Chapter 11
Taking refuge in an abandoned building as crazed beasts roam endlessly in the darkness outside is not the wisest of plans, but Lord El-Melloi II had no choice but to go along with it. He looked over at the Master and the Demi-Servant and noticed that both were leaning against each other, fast asleep.
He adjusted his glasses as he heard the thundering sound of hooves, and thunder itself.
"Hyaaaaaah!" shouted a voice, one that was enough to match the flashes of lightning and the loud crackling of thunder. The Lord merely observed as wave upon wave of these crazed beasts fell to the hand of this…monster.
"The power that struck down the Qin Dynasty, further utilized and enhanced in the Chinese Lostbelt…all under the command of a young man." He spoke, giving out a slight chuckle. "How lucky are we to have him on our side…" he added, as he lit a cigar.
As he continued with his observation, and as the renowned warlord Xiang Yu battled against these bloodthirsty foes, another figure stepped out, and aided the monstrous warlord in its battle.
The Lord puffed out smoke and felt a shiver down his spine as this woman plunged her hands and tore these beasts one by one, all with an unchanging cold glare on her face.
He looked back at the Master and saw that they were still resting peacefully. He went back with his smoking, and observing.
"The lady that remained by the Warlord's side until his untimely demise: The Beauty by the Beast…surprising to see that she is practically immortal." He spoke, continuing in with his smoke.
The moment their eyes met, Lord El-Melloi II almost dropped his cigar out of genuine fear.
"Truly a cataclysmic pair." He further added.
Lightning flashed, and thunder clapped. At that very moment, Lord El-Melloi II merely saw the eyes of a harbinger, and those of a supernatural creature by the harbinger's side.
As he adjusted his glasses again, he saw that the beasts were all gone. It began to rain.
He sighed, finishing his smoke and throwing it at the pile of wood they gathered earlier. He snapped his fingers and it went up to flames. The fire was put out earlier as he sensed the presence of these creatures.
Which was the reason as to why they were huddled in an abandoned building in the first place.
The two then approached them, and he steeled himself.
"Your tactics were reckless, human." sharply spoke Yu Mei-ren, and Xiang Yu merely stood guard outside. "But our situation upon Rayshifting was indeed dire, so I suppose your efforts are to be commended." She added, and the Lord merely bowed down.
"Your words elate me, Consort, but I do not deserve such wondrous praises." He replied. "Tch, you humans are all the same…" she simply replied, as she now walked towards the sleeping Master.
Lord El-Melloi II sighed. Xiang Yu then turned and spoke to him. "My beloved may appear to have not acknowledged your efforts, but indeed, your mind is as sharp as my own, tactician. The name of "Sleeping Dragon" truly fits you." He remarked, and once again, the Lord bowed down.
"I am honored to have been of use to the mighty warlord Xiang Yu." He spoke.
"Seeing as he's sleeping, Lord Xiang Yu and I will go around and see if we can find where these beasts came from. That would certainly be where the Holy Grail is, right?" Yu Mei-ren then asked, and the Lord merely nodded.
"We would also be able to reestablish communications once we find the source, although, there could be a possibility that we should go into deeper territory to—"
He was cutoff by the sound of galloping hooves. The two has already left them in the abandoned building.
He sighed, and chuckled. "They're quite the troublesome pair, too. Reminds me of some students in the Clock Tower…" he spoke, and as he was about to reach for a smoke, arms wrapped around him.
He sighed.
"Lady Skadi, you were hiding all this time." He spoke. It wasn't a question, rather, it was an obvious statement.
"I-I was afraid of those two…" she softly spoke. He sighed again.
"Whoa, you all looked like you had it rough!" commented Da Vinci as the team was Rayshifted back to Chaldea.
"Welcome back~!" greeted Sion. Goredolf patted Ritsuka by the shoulder. "Another job well done, as expected as always." He spoke, and Ritsuka merely bowed as thanks to all of them.
Mash did the same.
Xiang Yu and Yu Mei-ren came next, and while they were congratulated too, it was Xiang Yu who received them.
The last ones that showed were, of course, the two Casters that Ritsuka brought along this perilous minute Singularity.
Scathach-Skadi was still hiding behind the Lord, as she was still weary, and genuinely afraid of the pair that came before them.
"If only we knew we were going to fight a giant Dragon, we should've brought a Dragon Slayer with us." Spoke Lord-El Melloi II.
"Well the important thing is you all got back!" simply spoke Da Vinci, and the Lord chuckled, finally showing a relieved smile. "I suppose so. If it weren't obvious with the Lady Skadi, those two really are scary." He then replied, referring to the Consort and her beloved.
Ritsuka simply yawned. Mash then looked at him. "Still tired, senpai?" she asked, and Ritsuka nodded. "I'll be in my room if you need me…" he spoke, patting her head and going on ahead.
Mash merely waved him goodbye and went back to Da Vinci to see if she was needed elsewhere.
Yu Mei-ren merely stared at her Master.
"My beloved, is something bothering you?" Xiang Yu then asked, and the woman sighed. She looked at him and smiled sweetly. "There is, Lord Xiang Yu…I don't know if I should keep ignoring it…" she admitted.
The two then walked out of the Command Room and are now walking down the hallway.
"If this is regarding your conversation with the Master a few days ago, then I suppose it would indeed be more troubling if you didn't speak what you really feel." He then spoke, and Yu was shocked.
"But Lord Xiang Yu…!" she tried to speak in protest, but a hand then went on top of her head. Xiang Yu patted her head lovingly.
"My beloved, it is alright. He is our Master, we must always answer to him, and naturally, if there is something that troubles him, we do all that we can to make sure he's back in proper form." He explained, and Yu Mei-ren held onto the hand on top of her head, sighing.
"Very well, I shall go to him. I…did have something to give, too…" she spoke, and she went on her way towards the Master's room.
Smiling, Xiang Yu then went back to the Command Room, as he really had nowhere else to go.
Ritsuka Fujimaru yawned again as he exited the bathroom, already fully clothed in casual sleepwear. The towel was still on his head, as his hair was still wet.
He clearly was exhausted, as one: the minute Singularity they went was absolutely perilous, and two: he explicitly ordered Xiang Yu and Yu Mei-ren to not hold back, as it was their only way of surviving. As such, the two Servants needed a hefty amount of Mana.
He's thankful that the Lord El-Melloi II took over him in advising and decision-making.
He then sat on the bed, wiping his hair with the towel, and had the intent of falling on the bed, were it not for someone's back to halt his fall.
"You look pretty rough still, Master." Spoke the Consort, as she was reading a book.
Maybe it was due to exhaustion, but Ritsuka didn't seem to mind her being here, although he was surprised.
"How did you get in?" he softly asked. Yu Mei-ren scoffed. "You forget that I'm an Assassin, Master." She replied, and Ritsuka yawned again. "Ah…right…" he softly replied.
They sat there in silence, back to back, both seemingly comfortable with each other's company.
Ritsuka found it harder to remain awake, but amidst his weariness, he surmised that there was a reason the Consort is in his room.
"Something wrong, Yu senpai?" he asked, not an ounce of hesitation present from his tired voice.
"It's been…a while ever since I came here to Chaldea." Yu Mei-ren began. She closed the book she was reading and left it on the side.
She huddled herself while she let the Master lean on her back.
"I learned of many things. I experienced strange ones too, and I even got the chance to be reunited with Lord Xiang Yu…" she spoke, and Ritsuka couldn't help but smile.
'I like her voice now. Her words sound much more genuine this way…' he simply thought. As they were bound by contract, Yu Mei-ren heard of the Master's thoughts, and blushed.
She cleared her voice. "What I'm simply trying to say is…were it not for you, I wouldn't have experienced all of this." She continued.
As she turned around, the Master gently fell on her lap, peacefully sleeping.
She smiled, and caressed his hair.
She then leaned down and gave him a soft kiss on the lips.
"Thank you, Master. You really are an outstanding one." She remarked.
Ritsuka Fujimaru woke up to an unexpected sight: Yu Mei-ren was beside him, sleeping as well.
The room was dark, and he saw something on the bedside table. Wanting not to wake up the sleeping Consort, he carefully got out of the bed.
He opened the lamp to dim light, and saw that it was a book. There was a piece of paper beside it: a note.
Written by Yu Mei-ren no less.
The Master gently got up, note in hand, and turned off the lamp as he went towards the bathroom. He didn't want to disturb the sleeping woman.
He began to read.
"I don't need this anymore, so you can have it. It wasn't a particularly interesting book to begin with. I already skimmed through it multiple times, and I even tried reading it literally sideways and upside-down. But there's still no way for me to understand human sensibility. Telling me to enjoy it is a tall order in itself.
It did come in handy though, especially as here in Chaldea, no one was ever willing to bother somebody who was trying to read. And for that alone, this place was definitely better than many others I could have spent my time in.
That's right. This book was a shield with which I could deceive others. That's why I don't need this anymore. After all, there's no need for me to lie about my origins anymore, now is there?"
As he finished reading, he realized that his eyes were teary. He merely chuckled to himself.
Indeed, it was a touching note.
He went out of the bathroom, quickly turning the light off and placing the note back on the bedside table before he went back to the bed.
He huddled closer to Yu, wrapping his arms around her even more, and gave her a peck on the lips.
"Thank you…" he whispered.
I've written this one well. I'm satisfied.
- The Void Sprinter
