It was a younger Cú Chulainn. He was more armored, most noticeably on his left arm, and his blue hair was a little messier with a tuft hovering over his left eye. He was without any weapons, having left his glowing demonic sword, Cruaidín Catutchenn, at the house. He was in the throne room of Emain Macha, leaning back against one stone wall, expression like he'd rather not be there, and just watching his wife, Emer, argue with his maternal uncle, the king of Ulster, Conchobar mac Nessa, for the millionth time. Cú Chulainn knew not to stop Emer from saying what's on her mind. The last time he did she not only refused to have sex with him for two weeks but kept cockblocking him during that time.
"I know that Cú is Ulster's best fighter, but did you really have to send him out five days in a row?! Even he has his limits! I know you're looking out for Ulster as it's king but he's your nephew! You'll probably end up working him to death! If that happens, forget me but I doubt Deichtine will want anything to do with you! You know how much she loves her son despite her long since finding out he's the same baby she tried to abort! Don't you have other Red Branch Knights to send out?!"
"Emer, we're stretched thin right now. 'Sides, he can take care of himself until some of the others return."
Now Cú Chulainn decided to speak. "Uncle, I told her that already with foreseeable results. Ya need to use somethin' else."
Emer wasn't done yet. "I swear I'll have Lugh come out of the Otherworld and force you to give Cú a week or so off! Do you want that?!"
"Princess, Dad's High King of the Tuatha Dé Danann. I might be his son but this is too trivial. Let's forget this and go home already."
"Not until you get the break you deserve!"
"You remember me tellin' ya that I went a month without sleepin' in the Táin Bó Cúailnge so I could fight non-stop? This is nothin' compared to that."
"I do, but a rare talk I had with Lugh revealed more to the story. Apparently you got so wounded and so exhausted that when Lugh knocked you out you slept for an entire day! I want to prevent a repeat of that! And a month without sleep! I know you're the son of our chief god but that's ridiculous! You're lucky that didn't kill you!"
In the hall of Tsubaki-mon, Lancer was stopped by Andy.
"Full moon tonight, Lancer. Are you going to howl at it?" Andy asked.
A punch to the top of his head. "Don't be an idiot."
"It was a legitimate question! I don't know if you're a werewolf!" He had imagined a blue-furred bipedal wolf with piercing red eyes.
"Nothing in my legend indicates that I am!"
"I only learned the basics after the Captain summoned you!"
"Oya? I also thought you were."
Lancer went rigid and Andy practically jumped out of his skin. "How are you able to sneak up behind me? You have a form of Presence Concealment or somethin'?" Lancer asked through grit teeth.
Reisi adjusted his glasses and didn't answer Lancer's question. "The qualities you share with canines like your sensitive sense of smell, I also assumed you could transform into one."
"You can see all my stats! Why wouldja still think that?!" Reisi didn't reply to that aside from blushing. Lancer sighed. His Master can be such a dork sometimes that it rules out his common sense. Then he continued. "You do realize you fell asleep at your desk, right?" Of course he was since he wasn't at his apartment when he opened his eyes. Also, the fact he was still in his uniform and his glasses were still on told him he didn't sleep in a bed. "I was afraid that might happen since you decided to keep workin' 'till almost 5 in the mornin'. It's why you were excused until ya caught up on your sleep."
"Well, it showed me part of your past. Emer's really good at giving you a tongue-lashing. At least I now know who wore the pants in that relationship."
"First time we met, she kept bitchin' at me 'bout not wantin' to bed with some fameless kid."
Andy was just blinking at the spearman in disbelief. "Wait...Kid..? How old were you..?"
"Like 14. Why?" After some silence from Andy and Reisi, it dawned on him. "It was normal in the time I come from, okay?!"
There was commotion building up at a local casino, particularly involving a man with blond hair. People at other slot machines looked tense: jaws squared, spines rigid, and eyes glued to the screen in gamer-like concentration. In contrast, the man was completely relaxed like a person lounging in a hot tub and looking to regard this activity as the simplest thing in the world. But unlike those who treated gambling seriously and still came out losing tens or even hundreds of thousands of yen, piles of coins kept coming out of the man's machine each time the rotating columns on the screen came to a halt. The jingling sound produced became ordinary. Naturally, this attracted a crowd of people around him like ants to sugar.
"Just how much longer is his win streak going to last?" someone whispered.
"Hasn't it been going on for almost two hours now?" another asked.
"He might force the place to declare bankruptcy if this keeps up."
That was a worry the owner had, but Archer was in full view of one of the security cameras and no cheating could be seen. So this guy couldn't just be kicked out or it'll be bad for business. He'll need to check to see if the machine's working right when the blond leaves.
One might call this an abuse of Archer's Golden Rule skill, but he's merely reclaiming what's already his. A simple chore seeing that he's a natural winner.
Rider was in a good mood as he entered the bar, having taken the lights out of four men who thought they had the upper hand simply because he was surrounded. "Anyone wanna go for a ride in my chariot?" In an instant, all the boys tried avoiding eye contact with the Servant.
"I will."
A voice quiet like the wind resounded in the otherwise empty establishment, causing everyone to turn to the speaker. Anna looked more like a doll than a living person, with her flawless, porcelain skin, large, red eyes, her black-and-red gothic lolita dress, and her calm, expressionless demeanor.
Rider sighed at the lack of any other volunteers. He's sure Mikoto would've gone too if he wasn't currently at the convenience store for cigarettes. "Fine. Y'know, she has a good set of balls, unlike the rest of you Clansmen, and she's an 11-year-old girl!"
"Keep it under 59 kph and make sure you have an iron hold on her at all times!" Izumo said, his eyes narrowed at the green-haired Servant. "I swear that if she returns with even a single scratch-!"
Rider waved dismissively. "Yeah, I know you have strict safety shit for her. Y'know, she'll never grow up if you keep being a helicopter mom."
"I don't care what you think of me, just do what I say!"
"Whatever. Let's go, Anna." The little girl hopped off the stool she was on, The heels of her bright red shoes clicking on the ground as she dashed after the demigod heading out the back door. Outside, one Rider was sure no one was nearby, he stuck two fingers that were forming a ring into his mouth and whistled. A moment later, a green rip opened in the sky and a chariot pulled by three horses descended.
The white horse turned its head, those massive eyes fixed on Anna. She had been told which one could speak to people, so she wasn't surprised when it opened its mouth to talk. "My lord, I never would've thought you were a lolicon. Is that what you're into now? I can't believe we're serving such a disgusting man."
A vein appeared on Rider's forehead. "First, how do you know what that is? Second, I'm only taking her for a ride so shut up and do your job, Xanthus!"
"Gate to the Root...Release."
"Release."
"...Release..."
Red eyes flew open with a jolt. It was the same nightmare that had plagued Zouken for the last 21 years. The one where he and Nagato just watch as that pillar crushes Justeaze, her blood pouring out from that crack between that and the stone she lay upon like spilled oil to form the Greater Grail's magic circle.
A tear slipped down his face and he had to take numerous deep breaths to calm himself. "Just a little longer, Justeaze. Then the wish we tried to attain will be realized."
"Dead Apostles sleep? I thought it wouldn't be necessary since your kind is classified as the dead."
He looked to the direction of the voice. He'll never get used to seeing the homunculus with Justeaze's face. "Were you watching me sleep the entire time? That's pretty creepy of you."
"Don't say that. I only just came in to let you know I'm heading out to look for him again. I'll handle this," She added when Zouken got up to join her. "Just stay in here since it's daytime. We don't want to unnecessarily degenerate you."
"I sucked someone's blood completely only last month so I'm not that frail. I can handle being out in sunlight for awhile." Blood's a fuel for a Dead Apostle, but the genetic material in it that sustains them steadily wastes away in sunlight.
"Fine. It's really hard to get this information without asking the Overseer." This is because Kirei Kotomine is an Executioner. Dead Apostles are seen by the Church as creatures who have turned their backs on God and thus should be eliminated. As such, the Executioners and Dead Apostles are in constant aggression with each other.
"It's okay. We at least know he's a participant in the War. That narrows it down a lot already, ▅ ▅ ▅ ▅ ▅ ▅ ▅ ▅."
Rikio came through the front doors, arms full. By then, Mikoto, Rider, and Anna had returned. Much to everyone's surprised, Anna looked bored after the chariot ride and asked Izumo to allow the speed to be increased to 400 kph. "I have super-spicy daifuku mochi here! Enough for everyone!"
"I'm surprised you didn't stuff 'em all in your face," Misaki said.
"You know I can only handle four of these spicy kinds. Here! All of you can try one! They're really good!" Before long, everyone held the plastic wrapper with the treat within. Some were eating the snack right away, others kept it in the wrapper to eat later. Mikoto sighed and glanced at his Servant, who had just finished his.
'Rider.'
Golden amber eyes flicked over to the redhead and an eyebrow was raised in a question. 'What is it, Mikoto? And why are you speaking to me this way? An enemy isn't nearby.'
'I know, but ya want another daifuku mochi?'
'Sure, but why?'
'No reason, but I'll give it to ya in the back room and you'll eat it there.'
'...Is there something I should know about?'
'Look, let's not make a big deal about nothing!' Only a few Clansmen know Mikoto can't handle spicy food and like hell he wants to increase it.
Caster offered to take Ichigen flying. She offered it to Kuroh so Ichigen doesn't start thinking of her as a bitch. Ichigen agreed and Kuroh also gave his consent so the blue-haired mage doesn't call him a pussy.
Outside, Caster wrapped an arm around each human and started flying. Her cape fanned out like a pair of giant bat wings and she easily floated off the ground and into the sky. Kuroh figured since Caster's called a witch that she'd be flying on a broomstick. He quickly began freaking out.
"Wa-wait! Is this safe?! What if you drop us?!"
"Relax. To me, you both are weightless. But if you don't shut up that could change for you."
"Caster. Kuroh. Do try to get along." Ichigen sounded unbelievably calm in comparison. "I'm trying to come up with some new haikus. This scenery at this angle is giving me all kinds of inspiration."
Kuroh stopped arguing with the Colorless Servant and red bloomed of his cheeks. "O-oh...W-well please say any even if you think it isn't any good..."
Caster coughed, saying "kiss ass!" during it.
Izumo just got off the phone with one of his informants. "It seems a building here in Shizume suffered from a gas leak. Several of the workers in there are now in a coma."
"...I take it you brought it up because you think something's being concealed?" Tatara said.
"Yeah. The pipes of that building are checked on a weekly basis. There's no way a weakening in them would've just slipped by."
"Ya think it was sabotage?" Mikoto guessed.
"Maybe. But what purpose does it serve? It was probably somethin' else in that case and a gas leak is the cover story. In that case, what's the truth and more importantly, will it affect us?"