ARGH! LATE, LATE, LATE! I KNOW! I'M SORRY!

Seriously, I didn't think the second COVID vaxx dose would take me out for so long, but it did, and so here we are. I will strive to make sure this never happens again! Again, sorry!

Master seemed only slightly less furious when she eventually returned from… wherever it was she had stormed off to. Yet the silence remained as the night set in proper, neither of us saying a word. I wasn't going to push her to speak either. When she felt up to it, she would do so on her own accord. I knew from experience that the temperament of nobles was not to be tested.

"…We should have just killed him, outcome be damned!"

The sound of one of the garbage bins being sent clattering into a wall gave away her feelings well enough, to say nothing of the words chosen.

"I can always pick him off the next time I see him" I kept the majority of my attention focused on the city, scanning the streets for any targets. "But, for what it's worth, I do think playing it safe is the correct call."

"If we killed him, that was either Caster or Assassin gone and dealt with!"

"Potentially, yes. But we don't know if they would have simply found another method to remain in this war. What you do know, though, is that if what that master said is true, and you're the reason that information was sent out all over the world, this Mage's Association of yours would have your head, no?"

"They couldn't possibly fault me for that!"

"You think they'd care? You're nobility, no? You should know better than most that, in situations like those, someone has to take the fall; guilt is irrelevant. You really think they wouldn't have you take the fall for something like that?"

"W-Well, I-"

"Master, I don't know much about the world of you mages and all, but human behavior is predictable because it doesn't change. You would be dead in a week if this Mage's Association is as powerful as you've made it out to be."

"Isn't that what you're here for? To protect me?"

"To an extent" I laughed. "What I'm here for is the grail. Well, not even that, in all honesty. I really just wanted to get back in the action; get a good fight in or two. Wasting away in the Throne is boring. Of course, you have my loyalty, and not just because you're my master. But even I have limits, and I'm not exactly the most powerful Heroic Spirit out there, you know? If an army of mages shows up wanting you dead, I'm not sure how it'll go down. I never fought mages in life."

"So we just let that insufferable little shit go?!"

"Again, it's the correct call. From what we've seen, he doesn't have a good relationship with his servant. He's not a threat as a master. Now, what you told me about how he seemed to grasp Berserker's True Name is interesting, but it's not like he can do that with me."

"That's… true… But I still don't like it! Just letting him off with such blatant disrespect to his betters!"

"He's a peasant, master. What peasant doesn't curse out and disrespect the nobility? Granted, usually not to their face, but if you think peasants truly think highly of you just because they show you the expected respect to your face, you would really benefit from getting out more; put on a disguise and hang around with the peasants a bit."

"Why does it seem like you're taking his side all the time, Archer?!"

"It's not about taking sides, master... but what can I say? I like the guy. Reminds me of myself in my younger years. Being a disruptive troublemaker, rebelling against the other nobles like my father and causing them massive headaches… It's why I was exiled. My time in exile, working as a mercenary, and the adventures I had… I would be lying is I said I didn't miss them. Much preferred them to being the little nobleman."

"Yes, I'm well aware of your history, Archer."

"So yeah, I can't say I want to kill the guy" I admitted. "Now, I will if I need to, or if you expressly order it. But I'd prefer not to."

"Doubt it will do any good" master snorted dismissively. "He won't be so careless again. This was the only opportunity I had to take him prisoner, and look how it turned out!"

"Quite well, if I do say so myself. We learned that he is not a real threat to us, and that he is quite unkillable by us as well. Just imagine if I'd picked him off by accident in a fight or something? It's one thing to intentionally pick a fight when you're ready for it, but if this Mage's Association just seemingly randomly sent an army of mages after you? That would put us in a real bind. Also, he was technically more my prisoner than yours, considering I'm the one who spotted him and pointed him out to you."

"Hmph!"

"…But actually, on that note-"

"That was the first time you saw him since the fight, wasn't it?"

"…Yes, actually" I blinked in surprise. "Quite astute of you, master. I find that… troubling. I can see the entire city from here. Now, the fact that I haven't seen Berserker since that night suggest he and his master are hiding outside the city, which makes sense; Berserker's are typically hard to control, let alone hide. Of course, I also have no idea who I'm looking for in terms of the seventh master, so no luck on that front either. But the other masters? I can see them all constantly. Except for him. Even when I saw him earlier today… It was more like a fluke than anything. At least, that's how it feels…"

"…What are you suggesting, Archer? He can't be getting concealed by magic; the only magical trace on him was the sword."

"I know; it's not magic. It's hard for me to put into words, but…" I struggled to find the right way to put my thoughts into words.

"But what?"

"It's like he has no… presence. If that makes sense?"

"You mean like Presence Concealment? He's not a servant, Archer."

"No, not like Presence Concealment. It's not a lack of a physical presence. At least not only that. How do I… Master, you would say he annoyed you when you first met him, yes?"

"Quite a bit, yes…"

"You remember those you dislike, right?"

"Obviously."

"Right, people tend to do that."

"What's your point here Archer?"

"Until I pointed him out to you today, did you even remember he existed?"

"Of course I- Um… Uh…"

A silence set in, proving my point.

"As I thought" I sighed. "It was the same for me. Like, I knew he was a master from the fight, but until I saw him today, I didn't even remember him. It was only by pure fluke that I happened to see him walking the streets today, and it hit me that, oh yeah, he is one of the masters."

"Then, when you say he has no presence, you mean…"

"I mean he has no presence at all. It's as if his entire existence is so… insignificant, that I can't even register the fact he exists the vast majority of the time. It's like no matter how much I try or how much I want to, I just can't… remember him. It's like he has no place in this world."