Chapter 14


"I only wish I could protect you in your dreams, too."

Those words rang in my mind profoundly. The way she spoke it was soft, almost far, and yet it kept on repeating loudly whenever I remember it.

All I see is darkness, and the only sound present was her voice repeating those words over and over.

Until eventually, a different word was muttered.

"Master?" she called out, and suddenly, light enveloped my vision.

The darkness was gone, and all I could see was…a golden field of cherry blossom petals, with some of them even flowing through the direction of a wind that I cannot feel.

"You are sleeping peacefully. I'm glad." Her voice spoke.

I looked around, yet I did not see her.

"We are not to meet here, Master. Dreams end once the dreamer wakes." She told me, and within the blink of an eye, I was back at the darkness.

Strangely enough, I felt even more peaceful when I was in that place.


"Hold fast, Master!" shouted Arthur, as Ritsuka grabbed his hand. He was then raised, well, thrown upwards, with Mash catching him. "Arthur!" he shouted, and the King of Knights jumped to the platform as well.

Everyone around them was burning.

Arthur took off his hood, to get a better view of what they were facing.

"That Grail is already corrupted! We can't retrieve it anymore!" then spoke Da Vinci into the comms. "Only way to stop this minute Singularity from becoming a full blown one is to destroy it!" she added.

"I see…" spoke Ritsuka, looking at his Command Seals. He can use all of them to boost Arthur as he uses his Noble Phantasm.

"The Grail's flames are swallowing this entire place whole." Observed Arthur, and Mash noticed it too.

"The minute Singularity is collapsing! Da Vinci!" then called out Mash.

"Sion and I are already doing preparations to Rayshift you all out of there, but we need a full minute!"

"We'll get toasted in less than a minute!" interjected the Master, as he got off of Mash and put a hand on Arthur's shoulder. "Don't do anything rash. We'll leave this place together." He spoke, and Arthur chuckled. "I am contracted with you, my Master. My journey is far from over, but I have decided to tread that path with you." He then added, and Ritsuka gave out a sigh of relief.

"Alright then, how do we deal with this?" he asked, as Mash followed them.

Arthur clutched his Excalibur. "I can try and remove more Seals from Excalibur, but that would take a toll on both of us…" he spoke.

The flames grew larger, and the Grail itself was engulfed in its hellish glow. The fires in turn became a large entity.

It attacked the three of them, but Mash was quicker. As she shielded them, Arthur began to swing at the flames.

"Rayshift ready! Everyone hold still!" shouted Da Vinci.

While the flames were being blocked, it eventually encircled them.

"No time!" spoke Arthur, as he began holding his blade tighter on the handle.

"It was all a dream…" then spoke a woman's voice.

The three of them stopped, and the flames were all extinguished, and instead were replaced with falling cherry blossom petals.

The hellish burning of the corrupted Grail, the cause of this minute Singularity all vanished, with the Grail itself remaining.

As the three of them stood still, Ritsuka saw a familiar form.

A woman wearing a kimono, gracefully moving towards the Grail with her equally graceful blade.

"…naught but a withered flower."

They only saw a flash, and they were all Rayshifted back to Chaldea. To safety.

"That was close…" sighed out Sion, as Da Vinci approached them.

"Are you guys alright?" she asked, checking on Mash, and then the Master.

The King of Knights is fine, but he was concerned over that person he saw.

"Shiki…" silently called out Ritsuka.


The Master of Chaldea was much more tired today than usual. His body wanted nothing more than to collapse onto his bed, to pass out until morning comes.

And yet his mind was still erratic, still pumped.

His mind was telling him something. He is going to meet her today.

Someone important.

As Ritsuka entered his room, he didn't see the usual Servants hanging around, but instead, a new, albeit familiar, face.

"Oh, hey there Master. Sorry for coming in without notice." The short haired girl spoke. She was wearing nothing but a white long-sleeved shirt, and—

"I am wearing something underneath, Master." She spoke, annoyed. Ritsuka blushed and looked away.

"I-I'm sorry!" he immediately apologized, bowing down.

"Well, it is true that I am stuck and I do want to get back to where I was as soon as possible, but my life here isn't all bad." She replied, and as Ritsuka went back to standing properly, confused to what she just said, the girl then gave her a smile. "Its quite comfortable this way." She added.

That smile was something Ritsuka never expected from her.

"…Shiki." He spoke. "Hm? That's me. Something wrong, Master?" she then asked.

Ritsuka rubbed his eyes for a moment, and groaned a bit. He wasn't missing anything, surely?

He's aware of the circumstances regarding the existence of Ryougi Shiki, but he still can't help but get some whiplash when it comes to seeing her in a…different light.

A spoon was then gently shoved to his mouth. He tasted strawberry.

On the girl's other hand, Ritsuka saw a small, circular tub of Häagen-Dazs' strawberry flavored ice cream.

"You've been quite stressed and tense lately, it pays to cool off you know." Shiki told him.

She then proceeded to eat the ice cream, not even minding of the indirect kiss the two had.

Shiki sat on the bed, and urged him to follow suit.

"Ah, let me freshen up first, alright?" Ritsuka then told her, and she shrugged. She continued eating her ice cream as the Master frantically went to get his towel and change of clothes.


"Huh, you're quite comfortable, Master." Shiki remarked, as she was leaning her back on the Master's chest. Ritsuka was unsure of what to do next, but then Shiki looked at him.

"Aren't you going to hug me or something?" she asked, and Ritsuka blushed.

"W-Well…if its alright with you…" he replied, and Shiki laughed. "Its fine, you know." She spoke.

"…and its not like I'd hate it…" she muttered to herself.

As the Master wrapped his arms around Shiki's stomach, he was able to, surprisingly, calm down. Shiki continued eating her ice cream.

They were comfortably seated on the bed for a few minutes until the Master decided to ask her something.

"About you wanting to go back…" he started, trailing off. He was unsure where this conversation was headed.

"I already told you that my life here isn't all bad." She repeated, as she continued eating.

"I see. That's good to hear." Ritsuka replied, and Shiki, with the spoon in her mouth, then rested her head on the crook of his neck. Ritsuka blushed.

Shiki removed the spoon from her mouth. "And…I can't leave you alone." She softly spoke. The redness of Ritsuka's cheeks only got worse. He was not used to being flustered, but he was trying his best to calm down.

"I think I might have to see this through to the end..." she added.

Shiki finished eating her ice cream, and set the empty tub on the bedside table, alongside the spoon.

"You're kind, Shiki." Ritsuka found himself saying. This didn't catch the girl off guard but it was enough to make her blush.

"You're…kinder." She replied, and the Master chuckled.

"I don't mind you staying here at all. I feel much more at ease with you around…" the Master softly spoke, as he began to kiss her exposed neck.

"Nnngh…M-Master, what are you—hnn~!" Shiki tried asking, but as Ritsuka's hands began to touch her chest, she became even more flustered, and felt hotter.

Ritsuka then stopped what he was doing. "Ah s-sorry! I didn't ask…" he then said, and Shiki went back place her head on the crook of his neck. "I-I'm fine, Ritsuka…go ahead." She softly spoke.

It was more of an invitation than anything else, but the Master simply nodded. He went and kissed Shiki, as he continued on with touching her chest.

Shiki was easily overcome with emotion, but she knew better than to give in. She let the Master go on with his slow and steady pace. Shiki knew that he was being gentle, and she couldn't help but be fond of him even more because of how considerate he is.

Ritsuka broke away from the kiss, and Shiki smiled at him. She was the one who initiated another kiss as the Master began unbuttoning the long-sleeved shirt she was wearing.


Oh don't worry: Void Shiki will have her spotlight pretty soon.

- The Void Sprinter