"Perhaps investigating Fujimaru's background had more merit than I thought," Goredolf grumbles, flipping through the reports and files on Chaldea's brief sojourn in Japan. "However, this is not what I expected. It does explain why he went to Chaldea willingly, but I digress."

Waver agrees with a nod and grimaces with a sigh. "The death of his parents is too suspicious. Not only that, Miss Hoshino had mentioned how her obstetrician mysteriously disappeared before her delivery."

Waver pushes another file onto the desk; it opens to a profile picture of a relatively young Japanese adult male with glasses, wearing a typical white lab coat.

Gorou Amamiya.

"Their current status?" Goredolf asks, raising his eyebrow and quickly furrowing them right after observing Waver's expression.

"Still missing to this day. Since Mister Amamiya had no known living family or friends other than his colleagues at the hospital, there wasn't a push to search for him."

Goredolf grunts, "Any known connection to Magecraft?"

"No, none of his family were known practitioners either."

"Any possibility of leaving due to bribery or to avoid being caught in a scandal?" Goredolf suggests, drumming his fingers on the desk. "From what we've seen of idol culture, I can understand that it could be detrimental to be involved with them. Maybe the pressure got to him?"

Waver shakes his head. "From the way Miss Hoshino talked about him, he was extremely devoted to her and the twins' wellbeing. There is little to no chance of that being a possibility. He knew the estimated delivery day, and he was adamant on seeing it through, even reassuring her that he would come to her if she called for him."

"So the worst case scenario is that he got neutralized." Goredolf rubs their chin, slowly standing up from his chair to pace around behind his desk. "Was Fujimaru being targeted before he came to Chaldea? Is that why he omitted so many details about his personal life?"

"That's perhaps more of a mere coincidence since he didn't want to implicate Miss Hoshino, but these findings require further investigation."

Goredolf closes his eyes, slowly taking it all in. He nods to himself several times as if he needs his own reassurance. "Very well, I approve. Find out the full circumstances behind his parents' death and the doctor's disappearance with the authority of Chaldea. I assume that Miss Hoshino doesn't know about this yet?"

Waver denies, "She had some suspicions herself when she informed us, but we have not told her the full extent of our brief investigation."

"If only we still had that Detective," Goredolf mumbles before coughing to clear his throat. "Very well, I will bring this up with Miss Hoshino later. Her cooperation may determine whether or not that there's an unknown assailant after their family or if it's a series of unfortunate events."

"I did briefly talk about a protection service for her family," Waver agrees, cracking out his lighter for another smoke. He chuckles ruefully. "Either way, there's no shortage of people who want to protect them."

"That's the bigger problem," Goredolf groans, kneading his weary forehead. "It's the aftermath of having to clean up after them."

Jealousy.

Ai is no stranger to being the main subject of envy. As an idol, she could not understand what there was to be jealous of.

She didn't start out with a silver spoon in her mouth like many believed. She had to work just as hard as everyone else did to get as far. If anything, she was woefully behind in many matters that people considered as common sense.

Despite working together for so long, even her own idol group could never truly understand her.

She could always feel their resentment towards her, baffling her on why they didn't spend that energy on improving themselves. If they could only see her as the perfect idol, then that only means her facade was perfect.

If they saw her as their unattainable ideal, then she could only continue to mirror that for them.

Only a few people could truly see who she is — and after she enters this Novum Chaldea, Ai finally begins to grasp why people became jealous.

It is fear.

Fear of being irrelevant.

Fear of being replaced.

Fear of being forgotten.

For four years when she and Ritsuka have been apart, he has been with Chaldea — with Mashu Kyrielight — longer than he has been with her. And it's not even just her — there are many others here, each with their own story with him.

She was just a mere chapter in his book after all.

Ai had thought she would be happier just hearing more about him, but the heavy, murkier feeling within inside grows stronger instead.

"So that's how it feels like," she murmurs to herself; her hand clutches the front of her chest as if it could lift up the weight dragging her very heart and soul down.

It is as if Ai is the foreigner here, intruding into this sacred place that he had protected — like she didn't belong or fit in here.

Where is the place for her to be next to him? How could she compare with people that are smarter, more worldly, and even more attractive than she is?

"You okay, Mama?" Ruby asks as her fingers wrap around Ai's hand. Small as they are, but the warmth from them gives Ai the strength to rise against the dark thoughts prevailing in her mind.

Ai gazes back down at her children, noticing their worried looks. Even Aqua shows his rare concern through his widened eyes. They always seem to know how she's feeling, but perhaps they're also feeling the same way.

Ai sighs but smiles all the same. She kneels down to their level and hugs both of them. "Mama is fine, Ruby. Just feeling a bit out of place here."

"Then don't. Either be proud of who you are and stand firm, or drown in your insecurities." A deep, bold voice chastises hers.

Ai turns her head, only to find someone who isn't that much taller than Aqua, but their demeanor and voice is definitely unlike any other child she had heard before. "And you are?"

"Just a writer, nothing more," he grumbles, not even bothering to look up from his tablet as he scribbles on it rapidly.

"What a rude kid."

While Ruby glares at the stranger, Aqua is more contemplative as he taps his chin. "He must be another one of these Heroic people they're talking about."

He sighed but it didn't slow down his writing. "Not many Servants can choose the age or form they can manifest in."

"So essentially, you're an adult in a child's body. Like Conan Edogawa." Aqua quipped.

Ruby gapes, "You're from an anime?"

"Moving aside from that absurd observation," he finally lowers the tablet down, lifts his head so his furrowed, blue eyes pierces right through Ai. "I rather prefer to do something else with my time than to listen to the gripings of forlorn maidens — especially ones who don't seem to know anything about themselves. But even so, the story of yours and his is not — and will not be a tragedy."

Ai's heart palpitates with his words. "My story with Ritsuka?"

"You seem to be the smartest one," he points to Aqua. "Ever heard of the thought experiment of 'if a tree falls in a forest, but if no one is there to hear it, does it make a sound'?"

Ruby scratches her head in confusion. "Isn't it obvious it'll be yes? Just because no one is there doesn't mean it didn't happen."

Aqua shakes his head to refute her. "Not necessarily. If we're looking through it scientifically, then the answer is yes. The conundrum is that even if a tree did fall, if no one was there to hear it, does the sound even exist if no one can acknowledge it?"

While Ruby is still trying to grasp her head around Aqua's words, Ai feels a slight resonance, and the sinking feeling grows again inside her.

The Servant nodded. "Now let's put this into another perspective: If a hero saves the world, but no one else in the world knows what he did, is he still considered a hero?"

It is a rare instance where Aqua is left dumbfounded, "No, what are you trying to imply?"

"To be a hero, they must have great deeds that the world acknowledges. Let's say I was this 'Conan Edogawa' — he's a fictional hero, but his detective skills to solve crime are very known and acknowledged to be part of his strengths — his legend, if you can say.

But if someone did great deeds, but the world cannot confirm it, does that mean he wasn't a hero?"

"That's stupid though!" Ruby exclaims. "Just because no one knows what he did, it doesn't mean he isn't a hero."

"In an ideal world, yes, that would be true," the Servant shifts his eyes away from the family. "But this world is rarely that kind. Let us take another example of a great Celtish Hero, Scathach. She overcame so many trials, killed many monsters, and even slayed Gods. But these deeds were her own undoing — no mere human can do such actions — and therefore the world deemed it so: the hero Scathach is not a human being."

He turns his eyes back to Ai once again; this time Ai can see the profound sorrow within them. "So is it any wonder, what fate would befall the Last Master of Humanity? He who saved this world from various calamities — yet no one can acknowledge his legend because no one knows who he is or what he did.

"Who and what is Ritsuka Fujimaru?"