01: Unexpected

It was a cool spring night and the city of Kuoh as all seemed well and good. The city was quiet that not even the usual strange problems that usually assailed the town were active. Though as to what those problems were, were unknown to our newest arrival. The young man fell to the ground with a satisfying whump groaning from the sudden impact.

"Why is it always high? It's always high and then I fall. Glad that I learn some runes to mitigate the pain…" Ritsuka looked around before confusion took hold. "Mash? Mash!?"

As he looked around he noticed that no servants with with him. The bonds were still there but they weren't anywhere close to him. It took several minutes before he could calm down and figure things out, especially since he felt a bit weird in this world. It felt almost like he was back in Babylonia. Mana seemed to spread out around the world heavily saturating the atmosphere. His command seals glowed healthily as well seeming to pulse with power.

"Gonna hide that then." He muttered to himself as he placed his black glove back on. The Arctic Combat version of his original Chaldean uniform was perfect for any weather but being in a city might have made it a little awkward. "Oh right… communicator."

As he looked at his communicator only static answered him back. He looked at his surroundings, noting that it was the early morning before the sun arose across the horizon.

"Well… this feels familiar." Ritsuka sighed as he remembered his time in Shimosa whenever Musashi had gone to do some scouting for the night. Though he had never been truly alone like he was at this point. "What do I even have on me…?"

Looking through his pockets he noted that he had a small phone that acted like a hyper storage cube courtesy of the genius known as Leonardo Da Vinci. While he knew she was one of the biggest perverts in Chaldea rivaling even Blackbeard she still managed to be competent when it came to her craft. It also helped that several other Caster servants had assisted on this to hold reagents and summoning catalysts for him to use. Several small jewels from Ishtar's Valentine present were also there, though they were used when he needed to get money from whichever era he was in. Scrolling through the phone he noticed the other object that several of his servants had been working on.

The Illya of the Magical Girl world they went through that one summer called them Class Cards. Each holding the soul of a heroic spirit which a regular Mage could use to become a pseudo servant of a sort. When the concept had been introduced the servants eagerly decided to use them as a birthday gift for their Master. Even the most deranged of servants wanted to do this for him. Only problem was that he wasn't sure how to use them effectively. Illya had just told him to resonate them with his soul and the cards would do the rest. There wasn't much time to actually do so now because of his location but eventually he would find the time to go over this.

The sounds of cars off in the distance caught his attention leading him to a busy street as people scurried to and fro across the avenue. It was a bit shocking to say the least.

"People… they're alive…" Ritsuka muttered under his breath stifling the sadness that had been building up in him ever since he had joined Chaldea.

He wasn't unhappy that he was able to help humanity even if he was trying to survive then save anyone. It had been nearly four years or so since he had met regular people. People not tied to the Moonlit world that hid the secret society of Mages that populated the world. It had been slightly overwhelming but he had a mission to do.

"We've detected a strange anomaly here on earth growing bigger by the day. I need you to check on it since it seems to be getting a bit worse." Gordolf stated as he took his directing job a bit more seriously nowadays.

"It seems like there is a corrupted grail emanating somewhere in this area of japan. The problem is that it is pulsing in a different timeline. This one is somewhat like a singularity but at the same time might just be a parallel world. We've detected heavy mana in the world but we're unsure what it means." Da Vinci chan mentioned as she rolled around on her tiny skates. She was busy looking over several different charts.

"So what's wrong with it?" Ritsuka spoke up clearly confused on why his two bosses were so worried at the moment.

"That's the thing. There seems to be nothing wrong but a grail signature has been recorded within the area. Nothing has warped and there hasn't been any sign of a servant manifesting within the singularity. It could even be a sign that the Throne of Heroes doesn't exist within this belt similar to SIN and Shi Huang Di's reign." Da Vinci chan explained as she finally took a seat at the reyshifting station. "In which case that makes it imperative that we figure out what has corroded the human order so much that the throne is no longer necessary within its bounds."

"I'm also getting a bad feeling here Ritsuka-kun. I've been in enough accidents to know when something is going to go wrong." Gordolf coughed up clearly looking more distraught than usual.

"Ha ha… there is our bold director and his boundless spirit." Holmes stepped up clearly enjoying the small drama unfolding.

"Take this more seriously Holmes-kun! My ulcers only act up when something bad is set to go wrong!" Gordolf yelled back a bit riled by the aloof detective.

"Oh I don't mean to demean. I wholeheartedly agree that something is wrong here but unfortunately all of our attempts to peer beyond the veil have come up with nothing to show for it. So unfortunately for us dear friends, it falls to our master to once more dive into the breach." Holmes smiled his self assured stance once more before taking a drag on his pipe.

"I don't mind but it feels like the director is right on this matter." Ritsuka spoke up and received a heartfelt slap on the back from the director.

"See! I knew you would see reason though like always you're willing to jump into the fray once again." Gordolf signed the last part clearly unhappy at the turn of events.

"Sorry… I'm just used to it. I don't want to stand around and do nothing." Ritsuka admitted as he wrung his wrists. "If we need data then it's the least I could do."

"As you say Master. We need test data. I won't mince words since I don't feel like teasing you as much. Right now you should be careful and have your preliminary servants chosen before you head out." Da Vinci chan advised before rolling off to another station. Sion had been napping and 'Captain' as he preferred was doing maintenance on the Shadow Border.

It took several minutes but a team of servants were chosen, Mashu amongst them. Ritsuka had packed up the essentials including those Class Cards that everyone had given him. It had taken several minutes to convince Kiyohime that using her card didn't mean they were soul mates. It had taken longer to clarify that he meant that that sort of thing should be done face to face and not through a fancy gimmick. It had taken longer to pry her off of him so he could start the mission to the exasperation of Archer Emiya who looked as though he could see his past right before him.

The seven figures readied themselves for a reyshift. As the process took hold the entire system went on the fritz. All six servants were shunted out of the room almost violently due to the overburdened system… but the Master was still trapped in his coffin. Several computers broke as a state of emergency was issued. Several Caster servants immediately rushed to the room using their own magecraft to keep the power from overwhelming the room. Even with their combined power it wasn't enough to pry Ritsuka from his coffin.

The system had sent their Master… but no servant would be accompanying him.

Reeling from his memories… which due to interference from several Eldritch gods from beyond the veil were hard enough to recall left him slightly perturbed. He really should have seen this coming since the Director was usually right about these sorts of things. At the very least he always knew when something bad was going to happen before it happened. It was how they survived while within the Imaginary Numbers Space.

"Now what…?" Ritsuka muttered under his breath. While he had plenty of training in almost all fields due to his contracts with all heroic spirits, he didn't have much chance to actually explore places beyond his reach. A teenager… almost an adult was still viewed with some scorn on individuality when it came to Japanese society. It had been worse when you were a mage since their were much steeper expectations beyond the regular become a contributing member of society.

It had taken a few minutes to find a pawn shop… one that was willing to be opened at this time of morning. He needed to get some things out of the way before anything else went wrong. Food, Shelter and a map were amongst the first things Ritsuka handle before the inevitable soul crushing despair would take hold. Without the sensors from Chaldea every thing would have to be checked by sight alone.

While the mana density was heavy in the air, he couldn't exactly use his magecraft like a fool. He didn't even have anything really flashy except for what some of his servants taught him, though the ninja techniques might be good for that. He did have some extra craft essences though of that dapper looking man to use in case of emergencies. Well it was an option at the very least in case he needed an escape.

He had to take a few minutes before the pawnbroker would actually speak with him. A few minutes later and he walked out with a sizable chunk of yen which he put away within his phone. The weird looks that the broker had given him were unsettling enough as it was. The hard part came when he had to look around for somewhere to lay low until he could figure out what to do.

Kuoh Town… a town filled to the brim with a copious cavalcade of supernatural beings that would eclipse the entirety of Japan. You wanted to see it all you had to do was turn a corner. Fallen Angels, Devils, Yokai, Angels, and many more seemed to flock to this spiritual cesspool. Tensions were already running tight since the loss of one of those high level devils that seemed to let pride lead him around.

Azazel had seen it all go down before. First was the prideful dick waving it around for all to see before the wolves came up and chomped it off. Then came the bellows of revenge or slow agonizing death. It didn't really matter which came first though. For a moment he had felt a strange energy source from somewhere. Something stronger than the usual mage before it disappeared. The few times he was genuinely surprised he could count on one hand… and now he needed another hand. None of the mages in the world had learned how to effectively hide their presence as well as this new source.

Looking over the avenue while he took a small drink from his flask he couldn't see anyone out of the ordinary. Everyone looked normal. There was a kid wearing a fancy black uniform but it just looked like he was another weirdo that wanted to look more important than he actually was. Scratching his head he decided that he needed to get back to work. He needed to find those blasted Sacred Gears before he could get in trouble.

It wasn't his fault that they wound up in random humans because he decided to take a few for his own curiosity. That was just a side effect of his own ambitions, nothing more.

"Ugh… got up for nothing. Maybe I should get Raynare to do something useful. Damned if I get anything useful out of her." Azazel muttered under his breath clearly annoyed at the situation.

There was too much to do at the moment and he needed to make sure nobody did anything stupid. Some Fallen Angels clearly didn't have self preservation on their minds anymore and needed a beat down to learn that once more.

Unbeknownst to him the young man continued on completely unaware that someone had something planned for him. Even more so that not even the one who planned for such an operation had set into motion things that would clearly get out of hand.

Rias, daughter of the Gremory clan, felt that strange mana coming from somewhere. And just as quickly it had disappeared from her senses. Stretching herself out of bed and letting the blanket slink off her bare body she could only surmise a Mage had made their way into her territory.

It took a bit of effort to get up from bed that morning since she had felt that spike in magic around five in the morning when the sun had barely rose above the horizon. Still it would be worth it to at least check around for it. Her peerage was still relatively small. A Queen, Knight, Rook and Bishop already in use but she always needed a bit more behind her.

She needed to prove to herself that she was self sufficient to gather others under her. The fact that most of her peerage had fallen into her lap had left a sour taste in her mouth which she kept to herself. No need to bother her older brother and sister in law about that.

Though, there was another problem which weighed heavily on her mind. Her Father's 'infinite wisdom' had deigned to have her placed in an arranged marriage. Said fiancée had made his attitude clear that he wanted her immediately instead of after her education had been completed.

First things first though, a magical energy signal that originated out in town.

'Maybe I should get Akeno to come with me. It should be easier to find this new interest in town.' Rias idly thought as she finally decided to get dressed.

Still she had already talked to Sona about two hopeful candidates for their Peerage. Though her choice was kind of a pervert. It wasn't a bad thing but that was a problem in of itself. He could probably be led around easily enough but at most it would be at the level of a pawn. The other was more respectable but also had a perverted streak if what Sona had seen could be taken as truth.

A new member was still welcome for her family all the same. Still even with her working on their cooperation they couldn't take on Riser yet. All she had to do was keep her temper in check whenever he decided to disgrace her with his presence.

"Ugh… stupid straps. Did they grow bigger?" She adjusted her straps trying her best to get them into a better position.

Taking a deep breath she left to call Akeno so the two could figure out where that magical source had appeared. Though if the signal was lost then maybe there was no point. It was better to think about the possibilities than let pessimism be her guiding light. With a quick flourish of letting her skirt flow a bit too high she stepped out of her room ready to greet the day.

'Well… this is a predicament…' Ritsuka sighed as he was now cornered. 'This is what I get for going to a shady pawn shop I guess.'

What had been a lazy morning turned dire when two guys started following him quite closely. They weren't really that good at hiding it either. Cursed Arm Sensei would be rolling in his grave and bursting out to kill them himself if he could see how sloppy they had been. Ritsuka also realized that using a trained assassin for a measuring stick for sneakiness was probably insulting him as well since these two were two bit thugs.

'So… what do I do? I do have reinforcement magic so regular humans can't really hurt me too much. A Class card, if I could figure those out, would be overkill. I do have a craft essence but then I would be shown to be a ninja of sorts.' Ritsuka quickly sped through his decisions all the while letting his piercing blue eyes focus on the two thugs.

"So… thanks for taking the scenic route there boy. Our friend was hoping to know where you got that gem from." The bigger of the two thugs clearly threatened him before taking a step forward.

"Seriously, what kind of idiot takes an abandoned alley anyways. The stupid kind, of course!" The smaller thug guffawed as he merely stood back letting the apparent muscle take point.

Ritsuka didn't answer. Gilgamesh would have made mention of how there was no point of addressing mongrels before the slaughter. Emiya would have probably tried to talk them down before inevitably kicking their asses. All his assassins would have killed them before they ever cornered him. He wasn't used to doing things on his own except for that time against Goetia.

'Maybe I should just try to play it cool.' Ritsuka hummed to himself.

"Look at this idiot. Paralyzed from fear at getting cornered. Come on let's just get it done already before the crowds actually start." The small thug growled out. He was probably the brains… though that wasn't saying much.

"Right. Then come with me brat…" The larger thug loomed a bit closer and Ritsuka used what he had learned.

With a quick burst of reinforcement magecraft he thrust his fist forward allowing it to come in contact with the thug's chest. While Bajiquan wasn't his forte, Ishtar, and both Li Shuwens had drilled it into his head so that he would never be taken off guard. The large thug went flying backwards as if in a kung fu movie and the world seemed to slow between the three of them. The smaller thug was left gaping at the sight flapping his mouth in disbelief. Ritsuka, for his part, didn't waste a moment and with a kick sent the thug off into a trash can.

Unfortunately, he wasn't as graceful as either Li was. Had they been the one attack he was certain that the thug would have landed face first inside the can before rolling off to the side. With his mediocre kick the thug knocked over all the cans landing in a heap of leftover garbage. Now that Ritsuka thought about it he couldn't explain where the cans actually came from. Maybe he wasn't paying attention as well as he could have been.

Before he could try to solve the mystery the smaller thug rushed forward fists raised in protest. Ritsuka quietly grabbed his wrist and tossed him over his shoulder onto the concrete. The sudden loss of breath would be painful enough had he not followed through and stomped on the thug's stomach.

"Woops… shouldn't have done that. That's what I get for letting Yan Qing teach me about being ruthless in combat." Ritsuka muttered under his breath.

As he walked out of the alley the two thugs merely looked at him with far more wary eyes than before. They were frightened… Ritsuka noticed though said nothing else. They didn't need to know anything.

"Yakuza…" The larger thug hissed out… then rushed over to grab his friend. The look in his eyes was one of fear that they crossed the wrong guy.

"Yakuza? Me? I mean I did take part with some once…" Ritsuka idly stated as he remembered that one mission he went on with Moriarty when they posed as bartenders. The two heard that and immediately bolted off screaming in horror as they realized, in their own warped sense, that they had probably tried to attack a Yakuza Boss' son.

Ritsuka felt a small pang of worry. Hopefully no one would actually equate him to being a yakuza. That would be a weird shift from being a Master. Though Kintoki always called him Boss for some reason. It was slowly dawning on him that had Kintoki been there as well they would have indeed looked like yakuza members.

"Wait and hope… right Count." Ritsuka sighed once again.

The isolation was doing a number on him more than usual. No longer were there colorful personalities around him. No arguments on who would go on a mission with him. Who would eat with him that day. Which woman loved him more. Which man loved him more. Neither were there questions on why so and so had to interact with each other. No Holmes making very oblique comments on what was going on. No Da Vinci giving him smart asides and explaining what was going on through their genius. No Gordolf who they surprised with their bravery and sheer determination and grit. And most of all, no Mash…

The lack of Mash was the harshest blow of all. He had even managed to secure a date with her and both Lancelots had agreed to keep Kiyohime busy so she wouldn't ruin it. Though even he knew there were a lot of jealous servants because of that decision.

Nero Bride, Jeanne Alter (both versions), Artoria Alter (all three versions), Kiyohime (both versions), Minamoto no Raikou (both versions), Ushiwakamaru (all three though Avenger was reluctant), Tamamo Cat, Mata Hari, Carmilla (both versions), Tamamo no Mae (Shark mostly), Anne Bonney and Mary Read (already considered him part of their union) , Serenity, Gorgon (reluctantly), Musashi (Berserker mostly), Meltryllis (both versions), Passionlip, Schercherazade, Osakabehime (both versions), Circe, Ereshikigal, Okita Alter, Scathach Skadi (in the most tsundere-ish way possible), Qin Liangyu, Kingprotea, Kama, Sima Yi (Reines, the host expressed interest), Murasaki Shikibu (both versions, though Caster more so), Okita Souji (Assassin was more open), Lancer Artoria… a lot of women had wanted dibs on him. What made it worse was that with how naive Mash was sometimes she had let slip she would share.

Tamamo had been very adamant in wanting to smash his balls in though he had already made his choice. Jeanne Alter immediately jumped on that saying that since Mash had her turn then she could go next. It turned into a complete mess as each of them forced the issue to make sure he was shared amongst them all.

Ritsuka shuddered. The memory was more vivid than it should have been. Kiyohime wasn't happy about these things but she had made it clear she would go along with it because he was important to her. She had even used his name rather than call him Anchin. Didn't make him feel any better since he was unable to actually show anyone any obvious affection with everyone silently watching him… judging him.

Ritsuka smacked his cheeks breaking the fear that had gripped his soul. Hopefully they weren't doing anything crazy just yet… and they were still there.

Walking out of the alley back into the streets he hoped desperately that no one had noticed his magecraft. Even he knew the dangers that the Clock Tower could bring if they found out about this small debacle and his unwillingness to finish off the problems. The streets were still full and he needed to go find somewhere to bunker down for the night. It was already around three in the afternoon as well.

"Ara ara… Rias is being a responsible young lady, isn't she?" Akeno giggled into her hand as the two walked the street where the magic they had felt earlier had materialized.

"Akeno! Mou… stop teasing. I'm being serious here. We need to find whoever caused that fluctuation before one of the other factions finds it. Or Sona finds it." Rias pouted at her playful Queen. She wasn't annoyed but the teasing was a bit too much.

"Maa… well for now let's just travel down the boulevard." Akeno pointed out letting the two girls continue their travels.

Rias sighed. They had sensed nothing at all. The magic trail was gone and all that was left were the smallest hint that whatever had caused that burst was dead. So far their trip had been slightly pointless. School was also going to start up quite soon at the end of the week when the new students would be arriving. Then it was merely a matter of time before she found another Peerage member.

Two thugs raced past the two looking completely scared out of their minds. The mutterings of yakuza under their breath was caught by Rias.

"Jeez… what is this city coming to where some yakuza flunky thinks he can come into my territory." Rias felt another sigh coming on before suppressing it. She didn't need Akeno needling her on how sighs caused more stress.

"That's strange… one of the thugs feels like magic was used on him." Akeno tapped a finger against her lips before the light bulb flashed on.

"That's it! Quickly Akeno!" Rias raced in the direction the two had run off from.

"Rias! Wait for me!" Akeno chased after her headstrong King.

Reapplying the runes that hid his magic, Ritsuka returned to the crowd hiding amongst it. He didn't need to figure that using his magecraft like that would be like turning on a beacon for any one who set up the Bounded Field around this city. It was faint but he could feel the magic all around him seemingly acting like an advanced warning bell.

"Okay… next step… what? I need shelter. I'm good on food for now." Ritsuka looked around the avenue. There were merely commercial stops and no sign of a hotel.

The sun continued to set and his time was growing shorter each and every moment. Guessing he needed to bite the bullet and ask someone he stopped the first person who could answer him.

"Excuse me! Miss!" Ritsuka called out to the young woman with the crimson hair and deep blue eyes flagging her down.

"Ah? Oh yes? Can I help you?" The woman looked warily at him which he understood all too well.

Ritsuka wasn't wearing the most normal of clothing. They looked more for adventuring out in the cold rather than stand within the city. The Arctic combat uniform was meant exactly for what it was meant for.

"Sorry for bothering you. I was just wondering if there were any hotels in the area. I've come to the city recently and I'm still getting my bearings." Ritsuka asked as politely as he could. He didn't want to be too obvious that he wasn't from around this city.

'Damn… lost it. And who is this guy?' Rias silently looked at the new person before her.

The guy was wearing a strange black top. It looked a bit too futuristic to be modern fashion. The grey pants were nice at the very least. Still it wasn't what caught her attention much. It was his eyes… piercing blue eyes that seemed to stare straight into her soul. His gaze made her feel… heavy. A weight further than anything she bore was hidden within that gaze. It was actually intriguing. Before she could answer Akeno had decided to make her appearance.

"Ara are… Rias you sly dog you. First boy you meet and you pounce immediately on him." Akeno's comment sent her blushing.

The boy didn't react other than a gentle smile. Akeno watched him carefully. She couldn't feel any magic on him and the activation point where she felt that magic was gone.

"Akeno! Please I'm just helping this man find a place to stay!" Rias answered her friend… making her wince because she had just revealed her name. That was a blunder on her part for letting Akeno get her so riled up.

"Name's Ritsuka. Ritsuka Fujimaru. I feel that makes us even at the very least." He answered politely.

"Akeno Himejima. Pleasure." Akeno answered quietly though the sly smile on her face hid how her eyes truly felt.

"Rias Gremory. Sorry about that I wasn't trying to be rude, I was in a hurry… anyways as for your question. There is a hotel two blocks down. Just travel further west and you'll find a small hotel that's pretty affordable." Rias answered though at that point she couldn't feel where the magic was anymore leaving the two back in the dark.

"Ah thank you very much. If you'll excuse me I need to see if they have a room available." Ritsuka, as they now knew, answered.

"Ara… you meet two beautiful women and you don't immediately hit on them. How surprising." Akeno voiced out though Rias noticed what that was for. His lack of reaction had awoken a bit of her sadistic streak. It was a common reoccurrence whenever the two went out together. They would get hit on relentlessly and Akeno's sharp tongue would cut them down to size.

She was about to apologize for her Queen's demeanor but one look into his eyes made her change her mind. He wasn't put off at all by her observation. In fact he gave her an appraising look himself. It still felt weird to look him in the eyes. That heaviness was still there but it also sent a small shiver down her spine. It was as if this was a human she didn't want to piss off at all.

Akeno, on the other hand, was a bit taken aback by how deep his stare was. It matched one she had held before when she had lost everything she ever cared for. He hid it once again but that second was all she needed.

'Oh boy Ritsuka, what did you get yourself into now?' Ritsuka pondered as he glanced over the two before him. They were heavily saturated in magic. He could tell even with his shoddy magical skills. What was supposed to be a barb, he supposed, didn't really cause him much pause..

"Oh I have no problems escorting two beautiful women should they need so. I just didn't want to be too presumptuous to impose on either of your times. You both looked to be in a hurry so I didn't want to be a bother." Ritsuka answered with a clear smile.

'Thank you Gawain for showing me how to be slightly knight like when I talk to women.' Ritsuka silently thanked the Knight of the Sun. Akeno looked to be the only one caught off guard by that. Rias looked a bit more… pleased how easily the tables were turned on her friend.

"O-oh… um. It's no problem. We weren't that busy at the moment." Akeno answered. Ritsuka didn't buy the small stutter. While he was slightly dense about some things, having a cavalcade of women after him made him learn the subtleties of how women flirt.

The woman before him reminded him slightly of BB, although with less maliciousness behind her words. She seemed to him to be one of those people who liked to be completely in control of things. Rias seemed to be in charge of the pair but that was mostly what he gleaned off of feeling their magical power.

"We could show you around the city? As the President of Kuoh Academy, it's my sworn duty to welcome new members to their new home." Rias proudly announced though Ritsuka mostly let that fly over his head.

'Kuoh Academy? Was Kuoh even a town back in Japan?' Ritsuka tried to recall but nothing came to mind of that city at all. This world was completely different from everything he ever knew. So with that in mind he decided to do what he always did whenever a new servants wanted to drag him along on some random adventure. Roll with it.

As Rias spoke about Kuoh Ritsuka got the feeling that he was dealing with the princess type of person. Unlike Osakabehime she was outgoing and very people oriented. Akeno looked a bit more tense whenever Rias called herself President though for whatever reason he didn't know why Akeno tensed up when she did. He was really glad that he had learned how to tell what others were thinking by their face alone. He wasn't always the best at it but being around Berserkers who didn't speak through any means other than roars alone he was glad to know something at the very least.

"Seems like a lot of pressure to be president of Kuoh Academy. Sounds like a lot of work." Ritsuka answered as Rias finished her spiel on the things she did.

"Oh… wait you think - I'm sorry I didn't clarify. I'm president of the Occult Research Club I meant. The president of the council is actually my rival Sona. Heh heh…" Rias did a little motion as she hit her head and stuck her tongue out to look cute. Ritsuka gave off another small smile as if he was used to it. "Anyways here we are at the hotel. Go check out and see if they have any rooms available.

"On it. Thanks for your help. I really appreciate it immensely." Ritsuka spoke before grabbing Rias hand giving her a firm handshake. When he was done he walked inside to the front desk.

"Rias? Are you okay?" Akeno stepped up to her closest friend seeing a strange look on her face. One she hadn't seen for a long time. Rias looked confused.

"Uh… yeah. I think so." Rias answered but continued to stare at her hand.

"Rias, tell me what is wrong right now." Akeno ordered which was rare as well.

"It's… well when I touched his hand I could feel magic within his clothes. It's weird but he didn't seem to notice our magic at all." Rias answered on reflex not able to find the right words for what she was feeling.

"You think this is the person we were looking for?" Akeno asked the question that had been lingering in the air since they started the walk. Akeno had suspected something strange about Ritsuka the moment he let his true face show. Those deep sad eyes mirrored her own all too well to ignore.

"I don't know. The magic his clothes are enchanted with doesn't feel the same as what I felt earlier. It could mean that someone enchanted his clothes beforehand without telling him. It could also mean that he's under a spell to travel around. He didn't even really speak about himself at all during our walk which is why I'm leaning towards that particular reason." Rias amended her observations letting Akeno think about the possibilities.

"Hm… that could mean that whoever was using magic is targeting him? Should we really leave him here in this hotel? Does he even have the money for it?" Akeno brought up small sticking points to Rias' own theories.

"Let's just wait and see. We could probably rent him a room in my home… I'll just have to make sure my brother doesn't see him." Rias tilted her head back and forth. She had the room anyways since no one actually lived in her home here on Earth aside from Akeno.

"Ara ara… so soon… ufufufufu." Akeno lightly giggled clearly enjoying teasing her King once more.

"Akeno! It's not like that!" Rias argued back once again knocked off balance by the teasing.

'Well that was a bust… no vacancies my ass!' Ritsuka groused as he stepped out of the hotel. Everything had been booked up because of reasons beyond their control. It was a poor excuse since he could see the ledger of all the guests staying and there were plenty of rooms left. Since he didn't want to make a scene, he left without incident.

"Seems I'm out of luck here ladies." Ritsuka announced to his two new companions… though he was a bit confused as to why they were still waiting for him.

"Really? That's too bad there, isn't it Rias?" Akeno lightly hip bumped Rias making her jut forward. It was at this point he noticed just how… bouncy the two of them were. He quietly cursed Gawain for teaching him the power that breasts held over mankind.

"Um… Ritsuka, if you don't have anywhere to stay right now I could allow you to rent out a room in my home?" Rias brought up clearly working through some trepidation in her offer.

"I don't want to impose on you." Ritsuka answered though if he could be more honest, he would have immediately taken her up on her offer.

"It's no trouble at all. You are starting in Kuoh come next week so it would save you time." Rias pointed out.

Internally, Ritsuka was torn. He needed to get back to Chaldea. Finding the Holy Grail fragment that seemed to come from this world was his top priority. At the same time… finally being back in school… in a normal setting was more enticing than he ever imagined it would be. The only thing missing were his loved ones…

"I'll take you up on your offer then. Though I haven't sent my paperwork through to Kuoh since I never really expected to be in town for very long." Ritsuka admitted brushing the back of his head in embarrassment though the two girls noticed that his eyes weren't actually matching his actions. They were far too deep in thought.

"I shall take care of that. I'm guessing you're a second year in high school, right?" Rias pointed out.

'Well… I was but I haven't gone back in a long time… do I look that young?' The only question on Ritsuka's mind and he didn't have time to voice it. "Yes. I am. Is there anyway to keep wearing my clothes instead of a uniform. It's something special… something given to me from a relative I'll never see again."

'Not too far from the truth… I was given this as a late gift from Chaldea's Da Vinci…" Ritsuka allowed the small frown to escape from his careful vigil.

"I'll talk with Sona tomorrow… Maybe I can convince her but just in case you might have to get a uniform." Rias stated though she seemed uncertain about his request.

"It's fine. I understand if it won't work out that way. I still appreciate the try." Ritsuka smiled, though his eyes were constantly scanning the two.

Akeno kept quiet looking at their new acquaintance. While she noticed his eyes… they weren't actually checking out either of their bodies. His eyes were constantly scanning their faces. As far as she could tell, the mystery of Ritsuka Fujimaru grew and grew. Rias began leading the way all the while the quiet Ritsuka followed along.

And even as the two sashayed and strutted a bit Ritsuka's eyes remained stoic and unchanged.

Far away…

Rizevim Livan Lucifer, the worse of all devils, the one who led a successful raid on Heaven stood slightly flummoxed. His plan to unseal Trihexa had seemingly gone off the rails before it had even started. He wasn't sure whether to be angry… or elated with the reason for this occurring.

He had tried to break a world which seemed to have its own form of time space travel already in play… but the moment he touched that energy his entire operation was completely wiped from existence. It was almost as if the world itself had decided that Trihexa didn't deserve to exist before it was shunted out into the void. His ability to actually continue making those portals was also sealed… it was strange but he wasn't even the slightest bit angry at it either.

Something better had appeared… something more powerful than that abomination was before him. He had scoffed at how foolish others had been to think that there was anything stronger than the threat that Trihexa brought to the table but that had been too naive on his behalf. This was much more terrifying and for the life of him he couldn't actually tell why.

Floating in the spot where the former prison of Trihexa were nine cards. Each of the black cards held a blood red sigil on their backs each with a red roman numerals seemingly carved into the thin cards. There was a power within them… power which far acceded the known limits of the world itself. It almost hurt to look at them… and then he took a step forward.

As if in answer to his brazen act eight of the cards delved into shadows before dissolving from that plain of existence melding into the new world around them. The only one left remained floating on the spot. Rizevim was beside himself, livid in an impotent rage he couldn't actually release because he would have to admit that he fucked up. Ignoring the scathing remarks his mind made up about him he looked over the card that was left.

Then a word came to mind… based only on the sight of the roman numeral carved upon said card. It wormed its way into his mind and he soon regretted it. His mind was forcefully torn and memories were catalogued and archived if useful… barely anything was. Then a voice escaped his lips… a voice that wasn't Rizevim anymore.

"Pity…"

Full story on /works/21350530/chapters/50853424