Saber Wars: VII
Ritsuka kept his arms folded, a smile remained on his face as he watched over the three Servants recover from their bout against Akal.
And despite the fact that she had clearly held back, he felt that didn't detract away from the achievement in the least. Especially because Akal herself had still been a Divine Spirit level Servant and remained a dominant force even with her own self-admitted handicap…but it did put into perspective just how strong she was.
His eyes glanced towards the Servant, she was glancing over her wounds that were rapidly closing under their own power. He saw nothing to instigate the regeneration, she just started to shake her hand like trying to get some dust off it and the wounds closed up. Concerning when he considered that she had just tanked a B rank Noble Phantasm to the literal face and walked out with some burns.
But he could always praise Lily on being able to do some real damage on the Servant.
She had been very pleased with herself, if her cheer was any indication.
Returning his gaze to the trio, he stepped forwards and placed his hands on his hips, smiling towards them and speaking up. "We all feeling good now?"
Gwynevere responded before any of them had the chance. "Bruises and cuts, several broken bones…A blessed end to an encounter with an Everlasting dragon, but it speaks well for the fortitude of these souls that they could claim any manner of victory against one of their ilk."
A quiet hum escaped him as he nodded his head up and down.
He'd noticed that Gwynevere seemed particularly on edge, though he could attribute that to the fact there was an Everlasting Dragon here. There was no real love lost between the divine and the dragons, either in the case of Havel and any of the dragons or with Kalameet and the Gods in general.
He could hardly fault them.
They had been involved in a very long war with a lot of bad blood.
"Well, that's good news and I, for one, think that you guys really pulled through there." He called down to the trio, bringing his right hand up and raising his thumb towards them. "Some solid teamwork, I'm proud of you guys."
Lily sniffled a bit, though that was less to do with any tears and more to do with the fact her nose had just been righted once more. The girl rubbed at the underside of it before wincing a little, then looking towards him and smiling. "That was only because of your assistance, Master. I think that it might have been very different if you hadn't given us the plan in the first place."
"Yeah…but I think you would have probably figured something out by yourselves." Ritsuka replied after a brief moment, lowering his hand back down. "It just felt a bit wrong of me to be standing on the sidelines and watching you guys without doing anything at all. Especially because of…well…me being a Master and all."
He jerked his head towards the direction of Olga. "And I think the Director was getting a bit antsy."
"Excuse me?" A harsh whisper from the woman in question, he suppressed a flinch at her tone, then glanced towards her as she levelled a rather pointed glare in his direction. "They were facing a Divine Class Servant. I believe that taking precautions and stepping in was a more prudent course of action. Especially given that you all but agreed to training from a rogue Servant."
Ritsuka just shrugged. "Siegfried vouched for her…sort of?"
A swift look was directed towards the man.
The knight in question remained silent, still with Heroine X standing right next to him and glaring up towards the side of his face. Siegfried, to his credit, gave no indication that he even registered her appearance at all, or her proximity. Instead he just looked straight ahead without blinking, his eyes shifted onto Ritsuka.
"I did." Siegfried replied after a short moment. "But I was prepared to accept punishment if my word proved false. Though I sensed no ill-intent with her request…I am sorry if I overstepped my bounds."
"Hmph." A scoff from Heroine X, she turned from the knight and folded her arms. "Well, it worked out. Though I'd rather not take the word of a rogue Saber every single time…but Lily definitely proved why the Saber class was definitely the greatest, even against Casters who think they are boxers!"
Ritsuka rolled his eyes at the antics of Heroine X.
He was really getting a feel for her character now.
"But as for my apprentice…" X swiftly changed the topic, clapping her hands together and smiling rather approvingly. "A certified Saber home run was landed, it was a classic move and has definitely earned you some points. You're well on the road to becoming a right and proper Saber, keep up the good work and you'll definitely earn your approved Saber badge."
His brows furrowed a touch, angling his head slightly. "Does the Servantverse hand out badges to Sabers or something? Is it a licence to carry a sword?"
"Huh?" Heroine X turned, then made a noise and a shrug. "I don't know."
"...Aren't you hunting down Sabers? Shouldn't you know?"
"Eh…" She made a so-so gesture.
…This was actually rather horrifying.
"So…do you actually have a way of telling apart the fake Sabers from the genuine Sabers?"
"Of course I do!" The woman hotly replied, looking rather offended by his words. Jerking a thumb into her chest, she jutted her chin upwards and smirked. "It's a gut feeling!"
Oh good lord.
A brief pause, then the woman dropped her shoulders. "I have the strong feeling that you aren't actually believing me."
She could tell?
"...I'm a bit sceptical, yeah." Ritsuka replied after a brief moment, then brought his hand up and coughed into his fist. "But setting all of that aside, you're basically just running around and destroying pretty much every Saber you encounter on the off chance that they are a fake Saber or one not worthy of the class? Doesn't that seem a little…risky?"
Heroine X blinked, then furrowed her brows at him in confusion.
"I mean, if you're from the future where everyone is a Servant, then wouldn't killing all the Sabers mean that there is no Saber class in the first place?"
"That would undoubtedly cause a paradox."
He turned, blinking as the Director chose that moment to speak up. "Evidently this one didn't think through the problem, supposing for a brief moment that their delusional streams of consciousness have any basis in reality, then wiping out the Saber Class would remove the existence of Sabers, meaning there would be no surge in their numbers, which would mean this one would never have had to travel back in time to wipe them out."
Olga pointed to Heroine X with a flat look. "The problem is rather obvious."
Ritsuka bobbed his head up and down. "Yeah, if she never came back in time, then she never wiped out the Sabers in the first place…which would mean that she would come into existence all over again and…uhh…keep coming back?"
His brows pinched.
Now his brain hurt.
The Director sent him a pointed look. "See? A paradox."
"So even if her world is rooted in reality, her ultimate aim is pointless and would never succeed?" The dry comment from behind him came from Ash, soon followed by a quiet grunt from the Avenger. "Because the fabric of time is damaged…unless…No, that would suppose that time is consistent. My own experience has shown time to fracture with ease."
Ritsuka turned around and raised an eyebrow. "Wasn't that caused by the end of the world or something for you though?"
Ash, for his part, just shrugged his shoulders and pointed upwards.
His eyes followed the finger of the Avenger and gazed at the band of light in the sky, then lowered themselves back down. "Alright, fair enough. So she could only really come to this point in time? But wait…wouldn't the paradox be bad for the future as well? Isn't that the whole problem with the Singularities in the first place, they're damaging history?"
"They are, Senpai." Mash stepped forwards and gave a supporting argument. "And the presence of Servants in history is normally a sign that the era is experiencing problems, setting that aside, trying to summon a specific class outside of a Grail War without a catalyst would be difficult."
With a troubled frown, she turned on Heroine X and pursed her lips. "I think that your goal is very difficult, X-san."
The reaction from Heroine X was rather surprising.
That being that she blinked twice, then angled her head. "Goal? This isn't a goal, this is my hobby."
"...Hobby?"
"Yeah." The Assassin looked at them all blankly, then made a rather surprised expression. "Wait, you guys didn't seriously think that this was something like a job for me, did you? Wouldn't that be a little unreasonable of a demand to send someone back in time to try and deal with all of the problems regarding Saber classes? That would be really crazy. Much easier to deal with that."
She pointed to the sky.
"The Sabers are just a convenient bonus for me."
No one said anything for a couple of seconds.
Perhaps more than a couple of seconds.
Ritsuka, for one, was utterly dumbfounded at the revelation that the hatred of all the Sabers was quite literally nothing more than a hobby for Heroine X. He thought she was doing this because of some directive from the future at the way she talked about all of the different Servants and the surge of Sabers…but this was a bit…
Actually, he could see it now.
She was a tiny bit…eccentric.
"...A hobby?" He winced at the tone of Ash, one that betrayed no small amount of disapproval. As expected, when he turned on the blonde, he was met with a rather irritated scowl on their face. "You would do well to find yourself a better hobby and swiftly. For I can hardly say that I approve of one that consists of you picking fights with anyone who wields a sword."
Heroine X held up her hands, waving them down. "Trust me, this is a really serious deal in the future. Trust my words that the Sabers are a serious menace to the point where my actions make complete and utter sense."
"...Your future sounds rather disturbing."
A shrug. "It is what it is. Trying to make it a better place isn't really clean or easy…But it is rewarding, in its own way."
Heroine X then clapped her hands. "But enough exposition! Now we must move onto the next segment before we start to venture too far ahead! I've already talked for way too long and this is cutting into training time! My Saber senses are tingling and something is telling me that there is a serious problem here that involves more Sabers!"
Ritsuka found his eyes drawn to the hat of Heroine X.
More specifically, the ahoge that mysteriously jutted from the top and seemed to stand on end like an antenna.
Heroine X narrowed her eyes, brought up a hand, then thrust it forwards. "That-a-way!"
"Miss X really has some sort of sense like that?" Lily sounded rather awe-filled at her words, standing up and looking very impressed. "To think that such enhanced senses existed that she could detect the specific Class of a Servant, do you suppose I will be able to develop a skill like that?"
No.
That wasn't a skill.
Rituska was certain this woman was actually a bit crazy.
"W-well, that just comes with being a Saber." Heroine X flushed a little, her hand moved up and gripped the brim of her hat, pulling it down to hide her face as best she could, though he could still see the rather obvious smile dancing on her lips from the earnest praise. "I-I'm sure that you'll get a similarly amazing skill once you become a Saber as well, you know? A proper full-fledged Saber."
This sounded like a snake-oil scam.
"Amazing!"
He turned on Lily in shock.
She believed that?
Why did Marie look amazed as well?!
"Wolfgang said that he can do something similar with music." The Queen all but boasted on behalf of a man who wasn't here and would likely prefer not to have that happen for him. "Though I've never really seen it in action, but he definitely said he can even figure out the true name of a Servant if their Noble Phantasm relates to an artistic anecdote!"
Ritsuka paused.
Then blinked and leaned back. "Wait, seriously?"
The Director whirled on him. "What? Shouldn't you know that?"
All Ritsuka could do was shrug. "Well, I never asked and he isn't really boasting about his fighting abilities!" it was all he could really say to defend himself. "The guy is a musician, I've heard about what his Noble Phantasm can do, and apparently he can make music notes kill people, but I didn't think there was more to it than that."
Olga slapped a hand over her face, then dragged it down.
"An ability to discern true names based on artistic anecdotes…" The woman stared at him flatly for a few moments, then brought her hand up and pointed across towards a specific individual. That being Siegfried. "Think about where his legend is most famous from originating."
Or right.
Siegfried's story came from a poem, didn't it?
"Ooooh." It was all he could really say in that one moment. Ritsuka placed his hands on his hips, then nodded his head up and down, briefly looking at Siegfried before coming back to the Director and wincing a little. "Alright, that's fair enough."
"It's not really your fault." Marie jumped to his defence with a sympathetic smile. "Wolfgang would hardly ever announce something like that and would much prefer to stay behind the front lines and just make something of a nuisance for himself."
Marie would probably know better.
"Though speaking of behind the front lines…" The Queen turned her head, then brought a hand up and pointed towards another individual. "What about this one?"
Ritsuka turned to the direction she had pointed in, then thinned his lips.
Akal rocked back and forth on her heels, smiling rather innocently with every trace of previous injury gone from her body. Her eyes twinkled and her neck angled itself, an expectant look was levelled upon him as the Caster was clearly expecting him to announce that he was going to take her with them.
…He didn't have much of a reason to refuse.
"If they want to come with us, then they can." Was all he initially said, then gestured to himself. "Though I would prefer you made a contract with me…but if not, then you're allowed to accompany-"
Akal was in front of him before he could even get a word out, he jerked backwards only to find her hand gripping his own with a pull that would just not loosen at all. Ritsuka felt the faint spark of a contract being formed between the two of them, it was only then that Akal released him, then proceeded to step around and loop and arm over his shoulder, pulling him close to her.
"Isn't this just wonderful? I've always wanted to go on an adventure and this feels like a classic tale!"
Ritsuka felt lost for a second, then dropped his shoulders.
"...I'm glad you're having fun." He waited for her to release him.
She was still holding onto him.
He sighed and turned his head towards Siegfried, the knight lowered his head ever so slightly towards him. "If you would consider it, then I believe it would be a worthy trade for the trouble that I have caused."
Ritsuka felt a bit lost once more.
"But you didn't do anything."
"It was my responsibility to keep my eyes on my companion, if I had not inadvertently angered your other ally, then I could have done so. I am sorry for the trouble that my inattentiveness caused."
What?
"I think that's enough holding onto, Senpai." A grip landed on his other shoulder and pulled him forwards, he was freed from the hold of Akal and then found himself shuffled behind the stoic visage of Mash as she looked at the Caster with a stern expression.
Akal huffed, placing her hands on her hips. "I can control my strength, it is hardly as though I was going to crush him against my muscles."
Ritsuka tried very hard not to look at said muscles.
But it was really, really difficult.
Especially when Akal slapped her abs as a way of trying to punctuate the remark. "It's not like I'm made of rock right now."
She could have fooled him.
…Everyone was looking at him.
Why was everyone looking at him?
There was a light giggle from his right, he turned and saw Marie staring at him with her lips rolled inwards, amusement glittering in her eyes as a hand moved up to cover her mouth.
The Director sighed very loudly and pinched the bridge of her nose.
Ah.
Ritsuka realised he had said that out loud.
His face felt like it had been set on fire, moving a hand up and coughing into his fist while he started to march in…any direction. It didn't matter, so long as he was moving away from the prying eyes of the audience.
"Heroine X! I'm sure that there's more Altrium to find! Let's get on that right now! No time to waste!"
Ritsuka raised his voice a bit louder than he should have done, on the verge of a shout, but it was a vain effort to mask his rapidly climbing embarrassment. None of which was helped when he heard Marie laugh a little bit louder than before, nor when he felt the stares burning themselves into the back of his head.
He snuck a glance to his left.
Akal was looming forwards, smiling wryly at him, then she moved her left arm forwards and flexed it a little, just enough that her bicep became more pronounced than before. He sharply turned his head away from her, walking just a little bit faster and fighting the urge to just run away from everything.
Naturally, he heard the dragon woman start laughing immediately after he sped away.
He was a young man.
It wasn't his fault!
Ash kept his eyes on the back of Lily and Heroine X.
The two had started walking side by side not long after their journey resumed.
Though their troupe had certainly grown in number now, especially with the addition of Siegfried and Akal, why a Dragon Slayer was walking in the company of the supposed mother of dragons was something that he was struggling to understand. He would have assumed they would have fought as soon as they met one another.
It was…peculiar.
"Why did you not kill him?"
"Siegfried?" Akal understood the question immediately, her hands on her hips and a hum in her throat. "That would be boring. I've seen enough revenge quests play out over the millennium that I've grown tired of watching them. You realise that all they really amount to is a swift little burst of excitement and then fizzle out into nothing."
She waved a hand. "You get a brief flicker of satisfaction and then you're right back where you started…" the hand came down, then Akal grunted. "Besides, Siegfried had done nothing to offend me, and I was a bit curious as to what he was like as a person."
Ash…watched her for a moment.
"...Is that your sole reason?"
"Do you suppose I need another one?" She countered with a raised brow. "There doesn't need to be a reason beyond my curiosity. I'm meeting all these interesting characters for the first time. Siegfried wasn't interested in violence with me and I would rather not have to fight him to the death for the sake of me being a dragon and him being a dragon slayer."
It was hard to tell if she was lying.
He slowly turned his head from her, fixing it upon the pair ahead of him. "...Is that why you are with us now? To find stories?"
"Find stories, experience stories, make them." Akal replied smoothly. "I suppose the best answer would be, I want to live an interesting life. I want to see what sort of life all those humans who came to me were desperate to escape. I want to experience everything that this world has to offer me and then…"
She paused, then shrugged her shoulders. "Then I'll keep on going."
That was…
Ash couldn't describe much of what it was.
It sounded like a vague and directionless existence, one that lacked any and all sense of purpose or duty behind it.
The woman apparently cared for nothing but going where the wind took her and gathering every scrap of life she could find for nothing more than because she wanted to.
It should have disgusted him.
But she was a dragon, not a human.
And yet…even then…
"Is that why you fought the others? Because you wanted to partake in their story?"
"Naturally." There wasn't even a denial, the woman waved a hand almost flippantly. "Stories told from all points of view. On the side of the hero and on the side of the villain, one who fights for all and one who fights for themselves alone. There's no reason for me to be constrained to a single path."
Snapping her fingers, she brought up her left hand and pointed to him, all while keeping her gaze forwards. "That is the spice of life. I got to choose what I did. I became an obstacle because I wanted to know what that was like. I wanted to see how someone improved when I fought them."
That was…decidedly more menacing.
Ash realised it, his eyes narrowed ever so slightly. "And if becoming the villain - the enemy of Chaldea - proved to be the more interesting role to play?"
Akal hummed but gave no answer, instead her hands folded behind her back and clasped together.
He doubted he would receive an answer that pleased him.
But she looked utterly satisfied with her lack of an answer, unbothered by the question.
One who lived solely by their wants.
Akal and Drake were of the same nature.
Ash paused.
Then saw the mild link between the two of them, perhaps Ritsuka might have even found it humorous.
"So then…What about you?"
"What about me?"
"What's your story behind all of this?" Akal glanced at him, then cupped her chin. "You take on the role of a background character for the moment, Lily takes the centre stage for the development and yet you appear to drift behind her. Interesting things are happening right in front of you and yet…"
She frowned, then tilted her head. "And yet here you stand, away from the story and all on your lonesome."
Ash grunted. "I do not need life to be exciting, I merely-"
"Wrong."
"Excuse me?"
"Everyone needs excitement in their life, that is why it is called life." Akal stepped forwards, then nudged his shoulder slightly with her own. "I'm here because I can play all roles, but that doesn't mean you should as well. I can tell by that look in your eyes that you want to be right up there with them but you're holding yourself back…waiting for a development that hasn't come."
Akal turned her head and looked behind them. "Or perhaps…you don't think you deserve it?"
"...Lily spoke of her dream, the knight who defends the smiles of the people who would be subject under her. The creation of a paradise."
"Sounds lovely."
"I know how it ends."
"So do I."
Ash exhaled, then lowered his eyes down. "I know how it ends, she does as well. Yet she pushes forwards all the same, I would call it her drive being akin to a duty except that…I cannot recall a time where I smiled as she did. Where I showed as much passion for the role as she did. For me it was as simple as breathing."
Akal hummed. "The difference between a job and a passion. Or rather, the difference between life and existence and trust me…" a knowing smirk crossed the lips of the dragon. "I know the difference between the two of them. Existence is easy, everyone can do that. You just sit there and do nothing. But life? That's something you work at."
It was not just that.
"...Do you hate Gwynevere?"
Akal blinked. "That's a sudden turn."
He glanced at her expectantly.
With a sigh, the Caster turned her eyes away from him. "Hate would be a strong word. Perhaps I do have grievances with her, as much the same with all Gods, but I can understand why they did what they did. Though I do not have to like it in the least."
She spoke so flipplantly of a genocide.
"Your people-"
"I've had many cycles to come to terms with what became of them." Akal cut him short, her words quiet but powerful. "Many to come to terms with who I am as well. What I represent and all I can say is…my people were uninspired. I said the same thing to Kalameet when he posed me this question once. He was special because he was different, because he was unique."
She exhaled. "Life is a mixture of tragedy and joy. My people lived on in some capacity, they found co-existence in a meagre way…so I cannot lament the entirety of it. I cannot forgive what Gwynevere and the Gods did to my forebears, but I do not have to let it control me. After all…"
Akal nodded her head to him. "I believe I told you how little I like revenge stories. So very boring, focused on a single goal and having nothing left when it's gone. That's why it's better to focus on an impossible goal." she clapped her hands together. "That way, you'll always have something to strive for."
He watched her.
Then turned his head once more.
"Back to my original point." Akal patted him on the back twice. "I think what really matters is remembering that you can do things. You want to do something? Go and do it…That is what makes life so exciting."
A frivolous woman.
Just like Drake.
He moved away from her, marching further ahead until he moved into earshot of Heroine X and Lily who were animatedly discussing something.
"That sounds rather underhanded-"
"Yes, but it helps win fights against superior foes." Heroine X replied in what could be described as a sage tone of voice. "Being the ultimate Saber is knowing when the best time to fight fair is and when the best time to fight dirty is. Or rather, fighting differently to make things fair."
Ash pinched his brows at her words but said nothing, instead falling into step behind the two of them.
"But setting traps all over the battlefield-" Lily sounded decidedly unsure.
"It's fine." Heroine X waved off her concerns with a rather swift hand wave. "Trust me, this is the sort of thing that really pays off. What you want to do is deploy this against multiple fighters. Retreat when you need to and then control the battlefield so they are fighting on your terms."
Lily made a small noise, still uncertain. "I can understand the reason behind it, Miss X, but luring people into pitfall traps feels more like the tools of an Assassin."
Ash raised a brow ever so slightly.
His arms came up and he nodded along, not in agreement with Lily but rather with the bizarre woman who claimed to be from space.
"Not just against multiple combatants." His sudden interruption drew the eyes of both Lily and Heroine X immediately, the former looking surprised while the latter remained guarded by his intrusion. He continued on before he could offer anything else. "Using diversionary tactics was something that kept me alive much longer against larger and decidedly more dangerous adversaries. There is a reason I pursued the path of pyromancy."
He frowned. "More often than not, matching blows with my enemies was difficult…Especially when they were both taller and more physically imposing than I."
Ash raised a finger with each tactic he listed off. "Poison, pyromancy, explosives, ranged weapons. Anything that I could get my hands on I would use to kill someone."
It was when he had finished that he noticed something odd.
That being Heroine X regarding him as if she was seeing him in a new light, namely she was wearing a more approving expression and bobbing her head up and down. Then she paused and pointed to him, almost with a face of apprehension. "Backstabbing?"
"It's easier than stabbing them from the front."
"Exactly!" Heroine X clapped her hands, then turned to Lily. "You want to challenge someone to a duel? Fight as fair and honourably as you like. But if you're fighting to live? Then absolutely anything goes. Heck, not just that, but if you're fighting for someone else to live as well."
The Assassin exhaled, bringing up her hands. "I'm not saying to become an Assassin. You are obviously a Saber and should fight like a Saber, but that doesn't mean to say that fighting like a Saber should be just swinging a sword around all the time. It wouldn't work against, say, a dozen enemy Sabers."
Ash nodded his head in agreement. "She speaks truly. Being outnumbered is one of the main reasons I followed the path of pyromancy, for clearing away the groups of enemies who were surge towards me faster than I could cut them down."
He frowned. "It is hardly a pleasant death to cut down one hollow, only for three more to fall upon you and stab you repeatedly with broken dull swords until you eventually die from the injuries."
They were both staring at him with matching expressions of mild horror, though Lily's was a touch more pronounced.
With a grunt, he moved his hand up and cupped his chin. "But that is beside the point. What matters is the right tactic for the right situation. I believe that the battle with Akal should have been demonstrated as such to you…"
Lily flinched a little, then lowered her head. "She really was holding back-"
"Yeah, but you still beat her." Came the rather loud interruption from Heroine X. "That right there, that is what matters. But it is the way you beat her as well. She comes at you with better speed and strength? Just jump her with your friends and fight until she loses. If she is too much for your friends? Just bring more friends."
Heroine X smiled. "Would you call a fight with her one-on-one, fair?"
"Well…not…not really-"
"Exactly. You're just making things fair between the two of you, which is where the bombs, night attacks and kidnapping comes into play."
Ash paused at that last one.
His eyes slid towards the Assassin and remained on her, not that she seemed to notice.
Kidnapping?
He…he could see the value, he supposed.
But he doubted Lily would accept that tactic.
Better to introduce her to ones that she could find more palatable…whatever those were.
Olga found this situation to be increasingly varying between being unpleasant and…
She would not call it pleasant as an alternative, but there were moments that certainly made it less vexing than she would have otherwise considered.
"Well?"
The person on the other side of the communicator scratched the side of their head before they responded. "With what you've shown us thus far and what readings we've taken…Yes, I do not doubt that the material is powerful, but trying to incorporate any of it into Chaldea would be challenging."
She frowned at the response she received from Maxwell. "Challenging?"
The man rubbed the bridge of his nose and nodded his head up and down. "Perhaps if we had a full complement for the R&D team to examine it and more time, sure. But unless you want to pull Da Vinci away from everything that she is currently running…"
He lowered his hand, then looked at her expectantly.
Olga fought the urge to click her tongue at the attitude of the man, speaking in such a way that he already knew what the answer was going to be. "Fine. Just maintain the scans on the Singularity and alert me if there are any more Servants nearby, I have no interest in being ambushed again."
Maxwell just stared at her blankly for a moment, then blinked once more before he silently nodded his head with an expression that betrayed nothing.
The communicator clicked off a second later.
Closing her eyes, she lowered her arm and then moved her right hand to rub against the front of her face.
Her eyes snapped open when she felt a pair of hands fall onto her shoulder and what most certainly felt like someone's thumbs trying to knead them, she turned around ever so slightly and looked to the one responsible, met with the unashamed face of Marie smiling right back towards her.
The Queen said nothing, not even when Olga lowered her eyes towards the hands, currently making a rather poor effort to massage her, then brought them back up again to meet the Rider.
Marie just smiled and hummed.
"...What are you doing?"
"You seemed tense." Marie replied brightly. "I thought this was the sort of thing that people do when they try to relieve stress…" the smile faded just a little, the Rider slowed down in her movements and then tilted her head. "Was that not right? I only heard about that sort of thing in passing from Chevalier Astolfo."
Oh course it would be that one.
Though she couldn't say they were wrong.
She sighed and rolled her eyes. "Normally it is done by trained professionals, otherwise it runs the risk of causing more harm than good…" she stepped forwards and just out of reach of the Rider, then turned around and placed her hands on her hips. "And I am not so stressed that I need a massage in the middle of a field in broad daylight…just exasperated."
"Oh." Marie winced a little. "Sorry for the misunderstanding-"
"Don't…" Olga waved a hand, trailing off and then smacking her lips together. "Just forget it."
Marie rocked back and forth on her heels, then inclined her head to the side. "So then, how much further do you suppose we have to do?"
It wasn't a question of how much was left.
It was a question of how long she could last.
This situation had already veered far off course from what she had been expecting, signing off on a training expedition was one thing, but this was entirely different. Between the Berserker - because they couldn't be anything other than insane - moonlighting as some Class obsessed Assassin and the rocket ship that fell on their heads, then the dragon…
"...The sooner we end this the better."
"Really? That's a shame, I think this is quite fun."
Olga narrowed her eyes slightly. "Fun?"
Marie beamed at her, completely ignoring her sour expression. "Oui! It's exciting! None of this sort of thing would happen when I was alive and the chance to go out and bond with all sorts of people on exciting adventures like these!"
Her hands clapped together, the smile seemed to widen. "It is as though we've been pulled right into one of those tales from the Paladins or the Knights! More to the point, there is my pride as a Queen as well."
She held up a single finger, placing her other hand on her hip and leaning forwards.
"It would hardly do for me to let someone shipwreck in my country and not help them. That would paint us all in a very unfortunate light, wouldn't it?"
Olga rolled his lips and shuffled her jaw from side to side.
"I…Can see your angle." Was what she replied with after a few moments, "Though I question the need for…nevermind. So long as you can make some improvements that you're satisfied with, then this venture can hardly be called a total waste."
Folding her arms, she looked away to the side.
A low hum came from in front of her, she twisted her gaze to see that the Queen had stepped closer, now cupping her chin and wearing an inquisitive gaze.
"I get the feeling you aren't actually enjoying this."
Olga twitched her eye for a moment, then closed them and smiled with a strained tug of the lip. "Now what gave you that impression?"
"I'm just a little puzzled is all." Marie replied rather innocently, Olga opened her eyes back up as the Queen stepped back, looking rather puzzled. "You seemed fairly eager to come down and you said you were expecting something like this to happen, but when it does you seem a bit annoyed…I thought you were secretly after an exciting adventure…"
She most certainly wasn't.
"What I wanted was to get out of Chaldea before that self-proclaimed pop idol-"
She cut herself short, her jaw snapped shut and she turned away.
Though the damage was done already.
"Ho~" She almost cringed at the sing-song way that Marie hummed, the Queen stepped back into her line of sight, wearing a rather smug expression. "I see how it is. You're trying to hide away from Madam Bathory and her rivalry requests."
Olga rolled her eyes at the statement. "Rivalry requests…As if you could call them such thing, I have no interest in that sort of thing."
"...Wasn't the idol your idea-"
"That wasn't-!" She turned on the Rider and hissed at her, then composed herself a second later, glancing left and right to ensure no one else was close enough, then lowered her voice into a whisper before she resumed speaking. "I was not in the right state of mind at the time. That was not a representation of what I truly felt."
"...You looked like you were enjoying it though." Marie spoke further, pinched her brows and looked somewhat troubled. "Especially when you started handing out autographs-"
Olga glared at her, silently demanding she stop talking.
Marie raised her hands in surrender, though the disarming smile returned. "Alright, if you're not comfortable then I won't force you…but really, its only a matter of time before she ends up cornering you, you know?"
She scowled but said nothing.
Especially because she knew that Marie was right.
Avoiding Bathory thus far had been a minor miracle unto itself, but it was only a matter of time before their paths crossed and from what she had heard, the pursuit of the Lancer Servant had been dogged.
Though she questioned the sanity of Berserker who said he had attended a song of the Lancer.
And then came up to her and said he thought it was the second best thing he had ever heard in his life.
Marie coughed a couple of times, then folded her hands behind her back and resumed rocking back and forth on her heels. "So then…setting aside the matter that you obviously don't want to talk about, why don't you try and enjoy yourself now that you're out here? You went through the trouble of bringing Stahl down, so if we get into another fight, you should join in!"
The Queen pumped a fist. "It would be totally wizard."
"...Never say that to me again."
"Eh?" Marie blinked in surprise, then shifted into worry. "Oh, is it some sort of insult? I thought it was modern slang for something being amazing, I didn't mean to offend-"
"Just…" Olga slowly closed her eyes, holding up a hand and waving the Queen down. "Don't…Besides, if we encountered another battle, would it not be preferred for you to battle them yourself? Was this not towards your training?"
"Sure, but training is more enjoyable when done with friends!" Marie stepped forwards, looming right into her immediate personal space while wearing the grin once more, Olga jerked backwards at the sudden breach of her personal bubble. "I've heard that it lets people grow closer together, really brings up the bonds of friendship and other such things, you know?"
Olga brought up her hands and laid them flat on the shoulders of the Rider, pushing her back a step or two. "I have heard as such, yes…But the matter with Stahl can be just as easily dealt with at Chaldea whenever I so choose, this is less in regards to my own abilities and more to see how you function-"
"Come on…" Marie pouted. "I'm sure that Lily and the others wouldn't mind, I'm sure that Ritsuka would agree as well!"
"What am I agreeing with?" Came a call from behind them.
Marie responded rather quickly. "That Olga could help out with Stahl next time there is a fight!"
"...Why are we phrasing this like it's my choice?" Ritsuka replied, then made a bemused noise before speaking again. "But that does sound like a good idea. You guys can form the training team!"
Olga turned in his direction and squinted at him for a brief moment.
He agreed too easily.
…But she hardly wanted to be looked at as if she wasn't pulling her weight either.
That would look downright shameful for her, especially because she was a Master as well and the idea that her Servant was just standing around like a decoration was just pitiful.
She sighed, then turned away. "Fine, depending on the nature of the next battle."
Though she personally doubted it would be necessary.
Her fingers remained interlocked as she moved forwards, though a faint humming tune escaped her as she moved.
"I feel as though you've made some progress."
The target of her words jolted slightly before calming, turning their head towards her and tilting it. "You think so? Senpai said the same thing but-"
Gwynevere gave a light chuckle. "There is no reason to disregard the assistance of help. It is just as true that many others would have fallen short when faced with an Everlasting Dragon, even during the wars you could count on both hands the number who could face down a dragon on their lonesome."
She paused for a moment, then continued on. "And most of those were Gods."
Mash did look slightly mollified by the words, nodding her head in acknowledgement. "I…suppose I do feel as though I have gotten better. But I…I'm not sure how I feel about the idea that Akal-san went easy on us. It isn't that I'm not grateful for the help she gave…but-"
She could see the problem.
"I assume you are familiar with the notion that every castle begins with the building of a single brick, or that every garden begins from seeds."
Mash nodded her head once more. "I do understand that I will certainly get better the more I train, but I'm worried that sometimes I won't get the chance for that…What I mean to say is that the Servants in the Singularities are getting more powerful and…"
She turned her head down. "...It was during the resort made by Hanleth-san…I was ambushed and I was…I was defeated very easily and that left Senpai exposed. If Medusa-san hadn't been there then…"
The girl's hands clenched into fists, her arms trembled. "I want to believe that if I had known that we were going to be attacked, then it would be different but I was taken by surprise so easily…what if that happens again but the next time-"
Gwynevere lowered a hand onto the shoulder of the girl, giving it a gentle squeeze and silencing her words.
"The belief that you will fail, it is that thought which shall make it inevitable. Even the greatest of knights can be felled. It is not shameful to state that you were caught by surprise and do not forget, you were not alone in that encounter…There were others wounded when I was called upon, and the one I saw was decidedly monstrous."
Mash turned and looked up at her.
"What you must think on, Mash, is not what will happen if you fail, but what you will do better…"
She paused, then gave a low chuckle. "Though I would hardly call that great wisdom, indeed I believe that such words are common sense for anyone who aspires to better themselves. Though that does not make them any less true."
Removing her hand from the shoulder of the girl, he clasped them together once more.
"You stood your ground against powerful foes before. I do not doubt that your Master is still alive only because of your presence many times over. More than that…He trusts your strength of arm. You claim he fashioned a plan to deal with the dragon? In which case, he allowed the use of a Noble Phantasm in your direction because he had absolute confidence in your capacity to defend against it."
Mash paused for a moment, then turned away. "I…I understand what you are saying but…Even still, I do not have a true Noble Phantasm-"
"Perhaps that much is true." Gwynevere replied with a mild shrug of the shoulders, though she personally did not care much. If whomever granted Mash their powers did not feel the need to bestow all their strength, then she could hardly fault any weakness shown on part of Mash.
Rather, it was the fault of the Servant behind her.
"Though even if it were, it says more for your strength of character that even when faced with a liability, you may still step onto the frontlines and fight with those who have no such limitations."
"I…even still…"
"This serves as proof of his trust in you." Gwynevere raised a finger. "What the boy has is not blind faith in your abilities, it is confidence in what he has seen with his own two eyes. He does not reject the idea of training and claim you do not need it, but nor does he shy away from using your strength…The boy knows your strengths and weaknesses and still puts you at the forefront, trusting you to save his life."
She glanced down at Mash once more, then smiled. "Have a touch more confidence in yourself, Mash-Senpai. If you, Lily and the Queen can face down an Everlasting Dragon when you are your self-proclaimed weakest state, then you can only imagine the manner of foes you shall best when you reach your height."
Mash looked up at her with a widened eye, then swiftly turned her head away once more. "That is…very kind of you to say, Gwynevere-san."
"It is the truth…that it happens to be pleasing for you to hear is purely coincidental."
"There back at my damn ship again!?"
The rather high pitched screech from the front of the travelling group came from a certain individual, Gwynevere flattened her features.
It was then that the Master spoke up as well.
"Yeah, I just got a message from Tametomo about it as well." The boy turned back around, then started to walk back towards them, sweeping a hand above his head as a gesture for them all to turn around. "Something about another fuselage appearing of an unknown design and make…I think that might mean there is another robot there, but I'm not wholly certain."
Heroine X briefly stumbled before turning in surprise. "Oh, you have robots as well? How come we don't know about this? I thought this era hadn't advanced that far yet."
"...We're also from the future as well-no, actually, Tametomo is technically from the past and…You know what? Nevermind."
AN: To the guest who has frequented the reviews for the last few months.
I'd advise dropping this story for your own health.
This obsession with leaving a negative rant each new chapter is really unhealthy for you.
It's clear you don't like my story and probably never will.
All I can say is go and try to find a fic you do like and get some joy out of reading.
I appreciate you don't like my fic, but the review channel isn't a stress ball for you to vent into.
That is all.