Summary:

Not how they would have expected their Thursday evening to go, Ritsuka and Mash find themselves in a city that has become quite close to a hellscape. Traversing through the desolation, they face skeletons, smoldering heat, and a very angry Director, all while trying to evaluate their worth on this mission.

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[Note: Please don't try to read these chapters in one sitting, like holy shit.]

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Chapter 2: An evening stroll through desolate ruins

Once she opened her eyes, Mash saw the same thing she always did.

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Yes. It was a sight she'd woken up to every morning of her life.

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The ceiling of her room.

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This was her world. White, sterile floor. The pillow, the sheets, her clothes, all the same. A world in which every moment was scheduled. Each point in time perfectly accounted for, with no deviations permitted.

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That's right. Everything was as it should.

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And yet… she couldn't help but feel something was different.

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At first, she thought it was her imagination. After all, this was how it always was. What could possibly have changed?

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Then, she felt her right hand.

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"Warm…" she mumbled, bringing the appendage close to her face. Her hand felt so warm. It was as if it had been wrapped in a heat blanket.

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"But why…" for a moment, she was confused. Why would she feel like this? And why was it so familiar?

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And then, it came to her. "...Senpai."

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Yes, that's right. She had held her hand back then. With the warmth she still felt now.

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Right away, she began to move off the bed. She hadn't thanked her for what she had done yet. But, as she moved to the edge.

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"Ah-" she fell right on her stomach on the floor.

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"Huh? Why can't I…?" For some reason, her legs completely refused to move. All she could do was somewhat move herself ahead by dragging with her arms. "But… I need to…"

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For a moment, all she could see ahead of herself was pure white. But then, quite literally in the blink of an eye, someone stood there. A person? But they had basically no features. The stranger in front of her was more like a silhouette than person. Completely white, like everything else. They had a face, yet it was blank. They wore clothes, but their shape was vague.

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Yet, before she could say anything, the person leaned down, offering their hand. As Mash took it, they started pulling her up. Instinctively, she began to shift her legs to support herself… and they moved. After she stood up fully, the person still kept holding on.

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"...Why?" she asked, not entirely sure herself what she meant by it. Why did they help her? Why were they here? It could've been either of those, or something else. As if to reply, the person pressed the hand they were holding to her chest, before finally letting go.

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The warmth on the hand. It now seemed stronger than before, spreading across her chest. Yes, that was right. She had to go see Senpai.

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The silhouette turned, facing towards the direction she had tried to move to. In response, she walked past them, now knowing where to go.

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Leaving the person behind, Mash kept her hand on her chest, starting to run as it grew warmer.

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"Senpai…" Faster than she had ever ran before, Mash moved forward, the warmth having spread through her whole body. While she should have grown tired by now, the longer she ran, the more vigorous she felt. It was as if her body grew stronger with each step.

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"Senpai!" Her body grew warmer by the second, yet it never felt hot. It was gentle heat that, for a reason she couldn't explain, made her feel happy. So she ran, and ran, and ran.

Until finally, she reached it.

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The world of empty whiteness was taking shape. And in the distance, she saw her. Sitting on the ground, looking straight towards the two dark figures in front of her, was her Senpai.

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The situation was entirely alien to her. She wasn't sure what to do, her mind searching for a solution.

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But, her body knew what had to be done, so she let it take the lead.

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The warm right hand she had held to her chest. Mash reached forward with it, and grabbed a hold of something. It was heavy, yet light. Strange, yet familiar. While Mash didn't know what it was precisely, she knew it was something she could use to protect her Senpai.

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And so, with every bit of strength she could muster, Mash Kyrielight charged forward.

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As soon as she was pulled up, Ritsuka felt… strange. She really didn't know what to say. To ask. So, she just blurted out: "So… you're a Servant, Mash?"

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"Yes," she answered promptly, surprising Ritsuka somewhat, considering the absurdity of this situation. "I can confirm that a contract was formed between us earlier, Master."

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And then there was that. Right, Mash had indeed called her Master earlier. And now that they were right next to each other, Ritsuka could definitely feel a steady flow of magical energy between them. But… the contract. Was it formed when they held hands in the fire? Honestly, the whole situation seemed really embarrassing afterwards, but she could live with it, since Mash had actually survived. But seriously. Was forming a contract with a Servant really that easy?

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"You weren't injured, right, Senpai?" Mash asked, looking at her torso in a slightly worried manner. "It seemed that you were attacked before I got to you. I'm… sorry for my tardiness…"

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"Ah, no. I'm perfectly fine," Ritsuka assured, which thankfully was actually true. "My uniform got dirty due to a somewhat… reckless dodge of one of the Assassins' attacks. But there are no injuries due to the Mystic Code's protection."

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Mash seemed relieved at her answer, offering a slight smile. "That's good. I'm not really sure what I would have done if you had gotten hurt due to my absence."

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This girl… she really was earnest, wasn't she? In all honesty, Ritsuka felt bad for making her worry about her safety. But it was far overshadowed by the guilt she felt eyeing Mash's current… attire. What even was this thing she was wearing? This was supposed to be what a Servant wore to battle, yet it was so… absurdly erotic. Since Mash had worn fairly ordinary clothing earlier, Ritsuka hadn't really paid it any mind, but with this, this 'outfit' she was wearing, it was quite obvious how well endowed Mash really was. She was actually getting slightly aroused by her appearance, which made Ritsuka want to crawl into a hole and write a thousand word apology for Mash. She would have to do her best to focus solely on Mash's face, for both of their sake. So, by focusing with all her might, Ritsuka reverted her expression back to her usual, serious, dealing-with-people-face.

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"Fou!" Suddenly, the familiar white critter jumped from behind Mash, landing on her shoulder. Once settled, he rubbed Mash's cheek with his fluffy head.

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"Oh! Fou is here too?" Mash exclaimed, quick to give the little guy a few scritches. Ritsuka on the other hand could barely focus on them.

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All of these absurd things happening right after one another. Ritsuka really needed some time to collect her thoughts. Wiping off dirt from her clothes as a result of her tumble earlier, Ritsuka looked around for a good spot to sit and take a breather. "Alright… we should probably get to a less conspicuous spot to talk things out and form a plan," Ritsuka started, earning a nod from Mash. While the alley she had just ran from was more than adequate for that, going back there was a bad idea. All the noise had more than likely alerted 'something' that there were people in the area, and that's the first place they would look. Noticing a half collapsed building that had left a small opening to another alley, Ritsuka guessed that would be their best bet. "Over there. Right now, anything is better than this open area."

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"Yes, Senpai," Mash agreed, walking slightly ahead of her to enter first. "I don't see anything hostile on this side, so it should be fine for now."

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That was a relief at least. Made even better by that fact that there were actually a few intact buildings on this side. Most of them were on fire though, but at least they could grant some cover. As they walked ahead, Ritsuka spotted a perfect spot hidden between two buildings. A small garage. While some rubble had collapsed on top of it, it was still in good condition. And as a bonus, it wasn't on fire. "Over here, Mash. You should be able to open the door, right?"

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Turning around to look at the spot she had pointed, Mash was quick to get on the job. "Of course. With my current strength, something like this shouldn't be an issue." And it really wasn't. With what seemed like no effort, Mash lifted the garage door high enough for Ritsuka to pass through, then entered herself before lowering it. "Good find, Senpai. This should serve as a temporary shelter while we plan our course of action."

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"Thanks," Ritsuka nodded as she looked around the garage. There really wasn't much there, the only things of note were an old toolkit and some foldable chairs. The lights obviously weren't working, but a small window on the upper part of a wall let some light in, enabling her to see well enough. Taking two of the chairs and unfolding them, Ritsuka sat on one and motioned Mash to take the other, which she quickly did. "Now, we really need to start working on our plan of action. I also need to ask you some questions as a Master."

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"Ah, yes. There really is much to discuss," Mash agreed, looking a bit uncertain. For a few seconds she just sat there, seemingly trying to organize her thoughts. Soon after, she turned to face Ritsuka. "I'm... not really sure where to begin. Perhaps you should start with your questions, Senpai."

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That made sense. Honestly, Ritsuka wasn't really sure where to begin herself, so she went with the most obvious question. "So, you're a Servant then. But, I'm pretty sure you weren't earlier. If you had been, you wouldn't have been..." What could she even say at that point? Both of them were well aware that she was dying back there. So, she decided to put it as neutrally as possible. "...in that condition in the Command Room."

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"Yes, that is true," Mash confirmed, though the answer gave way to several more questions. "Until just moments ago, my physical prowess had always been on the lower side. In combat training I always had to stay after class. ...I couldn't even do a pull-up."

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Yeah, admittedly that was somewhat pitiful. To be tasked with a mission like this and having such a weak constitution was pretty questionable. "I see... But, how are you a Servant? I mean, you're a living person, so how is it possible for you to have the powers of a Heroic Spirit to that decree?"

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In response to Ritsuka's questions, Mash went quiet, her expression turning slightly distressed. She was clearly having a hard time coming up with any answers. This made Ritsuka herself feel bad. It was either that Mash truly didn't know herself, or the subject was a troubling one. "Oh… If my questions trouble you that much, we can of course move to another one. There are still plen-"

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BE BEEP

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Before Ritsuka could finish, she was interrupted by beeping coming from her Multi-Appliance. And immediately afterwards, a screen containing a familiar face was projected in front of them.

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"Right. I finally got through! Hello? This is Chaldea Command Room? Do you read me?"

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While the suddenly appeared screen had surprised her, Ritsuka couldn't deny feeling a considerable amount of relief upon seeing the Doctor's face. This meant they could receive at least some amount of backup, even if it was just information on the area. She would take anything she could at this point.

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"This is Mash Kyrielight, a member of A Team. At this time, I've completed the shift to Singularity F." Quick to respond, Mash was the one to speak up first. Ritsuka had to wonder if she was used to reporting like this. "My sole companion is Ritsuka Repo. Mind and body both intact. Rayshift compatibility, Master compatibility both satisfactory. Please register her as an official researcher."

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"...So Ms. Repo also got dragged into the Rayshift, huh?" Romani muttered. Both his tone and expression were rather vague, leaving Ritsuka unable to judge whether he was troubled or happy. Though the expression quickly shifted towards the latter. "I'm impressed you didn't 'lose your existence'. I'm really glad."

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Wait. That was a possibility? She would really need to do more research on the whole Rayshift procedure once she got back to Chaldea. "Yeah... I'm glad as well ...that that didn't happen..." Oh, yeah. Nailing it with the dialogue right there. Ritsuka almost wanted to slap herself.

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However, Romani focused her attention towards Mash next, his expression shifting to baffled. "Also, Mash... Of course I'm glad you're safe, too... But what's up with that outfit? It's shameless! I didn't raise you to dress like that!"

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He did it. He actually did it. Watching a blush rise to Mash's cheeks, Ritsuka felt her jaw drop. Roman had seriously managed to break her dealing-with-people-face with that one comment. Well, yes, Mash's appearance was... quite something, but for him to just blurt it out like that? Ritsuka couldn't help but to slip out: "Did you seriously just say that?"

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Mash turned to her with a slightly thankful, but still mostly embarrassed look. "Yes, ignoring the Doctor's tactlessness, Senpai, my current appearance could certainly be considered strange." Turning her attention back to the man on the screen, Mash began to explain. "l transformed into this. I couldn't protect Senpai wearing Chaldea's uniform."

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In response, Roman seemed even more confused, even somewhat worried. "What do you mean by transformed Mash? Did you hit your head? Or was it that..."

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"—Dr. Roman. Please be quiet," Mash interjected with a tone far sharper than Ritsuka had ever heard from her. The man in question was quick to follow her order, shutting up near instantaneously. "Please check my condition. I think you'll understand the situation better."

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"Your physical condition?" Romani wondered, clicking away at his keyboard for a second before utter shock took over his face. "Wh-Whoa, whoa, whoa, WHOA!" Yeah, that was more than likely the proper response for seeing someone you know well turning into a Servant. Romani seemed to be rechecking the data over and over, as if believing it to be some kind of error. "Physical strength, Magical Circuits, everything's improved! You're not so much a human, but—"

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"Yes, I'm a Servant," Mash confirmed matter-of-factly, as if it wasn't an absurdly big deal. Ritsuka couldn't help but to be impressed at how she was handling the whole situation. If she had to explain the same to someone, well, she wasn't sure she could even do it properly. "I don't remember how it happened, but it seems I have survived by fusing with a Servant."

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"A Heroic Spirit and a human, fused… A Demi-Servant? That's Chaldea's sixth experiment. I see. So it finally succeeded, huh?" Romani seemed noticeably calmer now that he understood the situation, but Ritsuka was just as bewildered as ever. Fusing with a Servant? Was that seriously possible? Well, the proof sat right in front of her, and it seemed like it had been something Chaldea had actually been trying to achieve. Maybe that was what made Mash so important. While she otherwise seemed rather unassuming, with an ability like that she could definitely be a tremendous asset. But from the way they described it, it seemed more like an accident than anything, which made Ritsuka somewhat nervous.

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"Does this Heroic Spirit still have his consciousness?" Yes, that was something Ritsuka would like to know too. Whoever the Servant was, they could certainly provide them with some information. Though she mostly wanted to know about Mash's abilities for now.

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"...No, he gave me his combat abilities then vanished. He never revealed his True Name even at the end. So I don't even know which Heroic Spirit I am…" Mash admitted dejectedly. True, not knowing the exact abilities she herself possessed must have been terribly frustrating. However, it also put Ritsuka's mind at a slight ease. That was one problem solved right away. "...Nor what kind of Noble Phantasm I'm holding. At this point there's too much I don't know."

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"So that's what that was..." Ritsuka mumbled, earning the attention of the two. From the moment Mash first appeared in front of her, calling her a Master, this had troubled her immensely. But now, she at least had an explanation. "From the moment I first laid eyes on you, I couldn't read anything about your Noble Phantasm or some of your Skills," Ritsuka admitted. In response, Mash looked at her in surprise. "But now it makes sense. If my Servant didn't properly understand her abilities, how could I?"

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"Yes, I can see the logic behind that," Roman nodded, looking at her questioningly. "But from the way you said that, are you implying that you can see a portion of her abilities?"

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"Yes," Ritsuka confirmed, earning a reassured look from Mash. If she could help Mash with this, she would do everything she could. Were she in the same position, Ritsuka would have most likely been tearing off hair in frustration. All the more reason she felt impressed with Mash's composure. Sure, Ritsuka could tell she was clearly troubled by all this, but she was still handling it remarkably well. "I can see her Parameters and some of her Skills just fine. As for why I can't see the rest and Mash doesn't know about them, I have a theory on that."

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"Really?" Mash asked hopefully, which Ritsuka confirmed with a nod. The way her expression brightened made Ritsuka really hope her theory was actually right. "That's amazing, Senpai. Then, could you ple-"

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"Woah! Wait a minute!"

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Mash was suddenly interrupted by Romani's yelling, turning her attention to the alarmed doctor. The man in question was running his eyes across one of the other screens visible in the background. "I'm picking up a life signature close to your location."

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Following Romani's announcement, Ritsuka and Mash immediately looked at each, the same thought in their minds. They needed to get to this person immediately. In this absurdly hostile environment, every second counted when it came to saving a normal person, as Ritsuka was well aware. Promptly, the redhead jumped up, turning to the doctor for directions. "Exact location?"

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"370 meters to the northeast from your location," Romani answered while still clicking away, his expression nervous. "But it's strange. I'm also picking up something else in the area. They're pretty weak, but they have a magical signature, what in the world could-"

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"The skeletons…" Ritsuka realized. She had been lucky enough to only encounter one, but there were definitely more of them around. If this person in question was a competent mage, they would quite likely be able to take down a whole group of them. But if they weren't…

"Mash! We should head there right now!" she prompted, running to the garage door.

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Mash seemed slightly surprised, but was quick to follow suit. "Yes, Master." With a single hand, she pulled up the door and let them onto the alley.

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"Romani, turn off the projection but keep the sound on! Let us know if anything significant happens!"

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"Oh, uhh, yeah." With a few awkward presses the screen flickered off, leaving the glowing light on the Multi-Appliance the only indicator they still had signal.

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But now there was another issue. To head northeast, they would have to go around the block. Could they really waste time on something like that? From the way Mash looked around, Ritsuka knew she was thinking the same thing. The best solution would most likely be…

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But before Ritsuka could figure it out, Mash had already found the solution. "Excuse me, Senpai. Please hold on. I'm going to carry you and jump through the rooftops."

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Wait what?

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Before Ritsuka even had time to process the statement, Mash slipped her right hand under her lower thigh, held her left hand on her back for support and lifted the stunned redhead off the ground in a rather pumped up manner. The look on her face was serious, yet eager, the best way to describe it would've been like a kid eager to prove themselves. "Whuh-huh?!" Ritsuka's mind went on overdrive trying to comprehend the situation. This was the best solution? Seriously? How could… Wait. No, she was right. A Servant running while carrying their Master was definitely superior to just running in terms of speed. This was absolutely the fastest solution. As for the best? That was questionable.

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"Senpai, please put your right arm around my shoulder for extra stability. I'm going to jump." At this point, Ritsuka just did as she was told. This situation was... certainly something.

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"Fou!"

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With a cry, Fou jumped on top of Ritsuka's stomach, surprising not only her, but Mash as well. "Ah! I'm sorry Fou. We nearly forgot you here."

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"No need to worry about that. This is currently the best and only safe spot we have, so we'd have most likely come back here after the rescue." In response to Ritsuka's words, Mash nodded, bending her legs slightly in preparation. Ritsuka wrapped her free left arm around Fou, making sure he wouldn't fall off.

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"We're going, Master. Mash Kyrielight, taking off!" And with that, came the jump. With a single hop Mash reached the top of a building, and without wasting any time, headed for the next one with another.

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The situation was bizarre to say the least. The wind howling in her ears as they moved was something Ritsuka was used to thanks to her hobbies. But the feeling of being carried was the strange one. Due to Mash negating almost all impact, Ritsuka felt less like moving from one roof to another and more like being on a swing. It was honestly somewhat relaxing.

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But not nearly relaxing enough to make her calm down. The feeling of Mash's bizarrely strong arms holding her, her serious, focused face next to her own. The situation was more than exciting enough to evoke some… feelings in Ritsuka.

"(No! Don't think about anything else! Just focus on the person we're supposed to save! We'll get to them in about half a minute, so there's no time for anything else! Focus, Ritsuka! Don't think about the fact that you're being carried by a cute female knight and youaaahhhh! Nonononononononononooooo! STOP! STOP! STOP!)"

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And thus, they raced through the rooftops of the burning city. The Demi-Servant girl and the white beast both blissfully unaware of the mental warfare raging on inside the Master's mind.

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Everything was fine. She was doing well. She could do this.

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These were the main thoughts running through Mash's mind as she raced across the rooftops.

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Honestly, it still felt a bit strange, leaping across buildings with such ease. She was just so strong now. Every physical and magical aspect of her body had increased an absurd amount. Yet, she was still lacking... She was unable to use her Noble Phantasm and some of her Skills. While she could fight, she wasn't a proper Servant.

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And yet her Senpai still had faith in her. She had called out to Mash immediately after the Doctor had given them the location. And while she had seemed a tad nervous when she was picked up, she still agreed with her idea and went along with it. Not to mention, she apparently had some idea of why she couldn't use the power of the Heroic Spirit she had fused with to full capacity.

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There were also other things to consider when it came to Ritsuka. How she seemed so calm and composed in this terrifying, alien environment. Yet she had also been so kind to both Fou and her earlier. Mash really had been lucky to find herself such a dependable Senpai. So, she had to do her absolute best as well as her Servant.

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"You're almost there, at the current speed, you should reach the target in about 20 seconds." Romani announced from the device around the Master's wrist. Yes, this had been substantially faster than just running regularly, but something was bothering Mash.

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"Doctor, by my estimation we should already have reached the designated spot. Did you fumble when you calculated the distance?" Mash asked in a tone more judgmental than she had intended. The doctor messing up in things like this was nothing particularly new, but considering the situation, such a miscalculation could put her Senpai in danger. If he had actually botched the calculation, she would have to make him straighten up.

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"No. I swear I didn't," Romani answered. Judging from his tone, he was being serious. Over the years, Mash had come to understand his cues quite well, so it was relieving to hear him sound so sincere. "It's just that the target is on the move. Unfortunately, they're moving in the exact opposite direction from you." So that was it. Certainly, if they were surrounded by hostiles, it made sense that the target was trying to escape. Mash could only hope that the sight delay caused by this wouldn't prove to be lethal. "By the way, ms. Repo has been really quiet throughout your run. Is everything all right?"

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Before the doctor asked, Mash really hadn't thought about that. Her Senpai hadn't said a word after they departed. Focusing her attention to her Master for a second, Mash noticed that her eyes were facing forward firmly, completely focused towards their destination. It was as if she hadn't even heard them talking, focusing completely on something else. While it was important to focus on their task, she had to wonder why Senpai hadn't answered. And then she figured it out. "While I can freely talk while moving around like this, it's solely because I'm a Servant. For a regular person, there's not only the wind resistance that causes trouble, but the danger from accidentally biting one's tongue is tremendous. I believe Master is avoiding talking for precisely this reason."

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"Ah, that's true. It's definitely better to stay quiet in that sort of situation if there's nothing important to say," Romani agreed through the transmission. "Alright, you should be very close to the target right about now. Can you see them?"

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Mash slowed down and eventually stopped by the edge of the roof they were currently on. Looking around, she couldn't see anything out of the ordinary. As out of the ordinary as something in a burning city could be. Slowly, Mash lowered her right arm, helping Ritsuka back on her feet. "Do you see anything, Senpai?"

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For a second, Ritsuka continued her silence, seemingly focusing on something else. Though she finally turned towards Mash upon realizing she had been addressed. "Ah, no. There's really nothing eye catching around here." As she began to look around the area, Mash noticed a faint glow in her Senpai's eyes. A clear sign of Strengthening. Yes, that would certainly be useful in a chaotic environment like this. "Doctor, can you give us anything more specific about the targe-"

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"Kyaaaaaaaaaaaaa!"

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The sudden scream alerted their attention to a street about half a block away, where the source of the cry sprinted out into the open, followed by a dozen skeletal creatures.

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Mash immediately summoned her shield, ready to move in, while Ritsuka was quick to withdraw her request, eyeing the person leading the crowd with her usual, calm expression. "OK, never mind. We just found the-" Suddenly stopping in the middle of her sentence, Mash noticed how her Senpai's expression suddenly gave a hint of astonishment. "Wait! That's Director Animusphere!"

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"Waaaahhhhhhhhh!" Romani yelled out of the Multi-Appliance. His tone was a rather rare one. Mash only ever heard him yell like that whenever he lost connection to that Internet idol of his. "D-Director? She's alive? Just how sturdy is she?"

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"Not helping," Ritsuka sighed as she returned to her calm self. With a serious expression, she turned to face Mash. "Please save the Director, Mash. The skeletons are rather weak compared to you, so a single punch should be enough to take one down. No need to worry about me, I can get down on my own. Doctor. Stop freaking out and keep track of anything unusual in the area. We don't want any nasty surprises now."

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At first, Mash could only look at her Master beside her. Despite the chaotic situation, she still managed to keep her calm and give sensible orders. But, that came to an end when she remembered that she was the one to fulfill her order. "Yes, Master! Mash Kyrielight, entering combat!"

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Leaping to the roof closest to the one they were on, Mash rushed towards the screaming director and her pursuers. There were quite a few of the skeletal beings, but if she attacked from above with a powerful strike on the ground, the shock wave should be enough to take down a few of them. After all, her Senpai had said that just a punch from her would be enough to defeat them. And of course, Mash believed her. She had said it with such confidence that it was hard to imagine it being untrue. Yet...

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The idea of fighting... it still scared her. While she had received the powers and Skills of a Servant, while she had the ability to fight, it still felt so... alien. Aside from combat training, she had never actually been in a fight.

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But still, this was something she had to do. That was simply because no one else could do it. While the skeletons were seemingly individually weak, with this many, her Senpai couldn't possibly stop them by herself. And the Director, while a capable magus, was seemingly too frightened to even consider fighting them. Besides, her Senpai, her Master, had said that they were weak compared to her. Which meant that she believed that Mash could handle the situation. And Mash wanted to warrant that trust. If she couldn't handle something like this, she couldn't possibly call herself a Servant.

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"Wh-Who are these guys, anyway? Why do these things keep happening to me?" the Director screamed as Mash closed in on her. She was now only a few dozen meters away. With a single leap off the rooftop, she could reach the assaulters chasing the distressed woman. She had to do this. Right now!

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Mash thought back to the time she had saved her Senpai from the Assassins. That feeling she felt as she rushed forward to save her. That was how she had to feel again. Not to just fight, but to save. To protect. She had saved her Senpai, and now she had to do the same to the Director.

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And so, Mash jumped.

'

"I can't take it anymore! Come save me, Lev! You were always there for me right?!" the Director screamed hysterically, not even noticing the girl wielding a large shield jumping over her. Putting all her strength into her arms, Mash slammed her shield into the concrete right in front of the first skeleton.

'

"Yaaaaaa!"

'

Feeling the impact on her arms, Mash watched as her attack smashed the ground beneath her to pieces, crushing a few of the skeletons outright and taking out a few more with the debris being flung at their bone bodies. All in all, her attack had taken out more than half of them, with just four more remaining. Not wasting any time to allow them to recover, Mash charged one of the remaining ones, ramming it with her shield. On impact, the bones shattered like glass, crumbling on the ground.

'

"H-huh? Mash?!" Hearing the Director talking behind her, Mash allowed herself a quick look to check that she was alright between the attacks. Judging from her appearance, she didn't seem injured, only frightened and confused. A natural reaction to their current circumstances. Her quick check finished, Mash took hold of the grip running close to the edges of her shield and swung it in a wide arc, shattering two more hostiles on impact. With the final one trying to take a swing at her from behind, Mash used the momentum from her swing, kicking out her leg to smash it pieces, catching herself off guard in the process.

'

Looking around to make sure no more hostiles were around, Mash let out a relieved sigh. She had done it. The Director was fine and the area was clear. Taking in a few more breaths to calm herself, Mash thought about what had just happened. It was bizarre... the way her body knew what to do without her mind giving it clear directions. She had wanted to use her shield to deliver all the strikes, but that kick at the end... She had just done it, like it was perfectly natural. It had felt natural, flowing together with her swing to form a perfectly fluent combination attack. And her Senpai had been right. It only took a single strike from her to dismantle each skeleton. They hadn't been strong enemies that could pose any significant threat to her. So... why did she feel scared?

'

It was most noticeable on her hands, but she also felt it on her shoulders and legs.

She was shaking.

But why? She was supposed to be a Servant, a being whose main purpose was to fight. How could she feel scared over fighting something so clearly weaker than her? Why did she feel this way?

'

"That form... " a voice mumbled behind her, snapping Mash from her thoughts. Director Olga Marie stood there, looking at her in astonishment. Her expression had lost nearly all the previous fright, but the confusion aspect was still very much present. "...What's going on?"

'

"Are you alright, Director?" Turning at the call that came from behind her, the Director looked at quickly approaching Ritsuka with increased confusion, seemingly ignoring the white critter running right behind her. Mash couldn't help but to be impressed with her again. She had climbed down from the roof and sprinted to their location in the time it had taken Mash to finish off the hostiles. Ritsuka had really meant it when she said that Mash didn't need to worry about her. "Good work, Mash," she quickly acknowledged before turning her attention back to the Director. "We came as quickly as we could. You weren't injured, were you?"

'

For a few more seconds, the Director continued to stare at the Master in disbelief, until she found her words. "You! You're that insolent, tall woman that fell asleep during the orientation!" Flinching slightly at the heated words flung at her, Ritsuka looked like she was about to grimace for a split second but managed to keep her composure. "Why are you of all people here?!"

'

"We got caught up in the Rayshift and were sent here," Ritsuka explained, keeping her calm expression despite the scowling Director in front of her. Though she added somewhat dejectedly, "...and did you have to describe me like that?"

'

"Yes!" Confirming her remark, seemingly to the Master's frustration, the irritated woman turned to face Mash next. "And you, Mash, you're a Demi-Servant right? It's pretty obvious that you fused with a Servant," she demanded, giving Mash barely enough time to nod before continuing. "What I want to know is why it's successful now all of a sudden!"

'

"Yeah, things have gotten crazy, haven't they?" Appearing on the screen projected from Ritsuka's Multi-Appliance, Romani managed to seize everyone's attention. And with his appearance, the Director managed to somehow look even more confused. "But, we should all calm down and-"

'

"Huh?! Why are you running the show, Romani?" Seemingly uninterested with the suggestion to calm down, the Director now turned her ire towards the Doctor on the screen. "What's the head medic doing in charge? What about Lev? Where's Lev? Put Lev on!"

'

Faced with the furious demands, Romani's expression shifted to a solemn, yet sincere one. It was an expression Mash had rarely seen on him, but whenever she did, she knew the Doctor was absolutely serious. "Dr. Lev was supervising from the Command Room," he reported. Immediately, the Director's expression fell. "He was right in the middle of the explosion. There's no way he could survive that blast."

'

With the exception of the crackling fire, there were no sounds. The Director continued to stare at the screen in disbelief as Romani continued. "The reason I'm in charge of operations is because there's no one ranked higher than me who survived. Judging from the observational instruments, currently, the surviving full time staff of Chaldea is about twenty people, including me."

'

Taking her eyes off the Director, Mash glanced at her Senpai on her side. While she seemed as calm as usual, she wasn't looking at the screen. Instead, her eyes were faced towards the ground, understanding the gravity of the situation.

'

Indeed, Mash understood as well. With around twenty people remaining, it meant that Chaldea had lost approximately 90% of its staff. The Director's reaction was well earned. The events leading up to their current situation had effectively all but disabled Chaldea. Not only did it make them receiving aid in the Singularity highly unlikely, but even when they returned, how much would there be left of the facility?

'

"No way—Lev... " the Director mumbled as her eyes fell towards the ground. From the look she had on her face, it seemed as if the poor woman was about to go into shock for a moment. However, with a sudden jolt, she seemingly regained her focus, turning her eyes back to Romani. "No, forget that, wait... please wait. 20 survivors? What about the Master candidates ...the coffins?"

'

Keeping his serious expression, the Doctor answered. "...All 47 are in critical condition. We just don't have enough medical equipment. We might be able to save a few, but most of them might be—"

'

"Don't be ridiculous!" the Director shouted, much to the shock of everyone present. Though the concern was still evident on her face, she had regained a portion of her earlier fire. "Cryopreserve them immediately! Think about reviving them later. Your top priority is to make sure they don't die!"

'

For a second, Romani only stared at her in surprise, but was quick to start clicking away on his control panel as soon as he recovered. "I'll get on it right away!"

'

Though her Senpai remained quiet to the side, Mash knew the reason for the Doctor's surprise. What Director Olga Marie was ordering him to do was very much illegal, and they were both well aware of it. "...That surprises me," Mash noted, turning the Director's attention to herself. "Cryopreservation without prior consent is a crime. Yet you made the decision right away. You put human lives ahead of your own reputation as the director." In all honesty, her reaction was a pleasant surprise for Mash. While the two of them had never interacted much directly, the Director had always seemed like a strict and by-the-book type of person. Seeing her act like this was... reassuring.

'

"Don't be stupid!" Responding with her returning ire, the Director frowned at Mash's implication. Though it notably lacked the usual bite. Even after giving the order, she seemed as concerned as ever. "As long as they're not dead, I can explain myself later - why else? In the first place, 47 lives... There's no way can I carry that burden!"

'

Continuing her raving, Olga Marie began to gnaw on the nail on her thumb. Though as she turned away from Mash, her anger subsided, giving way to more unease. "Please don't die... I'm begging you... If only Lev were here!"

'

"Ahem! If I may?"

'

Upon hearing the question, both Mash and the Director turned their attention on the third person with them. Ritsuka had been quiet throughout the Doctor's report, but had seemingly judged the current moment as appropriate to speak up. "While the Doctor works on the coffins, I think we should get to a safer area. Before Mash and I came here, we secured a relatively safe location in one of the buildings. While it's not the most secure spot imaginable, it's still intact and should keep us out of sight in case trouble appears. It's definitely better than just standing here on the street."

'

The Director looked like she really wanted to rebut, but was seemingly unable to come up with anything, so she in the end just let out an exhausted sigh. "Alright, where exactly is this spot?"

'

Turning to point towards the direction they had come from, Ritsuka began to explain. "Approximately 400 meters that way. We should get there in about ten minutes if we don't run."

'

"Fine!" Huffing to herself, Olga Marie began walking towards the street in the direction Ritsuka had pointed. Despite seeming both tired and frustrated she walked rather briskly, most likely just wanting to get somewhere quiet. "Literally anywhere is better than just here."

'

Letting the huffing Director walk ahead, Ritsuka turned to Mash. "Let's get going. If you could, please keep an eye out for any possible dangers, Mash"

'

"Yes!" Mash confirmed, stepping to her Master's side as they followed after the Director. Truthfully, Mash was very glad she had brought up the garage. With everything going on, it had honestly slipped her mind, so she would have most likely kept quiet about it without a reminder. It really was comforting having such a reliable Senpai.

'

'

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'

'

"This is it, right here," Ritsuka pointed at the garage as Mash began to open the door. Finally. They were finally back. It was nice that the Director had calmed down substantially, but that was only a miniscule portion of her sources of distress, so she couldn't get too comfortable. This whole thing was really beginning to drain her. Thank God for Mash being here. Not just because she was a Servant, but for her genuine eagerness to help. It was honestly really comforting. Although…

'

Walking past Mash into the garage, Ritsuka gave her a quiet: "Thanks," which the Demi-Servant acknowledged with a small smile. Though she seemed fine now, Ritsuka had definitely seen it earlier, after the fight with the skeletons. She had clearly tried to hide it, and while the Director had been too shocked to pay attention, Ritsuka did notice. Mash was shaking. It wasn't the type from exhaustion or something else. She had clearly been afraid.

'

Thinking about it, it made sense. Mash had almost certainly never been in a real fight before. Definitely not in one that had stakes anywhere close to this. Of course she would be afraid when thrust in a situation like this, even with the considerable power of a Servant. And yet she still tried. Even when she was afraid, she still did her best. She had even tried to hide her fear, to keep up a strong front. And while Ritsuka had seen through her, she couldn't really blame Mash. After all, it had taken her literally years of work to properly hide her own signs.

'

Ritsuka really was lucky to have someone like her as her Servant. After all, when Mash was working so hard despite her problems, Ritsuka couldn't just sulk around worrying about her own. Since Mash was now her Servant, she would have to reciprocate that attitude as her Master, working just as hard!

'

"You really weren't exaggerating when you said this wasn't the safest spot." Bringing Ritsuka's attention back to the garage with her huff, the considerably calmer Director sat on one of the chairs Mash and Ritsuka had left behind. "But true. It's still better than that street out there."

'

Letting Mash take the remaining chair, Ritsuka picked up another one from the corner, unfolding it and seating. They could finally start forming something of a plan. That is, as long as their sole contact was available. "Doctor, you there?" Ritsuka asked.

'

"Yeah," the man in question confirmed, appearing on the projected screen once more. "All coffins have now cryopreserved their contents, so I'll start by giving the rest of my status report." Clicking a few buttons, another screen suddenly popped up next to Romani's face, showing a three dimensional map of Chaldea. "First off, the main areas affected by the explosions were the Command Room, the Reactor room and their immediate areas. As such, the portion of Chaldea that holds the living quarters, cafeteria and the recreational rooms was basically unaffected since they're on the other side of the facility. Another major location that was unaffected was the summoning chamber, so the FATE system is still fully intact."

'

"I see. That's some good news at least..." the Director mumbled, looking over the map in a scrutinizing manner. Though Ritsuka eyed the map for a bit, there really wasn't much of a point. There were no labels anywhere, so she had basically no idea what rooms she was looking at. "Wait! What about this?!" Earning Ritsuka's attention, the Director pointed at a relatively large room some distance away from the Reactor. Both the hallway around it and a portion of the room had been colored red, differing from the more common light blue of most of the map. "Why is a portion of it red? Don't tell me the Automata Center was destroyed!"

'

"Ah, that," Romani nodded as he adjusted the map to show the area better. "I actually managed to contact the facility earlier. Basically, the entrance collapsed, trapping the Staff inside. However, due to 'Pressure Man' being there, it actually managed to stabilize the room, preventing most of it from collapsing. While they are technically stuck there, they're not in any danger."

'

"At least something is going right," the Director sighed, hints of both relief, and for some reason, frustration present on her face. "As long as we have some of the automata remaining, repairs should be possible even with minimal staff."

'

While Ritsuka was glad to hear that Chaldea could still manage to pull itself together, she couldn't help but to be a bit confused. So apparently there was a workshop for creating automatons in Chaldea, which made sense. They would most likely be used for menial tasks like cleaning and such, which was something they did at the Clock Tower from what she had heard. But in the world was 'Pressure Man'? It had to be something fairly powerful, since it had stopped the room from collapsing, but what kind of name was that?

'

Seemingly noticing the confusion in her eyes, Romani turned towards her. "Ah, you don't probably know it, since you're new, but Chaldea uses automata for a variety of things. Mostly they keep the corridors clean, since having any human on that duty would just be evil, but they also help deliver supplies and materials where they're needed. Oh, and some of the stronger ones help with heavy lifting, especially during construction."

'

"Yeah, that's what I figured," Ritsuka nodded. So her guess had been right, but there was still the question that had buggled her. "But what is this 'Pressure Man' you mentioned?"

'

"Oh, yeah. Hah. That would probably be confusing to anyone not from Chaldea," Romani laughed while the Director seemed to grow more frustrated. Though the Doctor didn't seem to notice as he continued. "It's basically a really powerful automata, a real cream of the crop by modern standards. Funnily enough, it was made 'just to flex' by Di-"

'

"Enough about that!" Shocking Romani out of his ramble with her shout, the Director now looked about the same as she did while they were on the street, making Ritsuka regret that she had bothered to ask. Really should've saved it for later. "We don't have time to waste on stroking that idiot's ego! Especially now, since he might well be dead!" Her words clearly had an effect on Romani, turning the Doctor's expression from shocked to somber. And while she hadn't said anything this entire time, Ritsuka noticed Mash having a similar reaction. Though the Director didn't seem to care as much, continuing with her rant. "He was in the Reactor room during the explosion, and as we can see from the map, it has been almost completely demolished." There was no doubt about that. Judging from the map and the red areas on it, the ceiling of the room in question had completely collapsed, causing some of the floors above it to crash down and bury most of it in rubble.

'

"Yes, you're exactly right, Director," Romani admitted in a melancholy tone, moving the map around to view the room from different angles. "And with the collapse, I've been unable to receive any concrete date, since all surveillance equipment was destroyed. So we don't even know how severe the damage to the main reactor is. In the worst case scenario, it's possible that the core has been damaged, and in that case, we might even need to evacuate the facility."

'

More bad news, as if they didn't have enough to worry about already. The Director had begun gnawing her thumbnail again, while Mash remained quiet, but serious. Ritsuka really didn't know what to say. Better yet, should, or could, she even say anything. While she was far more adept with technology than most mages, she really didn't know much about this kind of stuff. Judging from the way Romani had described it, Chaldea seemingly had a nuclear reactor. She had only seen a few documentaries on the subject, so she was far from an expert, but from what she did know, having a reactor with an exposed core was basically a catastrophe on its own.

'

"And considering that the man who knows most about the reactor is likely dead, we might have to quaren-"

'

BEEP! BE BEEP BEE!

'

Interrupted by the sudden beeping coming from his control panel, Romani turned to the Director questioningly, seemingly wondering if it was fine to interrupt his report. For once, though, she didn't seem to mind. "Go on. One of the staff might have something important to report. We can't afford to ignore any possible calls in this situation."

'

Receiving permission, the Doctor clicked somewhere to open the communication channel. "This is Chaldea Command Room, Romani Archaman speaking. Please stat-"

'

"ROMAN WHAT THE FUCK IS GOING ON?!"

'

Romani nearly fell over, startled by the sudden yelling, while the three in the garage could only watch in confusion. That was… certainly a way to greet someone. Ritsuka looked to her side, hoping to find some clarification. However, while Mash seemed just as confused as she was, the Director was downright bewildered, breaking the few following seconds of silence with: "You speak the devil's name and he shall appear..."

'

"So Olga is there too, huh? That's good, makes dealing with this easier." The person speaking seemed to have heard her, much to Ritsuka's surprise. The Director had been rather quiet, yet this man, judging from the voice, had perfectly understood her even between the communications. And seeing how the Director referred to him, he was most likely the person who made the so called Pressure Man. But if that was the case... "Everything's really gone to shit, hasn't it?"

'

"Arista?! You're still alive?!" Snapping herself from the shock, Olga Marie started questioning the man. While both disbelief and frustration were clearly noticeable from her tone, she also seemed somewhat relieved. "You were by the main reactor during the explosion, right? How are you not buried under ten tons of rubble?"

'

"Yes, I still am in the room. And it was 17 tons for the record." Confirming the questions just made the whole thing seem even more unbelievable to Ritsuka. Who in the world was this person? Then again, if he had supposedly created an automata that could keep a room from collapsing, surviving the collapse of another wasn't too far fetched. Chaldea really was a strange place. "As for how, all I needed was some quick thinking and an absurdly sturdy bounded field just large enough to cover myself and few others."

'

"Others?" Romani questioned, finally joining the conversation. While still serious, his tone had a bit of hopefulness in it. "How many survived?"

'

"...Six," the man answered after some time, sounding somber compared to earlier. "Considering that there were 42 people in the room, it's not much, but given the time-frame it was the best I could do."

'

"A seventh then…" the Director mumbled, back to biting her nail. Ritsuka couldn't even imagine the pressure on her, nor did she want to. To be solely responsible for the lives of all these people... Ritsuka really hoped she would never have to shoulder that much responsibility. A person or a few was fine, but this many? Just thinking about it made her sick. "No, it's still more than we estimated, so we can't hang on it for now. But more importantly, Arista. What can you tell us about the reactor? Since you're in the room, analyzing the damage should be easy for you."

'

"That's actually one of the good news," he announced, surprising both Romani and the Director. They clearly hadn't expected the answer. "The upgrades in the past few months really came in handy. The reactor itself suffered minimal damage from the explosion. The only major problem is transferring the power across the facility, but fixing that really shouldn't take too long."

'

"That's great!" The Director sounded almost happy as Roman nodded on the screen. While they understood the significance of the words far better than her, Ritsuka was just happy that they got any good news in the first place. "How long by your estimations?"

'

"I'd say it's about 22 hours of work, so with breaks, a bit under two days should be enough."

'

"I see... It's fast, but not fast enough to really help with our current predicament." Standing up from her chair, the Director began to walk around the garage, seemingly deep in thought. Different from her earlier worrying, she seemed to be genuinely working up a plan in her mind, made obvious by the fact that she wasn't gnawing on her fingernails.

'

After around ten seconds of mumbling, she returned to her seat, allegedly finished with her thoughts. "Alright, here's what we're going to do. First, you Arista. Get the surviving staff out of the room. Then go to the Automata Center and help the staff there. We need as many workers as possible. After that, head to the Command Room and start clearing things out. The Coffins have been frozen, but they're still all over the place due to the explosion. Start gathering them up and we'll select which we can defreeze for medical attention first."

'

"Alrighty then. I'll check on some of the other areas on the way to make sure there's no serious structural damage that could cause another collapse later."

'

And with that, the transmission cut off, leaving the four of them alone once more. "Now, as for us," the Director continued, standing up once again to address all of them. "Romani, start shifting any available manpower to Rayshift repairs, and maintaining Chaldeas' and Sheba's current states. Make the Rayshift repairs your top priority."

'

"Roger that. I'll begin right away," Romani nodded, starting once again typing on the console. "But what about you, Director? Is that garage safe enough for you to wait in?"

'

"Don't be ridiculous. I can't possibly afford to do that…" Seemingly confused by the retort Romani stared at the Director as she began explaining the rest of her plan. "As for us, we'll be investigating this town. The Singularity F."

'

Silence fell over the garage as Ritsuka, Mash and Romani all stared at her in equal surprise. Ritsuka wasn't really sure what to think. She could tell that the Director was absolutely serious, but that didn't make any sense. A team of 48 Masters was supposed to handle this, yet she suggested that just the three of them accomplish it?

'

Romani was the first to break the silence. "Director, you're not afraid to be at ground zero? Since when did you become so brave?" And what a way to start. First the comment on Mash's appearance and now this? Ritsuka really wanted to know how the Doctor had survived living his life being so socially inept.

'

"...Seriously, you don't know when to shut up." Putting the thoughts of the three women present into words, Olga Marie glared at the tactless Doctor. Taking a deep breath, seemingly trying to rid herself of frustration, the Director began her explanation. "I'd like nothing better than to go back now, but it's going to take time till you finish the Rayshift repairs. This town only contains low-level monsters, with Mash as a Demi-Servant we'll be safe. Accident or not, we Animuspheres pride ourselves on doing our best in the situations we're given. I'll be looking into Singularity F with Ritsuka Repo and Mash Kyrielight as investigators."

'

So she really was serious about this. Honestly, while what the Director said about them being safe with Mash was most likely true, this seemed quite risky. The cause of this devastation could very well end up being something more powerful than her, yet the Director was willing to risk her own life in this investigation. Ritsuka couldn't help but to find that admirable, though her true motives still eluded her. "That said, since my field staff is inexperienced, the extent of this mission will be to discover the cause of this anomaly. Analysis and eradication will have to wait until after Chaldea's restored, and I can send in a second team." Concluding her briefing, the Director turned to face Ritsuka directly. "You okay with that?"

'

"Yes, Director," Ritsuka answered almost immediately. It had been relieving to hear that they were to only investigate the cause of the singularity, since it meant that the Director perfectly understood their situation. And, as much as she hated to take advantage of their blight, this was also the perfect chance for Ritsuka to redeem herself in the eyes of the Director. If she performed well on this mission, she might not only erase the damage caused by her falling asleep, but to end up in the positives. And while she did feel a bit guilty, the Director had said it herself: 'doing our best in the situations we're given.' She had to put up her A-game and seem as competent of a Master as possible. "I am ready to work as long as Mash is."

'

"Of course, Master," Mash confirmed, giving her an eager nod. "While I might still be a novice as a Servant, I'll do my utmost to keep you two safe."

'

"Roger that, then. Best of luck to you, Director. Feel free to contact me in an emergency." Seemingly accepting her decision upon seeing that both Ritsuka and Mash were up to the task, Romani continued his typing. "Oh, and it seems that Automata Center's doors have been cleared, so I should be getting some help over here soon."

'

"I can't stand that man, but at least he gets things done when he's serious about something." Sighing seemingly from just thinking of this Arista guy, the Director leaned in to reach for Ritsuka's multi-appliance. "I'm cutting off the connection now, Romani. Go do your job."

'

"Sure thing."

'

As the screen containing the Doctor flickered away, Olga Marie then turned to stand in front of her two investigators. "Now, it's time we begin with a plan of action. Since you two were around for a while before coming to pick me up, did you manage to figure out anything useful?"

'

"Not really, no," Mash admitted, seeming a bit unsure about something. "...While I did already agree to help both you and Senpai on this investigation, Director, are you sure about this? There's also the option of waiting here for rescue."

'

"I can't afford to do that..." Growling in response to the suggestion, the Director started to show some of her earlier stressfulness again. "After we return to Chaldea, who knows how long it will take to select the next team? A month won't be enough to gather personnel or funds. Do you know how much the Association will harass me in the meantime? Worst case, they'll blame me for mismanagement, and I'll lose Chaldea to them." Yes, Ritsuka could definitely see that happening. While she had no personal experience dealing with the Association, her father had made it a part of her education to inform her of the numerous ways they could 'confiscate' assets from other mages for little to no reason, and taught her much about how best to deal with them. While she might be a Lord, the Director was still in a very real danger here. "And if that came to pass, I'd be toast. I can't go back empty-handed. I need something that will shut them up! ...Sorry, but you're both stuck with me, Mash, Ritsuka."

'

"I agree with your reasoning, Director," Ritsuka admitted. "If they saw an opportunity, the Association would besiege Chaldea much like a pack of wolves would a lost sheep."

'

"Exactly," Olga Marie huffed in response, crossing her arms. "You might be from a fletchling family, but it's good to know that you're aware of how the Association works."

'

"Hard to survive in our world without knowing," Ritsuka confirmed, earning an approving nod from the Director. So good so far. She had to try to push a bit more to really make herself look good, so she decided to share her earlier theory. "Now, to get back to our situation. I believe what's happening in this city is the result of some type of magecraft ritual gone wrong. This type of complete destruction is too unnatural, and given that all the people seem to be missing, the fact that we can't even find traces of corpses, and these weird skeleton soldiers, I can't really think of any other explanation."

'

"Good deduction, rookie," Olga Marie acknowledged, making Ritsuka cheer internally. "No natural disaster could cause this type of destruction. The situation is far too unnatural. As for the ritual, that's also most likely correct. And I'm quite sure I know the ritual responsible."

'

"Really?" Managing to ask before Ritsuka, Mash stared at the Director in surprise. The Master herself was caught just as off guard. Sure, the Director was a Lord of the Clock Tower, but to have figured it out so quickly. "How did you deduce it so quickly?"

'

For a second, Olga Marie stood quiet, seemingly deep in thought. After roughly ten seconds, just before Ritsuka was about to question her further, she began to explain. "It would be reasonable to consider the cause being a Holy Grail War."

'

"Holy Grail War?" Did, did that seriously mean what Ritsuka thought it did? If something like that was involved, it could definitely explain the damage, but... "You mean the Holy Grail from the Arthurian legends?"

'

"Yes, that's the one." Upon confirmation, Ritsuka felt her facial muscles loosen. This was... definitely something. Glancing to her side, she could see from Mash's expression that she shared the same astonishment. "The Holy Grail War is a type of magecraft ritual where 7 Servants are summoned to fight each other. Well, technically Seven Masters fight each other, and the Servants are used as their weapons."

'

"Fight each other?" Mash questioned. "What would they do that for?"

'

"To obtain the Grail of course." Stating the fact that a modern mage could obtain a legendary artifact so matter-of-factly, the Director cleared her throat a bit before continuing. "This will take a minute, so I'll try to summarize as best as I can. Originally the Holy Grail was a Holy Relic once held by Christ. The Grail used in a Holy Grail War is of course, not the original, but the two have a common feature. That is, they both 'hold the power to grant any wish'. It is for that reason the Masters and their Servants fight to obtain the Grail. And according to Laplace's observations, a Holy Grail War was confirmed in this city in 2004. The Fuyuki Holy Grail War system is simple. Seven Masters fight each other. The last one standing gets the Grail. Chaldea learned about this in 2010. My father... I mean, the previous director used this data to build the summoning system. That's what makes up Chaldea's Heroic Spirit Summoning System, Fate. Our third invention after Laplace and Chaldeas."

'

"I... see…" This really was a lot to take in all at once. Ritsuka knew that the first day in a new job should be about learning but this was on an entirely different level. And judging from Mash's reactions, this was all new to her as well. For someone who had lived their entire life in Chaldea, she knew surprisingly little. But, if this Grail War had also happened during proper history, then the result must've been different from all... this. "So, what really happened during the Grail War? It certainly wasn't a disaster like this. Even the association would have trouble covering destruction like this."

'

"Yes. Nothing like this," the Director nodded, confirming her inquiry. "Seven Servants fought here, and in the end, Saber was victorious. The town wasn't destroyed, and the Servants shouldn't have been noticed by anyone, but... Now this is happening. We should assume that the outcome changed due to this Singularity."

'

"Alright, I think I'm starting to get a clear picture now." Yes, while Ritsuka still had her share of questions, things were beginning to make at least some sense. At least a partial explanation was better than none at all.

'

"But Director, from what you've told us, the 'something' that distorted the original history is more than likely the Grail. But why would it cause such complete destruction?" Mash spoke up, asking the question that had also been on Ritsuka's mind.

'

"If I had to guess, either some lunatic won the Grail or some third-rate nobody got in way over their head, lost control of their Servant and managed to destroy the entire city. So, all we have to do is locate the origin and analyze what kind of countermeasures we need to get rid of it."

'

The Director sounded quite confident in her statement, standing in front of them quite proudly. And while Ritsuka agreed with her reasoning, there was a detail that bothered her. "And how do we go about locating this origin? Should we go around searching the local leylines for a workshop?"

'

In response to her question, the Director's confidence turned into pride. A smug look growing on her face. "Hmph. Are you forgetting who you're working for? Like I explained during the orientation, Chaldea has the finest technologies in the world. The only ones who could even hope to rival us are the Atlas alchemists. We don't need to just wander around aimlessly. The location of the origin will become clear as soon as we find a high enough viewpoint."

'

A high enough viewpoint? Ritsuka was admittedly lost. While they could definitely view the environment from there, how would that help with some technology. But before she could come up with an answer, Mash spoke up from her side. "Ah, the Definite Geographical Analyzer, Sigma."

'

"Exactly," the Director confirmed. "With it, we are capable of mapping out the entire city at once, thus finding any possible location for a powerful magical source."

'

"Yes, that is certainly true," Mash nodded as Ritsuka fell further and further behind in the conversation. She understood that they were going to use some device to map out the city, but that was about it. The finer details still eluded her. But she wouldn't dare to ask at this point. The way the Director talked made Ritsuka quite clear that she was actually supposed to know about it. Just how long had she slept while standing? "But how are we supposed to use it?" Mash continued as Ritsuka hoped for some clearer details. "We lack the proper supporting equipment to fully utilize it."

'

"I've already got it all figured out, so don't worry." At least the Director seemed confident in her statement, so both Mash and Ritsuka mentally agreed to go along with her. It really was relieving to have an actual plan with clear directives. "Now then, before we head out, does anyone have anything more to say? Any questions or observations?"

'

At first, Ritsuka really couldn't think of anything. Everything seemed perfectly clear, yet something...

'

And then she remembered. With everything happening, it had slipped to the back of her mind, but with the Director's question, she recalled an extremely important detail. Looking at Mash purposefully, it seemed that she had remembered as well. "The Assassins."

'

"Wait, what?" Olga Marie's expression shifted from an epitome of confidence, to nervous confusion nigh instantaneously, her eyes shifting between the two of them questioningly. "What do you mean by 'Assassins'?"

'

Ritsuka was quite sure that she knew perfectly well what they meant, but simply hoped that it wasn't actually the case. Still, she had to tell it to her straight. "We mean as in the Servant kind. Mash fought two of them right after we got here."

'

The Director's eyes widened considerably at her statement, staring at the redhead for a few seconds before finding the words to retort. "Tha-that's ridiculous! Why would there be Servants like that here?! Assassin of all classes survived until the end?! And multiple of them?! No way!" And back to the nervous anger she went. Honestly, Ritsuka wished that she could've just kept her mouth shut about the Assassins, but this was a detail far too important to keep hidden. "How would you even know that they were Servants? They were probably just some malicious spirits or something."

'

"I saw them myself. I could clearly view their parameters."

'

In response to the confirmation, the Director grew pale. Though it seemed that anger was doing a great job in covering her fear again, before she could respond angrily, Mash cut in.

'

"I agree with Senpai's statement. While I might still be a novice, I definitely felt a response from them. It was unlike anything I've experienced, far different from the skeletons."

'

Upon hearing Mash agreeing with Ritsuka, Olga Marie managed to somehow grow even pailer than she had been, her face nearly matching her hair. "S-so there really are other Servants?! Why didn't you say so sooner?! This changes everything! What are we going to do if more show up?! We only have Mash to fight, so if multiple appear, we're dead!"

'

"Ahem!" Coughing into her fist to catch the panicking woman's attention, Ritsuka continued the explanation. "Although they definitely were Servants, they were extremely weak ones." Calming down the slightest bit upon hearing her words, Olga Marie turned her full attention to Ritsuka. "While they were stronger than the skeletons, absolutely capable of killing humans, a strong blow from Mash was enough to kill them." Relief returning to her eyes, the Director turned to face Mash hopefully, wishing for confirmation from the Demi-Servant.

'

"That is correct. Their weakness was notable. While they were Servants, they seemed more like incomplete ones, or parts of one."

'

Upon the confirmation, the Director almost immediately returned to her earlier, confident self. Determination returning to her eyes along with relief. "Hmph, you should've started with that, you almost got me worried. If what you said is true, then we have nothing to fear from these so-called 'Assassins'. They were probably some low-level wraiths. A bunch of nobodies that couldn't become proper Servants, so they just manifested here with the other undead. Yes, that's definitely it."

'

"That sounds quite plausible," Ritsuka admitted with Mash nodding on her side. While the Director's hypothesis was convincing, though it sounded like she was mostly trying to convince herself, Ritsuka really hoped it would turn out to be true. If there were other, proper Servants here, their situation would be far more precarious than anticipated. The Director was most likely also wishing that was the case with all her might.

'

"Now, I assume this matter has been resolved and there is nothing more to report?" Olga Marie asked, looking between the two of them, and since no arguments were voiced, she pointed at the garage door. "Then I, Olga Marie Animusphere, declare this operation started! Mash Kyrielight, Ritsuka Repo! We are heading out immediately! Our objective is to find a high enough viewpoint to activate Sigma, so we begin by scouting the city for a suitable spot!"

'

"Yes, Director." Answering simultaneously, both Mash and Ritsuka stood from their seats and moved to the door, with the Demi-Servant opening it to let them out. As she did, Fou was quick to hop on her shoulder, seemingly preferring a ride to walking. Though as they emerged from their safe spot and entered the burning city once more, Ritsuka couldn't shake the bad feeling she had about the earlier conversation.

'

'

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'

'

"Over there. That should suffice."

'

Following the line from Olga Marie's pointed finger towards the distance, Mash and Ritsuka both turned to face the single large structure in the city that had been left relatively unharmed. The large, red bridge linking the two sides of the city across the river.

'

"The bridge, right?" Mash confirmed while gauging the distance between it and them. It would take them around ten minutes of walking to reach it by her estimate. Indeed, the arches of the bridge were just about the highest point they could reach safely. Some of the burning and partly collapsed buildings in the distance may have been taller, but trying to climb them would be dangerous, even with her as a Demi-Servant. All and all, it was the best spot available.

'

"Yes. Once we get there, we'll get in contact with Romani and that idiot, and have them help us activate Sigma. As soon as that's done, we'll be able to start tracking down the source of our troubles." Her explanation finished, the Director walked ahead with Mash following close behind, Ritsuka by her side.

'

For the next few minutes, everything went well. While a few skeletons appeared from time to time, Mash had no trouble dispatching them. And while it was still scary, she was starting to get used to fighting. The impacts from her attacks were the most alien feeling at the start, but getting used to her new strength over time lessened it considerably. Yes, if it was just basic fighting, she could do it. But that was the problem, basic fighting. She still had no idea how to properly use her Noble Phantasm or her Skills, which basically made her a failure of a Servant. And while she had talked about it with Doctor and her Senpai, she really didn't know how she should proceed. How would she even start a conversation on something like that.

'

"...Hey, Mash," the Director spoke, catching her attention. "Is it possible that you can't use your Noble Phantasm?"

'

Hearing the question, Mash had to seriously wonder if the Director had read her thoughts. But as she thought about it, the question was perfectly valid. While the skeletons were weak, a Noble Phantasm could have been used to deal with them more quickly. Yet neither she or Ritsuka had even once suggested using it. Seeing no point in denying it, Mash just came out with the truth. "That's right. I don't even know which Heroic Spirit fused with me... Thus I am unable to properly wield my Noble Phantasm. ...I can somehow use it as a weapon. but its output is decreased. I can't even release its True Name. In fact, I don't even know what the origins of this weapon of mine might be."

'

Mash could feel her mood drop further with each sentence, yet there was nothing she could do about it. These were just factual truths. Falling silent, Olga Marie had a slightly concerned look on her face, which made sense considering that she realized the gravity of Mash's words.

'

"Oh, yeah. About that." Both of them turned to Ritsuka who had just spoken up. She had a serious, yet calm look on her face, as if she were appraising Mash. Particularly, she was eyeing her shield. "We did talk about this earlier, right? Before we went to save the Director."

'

Her eyes widening from the sudden realization, Mash recalled the conversation from earlier. About how her Senpai had some idea of why she couldn't fully use them. They had to postpone it due to the urgency of reaching the Director, so it had slipped her mind, but now would be the perfect time to ask her about it. "Y-yes. That's right, Senpai. You said you had a theory as to why I couldn't properly use some of my abilities."

'

As Ritsuka nodded in confirmation, Mash felt the slightest bit of relief swelling in her chest. "Now, I want to remind you that this is just a theory. I have no concrete evidence on this, so what I'm about to say is purely speculation." Pausing for a second to look Mash straight in the eyes, Ritsuka's gaze seemed to almost be asking for permission to continue. Essentially, she didn't want to ignite any false hope with her theory, in case it was wrong. But to Mash, that didn't matter. She would take just about anything that could help her at this point. In response to Ritsuka's gaze, she nodded, wishing for her to continue. "Alright then. Basically, the reason that Mash can't use the full abilities of the Servant she fused with, is because the fusion itself is still incomplete."

'

"The fusion... is incomplete?" Mash was admittedly confused. And seeing how Olga Marie raised an eyebrow at the suggestion, she was most likely too. What exactly did Ritsuka mean by that? In her own mind, she had properly fused with the Servant. "Umm... Could you elaborate, Senpai? How does that differ from me just not being able to use the Servant's powers?"

'

"Well, I first thought about it when I saw your... appearance." Walking closer to Mash, Ritsuka seemed somewhat uncomfortable for some reason as she crouched to point at her feet. "Like the Doctor so... tactlessly pointed out earlier, your outfit is... quite something to say the least. But the parts that most trouble me are here," Ritsuka pointed, before moving her finger towards Mash's abdomen. "And here. Like, while your feet and ankles are well protected, your shins are completely bare. Even more so with your stomach. While your neck and chest are armored, as well as your hip area, the armor just abruptly ends, leaving your stomach bare."

'

"Like parts of it were missing..." Olga Marie mumbled, also walking closer to inspect Mash. Not that Mash really minded. She had been observed like this throughout her life, so she was quite used to it already. "Not a bad theory, rookie. You believe the same is true for her Noble Phantasm?"

'

"And some of her Skills, yes." Confirming the inquiry, Ritsuka stepped a bit further away. And while she still kept her eyes on Mash, they were now focused solely on her head area for some reason. "I can see her basic parameters like Strength and Endurance just fine, as well as what I believe are her Class Skills. However, while I can't really see the rest of her Skills or her Noble Phantasm properly, they are still there."

'

"They are there, but you can't see them properly?" Mash repeated in confusion. Again Ritsuka was speaking in a manner she didn't understand. Perhaps it was because of her inexperience with people, but Mash really wasn't sure. "I'm sorry Senpai, but I still don't quite understand."

'

In response, Ritsuka pinched the ridge of her nose, seeming somewhat troubled. Was it because of what Mash had just said? Maybe what her Senpai had said should have been clearly obvious, yet she was just too inexperienced to understand it. Not wanting to trouble her, Mash was just about to apologize when Ritsuka spoke up. "Yeah, sorry. Of course it doesn't make sense when I describe it like that. It's just... hard to explain properly. Give me a minute to find some better words."

'

For the next few seconds, Ritsuka stood there, mumbling inaudibly while snapping her fingers. Mash wasn't really sure why she kept snapping like that. Perhaps it was a technique to help her concentrate? But soon the snapping stopped as Ritsuka's troubled eyes cleared up a bit, turning back to face Mash now that she'd found her words. "Okay, think of it like this: I can see your other statistics clearly, but when I try to look at your Noble Phantasm and other Skills, they're really foggy and blurred. So, while I know that there is something there, I just can't make out what it is. And since that's the case, then-"

'

"Wait a minute." Surprised by the sudden interruption, both Mash and Ritsuka turned to face Olga Marie, who was seemingly inspecting Mash with ever growing inquisitiveness. "I can understand the part about her Skills, but what about her Noble Phantasm?" Stepping closer so that she could lay her hands on it, the Director touched the center of Mash's shield with her right hand. "This shield is definitely a Noble Phantasm, so how do you explain that?"

'

"Well... I did have a theory on that too." Moving her eyes around the shield, Ritsuka seemed to be straining her eyes as she looked at it. Most likely trying to analyze it, for no avail. "For now, the biggest issue is that we have no idea what the true name of Mash's Noble Phantasm is. I've been thinking about it ever since I laid eyes on it, trying to find a match for it from the descriptions of famous shields, but I really have no clue about this shield's identity. It's definitely not Aegis, nor does it match the descriptions of either Achilles' or Ajax shields. If I had to guess, unless it's from a myth or legend that was lost or something, this shield might not be something the Servant that Mash is fused with wielded during their life. It could very well be the physical manifestation of a legend about a knight famed for their ability to protect or defend someone or something."

'

"Yes, that's definitely possible," Olga Marie agreed, her tone sounding the slightest bit dejected. "And there are quite a few knights fitting that description, so deducing its true identity won't be easy."

'

While Mash had been mostly silent throughout the conversation, the weight of the words spoken weighed down on her mind. Thinking back to her short encounter with the Servant she had fused with, Mash really wished she had asked them something, anything. Yet she couldn't even recall their form properly, nor had they said a word to her. She had absolutely zero clues. But, there had to be something she could do. She could handle the skeletons just fine, but if something more powerful showed up, they could all be in serious danger. She could protect both her Senpai and the Director far better if she could just use her Noble Phantasm, yet the mere idea of them deducing its true name seemed to slip further with each word. "Then... What should I do?"

'

"Well, I did say that the fusion might still be incomplete. So, the obvious step would be to strengthen the connection between you and the Servant. As for how to do that..." Pausing for a moment, Ritsuka seemed slightly frustrated. The redhead snapped her fingers a few times, seemingly thinking about something, yet apparently unable to come up with any solutions to her problem. In the end, she coughed lightly in her fist turned back to Mash. "As I was saying. Now, I know how simpleminded and plain this sounds, but I believe that the best way for you to unlock your true abilities as a Servant, is to, well... break them in."

'

"Huh?!"

'

Ignoring the dumbfounded exclamation from the Director, Mash let Ritsuka's words sink in. 'To break them in.' While Mash understood the idiom, she wasn't really sure how to interpret it in this case. "Uhm... Senpai, could you please elaborate a bit. I'm admittedly still a bit lost."

'

"Now, you know when you get new shoes and they feel strange and unfamiliar on your feet before you break them in and get used to them? At the most basic level, I believe you should do the same here. As you get more used to your Servant powers, using them should become easier, more natural and thus progress your unification with the Servant."

'

The suggestion was... exceptionally simple. So simple that Mash hadn't even considered it a possibility, yet... her Senpai did have a point. She had only been a Servant for a bit over an hour, so development of her abilities was certainly a possibility. While she was dejected that her abilities as a Servant were quite inadequate, if she just tried hard enough, she might be able to improve herself.

'

"Wow. You really weren't kidding when you said it sounded plain."

'

Voicing her opinion first, Olga Marie stared at the redhead with a plain, unimpressed look on her face. And while she kept her stoic, calm expression, Ritsuka's eyes disclosed the slightest hints of dejection in response. Well, this was only to be expected, since mages always preferred their solutions to problems to be as mysterious and complicated as possible. Though after a few seconds, the Director's face returned to her usual expression, turning around to walk again. "But, the suggestion itself is not all bad. Hopefully we don't face anything too troublesome here, so that Mash can work on her condition back at Chaldea."

'

Appearing slightest bit happy at the Director's words, Ritsuka turned to Mash with a soft smile. "And there you have it. Essentially, just work hard and do your best. Of course, I'll help you as best as I can. If their Servant is having an issue like this, it's the Master's duty to help them out."

'

The last words her Senpai had said: 'it's the Master's duty to help them out.' For some reason, while they made Mash happy, she also felt... embarrassed. Of course, her Senpai offering to help her made her happy, but... "Senpai... shouldn't that be the other way around? A Servant is supposed to help their Master. And yet you..."

'

"Don't be stupid." Surprised at the sudden interruption, Mash raised her head to look Ritsuka in the eyes. While they still looked as kind as ever, there was a newfound sternness in them. "While it's true that Servants fight battles for them, it's the Master's job to support their Servant both in and out of battle. After all, a Servant's strength is the same as their Master's, so if there is a problem, it should be solved as efficiently as possible. Do you understand?"

'

The way she said that... While the words and the logic behind them were proper for a mage, the way Ritsuka had said them was anything but. She genuinely wanted to help her. Once again, Mash felt that strange warmth she had felt back at the Command Room, when her Senpai had held her hand. She really was lucky to have someone like her for a Master. "Yes, Senpai!"

'

"If you two are done, I'd like to remind you that we have a job to do."

'

"Ah!" Turning to face the sudden call, Mash noticed that the Director had already walked a few dozen meters ahead of them. Tapping her foot impatiently, she had her familiar scowl locked on to them.

'

"Hurry it up, will you? We're almost at the bridge, so we should start preparing Sigma."

'

"Yes, Director!" Making a quick dash towards their frustrated boss, Ritsuka was quick to reach her side, Mash right behind her. "But, how exactly do we prepare."

'

"We can't. It has to be done from Chaldea," Olga Marie stated as she began to walk again, pointing at Ritsuka's wrist. "Open up the communications with Romani. We'll talk while walking."

'

"Alright." Following right behind the Director, Ritsuka opened the communication function on her Multi-Appliance. "Doctor? You there?"

'

"Yeah. I'm hearing you loud and clear." Confirming the connection, Romani once again appeared on the projected screen. "Did you need something?"

'

"Has Arista or anyone from the Reactor room arrived there yet? We've had enough time to walk across several city blocks, even with interruptions, so they should have made it there by now." Asking for the report, Olga Marie grew irked as soon as she saw Romani shaking his head.

'

"Not yet, but they should be on their way. I received a status report a few minutes ago, saying they were gathering all necessary tools and automatons available. So they ar- huh?"

'

Noticing the sudden interruption, the three of them stopped once again to look at the confused Doctor on the screen. The Director being the first to question him. "What's wrong? Did something happen, Romani?"

'

"They're actually almost here. But it seems they're coming from the eastern entrance," Roman mumbled as he clicked on his console. "But according to the scanners, the containment walls are still up, so they'll have to find-"

'

CRRRREEEEAAAAK

'

Covering his ears over the awful creaking audible even through the line, Romani stared at his side, somewhere away from the screen, with a dumbfounded expression. The Director on the other hand, responded with her usual way. "What was that sound just now?! Did something happen?!"

'

Staring for a few more seconds before realizing he was being addressed, the Doctor turned his now nervous face to address them. "Well, something technically did happen. My reinforcements finally got here..." Taking a pause to tug his collar a bit, Romani revealed the reason for his nervousness. "Arista opened the containment wall... the most direct way possible..."

'

"He WHAT?!" Making its triumphant comeback, the Director's anger flared as strong as ever, all the while Romani shook on his seat. To Mash at least, that sounded quite normal. After all, for the roughly two years she had known him, Mr. Arista had been quite a peculiar person. "Does he have any idea how much those things cost?! You tell that idiot to-"

'

"IT WAS ALREADY BUSTED!"

'

Hearing the sudden, distant voice over the comm line, Olga Marie stopped her freak out for a few seconds. Long enough for Arista to elaborate. "THE WALL'S HARDWARE WAS TOTALLY WRECKED! WE WOULD'VE HAD TO TEAR IT DOWN ANYWAY, SO I TOOK A BIT OF A HEAD START!"

'

At the end of the sudden announcement, everyone present turned their attention to the Director, seemingly wanting to yell some more, but lacking a proper reason now. After a few seconds of silence, her anger had cooled down, though she was clearly still frustrated. "Alright, fine. Now, I need you to get to work. We're going to use Sigma to scan the city, but we're... lacking on supplies."

'

"Oh, yeah. You had quite a sudden Rayshift, didn't you?" Hearing the voice suddenly far clearer, Mash noticed that a little note had appeared at the bottom of the screen, indicating an additional caller. Though for now at least, there were no visuals, only Arista's voice could be heard. "To use Sigma properly, we would need Sky Eye to support it at your location, but you don't have it, nor can we Rayshift it there. Well, ain't this a pickle."

'

"Don't even start with that," Olga Marie groaned at the screen, though Mash didn't quite understand why. She didn't find anything worth getting frustrated over in his statement. But, the Director was quick to make her reasons known. "I know that tone you're using. It's your: 'Oh, man. I'm just so damn smart'-voice.

'

"Well, it is accurate." Stating it like it was an obvious fact, Arista managed to get the Director to groan even louder. "Now, then. I've got your situation basically figured out from Roman's report, so there is actually a plausible way to make Sigma work without Sky Eye. Mash, you actually became a Demi-Servant, right?"

'

"Yes, that is true. I've formed a contract with Master Ritsuka Repo." Upon confirmation, Mash heard an impressed whistle over the line. Considering Arista's overall interest in Servants and the extraordinary success of the experiment in general, the Demi-Servant anticipated a very detailed examination from him once she returned to Chaldea. Not that she really minded. While the man could act quite bizarrely from time to time, of all the mages in Chaldea, he had come closest to treating her like an actual person. Well, in Mash's eyes, that spot went to her Senpai at this point in time.

'

"Ignoring how absurdly awesome that is for a while, I'll get a thorough analysis of your abilities later, so for now, I just need to know one thing: How strong are you? As in Strength parameter wise?"

'

"Oh, I-um..." Mash... actually didn't know the exact answer. While she knew that she was very strong, she didn't know the precise, accurate ratings of her abilities. Should she just give a rough estimation? But what if he needed to know exact numbers...

'

"Her Strength is C Rank."

'

Turning her head in surprise, Mash was greeted with an amiable smile from Ritsuka. She was then quick to return it with a thankful nod.

'

"Alright, a solid mid-tier, then. That's good. Had she been something like an E, this might've been tricky. Here's what we're gonna do: Roman, start booting up Sigma. We need it to be ready. Meanwhile, I'll explain to our Field Agents over there what they need to do."

'

"Roger that. I'll begin right away." Starting his typing again, Romani muted his transmission, letting the trio in the Singularity listen to Arista's instructions properly.

'

"First, open the little panel on the wrist side of your Multi-Appliance and take out the tracking chip. It's light blue and on the right side of the panel. Press lightly on it to get it out."

'

Doing as she was instructed, Ritsuka removed the device from her wrist and flipped it over. There, like Arista had instructed, was a small panel, yet...

'

"Hey, hold on a minute." Interrupting the working Master, Olga Marie directed her words at their faceless adviser. The reason being obvious to those present. While the panel was indeed there, it was held in place by tiny, yet sturdy looking screws. "We'll need a screwdriver to open this. If we try to force it open, we might damage some of the delicate parts, losing our only way of communication. You'd think a 'genius' like you would've thought of that, Arista."

'

"Um, Director? That really shouldn't be an issue. I can just do this." Earning the attention of the somewhat gleeful Director, who thought she had finally found something to legitimately criticize Arista over, Ritsuka raised her right pinky, strengthening it along with the nail, and began to unscrew the panel. Over the course of a second, Olga Marie's face went from glee, to embarrassed frustration, likely due to the fact that she hadn't really thought of such a simple solution. Not that Mash herself had either, though she had considered offering to open it herself. After all, as a Demi-Servant her nails would most definitely be even sturdier than her Senpai's strengthened ones.

'

"Nice. The Real Superpower of Common Sense strikes again. This one is definitely a keeper, Olga." Giving his approval to the redhead, much to the Director's further frustration, Mash spotted the slightest hints of a smile on Ritsuka's lips as she began working on the final screw. Seemingly happy from just the slightest bit of praise, she managed to open the panel, placing the detached screws carefully in her pocket and removing the requested chip.

'

"I have it. Now what do we do?" As Ritsuka held the light blue computer chip between her fingers, Mash noted how small it was, around the same size as the nail on Ritsuka's pinky. While it was normal for modern appliances to have such tiny and delicate parts, this was definitely on the smaller side. They'd have to be extremely careful not to lose or break it, treating it with the utmost care. After all, without the tracking chip, communications with Chaldea would be far more difficult.

'

"Good, now we get to the fun part. For this to work, we need two points with direct connection to Chaldea. The chip would usually serve as the point on the ground, but this time we'll just improvise. Since we are keeping up a constant communication line, the Multi-Appliance itself will be the connection point on the ground, while the tracking chip will be the higher one. Once you get it high enough, we'll be able to activate a quick scan. Since the connection through communication isn't quite as stable as the chip, the quality will drop a bit, but Sigma should still be able to create a full map of the city and some areas around it."

'

"Fun?" Seemingly gotten over to most of her frustration, Olga Marie questioned the man's choice of words. It really did seem odd. Why would the scanning procedure be fun? "How is raising the tracking chip to the appropriate height fun? Now that I think about it, how high exactly should it be?"

'

"Well, if you want to scan the whole city, roughly one kilometer straight up should do it."

'

Silence took over the area as an immediate response to Arista's words. As the bridge was one of the rare, intact areas of the city, not even the crackling of flames could break the quiet atmosphere. If it weren't for the shared looks of disbelief on all their faces, Mash would have thought she had misheard him. A kilometer. Straight up. How were they supposed to accomplish something like this?

'

"DON'T SCREW WITH ME!" Startled somewhat by the sudden scream from the Director, Mash shared a perplexed look with her Senpai, who returned it in kind. Earlier, Olga Marie had sounded so confident in them utilizing Sigma and now this happened. While Mash could understand her frustration, she was still overreacting like usual. "HOW THE HELL ARE WE SUPPOSED TO DO THAT?! I SUGGESTED THIS PLAN BECAUSE YOU HAD MENTIONED ONCE THAT SIGMA COULD BE USED WITHOUT SKY EYE! BUT THIS?! ARE YOU JUST SCREWING WITH ME ON PURPOSE?!"

'

"You done? Good." Once the enraged Director had vented enough of her frustration, Arista began speaking again. Despite the outburst and the impossible task he had given them, his tone was as calm as ever. "Obviously I wouldn't have suggested this if it was impossible for you to accomplish. I'm not that much of a dick. Besides, I revealed the method already, just think back a bit."

'

Her anger now giving slightly way to confusion, Olga Marie looked perplexed as she brought her hand to her mouth, thinking back on their conversation. Seeing how Ritsuka was doing the same thing, Mash began recalling Arista's instructions herself. Yet, no matter what, she couldn't find any direct way for them to accomplish what was required of them. Had he used some kind of riddle or wordplay or- "Ah!" Hearing the sudden gasp from her side, Mash turned to her Senpai, now having realization written all over her face. But for some reason, she was looking directly at her. "You don't mean...?"

'

"That's right! Ten points for the new girl!" Mash was now even more confused, as was the Director seemingly. Yet that changed suddenly, as she too turned to look at Mash in disbelief. Now she really felt out of the loop. What was she missing? Why were they looking at- "Mash. You're going to take the tracking chip and throw it."

'

"H-huh?" The words hit Mash like a truck. That was why both the Director and Senpai had looked at her like that? But she couldn't possibly do something like that. She was a Servant, yes, but something like this was still far from her reach. "Wait. Please wait. I can't do that. The chip is supposed to be thrown straight up, correct? But I lack that kind of precision. If I threw the chip, we would definitely lose it. How am I supposed to accomplish this?"

'

"By doing your very best."

'

Silence, once more. Yet this time it was far more unnerving to Mash, seeing how she was the main subject for it. The Director looked just about ready to explode once again, but before she could unleash her fury, Ritsuka was the one to speak up. "Yes, yes. No pressure or anything, mister Arista. Come one, Mash. Let's discuss the easiest way to do this."

'

Huh? Was she... actually considering it? Mash looked at Ritsuka in disbelief, yet only received a serious look in return. Did her Senpai really have this much fate in her? "But, Senpai... I really don't think I can do this. I've never really been particularly good at throwing objects, and to throw something straight up... The swing of my arm would definitely throw it off course..."

'

"That's why you're not swinging your arms." Responding so matter-of-factly, Ritsuka was really giving a feeling that she knew what she was doing. "Now, have you ever played volleyball, Mash?" Obviously she hadn't. While she of course knew what it was, Mash never even had the opportunity to play it. When she really thought about it, Mash didn't really even know if she knew enough people to form two whole teams. To lack something as basic as this... It really proved her immaturity as a person. "I see. That's a no then. Well, I'll just have to give you some basic instructions."

'

In response to her words, Mash brought a hand to her face. Was her facial expression really so obvious that Ritsuka didn't even need words to receive her answer? But, she had to put those thoughts aside for now as she noticed her Senpai had started to crouch, seemingly doing some kind of demonstration.

'

"Alright. Since you have the strength of a Servant, you don't need to use your full strength to throw something this small. In this case, precision is far more important anyway. First, jump as you are throwing. Not only can you jump really high as a Servant, but it'll add to the momentum of your throw. And finally, the move itself. It's pretty simple really, just mimic me as you throw." Bringing her hands together above her head and looking straight up, Ritsuka straightened her legs and jumped. Before she lost her momentum, she shot out her arms, hands still together, straight up. If her memory served correct, Mash believed that in terms of volleyball, the maneuver was similar to an overhead pass. In case of sending something straight up, it would definitely be more accurate than a swinging motion. Finished with her demonstration, Ritsuka landed nimbly on her feet, seemingly used to jumping like this. The jump itself had been quite impressive, at least in Mash's eyes. At the height of her jump, Ritsuka's feet were nearly a meter above the ground, even with her legs straightened out. Now turning back to her, Mash could feel her nervousness rising as she was looked at in anticipation. "You got that, right? Try it a few times before your actual throw to get a hang of it."

'

Holding out her hand, Ritsuka presented a tiny piece of rubble to Mash. Realizing she was meant to use it for practice, she picked it up, tension rising in her heart. Calm. She needed to be calm. After all, this was just a practice throw, so there'd be no trouble even if she failed at her try.

'

"Mash."

'

No trouble. No trouble at all. Her Master, her Senpai believed that she could accomplish this. After all, she was a Servant. A fledgling, yes, but still a Servant. If she couldn't even do something this simple on top of not being able to use her Noble Phantasm, then she'd be an absolute failure of a Servant. She had to do this. She couldn-

'

"Mash."

'

Feeling a hand on her shoulder as her name was called, Mash turned her head slightly upwards to look Ritsuka in the face. While her face was serious, she once again had that kind look in her yellow eyes. But why did she call her so suddenly? She had just given her the piece of rubble. "Yes? What is it, Senpai?"

'

"You need to calm down."

'

Huh? How did she notice? Mash thought she had hidden her anxiety quite well. Her face had remained neutral and she wasn't even sweating. There shouldn't have been any obvious clues. "What do you mean, Senpai?"

'

"Mash," Ritsuka sighed, now looking at her with a somewhat amused expression. "You stood there staring at that piece of rubble on your hand for over 20 seconds."

'

Feeling heat rising to her cheeks, Mash stared at Ritsuka in disbelief. Both at the statement, and herself for not noticing something like that. Had she actually done that? "I, uh... I'm sorry. I don't really know what to say. I'm just not sure if I-"

'

"Take a deep breath." Seeing do reason to disagree, Mash did as she was told. Feeling her lungs fill to the brim, she held her breath. "And out." Releasing the held breath, she now emptied them. "And in again." Inhale. "And out." Exhale. Blowing the air out, Mash noticed to her surprise that she was genuinely feeling better. Obviously proper breathing helped one remain calm, but she hadn't realized her's had been that out of sync. "Good. Now listen, Mash. There's no need to be nervous. This is a practice throw. Even if you don't nail it on your first try, there won't be any consequences." Yes, she was right. Senpai was absolutely right. Why had she gotten so nervous in the first place? Even if she failed, a single failed practice throw wouldn't doom her in Senpai's eyes. Now she honestly just felt childish.

'

"Although, there might actually be quite a large, dangerous consequence if we take too long." Hearing the words, Mash felt her heart jump a bit, but as soon as she saw Ritsuka's face, she calmed back down. With a slight smile, the redhead pointed over her shoulder inconspicuously. "The Director might get really mad."

'

Looking at the woman in question, Mash was surprised to see her leaning on the side of the bridge, her right foot tapping in a quick session. While she wasn't looking at them, she seemed to be as frustrated as usual. Hearing a small snicker from Ritsuka, Mash couldn't help but to let out a giggle of her own. "Yes. I should do my best then."

'

"Right." Nodding in agreement, Ritsuka moved back a bit to give her space. "You don't need to go all out at first. Try a throw with a shorter distance to get a feeling to it."

'

"Yes! Mash Kyrielight, here I go!" Pumping herself up, Mash crouched, gathering magical energy in her legs. Holding the piece of rubble in her hands, she raised them right above her head as she looked up. Yes, this was just like Senpai had demonstrated. And then, after taking a deep breath, she jumped. From the sound, she could tell that she had shattered the road underneath her as she took off, but that was not important, she had to focus. 15 meters was what she had aimed for as the height of her jump, so right after she flew over the 10 meter mark, she shot her hands out, launching the rubble into the sky.

'

As the speed of her jump slowed down, she kept her eyes on the rubble, still rising as it flew across the air. But while wanted to keep her eyes on it, she had to take a second to look down in order to land properly. Confirming she was landing on the same spot, Mash quickly moved her eyes back to the piece. It was still amazing how much her eyesight had improved. While she was starting to have trouble given the small size of the object and the darkness of the sky, she still managed to track it at, 4, maybe 500 meters. Bending her knees to land, still keeping her eyes on the target, she heard Ritsuka speak from her left. "Nice throw, Mash. It's going really high."

'

"Yes, Senpai, but it's already starting to descend."

'

"Really?" she questioned, seemingly moving her head around from what Mash could see on her peripheral. "Even after I strengthened my eyes, I can still only barely see it."

'

Yes, it was descending, and fast. Judging the distance, Mash took a few steps to her right, lining herself up to catch the piece of rubble. It wasn't at the exact spot where she threw it, but still quite close, this could really work. Falling lower and lower, faster and faster, less than 100 meters now remained between her and the target. Cupping her hands to ensure the catch, Mash waited... And waited... And waited... And...

'

As the piece finally entered a reasonable range, Mash jumped towards, catching it midair. "Nice catch!" she heard Ritsuka call from her side. As she landed firmly on the ground, the redhead was quick to come to her side. "Only three meters off from the throwing spot. Very nice."

'

"Yes." In all honesty, Mash felt really good. She had expected the task to be far more difficult than it had been. And while she hadn't reached the required height yet, she was sure she could do it after a few more practice throws. But, that didn't mean she wasn't still nervous about the actual throw. "I'm ready for a few more tries, Senpai."

'

"Sure thing. Take as many as you need."

'

For the next ten minutes, Mash practiced throwing the rubble higher and higher, slowly getting the feel for the accuracy required to properly catch it. At her sixth attempt, as she looked down for her landing, she noticed that Ritsuka had gone to talk with the rather frustrated Director. While curious, she had to keep her eyes on the rubble, lest she lost it. As she felt her feet touch down, Mash kept her target in sight. She had thrown this one somewhere between 800 and 900 meters, so she had temporarily lost sight of it, but now that it was descending, she could spot it again.

'

Waiting for the right time, she once again jumped to catch the piece, now used to the process. Landing on the bridge, she felt happy over her spot. There had only been a difference of one meter from where she threw it. With a few more tries, she might even be ready for the real deal. Though as she thought about it, she felt her nervousness rising yet again. While she had done well with the practice throws, the chip would definitely be different than a random piece of rubble. Due to its lower weight, the wind might blow it off course or her aim might slightly be off and it could fall in the river. And unlike the piece of rubble, if she messed up once it would all be over. No scan, no map. Mash didn't even want to think of the possibility.

'

"You're getting really good at this, Mash."

'

Shaking the negative thoughts from her head, Mash turned to look at Ritsuka walking towards her... With a tiny ball of cloth that was slightly glowing. It was around the same size as the rubble she had been throwing, roughly the same as a ping-pong ball, but what it was for, Mash wasn't really sure. "Senpai, what is that cloth?"

'

"Well, I tried to think of a way to ease up your task, and this was the end result." Handing the ball to the curious Demi-Servant, Ritsuka continued her explanation. "I thought it would be easier if we put the chip inside something for your actual throw. So I asked Director Olga Marie for some assistance. She then gave me this handkerchief and used some magecraft to both keep its shape and make it glow. It should weigh about the same as the piece of rubble, so it shouldn't throw off your aim. And since it glows, it's far easier to see." Moving the ball of cloth on her hand, Mash had to agree with Ritsuka's statement. The weight was about the same and if there was a difference, it was far too small for her to tell. Then there was the color. Without a doubt, she would be able to see this white cloth far easier than a grey piece of rubble. The glow itself was more of an add-on than anything, making Mash certain she could spot the ball even after she threw it up to a kilometer. "So, want to give it a testrun?"

'

"Yes." With the confirmation, Mash crouched to begin her jump. At this point, the move itself was easy, given her practice throws. Not that it had really been complicated in the first place, but her feel for the required strength had been honed, making it far easier to gauge distance. And then, like all the other times, she jumped. Rising up to fifty meters, she made her throw, launching the ball high in the sky. While the procedure itself was the same, the results were noticeably different. Now that had switched to the clothball, Mash had absolutely no trouble seeing her target ascending towards the clouds. In fact, it would have been hard not to notice it, as it shined like a lone star in the cloudy sky.

'

Looking down for her landing, Mash noticed that both her Master and the Director had walked up close to her landing spot. Doing her best to soften the impact so that she wouldn't send either rubble or dust their way as she landed, Mash bent her legs right as she made contact with the ground. "Good work, Mash. That's definitely going high enough."

'

Straightening herself up, Mash came face-to-face with Ritsuka, who offered her a thumbs up and a smile. Reciprocating it with her own, the Demi-Servant then turned to look at the Director, looking... surprisingly calm, as she looked up at the sky. "Yes. That will definitely go up to a kilometer. I'd say even a hundred meters extra."

'

"Whoa, leave it to the head of the Astromancy department. To be able to tell even from this distance..." Ritsuka muttered, gazing at the sky herself. Though as she did, Mash managed to catch a proud smile sneaking on the Director's lips for the slightest moment.

'

As they silently waited for the ball to start descending, Mash couldn't help but to notice Olga Marie's current demeanor. She was currently just about the calmest she had been during their time in the city. And as she thought about, she gave voice to a question that had lingered in her mind for some time now. "Director, may I ask you something?" Turning to face her upon being addressed, Mash was given a nod of confirmation. "You really don't mind us taking up time like this? I had honestly expected you to be... well frustrated at the idea of Senpai and I wasting time."

'

Lifting her eyebrow at the last part, Olga Marie's stare nearly turned into a glare. However, despite the implication, she managed to remain relatively calm for her answer. "Well, I really don't mind you making a few practice throws to ensure that the scan goes off successfully. Besides, you've only taken a bit over ten minutes. Without Sigma it would take us hours to even somewhat scout the city. I don't mind taking a few extra minutes to ensure that the operation runs smoothly."

'

That... was honestly somewhat surprising. Mash had always felt that the Director was an uncompromising person, who accepted no excuses. Yet here she was, letting them take their time to complete a task. Between this and her actions with freezing the Master candidates, Mash had learned about the Director far more than during her entire time in Chaldea.

'

"Heads up. It's coming down."

'

Looking up on cue, Mash locked her eyes on the ball of light descending across the dark, cloudy sky. She silently thanked her Senpai again for coming up with it. It was just so easy to see. Waiting as the glowing cloth descended lower, lower, and lower, Mash bent her knees, ready to jump. And as the ball was only 50 meters away from the ground, she jumped, her cupped hands above her ready to receive the target. And receive it she did. As she caught the ball, Mash could hear a faint: "Nice," from down below, courtesy of Ritsuka.

'

As she landed back on the bridge, the redhead was quick to walk to her, the smile on her face now quite noticeable. "Good job, Mash. Now we're all set." Yes, they were. Feeling the tension inside her mind rise once again, Mash took a few breaths in an attempt to calm herself back down. All the practice throws had gone well. She could do this. She had to do this! Both Senpai and the Director counted on her. And as she was completely focused on calming her nerves, Mash almost didn't notice Ritsuka holding out her hand until it was right in front of her face. Looking up in confusion, the Master continued holding her hand in front of Mash, clearly wanting something. "Mash? The ball?"

'

Ah. So that was it. While she wasn't exactly sure why, Mash handed back the ball without question. And as Ritsuka took a few steps towards Olga Marie, a voice spoke up from her Multi-Appliance. "OK. And with that, I'm off. I've got to go check up on the shitshow that the Catalyst Department has been reduced to, so I'll be seeing you later."

'

What just... Why was Arista leaving? Wouldn't they need his help to properly use Sigma? Well, he had given them all the instructions they needed, but wouldn't it still be better if he had stayed over for the-

'

Mash's train of thought came to a complete halt as she watched Ritsuka hand over the clothball to Olga Marie. Then the Director unraveled it, carefully folded it and placed it in her pocket, and finally, gave Ritsuka a light blue computer chip. With it done, she spoke into Ritsuka's Multi-Appliance, now removed from her wrist and held in Olga Marie's hand. "Is everything going well, Romani?"

'

"Yeah. Running smoothly, we're getting everything and- Woah! Woahwoahwoahwoah! What's up with these readings?!"

'

Ignoring the rambling Doctor in the background, Mash turned to face Ritsuka, who appeared quite sheepish, something Mash had yet to see from her. "Senpai?" she asked, trying to comprehend the situation. No. Her mind understood essentially what was happening. But as for how and why, those were the questions on her mind.

'

"Yeeaahh... Good work, Mash. We activated Sigma without a hitch."

'

Silence fell between the two girls, disturbed only by the quarrel of the two grownups behind them. Mash... had done it. She made the throw to activate Sigma perfectly. Yet she had been unaware of doing it, believing it to be just another practice throw. She should have been happy to have accomplished her task, but the only thing in her head was confusion. "Why... why didn't you tell me about the chip, Senpai?"

'

For the first time that Mash had seen, Ritsuka looked... uncomfortable. Her calm countenance became awkward and embarrassed as she looked off somewhere behind Mash while rubbing her neck. "Well... ugh, this is kinda hard to say, but... your biggest issue during the throws was your nervousness. So, I had you throw the chip in secret so that you could fully focus on it."

'

Mash blinked in surprise. That was her biggest issue? While she had been nervous, yes, she had been far more worried about her own inability to accomplish the task instead of being distracted by her nerves. But as she thought about it, the fact that she hadn't been nervous at all during the last throw was certainly true. That was something she couldn't argue. However, that didn't mean she didn't have any. "But what if I hadn't taken the throw seriously and had botched my attempt? Or accidentally thrown it into the river? Or-"

'

"Mash." Interrupted from voicing her what-ifs, Mash watched as Ritsuka's face returned to her usual, calm state. The awkwardness from seconds ago was gone, now replaced with seriousness. "We've only known each other for a few hours, but during that time, one thing has become obvious. You always try your best when it comes to something important."

'

That... was true. Of course Mash would try her hardest when they were in a situation like this. After all, if she hesitated in a critical moment, either Senpai or the Director could be seriously injured, or worse. Honestly, Mash felt happy that Ritsuka had acknowledged her efforts like that, but that's all it was. Effort. She couldn't guarantee that her skills or strength could actually match it, so there was no reason to solely-

'

"And, I knew you could nail the throw already." Blinking in surprise, Mash tried to ask how she could possibly know that, but Ritsuka continued before she managed to. "Because, your earlier throws were already so close. You really had no reason to fail this one. There was only one problem: your anxiety. I saw how nervous you were before your first try and a few times between throws. Basically, the biggest hindrance was your self doubt. So, I did my best to make it a non-factor." Finishing her explanation, Ritsuka returned for just a second to her earlier, awkward tone. "Well, I am sorry about tricking you like that."

'

Mash had... complicated feelings over all this. On one hand, she was happy that her Senpai had not only acknowledged her efforts, but also had fate in her abilities. And on another, she felt embarrassed and slightly annoyed over the fact that she had been tricked so easily. Well, considering that the outcome was just about perfect, Mash decided to lean on the happy. "I accept your apology, Senpai. But... I hope you won't trick me like that again in the future."

'

"I'll try my best not to." Nodding in confirmation, Ritsuka, together with Mash, finally moved their attention to the Director who was busy berating the Doctor on the screen.

'

"For something on this level to be here... Are you absolutely sure you can handle this, Director? You could wait a bit until you can return to Chaldea and better equip yourselves."

'

"Out of the question!" Rejecting poor Romani's rejection outright, Olga Marie turned her attention to Mash and Ritsuka. While she did appear the slightest bit frustrated, she was clearly more determined now that she actually had a clear location in front of her. "You two finished with your talk? Good. Because we now have a clear location in mind." Pointing at a rather impressive map of the entire city on the projected screen, Olga Marie's finger focused on a mountain at the very western end of it. From the map, there appeared to be some kind of cavern there. "In this cave, there is a massive magical energy source. It's without a doubt the Grail we are looking for."

'

"I see," Ritsuka muttered as she eyed the map. But as she did so, Mash clearly noticed that she seemed to be looking at places other than the cavern. "Well, it's good that we now know exactly where to go. Definitely beats wandering around the whole city, just hoping to find something." Nodding in agreement, Olga Marie handed Ritsuka her Multi-Appliance back, which she quickly placed back on her wrist. Though after she did, she still eyed the map curiously. "Roman, can I ask you something?"

'

"Sure, go ahead."

'

"What exactly are these?" As Ritsuka pointed at several points on the map, Mash too noticed what she had been so curious about. There were three masses of magical energy in different spots across the city. While they were nothing compared to the mass in the cave and lacked proper forms, they were still noticeable enough that Sigma had picked them up. "I'm mostly asking because one of these is only a few blocks away from us on the map."

'

"Hmm. That is a good question," Romani admitted he too began to look at the spots closer, soon joined by the Director. "I'm honestly not sure. Perhaps some stronger skeletons? I can't really tell, since Sigma was activated so haphazardly."

'

"What do you mean?" Ritsuka asked. "Would the map be different if we could activate it properly."

'

"Vastly. It's not even funny how inferior the current use of Sigma is to the real deal." As he explained the device to Ritsuka, Romani was also seemingly zooming in on the map, trying to get a clearer picture on the magical energy masses. "If it was working at full extent, we'd be getting a real time 3D mapping of the whole city. So if Sigma is normally a video, it's currently just a single photo."

'

"Woah..." Ritsuka gaped at the explanation. Mash too had a similar reaction the first time she learnt of Sigma's functionality. When it came to observing large areas, it was a tremendously useful tool. "Chaldea really has some amazing stuff. And somehow more and more just keep piling up."

'

"Hmph, of course," Olga Marie huffed proudly. It was quite clear that she was enjoying Ritsuka's amazement. "Nothing less should be expected from an organization responsible for protecting the Future of Humanity." Though as much as she was enjoying the current situation, she quickly turned serious as she turned to the Doctor. "But, whatever these things are, they could end up being a problem. Have you tried analyzing them, Romani?"

'

"Of course. It's just..." Looking increasingly uncertain Romani clicked a few buttons to share a clearer picture with the trio in the Singularity. And it was... a blob. "They don't have a coherent form, so making a scan is impossible. It's like they lack proper mass or-"

'

Suddenly falling silent, Romani's expression shifted from puzzled to alarmed. Mash had only seen him looking like that once or twice, and only when there was something seriously wrong. "Doctor? What is it?"

'

"The three of you need to get out of there now! Head to the east side of the river!"

'

"What!? What are you talking about!?" Lingering somewhere between confusion and anger, Olga Marie was the first to respond. "To get to the Grail we need to go to the west! Explain yourself, Romani!"

'

"I'm picking up something on the west side! It's most likely one of those things we spotted on the map, and I now know what it is!"

'

As the Doctor was about to identify the unknown source of magical energy, Mash got her answer first. A terrible chill ran down her spine. It was similar to what she had experienced with the Assassins, but far stronger. On the ground Fou cried out, staring towards the west in an aggressive manner. Instinctively, she materialized her shield and jumped in front of the two still talking with Romani, now perfectly positioned between them and the approaching threat. "Senpai! Director! Please stay behind me!"

'

"Huh? What are you talk-"

'

Ritsuka's sentence was cut off. If Mash had to guess, it was because she had turned around and noticed the same thing her eyes were fixed on. A woman in a dark hood was making her way towards them. Her absurdly long purple hair together with what appeared to be a scythe in her hand, made it clear that this was no ordinary person. Yes, there was no doubt in Mash's mind what this woman was.

'

"A-a Servant?!" Hearing the Director's screech from behind her, Mash now knew that they were all aware of the situation. As for how they approached the situation, it now depended on the woman's intentions.

'

"It seems there's still some left." The tone of her voice was chilling, her eyes even more so. The way she looked at them... If there was any word for Mash to describe it, it would predatory. The Servant made absolutely no effort to hide her true intentions. "Survivors."

'

Putting up a strong front, hoping to discourage the Servant from attacking, Mash stood firmly between her and both the Director and her Senpai. "Hostile Servant detected! Master, please give me your orders!"

'

"Don't fight it, Ritsuka, Mash! It's too soon for you to fight a Servant!" Calling at her over the comms, Roman's voice was extremely concerned, with Mash feeling very much the same. She really didn't know if she could hold her own. "You should try to escape and-"

'

"I'm sorry, but that's not possible, Doctor." Interrupting the instructions, Ritsuka's voice remained calm, but there was a noticeable feeling of tension in it. She clearly understood the danger they were facing, so why was she- "This Servant's Agility is A Rank. Even if we tried to run, she'd catch up to us in no time."

'

Mash could feel her tension rising as she heard the words. So escape really wasn't an option. And given the Servant's obvious hostility, the only choice for them was to stand their ground and fight. But could they really? The way this woman looked at them, it terrified Mash. The skeletons weren't even on the same plane of existence compared to her. If she made the slightest mistake, the Servant would kill her instantly. And then, with no one to protect them, she would move on to the two standing behind Mash. They wouldn't last more than seconds until-

'

"Mash." Feeling a hand on her right shoulder, Mash glanced the slightest bit behind her while still keeping the Servant in her peripheral. Ritsuka's mouth was close to her ear, her words quiet. "I'm sorry to ask you to do this, but we really have no other options now. I'll do everything I can to support you, but you'll have to be the one fighting this Servant head on... Can you do that?"

'

Looking at the Servant in front of her, Mash wanted to say no. Just standing in front of her like this terrified her. If it was possible, she would do everything she could to avoid fighting this woman. But, like her Senpai had said, they had no other option. So, doing her best to swallow the fear in her heart, Mash gave her answer. "...Yes, Master! I will do my best!"

'

"Thank you. As for combat instructions, start by focusing purely on defense. To form a proper plan, I need to see how she fights." Nodding in response, Mash was once again thankful for how calm her Senpai managed to be in these situations. Had she panicked like the Director, Mash might've given in to her own fear as well, but thankfully that wasn't the case. She was certain that as long as Ritsuka was right behind her, supporting her, she could defeat this Servant that was almost definitely stronger than her. "And as a final note, avoid that scythe at all cost. It's definitely a Noble Phantasm, but we have no idea what it does. Sorry, but for now that is all the instructions I can give you."

'

"No need to apologize, Senpai." In fact, Mash had to wonder why she did. The instructions were simple, but in her opinion they were correct for a Master. When it came to battles between Servants, information was always vital, and even the slightest bits of it could grant one of the fighters an advantage. "I'll do my best to buy time so that you can form a plan."

'

"Done saying your goodbyes?" The chilling tone together with the words spoken were enough to cause another chill to run down Mash's spine. The enemy was most likely trying to terrify her on purpose. But, she had to stay strong. After all, she didn't need to win. All she had to do was buy time, so that her Senpai could come up with some plan. That's right. With her here, Mash could definitely win.

'

Then, the woman finally started walking towards her. She was seemingly in no hurry, simply walking towards them calmly, which only made her more terrifying. Licking her lips, she raised her scythe and pointed it towards Mash. "I'll be starting with you little girl. How many hits do you think that shield of yours will last before I shatter it?"

'

And with those final words, she dashed. With unbelievable speed, the woman had closed the gap between them and was swinging her scythe towards Mash's neck before the Demi-Servant could take even a single step. Gritting her teeth to drive the fear away, Mash raised her shield, facing the enemy Servant's swing with every bit of defensive power she had.

.

.

Notes:

Well, this took longer than expected.

Not really much to say at this point, since believe it or not, the chapter was supposed to be even longer. Originally, Druid Doggo was supposed to show up and it would have continued for a bit after the Medusa fight. For obvious reasons, I decided to cut it in half.

At this point, there isn't that much difference compared to the game yet, but that'll start to change from the next chapter onward, so look forward to that, I guess.

'

[On the notion of Chapter Releases: I will attempt to post new chapters during the first week of each month. However, if I finish a chapter early and the next one is well on its way, I might release them early.]

Also, I'm already 4 days late this month, though since the last month was February, I was kinda cheated from 2-3 days.