"Not the strangest thing I've witnessed, but this is still rather surprising…" Sensei admitted as he stared at the spirit in front of him. "It is nice to meet you too, Yume."

Kuchinashi Yume, the Abydos Student Council President and Hoshino's upperclassman that went missing over two years ago. That should have been the case at least.

Currently, said student was floating in front of him as a spirit as they talked in the Abydos Student Council office. Her appearance slowly became more clear to him as he got used to perceiving her, but she was ever so slightly losing her form, with her halo slowly dimming.

"Just what kind of life did you live if seeing a ghost doesn't faze you?" Yume asked

"A rather eventful one," Sensei said.

"There you go again being all vague and mysterious, but I guess that's just like you," Yume said with a giggle. "I'm assuming it involves a lot of powerful women as well?"

"You're…not wrong," Sensei said with a chuckle. "It seems you know me well."

"I have been here this entire time, after all. I also know that you want to be a Hero of Justice! I've heard the girls of RABBIT Squad talk about you sometimes!" Yume exclaimed before her voice became a bit more somber. "When you revealed yourself to be a mage shortly after arriving in Abydos, I had hoped that you might be able to notice me. Then you started getting those headaches every time I tried so I stopped. I'm really sorry about that."

"It's fine. I just wasn't used to Kivotos' environment at the time, so my senses can get overloaded. Learning more about its history and the people residing in it also helped with the headaches," Sensei said with a smile as he pondered about Yume's current state. He wasn't sure if it was a result of Astral Projection or something worse. When he asked her, Yume said that she herself wasn't too clear on the details regarding her disappearance.

"How long have you been like this?" he asked.

"A little over two years now, I think?" Yume replied as she let herself float around the room. She continued by explaining that she suddenly found herself standing next to a disheveled Hoshino who was carrying her Iron Horus from where she found it in the desert, and had been following her around since.

"Unfortunately, even though I've been by Hoshino's side all this time, I've been unable to communicate with her…" Yume said with a heavy expression as she and Sensei talked. "Watching her as she slowly worked herself to the ground, unable to sleep at night…Only to get back up and continue to defend Abydos and deal with the debt by herself…"

Sensei remained silent as he continued to listen to her.

"I was overjoyed when Hoshino finally gained juniors of her own, you know?" Yume said. "First it was Nonomi and Shiroko, then Ayane and Serika. 'She was no longer alone', I thought. She no longer had to struggle by herself now. And it was true to some extent. My lovely junior finally had some reprieve, even if only for a bit. Even then I knew that she still hadn't given up on me."

Yume remained silent as she recalled those times, before she made a smile as she turned to face Sensei.

"And then you arrived and even helped drive off the delinquents! It was really awesome watching you weave into the field with your swords! Though I think you put Hoshino on her guard with that stunt."

"Ahaha…" Sensei said as he scratched the back of his head. "I was still on a bit of an edge shortly after arriving in Kivotos, so it hadn't occurred to me yet that it might have been a good idea to use a gun instead."

"In any case, Hoshino kept her distance from you, believing you to be another bad adult, but you eventually managed to gain her trust! I guess your food has something to do with that! Too bad I can't try it myself..I would have loved to try your cooking…In any case, after that you—!" Yume recalled the once dried up oasis being filled with water after Sensei created that very special sword. "That night when you created that blade…It was like a scene from a fairy tale I read as a child…"

"After that night, I started fading little by little. That was when I realized that my continued existence was partly due to Hoshino herself," Yume said with a heavy smile. "I'm really happy that she started forgiving herself considering our last conversation ended on a sour note…Not that I blame her for it. We experienced one too many setbacks at the time. It's just that I…"

"What is it?" Sensei asked as Yume's voice trailed off.

"It's nothing important, Sensei! Don't worry about it!" Yume hastily said with a wave of her hands. "Now where was I…? Right! Given time I believed that she would eventually be able to move on from my disappearance, and that was fine by me."

Yume made a forlorn smile as she floated to the unoccupied table next to Sensei—the Student Council President's desk. "Perhaps eventually, she can even find it in herself to take over the mantle of President."

Sensei approached her, stopping just a few steps short as she turned to face him. "What do you plan to do now?"

"Sensei, I'm sure you can tell that I'm slowly disappearing. I can tell that you can see what's happening to my body. Maybe I'll disappear tomorrow, or the day after," Yume said. "I'd like you to pass on a message to Hoshino. Please tell her that I'm proud of her and that she should face the future with a smile!"

"I'd rather you tell that to Hoshino personally," Sensei said with a smile. "You're not going to ask me to help you with your situation? You still have some regrets, right? Given the chance, would you—"

"But Hoshino is finally moving on from my memory! If I were to show up now, I'd deprive her of that growth!"

"Perhaps. But you'll be there to help her, won't you?"

"I'm just going to get in Hoshino's way much like I did in the past!"

"Even if you trip and fall, I'll be there to help you up for as long as you need," Sensei said. "I'm sure Hoshino would say the same."

"...Can I really ask for your help?" Yume asked. "You hid it from Hoshino, but I know you over-exerted yourself when you created that sword in the oasis."

"So you saw that…" Sensei said as he looked at a specific spot on his left hand's index finger. Specifically, where his skin was darker. It was a really small spot, and would be unnoticeable unless you know where to look.

He had been doing what he could to avoid overexerting his Magic Circuits as much as possible,becoming more efficient in its usage while still remaining true to his ideals lest he start resembling that red bowman.

When he projected that sword to serve as the new water source for the dried-up oasis, he pushed himself past his current limits due to the sword's very nature. It was a sword that he would not have been able to project in his old world without risking his life and was only possible in Kivotos due to the world itself being a lot more accepting of his magecraft.

Still—

I risked my life every single day in the past just to achieve the power to save others, Sensei thought. Even after I became an adult…Even after I became a teacher to these students, that desire to save others hasn't changed.

He's no longer actively saving people's lives from battlefields as he did in the past. Or rather, it would be more accurate to say that his battlefield had changed to that of a teacher, and his methods for saving others needed to change too to reflect his new station. But if the magecraft he'd honed on the battlefield could still be used to put a smile on the faces of his students, then there is no need for hesitation.

"Leave that problem to me," Sensei said with a smile. "As your teacher, it's my responsibility to guide and help my students to the best of my abilities. Besides, I likely won't have to exert myself as much as I did with the oasis."

"But—"

"Even if I wasn't your teacher, I would still help you as best as I could."

"'Even if I wasn't your teacher…'" Yume repeated Sensei's words as she held back the tears in her eyes. "You really are…a hero aren't you?"

"Tell me, what is it that you really want?" Sensei said with a smile.

"I…" Yume wanted to reject Sensei's offer.

Tell him that I'm fine with disappearing…!

But that would be a lie.

What she really wanted was—

"I…want to attend school again," Yume admitted as tears rolled down her cheeks. "I want to be able to have fun with Hoshino once more…I want to talk to her juniors…I want to be able to eat your cooking, Sensei…Can you help me?"

Hearing this girl's heartfelt plea, Sensei—

"Of course," he said as he considered his options.

His first thought was a certain king's legendary sheath.

No, it wouldn't work without her.

He closed his eyes and began to look in his repository of swords. In the field of infinite swords to be used to reinforce Yume's existence. He excluded Demonic and Cursed blades, as those would affect Yume negatively. Weaker blades were also excluded, as they lacked the conceptual weight necessary to support Yume's continued existence.

Thus he was left with the high ranking Holy Blades in his possession. Among them, the legendary sword famous for being unbreakable and capable of granting miracles came to mind. It floated in front of him, waiting to be called in the outside world.

This should work, Sensei started to project the sword before he stopped himself once more.

Is…this really the best option? Sensei thought to himself. It might have unintended effects with her halo.

While he was sure that using said sword's miracles would work, but as they are crystallizations of legends, they have a certain weight to their existence that might affect Yume's own especially in her diminished state. He recalled the condition of a gray haired acquaintance of his that could be seen around a certain Lord he studied under for some time.

No, it's too risky, Sensei thought as he stopped the creation of the sword. There has to be something else!

Yume's own situation would be best solved using Puppetry, and he was no Puppet Master. And he didn't know of anyone in Kivotos proficient in Puppet creation, if they even exist.

Oh, he knew the fundamentals of Puppetry, but only to better deal against it in combat. It was at this time that he was reminded of a conversation that happened in the past.

"This option is no good either," Sensei muttered in frustration. It wasn't the first time he felt this, but he was frustrated at having a skill set that was too combat-oriented. It served him well in a fight, and creative use of it allowed him to also use it outside of combat, but it is ill-suited for these types of situations.

He opened his eyes and placed a hand over a certain section of his vest that was carrying a special card. It seems the best option would be to use this. This poses the least amount of risk for Yume.

And the greatest risk for Sensei himself.

The mysterious 'Credit Card'. It was one of the things that he found on his person shortly after he was woken up by Rin. He didn't know how he came to possess it, but he instinctively knew how to use it, and an understanding of what it was capable of. So far he hadn't made use of it as there was no need to, with him more than capable of fighting off threats like the Prophets of Decagrammaton.

It was a trump card that allowed Sensei to overturn a hopeless situation no matter what. But as with any powerful trump card, it always had a cost that he might not be able to repay.

It doesn't matter either way, Sensei thought as he pushed his doubts and reached into his inner pocket. If my life can help someone else, then—

[Don't be so hasty in throwing your life away! You might have overlooked a simpler solution—]

He was stopped by a memory of a conversation he once had with a certain redhead during a mission. Sensei chuckled as he lowered his hand.

"Heh. I did promise her then to think things through," Sensei said as he looked at Yume once more and noticed that she was releasing motes of light every so often. "The solution is right in front of me all along."

"Sensei, did you figure something out?"

"Yeah," Sensei said with a nod. "But first, can you hold your hand out?"

"Like this?" Yume said as she extended her right hand before Sensei placed his left on top of hers, as if trying to grab it. "Um, Sensei…You know I'm a ghost, right?"

"You're currently in an immaterial state, yes. Now I'm going to create a magical connection between us by establishing a contract. I'll explain everything later, but for now, no matter what happens, do not pull your hand away," Sensei said.

"Understood..?" Yume was a little confused, but decided to trust Sensei's words.

Glowing circuit-looking lines appeared on his left arm as he held Yume's hand, much to the girl's surprise.

"How did you—?" Yume was flustered as this was the first time she held anything in years. She was a little conscious to be holding a man's hand and wanted to pull away, but remembered Sensei's words and decided to ask him instead, "Um, what now?"

"Now, I will announce the stipulations of the contract…" Sensei said as he thought about what it should entail, but he smiled as he decided that there was no need for a complicated one. The rules of this world are different after all.

"I, the Sensei of SCHALE, ask the spirit of Kuchinashi Yume," Sensei asked. "Do you accept me as your teacher?

"Hehe, what a strange question," Yume giggled. "Of course I do."

Yume's body became clearer, indicating that what they were doing was working. He wasn't entirely sure how his magecraft would have interacted with Yume's Mystic, but he was fairly confident that it wouldn't reject his mana, though the only other time he tried something like this was while sparring with Hoshino.

"I accept you as my student," Sensei said with a smile.

A swirl of Mana and Mystic surrounded them, with the stacks of papers on the desk being blown away by the wind.

"I hereby proclaim to the land of Mystics that Kuchinashi Yume is now the student of—,"

Yume's body gained a material form.

"Emiya Shirou, the Sensei of SCHALE."

Disclaimer: Please read the notes only after reading the chapter.

Addendum:

To those reading this fic for the first time on this site, welcome!

...
...

True name reveal!

It's Shirou Emiya as Sensei!

Surprised?

Oh who am I kidding?

...

On a more serious note, it's an open secret by now that Shirou Emiya is the Sensei of this fic. I didn't really try to hide it save for avoiding the usage of his name and common Nasuverse terminologies. Most of you have probably guessed that this is a deliberate choice on my part. A gimmick of this story, you could say. Some may be wondering why I went out of my way to do so. Now I can finally explain why.

1. In the game, we players get to name Sensei, and this is reflected in the story, but we don't know how he looks. I had this silly idea of attempting to invoke the inverse of this in which you know what Sensei actually looks like, but the narrative fails to acknowledge his name, or goes out of its way to avoid mentioning it. At the very least, the idea is funny for me and it's fun to tease readers by doing everything except outright namedropping Shirou.

2. I wanted the usage of Sensei's True Name to happen at important milestones. Shirou Emiya is a popular character that's been around for over two decades. Many anime fans probably know who he is. While it would be fun to write a standard Shirou Emiya fanfic, I thought "Hey, why not try something different?"

3. Blue Archive is, in my opinion, a story primarily about the students, with Sensei usually in the background helping them, occasionally stepping in the spotlight when things are out of the students' control. I wanted the narrative to reflect that by having Shirou, as Sensei, seamlessly blend into the narrative.

I wasn't actually planning on name dropping Shirou when I started writing this chapter, but the very concept of using True Names in general (outside of Nasuverse) when making a contract is too good to pass up. I did try to off-screen when Yume and Sensei made a pact, or at least avoid outright mention Shirou's name, but I felt that it would detract from the chapter, so I had to make a choice on whether to keep the gimmick running for a few more chapters, or to acknowledge who Sensei really is.

This chapter is by no means perfect, and there are still room for improvements but...

As always, I hope you all enjoyed this chapter.