All the Interludes happen during separate times. Please also pretend that the Master was not occupied with grinding another event during this occasion.

Spoiler Alert: Some Servants that will be featured appear much later in the story of FGO that you were aware of. Also, references of events that happen later in the story may be used.

You have been warned.

Chapter 7 – Not Another Typical Valentines Episode [1]

Valentine's Day.

This accursed day that reminded single people of their lowly status was previously an occasion that the likes of a loner like Hachiman Hikigaya would not be involved in, whether he wanted to or not, but having become Humanity's Last Master, he has now ended up entering quite a popular phase in his life, at least in terms of the number of chocolates he's received.

Apparently, all that was needed for a cynic like him to be famous is to for the rest of the human race to be erased… Whether that is a fair trade or not however is up for debate. That being said, stories about Hachiman Hikigaya's recently more rose-colored Valentine's Days will be reserved for another time.

Chaldea, the last bastion of humanity, is a place that utilizes the powers of countless Heroic Spirits across different time periods of human history. With the sheer amount this criterion covers, it was not out-of-the-ordinary for there to be some couples among the mix. Tales that talked about heroes involved other characters after all.

The mercenary and the requestor he is supposed to be protecting.

The brave hero and the fair maiden he rescued from the prison that bound her.

The peerless general and the noble lady bequeathed upon him for his show of loyalty.

The adventurer who stands in the frontline with a sword in hand and the sorceress supporting him from the back.

The selfless king who wished for his own death and the queen who made an eternal vow of vengeance for his sake.

Despite their supposed intimate relations in the past, the words it's complicated fails to even describe the current status of all of these couples.

As it turns out, even people branded as heroes were rendered powerless against the omnipotent force called relationship issues.

In order to keep the peace here in Chaldea, such a ticking time bomb could not be left alone and naturally, since the Servants are involved, this task could only be left to the capable hands of Chaldea's Master.

Yes, that's right.

None other than Hachiman Hikigaya.

Although his real age is hard to approximate due to coming and going to worlds with varying flows of time, it doesn't change the fact that it is equal to the number of years he's lived without a girlfriend.

If someone with his experience or lack thereof is needed for this kind of issue then the world must truly be approaching its end.

"Okay, I fully understand what it is that I have to do but…" Hachiman put down his portable terminal while his expression contorted into a frown. "Isn't this being too meddlesome? Wouldn't you just the two people concerned deal with their issues?"

"And risk the destruction of Chaldea if they end up fighting?" Leonardo Da Vinci shot back her pre-prepared response, foreseeing that this kind of statement was going to come out of her Master's mouth. Her academic prowess was not the only reason she's hailed as a genius after all.

"On second thought, yep, I completely agree that this is necessary," against such a sound argument, even the Monster of Logic had no other choice but to concede. "In that case, are there any special instructions or tips that you can give me?"

"No. As usual, everything will be left entirely to your own discretion unless you decide to use means that involved a huge number of resources of course," Da Vinci casually answered before standing up and heading for the door.

Thinking that she was just joking at first, Hachiman let her be but once he didn't see any signs of her turning back around, he panicked.

"Wait a minute! You should know that given my background this is pretty much unknown territory for m-!"

Click. Click. Click.

Da Vinci closed the door behind her and exited the room without listening to Hachiman's protest, leaving him with his mouth agape.

As it didn't look like Da Vinci had any plans of coming back to help, Hachiman just resumed reading the last file he looked at earlier.

A quick scan was more than enough to solidify one of Hachiman Hikigaya's beliefs that he conceptualized when he was still younger.

"As I thought, marriage is a scam."

And if anyone said otherwise, he would tell them to refer to the stories of Heroic Spirits of the past.

This murmur of his however was vaguely heard by the only other person in the room after Da Vinci took her leave.

"Hmm? Senpai, did you say something just now?" the young girl took her focus away from the report she was reading and made eye contact with Hachiman.

If it was anyone else, then perhaps Hachiman will go on a long tangent to properly explain his thoughts but because it was specifically his kouhai named Mash Kyrielight, he could only answer in one manner.

"Oh, I was just thinking that we might need some extra pair of hands for this project."

Came the excuse that Hachiman thought on the fly to which the Shielder nodded enthusiastically in response.

"And who might you be thinking of exactly, if I may ask, senpai?" she leaned closer while asking, purple eyes glimmering with interest.

Hachiman Hikigaya was completely powerless against such a sincere stare. He did not even consider the notion of saying no because of it.

"For this case," the screen showed the details of the same report he had been reading before he decided to complain to Da Vinci. "I think a certain Red Archer would be of great help."

Interlude I – Mister Assassin Rejoiced When Caster Made… [2]

Even before its renovation, Chaldea's cafeteria has consistently been one of the busiest places in the entire base.

Today however, it was completely empty and not even the people manning behind the counter were present when it was already fast approaching lunchtime, this place's peak hour.

The only exception were two people.

One of them was a red cloaked man whose gait made it seem like he is a cold and sharp knife. He had gray hair and his empty eyes looked as boundless as the abyss.

Assassin Class Servant. True Name: Kiritsugu Emiya.

In contrast to the mercenary which reeked of death, the other guest seemed to be oozing with the radiance of life.

She was a woman wearing a pure white robe that is adorned with a red and gold sash. This along with her crown-like headdress made this silver-haired woman look like a saint and a queen at the same time.

Caster Class Servant. True Name: Irisviel von Einzbern.

Initially, the two were both confused with this strange turn of events but the latter shoved all her concerns out the window once she saw Kiritsugu's face.

This was not a predicament but an opportunity.

Of course, such a reaction by her was something that the Master of Chaldea has already taken into account.

Smiling, the terminal of the Holy Grail approached the apathetic mercenary.

"It seems like it's only the two of us here, Kiritsugu."

"Yeah. It's quite an odd situation we've found ourselves in, Irisviel," the red Assassin concurred while still looking around the cafeteria.

"It doesn't look like anyone else will be coming here anytime soon," Irisviel pointed out while leaning towards the cafeteria window where the kitchen personnel would usually be present.

It is a well-established fact that Heroic Spirits do not need food for sustenance as all they really require is magic power. Nevertheless, the act of eating has already been a part of the routine of most Servants. This statement held even more truth for those like Kiritsugu Emiya who managed to enter the Throne through more special circumstances.

"I guess I'll pass on getting lunch for now…" Kiritsugu begrudgingly grumbled to himself.

Even though skipping a meal or two was normal even back when he was a human, the red hooded Assassin's heart felt heavy as he made that decision.

After all, if the people-in-charge of the kitchen were still out, there was nothing more that can be done at the moment.

Click. Click.

"Oh! They left the door unlocked!"

Was Kiritsugu's thought until he heard the voice of the same woman he's been talking to since earlier laced with excitement.

His eyes widened in surprise when he found Irisviel unabashedly enter the forbidden sanctuary called the kitchen that would normally be impossible if the usual staff were present.

"What are you doing?"

The silver-haired woman smiled mischievously like someone who was caught trying to prepare a prank.

"Well, I figured that we might as well make our own food if the people in-charge are not present," she giggled at the end of her response.

"Can you even cook, Irisviel?"

That might've come off a little rude but Irisviel naturally played it off with an impish grin.

"Why don't you be the judge of that then?" her index finger gently landed on Kiritsugu's chest after teasing him. "And since you're here anyway, how about lending a helping hand?"

While the physical contact may have been a little sudden, by no means did Kiritsugu dislike it, though such a sentiment didn't show on his face.

"Fine, I'll humor you."

"Thank you, Kiritsugu."

With their roles settled, the two immediately went ahead to look around the kitchen to gather both the ingredients and utensils, Irisviel being in-charge of the former and Kiritsugu on the latter.

Upon approaching the fridge, Irisviel spotted a little note attached to it. The small piece of paper stood out so much in contrast to the well-organized kitchen that it was impossible to miss. Curious, Irisviel immediately grabbed it only to find out that what was written on it was actually intended for her. Had she taken on the role of looking for the utensils, it would've been Kiritsugu reading this and not her. How awkward that would've been then again, since that Assassin was well aware of how inept he was with kitchen work, the odds of him volunteering to handle the ingredients was pretty much zero.

At this point, Caster already had an idea that the cafeteria and kitchen being empty was no coincidence and such an arrangement was probably made by that Master of theirs.

I've already made it so that the only ingredients remaining are only for making that dish. Good luck and please make sure not to destroy the kitchen.

While the message could do well without the sarcasm, Irisviel was still touched at the unexpected assist of this anonymous Heroic Spirit.

"I guess I'll be giving chocolate to another person today," she smiled in gratitude while thinking about a young man who could've been, in a timeline much much different from this one, her very own son.

Then again, what was stopping her from calling him that now? It was already difficult to tell who really belonged to the Emiya family so adding one more person to the mix shouldn't cause any issues.

…

The reason why the cafeteria was empty is because a notice was disseminated to all Chaldea staff and Servants that some minor maintenance will be conducted today. Needless to say, that was nothing more than a scheme in order to get Kiritsugu and Irisviel together for the day which is why they weren't told about it.

There were a select few Servants who weren't aware of this arrangement however.

"Eh? Was that Mama and Papa? Why are they heading towards the cafeteria? Don't they know that it can't be used today?" the young girl's red eyes blinked multiple times as she stared at her parents in confusion.

She was wearing a white school uniform and her physical features bore so much resemblance to her mother that she might as well have been a young Irisviel.

Caster Class Servant. True Name: Illyasviel von Einzbern.

It just so happened that the great ringleader of it all was nearby while she made that remark.

"About that, Illya-chan. It seems like your parents were requested by the kitchen staff for some help," Hachiman spat out a half-truth without even blinking. "I don't think they'll be able to play with you until later. Much much later."

"Is that so? It was a rare opportunity so I kinda wanted to do something like that."

Hearing the longing on her voice made Hachiman feel guilty. It was like a wooden stake was being driven to his heart but thinking about the word heart made Hachiman recall the several small items that he was carrying on his arms. Having held on to them for quite some time now, it felt like they were a part of his body already so he almost forgot about their existence.

"Hey, Illya-chan," Hachiman leaned his body just to the point where his eye level was a bit closer to the little girl's but not enough to drop the stash he was holding. "If you want, how about you come and eat some chocolate with me?"

"Is that really okay?" Illya asked while her eyes widened in anticipation.

Before Chaldea's Master could give any response however, the other Servant accompanying the young Einzbern finally decided to speak up.

"Master, aren't the chocolates given by the Onee-sans supposed to be something you finish yourself?" her lips twisted into a mischievous smile as she commented. "You're such a terrible person."

It was a little girl who looked very similar yet completely different to Illyasviel. Their heights were around the same as well as the overall profile of their bodies. Their physical features however were the complete opposites. In contrast to Illya's silver hair, red eyes and fair skin, this girl had strawberry blonde hair, golden irises and lightly tanned skin. Her get-up was composed of a black leather-like garment that only seemed to cover the important parts as well as a red cloak that fanned out from behind her. In other words, it was one of those outfits that put a lot of emphasis on mobility.

Archer Class Servant. True Name: Chloe von Einzbern.

"Try as I might, it's physically impossible for me to finish everything," came the Master's excuse who became the physical embodiment of the phrase suffering from success. Had humanity not gone extinct, would he be even receiving a single one aside from what he'll get from his sister or mother? It was physically impossible to know now. "Don't worry. As a compromise, I'll write a unique and detailed food review to each person that gave me chocolate. Also, for your information, this is the fifth and last batch from the pile of chocolate I just received."

If he didn't finish all of this chocolate today, Chaldea will surely be at war. The only way to accomplish such a herculean task was to eat all this chocolate with other people.

Now while some of the male Servants would definitely be thankful, the ladies were sure to resent him if they heard he shared the chocolate with them so there was no way he's going to take that option. It will most likely be even worse if he attempted to share any with the ladies themselves… But he should be forgiven if he gave some with the Child Servants of Chaldea, excluding a certain sarcastic fairytale author. Of course, he was already resolved to eat more than half of all the chocolate himself. He'll worry about his body's blood sugar levels when the time comes.

The young Archer was unsure how to react after such a concrete plan was thrown her way when she was only trying to mess around.

"Are you serious, Master?"

"Dead serious," he snapped back instantaneously, making Chloe sigh.

"Wouldn't that be overdoing things?" her eyes sharpened as she asked but Hachiman effortlessly shrugged it off.

"No, not at all. I think it's the least I can do for all their effort."

Although he said those words in a straightforward manner, it was more than enough to catch Chloe off-guard.

Uwahh~ Those are the words of a lady-killer alright…

Chloe thought to herself while shaking her head, thinking that the older guy in front of her was a hopeless case on the completely opposite end of the spectrum.

"Speaking of chocolates," Illya took out a small white pouch that was tied with a cute pink ribbon from her pocket. "This is for you, Master. Happy Valentine's Day!" she handed her chocolate out with a smile but then retracted it a few centimeters away in the next second while fiddling her fingers. "Well, it's a little rough around some parts but I worked really hard on it."

Hachiman smiled towards the little girl who was trying her best despite her embarrassment. Unlike the other Servants who looked closer to his age, Hachiman was not as flustered with Illya because this situation felt like it was his little sister handing him chocolate, something he actually experienced before.

"Thank you. I'll be sure to enjoy it."

If his hands were free, one of them would be gratefully receiving Illya's gift while the other would be patting her head in appreciation. Instead, all he could do now was let Illya place the sweet confection she made on the pile he was already carrying.

"Hurry up and hand over the one you made too, Kuro!"

The sudden demand from Illya flustered the other young Einzbern.

"Shut up, Illya, I was just about to do it!"

"Eh?! Why are you angry with me all of a sudden?!"

Chloe ignored her counterpart and handed out the item she was holding on to ever since earlier, a yellow bag enclosed with a red ribbon.

"Happy Valentine's Day, Master," she lowered her head as she greeted but sneakily went for a peek after adding her own contribution to the pile.

"Thank you, Chloe-chan."

They could've been having a little moment after this if not for another Einzbern in the area who couldn't take the hint.

"By the way Master, is it okay if I invite Jack and Nursery Rhyme too?"

Chloe was far too shocked to say anything so the role to respond could only fall onto the Master's shoulders.

"Of course. The more the merrier," Hachiman nodded in agreement but his expression brightened even more in the next second. "In fact, let's just turn it into full-blown tea party with the rest of the kids. I'll get Da Vinci to reserve us a room."

"Yay! Sounds fun!"

Ever since then, Valentine's Day also became an annual tea party for all the children Servants of Chaldea while the reviews that Hachiman sent back to the ladies were treated by them as exclusive Valentine cards.

…

"Kiritsugu, can you pass me that knife?" requested Irisviel as she began pairing the tools and ingredients already within her reach according to the recipe.

No sooner after she read the little memo pasted on the refrigerator did Irisviel immediately get to work.

"Sure."

Kiritsugu headed towards the direction pointed by today's head chef and pulled out the knife from its container however…

"Ah."

…The knife was a little stuck on its case and upon accidentally pulling it with more force than necessary, he ended up making a shallow on one of the fingers on his other hand. It was ironic how someone like him who used knives sharp enough to kill people would find himself getting cut by a kitchen knife of all things.

"Did something happen, Kiritsugu?"

Irisviel promptly walked over after hearing the slightly louder voice of the usually more stoic Kiritsugu.

"Oh, it's just a little cut. Nothing to be too concerned about," he answered back while shaking his head, making the entire thing out to be no big deal.

"No no, you shouldn't be too careless," Irisviel wagged her finger as she chastised her husband making him avert his eyes.

Our Servant bodies would heal it off later anyways.

Was supposed to be Kiritsugu's rebuttal but Irisviel's words came first.

"What are you going to do if you get your blood on the food? Give me your hand."

The follow-up statement made Kiritsugu flinch. He then felt a slight pang on his chest.

Oh, I see. It was about that.

Despite his internal grumbling, the Assassin obediently complied with the orders of the Caster. It didn't even take a few seconds for the wound to close due to Irisviel's prowess with Magical Healing.

Feeling a little awkward, Kiritsugu decided to ask about something he was curious about for a while now.

"By the way, what are you planning on making?"

"Hmm, given what's available," Irisviel answered while putting a hand to her chin in a pondering gesture even though all of this was set-up by someone else already. "Our best bet would have to be Hamburger Steak," she then made eye contact with her male counterpart. "Or would you prefer something else, Kiritsugu?"

"No, Hamburger Steak is fine," he hesitated for a few seconds before saying something else. "I like it."

"I see."

Of course, Irisviel already knew about the fact that this was Kiritsugu's favorite dish and just feigned ignorance. She had to lower her gaze to try to hide the smile that she was involuntarily making. It didn't help that this Assassin had to casually say like with a mellower expression than usual.

All of Irisviel's discomfort however vanished into thin air after she earnestly began to cook.

While she is definitely much more skilled compared to the gloomy man giving her a hand, she was nowhere near the realm where she can multitask. Right now, it was taking all her focus in order not to mess anything up.

She was rewarded with her efforts as the end result was looking quite splendid. The patty was just at the right shade of brown, signifying that it was neither undercooked or burned. The aroma that came out of the dish was not just from the meat's oiliness but also a mild intoxicating scent from the reduced red wine which was used as its sauce. It was more than enough to make any normal person salivate.

Even with all this however, Irisviel von Einzbern didn't let her guard down just yet. After all, none of it mattered if it didn't taste good.

The moment that she dreaded more than cooking eventually came. The taste test.

On one of the cafeteria tables that was good enough for four people to comfortably eat on, what accompanied the hamburger steak and their respective bowl of rice was a salad composed of carrots, cucumbers and mangoes as well as potato slices that were fried using the same oil that was used to cook the patty.

"Itadakimasu."

The two said in unison but Irisviel didn't dare grab a single bite as her eyes all focused on Kiritsugu. The moment he brought his chopsticks to his mouth, she inadvertently leaned closer to him.

"H-H-How is it?" the usually elegant lady stuttered as she asked.

Because Irisviel threw that inquiry before her husband swallowed, she had to wait for Kiritsugu to go through the motions before he could entertain her inquiry. Every second he spent on chewing was agonizing for her and it didn't help that this man's default expression was devoid of any emotion.

"It's good," Kiritsugu said matter-of-factly before nimbly helping himself with another piece.

"Really?" the wife gazed expectantly, hoping to hear another positive response from her husband.

"Yes, really," Kiritsugu answered after swallowing.

"Thank goodness," Irisviel slumped back down on her chair as she let out a sigh.

Now that all the tension left her body, she suddenly felt extremely tired.

Then again, it was all worth it especially after seeing her husband delightfully eating her cooking.

"You should try it yourself," the Red Assassin moved the plate which had her masterpiece a bit closer to the White Caster, encouraging her to eat. "Before it gets cold."

Irisviel's mouth made a small o at the subtle gesture done by the stoic main in front of her. No, exactly because Kiritsugu was an aloof person that a minute change such as this is equivalent to a huge leap for other people.

Whether he was aware of it or not, this cold-blooded logician was now paying more care and attention to the white-garbed woman he was sharing a table with.

This should be enough for today.

Irisviel's lips curled upwards as she had that thought to herself.

"Yes."

Because of how Kiritsugu found the dish delicious and Irisviel enjoyed sneaking peeks at her husband while he was eating, the two ended up not exchanging much words during the meal. And like all things in life, this blissful moment eventually came to an end but Irisviel had one more trick from her sleeve that can prolong this time just for a little longer.

"By the way, Kiritsugu," she moved back a lock of her hair behind her ear. "Do you have some room for dessert?"

In the real world, this simple yes/no question was what one would call a trick question. Although you were given a choice, there really was only one possible answer…

"You made dessert? I didn't notice."

…But that was assuming that the other party was normal and he would pick between the two choices presented to him.

Nevertheless, whether they were intentionally trying to be smart against you or not…

"Answer the question."

…You could simply bulldoze your way through by using brute force.

Despite faring well against the killing intent foes much larger and stronger than him, Kiritsugu was helpless against the compelling force of Irisiviel when she crossed her arms and furrowed her brows. Such was the power of class advantage, it seems.

"I guess I do."

Hearing the words she wanted to hear made the Caster smile. It was as if her scary demeanor from earlier was nothing more than an illusion.

"In that case, put your hands out and close your eyes."

"Is that really necessary?" the Assassin reflexively asked after hearing the sudden demand.

"Kiritsugu!"

The same scenario from earlier played out and once again, Kiritsugu was forced to relent.

"Okay, I'll close them."

Irisviel's expression morphed into a smile so radiant that you would think that her earlier pout did not happen. It was the last thing that Kiritsugu saw before his eyes closed. He didn't have to wait too long before he felt the additional weight on his hands. Whatever it was being given to him, it was light and was small enough to fit on one hand of his. The silky texture he could feel on his palm meant that this was the kind of food that was packaged and could be eaten without the aid of utensils or the like.

Even after receiving the item, Kiritsugu Emiya didn't open his eyes for the simple reason that Irisviel didn't tell him to do so.

Are there more coming?

At the exact instant that Kiritsugu harbored that faint expectation…

Peck.

…He felt a light contact on his cheeks.

With his senses that were sharpened from his time on the battlefield, Kiritsugu instantly knew what just happened on those few seconds.

"That was…! Mmph…!"

"Please don't open your eyes," Irisiviel used both of her hands to cover Kiritsugu's face. Despite obviously being the stronger one between the two of them, Kiritsugu decided to follow his wife's demand and not move. "I'm way too embarrassed to try and talk face-to-face with you right now given what I just did."

Although her surprise attack worked, it was not as if Irisviel did not take any damage on her end. In fact, she was having an internal breakdown at this very moment that would make one wonder where all her courage went after her bold act a few seconds earlier.

But then, a surprising development happened…

"What's the occasion?"

…It was Kiritsugu himself who took the initiative.

Due to being slightly taken aback by the uncharacteristic move her husband made, it took Irisviel a short while for her to speak again.

"It's Valentine's Day," she chuckled partly because of how much Kiritsugu has changed and partly in an attempt to regain some of her composure. "Please try the chocolate I made for you and tell me how it tastes when you have the time."

He couldn't quite promise when such an event would occur as he was not the type of person to give out empty promises but that didn't mean he couldn't show his appreciation.

"Thank you."

He still wasn't quite sure if he was truly the Kiritsugu Emiya who deserved Irisviel von Einzbern's affection but even a machine-like killer such as him was tactful enough to know not to douse out the passion that Irisviel was feeling at the moment.

"I-I-I'll leave first, okay?" Irisviel tried to keep her dignified tone but her stuttering tongue betrayed her intentions. "I feel like I might end up embarrassing myself more if I stay any longer."

Kiritsugu would be lying if he said that he didn't want to see that happen but instead of saying that out loud, he voiced out a different desire from within himself.

"Irisviel."

Since it was only the two of them inside this room, the Terminal of the Holy Grail clearly heard the Guardian's voice call her name despite his voice only being a little louder than a whisper.

"Yes?"

Although it was a long time that something like this happened to him, Kiritsugu Emiya was still well-aware of what he needed to do in the near future as he was born Japanese.

"I'll be sure to prepare a return gift for White Day."

Since his eyes were still closed, Kiritsugu was unable to witness Irisviel whose face was red because of happiness, anticipation, embarrassment and surprise from what he just said.

"Yes, I'd like that."

Those were the last words that Irisviel could muster before she finally excused herself out of the kitchen. She had a feeling that even after this battle for humanity's continued existence ended and this manifestation of hers vanished, she would never forget what happened today.

…

In his own private quarters, the cold and calculating Kiritsugu Emiya who would usually be working out, polishing his knife or repeatedly disassembling and reassembling his pistol…

…Kept staring at the small gift he just received for the past few hours, a white box bordered by red lining and neatly wrapped with a gold ribbon.

"I guess I should open it…"

It took him several hours before he reached this conclusion but he finally got to this point and that was the more important part.

All the chocolates inside were shaped into hearts. Picking one up, Kiritsugu felt a moist sensation on his fingertips and a luscious aroma invaded his nostrils.

While admiring the sweet itself, even Kiritsugu wasn't quite sure at what point did he begin to bring the piece of chocolate to his mouth.

Snap.

"It's sweet…"

Kiritsugu commented as he bit through the hard exterior of the chocolate and his tongue came in contact with a liquid filling in the center, further amplifying the sweetness of the chocolate.

While Kiritsugu didn't necessarily hide it, it also isn't really public knowledge that he liked to eat sweets. As such, he was pleasantly surprised to find out that what he got wasn't bitter dark chocolate, the kind commonly given to men around his age, but was milk chocolate instead. There was no way that this choice wasn't made deliberately so he could not help but be impressed at Irisviel's thoughtfulness.

Nevertheless that… Felt sweeter.

Emotions that Kiritsugu Emiya thought he already lost began to come out of the surface. The surge was so strong that he felt like he was swimming against a river current.

This is driving me insane…

Unsure of what to do next, he used a technique that forced himself to sleep even if he was in the middle of a bloody battlefield but it only ended up making him feel even more tired in the next day.

While Kiritsugu was having this inner turmoil of sorts, Irisviel on her end was unable to remove the smile plastered on her face for the next couple of days.

Interlude II – Their Common Master Changes The Genre [3]

Valentine's Day.

In spite of the several implications of such a special occasion, the mood around Novum Chaldea's Command Room was anything but relaxed, in fact, it was very similar to the tension they would have moments before a Rayshift into a Singularity or a Zero Sail into a Lostbelt will be conducted.

Because today's operation is technically unofficial, the one taking command was not Chaldea's Director but was Humanity's Last Master, Hachiman Hikigaya himself. He was currently wearing the Atlas Academy Uniform with its trademark lavender dress shirt and purple vest.

"Master, we are in position."

"Awaiting your orders."

Came the remarks of the two Servants behind him.

To his left was a woman whose outfit was a mix of the gray plate armor of a soldier and the dark blue garbs of a nun. She held a large banner on her hands that bore the insignia of France. The figure of her waving this flag and her long blonde hair fluttering along with the wind to support her comrades was an unforgettable sight that even made their enemies feel awe towards her.

The Holy Maiden of Salvation.

The Maiden of Orleans.

Ruler Class Servant. True Name: Jeanne d'Arc.

To his right was the ever-reliable girl who has always been by his side since the beginning of this arduous journey of theirs. A shield that was taller than her body was beside her. She had short lilac hair and a mechanical visor was currently covering her violet eyes. It wouldn't be an understatement to say that without her, Humanity's Last Master could never have come so far. Her armor used to be one of those which placed emphasis on mobility but due to recent circumstances it was been replaced with a bulkier and heavier variant which reminded one of a tank's armor.

Shielder Class Demi-Servant Mash Kyrielight.

The True Name of the Servant she fused with is Galahad, one of the Knights of the Round Table.

They were currently standing on a brand-new prototype developed by the young Da Vinci with the resources provided by this brand-new base.

It was a dark panel mounted on the floor filled with various magical symbols including but not limited to Celtic runes, Egyptian hieroglyphics and Hebrew characters. Due to all the magical formulas that was inscribed on it as well as this being a rushed job of sorts, compacting it was not a priority so it ended up being large enough to fit in around seven people.

The purpose of such a conspicuous-looking piece of equipment was to transmit the effects of support spells or even Noble Phantasms on a designated receiver that was set-up on a different direction.

As to why such a thing was made in development was because for today's operation, it was extremely important that only two people would be left in the other room for the sake of well, ambiance. There would be no point otherwise.

"Alright," Hachiman Hikigaya nodded after casting one glance on each of his Servant. If what was about to happen next wasn't so serious, he could've been having vacant thoughts right now like how he is currently a man with a flower on each side. "We will now commence Operation: Brynhildr Romantia: Happy End!"

"Roger!"

…

Except for increasing the quantity of the rooms to accommodate for the ever-increasing number of Servants being recruited, Novum Chaldea was extremely faithful to the layout of Chaldea's previous base. It didn't take a long while for the surviving Chaldean staff and the older Servants to get used to the layout of the place.

Of course, as one of the pillars for Chaldea's stability, much care was also placed in the construction of the counselling room but its overall appearance didn't undergo that much changes. Today's client however didn't see the counselling room back in the old base as he was only been added to Chaldea's roster very recently.

He is clad in full armor which, just like his hair color, was black with streaks of white on it. Spikes can also be seen protruding from his shoulders. Despite the menacing appearance of his gear however, what stood out more was the pair of glasses that was concealing a pair of brilliant blue eyes.

Scandinavia's Greatest Hero.

The King of Warriors.

Saber Class Servant. True Name: Sigurd.

"Good day, Master," he greeted courteously. "May I ask why you have requested my presence for today?"

Nothing less expected from a Hero who also ended up being a King, Sigurd carried himself perfectly with both his choice of words that were neither too haughty nor modest and his mannerisms which was respectful enough but not too self-deprecating. It was a balance that Humanity's Last Master could easily learn a thing or two from unfortunately, now was not the time to focus on such a matter.

"Sigurd-san, I called for you today because we needed to talk about something," Hachiman brought both of his hands together and rested his chin on it. "Are you aware of a special day that's coming up pretty soon?"

If the Master was the one who was wearing the spectacles instead of the Servant at this moment, then this would be the kind of timing where it would glint but alas that development was not meant to be.

"Hmm, I'm not quite certain but if I had to take a guess from cross-referencing the information I got from our contract and the accessible archives then…" he fixed his glasses as he tried to form a conclusion. For Sigurd's end, it was more of a habit rather than an actual need as his eyesight was fine with or without them. "Is it Valentine's Day?"

"As expected of you, Sigurd-san," Chaldea's Master nodded in a satisfied manner. "Then since you already know, I don't need to say anything more, right?"

After all, there was only one thing or rather, person you can think of when you put the words Valentines' Day and Sigurd together.

"Brynhildr…" traces of both pain and longing could be felt on Sigurd's voice as he said that name out loud. "She tries to prove her love with murderous rage but how am I supposed to prove my love back if I died? It's rather difficult."

Hearing the torn feelings of his Servant made Hachiman empathetically nod before he looked at him like he was the stupidest person in existence.

"Then isn't the solution to this simple?" he leaned back matter-of-factly. "You just need to survive this love of hers."

Sigurd had to wait silently for a couple of seconds to confirm if his Master was serious or not. Upon understanding that Hachiman really wasn't joking, the bespectacled hero could only scratch his chin.

"I would like to do nothing more to do that except…"

Hachiman cut in before Sigurd could finish, already predicting how this lovestruck Hero would respond.

"You've tried and failed before. Am I right?"

"Exactly," Sigurd didn't mind being interrupted and just nodded in agreement.

"That might have been what happened in your past but this time around you won't be alone," Hachiman pointed his thumb to himself before shrugging his shoulders in the next second. "Well, I may be an unreliable Master but I am at least contracted with a lot of really powerful Servants," the wide doors of the counselling room opened in tandem with the Master's words. "Allow me to introduce to you one of them who is willing to become your training partner."

Hachiman Hikigaya didn't even need to say more as the Heroic Spirit who just made his entrance gave an opening speech of sorts, whether he did so intentionally or not however was something no one can really tell.

"For there to exist a couple who is oppressed by none other than love itself. How tragic. Truly, how tragic," these sympathetic words came out from the mouth of a giant of a man whose muscular build looked to be the pinnacle of what an adult male would have if he dedicated his entire life to training his body. That being said, it was nowhere close to a certain Greek demigod. He had long blond hair and his entire face was covered with an iron mask though the likelihood of it being attractive was quite high. Despite his mask however, that didn't mean that it was difficult to tell what kind of emotions he was feeling, if the tears on his eyes were any indication. When he clenched his fist in determination however, all those tears instantly dried up. "Then, there is no other choice but to rebel. I will gladly lend my assistance."

He is the Gladiator of Thrace.

Apparently, in a distorted Holy Grail War once, he also came to be known as the Berserker of Red.

Berserker Class Servant. True Name: Spartacus.

"Spartacus, a Heroic Spirit who carved his name in history by lighting the desire of freedom to the other oppressed slaves," Sigurd's glasses gleamed as he spoke about the origin of the Servant in front of him. "Well, I suppose I'll take this opportunity to test how Gram will fare against someone whose Noble Phantasm makes them stronger the more they are hit," he could feel his muscles tense in excitement as he continued to speak. "Can you persist long enough against my attacks to effectively make use of your Noble Phantasm or will Gram be able to cut through your resilience? I'd be lying if I said I'm not excited to find out."

His excitement however was rather short-lived.

"I'm sorry to burst your bubble Sigurd-san but I forbid you from using Gram during your training with Spartacus-san," Hachiman dropped such a bomb casually.

The Hero who possessed Crystallized Wisdom was so flabbergasted that all he could do was utter a single word.

"What?"

"This special training is to improve your survivability so why would I allow you to use your sword? That would be totally counterproductive," Hachiman doubled the difficulty of the training without batting an eye. "While we're at it, let us do away with your armor as well. It's probably useless against Brynhildr-san anyways."

"But that would be-…"

"Alright!" Spartacus bumped his two fists together in excitement. "Let the rebellion (read: training) begin! My love shall overcome love itself!"

Whatever it was that Sigurd wanted to say before, it was easily drowned out by Spartacus' enthusiasm.

…

The Simulation Room.

As this was the only facility on this base that allowed Humanity's Last Master and his Servants to have some modicum of real combat, a majority of this base's resources was used for maintaining it. Despite sharing the same appearance as its counterpart in the Antarctica Base, Novum Chaldea's Simulation Room was built to be much sturdier given that the battles were only going to get harder from this point onwards.

Today, those upgrades will be put to the test.

In the middle of this room was a magical circle which contained a similar set of characters as the panel on the Command Room. This was none other than the receiving terminal and standing on one of its edges away from the entrance was a fully armored Sigurd.

In spite of being in the Simulation Room, the Scandinavian Hero showed no sign of inputting his preferred settings on the machine so that he can begin his training as he was here for a completely different reason.

The doors of the Simulation Room opened and seeing who just entered made the Dragon Slayer smile fondly.

She was a silver-haired woman clad in gray armor with purple outlines. While her physical features and overall demeanor felt as cold as snow, her inner passion was something that burned as fiercely as flames. Sigurd couldn't be prouder to have this woman who bore the traits of fire and ice as his wife.

The daughter of the great Norse God Odin.

The First of the Valkyries.

Lancer Class Servant. True Name: Brynhildr.

"Sigurd! Thank you for meeting with me even though you know it's dangerous," Brynhildr timidly called out while stepping inside the Simulation Room. While the scene looked to be endearing even viewed on the screen of the Command Room, the purple aura that began to manifest around the warrior maiden completely dispelled the romantic mood. She was most definitely excited for this rendezvous but her heart and body didn't seem to agree with the kind of excitement she should be feeling. "There is something I have to give you today no matter what…"

"There is no need to rush, my love," the husband smiled while opening his arms out wide, inviting a hug from his wife. "Whatever it is you choose to give me, I will of course accept it all..."

Even if it's death.

Sigurd tactfully left that last part unsaid.

The lines that he uttered which were akin to sweet honey made the Valkyrie's heart skip a beat. At the same time, the magic power surrounding her began to behave more violently. It reached the point where she ended up manifesting her spear.

"Sigurd, are you sure?" Brynhildr trembled while her body adopted a fighting stance, her lance's tip pointed straight towards her lover.

"If I can't even reciprocate your love, what reason is there for my existence?"

With that singular line that you would expect to hear from some romance drama, Brynhild's magical energy reached critical mass.

"SIGUUUUUURD!"

After shouting out her husband's name so passionately, Brynhildr finally lost all control of her body and she came charging towards her other half.

…

"Confirmed that Servant Brynhildr's magic power is breaking through the limit! She is unconsciously releasing her Noble Phantasm!"

Hachiman closed his eyes took a deep breath to calm his nerves after hearing Mash's urgent report. He abandoned all other thoughts and simply focused on the battle that was about to occur.

"Jeanne-san, please."

Hachiman's voice was the perfect mix of warm trust and cold logic. This stemmed from the fact that he entrusted the right Servant for this task and the possibility of failing was basically nil.

Having fought with him for quite some time now, Jeanne understood that what her Master truly meant to say was…

I believe in you.

"Yes!"

Of course, as this was an operation that has been planned several days prior, Hachiman Hikigaya has already used his Command Spells that refresh on a daily basis so that his Servants can unleash their Noble Phantasms at will.

"Oh, flag of mine, protect our comrades, Luminosite Eternelle!"

Jeanne raised her banner, the symbol of France's rebellion. With that as the origin, shimmering golden radiance burst forth. The mechanism that connected the two rooms then hummed loudly and in the next second, a golden wall manifested in front of the charging Valkyrie's path. Unlike an ordinary defensive spell like a barrier, Luminosite Eternelle, whose origins stem from going against a figure of authority, pushed back against Brynhildr's attack proactively.

"AAAAAHHHHH!"

Their standoff didn't last long however.

Crack. Crack. Crack.

As powerful as the will of the French people was at that time to be free from oppression, it was still no match against an attack from a Norse Valkyrie which contained all her passion. It didn't help that the prototype assisting them for this long-ranged application of Noble Phantasms wasn't as efficient even with a genius like Leonardo Da Vinci behind it. At best, Luminosite Eternelle's output was only around 60% and that is if the numbers are rounded up.

"Ugh!" Jeanne groaned from the recoil of trying to resist Brynhildr's pressure. She held on to her banner as if it was a cane and tried to keep her feet planted on the ground.

"Jeanne-san, you've done enough!" Hachiman had to physically stop himself from rushing over to support his Servant. "Mash, you're up!"

"Roger, Master!" this time, what was being brandished was a shield instead of a flag. "Setting Ortinax at 80% output. This will be a showdown between my determination and Brynhildr-san's love!" the equipment worn by Mash hummed louder in response to her will. "True Name, frozen deployment. This is the castle of fantasy that holds many paths and wishes. Answer my call, Mold Camelot!"

The golden veil vanished and before Brynhildr could take another step forward, a fragmented wall appeared in order to obstruct her path…

"AAAAAHHHHH!"

…But this too did not discourage her.

Crack. Crack. Crack

Unlike the first barricade, Brynhildr's spear easily pierced through the distorted wall, creating multiple fractures on its surface. At the rate things were going, it was only a matter of time before the entire thing will be demolished.

"I'm not done yet!"

As if listening to Mash's cry, the wall slowly but surely began to reconstruct itself, eventually enclosing even the Valkyrie's spear that penetrated through.

Even so…

"AAAAAHHHHH!"

Crack. Crack. Crack.

…It only managed to halt Brynhildr's tracks for a moment. Purple flames began to erupt from the tip of her spear, creating ruptures in multiple areas around the wall.

Hachiman didn't even need to check the gauges to know that Brynhildr was increasing her output.

"Not yet!"

Mold Camelot's rate of regeneration increased after Mash's scream, persistently trying to overcome how much it was being chipped down by Brynhildr's flames in spite of the fact that it is severely weakened due to the efficacy of the transport prototype.

The winner of this battle between an unstoppable force and an immovable object became evident a few seconds later.

Unfortunately, the Shielder's adamant determination was no match for the Lancer's fervent passion.

Whir. Whir. Whir.

Ortinax cried out as Mold Camelot continued to endure the assault.

At this point, the spear was already halfway through the fragmented walls and no matter how much Mash squeezed out of her magic power, the damage that has been done to her Noble Phantasm was far too much already.

"Kuh! I can still…!"

Hachiman walked over to his kouhai and placed a hand on her shoulder. The sudden contact snapped Mash out of her trance.

"Don't overdo it," he spoke in a stoic manner but his kouhai clearly felt how worried he was from his hand's grip. "Fall back."

"R-R-Roger."

The sounds coming from Ortinax also quieted down once the strain of deploying Mash's Noble Phantasm was gone.

"Good," Hachiman nodded solemnly before taking in a huge breath. "I'll take it from here," he stimulated all the magic circuits in his entire body and squeezed out as much of his magic power as humanly possible. "Mystic Code activate, Dust of Osiris!"

Hachiman Hikigaya felt the same amount of fatigue a week of strenuous training would cause on his body in that single instant. It was only by sheer force of will did he manage to keep himself standing.

The castle walls broke down and, in its place, was a singular purple shield that was barely large enough to cover Sigurd's body however while Dust of Osiris is significantly weaker compared to the two previously invoked Noble Phantasms, it is fundamentally a spell designed to protect a singular individual anyways so this is in fact, the strongest defensive spell they have in their current arsenal.

"AAAAAHHHHH!"

The shield and spear clashed violently.

Even after breaking through two top tier fortifications one after the other, Brynhildr did not look like it was getting any weaker. On the contrary, the tip of the spear has now become twice its original size. Nevertheless, the amount of magic power that was utilized to overcome the prior Noble Phantasms should not be negligible while Hachiman Hikigaya's entire pool was completely unspent. With all that being said however…

Break.

…It still wasn't enough.

Unsurprisingly, an upstart Magus' full capacity was like a drop in the ocean when compared to a being straight from mythology like a Valkyrie.

After much struggle, Brynhildr's lance finally pierced through Sigurd's chest.

"Ack!"

"Guh!"

Both Hachiman and Sigurd groaned at the same time, the former from the recoil of having his Magecraft broken while the latter from the searing pain of his lover's attack.

"Master!?" before Mash could say anything else, Hachiman already raised his hand to indicate that he was fine.

"It's alright, I'm fine," he smiled confidently. "Sigurd too can take much more than that."

"SIGURD?!" despite being the cause of her lover's suffering, everyone could feel the genuine concern from Brynhildr's cry, even from behind the monitor. Truly, the curse that bound these two was something horrid.

Brynhildr Romantia.

An Anti-Unit Noble Phantasm originating from Norse Mythology that becomes stronger the more that Brynhildr considered the target as a Hero.

If the designated target so happened to be Sigurd who is not only Scandinavia's greatest Hero but the very person who liberated her from the prison that bound her at one point in her life…

Then it can be considered to be at its most powerful state as it was not only her mind as a Valkyrie that acknowledged him as a Hero but also her heart. With all the power and implications contained within the lance, it was impossible for Sigurd to survive such an attack.

The Valkyrie's burning love for her husband became a scorching conflagration, one whose heat can be felt even from the screen that Humanity's Last Master was watching from.

Brynhildr could only stare as her very own purple flames fully engulfed Sigurd.

Tears fell down on her face as she took in that tragic sight.

No matter how heart-wrenching this was for her was, Brynhildr did not dare to blink.

It was exactly because it is the last few moments of Sigurd's current manifestation that she wanted keep his image inscribed onto her memory even if it was just one second longer.

There was no doubt about it. This Sigurd was now dead.

Conceptually, it was impossible for him to survive this attack.

However…

"Don't… Cry…" a faint yet resolute voice came from the man with a spear stuck to his chest.

"Eh!?" the person who held the said weapon could not hide her surprise when she heard him speak.

…Defying impossible odds like this was exactly what it meant to be called a Hero.

"Bryn… Hildr… I'm… Okay…"

Despite looking battered with his armor getting entirely charred and his chest being gouged out, Sigurd was still standing strong.

Crying Warmonger.

A Noble Phantasm that converts damage taken from enemies into magic energy that can be stored.

Through his hellish training with Spartacus, Sigurd was able to grasp the essence of this technique, reducing the life-threatening damage he would have received into a level where he could barely survive it.

Even for a great hero like Sigurd it was still impossible to completely learn the Noble Phantasm of another Servant… But that is where Chaldea and its technology comes in.

In the same manner that the magic circle that allowed Noble Phantasms and Magecraft to be applied from the Command Room to the Simulation Room, mana could also be moved back.

Long story short, it worked both ways.

During that small window of time where Brynhildr wasn't expecting her husband to survive her attack, the magic circle installed on the floor glowed.

Hum. Hum. Hum.

The magic power that fueled Brynhildr's Noble Phantasm was slowly being drained. The siphoned energy was sent right back to the very Command Room, specifically, towards the waiting arms of Jeanne d'Arc.

"Jeanne-san, please!"

"Yes!" the Maiden of Orleans lowered her banner and brought of her hands forward. "By my privilege as a supervisor of the Holy Grail War, I unravel the mysteries that shroud thee, True Name Discernment!"

Red light shot out from Jeanne's body and surrounded Brynhildr. With her spear now lodged into Sigurd's body, it meant that Brynhildr stepped into the boundary of the magic circle connected to the Command Room. Because of this, Noble Phantasms and spells can now be directly applied to Brynhildr herself.

This was the reason why Hachiman decided to make Jeanne withdraw a little earlier. He was conserving her energy exactly for this moment. What she invoked just now was her authority as a Ruler Class Servant, the ability to temporarily limit the power output of another Servant participating in a Holy Grail War, kind of like how a referee awards a penalty to a player who committed a foul.

The compelling force that is binding Brynhildr was similar to being restrained by a Command Spell however instead of forcibly making the Servant carry out an order, it severely weakens them by lowering their power output. It didn't matter if her Spirit Origin was stronger, being the daughter of the great Norse God Odin, so long as she was a Servant, this was a kind of authority that even Brynhildr couldn't easily go against.

Brynhildr had no issues with being restrained by this power but just like how she has an uncontrollable urge to hurt the one she loved dearly; her body refused to listen to her will.

All of a sudden, the pupils on her eyes disappeared and her grieving expression became stoic. It was like she became a machine whose sole function was to kill the man she loved.

Blaze. Blaze. Blaze.

"!"

The warrior maiden began condensing her purple magic power in an attempt to oppose the Ruler Class' Authority that Jeanne was applying to it.

"Master! Servant Brynhildr's magic level readings are increasing once again!"

The report came from Mash who has already removed her combat gear and was sitting in front of one of the monitors.

"As expected, rewriting a legend was never going to be easy," Hachiman took a deep breath and played the last card he had on his arsenal. "Mystic Code activate, Eye of Medjed!" Chaldea's Master felt his knees shake as a wave of nausea invaded him. Despite that however, he continued to draw out just enough mana from himself so that he won't collapse at this instant. His target was not the tragic couple from Norse Mythology but one of the Servants in this room. "Once more, Jeanne-san! Don't let up."

In order to conserve their manifestation in the real world, the summoned Heroic Spirits unconsciously put a limiter on themselves to minimize the use of their skills or Noble Phantasms. The Eye of Medjed was a type of Magecraft that bypasses such a mindset and allows the Servants to just let it rip.

In other words, it was like a steroid.

Worried as she was with Hachiman's state, Jeanne decided to prioritize his most recent order.

"Understood, Master! True Name Discernment!"

The stalemate between Brynhildr's purple flames and Jeanne's red binding light was disturbed due to Hachiman's support.

"!"

Like a tsunami, the light aggressively wrapped around Brynhildr's body and swallowed her magic power, extinguishing her flames in the process. Having used so much of her magic power already, Brynhildr could only submit. Even for a legendary Valkyrie like her, trying to overcome a Ruler Servant's authority after using her Noble Phantasm for so long was impossible. Somewhere along the line, even her lance also vanished.

A few seconds later, something within the warrior maiden also changed, no, it was more like it went back to its original state. Her uncontrollable urge to kill the man in front of her disappeared. The first thing Brynhildr did in such a situation was to check her other half's condition.

"Si… Gurd…"

Despite almost dying by the hands of the very woman in front of him, Sigurd smiled towards her radiantly in an effort to reassure her.

"It's okay now… My love…" his hand shakily approached Brynhildr's head, rubbing it gently. "Thank you for the chocolate."

"…"

After feeling relieved, a wave of fatigue rushed over Brynhildr, making her lose consciousness. It wasn't long before all that was left inside the partially wrecked Simulation Room was Brynhildr peacefully resting on Sigurd's chest. Anyone looking at her currently relaxed expression would never be able to imagine that she was the culprit behind the large wound on the body of the very same man she was snuggling into.

Who had the right to say anything about it when the victim himself was the most satisfied person of this development?

"Thank you very much for entertaining my selfishness, Master," Sigurd tried his best to lower his head even given his current position. "I hate to ask something from you again after doing so much already but if it's possible, can you give Brynhildr and I some alone time?"

"It's no problem. That was the plan from the start," looking at the state of his Saber Servant made Hachiman frown, prompting him to push himself one last time. "Take this as my last service to you for the day and go to your room."

One of the symbols engraved on the back of Hachiman's hand glowed before disappearing in the next second. What else could he possibly be doing except invoking one of his Command Spells? Due to how tired he already was, Hachiman could not bring himself to cast it properly anymore but it still activated just fine as all that was really needed was the will of the Master to use it.

Shortly after that, Sigurd could feel his body's vitality returning. The restoration was so powerful that it even healed the wound he got from taking Brynhildr's Noble Phantasm.

The King of Warriors could only sincerely bow towards the camera in gratefulness before holding his wife in a princess carry.

"Thank you very much, Master. Truly."

The camera feed then ended from there.

…

Novum Chaldea Command Room.

Now that the issue between one of the most tragic couples of legends have been resolved for the day, Hachiman Hikigaya could finally let out a sigh of relief.

"Mission accomplished, Senpai. As expected of you."

"Good work, Master."

Unfortunately, Hachiman Hikigaya's head was hurting far too much for him to relish in the pleasure of being appreciated by two very attractive women.

"Mash... Jeanne-san…" his vision was getting blurrier as he continued.

"Yes, Senpai?"

"What can we do for you?"

The two girls' expressions contorted as they began to notice their Master's condition.

"Take care… Of the rest…"

Were his last words before he fainted.

Slam.

"Senpai!"

"Master!"

They could only rush towards him in panic after the fact.

Since the word chaos would be an understatement to describe what happened in Chaldea after the Servants heard that Humanity's Last Master fainted during Valentines of all days, it will be omitted.

Come morning, Hachiman Hikigaya was greeted with a pile of chocolate at least twice as much from what he was initially expecting.

…

Just like how it was before she lost consciousness, the first thing that Brynhildr saw upon opening her eyes was the figure of Scandinavia's Greatest Hero, Sigurd, her husband.

Even after being with this person for as long as she can remember, she still had no idea how he could perfectly pull off both an athletic and intellectual look at the same time.

"Si… Gurd…?"

She reached her hand out to touch her counterpart's face, trying to confirm if what was in front of her was reality or just a dream and as if to tell her that it was the former, Sigurd was quick to grab it.

"Yes, my love?"

Hearing his husky voice so close to her ear completely woke Brynhildr up.

"Sigurd, are you okay?!" she raised her upper body and quickly scanned her husband's body, checking his condition. "Your wound is gone!"

"Yes. Master was kind enough to use a Command Spell for me," a smile mixed with bitterness and gratitude surfaced on his handsome face.

Hearing that term made Brynhildr realize something that should have been obvious from the beginning.

"Wait, couldn't Master just use a Command Spell to suppress me? Why did he have to go through all that?"

Brynhildr couldn't stop her heart from beating furiously as she tried to discern her Master's true intentions.

"He said that it would only be a temporary solution if he did it like that," Sigurd repeated the words that Hachiman answered to him when he asked the same question. "He can't always guarantee to have a spare Command Spell for this day every single year."

The warrior maiden's eyes opened wide.

"Are you saying that Master is trying to fix this curse of mine?!" she shook her head fervently. "But that's impossible!"

"They said the same thing when I fought against Solomon was his answer when I told him that too," Sigurd shrugged before smirking. "By the way, he also said that there are a lot of things that he wanted to try and this was just the first on the list."

"…"

The usually calm Brynhildr had trouble keeping her emotions in check after hearing all that.

"He's amazing, isn't he? Our Master," Sigurd decided to lighten the atmosphere by slightly changing the focus of the topic. "While he also did tell me not to get my hopes up too much, to even think about trying to dispel a curse from myth requires a lot of guts in and of itself," Sigurd approached Brynhildr's face to the point that their foreheads were almost touching. "I think today's trial is in the right direction too," his smile then widened. "You don't feel like killing me yet, right?"

"No…" she opened and closed her hands to check a reaction from her body but found that it really was moving according to her own will, at least, for now. "…I don't feel like killing you, Sigurd," a deep gloom then clouded Brynhildr's irises. "I've never wanted to."

"Yes, I know."

One of his arms wrapped around Brynhildr's shoulder and brought her into a hug.

The Valkyrie flinched in surprise at first but shortly after that, found this intimate physical contact to be quite comforting, unconsciously snuggling closer to her beloved.

"Sigurd, can I make a request?"

"Anything for you, my love," Sigurd replied without hesitation.

The Valkyrie's purple irises passionately gazed at the blue orbs of her chosen Hero.

"I don't know when my uncontrollable urge to kill you will come back so…" she blushed to her ears as she continued. "Can we stay like this a little longer?"

The personal request she made combined with her embarrassed figure was a lethal combination. There was no man in the world who would dare to refuse if their lover did this much already.

"Of course," Sigurd brought Brynhildr to a tight yet careful embrace, as if he was handling a glass figurine before whispering sweetly to her ear. "For as long as you want."

Interlude III – Love Is Hard For An Elemental [4]

"You can't be serious with this, Senpai," grumbled a black-haired young man after saying an honorific that he was much more used to being called by. "I can't believe you're coming to someone like me who literally has zero experience for relationship advice of all things."

The receiving end of Hachiman Hikigaya's complaints was a woman whose long brown hair that reached up to her feet was fixed into a fishtail braid. Her eyes were a deep black, like a starless night sky but as one looked deeper and deeper into the middle of her pupils, the vaguest traces of a blood red shade can be seen, though that fact was being obscured by her glasses. She was wearing a black skin-tight dress that may have looked a little plain but because of how it emphasized her excellent figure which curved on the right places, it became a majestic outfit worthy of someone who held the title of consort. She was a transcendent beauty that calling her the fairest of the land would not be enough to do her justice.

Assassin Class Servant. True Name: Yu Mei-ren.

While working in Chaldea before however, she was also known by the name Hinako Akuta.

"Huh? What are you talking about?" Hinako's brows furrowed as she crossed her arms. "Aren't you someone who is in a relationship with multiple Servants?"

Hachiman darted his gaze from one corner of the room to another in panic before he resumed making eye contact with Yu.

"Senpai!" Hachiman's voice was like someone who was chastising their friend or at least a person of the same age. "Even as a joke, please don't say something like that! My heart almost stopped just now!"

"No, wait. Was I off the mark?" the clueless immortal tilted her head to the side after asking.

"Completely. Let's just drop this topic here, yeah?" Hachiman didn't wait for a confirmation from his counterpart's side and proceeded to move along with the conversation. "Anyway, what senpai needed was relationship advice, right? Is there any exact reason why you're asking in the first place?"

Although he already had an idea why, for things like this it was always better to hear it from the mouth of the requestor themselves. It didn't matter if his Senpai was currently looking at him like he's the biggest idiot in the planet.

"Of course, it's to prepare for Xiang Yu-sama's arrival here in Chaldea, what else could it possibly be aside from that?"

The answer he expected to come out made Hachiman nod.

As it turns out, summoning Servants from Lostbelts wasn't as easy as preparing the appropriate catalyst. There are a lot more factors that you should be more mindful of. One small mistake and they might end up summoning the Xiang Yu from Proper Human History instead. Simply put, it was like summoning a limited-edition variant of a character in a gacha that is supposed to be present in the standard pool. You had to wait for the rate-up banner to be available first before you even attempt to pull.

"I understand," Hachiman cleared his throat before joining his hands together and letting his chin rest on them. "Okay, I'm going to ask you a few questions now. I apologize beforehand if they might end up being a little personal but you're more than welcome to not answer them if you like. Will that be alright, senpai?"

"Yes."

"Alright first and foremost," Hachiman had to think of how to arrange this question for a couple of seconds before stating it out loud. "Is there anything that you want to happen between the two of you in particular?"

A strange silence invaded the room after that singular query.

Hachiman thought that Hinako didn't hear him at first so he considered repeating what he just said but upon seeing her fair skin turn redder and redder by the second, he found it unnecessary to do so.

"Well… Of course…That would be… You know… That is… None other than…" the Elemental tried to sound composed but her shaky voice betrayed her efforts. It took a while for her to even continue her own words. By the end of it all, she was even fiddling her fingers. "Couple… Stuff…?"

Hachiman found it difficult to maintain a neutral expression after hearing such an adora-… Err, cu-… Uh… Unexpected answer from his senpai.

"Is it too much for me to ask if you want to do anything more specific?" his carefully-laid-out follow-up question made his client frown.

"S-S-Shouldn't you get it from that much already?" Yu crossed her arms in frustration but her blushing cheeks made it obvious that she was more embarrassed than mad.

Given such a development, all Hachiman could do was change his approach. He lowered one of the hands that was supporting his chin as he decided to test the waters.

"In that case, do you want to ask him to go on a date with you?"

The blush on Yu's face became more prominent, even dyeing the tips of her ears red.

"I-I-Isn't that too inappropriate?!"

Hachiman could barely believe what he was hearing.

As things currently stand, it will be impossible for another woman in Proper Human History to be more maidenly than Yu Mei-ren… But if such a fact ever became public knowledge, then Hachiman was sure that his head will immediately come flying so he decided to keep his mouth shut. No matter what, he had to take this secret of hers to his grave.

This job of his would be so much easier if he could just show her a documentary of how modern-day couples do these kinds of things but his gut was telling him that if she saw such a thing… It will rain blood, figuratively and literally.

"Okay," Chaldea's Master adopted the most solemn expression he could muster. "How about you try to hear out what I thought first?"

Hinako Akuta opened and closed her mouth a couple of times before settling on something simple as a reply.

"Alright, I'll listen. But..."

This young man in front of her was the weakest Magus among those selected by Chaldea. In fact, you would be hard-pressed to find a Magecraft user weaker than him in existence. And yet, look how far he has come. Not just Solomon, he has even defeated three Crypters! Just having control of multiple Servants wasn't enough, he had to have compensated his lack of talent with something else. By the looks of it, that unscrupulous head of his was the X-factor and in this situation, this beautiful immortal was willing to put her bet on him.

"…Remember that the instant that mouth of yours spouts something vulgar…" the vampire's eyes became more crimson as she unleashed a little bit of her bloodlust.

Hachiman raised both of his hands to calm his senpai down after seeing her expression turn grim.

"Now now senpai, just because I said that you need to be more proactive, doesn't mean I'll make you do something so…" Hachiman had to take a couple of seconds to think of a term that wouldn't get him killed immediately. "Direct," he then raised his index finger before continuing. "Essentially, all you'll be doing is making it easier for him to ask you instead," his voice became as soft as a whisper by the end.

"Go on..."

"It's simple really," he leaned a little closer to Yu like how an insurance agent would to an unsuspecting stranger to get them to sign a contract. "All you need is a little guts. Oh and by the way," the words that followed next sounded like the sweet whispers of a devil to the undying woman. "Your opportunity to do so is coming much sooner than you expect."

…

A few minutes before the talk with Consort Yu, Hachiman Hikigaya was channeling enormous amounts of power on Novum Chaldea's Summoning Chamber.

The white magic circle which was initially red from his blood glowed brighter as Hachiman reached the end of his chant.

"…Thou, clad with the Great Trinity, come forth from the circle of constraint, Guardian of the Heavenly Scales!"

A flash of light enveloped the room and once it vanished, what appeared was the huge silhouette of a horse whose upper body was that of a man. It had multiple arms which each held onto a sword at least half his own height. A loud thud echoed out every time he took a step with that colossal metallic body of his. He was an existence that was part machine, part warhorse and part ruthless conqueror.

Berserker Class Servant. True Name: Xiang Yu.

"Family name Xiang, given name Ji, and courtesy name Yu. That is, at least, what others have used for me or called me before in the past. If you find saying my name to be too inconvenient Leader, then calling me by my class is fine."

Contrary to his rather monstrous appearance, Xiang Yu performed an elegant bow that would put most high-ranking court officials to shame. His stiff and robotic tone made him sound like a loyal retainer that would even follow the most unreasonable orders of an inhuman tyrant.

Being greeted by such a gesture was indeed flattering but the more dominant feeling on Hachiman's end was discomfort.

"You don't have to go so far just for a greeting. A simple good morning or hello will do," he waved his hand around the air to show that it was no big deal.

"I will endeavor to follow your words in the next opportunity that I can get."

Hachiman ended up inadvertently sighing once again. It was not like this was the first time that he was dealing with this type of person but he just felt a little frustrated since he worked hard to correct this kind of attitude from his prior Servants and he was about to go through all that process again with the Heroic Spirit in front of him.

"Is it alright if I call you Xiang Yu-san?"

"By your will, Leader."

Just when Hachiman was about to sigh again after receiving yet another overly respectful answer, a report came from the third person in the room who was silently carrying out her role as a bodyguard until this moment.

Who else was it going to be aside from his ever-reliable shield, Mash Kyrielight?

"Senpai, a message from Da Vinci just came in," her purple eyes quickly read through the report sent to her before sharing its contents with her Master. "She's saying that Hinako Akuta-san would like to have a word with you."

"Really? At this kind of timing? Is this what they call a woman's intuition?" Hachiman glanced back and forth between Mash and Xiang Yu as he pondered what he should do next. After a few seconds, he decided to take the easy route and base his next move on the opinions of others. "Well since it's a good opportunity, would you like to come with me in order to meet your wife?"

While Hachiman was initially planning to surprise his senpai about the fact that he finally summoned Xiang Yu, he wasn't sure exactly when do it anyways so he might as we do it today… Is what he thought until he heard the Berserker's reply.

"I'm afraid I would have to decline," this time around his head was bowed only slightly, intending to show just the minimum amount of respect. "I would like to be given some information about Chadea first before I interact with other Servants so that I would not commit any blunders," a faint trace of regret was present on his tone. "As I am now, I don't think I should meet face-to-face with my wife yet."

She probably wouldn't mind though.

Was Hachiman's internal thought but on the surface, he nodded and respected his Servant's decision.

"If that's what you want to do then let's make it happen," his head then turned towards his kouhai while he checked the condition of his clothes if they were in order. "Mash, please tell Da Vinci-san that I'll be meeting Hinako Akuta-san in the counselling room."

…

Since the talk with Yu Mei-ren ended surprisingly early, Chaldea's Master decided to return to the Summoning Chamber where both Mash and Xiang Yu were still present.

The two Servants turned towards his direction upon his entry.

"Were you two just about to finish?" Hachiman asked after making his entrance.

"Yes, for the most part," Mash nodded before transitioning into a bow. "Thank you very much for your hard work as always."

"I've arrived at the perfect timing then," his gaze moved towards the other Servant inside the room. "Xiang Yu-san, there is something that I need to tell you."

"Is this perhaps related with your earlier talk with my wife, Leader?"

Instead of answering him directly, Hachiman Hikigaya made a cryptic smile.

"Something like that."

Although he didn't receive a directive just yet, it was already obvious in one glance that another problematic couple has been added to the ranks of Chaldea. To spare himself the future headache, he might as well take action now.

The short interaction between the two that Hachiman observed back in the China Lostbelt was enough for him to tell that they didn't have any problems with how they feel towards their other half. The issue seems to be that they are far too considerate with their partner that it always ends up with both of them taking a step back for the sake of the other.

At this rate, literally nothing would happen if he just left these two to their own devices.

In that case, there was only one thing that Humanity's Last Master could do for this lovely couple…

"By the power of my Command Spell, I order you," Hachiman's expression contorted slightly as he felt his magic power concentrate on one of the symbols imprinted at the back of his right hand. "Follow what your heart desires."

…It was to give them a push.

The compulsory effect of a Command Spell becomes weaker the more vague or broad the given order is. With a contradictory directive such as this one, it barely had any compelling force towards a Servant as powerful as Xiang Yu.

In fact, if he tried hard enough, Xiang Yu could shake this order off quite easily but before this mechanized warhorse could even entertain that kind of idea, Humanity's Last Master was already through setting up his next move.

"By the power of my Command Spell, I order you…" the second Command Spell gave out heat as Hachiman recited the same set of spell words.

"Another one?"

Hachiman maintained his composure as Xiang Yu only stood still in shock while Mash was just wearing an expression that said it can't be helped.

"…Get rid of your hesitation."

Another ambiguous order came out of Hachiman's mouth that Xiang Yu was not quite sure how to follow. Even then, the cynic was still not quite done.

"By the power of my Command Spell, I order you," the color of the third insignia faded from the back of his hand. "Stop thinking about it too much."

In that short span of time, what Hachiman Hikigaya said and did was nothing less than crazy.

Aside from the fact that Command Spells are basically a symbol of a Master's authority, they were precious resources that could even turn the tide of a battle if used at the right timing. For them to all be burned just for these vague instructions was unimaginable.

It is often said that a Servant is a reflection of their Master and as someone who is contracted to multiple Berserker Servants, Hachiman Hikigaya was anything but a normal person. Although he is vaguely aware of this fact, he himself will refuse to admit that out loud.

"Leader, just what are these orders for?" Xiang Yu could only ask because even after running countless calculations in his head, he couldn't quite make sense of what just occurred. For someone dubbed as Humanity's Last Master, Xiang Yu refused to believe he would do something like that without a purpose in mind.

To that, Hachiman Hikigaya just shrugged nonchalantly.

"They're nothing really," a wicked grin was then plastered on his face. "Feel free to treat what happened just now as me talking out loud."

…

So he really did manage to summon him here…

Yu Mei-ren looked at the nameplate of the door to the private room in front of her while containing her excitement.

She was indeed informed about such an event for quite a while now but because Yu didn't really have a reason to meet him in particular, she didn't dare disturb him… Was the excuse she repeatedly told herself.

In truth, this maidenly Elemental was simply too embarrassed but today, she threw her usual excuse to the gutter. The reason she can meet him now was because of the item on her hands, a beige box wrapped in a red ribbon.

Valentines' Day Chocolate.

While she completely loathed the idea of playing along with the customs made by those despicable humans, it wasn't so bad if said tradition granted her an excuse to meet her beloved Xiang Yu.

Beep. Beep.

The gap from which Yu pressed the doorbell and the doors spreading open was not even long enough to make the fairy-like woman blink.

What stood in front of her was the tall silhouette of a muscular man with the lower body of a horse.

"Ah, my beloved Yu! We finally meet," the robotic voice sounded cheerier than usual. "What brings you here today?"

"This mistress greets you, Xiang Yu-sama," the consort easily performed a bow that made her upper body parallel to the ground. "I've heard that its customary for humans to give chocolate to their most important person today. Please have some if you like," she extended her hands out to make it easier for her counterpart to receive the present. "However, as I made these by myself, I'm ashamed to say that I can't guarantee the quality so feel free to throw them out if they don't suit your tastes."

The Chinese Warlord inadvertently grabbed the box that was very close to his hands already. He stared at it for a couple of seconds enough to bore a hole through it. During this entire interval, Yu Mei-ren still kept her head down so she was unable to witness Xiang Yu's expression transition from one of befuddlement, hesitation, calmness and finally, conviction.

"One moment please."

"Pardon?"

The sudden answer took Yu completely off-guard that she ended up raising her head but Xiang Yu didn't wait for her and retreated to his private quarters before coming back out in less than a minute.

"My wife, would you like to accompany me for a while?"

Was what he said when he came back out.

The sequence of events went by so fast that Yu Mei-ren didn't even know which part she should react to at first. That being said, she is a woman who had her priorities straight and while she never expected to receive such an offer from her beloved even in her wildest dreams…

"I'm willing to follow you anywhere you want to go, Xiang Yu-sama."

…Who was she to refuse?"

Not bad, kouhai.

The Elemental couldn't help but be impressed with her Master as she trailed behind her husband.

It should be noted that because it was only recently (according to Hinako's knowledge) that Xiang Yu was summoned to Chaldea, this would be their first conversation together. For it to turn into a date of all things, the ex-Crypter named Hinako Akuta couldn't help but be excited… However, a good chunk of that enthusiasm vanished into thin air upon arriving at their supposed date spot.

The mission of saving Humanity is largely dependent on the combat power of Chaldea's Heroic Spirits hence, there are numerous state-of-the-art facilities in the base for increasing a Servant's combat power.

One such place is the Simulation Room which reenacts multiple kinds of environments to allow the Master to work with his Servants in a setting as close to a real battle as much as possible and another area that provided a similar kind of benefit was the room in front of the couple.

As with most places here in Chaldea, the size of the door is larger than usual to accommodate for the Heroic Spirits who possessed much larger builds. The sign above read Training Room.

"Xiang Yu-sama, this is…?" the hopeful woman pointed towards the direction of the room with a shaking index finger.

"Exactly what the sign says," the conqueror answered matter-of-factly, convinced that he did nothing wrong. "There is something that I needed your help with, my wife."

"I-I-Is that so?" the normally calm and collected consort uncharacteristically stuttered. She then coughed abruptly before donning her usual stoic visage. "I personally think that my skills are pretty meager but if you think they can be of use then I would be happy to lend you a hand, Xiang Yu-sama."

Hinako Akuta didn't dare blame her husband for fanning her expectations even in her thoughts. It was her fault for expecting something in the first place. If there was one person that should take the blame then it would undoubtedly be…

That stupid kouhai of mine!

Due to her internally cursing their common Master all this time, Yu had no idea where they were really headed in this facility until he heard Xiang Yu's voice once again.

"We're here, Yu."

The Training Room is the largest facility in Chaldea occupying its own dedicated floor.

It is comprised of several sections based on the equipment required for a specific kind of training.

There is a gym for weight training of all kinds of varieties, a pool for swimming which has a setting that can adjust its depth or even add in some waves to make it like the sea, a field for running where the terrain can be changed from a smooth track to a rough mountain road, an enclosed ring for those who want to test themselves with others, and even an isolated space for those more willing to engage in self-meditation and the like.

The specific section that the two are at now is the field.

On a normal day, several Heroic Spirit would be seen taking a jog here. Some of the rowdier and more competitive ones would even aggressively race against each other, causing trouble for the other users. Given that it was Valentines' Day today, not a single runner can be spotted, in fact, the entire Training Room itself is empty. This is because of Hachiman Hikigaya's quick order to restrict entry upon knowing that Xiang Yu and Yu Mei-ren were heading to this place, although the two themselves currently have no idea about such secret arrangements being conducted behind their backs. As a side note, Chaldea's Master himself is a regular visitor of this field as running was one of the best ways to raise one's stamina.

"Xiang Yu-sama, I don't mean to be too forward with you but what is this task that I am supposed to help you with?"

The Chinese Warlord took a deep breath before responding. His loud exhalation seemed to be carrying several other things aside from just air.

"My beloved Yu, would you like to have a match with me?"

"Pardon?"

Although Hinako heard exactly what he said, she couldn't help herself from answering in this manner.

"I just wanted to have a friendly little competition between you and me. I can't do something like that if you don't lend a helping hand," he considerately clarified. "Am I asking for too much, perhaps?"

Once Yu heard him the second time around, she immediately changed her gears.

"No, it's just that I doubt that I'll be able to provide you with a challenge, Xiang Yu-sama," she answered while feeling a little ashamed. Even though she has existed a long time in this planet, since most of that period was spent in hiding or being imprisoned, she didn't really have much opportunity to train her body.

"You, not provide me a challenge? Nonsense!" a sound that was most similar to a chuckle came out of Xiang Yu's mouth. "It might be that you're just lacking some motivation my dear wife. How about we make it so that the winner gets the privilege to ask anything they want from the loser?"

Yu Mei-ren froze for a few seconds after hearing those magic words.

"Anything?"

She gulped after asking for clarification.

In contrast to her who was internally panicking, the famed Xiang Yu was as firm as a boulder.

"Did I stutter?"

She didn't need to ask or hear anything else anymore, no, it was more like Hinako was afraid that he'll take back his offer if she acted too fussy with him.

"Very well. I would like to participate."

"I am pleased to hear that response," Xiang Yu nodded in amusement before he slowly walked towards a spot on the track that was marked with a white horizontal line, the starting line. "The rules are simple," he pointed towards where he was standing and traced the entire field with a finger, drawing a circle in the air. "We make one lap across the entire field and whoever comes back first, wins," he then turned his gaze back to his wife. "Do you have any questions?"

The fair consort shook her head.

"None."

"In that case, allow me to get everything else ready," Xiang Yu moved towards the edge of the starting line where a terminal that allowed the users of this field to customize it to their preferences was mounted. "So as to not let anyone have an unfair advantage, we will let the machine here set the signal to start," he skillfully operated the device in front of him.

Once that was set, all that was needed was for the two to get behind the line. Given how wide the track is, the two were able to have ample space between them where Yu Mei-ren was situated on the left-hand side and Xiang Yu to the right. Because of the former's lack of awareness in the physical department, she did not crouch down like that of a professional runner. All she did was lower her upper body a little and let her feet dig into the ground. Both discomfort and doubt can easily be noticed from her posture and expression. On Xiang Yu's end, all four of his legs were tensed to the limit as he tilted his upper body in a way to better support his limbs.

A holograph was then projected from the terminal on the side shortly after they got into their respective positions. The digital image showed the two runners the exact timing for this race to begin.

3.

2.

1.

GO.

With nary a gap between the trigger, Xiang Yu's four hooves launched his huge body with great momentum while Yu almost slipped from putting too much strength on one foot.

Aside from that shaky start, the run was pretty much uneventful due to one of the runners being overwhelmingly superior over the other.

By the time the two participants reached the halfway point, the winner was pretty much obvious.

Naturally, it was not the vampire who could barely maintain her running form from all the fatigue.

"Hah… Hah…" labored breaths came out of Yu's mouth as she tried to keep herself in the competition.

She could only admire the figure of her beloved dashing violently (read as majestically in a wife's rose-tinted lens) up ahead. At this point, the dust cloud he was creating was enough to intimidate her into submission.

Determination alone wasn't going to cut it. The gap between experience, form and physique was so much that she had no right to be bitter about it.

Just when her thoughts were leaning towards such a pessimistic direction, she ended up recalling one particular memory.

It was about a battle that was already lost.

Despite being in the jaws of defeat against Chaldea's Master and his Servants from Proper Human History…

Just this once…

There was one warrior whose will to fight refuse to be extinguished.

It was a Xiang Yu who was similar yet quite different from the one running in front of her.

…I will fight not for the empire, but for the woman I love.

Recalling that mechanical figure of his even as he fell down in defeat inspired her to not throw in the towel just yet, even if what lay at the end of this stubborn choice of hers would also be the same defeat that Xiang Yu tasted.

There must still be something I can do.

Although the entire track was quite long and the gap between Hinako and Xiang Yu was only getting longer by the second, because the terrain selected contained no obstacles of the sort, the one thing that mattered the most in this race was just speed.

In other words, raw power.

Luckily, aside from time, power was the kind of thing that an Elemental like Yu Mei-ren had an abundance of, or rather, she knew exactly where to get it from.

Eternal Lament.

It was none other than the name of her Noble Phantasm. With the amount of magic power that these Heroic Spirits are restricted to use in the base, pulling something like that off is impossible.

That being said, the working principle behind it is very simple. It is essentially a crude Mana Burst that did not care for the condition of the user's body. Being an immortal being like her, regeneration of her lost body parts was child's play. No, it was even easier than that as it came to her as naturally as breathing.

All she was planning on doing was to redirect as much of her magic power into her legs. For something like that, she wouldn't need to unleash her Noble Phantasm's True Name.

Come to think of it, since that kouhai of mine knows my true nature already, there is no point in pretending to be a human in front of him… Or in Chaldea, in general.

From then on, Yu let go of all her hesitation.

"Gah!"

The blood vessels on her legs began to rupture one-by-one. Although this may have been dangerous for a normal human being, Yu's innate regeneration abilities was patching her up in a rate that she was still able to stand.

The problem with regeneration however is that it does not offset the pain. Right now, what she was feeling was akin to pouring hot liquid metal into her body, forcefully taking it out then pouring it back in once again. Despite the unimaginable pain, Hinako didn't stop what she was doing, even daring to increase rate at which she channeled her mana.

And once she was at her peak…

She leapt.

Boom.

The sudden surge of mana made Xiang Yu look behind him. Since there were only two people using the Training Room at this time, the source could only be…

"This is?!"

Even though he prepared himself, he was still quite surprised with what he saw, enough that he was frozen in place.

By overloading her magic power, Yu Mei-ren induced a Spirit Origin Ascension. Gone were her plain and modest clothes and in it's place was an airy dress that revealed her bare skin that was as fair as fresh snow. The braid holding her beige hair back snapped allowing her hair to flutter behind her like a pair of wings. The lower half of her body however was a grotesque sight. The combined burden from the physical strain and the excessive magic power severely damaged her legs to the point that her innate regeneration was unable to instantly fix them. In the rose-tinted lens of a husband however, this unyielding form of hers had its own flavor of elegance. The half-destroyed track as a result of the violent discharge of magic power was not even registered in his eyes.

Looking at his wife now, made Xiang Yu recall why he wanted to ask his wife in a contest against him all of a sudden.

Follow what your heart desires.

Get rid of your hesitation.

Stop thinking about it too much.

These were the orders that his Master gave him after burning through all three of his Command Spells. While they are not quite the same commands, at their core, it simply meant for Xiang Yu to disobey the most fundamental principle of his programming. Instead of just doing the things that he must do, he should also do the things that he wanted to do.

Even with all that being said though, he couldn't just do as he please without taking his wife's thoughts into consideration… But if Yu were to agree with him beforehand then that was a different story altogether.

Thus, they are in this kind of situation now although his original plan was to somehow let his wife win, this kind kf result wasn't too bad either. In the first place, they didn't talk about not using their abilities in this match so technically, Yu Mei-ren did nothing wrong.

"It's my loss," Xiang Yu remarked as he slowly galloped towards Hinako.

Due to pushing herself so hard, Yu had no sensation on the lower half of her body so right now, she could only powerlessly lay on the ground until she finishes regenerating.

"I can't believe… That I really managed to win…" the consort sighed in disbelief.

Despite Yu's helpless figure, the savage conqueror could not help but be awestruck of her, very much so that he wasn't able to stop himself from picking her off the ground.

"Wait, this is?! Xiang Yu-sama?!"

The sudden action of his husband surprised Yu so much that she wasn't even able to properly bask in the afterglow of her victory.

"I couldn't just leave my wife to lay on the ground like that now, can I?" came a flawless answer from the logician's end. "Or am I doing something to make you uncomfortable?"

"How can that ever be possible?!" Hinako vigorously shook her head as she answered. "I am most thankful. It's just that you didn't need to bother yourself when all the injuries I sustained will heal after a short while."

"Even so, please let me do at least this much for you," Xiang Yu stubbornly insisted. "I am your husband after all."

Now that he said this much, Yu Mei-ren figured that refusing his good intentions was only going to be rude. Well, it's not like she disliked being spoiled like this so there was no problem in the first place, though saying that out loud was beyond her at the moment.

"I understand," she relented and let the four-legged Berserker do as he please.

Xiang Yu might not have won the actual contest but after this current exchange of theirs, he felt like he didn't get absolutely nothing out of it either.

"According to the rules we've agreed on, I must now obey one order from you," he began to slowly gallop while still carrying his wife on his arms. "Is there something you'd like for me to do?"

If it wasn't for this reminder, Yu Mei-ren would've thought that she already burnt her prize with her being carried delicately like this.

It is definitely a precious opportunity but given today's occasion there's only one thing that Consort Yu wanted this husband of hers to do.

"In that case, I want you to tr-…"

"I plan on eating the chocolates you've given me later anyways so that won't count," Xiang Yu interrupted before his wife had the chance to finish what she intended to say. "If it's not too much trouble, please think of something else."

Although she was asked to come up with a different request all of a sudden, Hinako found it more important to satisfy her curiosity first. Was it her imagination or was she getting extremely spoiled today for some reason?

"Are you really willing to give those a try, Xiang Yu-sama?" she tried to lower her head in order to conceal her blushing cheeks but it was useless as even the tips of her ears were crimson. "Like I said earlier, I'm not really confident in my culinary skill."

"Hm? Was I not supposed to?" Xiang Yu tilted his head in confusion. "I'll end up wasting all the effort you put in that gift if I don't at least try it."

There was a vague tone of amusement in the quadruped Berserker's voice.

"I didn't know you were such a tease, Xiang Yu-sama," she tried to adopt a reproachful tone but her message did not come across because of her embarrassment. It didn't help that she was still flustered from being carried by Xiang Yu like this.

"Well, you don't have to give me an answer today," Xiang Yu tried to sound as calm as possible so as to not pressure his wife. "After all, we'll be able to see each other more often now because we serve the same Master," he continued to slowly gallop around while still carrying Yu.

Hearing a few keywords from her significant other gave the lovely consort a good idea.

"I think I know what I want now."

"Let's hear it."

"Xiang Yu-sama," as if she was on a trance, her hand was drawn towards Xiang Yu's and her dainty fingers began to caress his cheek gently. "I want for the two of us to have another contest like this once again," she then withdrew her hand and began to clarify something. "Ah, it doesn't have to be a race, we can also do things like board games or playing with cards."

It didn't take too long for this so-called ruthless conqueror to give his answer.

"I understand."

"Are you really okay with doing something like that?"

Even though it was to her benefit, the fair Assassin was still quite surprised in how easily Xiang Yu agreed.

"Wasn't I the loser? In that case, I am obligated to follow through with whatever request you desire, my lovely Yu," one of his hands moved back a few locks of hair that got onto Hinako's face.

And during that singular interval…

"Thank you very much, Xiang Yu-sama."

…Yu Mei-ren smiled radiantly like a blossoming flower. The sight captivated the warlord so much that he ended up receiving several error messages on his head.

It was the first time in a long time that she was genuinely happy. This entire thing with Chaldea may only end up as nothing more than a small instant in the eternity that it known as an Elemental's lifespan but even so, she was sure that she would never forget this part of her life no matter how many years pass by… Now if only that Foreign God out there would learn to how to take a hint, things would have been perfect for Hinako Akuta.

Interlude IV – The Reason A Blond Bastard Went To The Witch's Room That Night [5]

"Yo."

Out of nowhere. Sudden. Abrupt.

These were the kind of words that described the appearance of Humanity's Last Master on the personal quarters of a Greek Hero whose tales far surpass the splendor of the person himself.

It was almost like he was acting. While Hachiman Hikigaya's moments of slyness was no big secret in Chaldea, the Master in front of him today seemed to have cranked up such a trait to the maximum.

Is he trying to imitate a fox?

But the words that Jason said out loud were vastly different compared to what just popped out of his head.

"What are you doing here?" asked the owner of the private room.

He was a man with dazzling blond hair, the kind of which you would see a nobleman or even one of royalty would possess but because of his rather sloppy exterior and petty nature, he gave the airs of a thug more than an aristocrat.

The Leader of the Argonauts.

Saber Class Servant. True Name: Jason.

"I was gifted a bottle of wine earlier and I don't think I can finish this myself so," Hachiman dangled the said item with one of his hands like how an adult would lure a baby with a piece of candy. "Wanna have a drink?"

Why with me?

But before Jason could say that question out loud, Hachiman's answer came flying towards him.

"Amongst the other options for a drinking buddy and a fellow taste-tester, you're way less rowdy," Hachiman then brought his index finger to his lips. "You are also much better at keeping a secret from others."

The others being mentioned here were the more overprotective Servants who would nag Hachiman like his mother would if they ever found out about him drinking. Yes, that included a certain red Archer.

While Jason still felt a little suspicious about all this, he however had no reason to send him out.

After all, the alcohol did nothing wrong and he wasn't the type to reject stuff that was given to him for free.

In other words, he gave in to his desires.

"Give that here," Jason demanded pompously whereas Hachiman simply smiled, taking the highhanded attitude of his Servant in stride.

This Greek Hero was not the first Heroic Spirit to act in this manner towards their Master and he will most certainly not be the last. Complaining about such a thing would be a waste of time and energy on Hachiman's part so he simply emulated around the same level of brazenness towards said arrogant Servants in kind. Case in point, how he shamelessly went for Jason's cupboards without asking and grabbing two glasses there before pouring the drink for his Servant.

Once a glass was handed to him, Jason did not bother checking the color of the wine or its consistency and immediately took a sip. The intense sourness of the grapes assaulted his tongue and the astringency of alcohol invaded his nostrils. It was a flavor that would be much too strong for others to appreciate but it was just right for the Greek Hero's preferences.

Just when he was about to take another sip, his tastebuds were in for another surprise. All the acidity from earlier vanished and what was left was a rich and creamy aftertaste. The sweetness was enough to make you crave for something sour, in other words, another sip of the wine. It was an endless cycle and one without much self-restraint would easily lose themselves to these two complementing sensations.

"This is some good stuff!" Jason remarked in good cheer while licking his lips. "Where did you even get something like this?"

Got you.

The edges of the Master's lips curled upwards ever so slightly.

"Would you like to hear a funny story?" Hachiman didn't bother with the fact that he was answering a question by asking another question or wait for an answer from Jason's end and continued talking anyways. "There was someone who messed up and accidentally gave me the wrong gift for today and they were extremely embarrassed when they noticed the mix up. As an apology for making fun of them too much, I offered to deliver it to its rightful owner even though they refused so much," the nature of Hachiman's expression became more mischievous as he went on, making Jason have goosebumps. "Now who do you think would make such a mistake in this special day?"

Rightful Owner. Special day.

The conclusion he reached after connecting those two words together made Jason shiver. This unconventional Saber finally understood why he was feeling a little wary of his Master earlier. Then again, since that schemer used alcohol was as bait, there was no way he'll ever be able to avoid this situation.

"It can't be…!"

"Now now, don't be jealous," Hachiman used both hands to appease his Servant's agitation but in contrast to his gestures, he was smiling like a child who successfully pranked someone.

"Huh? Who are you calling jealous?!"

The outburst came as he expected so the cynic moved on to the next phase of his plan.

"Oh, you're not jealous? I see, I see," he nodded multiple times a little exaggeratedly while rubbing his chin with his hand. "I guess that makes sense. After all, what the two of us have is nothing more than a teacher-student relationship. A teacher giving her pupil a gift isn't so strange now, is it?"

"You…!" Jason was about to explode once again but now that he understood that him getting angry was exactly what this young man wanted to happen, Jason restrained himself and let go of his frustrations with a sigh. "Why are you telling me all this?"

This response however was still well-within the Monster of Logic's calculations.

"I am not telling you anything," the cynic asserted shamelessly. "I was simply speaking my thoughts out loud and you just happened to be present to listen."

"…"

Soundly beaten by this contest of words, the Greek Hero could only open and close his mouth wordlessly.

Now that Hachiman has already achieved his main objective, he saw no need to stay in this room any longer.

"Alright, I think that will be all from me."

Jason frowned when he saw his supposed drinking partner for tonight preparing to leave.

"Hey, wait a minute. You didn't even drink a single drop."

The situation was a little troubling for the blond pirate as it was Hachiman himself who brought the drink here but the latter didn't seem to mind at all.

"Even I am not so shameless that I'll have a taste from a gift that wasn't meant for me," he sounded really noble at first but all that was simply a preamble in order to make his next set of words leave a greater impact on Jason. "Oh, by the way, since this is not that kind of present, you don't need to wait one month later to give something in return," a smug smile appeared on Hachiman's face. "You had one prepared already, right?"

"How did you kno...!?"

The Leader of the Argonauts was a second too late with his realization. As for Hachiman, his smile turned into a full-blown grin, the kind you'd be seeing a villain wear.

"I didn't. I just thought that you were the type to believe that she definitelyhad something made for you so you would also make your own preparations beforehand and it looks like my guess was right," he fully stood up this time around without Jason interrupting him. "I'll really be taking my leave now, no need to show me the way out."

The one who is called Humanity's Last Master exited Jason's room in a similar manner as his entrance, out of nowhere, sudden and abrupt, leaving Jason by his lonesome once again. The only thing different from earlier is that a bottle of alcohol and a half-filled glass was now on his table.

He didn't know why he only noticed it just now but aside from the taste of its contents, a lot of care and attention was placed on the bottle itself. Its color was a distinct shade of green that was so dark that it could be mistaken as black depending on the lighting. The glass it was made from also didn't seem ordinary as even though it didn't feel cold to the touch, the wine that came out felt like it was just pulled out from a chiller. The reason looked to be the golden characters that were engraved on the surface of the bottle. It is most likely a kind of spell that maintains the optimal temperature of the wine for it to taste best. Among Jason's acquaintances, only one person is capable enough to make such a thing… No, he knew one more, but they didn't really have a direct personal connection and they were more like the friend of an acquaintance so they didn't count.

"Curses."

As someone who lived during the Golden Age of Romance and Adventure, Jason was no stranger to preparing a gift or two for a fair lady. That kind of thing was pretty much the basic of the basics during their time. It didn't help that the recent trend in Chaldea leaned towards giving these kinds of gifts not just to the Master but also towards the Heroic Spirits they were close with or even idolized back during their time.

After grumbling to himself for a couple more seconds, Jason's gaze landed to the wine bottle once again and before he knew it, he was already drinking another glass.

"Delicious."

There was no way he was going to say something like that after having an idea of where it came from so that could only mean that…

He was already drunk.

Yep, that is definitely what's going on.

…

Once Hachiman Hikigaya exited Jason's private quarters, his demeanor went back to being stoic instead of the sly one he made use of earlier and as if on cue, someone nearby decided to take on the role of the fox.

"Do you think he'll take action because of what you did, Sen~pai?"

The number of people in Chaldea who called Hachiman Hikigaya such an honorific could be counted by one hand and if you had to add in the coquettish and drawn-out way of doing so, then that would round it down to just one Heroic Spirit, that is, if she could ever really be classified as one.

She is a girl with violet irises, knee-length hair with a similar shade but became closer to being white on the tip and the red ribbons she uses to tie her hair as well as the one that functions similarly to a necktie.

At first glance, she appears to be wearing the uniform of a certain school but it was hard to imagine an educational institution with a dress code that involved a jacket with very baggy sleeves and whose rear end was even longer than a standard tailcoat, not to mention her thigh-highs also had a slit on the front side which somehow made it look more provocative than just showing off her bare legs.

Moon Cancer Class Servant. True Name: BB

As a side note, it was this particular Servant's attitude that he decided to utilize while he was conversing with Jason earlier.

Hachiman simply shrugged at the teasing query of this other kouhai of his.

"I'd say it's pretty likely but I can't really be too sure until I see what Jason decides to do next."

"If only there was some way for you to secretly monitor the situation from a distance," BB feigned a thinking posture all while her lips smiled suggestively and her brows moved up and down. "Wouldn't that be so~ convenient?"

Once she was like this, Hachiman knew that BB already had a card on her sleeve and the only question left would be if she was willing to let him use it or not.

"BB, you already installed a camera that is watching the door to her workshop, right?"

That was the natural conclusion to draw from what BB has said so far and it didn't seem to be incorrect. As someone who've conducted multiple deals with this girl in the past, Hachiman can somewhat predict her thought process already.

"You don't really expect to ask me for a favor without preparing something in return now, wouldn't you?"

An upturned gaze, a deliberate blink that emphasized her long eyelashes, a coy smile with her rosy lips, a distance that was not too near or too far that made the other party smell the floral scent coming from their hair and finally, the perfect lean that made a certain voluptuous part of their body stand out aside from their beautiful face, making you wonder where to keep your eyes on...

It was a deadly combination, powerful enough that it wouldn't be surprising for it to be associated with a name like one would with a Noble Phantasm. If this was used against any boy without much experience then they were sure to comply with any demand the girl had for them, regardless of how unreasonable it is…

Unfortunately for BB, it was not the first time that the senpai in front of her was hit by this special move so the reaction she was hoping for did not happen. Besides, if Chaldea's Master had to be honest, the advances of a certain oni who loved alcohol too much was far more difficult to deal with.

"I'll bring tea and some refreshments. You can tell me what you want while we have those together."

Just like how water can extinguish fire and fire burns wood, every single person had a type that they have difficulty in dealing with.

Now Hachiman Hikigaya may be no socialite but interacting and looking after several Heroic Spirits each with their own quirks and habits after all this time allowed him to develop his own set of skills to deal with them one-on-one.

Towards Jason's pride and quick fuse similar to a chihuahua, a clever fox was the most effective way to toy with him and now that he is currently pitied against that same foxlike behavior in the shape of BB, the best approach for this is to boldly close in on the other party, like a wolf trailing its prey but not immediately giving chase, confident of the inevitable result.

"Eh?! Does that mean you're going to watch them with me?" the bomb that her Master dropped surprised BB so much that it made her lean backwards.

Now that it was BB herself who was feeling more nervous, it made it easier for Hachiman to act calmer.

"How else am I supposed to monitor the situation properly if I don't do that?" he raised one of his brows while stating something that he thought was already obvious.

"Ah… Well, I guess that makes sense."

Shock was evident on BB's face. She wondered at what point did she lose control of this conversation but her Master wasn't going to give her the leeway to think.

"I'll be coming over in around half an hour."

Hachiman headed out immediately after dropping those words. Not only was he able to make his escape before his poker face began to crumble, the fact that he added some vague time pressure jumbled BB's thought process so completely that…

I need to clean my room no, wait… I think I need to take a bath first, just in case…

…She ended up drawing this strange conclusion of what was going to happen to them later on her own.

Needless to say, that delusion of hers did not come to pass.

…

The soft ticks of the clock, the gentle beep of an electric tool on use, the faint hum of the ventilator… Even indoors, the comforting ensemble of the night was always the best accompaniment for any person who wanted to completely immerse themselves in their hobbies at this kind of hour. For a world and its civilization approaching its doom, it was the kind of luxury you couldn't indulge yourself so easily anymore.

These soft noises were the sole company of a Servant with long hair whose shade was right in the middle of blue and purple. Black gloves covered her hands and she wore a long dress that was light purple in the middle but was much darker on her sleeves.

Caster Class Servant. True Name: Medea.

The Princess of Colchis was not conjuring a curse or brewing some kind of concoction as you would expect from someone who is called a Witch. Instead, all her attention was focused on the paintbrush she held on her hand and the 1:12 perfectly scaled figure of a blonde King of Knights in her swimsuit.

Medea was doing her best to make sure that not a single smudge would stray from the intended areas that the specific colors should be painted on however once she reached the point where all she had to work on were the clothes, she encountered a dilemma…

Should I keep the original color scheme or should I change it to something else entirely?

She would always end up asking herself this question every single time she had a project and it would take hours for her to finally settle on a decision as an angel Medea and devil Medea would figuratively appear on top of her head and endlessly argue with each other but before that could happen this time around…

Knock. Knock. Knock.

She heard three sounds that didn't come from the night's harmonious symphony on her door. She briefly glanced at her clock to check the time as well as get a hint as to the identity of this visitor. It was a few minutes past 11 at night already. Whoever is on the other side of the door either got the wrong room or was just trying to play a prank on her so she decided to wait things out a little longer however…

Knock. Knock. Knock.

Her door echoed once again, rendering her two earlier assumptions moot. Now that the person on the other side was being insistent, she decided to just meet them and get things over with. It was about time for her get a short break anyways.

Snap.

A single flick of her fingers was enough to conceal the model she was working on as well as her ever-growing collection and her most reliable tools.

While there are indeed a couple of sympathizers to her inside this base, it was still better to be safe than sorry. Even a witch like her had a reputation that they must maintain but after opening the door in order to meet tonight's unannounced visitor, Medea felt like she shouldn't have bothered at all.

"What are you doing here?" she asked without even bothering to sugarcoat how vexed she was.

"This," the visitor, Jason, the Leader of the Argonauts, dangled a wine bottle that Medea instantly recognized after one glance. "I heard this is from you?" he kept eye contact with Medea for a second while asking before he averted his gaze later on, an act that didn't bother the witch that much as she didn't like looking at his eyes in the first place.

"So he really did end up giving it to you," Medea sighed. As it was only her upper body that can be seen from the outside because the rest was still on her room, the door ended up closing slightly following her sigh. "That student of mine is being too nosy," she massaged her temple in vexation while wondering just exactly how she was going to get back at him.

"I said the exact same thing earlier to him and that bastard just shrugged it off while smiling," Jason's grumblings were much more vulgar than his counterpart although the essence was the same.

It was the first thing that they agreed about in… A very very long time. In fact, she couldn't even remember the last time they agreed on anything.

As it stands, their relationship was pretty much impossible to mend given how many knots they have to untangle. Grudges, misunderstandings, lies… They had far too many issues in the past to resolve…

However, those were all issues that they had when they were alive.

Now that they've become Heroic Spirits serving the same Master, having all that baggage would only be detrimental to the common goal that Chaldea wishes to achieve.

While starting from a blank slate is completely impossible…

At the very least, a friendly business-like relationship shouldn't be too difficult of a goal to aim for.

As soon as Medea thought along that direction, several words unconsciously came out of her mouth that it even surprised herself.

"Would you like to come in?"

The sudden offer made Jason blink. From a corner of his eyes, he could see that the hand holding the door was shaking.

She's forcing herself.

Was the ignorant blond's interpretation to her uncharacteristic actions so instead of courageously taking the dive along with Medea, the petty coward decided to give the woman in front of him an easy way out. The worse part about all this is that he actually thought he was cool when he did so.

"It's alright, I just wanted to confirm my hunch. I'll take my leave now."

He lowered his head when he answered so he didn't see the frown on Medea's face. Because of this irritation of hers however, she ended up doing something even more reckless.

As a side note, a certain Master who was watching this exchange from afar was half-tempted to jump into the scene and slap some sense into Jason but stopped himself once he heard what Medea wanted to say next.

"No, I insist," Medea stopped hiding behind the door and revealed her self. "I'd rather not have rumors about me popping out tomorrow that I am a woman who is unable to provide the most basic hospitality to a guest."

Hospitality.

It was a virtue that Greeks would never dare to underestimate as there was a famous story about how their Chief God decided to flood an entire community for refusing to provide it for him when he roamed around in disguise.

Naturally, both Jason and Medea were aware of such a story.

"I get it. I'll come in," he smirked before smugly adding. "But only because you forced me, okay?"

The needless comment shaved off a good chunk of Medea's patience, rendering her unable to stop her brows from twitching.

"Ugh! Just get in already!"

Although he was invited to enter, Jason would be lying if he wasn't apprehensive of this entire situation given his history of this workshop's owner but that unnecessary concern of his quickly disappeared before long.

The interior of Medea's workshop greatly resembled the one he visited in the past that Jason was feeling a little nostalgic. Seeing some of the items here made him recall some memories from so long ago, back when the two of them still didn't act like… This, with each other.

Well, I suppose there is more merit in being friendly with each other rather than remaining so antagonistic...

Although the two of them shared the same inward thought, it was useless if their intentions weren't properly transmitted to the other party.

It was only once the two were seated on the same table did Medea began to regret her past self ten minutes ago that dragged this man inside here and Jason began internally kicking himself for suddenly appearing in front of this woman's door tonight without a proper plan.

"…"

"…"

"…"

"…"

Awkward doesn't even begin to describe their current situation.

It would've been much better if they were silent because they are unable to come up with a topic but their situation was the exact opposite.

They had far too many issues that it was difficult to decide where to begin.

What should we even start talking about?

Although he did say that he was only entering the workshop because he was requested to do so, upon thinking about it more now, Jason felt like he lost to Medea in that instance because she relented to him first. In which case, he thought he had to somehow seize the initiative for this upcoming conversation.

The standard opening topic in a chat is usually either a little thank you to show your appreciation or the standard how have you been? for someone you haven't talked to for the longest time but with how much of a mess their past was, Jason couldn't bring himself to do either. No, perhaps one of the reasons things became that way between them is exactly because Jason is incapable of doing such simple gestures.

"Ahem ahem," the one branded as the Leader of the Argonauts back during his heyday cleared his throat deliberately, a gesture that made Medea roll her eyes, although she would be lying if she said she wasn't curious about what he wanted to talk about with her all of a sudden. "About this," he put the wine bottle on the table and pointed at it. "Aside from that stupid Master, did you give someone else a similar gift?"

The odd question left Medea repeatedly opening and closing her mouth in confusion.

What is this guy even asking? If he wanted to say something, he should just come out and say it, beating around the bush like this was just a waste of time for the two parties involved.

Hearing an inquiry filled with such distrust irritated Medea so much that instead of answering it directly, a different set of words came out of her mouth impulsively.

"And if I did?" her gaze sharpened. "How does this concern you?"

Jason's brows twitched.

"That's… Of course, it's… Well… Because…"

The blond kept saying a lot of things but it all came out as incoherent murmurs to Medea.

Pissed, she tapped her index finger on the table and made Jason look her way.

"It's what?" she raised one of her brows as she asked, applying more pressure.

Jason flinched a little before shooting back using sheer stubbornness.

"Just don't!" he crossed his arms to appear even the slightest bit more terrifying, though it was obviously not working. "Got it?"

Medea could only sigh at the pathetic display in front of her.

"Like I said, why do I even have to listen to you?"

The condescending stare, the cold tone, the suffocating atmosphere, the words layered with barbs, the apparent distrust…

Jason was once again reminded why he didn't like sharing conversations with Medea. Why did he even forget in the first place? Although he could somewhat understand why she was acting in this manner given his antics in the past, that didn't mean he wouldn't be angry when he is being treated in this disdainful manner.

"Haaa. It always ends like this when we talk," he sighed deeply before rubbing his temples in frustration.

The words combined with his mannerisms served to annoy Medea further for a completely different reason.

"What are you trying to imply this time?" the witch's irises gleamed as she asked.

Miraculously, Jason somehow found the courage to glare back at Medea.

"You know exactly what it is without me having to tell you, I'm sure."

The coward's uncharacteristic boldness shook Medea a little.

"Yes," a trace of guilt was mixed into her expression. "Perhaps I do."

Seeing her admit it so easily like this made Jason feel bad instead.

"You know what? It's fine," he waved his hand around to make it seem like what just happened was no big deal but it was obvious from his face that it was truly not the case.

"Oh, what's this? You're not going to throw a fit?" Medea spoke her true thoughts out loud.

Jason would be lying if he wasn't tempted to do as she just said but after seeing the faint smile etched on Medea's face, he figured that it was not an actual provocation. Were there times in the past where she was just teasing him like this and he ended up taking it the wrong way? Either way, it was impossible for him to prove this suspicion of his now.

He let everything out with a sigh first before actually responding.

"Must you always have something to say?"

Caster would have provoked this Saber further by saying that he gave a more lukewarm response than she expected but it wouldn't be fair of her to do so given that Jason himself has already made an adjustment on his end.

"Very well. I'll back off now."

Silence once again drifted between the two but unlike the earlier one which was riddled with awkwardness, this tranquility felt much much calmer as neither side was really pressured to say anything in order to change the situation.

Now that things have settled down, although he wasn't quite sure what made things sour in the first place, Jason felt that it was finally time to do what he intended to do by coming here in the first place. Attempting to mend their past relationship will be saved for another day.

"I almost forgot," the blond pirate put a pouch that was strapped on his waist on the table. He then opened it before pulling out an item from its depths. The pouch is in fact an artifact capable of storing much much more items than its appearance may suggest. Don't worry about it. "Here."

Clink. Clink. Clink.

The items that Jason pulled out made such sounds as they were each placed on the table.

It was a complete set of tea ware from the teapot, cups, saucers, spoons and even the sugar pot.

They had a white base and each piece was designed with an ornate floral pattern composed of golden leaves and a violet flower, each of which was etched with gold and a small amethyst respectively.

It was a present which exuded an air of both luxury and elegance.

"It's not really a return gift," he scratched his cheek in embarrassment. "I just really don't like the idea of owing you anything."

He pushed the items towards Medea's side of the table, indirectly asking her to take them.

"Oh my. This is a lovely surprise indeed," she smiled before tracing the rim of one of the teacups with her index finger. "You really didn't have to. It's not like I made that bottle expecting to get something in return."

Or for you to receive it.

But Medea left that part unsaid.

As the witch continued to admire her unexpected present, the blond adventurer, who seems to still be drunk from his earlier boldness decided to ask a rather hopeful question.

"Can I expect to receive another bottle like that next year?"

Although he didn't have the longest of bangs, the workshop's dim lighting was able to cover up Jason's expression which he didn't want to be seen at the moment.

On her end, Medea's hands instinctively went behind her to try and grab her usual cloak only to find out that she forgot to wear it in the first place.

"Well," she coughed once before averting her gaze. "It depends if I'll have enough time to make it."

She may or may not have a couple of them prepared already because of having to do trial-and-error but she kept that to herself for now. Wine was the kind of beverage that tasted better the longer it was stored anyways. Worse comes to worst, Medea could just use magic to preserve them anyways.

As for Jason, he may or may not have preemptively set aside valuable items that won't deteriorate even after a long passage of time goes by like jewels or accessories as potential gifts just in case.

The one he just handed was one of the very few which had a more practical application but another interpretation would be that an item with this kind of trait was hard to come by even amongst his pile of rare items.

"Is that so?" following Medea's lead, Jason also coughed before averting his own gaze. "I guess that's fine too."

Now that he was well and truly done with what he intended to do after forcing himself to come over to Medea's workshop, the Argonaut had no reason to stay any longer but before he even had the chance to stand up…

"Shall we have tea together for the first time in a long while?" Medea offered while grabbing the teapot. "It would be a shame to use such fine tea ware on my own."

He really shouldn't as he felt like he has already been pushing his luck for the past few minutes already however as he would be parting with such items after today, Jason had no idea when he'll be able to enjoy such a luxury once again.

In other words, for the second time today, Jason simply gave in to his desires.

"Sure. I don't see why not."

With that as her prompt, Medea stood up and began her preparations to make tea.

"I'll be right back."

As someone who is even aware of Jason's tastes in liquor, it wouldn't be an understatement to say that Medea knows pretty much all of his preferences. It was just the sort of thing you ended up learning whether you wanted to or not after spending that much time together with someone else.

Although they may look like this now, surely, at least one point during their long relationship, these two were a loving couple…

"Hey! Brew the tea where I can see you! I won't be able to tell if you plan on poisoning me otherwise!"

"Ugh! Would it kill you to keep your mouth shut for just one second longer?"

…Surely.

Interlude V – Who Made Her A Vengeful Princess [6]

An empty room whose only source of light came from the door when it opened. In this dark space, the words of an aria echoed from all directions.

"From the stars of the inner sea, from the tower of insight, from the four corners of paradise, let them know; their story is filled with blessings…"

Pink flower petals began to scatter around the room. If they landed on the floor, vibrant green grass began to grow and if they landed on the ceiling, clouds would start to appear. It was like the dark room was an empty canvass and the flower petals were an artist's brush that was trying to paint a beautiful landscape.

There was only one Heroic Spirit who had such a beautiful Noble Phantasm that stood in stark contrast with his nasty personality.

Caster Class Servant. True Name: Merlin.

"Only those free of sin may pass, Garden of Avalon!"

Beside the hooded Servant whose long white hair reminded one of cirrus clouds was none other than Hachiman Hikigaya who was wearing the Chaldea Combat Uniform. A trace of his magic power could still be felt from the right hand he extended outwards after using his Mystic Code just earlier.

Gandr. An offensive spell that, depending on the target's endurance, could immobilize or completely knock them out. When the said target is a Servant, only the former effect occurs but if they are taken completely by surprise then they are stunned long enough that they are unable to respond to a Noble Phantasm being cast on them.

Case in point, the helpless Heroic Spirit in front of the two at the moment.

"Mas… Ter…?"

Came the pitiful cry of the Servant who could only watch as the dreary room before her began to transform into a beautiful landscape.

She had platinum blonde hair which stood out in the darkness and even more so in a grassy meadow that the room was slowly turning into. She wore a long black dress which made one think that she was mourning for the loss of someone very precious to her however instead of grief, sadness or resignation, the emotion that could be seen when you peered into her gray eyes was something more aggressive and violent.

Rage.

That was why it was no surprise why this woman was summoned in a particular class despite her regal aura.

Berserker Class Servant. True Name: Kriemhild.

Seeing the betrayed look of his Servant made Hachiman feel a pang of guilt.

"I'll get on my knees and apologize as many times as you want me to later, Kriemhild-san," Hachiman bowed parallel to the ground as a display of his sincerity. "I'm only doing this for you own good. Trust me," he then pulled down the hood of the man beside him. "Also, in case you were wondering, this is the face of the guy who applied his Noble Phantasm on this room."

"Hey, Master?! This wasn't part of the script! Ah, wait!"

The invocation of the Noble Phantasm fluctuated a bit because Merlin just had to complain but the disaster was averted in the next second once he put his entire attention back to his original task, not like either Hachiman or Kriemhild was paying him any particular attention in the first place.

"Anyways, please enjoy your stay, Kriemhild-san."

The only exit of the room closed after Hachiman finished saying those words and at the same time, the Garden of Avalon also fully manifested.

The simple chamber that was enclosed by four plain white walls now became a vast plain that stretched out as far as the eye can see. Vibrant grass and flowers of all colors were on the ground while a clear and bright sky can be seen up above. No matter which direction one might look, the view was breathtaking, like one you would see straight out of a fairytale.

That being said, there was one thing in this glorious paradise that took Kriemhild's breath away for an entirely different reason.

He was a man with long gray hair which looked darker on the edges. The shagginess of his hair gave him a wild impression despite the mellow look on his face. He wore armor that exposed his chest and back, revealing some kind of tattoo engraved on his body that pulsated with green light. Unlike the flames of anger on Kriemhild's gray irises, his green orbs were calm but once he locked eyes with his female counterpart, his gaze became more apologetic.

Saber Class Servant. True Name: Siegfried.

"Good day, Kriemhild," the Tenacious Dragon Slayer greeted politely and cautiously but try as he might to act in a good-natured manner, all it did was frighten Kriemhild to her very core.

"KYAAAAAAAAAAA!"

…

"Hey, is this really a good idea, Master?" Merlin asked in concern, not a single trace of his usual frivolousness can be seen on his face as he continued to circulate his magic power from his body to his staff and to his Noble Phantasm.

"Probably not," Hachiman shrugged while trying his best to ignore the cold sweat that dripped down his neck. "It's a little too late for take-backs now in the first place," he sighed in an attempt to expel his anxiety. "For the time being, let's just focus on maintaining your Noble Phantasm. If it comes down to it, I'm more than willing to use a Command Spell."

Hearing the resolute tone of his Master forced Merlin to resign to his fate.

"Seriously, I am not getting paid enough for all this."

The sudden complaint made Hachiman look at the Grand Caster candidate in the same way one would look at a pest.

"I literally don't pay you anything."

"I know! I just wanted to say it!"

Despite his grumbles, the Mage of Flowers diligently persisted in carrying out his Master's orders.

…

Just when Hachiman Hikigaya thought that he has finally dealt with all the Servant couples, the marital partner of one of his Servants suddenly decided to show up in Chaldea. It was not like he was not thankful that they were willing to extend a helping hand for the sake of humanity but you couldn't really blame him for feeling a little frustrated.

Tap. Tap. Tap.

His index finger repeatedly hit the table as he reviewed the report he opened on his portable terminal.

It was the nth time that we went through the document but Hachiman was still having a difficult time of trying to find an opening that he could exploit in order to try and mend this couple's relationship.

After running out of ideas, Humanity's Last Master decided to ask for the presence of an apologetic Saber who formed one of the halves of Chaldea's newest Servant couple.

"Siegfried-san," despite holding the title of Dragon Slayer, Siegfried felt that the pressure coming out of his Master was more menacing than the legendary beast that he managed to kill in the past. "Given the circumstances between you and your wife, do you think she'll ever talk to you if given the chance?"

Siegfried pondered for a long time before finally voicing out his thoughts.

"I'm really sorry, Master but I don't think I'll ever be able to know her true thoughts unless she is completely cornered in some way."

Siegfried's simple and honest answer finally gave Hachiman the inspiration he was lacking.

"Oh, that sounds like a good idea," the cynic nodded to himself before smiling mischievously. "Don't regret it later, okay?"

"Excuse me?"

"By the way, there's a phrase I need you to practice saying, Siegfried-san."

"Excuse me?"

Although Hachiman forcefully changed the topic, Siegfried's reaction was still the same, making him sound like a broken record.

"No, that's not the correct one," despite knowing it was not his Servant's intention, Hachiman pretended that Siegfried tried to make a quip like you would see in a two-person comedy routine of some sorts. "I'm intending on making you say something else entirely."

"…"

It wasn't until a few days later did the apologetic Saber understood what his Master's cryptic words actually meant at that time.

…

After flailing around and uttering several words that you would not normally expect to come out from the mouth of a woman with noble upbringing, Kriemhild finally gave up.

Garden of Avalon. This Noble Phantasm is in fact composed of two parts.

It is both a beautiful paradise and a prison of isolation that has locked the real body of Merlin himself. In the current situation, the one being invoked was the latter. Even if this was not quite the real thing, there was no way for Kriemhild to break free from a magical prison that a Grand Servant candidate was unable to escape from.

Seeing her finally calm down like this, Siegfried felt like now was his best opportunity so he summoned out all of his courage in order to try and interact with his wife…

"Kriemhild, how about you sit for now?" he patted the patch of grass that was beside him. "The ground is much softer than it looks because of all the grass."

"There? Close to where you are? I refuse."

…Only to end up getting curtly shot down by her, the cold look on her eyes could make any Hero shiver, Siegfried himself was no exception.

"I see," he sighed in dismay.

This pitiful figure of his made Kriemhild's pupils shake.

While these two were only able to get married in the past after Siegfried overcame several trials, they were in fact, truly in love with each other.

Long story short, Siegfried's face, and pretty much everything about him…

Was exactly Kriemhild's type.

Just the look of his husband in distress was more than enough to tug on her heartstrings.

She hated herself for not being able to hate her this foolish husband of hers.

"Ah! Mou!" she stomped her feet a couple of times before she walked close to the spot that Siegfried just offered to her earlier. "Don't misunderstand. My feet simply hurt from standing up too much. I was in no way moved by your appeal."

"Yes, I got it," Siegfried nodded. Just the fact that he wasn't being completely ignore right now was already a win for him. "Although I wasn't really trying to appeal."

It would've been for the best if Siegfried kept the second half of his statement to his self but then again, it was Kriemhild's fault in the first place for expecting this dullard of a man in front of her to have that kind of delicacy. He wouldn't be the Siegfried she loved if he had such a thing.

"Argh! Shut up! Shut up!"

The death of her husband was extremely sudden for Kriemhild but after finding out that the cause of it all was none other than Siegfried himself, she would never be able to achieve the revenge she wanted.

There were definitely a lot of things that she wanted to talk with Siegfried but now that they were face-to-face like this, only these unpleasant emotions keep coming out instead.

While the man in question is not fully aware of what he did wrong…

"I'm sorry."

…That didn't mean that he couldn't apologize.

Although, it was still dependent on the other party whether they accept the said apology or not.

After getting countless such apologies in the past, Kriemhild was frankly sick of hearing them.

"And just what exactly are you sorry for?" she crossed her arms and sent that dare towards Siegfried's way.

"For a lot of things," he closed his eyes and carefully considered what he would say next. "But mostly for leaving you behind without properly asking for your opinion."

Kriemhild initially thought that those words would affect her in some way. Was it going to drive her further into madness or will it make her regret the merciless acts she committed in the name of her revenge?

Now that she heard this statement from her husband himself, she was surprised by how calm she was feeling. Is it because she is already in the farthest point of insanity that it was impossible to push her any further?

Thinking about it too deeply like this didn't seem like it was working so Kriemhild decided to take a more action-based approach.

"Siegfried-sama, let's have a duel."

Although the Dragon Slayer prepared himself for the worst, even he didn't expect to hear these words come out of the Vengeful Princess' mouth. As it was the first thing that his wife asked for him in the longest time, he really wanted to respond to her positively but given the nature of this request, he couldn't help but be cautious.

"Why ask something like this so suddenly, Kriemhild?"

"Please," for the first time throughout their entire exchange, Kriemhild locked eyes with her husband. "There's something I want to confirm for myself and I think this is the only way for me to understand it."

Now that she has said this much, refusing any more would just be equivalent to spitting on her resolve.

"I understand," Siegfried stood up to his full height before meeting Kriemhild's gaze once again. "I accept this duel."

While the True Name of Noble Phantasms cannot be used in the premises of Novum Chaldea unless a Heroic Spirit had special permission, manifesting the weapons themselves for the purpose of training is allowed.

For this current match, the two fighters are wielding virtually the same sword. Balmung.

The Balmung on Siegfried's hands was a slender gray longsword that looked deceptively simple except for the blue gem embedded on its hilt. Siegfried easily held his Balmung with just one hand while standing completely upright. It was the standard form to take for dueling or anti-personnel combat as it allowed the swordsman to respond quickly to any kind of move from their opponent, a completely adaptive stance. Even if his opponent is his wife, Siegfried was showing no sign of taking things easy. He was giving her the same amount of respect he gave every other swordsman he faced in the past.

"Kriemhild, are you ready?"

Kriemhild's Balmung on the other hand was a broadsword with a much thicker blade. Not only that, it also looked much more aggressive because of the orange hue of the blade that made it look like it was dipped in magma. Kriemhild wielded her Balmung in an extremely one-dimensional position, with her body angled to her right-hand side, making her left foot be in front of her right. The sword was held with both hands and it was tilted slightly downwards, the blade almost but not quite touching the ground.

At this point, Kriemhild might as well be holding up a sign that said I will attack.

"Yes," she cast a look of determination before continuing to answer. "As ready as I'll ever be."

Siegfried didn't appear to be too bothered while facing off against such an aggressive form and calmly pointed towards something to his far left.

"Do you see that flower?"

Kriemhild was very much ready to retort with which one? given how there were countless other flowers in this meadow but upon turning towards the direction her duel opponent pointed, she immediately understood what flower he wanted her to look at.

Without herself noticing it, Kriemhild smiled faintly. Unfortunately, because he was also looking at the flower, Siegfried completely missed the face that Kriemhild made.

"Yes."

Roses, Violets, Sunflowers, Tulips and many other flowers of various colors bloomed all over the Garden of Avalon but whether it was intentional or not, white-colored ones were in the minority.

On a hill a bit of a distance from the plain where the two fighters were to proceed with their duel but not too far that it could be missed by the naked eye, a lone peony was being caressed by the gentle breeze, making it tilt slightly to one side.

"We'll start the instant the wind changes direction and pushes that flower back in the other way."

After hearing that instruction, Kriemhild's current expression became as cold as a steel blade.

"Understood."

As if it heard their agreement, the breeze suddenly strengthened, making the peony lean even more to the direction favoring the wind. That whole sequence should not have lasted more than a minute but to two fighters who were on high alert, it might as well have been a full hour.

The moment that the two duelists were waiting for finally came.

The wind's course shifted and in that singular instance…

"!"

Kriemhild immediately leapt and went for a high risk, high reward move…

A heavy vertical slash.

Even if she was physically much weaker compared to Siegfried, the weight of the sword alone along with the momentum of her movement should provide more than enough power for this attack to threaten Siegfried…

…But that was only if she was half the swordsman that her opponent is.

Although Kriemhild has definitely learned the way of the sword, in terms of power, speed, technique and experience, she fell so far behind when compared to the great hero, Siegfried.

On Siegfried's end, despite seeing the attack coming and having more than enough time to react to it, he kept his feet planted on the ground and didn't move a single step, still maintaining the same neutral sword stance he had since the beginning of the duel.

Even if this was all a trap, this was still the best opportunity that Kriemhild could get so she couldn't just stop her approach.

Today, towards this selfish blockhead of a husband of hers, she could finally finally…

One swing.

That was all that she needed to do from this point.

And yet..

Ah, I knew it.

She couldn't quite take that final step.

Despite being called a Queen of Vengeance, what ultimately drove her to madness was not her thirst for revenge but… Love.

Even in her current state, to intentionally hurt the one she loved so dearly was something Kriemhild could not bring herself to do.

Upon getting this realization, she closed her eyes that was beginning to tear up before letting go of her sword in the next instant.

Siegfried's counterattack was coming and now that she dropped her sword, she lacked the means to defend herself.

There was nothing she could do at this point.

Now that things have turned out this way, Kriemhild thought that it wasn't too bad to die by the hands of her husband that she both loved and hated to death.

As Kriemhild somewhat settled down on that strange desire of hers…

Bump.

…A strange development occurred.

The painful sensation of being cut down that she was waiting for never happened and instead of her own cold body lying in a pool of blood what she felt was a warmth that was strange yet also inexplicably familiar to her.

It was only after she heard a deep voice so close to her ears, was she able to partly snap out of her trance.

"I didn't expect that the two of us would be thinking of doing the same thing," Siegfried whispered as he wrapped both of his arms on his wife. "It's a good thing that I didn't close my eyes."

The sudden auditory and physical stimulus made Kriemhild flinch.

"Siegfried-sama?" she asked while she slowly opened her eyes.

"Yes, Kriemhild. It's me," he smiled as he made eye contact with the Berserker who was looking upwards. "I'm here."

"!"

This time around, Kriemhild was now fully awake.

She took a few seconds to look around in order to get her bearings and have a better understanding of her situation.

Their two swords were on the ground and if what her husband said earlier was the truth, then it would seem that Siegfried like her, was also resolved to get hit, although she wasn't too sure of his reasons why.

Nevertheless, that was simply a minor detail.

The more important thing here is that Siegfried. Is. Hugging. Her.

They were close enough that not only could Kriemhild feel his warmth but also his heartbeat, breath, scent… If she had to summarize what she was feeling at the moment in one statement then she would say…

This is driving me insane!

As such, while she still possessed some vestige of her rationality, she made a request.

"Please let me go."

Thankfully, her voice still carried her usual dignity but she was not so sure just how long she can keep this façade up… Now that shouldn't be too huge of a concern as Kriemhild was sure that her no-nonsense tone combined with her cold stare that was only a few steps away from being a glare should be more than enough for her husband to understand her intentions…

"I don't want to."

…Or so she thought.

An uncharacteristic refusal came out of the apologetic hero, shocking Kriemhild to her very core.

"Excuse me?"

You couldn't really blame her for reacting in this manner as her husband was one of, if not, the biggest pushover of a Hero in all of mythologies combined.

To hear someone like that refuse was as unbelievable as prolonging one's lifespan without the use of Magecraft, technology and whatnot.

Such a development of his was only possible through an intensive training program designed by Humanity's Last Master himself.

The training revolved around the psychological side instead of the physical side but in order to prevent staining the reputation of Chaldea's Master for coming up with things that even someone like Siegfried was forced to refuse, the specifics of said program will be omitted.

"I said," a smile with a trace of discomfort due to recalling a trauma of sorts surfaced on the Saber's face. "I don't want to."

It was only much later did Kriemhild hear from a NEET vampire that what she was currently experiencing was called gap moe… And she instantly became a big fan but that is a story for another time. Right now, what Kriemhild needed to do was escape from her husband's clutches before she begins to embarrass herself.

"W-W-Why?" the Queen's voice started being a little shaky, a sign that she was close to caving in.

"What do you mean why?" he innocently tilted his head. "Do you dislike being held like this? Just say the word and I'll stop immediately."

The most dangerous thing about all this was how Siegfried had no idea how much he was driving Kriemhild into a corner.

"That's… Not it."

Although Kriemhild disliked being in Siegfried's embrace like this, she doesn't actually dislike it but as usual, Siegfried did not possess the disposition to understand this inner predicament of hers.

Desperate, Kriemhild began to struggle to try and get out of this situation but because of her resistance, something rather (un)fortunate, depending on whose perspective, happened next…

Drop.

…A small pouch suddenly fell from her pocket and as the person who had the sharpest senses in the room, Siegfried noticed it first.

"Kriemhild, you dropped something."

"Huh?" given how relaxed he sounded, Krimehild initially thought that it was no big deal but upon seeing exactly what that item was her heart sank. "That's…!" she instantly went red to her neck. "KYAAAAAAAA!" she screamed in an unladylike manner before suddenly summoning enough strength from her body to escape Siegfried's grasp and grab the said item. She then coughed a little later and pretended that absolutely nothing happened in the past five seconds. "I-I-I wonder what it could be. It's pr-probably nothing."

"You wouldn't be reacting like that if it really was nothing," Siegfried smiled wryly.

He honestly didn't want to pester his wife about what that little item was but as his curiosity slowly started to take over him...

Step.

Step.

…He ended up inadvertently taking one step towards Kriemhild prompting her to reflexively take one step back in the opposite direction.

"…"

"…"

The couple stared at each other for a few seconds, questioning their counterpart's intention but it was clear from their expressions who had the upper hand here.

"Can you really not tell me what that is?" with the die already cast, Siegfried took another step forward while pointing his index finger towards Kriemhild's hands that was hiding the object that fell down earlier.

"That's… Eek!"

While the panicked princess was trying to come up with an answer, Siegfried immediately closed the distance and had her on his arms once again, just like how it was earlier.

"Kriemhild," he whispered close to his wife's ear, whether he was doing so intentionally or not was still up for debate. "Just what are you trying to hide?"

Now that she was trapped like this once again, she had no other choice but to cease her useless resistance. It definitely was not because of the hypnotizing voice of the man who held her.

"Just take it then, Siegfried-sama."

Siegfried felt a little guilty after seeing Kriemhild sulk.

"I apologize for sounding presumptuous but," he brought the item that was handed to him, a small bluish-gray box that was glossy to touch and was tied up with a mint green ribbon, close to Kriemhild's face. "Was this meant for me?"

"Nonsense!" Kriemhild vehemently rejected. "I'm just giving it to you so that you will stop bothering me!" the entire thing was said at a fast tempo. "It's not like I spent a lot of time and effort just to make something special for you!"

In a rare instance of sharpness, Siegfried somehow understood that the woman in front of him was saying one thing but meant another. He also knew that if he didn't want to complicate things, he should feign ignorance.

"I see. Thank you for the gift."

No sooner after saying those words did Siegfried open his present to reveal several pieces of chocolate in a dark brown hue. Although it didn't look like their quality would lose out to those you can buy from stores, what stood out more than their aroma, color or texture was how they were all shaped into… Hearts.

There was no way someone like Kriemhild would just give heart-shaped chocolates to anyone so this just basically confirmed Siegfried's suspicions from earlier, making him smile.

Unfortunately, his reaction was misunderstood by another party.

"What? You don't like it?"

"No, that's not it," seeing the pouting expression of his wife only served to make Siegfried smile brighter. "I think there's a little too much chocolate for me to finish all by myself so I was hoping that you would eat these together with me and that thought just made me happy."

The entire statement said by her husband made Kriemhild blush but there were a few keywords that she can't help but tunnel vision into.

"Eh?! By that, do you mean?! That?!"

Completely unaware of the reason behind Kriemhild's panic, Siegfried just calmly answered back.

"Huh? Did I say something wrong?"

The Queen's eyes widened after seeing her husband respond so nonchalantly. She knew that Siegfried was acting a little bolder than usual but even she didn't expect that he'll go this far…

But what was even scarier here was how easily Kriemhild agreed to go along with it despite her initial reservations, no, it was more appropriate to say that she was mixing up reality with her own delusions but Siegfried would not be able to find out such a fact until it was too late.

"Then…"

The flustered Kriemhild took one of the chocolates she wrapped and brought it to her lips, without biting on it completely before she raised her chin and made a pleading look towards her husband.

Like this?

Her eyes seemed to say those words.

On his end, Siegfried was pretty much short-circuiting.

This was definitely not what he meant when he asked to eat together with her however if he said such a thing at this timing, things will definitely take a turn for the worst. Furthermore…

How can he call himself a Hero no, a Man if he backs out from this?

"Yes… Exactly like this," he whispered before going for the chocolate and lips of the lovely woman who held it in place for him.

Interlude ? – Consequently, Another Flag Was Raised

Gods.

They were a superior existence who possesses powers that are a manifestation of their authority of the concepts they are worshipped for. Thus, it should follow that they are unaffected by the forces that fall under their dominion. Ergo, a God of Fire would be impervious to flames or end up strengthening them instead.

But like every rule, there always existed an exception. In this case, that would be…

"There you are, Master! Where have you been?"

"Ara, Master! It's very nice to finally see you."

"You didn't forget what day it is today, did you?"

"Are you hiding something perhaps? Keeping secrets is no good."

…The Goddesses of Love.

Apparently, Love was a force that even the very beings that rule over them cannot resist, or is it because they rule over Love that these Goddesses were more vulnerable to it. Regardless of the premise, that didn't change the current situation of Humanity's Last Master.

Four exalted individuals suddenly surrounded Hachiman Hikigaya when he could've sworn that there was no one else on this corridor one second ago.

The first among the quartet was trying to hide the joy in her voice by acting mad. Her hair was black and was tied into pigtails. Aside from how she floats around Chaldea 24/7 instead of walking on the ground, her most distinct characteristic is the fact that what she wore on a daily basis doesn't even belong to the armor that emphasizes a lot on mobility category, it was just underwear that was decorated with golden accessories.

Mesopotamian Mythology's Goddess of Love.

Archer Class Servant. True Name: Ishtar.

The next Heroic Spirit wore a polite smile as she greeted her Master although the latter could faintly detect a different kind of emotion on her eyes. Both her eyes and hair were the shade of amethysts which blended well with the royal blue color of the traditional Indian outfit she wore and the fair skin that peeked out of its gaps. While she does indeed exude the aura of a woman who is perfect wife material, there was also something about her core that makes Hachiman think of the word kouhai. Was it the hair color?

Indian Mythology's Goddess of Love.

Lancer Class Servant. True Name: Parvati.

Following the two was a Servant who was just straight-up sulking. Except for her silver hair and red eyes, her physical features bear a lot of similarities with Parvati. The purple aspect was not entirely lost in her though as the motif of her dress, which might as well be described as a swimsuit, was a gradient that started with pink on the same shade as cherry blossoms on her abdomen and ended with a deep violet on her chest, wrists and ankles.

Indian Mythology's Other Goddess of Love.

Assassin Class Servant. True Name: Kama.

Last but not the least was an individual who rather than sharing the sentiments of the prior three, just didn't want to be the odd one out, seeing as she possessed the same kind of divinity as they do. She donned a Western style outfit that was completely in red and wouldn't appear too strange if it was worn by a tourist, student or even someone planning on attending a formal event. Her wavy white hair complemented the dark shade of her getup extremely well. Despite what her monotonous voice might suggest, she was genuinely having fun with the current situation, if her shining golden irises was any indication.

Romcrypan Mythology's Goddess of Love.

Ruler Class Servant. True Name: Amor.

The four Goddesses came closer to their common Master after saying their piece, inadvertently applying more pressure to the cynical young man.

While the current Hachiman Hikigaya was someone who has triumphed over Singularities, Demon God Pillars, Sub-Singularities, Beasts, Mechanical Gods, Lostbelts, Crypters and everything else in between, he couldn't, for the life of him, recall a situation wherein he was in more danger than he is now.

That being said, he also couldn't afford to stand still as the longer this status quo is maintained, the more troublesome it will become.

"I just had some work to finish," he waved his hand around to make it seem like it was no big deal. "You know, the usual."

It was technically not a lie. It was Da Vinci herself who said that mending the relationship of his two Servants fell in line to his duties as a Master.

"Heh, you don't get an exemption even just for today?" Kama leaned her face closer to Hachiman while asking, trying to inspect even the most minute change in his expression.

Looking back at the girl whose face was so close to his own made Hachiman gulp involuntarily.

Empty eyes, an inquisitive gaze and an air that was around two steps below bloodlust…

This form of hers is not from the Way of the Sly Kouhai but an entirely different school that Hachiman is, unfortunately, not wholly unfamiliar with.

It was the face of a needy girlfriend (the Servant's own assumption without consent from her Master).

If Kama's sulking state earlier would be set as the first stage, then right now, she has reached the second stage, the one where they become suspicious of everything their designated partner says or do.

Before Hachiman could even get a chance to defend himself, someone else decided to interject while also skillfully shoving Kama to the side.

This little exchange instantly sent Kama to the third stage. The flames of jealousy can be clearly seen on her eyes and killing intent seemed to gush out from every pore of her body.

In contrast to Kama, the perpetrator of this entire incident wore the very same smile she had on her face when she greeted her Master just earlier.

Who else would be bold enough to do such a thing between the people present here except Parvati?

"That really won't do, Master. You should always allocate enough time for you to rest and recreation," she casually hooked her arm with Hachiman's, unperturbed from the stares she was getting from four different pairs of eyes. "Now, follow me. I made some coffee to pair with the chocolates I'm going to give you this year. I'm sure it'll help you unwind."

Parvati tried to abruptly end the scenario then and there but an outstretched arm stopped the two on their tracks, or rather, it stopped her fellow Goddess from dragging their Master to who knows where.

"Wait," Ishtar's ruby-like irises gleamed into a lustrous gold. "And just where do you think you're taking him?" she then crossed her arms to her chest and glared at Parvati.

"Weren't you listening to what I just said?" the Lancer tilted her head innocently. "I'm planning on accompanying Master to a place where he can relax and eat my chocolates."

"But why does he have to go with you to eat your chocolate?" Ishtar raised one of her brows as she challenged Parvati before pulling out a little box out of nowhere. "I have some perfectly fine chocolates right here."

Her words seemed to resonate with the frenzied Kama whose glare was only getting more intense by the second. One of her hands was grasping what looked to be the chocolates she prepared for today as well.

There was however one other Goddess who maintained her calm throughout this entire exchange who isn't Parvati.

"Now now ladies," Amor smiled faintly before taking over the initiative of the conversation like it was the most natural thing for her to do. "For these kinds of things, shouldn't it be up to the Master to decide?" her smile became more mischievous by the second. "By the way," she took out a golden rectangular box from her pocket and waved it around for everyone to see. "I also made chocolates myself."

The atmosphere became even more strained due to Amor's words.

Was it because it was just that time of the year? Hachiman Hikigaya was not sure why but these goddesses seem to be much clingier with him today than a certain trio of stalkers.

"There's no need to do something like that," Hachiman shook his head as he spoke. Now that he was finally given the opportunity to talk after all this time, he was going to take full advantage of it. He alternated his gaze to each of the four girls to make sure that they were listening to him. "I'm planning on eating the chocolates that everyone made for me today just like what I did last year and the year before that, so there's no need to fight."

"Then," despite the raging emotions emanating from Kama, her voice sounded cold and detached. "Are you saying that you're fine with getting chocolate from anyone as long as they are from a cute girl?"

Hachiman felt so much pressure from Kama that it felt like his neck was being physically strangled. The only other times that he felt this threatened was when he was facing off against a Beast… Oh wait.

"That's not true," the logician tried his very best to sound as composed as possible. "It doesn't matter who made them, as long as they are made with good intentions, I don't think I am in a place to refuse them."

With that, Hachiman successfully reset Kama's emotional state back to zero.

What he said was the absolute truth as a few years back, Hachiman Hikigaya was a loser who would shamelessly accept chocolate from either his sister or mother and on some years, even both.

"Master is truly kind after all."

That follow-up statement came from Parvati and it irritated Kama enough to the point that she was quickly approaching stage one.

"Well, I know that already."

"That is no secret in Chaldea."

Both Kama and Ishtar expressed their agreement respectively.

As embarrassing as it was to be hit with consecutive praise such as this, Hachiman Hikigaya was willing to endure just for things to end in a good note but too bad for him as the newest addition to the Goddess of Love group was not quite done with her schemes.

"Allow me to rephrase my question then," a mischievous glint can be seen on Amor's golden eyes. "Whose chocolates are you most looking forward to receiving today?"

"…"

This was without a shadow of a doubt, a trick question. Regardless of what kind of answer he gives, he was bound to suffer some repercussions one way or another.

While Hachiman Hikigaya has pretty much drafted and memorized an outline of responses to give to his Servants to make sure he won't piss them off too much but those guidelines become useless when he is forced to interact with multiple of them at the same time as what one Servant favors may not necessarily hold true for the other one.

"Ah, that would be…"

Hachiman averted his eyes as he racked his brain for an answer. No, it would be more appropriate to say that he was unconsciously rejecting the first few answers that popped out of his head.

Verbal scuffles of this nature are not actually that uncommon in Chaldea but because of how much challenging the most recent fights have been, this kind of issue has been moved to the backburner for quite some time now.

With the reality of the situation being slapped into his face like this all of a sudden, it made Hachiman Hikigaya realize that he should really start taking things more seriously on this end.

His current situation was pretty much a checkmate.

Things were sure to get messy regardless of who he picks from the quartet but if he also mentions the name of someone else here, Hachiman wasn't sure what these four would do to that person, unless they were someone they couldn't quite easily touch but would an individual who perfectly fits such a niche criteria just appear out of nowhere like that?

For the first time in his entire life, the Gods of Romantic Comedies heard Hachiman's cry and help came for him in the form of a young woman wearing the Atlas Academy uniform and whose purple hair was tied into twin-tails.

In his desperation, he ended up involuntarily saying her name out loud.

"…Sion-san's."

.

.

.

.

"HUH!?"

Having heard the name of someone completely out of their radar, the four Goddesses were stumped.

As for the person who just got mentioned…

"Eh? What? I think I heard someone call my name just now," she brought a hand to her chin while passing a glance to the people she coincidentally met in this part of the base. "Now that I'm taking a closer look, isn't this quite the star-studded lineup?"

…She was calmly saying such a thing without having any idea what kind of mess she's been pulled into.

As the four ladies were still quite dazed, what Sion said simply went in one ear and out the other.

If Hachiman wanted to escape from this encirclement, then now was his best chance to do so.

"Then if there's nothing else, I'll be taking my leave first," he then went towards Sion's direction and grabbed her wrist. "Sion-san, please follow me."

"Yes? Ah, sure," Sion read how serious Hachiman was from his expression and just agreed. Knowing his character, he wouldn't be doing something like this without an appropriate reason. "I'll be seeing you later, esteemed Goddesses."

It was only after they witnessed the figure of Sion waving goodbye to them from a distance were the Divine Servants able to recover from their stupor.

"Hey! Wait!"

"Master?"

"Where do you think you're going?!"

"A pity. I hadn't even had my fun yet."

Ishtar, Parvati, Kama and Amor remarked respectively before attempting to give chase but Hachiman Hikigaya was able to use his knowledge of all the secret passages in this base to elude them completely. As to why he knew of such things then that's because he needed to develop a countermeasure for a notorious stalker trio who didn't understand the meaning of the word privacy.

Just to be safe, Hachiman decided to pick a route that led him to the other side of Novum Chaldea from where he met the Goddesses. It was only after they got there that he was able to relax.

"I'm terribly sorry for this, Sion-san," Hachiman bowed repeatedly to the girl he dragged into this. "Please let me explain myself."

"No, it's completely fine. I think I already have a good understanding of what happened just now."

Being shown such broadmindedness after having to deal with the needy Goddesses just a few minutes ago made Hachiman think that this girl in front of him was the actual Goddess instead or at minimum, an angel.

"Thank you so much for your understanding, Sion-san."

If this was before he delved into the world of Magecraft, he would be down on his knees to confess right here and now before instantly getting shot down in the next second.

"It's really no big deal as aside from small matters like this, it's not often that I get the opportunity to help you out," she smiled candidly before taking a few steps to approach Hachiman, close enough that he could catch whiff of a floral scent coming from her hair. "By the way, allow me to clear up one little misunderstanding of yours, Hikigaya-kun," she raised her index finger and winked playfully. "It's not like I'm completely disinterested."

Sion then pushed an item that was just around the height of her palm to Hachiman's chest. From its purple packaging to the green ribbon, it was obvious that what he was given was none other than Valentines' chocolate. if only Sion didn't drop a bomb like that when it's just the two of them here, he would not have been troubled to receive such a thing especially since she has been regularly giving him chocolate ever since they worked together.

Since Hachiman wasn't really sure what's going on, the logician in him decided to play it safe.

"Thank you for making chocolates again for me this year," he received the chocolate that was being pushed to him and forced a smile. "But Sion-san, I don't think it's a good idea to say such things as I might misunderstand."

A smile whose nature was very hard to discern even for Hachiman appeared on Sion's face for a brief second before she dismissed it with a giggle.

"Well, let's leave things like that for now," she separated herself as easily as she closed the distance. "By the way, don't bother with writing me a report of how the chocolate tastes, I would much prefer if you tell me what you thought about them personally."

And just as sudden as she appeared, Sion swiftly took her leave. As someone who provided this base for Chaldea's use, she was not unfamiliar with navigating around its secret routes either.

"Seriously, what just happened?" Hachiman leaned his upper body on the wall and breathed out a sigh, feeling a little too overwhelmed with how eventful this year's Valentine's Day is.

If he ever developed the habit of smoking, this would have been the perfect opportunity to pop one.

That disturbed state-of-mind of his didn't last long however. He wouldn't be called Humanity's Last Master if he was not quick enough to change his gears.

Regardless of what happens next, his priority would always be about fighting in order to save the world. He'll deal with the other problems that pop up in the process one at a time.

"As expected, even in a world where humanity's survival is hanging in the balance and I can use Magecraft and such, my life's romantic comedy is still wrong."

In other words, nothing much has really changed in Hachiman Hikigaya's life.

Author's Note:

I am extremely sorry for the delay but I did say beforehand that this special chapter will come late so I didn't technically lie.

To be honest, this was quite the challenging chapter for me to write as this is a kind of genre that I have zero experience in writing.

Part of why this took so long is because I had to learn how to write a romance that involved full-grown adults from the most reliable sources in the planet. Shoujo/Josei Manga and Manhwa. I even ended up using the titles from various works as the basis of how to name my interludes. Please note that just because I used a certain title, doesn't mean that the corresponding Manga/Manhwa went in a similar way as to the scenario I wrote.

Now I will admit that there might have been some instances there where I was reading just for the sake of reading instead of as study material but can you really blame me? Some of them are just really good so it can't be helped. I didn't do anything wrong.

After I felt like I had a better grasp of the genre, I had to overhaul the copy I wrote before I subjected myself to my training. Seriously, if I didn't do something like that, the adults here would end up acting out scenarios from high school romances.

Aside from the massive word count, this chapter also went through countless iterations until I felt like it reached a quality good enough to be uploaded. There are actually two to three interludes that I scrapped because I felt like they were subpar and the situations were too forced.

I can understand that those who ship themselves with one of the Servants or ship Hachiman/Ritsuka with the Servants may not see this chapter in a favorable light because of such preferences but it's not like I decided their pairings you know?

Besides, I'm pretty sure I'm not the only one who crave more Servant couples content. You can pretty much treat this entire chapter as me, a fanfic writer, making content that I want to consume on my own as I couldn't wait for FGO to release it themselves.

That being said, both writing and editing this behemoth of a chapter is way too much work so moving forward, I think I'll go back to my roots and just write right around 5000 words, give or take a few. It will be kind of difficult though as Fate lore requires so much exposition but I will simply try my best.

Who knows? Maybe making this little adjustment would allow me to update much more frequently, no promises though.

As always, if you ever have any suggestions on which Servant/s you want to be featured next, feel free to write them on your review, I'll be sure to take that into consideration for the coming chapters.

Now with that out of the way, time to get on to the reviews from the previous chapter.

ENDDRAGON369: I unfortunately have not played the game so I can't relate. I'm very sorry.

BlueCore: And this is the newer one.

bluecookie420: Sadly, I'm sure this one came much later than your expectations. Sorry about that.

Raijinmaru: Thank you very much for the kind words and your vote of confidence but for now, I'll just stick with this fic. I'm barely able to update this as it is.

guiltyr2: Space Ishtar would be cool, yes but I am prioritizing comedy for now. As for your question, allow me to answer with what do you think?

IsekaiFanboi: Please stay curious like that even after quite some time has passed by already. I'm begging you.

shintaro162: That would be cool indeed but I think the aspects that each Beast represents have already been decided and personally, I'm not making him head in that direction.

finhirblank: I'm sincerely hoping that you've read beyond the chapters that you've reviewed. If you haven't, please take the time to do so.

ObeRun: Here you go.

To everyone else who takes the time to read this fic, a huge thank you to all of you as well.

That's it for this chapter.

I hope we meet again in the next one or in another story of mine.

Reviews, follows and faves are all very much appreciated.

Until next time...

May everyone's good wishes and realities intersect.

Morii Hikikko

References:

1 - Another Typical Fantasy Romance

2 - Mr. Devil Rejoiced When I Made Parfait

3 - I Will Change The Genre

4 - Wotakoi: Love is Hard for Otaku

5 - The Reason Why Raeliana Ended up at the Duke's Mansion

6 - Who Made Me A Princess