Fate-profaned offering

by VitaVitaAR

The Holy Grail War. A free-for-all battle to the death between seven pairs of Masters and Servants. Matsushita Ai, at the behest of the organization that has cared for her for ten years, has been sent back to her birthplace to participate in such a clash. Together with her Saber-class Servant, Okita Souji, she will descend into a violent conflict in which there can be one victor.

4. Chapter 4

The girl's hands were so slender and delicate. She was nothing more than a child. And yet she held the wooden sword so firmly. She gripped it, as if her very life depended on it. The small, pale fingers adjusted as she stepped forward. Her teacher's wooden blade was held at the ready. She took a deep breath as both master and student prepared themselves.

Shocking even the one who instructed her, she did not fall. No, she stayed on her feet. It was as if she innately understood what she was meant to do.

After the training session, she was praised as a genius. She was called a prodigy whose future was filled with promise.

As she grew, she trained. Those hands, still so delicate even as she grew older, became more and more practiced. At a young age, she had mastered all the techniques of her school and obtained a scroll certifying her success.

She was happy. She was loved.

She wanted to become one who could teach others. But after spending some time as such, more than anything else she felt a desire to fight alongside others. To become someone who could do good.

She became part of a police force created to enforce peace and justice. Not simply for such purposes, but due to a sense of loyalty to its founder. And yet, was that really what they were in the end? Certainly, they defeated elements that could cause chaos, however…

But, the girl remembered this time of her life with fondness. Even in battle, where nothing mattered except the defeat of the enemy, the fact that she could fight alongside those she called her comrades was what she desired more than anything else. She wanted to fight with them forever.

The girl's simple desires were fulfilled, even as the unrest in society grew more and more. Time and time again she had to draw her blade, to spill blood over and over, and yet her soul remained untainted. Even as others among their number began to falter under the weight of it all, to descend further into even darker places than they had started in.

Even then, the girl held her head up high. Even then, she could smile and laugh. Even then, her sword skills remained pure. Even as those around her tortured and maimed people in the name of what they called their duty. Even then, she didn't falter.

It wasn't as if she wasn't aware. But these people were her comrades for so long, she could not bear to speak against them.

All she wanted was to keep fighting alongside those she cherished, and who had cherished her. Even though sometimes her chest felt so tight that it might burst, she wanted to smile and laugh with everyone like she always had, and then take up her sword and fight until the end.

With everyone she cherished.

It was her one desire.

And yet…

Soon, she felt a different kind of pain in her chest. Every time she took a breath, there was pain.

One day, even as she did her best to endure the weakness that had begun to assault her body, she found herself barely able to stand. When she coughed, there was a stab of agony.

When she lowered her delicate, pale hand away from her mouth, she could see flecks of blood in her palm.

---

Slowly, Ai stirred, blinking the sleep from her eyes. That dream… it wasn't simply an ordinary creation of her mind. It wasn't images conjured by her thoughts are rest. It had all felt so real, as if she were actually experiencing it.

It wasn't a mere dream.

Sitting up, the brunette rubbed her eyes with a yawn as her mind slowly cleared itself.

Had that…

Had that been images from her Servant's life? Okita Souji, the first captain of the Shinsengumi… had she been granted a window into the life of her servant, into the memories of Saber's experiences in life…

The sight of that bloodied palm.

Okita Souji had died of tuberculosis. Her life had ended in a bed, the strength seeping from her with each cough.

It was still early in the morning, earlier then Ai usually awakened. That dream… or rather, that vision of her Servant's past had stirred her to wakefulness far earlier than usual. Slowly, she remembered she had class today, and rubbed her eyes once more. It was too late to go back to sleep… besides, how could she, really, after that vision?

Did Saber know what she had seen? What would she say to her, if she had? Ai felt almost like she had intruded, stepped in on something
private…

It was only a few moments later, when Ai was leaving her bed, that her door opened. In walked Saber, the girl samurai's eyes somewhat downcast as she looked away from her Master.

"… Eh… I…" began Saber, awkwardly. That answered Ai's question, at least. It was clear her Servant was aware of the fact that she'd seen her past. Or at least, portions of it. "… I don't blame you. It's not something you could control, it's something born from the contract between us as Master and Servant."

Ai nodded, slowly.

"It's not something either of us could have done anything about…" she said, "I-I… i-its not like I meant to intrude…"

To her surprise, Saber's bright smile returned.

"Don't worry about it, Master!" she declared, though her cheerful tone of voice sounded somewhat more forced then Ai had become used to. "Whatever you say… like I mentioned before, it's part of our contract…"

She trailed off, before shaking her head.

"I guess more than anything I wanted to make sure were alright, Master!" This time, Saber's upbeat attitude seemed to be back to normal, at least.

"I-I'm fine, um…" Ai fidgeted. She still had to wake up a bit more and given what she had just experienced… it wasn't the easiest thing to simply talk to her Servant. "But… you… what I saw…"

Saber paused for only a moment.

"… You saw the people I cherished in life," she said, finally, her smile fading but never disappearing, "And the things I did in life. And you saw how I failed to fight to the end. That's right, isn't it, Master?"

Ai hesitated for a moment, and then nodded.

Saber's smile grew again.

"I'm here to fight for you though, Master," she continued, "I'm your sword, the blade that exists for your defense. No matter what I desire, that's the first thing on my mind!"

What her Servant desired… Ai didn't want to pry into Saber's wish for the Holy Grail. That was something that she held in her heart, for no-one else but herself. And yet, she also didn't want to treat Saber as a tool. There was a reason she'd tried to get the other girl's opinions on where to go, to check out that bakery(unfortunately they had never gotten to it) for example. It was because the girl samurai had decided to heed her summons.

Because Saber had chosen to obey the call, no matter how much the grail war frightened Ai, she wanted to pay her back for this. The brunette wanted to give her something in return, even if it was just listening to where she wanted to go.

"Um, about that, Saber…" Ai began, before taking a deep breath, "I have class today, but after that, um… I know we have to discuss more about our strategy, and tonight we'll probably end up fighting again, but…"

Saber was watching her expectantly. She did her best to relax and continue speaking.

"Is there anywhere you'd like to go?"

After a moment's pause, the samurai replied.

"Well… I guess I've been wanting to try ice cream!" she said, cheerfully, "I want to know what something sweet and cold like that can taste like. But…"

She sat down on Ai's bed, after a moment of hesitation.

"You keep asking me things like this, and I guess it takes me a little bit off-guard, eh-heheh…" she continued, "When I was summoned, I thought I'd be doing something like fighting all the time and fulfilling my duties as a Servant in that way. But you keep wanting to take me out to eat!"

"Ah… s-sorry…" was that really how Saber felt? Was it a waste of her time to be doing things like this? But when she looked up at her Servant, she was waving her hands.

"I didn't mean it like that!" Saber cried, "I don't dislike it. It makes me happy to try new sweets and do all kinds of new things like that. It's not that I dislike doing these things, because I don't. I guess I just wasn't expecting something like this."

"… Knowing It makes you happy is all I need…" Ai replied, smiling weakly. Admittedly, her mind was now drifting a bit… the mental image of feeding Saber pieces of cake while she opened her mouth for them floated through her thoughts. "It's cute to see you eating something you like…"

"Ah… you're saying things like that again," Saber commented, scratching the back of her head with an awkward smile, "But if we can keep doing these things and win the Grail War too… I don't have any problems at all. Um… Like I said, I really wanted to try ice cream!"

"Then… then that's where we're going to go after classes today!" Ai declared, "I'm going to buy you whatever flavors you want!"

The ulterior motive that could best be described as 'cute girls eating things they like are a treasure' was certainly a factor, but more than anything else she simply wanted to do things that Saber desired. Of course, claiming victory in the Holy Grail War would grant whatever wish it was her Servant desired, but Ai still had little confidence in her ability to win… and she wanted to do everything she could in return for Saber answering her summons.

"… I'll have to see the flavors first before I decide…" Saber responded. "… But… why do you keep doing this?"

"Eh? I…" for a few moments, Ai trailed off. But… no, it was time to tell her Servant. "… I know that you're here to obtain your wish from the Holy Grail. That's obvious. But you still answered my summons, even though I'm not a good Master, even though I don't know if I can win the Grail. That's why. You came to me, so… I want to do things that can make you happy for as long as you're here. It's only right, given that you answered the call when it came from someone like me…"

"… Master, don't worry about that," Saber responded, "You're my Master, and I'm your Servant. That's the kind of relationship we have. You were able to heal me last night, weren't you? You're not a bad Master at all. So-"

It was at that moment that Marianne abruptly burst into the room.

"Good morning, ojou-sama~" said the maid, brightly, "Today, Marianne is your wake-up call! So-oh!"

Both Ai and Saber had stopped talking, instead turning to stare at the sudden appearance of the white-haired maid.

"Did Saber-chan steal my job?!" cried the maid, in mock horror, "And to think, I almost never get to wake up ojou-sama…"

"Ah? No, she was already awake…" Saber tried to respond.

"Don't tell me!" continued Marianne, dramatically, "You kissed the sleeping princess to awaken her, didn't you?!"

"Eeeeeehhh?!"

"Hawawawa…"

Both Master and Servant blushed in embarrassment.

Marianne grinned at them, stifling a giggle with one of her oversized sleeves.

"Fufufu. That was all I needed~" said the maid, cheerfully, "Breakfast will be ready soon, ojou-sama, Saber-chan. Then ojou-sama will need to prepare for her classes~"

After that, Saber decided to take a shower after her Master had done so, first. Ai's morning routine went mostly as usual, nothing else particularly unexpected occurred. And yet, still her mind dwelled on what they had discussed earlier… and the vision of her Servant's past. She had to do what she could, didn't she? She had to do everything she could, both to repay her Servant for bothering to show up and to try and win the Holy Grail. But… Rider, especially, was terrifying, and there were still several Servants who were mostly unknown.

Could she support Saber well enough to defeat them?

Today, as they'd discussed last night, Saber would not be accompanying her to school. While her Servant initially didn't like the idea, and Ai herself had been rather frightened about the prospect, it was highly unlikely she'd be attacked on school grounds. And if another Servant was present, following their Master in spirit form, it was likely they'd be able to detect Saber, wouldn't they?

It wasn't as if the idea didn't scare her, but she'd managed to consider it from a wider perspective. Her command seals could instantly call Saber if something happened, as well…

After finishing her shower, Ai quickly dressed herself in her school uniform and made her way downstairs. Marianne had already finished making breakfast, with Charlotte tidying up the kitchen after she was done.

Enjoying breakfast(and getting to see the cute faces Saber made as she did the same) helped somewhat to take the girl's mind off of things. But as she left the mansion, Ai's fears started to prey upon her once again.

Was it really a good idea to leave Saber behind?

She tried to reassure herself that this was the case. After all, if Inoue Tsubaki was a Master, another student at their school could easily be one as well. And if that was the case, they could detect Saber's presence with their own Servant even if she was in spirit form, and therefore they could potentially pinpoint that she was a Master. But on the other hand… it meant she would have to call Saber by using a command seal. While she had no intention of using them otherwise, losing all three seals was the same as forfeiting one's position as a Master in the Holy Grail War. Ai felt confident that Saber didn't have any reasons to turn on her, but…

What would actually happen if she did lose all three? While she didn't want to force Saber to do anything, the small brunette was still worried. What if she had to use them to make her teleport, or something like that…

She tried to shake her head and stop worrying about it. No. That wasn't going to happen. The fact was that it was too bright outside right now to risk fighting in the open, and certainly, doing battle in the middle of the school day at the local high school seemed like a terrible plan for anyone. That being said… there was something else Ai was considering.

The possibility of another Master being at school was hard to ignore. Maybe Tsubaki would have some more information. After all, she'd gone to look for… something after they'd parted the other day. Ai couldn't ignore the way the runes were arrayed. Not only on the leylines, but also in close proximity to the school. Like it was being used as a central hub of sorts. This didn't mean that Caster's Master was a student for sure, but at the same time it was an implication based on the way the runes had been placed.

If nothing else… Ai felt like maybe she should try and keep an eye out for anything strange. Not that she believed she was any good at spotting anything like that, but… at least she could try, right?

In any case, she had soon arrived at the school… and stopped dead in her tracks.

She could see Tsubaki ahead of her, but that wasn't all. Natsuki Yukihiro was there, too. A few other girls were watching as the two had a heated conversation. Tsubaki looked furious. What was going on? She couldn't quite hear… but at the same time, she didn't want to try and get closer. She didn't want Yukihiro to see her again…

After a few moments of hesitation, she managed to swallow her fear and edge closer. But as she did, the two parted, the angry-looking Tsubaki practically storming into the school.

"I've never seen Inoue-san look so angry…" she heard one girl say.

"Natsuki-kun doesn't look like he even knows why, too…" Ai heard another, "Maybe she has a crush on him or something…?"

Then she heard Natsuki Yukihiro's voice.

"… And all I did was wonder if Saori-san is alright," he said, with a sigh and a shrug, before heading inside himself.

After a few moments of silence, Ai followed as well. What was going on? There was no way she could piece it together just by hearing the very ending…

Soon enough, everyone had headed inside. After a moment, Ai took a deep breath and proceeded along into the school. It was the first time since the Grail War had begun that she had gone to school, and she was… surprisingly, less nervous then the first time. Maybe the fact that she had experienced a battle between Servants had made school feel more mundane. Oh, she was still nervous, and didn't really know what to do, but it wasn't as frightening as her first day was.

When the small brunette arrived at her class, she sat down quickly and glanced over the class. Indeed, there was Inoue Tsubaki, still looking quite irritable over the conversation she'd been having with Natsuki Yukihiro…

He was a creepy guy, and scary, but that didn't seem like it would be enough for Tsubaki to get as angry as she was. He'd been talking about Yumimura Saori? What had he said…? Or had Tsubaki found something else out about Yumimura's disappearance?

She resolved to ask Tsubaki about it. Or… at least try to, she wasn't too certain about what to say. Just going up and asking 'what made you so angry?' seemed too direct, she didn't want to cause any problems… and what if it was something obvious? Like… how creepy Natsuki Yukihiro was…

The first half of classes for the day went fairly normally. Nothing particularly unusual occurred, and really the only thing that Ai could do was sit there and listen to her own thoughts. Was Caster's Master one of the students here? Could they be in this classroom?

Soon enough, lunch had arrived. Today's meal for Ai featured a few different fried items and fruit, which was fine by her. After all, Marianne's cooking was invariably delicious. Just as on the first day, Tsubaki approached, pushing their desks together as she did.

"… Matsushita-san, I'm going to have to talk to you after school," she said, "I don't think it would be a good idea to talk about it here, though…"

"E-eh? Um… what do you mean…?" Ai asked, shifting a bit in her seat. Tsubaki seemed serious… it had to be something about the Grail War.

"… I don't think you need to ask, Matsushita-san," replied the tanned girl. Ai nodded slowly. It didn't really require much thought to figure it out… Tsubaki must have thought there was another Master here too.

Picking up her lunchbox, Ai followed Tsubaki up to the roof. Once they got there, one of the first things that the small brunette noticed was… well, it was hot. It was summer, and they were on the rooftop. Of course it was going to be hot. Thankfully, Tsubaki guided her over to a patch of shade before sitting down. The second thing that Ai noticed was the view. While the Takahashi High School wasn't an especially tall building, it was tall enough to get something of a view of Minami.

It was… oddly beautiful, looking out over the entire city like this. Well… entire was an exaggeration, but she could see rooftops for quite some distance. It wasn't a particularly large city, but it was large enough… She could even see the green of the distant forest across town.

"Haaah, it's hot, isn't it?" commented Tsubaki, sitting down and fanning herself with the front of her uniform. She reached into her bag, then handed a water bottle to Ai, who took it somewhat awkwardly. It was ice cold. Tsubaki took one out herself. "But here we can get some privacy, right?"

"Um… right… thank you for the water…" Ai replied, slowly. If not for this patch of shade, and the water bottle, she likely would have started feeling like she was on the brink of passing out.

"Wow, your lunch looks amazing again…" commented the black-haired girl, looking it over, "Maybe I should get a maid to make my food, too…"

"Um… so, um…" Ai mumbled for a few moments before finding her voice, "So what did you want to talk about? I know we're not up here for you to compliment my lunch, eh-heheh…"

"I guess I just wanted to have a more relaxing conversation first," replied Tsubaki, scratching the back of her head with a chuckle. But then, the girl took a deep breath.

"First things first: One of the enemy Servants, most likely Caster, can create the Dead."

The Dead…? The familiars most commonly used by Dead Apostles, born from the bodies of those who they drained dry, yet were unable to become vampires themselves? She knew that it was also possible to create the Dead using Magecraft, as well, but still…

"Are you sure it's one of the Servants…?"

Tsubaki shook her head.

"I can't be completely sure, that's true," the other girl responded, "But as of now it seems like the most likely option. I was investigating the Upper Minami Apartments parking complex when I came across them."

That was one of the potential locations for the descent of the Grail… Was Caster attempting to create a workshop there?

"How… how many were there?" asked Ai, "What were they doing?"

"There was five," Tsubaki responded, "And… admittedly, they weren't doing very much. It almost felt like it was some kind of test. They weren't even fresh bodies, it was clear they'd come from the grave."

Ai nodded slowly. It was strange. A little relieving that the bodies weren't fresh, but still strange. Why would Caster, or any of the other Servants, do something like that? What sense did it make?

"More importantly, though…" the tanned girl continued, "Lancer and I had a run-in with Assassin."

Ai's eyes widened with shock.

"You were attacked by Assassin?" she exclaimed, "That's… what were they like? D-do you know?"

Assassin was a Servant class with relatively low fighting capabilities. Rather, their specialty was in killing in a stealthy manner. Naturally this wasn't suited for slaying most Servants.

Rather, Assassin's targets would be Masters, as opposed to Servants.

"She was wearing a green kimono," began Tsubaki, "And she had two katana. She was wearing a fox mask, too. But that wasn't the strangest part."

Ai could feel her heart beating faster. It's not as if she thought this war wouldn't have an Assassin-class Servant, but she had hoped that she wouldn't need to worry about them, that they'd be caught up in something else. It was a rather naïve hope, now that she reflected on it.

"Every time she attacked, every time Lancer stopped her, she'd disappear," concluded Tsubaki, folding her arms, "There wasn't a trace until she attacked again, and there wasn't anywhere she could hide, either."

"Then… was it a really good rank of Presence Concealment?" Ai asked. The Class Skill of Assassin, Presence Concealment was the capability to hide oneself until attacking, even if they were hiding in plain sight. But even as she spoke, Ai could tell this didn't feel quite right.

Tsubaki shook her head.

"There's no way that could be the case," she answered, "To begin with, Presence Concealment doesn't let a Servant vanish right before your eyes. If they've already attacked, they need to escape before they can use it again."

"So… so it was something else?" asked Ai.

The tanned girl nodded.

"But neither Lancer nor myself have any idea what it was," she took a drink from her water bottle, "Ahhh… No matter how much we tried to figure it out, the only idea we have is that she couldn't simply disappear and reappear at will."

On one hand, the fact that Assassin couldn't just teleport or something like that was something of a comfort. One the other, that still left the fact that Assassin had some method of vanishing completely. And that was terrifying. How did you counter something like that?

Did she just place her faith in Saber? She didn't see much of another choice… It wasn't as if she doubted Saber, but if she messed up she could easily get herself killed regardless of how well Saber defended her...

"Is… is there anything else?" Ai asked, shaking slightly.

"Yes," said Tsubaki, "When I arrived here today at school, I checked the rune on the storage shed. It's already been restored."

"A-already?!" cried Ai. That was terrible! The runes were being replenished that quickly?! "Then… then that means we have to find Caster quickly, o-or else-"

Tsubaki waved her hand.

"I got up early so Lancer and I could check some of the others on the way to school," she explained, "And none of them were restored yet."

"… So… so that means…" Ai trailed off. There wasn't really any doubt in her mind about what that meant, but she was frightened of even saying it.

"It means that Caster's Master is a student here, too," Tsubaki responded, "… Or they could even be a teacher."

The black-haired girl narrowed her eyes.

"I can't stand knowing that's the case. What kind of person would do let their Servant do something like this?"

"Um…" Ai hesitated. If the Caster-class Servant was doing something like this… well, Servants had free will, didn't they? "Is it possible they don't know what their Servant is doing?"

Tsubaki paused for a moment, her anger giving way, slowly, to a more thoughtful expression.

"I can't say something like that is impossible, I suppose," she said, finally, "But the only way to be sure is to track Caster down and stop them."

To be honest, Ai hoped that was the case. She didn't like it, the idea that there was someone at their school, student or teacher, who would create a bounded field encompassing such a large area. Even if she didn't know exactly what it did… there was no way it was anything good. She had seen that rune enough times now to be able to tell there was something horribly toxic about it, even if the brunette magus couldn't put her finger one exactly what that was.

Even if she had no idea what the effects of the field would be if it was activated, she simply couldn't trust it at all.

"S-so…" Ai stammered, before taking a deep breath to try and calm herself, "So what do we do?"

"Well…" Tsubaki began, "I'd like to say we could just check everyone's hands for a command seal, but it's not that simple. It'd be ridiculous to expect everyone to go along with such a random inspection. On top of that, it's not like the command seal has to be on the back of the hand, either."

"Ah…"

Ai hadn't thought about that. Tsubaki's seals were on the back of her hand, and so were her own. She thought that it would be the same way for everyone. But if it wasn't, that made the idea of trying to find the enemy Master quite a bit more complicated than it already was.

And it already hadn't sounded easy.

"So… their seals could be anywhere?" Ai questioned.

"That's right," Tsubaki responded, "Their back, their chest, their stomach. It could even be somewhere inappropriate, to be honest. Though that would be pretty ridiculous, wouldn't it?"

Tsubaki glanced towards Ai.

At the moment, there was a look of absolute horror on the small girl's face as she contemplated that. Having the command seals manifest somewhere like that… How would you deal with it? Wouldn't it be mortifying? At least no-one would see it.

"… Eh-heh… I doubt that would be the case, though, Matsushita-san," Tsubaki added, waving her hand, "I was mostly joking around. Things are pretty tense, so sometimes it's good to try and lighten the mood."

"Oh… eh-heheh…" Ai fidgeted. For a moment, she'd actually believed that the seals could manifest somewhere like that… but in retrospect, it was pretty silly to think that. Then again, if they could manifest anywhere on the body, why couldn't they appear there…?

Maybe it was best to stop thinking about this.

"So… how do we find them?" Ai asked. At this point, she wasn't sure how it would be possible to locate the enemy Master even out of the more limited pool of students and teachers. Certainly, it was less then trying to find them out of the entire city's population, but still… it was possible that they could be anyone, wasn't it?

And what if they were making a mistake, and Caster's Master wasn't a student or a teacher?

"Well, it would be easier if we could pinpoint a general location of Caster's workshop," Tsubaki took a drink from her water bottle, looking thoughtful, "It's not as if they need to be in the same place as their Master is living, but at the same time in all likelihood they'd be nearby for their Master's sake."

She leaned back against the wall.

"Even if Caster's Master isn't aware of their Servant's actions, I can't imagine that any Servant would risk making their move back and forth over large distances unnecessarily."

Ai nodded. It didn't really make much sense for Caster to set up a workshop that was too distant from where their Master lived. Not only due to the risk involved in travelling there, but the fact that something like that would seem awfully suspicious to anyone trying to find an enemy Master.

"Then… um… we try and figure out where the runes are most concentrated, and work from there? Obviously they're going to be on the leylines, but if Caster is moving in a specific area we might be able to figure out where they live…" the small brunette concluded.

"That's right, Matsushita-san!" responded Tsubaki with a grin, "And you keep acting so down on yourself, too… Anyway, the idea is to figure out where the runes are most concentrated. After we do that, we can work out what students live in that area."

Ai relaxed a little. At least they had a plan now, right? Even if the brunette wasn't feeling entirely confident in it, given how many variables there were, at least it meant they had some kind of idea of what they would be doing next. That was something to feel a bit more comfortable about, right?

"At least it's something, eh-heh…" Ai trailed off for a few moments, but then recalled what else she wanted to talk about. After all, she'd seen Tsubaki shouting at Natsuki Yukihiro. Not that she felt he was undeserving, but… she did want to know just what was going on. "Oh, um… I noticed you were yelling at that creepy Natsuki-san again… did he do something?"

Almost immediately, Tsubaki's expression soured.

"That creep was talking about Yumimura-san," she said, narrowing her eyes, "He was going on about hoping that they weren't ruining her 'pretty face' at least and it just pissed me off. Like that was all that mattered. I couldn't hold back when I heard him talking like that and just… let loose on him."

The tanned girl folded her arms.

"She's a girl who disappeared, and he's talking about her like her looks are more important then her safety. I can't stand Natsuki, but that was even worse than usual."

Ai could agree with that, at least. Natsuki Yukihiro had seemed like the type of guy who couldn't take no for an answer, the type of person who was forceful and didn't like it when he didn't get his way… But if Tsubaki was right he was also a coward who wouldn't bother again if he was rejected. But talking about a disappeared girl like that…

"I… I understand now," Ai said, finally. "That's horrible."

"He's an absolute bastard and I can't believe he thinks it's okay to act that way," Tsubaki concluded.

After that point, most of their time was spent finishing up their lunches. There was a lot of think about, at this point… Caster's Master, the whereabouts of Yumimura Saori…

Even after they finished lunch and returned to class, she was still deep in thought. Maybe after she went out with Saber for ice cream… as much as the idea scared her, it would be best for them to try and do some kind of patrol? Maybe they'd catch Caster in the act… She didn't doubt Saber's abilities, at least. Caster was most dangerous at range, and Saber's abilities would allow her to get in close quickly. In other words, for once she actually felt confident about going up against an enemy Servant. Provided they did find Caster, at least.

Still, as much as the idea frightened her… maybe a patrol really would be for the best.

The rest of the school day went just as uneventfully as the first half. Aside from lunch, nothing seemed out of the ordinary. It was surreal, in a way… the idea that Servant posing a threat to such a large number of people had been summoned by someone at the school. And there was still Rider to worry about… not only that, but that gunslinger Servant was somewhere out there too, and they hadn't even learned anything at all about Berserker. Ai supposed she could at least guess that the gunslinger Servant was Archer, given he was clearly rational and Assassin was now accounted for. But Berserker was a total unknown, and needless to say that was something that frightened the small brunette.

Soon enough, the bell signaling the end of the school day rang. Thankfully, in spite of missing a day, it seemed like Ai's load was relatively light…

As she was leaving, Tsubaki met her at the front gates. This time, she had Lancer with her. The blonde Servant was wearing another light dress, this time black and white, and a hat with a white ribbon.

"Greetings, Matsushita," Lancer said, bobbing her head.

"Ah… hello, Lancer…"

"I wanted to tell you that I'd like to meet up with you and Saber again, tonight," said Tsubaki, "There's a few things I want to check out on my own with Lancer, but be ready at around nine tonight."

"Right!"

With that, they parted ways.

As she walked home, Ai tried to focus on more lighthearted matters.

Like taking Saber out for ice cream.

---

"So, Saber-chan, how are you?"

"Ah? Oh, Marianne-san…" Saber, seated by the window, glanced towards the maid. "I guess I'm fine. I'm a little concerned about my Master, but since it's the middle of the day and there's a lot of people out… I don't think she's in immediate danger, at least."

The samurai girl smiled. While there was no way for her to avoid being concerned about her Master, the situation meant that she wasn't feeling too worried. Ai could summon her with a command seal as well, meaning that if something did happen she could arrive there in an instant.

"Aaah, ojou-sama will be fine," Marianne said, waving her hand with a cheerful grin, "She hasn't called you, has she? And it would be foolish for anyone to go attacking in broad daylight."

"You're right," replied the platinum blonde girl, "I'm staying ready for the moment she needs me, though!"

"Fufufu, you're so loyal~" declared the maid enthusiastically, leaning towards her as she did. Saber leaned back slightly. Marianne seemed like a nice girl, but she was also kind of… unusual. She kept trying to get close, and some of the things she said were strange… Saber wasn't quite sure how to react to it all. "Beautiful, cute, and loyal~ That's a great combination for a samurai, isn't it?"

"Er… I guess?" Saber shifted awkwardly. Marianne… liked to say things like that, and so did her Master, to be honest. It still felt kind of confusing to her… but she didn't really mind it either. It was just kind of strange, she didn't see why she had deserved to get such comments.

"Onee-san," came Charlotte's voice from the door, "Ojou-sama will be home soon. We should prepare."

"Ah, of course~!"

Marianne hopped off of her seat and cheerfully hurried to the door. With a wave and a wink to Saber, she left the room.

A few moments later, Saber got to her feet and left as well. She wanted to be ready to greet her Master, for one… and to be honest she kind of wanted to go out and get ice cream sooner than later. She couldn't help being excited, not when she had this kind of sweet tooth. Something both chilly and sweet just sounded great. And even though Servants weren't really bothered by temperature… well, it was hot outside, there was no denying that. Something that was simultaneously cold and sweet sounded like it would be great!

As she made her way into the main hall, she caught sight of her Master, entering the room.

"Um, Saber!" she called, "There's some things we need to talk about…"

"Eh?"

A few moments later, Ai had filled her in on the details.

"Assassin can disappear like that…" Saber said, with a frown. It was strange, hearing about a technique like that second hand. How did something like that work? Simply vanishing in plain sight would be odd enough, but the fact that Assassin only seemed to attack from different angles made it sound even more unusual. "On top of that, Caster's Master is someone at your high school?"

Ai nodded.

"Most likely… I don't like the idea of that at all," her Master said, her eyes downcast.

"Well, I guess it would be kind of strange if you did, eh-heheh…" Saber said, attempting to bring some levity to the situation. It didn't seem to work. But at least she knew a bit more about the situation now! So the gunslinging Servant was probably Archer, then… That made a lot of sense, too. In fact, if she'd really thought about it prior… that was really the obvious conclusion. Assassin was really the only other potential option, for someone like that. "… You said you wanted to patrol later… does that mean we're not getting ice cream?"

"Ah? N-no!" cried Ai, "We're definitely still getting ice cream! I don't want to skip that…"

There was no way to hide how happy Saber was to hear that. If her Master had said no, she would have immediately accepted it and understood, but she likely would have been crushed. She really wanted to try ice cream, after all…

"It's just… after that, and before we go meet Inoue-san and Lancer," Ai added, "I want to try and look around a bit more by ourselves."

"I understand, Master," Saber said, with a firm nod, "I think that's a great idea. Things might have changed, or there might be something we missed!"

Indeed, patrolling in order to locate anything unusual seemed like the best idea. Especially as it was during the day, when they were unlikely to be attacked. That seemed like a fantastic idea. There would be a low degree of risk of being interrupted. It wasn't impossible, but she had a feeling there wouldn't be a repeat incident like with Rider's attack.

"Yes, um, that's what I was thinking!" responded her Master, "So, um, we should get going…"

"I'll put on some casual wear, then!"

With that, Saber proceeded up the stairs, to Ai's room. When she got there, however…

"Eh…?"

Both Marianne and Charlotte were waiting there.

"We decided we'd help you get dressed today, Saber-chan~" declared the more expressive of the two maids, happily, before quickly stepping towards her.

"E-e-eh?! What?"

In a few moments, Saber had been fully undressed. She was certain that Marianne's hands were lingering far too long on certain areas, and they seemed to dress her far less quickly then they had undressed her. Embarrassed, nevertheless Saber eventually found herself in one of the outfits Ai had purchased for her. This time, it was a short-sleeved shirt and skirt, with another pair of thigh-high socks.

"Ah, perfect! Don't you think so, Charlotte?"

The less expressive maid nodded slowly.

Blushing, the girl samurai quickly left the room. What was all that about? She knew Marianne was strange, but she'd gotten her twin sister in on it too… Ah, she didn't want to be so flustered when she spoke to her Master, either… Saber paused outside the door and took a deep breath in order to calm herself as best she could, before eventually proceeding downstairs once again.

"Er… I'm ready, now, Master!" she called to the small brunette girl as she reached the bottom steps. Ai's eyes lingered on her for a few moments, longer then Saber had expected, before she finally spoke.

"A-ah, um, yes… Let's go!"

With that, the two girls departed from the mansion. Saber was figuratively speaking at her Master's mercy, here. She was almost uncontrollably excited about the ice cream, but she had no idea where to go.

And yet…

Suddenly, unbidden, Saber recalled the conversation they'd had in the morning. Ai had seen a piece of her past… No, not just one fragment. It had been many scenes of her entire lifetime. Her biggest regrets… the things she never got a chance to do… The reasons she had to be summoned to fight for the Holy Grail. Of course, now there was her duty to Ai, as well, but that wasn't anything to do with her wish…

Something the girl had simply never been able to do. Not with how things went in her life.

But for now, what she had to do was ensure that Ai succeeded. To fight as hard as she could. That was the path to her Master's victory, and to both their wishes. She hadn't asked what it was Ai was going to wish for. It wasn't her place to do so, and Ai had respected the secrecy of her own wish as well. Saber was comfortable leaving it that way. She trusted her Master, believed that the small girl would never wish for anything that went against her own ideals.

There was no reason to think otherwise.

"Ah, Saber, we're here!"

There was a short line at the ice cream shop, and to be honest, Saber's excitement made her feel rather impatient. For the moment, more serious matters were pushed from her mind entirely as she tried not to too obviously bounce on her heels… and failed completely.

It was a new sweet, one that was perfect for the weather. Of course she was going to be excited. Once they got to the counter, after a great deal of indecision, Saber eventually settled on a flavor called 'cookie dough'.

She didn't even wait to leave the store. She was eating even before Ai was finished paying. And the taste… it was so cold, but so sweet… and there were pieces of chocolate and dough in the ice cream itself! It had a wonderful flavor, so delicious, so cold… it was the perfect thing to eat when it was hot outside! If only they had such a thing back in her lifetime… that would have been wonderful!

However, as they left, it almost seemed as if her Master was feeling down again… Saber couldn't help but notice that her Master seemed to enter these states, sometimes… she wracked her brain to try and think of a way to help. She might have been summoned to fight, but… the Servant didn't want her Master's mental state to degrade.

However, when Saber glanced over towards her Master once more, she was perking up again… oddly enough, as she was watching Saber enjoy her ice cream. The girl samurai didn't really understand why, but provided it was managing to make Ai happier… well, she didn't mind. It was strange, but she didn't mind. If it was cheering her Master up, that was what mattered the most.

"… Eh-heh… it looks like you're really enjoying it, Saber!"

Frankly, she hadn't expected someone like this was going to be her Master. She had admittedly assumed prior that the masters involved in the Holy Grail War would be, well… more like some of those she knew in life. Those who were prepared to fight and die.

She just hadn't expected someone like Matsushita Ai.

Unfortunately, a few moments later, her Master's cheer seemed to start vanishing once more. Ah… it was so easy for Ai to lose her resolve and start to doubt herself, to go from happy to depressed in moments… Saber had to think of some way to help her, to prevent her from breaking down like this over and over.

"I hope this isn't our last meal…"

She just wasn't the most confident of people.

"Ah… don't worry, Master!" declared Saber, "As long as you're my Master, I'm your sword! And this is one sword that won't falter in her service!"

As of now, the sunset was casting streaks of orange across the sidewalks. There were few people present in the route they'd chosen to take back home. In fact, they were entirely isolated.

"It's not you I have any doubts in," her Master said, an apologetic look on her face, "I'm not a very good Master, though. I can't really help you when you're fighting…"

Saber paused for a moment. It felt like her Master took every opportunity to beat herself down… Taking a deep breath, she stepped towards the small brunette.

"You don't need to worry about fighting, Master," she asserted with a bright smile, "Fighting Is what I do best, I'm at home on a battlefield! All you need to do is keep giving me mana, and I'll fight to the end without fail! It's just like I told you before, isn't it, Master? Nothing's changed since then!"

One thing that she knew her Master couldn't claim she did poorly was supplying her with mana. Indeed, the silvery-haired girl felt like she was 'fully charged' so to speak, at any given moment, even after intense fighting.

"… But… if I can't support you…" Ai replied, morosely, "… That Rider was really scary… if we have to fight her… again…"

"Erk…" Aaaah, she had to get her Master to stop being so pessimistic! It wasn't a good way to approach the War! Even if that Rider had been scary… But that didn't mean they couldn't beat her. "… Like… like I said, all I need you to do is keep supplying me with mana. I'm faster then her, so as long as I don't let her use any of her Noble Phantasms I can overtake her at close range!"

"… I'm glad you feel so optimistic at least, Saber," the brunette commented, with a small, rather hollow laugh. "… But… I guess it does help to hear you say things like that. Eh-heheh… and I'm really glad you're enjoying your ice cream."

"Eh-heheh, well…" Saber took the opportunity to lick her ice cream again. The cookie dough flavor ice cream had been a great choice, to say the least. It was just so good! "I really like sweets, so when I learned about ice cream I really wanted to try it!"

Maybe getting off the subject of the war itself would be a good idea for her Master's mentality. Sure, the silvery-haired swordswoman wanted to ensure they had a strategy going forward, but not when her Master was feeling like this.

She had the impression that wouldn't lead anywhere good.

"I like watching you eat sweets," added her Master, brightening up, "Seeing a happy girl eating something she loves is kind of like a treasure!"

To be frank, Saber still had no idea what that sort of thing meant, but at least her Master seemed more cheerful now.

"I don't understand, but at least it makes you happy," replied the platinum blonde girl, awkwardly laughing and rubbing the back of her head, as she glanced back over towards Ai.

"It's your outfit, too… it's hard to believe you're a skilled swordswoman when you look like a cute schoolgirl on her day off!" declared her Master, yet again saying something that the Servant didn't exactly understand. Oh well, it was making her happy…

"… Thank you, Master… I think?" Saber tilted her head, "Though… I'm not really out to look cute, or anything like that. I'm dedicated to the sword, so as long as I can fight and serve you well, I'm satisfied."

"Eh-heheh… sorry," apologized Ai, with an awkward laugh.

Ah? She didn't need to apologize though! Saber raised her free hand, waving it.

"You don't have to say you're sorry, Master!" she asserted, trying to be reassuring, "I wasn't complaining, it's just not something I ever paid much attention to before."

She gave what she hoped was a reassuring smile to the brunette, but it was at that moment something else caught her eye. Her Master's shadow almost seemed to ripple for a moment… and then…

"Master!"

In an instant, the atmosphere changed. The ice cream Saber had been holding was tossed aside without a second thought, as motes of light traveled from her hand into the air. In an instant, the silver blade of a katana flashed through the air.

Metal met metal in a shower of sparks.

Saber had crossed the space between herself and her Master in the blink of an eye, and placed herself between the brunette and the figure that had suddenly risen from her shadow. No longer was she clad in casual wear, but rather her short, white kimono, black scarf fluttering in the wind.

"A… aaah…"

Wide-eyed, Ai stared in shock, her mouth hanging open.

The weapon that had nearly struck her down was now quite visible, blade shuddering against Saber's weapon. It was a straight-bladed katana, shorter then Saber's, the pale girl's silvery eyes traveling along its length to the wielder.

It was a girl, elegant, with dark hair in a long ponytail. She wore a short kimono, a second sword sheathed on her hip. On her face was a fox mask.

Assassin.

They parted, in an instant, the enemy Servant forced back. Without speaking, she moved back for several feet. She had seen it! The secret of Assassin's ability to teleport! She had emerged directly from Ai's shadow itself!

Saber pressed her assault. She wasn't going to give Assassin a moment to try and retreat again! They clashed again, but this time the girl samurai was prepared!

Both hands on her katana's hilt, Saber leveraged her blade and used it to force her enemy back. In the tiny space of time she had to strike, she thrust her blade forward and struck home!

But she'd hit the fox mask, rather then hitting the enemy Servant directly. It went flying off, a crack right through it as it landed several meters away.

Assassin leapt backwards, her sword singing through the air. Now, her face was visible… beautiful, soft features, purple eyes… but there was a coldness there. A feeling like ice.

"… You were able to intervene in my shadow-stepping," remarked the enemy Servant, in a calm, level voice, speaking for the first time since her appearance "Impressive. As expected from a Servant of the Saber class."

"Don't expect me to be happy with that compliment," the platinum blonde girl replied, sliding her feet into a ready stance, "After your attempt to assassinate my Master!"

Saber glanced back at her Master, quickly nodding her head. Thankfully, Ai understood, and hurriedly backed away.

In the scant seconds that this action took, the enemy Servant was suddenly upon her. The straight-bladed katana flashed forward with blinding speed, forcing Saber to counter with a swift slash in an upwards arc, deflecting it and forcing the attacker to back out of range once more.

"You're a skilled swordswoman," observed Saber, staring her opponent down, "And with that ability to move through shadows… You're Assassin."

"Of course," responded the black-haired girl, "Indeed, I can see there is little point in attempting to hide my nature from you."

Saber narrowed her eyes. Inwardly, she found herself cursing her failure to notice something was amiss. She had managed to protect her Master, but Assassin's attack had come far too close for comfort.

"One with such speed, and a samurai, no less," commented the Assassin, eyeing Saber's weapon and garb, "I cannot justify my failure, but I have surely encountered an interesting opponent."

Saber stood at the ready. She couldn't be certain of what abilities her opponent possessed, but for an Assassin-class Servant to be willing to engage in open battle against one of the knight classes… there was undeniably something up her enemy's sleeve.

"However… your agility may be top notch," Assassin continued, "But your strength… This is much more of an even match then I had expected. I can fulfill my duty regardless of being discovered."

"You may mock me, but I won't allow you to find victory," Saber responded, with a glare. She couldn't allow such comments to get to her.

"Mock?" her enemy questioned, tilting her head, "You misunderstand me. It was a statement of fact."

Smoothly, she sheathed the straight-bladed katana and drew her longer sword.

"This is where you are going to die."

Assassin darted towards her, but Saber's response was equally swift, and she met the enemy Servant almost immediately! Their blades clashed against one another in a shower of sparks and noise.

"Die? No, there's no way I'd allow myself to fall here!" Saber cried, pushing her opponent back, "As long as this transient body exists, I've sworn to be my Master's sword. I won't allow you to harm her!"

They parted.

"You think you are the only one?" asked Assassin, her body twisting as she lashed out once more, only to have her blade met with Saber's. To an observer, such as Ai, their movements were impossible to track. Even if she had seen Servants do battle before…

The only way she could follow the course of battle was by feeling the wind pressure from each strike, and the sound of blades clashing.

The brunette had no idea who had the upper hand. Normally when it came to melee she would hope it would be Saber, even with her Servant's low stats for the class, but this Assassin's speed and skill… even if she couldn't follow the battle with her own eyes, she knew that she had to be strong to last so long in melee with any of the knight classes.

Saber's lightning-fast strikes were being countered, but she was growing used to her opponent's defense. Certainly, she was incredibly skilled, but Saber stood as the most skilled wielder of the sword in the Shinsengumi. If she could keep analyzing the defense of her opponent, she would find a hole!

Their blades clashed again and again, the sound of metal on metal ringing out through the alleyway. The sun sank lower, the long shadow of street sign now being cast over the dueling Servants…

There! There was the hole Saber needed! The girl samurai's sword flashed like lightning, and bit into…

Empty air.

Assassin had vanished?! But where could she have gone!? She could disappear that quickly into the shdows?!

"What…?"

Her silver-gold eyes widening, Saber looked around. She'd heard from Ai about how Assassin could disappear into the darkness, and seen it the first moment she had appeared. But this was something entirely different. She could vanish that quickly?!

"Saber!"

On hearing her Master's voice, the platinum blonde swordswoman looked back over her shoulder… and saw Assassin rising from her shadow in an instant, her shorter blade swinging outward in a wide arc!

Saber had barely any time for a response, just managing to deflect her attacker's offense and hurl herself back and out of the way.

A thin line had been sliced through the skin of her shoulder, trickling red.

"… And so I drew first blood," declared Assassin, flicking her blade clean, "My lord would be proud."

She paused for a moment, as Saber immediately took a ready stance. Now Assassin was between her and her Master…

"… Concerned for your Master's life?" questioned the enemy Servant, "Worry not, Saber. I understand that you would prevent any further attempts I make to eliminate her, now that I have been discovered. I will slay you first, before slaying her as well."

Saber gritted her teeth. There's no way she could allow her Master to fall. If she died, it would only be if it ensured her Master wouldn't follow!

"As if I'd allow you to touch her!" snapped the swordswoman, darting forward in an instant, covering the distance between herself and Assassin in the blink of an eye. Her thrusting blade was answered by a deflection from her opponent's katana, and the follow-up slash was met with an equally swift block. Indeed, Assassin was a formidable foe… But Saber held firm. She could defeat her! Even if she could travel through shadows…

Another hole opened in Assassin's defense, another strike…! But the black-haired girl had already disappeared.

This time, Saber's eyes were on the shadows. If she could travel through any shadow, then she could appear anywhere she wanted… but she had waited until the shadow from the signpost was cast over them. If that's how it worked, in that case…!

To her left!

Saber spun on her heel and swung her katana in an arc. Assassin, who had been rising from the shadow cast by the nearby wall, barely had a chance to spring into the air, leaping over Saber's strike and allowing it to slice through the solid wall behind her! A second strike carved through the wall, and as Assassin landed on the other side, in the yard of the nearby home, a portion of the wall fell away, exposing her once more.

"… So you discovered the secret of my shadow-stepping so quickly?" Assassin asked, tilting her head, "Perhaps this will be a longer battle then I believed…"

"Of course!" Saber declared, katana held at the ready as she advanced through the hole, "I noticed that the shadow from the signpost was touching the shadow from the wall. It's not any shadow you can move through, they have to be in contact, even if it's only for an instant!"

"Impressive," commented Assassin, giving Saber a slight smile, "To understand the technique behind one of my skills so swiftly… Surely, you must be a warrior of great fame and prowess. A desirable opponent, especially given the both of us originate from Japan's history. But tell me, Saber, will that knowledge truly allow you to counter it?"

The silvery-blonde-haired girl's grip tightened on the hilt of her katana. Every single moment in battle counted, even if she wasn't clashing with her opponent. It would be difficult to prevent Assassin from using her shadow-stepping, but now she could prepare for it.

"As long as I'm prepared for your attack, I can counter it," Saber asserted, giving the enemy Servant a small smile of her own. She hadn't trained so hard, perfected her techniques so extensively, without being able to understand and combat even the most subtle and dangerous tricks an enemy could utilize!

"Heh," Assassin's only response was a single, solitary laugh, before reaching into her kimono. In a flash, she had drawn and thrown a set of four razor-sharp kunai, forcing Saber to dart to her right in order to dodge. In a split second she had already thrown another set of kunai, but Saber was more prepared this time, using her speed to go up the back wall of the yard and run across it, even as another set of four kunai embedded themselves in the concrete behind her!

The moment she came in line with Assassin, Saber leapt from the wall, flashing through the air in an instant to bring her sword slicing downwards! This time, her enemy was barely capable of blocking the blow, sparks scattering from the clashing metal as the sound of each blade colliding with one another rang out.

While Saber's parameters were hardly the highest for her class, the force of her katana coming down made Assassin bend at the knee, the earth beneath the dueling Servants cracking. The force was too much for Assassin, and she was sent hurtling backwards!

When she made contact with the rear of the house, the wall crumbled and cast up a cloud of dust, obscuring her for the moment. Even as it began to clear, however…!

The shorter of Assassin's paired blades suddenly came hurtling from the debris cloud, taking Saber by surprise. However, she didn't forget herself to the point where she failed to dodge, tilting her body to the side as it careened past her, embedding itself firmly in the back wall. And yet…

Before her, as the dust settled, Assassin was gone.

"How-"

Saber's answer came immediately from behind her. A blade, singing as it sliced the air in an arc towards her back, forcing her to twist in place in order to deflect it!

It only took a moment for the girl samurai to assemble what had happened in her mind. Assassin could use any shadows, as long as they were touching one another, to hide herself in. That meant she must have used the shadow of her weapon in order to get behind her!

Even knowing how it worked, that shadow-stepping skill was far too dangerous to leave unchecked. By this point, Saber was certain that she had to address it somehow… but how? It wasn't as if she could eliminate all the shadows in the yard. She had to find somewhere that lacked shadows entirely!

They parted for a brief moment, and clashed again, steel grinding against steel.

"Amazing!" declared Assassin, who was now openly grinning, "Slaying someone like you… truly, truly it is a feat worthy of my one true lord! Truly, my lord would shower me with praise for your death!"

Where could she go? She had to find somewhere that made it difficult for Assassin to use her shadow-stepping, but also somewhere that the enemy Servant would follow her…!

Even as she clashed with Assassin once more, sparks illuminating the vicious grin now adorning her opponent's face, each collision of blade on blade highlighting the gleeful look in her opponent's eyes, Saber was trying to analyze her surroundings, to find a spot in which she could take the battle that would remove Assassin's advantage when in the shadows.

Given the sun was setting, she had little time to waste…!

There!

The rooftop was still bathed in sunlight. If Saber could guide Assassin onto the roof, there would be no more tricks. There wasn't enough shadow up there to use that technique!

But how? It wasn't as if Assassin wouldn't be unaware of such a thing. By this point, Assassin was aware that matching pure swordplay with Saber was unlikely to end in her victory. So there was no way that her enemy would follow her somewhere that would eliminate one of her options!

Unless she thought that she would win regardless…

Assassin's blade flashed again, and just as swiftly, Saber's went up to meet it.

But then, something happened. In that instant, her opponent's blade seemed to shimmer, and almost fade…

"Yuurei no Setsudan!"

Her Noble Phantasm!?

Saber's silvery eyes widened in shock as Assassin's sword simply passed through hers. This whole time, Assassin had possessed the ability to phase her weapon through others?! Her Noble Phantasm… it was an assassination sword that could pass through objects as if nothing was there, in order to cleave through its real target!

But this…

Perhaps this was Saber's chance.

Her body twisted, but she still felt it. The blade cutting into her chest, above her breasts, and slicing diagonally across her body. She stepped back as it left her, blood spattering across the ground. Assassin's sword had even passed through her clothing, leaving the blood to stain her kimono.

Saber gasped. She was used to pain, but that didn't make this any better.

"Ah…"

"S… Saber…?"

There was her Master, eyes wide with horror at the girl's bleeding frame, having followed them, peering through the gap Saber had cut into the wall.

But there was no time to reassure her.

Pain radiated through Saber's frame. But her mind was clear. Her next actions had to be very deliberate. The platinum blonde girl had to act swiftly.

Morever… an assassin who could vanish into the shadows, dutiful to a lord who was not present, using a manslaying technique created in order to impress that lord… It was perhaps not the best basis, but…

She had to make Assassin think she was retreating!

Using the nearby wall as a springboard, holding her bloodied chest in one hand, Saber sprang up and onto the roof.

Just as she had hoped, Assassin followed.

"Fleeing? How disappointing," Assassin commented as she landed on the roof of the home, brandishing her katana. Placing both hands on her blade, Saber turned slowly in place.

"Oh… perhaps not? Have you decided to face your death?" Assassin asked, readying herself for another attack.

"An Assassin who is always in the shadows…" Saber's gaze was firmly planted on Assassin, following every movement. "Loyal to an unseen lord… You are Mori Ranmaru, aren't you?"

The enemy Servant paused for a moment.

"… Ah, so you guessed?" she asked, after a moment, "… Indeed, I am Mori Ranmaru, loyal attendant to the greatest of all warlords of the Sengoku era: Oda Nobunaga-sama! Ah, the thought of her praise for slaying such a strong foe such as you… it's intoxicating! You'll die for me, won't you!?"

Assassin didn't know it yet, but the tide of battle had shifted. The way in which Saber had taken the blade across her body had been painful, yes, but…

She'd ensured that it wasn't a serious injury!

The wild look in her opponent's eyes, Assassin was obsessed with the thought of her lord's praise. Her adoration of the one she had served in life was chief in her mind, above all else! It was these things that had allowed Saber's ploy to be executed.

"I think you're too confident, Assassin!"

In the blink of an eye, the space between them was cleared, slates torn up from the rooftop. Range was nothing to someone who had mastered the art of flash-stepping!

Assassin, who had assumed Saber was more deeply injured then she truly was, was taken aback by this sudden burst of speed, almost pierced by the edge of the silvery-haired girl's katana. Their blades clashed once more.

"Saber?! Even as a Servant, that injury-"

"Your own desires betrayed you!" Saber interjected, stepping forward and pushing her opponent back. "You thought only of being praised by your lord, someone who isn't even here. Because I fled, you assumed I had been seriously injured, and followed me to a place where your shadow-stepping is no use!"

Realization dawned on her enemy.

"… Impressive, Saber," replied Assassin, through gritted teeth, "Deceiving someone whose life has been constructed on deception… Whoever you were in life, perhaps you were not unfamiliar with deceit?"

Leveraging her katana, Saber used the momentum she had built to drive the enemy Servant's blade to the side! Even if it was quickly answered by a dodge and deflection, by this point the girl samurai was familiar with her enemy's technique. All she had to do was make that hole in her defenses one last time! All she had to do was keep on her, never giving her an opening to escape!

Even as Assassin leapt over her, Saber's blade flashed up to meet her strikes, and the silvery-haired Servant kept pressing her offensive. She'd forced Assassin to fight directly, without her shadow-stepping, and that Noble Phantasm wouldn't be nearly as dangerous now that she was prepared!

Again and again, their blades clashed, until…!

There! Assassin's blade was pushed aside, and Saber thrust her katana forward, through that instant-long gap!

The tip of her sword bit into flesh, piercing Assassin's shoulder. Her opponent let out a cry of surprise and pain as It erupted out through her back. It hadn't been her target, but that blow was deep, and painful. It had run Assassin completely through!

Even as the enemy Servant leapt back, she could see the hole she had put clear through her opponent's body. The black-haired girl hit one knee with a gasp, clutching at her shoulder as she bled. Saber may not have slain her, but she had disabled that arm, for the moment!

A Servant could heal, and could be mended by their Master. But Assassin's Master was no-where to be seen.

"Stand up, Assassin, and we'll end this here!"

For a few moments, the bleeding Servant was silent. Then, her grin returning, Assassin rose back to her feet, her still-working arm gripping her sword.

"… Very well… a death in battle would earn Oda-sama's praise as well…"

The two swordswomen tensed, and…!

Gunshots rang out.

With no choice but to defend herself, Saber spun, sidestepping two shots and deflecting the other three. It wasn't hard to locate the shooter.

Perched on the corner of the wall, tipping his hat, was the blonde-haired Archer-class Servant. He was a boy clad in attire that called for images of the wild west.

"'Evening, ma'am."

"Archer?!" Saber cried, "Why…"

Interrupting herself, the silvery-haired girl quickly turned back towards her foe, but Assassin had already fled.

She'd lost her chance to end it… Her attention immediately returned to the gun-toting Servant.

"Archer, why did you intervene?!" she snapped, unable to hold back her anger. She had almost finished off Assassin right here… even if they were enemies, surely Archer could understand the merit in removing a Servant that could pose such a threat to either of their Masters, couldn't he?!

"Sorry, but it wasn't my idea," replied the gunslinger with a shrug, "I woulda been happy to watch you work, but Master's orders."

At Saber's glare, he sighed.

"I'm not here to fight, either," he added, "Believe me, I would love to test the fastest gun in the west against the fastest sword in the east, but my Master's not ready for that yet. See ya around, ma'am."

Before Saber could say anything else, Archer had already disappeared into spirit form.

She'd failed to slay Assassin, and yet…

If nothing else, she now knew Assassin's identity. And had learned her combat style. If they met in battle once more, Saber felt confident she would emerge victorious.

The moment she stepped off the rooftop, she was immediately embraced by her Master.

"Ah?"

"S-Saber!" cried Ai, tears in her eyes, "Y-you're bleeding, I… I… I h-have to fix your wounds, I… I w-was scared you were… I…"

"… It's alright, Master," she said, pushing the fight out of her mind for the moment to try and reassure the small girl, "It's not as bad as it looks, I'm sure it'll heal-"

"S-still!"

As her Master began to mend her injury, one thought surfaced in Saber's mind.

If nothing else, at least she had protected Ai.

The tiny girl was fretting, and that warm sensation once again spread through Saber's chest. It was a shallow injury, so a Servant's capabilities to heal would assist in mending the injury. It seemed like her Master was surprised at how quickly it was healing… she'd assumed it was as bad as it looked, too.

"Ah… it healed so fast…" Ai said, her eyes widening, surprised at the speed of Saber's healing what looked like a deep cut.

"It wasn't as bad as it looked," Saber explained, doing her best to reassure the smaller girl, "I had to lure onto the rooftop, or else I couldn't stop her from using the shadows. So… I let her hit me, but I pulled back enough that she wouldn't cut very deeply."

"U-um… I see…"

It seemed like her Master was still too scared to fully comprehend it… and Saber couldn't help but be angry. Archer's intervention had allowed Assassin to escape…

"I almost killed Assassin, but Archer intervened…" Saber added, glaring at the corner of the wall where the blonde-haired cowboy had been standing. "I can't understand why. Wouldn't allowing me to slay Assassin be the best choice?"

Ai was silent for a few moments. She kept glancing at the bloodstains on Saber's kimono…

"… U-um…" the small brunette hesitated, "Do you think… is it possible that Archer and Assassin are allies?"

Her eyes hadn't left the bloodstain, even though the wound had been healed.

"I don't think so," replied Saber, finally tearing her eyes away from the corner of the wall that Archer had appeared on, "If that was the case, Archer could have intervened much earlier and joined the fight. But he left as soon as possible… It's just… frustrating!"

The truth was it was hard for Saber not to be angry. Assassin had directly threatened her Master, tried to kill her, and then she'd escaped right when she'd had her where she wanted her. Would Assassin's decision not to attack her Master extend beyond this fight, or was this where it ended? There was no way for Saber to tell, and the reason it was a potential problem was all because of Archer.
But… Saber tried her best not to dwell on that fact. Even though her Master was attempting to calm herself down, the girl samurai didn't need any special abilities to be able to tell that the small brunette was still shaking with fear.

"… I'm glad you're okay, Master," she said, placing one delicate, pale hand on the shorter girl's shoulder. She had to cool her own anger, and she had to try and reassure her Master as well. The platinum blonde didn't want her Master to break down. She couldn't allow something like that to happen if she could help it. "Do you think we should go back home?"

There was a few moments of silence. Ai was gulping in air, then took a deep breath to try and calm herself down. It didn't really seem to work very well, but she was shaking less at least…

"… N-no…" she said, finally, "I… I-I'm scared, but… I… we need to figure out if anything strange h-has been happening… and investigate the runes…"
"If you're absolutely certain, Master," replied Saber, "I can keep going."

She did her best to give Ai a smile, no matter how angry she was about Archer's intervention in her fight with Assassin. Both times he appeared, he'd been just as quick to vanish without doing much in the way of fighting…

"… A-are you sure?" asked Ai, still airing the bloodstain on the front of Saber's kimono.

"The wound's healed, thanks to my Master," replied Saber. It was true, without the help of her Master's magecraft the cut would likely have taken much longer to heal. She was hardly about to pretend she knew much about the process behind the healing magecraft, but what she knew is that it had worked with the ability of a Servant to heal. And more importantly, the girl samurai knew that hearing that could potentially help with her Master's morale.

She had to try and help her Master somehow, and right now, right after being attacked… It was important to try and keep her spirits up, at least, if nothing else. "If you want to patrol, I can protect you. I don't think we'll be seeing Assassin again any time soon."

Part of Saber wanted to try and find Assassin. To track her down and finish her off, before she could pose a threat like that to her Master again. But at the same time, she realized that this was a poor idea when her Master was this shaken. To be honest, she wasn't sure letting Ai continue on this patrol was a good idea, either… But her Master seemed to want to do it, in spite of how shaken she was. Even if part of her wanted to scoop the small brunette up and run her back home, she decided that it was for the best to at least do a quick scouting of the surrounding area.

Cherry blossom petal lights fluttered off of her body, leaving her once again in the casual outfit Marianne and Charlotte had selected for her. Getting rid of the bloodstains was probably a good idea for her Master's composure, as well.

"… S-so… so we'll…" Ai stammered, before taking a deep breath, "We're going to check this area over for any more of those runes… or… or any of the Dead. If there's any of… of those here, it's our duty to eliminate them. And… a-and if we… we see Assassin again."

Saber gave her a confident, firm nod, smiling. "I'll defeat her. I got used to her fighting style, and I know how to counter her tricks now. When it comes to swordplay, I'm the more skilled one!"

That seemed to comfort her Master a little, at least. But… Saber couldn't hold back her concerns any longer.

"… Master, you don't have to push yourself," the girl samurai added, her smile turning into a small frown, "I don't think there's any shame in being frightened… nor is there in going back home for now. We'll be meeting up with Inoue-san and Lancer later, anyway, won't we?"

She saw her Master hesitate before responding.

"Th-that's… that's true, but…" she fidgeted, "If… if Caster's Master is someone at my school… I've only attended two days, but it's… it feels like I should do something."

"But we will be doing something later, won't we?"

Ai adjusted her glasses before managing to speak again.

"Th-that's… yes… but I… I… if they're… I… It's scary… all of this is scary…" she replied, "… But… it's my duty… I… I came here to fight in the Holy Grail War… and I wanted to make sure that the secrecy of magecraft was kept safe, and… and that no-one who wasn't involved in all this had to suffer because of it… so… so even if I'm scared… I-I don't want to give up."

Ah… so that was it. Her duty outweighed her fears, even if it was just barely. Even if she was scared, it was something she didn't want to give up on…

Saber gave her Master a smile. It wasn't just that she felt she needed to protect the fragile-seeming girl, now. It wasn't just affection born from concern for her Master's safety, and a need to reassure her.

"Master, I'm proud to be your Servant."

"E-e-eh?! Why?! I-I'm… I'm a terrible Master, I… I can only barely heal you u-um…" the brunette stammered.
Still smiling, Saber waved her hand.

"You're someone I can feel proud of following. Because even if you're scared, you still want to do your duty and try and make sure no-one else gets hurt," she said, "No matter what you say, it makes me happy to know I've been summoned by a Master like that."

"A...a-ah… hawawawa…" Ai buried her face in her hands, practically glowing from how red she'd gotten, "I-I'm nothing as i-impressive as th-that… I-I'm not good at all, i-it's just… I w-was… I had to…"

"You don't need to try and bring yourself, down, Master," replied Saber, nodding to herself as she did. It was simply fact, in the samurai's mind. She had a Master who, no matter how timid she was, showed genuine dedication to the duty she had been given. "This is my honest feelings. You're someone I feel proud to follow."

"… Aaaah…"

The small brunette buried her face deeper into her hands. It seemed like she didn't know how to handle the praise she had received, now… She was even crouching as she mumbled to herself, trying to make herself look even smaller then she usually did.

"Er… sorry, eh-heheheh…" Saber said, scratching the back of her head as she apologized, "I just thought after you said that… well, it was important to let my Master know how I felt about it, right?"

"… It's… I… th-thank you…" Ai finally said, still unmoving, almost seeming to have curled up into a ball as she crouched there, head in her hands. "B-but I don't deserve to be praised that much… I-I'm still terrified of this entire War… whenever I see you fight, I don't know what to do…"

"And yet, you stay here and make sure you heal any injuries I might have gotten, don't you?" Saber asked, "And you're still dedicated to going on this patrol, no matter how frightened you are."

Her Master mumbled to herself again. This small, frail girl was someone who was willing to put aside her fears and try her best to fulfill her duty, even if she didn't acknowledge being so. Saber couldn't help but let her know the way she felt about that, how she respected it. The simple fact was that her Master had gone from being someone she felt the need to help and protect to someone she could take pride in.

… Not that she didn't still feel as if Ai needed protection and assistance every step of the way. The girl had almost no confidence in herself and her abilities.

"So, let's go, Master," Saber said, reaching down towards the smaller girl with a smile, "Let's scout this town out and see if anything has changed. And tonight, let's put a stop to Caster's plan!"

For a few moments, Ai was silent.

Then, trembling, she reached up and took Saber's hand. Holding that small hand in her own delicate palm, Saber pulled her Master to her feet.

Ai wouldn't meet her gaze, presumably thinking she wasn't deserving of the praise that had been given to her.

Saber hoped that her Master would become capable of seeing her own worth, and the worth in her own actions, with time. But for now, the both of them had a duty they had set out to fulfill. They had to scout out the local town and see if anything had changed, if any of the runes had been restored and where it was they were if so.

When she regained some level of composure, before setting out again, Ai summoned up her cat familiars.

Even if Saber had just been fighting, even though she was still angry at Archer… well, it was hard to focus on those feelings when she was suddenly surrounded by cute cats. Kneeling, with a blissful expression on her face, she reached out to stroke one of the numerous cats behind its ears. They paid her almost no attention, still fixated on her Master's orders, but… aaah, they were so cute! How was she supposed to resist giving them attention? She simply couldn't, that was the only answer.

Moments later, they were dispatched to search the town for anything unusual once again.

"There…" Ai said, as she stood up straight, "Now… now my familiars can report to us again if they see anything unusual!"

With a nod, Saber straightened as well. As cute as they were, her Master's cat familiars were serving a far more important purpose then hanging around to be petted! By working as secondary scouts, it allowed them to cover a wider ranger of area than just herself and her Master would be capable of doing on their own.

Given what had come before it, perhaps it was for the better that the patrol itself was relatively sedate. The route they had picked out was more public, making it difficult for enemy Servants to attack even if they wanted to. Even Rider, with her seemingly shameless attitude, wouldn't likely attempt to attack so blatantly in the middle of a more crowded area. As predicted, Assassin didn't attempt to attack again. It would likely take attention from her Master to mend that injury, as Saber's katana had gone clear through her shoulder and impaled her entirely, coming out the other side.

The runes in this location did not yet seem to be restored. While Saber didn't know much about magecraft, she couldn't help but find that strange. She'd been able to understand that the bounded field required a large number of runes to link together in order to activate, and most of them had been disrupted. She'd also understood that the one closest to the school had been fixed after her Master and Inoue Tsubaki used their own magecraft to disrupt it the previous day. Then why was it that it was the only one restored? Surely Caster had time to visit at least one of the other nearby runes, didn't they?

"… It's strange, why did Caster only fix the rune by the school? Is that one more important?" Saber asked, as they continued their search for further runes.

Ai shook her head.

"No, it's not," she answered, "All of the runes need to be active for the bounded field to be created. And it takes some time for them to do it… I don't understand why Caster would only fix the rune closest to the school and then let all the others regenerate on their own. It doesn't make any sense…"

It was exactly as Saber thought.

"Could they be waiting for something?" the girl samurai added.

"Waiting? Um… maybe?" Ai looked rather thoughtful as she tried to think this possibility over, "Maybe they want something to happen before the bounded field activates… but… then why would they only fix the rune by the school? You'd think if they were fixing them they would want it to activate as soon as possible…"

The small brunette frowned.

"It's weird…"Ai continued, folding her arms across her chest as she thought it over, "It's… almost like they don't really care about the runes getting disrupted, but… I don't know why they wouldn't."

"Hmm… could it be some kind of trap?" Saber didn't really know what sort of trap would result in trying to make a bounded field, but it seemed like a more likely option the more she heard about all of this. After all, if they didn't care about the bounded field getting disrupted, maybe they just wanted to lure the other Masters and Servants somewhere? "If Caster isn't interested in fixing all of them, maybe they just want us to think that they're up to something so we end up right where they want us?"

"I… th-that's… kind of scary to think about," her Master replied. Saber winced. She hadn't wanted to frighten her Master, she was just trying to think of possibilities for this unusual approach to the bounded field that Caster was displaying. "But… I don't think that's it, either. If that was true, why would Caster wait to spring their trap? We visited a lot of the runes yesterday, after all…"

That was true… why wait? Caster hadn't shown their face at all, even though they disrupted as many of the runes they could find. Decoys? But no, they were all placed around leylines, weren't they… This was difficult. Just what was Caster's plan here, allowing the runes to be disrupted and then only bothering to fix one of them? It didn't make any sense at all. Not even the other more isolated runes had been repaired.

Just what was Caster's game here?

"Maybe Inoue-san will have some ideas…" said Ai, "A-and… we should tell her about Assassin and Archer, too…"

"Of course, Master," Saber replied, anger resurfacing at the memory of how the fight had concluded, "Now that I've figured out how Assassin's shadow-stepping works, it'll be much more difficult for her to try and perform assassinations. And since I learned her identity, too, we can figure out what to expect!"

"A-ah? You learned her identity?!"

"Ah…"

In all this time, so caught up in reassuring her Master and then attempting to figure out Caster's plan, Saber realized she hadn't actually mentioned Assassin's identity to her Ai. She fidgeted, slightly, for a moment, then took a deep breath.

"Eh-heheh… I'm sorry, Master," the platinum blonde girl scratched the back of her head, "I got so caught up in everything else that I didn't realize I forgot to mention that to you…"

"U-um, it's okay…" Ai responded, "U-um, it's just… I… well I don't have to tell you how important it is you probably know better than me anyway you were the one fighting after all it's not really your fault…"

Ah…

The best way to snap her Master out of that was just to mention Assassin's identity.

"Assassin is Mori Ranmaru," Saber declared.

"… Mori Ranmaru?" repeated the small brunette, snapped out of her own self-deprecation, "The attendant and lover of Oda Nobunaga was female? Um… then… when they talked about being Oda Nobunaga's shadow…"

"It seems like that was literal," replied the Samurai girl, neglecting to mention that they way that Assassin spoke about Nobunaga indicated the latter had been female as well, "She was obsessed with her former lord, to the point where she felt like everything was doing was for Oda Nobunaga. I think that's one of the reasons I was able to lure her onto the roof so easily. She felt like defeating me was a way to honor her lord."

"Even though Oda Nobunaga isn't here…" mused Ai. "… U-um, he's not, right…?"

"… I… would assume Oda Nobunaga would be summoned as either Archer or Saber," responded Saber, "And since I'm Saber and Archer is a cowboy I don't think so."

"R-right…" Ai paused for a moment. "Um… we should probably get back home to meet Inoue-san and Lancer."

Saber nodded. It was getting close to the set meeting time, and tonight was when they would hopefully track down Caster and put an end to their plot. Certainly, the details of Caster's plan became more muddled and confused after this patrol, but regardless of what was intended the simple fact was that Caster had to be stopped.

And so, the pair of girls headed back towards the Matsushita estate. As they walked, Saber remained wary of their surroundings. The simple fact was, now that it was getting later, the prospect of an attack by Rider was once again looming. Additionally, it wasn't impossible that Assassin would be sent to attack once more, though she was confident that the enemy Master would prefer to plan another route of attack rather then send their Servant out immediately after suffering a serious injury. On top of that, Archer's plan was still unknown, and Berserker remained unaccounted for.

Therefore, it was certainly wise to remain cautious.

But it seemed as if there was little need to be concerned, as the both of them returned home safely. However, when they arrived, Saber was surprised to see that Inoue Tsubaki and Lancer were already present. How long had then been waiting?

"Ah? Matsushita-san, Saber," Tsubaki began, waving to them as they approached, "Where were you? We've been waiting for a while now."

"Hawawawa… s-sorry, I lost track of the time…" mumbled Ai, weakly.

Saber stepped forward.

"My Master wanted to go on a patrol, to see if anything particularly unusual had happened recently," she explained, "But while we were preparing to scout the area, Assassin suddenly appeared and engaged me in combat."

"Assassin attacked you?!" exclaimed Lancer, "Did you discover the secret behind her ability to vanish!? What happened?"

The fact that Lancer was somewhat sore over her failure to defeat Assassin was rather obvious. From what Saber understood, she'd hardly lost, either, but the fact was still that she hadn't won. She could understand the frustration.

"U-um… Saber can explain it better," half-mumbled Ai, shuffling her feet. The girl samurai glanced towards her Master. While she felt that Ai would be able to convey the information as well, she decided it was for the best to attempt to explain things herself, as the small brunette wanted.

"Assassin has the ability to disappear into the shadows," she explained, "And that's not all. As long as two shadows are in contact with one another she can travel through them, letting her disappear and reappear to attack from anywhere that's in the dark."

"Of course!" Tsubaki declared, glancing towards Lancer, "That explains why she could only attack from specific angles, and how she was able to get behind me that quickly!"

Lancer folded her arms.

"So it was a trick like that, after all," she said, simply, "Of course. Assassin's capabilities don't lie in fair combat, after all. Did you learn anything else?"

Needless to say, it seemed as if Lancer was rather eager to learn about any kind of advantage she could get when it came to Assassin.

"It seems like you're really intense right now, Lancer," Saber commented, scratching the back of her head, "Not that I blame you. Assassin is pretty dangerous… I learned her identity, though, too! She's Mori Ranmaru, the famous attendant and lover of the Sengoku Warlord Oda Nobunaga!"

"Mori Ranmaru?" Tsubaki asked, "Hmmm… I wouldn't expect her to be very powerful. Not just because of her class, but because of her role in history. Disregarding the fact that history was wrong about Ranmaru's gender, the fact is that she wasn't a fighter or anything like that."

Saber shook her head.

"There was definite skill behind her blade," she responded, "I'm sure Lancer can tell you the same thing. But she didn't fight like someone who was used to long engagements. When I figured out the trick behind her shadow-stepping, she quickly used her Noble Phantasm before I tricked her onto the roof and was able to seriously injure her."

Saber sighed. The memory of the way that battle had ended still frustrated her.

"But at the last moment, Archer intervened and allowed Assassin to escape."

"Ah? Does that mean Assassin and Archer are allies?" asked Tsubaki. This time, it was Ai who spoke up.

"I don't think so… um, Saber said if they were, Archer would have acted to join forces with Assassin and support her," she responded, "But instead of doing anything like that, he just stopped Saber from finishing Assassin off and then left."

Saber nodded.

"I think this might be some sort of plan by Archer's Master," she added.

Tsubaki folded her arms, a thoughtful expression crossing her face.

"I see…" she began, "Then we need to be prepared for Archer appearing to intervene in any fights we get into. There's no way of knowing what his Master's plan entails."

"Archer's behavior is decidedly uncouth," commented Lancer with a frown, "To interrupt a duel between heroic spirits… His Master must have little concern for matters of honor."

That was something Saber could definitely agree with. But this wasn't the only issue that she felt needed to be brought to their allies' attention.

"Um… there's more, too," Ai started, as if reading her Servant's mind, "We checked all the runes near the school, but none of the others had been restored. It's only the one by the school. It doesn't make any sense at all…"

Tsubaki seemed taken aback by this.

"Eh? But why?" she asked, "I was ready to start checking them all again… If Caster was able to restore the rune by the school that quickly, why didn't they restore any of the others?"

Unfortunately, Ai didn't have any answers, and neither did Saber.

"I don't know at all…" said the small brunette with a frown, "It's like they don't really care that they've been disabled. I can't think of why Caster wouldn't mind something like that… If they're going through the effort of creating such a huge bounded field, why don't they care that someone is disrupting it and keeping it from activating?"

Tsubaki sighed, but seconds later the tanned girl had perked up.

"It's not as if it's not good news, in a way. It means we have more time," she responded, looking confident. "We might not understand Caster's plan, so that means we need to be cautious, but if they're not actively attempting to restore most of the runes, it's going to be easy to keep them from repairing themselves on their own, and tracking Caster down will be easier with more time, too."

"Based on what we have seen so far, I would not be surprised if Caster comes to us, first," said Lancer.

For a moment, Saber wasn't certain this was the case. After all, Caster was going to be at a disadvantage against two of the Knight classes. Certainly, her own Magic Resistance was very low for her class, but all it would take was closing the distance. Then again, Caster's abilities were still unknown. It was possible that the enemy Servant was more capable of dealing with multiple opponents then it may have initially seemed.

Regardless, she had to be prepared for the event that they would be facing Caster tonight. By now, it had grown quite dark, streetlights providing the chief source of illumination.

"Lancer is right," Saber said, finally, "We need to be prepared for a trap."

"I'll… I'll be ready!" declared Ai, as confidently as she could. No matter how scared her Master was, Saber knew that Ai cared about stopping Caster enough to override her fear.

"Then let's go!" Tsubaki pointed towards the street.

For quite a while, the search was uneventful, just as the earlier patrol had been. Indeed, none of the runes had been reactivated, just as Ai and Saber had discovered earlier. Not only the ones that they had checked, but the other runes in a wider area. Just what was Caster playing at?

"… Maybe they're just lazy?" Saber wondered to herself. She wasn't entirely serious, even if it wasn't exactly impossible, but mostly it was something of a funny possibility to consider.

Lancer didn't seem to agree.

"I would hardly assume that would be the case, Saber," she said, "It would be ridiculous to assume Caster is simply 'being lazy'."

"Eh-heheheh…" Saber scratched the back of her head with an awkward smile, "That was a joke, Lancer…"

The blonde knight seemed rather irritable today. It wasn't as if Saber didn't understand why, but at the same time she didn't really want to say anything that would bother her fellow Servant. She was looking forward to that duel, anyway…

"Hmmm… hey, Saber," began Tsubaki, suddenly, changing her pace to walk beside the platinum blonde girl as she spoke, "What do you think of Lancer?"

"Hm? Well… it's nothing I haven't already said already, really," the girl samurai replied. To be honest, she wasn't sure why Tsubaki was asking her. She'd already praised Lancer's capabilities in combat, hadn't she? Lancer was a strong knight, a great opponent, displayed great skill with the cavalry lance she wielded, and additionally performed highly honorable conduct. Even across the different cultures they originated from, the matters of honor were similar. "She's a very skilled combatant, she's honorable, and she's a fine example of a knight!"

"No, no, I don't mean it like that," responded the black-haired girl, "I already know all of that. I mean more… what do you think of Lancer, as a girl?"

Almost immediately, Lancer looked away, pulling her hat down slightly to obscure her face.

"As… as a girl?" Saber repeated. She shifted uncertainly as she walked. Exactly… what did Tsubaki mean by that? It wasn't something the girl samurai had spent any time thinking about. What she thought about Lancer as a girl? Wasn't that kind of a secondary concern, anyway? They were both here to fight in the Holy Grail War… she glanced towards the knight, who was still doing her best to hide her face with her hat. "… I'm afraid I don't really know what you mean, Inoue-san… eh-heheh…"

"I mean… do you think she's pretty?" asked Tsubaki, "Do you think she looks nice in that dress? Do you think she's a model example of a beautiful maiden?"

"U-um… well… she's quite beautiful, I guess?" what kind of conversation was this? Saber didn't really understand, but it was kind of awkward. Lancer hadn't spoken since it began, instead attempting to cover her face as much as possible with the brim of her hat. To be fair, she was a very beautiful girl, but that wasn't exactly what Saber was focusing on.

Tsubaki chuckled.

"See, Lancer?" she said, giving a glance towards her Servant, who was still doing her best not to show her face.

"Th-this… is… very unbecoming, Master…" mumbled Lancer, sounding considerably more shy then she ever had before.

"Of course, Saber is a beautiful girl as well, isn't she?" Tsubaki declared, cheerfully. Now it was the samurai's turn to blush.

"I… what? Er… thank… you?" the swordswoman responded, taken off-guard. Why were so many people making comments to her like this? What was it about her that got them all to compliment her looks?! Her Master, the maids, Tsubaki now as well…

"I… um…"

Now Ai was joining in too?!

"Saber… Saber is a really cute girl!" cried the brunette, "She looks so happy when she's eating something sweet, and… and she looks good in any outfit I picked out for her!"

"… Um…" Saber herself had no idea how to comment, at this point. She was embarrassed to say the least, her looks were hardly the chief comment about her during her life, and she hadn't expected them to be when she was summoned to do battle in the Holy Grail War. "… Th… thank you… I-I guess…"

Tsubaki smiled brightly, but after a few moments that cheerful grin dulled somewhat.

"… I guess this is going to seem like a bit of a mood swing," the tanned girl confessed, "But… when I first encountered you, I thought about how Matsushita-san didn't seem to be suited to fight in the Holy Grail War."

"… I-I'm really not," responded Ai. Her enthusiasm had evaporated in an instant. Saber was about to comment herself, growing more then a little annoyed with the way Tsubaki had sucked away her Master's good mood, even if it had been about something embarrassing, but then the tanned girl continued.

"But the fact is she's shown a lot of dedication to finding Caster," Tsubaki continued, "So… I feel like I need to apologize, Ai-san. You're clearly working hard, and you've clearly worked up a lot of courage just to be here. I think you and Saber make a good pair."

"A-ah… hawawawa… th-that's… that's a lot of praise I don't deserve…" Ai placed her hands to her cheeks, trembling.

"See, Master? Inoue-san recognizes it as well," Saber commented, her smile returning.

"Hawawawa…"

"The next rune is ahead, in that building," Lancer's voice suddenly interjected.

"Oh, that's right!" Tsubaki declared, her attention focusing ahead once more. It was an old, abandoned apartment building. The last time they were there, nothing had actually happened. It just looked rather run down and neglected. Saber didn't know why it was abandoned, or why it was still standing. The important thing was that one of the runes had been placed inside of it. If all was as she expected, it would still be disabled, just like all the others.

She noticed her Master take a deep breath before Saber cut the tape again and the four of them entered the building. Inside, it was dark, but Tsubaki preformed some sort of magecraft that created a blue glow, enough to illuminate the entire room. Within, there was a great deal of dust and debris, cracked windows and rusted metal displaying just how little the old building had been cared for.

"Well, if Caster's been back here, they certainly haven't tidied the place up," Tsubaki joked, glancing around the room as she did. While it was a joke, that didn't mean it also wasn't true, insofar that it was clear no-one had been here since they last checked the building.

That being said, it didn't mean that Caster hadn't actually been back to the old apartments, but given what they had seen so far that was doubtful.

"Um… l-let's just… get this over with," said Ai, fidgeting. Saber nodded towards her Master. Last time, the small brunette had been even less willing to enter the old apartment complex, though the presence of two Servants had eventually reassured her that no spirits likely to be dwelling in such a location would pose any real threat. Certainly, there were weak phantoms in a place like this, but nothing that could actually be of any danger.

"There is no reason to wait around," Lancer said, simply, "All we need to do is confirm that the rune has not been reactivated."
With that, they simply had to go up to the third floor, at the end of the first corridor. The rune would be there, unless anything had changed.

At the moment, Saber doubted there would be any alterations to the location or state of the rune. If Caster hadn't bothered to restore any of the other runes, why would they have restored the one here?

The building was silent, aside from their footsteps. The girl samurai could tell her Master was feeling rather uneasy, as well… But so far, nothing seemed any different from the last time they had been here, as they made their way up the stairs. Certainly, it was important to be aware of one's surroundings, but nothing had changed in the slightest… The same cobwebs, the same dusty, rusted railing on the stairs, the same cracked windows… The old building was certainly a mess, but there was nothing threatening there at all. As the four girls walked, the light that Tsubaki had created followed them, drifting over the tanned girl's left shoulder.

Even as they made their way up to the second floor, nothing seemed different at all. There were no traps in place, nothing that seemed to be prepared for their arrival. It was good news, but also unusual. Nothing was making any sense when it came to Caster's actions.

Until they saw the rune at the end of the corridor. It was giving off that hazy green glow, indicating it had been reactivated. In an instant, the situation had changed. For some reason Caster had chosen to fix this specific rune, but none of the others?

"Eh? This one too…? But why?" Ai said, stepping forward somewhat. Saber shared her confusion. Why is it that this rune had been activated but none of the others they'd come across in the area had been? It didn't make any sense at all.

Unless…

As Ai stepped forward, Tsubaki went to follow her.

"It's weird, this rune isn't anywhere near the school, there's plenty in between…" Tsubaki commented, "So why is it that this one has been reactivated but none of the others have?"

A tiny pinpoint of light and heat appeared on the wall to the right of Ai and made it glow white-hot in an instant. The miniscule dot swelled rapidly, growing into a wider circle incredibly quickly…!

"MASTER!"

Saber threw herself forward without a second thought, as Ai turned to face her, surprised. Behind her, Lancer grabbed Tsubaki and yanked her back, as Saber threw her arms around her Master and went hurtling forward, rolling once as she held the smaller girl close to her body.

With a sound like a woman screaming, the wall exploded inwards! A column of green light ripped through not only the side of the apartment complex, but the wall beyond! It tore its way completely through the abandoned building, a white-hot, perfectly circular hole burned in one side of the old apartments and out the other! It contracted into a thin line of green light before fading entirely. Immediately, Saber shed her casual wear in a flurry of cherry blossom petal lights, drawing her katana as she did, scarf fluttering in the light breeze from outside. She gently shoved her trembling Master behind her, catching sight of Lancer, now clad in her full armor as well.

"So it was a trap!" snapped the blonde knight, gripping her cavalry lance tightly.

There, through the hole, was a girl. She looked young, incredibly pale with black hair and green eyes, hair in short pigtails and adorned with a pair of strange, golden, spiked decorations. Her clothing was black and green, an unusual outfit consisting of a light top, mesh over her midsection, and what almost looked like bone wrapping around her waist.

In her hand, she gripped a staff tipped with the skeleton of some kind of small, horned animal, glowing with a green haze.

There was no mistake. This had to be the one behind the runes themselves.

They had come face to face with Caster.

"There you are," began the enemy Servant, grinning widely. It wasn't a friendly expression.

"Meddlers."