Fate Grand Order: Blessing of the Fortuity Shard

by FGO-BoFS

Meetings are something that most people experience often. They can be either frivolous or life-changing. Or anything in between. But there is a type of meeting that is rarer than any other. The type that has occurred scarcely more than a few times throughout Human History. A meeting between two people that could decide the future of Humanity itself.

8. Chapter 8

Summary:

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The stage is set and their mission clear, it's up to Chaldea to restore humanity from its incineration. But, before they can begin their counterattack, they are in desperate need of some man- and firepower. Luckily, there are 7 rainbow colored stones capable of helping them acquire both.

'

"i SHouLd bE AbLE to GeT tHe ChAPtEr oUT dUriNg NExt WeEK." -Might honestly be the biggest lie I've ever told.

I've had a lot going this past month, like my left arm effectively trying to commit suicide due to the Covid vaccine, and changing to a new medication. It's been rough, but things are slowly starting to get better.

Anyways, it's been like three months since the last full chapter, so at long last, please enjoy this 56 thousand word monstrosity.

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Chapter 8: It begins with a Squad

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'"This... This is a piece of the Sampo..."

'

As Ritsuka revealed the true identity of the tiny piece of metal held by Da Vinci, Mash's eyes widened in shock. "The Sampo? You mean the magical artifact of Finnish mythology that was said to have brought eternal prosperity and good fortune to its owner?"

'

"...Yeah," Ritsuka nodded, still staring at the shard absentmindedly. "There's no way I could mistake this for anything else..."

'

This was a surprise to say the least. Mash hadn't been sure what to expect when Ritsuka told them that she had a catalyst, but something like this was beyond her wildest guesses. Considering all the people related to it, this was without a doubt a first-rate catalyst. And yet... Why did Senpai herself look so shocked by it?

'

"So that's what this is~" Da Vinci hummed, growing more interested by the second. Twirling the tiny shard in her hands, the renaissance genius seemed far more invested in it than anything Mash had seen thus far. "I knew it was something special the moment I saw it, based on the magnificent craftsmanship, but a relic from the Age of the Gods? My day just got a whole lot more interesting~!"

'

"Woah. You seriously had something like this tucked away?" Romani muttered, finally joining the conversation. The coffee seemed to have given him the needed boost to react. "That's amazing, Ritsuka."

'

"No... But, this... This doesn't make any sense..." the Master mumbled, still in disbelief. "How do I have something like this? How did my dad get something like this? A fledgling family like mine should have no business owning one of these..."

'

So that's why she was so surprised. But, that presented Mash with another question. "What do you mean, Senpai? While I know the legend of the Sampo, I'm shamefully unaware of its existence in the modern day."

'

"That makes two of us," Da Vinci nodded, still looking over the shard in intrigue. "I know it was ultimately destroyed and that some of its pieces later washed up on the shore, but not much about what happened to it afterwards. The folktales don't really explain it that well, nor is that information something provided upon summoning." Turning her attention to Ritsuka for a change, she gave her an encouraging wink. "So, care to enlighten us a bit~?"

'

Though she appeared a bit flustered over the act, Ritsuka was quick to collect herself again. "Well, alright." Taking a deep breath, she began her information. "When the Sampo was destroyed, it was separated into several pieces. The largest, the lid, was taken by Louhi. The large chunks sank to the bottom of the sea, where they were taken by the god of water, Ahti and his people. The smaller shards eventually washed up to the shores of Väinölä, where Väinämöinen collected them and blessed them to bring prosperity to the people of Finland."

'

"So that's why they are still around today..." the Doctor nodded, though looked a bit confused. "Although, you'd think something like this would be more well known. Artifacts like these would usually be sought after everywhere, leading to the Mage's Association snatching up most of them. And yet this is the first time any of us are hearing of them..."

'

"That's because they're worthless to most people." Upon hearing Ritsuka's explanation, all present turned to her in varying levels of confusion. "The shards are an exception because the wording is important here. 'To bring prosperity to the people of Finland,' that's the crucial part. They do bring prosperity to those who own them, but only if they have Finnish blood. To anyone else, the shards are basically useless."

'

And now Mash finally understood. That certainly made sense. Even if a powerful foreign mage got their hands on one, it would just make him a target for those who could actually use the shard. Trying to collect them without having a Finnish heritage would just be far more trouble than it's worth.

'

"So that's why you could feel it while carrying it in a box," Da Vinci realized, growing more amused as the explanation went on. "And I presume that any magi who owns these will go to any lengths to keep them in their family."

'

Ritsuka nodded. "Yes, that's the other reason. For Finnish magi, there are few things as valuable as these shards. They are rarely, if ever, sold. Every old magus lineage in the country owns at least a few, though some obviously have far more than others." As her tone suddenly grew a tad frustrated, the Master let out a sigh. "I honestly don't want to even imagine how many the Edelfelts have..."

'

While hearing the unfamiliar name did nothing for Mash and Roman, Da Vinci rolled her eyes immediately. "Oh, those crooks. While I definitely heard stories, I thankfully never interacted with them while I was alive."

'

Edelfelt... That wasn't a name Mash ever recalled hearing, meaning they must not have been that notable in history, whether it be common or of magecraft. And yet the way these two talked about them... "I-uh, I'm sorry. I'm currently a bit lost. Who exactly are the Edelfelts."

'

As Ritsuka was about to speak, the Caster raised her hand to halt her, wanting to get some words in herself. "Edelfelts are a family who's magus lineage came into power during the Renaissance Era. They are originally from Sweden, only moving into Finland a few centuries back."

'

"That's right," Ritsuka confirmed before continuing. "They're pretty infamous around the world as far as magi go, but no one hates them more than the finns. They kinda just snuck into the country in the early 19th century. The older families have been trying to drive them out for a long long time, but no real progress has been made."

'

Well, territorial disputes were hardly uncommon when it came to magi, but around the world. Just what type of family were they? "But why exactly is that? What did they do to earn a reputation like that?"

'

Mash was taken aback as both her Senpai and Da Vinci simultaneously scuffed, clearly amused by her question, the brunette being the first to speak up. "The main reason is because they're known as: 'the most elegant hyenas above the ground.' They earned that nickname for shamelessly intervening in conflicts unrelated to them around the world, picking and choosing the most prized examples of magecraft from the ruins for themselves. That's probably also how they have so many pieces of the Sampo."

'

"Yeah, that about sums it up," Ritsuka nodded with a sigh. "The other is that they specialize in gem magecraft derived from Rune magecraft."

'

And Mash got her answer. And a new question with it. "I see... And, um, what exactly is wrong with that?"

'

Ritsuka looked at her in surprise, before rubbing her temple. "...Oh, right. You obviously don't know that... To put it simply, it's because they are magi who live in Finland, but don't use Finnish magecraft. Runes come from the ancient Norse, originating in Scandinavia. The Thaumaturgical system used almost exclusively in Finland is derived from the system used back in the Age of Gods. Well, more like it's a cheap knock-off of the system or a solid imitation, depending on the user. The main similarity is in that it uses music, songs, or poems as a way of control."

'

So that was why. Though it did seem a bit silly... Well, from what she had read, Mash was well aware that there were far more illogical reasons for conflict between mages than something like that. But before she could comment on the magecraft, Roman opened his mouth.

'

"That's right. I remember you citing what I think was a poem back at the bridge in Fuyuki. You know, before you launched those shards at Lancer." An observation that earned the man an extremely dry look from Ritsuka.

'

"...Yeah, but comparing the magecraft I use to the stuff spoken of in legends and folktales is like comparing a kitten to a tiger."

'

Aware of his comment souring the Master's mood, Roman coughed into his fist awkwardly. "Alright. This has been a nice little history lesson, but we should really be getting back on track here."

'

Her sour mood dispersing, Ritsuka scratched her cheek and smiled apologetically. "Ah, sorry. I kinda went on a tangent there..." Looking at the shard on Da Vinci's hand, her eyes seemed very... hopefully. Something that made Mash glad as well. "...Yes. While I would really like to know just how my dad got this, there's no way to investigate it at the moment. But still, this is without a doubt a broken piece of the Sampo, meaning we should be able to summon some excellent Servants with it."

'

"That's right. I am actually quite curious with the results," the Caster agreed. "Due to the nature of this relic and those connected to it, we might even end up summoning a Divine Spirit."

'

"Is that... actually possible, though?" She still sounded hopeful, but there was clearly some doubt mixed in. "Summoning a Heroic Spirit is already amazing, but something like that..."

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"If we want to get technical, then no. It shouldn't be," Romani shrugged flatly. "But these are some unprecedented circumstances. Plus, this is a catalyst that should have a strong connection to beings who were treated as gods, so it definitely won't hurt to try."

'

While the doubt remained, Ritsuka nodded with a smile. "Yeah. Not like we lose anything in trying. This is still a legitimate shard of the Sampo, so it should summon at least someone."

'

"Though there is something extra on this piece," Da Vinci noted, earning a surprised look from the Master. "Look here." As Da Vinci presented the shard to Ritsuka, Mash too moved in to get a better look. And true enough, there was a small section on it that was slightly different from the rest. A tiny band made of a different metal. "From its shape, it's pretty safe to assume that someone wore this as a necklace. Handy for keeping it around. Considering its usefulness, you ought to do the same, Ritsuka."

'

The redhead blinked in surprise, but quickly brightened up. "Oh... Yeah, that's actually a great idea. Having this on me could very well end up saving my life some time." A comment that didn't really sit well with Mash, but she was still relieved that her Senpai would have an additional safeguard to guarantee her safety. "I'll just need a strong string or something similar and-"

'

As the sound of a door sliding open came from the side, Ritsuka cut her sentence and turned towards the source, along with the others present. Standing in the open doorway, Brynhildr looked around awkwardly, clearly not having expected to draw this much attention. "...Ah? Am I interrupting something? Please do continue. I am simply here because of the appointed time, so pay me no heed."

'

As Mash looked at the clock, it was indeed two minutes before nine o'clock, when they were supposed to meet. It was just that they had started ahead of schedule since she and Ritsuka had arrived early.

'

"You didn't really miss anything yet. We're still preparing for the actual summon," Da Vinci confirmed before turning to Ritsuka. "I'll get you something to properly hold it later, so we can focus on our current task."

'

"...Very well." Walking across the room as gracefully as ever, Brynhildr moved to Ritsuka's side and gave her a light bow. "...Good morning, Master. I hope you rested well."

'

"I did, thank you," she nodded with a smile before turning back to Da Vinci. "So... What exactly do we need to do before the summon?"

'

"First off, we need to replenish your Command Spell for the summoning." A comment that drew a surprised look from Brynhildr and a curious one from Ritsuka. Ah, that's right. Certainly, Chaldea's system greatly differed from the norm in this field.

'

"...Replenish it?" the Valkyrie repeated, getting a confirming nod from the Caster. "...I suppose it makes sense since the summoning system was created by this organization. But still... To say something like that is somewhat strange..."

'

"In this case, it's more of an extra insurance in case something goes wrong with the summoning," Roman added. "Let's hope that things go well, but there are definitely Servants that can be, well, troublesome, especially Berserkers."

'

Ritsuka nodded in agreement. "True enough. But I've also wondered this... How does replenishing Command Spells even work? Masters get only three for a reason, so giving more feels... I dunno, like she said, strange?"

'

"An excellent question." Without warning, Da Vinci pulled out a pair of oval shaped glasses and placed them on her face. And judging by how the Doctor rolled his eyes, this wasn't something out of the ordinary. ...Admittedly they looked good on her, but Mash was still confused by the act. "Originally, Command Spells are the crystallization of a great curse. In a normal Grail War, anything short of somehow obtaining them from other Masters would make replacing them nigh impossible. But fortunately, or unfortunately depending on the context, Chaldea's fall a bit short when compared to the Command Spells used in most Holy Grail Wars."

'

Ritsuka appeared even more confused. "Fall short? But I'm sure they were really powerful when I used them in Fuyuki... Are you telling me they were supposed to be even stronger?" she asked in disbelief. "And why are they weaker in the first place? Does it have something to do with the number of Masters?"

'

"Precisely. You guessed right, clever girl," Da Vinci winked, making Ritsuka blush the slightest bit. "Because there were supposed to be a total of 48 Masters, the quality had to drop noticeably, since providing that many Command Spells was simply not possible. In a normal Grail War, there are only seven Masters, meaning that the number of Command Spells distributed in Chaldea is almost seven times greater. That's why a workaround had to be made."

'

As she kept talking, Mash really had to wonder... Did Da Vinci like expounding like this? She did seem to be enjoying herself a great deal. "Unlike the usual 'three claims of absolute obedience', Chaldea's Command Spells are simply a great amount of crystallized magical energy. If used for simple commands, like you demonstrated in Fuyuki, their effects are nearly identical to the real deal. However, it's when it comes to more advanced stuff that the inferiority really starts to show. For example, if you had used a Command Spell with an order to: 'Go to Archer', an absolute Command Spell would be able to directly transport a Servant through space, making the trip almost instantly. On the other hand, Chaldea's version would have most likely done something like sending a Servant towards him at a great speed, essentially turning them into a human rocket."

'

As Da Vinci finished, Ritsuka, having followed the explanation very intently, snapped her fingers. "Alright, I think I got it. To simplify, Chaldea's Command Spells are like an inferior model, so while they normally function just as well, when they're pushed to the limit they fall short." Receiving a confirming nod from the inventor, she moved on. "Right. So, how does the actual replenishing work then?"

'

"As a Master obtains their first Command Spells during a Servant contract, a 'frame' is crafted into their body." Moving to Ritsuka's side, Da Vinci pointed at the two now faded red patches under the remaining one on the back of her hand. "After a Command Spell is used, they leave behind this frame, meaning that it can be filled again. This filling happens by installing the same amount of magical energy as the previous one into their body, thus replenishing the Command Spell."

'

Ritsuka gave the Caster a skeptical look. "I'm guessing you're making this sound easier than it is." An observation that was confirmed with an apologetic nod, causing the redhead to click her tongue. "Figured. Otherwise, Chaldea would have no problem backing any Masters up by just sending them extra Command Spells while on the field."

'

"Right. This is not something that is simply done with a flick of a finger. The installation is still a great amount of crystallized magical energy, meaning that if not done carefully, it can seriously damage the Master's body and their magic circuits." A fact that made Mash once again glad that Chaldea at least prioritized the safety of the Masters over pure results, unlike some other magecraft research organizations. "The machines we have here at Chaldea were specifically made for that purpose, and their overall size and delicate build mean that moving them around is impossible."

'

"So there's at least more than one?"

'

"Oh yeah. This is far too valuable a machine to only have one of," Romani confirmed. "Of course, we have one here at the Summoning Chamber, then there's also another in the infirmary, and there was one in the Command room."

'

"I see. Well, better get started then."

'

With a confirming nod, the Doctor headed to the door on the other side of the room, motioning the others to follow. As Da Vinci picked up the container holding the arm guard, Ritsuka, Mash and Brynhildr walked after Romani, exiting the side room to arrive at the Summoning Chamber's observation room, its large windows showing the large space down below. The front of said window was lined up with consoles used to assist in the summoning, usually having several workers seated. Although at the moment, only one was occupied, with a rather nervous looking woman typing away at a console with impressive speed.

'

"Everything ready, Hui dear~?" Da Vinci called out, causing the lone woman to noticeably jump before turning around. Upon seeing the woman's face, Mash remembered seeing her quite a few times among the Summoning Chamber staff, as well as from the conversation last night. She was one of the Yuan twins Dio had mentioned. While she only had faint recollection of the other sister, due to her differing division, it seemed that both of them had thankfully survived the disaster. Working under these circumstances after losing a family member would have been an anguish Mash couldn't even imagine.

'

"Y-yes! I'm just... well, running one last system checkup to make sure everything goes perfectly..." The Chinese woman was clearly trying her best to appear as composed as possible, though her slightly tilted glasses together with her hair being in a somewhat messy bun revealed her true state of mind even clearer than her words. She was wearing a standard, orange Chaldea uniform with the accompanying skirt, much like most of the female staff. Though in her case, it did look noticeably snug around the waist. "After all, this... this is something that mustn't go wrong, no-no matter what!"

'

"Again?" Da Vinci asked, seeming amused by the statement. "Isn't this the sixth one this morning?" A question that prompted a nervous nod from the programmer. That was certainly a bit... excessive. Of course, two or three checkups were natural before an important operation, but six? The Caster seemed to agree as she shook her head. "I can't really fault you for being so thorough, especially after yesterday, but there's a limit to everything. We can't use the Fate System if it's going through a checkup, you know?"

'

"...Yes, of course. I was just-!" Seemingly finally noticing that there were in fact more people in the room, the woman quickly brushed her skirt before standing up and giving them a little bow. "Ah! But where are my manners? I-I am Yuan Huifen. Just one of the staff members working as a programmer here at the Summoning Chamber..." Falling silent, like realizing she had said something wrong, she awkwardly added. "...Well, at least I used to be, but with, well, everything going on, I now just kind of work wherever I'm needed at the moment..."

'

Oh, that was definitely an issue. Frankly, manpower might just be Chaldea's most limited resource at the moment. A fact that Roman at least was very aware of. "Yeah... We're currently really limited in terms of staff, so we have to do a lot of moving around with the people we have. She, Leonardo and I will take care of the technical side of things, while you do the actual summoning. Then we're each off to our own tasks."

'

"I see," Ritsuka nodded before turning to the programmer. "Well, it's nice to meet you. I'm Ritsuka Repo, one of..." The redhead's poise faltered minisculely before she corrected herself. "...The sole Master of Chaldea, currently."

'

A wave of melancholy flowed through the room. "...Senpai..." Ritsuka's new position was hardly something one could settle in over the course of a single night. But, that was something that Mash had decided to assist her with, no matter how little she could do. Although... There was a hopeful glint in her eyes as she gazed at the chamber outside the window. "Is there something on your mind?"

'

"Mostly just thinking out loud," she mumbled before turning back to Mash. "It's just... if nothing else, at least this is a big positive in our situation. I'm not sure if it was just luck or an undersight on Lev's part, but thank God he didn't blow up the Summoning Chamber. We would've almost definitely died in Fuyuki if there was a bomb here."

'

Oh... That was something that Mash hadn't considered, but Ritsuka was definitely right. If the Summoning System had been destroyed... Yes... Both of them would quite likely be dead at this point. While it was definitely odd that professor Lev hadn't done anything to it, they would just need to take advantage-

'

"Oh there was," Da Vinci noted nonchalantly, much to the shock of half the room, with Roman and Huifen looking more tired than anything. The Master and her Servants could only stare in disbelief.

'

"Wha-!?" Ritsuka uttered, first to give words to the question on their minds. "I-what even happened!?"

'

"Ah, now those are some fine reactions~" Da Vinci laughed as the Doctor let out an exasperated sigh. "When I told him about it, Roman looked like he was going to have a heart attack. But, no worries." Patting Huifen's shoulder, she gave the group a confident wink. "Thanks to our vigilant staff member here and your very own Universal Genius, a crisis was averted~"

'

Though the programmer clearly didn't share her attitude. "It really was more of a coincidence than anything..." Moving the inventor's hand off her, Huifen rubbed her eyes anxiously. "I was just doing some last minute checkups before the Rayshift, when I noticed something odd among the machinery. I didn't know what it was even though I'm part of the chamber's staff, so I called for Miss Da Vinci, who was supervising here at the time, to take a look. Thankfully, she realized what it was immediately, and defused it almost as quickly..." Mash felt her blood run cold. Had... had it really been that close? The fact that they still had a chance at saving humanity came down to something like that? Seemingly sharing her uneasiness, Huifei sat back down on her chair, still rubbing her eyes. "I... try not to think what might have happened if I hadn't called for her at that very moment..."

"Well, defusing it only took me three seconds, since the design wasn't that complex, but unfortunately, before I could alert anyone, the other bombs exploded about four seconds later. Cut it pretty close, huh~?" It was honestly astonishing to Mash that Da Vinci could say these things so cheerfully.

'

"...Four... Four seconds...?" Even Ritsuka started to look faint at this point. It wasn't even funny how close to death they had all been.

'

Thankfully, a certain lax Doctor very much agreed with them. "I'm sure I'm not the only one who would like to forget that detail, so what do you say we move on?" A suggestion that was met with overwhelming support. "After all, we're here for a reason."

'

"Yes, the Command Spell restoration." Clearly eager to change the subject as well, Ritsuka's eyes scanned through the room. "So, how do we do this?"

'

Walking to the other side of the room, Roman motioned towards a large machine that looked a bit like a small generator. "Place your hand here." As the group moved closer, the interaction point became quite obvious, seeing how it looked like a hand shaped imprint. Though what made it greatly unnerving was the fact that above it, there was an identical piece, making it look like a hand shaped waffle iron. The number of restraints on it didn't exactly help. "Now, I'll give you a warning so that you're ready for it, but this will hurt."

'

Ritsuka looked at him in confusion. "Huh? Sure there was some irritation after I formed a contract with Mash and the Command Spell appeared, but it wasn't that bad. Why would this be different?" A point the Shielder had to agree with. While she hadn't been there from the very beginning, her Senpai had shown absolutely no signs of the Command Spells bothering her. Although... She wasn't intimately familiar with all the details on how Chaldea's Command Spells worked in the first place.

'

And as a question was brought up, a certain Universal Genius once again took it upon herself to answer. "The first time, the Command Spells were inserted while the contract was forged, making their forming easy due to the flow of magical energy beginning between you and Mash. This time however, while the flow is already there, we're inserting something extra into it, so your body will naturally try to reject the alien magical energy."

'

"I see... Well, one can't really be a mage without dealing with pain, so let's just go ahead." While what Ritsuka said was certainly true, Mash didn't exactly like it. Maybe it was just her nature as a Servant, but seeing her Senpai harmed in any way just made her feel so uneasy.

'

The Doctor nodded, though didn't seem happy with the fact either. "...Yeah. True enough." As Ritsuka placed her hand on the imprint, Roman started placing the restraints on it. One for each finger and one to keep the wrist in place. "Now, even if it seems rough, try to keep your hand as still as possible."

'

As Ritsuka gave him an acknowledging nod, Roman lowered the upper piece, hiding the hand away. Preparing for the replenishing, the redhead held on to her restrained forearm with her other hand, trying to prevent any reflexive movements. Da Vinci walked to the machine as the Doctor worked by a monitor. Peeking over his shoulder, she proceeded to flip a switch as Roman finished typing. "Vital signs: normal. No abnormalities in magical circuits. All and all, we're good to go. Ready, Ritsuka?" As the Master gave her a quick thumbs up, the Caster moved her finger over a large button. "Restoration of two Command Spell strokes starting in: 3, 2, 1, begin!"

'

The moment the button was pressed down, a sound like a starting engine came from the machine, as well as the faintest hints of light from within the casing that surrounded Ritsuka's hand. But all that was secondary to Mash, her eyes locked on the struggling girl. Her Senpai's grip on her arm had strengthened noticeably as she audibly pulled in air through her grit teeth. From what little of her bare arm could be seen, was glowing due to her magic circuits turning on due to the invasion of this alien magical energy, trying their hardest to repel it. In the end, the procedure lasted maybe three to four seconds, but to Ritsuka, who experienced it, and Mash, who had to witness it, it might as well have gone on for several minutes, leaving the former breathing heavily as it ended.

'

The reaction was concerning to say the least. Mash remembered how Ritsuka had shown no signs of discomfort while removing the shard of asphalt from her thigh back in Fuyuki, yet this had been enough to get a visible response from her. How in the world did the procedure even feel like? "...Are, are you alright, Senpai?"

'

As Roman removed the restraints, Ritsuka rubbed the back of her right hand gingerly. "...I'll admit, that stung a lot more than what I expected. It really felt like something was crammed into my hand." Though her pained expression soon made way for a smile. "But, considering what I get in return, I'd still call it a fair trade." Removing her other hand, the redhead showed off her restored Command Spell to the room, now back to the appearance Mash had first seen in Fuyuki. "We should be all ready for the summoning, right?" A question that Da Vinci answered with a quick shake of her head.

'

"Just one more thing." As she tapped her tablet a few times, Ritsuka's Multi-Appliance suddenly let out a beep and started to blink. Upon pressing a button on the side, a tiny window filled with text was projected atop of the device. "We've made a new chant for the summoning, so be sure to look it over."

'

Eyeing the text quickly, Ritsuka gave her a questioning look. "...Why exactly? The one I used for Brynhildr worked perfectly well."

'

"True, but the simplified chant is just that, simplified. Normally, Servants would be summoned to deal with a given situation, then disappear once their work was finished. Well, a genius like me, who is far more useful in the long term, is obviously an exception," Da Vinci proudly explained, her smile shining particularly brightly during the last part. "This situation however, is very much different from normal. We can't take any chances or shortcuts with it. That's why we prepared this chant, in hopes of receiving any possible help from Heroic Spirits, and to have the highest possible chances of them answering our summons." Walking to Ritsuka's side, the Caster pointed at a few colored parts on the text. "Now, there are a few marked sections here, which you are free to change the wording to your liking. Since you are the Master of all the summoned Servants, the chant should include parts that express your own nature, that resonate with you."

'

Ritsuka gave her an acknowledging nod. "Alright, I'll go over it before we start."

'

"Good. Now, you're ready to get down there." Pointing at a door at the back of the room, Roman moved to the console by the window where Huifen was already seated. "We'll get all the technical parts done, and then you're free to begin your summoning, Ritsuka." As the Master nodded, he turned to her two Servants next. "Mash, Brynhildr. I want you two to stay close to Ritsuka during the summoning. Hopefully everything goes well, but if we end up summoning a rowdy Berserker or something, things could get dangerous. The Summoning Chamber does have measures to restrain any violent Servants, plus Ritsuka has her Command Spells, but you should still be ready in case things do go south."

'

"...Naturally," the Valkyrie said, with Mash following close behind.

'

"Yes! I'll make sure no harm comes to Senpai in case of an emergency." Of course, while the possibility of such a situation was low, Mash wasn't going to take any chances. If there was any possible danger to Ritsuka, she would be sure to take care of it without fail.

'

"And, don't forget this." Da Vinci said, holding out the container for the catalyst towards Mash. "Leave it on the lower floor for the first summon. We don't need two catalysts in the same space to interfere with each other."

'

"Very well." Taking the box, the Demi-Servant quickly skittered after Ritsuka and Brynhildr as they exited through the door and walked the spiral staircase down to the floor below. There, she found a table to place the container on before moving to the actual Summoning Chamber. As she watched Ritsuka reading through the chant she was given, Mash let her mind wonder a bit, thinking about the possible Servants they could summon. In order to not be a burden to her Senpai, she herself still had a long way to go as one. But training by herself was... difficult to say the least. While Brynhildr could definitely instruct her in fighting, their styles couldn't have been more different, so she held a faint hope that a Servant experienced in fighting with a shield could be summoned. If she had an instructor like that, then surely she could improve beyond her current self...

'

"Alright, I'm ready to start."

'

Hearing Ritsuka's words, Mash put her thoughts aside as the girl shut off the window on her Multi-Appliance. Looking at the shard of metal on her hand hopefully, she then turned upwards, towards the room above them. "Is everything ready on your end?"

'

"All set~" Da Vinci answered cheerfully. "We're ready to go at any time."

'

"Good..." Taking a deep breath, Ritsuka walked to the box by the console that contained the Saint Quartz and picked one up. "Then, let's do this."

'

"Yes! We're ready as well, Senpai." Giving her Master the most encouraging smile she could muster, Mash's body emitted a light glow as she changed into her Demi-Servant form, holding her shield by her side. She watched as Ritsuka walked towards the center of the room and placed the Saint Quartz on the round pad where the summoning would take place, hoping that everything would go well.

'

'

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'

'

The Summoning Chamber itself was certainly different from what Ritsuka had expected. Back in Fuyuki, Mash had described it to be the same as the strange sphere filled with circuitry and stars that had surrounded them during summoning, yet it was nothing alike. The room they were in had its walls, floor and ceiling completely covered in blueish-grey metal plates. The only spots without being a pair of double doors leading into the room, the windowed observation room above it, a roughly 2 meter wide console in front of it, and a round metal pad on the other side of the space. The last one being the spot where the actual summoning happened. Considering how dull the space was, Mash's previous description was certainly questionable. Although, if Ritsuka had to guess, it would probably light up during summoning.

'

"Everything is ready," Roman informed through the intercom. "The rest is up to you, Ritsuka."

'

Yes. It really was, wasn't it?

'

Taking another deep breath, Ritsuka focused on the metal pad and the Saint Quartz placed on top of it little over ten meters in front of her. The distance seemed a bit much, but considering that it was filled up with bounded fields for the safety of the summoner, she couldn't really fault it. Plus, she could feel that both Mash and Brynhildr were both a few meters behind her, ready to jump in in case something happened, so there really was no reason to worry.

'

...At least that she was telling herself...

'

Ugh. No, she couldn't start worrying over possibilities now. She just had to do this, there was nothing else to it. If something did happen, they could just deal with it. Nothing would happen if she didn't do anything. Neither good, nor bad. Gripping the shard of Sampo in her left hand tightly, she reached out her right towards the center of the room.

'

Once she did, it was like the room came to life. Like she had suspected, the dull metal plates were immediately overwritten by what looked like the night sky with glowing circuitry running across it. As the metal pad lit up with the summoning circle forming on it, curiously, something like a copy of Mash's shield made of light formed under it, making the conditions identical to her first summon. Much like in Fuyuki the spheres of light emerged from the shield, the large sphere in the middle lifting the Saint Quartz together with it. And as Ritsuka began to speak, the smaller spheres began their rotation.

'

"Let silver and steel be the essence.

Let stone and the archduke of contracts be the foundation.

Let rise a wall against the wind that shall fall.

Let the four cardinal gates close.

Let the three-forked road from the crown reaching unto the Kingdom rotate."

'

The spheres formed into three bands that began to rise vertically, the large sphere glowing brighter and brighter. And as her Command Spell began to shine, Ritsuka could feel it was working. Like with Brynhildr, she felt like she was reaching out, somewhere far, far away... and someone grasped her extended hand. Now, she just had to pull them here.

'

"I shall declare here!

My will creates your body, and your sword creates my destiny!

If you heed the Human Order's beckoning, if you abide by this will, this reason, then answer!

An oath shall be sworn here!

I shall attain all virtues of all of Heaven, I shall surmount all evils of all of Hell!

From the Seventh Heaven, attended to by three great words of power, come forth from the ring of deterrence, Guardian of the Scales!"

'

The bands of light crashed into the large sphere in the middle, creating a flash of light far too bright to look directly at. But, Ritsuka didn't need to see. She knew it had worked from the feeling.

'

And that feeling was confirmed the moment the light began to fade.

'

From the silhouette, she could tell the Servant was a man. A fairly tall, well-built man, wearing a vermillion coat that fluttered in the wind from the summoning. The collar, ends of the sleeves and the hem of said coat were covered with white fur, looking quite... flaming for the lack of a better word as the garb gently fluttered. As it was left open, it revealed the simple metal armor covering his chest, matched by more on his shoulders, upper arms and wrists. From the waist down he wore dark brown pants that ended in his boots, black leather with some armor, with white fur at the top.

'

But, the most striking part was without a doubt his head. He was very good looking, appearing around his early twenties, with a face that could definitely be described as beautiful, a real handsome prince type. Above all else, the detail that captured Ritsuka's attention the most, was his flowing, fiery red hair. Quite a few people had described her own hair like that, but it fell far short when compared to this man's mane. While hers was more comparable to a fox in its coloration, both the shape and color of his hair were best compared to genuine fire. Swept backwards, it fluttered in the fading wind, looking as if his head was actually on fire. His golden-orange eyes, flickering like sparks, perfectly matching his hair in their aesthetics, were sharp as they looked around the space.

'

On his right hand he held a sword, resting it on his shoulder. With a single glance, Ritsuka could tell that it was a Noble Phantasm. The sword's hilt was shaped like what appeared to be an eagle, the pommel shaped like tail feathers, the guard its spread open wings, and the blade emerging from its beak. A grandiose golden raptor with red eyes that glittered like gemstones, rubies most likely. The blade didn't fall short either, the finely tempered metal shining like a decorative sword that had not seen a single battle, but she knew better than that, given who this was. That's the kind of quality one gets when their sword isn't made by humans.

'

Yes. There was no doubt in Ritsuka's mind as to who this was.

'

Turning his attention away from the room, the Servant looked right towards the three women with a quirked eyebrow and a grin, appearing quite pleased with what he saw. "Oho? Now this is quite a pleasant first sight to come across. I was just summoned and already there are several lovely ladies present~ "

'

Yup. No doubt at all...

'

Hearing a troubled gasp from Brynhildr, Ritsuka held back a groan as the man winked at her. "Guess I lucked out getting summoned by you as much as you did upon summoning me, huh?" Thankfully he left it there as he started walking towards her, looking around the chamber curiously. "But I gotta say, this is one hell of a summoning space. How many bounded fields are there between us here? It's hard to tell since they're so tightly packed." With now only around six meters between them, the man knocked on the air much like one would on glass, revealing the invisible barrier for a moment. If she didn't know his background, Ritsuka might've been surprised that he even noticed the bounded fields in the first place. If she didn't know they were there, she might not have detected them at all. "Not too strong, but with this many it'd definitely take a few hard hits to break through them all."

'

"Well, hearing you admit that just makes me feel more confident in them, Lemminkäinen," Ritsuka smiled, earning a little, knowing gasp from Mash. Of course this well studied girl would know who he was.

'

The Servant himself, on the other hand, appeared more confused than anything. "Huh... You're just gonna expose my True Name like that?" Moving his eyes between the two behind Ritsuka, thankfully not that way this time, he at least didn't seem troubled. "Doesn't seem like these two are my enemies though, so guess that's fine." Leaning on the whizzing bounded field in a laid back manner, he gave the Master an inquisitive look. "But, what's up with this summoning? Doesn't seem like any Grail War I've ever taken part in. It felt like I was called to help, but the summoning didn't really give any details."

'

And this was what she had been afraid of. "Oh, yeah... I guess that makes sense, given our situation." Ritsuka really wished that the summoning had given the Servants at least some idea as to what was going on, but no such luck. This was going to be awkward. "First off, yes. As you guessed, these two behind me are to fight together with you as allies. And for our goal..." Ugh, hopefully he wouldn't mind them finishing up first. "Sorry, but could you wait for a while? The explanation is pretty long and if I had to give it several times we'd be here for hours. I promise to tell you everything after the summoning is finished."

'

"'After it's finished?' You're gonna call more Servants here?" Lemminkäinen repeated in disbelief. Looking around the room, his eyes focused on the observation room for a few seconds before returning to Ritsuka. "And there's already two Servants here and just you... Are you seriously making contracts with multiple Servants? I can tell that I'm also getting mana from somewhere other than you, but are you gonna be OK? Your magic circuits seem pretty trash."

'

Well, that was certainly true, but did he have to be so blunt about it? Then again, given who he was, it would've been weirder if he hadn't. "Yes, I'm aware, but we really don't have any other options," Ritsuka confirmed, doing her best to not sound desperate, though the Servant's curiosity seemed to jump back up. Why'd he have to be the first one to be summoned? This man wasn't exactly known for his patience, but lack thereof...

'

Turning around, Ritsuka motioned at the observation room. "It should be fine to turn the bounded fields off. It's better if we get to talk face to face." As Roman gave her a thumbs up through the window, the barriers between the three and the newly summoned Servant faded, prompting him to close the distance between them. Ritsuka was still a bit nervous, though at least the man had been courteous enough to put his sword away as he strode over, but just in case... "But to at least give you something..." The Master straightened herself, trying to look as capable as she could while offering her hand. "Thank you for responding to my summons. I'm Ritsuka Repo and I'm your Master. I assume you were summoned as a Saber, right Lemminkäinen?"

'

Much like she had feared, upon hearing her name, Lemminkäinen looked incredibly amused, eyeing her hair. "Repo, huh? That's a fitting name if I've ever heard one," he chuckled, forcing Ritsuka to hold back a groan. From the corner of her eye, she could see Mash giving them a confused look over the words. Great... Just what she needed. "So you're from Finland too. That's great. Means you already know just what I'm capable of, which is probably why you summoned me." ...Wow. The stories had really gotten his personality spot on. "And yeah, I'm a Saber. It's just natural that I'd be in the best class."

'

Really spot on. But, at least Ritsuka could give his ego a little hit as she shook her head. "Not exactly. We didn't try to summon you specifically, since our catalyst is a bit more varied. You just happened to be the first to show up."

'

As she received a confused look from the Saber, Ritsuka opened her left hand, revealing the catalyst in it. Instantly, his eyes widened in recognition. "Well, damn. This really is a surprise. To think these things would still be around after so long." As Lemminkäinen scratched his head awkwardly, she felt a wave of relief moving through her. Maybe with this holding his ego back a little, she could- "And even more surprisingly, who would've thought that you'd end up finding my shard specifically."

'

Ritsuka felt her thoughts come to complete halt, as if someone had ripped the plug out of a computer. Did he just...? She had to have heard that wrong. Or he had to be mistaken. "What do you...?"

'

But Ritsuka's fears were confirmed as Lemminkäinen pulled up a necklace from under his clothes. Right there, on a string, hung the exact same piece of the Sampo that she held in her hand. Sure, his was a bit more shiny, given the difference in age and all, but otherwise they were completely identical. "That's mine alright. It's the shard I got from the Old Man and kept," he confirmed with a somewhat apologetic nod.

'

This... This was just... Damn it! If it had been a normal shard, then it would've worked as a catalyst for anyone involved with the Sampo. But if this was specifically the shard Lemminkäinen had owned and kept on him his whole life...

'

"Yeah... Guess you were also hoping to summon the Old Man and Ilmarinen? Can't exactly blame you for that..." Nodding in a tone that seemed genuinely sorry, Lemminkäinen slipped the shard back under his clothes. "If you're summoning multiple Servants, Ilmarine would no doubt be one of the best support types out there, with his godly skill to make gear and all. And of course, the Old Man is just a straight up monster. Who wouldn't want him on their team?" While it was relieving that he at least understood her frustration, Ritsuka still couldn't manage to calm down. For something like this...

'

"Senpai..." Feeling a hand placed on her shoulder, Ritsuka turned around to see Mash smiling encouragingly at her. "While it is possible that it won't work, we should still at least try another summon. Even if Lemminkäinen ended up owning the shard, it could still function as a catalyst for the other candidates."

'

...Mash was right. Of course she was. Taking a deep breath, Ritsuka smiled back at her. "Yeah. You're right. Let's at least try before worrying about it further." It was still incredibly frustrating. Upon finding out about the shard, Ritsuka's hopes had peaked, only for them to be smashed down with this development. The possibility of summoning the greatest heroes from her homeland, yet ending up with just Lemminkäinen...

'

...Honestly, he had been her third choice out of the four possible candidates. He avoided the last spot since Louhi was honestly just too scary a possibility.

'

But still, he was an Epic Hero from the Age of Gods and even a Saber-class to boot. This man was without a question an above average Servant, so she could hardly complain. The fact that she summoned him at all was a miracle and a half, so she wasn't going to waste it.

'

...Of course, when it came to her issues with the man, it wasn't exactly about strength.

'

"That's the spirit," Lemminkäinen grinned, giving Ritsuka an uncomfortably strong slap on the back. And next, much like she had feared, approached the other two women in the chamber with a (frustratingly) dashing smile and a smooth tone. "Now then. Aren't you going to introduce yourselves? If we're gonna be working as a team, I should at least know the names of you fair maidens~"

'

This. It was about this.

'

While Brynhildr looked... flustered to say the least, the Demi-Servant next to her had a much different reaction. "Y-yes! I am Mash Kyrielight! It's nice to meet you, Mr. Lemminkäinen! While I might still be a novice as a Servant, I look forward to working together with you!" Though she was still nervous for different reasons, Mash introduced herself properly with a slight bow, completely missing the Saber's intentions. Ritsuka could only thank God for this girl's innocence.

'

"...I see." Even Lemminkäinen seemed a bit taken aback by the straightforward answer and attitude, but was quick to move on. "And what of you, oh gorgeous lady?" Approaching without the slightest hints of doubt or hesitation, he wrapped his arm around the Valkyrie's shoulder, looking her straight in the eye as she could only stare back in bewilderment. "Though faint, I still sense divinity from you. Could you be a goddess of beauty? Or love mayhaps? I could find no other explanation for your overwhelming loveliness."

'

And there it was! He was going in full-force!

'

The worst part was that Ritsuka could actually understand why Brynhildr was so flustered. Lemminkäinen was filled with confidence in his advance, had a very strong, smooth voice, and was very good looking, like some fairytale prince. Even if she wasn't personally attracted to him, she had no trouble seeing how most women could be. And damn were there a lot of women in this man's past. No wonder his most famous epithets were beautiful and dissolute.

'

"I, um, I'm sorry... You are, that is..."

'

As Brynhildr was struggling to find her words, before Ritsuka could step in, aid came from an unexpected source. "...Did Ritsuka seriously just summon some type of casanova?" Roman's disbelieving voice echoed across the chamber, catching everyone's attention. "Guys like this are basically my natural enemies."

'

"Huh? The hell was that?" Turning away from Brynhildr, much to her relief, Lemminkäinen glared towards the observation room, causing the Doctor to noticeably flinch. "That whining just now... What kind of weakling do we have mouthing off over there?"

'

"Again!?" Roman could only gawk in disbelief while Da Vinci laughed by his side. "I got immediately called a weakling by a Servant I just met again!?" ...While holding back a laugh, Ritsuka had to admit that the choice of words was actually pretty funny.

'

And as a bonus, Brynhildr had managed to slip away from the Saber, calmer, but still flustered. "...Apologies. I am Brynhildr, currently serving our Master Ritsuka as a Lancer-class Servant..." As she spoke, Ritsuka couldn't help but to notice something... off, with Brynhildr. While she was still blushing, her current demeanor felt... dangerous, in the absence of a better term. Her head hung, hiding her eyes with her bangs, and she was gripping her own arm something fierce. "...While I have no issues with fighting on the same side as you, sir Lemminkäinen... Please, do not be so... affectionate towards me. It's... very troubling... I might end up... haa..." As the Valkyrie's tone shifted to, well... crazy, Ritsuka felt a chill run down her spine. There was definitely something more to this than just regular flirting. Even Mash seemed concerned.

'

But of course, something like that wouldn't stop this idiot.

'

"Brynhildr...? Ah, so you're a Norse goddess just from the other side of the gulf then?" As Lemminkäinen strode towards the Lancer as if nothing had changed, Ritsuka hit her limit. "No wonder you're so gorgeous then, since you're the daughter of a Great god and all. With that hair like a breathtaking night sky and those eyes like- ack!"

'

Both Mash and Brynhildr stared in disbelief as their Master silenced the Saber... with a chop at the back of the head. Knowing it was the best way to get his attention, Ritsuka had even strengthened her hand for the job, to the point where it would've actually hurt a normal person. But even ignoring him being a Servant, she was well aware that this man could take much more punishment than that. "That's enough of that. We're in the middle of something here."

'

Rubbing the back of his head, Lemminkäinen turned to face her, looking expectedly annoyed, but also curious. "The hell? I was just getting-"

'

Raising her finger to cut him off, Ritsuka put on the most resolute expression she could muster and walked right in front of the Saber, locking eyes with him. "Trust me. There's plenty of time for... this later, but we've still got summoning to do and an important job to take care of." God she hoped this would convince him. "Just... Could you please just wait for a while and let us get this done, Lemminkäinen?"

'

Seconds ticked by as the two of them kept their eyes locked, no one saying a word as the atmosphere grew heavy. The other two present kept looking between them in concern, Brynhildr seeming prepared to jump in at a moment's notice. As time stretched on and on Ritsuka had to do everything she could not to lose her resolve. While he had his eccentricities, this man was still a hero, a Servant, and could kill her in the fraction of a second with a single hit even if unarmed. And his eyes reflected that. They didn't lose in intensity even when measured against the Servants she had met in Fuyuki. Ritsuka had compared them to sparks before, but the fire in his glare would've definitely made her flinch if it weren't for the stakes weighing down on her. She couldn't afford to lose now! Not this early!

'

And after what seemed like an eternity, the man broke their stare-off, bursting into a boisterous laugh. "Alright, alright! You've got guts, missy! That's what I like to see!" Ritsuka was caught off guard to say the least as Lemminkäinen patted her roughly on the back with a grin on his face. And that look in his eyes... Was... Was that actually... respect? "You did summon me, so I can at least do as you ask, Pomo."

'

And so much for that. As the Saber started walking towards the side of the chamber, she could only stare at him in frustration. "...Pomo, huh? Really? Couldn't you use some other term?"

'

Stopping in his tracks, Lemminkäinen turned around and gave her the most obnoxious grin imaginable. "Well, would you prefer Emäntä?" he asked, prompting Ritsuka to give him a look so dry it would have made Sahara look humid in comparison.

'

"...And Pomo it is." Maybe summoning Louhi wouldn't have been so bad after all...

'

As the Saber leaned against the wall nonchalantly, hands folded behind his head to make himself comfortable, Brynhildr gave him a look that was half perplexed, half relieved. "...Such a troublesome man." Turning back to her Master, she gave her an appreciative bow. "...I must thank you, Master. Had you not stepped in, I might have even ended up loving him..." A revelation that prompted Mash and Ritsuka to exchange confused looks of their own. What did that even mean? But before the Master could question her, she continued in a tone frighteningly similar to the one she'd used before. "Although, since you did... Now I..." Gripping her arm way too hard to be normal once more, Brynhildr took a few sharp breaths before seemingly calming back down. "...No. No, it's nothing... Please carry on..."

'

Yeah. Okay. This was absolutely something Ritsuka had to get to the bottom of as soon as possible. Well, not right now due to the situation, but when they had the time, definitely. If there was something strange going on with Brynhildr that could end up being dangerous to her allies, she would need to know it as her Master and at least try to come up with a solution. Wait... Was this why she was always so intent on not being treated kindly?

'

But, that was for another later. "...Alright... If you're sure." Glancing towards Mash to confirm that she seemed just as concerned, Ritsuka did her best to put the subject aside as she turned towards the large window of the observation room. "Can, uh... Can we get back to summoning now, guys?"

'

"Yes, please..." Romani sighed. "Hopefully we summon someone more sensible this time..."

'

A comment that amused Da Vinci. "And by 'sensible' I guess you mean someone who is not so good looking?" The Doctor did his best to ignore the inventor by drowning his worries with coffee, all the while Huifen looked like she wanted to be anywhere but here. "But yes, while this development may not be ideal, let's give the Sampo shard another try."

'

"Right, I'll just get another Saint Quartz and-"

'

"Already done, Senpai!"

'

Turning around in surprise, Ritsuka saw Mash skittering towards her from the direction of the summoning pad. She'd already completed the task while they were talking. "Oh... Thanks, Mash. You're always so quick on the uptake." The Demi-Servant moved to her side with a proud smile, all the while the pad released a faint glow as a sign that all was ready. "Now then..." And so came try number two, with the Master repeating the chant and the following lightshow.

'

As the summoning ritual was completed a second time, Ritsuka awaited nervously as the light began to clear out, revealing the Servant's form. The first detail she noticed was that they were wearing hooded robes, which gave her a small amount of hope that she had summoned one of the legendary mages of her homeland.

'

But that hope was dashed when she noticed that the figure was holding a staff. A staff that she recognized immediately, having personally seen it just yesterday.

'

"Well then. This time I'm summoned as a Caster." A very familiar man in a blue hood wielding a wooden staff examined his surroundings curiously before noticing the surprised group staring at him. "Aah, you guys. We met before, right?"

'

Mash could only gape as the Servant's identity was revealed without question. "S-Senpai! That's..."

'

"Cú Chulainn!?" As the Caster started approaching her, Ritsuka didn't even have time to lament the fact that she had failed to summon a Servant from her homeland. Oh no. She was currently far too confused for that. "But you're... How did we end up summoning you?"

'

"No idea," he shrugged way too nonchalantly given the situation. "Though you, young lady and the Valkyrie look the same as last time. How much time has passed?" As Cú made his way towards them, the reactivated bounded fields flickered off once again. Guess Da Vinci and Roman at least trusted him that much after what happened in Fuyuki. "Huh... This definitely ain't that city at the very least. We in that Chaldea place you're from?"

'

Faced with the sudden inquiry, the Master gave him a quick nod. "Oh, yeah. Yes, this is Chaldea... But, hold on..." While the question distracted her for a moment, Ritsuka soon realized what was so odd about the situation. "Wait a second... You remember meeting us?" Exchanging a look with Mash, her equally perplexed expression gave the Master all the confirmation she needed for her suspicion. "But how...? I thought Servants don't usually retain clear memories from their past summons."

'

"That is how it should be from what I've been taught," Mash agreed, now a bit more cautious. "Do you have an explanation for this, Caster?"

'

As the tension mounted with the absurd ambiguity of the situation, the Caster... let out a deep sigh while scratching his head, his expression somewhere between tired and uncertain. "I'd really love to, but this ain't exactly something that's happened to me before. Just been one confusion after the other." Ritsuka wasn't really sure how to feel about this. The man's frustration at least seemed genuine, so maybe he was just as clueless as they were. Just another question for later. "Although..." Putting the thought aside, Ritsuka focused back on Cú as his expression shifted to serious. "Guess you summoning me like this also means that the mess that went down in that Grail War really wasn't fully resolved, huh?"

'

Understatement of the century. Just thinking about the moments after Caster's disappearance was enough to plummet Ritsuka's mood. "...Yeah. It ended up being way bigger than what any of us expected..."

'

"Figured. Can you give me a rundown on what happened after I left?"

'

"Oh..." This problem again. The idea of asking three more Servants after this to wait made Ritsuka cringe internally. "Sorry, but could you wait for a while? We're going to summon some more Servants, and had planned to give a thorough explanation once everyone got here."

'

The request earned her a quirked eyebrow, but not much else. "Huh... Well, shouldn't really be surprised since you summoned me and all. Nah, I don't mind. Having more allies is always welcome, so go on ahead."

'

Well, that was good at least. But... There was also the other matter that had popped into her mind a while ago, about the request the Caster had made. "Also... Well, I'd like to apologize..."

'

The earlier confusion returning to his face, Cú gave her a questioning look. "Huh? What for?"

'

Damn it. Had he seriously forgotten? But... Ugh. No matter how Ritsuka tried, she couldn't figure out a way out now that she'd brought up the topic herself. She'd just have to go along with it... "You know... What you said before disappearing..." she muttered, doing her best not to sound awkward, but sincere. "Despite what you asked, I still ended up summoning you as a Caster instead of a Lancer, so... sorry about that..."

'

The confusion was washed away in an instant by her words, leaving Cú staring at her completely dumbfounded. The next few seconds were unbearably quiet, racking Ritsuka's nerves to no end. Until... "Aha... Ahhahahaa! Seriously!? Over that!?" The Caster burst into a hysterical laughter, doubling over as he held his stomach. Watching him slap his knee, the Master felt a blush spreading on her face as an overwhelming feeling of stupidity crawled all the way to her soul. Why couldn't she have just kept quiet? "It seems that I really lucked out with my Master this time." Managing to finally calm down his cackling after nearly half a minute, the man wiped an honest to God tear from the corner of his eye. Ritsuka seriously made him laugh hard enough to cry... She really wanted to crawl into a hole right about now. But, no holes were present, and she wouldn't have even managed to crawl into one before the Caster slapped her in the back merrily. "Don't sweat it. Not like you could choose my class for me. And it's not like I can't fight as a Caster. Hell, you saw how I kicked ass back in that city."

'

That was definitely true. Even if he was a Caster, she could hardly call Cú Chulainn weak. And that Noble Phantasm of his was just awesome. Honestly, if he wasn't worrying about it that much, her doing so would just be stupid. "Well, if you're fine with it..." Ritsuka sighed before looking at the man with an awkward smile. "Maybe we could all just forget this part of the conversation?"

'

"That's the spirit," the Caster chuckled before giving a nod and a wink to Brynhildr. "So, guess we'll be teaming up again, Valkyrie."

'

Oh great. He was nowhere near as bad as Lemminkäinen, but acting like this towards Brynhildr always seemed to bring out her 'weird' side. Turning her attention to the Lancer, Ritsuka saw that...

'

"Indeed. It's relieving to have such a reliable ally on our side once again," she gave a slight bow and a cordial smile...

'

Huh...? What was up with that reaction? No awkwardness or asking not to be so kind to her? Compared to everyone else, why was Brynhildr perfectly fine with Cú Chulainn? Thinking back, that had been the same in Fuyuki too... This whole interaction just managed to increase Ritsuka's confusion about the Valkyrie.

'

"Yup! I'll be counting on you as well." The druid at least didn't seem to notice, his smile not wavering for a moment. That is, until he noticed the other male Servant in the room. "Hm? Oh, I see there's a new face here as well."

'

Lemminkäinen had stayed quiet for a while, just leaning on the wall like there was nothing better to do. But, that changed when Cú Chulainn brought his attention to him. Their expressions were equally serious as they locked eyes, gauging each other with growing curiosity. Considering that Servants hardly got to meet without being enemies, it wasn't that odd. Ritsuka just hoped they wouldn't start anything. "Yeah, you were the second Servant we summoned here," she noted without getting any reaction from the Caster, much to her unease. Unease that jumped even higher as the two started smiling simultaneously. The silence was the worst part. If they'd just said something, she would've had a much easier time reading them, but not. Damn this was unnerving. "...So, that... that's Saber. If you want, you could go introduce yourself. We've still got four more summonings, so it's definitely long enough to hold a conversation."

'

"You know, I might just take you up on that," Cú said, much to her relief. At least he seemed more curious than anything else, even with that grin on his face. "That look he has in his eyes... Hah! Reminds me of some of the folks back home. This should be fun at least." With that, the druid began walking towards the swordsman, leaving their Master more than a little anxious.

'

Well, that wasn't worrying at all... From what little Ritsuka knew of the celts, they could be pretty wild... And considering this was Lemminkäinen... Yup. That was probably what the Caster had meant. Ugh. She could only hope that the two of them wouldn't start a fight or something.

'

"Well, it certainly is helpful that you summoned a Servant we are already familiar with..." Romani muttered. "Even if we don't exactly know why we summoned him."

'

Yeah, summoning Cú Chulainn had been a real stroke of luck in that sense. But, that had also basically confirmed that her Sampo shard wasn't summoning any Servants related to it aside from Lemminkäinen. Ritsuka had made peace with that option earlier, but that didn't stop it from frustrating her no end. Well, at least they still had another catalyst. One that could summon another hero she was familiar with. "Let's move on to the next one, then. Mash, would you mind getting our second catalyst?"

'

"Right away, Senpai." As Mash proceeded to go fetch the arm guard from the other room, Ritsuka took it upon herself to place the next Saint Quartz on the pad. She had forgotten it for the moment due to the piece of the Sampo, but they still had a catalyst for a hero she was quite excited to meet.

'

Admittedly, she was quite curious as to how Kintarō would manifest as a Servant. While Servants should usually be at the prime of their lives, that could apparently be interpreted in several ways. Since Kintarō was mostly famous for his exploits as a child, he might actually show up as one, but on the other hand, he did become a famed warrior after being taken in by Minamoto no Yorimitsu, so that was another possibility. Would he be summoned as a Rider? The idea of Kintarō riding into battle on a bear while swinging his axe was equally as amusing and awesome.

'

As she walked away from the pad, Ritsuka noticed a rather surprising sight. Leaning together on the back wall, Lemminkäinen and Cú seemed to be having a fun conversation. Their smiles still made her worry that they might light the place up any second, but they at least appeared to enjoy each other's company. At the moment, the Caster was holding out his hands as if describing the size of something, while the Saber laughed, widening his own even further, prompting the druid to chuckle in return. Were they discussing hobbies or something? She remembered the Kalevala telling that Lemminkäinen also enjoyed fishing and hunting aside from fighting and... that, so maybe they found some common interest that didn't involve other people.

'

Well, whatever it was, Ritsuka put those thoughts aside as Mash happily walked to her with the container in hand. "Here you go, Senpai."

'

Taking a glance at the arm guard again, Ritsuka was really looking forward to seeing the rest of it. Considering how it looked now, the full set must've been awesome. "Thanks, Mash. Can you hold it for the duration of the summoning?"

'

"Of course, Senpai," Mash nodded with a smile.

'

"We're good to go," Roman announced. "Go on ahead, Ritsuka." On cue the pad released the faint glow while the bounded fields turned back on. Hopefully they wouldn't be needed in this case, but considering their circumstances, they couldn't really be too careful. And thus, the third summoning began, with the now familiar lightshow taking over the space.

'

As it began to fade back down, a clear silhouette of a tall man with a large axe came into view. Upon seeing it, Ritsuka figured that she ended up summoning Kintarō as an adult. Nothing wrong with that, considering that he had effectively been a wild child, so a grownup should at least be easier to reason with. But as she was about to call out once the figure became clearer, the words got completely stuck in her throat out of pure bafflement. The reaction spread throughout the room as Mash and Brynhildr joined in, with even Lemminkäinen and Cú Chulainn falling silent. The reactions in the observation room were more than likely identical. Ritsuka had been quite sure she couldn't have been more confused than when Cú Chulainn ended up being summoned, no matter what Kintarō looked like. But wow was she proven wrong immediately.

'

"Ohh, nice to meet you! I'm sorry to trouble you for now. Just call me Golden."

'

The greeting itself was spoken in a very friendly tone with an accompanying wave. Despite possessing such a tall, muscular body and carrying a large axe, the atmosphere around the man didn't give even the slightest hint of danger. While it was hardly proper to judge a person through first impressions alone, Ritsuka couldn't shake the feeling that the Servant she had just summoned was without a question 'a good guy.' And that was nice, great even. If it was just about his demeanor, she would've welcomed this Servant without issue.

'

But what the hell was up with his appearance!?

'

The man standing on the pad was rather tall and extremely muscular. He possessed straight golden hair, reaching down to his neck, evenly cut, and hiding his forehead. His eyes were hidden beneath sunglasses, which appeared to have a violet tint. His main attire consisted of a white, button shirt, with an oversized collar pointing upwards, which he wore with rolled up sleeves and the top buttons unbuttoned, exposing his chest. For the lower body, he had black trousers and white shoes on. His body was decorated with golden accessories: a pair of belts with a large belt-buckle spelling the word 'GOLD', rings on every finger except the thumbs, a golden watch on his left wrist, a spiky handband on the right, bracelets on both, and three golden necklaces, each longer than the last. There was also a metal chain tied to his belt loops, distinct from the rest for not being gold.

'

And then there was his axe, which was... Ritsuka wasn't even sure how to describe it. It was mostly dark grey, with the exception of the blade and the pommel (of the upper handle?) which were gold. Sure, it looked like it could've come from Japan, it wouldn't have surprised her to see something like it in a Tokusatsu show. But why was something like that in the hands of a warrior from the Heian period!?

'

Granted, given how his name basically meant 'golden boy', it wasn't that strange to imagine it coming from him having natural golden hair, something that was rare in modern Japan, let alone over a thousand years ago. Also, since he was always depicted wearing only a bib with the kanji for 'gold' on it, him now having a giant belt that just had 'GOLD' engraved on it was pretty funny.

'

But that still didn't explain why he was dressed like that!

'

"Huh... Looking at it again, this is a pretty golden place," the man muttered while walking closer. As he did, Ritsuka turned to Mash, who's equally confused stare confirmed that she was indeed seeing the same thing as her. Upon turning back, the newly summoned Servant was standing right in front of the bounded fields, looking... admittedly pretty confused himself. "Uh, you're my Master, right, lady?"

'

Still trying to comprehend the bizarreness of what was happening, it took the redhead a second to realize that the question was directed at her. "...Oh, yeah. That's me. I'm your Master, Ritsuka Repo." Of course the situation would seem strange to him, but it couldn't be anywhere near as bad of a shock as what she felt at the moment. Did... Could it be that they summoned the wrong person by accident? This was... She just had to confirm it. "I, uh... I'm sorry, but I just have to make sure. You are Sakata Kintoki, yes?"

'

The man appeared abashed over the question, rubbing his neck awkwardly. "...Yeah. That's the name I was given, so it's technically true... But, I'd prefer if you called me Golden. It ain't that I don't like the name, it's more of an issue of feeling. You know what I mean?" he asked, seemingly trying to find the right words before starting to grin. "It ain't about how they mean the same thing or about decorum. I'm talkin' about my soul."

'

So this really was Kintarō... While this whole situation was bizarre to say the least, he did seem like a strong Servant, even with Ritsuka's shortcomings weakening him. His Strength especially was really high, as one would expect. "Alright... Alright... Glad we at least made that clear." Letting out a slight sigh, Ritsuka rubbed her forehead. This was so weird, but she really had to get an answer to this. "Then to the next question: Why are you dressed like that?"

'

"Hah? What do you mean?" Kintoki said as if she had asked something stupid. "It's obviously because I wanted to." A straightforward answer, certainly, but...

'

"...Because... you wanted to?" Mash repeated in disbelief, exchanging a look with Ritsuka. The redhead really was glad that she was here with her, just as confused. Otherwise, she might have started to believe that all this weirdness actually made sense and she was just stupid.

'

"That's right!" Kintoki confirmed with a grin, seemingly not understanding their confusion. "I mean, these clothes in this time period are real golden, you know? Nice to wear, look good, and there are some many types of accessories to go with them! Like my belt buckle here, see? Tell me this ain't the most golden thing you've ever seen!"

'

Ritsuka did her best to take all this in. So, when he was summoned as a Servant, Sakata Kintoki was dressed like a modern man, decked out in gold jewelry, because he wanted to...? Letting out a deep sigh, the Master was nearing her limit. What even was today? Like, seriously? What could she even say to all this?

'

You know what? Screw it. Considering that Leonardo da Vinci managed to transform into the Mona Lisa, Sakata Kintoki getting himself modern attire really wasn't even that bizarre. And honestly, his axe was really cool, even if it hardly looked like something from the 10th century. Thinking about it, it really did look more like something from a Tokusatsu, or...

'

Wait. Now that Ritsuka examined it closer, was... was the blade of his axe segmented? And then there was what looked like a trigger on the handle... Holy...! Did Kintoki's axe have some kind of jigsaw function that let it grind and cut into things without him having to swing it!? That was so awesome! She would really need to find out more about it afterwards. Although... She'd seriously have to calm down first. If she came to him asking questions about his axe super enthusiastically, she'd look like a total weirdo.

'

"...Okay. Glad to have you on board, Golden," Ritsuka said, motioning the observation room to shut down the bounded fields while Mash stared at her in disbelief. As the barriers disappeared, she walked a few steps forward and held out her hand. "I hope we get along."

'

Grinning, Kintoki shook it. His grip was about as strong as Ritsuka had expected, yet gentle enough to not actually hurt. "Yeah, right back at ya. Seems I lucked out, getting myself a nice Boss and all."

'

"S-Senpai?" Finally clear enough to speak again, Mash pulled on Ritsuka's free hand's sleeve awkwardly. "You... Do you really consider that explanation satisfactory?" Without question a reasonable and justified inquiry.

'

Smiling softly, Ritsuka turned away from Kintoki to face her. "Mash... Do I need to remind you that Leonardo da Vinci transformed into the Mona Lisa because he wanted to?" Upon hearing the question, Mash's mouth fell agape. "Is this even anywhere close to being as weird as that?"

'

"I..." While Ritsuka had half meant it as a joke, Mash began to seriously contemplate the subject. After a few seconds, she gave her a hesitant nod. "...I suppose that is a fair point."

'

"Yeah... Things have really gotten weird." Moving closer, Ritsuka gave her a few gentle pats on the head, with the Shielder blushing slightly yet she didn't move away. "I think it's just best that we don't think about these things too hard."

'

"Ahem. By the way, Boss. I couldn't help but notice..." Letting out an awkward cough to get Ritsuka's attention, Kintoki looked around the room. At least she thought he did. Kind of hard to tell because of the shades. "...That there's quite a few Servants beside me here."

'

And this again... "Yeah... That can be pretty confusing to see right after getting summoned." Well, at this point Ritsuka was actually getting used to answering the question, not to mention that Kintoki just had this aura that made him easy to talk to. "Long story really short: This is kind of a Servant team up operation. I'll give you a proper, full explanation once three more are summoned. Does that work for you?"

'

While the man looked a bit surprised, the grin returned to his face soon enough. "Oh? That's just Golden. I don't mind having allies. This some kind of team based Holy Grail War or something?"

'

"Not exactly..." Ugh. She really wasn't looking forward to the actual explanation. "But, you can go ahead and meet the guys back there while we finish the summons," Ritsuka suggested, motioning towards the Saber and Caster who had returned to their cheerful conversation.

'

"Yeah, sure." Turning to Mash and Brynhildr, who had fallen quiet once more, Kintoki gave them a friendly wave. "Nice to meet you ladies, I'm Golden. Good to be working with ya."

'

The Demi-Servant gave him a slight bow. "Yes. I look forward to it as well. I am Mash Kyrielight, a Shielder." While it wasn't without a hint of nervousness, Mash was really getting used to introducing herself, an improvement that made Ritsuka smile. It was nice to see after she had been so awkward at it yesterday when they first met. "Thank you for answering the summons, Golden."

'

"...Likewise," Brynhildr muttered, looking noticeably tenser than a moment ago. So, Kintoki also got this reaction from her... "...I am Brynhildr, a Lancer."

'

Although a bit confused at the latter introduction, Kintoki's smile never faded. "Golden, so I'mma just..." Just as he was about to walk away, the man's head snapped towards Mash for a double take. Or more specifically, what she held on her left hand. "Wait. Is that my armor?" As he moved closer to get a better look, Mash lifted the box to assist. Looking over the armament with glee, the man's grin grew wider than ever. "It is! Seriously? It's survived over a thousand years and is still in such good condition? Damn! If that ain't golden, then I don't know what is!"

'

The reaction sweeped the last faint traces of doubt from Ritsuka's mind. If he recognized the armor with such enthusiasm, there was no reason to suspect him any longer. Yup, this really was Sakata Kintoki. While he was definitely odd, the Master couldn't deny the innocent charm he had as he went to introduce himself to the other men in the room.

'

"...On to the next one, then," Ritsuka muttered. "Although... Who do you think will show up? Since we don't have any more catalysts, we can't summon a specific Servant. While Cú was a surprise, at least we had a connection with him. Do you think we might summon some random Heroic Spirit?"

'

"Good question," Da Vinci replied through the intercom, as cheerful as ever. "That's actually what we wished to find out as well, so let's go ahead and see~"

'

While Mash returned Kintoki's catalyst to the other room, Ritsuka went to place another Saint Quartz on the pad, her anticipation growing by the second. Walking back, she spotted Kintoki talking with the other two, seemingly getting along with them quite well. That was good at least, since getting along was vital when working as a team. As everything was ready and she finished the chant for the fourth time, Ritsuka did her best to look at the new Servant even through the blinding light, eager to see just who had answered her call.

'

And as the light faded enough for her to see, Ritsuka was met by... someone she had never seen...

'

The man that stood on the summoning pad had short white hair that was swept backwards, gray eyes and tanned skin color. He wore a black body armor which outlined his muscles with a metal plate on his collar, and black pants that had some straps around his shins, which connected to his black metal plated shoes, appearing to be attached to each other. He had some strange sleeves on both his arms and an open skirt around his waist, all made of red cloth slightly darker in shade than the one Lemminkäinen had. It was like he had a coat that'd had almost all of its fabric removed from his torso. An interesting choice of attire to say the least.

'

While Ritsuka was still trying to figure out the situation, the man scanned the room before moving his eyes to her. "Servant Archer. I have come in response to your summons."

'

...All right. Apparently he was an Archer, which was a start, but she still had no idea of his True Name or why he had been summoned. Looking a bit closer, she spotted the two white ribbons that connected his sleeves, and that they were shaped quite similarly to a cross. Maybe he was a christian figure of some kind? Though she couldn't think of any that would be Archers at the moment. She'd need to- "(Pardon me, Master.)"

'

Doing her best not to react to the sudden voice inside her mind, Ritsuka kept her eyes on Archer, as if she was just waiting. "(Lancer? Why are you using the communication rune? Is something wrong?)"

'

"(I'm not sure... But I believe that I must inform you of something.)" The Valkyrie's voice sounded conflicted, as if she was really uncertain of something, even though her composure remained the same. Apparently telepathy made it difficult to hide your tone... Good to know. "(This Archer is the same one that bombarded us back in Fuyuki.)"

'

"(Huh!?)" Ritsuka just barely managed to keep herself from turning towards Brynhildr in disbelief. This was the enemy that had hunted them throughout the city, coming uncomfortably close to killing them all with his suicide attack? She hadn't actually seen him due to the absurd distance, but just knowing that was enough to justify the Lancer's conflicted tone. Could they seriously trust him? "(This guy is that Archer!?)"

'

"(Indeed. ...But, his current self is far different when compared to how he was back then.)" And there was the reason for her uncertainty. "(He lacked the red coat, his hair was more crude, and he had a dark distortion on his face, particularly on his left eye, which was black with a yellowish pupil...)" As Brynhildr fell silent for a moment, before Ritsuka was able to ask why, she continued, her tone now identical to when she had talked to Lemminkäinen and Kintoki. "(Also, well... He currently possesses heroic qualities... that he lacked while fighting us...)"

'

As she listened to the awkward murmurs that followed, gears started turning in Ritsuka's head. 'Heroic qualities'. Could that be it? Was that the reason for Brynhildr's strange behavior? Her being able to perceive such things made sense, given that she was a former Valkyrie, and when put together with her relationship with Sigurd... Oh... It was all starting to make sense, bit by bit. The Lancer no doubt suffered from some serious trauma, to the point that people she just considered heroes made her uncomfortable with basic acts of kindness. Although... As to why that applied to Ritsuka herself and apparently Dio, but not Cú Chulainn was currently the biggest mystery. "(I see...)" But back to Archer. If Brynhildr considered him a hero now, but not before, it was probably due to what happened in Fuyuki. "(The safest bet would be that he was just straight up corrupted like the other Servants beside Caster.)"

'

As Brynhildr agreed in her mind, the man in question was looking around the room, much like others before him. "Hmm... This is quite a workshop." Turning his attention back to her after a few seconds, he started to walk forward. "I assume you are my Master, girl?"

'

Girl, huh... Even if it was perfectly appropriate, it wasn't too often that Ritsuka was referred to as one these days. Well, more like in the last few years, due to how frustratingly tall she had gotten... Ugh. She would never forget that time when someone from a higher grade than her had referred to her as: 'ma'am'. Just the thought mortified her. At least this Archer with his sharp eyes could presumably tell her actual age. It was honestly nicely refreshing. "Yes, I am. Thank you for answering the summon. My name is Ritsuka Repo."

'

"I see... Pleased to make your acquaintance." Stopping right in front of the bounded fields, Archer examined the barriers, much like Lemminkäinen, though he didn't touch them. "Cautious in your summoning, are you? Well, I can't exactly blame you, given how some of the wilder Servants can be. Although..." His demeanor suddenly shifting, the man's irked stare moved to something behind her, and as Ritsuka turned, she found... Cú Chulainn glaring right back at the man, not even bothering to hide his resentment. ...Oh, right. He did mention there being something between the two of them back in Fuyuki. But Archer hardly seemed like a celt, so she could only imagine what the story behind that was. "I have quite a few questions on the current circumstances, especially..."

'

Yup... Really getting used to that inquiry. "Yeah, sorry about that. In the most basic sense, we're summoning several Servants for... a mission, I suppose that's an appropriate term. Two more should come after you, so if you could wait until then for a full explanation, I would really appreciate it." As Ritsuka gave him the most apologetic look she could muster, the bounded fields fizzled out once more. Apparently Da Vinci at least considered this guy trustworthy enough.

'

Seeing this as a moment as good as any, the Master took a step forward while holding out her hand. Though the man still looked dubious, he walked up to her and shook it. "Very well. It's not like I'm going anywhere, so that is certainly agreeable."

'

Ritsuka could only thank God that all the Servants thus far had at least been reasonable. "Thanks. Feel free to... um... wait around, I guess."

'

With an acknowledging nod, Archer moved to the wall on the opposite side from the Caster, leaning on it with his eyes closed, prompting the girl to let out a relieved sigh. Two more. Just two more, and they could finally move on. While Ritsuka was going through the full explanation she had planned in her head, Mash, as diligent as ever, had already run to the pad and placed the Saint Quartz on it.

'

"And here goes number five," Roman announced as the pad lit up. Honestly, Ritsuka was really getting sick of the chant at this point. And with the all too familiar lightshow, the second to last Servant revealed themselves, making the redhead uneasy the moment their form became distinguishable. This was bad...

'

Oh no... She was really hot.

'

While Brynhildr's beauty was more ephemeral, delicate like a fairy or an angel, the woman who had just been summoned was a beast of a completely different kind. ...Bewitching would be the most appropriate word. Or perhaps alluring, or enticing? Whatever it was, Ritsuka had to do her damndest to keep her face as natural as possible.

'

Clad in black with some dark purple mixed in, the woman's clothes were... Honestly, Ritsuka wasn't entirely sure how to describe them. Like an extremely short dress, with separated sleeves, and thigh highs fused into boots, finished with a collar and an eye cover. Just... wow. Even though she showed less skin than Mash in her 'armor', her appearance was just... astonishingly erotic. A thought that made Ritsuka want to crawl into a hole once again.

'

And then there was her hair, which was purple, like a darker shade of Mash's. But it wasn't the color that drew the most attention about the hair. Oh, no. That would be the ludicrous length. Surpassing both Brynhildr and Dio's, Ritsuka was quite sure that it actually reached the ground at some points. Taking care of it must've been a complete nightmare.

'

No, focus damn it! There was a time and a place for these kinds of thoughts, and this wasn't one of them. Just... What was with her recently? While she had met quite a few stupidly attractive women in the last 24 hours, it didn't excuse her getting distracted by them to this degree. Was... was she seriously this pent-up?

'

Well, if nothing else, at least the newly summoned Servant didn't seem to notice. Although... she didn't really seem to react to her summoning at all. Unlike the others upon summoning, she wasn't looking around the area. But then again, considering that she was wearing a blindfold, it certainly made sense... And yet, she was observing her somehow, since Ritsuka could feel herself being watched. Why was the Servant being so quiet, though? Was she expecting her to speak up? ...Maybe she should, then. "Ahem. Hello, I'm your Master, Ritsuka Repo. Thank you for answering my summon. We could really use all the help we can get."

'

The Servant remained silent, though she seemed a bit more... curious? She was honestly really hard to read, and not only due to her eye cover. Just as the silence was about to turn uncomfortable, she spoke, her voice matching her appearance almost frighteningly well. "I see... Desperation, then? That would explain why you summoned someone like me." A reasoning that only served to confuse Ritsuka. 'Someone like her?' What? Who was she in the first place? Taking quick notice of her uncertainty, the Servant continued. "I am the monster, Gorgon. If what you sought was a woman like this... then be sure to handle me carefully."

'

Gorgo- Oh... Oooh, that made sense. Ritsuka wasn't entirely sure how to feel about this, and seeing Mash's worried glance by her side, she definitely agreed. This woman was Medusa, the very opposite of a hero, a monster killed by one. Although, she didn't seem that monstrous at the moment, which meant that she had manifested in the form she had before becoming a monster. Meaning she was either a goddess or a human, depending on which version of her story was right. Still, this was definitely an unexpected summon. "...Alright, I'll keep that in mind. Which class are you, by the way?"

'

"Rider. Do feel free to treat me as you wish." she answered straightforwardly, giving no further reactions to anything. Yup... Really hard to read, but at least Ritsuka now had the basic info down. Considering her parameters, she'd figured her to be either a Rider or a... Lancer...

'

Wait. This... Was this woman the same Lancer they'd fought on the bridge? Looking closer, her hair and... bodily structure... seemed very similar, so it was definitely possible. And yet, her demeanor was completely opposite... Was that corruption thing at work again, or...

'

While Ritsuka tried to figure out the best course of action here, the Rider kept standing in place, almost like a statue. She sure was passive at the moment. Well, considering the number of other Servants present, she wasn't most likely going to try anything, so it would be proper to just treat her like the rest of them. Though it would be better to keep a close eye on her, just in case. "...Alright, well, good to have you on board." As the bounded fields went down and Medusa walked forward, Mash noticeably tensed, moving a step closer to her Master. Well, considering their previous encounter with this Servant, Ritsuka couldn't exactly blame her. "Please wait a moment before I begin explaining the situation. There's still one more Servant left to summon." Simply nodding silently, the Rider walked past Ritsuka, settling by the wall on the opposite side from Archer. The reactions from the other Servants were... curious, to say the least. Lemminkäinen, to no one's surprise, was eyeing her with obvious interest, yet both Archer and Cú Chulainn seemed strangely vigilant. She did remember the Caster talking about her a bit in Fuyuki, but not much. Just what kind of relationships did these Servants have? Well, she could always ask about it later. Now, they were almost finished with this. "So, moving on to the next one, then."

'

"Sure thing," Da Vinci chimed, earning surprised looks from some of the Servants. Guess she was still a curiosity they hadn't properly met. "Honestly, this has been a really fascinating experiment. The results of this summoning helped prove a few vital theories about the system as a whole, so that's been a nice bonus." As Mash went to fetch the final piece of Saint Quartz, the summoning pad lit up. "Now then, let's see what number six has in store for us."

'

And here it was. The last summon. With this, they could finally move on to their actual mission. With the one last light show accompanied by a one last chant, Ritsuka waited to greet the final Servant. And yet, as their form became discernible, she... recognized it? Judging by his appearance, the man was without a question Japanese, so he was quite likely someone she was familiar with, but even so... Why did he look familiar?

'

But before Ritsuka could surmise a candidate, the man spoke out. "Assassin-class Servant, Sasaki Kojirou. I have been called to serve."

'

Assas- Sasaki Kojirou!? The revelation hit Ritsuka like a brick. Had she seriously just summoned the legendary rival of Miyamoto Musashi just like that? No catalyst or anything, he just showed up? But why would-?

'

Wait. An Assassin... Legendary swordsman... Familiar appearance... And then it all clicked. This was totally the guy that had fought them at the temple stairs in Fuyuki, wasn't he? Looking closer, while he had been kind of... foggy, back in Fuyuki, his clothing at least seemed similar, and although it was currently sheathed on his back, that stupidly long nodachi was no doubt the same sword she had seen back then. Ritsuka had figured that he'd been some famous Japanese swordsman, but Sasaki Kojirou? Man...

'

Wait... Sasaki Kojirou was real?

'

Seemingly yes, since the man was now standing there in front of her, smiling as if on a relaxing walk through a park. "I see... Not the most elegant location to be summoned in, but for an eccentric like myself to be summoned at all is quite a miracle, so I can hardly complain." Saying such self deprecating words, the Assassin began walking towards her as calmly as one could be. "Well then, Master, who's head am I to take?" ...Which just made that sentence a lot scarier.

'

Exchanging an awkward look with Mash, Ritsuka shook her head. "Um... No beheading at the moment. We've got a briefing first. And yes, I'm Ritsuka Repo, your Master. Now that everyone is present, I can actually explain why you have all been summoned." At least they could finally get to that.

'

"Very well. The current circumstances do seem quite interesting." Showing an obvious interest in the other Servants present, the Assassin strolled through the chamber as the bounded fields switched off one last time. Looking at him closer, he really was another pretty boy. Were all Servants just good looking by nature?

'

But, that aside, they finally had a full squad of Servants, and the results were quite something. Three strong heroes summoned with catalysts and four called by... something. But, while they seemed like random Servants with nothing in common, there was one attribute they all shared.

'

So that was it then... Aside from the three who had been summoned with catalysts, the Servants she had summoned were all ones they had encountered in Fuyuki. Even if Ritsuka hadn't actually even exchanged words of any kind with two of them, those encounters had formed a link or bond of some kind that had led to them being summoned to Chaldea. She wasn't entirely sure how that worked, but she knew that a link was necessary for summoning Servants. So... If there was no catalyst, the summoning used another type of connection, anything it could find, which was why these Servants in particular were called... Wait. But didn't that mean...?

'

And it was at this moment that Ritsuka realized that if she had been lucky, she might've summoned King Arthur and/or Heracles... No, no. She wasn't going to complain. They might not have been God-tier, but she doubted any of these Servants were actually 'bad'. And most importantly, instead of just raw power, they at least had diversity, which she was grateful for. 'Right person for the right job' was especially crucial when the stakes were this high. She was notably happy with Archer, even if she didn't actually know his True Name at the moment... Huh? That had really slipped past her... Well, she could just ask about it later. The important thing was that he was really strong. Extremely long range combat had just an absurd amount of advantages, so whoever this guy was, he had been a great pull.

'

"Ritsuka? Are you alright down there?"

'

Hearing Roman calling for her, Ritsuka silently cursed herself. All the Servants were also looking at her expectantly. This really wasn't the time to sink into her own thoughts. "Oh, sorry. It's nothing. Just going over all the info to make sure I remember it all. There's so much to explain about our current circumstances, you know?" Well, that was technically true, so she wasn't exactly lying. There would be time to think of the Servants' utility in battle later, since she would first need to make sure that all of them were actually willing to fight with her. "But, this is something I can take care of, so you can just go ahead and head to your own tasks. We've only got so much manpower after all."

'

"...That's definitely true." The Doctor let out a rather deep sigh. Honestly, Ritsuka was pretty worried for him too. There was quite a lot of responsibility on his shoulders as well, and judging by how tired he had looked earlier, he hadn't gotten much, if any, sleep. "Well, if you're sure you can handle it all, then go ahead. Mash, show them to the conference room close by. It should be more appropriate for long talks compared to this empty space without a single chair."

'

"Yes, Doctor." As the group upstairs left with a wave, Mash shifted back to her regular clothes before turning to Ritsuka. "Shall I lead the way, Senpai?"

'

"Thanks, please do." Upon confirmation, Mash gave her a nod with a smile while Ritsuka spoke to the others "Alright, thank you for your patience, everyone. This has probably been pretty confusing to you all, considering what Servants are usually summoned for, but I can finally give you the promised explanation on what's happening." As she was about to head out though, the redhead noticed both Lemminkäinen and Cú giving her teasing grins. Why were they... Oh. Oooh... Doing her best not to slap herself, she coughed in her hand. "I mean... After we get to the other room..." She really should've chosen her words better... Doing her best to not show her awkwardness, Ritsuka turned back to the Demi-Servant. "...If you could, Mash."

'

Thankfully not saying anything about what just happened, Mash headed for the door of the Summoning Chamber. "Please just follow me, everyone." As she exited, the Servants each moved after them, though some noticeably cautious and keeping distance from each other. Ritsuka couldn't really blame them, considering that under normal circumstances, they'd probably be killing each other right about now...

'

But, that wasn't something she'd have to worry about, given that she had much more important things to worry about. Unlike when they entered the side room, they didn't go through the stairs, but another door, which led them straight to a familiar looking corridor. As they did, Ritsuka did her best to go through the most vital parts of the explanation, making sure they were as clear and convincing as possible. This was something she couldn't afford to mess up!

'

"And here it is."

'

Wha-huh? Ritsuka could only stare in disbelief as Mash opened a door and headed inside. Already? The walk didn't even take twenty seconds! She didn't have time to go over anything! But... Well, she just had to count on being ready enough as she was...

'

The room itself wasn't much different from the one they had used yesterday. A long table, some chairs, a few well cushioned seats by a corner and some cupboards along the walls. "As you speak, I can take care of presenting any supplementary images, Senpai."

'

Oh yeah. Looking at the table, it had the same type of projector thing as the other room. Having something like that actually made things a lot easier. "Thanks. That's really helpful, Mash."

'

"Of course."

'

Encouraged by the girl's smile and eager attitude, Ritsuka took a seat at the end of the table, with Mash taking the closest on her right and Brynhildr moving to stand behind her while the other Servants poured in one by one. "...Alright, we can finally start. Please make yourselves comfortable, since this will take a while."

'

On cue, each of the Servants spread across the room. Cú, Kintoki and Lemminkäinen, who all seemed to be getting along well, each took one of the cushioned seats, while the other 3, who apparently preferred standing, took positions by the walls while keeping a good distance between each other.

'

Taking a deep breath, Ritsuka took one last look at Mash, who smiled at her, tablet in hand, and then began. "Well then. First off, where exactly are we: This is the Organization for the Preservation of Human Order, Finis Chaldea."

'

'

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'

'

As he arrived in the Command Room, Romani had to admit, he was impressed. The only signs that a disaster had even occurred just yesterday were the cracks on the walls and floor. All the rubble and the coffins had already been cleared out, leaving only an open space for people to work in.

'

And work they did. Nearly all of the staff was here at the moment, working on either the reconstruction of the structure itself or the machinery. Power tools blared, scissor lifts moved around wherever they were needed, and automata carried heaps of materials all around the room. The amount of progress already made was astounding to say the least. Well, considering that the Maintenance crew had been working for several hours, the tireless automata starting the clearing last night, and the newly assembled construction vehicles, it was hardly impossible.

'

"Um... E-excuse me, Doct-I mean, Director Archaman?" Hearing the timid voice from behind him, Roman turned around to see an extremely nervous Huifen tapping her fingers together. "...Before I start working, may I... May I exchange a few, few words with my sister?"

'

"Huh?" For a second, the Doctor almost forgot why she was asking him for permission. After spending years only as the head of the medical department, it felt strange being in a real position of power. "Oh, yeah. You can go ahead, ms. Yuan. Just be sure to head to your post soon after."

'

"Y-yes. I will. Thank you very much." Giving him a quick bow, the woman proceeded to scuttle towards the other side of the room, waving to a figure in a welding helmet, who returned the gesture.

'

"Those sisters are really fortunate," Da Vinci noted from his side. "The chances of at least one of them dying was extremely high, yet they ended up both living through the bombing."

'

Without a doubt. While he hadn't interacted with them that much, Huifen had always been rather timid and awkward, so if she had lost her sister... "Tell me about it. Since they're so close, had one of them died, the remaining one would no doubt be incapable of working due to their grief." Losing family was always rough, but those two were the only ones in Chaldea who had any working together with them. It was quite perilous, yet undoubtedly beneficial at the moment. "But on the other hand, them having each other is probably the most effective coping mechanism imaginable."

'

Smiling, the Caster kept her eyes on the sisters as the helmeted one patted the other on the back. "True. Hui may have her issues, but her sister's got enough pep for them both, so they're among those we should be the least concerned with among the staff. The rest of the Maintenance crew seem to be doing fine as well, even if they lost quite a few of their members, so I doubt we need to worry about them at the moment."

'

No question about that. The fact that at least a portion of the Maintenance crew had survived the catastrophe was truly a blessing. No one else in the staff was experienced in construction work of this scale, which would have delayed the reconstruction process by who knows how long if they hadn't been here. The automata were strong, but lacked the intelligence to properly execute work this complicated without constant instruction. It was something where human touch was necessary.

'

And speaking of blessings.

'

"You six! Bring me 2376 more kilos of Ti-6Al-4V. And you, bring me 7,9 kilos of silver! Trismegistus' casing needs to be fully patched up by tonight, and the insides need to be completely intact for that! And I don't want to spend the entire day on it, since there's so much shit to fix!"

'

As the Spaniard gave orders to the automata, Roman could only wonder how he did it as he and Da Vinci walked closer to him. Not the orders part, or how he kept making hunks of metal and concrete that perfectly fit the fractures on the walls, and fixing them by simply filling them up. Oh, no. It was a far simpler question. "Dio, are you sure you don't need to take a rest? You've been working nonstop since yesterday, which is simple for our Servant friend here, but you're still a human..."

'

"Sleep is not necessary for the mighty." Stating it with absolute confidence and sincerity, the Doctor might've actually believed the man if he didn't chuckle immediately afterwards. "But seriously, I can handle a week or three without sleep if I just focus. I just need to pass out for some time afterwards."

'

He could only smile and shake his head at the absurd statement. The same had happened a few times before, but the Doctor still had no idea how he actually did that. It didn't seem like the man was taking drugs of any kind, so it was most likely due to the fact that he was quite a powerful magus. He already had that absurd thing with his memory, so staying awake for weeks on end wasn't something he'd put past the man. "Well, if you're sure."

'

"Sure I'm sure. Now, how did it go with the sum-Hey! I see you over there, Meuniere!" As Dio suddenly cut himself off to shout, Roman followed his line of sight to the center of the space, where a blond man stood frozen with a tablet in his hands. "You're the Coffins staff officer... Well, currently the only remaining member of the department, so we can't have you slacking off! We need those Coffin bases in tip-top shape!"

'

Making an expression painfully similar to one Roman often used himself, the man was quick to put the device away and crouch down next to the open panel on the floor. "Yeah, yeah! I was just taking a little break! I know the stakes here!"

'

"So there really was a remaining Coffins staff member..." Da Vinci muttered as Dio and Meuniere continued exchanging words. "And the officer for that matter. How in the world did that happen?"

'

"Well, as you can probably guess, mr. Meuniere there wasn't actually in the Command Room when the bombs went off, thus sparing his life." The Doctor had expected the question to come up at some point given the, frankly, astonishing set of circumstances that led to the man's survival. After he'd first heard it himself, he'd worked on trying to explain it as seriously and sincerely as possible. "As for where he was... Well..." Unfortunately he had yet to fully achieve the desired result. The whole thing was just so absurd. "Frankly, he was off duty due to food poisoning."

'

"Food poisoning?" the Caster repeated in disbelief. "Where and how did he contract that? The cafeteria's food is quite good, and I haven't heard of anyone else suffering from it."

'

"No, it wasn't due to the cafeteria. It was caused by his personal property." Doing his best to remain serious, the Doctor coughed into his fist in an attempt to harden himself. "Apparently, he had been saving some sweets for a special occasion, one that happened to be the day before yesterday. But unbeknownst to him, they had gone over the expiration date and spoiled. He didn't realize anything until yesterday morning, but by then, he was already out of commission. It wasn't a bad case, so he was quite well by the evening, meaning he had no trouble working today."

'

For the next few seconds, Da Vinci continued staring at him, looking for any possible hints of this being a joke or a prank, which was precisely why he had taken such care in his delivery. After seemingly finished with her inspection, the inventor let out a soft laugh. "Hah! Something like that really saved his life?" As she continued giggling, Roman could only shake his head. When he'd heard about it, he hadn't been sure whether he should laugh or cry. "Well, that just goes to show that seemingly insignificant things can still alter one's life greatly."

'

"Tell me about it..." As much as simply remembering it dreaded him, the deal with the Summoning Chamber was much the same. Without those minuscule chances, their situation could have worsened unimaginably. He really wanted to stop thinking about it. "But, we should start heading to work ourselves." As much as it seemed out of character for him, work was currently the best distraction the Doctor could hope for. And seeing how Dio was seemingly finished with his own, Roman disclosed the situation to him as quickly as possible. "As for the Servants, Ritsuka is currently speaking with them all. If all goes well, they should go through here on their tour."

'

"Cool. I'll take my break at that point, then. I'm gonna introduce them to the Simulator, which is something the battle rowdy Servants will definitely enjoy."

'

Without a doubt. Considering that it was effectively the only place in Chaldea where Servants could move around freely, the Doctor could only hope it was enough for the battle nuts to blow off steam. They had far too much on their plates already to worry about some warriors getting bored. ...Well, as long as they did agree to fight with them.

'

No. He shouldn't worry about that.

'

Shaking his head to clear his thoughts, Roman placed his sights on the Command Rooms' Observation Deck. He had his own job to worry about, so he would just count on Ritsuka to handle the business with the Servants. He had considered stepping in on the contract negotiation, but Leonardo had convinced him to leave it to their Master, which was ultimately for the best. His butting in might have shaken some of the Servants' faith in Ritsuka as a capable Master, so her handling it by herself was the preferred solution. And, it left him time to focus on his own mandatory tasks.

'

After all, there was much, much to be done until Chaldea was anywhere close to running perfectly.

'

'

---

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'

'

"And... that's it. That's everything."

'

As Ritsuka finished the breakdown of their situation, the room grew quiet. Painfully quiet.

'

As Mash nervously moved her eyes to her Senpai, she could see from her eyes that the uncertainty was plaguing her as well. The atmosphere was unbelievably heavy, with the Servants each wearing severe looks on their faces, some of their earlier, carefree attitudes disappearing just a few minutes into Ritsuka's explanation. There was no doubt they understood the grimness of the situation.

'

"Now that you properly understand our circumstances, I'll ask this straight away..." Taking a moment to steady her breathing, Ritsuka's face hardened, returning to the composed look she often wore in Fuyuki. "Will you accept me as your Master, and will you help Chaldea in the restoration of human history? This will without a doubt be an absurd undertaking, with stakes beyond anything most could even imagine." While it remained unseen to others, Mash, who was closest to the Master, noticed her right hand clenched on her lap, shaking slightly from all the force she put into it. "And still, I ask you: Will you lend me your strength? Will you fight with me? And will you assist me on this unreasonable journey?"

'

The earlier silence returned, perhaps even more painful than it was before. The shaking on Ritsuka's hand intensified as the seconds ticked on, without anyone making a sound. That is, until Lemminkäinen let out a deep sigh. "Are you serious? The hell kind of questions are those?" Shaking his head in disbelief, the man rose from his chair, eyes locked on Ritsuka. As the attention of everyone in the room was on him, the tension rose steadily... until he started grinning. "As if anyone calling themself a hero could walk away from something like this!" Both Ritsuka and Mash blinked in disbelief as the man started laughing. "Hah! Besides, this is the most ridiculous uphill struggle I've ever heard of. It's more like a cliff face struggle than anything." Nearly all of the tension had flooded out of the room at this point as the Saber kept talking like he'd won a prize or something. And as Mash glanced towards her Senpai, she felt incredible relief as there was an unmissable spark of hope in her eyes now. "But, that's how I like my missions! Makes things more interesting! So, no worries! You have my sword, my spirit, and my everything, so count on me to burn away any obstacles that try to get in your way, Pomo!"

'

The Master was frozen stiff, looking like she wanted to comment, but was unable to find her words. And before she could say anything, Kintoki started clapping, grinning as madly as the man next to him. "Ooh, that was one golden line! Not sure I can top that!" Rising from his chair, he too turned to look at Ritsuka while thumping his chest twice with his fist. "But, I'm on board too, Boss! I may not have flames, but my lightning will roast things just fine! Anything hit by my Golden Spark will get blasted to the sun!"

'

With every word, Mash felt her heart lighten, and she was sure that Ritsuka was feeling the same way. This was, without question, a fantastic turn of events. She had expected some of the more heroic individuals to join them, but to think that they even agreed so happily... It was just... wonderfully reassuring. A feeling that kept growing as Cú Chulainn stood as well.

'

"To think that the mess in that town could lead to something like this... But whatever." Shrugging, the druid's grin matched those of his companions perfectly. "We already fought together once, so I have no trouble doing so again, Master. I might not be at my peak as a Caster, but I'm not letting that slow me down."

'

And that was three. Three more Servants that had agreed to join their cause. Although, they were the ones Mash had expected to join them in the first place. It was the three that remained that she was worried over. Even if they didn't seem to remember, they had been enemies just yesterday, so she wasn't really sure what to expect of them. Sasaki Kojirou and Medusa weren't exactly heroes, and they still weren't aware of Archer's True Name, nor did they even have a decent guess for it. The man was without question the wild card of the situation.

'

As silence reigned once more and the ones who had yet to answer were watched by the rest of them, the Servant in red, leaning against the wall, let out a deep sigh. "Good grief. Seems like I've been summoned into yet another bizarre mess..." And then, much to the shock of everyone present, Archer straightened himself and smiled at Ritsuka. Perhaps even more surprisingly, the smile was a genuine, kind one. "But, I have issues with neither your goal or you being my Master, so you can count on me as well."

'

Even as Cú Chulainn clicked his tongue in the corner, the man in red kept smiling, giving Mash... complicated emotions. She had honestly been quite wary of him, due to the fact that he was probably the one who came closest to killing them all in Fuyuki, but his current behavior... She did remember that the Servants in that city had been corrupted, so maybe this was his true self...? Well, whatever the case, Mash made herself a mental note to always stay by her Senpai's side while this man was around... Just in case.

'

Next was the Japanese swordsman, who chuckled softly as he took a step towards Ritsuka. "All this nobility and heroism doesn't really fit a man like myself, but you summoned me, and that is all the reason I need to fight for you." A statement that earned him confused looks from nearly everyone in the room, though the man didn't seem to care as he kept smiling slyly. "Swinging my sword is all I need to be satisfied, so use it however you see fit."

'

That was certainly... simplistic. Although, from a certain point of view, it was the most 'Servant-like' response they had received so far. While it wasn't the most encouraging one, the agreement to help was still there, which, judging from Ritsuka's expression, was enough for her.

'

And then there was one, the Servant Mash had been worried about the most. Or to put it more specifically, the one she was genuinely afraid of. Even if they were currently covered, she still couldn't get the woman's eyes out of her mind. When they had battled on the bridge, this Servant had toyed with her, which was the only reason she was still alive. Had Caster not arrived when he did, she, Ritsuka and the Director would have most likely died right there. Maybe it was just her prejudice speaking, but after everything, she couldn't help it. The idea of letting a person like this anywhere close to her Senpai... It just didn't settle well with Mash. At all.

'

"Relying on someone like me to save humanity... You really are a curious person..." As Medusa began to speak, Mash went immediately on guard, even if it seemed rather immature. But thankfully, the Rider had shown none of the gleeful malice she had displayed on the bridge. More than anything, she was acting very reserved, much like Brynhildr. "No matter. I'm used to being used by others. Please do not mind it."

'

That at the very least put Mash's heart slightly at ease. She was still going to be cautious, but if Medusa had agreed to help them in the restoration of human history, the Shielder would do her best to treat her just like the other Servants.

'

But, to return to the main topic, it was unbelievably fortunate that all of the Servants had agreed to help them without any notable complaint. What made Mash especially happy was the fact that Ritsuka looked unbelievably relieved, as if a massive weight had been lifted from her shoulders. Thus far, she hadn't spoken a word after the first Servant's confirmation, only staring at them, with an extremely grateful look on her face. "I... I don't..." Still having trouble finding words, the Master exhaled deeply before inhaling again with her eyes closed. After a few seconds of this, she turned her eyes back on the room and spoke. "...Thank you. Thank you all so very much. That's really all I can say to you right now. Even if I'm a third-rate mage at best, you would all still accept me as your Master... That... means more to me than you realize."

'

The words were simple, but full of meaning. Even with her limited experience with things like these, Mash could feel the warmth in her words that had managed to turn the room's mood into something far more positive. Unfortunately, that mood was completely shattered once Lemminkäinen opened his mouth. "Well, not like we have much in the way of options when it comes to that." A comment that practically shook the room. Ritsuka's mouth fell agape as she could simply stare at this audacious man, with reactions from everyone being much the same. However, just as it looked like his companions might cut-in, he added with a grin: "But, all that means is that you have to make up for it in other ways. After all, a third-rate mage doesn't equal a third rate Master. So, I'm just looking forward to what you're gonna show me."

'

Well, that at least made his crude comment somewhat acceptable, even if Mash really wished the man had worded it better. However, much to her surprise, the first one to respond was Ritsuka herself, giving him... an extremely dry look. "...You totally said that just to mess with me, didn't you?"

'

"Mayhaps~" Lemminkäinen added with an 'innocent' smile, prompting Ritsuka's stare to evolve to a level of dryness that would put the burning Fuyuki in shame.

'

"Terrific." But as soon as she turned to face Mash, the brightness from earlier returned to Ritsuka's face, giving the Demi-Servant a wonderfully warm smile. "But, now that this matter is settled, I believe it's your time to shine, Mash."

'

"H-huh!?" Caught completely off-guard by the sudden suggestion and the accompanying smile, Mash stared at Ritsuka in confusion. Where was this coming from? What did she want her to do? "Me, S-Senpai?"

'

In response, the redhead kept smiling, but looked at her like she had asked something silly. "Well who else? The Servants still need a tour of Chaldea, and I could really use a proper one as well."

'

Ah! That's right! She had promised to do that last night. Well, in that case, there was only one response available: "Yes, Senpai!" Quickly standing up, Mash eagerly marched to the door with Ritsuka close behind her. Yes, this was an important duty indeed, one that she had actually practiced for last night. For the sake of both her Senpai and the other Servants, she would give them the greatest, most professional tour with as much detail as possible. This way they could effectively move around Chaldea and find exactly what they needed. As most of the people in the room were looking at her in amusement, Mash paid it no mind as she focused on her practiced guideplan. Turning around, she faced the group with a serious expression. "Very well then, everyone. I, Mash Kyrielight, shall be your guide today for a tour of the Organization for the Preservation of Human Order, Finis Chaldea."

'

"We'll be in your care, young lady," Cú Chulainn chuckled as the Demi-Servant marched out of the room, beginning her tour.

'

"The area we are currently in is located roughly in between the Summoning Chamber and the central Command Room. Following this corridor are multiple office spaces, the congress room we just exited, a backup research station, and a restroom. Following this corridor to the left, we begin approaching the Main Reactor room, the Automata Center, and the Engineering Department located above them. Although, most of the spaces have been closed off due to the structural damage. If we are to visit the Engineering Department, we must use the stairway and climb exactly 64 steps to reach the correct floor. And then..."

'
And so, the very informative tour moved on.

'

'

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---

'

'

"But seriously, I still can't get over it! This is an entire fortress made of metal on top of a mountain! That's so golden!"

'

Looking at Kintoki's childlike enthusiasm, Ritsuka felt immensely thankful for even this slight change in the awkward atmosphere. Their tour had lasted approximately twenty minutes at this point, but, well... To say it was informative was an understatement. Even if parts of it didn't stick in her head, the Master was certain that by the end of this tour, she would be about as familiar with Chaldea as those who had lived here for months or years. But that... was kind of the problem.

'

Their tour guide, Mash, was doing her absolute best to provide them with as much knowledge as possible about every little detail imaginable. Which wasn't bad per se, but when she started informing them of things like the number of stairs in a stairway or the number of doors along a certain corridor, she started going just a bit overboard. Honestly, Ritsuka could only wonder how much Mash had actually prepared for this. She must've used at least a few hours last night to go through all that material. Yeah... She really was doing everything she could to make this tour as perfect as possible, which was where the next problem lied. Ritsuka could tell that the Servant's were just as troubled with the tour as she was, but upon seeing just how enthusiastic Mash was when giving it, they were simply unable to stop her...

'

But, that could do nothing to stop the elation she had felt ever since all the Servants had agreed to help her. It was like a dream come true, an absolutely perfect case scenario. She had actually pinched herself a few times in secret, just to make sure it wasn't all just a happy dream. But it wasn't! It was all real and she loved it!

'

And as a further bonus, she had something amazing to distract her for the moment, seeing how the heroes of her childhood stories reacting to a modern research facility was quite amusing.

'

"For real. Just building this place must've required a mountain's worth of ore. In my day, something like this would've only existed if it was made by a god," Lemminkäinen agreed, far less openly enthusiastic, but still obviously impressed. "Guess humanity has come a hell of a long way."

'

While the rest of the Servants didn't say much, each of them was still fascinated to a certain degree. But, as fun as it was, it was also important to keep them from getting deluded. "Well, don't get too excited about it. Though there are buildings on the same scale in other parts of the world, none of them are in a location as absurd as this. Chaldea just happens to be a cut above the rest, since it's an organization that houses both mages and scientists."

'

"That's right," Mash agreed from the front of the group. "In many ways, Chaldea is far ahead of the rest of the world when it comes to scientific advances. As you'll soon see in another fine example, as we arrive in the central Command Room."

'

Ah, yes. While she had done her best to hide it at the time, Ritsuka herself had been quite awestruck when she first saw the room for herself. The sheer scale and the even more sci-fiesque appearance compared to the rest of the facility were already impressive enough, speaking nothing of the Chaldeas floating in the middle of the room. It had truly been a sight to behold. Though unfortunately, given how badly it had been wrecked yesterday, the piles of rubble everywhere would ruin the view quite a bit. But, at least the scale of it all was still present.

'

As Mash led them through the large gate leading inside, Ritsuka... could hardly believe her eyes.

'

"Whoa... Now this is one golden room..." Kintoki muttered in awe, and for once the redhead agreed wholeheartedly.

'

It was just absurd. Sure, there was still quite a bit of noticeable structural damage, but the debris was all gone, leaving the room open for view once more. And there were people working and automata carrying things around and... and... Were those construction vehicles? How did they even get here? Sure the corridors were really large, but still...

'

"Man, you didn't tell me that Chaldea was this impressive," Cú Chulainn noted while eyeing the area. "All those corridors and rooms made me think this place was cramped, but at least here there's some space to move around in. You could fit an entire building in this room pretty easily."

'

"As much as I don't care to agree with you, I must concur. This is quite an impressive structure for this time period." The Archer in red's reaction was oddly subdued, even as he showed mild surprise. But, the other Servants shared the curiosity of the other two, looking around with obvious interest.

'

Although, the sole exception to this curiosity was Brynhildr. While she had already seen the room once, that wasn't the reason for her lack of reaction. Rather, it was because she was currently far more distracted by something else.

'

Watching the Lancer gripping her arm and muttering something wordlessly, Ritsuka couldn't help but feel her worry rise once more. She had been like this ever since the other Servants had agreed to help them. She guessed that the heroic attitudes shown there had really taken a toll on her. When there was time, she absolutely had to get to the bottom of this whole thing. After all, it was her duty as a Master to help her Servant if problems like these were plaguing her.

'

"Unfortunately, a thorough tour of this area is impossible for now, due to the construction, but I'll do my best to expound on what's available." As their guide marched eagerly further into the room, the rest of the group shared awkward glances. After experiencing the tour up to this point 'expound' was honestly putting it lightly. Though in this case, it was for an intriguing subject. "First, as the most prominent element in the room, you've all most likely taken notice of the Simulated Global Environment Model: Chaldeas. Without question, Chaldea's most impressive achievement to date. Utilizing the soul of the World as a foundation and basis, the system manifests in miniature a perfectly accurate replica of the planetary body of Earth, permitting a representation of the World's status both in past and future eras."

'

It would have been far more shocking had anyone managed to actually miss the giant sphere floating in the middle of the room. Even Medusa, with her eyes covered, would definitely be able to feel the sheer pressure of the thing.

'

"Well damn. So that's what that is used for," Lemminkäinen muttered while eyeing the globe. "I've seen my share of absurd creations, and that... That's the real deal." A high praise indeed, considering that this man was effectively friends with a smith god.

'

"Agreed..." Medusa nodded. "To think that humans have managed to build something like this... It's bewildering to say the least. A bit unnerving, honestly." For real. Although it was created by one of the Twelve Lords of the Clock Tower, specifically, the leader of the Astromancy department, which brought the impossibility level down a bit, it was still an unbelievable achievement.

'

And Mash was prepared to make sure that they knew as much as possible about said achievement. "Of course, having Chaldeas alone is not enough to let us monitor the Earth. Most of the visible machinery here is part of the Spiritron Calculation Engine: Trismegistus. It is the computer that serves as oversight in the implementation of Rayshift and it assists alongside Laplace in the real-time analysis of phenomena observed via Sheba. Furthermore, when-"

'

"Excuse me, Mash?" Surprised by being suddenly cut off, Mash turned to look at Ritsuka. The redhead really felt bad for raining on her enthusiasm like this, but someone needed to say this. "I really don't think there's a need for you to go into extensive detail about the machinery. No one here is a mechanic exactly, so while it's nice to know how everything works, it's really not necessary at the moment. There's still a lot more we need to cover on this tour, and plenty of work afterwards, so I think it would be for the better if we moved on to something more... consequential." Ritsuka could effectively feel the thankful stares on her back. If only the same could be said about the girl in front of her.

'

"I..." Looking at her tour group sheepishly, Mash really seemed to not have expected an interruption like this. After a few seconds of silence, she sighed, looking a bit dejected. "I suppose that's fair, Senpai. Do the rest of you feel the same?"

'

As the group exchanged awkward glances, Kintoki managed to speak up first. "Yeah... While this all looks pretty golden and all, and you've been really informative all this time, I didn't really get most of what you explained."

'

"I see... If that is the case, then I suppose it's better for us to move on." Promptly, though with a hint of dispiritedness, Mash began walking to the other side of the space, choosing her path carefully to not interfere with the workers. Following with the rest, Ritsuka made a mental note to actually let the Demi-Servant hold a 'full' tour for her one day as an apology. It was obvious that she had worked very hard for all this. "For our next destination, we need an additional tour guide." The group stopped by one of the walls, leaving Ritsuka confused about the location until Mash looked up. Following suit, the Master's question was answered. Unfortunately, several others took its place. "Or, rather, he insisted on it."

'

The sight was... curious, to say the least. It was the man she had met last night, Dio Orlin Arista, easy to recognize due to his unnaturally dark hair and colorful coat. Yes, he was indeed easy to recognize... Even if he was about twenty meters high in the air, hovering by the wall. There was a scissor lift next to him, but all it did was hold some sheets of metal, while the man himself just stood there, midair, placing the materials into a hole in the wall. Although... No, now that she strengthened her eyes to look a bit closer, he wasn't standing in midair, though that didn't make the sight any less absurd. Below his feet, there were what appeared to be two metal spheres, each a bit smaller than a volleyball, even if it was a bit hard to tell. The pair of spheres were... wavy, similar to how air warped in extremely hot weather, making them hard to see properly.

'

But still, he wasn't standing in midair. He was standing on two metal spheres... That floated in midair... Sure, he was a powerful mage, but from all that Ritsuka had learned, she knew that all levitation type magecraft was supposed to be in steep decline in modern times, due to humans having achieved fight via science, and yet here this man was, not caring a bit. It definitely had to have something to do with those spheres, but she couldn't even begin to guess how they worked. They didn't have any markings or notable details, just perfectly round, shiny metal spheres.

'

"You mean Dio's going to join you in giving us a tour?" Ritsuka asked, receiving a nod from Mash. But just as she was about to call out, the man raised his hand towards them, cutting her off without so much as a glance.

'

"I'll be with you in a bit. There's still some slight defects in the structure here."

'

"Oh, that guy," Cú Chulainn noted, looking at the man with obvious interest. "I remember hearing his voice back in the city. Although..." As his interest shifted to curiosity, Ritsuka could've sworn the druid's eyes glowed for a second, but it disappeared as soon as a slight grin grew on his face. "Huh. So that's how it is." ...And she was officially lost. Again.

'

Thankfully, most of the others present at least seemed to share her viewpoint. Though while the others looked curious at best, Archer's eyes looked like they were trying to pierce holes into the air itself. Guess one needed eyes like that to be a legendary bowman. "Those spheres... A Mystic Code of some kind?" Admittedly, it was nice to see that not all Servants were aware of what was going on. Made her feel less self aware of her lack of knowledge.

'

"Father!"

'

Hearing the sudden call, Ritsuka, along with the others, turned towards the source of the voice. ...And her thought process came to a complete halt.

'

Upon hearing the word 'father', she had expected the caller to be a, well... a person, but the thing coming towards them was clearly an automaton. But that was hardly the most surprising part. What made the situation even more bizarre, was just the hilarious level of contrast between the appearance of this automaton, and the others.

'

The automata she had seen in Chaldea looked like skinny humans made of metal, or maybe metal skeletons with the bone details removed. There really weren't any notable details on them, with their white metallic bodies appearing nearly spotless, only differing on the chest, where the logo of Chaldea was present, and on the head, which was featureless with the exception of a single eye in the middle of the face. They could be seen all around the room, delivering both tools and materials where they were needed, or several ones working in a group to carry larger loads. All and all, while they weren't all that remarkable appearance wise, they at least seemed efficient and precise workers, with their large numbers being the most impressive part about them.

'

The thing walking towards them though, looked like it came from a completely different world. It was... well, for lack of a better term, a robot. And not a robot like the ones that already existed in the modern day, oh no. This thing looked like it came straight out of a comic or a TV-show. Standing around three meters tall, it was mostly red with some dark gray mixed in, in the areas that would be upper arms, thighs and hands for humans. While it was still a humanoid, its torso was shaped like a triangle, but the parts that should have been shoulders stretched out beyond the arms, like some epic shoulder pads. The waist area was designed like a belt that had the letters PM embedded in it, meaning that this thing was almost definitely the 'Pressure Man' she'd heard mentioned back in Fuyuki. The arms and legs were designed bizarrely, with the crura and forearms being twice as thick as the thighs and arms, giving it large hands and feet. The head looked more like a horned helmet than an actual head, with the 'eyes' being a black visor with two glowing yellow dots, and to top it all off, it had a red jewel of some kind on its forehead. Without a doubt, this thing had been designed with style prioritized over practicality, leaving the metal hulk with a design that just screamed 'late 90s and early 2000s robot'. And Ritsuka hated the fact that she thought this thing looked incredibly awesome.

'

Stopping by the scissor lift next to Dio, the automaton's eyes locked on to him. "Father, I have finished condensing the materials. May I now go have some fun?"

'

"Not yet, PM. There's still plenty to do," the Spaniard replied casually, still keeping his eyes on the wall. "If you're done with the condensation, you can start reinforcing the marked spots on the walls."

'

Hearing the answer, the red robot clenched its fists and stomped on the ground, looking like a cranky child. "But father, I crave violence!" A whine that seemed to unnerve both the workers, and even some of the Servants present.

'

And yet despite the disturbing words, Dio's face was perfectly natural as he finally turned to face the machine. "Now, now, junior. What do I always say?" he reproved while shaking a finger, as if he was talking to a child instead of a metal hulk. "First chores, then violence." The hell kind of a saying was that?

'

For a second, PM looked like it wanted to protest, only for its head to droop downward. "...Yes, father." Its gaze on the ground, the machine trudged away, kicking a piece of scrap all the while. Was this thing seriously a child?

'

As the group watched the robot go with a mix of confusion and amusement, Kintoki spoke up, his face lighting up to a grin. "Whoa... That was one golden golem."

'

"Nice detailing too. Kinda reminds me of the lady Ilmarinen made out of gold and silver, but with a lot more personality," Lemminkäinen noted, reminding Ritsuka of one of Kalevala's poems. That story was always pretty depressing. After losing his wife, the divine smith attempted to make a replacement out of precious metals, only to discover that the artificial woman was unbearably cold and bleak. Made for a nice moral for a tale, though.

'

Hearing metal scraping from above, Ritsuka looked up to see that Dio had finished, needing a double take to make sure she wasn't seeing things. The man was running his hands over the portion of the wall where the hole had been, with the emphasis on had, since there was currently no sign of any damage to be seen whatsoever. Even the pattern running along the walls had been replicated perfectly. That was some really efficient work. "And, done. Now then." In the next instant, the Spaniard... came down. And not by falling, since it was far too smooth, it was like he just moved downwards quickly while standing and stopped on the ground without so much as bending his knees. The movement was so sudden that Ritsuka jumped back on reflex, yet the man didn't seem to mind, looking at their group with an excited smile. "Hey there, folks. I'm one of the eggheads working here at Chaldea, Dio Orlin Arista de Pamplona y Íñiguez de Tudela, but you're free to ignore the five last words when referring to me." Thank God he wasn't one of those types of mages that held their name in absolute regard. "I trust you're all here for the thing, Mash?"

'

"Yes. We're all ready for your presentation."

'

The man grinned with absolute glee, smacking his hands together. "Oh yeah. And I'm ready to-" As if someone had cut his words with a knife, Dio's head snapped towards something behind the group, his mood shifting in an instant. "Hey hey hey! What the fuck do you think you're doing!?"

'

As Ritsuka turned to find the source of the outburst, she was... surprised, to say the least. Dio's eyes were firmly locked on to a pair of workers on the other side of the space, who had frozen due to a sudden callout. Aside from the fact that they looked so shocked, which was the mage's doing in the first place, she really couldn't see anything that would warrant such a reaction. But before anyone could question the man, Ritsuka noticed two things: 1, Dio was still standing on the sphere things. And 2, he was already on the other side of the room, looming over the constructors. And just like before, he didn't walk or jump or anything. He just stood completely still, yet his body closed the distance in the blink of an eye. The movement was just as bizarre as when he descended, like there had been an invisible conveyer belt below him. It was really freaking her out.

'

Looking down at the workers crouched by a gap on the floor, Dio's eyes seemed far more piercing than the powertools by their side. "I asked you a question, guys. What. Are. You. Doing?"

'

The two exchanged glances with a mix of confusion and worry, before one of them spoke up. "We-we're just starting to fix the floor panelling on the more high temperature areas, now that... that the wiring work in this area is done."

'

"Y-yeah," the other confirmed with a nod. "We'll be plating them with this ti-titanium aluminide to-"

'

Before the man could even finish his sentence, he fell silent upon facing the aura of irritation that flared from the Spaniard. At this point, every person in the area had stopped working, looking at the spectacle. "That's not titanium aluminide, you dumbasses! That's hafnium! It's used in filaments and electrodes, not for construction!" Picking up one of the large plates, Dio's frustration was mixed with perplexity. "In fact, why do we even have these? Who was the genius who decided that we should store pure hafnium plates?" His eyes scanning the room for any possible reactions to reveal the apparent offender, once none were found, the man let out a sigh and moved to a cart a short distance away, picking up another metal plate from it before moving back to the workers. "Alright, look here. This is titanium aluminide, this is hafnium. See?" Dio asked, holding two metal plates that seemed identical to Ritsuka. She could only wonder how the hell could someone even tell the difference between the two from across the entire room? "There's clear differences between them. Both the colorization and weight are easily distinguishable as long as you take a good look."

'

Looking about as aware of the differences as Ritsuka, one of the workers took the plates and weighed them in each hand. "Uhh... Yeah, sure. We'll be sure to check them before starting any work in the future."

'

"Good. At least I noticed before you started actually making anything with these. We can't fuck around with our preparations in a situation like this. Even the tiniest misstep can lead to a disaster, so keep that in mind." Seemingly satisfied with the answer, Dio started looking around the area once more. "In fact, why isn't Sachin doing this? He's usually the one who keeps an eye on delicate stuff like this. Hey, Sachin! Where are you and why aren't you handling this!"

'

"Stuff it, Dio!" Came a shout from above the main entrance to the room, an area that seemed much like the observation room in the Summoning Chamber, except far larger. For obvious reasons, the glass wall was no longer there, letting a man, seemingly from India by Ritsuka's guess, to yell at the Spaniard. "I've got my hands full with the hell that is the wiring on the Observation Deck!" Although finished with Dio, the man moved his eyes on the two next to him. "But I agree with everything else! Get it together, guys!"

'

As the workers groaned, the mage patted them on the shoulders with a smile. "And there you have it. Keep up the work, but pay more attention." Spotting a pair of automata nearby, he motioned them to get closer. "Hey, you two. Take these hafnium plates to the storage and get these folks some titanium aluminide." As the machines got on with their task, Dio looked at the people still watching the situation and loudly clapped his hands. "OK, that's enough for the break, everyone! This is a construction site, not a talk show, and we've got hell of a lot of work to do!"

'

Seeing how the 'talk show' was over, everyone got back to their tasks while Dio moved back to the group, as if he had never left. As he finally jumped off the spheres, they floated off the ground and flew neatly inside his coat which he held open. Though they were obviously too big to fit in without being noticeable, Ritsuka figured the pockets had some sort of slight spatial increasement enchantment. "Alright, it's time for me to show off the Simulator, isn't it? I'll be giving you a proper tour so that you'll be able to use it by yourselves in the future."

'

As he headed for the door with Mash following close behind, Ritsuka felt confused. "Wait, we're going to the Simulator now? Isn't it on the other side of Chaldea?" She'd first entered it shortly after coming to Chaldea, and while she had definitely been out of it upon exiting, she did remember entering it. Wouldn't this throw their tour completely out of order?

'

"Oh no. That's just one of the entrances. There's another one just next door." Well that answered that. "Sorry about that earlier. I'm just extra attentive due to our situation, so my Científico popped out a little. Had to stop them quick, or there would've been extra work removing those hafnium plates off the floor. We really don't have any time to waste on things like that." Well, she could at least understand that. It'd felt a little extreme as far as reactions go for her, but given what was going on right now, Ritsuka couldn't fault him too much over. Though it made her wonder: What exactly was this man's job here? He both seemed like he possessed a high rank and didn't at the same time.

'

"But seriously though, who orders hafnium as plates? Not even in an alloy, but as pure hafnium?" And Dio went back to that again, making Ritsuka feel even more lost. What even was hafnium and why was it bad to have it as plates? She remembered hearing that it existed back in highschool chemistry, but that was it. Peeking at the Servants, the Master hoped to get some sort of reaction from some of them, but there was nothing. Everyone was just walking along, including Mash. Seemed like she would have to look it up by herself later.

'

"And here we are." True to his word, in less than half a minute, Dio had led them to a door with 'Simulator Entrance A' written on it. As the lights flickered on as the group entered, Ritsuka's suspicions were confirmed. It looked exactly the same as the room she had first entered the Simulator from. There were a few working stations with chairs, the ceiling was filled with machinery, and there was a large, round platform that looked like a magic circle with ten magic circles positioned on it. Other than that, there was literally nothing eyecatching there. While the Servants looked around the space, Dio strutted onto the platform with Mash right behind him. But before Ritsuka could join them, she noticed that some of the Servants had stayed back, eyeing the platform cautiously. Not that she could blame them.

'

The Archer in red seemed particularly skeptical. "Sorry, Master, but I'm not really keen on hopping inside magic circles I don't know anything about." A perfectly justifiable reasoning. In fact, the only ones who had taken spots inside the circle were Brynhildr, who seemed to already trust them, and Lemminkäinen, because that man put the 'fool' in 'foolhardy'. "From the appearance, it seems to be used for travelling, but that only serves to make me more suspicious. Where exactly are we going if the rest of the world has gone up in flames?"

'

Yeah, Ritsuka could definitely see how it looked pretty shady, stepping into something like this, but she'd already experienced it once. While it felt pretty weird, much like the Rayshift thinking back on it, that's all it was. "I get where you're coming from, but trust me, it's faster if we just show you." Taking a spot inside herself, Ritsuka hoped to gain some trust from them, which appeared to work, seeing how both Kintoki and Cú Chulainn moved in as well, with the latter noticeably smirking at Archer. That seemed to do the trick, seeing how the bowman responded with a slight scowl before following suit, with both Rider and Assassin coming along. And though a few still eyed the magic circle cautiously, their Master moving in herself had at least seemed to ease them a bit.

'

"Everyone stand inside your circles please, and try not to move around too much, it makes the transition rougher," Dio requested, as everyone finally got to their positions. "Though I suppose that matters more to you, Ritsuka. Servants are easier to transport and just overall hardier." Well, spirits being easier to transport than flesh and blood humans certainly made sense, especially given the method they were using. Not that she'd need the advice, seeing how she'd followed it the first time she'd used this thing. The procedure felt funky enough as it was, so she wasn't going to even try how 'rougher' felt. "Alright, get ready to have your socks blown off, guys. Oh, and while this probably won't be needed, if you feel yourselves undergoing spaghettification, just keep on focusing on your real forms with all your might."

'

"Wait, what does that even-"

'

Before she could demand an explanation for the disturbing comment, Ritsuka's field of vision was colored white and she lost most feeling on her body. What perception did remain, was bizarre at best, as she felt like she was pressed from the sides while floating, like she was being pulled through an extremely tight space. The entire experience really messed with her sense of time, making her unable to discern whether one second had passed or thirty as her senses finally began to return. At first she could feel the ground beneath her feet, then the wind humming in her ears, and the scent of grass. Though her sight was still behind the rest, she figured that was due to the brightness of the area, based on the feeling of warm sunlight on her skin.

'

"And here we are. Nice location, ain't it?" Dio asked from behind her. An inquiry she had to agree with once her eyes got used to the lighting.

'

Nice was honestly the first word Ritsuka would've used to describe it as well. The group currently stood in a large, open field, stretching several kilometers in every direction, like a sea of grass. Depending on the direction, in the distance there were forests, mountains, and she could even spot a river some distance away. The sun was warm, but not overly so, and the breeze was refreshing without being chilly. All and all, a nice location was a fitting description. "Yeah. This is a lot more enjoyable than the wasteland I was thrown into on my first time."

'

Looking around, Ritsuka spotted the rest of their group as Mash skittered back to her side. Already used to the sight after using the Simulator multiple times, she remained as her usual calm self, while the reactions from the first timers varied. From the obvious astonishment of Kintoki and Lemminkäinen, to the more subdued but still present surprise of the others, it was clear that none of them had expected something quite like this. "Ah, there it is. These first responses of awe are always so great to watch," Dio grinned, clearly enjoying the reactions. "Of course, it kinda ruins the magic since you already know it's fake, but can't really do anything about that. Messing with memories whenever someone comes in would just be, well, dumb."

'

"Woah... This is a real golden stretch of land," Kintoki muttered, his mouth slightly agape as he stared at the open field of grass. "If I'd been summoned as a Rider, this is the kind of scenery I would've loved to cruise across on my Bear." Wait. So he did have a bear as a Rider? Ritsuka was now regretting not summoning him as one even more.

'

Though Medusa remained as hard to read as usual, the other female Servant did show some emotion, other than nervousness and unrest for a change. Walking to one of the flowers specking the field, Brynhildr picked it up, inspecting it before turning to Dio. "When you mentioned this space before, I didn't think it would be quite so authentic a reproduction. I suppose I owe you an apology for my doubts."

'

The Spaniard was quick to wave his hand dismissively. "Nah, don't sweat it. That's just the typical reaction when first hearing about my baby. Well, except in the Titan's Pit. There's a few comparable creations there." The Titan's Pit? The name quickly caught Ritsuka's attention, and not just for its uniqueness. It sounded vaguely familiar, and it was unlikely that it came from Greek mythology. But where-

'

POW

'

Jumping from the sound, Ritsuka's train of thought was cut off by a sudden impact by her side. Snapping towards the source, she saw Lemminkäinen holding a chunk of soil slightly smaller than a head in his hand, a small crater by his foot revealing the source immediately, both for the sound and the lump of dirt. Clearly not the only one surprised by the sound, the other Servants also had their eyes on the man, yet he didn't seem to care as he studied the lump of soil and grass. "The scent and feel of the grass and dirt... This is one hell of a fake."

'

"Still not enough to completely fool the senses of a Servant, huh?" Dio muttered, sounding almost disappointed. "Well, I'll work on honing it when I have the time. But enough about that, what do you think of my baby, eh? Quite a marvel, ain't she?"

'

RRRRRUMBLLLE

'

Another burst shook the air, this time from the opposite direction, where Cú Chulainn had struck his staff on the ground, causing a bunch of tree branches to erupt from the dirt a few meters away. "Huh... Magecraft seems to work as well as ever. Thought you'd be exaggerating, but this is pretty damn marvelous. Not enough to get my 'socks blown off', yet not a disappointment by any stretch of the imagination either. This a Reality Marble of some kind?"

'

"Oh..." Dio blinked in surprise, realizing the same thing Ritsuka did at the moment. This was going to be something. "...Yeah, I'm supposed to explain how virtual reality works to people who have effectively no experience with our current pop culture," he muttered, raising his hand towards the Druid. "Just... give me a sec." The Master thought for sure they'd have to wait a good while for the Spaniard to come up with an explanation. But instead, completely contradictorily to her guess, the man snapped his fingers after a literal second. "Okay, got it. Show us the IRL Icosahedron inside Chaldea."

'

Immediately, a screen appeared in the air, much like the ones Chaldea had used in Fuyuki. On it, there was... something. Ritsuka really wasn't sure how to describe it. It was like some kind of weird geometrical shape, with straight edges and sharp corners that formed several triangle shaped faces. Running across its surface were lines similar to circuitry, but instead of spreading erratically, they formed beautiful, symmetric patterns. It floated in the middle of a room while rotating slowly, surrounded by machinery. "Think of it like this: We're currently inside a miniature world that is being generated inside this piece of art right here. To get here, we're converted into Pseudo-Spiritrons, in a similar fashion to how Rayshifting works, plus given bodies that are better suited to this world. Though obviously, sending someone into the D20 World is way easier than sending them into a Singularity."

'

It really was a simple explanation, to the point where basically anyone could follow it. But unfortunately, Ritsuka just got extremely distracted upon Dio saying a certain name. "...I'm sorry, the 'what' world?"

'

"The D20 World," he answered matter-of-factly, as if the name wasn't just... silly. "That's the actual name of this place. The Icosahedron Generated Software Marble: D20 World." As Dio proudly declared the name of his creation, Ritsuka could just... stare at him in disbelief. Basically all the Servants seemed more confused than anything, probably not realizing how laughable the name was by modern standards, with the exception of Archer, who shared his Master's reaction. While she could understand mages giving their creations... unique names, this was just... wow. Like seriously, D20 World? It sounded like some cheap, knockoff amusement park. Ignoring his stupefied audience, the Spaniard kept talking, his tone shifting to what was basically a grumble. "But, people really seemed to like just calling it 'the Simulator', so it stuck. Plus Olga got mad at anyone who used the real name, saying it was 'the most frustratingly juvenile name for such a brilliant invention in the history of mankind'. Really hurt my feelers." An opinion Ritsuka agreed with 100%. Thinking back, the late Director had mentioned Dio's naming conventions to be awful. If 'Saint Quartz' was his best, to the point where the Director had been genuinely shocked by it, she dreaded to think what the worst could be like. Moving on seemed to be the best option to avoid finding that out.

'

"Well, to get back on topic, the transition did feel pretty similar to a Rayshift, now that I've experienced it." Especially the floaty feeling and being blinded. Well, it probably made sense since the basic idea was the same. Really, Chaldea was just so far ahead of the rest of the world it wasn't even funny. "And it's pretty amazing that this machine can pull it off so quickly. Like, Servants are one thing, but to transfer flesh and blood humans like that is-"

'

"Oh no. You yourself are just a very easy case, Ritsuka."

'

Upon being interrupted, Ritsuka could only stare at the man in confusion. She was a 'very easy case'? What was that about, nobody had told her anything like that. "What do you mean by that?"

'

Raising an eyebrow, Dio looked at her doubtfully. "Huh? Did nobody tell you? Seriously?" Ritsuka really had no idea what he was talking about, shaking her head at the question. "Well damn. You'd think that at least someone would've mentioned it, but I guess I can just let you know. Frankly, Ritsuka, your Rayshift compatibility is first-rate even among all the Master Candidates." The redhead could only blink in surprise at the revelation, exchanging a quick look with Mash, who shared her reaction. She hadn't even been aware that there was such a ranking, thinking one either had compatibility or not. "That's the reason why you even made it to Fuyuki in the first place. Sure, there was a possibility of something going horribly wrong, but compared to most of the others, you actually had a notable chance of success. Rayshifting flesh and blood is way harder than a Spiritron Dive, which is why the Coffins were created. Without them, the Rayshift success rates for most candidates would be around 20 to 30 percent, while your chances were all the way up at 74."

'

Trying not to think about the fact that she'd had a 1 in 4 chance of death upon Rayshift, Ritsuka felt a strange bit of happiness over the revelation. Having such a high rank in such a rare and currently desired quality... It was just such an alien feeling for her, who was an epitome of mediocrity in basically every aspect of the magical world. It felt... well, good. "I seriously had no idea. I wasn't even aware of the whole ranking. The only thing I knew was that the Coffins would stop the Rayshift if the chance of success fell below 95%"

'

"Yeah, that's right," Dio nodded. "With the coffins, the lowest acceptable Rayshift success rate is 95%, which was the prerequisite for one to qualify as a Master candidate. For you, it's 99,998947%, almost a whole percent ahead of the next highest."

'

That was... wow. And from the way she looked at her, Mash seemed to agree. "That really is surprising. I had no idea Senpai had such an amazing quality." Her expression shifted from impressed to glad, smiling at Ritsuka. "Then I suppose it was all the more fortunate that Senpai was the one who came to help me and ended up getting Rayshifted." For sure. Ritsuka didn't really like to think about it, but considering that she was basically the only one that could help Mash at the moment, she would have definitely died back there if she hadn't followed Fou.

'

"Oh, definitely. If there's ever a time to thank Lady Luck, it was then," Dio nodded, before clapping his hands loudly. "But, enough about that depressing stuff. It's about time to explain to you what this baby can do." Suddenly the entire field they were on faded away, being replaced by a world of blue wireframe, but before anyone could react in any meaningful way, the digital world was covered by another landscape, a sandy beach with a forest on one side, sea on another. While everyone studied the unexpectedly changed surroundings, Ritsuka focused her attention on the sea, which stretched on as far as the eye could see. The sheer speed of the shift was simply mind boggling. "The Simulator's purpose here in Chaldea is to give Master Candidates 'field experience' without actually going to the field, due to our remote location. It can be used to generate all types of landscapes, conditions and beings, although it's limited to things we have precise, accurate data on. Hard to make something if you don't have a blueprint or even a minor reference, you know?"

'

"So that's why you have something like this," Lemminkäinen muttered while also gazing at the sea. "Sure is a handy tool when you live on top of a mountain, without any other living things as far as the eye can see."

'

"Oh, don't worry. It gets even more impressive," Dio grinned, starting to walk along the shore while motioning the others to follow. "Pretty sure you've noticed it by now, but you're not really in your bodies at the moment. You're currently inside avatars replicated from your bodies when you entered here." As the Servants walking alongside her nodded, Ritsuka kept quiet. She... actually hadn't realized that, much to her shame. Sure her body felt a bit... floaty at the moment, but she'd thought it was only due to her being inside the Simulator. Wait, but how was she using magecraft- "During the conversion process, the body is separated from the mind and the soul, and placed into 'storage', while the former two are inserted into the avatar," the Spaniard explained, as if he'd read her thoughts. The machine just kept getting more and more impressive each moment. "You can't actually die while inside the Simulator, whether you're a Servant or a normal human, since it's not your actual body that gets damaged, and the systems protect both the mind and the soul. That way we can place people in really dangerous training scenarios without worrying about major injuries or death." That certainly sounded like ideal for an Organization like Chaldea, especially to avoid training accidents. Although, if a person spent months or even years training in here, wouldn't there be a risk to- "But, you still do feel pain when your body gets hurt. After all, can't let people get complacent if they make mistakes. No pain, no gain and all that. But the limit of how much pain it's possible to feel has been reduced."

'

Ritsuka was about 40% sure that this man was actually reading his mind. But, since he didn't go any further, she asked anyway. "And what kind of limit is that?"

'

"Let's see... For example: If you get literally, physically torn in half, eaten alive, or burned to death, the pain will be nowhere near as intense as it should be." The words, combined with the careless tone they were spoken in drew quite a few uneasy looks from the group. "I mean, it'll still hurt like a bitch, but not enough to put people in shock or for them to pass out."

'

"...Well that's comforting." Ritsuka was really hoping she'd never have to find out just how much the pain reduction actually mitigated suffering in said situations.

'

"But the point is, this is the ultimate playground where you're free to cut loose as long as you're in here. If you're battle hungry enough, you can enact all sorts of epic battles to your heart's content." There was noticeable intrigue already growing among the warrior types, but that point really got their attention. Thinking about it, this really was the perfect playground for the battle lunatics among them. "Unless you have some ridiculous Anti-World Noble Phantasm or something that messes with space itself, you won't be able to do anything to harm my D20 World from the inside. Although..." Dio fell quiet for a second, seemingly going over something in his head before continuing. "Yeah, a Manifestation of Irrationality would also do it, but that's as rare as those two, if not even more so." ...And Ritsuka didn't really know what that even was.

'

Looking a lot more invested, Cú approached the Spaniard with a grin. "Well, this is all pretty damn handy, but how do we get things done here? Or is changing this world at whim something restricted to you?"

'

"Oh, that's easy. In order to get things done, just say: 'Open the list'." Immediately, a screen popped up in front of Dio, filled with different boxes with text on them. "Like so. There's all sorts of creatures, environments and scenarios to choose from, and a search function if you're too lazy to scroll through them all. But do keep in mind that if multiple people try to change the landscape at once, it can lead to some serious chaos, so try to avoid that." Following the demonstration, some Servants summoned their own screens for a test. While there were a great category of options, the menu itself looked rather simple to navigate, which was something Ritsuka could appreciate. Even if she was lightyears ahead of the more traditional mages when it came to technology, she often felt that some systems similar to this were just needlessly complicated.

'

Suddenly Kintoki raised his hand, gaining Dio's attention. His face was a paragon of seriousness as he asked: "You got bears in this thing?"

'

"Yes, there are bears. 8 natural species and a few phantasmals too," Dio confirmed.

'

The Berserker grinned widely, all seriousness melting away as he gave a thumbs up. "Golden." Wow this man liked bears.

'

"How much space is there really?" Archer asked, his eyes scanning the horizon. Ritsuka had been pretty interested in that herself. Just how far could this artificial sea go? "The quality doesn't seem to drop no matter how far I look, so I'm quite curious about that."

'

"The scale has been reduced a bit, since Chaldea is currently running on the backup generator, but once the power has been restored, it's possible to generate a fairly large country's worth of space," Dio shrugged with a smirk, silencing the area as the group came to a halt. The man was clearly pleased that he'd manage to astonish everyone present. Ritsuka turned to Mash, hoping to see some indignation that this was a joke, but the Demi-Servant just nodded in response. This was for real. How was this real? "Though that's really pushing the system."

'

Clearly not expecting anything close to this scale, just like the others, Archer blinked a few times before recomposing himself. "Define 'fairly large'."

'

"You know, like France, Spain, Thailand, Ukraine, Kenya, or Madagascar. That scale." A clarification that didn't make anyone less astonished. As Kintoki was about to lift his hand, he added: "Japan is included, yes."

'

"Golden... That cleared things up," the Berserker muttered, looking just as dazed as earlier.

'

"Yeah, but constantly running something like that uses a lot of power. I don't see a reason to generate an entire country of that size except for some real epic war games," Dio chuckled as he started walking again. Yeah, that wasn't a game at that scale. "But, that's the basics of it. If you ever need to blow off some steam, just head on over here and let loose. Mash will show you the other entrance by the residential area when you get there."

'

Letting out a sigh, Archer joined the man's side as they travelled along the beach. "Good grief. Making something like this for training." An exasperated smile took over his features. "You mentioned the Titan's Pit, yes? I see that the people from the Temple are just as outrageous as the stories indicate." That again? And Archer knew about it? Ugh, she'd really need to look it up later.

'

"I'll take that as a compliment," Dio smirked.

'

A few minutes passed as they walked along the beach, and Ritsuka had to admit, it was really nice. The sunlight and a gentle wind, even if she knew them to be fake, were things she hadn't experienced in a few days, so she really appreciated this little walk. And even when she was aware of their artificiality, she didn't feel a noticeable difference to the real deals. She'd have to come here on some other day to relax for a bit. Maybe with Mash, seeing how she seemed to be enjoying their walk as well.

'

But unfortunately, not everyone shared the interest in the moment. "So, how do we get out?" Lemminkäinen called out. "Are we heading there? Or do we need to conjure up a door or something?"

'

"That's actually really easy for you Servants." Bringing the group to a halt, Dio turned to face them, his body turning slightly transparent for a second before returning to normal. "The basic principle is the same as when you change into spiritual form. If you try to do it in here, you 'fade from the world' which gives the D20 World a signal to reconnect your minds and souls with your bodies and return you outside." Some of the Servants followed the instructions, flickering for a second like Dio had before returning to normal. Of course, Ritsuka was already aware of it, having exited the space once before, so- "And the other way is just straight up dying."

'

"Huh?" Having her line of thought cut by the abrupt statement, the redhead stared at him in confusion. "Didn't you just say that we couldn't die here?"

'

"Oh no. You can't actually die, but your avatar body can," Dio corrected. "It was a setting made for training exercises. If someone is completely, absolutely, without a doubt, dead, through damage to their body, they get kicked outside. It was the easiest and fastest way to get those who failed a training scenario out of the way of those still in."

'

"Fair enough, I suppose." A bit morbid honestly, but an effective way to eject people. Thinking about it, by mage standards, it was almost kind. "Back when I first used the Simulator, I was told to imagine myself 'fade from the world'. Glad to know where the term came from."

'

"Hey, wait a second." Lemminkäinen called out, looking at Dio in confusion. "Why have we been walking along this beach if we're just going to leave like that?"

'

That... was actually a good question, one that Ritsuka hadn't actually realized until now. And judging by the expressions of the others, they'd wondered about it too. Everyone present turned to look at the Spaniard questioningly, only for him to shrug. "Oh, I just wanted to take a walk." Whatever guesses Ritsuka had about the reasoning got shot down immediately. For the next few seconds, the only sounds were the wind susurrating through the trees and the gentle crashing of the waves. No one in the group said a word, the reactions ranging from, surprised, to irked, to amused. Finally, it was Dio himself who broke the silence. "What? The weather is nice, so I thought I'd take the chance to walk around a bit before getting back to work. Artificial sunlight is all we're getting here in Chaldea, so you've got to take what you can, whenever you can." ...Alright, that reasoning actually wasn't too bad.

'

"This bastard," Lemminkäinen snarled, though he clearly seemed more amused than offended.

'

Slapping his hands together, Dio moved on as if the last dozen seconds never happened. "But that about covers the essentials, so you're free to use the D20 World whenever you want." ...Yeah, Ritsuka was not calling it that. "Now then, this has been fun, but I've got work to do, and you've got a tour to finish. See you on the other side." And just like that, he faded away, leaving the Master and her Servants alone on the beach.

'

"Well, I guess that's the end of that," Ritsuka said, mostly to fill the void of silence. Thankfully, a rather excited Kintoki was quick to follow up on it.

'

"Man, you told me that Chaldea had some amazing stuff, but I never imagined that there could be something this golden here." Yeah, that. She had deliberately chosen not to explain it in detail, since she wasn't entirely sure she could. The Simulator really was a 'got to see it to believe it' type of deal. And now that he had seen it, Kintoki's face had been lit up by an excited grin for a good while. It really reminded Ritsuka more of a schoolboy than anything else. "Can we really go nuts in here, boss?"

'

"That's right. You're free to use it whenever you have some spare time." Upon confirmation, the golden man pumped his fist with intense cheer. While the redhead was still... confused over his modernized persona, his overall positive personality was an extremely pleasant feature. That, and the fact that he wasn't a raving lunatic despite being a Berserker.

'

On the other hand, there was Lemminkäinen, just as excited as the other man. Though in his case, instead of a schoolboy, he was more like a highschool delinquent, always searching for more trouble. "This is really getting me fired up. Can't wait to see what kind of beasties this thing can make." Cú looked to be very much in the same boat, while Archer, Brynhildr and Medusa didn't seem that interested in the 'going nuts' prospect. And then there was the Assassin of the group, who Ritsuka currently had her eyes on. Kojirou had been quiet and cool the entire time, not showing that much of a reaction to anything, but basically anyone could pick up the clear interest in his gaze when the current topic was brought up. Specifically, the interest towards the other Servants. Cú had described him as a duel nut of some sort, and her knowing the stories of Sasaki Kojirou only served to enforce this view.

'

Well, that would all have to wait. She'd need to take control of the situation before things got too exciting. "Alright, alright. But remember, that is all for later. Since Dio's already gone, let's get back to proper Chaldea ourselves, then." Upon hearing the confirmations from the group, some of them disappointed, Ritsuka began fading herself from the world, the feeling just as bizarre as the first time she'd experienced it. As her eyes lost all vision, she let the floaty feeling take over again before the pressure and pulling force began to move her along. Thinking about it, maybe this was how being sucked through a straw felt like. After the usual, unquantifiable time had passed, she felt her feet on solid ground again, with her vision starting to return. "Everyone here?"

'

"Yes, Senpai," Mash confirmed from her side. "Everyone has successfully exited the Simulator and are present."

'

With her sight just about restored, Ritsuka could confirm, while also noticing Dio by the machines of the room. "Good. We'll resume your tour in a moment, Mash." As the Shielder gave her a confirming smile, she moved to the man typing on the console. "Thanks for showing us how to basically use the Simulator, Dio. We'll let you get back to work."

'

"Nah, don't sweat it. But before you go, Ritsuka, after the tour is finished, send us a message. Da Vinci and I'll be giving you the two finished Mystic Codes, so you can start practicing with them a bit." Ah, yes. That. She was honestly really looking forward to seeing what they could do, considering how impressive the one she was already wearing was. "And while you're at it, there's some work we could really use the Servants for. Brynhildr has the details, so she should be able to provide you with answers to any possible questions."

'

Though she had done her best to remain calm this whole time, the Lancer's expression hardened upon hearing the words. "...Indeed. As long as you have no objections, Master." Oh yeah, she was doing something like that last night. But that reaction... Thinking about it, Ritsuka hadn't actually asked what type of work it was, but if she had to guess, most likely something the regular employees were better off not doing. And considering what had just happened in Chaldea... Well, she could always confirm it when they had some proper time, after the work was actually done, maybe.

'

"Ah, no. It's necessary to get Chaldea back into working order, right?" Ritsuka ascertained, getting a nod from Dio. "Then as long as any of the Servants have no trouble with it, you can go right ahead."

'

The Spaniard responded with a raised thumb. "Cool. And with that, my break's over. Later, guys."

'

Ritsuka watched as Dio strode off with a smile and a wave, still not entirely sure how she felt about him. He at least seemed quite amiable, especially for a mage, but she was having trouble getting a solid read on his personality, mainly on his level of seriousness in most topics. Well, at least he was excellent at his job. But, deciding she had her own task to get back to, the redhead turned to the pink haired girl by her side. "Now then, Mash. That was a nice little detour, but we still have a tour to finish, if you don't mind."

'

As usual, she responded with a smile. "Of course not, Senpai. If you would follow me, everyone." With her former earnesty returned, Mash led the group back to the halls. It really was cute how seriously she took this task. "Next, we'll be taking the elevator to an upper floor, where we'll be moving on to..."

'

'

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'

'

"And finally, here is the beginning of the area that houses the living quarters," Mash announced as they reached the end of her tour. She'd thought hard about what to make the final destination for the trip around Chaldea, and had finally decided on the outside of Ritsuka's room. After all, it was currently among the most important ones in the building. "The ones meant for the Master candidates stretch along this hallway, and the ones for regular staff start by the next intersection. With that, we've reached the end of the notable areas in Chaldea." While she was still a bit disappointed that Ritsuka had asked her to abridge some of her explanations, she also saw the point in it. Had she continued at her original pace, they'd still have around an hour's worth of tour left.

'

"Thank you, Mash," Ritsuka nodded with a smile before turning to face the Servants, simultaneously knocking on the closest door. "This room here's mine, so if I'm not off working somewhere, it's the safest bet to find me."

'

"As for the rest, you're each free to choose one for your liking," Mash announced, much to the surprise of most of the Servants based on their reactions. "The rooms reserved for the Master candidates are unoccupied, so after choosing one, let Dio know your pick and he'll provide you with a key for it."

'

"Rooms?" Archer repeated doubtfully. Thinking about it, Mash didn't actually remember hearing his true name. "Master, I trust that you're already aware of this, but-"

'

"'Servants have no need for living quarters', right?" Ritsuka finished in his stead, earning a surprised look from the Archer before he nodded in confirmation. The Master looked quite amused as she turned to Brynhildr. "Wow... Wasn't that word-to-word exactly what you said last night?" Oh? Thinking back, it really was. And as the Lancer confirmed it, Archer seemed quite staggered by the turn of events, a stark contrast to his serious demeanor thus far. Ritsuka shook her head with a slight smile, raising her hand much like Dio had last night. "Let's go over this quickly, then. 1: This operation is long, so you'll be staying here for a while. Quite likely several months. 2: Each of you having a spot to stay in while you're not working makes it easier to find you. And 3: We have plenty of empty rooms. Any objections?"

'

Faced with a lightning round of justifications, Archer could only stare at his Master before letting out a frustrated sigh. "In that case, none," he muttered, clearly abashed over the entire exchange. Behind him, Cú Chulainn was grinning merrily. Thinking back on it, he'd had an identical look on his face after they had defeated Saber.

'

"Well, I won't be saying no to a free bed. It's nice to have one for a number of reasons," Lemminkäinen noted from his side, earning a raised eyebrow from the Caster.

'

"Ho? When you put it like that, it's definitely better to have one than not."

'

Ritsuka however, didn't seem nearly as amused, sighing loudly before clapping her hands to get everyone's attention. "Alright, enough about that. Now that the tour is finished, it's time to get to work. Since Dio has something he needs Servant help with, so I'm hoping you could all assist with that. And since she already knows what the task in question is, Br-Lancer should be able to direct you to it." Doing her best to ignore the hasty correction, she turned towards the Valkyrie. "Isn't that right?"

'

"Yes." Brynhildr's prompt reply caught Mash off guard. Unlike her usual emotionlessness, her tone was severe, as was her expression. "The work is hardly challenging, but given the current circumstances, it's better for everyone if we Servants take care of it."

'

That was... a bit concerning. Mash exchanged a quick glance with her Senpai before she answered. While she'd obviously noticed the strange tone, she seemed to ignore it for some reason. "Alright, I'll leave it to you. Now, while the rest stay on the task, I'll be calling each of you one by one for a 'demonstration', where you'll be showing me exactly what you're all capable of."

'

The Master's last sentence notably spiked the interest of most of the members of the group. The red haired Saber grinned widely, not even trying to hide his excitement as he asked, "Does that mean I finally get to swing my sword a bit?"

'

"That's right," Ritsuka confirmed, widening the man's grin even further. "To properly perform as your Master and plan up tactics, I'll need an accurate grasp of each of your abilities. And by that, I mean all of your abilities. I've planned to use the rest of the day for this, so details are very much mandatory." A demand that sparked some uncertainty with a few of the Servants, yet she pushed on nonetheless. "And no hiding any tricks up your sleeves. Something like, if one of you were to hide an ability that would have been really useful earlier, but decided to keep it as a hidden trump card until the very last possible moment. None of that nonsense. I'll be seriously pissed if you try to do that." The sudden attitude shift surprised those present, Mash included. She had yet to see her Senpai act so... demanding. Like she wouldn't take no for an answer. It was an understandable demand given the circumstances, but no matter how she tried, the Shielder couldn't think of a proper reason as to why a Servant would even want to keep some of their abilities hidden from their Master.

'

After a few seconds, Archer let out a sigh, yet he seemed... amused for some reason. "Very well, I can see you're serious about this, Master. You said these demonstrations would be one by one, right? How will we be going about them?"

'

"Well, since I managed to summon a Servant from each of the main classes, I suppose the easiest way would be to go in an alphabetical order with them. Meaning that you'll be the first, Archer," Ritsuka confirmed while completely ignoring the disappointed groans in the background. "As for when and where, it's a bit past noon, so Mash and I will be having lunch first, and then we'll go to pick up the new Mystic Codes..." she muttered while snapping her fingers, trying to set up the schedule. "Let's say half an hour. Come to the Simulator room when that is up."

'

"Understood."

'

"Hey, Master," Cú Chulainn called out, waving his hand at her. "We've already fought together before, so is it really necessary for me to go through this too?"

'

"Yes, absolutely," Ritsuka answered without a hint of hesitation. "While I'm more familiar with you and Lancer in comparison to the others, there's always more to learn." A statement Mash thoroughly agreed with. It was reassuring how thorough her Senpai was in these things, though it seemed that the druid didn't agree, judging by the slight frown on his face. And the redhead's dubious followup didn't help with that. "Besides, I know you've still got some tricks left. I haven't forgotten about that cave battle, you know." Oh, thinking back to it, Cú Chulainn had used some techniques he'd never mentioned to them during the confrontation with Saber, most notably that strange staff throw.

'

The Caster's frown grew even deeper. "Oh, great."

'

Ignoring the man's grumbling, Ritsuka turned to Brynhildr. "I'll leave the rest to you, Lancer. Will you be fine leading the others to whatever this work is?"

'

"...Yes. There will be no issues," she confirmed, getting an approving nod from the Master.

'

"Good. It's time for work, then. We'll be seeing you in half an hour, Archer, and the rest of you throughout the day," Ritsuka said, getting the Servants moving.

'

"Yes. I'll make sure to be on time."

'

"Later, Master."

'

"Have a golden lunch."

'

"Get ready to pick your jaw off the floor once it's my turn to show off my stuff."

'

With a chorus of goodbyes, the group, led by Brynhildr, began heading towards the center of the facility, leaving Mash and Ritsuka by themselves. But as the last of them passed her, the Demi-Servant felt a chill run down her spine. It was her again... Medusa... Watching that long, long hair disappear behind the corner, Mash couldn't help but feel conflicted. While a part of it was due to her bias caused by their fight in Fuyuki, she still found the woman unsettling otherwise. She'd hardly said a word throughout the tour, just standing silently by the side, like a shadow. She wished to do her best to at least act polite while interacting with the Rider, so that she wouldn't cause her Senpai any trouble, but it was proving more... difficult than she imagined. She just... couldn't get those eyes out of her head when looking at her, along with the malicious sneer.

'

"And now it's off to lunch for the two of us." The sudden words returned Mash to the present, where Ritsuka rubbed her shin before setting it down and lightly bouncing on her feet. "Based on the breakfast, my hopes are pretty high, so I'm looking forward to this."

'

In the face of the hopeful anticipation, Mash decided to put the issue aside for now. There was no need for her Senpai to worry about her personal issues. She had enough on her plate already. ...Although there was something she wanted to ask from the redhead, but wasn't sure if it was really appropriate. It might even seem silly to her. "Yes. I'm sure it will be enjoyable."

'

"Fingers crossed," Ritsuka grinned as she started walking towards the cafeteria. All the while, as she followed her, the Shielder kept wondering if her question was actually worth asking. Even if it was important to her personally, it was hardly essential by any stretch of the imagination. As she struggled with the little dilemma, the Master spoke out. "Come on, Mash. Let's get going so that we don't waste our lunch break." That call was the final push she needed. No matter how she thought about it, she really wanted to ask it.

'

Pattering closer, she called out. "...Um, S-Senpai?" As Ritsuka turned in response to her call, Mash gathered her resolve. She really needed an answer for this. Taking a deep breath, she voiced her question. "Do you... Do you think I did a good job on my tour?" The redhead blinked in surprise, clearly not expecting the question, yet the Demi-Servant pushed forward, even as embarrassment started sinking in. It might just be her vanity talking, but she really wanted her Senpai to evaluate her performance for future reference. "It was my first time doing something like this, so I hope it went well..." she muttered, eyes on the floor. "But I lack any type of referential material or experience with tours, so I'm not entirely sure if-"

'

The thought process was instantly cut as a weight settled down on the Shielder's head. Her eyes darting up from the floor, she was met with Ritsuka's smiling face and an extended hand that rested on her head. "Oh, Mash. You can be such a worrywart, even when there's no reason to." The words lacked even the slightest hint of condescension, yet Mash's embarrassment rapidly increased. It really had been a vain thing to ask, like she had feared, and now, Ritsuka was patting her head again, for the third time today, which was just... No, in all honesty, Mash really liked it when she patted her head like this. Ritsuka's hand was just so warm and gentle as it pressed down on her hair. The Doctor had done the same when she was younger, but this just felt... different, for some reason. Maybe it was because the Doctor was... well, the Doctor, even if she didn't really understand the feelings the act gave her. But just as she was about to try and switch topics, Ritsuka removed her hand and continued speaking. "Don't worry. Your tour was perfectly informative, and really helped me get a hang of Chaldea's layout. And I'm sure the Servants feel the same." Mash blinked in surprise, not expecting her to still answer the question, let alone so positively. "But if you want any more in the way of appraisal, I thought your enthusiasm over the task really helped in keeping the tour interesting."

'

"I... Thank you, Senpai." It really was relieving to know that despite most of what she had planned to explain in great detail had been cut, the tour had still served its purpose. And of course, receiving direct praise from her was always nice. "It means a lot to me to hear you say that."

'

"Well, you're very welcome," Ritsuka smiled, patting Mash on the back to usher her towards the cafeteria. "Now come on, we should really get going. Trying to work on an empty stomach is just asking for a bad time."

'

Oh, right. She'd been so focused on her question that she'd forgotten their time limit. Hoping to make up for even the slightest amount of lost time, Mash walked after Ritsuka briskly. While her personal necessities for food were still under inspection, she couldn't let herself be the reason her Senpai ended up ill-fed due to an unsatisfactorily short meal time. "That's true. Then, I sup-"

'

"Foouu!"

'

"Wha-!?"

'

As Mash arrived at an intersection, Fou leaped from around the corner, landing straight on her face in a serious case of deja vu. Wholly unprepared for the attack due to her speed, she might've fallen over if Ritsuka hadn't caught her. "F-Fou. You surprised me," she muttered as he scampered on top of her head, before sliding around to her back and settling on her shoulder, like usual. A few hours ago, the critter had run off somewhere right before the summoning. Perhaps it understood what was happening and decided to avoid the coming crowd.

'

"So you decided to ditch us, and then come running as soon as it's time for food?" Ritsuka indicted with a tepid glare, though the slight smile on her face revealed her trouble being serious. In response, Fou hopped on her shoulder, snuggling against her cheek, completely demolishing any seriousness the redhead had possessed as a pouty smile grew on her lips. It was honestly quite sweet to see her acting like this. "...You're lucky you're so cute, or I might actually consider not sharing anything with you."

'

"Fou," the critter barked, straightening himself proudly, apparently pleased with the oblique praise.

'

Letting out a defeated sigh, Ritsuka turned to Mash with an amused smile. "A change of plans, then. The three of us are going to get some lunch."

'

The Shielder was more than happy to reciprocate the act. "Yes. It seems so." Well, not that she had any issues with Fou joining them for lunch. If anything, he'd probably make it more... enjoyable...

'

It was at that moment that Mash realized something. On any other day, she would've been eating in her room at the moment, her only company being the occasional beeping from the medical equipment. It was a condition she had been fully satisfied with for years, not even bothering to wonder any alternatives. But now... Originally, she had asked Senpai to eat breakfast together because of the recommendation, since it was simply something that friends did. And yet, even though her attempts at small talk hadn't gone anywhere close to as well as she'd hoped, Mash wished to repeat the event. It was a bizarre feeling. Another one that she didn't fully understand. She had never imagined that such idle, pointless conversation could be so... enjoyable. She just couldn't understand the logic behind it. There was nothing productive about it, nor was there something to learn from it. Her enjoyment on the matter... It just didn't make sense to her.

'

"Mash?" Ritsuka called out, looking at her questioningly. "Is something still bothering you?"

'

Upon hearing the call, Mash pushed the thought process aside, not wanting to bother Ritsuka any further. Right now, she had more important matters to focus on. A smile grew on her lips, and thanks to her mood, she didn't even need to try to fake it. "No. Everything is fine, Senpai. I was just... going over today's events. We should hurry. We are still on a time limit." Catching up to the redhead, she continued quickly walking towards the cafeteria by her side. Even if she couldn't understand her enjoyment of the matter, she could always try to figure it out later. At the moment, she might as well go along with the feeling.

'

'

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---

'

'

This was certainly a strange situation, even for him.

'

Walking alongside the six other Servants, Emiya could only wonder what the odds of him ending up in his current position were. Being summoned to save humanity was something he was very familiar with, but the current case was just an absurd heap of unprecedented circumstances piled on top of each other. Hell, he hadn't even been summoned by the Counter Force. In fact, he'd almost had a stroke in the first fraction of a second upon seeing his Master. He managed to compose himself again almost immediately upon noticing the feminine features she possessed, but the mage's hair and eye color combo had been dangerously close to a certain annoyance. On the other hand, that demanding attitude she had shown earlier in regards to the Servants' abilities reminded him very much of one of his past Masters. Though thankfully this girl's skills in verbal abuse didn't even seem to be in the same league as that one's. Still, not only was he summoned as a Servant instead of a Guardian, but from what he'd been told, this mission had stakes even higher than what he was used to. At least he had allies this time around, strong ones too, but by some laughable twist of fate, three of them were Servants he was already very much familiar with. Especially that damn Caster. Why was it that they just seemed to run into each other whenever he ended up being summoned?

'

"So, we've been walking for a while. Where exactly are we going?" Thinking of the devil, he'd just opened his mouth to address the Lancer leading the group. At least the question was reasonable. Honestly, the Archer was quite surprised that the dog had yet to make advances of any kind towards the Valkyrie. Granted, during the tour the Saber had made enough for the whole crew, but it still puzzled him. Even if there was something going on with her, Brynhildr was a literal goddess level beauty, making the former spearman's complete lack of attempts confusing to say the least, especially knowing his personality.

'

"The Reactor room, which as you know is already close by," the Valkyrie answered matter-of-factly, the strange tone she'd held from time to time now completely absent. "Getting it to function at full capacity is among the most vital tasks currently in Chaldea, but there is an... issue with the space, which is why we Servants are needed." Judging by the pause, as well as her earlier talk with their Master on the subject, Emiya guessed that the task they were supposed to work on was hardly pleasant. Not that that was anything new to him.

'

But yes, they knew where the room in question was. While the beginning of the tour before Master had stepped in had been... descriptive, to say the least, it had overall helped him get an accurate grasp of the massive workshop's structure. Which was why he knew that they'd be within visual range of the door in a matter of seconds.

'

And so they were, along with the man sitting by it. "Damn. We've actually got the whole squad here." It was the Spaniard mage he'd met earlier today, Dio Orlin Arista, easily recognizable from a distance due to his unnaturally dark hair and ultramarine coat. He seemed genuinely pleased that they had all shown up. "Nice. Makes things easier if I can just explain all the details for the assignment to all of you at once."

'

From what he had seen thus far, this man seemed like he'd be a useful ally at least. Certainly eccentric, but his skills as a mage appeared notable, especially by modern standards, and he didn't seem to share the typical mindset of their kind, which made him that much easier to deal with. Though admittedly, Dio had caught his attention somewhat. First, there was the situation in the Command Room. Given what had happened, he couldn't help but to commend the man for his eye for detail. After paying attention to the workers, the Archer had also immediately noticed the error they had committed in material selection, but noticing something like that across the room at a glance required keen perception.

'

The spheres he had stood on had caught Emiya's eye in particular, but not because he had analyzed them and found them interesting. Quite the opposite, it was because he couldn't get a proper read on them. Now, while it was hardly unusual for mages to add spells to their creations that made them hard to grasp, if they weren't like that to begin with, this was on a different level entirely. He'd seriously tried to trace them after he noticed the quality, but still found himself completely incapable of doing anything above scratching the surface. These things had to be a well kept secret of a very old bloodline for something like that. But, whatever. It was hardly his business, and he wasn't petty enough to get frustrated by something like that, especially when it came to mages .

'

But what did frustrate him was that apparently that damn Caster had somehow figured it out, based on what he said back in the Command Room. While there was no question that he possessed great skill with Runes, it had sounded like he understood something beyond their effect, which bothered the Archer to no end. Could those spheres have been something that dog had encountered during his life? That was the only explanation he could accept. He didn't possess pride in many things, but he absolutely refused to lose to that spearman when it came to analyzing objects.

'

"I presume we'll be finishing the work we started last night?" Brynhildr asked.

'

The man's smile faltered a bit as he rubbed his neck. "Yeah... Better get it done sooner than later." Judging by the attitude, Emiya's guess was likely right. Dio flashed his hand by a panel next to the door, opening the way for them. "Well, come on in. Better get started sooner rather than later."

'

The space, while nowhere close to the Command Room, was quite large, to the point that a normal building would fit inside without much trouble. Though its current condition made analyzing the full scope a tad challenging. Looking up, he could see that the room's ceiling had collapsed, along with three, no, four floors above it, with the rubble from said floors now covering most of the room, with two exceptions. The reactor itself, which seemed to be a nuclear kind, though he didn't really have experience with them, making it hard to judge. And a path that led straight to it, cutting right through the sea of rubble.

'

...So that's what their first job was going to be. The aura of the room had basically written the answer for him. The other Servants had realized it too, seeing how most of their earlier disinterested expressions had shifted to seriousness, while others remained as they were. All of them were well aware of what they were about to do.

'

There were eight people in the room, all working by the generator, unaware that the group had entered until Dio clapped his hands loudly. "Alright, crew, break time! Go get yourselves some lunch!" While there was some obvious surprise at the suddenness of it all, the workers quickly packed their tools and started walking towards the door. The Archer couldn't help but to be impressed with the staff's professionalism in their catastrophic situation. While they were hardly 'fine', most were clearly anxious or unsettled, each of them still did their job admirably. He wouldn't be surprised if staying collected under immense pressure was one of the qualifications for working at Chaldea, though he could only imagine how the applicants were tested for it. "After that, head to the Command Room to continue the work there. We'll be here at least for the next few hours." ...Yes. Even with Servants, this was going to take a while, no doubt. Seeing how the path separating the rubble was fairly narrow, their group moved to the side to let the staff pass, getting a few nervous stares. Considering that they knew well what the seven figures actually were, the reaction was fairly mild. As the last of the workers had moved out, the mage turned to the Servants, all hints of joviality now gone from his person. "Now... I trust that I don't need to tell you why you're here."

'

"No. It's quite obvious," Emiya confirmed. Everyone here was well aware. As Servants, they were all far more sensitive to things like spirits and grudges, so it was easy to tell that several people had died here just yesterday. He'd felt it in the Command Room too, where it had been noticeably stronger, but quite a few people had lost their lives here as well. Although there was a noticeable lack of physical evidence of it. "But, just for the sake of knowing; how many?"

'

"64. 38 in this room, due to the explosion, and the rest from the collapsing upper floors." Less than he'd guessed from the size of the space. Considering the damage and the overall sturdiness of the structure, the bomb must've killed everyone in the room near instantly, while the rest either died from the fall or were crushed by the falling debris. "Sorry to ask you to do such a shitty job for your first task in Chaldea, but this needs to be done. The remaining staff is stressed enough as they are, so I'm not going to have them dig up the remains of their coworkers. Frankly, it's just better you than them, since you're Servants. And from what I've heard, none of you are particularly the squeamish sort, so that's a bonus." A perfectly rational decision, one that he couldn't complain over, and judging by the looks of the other Servants, while some were hardly pleased with it, they at least understood the reasoning. But what surprised him was that the mage seemed genuine in his apology. An apology to Servants. The Archer would've thought him a novice of some sort, if it weren't for the obvious scent of blood on him that most mages carried. The type that valued human life but wouldn't hesitate to take it if necessary, huh?

'

"Don't sweat it." Cú Chulainn waved his hand dismissively as he walked past the man. "Shitty jobs come with the line of work, and this is hardly the worst thing I've had to deal with." That was a point the Archer was actually forced to agree with. This was far from the lowest task he'd completed. At least he wasn't the one piling up corpses this time.

'

"I won't mull on it further, then. Brynhildr already got started last night and cleared this path for the workers to use. It'd be good if the rest got taken care of today."

'

"Alright, got it." Cracking his knuckles, as if this was going to require much muscle, the Caster gave his staff a whirl before pointing it towards one of the larger piles. "So, where should we start? I could whip up a few search runes and-"

'

"No need." With a snap of Dio's fingers, the room lit up as dozens of arrows of light appeared over the wreckage, each pointing downwards. "All the spots have been marked by my Prisms, so it's up to you to just... well, gather what's under the rubble." Looking around the area, Emiya had to admit this being quite efficient. It would certainly make their work that much faster. The mage then pointed towards the other side of the room, where there were about four dozen coffin-like containers and three much larger ones by the generator. "Once you do that, bring them to me for identification and I'll start putting them in coffins. The mages' remains go without saying, but it's at least some comfort for the normal folks' families to have something to bury."

'

"Can't help but to notice a lack of anything visible here." Putting his earlier thoughts into words, the red haired Saber hopped on top of a pile of rubble before tapping the air above him with his index finger, the act spreading waves across the barrier, much like a stone thrown into a lake. "There's also a peculiar lack of putridness in the air. Well, it smells like death, but not like corpses. Is that what this bounded field is for?"

'

"Yeah, the visible stuff already got picked up, and there's a barrier over the area that keeps the decay at bay, otherwise this whole room would reek to high hell." Another good call. The staff could hardly work effectively in such conditions, and it was something that the Servants were also thankful for. The field itself was impressively subtle, to the point that most mages wouldn't probably even notice it unless they were specifically looking for it. "And, if there's something that's just completely unsalvageable, either clean it with fire, or if you can't, call for someone who can."

'

Emiya looked at the man questioningly. "By that, you mean something like a tiny body part, or...?"

'

"No. Even something like a finger, toe, or an ear is enough for identification. That's not the issue here." Dio rubbed his neck awkwardly before continuing. "It's more that if the body has been turned into complete paste. No real reason to start shoveling something like that up." Ah. That's what he meant. Doing something like that would indeed make this work even worse. Another point for the Servants to be glad for. "Who here has the ability to make fire, by the way?" In response to the question, Saber, Lancer, and Caster raised their hands, with Emiya joining in a second later. While he couldn't generate fire on his own, he had a few swords that could get the job done quite easily. Dio nodded, content with the result. "Nice, four. More than half, then. Less running around." He then turned their attention back towards the containers on the other side of the room, this time on the larger ones. "As you go along, just chuck the rubble into those containers. I'll recycle it all once we're done." Before he could continue any further, the Spaniard's eyes moved to the sudden shift in the group, caused by Sakata Kintoki raising his hand. "What's up, Golden?" The Archer was honestly surprised he called the Berserker by the... unique name.

'

"I don't have fire, but lightning will work just the same, right?"

'

"Yeah. No issues there," he confirmed with a nod. "Now then. I assume there are no objections at this point." As none came, Dio gave another nod as he started walking towards the containers. "Good. Let's get on with it. The sooner we're done, the better for everybody."

'

The Servants spread throughout the room, each content with taking their own area of the room, something the Archer agreed with. Following one of the arrows of light, he lifted a large boulder of rubble off the ground... and was immediately met with a mostly undamaged arm attached to a paste-like corpse. Letting out a sigh, Emiya picked the appendage up while projecting a sword he used to incinerate the paste away. He still had more than a dozen minutes left before he needed to rejoin Master, so might as well use the time productively.

'

'

---

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'

'

"Just two minutes ahead of schedule, huh? My time assessments have really been on fire today," Ritsuka noted as she and Mash arrived at the specified room close to the Simulator entrance. They'd just finished eating lunch a few minutes ago, and... just, wow. She knew that good food was highly beneficial for one's mental wellbeing, but this was going way beyond what she had initially expected. While she'd harbored some uncertainty on whether or not the breakfast had been a fluke or something, lunch had cleared away every bit of those doubts. Chaldea's cafeteria really was a match for accomplished restaurants when it came to the quality of their food.

'

"It really was quite impressive, Senpai. We didn't even need to rush ourselves while eating," Mash nodded. Well, after living in a scheduled fashion for the last couple of years, Ritsuka was pretty used to making estimates like that.

'

Suddenly feeling a slight jolt through her circuits and a flash of red in her peripheral, the redhead took note of the approaching Servant, raising the people in their group to three. Though it was more like back to three, since Fou had once again ditched them after the meal. Archer, perfectly on time, walked up to the girls. "I'm here, Master. I trust that we're doing this 'demonstration' in the Simulator."

'

"Yes. We need room to see what each of you is really capable of, and we can't exactly do it in Chaldea without partially blowing it up and risking the entirety of humanity in the process. Would be kinda counterintuitive."

'

The bowman let out an amused huff. "Hmph. Well, it's good that you've managed to keep a sense of humor despite our catastrophic situation." Huh... Thinking about it, that was good. Ritsuka wasn't really even sure if it just helped her cope or something, but at least it was there, so maybe she hadn't gone insane just yet.

'

"Sorry to interrupt your chitchat~" A sudden singsong from behind her almost made the Master jump, turning around to see Da Vinci peeking through the now open doorway. ...She'd actually been inside the whole time. "It's nice to see you getting along, but let's get on with this. A genius' time is valuable, you know."

'

"Ah, please excuse us, Da Vinci," Mash quickly apologized before heading in after the Caster, the other two following right behind her.

'

"Huh... So the renaissance genius really transformed himself into his greatest masterpiece," Archer muttered, looking more curious than surprised. He must've seen some pretty weird stuff during his time as a Servant. Entering the room, the trio found it... completely empty except for a few chairs and a desk. There was literally nothing else there, yet Da Vinci had taken position in the middle of the room, standing there proudly with her arms crossed, as if waiting for something. That something appeared quickly as Archer held out his hand, a jewel-like shiny object resting on his palm. "So, I assume this thing that mage gave me is going to- Yup, there we go."

'

Before his question could be finished, the jewel on the bowman's hand started to glow, then flew off next to Da Vinci as lines of pure light erupted from it, forming something in the shape of a human. Ritsuka didn't even need to guess who it was creating, even before Dio's form fully manifested through the intertwining lines. "Connection secured. Construct projection complete. Status: stable." For a second, Ritsuka was expecting this to be some type of automaton based on the robotic tone it had, only for the thought to get thrown completely out of the window once Dio turned to them with a grin. "Now then, ready to get your socks blown off, kids?"

'

The creation was a really impressive copy, with the earlier lines of light having lost their luster and fused completely, a seamless image of a person was formed. Though there was still something bothering Ritsuka. She hadn't noticed it immediately, but after Dio took a few steps, it became clear. Even if it was faint, she could still hear his footsteps whenever he moved. "You... you're a hologram, right? But how are you, you know, touching things?"

'

"Nice observation. This form is a hard light construct projected by my Impact Rainbow." At the mention of the frankly baffling name, Da Vinci rolled her eyes and let out a sigh. Dio clearly noticed based on his smirk. "But if that name really bothers you, like it does a certain someone, you can just call it the Spectrum Stone Holoprism." Yup. Ritsuka would definitely go with the latter.

'

"Well, it's really impressive. You're actually in the Reactor room, right? Despite that, it looks so real that I might've thought it really was you if I didn't see the Holoprism activating."

'

"I know, right? And it's even in full color," the Spaniard nodded proudly, though his mood suddenly soured. "Seriously though, why is it that in like every sci-fi series where they have holographic communicators, those damn things can only show blue? I know it's the easiest color to project, but put some damn effort in, like c'mon." ...While the Master could somewhat agree, what was with this timing?

'

Completely ignoring the tangent the man went on, Da Vinci walked over to Ritsuka while pulling something from her pocket. "Now, before we start, here's a bit of an extra gift from your local Universal Genius." Extending her hand forward, she presented the Master with a loop of cord. "With this, you should be able to properly wear that piece of Sampo around your neck."

'

"Oh, thank you very much, Da Vinci." As Ritsuka took the white cord from the Caster, she wondered why she looked so pleased with giving something like this. But that changed the moment she took it in her hand. Eyes wide, she raised the string to her face to get a better look. "Wow. This is some really nice cord." She'd never felt such smooth fabric. It didn't feel the least bit rough to the skin. In fact, even when she just held it in her hand, she could still barely feel it. The clasp too was nearly indistinguishable from the rest of the cord, both to the eye and touch. This would almost definitely be really comfortable to wear.

'

"Well obviously, since I crafted it personally. It's really tough, to the point that you could chop at it with an axe and it still wouldn't snap. It also tightens around your neck, without being uncomfortable, to ensure that it doesn't fall off no matter how rough a situation is."

'

"Oh, I... see?" Ritsuka muttered. That honestly seemed a tad extreme to her, (and some really quick work,) but having something like this keep the shard safe while it was on her was really reassuring. "You really didn't have to go through all that trouble, but I'm very thankful that you did. I'll be sure to take good care of this."

'

"Hmm~ Having people appreciate my work is the greatest reward as a creator," the brunette hummed gleefully. "But, we're here for a reason, so let's move on, shall we." Turning to Dio's hologram, she gave him a nod, which was immediately reciprocated with a thumbs up and a grin.

'

"Suspense intensifying." With a snap of Dio's fingers, a drumroll started sounding from somewhere, and the lights turned off with the exception of a single spotlight in the middle of the room. Right under it, the floor opened up, letting colored smoke into the room as two sheet covered forms rose from the hole. All the while, Ritsuka, Mash and Archer simply stared at the spectacle in disbelief, the Master wondering just how much time had been used for this pompous reveal.

'

"And here you go," Da Vinci announced, simultaneously pulling the sheets off of the forms. "Two brand new Mystic Codes, straight from my workshop."

'

There were two mannequins under the sheets, though they each only had the torso left. Both heads and the legs had been removed, yet considering the apparel on them, those parts were hardly necessary. The one on the right was a skin tight garb that covered the wearer's arms, shoulders, and partially neck, but nothing else. It was mostly yellowish orange, which notably matched her scrunchie really well, and white, with some black and silver mixed in. The forearms had some sort of hard ridges running along their length, and the gloves had the backs of the hands missing. The one on the left, on the other hand, was a far more ordinary piece of clothing. It was a black, hooded robe that reached around her thighs. The only real things of note were the two cords running across its chest and the Chaldea logo on the upper sleeves. All and all, it was a really simple garment.

'

"These two, huh..." Approaching the more interesting of the two garments, Ritsuka began inspecting it, focusing mostly on the hands. "This one has a pretty curious design. Is there a reason for it to look like this?"

'

Dio immediately let out a chuckle, sharing an amused look with Da Vinci. "Oh, man. You should've seen the crap the guys at the Engineering Department were suggesting at first. A full-on bodysuit? Yikes." The Caster joined in on the laughing, shaking her head in a way that, above all else, reminded Ritsuka of a teacher getting some completely ridiculous answer from a student. Thinking about it, being an ordinary person working with these two must have been... draining, to say the least. "Completely unnecessary when it comes to efficiency. Just the arms and shoulders need to be covered for proper functionality. It can also be easily worn under other clothes."

'

"...I'll take your word for it," Ritsuka nodded. Really, what could she even say? This type of engineering went way over her head anyway. However, as she examined the Mystic Code, there was one detail that confused her. If nothing else, she could at least criticize the appearance of the clothing a bit. "But the glove parts here... I get that they're supposed to leave the back of the hand bare to let the wearer see their Command Spell, but was it really necessary to have them on both hands? I mean, I suppose some people hold their's on their left hand, but still..."

'

"Ah, but that's just one thing those gaps are used for." Dio joined Ritsuka right by the mannequin before removing the Mystic Code from one of its hands, leaving the glove part awkwardly hanging off of the wrist. Next he pointed at the spot right above it. "You see how the cuffs are somewhat distended on the wrists here? Well, just press this tiny button here and: voilà." Like getting sucked into a vacuum cleaner, the glove disappeared into the cuff without leaving a trace that it had existed in the first place. "These are some really nice gloves, so they shouldn't really get in the way of most things, but if you want them off, that's all you need to do. And pressing the button again will let them out again. You do want to keep them on for a proper flow of power when using spells, though."

'

Ritsuka had to admit, she really hadn't considered them to have that useful of a function. "Huh... Well that's definitely handy," she muttered, only to realize what she'd said after she finished speaking. Wait. Did she just accidentally make a pun? Oh God she totally did, and it was a stupid one too. The Master quickly moved on before anyone could start paying attention to her accidental joke, and started observing the other Mystic Code. "This one is a lot more traditional, though. Wearing something like this would make me stand out a lot less during a Rayshift into the past."

'

"Oh, that," the two inventors sighed together before Dio continued. "Yeah, its appearance comes from the Mystic Code handed out to notable students in the Clock Tower. The only real difference comes from us switching the Clock Tower's logo to Chaldea's. It's honestly a pretty boring design, but we had to make at least one that didn't stand out."

'

"Some people just want to live life boring," Da Vinci muttered, shaking her head wistfully. "I mean, we have Perception Guises, so it really doesn't matter what Masters wear during Rayshifts. It's just oppressing creative freedom and beautiful clothing for the sake of oppression."

'

Nodding somberly by her side, the Spaniard patted her shoulder. "It is a tragedy, but that's enough about the lameness of the bigwigs. Let's move on to the best part, which is what these babies can do. Starting with the Combat Mystic Code," he announced, managing to raise the Caster's mood back up while motioning at the bodysuit. "First off, we have Reinforce All. ...Which is actually pretty boring to be honest. Not the best start." In response to the lukewarm start, Da Vinci shot Dio with an extremely dry look, yet he just shrugged with a smirk. "It's true though. The spell is extremely similar to the Momentary Reinforcement your current Mystic Code has, but can be used on multiple Servants at once, up to three, plus the recharge is roughly a quarter shorter. Obviously there's a drawback, which is that the strength of the reinforcement is only 60% of the concentrated one."

'

"Alright. Simple enough," Ritsuka nodded. While it definitely wasn't anything mindblowing, the spell was at least useful in practically any combat scenario with multiple Servants.

'

"Next up, we have Gandr. Differing from the other spells, this one's actually meant to be used on any hostiles. Just point, aim, and pew." As if to demonstrate, the hologram pointed its finger and fired a ball of light from it, which flew only about a meter before exploding like a small firework. "A solid hit will give a nice shock to anyone thinking they can just tank it."

'

"...Gandr, huh?" Ritsuka let out a soft sigh as she repeated the name. Mash gave her a slightly concerned glance, clearly still remembering what they had discussed in the morning. "While I personally don't really have issues with runic magecraft, using something like this is basically the fastest way to turn oneself into a social outcast among my country's mages."

'

"Yeah, that's definitely true. Good ol' Uralic/Indo-European barrier held so tightly by Finnish mages. They've really done their damndest to keep the old Scandinavian ways from influencing their thaumaturgical system," Dio nodded, much to Ritsuka's surprise. He really seemed to know what was going on. "But, it's also thanks to that, that the Tietäjä-arts are so remarkably well preserved. Just kinda ironic how our last Master ended up being a Finn in that sense."

'

Well, that was definitely true. Even if her own meager bloodline didn't possess any of the ancient knowledge, Ritsuka knew that they had at least persisted far better than most thaumaturgical systems. ...In all honesty, Dio was shockingly well informed on the matter of her country's mages. Did he have a friend in Finland or something? But still, while she'd take any help she could get, ignoring the old ways and just using runes for something of this level didn't really seem worth it. "But Gandr... Not really the most impressive option to pick if you're going to use runes."

'

Shaking his finger, the Spaniard grinned at her. "Ah, but this is no ordinary Gandr. In fact, I'd go so far as to call it 'Super Gandr'."

'

Da Vinci rolled her eyes once more. "Putting that awful name aside, it really is quite something. Even I was shocked by how this man managed to craft such a heinous, wicked curse for the Mystic Code." As if it was the most lavish praise in the world, Dio puffed his chest proudly, prompting the Caster to give him a jab with her elbow, yet he just kept on grinning. "It really is no exaggeration to say that it hardly even counts as a Gandr anymore, since it no longer deals damage comparable to a cold as it curses the target. As far as diseases go, it's moved on to a league of its own."

'

The three spectators exchanged curious glances, Ritsuka's hopes rising notably. For a genius like Da Vinci to say that was certainly promising. "Really? Then what kind of disease would you compare it to?"

'

"Well, its main purpose is to immobilize a target, so I chose the perfect disease for that," Dio said, pausing for drama for a few seconds before his grand reveal. "Basically, in a single shot, this Super Gandr deals all the damage of polio."

'

"Polio...? It inflicts all of the bodily damage of going through polio in a single strike?" Mash repeated in disbelief. While Ritsuka was hardly a medical expert, she still knew that polio was extremely dangerous as far as diseases go, especially in the past. "Well, that is most certainly... devastating. But why polio of all diseases?"

'

"Paralytic polio to be exact. As for why: well, that's because it's ridiculously effective," Dio said, raising a finger. "First off, it's old. While major epidemics only began to occur in the 1900s, we've got documentation of polio all the way from 15th century BC. Second, it's not literally polio, but its concept. The reason I chose it is that it's an especially effective curse against older targets. Usually, older beings are harder to affect with magecraft, since mystery increases with age and all that, but this nasty little curse actually relies on that itself. Longer history is a weakness in this case, since the likelihood of developing paralytic polio increases with age, as does the extent of paralysis. So, the older the target, the greater its chance of success."

'

Putting morbidity aside, Ritsuka had to admit that the spell sounded extremely effective. This seemed like something that could've been really useful back in Fuyuki. Archer appeared to concur, looking simultaneously impressed and slightly disturbed. "Hoh... This is certainly a cunning curse."

'

Da Vinci nodded in agreement. "It's effectively the world's nastiest stun gun. Of course, it depends on the target's age and level of Magic Resistance, but with a solid hit, even most Servants would get immobilized for a second. The unfortunate side-effect of the polio fixation is that the spell no longer affects anything inanimate. It can function against things like golems and automata by targeting their mana core, but it can't be used to break down something like a strong door." Well, that was hardly a problem considering the upsides. Ritsuka couldn't really imagine herself needing something with the force of high yield explosives when she had Servants around.

'

"Also, you might want to avoid using it against humans," Dio added, just in time to reveal one more downside with the spell. "Because, let's be honest, you won't be stunning humans with this spell. Of course, the amount of damage depends on if they have any resistance to magic, but generally, it's gonna turn people into sauce."

'

Ritsuka's face paled the slightest bit before she coughed awkwardly. "I'll... definitely be keeping that in mind." She could very much have lived the rest of her life without that image in her head. "Let's move on, then." A suggestion the others in the room seemed very much in agreement with.

'

"Now here's another big boy for you, as if the last one wasn't impressive enough, Order Change." The Spaniard seemed especially excited over this one, but at least the name didn't sound too weird. And the reason for his excitement became clear immediately. "Take care not to get your socks blown off, 'cause what this baby does is use Displacement magecraft on two Servants, immediately switching their positions." The jaws of the listeners practically dropped, and judging by the look on his face, Dio really seemed to enjoy it. Da Vinci as well. "Ahh, I just love these reactions."

'

Ritsuka exchanged a look with Mash, their faces in equal disbelief, so she clearly hadn't been aware of this one either. For a second, the Master wondered if it might be a joke of some kind, yet Dio's face, while enthusiastic, seemed perfectly serious. She tried Da Vinci next, but was faced with the same result. This was seriously... How did they even manage to do something like this? "Hold a moment." Archer, while clearly surprised as well, looked quite skeptical as he interjected. "You're seriously telling me it's possible to achieve spatial transportation with this Mystic Code?" Even as the two inventors nodded simultaneously, his skepticism hardly faltered, just raising his eyebrow questioningly. "...Alright. What's the catch, then?"

'

Hearing the question, the redhead managed to shake off the shock to really process what was being suggested here. Of course, even if it was someone like Leonardo da Vinci, something like teleportation wouldn't be that easy to achieve. There had to be a trick or a limitation of some kind. A theory that was basically confirmed by the Caster's smile. "A sharp guy, this one. Definitely a keeper~" she hummed, reminding Ritsuka that she still didn't know who Archer actually was. "Of course, this isn't Pure Spatial Transference, since that falls into the realm of True Magic, so there are some notable limitations. First: It only works on Servants, like with the other support spells. Aside from the obvious reason for choosing us as targets, Heroic Spirits by their nature as, well, spirits, are easier to transfer like this when compared to solid, continued existences." That would've been Ritsuka's first guess too. Not only for the fact that it was a shared limitation among the other support spells, but also because of the ephemeral nature of Servants. "Second: Consent. As in, a Servant will be able stop the change by 'holding on' to their current location. So unfortunately, no swapping any possible enemy Servants into a trap." Disappointing sure, but something like that would have been just too good to be true. If she'd had access to something like that in Fuyuki, getting a hit on Berserker and Saber would've been so much easier. Speaking of disappointing, that was the look on Da Vinci's face as she explained the final limitation. "Third: Range. The targeted Servants must be within a 200 meter radius of the Mystic Code and each other, or they can't make the jump. This last one has been really frustrating, but it was the furthest distance where we were able to get consistent results."

'

"Well, we can always try to improve it when we have the time," Dio added with a shake of his head. "Which we really don't currently have, so it's a no can do at the moment."

'

"I see..." Ritsuka muttered. While the limitations were certainly... well, limiting, there was no way she could complain over the results. The range was the most restrictive of the conditions, but still... 200 meters. While not long in terms of Servant combat, especially Archers, it was still a good bit of distance. In a chaotic melee, the spell was perfect for a surprise attack. Ideas were practically starting to pour into her head. "But even with those limitations, it's still an incredible achievement. If we'd had this back in Fuyuki... I mean, wow. The possibilities are just ridiculous."

'

Something that Archer clearly agreed with. "That they are. Just the ability to have Servants instantly switch positions is a trump card that should be able to catch just about any enemy off guard."

'

"Definitely," Ritsuka nodded. It seemed that the bowman had had the same thought as her. She really was growing more and more curious over his identity. But, that would have to wait, as a more serious possibility popped into her head. "Although that raises the question..." The redhead gave Mash a worried glance. "Can it... Is it safe to transport Mash with it?"

'

The girl in question looked at her in surprise, having clearly not thought about the possibility before now. "That is... Yes, that is certainly true. How would my Demi-Servant body react to something like that?"

'

Both Da Vinci and Dio seemed interested in the possibility as well, the latter nodding sagely. "Ah, what an excellent question that is. As for the answer..." he drew out, gaining the attention of the others in the room before shrugging. "Who knows?"

'

Ritsuka furrowed her brow at the nonchalant attitude. "Are you screwing with us? This really isn't a laughing matter." There was no way she could just 'use it' on Mash without knowing the consequences. Who knew what something like spatial transportation could do to her.

'

Da Vinci gave the man another jab before rephrasing the answer. "Well obviously we haven't been able to test it on her, what with Mash only becoming a Demi-Servant yesterday, so we can't know for certain, but it should be theoretically possible. After all, the other support spells, which had been tailored specifically for Servants, were able to affect Mash." The answer at least eased Ritsuka up a little. While she didn't like the 'theoretically' part, the other spells working did bolster her confidence slightly.

'

"But as far as testing that goes, well... let's just put it on hold for the next couple of days. To maximize safety, we'll be trying it in the D20 World, with the two of us on standby just in case something goes wrong."

'

"Hold on a moment," Ritsuka called out, gaining the attention of those in the room. "I think you're both forgetting the person who's answer counts most of all in this matter." Now in turn, all eyes moved on Mash, who blinked in surprise. The fact that she had expected to just go along with While she was technically her Servant, to Ritsuka at least, Mash was a person first, and she wouldn't force any unnecessary dangers on her after she'd already agreed to fight for her. Even if the Shielder's protective Noble Phantasm made her the prime target in using Order Change to save someone else, the rewards might not be worth the potential risks. "If it's too dangerous, Mash has every right to refuse the testing. And no matter how important you think-"

'

"I'll do it, Senpai," Mash confirmed before Ritsuka even finished speaking. And before she could interject, the Demi-Servant's serious expression stopped the words from exiting her mouth. "The advantages of using Order Change are prominent enough that I believe the risks would be worth it if we can confirm its viability. As such, I have no issues with testing it." And yet, her seriousness shifted to a smile before adding: "But I do appreciate you asking for my opinion on the matter."

'

"Well, if you're sure," Ritsuka conceded. For a second, she had wanted to disagree, but she was the one who brought it up and she'd stand by Mash's choice. ...And admittedly that smile had made her back down a bit. Ugh. She had to focus. With the answer, this matter was settled, but they still had a reason to be here. "Alright, but that test won't be happening until later, and right now, I'm sure you two have more important things to do than this, so I suggest we get back on track."

'

"Yes. It's about time we got a move on," Da Vinci nodded, patting the black robe next to the bodysuit. "Now for the Association Mystic Code. First, we have... Heal All." Enthusiasm could literally be heard draining from the Caster's voice as she got to the name, simultaneously giving Dio the side-eye. "Seriously. This is effectively the most basic rpg name imaginable." A statement Ritsuka agreed with 100%. Also, Da Vinci apparently knew about rpgs.

'

"I'll take that as a compliment," the Spaniard grinned, prompting Da Vinci to roll her eyes. "But, in comparison to the reduction in Reinforce All's efficiency, here the reduction compared to Chaldea Mystic Code's First Aid is only 6,67%. Of course, the cooldown period is longer, but it far outperforms the former when it comes to team support."

'

Well, that was definitely good. Ritsuka herself had absolutely zero skills in healing magecraft, so to have multiple options offered to her through the Mystic Codes was reassuring to say the least. "Alright, what's next?"

'

Dio was getting excited again, tipping the redhead off that this one would be another special case. "Next, we have Spiritron Transfer. This one's actually really simple, and useful in just about every situation. It's connected to your magical energy flow with your Servant. For example, you know how when you charge your phone, you plug it in and let the power slowly fill up its battery?" Ritsuka nodded, but was a bit surprised by his words. So this was a simple one after all? Oh, maybe this spell temporarily did something like improve the transferring rate of magical energy between her and the Servant- "Then think of this spell like firing a taser at your phone to instantly charge a portion of it."

'

Taken aback by the analogy, Ritsuka shared an uncertain look with Mash, who seemed much the same. The usage was certainly a lot more... straightforward than what she had imagined. "Is... is that even safe?"

'

"For Servants, completely. For your phone, absolutely not," Da Vinci confirmed with a smile that was... honestly a bit frightening. "While it definitely feels a bit... unusual, to have a chunk of magical energy blasted into your Spirit Core like that, it can be really useful in a pinch."

'

Ritsuka gave Archer a glance to try and gouge his opinion, but the man simply shrugged. "I have no experience with something like that, but if this spell works like they're describing it, it would without a doubt be useful in long, drawn out battles or situations where we don't have much time to rest between combat." Well, she couldn't exactly argue with that.

'

But with that, they were down to the last one, which Dio seemed more than happy to announce. "And finally, we have Command Shuffle."

'

"Why did I even let you name this one?" Da Vinci just sounded tired at this point.

'

"''Cause you lost at rock-paper-scissors," Dio grinned. That's how they decided who got to name the spells? In fact, Ritsuka couldn't even begin to guess what it did based on the name before he explained it. "But moving on, this baby is a party-wide repositioning spell to give your Servants different options for attacking. Not liking your current attack options? Then just use it to shuffle your Servants out of, or into the fray."

'

"Shuffle my Servants...?" Ritsuka repeated. Even after the explanation, she was still just as lost. "Maybe this is a language barrier thing, but... What does that even mean? Isn't shuffling like rearranging cards or something?"

'

"Shuffle, a verb. To move (one's feet) along the ground or floor without lifting them," Dio clarified in a nearly robotic tone. "Although it can be used for a few different purposes, your suggestion being one of them. I can't really blame you for being confused, though, seeing how all the different definitions would be separate words in Finnish and all." Well, that helped a little, but Ritsuka was curious as to why and how the Spaniard even knew that last part.

'

Thankfully, Da Vinci was there to progress the explanation. "But, as he said, it's a repositioning spell. It's nowhere near as fast as Order Change, but there are far fewer limitations. As for where the 'shuffle' comes from, it's due to the spell's main limitation, which is that it needs solid surfaces to move Servants around."

'

"Effectively, by locking the targeted Servants together with a compact surface, the resulting concrete mass can be moved freely along an analogous surface." ...And Dio managed to lose her again. Ritsuka's eyes shifted between the two inventors awkwardly until Da Vinci jabbed the Spaniard once more. "Oh, right. You partially fuse a Servant's feet with whatever they're standing on, which allows you to rapidly reposition them by sliding them along said surface or anything that's connected to said surface and is similar enough in composition. Meaning, you can move a Servant from a stone floor to another stone floor, even if it's made of different stone, but not if the floor is made of wood. Also, this obviously means no moving Servants in midair."

'

"...Thank you for the clarification." While there was still some grey area, she at least basically understood the function. Although, thinking about the way Dio had described it... "By 'sliding along a surface', do you mean like the thing you did back in the Command Room?"

'

"No. Not really." Ritsuka was admittedly a bit surprised by the immediate, flat rebuttal. "They might look similar but both the methodology and results are completely different. It'll probably be easier to understand if you just try the spell for yourself and see how it works." Honestly, she had to agree. That just seemed like the best option at this point. "Anyways, that's all the main parts of the Mystic Codes themselves. You got anything left to ask before we're finished here?"

'

Ritsuka shook her head. She was quite confident that she had enough information to at least practice with the Mystic Codes. "No, I think I've got a good enough understanding on how each of them works."

'

Da Vinci clapped her hands together, once again showing off that gorgeous smile of hers. "Alright, that's good. But in any case, train yourself in using these properly for the next couple of days, until we get the upgraded versions working properly."

'

Ritsuka nearly froze at the final part. "Upgraded?" she repeated in disbelief. "Are you seriously planning on making them even stronger?"

'

But Dio was quick to alleviate her shock with a quick shake of his hand. "No, no. At this point, they're just about as strong as they're going to get, so we're not gonna waste time on such minimalistic upgrades." Yeah, figured. Some of the spells were already crazy enough, to the point where she couldn't really imagine them becoming even stronger. "Instead, we're going to be working on the magical energy flow of all three of them to ensure you can use them simultaneously."

'

Ritsuka fell silent, exchanging looks with Mash and Archer, who shared her surprise this time. "...Wait. You mean, I'll be able to use all three at the same time?" She genuinely thought that she'd misunderstood something, yet the confirming nods from the two in front of her certified the possibility. The redhead felt a simultaneous wave of relief and dismay washing over her. This possibility had crossed her mind, but she'd written it off as wistful thinking. And yet... "That's just... I mean, wow. That honestly seems kind of nuts."

'

"Agreed. It does sound quite dangerous," Archer nodded, giving the inventors a skeptical look. "Utilizing three powerful Mystic Codes in conjunction is no small feat. Are you sure Master's body will be able to handle it?"

'

That's the point that bothered Ritsuka the most, and judging by the hint of worry in Mash's gaze, she was of the same mind. Given how aware she was of her own abilities, the redhead would've answered 'no' almost immediately. Yet the confident grin on Dio's face and the thumbs up he flashed managed to alleviate their worries. "Sure I'm sure. Given how Chaldea's Mystic Codes are powered, there isn't any danger to Ritsuka, unless she does something really stupid." As the Spaniard's grin shifted to sly, Ritsuka could feel a slight frown growing on her lips. Was he trying to imply something? Well, she would certainly try not to do anything of the sort, like she'd done in Fuyuki. "The biggest issue is getting them all to work properly without interrupting each others' energy flow. At the moment, think of it like the Mystic Codes are short circuiting each other."

'

"I see..." the bowman muttered, walking closer to the Mystic Codes. Ritsuka once more got to witness his piercing eyes as he observed the garments. "But, what do you mean by: 'how Chaldea's Mystic Codes are powered'? I can sense that there are some types of mana storages in them, but not much beyond that." Taking an even closer look, the man picked up the robe, turning it in his hands. There was no hiding the impression in his eyes. "Though I must say, they are quite intricately crafted. It's not often that I get to see quality work of this level."

'

Dio puffed out his chest, the pride in his smile obvious. "Excellent eyes for quality on this one. No wonder he's an Archer." A remark that got the Servant to roll said eyes. "And yeah. Of course you wouldn't know that. Aside from the constantly active protective spells, each of the Mystic Codes contains three built-in spells to execute at a moment's notice. In this regard, they are much like other Specialised-type Mystic Codes. But, given how they are meant to be used at Rayshift destinations, we added a bit of something extra to them."

'

Holding out his hand, a screen much like the ones projected by the Multi-Appliances appeared out of Dio's palm, showcasing the Combat Mystic Code. As if on cue, Da Vinci pulled out the pair of glasses she'd worn yesterday and placed them on her face, followed by a pointer extending from her other hand, highlighting parts of the Mystic Code on the screen. The Master could only wonder if they practiced these things ahead of time. "You see, the Mystic Codes contain three magical energy 'batteries', one for each spell. Once they are full, the wearer just needs to 'light the fuse' with a bit of their od to fire off the spells. That way, even a mediocre mage will be able to support their Servant with first-rate spells. Of course, after a spell is fired, it needs to go on cooldown until it's recharged. The period lasts around a minute on average, depending on the spell." The Caster really was giving Ritsuka some massive teacher vibes. And to drive the point further in, just as Archer was about to speak, Da Vinci turned her pointer towards him, shutting him up. "And before you ask, the magical energy for the batteries comes from Chaldea, the same way it's sent to the Servants. It's actually quite a bit easier, since we can just send the energy straight to the Mystic Code, unlike the Servants where it needs to be channelled through the Master."

'

"And, if the Master doesn't want to wait through the entirety of the cooldown, they can fire the spells off again, as long as they compensate for the missing energy themselves," Dio added, before giving the redhead an awkward look. "But, with Ritsuka, we recommend that you don't do that, unless it's a last ditch effort."

'

"...I have a feeling as to why, but I'd still like confirmation."

'

At the very least, Dio looked genuinely sorry as he confirmed it. "Yeah... The problem with that is that you just don't have the magical energy needed to do it." Yup, as expected. "The stronger spells, like Super Gandr and Order Change, simply just need more power than literally all of your od can provide. You could drain herself dry and still be unable to use two of the same spell back to back."

'

The Master felt a few more apologetic gazes on her, but didn't pay them any mind. This was simply something she was already used to after years of mediocrity. "Well, that's to be expected when dealing with tools of this level." Picking up the garments, Ritsuka felt a spark of exhilaration running through her spine. Even if she couldn't use the Mystic Codes to their absolute limit, the fact that she could use them at all was a victory in her book. "But still, these are just amazing. Using these, I can actually be a competent support for the Servants during battle. I really can't thank you enough."

'

Da Vinci smiled loftily at the words of praise. "You're welcome. And don't worry about praising my creations too much, since such a thing is hardly possible." A comment that earned her a halfhearted glare from Dio, but she pretended not to notice. "Just be sure to practice so that you'll be able to use them properly when the time comes."

'

"Of course." Carefully folding the Mystic Codes under her arm, Ritsuka turned to face her Servants, focusing on the man in particular. "Now, it's off to the Simulator with us, and I've got plenty of questions for you, Archer."

'

"Good grief. I can already tell from that look in your eye that some of them are going to be demanding," the bowman sighed, yet a small smirk grew on his face afterwards. "Well, so far you're at least far less of a slave driver than my previous Master." Oho? That was definitely an interesting detail. Ritsuka knew that Cú Chulainn had memories of his previous summonings, but it seemed that he wasn't that only one.

'

"Oh, one more thing before you go." As Ritsuka turned back to Da Vinci, she was holding out a tablet towards her. "Here's the tablet you requested, Ritsuka. Guessing you want it for taking notes on your Servants?"

'

"Exactly, thank you very much." The Master gratefully received the device. With its white coloring and spotless screen, it was very much like some of the top of the line devices she'd seen in stores, with the obvious exception of Chaldea's logo on the backside. Although if she had to guess, this thing was way more powerful than anything available in stores. "There's going to be a lot of info to pick up during the day, and I'm making sure I'm not forgetting anything." Gently placing the pad between the Mystic Codes, she turned to the waiting Servants once again. "Now, this time, let's get going."

'

"Yes, Senpai," Mash nodded, smiling eagerly. "I'm already quite familiar with the Simulator's workings, so you can leave adjusting any necessary settings to me."

'

"Thanks, Mash. That should make things go quicker." For who knows how manyth time for the day, the redhead was unbelievably glad to have her around.

'

"Have fun blowing stuff up," Dio waved at the fleeing group. Though right before she exited, Ritsuka heard him begin talking to the Caster. "By the way, Da Vinci. I just found out about this earlier, but did you know that we have plates of pure hafnium in the storage?" This man was seriously going back to that again?

'

"What? Are you serious?" Da Vinci asked in disbelief, sounding sincerely baffled, much to Ritsuka's surprise. "What kind of an idiot decided that? Sure, it's useful to have around, but as plates? Are you sure it's not just due to some accident?"

'

"I know, right? When I have time, I'll be checking through all the possible records. Then, I'll find the dumbass, and..."

'

'

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'

'

"A room, huh..." Cú Chulainn muttered as he walked around the space he'd been given to call his own. Much like most of Chaldea, the interior design of this place was really stale, with only the plant in the corner bringing any coloration to the metallic room. There were also some books, but from just the slightest glimpse at the titles, he had no interest in looking them over. Well, the bed was at least comfortable enough, something that was confirmed as he laid down on it, staring at the ceiling.

'

So, this was his new gig, huh. When he'd been tasked with helping Chaldea solve the mess that his last Grail War had turned into, the Caster wouldn't have ever guessed that it would escalate into a catastrophe like this. Well, that was the reason he'd been given the task in the first place. Not that he really minded too much. Sure, the stakes were higher than ever before, but that just meant that he'd have to tackle it with everything he had and then some. Hell, for once, he actually had some really capable allies. Of course, the fact that he'd ended up becoming a Caster was frustrating, since it meant that his spear had been sealed away. He wasn't forgetting that any time soon. On the other hand, the bonuses he received in its stead weren't bad at all. Kind of a nice change of pace.

'

But on the flipside, there were some issues too. He wasn't going to explain his whole situation to the Chaldeans, since it seemed like it would be a complicated pain in the ass. Unless someone came to him with some concrete proof, he'd just keep quiet about it. Not to mention that it would make his relationship with the Valkyrie just absurdly convoluted. His feelings towards her were already... bizarre at best due to this new influence, so adding anything more would just be unbearable. He could only thank every god imaginable that his newfound position let him 'muddle' her feelings towards him a bit, coming with the added bonus of her not going crazy over his nature as a hero.

'

If only he could do something about the other frustratingly familiar faces he now had to work with. That Archer bastard most of all... How the hell did they always end up meeting in Grail Wars and such? If the Throne had a sense of humor, it was an ungodly crappy one. There was also that snake woman and the pain in the ass swordsman to deal with, but at least in their cases, it was fighting against them that was the frustrating part, so he'd at least take them as allies over enemies any day.

'

And then there were the two new faces, the Saber and the Berserker, who at least from his first impression seemed to be fun enough company. Both of them just had that... spirit that spoke to him. Reminded him of some of the rowdy bastards back home, who he could enjoy a good fight with and get some drinks afterwards. The swordsman even seemed to enjoy fishing as much as him, based on their talk earlier, which made him wonder... Could they use that Simulator thing for fishing? Would it be as enjoyable as the real thing? That was something he'd have to check out later.

'

Of course, the guy who made it was also an interesting case. Had he been his usual self, he might've not noticed anything, but with his newfound perception, he was able to see right through the trick the mage had been using. And the results had been... intriguing to say the least. Only time would tell, but he had a feeling he could get a lot of fun out of that fellow.

'

And for once, he'd actually lucked out when it came to his Master. Sure, she did admittedly suck as a mage, but as far as he was concerned, personality was more important than skill in magecraft when it came to being a good Master. The girl was willing to be a bit reckless and take risks when it came to battle tactics, but not to the point of stupidity. She was overall pretty polite, but wasn't afraid to speak out when she needed to and had a good head on her shoulders. Although that had its own issues, mostly made clear during his demonstration earlier. Thankfully he'd gotten through it by just showing off and explaining his second Noble Phantasm to the redhead, without the need to go into detail about its true nature.

'

As for what to do now...

'

After finishing that dirty work in the Reactor room, the Servants had all gotten a few hours of 'off time' to do whatever they pleased. A nap could be nice enough, but the druid really didn't feel like sleeping at a time like this, where there were so many different sources of intrigue available. If he was going to be fighting together with these guys, he might as well get to know 'em a bit better. And the little thing he'd picked up earlier could do just the trick.

'

Exiting his room, Cú immediately spotted one of the two people he was looking for, walking in the opposite direction. The golden haired, muscular Berserker. This guy's physique really reminded him of his uncle Fergus. "Hey there, Golden. You got a minute?"

'

On cue, Kintoki turned around, grinning at him. "Oh? Sure. I was thinking of going to check out the gym they've got here. Those modern training equipment are pretty golden." Man did he like that word. The guy was definitely 'quirky', but considering the alternatives, he'd drawn one hell of a good card as far as Madness Enhancement goes. And while on the subject of cards.

'

Pulling out the pack, he presented a box with the word 'Poker' to the Berserker. "I picked these up from that recreation room. Wanna go for a game?"

'

Kintoki's smile widened almost immediately upon reading the word. "Oh, ain't those poker cards? That's one golden game." Cú honestly wasn't surprised that this guy already knew about poker, given the way he was. "Yeah, I'm up for it. You want it to be just the two of us, or...?"

'

The Caster shook his head. "Nah. Saber should be done with his demonstration soon, so we can have a third player join in." These two were the ones he wanted to get to know after all.

'

"Golden. But what about the other Servants? I just saw Archer walking by, so-"

'

"No." The instantaneous rejection faltered the Berserker's smile a bit, but Cú kept going. "Trust me on this. That guy's a major pain in the ass. Playing with him won't be a good time in the least."

'

While the man didn't seem entirely convinced, he still nodded in affirmation. "Alright, I guess... By the way, should I call you Caster, or what? The normal Grail War rules don't really apply here."

'

Right, that. That was an issue that wouldn't even come up in a normal Grail War. And in Cú's case, the question was even more complicated than usual. Well, it wasn't exactly conventional, but nothing about their situation was, so: "You can just use my true name, since everyone already knows it. Besides, we've got another Caster here in Chaldea, so it would just make things confusing."

'

"Oh, right..." Kintoki looked a bit conflicted as he scratched his head, like it was an obvious answer that he should've figured out on his own. "...This place is weird. Golden, but weird." Yeah, that was something every Servant here could agree on. But before he could go any further, the Berserker's expression lit back up and he started waving. "Oh, hey. There he is. Yo, Saber!"

'

Turning around on cue, the Caster also spotted the red haired man walking around a corner at the end of the hallway, looking at them curiously. "Hm? Oh, you guys. What's up?"

'

"We wanted to talk. You finished with your demonstration?" Cú asked as the Saber walked closer.

'

A proud grin grew on the man's lips as he let out a laugh. "Hah! Oh yeah. You should've seen Master's face when I let my Noble Phantasm loose. Even though she's familiar with my stories, she didn't see that one coming."

'

"Right... You and Master have the same homeland, don't you?" An inquiry that was confirmed with a nod. "Well, whatever. We wanted to know if you're up for a game."

'

"A game?" Lemminkäinen looked at the deck of cards on his hand with a raised eyebrow before shrugging. "Eh, why not. It's got to wait a bit, though, since Master still has something she wanted to talk about with me, but it shouldn't take too long."

'

"Golden," Kintoki grinned, having grown quite excited upon the confirmation. "While it doesn't really matter since they're all new, we can use my room."

'

The other two nodded in confirmation before Lemminkäinen continued. "Sure, but after the game, I've got something else in mind." Both the druid and the blond looked at the man expectantly until he slapped Kintoki on the arm, fire shining in his eyes. "You've got one hell of an impressive bod there, Golden. I want to see if it's as strong as it looks, so care to take me on in the Simulator?"

'

The Berserker's grin somehow managed to grow even wider, obviously more excited with the proposition than the game. Well, Cú would have been the same in his place. "Ho? Now that's something I can't ignore. You're on, Lemminki, Lempki..." The growing excitement came to a screeching halt as Kintoki continued messing up the redhead's name, while the man in question stared at him blankly. On the fifth try, he finally got it down. "...Lemminkäinen? Damn you've got a long name."

'

The dry look the Saber was unleashing was nearly a match for their Master's. "Come on, it ain't that tough." Yet despite the stuttering, it was still a confirmation, getting Lemminkäinen to resume his earlier smile. "But it's settled, then. You want in, Child of Light?"

'

He was seriously glad to have been invited as well, although... "Honestly? Yeah, I do. But just, damn..." The Hound of Culann's earlier annoyance returned ten-fold, to the point where he nearly felt like crying. This was such an absurdly unique summoning, and yet: "Why the hell did I get summoned as a damn Caster again..."

'

Lemminkäinen visibly cringed at the words. "Uuhh, right, that." The Saber then proceeded to pat the Caster's shoulder, much like he had done back in the Summoning Chamber when the topic first came up. The act had been a surprise to Cú then, and still was. It was genuine sympathy, without a hint of condescension. This man truly understood how he felt. "Trust me, man, I get it. I've been in the same boat a few times myself. It sucks, but you've just got to deal with it and play to your strengths." The heartfelt words really did make the Caster feel better, while Kintoki was left looking awkwardly at their shared moment from the side, having no experience with their struggle.

'

Obviously he was right, and the druid desperately missing his spear could just barely get over the situation. Just had to grit his teeth and play with the cards fate had dealt him, no matter how much it sucked. "...Yeah. But shouldn't you go to see Master now? The sooner you do, the sooner we get to start the game."

'

Lemminkäinen blinked in surprise at the words. Did he seriously... "Oh, right," he added hastily. Yup. He'd totally forgotten. "See you in a bit." The Saber made a dash towards the end of the corridor, where their Master's room resided. After a few seconds and some words into the speaker, the door opened, and he disappeared inside, leaving the remaining two hoping that whatever the subject was, it would be over quickly.

'

'

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'

'

It had been a long, stressful day. Very stressful, but it was finally nearing its end. Ritsuka would've wanted nothing more than to spend the rest of the evening by herself, but unfortunately, she still had two things to take care of with the Servants. Well, the subject of those tasks was the same, but she'd need to converse with two different Servants about it. And it was precisely that subject that made the task so unfortunate. It was quite likely going to be her most frustrating and awkward job for the day, but it had to be taken care of. Which was the reason Ritsuka was currently sitting in her room, waiting for a certain dissolute man to show up. Unfortunately, she hadn't specified an exact time, so she only knew that he was going to show up within the next half an hour.

'

But, that was no reason for her to simply sit idly by. With this extra time, she could properly review all the info she'd picked up on her Servants throughout the day. And boy was there a lot to go through.

'

First off was Cú Chulainn, who, as she'd guessed, still had some tricks he'd kept in his sleeve. Although, while she'd expected something, the fact that he'd had a second Noble Phantasm had caught her completely off guard. She'd honestly been pretty mad at him, until he explained why he hadn't mentioned it. Considering that his Wicker Man had overall been the superior choice between the two against Saber, there really hadn't been a reason for him to even use it. At least she knew of it now, so ultimately, there was no harm done. Though the nature of his second NP had surprised her. She knew that the Caster was extremely skilled with runes, but to think that he'd be good enough to invoke all 18 of the original runes and unleash them in an A-rank Noble Phantasm. Brynhildr had mentioned it before, but he must've had an incredible teacher.

'

Speaking of, the Valkyrie's had been the least informative of the sessions, given that Ritsuka was already quite aware of her abilities. There was still the issue with her strange behavior, but the redhead had decided it would be better if they talked about it privately, with just the two of them, at a later date. Given that Mash was with them at the time, she'd figured it'd be more comfortable for the Lancer if she was the only one who knew, as her Master.

'

Next, the two Japanese Servants, Sakata Kintoki and Sasaki Kojirou, who were in similar positions as far as their combat utility went. Specifically, the two were close range powerhouses, though for different reasons. Kojirou's skill with the sword was... well, frankly, it was just stupid. This man could seriously mimic Second Magic through pure swordsmanship alone. In terms of pure skill, he was very likely to be the strongest Servant in existence. Kintoki on the other hand, while greatly lacking in grace by comparison, made up for it with sheer brute strength. In purely a contest of strength, without Noble Phantasms, he was definitely the strongest of the Servants currently in Chaldea. And his Noble Phantasm, while falling a bit short of the others in terms of raw power, had been just as cool as Ritsuka had imagined. She'd seriously had to hold back from showing too much enthusiasm after Kintoki first showed it off. It was also really nice to know that, despite his strange appearance, he was overall a very kind, well meaning person. A real heart of gold. And although he had the body of a grown man, he basically radiated the aura of the excited child Ritsuka had imagined to summon. All and all, both Servants had some fantastic strengths. But they also both faced the same problem, which was a serious lack of diversity. They could only really shine in a direct melee confrontation, severely lacking in options for any other situation. Sure, Kojirou was excellent in a straight up fight unlike most of his class, but he couldn't really function as an assassin. And Kintoki had a lot of raw power, but not that much else. If an opponent attacked from range, all he could really do in retaliation was throw things at them. Definitely things to keep in mind for future battles.

'

And then there was Archer, or Emiya as she had learned earlier, who had easily been the most shocking person to be summoned, even if Ritsuka hadn't realized it at the time. He wasn't even a proper Heroic Spirit in the first place, but a Counter Guardian. Not a famous figure from history or mythology, but simply someone who had made a deal with the world for power. Well, she didn't really mind it all that much, especially since he had that completely absurd Noble Phantasm of his. It wasn't quite as absurd as Kojirou's feat, but it was still pretty ridiculous. The ability to reproduce Noble Phantasms through magecraft? Just... wow. It had at least explained how he was so strong without being a famed hero. The sheer diversity this man possessed was just unreal, which was the reason his session had been the longest by far. Frankly, they didn't even have time to go through all of his weapons due to their sheer number, just some highlights, but he had at least promised to inform her of all the ones that were especially useful and/or unique at a later date.

'

Speaking of variety, the Rider Ritsuka had summoned was no slouch in that regard either. With three Noble Phantasms and a nice collection of Skills, Medusa could fit into quite a few different roles depending on the situation. And despite being hailed as a legendary monster, the woman's personality was surprisingly subdued, which, quite frankly, Ritsuka appreciated immensely. They had enough eccentric Servants already. Not that there weren't any problems, though. Mainly, her main offensive Noble Phantasm. Ugh. Just thinking about it made the Master squeamish. Of course Medusa's mount had to be one of... those. Obviously they were the most common type, but there were other perfectly valid mounts for Riders to use too, like bulls, or ships, or... well, bears in Kintoki's case. At least it was amazingly powerful, so it had something going for it. There was also another issue, and a troublesome one at that. Mash was clearly quite wary of Medusa, for reasons Ritsuka understood perfectly well. The woman had been quite frightening back in Fuyuki, especially for the Shielder who had fought her directly. At least in Chaldea, she seemed courteous enough, if a bit quiet, so hopefully Mash would be able to get used to her with time. Given the small number of fighters on their side, teamwork would be essential for their success, which meant that none of the Servants could afford to be wary of their own allies.

'

"Hey, Pomo." Sudden call from the speaker by the door returned Ritsuka's thoughts to the present. Before she could go over his info, the final Servant actually showed up in person. "You called for me, so here I am."

'

Standing up from her chair, Ritsuka took a few breaths to appear as composed and convincing as possible. She absolutely needed to have this talk with him. The subject was just... the worst. She really wished she could just ignore it, but it was her duty as his Master to take care of this. Walking to the door, she took one last calming breath before opening it, coming face to face with the grinning Saber. "Evening, Lemminkäinen. You seem to be in a good mood."

'

"Sure am." Lemminkäinen walked in as Ritsuka closed the door behind him. "I'll be joining the Hound of Culann and Golden later for this game called 'poker'. After that, we'll head to the Simulator to 'size each other up' for a bit. I want to see if the muscles on that Berserker live up to their prominence."

'

"Well, it's good that you're getting along." It was infinitely better than them disliking each other. Definitely made her job a lot easier. "You seemed to really hit it off with Cú Chulainn in particular."

'

"Oh yeah. People with similar tastes mostly get along." True enough. From the little time she'd known either of them, the two were shockingly similar in more than a few regards. Well, she didn't know that much about Cú Chulainn from the myths, so she couldn't make a comparison in that segard. "Besides, he kinda reminds me of my ol' pal, Tiera. Guess I'm just drawn towards rowdy spearmen." Oh... Thinking about it, Ritsuka had to agree with that. But honestly, Tiera was a very minor character mythologically, to the point where the only notable points about him were his skill with the spear, thirst for battle, and friendship with Lemminkäinen. He'd only appeared in like one or two chapters in the Kalevala. She wasn't going to tell him that though, and just kept nodding while he talked, his voice taking on a bit of a sadder tone. "There's also the part where the poor bastard got summoned as a Caster. I could only offer my sympathies over his bad luck. Getting summoned as one when you've got other options is one of the worst fates a man can have."

'

Oh, that again. Ritsuka held back a frown. While it would have been preferable for him to be summoned as a Lancer, due to the increase in combat prowess, complaining about it wouldn't do anything to change the situation. She could only hope that time would get him to let go. "I suppose you would know, since you can be summoned as one yourself. Thinking about it, based on your legends, wouldn't Caster actually be the most fitting class for you?"

'

Lemminkäinen vinced at the words, as if he'd been stabbed. But, as expected, he got over it almost immediately by letting anger take over. "Oh, hell no! Don't even joke about that! Just the idea of losing my sword gets my blood boiling."

'

She couldn't really argue with that. The subject had come up during the demonstration, and in his case, the tradeoff was just awful. Even if Ritsuka wanted to avoid feeding his ego as much as possible, that was something she had to admit. "True enough. That fiery sword of yours isn't really worth losing when all you get in return is a modest increase in your magecraft potential." Even though it was weakened, Lemminkäinen still held on to a large portion of his power as a mage thanks to one of his Skills. And as much as she hated to admit it, even the small demonstration had made her incredibly jealous. She knew he'd be a powerful mage from all the stories, but, just... damn. Even as a Saber, his magecraft was still powerful enough to easily outclass effectively every modern mage. Age of Gods magecraft really felt like cheating.

'

Unfortunately, even the slight praise got the reaction she had feared out of Lemminkäinen. "Of course. Saber is called the best class for a reason, so it's only natural that I'd be summoned into it," he nodded, puffing out his chest proudly, much to Ritsuka's grievance. Ugh, she'd have to end this before he could even start, but she'd need a distraction of some kind... Thankfully, he seemed thoughtful for a moment before adding: "Though I suppose I wouldn't have minded it too much if I'd been summoned as a Rider. I kinda miss Tulisuu. He could gallop days on end without running out of steam."

'

The Master barely withheld a cringe. There was the desired distraction, but wow was it an awful topic as well, barely preferable to the current one. Given what Lemminkäinen would be riding, Ritsuka was eternally thankful that the man hadn't been summoned as a Rider. She could only pray that she'd never have to personally witness the damned beast. In all honesty, she would've preferred to drop the entire topic, but since it came up... "Alright, I have to ask: Does that thing even count as a horse anymore?" A question that raised confusion from the Saber, prompting Ritsuka to continue. "I mean, sure, it's shaped like a horse, but considering its size and attributes, it almost feels like cheating to actually call it one."

'

"Of course he does. He's got four legs, hooves, a mane, a muzzle, a tail, and a fine coat of brown hair. Plus he has no antlers. What else could he be but a horse." As he recited the attributes, Ritsuka gave the man the most doubtful look she could manage. Well sure, when he put it like that, it sounded perfectly plausible. Certainly, Tulisuu was a horse by that criteria. Although she couldn't help but to notice that Lemminkäinen left out the parts about the beast being as tall as a house and able to breath fire.

'

She could've disagreed, but this was also an out from this particular topic, so she decided to just take it. "Well, whatever. If you say so." As Ritsuka waved her hand dismissively, Lemminkäinen thankfully seemed satisfied with her answer. Now all she had to do was move on to... that. Ugh, wasn't there something, anything else she could first talk about? Something she could use to prepare for at least a bit... Ah! The Master could almost see the lightbulb over her head. There was another topic they had discussed during the demonstration that needed to be addressed. "By the way, I did check, and Chaldea does have some honey in store." The Saber blinked in surprise at the sudden topic deviation before connecting the pieces, and began grinning at the confirmation. To any outsider, the shift in the conversation would have sounded completely nonsensical. "Honestly, if I didn't know your legend, I would've thought you were just screwing with me when you explained that Skill of yours."

'

"But it's a handy one, ain't it?" he asked proudly, his previous attitude resurfacing. Though at least in this case, Ritsuka didn't mind the tone. Having a Skill like that was almost cheating.

'

"You can say that again. I've heard of cheap survival tactics, but this is something else."

'

Lemminkäinen chuckled, giving her a thumbs up. "Oh yeah. I'll be counting on you when I need it, Pomo." ...And there was the drawback. The fact that she as the Master was needed to actually use the damn Skill. And what she had to do to make it work... ugh. Ritsuka nearly shuddered as the image popped into her head. She was still a mage, so she could and would do it if the situation called for it, but it didn't make her part any less undesirable. Thankfully, the Saber moved them to the next topic. "But, maybe we should get to the point. So, why did you call me here?" ...And not so thankfully, was the topic itself. "Was it for a job, or..." In the blink of an eye, Lemminkäinen had closed the already modest distance between them and wrapped his arm around Ritsuka's shoulders, bringing their faces at most 10 centimeters apart, perfectly showing his striking eyes and brilliant smile as the tone of his voice lowered. "Maybe you wished to spend some quality time with me and deepen our Master-Servant bond, eh?" She dreaded to even imagine how many women he'd gotten hooked with this sort of move.

'

But much to his surprise, Ritsuka slapped his arm away without hesitation, her face as blank as one could imagine. Unfortunately for the Saber, while he was without a question gorgeous, he was just about as far from the Master's type as it was possible. She was not dealing with his bullshit. "The opposite of the latter, actually," she disclosed, getting a confused look from the man. As much as she dreaded this topic, she just had to go through with this. Taking a deep breath, Ritsuka began. "Now, I'm not going to ask you to stop your womanizing, since that's like asking you to stop breathing, so I'm not going to even bother." The surprise Lemminkäinen had held was just about to change into a grin, but the Master raised her hand to stop him from uttering even a single word. She wasn't done yet. Oh, she was so far from done. "But what I will ask of you is that you limit it to a point. Specifically, narrowing down your list of possible 'copulation candidates'."

'

The Saber tilted his head at the question. "Narrow it down? Well, there aren't that many people here in the first place, so I'm gonna need some specification."

'

"First off, in terms of the normal employees, you're free to flirt with them as much as you want, as long as they won't tell you to leave them alone. If someone tells you to piss off, then you do, no ands, ifs or buts. But if they're open to spending time with you, then go right ahead. With everything going on, it may actually work as 'stress relief' for some people." Lemminkäinen grinned at her choice of words, while Ritsuka remained as blank as she could. They were both well aware what 'spending time' with this man entailed. But she couldn't let him annoy her now. The worst part was yet to come. Taking another deep breath, she continued. "Next, when it comes to the other Servants, you're free to hit on Medusa and Brynhildr as you please, since I know that they're actually strong enough to use force to make you stop if necessary." Honestly, giving him permission for something like this made Ritsuka feel unbelievably dirty, but out of all the options she'd considered, this was the 'safest'. Mostly because she genuinely believed that both Brynhildr and Medusa could take care of themselves should the need arise.

'

Lemminkäinen simply nodded in response, appearing fine with the terms. In fact, he seemed almost pleased. "...Alright. I can definitely live with-"

'

"And, I'll give you this one warning," Ritsuka damn near yelled, getting a slight twitch from the Saber for cutting him off so suddenly. Oh, she wasn't letting him off that easily. She stepped right in front of him, locking eyes and jabbing him in the chest with a finger to completely drive her point home. "If you try anything with Mash, and I mean, if I even hear that you've tried to flirt with her, I'll use three of my Command Spells to ensure that you won't be so much as looking at women without my permission." Following the sudden outburst, Lemminkäinen was looking genuinely dumbfounded for the first time since his summoning, and in all honesty, she was a bit proud of that. But, this was the one point where there would be zero compromise. Ritsuka wasn't taking any chances when it came to this. "Have I made myself clear?"

'

The Saber stayed silent for the next few seconds, followed by a deep sigh as he rubbed the back of his neck. "Geez, Pomo, you sure don't mess around when it comes to that lass." Absolutely not. But, she was glad that, judging from his slightly sullen attitude, he had at least understood the message. "Yeah, yeah. I get. I'll leave her alone," Lemminkäinen muttered sincerely, bringing Ritsuka immense relief. This conversation could've gone so much worse. But that relief immediately came under attack as he moved his eyes back on her, looking at her with obvious curiosity in them. "Hmm? Although..." A smile spread on his lips, giving the Master chills. Oh, God. This was going to suck. Taking advantage of their proximity, Lemminkäinen wrapped his arm around her shoulders, locking eyes with a dashing smile, just like before. "You spoke about everyone else, but you never mentioned yourself. Does that mean that you yourself are available, then?" ...Called it. But luckily, she had a counterplay for such a suggestion.

'

Matching the stare, she looked him straight in the eyes with a smile. "Haha. Oh, Lemminkäinen. You're such a jokester," the redhead laughed in the coldest voice imaginable, actually managing to blow away the Saber's smile without a trace. "If you want to waste both of our time, then go right ahead. I will warn you though, you have absolutely no chances with me."

'

Silence took over the room as the Master kept smiling. Retracting his arm, Lemminkäinen took a step back, and from the surprised expression on his face, Ritsuka knew that he had realized just how serious she was. Which was great. Fantastic even. She'd managed to fully drive her point home. The Master almost felt like celebrating... Until the man's lips curled upward once more. "Ahh. So that's what it is," he muttered, smirking in a way as if to say that he knew everything. What nonsense was he thinking about now? Tired of this conversation now that her point was made, Ritsuka was just about to ask the Saber to leave, only to get completely blindsided by his next words. "I did see you eyeing the goddesses in a certain way over the course of the day, but I honestly thought it was due to jealousy over their assets. Oh, but this is a far more interesting reason."

'

Silence fell once more, but for the complete opposite reason. Ritsuka could've sworn she heard her skull crack from pure exasperation. This guy... had seriously figured it out? She had been spotted 'eyeing'...? Feeling heat rising to her cheeks, the redhead honestly wasn't sure if she wanted to kill herself or Lemminkäinen more at the moment. "Y-you!" She didn't know what to say... What could she even say? Of all the people, of all the ways for her 'preferences' to be discovered, it was like this... and it'd been him? "I don't-!"

'

The Saber cut her off with a casual wave of his hand, no longer smirking obnoxiously. "Oh, relax. I might be many things, but I'm not the sort of person who goes around telling other peoples' secrets." Ritsuka was... honestly caught off guard by the sincerity of his words. ...But thinking about it, that was certainly true. Lemminkäinen was many things, notably a blabbermouth, but a tattletale wasn't one of them. He liked to talk a lot about his own doings, but not really about others'. Granted, it might've been because he was simply so self centered, but it was true nonetheless. A slight feeling of relief started to return to Ritsuka... Until, once again, Lemminkäinen started smirking with that infinitely frustrating look of his. "It's just nice to see that my Master has such similar tastes."

'

"D-don't you dare lump me together with you!" At this point, Ritsuka could feel that the blush had reached all the way up to her ears. It almost felt like she had a fever. If she hadn't been so angry, she would've crawled under her bed at this point. She couldn't remember any point in her life when she'd felt this mortified. She needed this man gone yesterday. "I've said what I needed to say, so get out of here!"

'

"Yeah, yeah. I'm going." Chuckling all the while, Lemminkäinen walked to the door, but right before exiting, he turned back to his Master, rubbing his chin with that damned grin still plastered on his face as if he'd just realized something else. "Ah, but now I see. So, you've really got your eye on Mash then?" Ritsuka was pretty sure her anger had surpassed her embarrassment at this point. Her face felt like she'd been standing under the midday sun for an hour or so. Was this dumbass actually trying to piss her off!? "Very well, I'll respect that and leave her alone, since you're my Master and all."

'

"OUT!" she screamed hard enough that half of Chaldea might've heard, but she was way too pissed to care.

'

As Lemminkäinen finally left her room, laughing as if what had happened was the funniest thing he'd seen in years, Ritsuka locked the door before collapsing on the floor, holding her head in her hands. Of all the people to figure out her preferences, why'd it have to be that idiot? While it wasn't some deep, dark secret of hers, given that Ritsuka would answer truthfully if asked about the subject directly, it wasn't exactly a topic she wanted going around. She knew from experience that the knowledge was very much capable of making relationships awkward, so she just preferred to not let people know unless necessary... But now that dumbass had realized it, and worst of all, from the way she had looked at Brynhildr and Medusa. A result made all the more frustrating by the fact that she had done her best not to stare. An approach that had worked far better with the former when compared to the latter. She had at least gotten a little used to having Brynhildr around after everything they went through yesterday, but Medusa was an entirely different kind of beast. Like, why the hell was her skirt so short? In comparison, while her own skirt wasn't exactly the longest one around, Ritsuka at least wore tights, while the Rider just had... nothing. And they had climbed stairs during the tour! She had to know just how dangerous of an attack that was! There was no way she was that oblivious!

'

Taking a deep breath, Ritsuka did her best to calm back down. The situation was far too precarious for her to get distracted by things like this. From now on, she'd at least have to try to spend time with Medusa, so that she could get used to having her around. Her current feelings on the matter were only the result of the Rider's abrupt arrival, and she would be able to rid herself of them with effort. ...Yes, definitely. Without question.

'

And then there was the final thing Lemminkäinen had said. But at least in that regard, he actually was wrong. Yes, she thought that Mash was very attractive... physically, and that she was extremely adorable, but after everything that had happened yesterday and today, Ritsuka just couldn't see her in that way. The way Mash was so enthusiastically trying to be useful to her was just so precious and pure, and the way she had asked if they were friends and awkwardly hugged her afterwards was just so heart meltingly cute. While she appeared perfectly mature in every other way, when it came to personal relationships, she was very much like a child. All and all, to Ritsuka, Mash was just far too innocent to even be considered as a lover.

'
After screaming into a pillow for about a minute, the redhead had managed to calm down enough that her blush had just about faded. If only her treatment worked on emotions other than fear... Laying on the bed, she took a look at the clock before groaning and getting up. It wasn't quite late enough for her to just wrap herself in a blanket to relax, and since Lemminkäinen had been 'kind' enough to remind her of the matter, Ritsuka still had one more meeting this evening, and she might as well get it over with.

'

'

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'

'

It really was like a bad joke...

'

That was the main thought running through Medusa's mind as she walked along the corridors of this strange fortress. A monster like her, chosen for such a desperate mission to save humanity? Absolutely laughable. It wouldn't have surprised her if the ones responsible for this disaster had actually summoned her to try and kill the last Master humanity had left. She could only wonder if the Moirai had specifically chosen to play some type of prank on her, and if so, it was in horrible taste.

'

And then there was Chaldea itself. She remembered that Saber mentioning how something like this would've only existed if it was made by a god in the distant past, and couldn't have agreed more. This facility truly was like something the ancient gods of her time would have built. Everything, with the exception of the damaged areas, had been built in such symmetrical, polished fashion, and with a great deal of energy flowing through it all. It truly was frightening how far humans had come in a few thousand years.

'

Although, there was a detail about all of this that admittedly... intrigued her. At first, she had just assumed that something about this bizarre place had somehow jumbled her senses, but after this long, she had to disregard that thought and accept reality. The wholly astonishing, yet sensational truth.

'

Here, in Chaldea... Her height didn't stand out.

'

As impossible as it should have been, not only were all the male Servants taller than her, but the other female Servant, Brynhildr, was just as tall as her! If Medusa were to stand among them all, she would be tied for the shortest person within the group! And then there was her Master, who, despite being a woman, was taller than her! If she were to stand beside her as her Servant, she would look noticeably shorter! It was just so strange, yet wonderful at the same time, it almost made the Gorgon giddy. If only for this experience, she actually felt like thanking the Moirai from the bottom of her heart for the first time in possibly ever.

'

Sure, there were some of the regular employees and that girl Mash as exceptions, but she couldn't exactly see herself spending any amount of time with them when compared to her Master and some of the other Servants.

'

Speaking of whom...

'

Long before visual contact was even possible, Medusa could sense her Master walking towards her a few intersections away, her presence easily discernible from any other humans in the facility. Not only because she was her Master, but because of her way of walking and breathing, specifically, how cadenced and natural it felt. Mages in the past had often tried to bring themselves closer to the world, and it seemed like that was the case even in this period of time.

'

From the way her head turned every time she came to an intersection, Medusa could tell her Master was searching for someone, and from the lack of any other Servants in the close vicinity, it was most likely her. Not wasting any time she headed towards the mage herself, coming to visual range just after two turns, leading the Master to spot her almost immediately. "Ah, Medusa. There you are." Hastening her steps, the girl made her way towards the Rider in a... rare case, that held no hostility whatsoever. From the time they had exited the Summoning Chamber, it was quite clear to her that Ritsuka held barely any fear towards her. She obviously showed some slight caution whenever they were close, which was something Medusa could hardly blame the girl for. In fact, her showing absolutely no reaction at all would've been far more suspicious and, frankly, would've made the Rider question her Master's sanity. But, that slight caution was all there was to it, with her otherwise treating the Gorgon just the same as the other Servants. ...And that was hardly something she could call unpleasant. "Perfect timing. I was just looking for you."

'

"And what is it that you require of me, Master?"

'

Ritsuka was quick to shake her head. "No. It's not that I need anything from you, but more like I have a... um..." The Master fell quiet, snapping her fingers while seemingly thinking of something. "What's a good word here...? Sanction? Yeah, that works, a sanction for you."

'

Medusa really didn't know what to think. "...A sanction, Master?"

'

"Yes. For how to act with Lemminkäinen, and, well... maybe Cú Chulainn to a lesser extent, but mostly Lemminkäinen." Oh, those two. Strangely enough she had some memories of the Irish demigod from a previous summoning, but honestly lacked any notable interest in him. As for the other, he had made some clear advances towards her during the tour and a few times in the Reactor room, but other than that, she had yet to form a solid opinion on him. ...Although she was leaning on the negative. "As you know, with our limited resources, we can't risk conflict between Servants, since losing just one of you would have serious consequences to our combat potential." Medusa nodded in confirmation, finally getting the point. So this was where her Master was going with this. Hardly surprising, given the stakes of their mission. Well, no matter. Even if she was quite confident in her chances at victory, the Rider was perfectly fine with avoiding battle with famed hero- "Which is why I'm authorizing you to use your Mystic Eyes on Lemminkäinen in case he gets too annoying to deal with."

'

"...Huh?" Caught completely off guard by the final part, Medusa fell silent for a moment. Apparently she hadn't gotten the point, considering this... curious turn of events. Her Master didn't sound like she was joking at least, but there were a few ways of interpreting what she'd just said. "I... Could you... clarify what exactly you mean, Master?"

'

"Well, given his way of life and your... y-you know, appearance, that man is without a question going to try and... um, 'familiarize' himself with you," Ritsuka muttered, her tone growing abashed as she fiddled her fingers. "So, in case his pestering just gets too aggravating for you, you're free to use your Mystic Eyes on him. Now, obviously you can't fully petrify him. We need him to be able to fight in the future. So, just turn him to stone up to somewhere between his waist and chest, and leave him to cool off in the corridor or something."

'

Medusa could feel the slightest hints of a smile sneaking on her lips as she finally understood the full reasoning. This sanction of hers was amusing to say the least. "Hmm... Very well. I may just take you up on that offer." To be honest, while she had already held some curiosity towards her Master, this short, private conversation had increased her interest in her tenfold. She was a curious person to say the least.

'

"Alright. I'll be seeing you later, then." With a nod, Ritsuka started to turn, but before Medusa could even give a reply, she suddenly jolted back. "Oh, just one more thing." The Master's voice took on a more serious tone, her previous awkwardness gone. "Don't use your Mystic Eyes unless it's absolutely necessary. He might seem like... Okay, he is an idiot, but he's not stupid. That man can be shockingly capable at times, so after he's experienced your Mystic Eyes once, he will most likely have come up with a countermeasure of some kind to reduce their effectiveness by the next time he tries to approach you."

'

Given his... personality, she would have sincerely doubted that, but according to the information she received upon summoning, Heroic Spirit Lemminkäinen also possessed great skill as a mage. With his Mana-level, he was already at a range that her eyes were starting to have difficulty reliably petrifying him, so if he added some powerful thaumaturgy to the mix, she could definitely see him being able to diminish their effects. "...I will keep that in mind."

'

"Good. Right." Fiddling with her fingers as she fell silent, Ritsuka was looking at her... oddly for a second before continuing. "Um, well then. ...Have a good night." And so, with a slight wave, the Master hurried off, her previously even walking thrown off by haste, leaving Medusa in her lonesome as she watched her go.

'

"You as well..." Curious indeed. The ending to their conversation had certainly been abrupt, and the way her Master's breathing had been disrupted was another point of interest. Well, to be more precise, it had started to teeter the moment Ritsuka had explained the reasoning for her sanction. As for the cause, while she had nothing concrete, Medusa could make a few guesses based on her behavior, some of them reasons she understood quite well personally.

'

It was then that Medusa felt another human in the area, tensing slightly as she focused on the presence. Compared to her Master's meager pool of magical energy, this man had so much to offer that even comparing the two felt insulting. Which just made her not noticing him until now all the more peculiar. The Rider could still feel Ritsuka quite clearly, even though this newcomer was less than half of the distance between them. In fact, he would be within visual range in just a few... "Aha, just the Servant I was looking for."

'

It was the long haired mage she had met earlier today, striding towards her without a care in the world. Unlike her Master, whose way of carrying herself made her stand out, this man's presence was the complete opposite. It was unremarkable to the point of abnormality, like he was something that was just supposed to be there. She truthfully hadn't noticed him until he was a relatively short distance away, just thinking he was a natural part of the area. But even beyond that, there was something about this man that felt... off. Not in an entirely unpleasant sort of way, but it was something she couldn't ignore now that she'd noticed it. It was such a minor feeling that she might not have noticed it had she been using her eyes instead of all her other senses to perceive the world, yet it was like a constant itch she couldn't reach. "You are... Dio Orlin Arista, correct?"

'

"Yup, that's me. And you're Rider-class Medusa from what I've heard," he confirmed in a dubiously cheerful tone, prompting the Gorgon to confirm his own inquiry with a nod. Stopping from roughly a meter away from her, she could feel his eyes scanning her face, but she just felt slight confusion over the meeting. What did he want with her? "Hmm, yeah. At first I was wondering why you kept that Noble Phantasm on your face, but knowing what it's hiding from hearing your True Name cleared that up real quick. Those Mystic Eyes of yours ain't no joke." Medusa could hear him nodding to himself through a subtle sound as he observed her Breaker Gorgon, tensing slightly as the man placed a hand in his pocket and pulled something out, only for her confusion to increase as he handed the object to her. "And that's why I'm here. Had these babies in the storage, so thought I'd give them some use."

'

Taking the object carefully, she felt over its smooth, oval-shaped surface before giving it a quick knock with her finger, the sound confirming it to be a container of some sort. With continued caution, she opened it slightly to check for a trap of any kind, only proceeding further when nothing happened. There was something inside that gave off a slight magical reaction, but it felt both non threatening and dormant, so she dared to examine it further. From both the feel and scent, she could tell that the object was made of glass, some metal and some other material she wasn't familiar with, but for some reason, the shape felt somewhat familiar. As soon as she brought it closer to her face for a more accurate inspection, her eyes reacted, and she understood. This was a Mystic Code meant to suppress Mystic Eyes. Her confusion just continued to grow. "...Why?"

'

The answer was hardly what she had expected. "Well, originally I made them for Sachin to help with his Mystic Eyes, but he didn't really like them, so I got them back. Then, I tried giving them to Ophelia, but she was really insistent on wearing that eyepatch of hers, so that was also a bust," Dio explained, Medusa only growing more lost with the misinterpreted answer. "And there you have it. So, feel free to use them. Should make life a bit easier."

'

"No, you misunderstand. I mean; why are you giving them to me?" the Gorgon rectified, getting a confused mumble from him. While she couldn't sense a curse or a malicious enchantment of any sort, this man was still a mage, and their kind wouldn't do something without a reason. There had to be something behind this offering. Some motivation or aim. "You said you made these and I can tell they're high quality, so why would you give something like this to someone you've just met, to a Servant no less?"

'

"Oh, right. That," Dio chuckled. "Well, that's really simple. I mean, it's obviously better for them to be of some use instead of collecting dust in the cabinet, and you're the only one with any use for them in Chaldea, so you're the logical choice. And it's not like you're gonna run off with them somewhere, since, you know, there's really nowhere to go."

'

Medusa was admittedly at a loss. The reasoning was perfectly valid, to the point where she herself lacked any real reason to refuse, other than simply for the sake of refusing. And she had no interest in doing so, seeing how the offer did hold some level of intrigue to her. While she still didn't fully understand his motivation, it might just be as simple as the vanity of a craftsman, given how enthusiastically he had talked about that constructed world of his. "...Very well. In that case, I accept your offer." Turning away just in case, Medusa removed Breaker Gorgon from her eyes before placing the glasses in its place. She could feel the binding taking effect, allowing her to finally see Chaldea for herself. Taking in the first visuals, the area looked quite lifeless yet bright, much like what she had gathered through her other senses, but it wasn't as if she wasn't used to living in such places. The most notable difference was the lack of statues. "Yes... They seem to function perfectly."

'

"Ohoo? Square pupils?" As soon as she turned around, Medusa came face to face with the mage, who was... surprisingly easy on the eyes. Well built, (noticeably taller than her,) and a handsome face that fell only a step short of that Saber. ...And yet there was something about his body that bothered her, even if she couldn't fully figure out why. The unnaturally dark hair was one reason, but other than that... "Quite lovely indeed. The famed Cybele are definitely worth their reputation. No wonder they are ranked Jewel, seeing how they actually look like ones."

'

Hearing Dio's words, Medusa's thought process was caught by the unexpected praise. Usually, she would've ignored the supposedly empty compliments, but in this case... No, his praise was genuine, but like the man himself had said, he wasn't appraising them like eyes, but jewels, something like a piece of art. ...Still, as far as mages went, it was at least gratifying enough when it came to some alternatives. "...Thank you. Yours are hardly unpleasant either."

'

The mage grinned. "I know. But, they don't exactly need sealing like yours." Yes, even if she didn't know their exact nature, that much was obvious. His eyes didn't seem that powerful, but appearance wise, they were quite striking with their starlike appearance. "But, with that done, it's time for me to head back. No rest for the indispensable," he sighed, though didn't exactly seem displeased. Before leaving, he turned to the Rider one last time. "Just a reminder that your break ends in two hours and twenty six minutes, so I'll be expecting you and the rest of the squad in the Command Room by then."

'

"Yes. I'll be sure to arrive on time."

'

"Good. Later, then." As Dio strode away with a wave, Medusa waited until he was out of sight before heading out herself, her goal just at the end of the corridor she was on. She'd passed by the windows a while ago, recognizing them by the coolness, but now she had another purpose in mind for them. Coming in visual range with the glass, she was pleased that her guess had turned out to be right, with the corridor to her right being reflected clearly on its surface. Frankly, even if the glasses she was wearing worked perfectly, the Gorgon still wished to see how they looked on her. While her dislike of mirrors was as strong as ever, she still wished to have at least an inkling of her current appearance. And as she took a peek at the reflective surface, the glasses looked... unexpectedly good on her. In fact, she faintly recalled wearing something similar during another summoning. While the glasses functionality was of no question, the fact that their creator had taken the extra step to make sure they also looked good, was quite a pleasant surprise, especially for a mage.

'

This entire situation was quite an unexpected development, to the point where Medusa was a bit lost at the moment. Her only plans had been to get better acquainted with the area and then wait in her room until her next assignment, but now...

'
Thinking back on the tour, Mash had shown them where the facility's library was...

'

'

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---

'

'

Finally. She finally had a moment just for herself.

'

After setting her boots by the door, Ritsuka collapsed onto her bed, releasing a loud groan into the muffling mattress. She could only hope she hadn't just made herself too much of a joke in Medusa's eyes. With the exception of the last half an hour, the day had been slightly less stressful than she had anticipated, but it had still been unbelievably draining. But even so, in a situation like this, where everyone was working their hardest, she really wished she could push past the exhaustion and just keep working. But, as much as she hated it, she was still a human, which meant that she had clearly defined limits. After everything that had happened today, she was getting really close to one of those limits. If she didn't take the rest of the evening off and do something she actually enjoyed, the stress she had accumulated would affect her sleep, and therefore her condition tomorrow. Which meant that she had a choice between slacking off tonight, or working and reducing her capability for tomorrow, maybe even for the next few days...

'

...Slacking off it was.

'

Taking off her uniform with the exception of the shirt, Ritsuka carefully folded the clothes and placed them in the closet before putting on something comfier, in this case a pair of grey pants she'd brought from home. That took care of the comfort part, but now she ran into the larger issue, the relaxation itself. She couldn't just read a book or something. It needed to be an activity that'd let her loosen up and put aside everything that had happened today. ...And unfortunately, she knew exactly what it was. With a sigh, Ritsuka moved to her luggage and pulled out her laptop from the cushioned cover, along with a tiny plastic bag. She would seriously need to watch that in Chaldea...

'

Making triply sure that the door was locked, Ritsuka moved to her bed, the comfiest place in the room. Setting the pair of pillows on top of each other against the headboard, she prepared the most pleasant seating available. She wasn't entirely sure why the bed had two pillows, but she wasn't going to complain about it, considering that it saved her the trouble of trying to get another one surreptitiously. Ritsuka had many habits she wished to keep to herself, and the fact that she slept better while hugging a pillow was definitely one of them.

'

Speaking of habits she wished to keep hidden, this was absolutely at the top of that list. While there were plenty of embarrassments in her life that Ritsuka did her best to keep from being discovered, this was in a league of its own. Even her parents, who knew basically all of her most humiliating aspects, were not aware of this. The only reason for it was the lack of physical evidence. And what evidence was there, was carefully hidden behind roughly a dozen folders. Thank God for the digital age. Around ten years ago, she would have needed disks for all of these, but now, they just existed as data on her computer, ready to be played.

'

As Ritsuka scrolled through the files, she felt the slightest bit lost for a moment. There was a lot to choose from, so maybe she could watch something fresh, or... No, she couldn't start second guessing now. She couldn't just pick one of the new ones she had accumulated on her backlog, since the one she picked might not be gratifying enough. She had to be able to relax and take her mind off of things. It had to be something she knew she would enjoy.

'

With that in mind, Ritsuka made the most obvious pick, the one she had watched more than any of the others, the one that brought her the most satisfaction of them all: 555.

'

It seriously was demeaning, for someone in her position having to watch something like... this to relax, but she no longer had a choice at this point. Ever since she discovered this form of entertainment, she had been completely hooked, with no way out. Which was exactly why she had to keep any of the Servants from discovering it. Having them learn about this was just about the fastest way to lose any amount of respect they held for her. And then there was Mash, who, despite her bizarre admiration for her, would certainly be disillusioned if she saw her watching this. While the Demi-Servant was far too nice to actually mock her for something like this, their future interactions would definitely have some painful awkwardness mixed in. That... Ritsuka was pretty sure she wouldn't be able to bear something like that.

'

Setting the laptop on her lap, the redhead made sure to have some articles ready in case someone just somehow happened to walk in. This way, she might be able to hide what she was actually watching. Following with a sound test, she double checked that the sound only came from her headphones, so that not the slightest noise could escape the speakers. With that final preparation out of the way, Ritsuka wrapped herself into the blanket, placed the headphones over her ears, and pressed play, the familiar music instantly greeting her eardrums. She then opened the tiny plastic bag, taking out one of the chocolates inside and popped it in her mouth, the sweetness helping her relax even further.

'

Within a minute she could already tell it was working. She was getting into the mood, with the day's worries melting into the background. Of course, they were still there, but for the rest of the night, she could ignore them. At this moment, there was only her, and the laptop displaying the exasperating content that roused her heart so. And as much as she wished that it could from literally anything else, Ritsuka found herself genuinely happy as the theme neared its end, bringing her closer to the main feature.

'

"Jirenma wa owaranai... hashiri-tsuzukete mo...
End justiφ's the mean!"

'

...Although that didn't make the engrish in the opening theme any less painful/hilarious.

'

'

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---

'

'

7:40 in the morning, Mash stood in front of her Senpai's room once again, checking the exact time on her Multi-Appliance. Based on yesterday's results, she had arrived ten minutes later in hopes that Ritsuka had managed to complete her morning activities on time. Emphasis on 'hopes'. Yesterday had been awkward enough with her coming in while the Master was taking a shower, and she very much wished to avoid a repeat scenario. ...But was now really a good time? What if Ritsuka had been slowed down by something, leaving her behind schedule? Did she even have a schedule? Maybe she should just wait a few more minutes... Or maybe she should just head to the cafeteria on her own, or...

'

"Fou, fou! Kyu!" Suddenly, a wake up call came in the form of barking and a paw slapped against her cheek. Blinking in surprise, Mash glanced at the critter on her shoulder, who seemed to be reproaching her.

'

"Ah, sorry, Fou. You're right, of course. I shouldn't give up without trying," she muttered, giving him a rub on the head, and receiving an encouraging bark in return. Gathering her resolve, Mash pressed the button on the room's intercom. "Senpai...? Senpai, are you awake?"

'

For the next few, agonizing seconds, Mash waited in silence, doubt rapidly crawling its way across her being, until: "Ah, morning, Mash. Just come right in." Hearing her Senpai's words managed to just about blow all of her tension away. Well... 'just about'. Having received confirmation, Mash opened the door, and inside, Ritsuka was fastening the belts on her uniform, making the Demi-Servant cheer internally. Good, she'd arrived just on time. "Oh, Fou is here too. Morning to you as well," she greeted with a smile.

'

"Fou!"

'

As Fou barked his own greeting, Mash felt a smile spreading on her own lips. There was just something about being greeted with a smile by her Senpai in the morning. "Good morning, Senpai. I hope you slept well."

'

"Yeah, really nicely. The beds here are very comfortable, at least in my own tastes," Ritsuka nodded to Mash's relief. Had there been any issue with the sleeping conditions, immediate action should've been taken, given the importance of a good night's rest for the sole Master of Chaldea. "I guess you're here to invite me to eat breakfast with you again?" the redhead asked with a knowing look, catching her off guard.

'

"W-well, yes. Yes I am," Mash mumbled. Thinking about it, that was the obvious conclusion for her being here. A tinge of worry surfaced at the question. While it was normal for friends to spend time together, too much too often could also be detrimental from what she'd read. Was she... overstepping by asking this two mornings in a row? "You... you don't mind, right?"

'

But the slight worry was washed away immediately by Ritsuka's smile. "Not at all. It's honestly a really pleasant way to start a morning." A confirmation that brought joy to Mash's heart. Just knowing that her Senpai enjoyed their shared meals as much as her was such a relief. With her belts fastened, Ritsuka gave herself a quick look over and brushed her skirt before turning to Mash. "Alright. Shall we then?"

'

"Yes." Following right by her side, Mash excited the room with Ritsuka after the latter grabbed a tablet from her desk, heading towards the cafeteria, a noticeably spring on her step that had been absent earlier. As they walked down the corridor in a comfortable silence, only interrupted by a rare yawn from Fou, they came across a most unexpected sight as they turned a corner. It was Lemminkäinen, the Saber-class Servant they'd just summoned yesterday, leaning against the wall. That by itself was hardly surprising, but there was a single detail that managed to halt Mash's entire thought process, her steps coming to an immediate stop. His legs, up to the knees, had been turned to stone.

'

While the man himself didn't seem too bothered by it, Mash had to blink several times and check her glasses to make sure what she saw was actually real. And as it actually was, she turned to Ritsuka in confusion, expecting a reaction similar to her own, but: "Morning, Lemminkäinen."

'

As if this was the most regular everyday occurrence, Ritsuka kept walking, moving right past the partially petrified Servant without the slightest disturbance to her pace. Lemminkäinen himself, just as nonchalantly, greeted them with a smile. "Morning, Pomo, Mash. You're both dressed as primly as usual."

'

"M-morning..." Mash managed to utter while standing there, dumbfounded. It wasn't until Ritsuka was a good distance away that she remembered about their plans, darting after her after giving one last worried glance to the frozen man. "Se-Senpai? Are you... I mean, what should...?" she babbled, finally getting the Master to stop and look at her. Her entire thought process was a mess, trying to make sense of the situation. "That was quite definitely Medusa's doing, so should we..."

'

"Oh, no. I gave her permission to petrify him in the case where he got too frustrating," Ritsuka confirmed, much to Mash's shock. And when she finally showed any emotion, it was frustration while rubbing the bridge of her nose. "Though I can't believe he got her to use it in a single night. I seriously underestimated just how much of a menace that man can be."

'

"I... see?" She really didn't, but since her Senpai had given Medusa permission, there had to be a valid reason. "Are, are we just going to leave him there?"

'

"Yeah," she answered shockingly nonchalauntly. "Think of it like detention. He'll get himself free in a short while." ...Well, if she thought about it like that, Mash could at least somewhat understand leaving him there, even if she still wasn't sure what he was being punished for. Although before she could go any further, the girl by her side switched on her tablet, motioning her to come closer. "But enough about him. We've got much to do today. After breakfast, we're heading into the Simulator, where I'll be taking the new Mystic Codes on a proper testrun and we'll call in some of the Servants for a teamwork practice session." Listening to the listing, Mash was surprised to see that her Senpai actually had a schedule for the whole day. As she carefully took note of each timeframe, once they were finished, Ritsuka turned to face her, smiling brightly. "I'll be counting on you again today, so let's both work our hardest, alright?"

'

Mash still didn't really understand the situation with the Saber, but since Ritsuka was so unconcerned about it, maybe there wasn't any reason for her to be worried after all. Putting the thought aside, she gave the redhead the best smile she could manage. "Yes! I'll be sure to give it my all today, Senpai!"

'

With a cheerful nod, Ritsuka started to head towards the cafeteria again, Mash right on her heels with a hungry critter on her shoulder. There really was much to be done. After all, they only had slightly less than two weeks left till the first Rayshift.

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Notes:

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First off, sorry again that this took so long. It's been hectic.

Second, we somehow managed to reach 3000 views, which is just mind boggling to me. The fact that so many people care enough to read my bullshit is just crazy.

Now then, I decided not to put out the World Revisions yet, since a lot of stuff gets added to it in the next chapter, so I thought it was better to just put some stuff here for now.

'

First, the Sampo shard: Its more exact properties will be explored in the future, not in this chapter, but in case of any worries: No. It doesn't let Ritsuka use some kind of epic magecraft. In the most basic terms imaginable, it's a really powerful good luck charm.

'

The part about Edelfelts: These are mostly my own add-ons, since we actually don't know that much about them, but I feel that they're sensible ones. First, the part about them coming from Sweden is actual IRL Edelfelt lore. Yes, they were an actual noble family that kinda just wormed their way into Finland. Second, the rest of the Finnish mages hating them feels like the natural conclusion due to the IRL lore + everyone already kinda disliking them + the Finland-Scandinavia rift. Because unlike what most people for some reason think, Finland is NOT a part of Scandinavia. To further the magecraft compatibility point, while Swedish, Norwegian and Danish are all closely related languages, they are absurdly far from Finnish. Like, all of those 3 are more closely related to French, Spanish and Greek than Finnish.

'

Droppin' dem OCs: In this chapter, I'm starting to sprinkle in some of the Chaldea staff, but not too much. With only about 4 of them getting even named before Orleans, I want to make sure I don't just drown the readers into a sea of OCs. Once Chaldea gets rolling, more of them will start to get named, with a few of them getting to actually participate in the story in any meaningful way.

'

Command Spells: This is kind of a mix of canon and my own additions. Unlike in gameplay, the Command Spells don't just "grow back" both in ingame story and adaptations. (Like how does that even work? Where's all that mana coming from?) Guda only gets three of them per Singularity before needing a refill in Chaldea, which is also what I'm going with. Means you can't just spam them. Rest of the differences come mostly from me though, since while we know that Chaldea Command Spells are inferior to normal Grail War ones, the details on that have never been particularly clear.

'

From Servants in general:

Summoning:

-Saint Quartz are created when a Servant's spiritual body is destroyed, their fading Saint Graph collapses, leaving the stones behind. The jewels are essentially formed of leftovers, things that the Saint Graph received with their Servant body, left behind once again when they fade from the world. Essentially, if a Servant's Saint Graph is the contents of a book, these things are the covers, not ultimately having any greater purpose than keeping the contents together. To put it simply, these stones are like someone took the covers off a book, scrubbed them clean, and left them behind as something that could fit in just about any book. This is also why they enable the summoning of new Servants, and why they are consumed during summoning. Note: [Only Servants that disappear due to excessive damage leave Saint Quartz behind, since they're created through the collapse of a Saint Graph. Servants fading away naturally, such as Cú Chulainn in Fuyuki, don't leave any.]

-Each piece of Saint Quartz guarantees a new Servant upon summoning, but (much like in the game) the real issue is the number of Quartz available..

-[No duplicates] Same Servant won't get summoned multiple times. This includes the same Servant in different classes, such as Cú. Thus, Lancer Cú won't get summoned since CasCú is already in Chaldea. However, there are exceptions in cases where the two Servants are technically of the same origin, but they are each distinct enough, so both of them can get summoned. For example: A certain edgelord. (Class changing will be possible in the future and will be talked about later.)

Deployment:

-To start with, only Mash and one more Servant can be sent to a Singularity at a time. The reason for this, (other than balance), is that Chaldea's systems weren't designed to transport more than one Servant with a Master, since there were supposed to be 48 of them instead of just one.

-The number will increase in the future as we go through the Singularities, but it will never surpass 6. Six + Mash is the maximum, otherwise Chaldea could just completely steamroll most of the story.

-There will be a few more limitations in the future, but they'll be talked about in the story.

OC Servants:

-There will be one [1] for each Main Story Singularity. No events. Just Main Story, with the First and Final Singularities not having one. There is a slight aberration to this in Septem, for reasons explained in detail there. (One of them being that the story is bad.)

-They will never be the strongest Servant in the Chapter they appear in. Mostly 'cause that just wouldn't be fun to write, or to read. Like, imagine if the Servant added for Orleans was someone like Erlang Shen, who can just go: "Haha, mountain disintegrating eyebeam goes brrrrr" and solo the damn story.

-The Saber summoned in Chapter 8 is the only one Chaldea summons. The rest will be in the Singularities before the Chaldeans get there, meaning they aren't automatically allies upon arrival. Though they will be summonable to Chaldea afterwards.

-Don't bother asking for a certain character to be added in, since the particular Servants have already been chosen, most for a few years. And yes, all the way to JP's newest story chapters, though the newer ones are still mostly drafts at this point. Most Story chapters also have 2 possible candidates, in the case that one of them actually gets made into a character in the game. Honestly, really hoping this won't happen, since the replacement Servants' stories aren't as fleshed out as the main candidates, meaning I'd have to seriously rework most of the planned story structures.

-If a character gets added into the Fate canon as a Servant after I've already got them in the story... Well shit. I will most likely just roll with my own versions, but might need to make compromises depending on their story importance. I've tried to keep most of my Servants on the "literally who?" category, but FGO really likes throwing some of those characters into the game without warning, so it's hard to guess their choosing process.

-Each will get profiles, with Saber getting one after the next chapter.

'

Finally, as for the next chapter: It shouldn't be as long as this, but again, I'm awful at actually judging how much text I need to tell something, so we'll see. I'll at least try my damndest to get it out during December. I'm honestly pretty pissed over how behind schedule I am, since we should've already been in Orleans, but all I can do is cry at this point. On the bright side, since I suffered some writers blocks during this chapter, parts of the next one have already been written.

'

Also, those who understood what Ritsuka's Deep Dark Secret Enjoyment was get a free gold sticker to their Nerd Cards.

'

Note: due to how much of a pain it is to put out updates in the Story itself, I won't. Instead, I'll start placing story updates in my profile, so be sure to check it out from time to time.

'

Next time: [The Calm Before the Swarm]