Chapter 4

"Everyone, thank you!"

I yelled as cheers erupted from the crowd. It's much smaller than I'm used to but it's still pretty nerve-wracking especially alone. Just a year ago I don't think I could've imagined doing this in front of others let alone without everyone. Performing alone is refreshing in its own way but something still feels like it's missing. I'm not confident about it but we need to find a way to win this.

I leaped down off of the makeshift stage and Mai immediately ran up to me and hugged me as the crowd dispersed around us. Normally without a true backstage I wouldn't be able to escape the notice of the crowd after a performance but as a Servant I'm able to divert their attention away from me when I need to.

"That was so great Archer!"
"I'm not sure if this will really help attract other servants…"
"Huh? Was that the point of this?"

I began rubbing my forehead. I should be used to dealing with this type of person by now, acting on whatever whim holds their attention at the moment. Instead of focusing on the Holy Grail War, she spent the day finding a location, making flyers and handing them out to anyone willing to listen. Thanks to that she managed to gather a small crowd, something it took our whole group to manage in our early days. Despite her lack of focus her effort definitely wasn't lacking.

She grabbed my hand and began dragging me around town. I switched from my battle outfit, which was honestly just a typical idol uniform, and into my regular school uniform. Although I can hide myself from people's attention it's just easier to blend in normally. It's not a uniform from any school in the area but it's less conspicuous. Also it's a little embarrassing even if no one's looking.

We ended up stopping by a Burger Queen to grab food, Mai wanted a celebration after my performance. I didn't need to eat per se, but it was helpful to recover my energy and it was also just comforting. Apparently typical Servants don't need to consume food, or even remain in the physical world but as I and the others aren't typical Heroic Spirits summoned there's several limitations we face. I suspected it was because I'm not even a spirit by nature. I'm not sure how the others are, but I was just a regular second-year high school student before coming here.

"Welcome!"

We were greeted enthusiastically by the young man manning the register. His uniform was different, gone was the red polo with golden arches but this was unmistakably him.

"Can I take your or… wait it's you"

Rider and I stared at each other. His face contorted in odd angles once he realized who I was. I can only imagine I was doing the same. I'm not sure how the rest of the Servants are but given Rider was about to ask if I wanted fries with that, I can imagine he is similar to me in nature.

"Yeah yeah, what do you want?"
"Where'd all your enthusiasm go, Rider?"
"Listen you, my employee handbook says I treat all customers with the dignity and respect they deserve."
"What're you trying to say!"
"Oh, you two seem to be getting along pretty well after fighting. It's like they say 'the ground hardens after it rains'" Mai said something completely absurd.
""How are we getting along!""

I didn't have the energy for this right now…

"Alright, we'd like to take our order please, I'll have a number one, and she wants a number one, and an extra side of fries!" Mai began ordering for us… wait just how much does she think I can eat?

We took a seat and shortly afterwards Rider brought us our food. It wasn't any of my business but I was kind of curious what he was doing here so I had to ask.

"Hey Rider weren't you supposed to be a Demon Lord in your old world? Why are you working at a Burger Queen?"
"I had no choice! I couldn't bear to work for one of our bitter rivals but there was no MgRonalds in the area! I couldn't stay too far away in case something happened to Master… I feel like burning this uniform every time I put it on!"
"Uh, no I meant… why are you working in general?"
"I can't very well let my skills fade while I'm acting as a Servant can I?"

His skills… at working at a fast food restaurant? His circumstances are much more complicated than they seem. Well whatever, he seems like a guy who takes his responsibilities seriously so I doubt we have anything to worry about while we're here.

Mai stood up and took a closer look at Rider. Her crimson twin-tails almost touching his chest. He seemed taken aback for a moment as Mai inched closer.

"Hey your name tape doesn't say Rider on it!"
"Of course! What kind of name is Rider!? What am I supposed to do, walk into my interview and tell them 'I'm Rider, a Servant taking part in a magical war but in reality I'm a Demon Lord from another world.'"

I was curious so I took a closer look at his name tape.
"Sadao, huh? Who names their kids that these days?"
"That joke was already done leave it alone!"

He stomped away leaving me mildly confused.

After enjoying our food we left the restaurant, Rider gave a curt "Come back again" as we were leaving, clearly hoping we wouldn't ever be back. I wasn't actively searching for servants previously so I didn't notice we would be coming up on Archer, however Mai brought us right to him. I seriously can't tell if this is just dumb luck or if Mai is much more capable than either of us realizes.

Upon leaving the restaurant, much to the delight of Rider, Mai tugged at my sleeve trying to drag me this way or that. Likely she wanted to stage another production, but I thought it was time to make her get a bit serious. At the very least I need to do some scouting of the area to keep us safe while we figure out what to do.

"Mai, wait"

I stopped where was, letting her hand slip off my sleeve.

"Huh? Archer? Is everything okay?" She sounded worried.

I learned a long time ago that at times like this I have to be stern with a person like this. To keep her on the right track.

"It's a bit dangerous to run around at will, I think it's important for us to focus on the Holy Grail War. I'm not sure how much I can do in battle but I at least need to scout the area and try to keep us safe."

I felt bad, maybe my voice was more stern than usual because Mai's personality was just like her's and it brought out that side in me, as if I had to be the voice of reason to her.

"Huh? Aren't you doing that the same time? I mean it's more efficient to multi-task when we can right? Also this will help keep your skills up for when you go back… and I get to have fun watching so isn't it a win-win?"

I had to catch my jaw before it completely hit the floor. Did she really have that type of motive behind this the whole time? Maybe I'm the one at fault for letting my guard down so much… I mean we literally walked into Rider's lair without me even noticing.

"I-I'm sorry!"

I said while lowering my head a bit. I've taken her a bit lightly. Mai was right, there was no reason I couldn't do both at the same time. I was previously just stopping and feeling for servants when I had a need to, blocking my senses thinking that it was some special ability I had as an Archer-class servant. But it's not an ability at all but rather another sense. I was doing something similar to shutting off my other senses to improve one, but the rest of the time I was just ignoring this sense of mine because I'm just not used to having it.

"Huh? What's wrong Archer?"
"You helped me realize something as a Servant which is a little embarrassing. Also I never thought you've had such a plan all along"
"Well of course not, I just made it up, but it makes sense doesn't it?"

She grinned at me stinking her tongue out mischievously.

Opening my mind to that sixth sense of mine, I felt another world open up. It wasn't just servants, or even people in general. Animals, buildings, trees, I could see and feel them all around me. Actually even my sense of sight and hearing seemed to improve greatly. It should've been obvious from the start, but my mind was blocking off all this extra information because I never thought to access it. It's after all not something I could've done before becoming a Servant.

Now I'm even able to hear the footsteps of those approaching even through all the noise from the city. Wait, something's not right, I hear two pairs of footsteps approaching from behind me but I only sense one presence… But that's impossible I should be able to detect everyone, even Servants though I may not be able to identify them as such unless they're using their magic power. Wait- there is possibly one who can hide his presence to this degree. I turned around to greet them.

"Assassin, I take it?"

The pair stopped in their tracks. One was a high school boy wearing his school uniform carrying his bag in his hand. He had glasses and dark grey hair. The one next to him however wore a hakama with a red top which matched his long red hair. He had a cross-shaped scar and wore a katana at his side.

"That's quite an impressive observation." He spoke quite cordially, his speech matched that of a Samurai drama on TV.

"Your servant doesn't seem half-bad, does she Mai?"
"Huh, Souma? What're you doing here?"

She seemed flustered, they clearly had some sort of history but she never mentioned knowing any of the other Masters. Given her personality I wouldn't think she was intentionally hiding it, but there had to be some reason why she never mentioned it before.

"Clearly, we're here for the Holy Grail War. I don't have time to play around like you are, I intend to win."
"Huh, you're pretty dedicated aren't you? You've changed a bit from before"

"And you haven't changed a bit, Mai."

Certainly there was a history between the two. In any other world I'd have liked to see them resolve their differences, but putting them on separate sides of a battle royale like the Holy Grail War doesn't really allow for that.

"Assassin, take that Servant down."
"I apologize for this but it seems like we will have to cross blades."

Assassin pulled out his katana, but something seemed off about it. I'm not exactly an expert on Katana's so I couldn't place my finger on it though. My school uniform glowed bright and transformed into my Idol uniform and I summoned my pink bow in my right hand. I really have to be the only Archer in history to dress like this.

"Mai, please step aside, he seems really strong."

She nodded and took a safe distance away. We stared at eachother on the now-empty street. It seemed like when Servants gathered to battle, the area formed some type of barrier that kept normal people away. Even the nearby stores were empty. It's rather convenient because I'm not sure I'd be able to concentrate otherwise.

Assassin took a step forward, sliding his trail foot as he did so. It was just a step, but his presence was so intimidating that I took a step back out of reflex. We stared at each other for what seemed like an eternity. Finally as if attempting to break the silence, he broke out in a dash towards me.

I leapt backwards firing a hail of arrows towards him. He used his katana to chop down just the arrows that were on target, the rest flew safely past him. Not being able to even slow down his approach, he got to me in no time. I diverted his downward slash with my bow. Without losing speed he spun around and came down at me again. In my free hand I created an arrow and used the arrowhead to push it away.

He was good, really good, quite frankly I don't think I stood much of a chance, but for my sake and Mai's, I wanted to win. No, I had to win.

I leapt away and dashed into an alleyway I climbed higher by jumping between buildings while firing an arrow into the air. I thought my movement going up was already insane, but Assassin simply ran up the wall towards me. However in this small confined space he shouldn't be able to swing freely so I launched a barrage as he climbed. Instead of using his blade however, he drew his scabbard and used it to deflect the oncoming barrage. My goal however wasn't to do damage here, I simply wanted to slow him down to get the timing right.

My arrow flew down faster aided by gravity. He seemed to sense what was going on however and flipped backwards, barely letting it knick his leg.

I began leaping backwards forming a staircase of my heart-shaped platforms to gain a height advantage on him while I continued to fire at him to attempt to slow him down. After reaching a height well above all buildings in the area I paused. He leaped after me until he reached the platform right before me. Simultaneously he sheathed his katana and prepared to draw it again while I had a arrow pointed at his face.

We stood like this for about one second, but it seemed to last an hour. Despite being inches away from my bow, I fully expected him to cut down the arrow. Instead, I aimed down and shot. He seemed confused at first, but the platform below him disappeared, and gravity drew him down towards the earth. Aiming down, I drew a single arrow and poured my magic power into it. It glowed brightly and I let it fly. A large arrow fired towards him and exploded in the ground below. Knowing this wasn't enough, I continued to rain countless arrows down towards the crater created from his fall.

"Hiten Mitsurugi Ryu: Ryukansen"

As the smoke settled, Assassin stood with his katana drawn the arrows forming a clean circle around him. He exhaled slowly and sheathed his Katana keeping his hand ready to draw at any time. I dropped down a short distance in front of him.

"You are quite skilled for someone with no formal training or combat experience, Archer"
"Coming from you, that doesn't sound like an insult."
"It very much is a compliment that it is. However you would do well to realize that you shouldn't hold back in a battle that you must win."
"I… I'm not holding back, how could I be!?"

I was legitimately confused, what was I holding back? I was doing everything I could to just keep up with him.

"Your Noble Phantasm, is it really smart for you to hold it back against me while I'm using mine?"

It's true, the technique was beyond comprehension. The one he used as he was falling to the ground was so quick I could barely keep up with my heightened senses. It's not like I wanted to hold it back but…

"I… I can't use it. It's embarrassing to use after all!"
"Huh?"

He seemed confused, and I don't blame him. It… is embarrassing but that's not the only reason.

"Hey Assassin! Stop giving her hints and finish her off" His Master yelled from a distance.
"My my, I have quite the impatient master don't I?"

He sunk into his stance and dashed towards me. Drawing his Katana in a flash, I barely managed to block with my bow, but the impact blew me straight backwards a bit. He continued his assault as I continued to do my best to avoid a critical hit. I blocked left, right, left… it went on for countless blows. He thrusted his Katana at me and caught my bow at the string and pulled it away from me, shortly after getting a clean hit on my chest and knocking me back into a tree. I almost passed out as the pain shot across my entire body but for some reason still alive, his katana… it had no edge?

Stumbling sideways, using the tree to support myself, I prepared my bow and stared at Assassin. Even a short distance was cleared by him in an instant. I didn't have any chance, I didn't want to use it… for various reasons, but did I have much of a choice in this situation? I guess not.

He leaped towards me once again but I resolved to do it. I blocked his katana and with all my might I pushed him back while leaping backwards to create some distance. I drew my bow, this time mimicking my typical Kyudo stance. I carefully controlled my breathing, forming a bright red arrow in my hand. Carefully bringing it sideways to my bow I held the drawstring tight. For the first time, Assassin looked on guard, clearly not knowing what to expect. At this distance I had a clear advantage over him after all. As I poured all my magic power into my arrow, he drew his katana and performed an upwards slash dragging his blade on the ground.

"Doryusen!"

Time seemed to slow down around me. My already heightened senses became even more sensitive. Chunks of the cement came flying towards me, they shouldn't be much of an issue for me like this, however. I looked towards Assassin, behind the debris Assassin was currently exposing his body as his blade's moment slowly carried itself overhead. I could win, I could do this.

"I'll pierce your-"

I hesitated, I couldn't do it after all. I… just wasn't cut out for this.

"Mai… I'm sorry"

The chunks struck me in the chest carrying me skyward. The last words I heard before blacking out were…

"Hiten Mitsurugi Ryu: Ryutsuisen"

"Archer!"

I… I don't like fighting. But I'm not so ignorant to think I expected to get through this without fighting. It's not like I didn't have a wish, we all do. I thought I'd be able to tough it out to achieve it. But the second I laid eyes on her after I summoned her, I didn't think there was any reason for her to get hurt. Idols are supposed to be our goals, they were supposed to be beyond reach. An Idol should never have to experience the pain and suffering that accompanied battle.

I know she had her wish as well, and it was selfish of me but… I was hoping she could avoid direct fighting if at all possible for the duration, even if it meant neither of us getting our wishes fulfilled.

She lay on the ground unconscious as the other Servant walked up to her. She called him Assassin, so he had to be about to strike a finishing blow right? That's what Assassin's do in stories and stuff after all. She didn't deserve this, she deserves to be higher than this to inspire people like me who look up to her. This… this can't be my last image of her, I won't let it!

I looked down at my hand, the symbol looked like two halves of a heart over a full moon. That's right. I still had these. I drew my hands to my heart as if I was praying… maybe I really was actually.

"Archer, you need to survive!"

Both the moon and Archer began disappearing from sight before us.