Another fire, he found himself in another fire. Instead of burned-down rubble and buildings, he was surrounded by trees, ledges, and cliffs. Meanwhile, the houses surrounding him were ablaze, along with the surrounding trees. No… These weren't housing, they were tents. Was he in a military camp?

It didn't matter, not to him. He could hear the screams of people all around him, just like when he was a child. As much as he hated his dream, as much as he tried to let go, he can't; it's his entire being to save others. After an eternity of hating himself and his dream, he began believing in the beauty of the dream again. And so, instead of doing what any sane or normal person would do, like running away from the fire and screams, he dove right through the fire and to hell again.

It really was a military camp. In addition to the screams, the sounds of battle rose. Metal rang as iron and steel clashed against each other as he got closer. And this smell… Magecraft? No, it felt purer, more powerful. Magic? But that was impossible… Unless… Damn, he wasn't in the Modern Era anymore, wasn't he? Still, the mana around didn't feel too suffocating, so it definitely was not as far back as the Age of Gods.

On top of all that, his pace felt slower than normal. Did his body regress? It certainly felt smaller. A quick look at his body certainly answered it; yes, his body regressed. It wasn't the same body as Counter Guardian self; there was no tanned skin, and his muscles were certainly not as toned. It was his teenage self, wasn't it? No, perhaps even younger. His clothes, however, were his Counter Guardian clothes, but it looked like it was changed to fit his new body. The Holy Shroud wasn't on him, but his black armor certainly did. It was just like when he started his job as a glorified janitor.

'Just when I thought I was free.' Emiya was about to chuckle at the irony, were it not for a woman's sudden scream that ripped through the air. He Reinforced himself and began running as fast he could.

Soon, he arrived at a scene of bodies and blood on the ground and five hooded people surrounding a woman in a blue dress. 'She was the one who screamed.' Moving as silent as possible, he crept even closer, but it didn't seem like anyone in the area was focused on their surroundings.

"Use one of the spears to kill Her Majesty," one of the hooded men commanded. "Don't use magic. If anyone finds the body, it'll seem like her own bodyguards killed her."

The woman became horrified, then her face became defiant. "Why? I helped you, even gave you all the military locations and their shifts! I gave you everything, and all I asked in exchange was to keep my son safe from harm, and for passage back to Enbarr, back to my daughter!"

"Ah-ah," the same man wagged his finger. "Let me correct that for you: it was Cornelia you made a promise with, not to us. To us, you're fair game." He glanced back to the other hooded people. "Let's finish this and get back to the others. They should be nearing the king's position. They'll need all the help they can get if we're going to kill him."

The woman's breath hitched. "La-Lambert… Did he even know my daughter was in Fhirdiad at all?!"

The hooded man looked back at the woman, as if in disbelief. He began chuckling softly, only to let out a loud, maniacal laugh. "Of course, he didn't! Cornelia sold you that story and you took it, bait and all! He's so in love with you, he could never keep anything from you! Why do you think we targeted you, of all people! His military is too tight-knit, not even our spies saw a way in. And so, we branched out, looking for another opening. And you, oh Queen Consort Patricia, was the perfect chink in his armor! Still, everything was mere happenstance, from him falling for you, to Lord Arundel arriving in Fhirdiad with your daughter in tow! It was as if the world was on our side and all we had to do was take our chance!"

The woman, Patricia, was horrified. Her mouth was open, yet no sound came out.

The hooded man took a deep breath, shook his head, and motioned at the others. "Ah, but enough of that. What are you guys waiting for? Go on, we have to clean this up. I doubt she has any fight left."

'Talkative, aren't they? Still, what a nice way to wrap everything up, so I can't complain.' Emiya activated his magic circuits, Projecting a bow and five arrows. While the electricity-like effects appeared, the fire around him hid them, and no one saw it. No one except for Patricia. Before the hooded people reached her, he lined up an arrow and shot in rapid succession.

As the men came closer, Patricia saw lightning. What was weird was that it didn't come from the skies but from the ground. What she saw surprised her: a child, not even older than her beloved children, wielding magic that she had never seen before. The lightning disappeared and a bow and arrows appeared as if he created them from nothing. She looked back at her would-be made sure that none of the men saw what she saw, but they were too focused on her.

The boy let loose his arrows and, suddenly, five people died.

Emiya exhaled. Patricia's face was one of surprise.

"Do you know anywhere where you'll be safe?" Emiya asked, knocking Patricia out of her surprise.

"I- Yes, where the king and his retinue of knights are," Patricia answered. "Lambert is where most of the fighting will be. Those Who Slither in the Dark are planning a regicide!"

Emiya rolled his eyes. "Yes, I'm not deaf, I got that from the conversation. We have to move if we're keeping the king alive. So, where is he?"

Patricia stood up and pointed in a direction. "North, where everyone else is. The Holy Knights of Fhirdiad are strong, but Those Who Slither in the Dark know everything about the Knights. With their knowledge on the military formations, the Knights will lose."

Emiya Reinforced his body, carried Patricia like a princess, and began running north. He kept low on the ground as the fire was spreading on the treetops and made sure that his path was not blocked by the fire.

"Hey! I'm a Queen Consort! I will not tolerate being manhandled by anyone, even if you are a child," Patricia exclaimed. "Who are you, anyway? The Gautier certainly wasn't on the list for this expedition. On top of that, what kind of magic was that? No magic can create weapons like what you did. While Thunder certainly made lightning effects, they're yellow, not blue like yours."

Emiya grit his teeth. "Let me concentrate, woman! I'm just a kid, carrying you like this is tiring as it is. I'll explain later, so keep your mouth closed before you inhale the smoke around us."

Patricia became much more frustrated, but seeing as he was right, stayed quiet. She kept her head low and prayed that Lambert and Dimitri were safe.

Author's Notes:

2021/02/03 Edit:

EMIYA - Emiya.

Miscellaneous grammar or spelling changes.

No plot changes.

2021/02/05 Edit:

Majesty - Highness

2021/02/19 Edit:

As someone pointed out, it's supposed to be Majesty for both kings and emperors. I made this error because I thought Dimitri was called "Highness" in canon, even past the timeskip. However, this is wrong because Dimitri became king after the final map and Dedue calls him "Majesty".