Hey guys, it is I, the Phoenix, finally back with another Chapter of Grand Eroge! I'm so sorry for the delay, but getting into my third year of college with almost no break right after my exams has been hurting my available writing time. It's unfortunate, but that's just reality. I'll try to update faster in the future, but with the way my life seems to play out, I'm not making any promises.
As you guys have probably noticed if you follow my other stories, I've been going over and rewriting a bunch of them into better versions of themselves, taking the time to see where I went wrong and then writing a better story in its place.
I've done some thinking about this one too, but thankfully the mistakes in this story don't require it to be rewritten. I'll just be specific with one thing; I seem to have implied in the previous chapter that Ritsuka has some sort of connection to the Counter Force. That's not true, it's what Fou believes. The System is an Outside Context Ability, and as such cannot be defined by Nasuverse Terms and Parameters. Perspectives are really important in this story, as you'll see in this chapter, and you need to look at the words of the character from their perspective.
I've also changed the Partner Servant Ritsuka got, because I've decided to be a little canonical about it and have Ritsuka summon Servants that don't show up in the main story or events until he actually completes them. For example, he can't summon Jeanne till he finishes Orleans and he can't summon Jack or Mordred until London is finished. And so on. There are a few exceptions to this, but those are for Servants who had no real place in the story and were thrown in for no reason except to bridge a few gaps. An example of these would be Servants who died in the Singularity before you got there, like Tomoe Gozen in Babylonia, who you don't meet in the Babylonia Singularity due to her having perished already.
This pretty much sticks to canon because it's outright stated several times that Ritsuka's Bond with the Servants he encountered, both allies and enemies, are what allow him to summon them in the first place.
Another edit I've made is on how the Mystic Code feature works. Ritsuka gets a Blueprint instead of getting the full Mystic Code so he doesn't have to explain where the heck he got a Mystic Code from. He can take these Blueprints to Da Vinci, and she'll automatically begin making it. (The Blueprints aren't physical, just in case you were wondering. He just presses a button on the Window and then the idea magically pops into Da Vinci's brain).
On that note, there are two things that I want to clear up.
With regards to FATE and the Servant Summoning, people were asking me if Da Vinci wasn't around yet because I said it was the third summoning test instead of the fourth. What you guys aren't realizing is the fact that Solomon's summoning was extremely top secret, with only Olga and Wodime even knowing about it (and even then they don't know the identity of the Servant summoned). Marisbury created Chaldea AFTER he won the Holy Grail War with Solomon, so official Chaldea records wouldn't even know about it. As a matter of fact, Solomon's summoning was due to Marisbury boosting the FATE System using the existing Grail System to make the summoning work. So according to Chaldean records, there were only two summoning tests, the first summoning Galahad and the second summoning Da Vinci. Only Mash and the higher ups even know that there was an additional summoning test, and Wodime didn't bring it up because it wasn't necessary for Ritsuka to know about it.
Second is whether Xiang Yu could be summoned as a Servant in Proper Human History. The answer is technically yes, but that Xiang Yu would be a parody of the real one. Servants are influenced by the public belief of their legend and qualities, which is why Vlad has The Legend of Count Dracula even though he isn't a vampire. Xiang Yu was publicly regarded to be the epitome of evil, a murderous freak who went around killing people and burning villages to the ground. In reality, he did this to inspire some guy to become the Emperor who would save China, but nobody except Yu knew about that. However, because of public perception, Xiang Yu would be summoned as a Berserker who would be nothing like the real thing. The only reason Xiang Yu in the Lostbelts had his memories when being summoned is because Yu sacrificed herself to become a Heroic Spirit, taking her knowledge of his true nature to the Throne of Heroes and "updating" it, in a sense. Now, you can argue that because he's summoned in the Lostbelts he can be summoned in any dimension, but that's not exactly true. Yes, Heroic Spirits exist outside of Space and Time, but that doesn't mean they can be SUMMONED outside space and time. For example, in the original F/SN, Shirou wouldn't be able to summon Caster Artoria even if he had Avalon, because she isn't summonable in that timeline unless the Camelot Lostbelt somehow existed there. Cu Alter can't be summoned instead of Cu because the America Singularity never happened in that timeline. Yes, the Heroic Spirit technically exists, but he can't be summoned into an incompatible timeline.
Just wanted to clarify these things because they've caused a lot of confusion.
Also, a little note; READ THE AUTHOR'S NOTE AT THE END OF THE CHAPTER! IT EXPLAINS SOME OF THE EVENTS IN THIS CHAPTER WHICH YOU MIGHT NOT UNDERSTAND AT FIRST GLANCE! AND IT ALSO HAS A QUESTION FOR YOU GUYS AFTERWARDS!
I don't want to be flooded by flame Reviews because you guys didn't understand what really happened.
Anyways, that's all I wanted to say, so without further ado, let's get on with the story!
Chapter 6 - Duty and Purpose
Ritsuka Fujimaru was no stranger to combat.
With the amount of misadventures Gudako had dragged him on, it was inevitable that he would gain some kind of battle experience. While Gudako was the much better fighter between the two by far, able to defeat heavily armed enemies with her bare hands, Ritsuka's main talent lied in battlefield intuition and tactics. He was much more suited as a strategist than a front-line fighter.
But that didn't mean he couldn't fight.
Almost even before his mind had processed the streak of red light heading for his face, he was already in motion.
The trick to fighting someone with a projectile weapon was to step closer to them, not away.
This was more of a psychological trick than a practical one, as it would normally seem insane to voluntarily move into the line of fire. While it was technically easier to shoot someone closer to you (at least with firearms), the fact of the matter was that the shooter would expect you to run away from them in order to avoid future projectiles.
So when you moved closer to them, it took them a second to realize that you had subverted their expectations.
And that one second is what Ritsuka took advantage of.
Or at least, what he tried to take advantage of.
He dashed towards his assailant, dropping into a roll before using his hands and feet to push himself up and slam straight into the attacker.
While that would have worked on a good amount of people, the unfortunate truth was that the gap in Skill Level between Ritsuka and his assailant was a little too large.
As he was about to slam into his attacker, he was caught off guard by a fist that seemed to appear out of nowhere, and slam into his chest painfully, knocking him back a good couple of feet and sending him sprawling.
With barely a moment's respite, Ritsuka was back on his feet, his pain tolerance allowing him to keep moving with hardly a flinch though his chest ached something fierce, especially since the damage to it from Yu's er... outburst hadn't fully healed.
The knife Beryl had given him slid out of its holster, hidden in Ritsuka's sleeve, and into his waiting hand as he slashed at the attacker, only to be stalled as the serrated edge of the knife clashed against the edge of another knife which was held by his attacker.
It was then that Ritsuka got a good look at who was attacking him.
"Gut-Senpai..."
He wasn't really shocked, to be honest.
Ritsuka's eyes hardened and he pushed harder, but Beryl easily overpowered him, knocking the knife out of Ritsuka's hand and pointing his own at the younger boy's vulnerable throat, the tip practically only a millimeter away from his jugular.
"Heh, not even a hint of surprise." said the man, a large, unfriendly grin playing across his lips. "I don't know whether to feel insulted or proud that you saw through me so easily."
"You have the vibe of a killer." said Ritsuka. He'd realized this ever since they first met. His intuition had never let him down before, and it had practically been screaming at him that Beryl was dangerous and shouldn't be trusted.
Looked like it was right. As usual.
"And you're pretty perceptive for an average joe from the boonies." fired back Beryl, his grin only going wider before he lowered his knife. "Not bad, not bad at all. Kadoc could learn a lesson or two from you, which is hilarious because he grew up in Magus Society."
Looking at Ritsuka's guarded expression, Beryl raised his hands in an expression of mock surrender.
"Now, now, let's just settle down. I wasn't really trying to kill you anyways. This time, at least."
Ritsuka reluctantly allowed himself to relax, because he knew Beryl was telling the truth. He had the distinct feeling that if Beryl really wished for his death, he would never even have seen it coming. The other man was clearly a professional at the Art of Murder, and knew Magecraft to boot.
He didn't stand a chance.
"Well, take a seat." said Beryl, gesturing to one of the couches while he sat in another one with his legs crossed, the knife he held spinning across his fingers.
Ritsuka calmly sat down, not taking his eyes off of Beryl for even a moment. Despite what the man had said, he couldn't help but remain wary.
"So what's this about?" he asked, wanting to cut to the chase. The man clearly had something to tell him, even if he had a strange and potentially deadly way of showing it.
"Impatient, aren't you? Well, I guess I don't really care. I'm actually here to help you out, kiddo."
Somehow, Ritsuka doubted that highly, but he didn't say anything.
Beryl took his silence as a cue to continue.
"After all..." he said, his slasher grin reaching its peak. "I'm about to tell you what the true purpose of Chaldea is. The Grand Order."
"The Grand Order..."
Wodime had mentioned that earlier. The Grand Order. Ritsuka had no clue what it was. The only thing he did know was that he was a part of it as a member of Team A, as a Master of Chaldea. It was literally his Job, even though he had no idea what it even was.
"But Wodime-sama said-"
"Yeah, Wodime said he'd tell you after the test tomorrow, I know. He told us too." interrupted Beryl, rolling his eyes. "However, I disagree with his decision."
"Wodime's an upstanding guy, but just like most Magi, he's shit when it comes to understanding people." continued the man, a fleeting hint of disdain crossing his face before it vanished as fast as it had appeared. "He still insists on treating you like a kid, despite everything you've done."
"Everything I've done?" said Ritsuka, confused. He didn't recall doing anything particularly noteworthy since he started working at Chaldea.
"Don't tell me you don't know what I'm talking about. You managed to impress every single one of us, myself included, got two of the most uptight hardasses I know to open up, and even managed to get praise out of Daybit. That's an achievement for sure, because none of us have low standards."
Even though Beryl was praising him, Ritsuka couldn't help the chill that ran down his spine.
"Wodime acknowledges that, but he can't help but want to hold your hand, because he thinks you need it. He'll try to sugarcoat it and ease you into it, as if you're some kind of pansy who'd bolt at the first sign of danger." said Beryl, shaking his head in mock sorrow. "Personally, I think he's underestimating you. You've got a lot more spine than he's giving you credit for, so I thought maybe I would do you a little favor and come clean about what exactly it is you're expected to do here as one of us."
He placed the knife on the table and steepled his fingers, his eyes boring into Ritsuka's blue orbs.
"But first, use that tactical mind of yours and tell me; what do you think the Grand Order is?"
The question gave Ritsuka a momentary pause, but he answered it without hesitation.
"I think it's some kind of Holy Grail War. It only makes sense considering the amount of information the others have given me regarding Servants. But I don't know anything more than that..."
"Eh, I was expecting more, but I suppose that's fair considering you've only been with us for a few days." said Beryl. "You're not wrong, but you're also a little off."
"I'll spare you all the technical lingo, but basically, the Grand Order is a fake Holy Grail War to save the World."
"Save... the World?" said Ritsuka, his eyes wide open in shock.
Beryl couldn't contain his amusement at the younger boy's expression. It was absolutely priceless.
"That's right. The eggheads found out that the human race was ending pretty soon, and they used their tech to localize the cause; Fuyuki City, in the year 2004, now code named Singularity F."
Humanity... ending?
Ritsuka almost couldn't process it. Instead, he latched on to a particular piece of information.
"2004?"
"That's right. In the past. A Singularity is basically a screw-up in the normal flow of history, causing a hole in the timeline which can basically end history itself, and whatever caused Singularity F is responsible for wiping humanity off the map."
The man seemed utterly nonchalant about the bombs that he was dropping on Ritsuka, taking amusement from Ritsuka's shock and horror at the news.
"So that means..."
"That's right. The purpose of Chaldean Masters is to travel through time back to Singularity F, try to figure out what's wrong and then fix that using Servants in order to save the Human Order." said Beryl. "Sounds like an adventure, doesn't it?"
"..."
"Of course, what they aren't going to tell you, to tell almost everyone participating, is that you're most likely going to die during this."
"It's a suicide mission?" asked Ritsuka, paling.
"Heh, not technically. But it might as well be, especially to a nobody like you, a kid who stumbled upon the Moonlit World thanks to a few numbers. The technology used to send Masters to the past is completely experimental, the FATE System to summon Servants is garbage, and we have no idea what's waiting for us in Singularity or how to fix it. Olga and Wodime will pretend like everything's just fine, but the truth is that we're going in blind and underequipped to carry out an operation that could end up being more horrifying than anything the World has ever known. Only the toughest will survive what the Grand Order has to throw at us, and people will die."
Beryl's smile was downright sinister as he got up from the place he was sitting and began to walk towards the door, leaving the rigid Ritsuka in his seat.
"So tell me, kid..." asked the Crypter. "Knowing all this, knowing that you'll most likely die out there, will you still continue to work for Chaldea? Or will you leave this all behind and return to the cushy life you used to lead?"
He paused as the door slid open.
"I like you, so I don't want to see you kick the bucket just yet. My advice? Walk away and don't look back; Chaldea can't even legally stop you considering they lied about what you were really supposed to do here, and since you're a nobody, the Magus Side won't even bother with you. Once you truly get involved with the Moonlit World, once the Grand Order begins... regardless of what happens, whether you live or die, your life will never be the same again."
With those parting words, Beryl left Ritsuka alone, his body unmoving as one question kept playing in his mind over and over again.
'Am I willing to sacrifice everything I've ever known to save the World?'
Beryl Gut didn't even make it down the hall before he was caught by the rest of Team A.
"What have you done, Beryl?" asked Wodime, his voice harsh. He could tell the normally composed man was pretty pissed off due to how harshly he was gripping that staff of his.
For a moment, the murderer's eyes flitted across the faces of the people gathered in the hall.
Yep, no sympathy to be found anywhere. If looks could kill, he'd have already died several times over. Hinako especially (damn, she looked good in that outfit), looked like she was one step away from tearing his head straight off his shoulders.
It was a good thing he didn't kill the kid then, because she was giving off some pretty scary vibes there. However, the thought of crossing blades with her honestly made him a little giddy.
Still, now wasn't the time for that. After all, the current situation was far more entertaining.
"What have I done? I just told him the truth." he said innocently. "About how you're leading him to his death."
"Lord Wodime isn't-" began Ophelia heatedly, but he interrupted her before she could begin her rant.
"Isn't he? We have no idea whether the Rayshift tech actually works or not, we have no idea what's waiting for us in Singularity F, and the FATE System is about as functional as a ten year old coffee machine. Not to mention we're going to be the first people in the field as the illustrious Crypters." Beryl said, enjoying the frustration he was eliciting. "Unless you can somehow turn him into a First-Rate Magus in less than 2 weeks, the kid's going to be the first to die when shit hits the fan."
"He isn't going to be alone." said Kadoc angrily, his fists clenching. "We'll be there with him. We can keep him safe."
"Can you?" said Beryl, grinning at the naïve optimism. "Can you really? What if we get separated? What if something goes wrong with the Rayshift and his Coffin ends up exploding?"
"...The chance of that happening is extremely low. Countless simulations have been run to verify the safety of Rayshift technology." said Daybit, his emotionless face unchanging.
"Simulations, not live testing. Don't try to fool yourself; we have no idea whether anything is actually going to work."
He shook his head with a laugh before continuing.
"The truth you guys are trying to ignore is that out of all of us, Ritsuka has the least to gain and the most to lose out of participating in the Grand Order. If we make it through this, we'll get prestige for days, not to mention other perks, increasing our rep with both the Clocktower and the Moonlit World as a whole. Hell if we find out some magical secret on our little trip, even little Kadoc might get a Lordship out of it. But the kid? He'll just get a target on his back, as nearly every Magus hunts him down either for a chance to claim him politically or experiment on him to find out what makes him so special despite being a First Gen Magus."
"The Clocktower knows better than to mess with Chaldea's employees and risk the wrath of the Animusphere Family." said Wodime harshly, though Beryl noticed that the blond man harbored traces of what looked like guilt on his face.
It almost made Beryl want to burst out laughing. Did he seriously not consider that outcome?
He could tell by the harsh look on Pepe's face that the other man had indeed thought of such a future, but instead chose to keep it to himself for whatever reason.
Hinako looked furious, which was really the most emotion he had ever seen on her face, while Ophelia and Kadoc had pale faces as the full implication of his words seemed to hit them.
Daybit didn't really change his expression, which was nothing new.
It was more or less expected, because while he didn't know about Hinako or Pepe, Beryl knew for a fact that the other three had been raised as Magi from the day they were born. They wouldn't be able to instinctively look at a situation from the lens of a normal person, a first generation Magus with no grasp or idea of the Moonlit World.
"Naïve. You really think that'll stop them? Yeah, maybe they won't do anything directly, but they're sure as hell not going to leave him alone. The kid will basically have to be imprisoned in Chaldea for his own good, and even that won't help, because then they'll just go after his family and use them as leverage to force him to obey them. Hell, even the people here hate his guts because they resent him for being some kind of Special Snowflake, so they would probably help those people get to him. He may be an employee of the Animuspheres, but that really doesn't mean anything in the grand scheme of things, especially since Marisbury kicked the bucket and Olga hasn't gotten her act together. Unless he's adopted into the Family like that El Melloi guy, they won't leave him alone."
At this point, Beryl couldn't help but laugh at the expressions on their faces. Did they seriously have no common sense whatsoever? They'd no doubt dealt with the people of the Clock Tower, and seen firsthand the backstabbing bullshit that went on there. So why were they acting so cluelessly?
Well, he'd pushed them far enough and made his point. It was time to backtrack a bit.
"Now look, I'm not telling you to boot him off the team." said Beryl, raising his hands placatingly. "He's a good kid, and has a ton of potential. Probably better than anyone else we can get, to be honest."
He gave a pause, just to let them settle down a bit, before finishing up.
"But we all knew the risks of participating, and we accepted it. He came here just to get a good word on his résumé for college, for a 'part-time job' he didn't know the true nature of. Any of you read his file? No? The kid's as normal as a person could be. Normal parents, an older sister studying law, great grades across the board. He didn't come here to save the World, nor does he have any obligation to. Least you could do is be open with him about the risks and let him make his own choice, don't you think?"
The silence that followed his words was broken by Pepe.
"And what makes you, so invested in his well-being, hmm, Werewolf?" he said, his smile not looking very friendly, voicing the thoughts of everyone there.
After all, Beryl Gut was not a nice man. He was an unrepentant mass murderer who was hated by even the likes of the Clocktower for his actions. If rumors were to be believed, he murdered his own parents without even a second thought, among other equally heinous crimes. He was a natural-born killer, one who lived just to slay others.
So it was quite reasonable of them to ask what made someone like him show that much concern about someone else.
"I just hate seeing good potential go to waste..." said Beryl, before beginning to walk off from the cluster of people in the hallway.
This was true. Ritsuka was interesting. For all intents and purposes, he was a mostly normal kid from a small town in Japan. No traces of a Magical Lineage and no involvement with the supernatural. Yet... he had a feel about him that just made Beryl want to sit back and observe where he would go in the future. He'd been capable of some pretty interesting things. Beryl was no idiot; from the moment they had met, Ritsuka had subconsciously realized that he was a killer, and that was something few people would pick up immediately, without any knowledge of his reputation. When he had attacked Ritsuka earlier, he was actually aiming to knock him out with his fired spell, but the kid actually managed to dodge the spell, even when taken by surprise, and engage him in a knife fight.
Well, try to engage him in a knife fight. He was a little too out of the kid's league. But still, the actions and body language Ritsuka had displayed were not those of an ordinary snot-nosed teenager.
He displayed no hesitation in dodging and and counter attacking with the intent to kill. Beryl couldn't help but admire that, and it almost made him giddy to think of what Ritsuka would become given the right stimuli.
Still, he liked the kid, and it wouldn't be fair for him to get involved with the Moonlit World without knowledge of the risks. After all, it could end up transforming him into another person entirely.
It was only a plus that the kid was unknowingly letting him get one up on Wodime for the first time. He knew Team A's leader was a lot less naïve and thoughtless than he was making him out to be, and had no doubt considered the dangers involved, but Wodime truly hadn't considered that there might be consequences for Ritsuka surviving.
"Besides, I don't think you guys really have to worry. If my read on the kid is right, then he'll probably show up tomorrow, regardless of the risks. Ritsuka doesn't strike me as the type to back out from anything, even something like this."
Before he turned the corner of the hallway, he said one last thing, a grin crossing his face.
"Although... Wodime, you should be asking yourself whether that's a good thing or not..."
"How dare he-" began Ophelia furiously, only to be cut off by Wodime, the uncharacteristically grim look on his face making her quiet down immediately.
"While his intentions are still suspect, none of what Beryl said was wrong." admitted Wodime quietly. "I'm ashamed to admit... while I was initially against this because of his age, I had not truly considered the full implications of involving Fujimaru in this operation..."
"Because this is a situation that has never occurred before." said Daybit of all people, crossing his arms. "An ordinary civilian being involved in an extremely important supernatural operation is unprecedented, so we never really took a moment to actually think about the additional consequences and dangers Fujimaru would face."
"And we accepted him as one of us already." finished Kadoc, a contemplative look crossing his face. "He's a nice guy; the complete opposite of your average Magus. He treats all of us with genuine respect without even knowing us, and doesn't have any ulterior motives. It's refreshing."
And wasn't that something? His whole life, Kadoc had been looked down on by practically every Magus of the Clocktower since he was an average Magus with a common Bloodline only 200 years old. Team A was much better in that regard, but he always felt lesser to them, as a normal Magus among Geniuses of the highest caliber.
Then came along Ritsuka Fujimaru, a charismatic (because there was no fucking way he could have gotten Hinako to open up that quickly without any Charisma) kid from a background even worse than his (from a Magus standpoint), who genuinely looked up to him and treated him with respect he had never gotten before.
Them having similar tastes in music was just the icing on the cake. Seriously, no Magus actually appreciated the beauty of modern music.
Kadoc immediately taken a liking to Ritsuka, who might have honestly been one of the only people he could call a real friend despite only knowing him for a few days.
He could tell that the others, at least with the exception of maybe Wodime (who he didn't understand that well) and Daybit (who he didn't understand at all), felt the same way. He didn't believe for a second that Beryl actually cared about Ritsuka, considering his less than pleasant reputation, but the point he had raised couldn't be ignored.
After all, he'd been treated like dirt just because he came from a Family that wasn't very old or prominent.
How would they treat someone from no Family, a First Generation Magus?
It didn't matter even if Ritsuka turned out to be some kind of Magical Genius; his lack of a Family Crest of any kind pretty much sealed the fate of his sociopolitical standing in the Moonlit Word.
And that meant that the more he ended up achieving, the more danger he would put himself in.
Of course, all this implied Ritsuka survived the Grand Order to begin with.
"This is... true." said Ophelia, faintly blushing. "While far from being an acceptable Magus, he is a stellar student and... a nice person."
After all, despite her being so rude to him initially, Ritsuka had still become her first friend and had helped her form a connection with Mash. His genuine nature coupled with his inherent kindness had affected each and every one of them, especially Hinako.
Although Ophelia couldn't help but feel a strange, uncomfortable emotion welling up inside her when she thought about how close Ritsuka and Hinako had become in such a short period of time. The normally shy and reserved woman had even changed into an outfit that showed off her figure more, and it was irritating Ophelia something fierce, though she couldn't understand why that was.
However, she hadn't thought about just why such people, such kind and normal people, were practically extinct in the Clocktower...
"But will that only put him in more danger?" she couldn't help but murmur.
"I'm going to see him." said Hinako with a huff, trying to stave off the guilt that was rising up inside her.
He had been the first human to wholeheartedly accept her for who she was, showing not an ounce of fear or distrust despite knowing her true nature.
With Xiang Yu, their relationship had been a love born out of understanding, between two inhuman beings trying to find their place in a World increasingly dominated by mankind.
Her... feelings for Ritsuka were born out of acceptance. He had no connection to her, no way of relating with her, and yet... he had not hesitated to accept her for who she was and still smiled at her wholeheartedly despite the differences between them.
For the first time in two thousand years, she'd felt... warm.
Maybe that was why she was falling in love again, after having her heart frozen for so long...
But she was being selfish, something that was a bitter pill to swallow considering one of the things she hated about humans was their inherent selfishness.
She'd been happy to find acceptance after so long that she hadn't stopped to consider his situation.
Ritsuka was an ordinary boy... who was unknowingly tasked with saving the World. He had lived an ordinary life free of danger, and now he was about to be thrust into more danger than most Humans faced in their lifetimes.
And even if he did make it, then well, she knew full well the atrocities that Humans, especially Magi, were capable of, especially out of jealousy and against those they thought of as lesser than them, even if they were of the same species.
Beryl was right, loathe as she was to admit it, even to herself.
Ritsuka would be in danger if he stayed in Chaldea. He was at risk of losing everything the longer he was in contact with the Moonlit World.
Yu Mei-ren refused to allow it. Xiang Yu had destroyed himself by trying to protect China's future, smearing his own reputation and committing countless atrocities for the sake of inspiring a dullard to become the leader the country needed.
He had sacrificed himself for the sake of something he considered his duty, and the Humans around him were all too happy to condemn him, even in death. They did not understand his motives and reviled him when everything he did was to protect them.
She couldn't let that happen again, not to Ritsuka as well.
He had no obligation to save the World. He was just an ordinary teenager one could find anywhere. He had a whole life ahead of him, one free of strife.
He didn't have to lose it for the sake of his ungrateful species.
Besides, it wasn't as if he was the only person who was capable of saving the World. Team A was composed of some of the best Humans (in terms of Skill, mind you) of this generation. Wodime himself could handle the Grand Order. There was no need for Ritsuka to get involved with this.
Neither did she. Yu had joined Chaldea not because she cared about saving Humanity, but because there was simply nowhere left for her to go.
She accepted Marisbury's offer not because it was a particularly attractive one, but because she had never foreseen that there was someone out there, a Human, who could accept her for who she was. She thought that it might be for the best if she just found some place she could live in relative isolation, without being bothered by anyone.
But now...
She didn't need to remain in Chaldea. Marisbury had given her the freedom to leave whenever she wanted.
If Ritsuka left, she could just go with him. It wasn't like she had any attachment to anything or anyone in Chaldea. Even the other members of A-Team were basically strangers to her, to be honest.
They could just live a peaceful life together in Japan, without having to deal with anything out of the ordinary.
For that reason, Yu decided to try and convince Ritsuka to leave Chaldea. It was for his own good, because he didn't have to burn himself out for the sake of Humanity.
Things would be safer, better that way.
She had barely taken one step towards his room when a hand clamped down on her shoulder, stopping her in place.
The glare that she levied on the person who had done so could have killed a lesser man out of sheer terror.
"Let. Me. Go." she growled, red beginning to seep into her eyes.
"I'm afraid I can't allow that, Hina-chan." said Pepe, and it was only the lack of his customary smile that prevented Yu from tearing his arm off.
"Beryl was right; this is his decision to make, whether he chooses to remain or not. It isn't our place to influence him down either path."
"He doesn't truly know the dangers he'll be facing." said Hinako, her eyes narrowing. "He'll die."
"All the negative possibilities Beryl spoke of are only applicable in the worst case scenarios." offered Daybit. "While possible, it is highly unlikely that these situations will occur."
"Daybit is correct." said Wodime. "While I admittedly did not consider a few of these possibilities, now that they have come to light, it is up to us as his seniors to prevent such events from coming to pass."
He slammed the butt of his staff on the ground, a clear gesture of authority, and everybody couldn't help but listen.
"If Ritsuka decides to leave Chaldea, we will let him go without a hassle. But if he chooses to stay, then we will do everything in our power to prevent him from meeting a terrible fate, both during and after the Grand Order."
And despite the misgivings in her heart, Hinako couldn't help but be satisfied with that for the time being.
Though... she already knew what choice he would make. People like Ritsuka... never took the easier path.
Ritsuka remained in his seat for a while after Beryl left, maybe an entire hour.
He was being asked to participate in a mission to save the World.
Yeah, one could argue he was a Gamer and that he shouldn't even be thinking that hard about something like that, but unfortunately, he had drawn the short end of the stick in terms of Gamer Abilities. His lame-ass powers only seemed to do one thing; pick up girls, and that was it.
It didn't make him any stronger, nor did it make him any smarter or give him some kind of useful Magic. The closest thing to useful it had done was making Fou his Familiar, which was actually a really complicated process from what he had read in the books Ophelia had lent him.
A few of the Skills like Faerie Feast were also useful in everyday life, but nothing that would make him stronger in combat or give him some kind of survivability boost was present.
He still had a high chance of dying out there. His new 'powers', if you could even call them as such, offered no solution in this situation.
It wasn't that he had never been in danger before. He'd been in tons of misadventures, many of which had taken a deadly turn. Gudako had dragged him along on adventures all over the World. He had seen tons of harsh environments, harsher people, angry animals, and so on.
But those had been mundane dangers, like men with guns or falling buildings, not Magical stuff which could literally end the human race and required time traveling to fix.
The fact that they needed Heroic Spirits, the immortalized manifestations of some of the most powerful people to ever exist in human history, for this operation in the first place was a glaring indicator of how deadly the mission would be, as it implied that no ordinary Human being could get the job done.
Ritsuka was way in over his head, and he knew it. Saving the World? Less than a week ago, he was worried he would miss the the release of Doom Eternal's DLC!
While he may have lived a life that was much... spicier than the norm, no thanks to his crazy elder sister, that was still nothing compared to the rabbit hole that was the Moonlit World.
Learning Magic was fun and all, but was Ritsuka willing to face the kind of immense dangers that no doubt came with saving the World?
Wodime, Ophelia and the others on Team A were all big shot Magi, the best of the best. They no doubt had a billion tricks up their sleeves, and had been preparing for this at least since a year ago, and had been trained in the Art of Magecraft since they were kids.
Who was he?
A total noob who'd blundered into the World of Magic just because of some lucky numbers and had less than two weeks to prepare for an operation to save the freaking Human Race.
Did he really even have a chance?
Sure, he could fight off fully grown and armed men and was physically fit enough to nearly hit Olympic Grade Parameters, but would those abilities be enough or him to make it out of the Grand Order alive?
He didn't think the ability to run really fast would actually be of any use, and if whatever problem that had caused the end of humanity could be solved with a couple of punches, they wouldn't even need Magi for the job.
Even with training, Ritsuka knew he would never be able to get up to the level of his teammates, who were some of the best Magi in the World. It was quite literally impossible thanks to how Magecraft worked in the first place. No matter how much talent for Magecraft he may or may not have had, Ritsuka was a First Generation Magus, which meant he was the first of his family line to learn Magecraft. If he even had Magical Circuits, which were basically the key component in Magecraft, they would definitely be on the lower side, since he lacked a Magical Genealogy, coming from a mundane bloodline. Unfortunately, a person's Magical Capacity was completely dependent on their Magical Circuits, which could never be increased naturally, a rule that seemed quite unfair in his opinion. Even if he became a proper Magus, he wouldn't be throwing around Super Tier Magic or anything like that. He simply wasn't, quite literally, built for stuff like that.
Ritsuka Fujimaru had never in his life wanted power. He'd always been very strong physically, and had a sound mind to apply it with, and for him, that was all he needed to live out his life the way he wanted to. However, at that moment, he couldn't help but feel hopelessly weak. Among the mundane, he was above average, but with the revelation of the Moonlit World, Ritsuka realized how small he really was.
For the first time, he wished he was stronger.
But you don't even need to get involved, do you?
The thought crept into his mind, and Ritsuka found that he couldn't deny it. After all, he did have a choice. He didn't need to participate in the Grand Order. He could leave Chaldea unscathed and unharmed, and a little bit richer. Seemed like the perfect deal, right?
It's not like he was the last available Master candidate or anything like that. There were no doubt perfectly capable people who could do the job in his stead. Hell, he was sure the rest of Team A could get the job done on their own.
If he chose to walk away, he could return to his normal life, and could forget about the Moonlit World entirely. His life, which had been more or less derailed from the moment he had woken up with Gamer Powers (though not necessarily in a bad way), would more or less get back on track.
However... a part of him refused to back out despite it being the clearly logical choice for him to make.
Why?
He couldn't say.
Maybe it was a thirst for adventure, maybe it was a sense of duty. It was hard to precisely identify what that feeling was. This situation was... bigger than anything he had ever been a part of.
After all, what normal person could say they were being asked to save the World?
All humans desire to be a part of something greater. That was inscribed in their very nature and is a quality that led to their greatest achievements. Deep down, everyone wanted a purpose.
Ritsuka was no different. All his life, he'd never really had a true ambition. He had a definite plan for the future, sure, but there was no ambition involved in that. It was less of a dream and more of a simple goal to meet, like how one might set a reminder on their phone that they have a meeting on the weekend. There was no substance in it. It was mechanical, like how a great many children went to school despite not actually wanting to learn anything.
This promised to change that. After all, was there a greater purpose than trying to save the World?
But at the same time, there was another question he needed to answer; Was the risk worth it?
His face twisted into a frown as he tapped his finger against the side of his couch.
Suddenly, Ritsuka was reminded of an excerpt from the Illiad.
"Mother tells me,
the immortal goddess Thetis with her glistening feet,
that two fates bear me on to the day of death.
If I hold out here and I lay siege to Troy,
my journey home is gone, but my glory never dies.
If I voyage back to the fatherland I love,
my pride, my glory dies. . . ."
The great hero Achilles was also faced with something similar, wasn't he? Achilles was faced with a choice; to live a short life that would be filled with glory, or to live a long life in obscurity.
In the end, Achilles chose glory over life, though it wasn't at all for the glory and rather because he wanted to avenge his friend. But he still made that choice, and ended up dying to a deadbeat archer who literally only managed to hit his heel because of a Miracle. Oh, he definitely got the glory he was promised, but he also got a demise that was downright disgraceful for someone of his greatness.
Of course, Ritsuka's current situation wasn't exactly the same. There was no glory to be had here. The nature of Chaldea's work was top secret, and even if they did save the World, nobody would be aware of it except for the people who worked within its halls. There would be no legend about him, no tales or storybooks depicting his adventures, and that was just fine with him. Fame was a little too overrated in his opinion.
But that didn't change the fact that from a clinical standpoint, it looked like a lose-lose situation. However, Ritsuka came to the realization that there was a factor he was overlooking, one that he had already been subconsciously aware of.
The Game.
Yeah, sure, it was nearly useless, but it was still a metaphysical ability that transcended beyond the normal systems of Magic. And it had chosen him to be its host, out of all the people in the World.
Maybe one could argue that it was a random choice. Ritsuka himself couldn't really deny it, because as far as he knew there was nothing about him that really stood out or indicated he was special in any way. He wasn't descended from a special lineage nor was he born with any unique superpower. Apart from a penchant for being dragged on wild adventures, there was nothing really unique about him.
However, even an idiot could see that The Game was most definitely responsible for his presence in Chaldea. Ritsuka was almost certain that his perfect Master and Rayshift Compatibility Scores were because of The Game's meddling. There was also the "Main Scenario 0.5" message that had triggered on the plane to Chaldea, which was what had allowed him to access the Menu.
That meant Chaldea, and by extension, the mission to save Humanity, were a part of the "Plot" that The Game followed. That meant he might have a bigger role to play here than he had initially imagined.
Suddenly, Ritsuka remembered what he had been called in the very first Message he had ever received.
'The Protagonist'
What were the implications of that Title? Or rather, what happened to a story missing its Protagonist?
Ritsuka swallowed, a cold sweat breaking out on his forehead. If he backed out, would that result in the destruction of the Human Race? Would that lead to the deaths of his teammates in Team A?
The answer seemed pretty obvious from what he'd seen up till then; yes.
But what could he provide?! That was one thing he still failed to see the logic behind. What made him unique among the members of Team A? The others were practically the perfect lineup of Magi! Wodime was probably the greatest Astromancer alive, Beryl and Pepe were peerless combat Magi, Ophelia was a prodigy at Spiritual Evocation, and Yu/Hinako probably had super vampire magic from Ancient China! In that regard, Kadoc was a bit of an outlier, but he was still far more advanced as a Mage than Ritsuka was, by a longshot.
Why was he dubbed the Protagonist and given nigh-useless powers when there were so many people more qualified than him for this?!
It wasn't as if raising his Bond Levels would save the World, right?!
Ritsuka blinked for a moment, before repeating his previous thought in his mind.
And then it clicked.
Suddenly, he felt really stupid. After all, the hints were there all along, he just wasn't looking at them.
He'd been thinking to himself over and over again that he had been saddled with a lame Gamer power that only seemed to be useful for picking up girls. But that wasn't quite true, was it? Yeah, his powers were definitely biased towards girls, or Heroines as it called them, but there were Also Miscellaneous Bond Levels for the guys he had met too, and Fou.
It was literally in the name too. Bond Level. His powers were designed for the express purpose of creating Bonds, between him and the people around him.
What could Bonds do, one might ask? Surely, it wasn't anything as ludicrous as the "Power of Friendship" that seemed to be the staple of shonen anime?
The answer was no. Forging strong Bonds with people didn't make you any stronger physically or magically. However, it did have its uses, important ones at that. It helped in fostering teamwork, synergy and understanding. Things that might be useful for, say, a Team of Masters contracted to Heroic Spirits?
Come to think of it, hadn't his powers already come into play already? With Yu? He'd manage to make her break out of her shell and was slowly facilitating her relationship with the rest of the Team. This wouldn't have happened if it wasn't thanks to his power, and from what he knew of the others, none of them would have taken the same actions he did. They would have just given Hinako her space, which wouldn't have helped them at all in the long run as she would have remained just as cold and unresponsive as she had been the day he met her. Of course, Ritsuka knew that she was just really shy and scared (for good reasons), but nobody else save maybe Pepe would realize that, and Pepe, for all his jokes and his touchy nature, didn't actually push his boundaries in the least.
If he hadn't been there, hadn't been able to talk to her and understand her, what would have happened?
The question hung in the air, and Ritsuka remembered the raw pain Yu had been through, with no one to confide in, feeling alone in a World dominated by those who could not tolerate those born differently. How many other people were like that in Chaldea, people who had something eating away at them? The answer was a lot of them. Mash and Ophelia both came to mind immediately, and even Olga to a degree.
Magi did not value relationships. That was something he had learned in Chaldea. They were raised to trust no one and keep everything to themselves, even if it caused them to explode later. Considering the atmosphere of the Clock Tower and the almost daily power struggles there, that wasn't really an incorrect philosophy. But what consequences could that lead to, in an undertaking such as this one?
Magi almost never worked together. Friends were a rare commodity, and the highest relationship they had with anyone else was limited to "political ally". Teamwork was literally nonexistent.
That same attitude was reflected even here in Chaldea, although it was a place where that was a detriment. Sure, Team A wasn't nearly as bad as the Magi he had heard of, but they still reflected elements of that upbringing. If it wasn't for Wodime's charisma, there would be no semblance of teamwork among them whatsoever. And even Wodime's leadership could only make up for so much.
Could they succeed like that, like a collection of highly pressurized leaky steam pipes held together by the duct tape that was Wodime?
Despite what his power thought, Ritsuka was no one special. He knew this with an absolute certainty, especially considering the existence of the Moonlit World. However, what Team A needed was something only a normal person could provide.
This wasn't about personal glory, money or even adventure. This was about keeping his friends safe and making sure they could all get through whatever awaited them alive. True, he couldn't bring much to the table, but he would do everything in his power to help.
Yes, it was optimistic to think that nothing would go wrong, or that they would get an ideal result. It was almost foolish even. But there was nothing wrong with trying one's best and rolling with the punches, something he had a lot of experience in.
And so, with determination shining in his eyes, Ritsuka made his choice.
The next morning, Ritsuka walked out the door.
The empty hallways seemed to make his footsteps echo as he walked closer and closer to the room where the Summoning was going to take place.
Last chance to reconsider, his mind seemed to be whispering.
I've made my decision, he answered back.
Even if it kills you?, his mind countered.
...Even if it kills me.
A small smile broke out on his face. If his sister was in his shoes, she would have made the exact same decision he did, although with a lot less thinking and deliberation. The thought didn't really bring him comfort considering how bizarre she was, but he had to admit that no matter how crazy her messes got, things always had a way of working out in the end.
He could only hope the same happened here.
As he finally reached the Summoning Chamber, he was faced with the rest of Team A, each member looking at him with expressions ranging from open concern to a sharp grin.
He looked them in the eye.
"I'm ready."
[Congratulations! The Title 'Junior Crypter' has evolved into the Title 'Crypter'! You have received the Achievement: 'Crossroads of Destiny!'. 'The Choice He Made' has been added to the Gallery! You have gained +3 Aura, +2 Wisdom and +2 Charm!]
There was no going back now.
And that's a wrap!
Before you guys start yelling at me, keep in mind that Beryl's words were intentionally designed to psychologically screw with Ritsuka and the others on A-Team. It's not really as bad as he's making it out to be, although it's not really a lie either. Wodime is also not an asshole, but genuinely didn't consider the negative impact of Ritsuka being a part of the Grand Order and surviving it, because like Daybit says later, it wasn't a situation that had ever happened before. And on the topic of traditional Magus behavior, I have to stop the people who're about to go "But RIN isn't like that!". Rin is literally the kindest Magus on the face of the Earth, hands down. And she has a crush on Shirou, who additionally had no wish on the Grail and just wanted to stop other people from making bad wishes themselves. Those are literally the only reasons why Fate: Stay Night didn't just end with Rin killing or enslaving Shirou like basically 99% of Magi would have done.
If you guys don't know, Reines El Melloi was perfectly fine with kidnapping, torturing and blackmailing Waver at like 5 years old. And she's one of the nicer Magi.
Also, the issues discussed in this chapter is something a lot of people gloss over, not just in Fate, but in a lot of other fandoms. In canon, Ritsuka literally had no other choice but to lead the Grand Order as Humanity's Last Master, but that isn't the case here, which is why the issue even arises. And the problem of the Moonlit World harming him if he managed to survive the Grand Order is also canonically true. The only reason Ritsuka wasn't carted off to become someone's lab rat in canon is because the employees of Chaldea forged the records to make it look like Romani was responsible for everything and Ritsuka was just a figurehead who herded the Servants on Romani's orders, just to protect him.
Another thing I just wanted to put out there is that some of you were concerned that Bond Levels were rising too quickly with the women. That's true, but 90% of Nasuverse women have intense psychological issues and immediately cling to someone who shows them acceptance and kindness because apparently decent human beings are a rare breed in that universe. Ritsuka's ability to wholeheartedly accept even the most evil of people is what makes him the Harem King he is in canon, considering he isn't a flirt or a suave individual.
As for the question I wanted to ask you guys; should Ritsuka only be able to summon female Servants, or should he be able to summon male Servants too? I honestly want him to be able to summon male Servants because many of them are really important to the FGO experience, but my friends are telling me that it would ruin the Dating Sim part of the story if he was able to summon guys too. What do you guys think? I'll make my decision based on your opinion.
Well, that's all I wanted to say for now. I hope you enjoyed this chapter. Next chapter will include the summoning, and I'll be giving more attention to Mash because she's been kind of underrepresented in this story.
Additionally, please don't post Reviews saying me and my story are trash unless you have a genuine, logical reason to say so. Criticism is okay, but flaming helps no one. I've been having some bad experiences with FFN's various fandoms recently, which is why I'm being a little careful.
Stay safe everyone.
Spatialphoenix here, burning to ashes.