Fate/Infinity Shuffle: Reshuffled
Chapter 16 – Full House:
Upon the stream ending, the screen turned black.
No one had the courage to break the silence outside of small whispers.
"I can't believe Ranker lost! You think he's okay…?"
"We should go to him. That final blow look like it hurt."
"I want to beat that little girl up so bad…"
"W-Watch out what you say."
"What the hell is that little girl?"
Altogether, there was some noise in the air, but nothing akin to the cheers from before.
That was, however, until someone spoke into the microphone. And there was only one of those in the room. Everybody knew where to turn their necks to.
"U-Umm… Hello? May I have your attention please?" Everybody's eyes turned to the aspiring idol. "I know what we just saw was pretty shocking, but I ask of all of you, please keep calm!" Lizzie bowed towards the audience, which was definitely a shocker for the audience. "Some of you probably want to rush to him, or maybe fight that little girl, but please don't be reckless! Ranker is fine thanks to that Player, and that girl is really dangerous! So, please don't do anything reckless!"
While at first everyone was silent, murmurs started flying around soon enough. Lizzie was still bowed, her shut eyes facing the floor, there was no way she could see the audience. Her request sounded genuine in her worry for them, but… they had to do something, right?
"H-Hey, Mongami, do you think it's a good idea?!"
Step, step, step.
"Gimme the mic."
Somewhat surprised and taken aback, Lizzie almost fell, but she quickly recovered her footing. "E-Eh?!"
"I said 'Gimme the mic'." Mongami had a serious, but not angry face. An open hand waited for the object in question.
"S-Sure…" Lizzie handed the object over.
Mongami cleared her throat and let out an 'ahem' before taking a breath and speaking into the mic. "Listen up!" Almost everybody jumped. "You guys came here to listen to her sing, right? Then chill and let'slisten to one more song. Ranker's business is his business. If he'd want our help, he'd ask. Got it?"
"M-Mongami, do you think that's a good idea?" Lizzie didn't know if her teammate's approach was a good one.
"Of course!"
"Eh?"
They turned to a single member of the audience.
"That's…!" Mizuki recognized him. She wouldn't forget that face. That darn Player that gave her the terrifying Rider Card as a result of winning against him. A shiver went up her spine. "Ryuusei, I think."
"They were such wonderful songs. I'd like to hear a little more, if you wouldn't mind."
And the moment one person agrees… "Yeah! One last song!"
Mongami grinned. "Good! I know Ranker is in all of your minds, but it's Lizzie's moment to shine a little. You can send your worries to him later, got it?"
"Got it!"
She handed the mic back to the confused idol. "Go kill it, Lancer."
Lizzie took the mic and smiled. She gave a strong nod. "You got it! Alright everyone! To finish this off, I'll sing my signature song once more!"
Mongami was already out of the stage by the time the music started blasting from the speakers.
"That was awesome, Mongami!" Mizuki was impressed to say the least.
"It was nothing, really. They looked like they needed a distraction."
"Ehhhh." Sayuri smirked. "For someone without friends when we first met, you sure can be social."
"H-Hey!" Mongami was not happy about the comment. "Don't say stuff like that!"
"Hm? Why?" The pink-eyed girl was genuinely confused.
"Because he didn't need to know that!" Her arm pointed at Isemi, who simply waved upon being mentioned.
"W-Well…" Sayuri giggled awkwardly as Mizuki found the situation funny .
"Besides, I am from another school! I have a social circle outside of you guys."
"I thought they were slaves."
"You're not helping, Mizuki!"
There was a shared laughter among the three of the Team, as Mongami glared at each at a time.
She probably didn't want to admit, especially now, that while they weren't her only friends, they probably were the ones she felt closest to.
A popping red vein bulged out of the forehead of a ruby eyed Saber.
"Crap, crap, crap, you crappy Ranker!" Surrounded by her Team, the 'Red Oaths', Akane had just finished witnessing the battle between Hakuno and the Foreigner.
They happened to be in the middle of a get-together when the stream began. The moment they realized what was happening, Akane connected her phone to her television, so they had a better viewing experience.
They wanted to help in the matter for sure, but Ranker seemed to be hellbent on doing it alone. After all, he would've called them and the Black Yggdrasil otherwise. And they were admittedly curious about how far Hakuno's potential went when pushed to his limits.
They weren't expecting for him to lose.
"Ranker…" Momoka let out a sniffle, feeling sorry for the outcome.
"There there, girl." Kazan patted her head for comfort.
The Leader of the team jolted out of her seat. "Why didn't he ask for us?!" Akane stomped on a random box out of rage.
"Calm down!" Aimi and Ringo pulled her back, as she breathed heavily. The anger was real. But she had no idea if she was more angry at the Ranker who didn't ask for help, or at the Foreigner that had hurt him.
"Alright, alright… I'm fine…"
"This is concerning." Taiyou admitted, going to the Site on his phone to check on threads talking about the fight. "Regardless of Hakuno's level, that girl is strong without a doubt. I wouldn't be surprised if, for a moment, Hakuno fought like a true A-Ranker against her."
"If that's the case, that's quite a problem at hands." Daisuke rubbed his chin. "Should we intervene?"
Akane took a deep sigh. "…I'll talk with Hakuno before making a decision."
Coincidentally, the members of Black Yggdrasil were in a similar situation.
"I can't believe Ranker lost!" Sekai, the Rider of Black, couldn't believe her eyes.
"This is… unexpected. The little girl, I mean." Rikuto admitted. "I thought children weren't able to find the Cards."
"That means…" Kuroko let out a sigh of sorrow. The implications were clear. "Someone gave her that card." Regardless of what she did to Hakuno, the fact that she was still a little girl was very real and impossible to deny. And perhaps, that was used to someone's advantage.
"But why give it to a little girl? That card is clearly powerful." Haruto was somewhat confused. "Any high-level Player knows that half of the strength of a Card has to do with how a person uses it. Little kids aren't exactly battle geniuses, as far as I'm concerned."
"You need to think outside the box." Hibiki's remark surprised Haruto.
"What do you mean?" Yuri was just as curious.
"Giving a little kid a Card is the easiest way to cause chaos." Hibiki pointed out, crossing her arms. "At least, that's what I'm assuming. I may be wrong." Noticing Kuroko's look of deep thought, an eyebrow of hers raised. "Anything on your mind, Kuroko?"
"I have an idea."
"Hm?"
Everybody followed his eyes, which landed on Hachirou, the Assassin of Black.
"Eh? Me?"
"Time to dig in!"
"…" Edward couldn't believe Hakuno. The guy who was passed out just a few minutes ago, simply placed a bunch of band aids on the wounds his body suffered, and dragged him into a ramen shop, offering to 'treat him' to a bowl.
The shop was practically empty. Besides the two of them, the only other person was the cook.
"Ranker… I-I mean, Hakuno!" He didn't want to expose secrets.
"Hm? Oh, don't worry. The cook is a Player."
"E-Eh?!" Edward turned to the older man, who was preparing his meal. A well built man with brown, neck-long hair and eyes with clear age. "But I thought adults…"
"The Cards usually don't call for them. But that doesn't mean they don't exist. Isn't that right, Kirei?"
"Quite so, yes." Kotomine Kirei, wearing a black t-shirt and a white apron from the waist below, over his black jeans, and a bandana over his head, approached the counter, presenting Edward a bowl of noodles with soup.
"W-Wow… I never thought I'd see someone like that." Edward admitted. "No offense!"
"It's okay, young boy. I've been told that many times before."
"Dig in, Edward. This guy makes the best ramen in the entire city."
"Alright." Edward nodded and began to eat with the use of his chopsticks. He blew air on the steaming noodles and then took them into his mouth.
Aaaaand immediately coughed.
"AGH!" He reached for his glass of water, taking large sips. "T-These are…!"
Hakuno grinned. "The best spicy ramen I've ever eaten in my entire life."
"At least warn in advance!" Edward yelled. He didn't appear to be fond of the hot spices. "I thought my tongue was going to burn."
"Hmph. If you can't handle this bowl, you'll never appreciate Mapo Tofu."
"I don't think I want to taste it either…" Edward answered the older man with the cross pendant.
Hakuno, however, ate them with great pleasure.
But Edward didn't want to let go of the previous subject. "So, Ranker, why didn't you call for help?" Hakuno stopped moving. "I mean… Kirei wasn't even that far from us."
With a laugh, Hakuno scratched the back of his head. "I didn't want to put E and D Rankers in danger. And no way I'm going to bother C and B Rankers, let alone an A Ranker like Kirei."
"A-RANKER?!" Edward was clearly shocked. After all, he, who was only an E Ranker, who had only battled once before, had just been served a bowl of Ramen by an A Ranker.
"Is it surprising?"
"I-I'm new to all this, sorry…"
"But." Kirei's word made Edward perk his head up. "You bring up a good point, young boy." He turned to Hakuno. "Ranker, it wouldn't be much of a bother to lend you a helping hand. And this is outside of my civic duty as a priest. Even my brother, who's a Ruler, would help you without questioning."
"…" Hakuno stared down at his bowl for a few seconds before turning to the two Players. "Guys, I have secrets of my own, like everybody. Please don't pry about them." His smile was somewhat saddened. "Otherwise, I could just pry on yours. Like how Mister Priest must have quite an unfulfilled wish to have come across a card."
"…" Kirei snickered and lowered his head, before turning into a laugh and a raise of the head. "Ranker, you can be quite scary if you wish so."
"Why thank you." Hakuno laughed softly before proceeding with his bowl of ramen.
Edward was still worried over the situation. "Hmm…" With a sigh, he instinctively ate some more strings of the spicy soup. And coughed immediately again. "Agh! Why did I do this?!"
As Kirei chuckled at Edward's ventures through the spicy food, Hakuno cleared through his email inbox. He had gotten multiple emails from the Player-base. Part of him felt glad that so many people were worried over his stunt, but there were just way too many. He started speedreading in order to be able to go through everything at a decent time.
He came across one that stood out though.
"Hm? This one is from… Mizuki?" Hakuno blinked twice and then turned to Edward. He chuckled a little. "Hey, Edward, guess what!"
"W-What?"
"You managed to snatch the spotlight for someone, you know?"
"What do you mean?"
"Take a look." Hakuno handed over his phone. Edward read the email carefully.
By the looks of it, a girl named Mizuki started off the email asking if Hakuno was okay, which was no surprise. Everybody probably did some variation of it one way or another. But she then continued to ask who the boyy that intervened was and if he already had a Team he belonged to.
"She's… asking for me?"
"Seems so. I don't think her Team has a Caster yet. Were you looking for a Team?"
"I wasn't really thinking much about it, but…" The boycouldn't help but feel a little flattered by the email. "I-I guess there's nothing wrong in checking out this Team."
"Pretty sure you guys will get along. They're a friendly bunch."
"Really? I… I hope so." Edward stared down at his dish and gave a little smile. Hakuno and Kirei shared a look. Whatever happened to Edward at that moment, it was probably something important for him, and they both knew it.
Slurp! "AGH! Again?!"
Hakuno arrived 'home' once the sunset had started.
With no time to waist, he moved to the laptop and logged into it. As expected, someone seemed to have logged on and activated the streaming drones. "Tch. Time to find a new password." He was genuinely annoyed. He was rather fond of the one he had picked a few months back. But that was for after what he had to do.
After cracking his fingers and resting them on the keyboard, he began to type at a rather astounding speed.
'Dear Players,
As you probably know, a strange danger is loose in the parallel dimension where our fights for the Game take place in: Foreigner. Your safety is more important than the Game. And that is why I declare that any Player or Team that attempts to engage in battle with Foreigner without my permission will suffer a Rank Down. If this seems harsh, it's because it is. It's because you are more important than the Game. If, amidst a battle, Foreigner approaches you, leave.
I hope you listen to me.
Hakuno, the South Ranker.'
Send to all.
Hakuno leaned back on his chair and let out a sigh. He reached for his phone and checked for notifications.
No new texts.
He… expected something for sure.
After a couple taps, he made a call.
'Beep… This number isn't available at the moment. Please aleave a message after the signal.'
Cancel.
Hakuno stared at the screen with some melancholy. "…You're that mad at me? I… don't think I can blame you."
His heart ached as he set the phone down.
"UFF!" Lizzie dropped herself onto Mizuki's bed. The whole team of the 'Conquerors of Deva' returned to her house in order to celebrate the success of the concert. The aftermath of the situation was somewhat odd, considering Hakuno's situation. But that wouldn't cancel the get-together.
"Are you okay, Miss Idol?" Isemi wondered.
"Yeah, yeah, just a little tired…"
"You spent the whole afternoon singing and dancing. I'm not surprised." Sayuri noted, as Mongami sat down on the only desk chair in the room.
Mizuki entered her room, holding a tray with multiple cups filled with green tea and a bowl of rice crackers.
"Here it is guys. I think this is the closest thing to a snack that I have."
The moment she placed down the tray, Sayuri and Isemi didn't hesitate to take a cup each and start drinking from them.
Shortly after, not even allowing Mizuki to sit down in front of the short table, the doorbell rang. Surprised by this, the girl rushed to the entrance of her house. She wasn't expecting any orders, nor were her parents returning anytime soon to the country. It was a true mystery.
"Yes?" She asked while opening the door, somewhat absent-mindedly. She should've asked who it was first. "Oh! You're…" It was a bit of a surprising visit.
"H-Hello." The boy that appeared during Hakuno's stream. Though, he looked ordinary, compared to how he did Installed. And clearly more nervous. "Yyou're Mizuki, right? Hakuno told me you were interested in me being part of your Team."
"Wow, he works fast." Mizuki was genuinely surprised. "I sent the email today."
"I happened to be next to him." Edward admitted. "He gave me your address. O-Or rather, I asked for it, because… I-I'm interested in being part of your Team."
"Really? I'm glad." Another member recruited!
"B-But…" There's always a catch. "I'd like to meet the other members, if possible."
Mizuki blinked twice. She then turned to the house, and then back at Edward. "They're all in there."
"E-Eh?!"
"Yeah, we're all here to celebrate one of our member's concert debut. If you have the time, I think this is a good time."
Edward was admittedly surprised. It looked like fate was playing in everyone's favour.
"W-Would you mind if I came in then?"
"Not at all!" Mizuki gave him a cheeky grin. "Another teammate in the bag!"
"S-Sorry for the intrusion." A bit too many people at once. Edward's face turned red as he joined the crew.
"Oh?" Mongami gave a bit of a smirk efore sipping some of her tea. "He's kinda cute, not gonna lie."
"Ah!" Edward was taken aback. "Isemi? You're part of the Game?"
"What a coincidence." The Rider spoke before taking a sip, much to Sayuri's confusion.
"Wait, you to know each other?!"
"We're from the same class." Edward elaborated.
"Wait," Mizuki returned with a cup of tea for Edward. "That means you're in our school?"
"Guess we just never noticed each other." Edward deduced, accepting the cup with a slight bow. The presence of Isemi eased him a little. "Ah, you're the one that gave the concert?" He noticed Lizzie's clothes. "I'm sorry for not appearing at the concert. I'm not good with crowds."
"No worries! But you gotta hear all of my singles once I become an idol." Lizzie pointed out with crossed arms and a haughty smirk.
"she's serious, you know? And she'll bite you if you don't."
"W-What? A-Alright, I'll listen to them." Edward wasn't going to risk it.
"Hey, Mizuki! You don't need to spread rumours like those." Lizzie puffed out one cheek."
Mizuki giggled. "Wanna see the teeth-mark?"
"Hey!" Lizzie barked again.
"I thought you were out of energy." Mongami grinned, holding a cracker between her teeth.
"W-Well… Mizuki is bullying me! She's going to destroy my career!"
Sayuri giggled. "Is there such a thing as bad publicity?"
"Of course there is! Whoever made that up is crazy!"
Mizuki turned to Edward. "By the way, what Class do you fill?"
"Me? I'm a Caster."
Great, we don't have one of those yet." Mizuki pointed out, meanwhile sitting next to Lizzie.
"Come on, Lizzie, you had your moment, it's time to poke at you a little."
"Hmph!"
Mizuki kept poking the puffed out cheek.
"Yo." Mongami's call called Edward's attention. "You wanna join us, right?"
"W-Well… I wanted to see how you were first."
Mongami's eyes narrowed, as she bit down on the treat. "And?"
Edward smiled softly. "I think I like it here."
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