It was late December, the first month of winter.

Sakura wrapped the coat around her, enjoying the warmth it provided. Something which she wasn't able to experience before. Usually, everyone at the village could only wear a wool cloth over themselves to combat the cold. By that point, everyone would be staying at home keeping warm around the fire.

Hard to imagine that more than a year had gone by since her kidnapping. To Sakura, remembering her memories of the village seemed like that of an old life to her.

Many things had happened since then.

Two years ago, she wouldn't even have known how to read and write, much less know the names for each month.

If she was still in her village, they would've called this month simply as "early winter".

To think each part of a season had names…

Sakura's breath appeared as a frosty mist in front of her.

She and Garamm were walking down an alley of shops. It was the day before winter solstice and her teacher was kind enough to spend their last day enjoying the city.

Tomorrow, they will pass through the Eastern Grand Continental Gate outside the city.

The Gates were created hundreds of years ago, and the city was slowly built near it to accommodate the traffic. The aptly named East Gate City had become the center of commerce in the east. Its central position and connection to the gate was the perfect combination to form a major hub.

Garamm paused in the middle of the street. Around them, people of many nationalities walked, going about their day. Just like the pair, most of the people were foreigners in the city. Foreigners meant business and the locals took advantage of the solstices to boost their profits, in addition to what they earned from the rest of the year.

East Gate City was called the center of commerce in the east after all.

"So, where is this cafe you mentioned?" Her mentor asked.

"It's up ahead, but keep your eyes downward." Sakura answered.

The cafe was easy to miss if you only paid attention to the buildings and shops on the street sides. People were accustomed to looking from left to right, not up and down.

The pair continued walking until they reached an intersection. Garamm raised an eyebrow at the cafe. It was definitely distinctive with its location compared to the others he had seen.

In the middle of the intersection, under their very feet, was a cafe. The paved roads ended and the entire intersection was a transparent layer that separated the shop below and the road above. It was visible, but only some noticed, while others casually walked over it nonchalantly.

Garamm stood there searching for the entrance. His eyes moved across all corners of the cafe roof.

There appeared to be none.

Sakura giggled. The entrance wasn't above the cafe. The last time she came here, she had to look for the entrance. Sakura tugged on Garamm's dark trench coat. He watched her nod to the sidewalk. In the indicated direction was a weird looking doorway that looked like it led to nowhere.

Withholding his question, Garamm opted to follow his protege.

Sakura walked into the doorway, then promptly fell in front of his eyes.

How odd.

Garamm approached the entrance with caution before falling through it himself. It was like he passed through a layer of water, sinking down slowly then landing on some sort of platform. The underwater sensation disappeared once he vacated the liquid passage into the main area of the cafe.

The noise from the street above was completely nullified, replaced by the cafe's soothing atmosphere.

The first thing that stood out was how the ceiling stayed transparent, letting the people see the passing crowds above. Second was the general shape of the cafe.

It was going downward.

In front of them was a highest area, right underneath the intersection. Two more floors appeared further below when seen from the balcony overlooking them.

The cafe was medium-sized when seen from the intersection, but the total area must've been at least thrice what was shown above.

Under the balcony Garamm stood at, another balcony extended underneath, followed by the bottom layer. Tables and guests sprinkled throughout the cafe, along with balls of light flying around, illuminating the place with a nice warm hue.

The source of the music came from a live band playing far down below at the first floor. They were playing a tune that elevated the cafe's nice atmosphere.

Compared to other establishments, this place was a good find. The fact that Sakura was able to discover the cafe was already noteworthy, seeing as the city was massive.

"D-do you like it? I-I thought that you needed a break too…" Sakura mumbled shyly.

Garamm blinked. Had it been that obvious that he was tired? He made sure to keep up appearances, which made it all the more impressive that Sakura had noticed.

He patted the little girl's head gently.

"Thank you, Sakura. I'll make sure to enjoy this break."

Sakura brightened at the gesture. Then she led the way to a table.

They spent the rest of the day in the cafe relaxing. Sakura continued reading her books while Garamm spent the time enjoying the drinks the cafe could offer.

...

Sakura stood with Garamm on top of their elevated platform. The earth construct underneath them was convenient, separating them from the throng of the masses as everyone bunches up together in front of the massive archway outside the East Gate City.

The humongous archway was going to open at midnight, and already, tens of thousands of people had lined up before the activation.

Sakura watched the long line of glowing lights illuminating the massive queue. It was like looking at a polka-dotted rainbow trying to form a straight line. The entire group was on the opposite side of the gateway, facing away from the city.

The idea was simple, the side facing the city will be for the incoming traffic, directing them straight to the city. The outgoing traffic was arranged opposite the city, because they were already leaving.

Sakura watched as soldiers and officers maintained control from the sides, corralling the people like a herd of sheep as best as they could.

Soon, the gate would open and they would pass through to the other side.

To the Central Continent.

Sakura was thankful for the platform Garamm conjured. It would've been hard for her to stand with him inside that mass of limbs called a line. More than likely, she would've been squished.

"Sakura, it's starting." Garamm informed his student.

Sakura couldn't see any changes at the gate itself, but she sensed the slow build up of energy in the area. She looked up at the full moon directly overhead in the sky, noting how it seemed closer.

Much much closer.

It wasn't a small white ball in the sky anymore. The moon was close enough for Sakura to see what seemed like craters on its face.

But her attention immediately returned to the gateway as the energy spiked further, a thrumming sensation in the air danced on her skin. The magical power being generated was immense, to the point that it was starting to reverberate on the physical world.

It rose higher and higher.

Sakura hid behind Garamm nervously. It required this much magical power? Up until that point, her master was the strongest magic conduit she had ever seen.

The gate must've been a thousand times stronger.

The energy being built up had to go somewhere. Could the gate really manage all of it? One mistake and the congregated mana would blow up sky high. Erasing everything around it, including the city.

Madness. Whoever created these gates were either ingenious, or suicidal.

Then, the thrum of energy disappeared.

Sakura blinked as the gate spiraled to life in front the edges, meeting in the middle. Bright blue light emanated from the gate, basking the environment in its hue. The space in the middle looked like a glowing blue whirlpool that wanted to suck everything inside.

Then, groups of soldiers and adventurers entered ahead of the procession. One by one disappearing into its depths.

"What are they doing?" Sakura asked. "Are they testing the gate?"

"Yes and more. The world inside the gate is a dangerous place, they have to set up guards on the path so that no civilians fall off." Garamm answered her question.

"F-fall off?" She asked nervously.

How could you even fall off during teleportation? Does the gate just drop you in the middle of nowhere? What if you just disintegrate as your body splits across space like dust?

"Don't worry. The teleportation gate is safe, it's the world inside that we need to be careful of."

Half an hour later, the Sakura spotted movement at the front of the group. People were moving into the portal and going through it. Garamm took the queue and maneuvered his platform forwards.

Once again, Sakura was thankful for the convenience. The pair flee over the crowd towards the portal.

"Are they going to stop us?" She asked. It didn't seem fair that they were practically skipping the line.

"No. As non-civilians, we are responsible for our actions and safety. They will still watch over us, but if we get ourselves in an accident, we'll pay a hoard of cash for the delays in transit."

That seemed fair to Sakura.

The master-student pair flee through the portal and into the other side.

"Huh?" Sakura gaped as they emerged into a sort of limbo.

In front of them was a large bridge, and another, then another. Curved ramps, stairs, moving platforms dotted about amongst a backdrop of a blue-purple expanse.

White bricked roads led to and fro, in a diverse set of directions. Some were upside down, others going diagonally.

"W-what's going on?"

"The portals are not really teleportation gates. They are anchors, tied into the World Labyrinth."

Sakura snapped back to her master. What did he mean?

"In reality, the gates don't have the means to cross tens of thousands of kilometers. Instead, they anchor in stable exit points at the space in-between our layer, and the one underneath."

Garamm turned towards Sakura.

"Everything you hear now, please keep it a secret. Do not share this information with anyone unless you absolutely trust them."

Sakura nodded. Whatever her teacher was about to share was clearly a secret.

"The Realm of Man and other Realms are all leaves of what is known as the World Tree. Underneath the conceptual form of our Realm exists the branches that connect us to the Tree and one another."

Sakura glimpsed downwards into the purple-blue abyss below. Somewhere underneath all that was the branches that connected their Realm with many others.

What if you fell?

She shuddered thinking about it. No wonder this was kept a secret.

It was dangerous.

If anyone learned about the risks of this gate, then nobody would willingly take it.

"How did people get convinced that using this route was a good idea?"

"The people in charge assure that death is not likely when falling off. As a teleportation gateway, people who fall off teleport to the closest exit from where they fell."

Garamm paused at this. A grim expression on his face.

"That's not true. Expeditions have been formed in the past and none have returned. As far as we know, they have fallen somewhere else, deeper, farther, we don't know."

He shook his head. "Back to our topic."

"The gates we have interact with the topmost layer of the World Labrynth, which is already on the edge of the branches to our realm. There are more layers below but we have no records or discoveries yet."

Sakura couldn't even fathom how deep the branches were. If the World Labrynth was just the branch tip, what about the stem? Currently, they were already on the exterior of said labryinth. Which made it harder to imagine.

"The concept of space is warped in the Labryinth, which is how we essentially cut down the distance between both exit points. At the same time, all other types of magic also become unstable."

The deeper one travels to the Root, or the World Tree in this case, the more complex the concept becomes. Humans as a new species have yet to even comprehend a concept beyond their realm.

Shirou's original world didn't understand how far they truly were from Akasha. Even this new world had some idea of the relative distance between them and the Root. But that was mostly because they had gained wisdom from other older species.

"Is it safe to test?" Sakura meekly asked.

"Absolutely. But you will find that the effects of your spell will be far weaker." Her mentor replied.

Sakura casted a simple light spell, and was surprised her usual ball of light appeared a small flickering spark, before it died out.

"Every spell acts like that here. That's why more emphasis is placed on physical ability and personal comprehension of yourself. That way, any magic enacted within your body is stronger than any used outside of it."

Sakura was starting to be nervous about the trip. She had wondered why only a few guards and adventurers carried around staff.

Most of them were melee combatants. Just in case any external factors came into play.

But in terms of magical protection? Not much.

She was going to have to work harder if she didn't want to be caught unprepared. Sakura had felt weak before, and today was one of them.

Sakura didn't want to feel helpless ever again. Just like that day she got kidnapped.

The rest of the journey passed in silence.

As they neared the exit, Sakura quietly reflected.

Before Garamm…no. Before her abduction, her entire world had been the village. The world was a distant idea, nothing she thought much about. An idle curiosity perhaps, but never could she imagine just how big and exciting it all was.

The past year and a half was like a dream.

Being saved from slavery, becoming a student of a mage, travelling all over the nation.

Learning magic, tasting food, getting clothes.

It was all fun, more than Sakura wanted to admit.

Which made it all the worse for the festering guilt inside of her.

Returning to the village.

Long ago, she would've immediately jumped at the idea to return.

Now? Sakura wasn't sure if she wanted to return.

After everything she learned, after each experience discovered. It was becoming harder and harder to imagine returning to the village. Could she really return to that boring old life?

Sakura nervously glanced at the looming gate.

For now, she would just follow the route ahead of her and see where it leads.

Unfortunately for her, the country girl from the Fujimura Village was slowly disappearing, replaced by the student of Garamm El-Melloi Archisorte.

Sakura was beginning to change.


3 months after the Winter Solstice.

Sakura watched with rapt attention as their magical carriage arrived at a seaside town. The enhanced transport was prepared by the El-Melloi family once the pair arrived in Central Gate City.

She didn't even get to set a foot in the city before being whisked on the ride along with her mentor. Apparently, the people who prepared the carriage wanted Garamm back as soon as possible.

The past 3 months had been spent travelling with few breaks, and now, they had finally arrived at their location.

While it wasn't the Albion Isles, it was quite close. Just being directly across the sea from the said homeland of the El-Melloi families.

What Sakura learned was that there were other families also whose origins were in the Albion Isles. Said families being the other 6 major families of the New World Association. Naturally, the families would band together and create a united settlement to act as a port between the Albion Isles and the central continent.

As such, the Alcentra city was born. A combination between the names Albion and Central, the city was the major hub of trade for the 6 major Albion families and the central continent.

It wasn't the headquarters of the New World Association, but was considered to be one of its vital branches.

"Sakura, once we arrive I need you to be on your best behaviour." Garamm uttered while handing her an emblem.

"This magical emblem will give you permission to enter the boundaries of the El-Melloi compound in Alcentra. Our host has received news of our arrival and is waiting for us already."

Sakura wasn't prepared yet. Garamm had mentioned that their host was the same person she would be serving in the future. Was nearly 2 years of training enough? What if she disappointed the host? Would Garamm help her?

Nervousness creeped in and she unsuccessfully tried to ward them off. Each minute passing by increased the anxiety building within.

Garamm read the mood that his apprentice was in. He reached over and reassuringly patted the nervous girl.

"Just present yourself as best as you can. Considering your abilities, I doubt she would turn you away."

Sakura nodded. She could trust Garamm's words. Just a little, her mood lightened, allowing her to focus on calming down for the introduction.

The carriage entered a large gated compound. Inside, expansive gardens surrounded a grand white manor. Numerous servants could be seen tending to the gardens while their carriage drove past.

They stopped in front of the main entrance. An entourage of butlers and maids stood on both sides to greet them. In the front stood an elder butler leading the group.

"Lord Garamm, we have awaited your return. The Master wishes to meet you right away." The butler greeted him.

"We will meet them at the entrance. Please send word." The elder magus replied.

They were led into the manor right afterwards. Sakura glanced at the atrium decor idly, already slightly accustomed to the grandiose displays that were commonly seen when attending events with her teacher.

It seemed as if every host they met competed to impress Garamm.

"Sorry for the small accommodations, but this was the only available El-Melloi compound in the city right now. If you desire, we could request a family member to surrender a better location for such a meeting Lord Garamm."

"This manor will do. I doubt rescheduling the date would matter."

Boisterous laughter erupted from the direction of the grand staircase leading up to the second floor, followed by loud footsteps.

A large bearded man wearing a red robe appeared before them over the second floor railing. Fiery red hair, a large grin, a powerful overwhelming aura. He held a silver goblet in hand, took a swig at its contents, then greeted the newcomers exuberantly.

"Hahaha! So these are the people that managed to move you away from your studies young Waver? And here I thought only your mentor Kayneth could drag your attention."

A young man in his 20s appeared right beside the hulking giant with a hand to his forehead.

"Please Iskandar, don't just run off like that. I'm supposed to be responsible for your every action." The man complained exasperatedly.

"Aren't they your guests? Should you not greet them when they arrive? As kings, we pride ourselves in treating our honored guests properly!"

"Yes, I know that. I am receiving them in the hall after all." The young man grimaced as the giant patted him on the back, shaking his frame.

Another person appeared, cloaked in grey and black. The man identified as Waver turned to the smaller figure and after a small exchange of words, sighed.

"Lord Garamm. Let's bring this meeting to a more suitable place before I get into any more trouble." Waver tried to smile politely.

Keyword: tried.

Even Sakura could tell that something was troubling the man.

Garamm motioned for her to follow him, and they trudged up the stairs to the unusual trio.

Upon reaching them, Sakura felt the group properly. The large man, a powerful and intimidating, yet commanded a regal presence that nearly overwhelmed her. Beside him was the person identified as Waver, and behind him hid the last figure, a person her size whose face she couldn't see.

The ragtag group made its way down the halls, Waver leading them to a private study deep in the manor.

Waver closed the door behind him once the group was inside the room.

"Iskandar, this matter does not concern you. So why do you insist on being present?"

"It looks to me like you can't even control your own legend, Waver." A snicker came from the small blonde girl sitting on the couch.

Sakura stayed quiet, slightly behind Garamm as per her position as his student. Behind her silence, budding confusion grew.

What was a girl her age doing here?

"It doesn't matter anyhow. I trust you to be able to keep him in line, Waver. Any leaks will mean more punishments for you." She cheerfully commented.

Waver's face darkened at the thought. Really, how did he ever manage to catch her attention.

Garamm and the petite girl exchanged looks before she burst out into a smile.

"So? You said you had a surprise for me? Something I've wanted for a long time, uncle?"

Garamm nodded, he landed a hand on Sakura's shoulder, slightly pushing her forward towards the other girl.

"You said you wanted to build a team. I've brought you a third member."

The young woman's eyes glanced at Sakura, seemingly reading the girl.

"And? Not just anyone can come forward and gain my approval."

"She's talented."

Talented.

Sakura's eyes widened. Garamm had never gone that far when complimenting her. To receive such praise now of all times? What was going on? And what team are they talking about? Wasn't she meant to serve a master?

"Enough to impress you?"

"Why don't you see for yourself?"

Her gaze returned to Sakura, inside them, a sparkle of interest appeared.

"Alright then. " She smiled, a predatory glean reflected from within her eyes.

"Tell me, what is your name?" The blonde asked her.

"My name is Sakura."

"Well Sakura, let's have a little test shall we?"

"R-right now?" Sakura tripped on her words. The nerves overwhelming her. She wasn't prepared!

"Yes, and should you pass…I will welcome you to our team."

"Team?"

"Oh sorry, We haven't introduced ourselves."

She nodded in the direction of the silent hooded figure. "That's Gray, she's my first party member."

"...and I'm the team leader, Reines El-Melloi Archisorte."


Heinrich and Eugen blinked.

"I want to join your adventures."

Those words came from the mouth of a young white-haired girl of Shirou's age. Wolf ears and a tail twitching in excitement, paired with a bright smile that completed the look.

They turned to look at Shirou.

His face was ashen grey, horror and disbelief etched into it.

"We're sorry, who are you?" Eugen asked with confusion.

They had never seen this girl, much less knew what adventures she was talking about.

"It's me, Lunea! Shirou has been telling me all about the adventures you all have! I don't want to be left out anymore!"

Heinrich narrowed her eyes. She glanced at Shirou, who seemed to be frozen rock solid at being caught.

Surely, he hadn't been sharing their missions with the wolf pup who had been born half a year prior?

"Shirou?"

"This must be a dream. Lunea is a wolf."

"Mama taught me to change form. She said I needed to learn it to join you."

Eugen smiled. "Welcome to the team Lunea! We'd love to have you with us!" A dangerous gleam appeared in her eyes as she looked at Shirou.

"W-what?! She's a child! You can't be serious!" Shirou shot back.

"And? She's a phantasmal beast. We're just granting her wish." Eugen cheerfully replied.

Lunea's tail wagged even harder.

"Really?! Can I really join you?!"

If she could, Lunea would've probably lit up like a christmas tree at that point.

"Of course you could join us. Although you will need more lessons, specifically from the three of us. Are you sure?"

"Yesssss!" Lunea jumped gleefully, excitement flowing off the little wolf.

Shirou felt like he had just been punched in the gut. A heavy feeling settled in his stomach as he realized the true magnitude of the situation.

He was supposed to be protecting Lunea, instead, he had inadvertently inspired her to join the worst possible group of people he knew.

"Even better, we can partner you with Shirou." Heinrich said.

"Yeah, we can tell Pein that we found ourselves another member too." Her sister added her input.

A heavy thud sounded, coming from the fainted body of Shirou landing on the floor.

Lunea was too happy to care about her friend falling unconscious from shock.

She was finally going to join them on adventures!


Author's Note

I owe everyone 2 chapters. Also, interlude over! Time for us to get back to Shirou and his gang!

Hopefully, Sakura's side of things would raise some interest now that I've started the ball rolling on her end of things.

Lunea's human-fox hybrid form is inspired by Fubuki from Hololive or Kawakaze from Azur Lane.

Leave a review if I should drop some side interludes about Sakura's story during breaks from Shirou's side.