While the holding cell those three Servants threw him in was rather cold, Kazuha found the room just to his liking. Being left there overnight was not as bad as one would think; it gave him the opportunity to actually rest following the headache that was the previous day. The distant sounds of waves helped lull him into a dreamless sleep. Even though he woke up still in Ritsuka's body, he didn't mind as much.

He was hungry though.

"Kaedehara?" Fortunately for him, a knock on the door signalled that someone finally came to check on him. The ever-reliable Mash Kyrielight had interrupted him in the middle of his meditation but Kazuha didn't mind much; she was clearly worried about him from her voice.

"Miss Kyrielight, I assume it's time for breakfast now?" Kazuha asked with a gentle smile. He then asked for her to do him a favour and bring the food to his cell— "And… don't tell anyone I'm here." He couldn't hide his awkwardness at that request. Luckily, Mash was kind enough to accept the favour and left to get him breakfast.

Kazuha resumed his meditation and, after roughly ten minutes, there was another knock on his door. The door opened and to Kazuha's mild surprise, it wasn't Mash standing there but one of the cafeteria staff. "Good morning, Kaedahara," the redhead dressed in white greeted while carrying a plate of food. "Kyrielight was dragged away to deal with an… accident. She asked me to bring you your breakfast; please enjoy!" The motherly smile she had was infectious; Kazuha couldn't help but smile back as he thanked her for bringing his food. She put the tray on one of the bunks and said goodbye.

After she left, Kazuha took his time to finish the delicious meal (if there was one thing he missed about this place, it was the food) before resuming his meditation and poetry-crafting. However— "Kaedehara?" He was interrupted by another knock on the door.

"Come in?" He replied with some confusion. He didn't recognise the voice, not immediately, but did find it familiar. When the door opened, he got his answer.

"I heard you were staying in for the day and thought you'd enjoy something to read." The librarian entered carrying a stack of books. "I wasn't quite sure what you like so I got something of everything; sorry if there's nothing that's in your interest…" She bowed in apology before quickly dismissing herself before Kazuha could say a thing. He stayed in stunned silence for nearly a full minute before checking out what books she left behind on his bunk.

He grabbed the book on the top and read the title… only to cringe a bit at what was written. 'Even here, I can't run from light novels…' He didn't really have anything against them directly, but the titles can be a little too long and blunt. Oh well, at least it sounded interesti— "Hey, fake Master." The door opened and before Kazuha could even turn to look, he was smacked in the face by too fluffy pillow and sent sprawling onto the ground. By the time his head stopped spinning, whoever it was had already left with another gift. The other bunk in the cell had its mattress replaced with a thicker and more comfortable one. Combined with the pillows, he assumed that this was yet another cell-warming gift.

"Who was that…?" The speed at which they replaced the mattress was simply incredible. In any case, at least he had something better to lay on instead of sitting on the cold metal floor. The light novel seemed an interesting read but he wanted to see what else was in the pi— knock knock!

…Kazuha thought he told Mash not to tell anyone where he was.

Regardless, the door opened and his latest visitors came in with another gift. "Master, or not Master as it were—" This time there were two. The one who spoke was a Servant Kazuha thought hailed from a land similar to his own when he saw her the last time he was here; even though she wasn't wearing her armour, the fiery red eyes were unmistakable. Her companion was another Servant that, from her name, might also come from the same place. Their gifts, however, were things Kazuha didn't recognise. One was a box with a glass screen while the other was a set— a purple and grey box with some things attached to it. There were also more accessories but frankly, Kazuha knew nothing about how to use them.

Knock knock!

Guess his "me time" was now over…

By the end of the day, both bunks, as well as the floor, were now covered in various things and gizmos that Kazuha had no idea what to do with. More than half were stuff he didn't even know the names of— let alone use. Sure, there were gifts such as board games like chess he liked but other than those the gifts he got were… less than stellar. There wasn't even a place he could sit down to read anymore!

However, all of that still paled in comparison to what was about to happen. A sudden chill ran down his spine— a feeling of abject horror and despair filled his body for an unknown reason. Kazuha instinctively reached for his side before realising that he didn't have his trusty sword with him for the coming terror.

Finally… she arrived.

"Yo, not Chan-Mas!" The overtly rambunctious and loud girl burst into Kazuha's cell, radiating happiness and energy the likes of which he had never encountered. Not even Director Hu Tao could compare. Then… "Daaaaaanngg, you got lots of stuff now, don't ya? Mind if I stick around for a bit? Oooh! We can binge that thing Chan-Mas wanted to rewatch together! The effects and storytelling will blow. Your. Mind. Not Chan-Mas!'

…Kazuha didn't think he could last another day in this place.

…

…

…

"…Hey, we're here."

"Huh? Oh, nice." Ritsuka let out a yawn before thanking the boatman. He left his ride and took his first step onto Watatsumi Island's beach. 'Well… here's hope I don't screw up my mission…' He thought while stretching his legs. Now then, which way was civilisation?

A/N: Much shorter than usual but hopefully the Kazuha suffering makes the wait worth it. I love Sei with all my heart but you know she's the last person you'd want to hang out with for an entire day unless you could match her demeanour and hobby (which Kazuha could not). The last few weeks have been terribly busy for me but finally reaching the end of my semester so I can (hopefully) focus on hobbies and stuff. Now if I only have the money to indulge in my hobbies…

Next chapter, Ritsuka suffering includes getting chased by more ronin, getting captured by best doggo, and meeting and getting interrogated by best fish. See you then!