It was just your standard run-of-the-mill Singularity that had popped up— one that would have disappeared on its own if left alone but Da Vinci and Sion wanted them to investigate something within it. Ritsuka had a bad feeling about going in, feeling like they could end up messing with something they should. Ultimately, he went along with it but remained careful during the investigation.

And it nearly paid off.

Outside of a few skirmishes with some wild beasts here and there, they succeeded in their objective. He even let his guard down as he felt things were over. That was, naturally, when disaster struck; Ritsuka didn't even realise something was going wrong until Mash was crying his name and a bright light blinded him.

"Huh?" He could only dumbfoundedly say as he fell through the air. 'Not again!' Then he crashed with a thud. He groaned in pain and thought he could have broken something. His head was still spinning regardless and the dazed Master spent what was likely minutes teetering on the edge of consciousness. What kept him awake was the knowledge that passing out could spell his death as he was in an unknown location— for all he knew, he was in a hostile situation and couldn't afford to lose consciousness.

His vision finally cleared after some time, and he managed to sit up after making sure he didn't break his legs. '…Maybe I am dreaming…' Ritsuka thought first as he finally took in his surroundings. It was like something straight out of a dream— or a nightmare. Chunks of buildings and landscapes floated around with no apparent ground below them, only a seemingly bottomless void. The sky was also not like the one back home… then again, it was not normal back there anymore— but it certainly wasn't here either.

"Where did I end up this time…?" Ritsuka sighed to himself. He really shouldn't feel a bit smug that he was right but he certainly called it that they should have left that Singularity alone. That was assuming it was something in that place that led to him appearing here— wherever here was. In any case, he didn't see Mash or any of his other Servants around so he was own. Hopefully not for long; while he knew some basic magecraft to keep himself safe, it was nowhere near enough to stay alive for long in an encounter.

'Alright, first things first, find someone.' Whether it be one of his Servants who hopefully got sent to this weird place with him or a potentially friendly or even neutral person who lived here for whatever reason, it was his best bet for now. He got to his feet and immediately, while trying to push himself up, felt a sharp pain in his left shoulder. It was likely just a sprain or dislocation from his fall, it was a painful problem nonetheless.

Still, he could not stay out here and hope that someone would find him. Shouldering the pain, he got to his feet and chose a direction to walk in… only to realise he was essentially trapped on the floating slab of concrete with no way out. 'It's going to be that kind of day, huh?' Well, not as much of a bad day as some others he has had before; he'll survive.

"Alright, back to the drawing board…" There were a few pieces of debris that looked solid enough floating nearby. He could try platforming around but the endless void below him made him pause for obvious reasons. Technically, he (probably) won't die if he fell again but he'd rather not risk that.

Unfortunately, the decision was made for him when he heard something behind him. He turned around to see the last thing he needed in a situation like this: obviously hostiles with translucent starry bodies menacingly approaching him.

'I can never catch a break, can I?' Welp, good thing he never skipped leg day.

Every day was the same thing from her counterpart: "I'm bored of this place. When are we moving on already?" There was nothing wrong with wanting to waste time now that they had nothing to do, right? Fu Hua could only sigh in exasperation at Senti's impatience. She thought she would appreciate being in the city after weeks of being in the countryside but no, Shinjuku doesn't seem to be to Senti's tastes either.

Either way, she went on a nice walk around the district to clear her mind and just enjoy the peace. Senti stayed back at their hotel, wanting to sleep in more, but that just made things easier for her. As she wandered the streets, she had to remind herself that things were finally over; it took so long, but her war had ended and she could enjoy herself to her heart's content…

'Peace at last…' Well, mostly peace. There was still trouble here and there but for the most part, the fight against the Honkai had finally ended. She could just rest and relax for the first time in a long… long… time…

CRASH

"AHH!" "Run!"

…Of course she just had to jinx it. Well, it should be little trouble for her. Following the sounds of the screams, Fu Hua came to a scene she wished not to see ever again: people fleeing from Honkai Beasts. Taking another look though, she realised they were not actually Honkai Beasts but rather Quantum Shadows. While she did wonder why they were here, she could figure that out later and take action for now.

Another oddity she noticed was how they seemed to be after a specific person; there were only about five of them, but they were all going after a single teenage boy who looked injured. Letting her instincts guide her, she engaged the monsters in battle to save him and the other citizens. While it had been some time since she had fought anything, she still trained out of habit and could deal with Quantum Shadows with enough effort.

Ritsuka still didn't quite understand how running into that weird wall took him out of that weird space/dimension/whatever, but he wasn't complaining. However, the weird monsters came through with him and were still after his ass. At least that meant only he was in danger and had to lead them away from the civilians around him. How would he deal with the strange beasts?

…One problem at a time.

Fortunately for him, lady luck smiled on him for once and was saved. He heard the cry to get to safety before hearing fighting behind him. Glancing back, he was surprised to see a rather thin girl about his age fighting off and demolishing the monsters with nothing more than punches and kicks. It was honestly impressive and his first impression was that she was a Servant but something told him that was wrong… unless Merlin had something to do with it again. That was doubtful though. In any case, now that there was an actual threat, the monsters chasing him turned their focus on her instead— letting Ritsuka catch his breath and watch the fight. He didn't quite recognise her form as one like some of his Servants but that didn't take away from how impressive it was as she was clearly a master in it.

As she took down each of the monsters with seemingly no effort, he could only describe how she fought with one word: "Beautiful…"

Before he knew it, all of the monsters had faded into nothing as if they never existed in the first place. It wasn't something he wasn't unfamiliar with but that just made him question what they were more. Regardless, he could finally breathe a sigh of relief and nearly collapse on a nearby pole from sheer exhaustion. He had lost track of how long he was running and even before that, the investigation took a bit out of him.

"Are you okay? Did they injure you?" The concerned voice made him glance up to see his saviour offering him a hand. As he thought, she seemed to be about his age with long blueish-grey hair while her eyes were a light shade of blue. She was also dressed rather casually akin to a summer outfit; a thin black shirt with golden designs with white short shorts. She also had a nice belt… thingy… with a Chinese lion buckle.

It looked nice.

"Ye–yeah, mostly. I hurt my shoulder but that's about it," Ritsuka replied as he took her hand and got to his feet. Technically, he sprained his shoulder from the fall but that was neither here nor there. "Thanks for the rescue, miss…?"

The girl did not reply immediately; it could have just been his imagination, but Ritsuka thought she recognised him. Her head tilted in confusion and she squinted as she stared at his face.

"Is… everything okay?"

His second question was enough to snap her out of her focus. "Huh? Oh… no, I just thought… Never mind. My name is Fu Hua," she answered his first question with a small smile. "May I ask for your name?"

"It's Ritsuka. Fujimaru Ritsuka," Ritsuka replied, returning the smile with one of his own. Before he could say anything else, his left shoulder ached again, reminding him of his injuries. "Ow…"

His wincing in pain made her frown, prompting her to say that it was best he get his shoulder checked. "Seeing as they were Quantum Shadows, your injury might not be as it seems."

"Quantum Shadows?"

"Er… Later. We better get your shoulder looked at first. There should be a clinic not too far from here; come with me." Seeing as he had no other choice and trusted the girl to know what she was talking about, Ritsuka followed her lead.

She knew him from somewhere; that much was certain. Fu Hua didn't quite place her finger on why. Even his name invoked a sense of familiarity within her. It was highly doubtful they had run into each other before, but then why did she have that feeling around him…

In any case, Fu Hua waited outside the room as the doctor finished up his tests on the boy she saved from the Quantum Beasts. The doctor had assured her he was fine and wasn't at risk of anything, but she did notice the slight unease in his voice. Maybe she could ask Ritsuka himself if he knew why the doctor seemed bothered.

'Why am I so worried…?' She thought to herself, her confusion matching her worry. By all definitions, that boy was a stranger; yet she felt like he was someone she knew for a long time. That was impossible… unless… 'No, it can't be,' she shook her head to rid it of that thought. The chances of something like that were basically zero.

"—ank you, doctor."

"It's my duty, young man. Try to stay out of any more trouble. Now, better calm that friend of yours. She must be worried sick." Fu Hua heard the two talking as Ritsuka exited the examination room. She glanced up to see Ritsuka with a reassuring smile.

"Sorry about taking so long. The doctor wanted to make sure I was completely fine," he apologised to her. She expected that to be the case and asked if there was anything wrong. "Nope, he was curious about some of my old scars."

That… didn't answer anything. Fu Hua wanted to question him further about that but she stopped herself, realising that would be overstepping his boundaries. "I see. At any rate, we best be on our way." She wanted to know why those Quantum Beasts were after him and this place was not the best place to ask. That was when a loud grumble filled the air with the source making Ritsuka flush from embarrassment.

"Oh… Sorry, I haven't had anything to eat in a while," he nervously chuckled with a red face.

Fu Hua could only laugh in amusement at his stomach demanding to be filled. "It's just one thing after another with you. Is this sort of day normal for you?"

"…Actually, yeah. This is normal for me," he tried to alleviate the situation with a laugh of his own but Fu Hua immediately felt bad for laughing regardless. "No worries though, I'll make do. I always do."

"Hmm… I can't in good faith leave you be after earlier," she crossed her arms with a serious look on her face. "Allow me to treat you to lunch; you need something positive after everything." Ritsuka naturally tried to dissuade her from doing so, saying that she didn't need to inconvenience her with him but she was having none of it.

"Alright, I know when it's impossible to change the mind of someone like you," he gave up with a sigh. "I need to use the bathroom first so wait outside for me."

She doubted he would try running away and had no issues with doing as he said. She exited the clinic and leaned against the building, patiently waiting for Ritsuka to come out. To her surprise though, it wasn't him to end her waiting, but her counterpart being as loud as ever.

"There you are, old timer! I've been looking everywhere for you!" The Herrcher of Sentience came barrelling down the street without a care in the world. "Heard some trouble was happening around here on TV and thought you got your hands in it."

She sounded carefree but Fu Hua knew she was worried over her. "I'm fine. There's nothing to get worked up about," Fu Hua reassured Senti.

"Then why are you hanging outside of this place?" Senti questioned, glancing up at the clinic's sign above them.

As Fu Hua opened her mouth to answer, the front doors slid and out stepped Ritsuka. "Sorry for the wait… again… We can go now," he cheerfully said before noticing Senti. "Oh, you have a twin, Fu Hua?"

Twin was a bit of a simplification but that might have been the best way to describe Senti without giving anyone a headache so she just nodded. "This is Sentience, Fujimaru," she introduced her to him, neglecting to give her full title just in case. As she was about to do the same for her, she turned to face Senti… and realised her earlier feeling of familiarity with Ritsuka was not mistaken. It was mostly hidden but she saw the shock in Senti's eyes at seeing him along with a small hint of something else with it.

"Sentience? That's a… unique name," Ritsuka noted before also noticing the look she was giving him. "Is something wrong?"

"…Ritsuka?"

"Uh… yes?"

A/N: Next chapter~ I am torturing myself by letting this brainrot take more and more control over my brain but oh well, at least its a fun brainrot.