."

Connla immediately shook her head. "I'm afraid I can't. My place is with Master."

"Is that so? How disappointing that you would choose such rabble over us. But that cannot be helped. If there are other unsavory characters like Crom Cruach causing such trouble for humanity, then it is your sworn duty to put an end to their schemes. If you do that, then we shall call it even."

"Of course. I might be Master's weakest Lancer, but I'll still fight to my utmost. If there's one thing I cannot stand, it's letting anyone down. Now that you've also vested your faith in me, I'll have to work even harder."

"Very good. That is what we like to hear," Wu smiled. "Then we are satisfied. If we are to ever see each other again, then we pray it will be in more favorable circumstances, Cuchulainn Lily."

Connla paused. She remembered how the alternate Wu called her counterpart Cu Lily, and of how they fought Minotaur together in that particular dream. In that moment, it felt like they were reuniting with each other, if only in spirit. Connla watched quietly as Wu returned to her palanquin and commanded her soldiers to carry her aboard the ship. Soon, the vessel pushed off the pier and sailed off towards China, gradually vanishing into the horizon.

On the last day of the Chaldeans' summer vacation, Connla sat at the beach by herself and observed the vibrant sunset as it slowly but surely descended upon the horizon. The waves rolled softly, momentarily lulling all of her thoughts and worries away as she fully took in this moment, intent on remembering it for the rest of her life as a Servant. Deep down, she also hoped that Connla Cliste or some other Connla from an unknown parallel world was watching this as well. She believed that at least one of her other selves could enjoy the same fleeting peace she was experiencing, so she kept her eyes trained on the blood-red sun and the darkening yet colorful skyscape.

"Connla," she heard Ritsuka's voice nearby, and the girl looked over. The young Magus approached and leaned over her while asking, "Watching the sunset?"

"Yes. So much has happened that I just wanted to take a moment to relax by myself."

"I'll bet. But you really shouldn't be alone like this. Who knows how Cu Alter would react if he found out something else happened to you."

"I suppose so. I just want to see the last of the sunset, then I'll go help pack up."

Ritsuka sat down next to her young Servant and smiled, "Let's see it together. Once summer ends, I'm sure things will go back to being hectic as usual."

"Mm. But at least you now have Lord Lucius, Sir Beowulf and Miss X to help you with the Seventh Singularity, whenever that might be discovered," Connla said, then murmured in realization and added, "By the way, there's a favor I want to ask of you, Master."

"What is it?"

The child Servant took out the necklace with the 12 bronze stones and presented it to her. "This is a catalyst that a certain Servant gave to me."

Ritsuka grew curious. "A certain Servant?"

"He and I made an agreement that if I defeated him, he would relinquish his freedom and be summoned as your Servant. This is the catalyst he said would guarantee that he'd be summoned."

"You defeated him? Then does that mean the Servant in question is…?"

"Crom Cruach."

The Mage stared at the necklace hesitantly. "Are you sure about this? He's known as an extremely dangerous god who must be sustained through sacrifice. He might have some trouble getting along with the Christian Servants as well."

"If you're that worried about it, then I'll keep an eye on him."

"Hm… Well, I suppose enlisting one more Pseudo-Servant wouldn't hurt. Do you know what class he would be summoned into?"

"He told me that he materialized into the Assassin class. The man he inhabited, Kuzuki Soichirou, was also raised from childhood to be a killer. I bet that's the reason why Crom Cruach chose him to be his vessel – they're both entities that revolve around others using their powers of death for their own benefit."

"I see. Then let's give it a try."

Ritsuka created a summoning circle, then placed the necklace in the center and raised her arm high while chanting, "Heed my words. My will creates your body, and your sword creates my destiny. If you heed the Grail's call and obey my will and reason, then answer my summoning! I hereby swear that I shall be all the good in the world, that I shall defeat all evil in the world. You seven heavens, clad in the three great words of power, come forth from the circle of binding. Guardian of the Scales!"

An intense flash overwhelmed their vision, and they had to squeeze their eyes shut for a moment. When the wind and light died down, they peered at where the summoning circle once was. In its place was a familiar tall man with short black hair and a gaunt, vapid expression. He wore an asymmetrical black coat that had buckles wrapping around his exposed chest, and bore a steel pauldron on one shoulder.

"Servant, Assassin. True Name, Crom Cruach. I have responded to your summons," he announced quietly. "You had best handle me with care, Master. If you seek to use my power for good, then I must be given a sacrifice of equal worth in exchange. If I am not sustained through such rituals, my power will subsequently wane, which will make me assisting you all the more troublesome."

Ritsuka frowned and scratched her chin. "Oh boy. This could get a little complicated. Sacrifice is something I have a strong distaste for."

Connla said, "Don't worry. I've got an idea in mind."

Crom Cruach's eyes shifted in her direction, and he curiously asked, "Is that so?"

"Why don't you and I go back to Chaldea ahead of everyone else? I'll get you sorted out there."

"Very well."