Antagonistic writer
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Whoo great chapter.
It begins
It begins
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Shirou, Blade of Emiya
- Thread starter Dunno.
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OverReactionGuy
The only Sane one left
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Honestly, just remember that the throne is outside of time and space and the containers they are summoned into can't contain the full power of the heroic spirit in it and thus are limited.
Even if this servant is the SI, its one that is already dead with its story over and can't grow beyond that point unless it is fully incarnated again.
That and the madness enhancement means it likely has a twisted view of the world or distorted in a way. Madness enhancement isn't just raw I angry. There's many flavors of it.
I would be kinda disappointed if this berserker doesn't act like a berserker. Beowolf gets a pass since he has a very low level of madness enhancement. So maybe this is the case with this servant I don't know what it is at.
Still curious how this war will go. The church people are crusading with their saint and its kinda hilarious.
17: Servant.
Dunno.
Dunno.
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Chapte 17: Servant.
Entering a school yard different from my own, my eyes scanned the area in search of someone. My sights immediately trained itself on a figure with a head of black hair and sky-blue eyes sitting on a bench under the shades of a large tree. Finding my target, I made my way towards them, my steps light.
"Hey there, Ritsuka," I greeted the boy in front of me, prompting them to turn around.
"Ah, Nii-san," Ritsuka Fujimaru, now a boisterous young man, returned with a smile.
"You know, ever thought of calling me something else? Basically everyone around here calls me that." Nearing him, I lifted the lunchbox in my hand, presenting it.
"Ah… well, I don't really know what to call you," he replied. Hands raised, the young man accepted the gift and placed it on his lap, unfurling the fabric around it.
"You can call me Shirou, or Emiya if you want," I suggested. Plopping down beside him, I watched as he picked out a sandwich from the container and took a small bite out of it.
After swallowing, he spoke, "But that just sounds wrong to me, you know? You've been like an older brother to me my whole life."
I've been quite active in his life for the past decade or so, solidifying my image as a brother-figure in his mind. So it didn't come as a surprise to see him treat me like this. That said, having been in his life for so long, I could easily spot some of his odd quirks and habits.
"Hm," I hummed, staring at his face. Suddenly, a lightbulb lit up in my head. "Alright, spill it out, what's the problem?"
"W-what do you mean?" Ritsuka stammered, briefly loosening his grip on the foodstuff.
"How can I not notice when my 'younger brother' is obviously not feeling well in some way?" I commented. Leaning back, I slung my arms behind the bench's backrest in a comfortable position, waiting for his response.
"Was it that obvious?" he asked, scratching his cheek. After I replied with a lazy "Yep", he continued, "Well, it's just that… my parents decided to move to Shibuya next week,"
Next week, huh. I'm guessing he'll be transferred to another school there instead of staying here. That's good. At least he won't get involved with any of the crazy stuff that'll happen here in just a few days.
"Okay," I calmly answered. He looked at me, a tinge of confusion swirling behind his eyes. He almost seemed… betrayed? He looked like I just kicked his pet in front of him. Was he scarred that I might be pushing him away? "What? It's just in Shibuya, we can still see each other from time to time. It's not like you're leaving the country, are you?" I said, pulling out my phone and showing it to him. He already has my phone number, so we can still talk even in far distances.
"Oh… now that you say it out loud, its kinda stupid of me for worrying. Haha," he let out a stifled laugh, his cheeks going a shade of pink. He buried another mouthful of bread into his mouth, trying to hide his embarrassment.
"When you get there, how about you put some muscle on yourself," I off-handedly mentioned.
"You mean work out? Why?" Ritsuka looked down, scanning himself from top to bottom. For a literal twelve-year-old, he was rather well-built due to all the physically taxing activities he usually partake in.
My advice may or may not come in useful in the coming years but it's better than nothing. Recalling the future events of another timeline where Marisbury Animusphere got involved, I spoke, "Keep yourself healthy, of course. You never know when a bit of strength might make the difference between being able to save someone or not from being crushed by a heavy beam."
"That's an oddly specific scenario. Is there something I should be looking out for in Shibuya?" he asked, brows raised. Shibuya wasn't that dangerous, now was it?
"You never know," I repeated, shrugging my shoulders.
"That doesn't sound ominous at all. You're not helping," he gave a scowl, which I found adorable more than anything.
Ignoring his pitiful attempts at appearing annoyed, I resumed, "Old man Tanaka might get mad at you if you don't take care of yourself."
"Probably not. He never really chastised me for my eating habits," Ritsuka returned without missing a beat. Head dipped low, he took another munch of the homemade sandwich as if to prove a point.
Speaking of the veteran, he'd unfortunately passed away a few months ago due to old age, leaving the young Ritsuka downtrodden for a few weeks. Though not much as his parents, I was there for him for the most part, doing my best to cheer him back up. Thankfully, the boy managed to recover without issue and let the past remain as such. Quite the smart cookie, isn't he?
"Are you disrespecting the dead already?" I threw a bombastic side-eye at him. "Where did the idiotic Ritsuka that I know go? Who are you!" I exclaimed, enveloping myself in a theatrical aura.
We bantered a little more, talking about various things and generally enjoying each other's company, until he was called by one of the Volley ball club members—which Ritsuka is part of. Getting off the bench, the young man waved goodbye and left to practice the sport with his friends. Left alone, I stood up and walked back home.
Upon returning to the Emiya abode, I looked over the various Bounded Fields I've erected around the house for protection, double checking if they were functioning properly. Finding nothing amiss with the wards, I went ahead and spent the rest of the day with Sakura.
"Senpai?" she called out, gaining my attention. She then reached out, taking hold of my right hand, her expression one of deep worry. My eyes narrowed, gazing the back on my hand where a red smear had suddenly came into existence.
'So I still got picked in the end, huh.' Sakura released my hand, allowing me to inspect it closer. Even after all the changes I've done, I still got chosen as a Master. Was it Shirou Emiya's fate, perhaps? A short laugh resounded in my head.
"This is a Command Seal, right? Is the Holy Grail War starting now?" she asked, to which I affirmed with a nod. She already knew of the upcoming blood sport and my subsequent participation long ago since I decided to come clean, unable to keep it a secret from her.
Worried for my safety, she offered whatever help she could give. This is one of, if not the biggest reason why she even started utilizing the Matou Magic Crest. At first, I rejected the idea of dragging Sakura into this but later accepted her aid, all I need to do is not make her regret helping me. She was her own person who could make their own decisions, there was no need to coddle her like I usually did.
"No, not now. Maybe tomorrow or the day after that. The other Masters are probably still getting their bearings," I answered. "We'll summon our Servants tonight. We'll most likely get a Saber and a Rider if nothing goes wrong," I said with a bit of optimism, which was immediately broken by Sakura's following statement.
"Our? But… I didn't get one," she claimed, lifting her hands for me to see.
"What?" I uttered in disbelief, eyes widening. It was as she said, there was nothing on both of her hands to indicate her status as a Master.
No, no… how could this be? This shouldn't be possible. From what I could remember, a set of Command Seals should've been reserved for the founding families' descendants so they could join the next Heaven's Feel ritual, so why didn't she get one? My lips suddenly twisted into a frown as a conjecture slowly formed in my head—had another Matou fill in the spot?
"Senpai… d-did I do something wrong?" seeing my change in expression, Sakura spoke. Her posture deflated, feet curling in discomfort.
Hands waving in the air, I instantly denied it in hopes to erase her worries, "Oh no, no. You didn't do anything wrong. Please don't worry. I just need to check on something."
I reached out, giving her head a light pat. I've been doing this quite a lot lately, no thanks to the System. Well, not like it's a bad thing to do. She gave a nod, her body relaxing as she adopted a bright smile. Goodness me, she had a bad habit of pinning the blame onto herself whenever I found myself in a tight spot, something I've been trying my hardest to fix.
After reassuring my housemate, I quickly stood up and grabbed the landline phone, punching in a special set of numbers belonging to the people who looked after Shinji. After a couple rings, the other side took the call.
"Holy one, is there anything you require of us?" Shinji's current guardian, a priest of the Holy Church, answered, his voice filled with respect. Only one person knew of this number, so he already knew it was me who called.
"Is Shinji with you right now?" I inquired. Hearing a confirmation from the other side, I intoned, "I want you to check up on him, see if a Command Seal appeared on his hand or any part of his body."
Placing the phone down, he called Shinji over. After waiting for a minute or two, hearing the sounds of shuffling cloth behind the device, the other person came back, reporting his findings, "There is none, your Holiness. There are no signs of such mark appearing anywhere on him."
"I see… give me a call if it ever does, alright?" The priest responded with a firm "Understood". Trusting his words, I ended our conversation and let out a sigh, head cranked low in contemplation.
It seems I've already encountered my first problem, and it's a pretty big one. I just hope whoever took Sakura's place in the War isn't some deranged psychopath who'd endanger everyone in Fuyuki for no reason. Well, no matter. That's what the congregation is for; to stop civilians from being affected. I should focus more on summoning my own Servant.
A bit later, the pair went into the shed out back. The inside was empty, no longer a place of work, having already moved everything to the former Matou mansion earlier with the help of the Gate of Babylon.
Shirou crouched down and grasped the edge of the carpet, before carefully removing it off the ground, revealing an intricately drawn magic circle hidden underneath. Sakura remained some steps away, watching the redhead stand back up and place a hand on his chest.
He closed his eyes, calling upon Avalon's presence within him. As a golden glow broke free from his chest, he intoned the incantation for summoning a Servant, prompting the circle below to hum with mana. The summoning circle intertwined with his existence, using the Ever Distant Utopia as a catalyst to call forth a suitable hero from the Throne of Heroes. The rite continued, processing without issue.
With a final flourish, the pillar coated the entire space with light before fading into shards of magical energy. In the brilliant column's place stood a lone figure—a woman with a slim build and fair skin, her crown braided hair shining as if sprinkled with gold dust. Her attire consisted of a blue battle-dress, with the occasional lines of yellow at the edges, that is covered in beautifully crafted metallic plates, a perfect blend of practicality and baroque.
Saber's eyes fluttered open, her emerald-like eyes glinting under the fluorescent lighting, and was instantly greeted by a face nearly identical to hers. Had it not been for their differing hair colours, she would've mistaken him for a reflection. From behind the young man, Sakura covered her open mouth with her hand, a bit taken aback for the same reason. Looking closer, Saber noticed a few details that separated them other than the obvious; the redhead was taller by a few centimeters and possessed a more mature appearance compared to hers. And more importantly, his face showed a myriad of emotions unlike hers, which was shielded by a mask of impassiveness.
"I ask of you. Are you my Master?" the summoned Servant started, breaking the stillness. She kept her gaze trained on the red-haired teen's face, waiting for an answer.
"Indeed I am," Shirou affirmed with an idiotically wide smile, recognition flashing through his eyes. Raising a hand, he showed the now completed Command Seals that's fashioned like a sword, in correspondence of the class he'd summoned.
"Understood. From here on, my blade shall rest in your hands, and your fate shall rest in mine. Thus, our contract is formed," she announced. With that, their partnership has become official.
"You must be Arthur Pendragon, correct?" Shirou asked out of the blue, taking Saber by surprise. She was about to deny the claim but ultimately decided not to, choosing to respond with a silent nod. She was hoping to hide it at first but realized that Shirou could just check her identity using his ability as a Master, there was no point denying it.
Arthur Pendragon, or in this case—Artoria Pendragon, is a character that needs no introduction. She is the wielder of the one and only Excalibur, the once and future King of Britain. Though history can be a little fickle at times; as queens possessed not as much power as their counterpart, she hid her true gender to rule as a king, leading to the future generations to refer to her as a man.
Unbothered by her nonverbal reply, he continued, "I'm Shirou Emiya," he then gestured to the plum-haired girl, "and she's Sakura Matou. Nice to meet you, Saber."
'Emiya…?' the name bounced around her mind for a bit, leaving a bad taste in her mouth. She grit her teeth, recalling her past experience with a man who carried the same name, Kiritsugu Emiya—her former Master during the fourth Holy Grail War. She should've won that conflict but lost because of his betrayal near the end, her chance of gaining the Holy Grail ruined. What even drove him to do that? Despite all the despicable acts he committed during the War, Kiritsugu didn't strike her as the type of person who'd do something without reason. Was this person related to that man? Will he betray her too?
"You may call me Shirou, by the way. There's no need to call me Master or any of that, my name is fine," her Master insisted, as if able to read her inner turmoil.
After a moment, she replied positively, "Then I shall call you Shirou. Yes… I think I prefer how that sounds."
With a welcoming smile, Shirou extended his hand for a shake, which she returned, finding no reason to refuse. As she gripped his hand, a sensation she was all too familiar with coursed through her entire body, for she carried the same aspect within her—the essence of a dragon. If his name wasn't confusing enough, the draconic presence he exuded made her raise her guard several folds. Letting go, she scrutinized the young man's face, a frown threatening to break her stony facade.
Her mind raced through the possibilities, but she kept her composure. Was this another one of Morgan Le Fay's sick jokes, perhaps? His draconic aura was undeniable, that's for certain. Mordred alone was bad enough; had Morgan created another homunculus using her blood? No, that couldn't be. It had been many centuries since Artoria's time; Morgan couldn't possibly still be around in the modern world.
So who was it? Merlin, perhaps? This seemed like something that jester would do for a laugh. However, she also knew that flower-obsessed wizard always had an agenda behind his actions, no matter how minuscule. Why would he interfere so far into the future? She briskly culled that train of thought. Maybe she was getting ahead of herself. Perhaps they had nothing to do with this, and it was the result of nothing more than a string of coincidences... or at least she hoped it was.
"Well, we can talk back inside the house," Shirou declared, not noticing the weird look Saber was giving him as he walked away with Sakura, who's eyes went back and forth between her face and his. Was this Servant somehow related to her senpai? Shirou was adopted after all, so the possibility is certainly there. Either way, what mattered was that he'd succeeded in calling forth Saber, arguably the most balanced class, as his Servant.
As much as she wanted to ask about his origins, Saber kept her mouth sealed for now, keeping to her solitude, and followed the two into the Emiya mansion. The pair gave her a tour of the place so she could navigate it later on her own, even telling her where some wards are located.
"Shirou, there's something I need to discuss with you," the Servant spoke up after the short tour. Gathering her wits, she began to divulge a story she quickly brewed up, "My connection with you seems to be… muddled for some reason, and I am unable to enter spirit form because of it. Though I assure you it has no negative impact on my capabilities as a Servant whatsoever."
He'll learn of this peculiarity of hers sooner or later, better to reveal it now before it becomes a problem and have their relationship be soured. A multitude of excuses floated at the back of her mind, ready to deny or reflect any sort of question Shirou would throw at her… but such scenario never occurred, much to her surprise.
As if he'd known beforehand, Shirou did not ask further and took her to a room with Sakura, giving her a set of apparels for her to wear as her Servant gear would draw too much attention if he decided to go outside. Thankful that he didn't push the issue, she graciously accepted. With but a mental command, her battle gear scattered into motes of blue light, letting her bare figure be seen by the world. Shirou quickly turned around, eyes shut closed, while Sakura sprung up and covered her with a blanket in a panic.
"S-Saber-san, what are you doing!" Sakura exclaimed, her face slightly tinted red.
"My armour is woven with magical energy, allowing me to call upon it anytime," she explained, shifting her arms under the fabric.
"But-but you shouldn't do that. It's not good to s-strip all of the sudden!" the young woman countered, shuffling the cloth around Saber to cover more of her skin.
"Why? Is it not a more efficient way of disrobing? Or has the people of today thought of something better?" the blonde retorted.
"That's not the point, Saber. Don't just go buck naked when there's a guy right in front of you," Shirou casually said, his back still turned towards the pair of women.
"Why does that matter? I am but a mere tool for this War, your worries are unfounded," she expressed her confusion by titlting her head, unable to find the problem. She never viewed herself as an individual, putting her duties first before anything else.
"Yeah—no. Don't think of yourself like that," Shirou interjected, sounding a bit agitated for some reason. As for why, Artoria could not figure out the reason. "Sakura, can you please help dress her up? I'll be at the kitchen to prepare dinner," he said before leaving the room.
"Yes!" the aforementioned girl responded, grabbing the spare clothing, one personally made by Shirou quite some time ago, on the desk for Saber to use.
After the whole debacle, Saber and Sakura went out of the room and gathered in the living room connected to the kitchen, where Shirou could be seen plating some food. Hearing their arrival, he turned to look at his Servant. The blonde now sported a muted blouse that wrapped around her petite figure, paired with a teal skirt that fell just below her knees and black tights that enveloped her legs.
Truth be told, wearing such feminine clothing was an odd feeling for Saber. Throughout her life, she went the effort to disguise herself as a man to serve her kingdom as its king, so she never truly got to experience what it felt like to dress up like this.
"Well, dinner's up," Shirou said as he emergered from the kitchen, an assortment of foodstuff in hand. Sakura went ahead and helped him set down the items onto the table, finishing the preparations.
"Saber? What's the matter? Come here, sit down and join us," the Master called her over, motioning to the seat across from him.
"I am fine, Shirou. Servants only need a steady flow of magical energy to maintain our existence," she voiced out, refusing the tantalizing aroma that wafted across the room with everything she had.
"But you can still eat, right?" he said. Saber confirmed his assumption, prompting the young man to try even harder to convince her to join them. "Then you should eat. There's plenty enough food for everyone and a half."
"There's really no need," she shook her head once again.
"Oh come on... please?" he pleaded, putting on his best puppy-eyes. At this, Saber gave up convincing him and sat down, her figure shrouded with dignity, which steadily broke as she started wolfing down on her share.
It started with a single bite, then another, and another, until there was nothing left on her plate, leading her to ask for more with an stone-cold yet flushing face. Shirou adopted a grin, appearing victorious.
Sakura on the other hand let out a soft giggle as she watched an entire steak disappear into Saber's stomach, leaving not a parcel of meat behind. Shirou's food had that kind of effect on people, one bitefull is all it takes to hook them in.
Meanwhile, as the trio indulged themselves in a feast, a girl with snow-white hair and amber eyes sat on a bench on the other side of the city, swaying her legs out of boredom. She turned her head, looking inside an arcade place where a dozen or so people were huddled over one machine. Two people sat before the device, their hands whipping across the controls in quick succession. On the screen were two characters locked in a duel, which quickly ended in a one-sided slaughter.
"Another win for me! Who's next, huh!?" The victor, a well endowed woman with long violet hair and unimaginable beauty, shouted challenge. This was her twentieth win streak in less than half an hour, leading to a sizable crowd to form around her, impressed by her skill.
"Haah," the little albino sighed. The woman she was inspecting was encased with divine energy, something she was greatly intimate with, having lived her whole life surrounded by it. She pulled her gaze down, checking the back of her hand to find a Command Seal vaguely shaped like a chariot. Rubbing the symbol, she spoke, her tone one of fatigue, "The Lord seems to like picking weirdos to bless."
First a man with a weird obsession with swords and helping people, now a woman who's first instincts is to enact unfiltered violence on everything. She just hoped it didn't get worse than that.
Suddenly, her tiredness dissipated as soon as she spotted a small shiba inu playing with a black cat by the public park. As she continued to watch, a sense of foreboding arose. From above, she noticed a few birds silently posted on the powerlines. She didn't know why, but it felt like they were keenly aware of everyone around, scanning the people as they went about their day. Meh, it was probably her imagination.
A/N: I'm currently going through some things, so I might not write for a while.
Entering a school yard different from my own, my eyes scanned the area in search of someone. My sights immediately trained itself on a figure with a head of black hair and sky-blue eyes sitting on a bench under the shades of a large tree. Finding my target, I made my way towards them, my steps light.
"Hey there, Ritsuka," I greeted the boy in front of me, prompting them to turn around.
"Ah, Nii-san," Ritsuka Fujimaru, now a boisterous young man, returned with a smile.
"You know, ever thought of calling me something else? Basically everyone around here calls me that." Nearing him, I lifted the lunchbox in my hand, presenting it.
"Ah… well, I don't really know what to call you," he replied. Hands raised, the young man accepted the gift and placed it on his lap, unfurling the fabric around it.
"You can call me Shirou, or Emiya if you want," I suggested. Plopping down beside him, I watched as he picked out a sandwich from the container and took a small bite out of it.
After swallowing, he spoke, "But that just sounds wrong to me, you know? You've been like an older brother to me my whole life."
I've been quite active in his life for the past decade or so, solidifying my image as a brother-figure in his mind. So it didn't come as a surprise to see him treat me like this. That said, having been in his life for so long, I could easily spot some of his odd quirks and habits.
"Hm," I hummed, staring at his face. Suddenly, a lightbulb lit up in my head. "Alright, spill it out, what's the problem?"
"W-what do you mean?" Ritsuka stammered, briefly loosening his grip on the foodstuff.
"How can I not notice when my 'younger brother' is obviously not feeling well in some way?" I commented. Leaning back, I slung my arms behind the bench's backrest in a comfortable position, waiting for his response.
"Was it that obvious?" he asked, scratching his cheek. After I replied with a lazy "Yep", he continued, "Well, it's just that… my parents decided to move to Shibuya next week,"
Next week, huh. I'm guessing he'll be transferred to another school there instead of staying here. That's good. At least he won't get involved with any of the crazy stuff that'll happen here in just a few days.
"Okay," I calmly answered. He looked at me, a tinge of confusion swirling behind his eyes. He almost seemed… betrayed? He looked like I just kicked his pet in front of him. Was he scarred that I might be pushing him away? "What? It's just in Shibuya, we can still see each other from time to time. It's not like you're leaving the country, are you?" I said, pulling out my phone and showing it to him. He already has my phone number, so we can still talk even in far distances.
"Oh… now that you say it out loud, its kinda stupid of me for worrying. Haha," he let out a stifled laugh, his cheeks going a shade of pink. He buried another mouthful of bread into his mouth, trying to hide his embarrassment.
"When you get there, how about you put some muscle on yourself," I off-handedly mentioned.
"You mean work out? Why?" Ritsuka looked down, scanning himself from top to bottom. For a literal twelve-year-old, he was rather well-built due to all the physically taxing activities he usually partake in.
My advice may or may not come in useful in the coming years but it's better than nothing. Recalling the future events of another timeline where Marisbury Animusphere got involved, I spoke, "Keep yourself healthy, of course. You never know when a bit of strength might make the difference between being able to save someone or not from being crushed by a heavy beam."
"That's an oddly specific scenario. Is there something I should be looking out for in Shibuya?" he asked, brows raised. Shibuya wasn't that dangerous, now was it?
"You never know," I repeated, shrugging my shoulders.
"That doesn't sound ominous at all. You're not helping," he gave a scowl, which I found adorable more than anything.
Ignoring his pitiful attempts at appearing annoyed, I resumed, "Old man Tanaka might get mad at you if you don't take care of yourself."
"Probably not. He never really chastised me for my eating habits," Ritsuka returned without missing a beat. Head dipped low, he took another munch of the homemade sandwich as if to prove a point.
Speaking of the veteran, he'd unfortunately passed away a few months ago due to old age, leaving the young Ritsuka downtrodden for a few weeks. Though not much as his parents, I was there for him for the most part, doing my best to cheer him back up. Thankfully, the boy managed to recover without issue and let the past remain as such. Quite the smart cookie, isn't he?
"Are you disrespecting the dead already?" I threw a bombastic side-eye at him. "Where did the idiotic Ritsuka that I know go? Who are you!" I exclaimed, enveloping myself in a theatrical aura.
We bantered a little more, talking about various things and generally enjoying each other's company, until he was called by one of the Volley ball club members—which Ritsuka is part of. Getting off the bench, the young man waved goodbye and left to practice the sport with his friends. Left alone, I stood up and walked back home.
Upon returning to the Emiya abode, I looked over the various Bounded Fields I've erected around the house for protection, double checking if they were functioning properly. Finding nothing amiss with the wards, I went ahead and spent the rest of the day with Sakura.
"Senpai?" she called out, gaining my attention. She then reached out, taking hold of my right hand, her expression one of deep worry. My eyes narrowed, gazing the back on my hand where a red smear had suddenly came into existence.
'So I still got picked in the end, huh.' Sakura released my hand, allowing me to inspect it closer. Even after all the changes I've done, I still got chosen as a Master. Was it Shirou Emiya's fate, perhaps? A short laugh resounded in my head.
"This is a Command Seal, right? Is the Holy Grail War starting now?" she asked, to which I affirmed with a nod. She already knew of the upcoming blood sport and my subsequent participation long ago since I decided to come clean, unable to keep it a secret from her.
Worried for my safety, she offered whatever help she could give. This is one of, if not the biggest reason why she even started utilizing the Matou Magic Crest. At first, I rejected the idea of dragging Sakura into this but later accepted her aid, all I need to do is not make her regret helping me. She was her own person who could make their own decisions, there was no need to coddle her like I usually did.
"No, not now. Maybe tomorrow or the day after that. The other Masters are probably still getting their bearings," I answered. "We'll summon our Servants tonight. We'll most likely get a Saber and a Rider if nothing goes wrong," I said with a bit of optimism, which was immediately broken by Sakura's following statement.
"Our? But… I didn't get one," she claimed, lifting her hands for me to see.
"What?" I uttered in disbelief, eyes widening. It was as she said, there was nothing on both of her hands to indicate her status as a Master.
No, no… how could this be? This shouldn't be possible. From what I could remember, a set of Command Seals should've been reserved for the founding families' descendants so they could join the next Heaven's Feel ritual, so why didn't she get one? My lips suddenly twisted into a frown as a conjecture slowly formed in my head—had another Matou fill in the spot?
"Senpai… d-did I do something wrong?" seeing my change in expression, Sakura spoke. Her posture deflated, feet curling in discomfort.
Hands waving in the air, I instantly denied it in hopes to erase her worries, "Oh no, no. You didn't do anything wrong. Please don't worry. I just need to check on something."
I reached out, giving her head a light pat. I've been doing this quite a lot lately, no thanks to the System. Well, not like it's a bad thing to do. She gave a nod, her body relaxing as she adopted a bright smile. Goodness me, she had a bad habit of pinning the blame onto herself whenever I found myself in a tight spot, something I've been trying my hardest to fix.
After reassuring my housemate, I quickly stood up and grabbed the landline phone, punching in a special set of numbers belonging to the people who looked after Shinji. After a couple rings, the other side took the call.
"Holy one, is there anything you require of us?" Shinji's current guardian, a priest of the Holy Church, answered, his voice filled with respect. Only one person knew of this number, so he already knew it was me who called.
"Is Shinji with you right now?" I inquired. Hearing a confirmation from the other side, I intoned, "I want you to check up on him, see if a Command Seal appeared on his hand or any part of his body."
Placing the phone down, he called Shinji over. After waiting for a minute or two, hearing the sounds of shuffling cloth behind the device, the other person came back, reporting his findings, "There is none, your Holiness. There are no signs of such mark appearing anywhere on him."
"I see… give me a call if it ever does, alright?" The priest responded with a firm "Understood". Trusting his words, I ended our conversation and let out a sigh, head cranked low in contemplation.
It seems I've already encountered my first problem, and it's a pretty big one. I just hope whoever took Sakura's place in the War isn't some deranged psychopath who'd endanger everyone in Fuyuki for no reason. Well, no matter. That's what the congregation is for; to stop civilians from being affected. I should focus more on summoning my own Servant.
A bit later, the pair went into the shed out back. The inside was empty, no longer a place of work, having already moved everything to the former Matou mansion earlier with the help of the Gate of Babylon.
Shirou crouched down and grasped the edge of the carpet, before carefully removing it off the ground, revealing an intricately drawn magic circle hidden underneath. Sakura remained some steps away, watching the redhead stand back up and place a hand on his chest.
He closed his eyes, calling upon Avalon's presence within him. As a golden glow broke free from his chest, he intoned the incantation for summoning a Servant, prompting the circle below to hum with mana. The summoning circle intertwined with his existence, using the Ever Distant Utopia as a catalyst to call forth a suitable hero from the Throne of Heroes. The rite continued, processing without issue.
With a final flourish, the pillar coated the entire space with light before fading into shards of magical energy. In the brilliant column's place stood a lone figure—a woman with a slim build and fair skin, her crown braided hair shining as if sprinkled with gold dust. Her attire consisted of a blue battle-dress, with the occasional lines of yellow at the edges, that is covered in beautifully crafted metallic plates, a perfect blend of practicality and baroque.
Saber's eyes fluttered open, her emerald-like eyes glinting under the fluorescent lighting, and was instantly greeted by a face nearly identical to hers. Had it not been for their differing hair colours, she would've mistaken him for a reflection. From behind the young man, Sakura covered her open mouth with her hand, a bit taken aback for the same reason. Looking closer, Saber noticed a few details that separated them other than the obvious; the redhead was taller by a few centimeters and possessed a more mature appearance compared to hers. And more importantly, his face showed a myriad of emotions unlike hers, which was shielded by a mask of impassiveness.
"I ask of you. Are you my Master?" the summoned Servant started, breaking the stillness. She kept her gaze trained on the red-haired teen's face, waiting for an answer.
"Indeed I am," Shirou affirmed with an idiotically wide smile, recognition flashing through his eyes. Raising a hand, he showed the now completed Command Seals that's fashioned like a sword, in correspondence of the class he'd summoned.
"Understood. From here on, my blade shall rest in your hands, and your fate shall rest in mine. Thus, our contract is formed," she announced. With that, their partnership has become official.
"You must be Arthur Pendragon, correct?" Shirou asked out of the blue, taking Saber by surprise. She was about to deny the claim but ultimately decided not to, choosing to respond with a silent nod. She was hoping to hide it at first but realized that Shirou could just check her identity using his ability as a Master, there was no point denying it.
Arthur Pendragon, or in this case—Artoria Pendragon, is a character that needs no introduction. She is the wielder of the one and only Excalibur, the once and future King of Britain. Though history can be a little fickle at times; as queens possessed not as much power as their counterpart, she hid her true gender to rule as a king, leading to the future generations to refer to her as a man.
Unbothered by her nonverbal reply, he continued, "I'm Shirou Emiya," he then gestured to the plum-haired girl, "and she's Sakura Matou. Nice to meet you, Saber."
'Emiya…?' the name bounced around her mind for a bit, leaving a bad taste in her mouth. She grit her teeth, recalling her past experience with a man who carried the same name, Kiritsugu Emiya—her former Master during the fourth Holy Grail War. She should've won that conflict but lost because of his betrayal near the end, her chance of gaining the Holy Grail ruined. What even drove him to do that? Despite all the despicable acts he committed during the War, Kiritsugu didn't strike her as the type of person who'd do something without reason. Was this person related to that man? Will he betray her too?
"You may call me Shirou, by the way. There's no need to call me Master or any of that, my name is fine," her Master insisted, as if able to read her inner turmoil.
After a moment, she replied positively, "Then I shall call you Shirou. Yes… I think I prefer how that sounds."
With a welcoming smile, Shirou extended his hand for a shake, which she returned, finding no reason to refuse. As she gripped his hand, a sensation she was all too familiar with coursed through her entire body, for she carried the same aspect within her—the essence of a dragon. If his name wasn't confusing enough, the draconic presence he exuded made her raise her guard several folds. Letting go, she scrutinized the young man's face, a frown threatening to break her stony facade.
Her mind raced through the possibilities, but she kept her composure. Was this another one of Morgan Le Fay's sick jokes, perhaps? His draconic aura was undeniable, that's for certain. Mordred alone was bad enough; had Morgan created another homunculus using her blood? No, that couldn't be. It had been many centuries since Artoria's time; Morgan couldn't possibly still be around in the modern world.
So who was it? Merlin, perhaps? This seemed like something that jester would do for a laugh. However, she also knew that flower-obsessed wizard always had an agenda behind his actions, no matter how minuscule. Why would he interfere so far into the future? She briskly culled that train of thought. Maybe she was getting ahead of herself. Perhaps they had nothing to do with this, and it was the result of nothing more than a string of coincidences... or at least she hoped it was.
"Well, we can talk back inside the house," Shirou declared, not noticing the weird look Saber was giving him as he walked away with Sakura, who's eyes went back and forth between her face and his. Was this Servant somehow related to her senpai? Shirou was adopted after all, so the possibility is certainly there. Either way, what mattered was that he'd succeeded in calling forth Saber, arguably the most balanced class, as his Servant.
As much as she wanted to ask about his origins, Saber kept her mouth sealed for now, keeping to her solitude, and followed the two into the Emiya mansion. The pair gave her a tour of the place so she could navigate it later on her own, even telling her where some wards are located.
"Shirou, there's something I need to discuss with you," the Servant spoke up after the short tour. Gathering her wits, she began to divulge a story she quickly brewed up, "My connection with you seems to be… muddled for some reason, and I am unable to enter spirit form because of it. Though I assure you it has no negative impact on my capabilities as a Servant whatsoever."
He'll learn of this peculiarity of hers sooner or later, better to reveal it now before it becomes a problem and have their relationship be soured. A multitude of excuses floated at the back of her mind, ready to deny or reflect any sort of question Shirou would throw at her… but such scenario never occurred, much to her surprise.
As if he'd known beforehand, Shirou did not ask further and took her to a room with Sakura, giving her a set of apparels for her to wear as her Servant gear would draw too much attention if he decided to go outside. Thankful that he didn't push the issue, she graciously accepted. With but a mental command, her battle gear scattered into motes of blue light, letting her bare figure be seen by the world. Shirou quickly turned around, eyes shut closed, while Sakura sprung up and covered her with a blanket in a panic.
"S-Saber-san, what are you doing!" Sakura exclaimed, her face slightly tinted red.
"My armour is woven with magical energy, allowing me to call upon it anytime," she explained, shifting her arms under the fabric.
"But-but you shouldn't do that. It's not good to s-strip all of the sudden!" the young woman countered, shuffling the cloth around Saber to cover more of her skin.
"Why? Is it not a more efficient way of disrobing? Or has the people of today thought of something better?" the blonde retorted.
"That's not the point, Saber. Don't just go buck naked when there's a guy right in front of you," Shirou casually said, his back still turned towards the pair of women.
"Why does that matter? I am but a mere tool for this War, your worries are unfounded," she expressed her confusion by titlting her head, unable to find the problem. She never viewed herself as an individual, putting her duties first before anything else.
"Yeah—no. Don't think of yourself like that," Shirou interjected, sounding a bit agitated for some reason. As for why, Artoria could not figure out the reason. "Sakura, can you please help dress her up? I'll be at the kitchen to prepare dinner," he said before leaving the room.
"Yes!" the aforementioned girl responded, grabbing the spare clothing, one personally made by Shirou quite some time ago, on the desk for Saber to use.
After the whole debacle, Saber and Sakura went out of the room and gathered in the living room connected to the kitchen, where Shirou could be seen plating some food. Hearing their arrival, he turned to look at his Servant. The blonde now sported a muted blouse that wrapped around her petite figure, paired with a teal skirt that fell just below her knees and black tights that enveloped her legs.
Truth be told, wearing such feminine clothing was an odd feeling for Saber. Throughout her life, she went the effort to disguise herself as a man to serve her kingdom as its king, so she never truly got to experience what it felt like to dress up like this.
"Well, dinner's up," Shirou said as he emergered from the kitchen, an assortment of foodstuff in hand. Sakura went ahead and helped him set down the items onto the table, finishing the preparations.
"Saber? What's the matter? Come here, sit down and join us," the Master called her over, motioning to the seat across from him.
"I am fine, Shirou. Servants only need a steady flow of magical energy to maintain our existence," she voiced out, refusing the tantalizing aroma that wafted across the room with everything she had.
"But you can still eat, right?" he said. Saber confirmed his assumption, prompting the young man to try even harder to convince her to join them. "Then you should eat. There's plenty enough food for everyone and a half."
"There's really no need," she shook her head once again.
"Oh come on... please?" he pleaded, putting on his best puppy-eyes. At this, Saber gave up convincing him and sat down, her figure shrouded with dignity, which steadily broke as she started wolfing down on her share.
It started with a single bite, then another, and another, until there was nothing left on her plate, leading her to ask for more with an stone-cold yet flushing face. Shirou adopted a grin, appearing victorious.
Sakura on the other hand let out a soft giggle as she watched an entire steak disappear into Saber's stomach, leaving not a parcel of meat behind. Shirou's food had that kind of effect on people, one bitefull is all it takes to hook them in.
Meanwhile, as the trio indulged themselves in a feast, a girl with snow-white hair and amber eyes sat on a bench on the other side of the city, swaying her legs out of boredom. She turned her head, looking inside an arcade place where a dozen or so people were huddled over one machine. Two people sat before the device, their hands whipping across the controls in quick succession. On the screen were two characters locked in a duel, which quickly ended in a one-sided slaughter.
"Another win for me! Who's next, huh!?" The victor, a well endowed woman with long violet hair and unimaginable beauty, shouted challenge. This was her twentieth win streak in less than half an hour, leading to a sizable crowd to form around her, impressed by her skill.
"Haah," the little albino sighed. The woman she was inspecting was encased with divine energy, something she was greatly intimate with, having lived her whole life surrounded by it. She pulled her gaze down, checking the back of her hand to find a Command Seal vaguely shaped like a chariot. Rubbing the symbol, she spoke, her tone one of fatigue, "The Lord seems to like picking weirdos to bless."
First a man with a weird obsession with swords and helping people, now a woman who's first instincts is to enact unfiltered violence on everything. She just hoped it didn't get worse than that.
Suddenly, her tiredness dissipated as soon as she spotted a small shiba inu playing with a black cat by the public park. As she continued to watch, a sense of foreboding arose. From above, she noticed a few birds silently posted on the powerlines. She didn't know why, but it felt like they were keenly aware of everyone around, scanning the people as they went about their day. Meh, it was probably her imagination.
END.
A/N: I'm currently going through some things, so I might not write for a while.
Poke_verse
Not too sore, are you?
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Thank you for the double post and I hope you get better soon
Antagonistic writer
Now a Writer
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Hope whatever is troubling you stops or that you find a solution soon.
Great job on the double posts today.
Great job on the double posts today.
ThatCatMan
Man of Cats
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Neat. Mine's in 4 days!
OverReactionGuy
The only Sane one left
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Martha is that you?
Candyturtle
Turtle Wizard
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happy birthday in advance to you then!
One of my favorite characters, Caren 
Spelloyal
Verified yuri lover
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Thanks for the chapter!!!
A member of the church, let alone one who has participated in hunts for dead apostles, should know better than to ignore this kind of thing even if they didn't know that Magus tend to use common animals as familiars for scouting.
A member of the church, let alone one who has participated in hunts for dead apostles, should know better than to ignore this kind of thing even if they didn't know that Magus tend to use common animals as familiars for scouting.
Spearow
Respect the bird
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its because birds are not real, they are drones made by the clock tower, wake up to reality people!
UNSC-Cosmos;Æther
Know what you're doing yet?
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Just found this story and i really like it soooooo much!!! Please moarrrr!
18: Reconnaissance.
Dunno.
Dunno.
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Chapter 18: Reconnaissance.
It was crisp weekday night, and quite an important one for Rin Tohsaka. After school, she went straight home and entered the basement, where everything had been set, then begun the final preparations to summon her Servant. The Tohsaka family's legacy rested on her shoulders alone, and she would need to secure the Holy Grail War to make her father, whom participated in the previous War, proud.
The moon was at its highest tonight and the magical symbols inscribed on the floor was complete. Without a specific catalyst, the Servant she would summon would highly differ from what she wanted. It did not matter, however, all she needed to do was pour a surplus of mana into the circle to summon the Saber-class through sheer force, completely unaware that said Servant had already been plucked by someone else.
She started the incantation, one she'd been studying for the past weeks, all for this moment. Unknown to her, the summoning circle used the red necklace on her person as a catalyst, choosing someone from the Throne of Heroes closely related to it.
With a blinding shine, the ritual concluded, performing its function without a hitch—or at least Rin thought. Opening her eyes, she found… nothing. She turned her head, searching around the room but found not a single trace of her Servant anywhere. Suddenly, a loud boom reverberated from above, shaking the entire building, as if something had crashed into her abode.
"What now!" she exclaimed, her voice one of annoyance. First her summoning supposedly ended in a failure, now her house was getting attacked? What's next? Is she gonna find Shirou cooking dinner for her? Her ascent to the ground floor paused, cheeks flushed. She shook her head, ridding it of any thoughts of the red-haired boy.
Rushing upstairs, she booted the door which lead to the living room open to find the inside of it utterly thrashed, as if a miniature tornado had swept across it. Her eyes narrowed, locked onto the lone figure that stood in the middle of it all. It was a woman of short stature with reddish—almost pink hair that reached their shoulders, garbed in a dress underneath an earthen cloak that masked the majority of her body, along with a pair of long-boots of the same hue. There was a scar on her left cheek which overlapped with her left eye, forcing it shut, leaving only one eye open. Looking closer, Rin realized it wasn't a scar but a symbol—a Magic Crest if she guessed it correctly.
"You!" Rin shouted, sending a mean glare at the person.
"Ah?" the mysterious heroine quickly turned at the magus' call. "I am terribly sorry for the mess, I did not mean to cause such ruckus upon my summoning. It's just that I awakened in the sky for some reason," she explained, her voice a soothing melody. She bowed apologetically, sincerity palpable to the naked eye.
"Well, let's just forget that for a moment. Are you my Servant?" Deciding to ignore the mess for now, Rin looked at the girl. Judging from the amount of magical energy she carried, she was undoubtedly a Servant. Which one, however, she didn't know.
"Indeed," the cloaked woman confirmed with a nod. She then stated, "Responding to your call—I, the Archer Servant, has been summoned."
Feeling a surge of heat spread through her hand, she lifted it up to see a Command Seal shaped like an arrow being etched, glowing red. Then, her mind finally processed Archer's words. "I see. Wait… Archer?"
Rin whipped her head to the side, looking at clock on the wall, then to the cloudless night outside. Everything was perfect, down to the minute details; the clocks weren't an hour in advance today, nor were the equipment she used faulty, yet she summoned a completely different class. That could only mean one thing—someone else already has Saber.
"Haah," instead of getting frustrated by it, she chose to let out a sigh. It was her fault; she was too slow, there's nothing she can do about it now. She turned to her Servant and felt her magic circuits open, pumping magical energy into her eyes, using her ability as a Master to determine their status.
—
Class: Archer.
True name: ???
Strength: C+
Endurance: D
Agility: C
Mana: A+
Luck: E+
Class skills:
Independent action (C)
Magic resistance (B)
Personal skills:
Clairvoyance (C+)
True Mind's Eye (B)
Magecraft (B+)
Veil of light (A)
Miracle (E-)
Noble Phantasm(s):
(None)
—
If she were to be honest, their parameters appeared more like a Caster's than an Archer's. And how does she know Magecraft while also having a Miracle skill? Was she similar Kirei Kotomine, whom utilized the mystic arts despite being part of the Holy Church—a group known to vehemently despise it? Either way, having multiple set of skills was a good sign.
"Uh… why can't I see your name?" the magus asked, eyes squinted.
"It is the effect of my skill 'Veil of light', it prevents others from finding out my True Name. It also blocks all kinds of scurrying methods," she calmly answered. She continued before Rin could mutter a word, "Before you ask, my name would need to remain undisclosed as revealing it would disable the skill. When the time comes, it would be revealed. You may call me Archer for now."
"Okay…" Though a bit bummed out, she grudgingly accepted it. At least other Masters wouldn't be able to snuff it out and figure out her weakness. From appearance alone, Archer seemed to have been from the fifteenth century, but looks can sometimes be deceiving. Then, the magus put attention to something else, her voice one of confusion, "What about your Noble Phantasm? Why does it say that you have none?"
"If it wasn't obvious enough, it is because I do not have one, Master," Archer replied in a dry tone, prompting Rin's eyes to slightly twitch. The Servant raised her hand, pointing at her closed eye, "You need not to worry; I do possess an ability which could be considered my Noble Phantasm. It is my family's Crest, and it is quite a powerful one."
"Oh? And what does it do?" Rin asked, intrigued. So her guess was correct, it was a Magic Crest. As to why it didn't get registered as a Noble Phantasm, it was probably because it was a craft made to be passed down to many people. It would fall under the Magecraft skill more than anything.
"Secret," the cloaked woman replied with a smirk, which irked Rin more than she'd admit.
"What—Why?" Rin sputtered out.
"Secret," she repeated, keeping the same tone as before. This Servant of hers was being quite unruly, should she use a Command Seal? She was increasingly tempted to do so, but ultimately decided not to; it'd be pretty dumb of her to use a limited vital resource for such inane reason.
"Fine, if that's how you want to play it," Rin went to the supply closet, grabbed a broom and dustpan, then threw it at the uncooperative Servant, whom caught it without a problem. "I'm going to sleep. While you clean this mess up," she commanded before walking away, retiring for the night, leaving an amused Archer behind. The pink-haired Servant gave a nonchalant shrug and did as her Master instructed.
And so, the night proceeded without further incidents and morning swiftly came. Sunlight peeked through the windows, landing straight into Rin's face as she slept. She rolled, covering her face with a pillow to block out the brilliant beams. However, her relaxation soon ended; the alarm clock by the desk went off, forcing her to stir from her slumber. Stretching, she groggily went downstairs to discover a neat and clean living room, as if last night's wreckage never happened.
Amazed, she entered the kitchen which was occupied by a tantalizing scent, making her mouth water. Inside was Archer wearing the same brown robe, her hands moving over the counter top with familiarity, preparing today's breakfast.
"Ah, Master. Sit down, I have made something to eat," Archer spoke, noticing Rin's approach. She wiped her hands with a towel and turned around, plate in hand.
"Hm…" Rin hummed, eyes fully captured by the dish. She sat down, utensils gripped, ready to consume. "You know how to cook?" She honestly did not expect a Servant to have culinary knowledge.
"Yes. My aunt had taught me the ways. Mostly because another auntie of mine is quite the glutton. Leave her unfed for a day and she'll drag my father behind the kitchen, never to emerge from it until she's satisfied," she affirmed, reminiscing of her past. The Servant of the Bow then placed the foodstuff down on the table, allowing its delicious aroma to spread across the room.
Without further ado, Rin brandished her tools and slaughtered the divine offerings in front of her. For reasons she could not comprehend, the food reminded her of one Shirou Emiya, who cooked just as good—if not better dishes. Catching herself form such thoughts, Rin's ears turned red. To set her mind straight, she stuffed her mouth with more food.
On the side, Archer watched with an affectionate smile as Rin quickly emptied the table in minutes.
[Skill 'Cooking' has leveled up to A - 3]
'Oh, that hasn't leveled up in quite a while,' I thought. Dismissing the screen, I sat down and clapped my hands together before taking a bite of my share of food. Sakura followed suit, her movements graceful and practiced. Saber, though initially a bit confounded by the custom, mimicked us after a moment's hesitation and began eating as well.
Just as the meal settled into a peaceful rhythm, Taiga Fujimura's distraught voice suddenly resounded from the foyer. "Where is Rou? What have you done to her, Shirou!" The sound of shuffling furniture and thumping wood echoed as she searched for the fluffy animal. Unfortunately for her, Rou was currently out in the city, scouting under Sakura's orders.
"I didn't do anything. She's probably out playing somewhere!" I shouted back, letting my voice bounce throughout the room.
"You shouldn't let a little dog like her wander the streets! What if she gets taken by someone—" Her wails abruptly stopped as she entered the dining room. Her gaze landed on Saber, a hint of suspicion flashing in her eyes. "Who's this?"
"This is Selene, a friend of mine. She's going to be staying here for about a week or two," I answered nonchalantly, taking another bite of my food. Taiga exploded with a loud "What!?" which made me wince from the sheer volume. "Calm down, Fuji-nee. What are you screaming about?"
"No-no. This isn't allowed!" she exclaimed. Her eyes narrowed as she leaned forward, her gaze darting between Saber and me.
"Says who? This is literally my house," I retorted.
Taiga straightened her back and crossed her arms, clearly preparing for battle. "Says me! You are not allowed to do anything indecent in this house until you're old enough, Shirou. You know that."
"I am not doing anything what you are thinking of, so stop looking at me like that," I shot back, waving my chopsticks around as if swatting an imaginary fly. Her accusatory look was seriously starting to get on my nerves.
Before we could spiral into another pointless argument, Sakura quietly intervened. With a gentle smile, she placed a whole steak in front of Taiga—a peace offering that effectively placated the rowdy Tiger. Taiga's eyes lit up at the sight, and she accepted the tribute without hesitation, promptly digging in and joining us at the table.
As Taiga gulped down a mouthful of steak, she eyed us with renewed curiosity. "So, there's really nothing going on with you three?" she asked, her tone slightly skeptical.
I shook my head. "Nope, nothing at all."
"Uh-huh. So you're just visiting, Selene?" Taiga asked, her heavy accent butchering the pronunciation of Saber's fake name. She turned her attention to the aforementioned individual, who nodded politely.
"Yes, Miss Fujimura. I was passing through town, and Shirou graciously offered me a spare room to stay in for the coming week," Saber replied, her voice calm and composed.
Her head snapped towards me. "I better not start seeing more girls randomly appearing in this house, Shirou, or I will get mad at you on Sakura's behalf," Taiga warned, her tone half-joking, half-serious.
"There's no need for that, Fujimura-sensei," Sakura interjected with a flustered face, trying to soothe Taiga's concerns.
Though still unconvinced, Taiga begrudgingly accepted the situation, allowing 'Selene' to stay until she was done with whatever business she had in Fuyuki. The conversation drifted into lighter topics after that, with Taiga peppering Saber with questions about her supposed travels and interests, while I quietly finished my meal.
When we finally finished our dishes, we began preparing to head to school. The mopey Tiger went out first, riding away on her scooter, still grumbling under her breath about Rou, demanding me to bring her back safely as she sped off.
"No, Saber. You'll stay here for now." I raised my hand, keeping Saber by the entrance. "No buts. You'd attract way too much attention if you followed us to school. And don't worry, I can protect myself just fine."
Due to her inability to dematerialize, she would have to wait at home. I already knew why she couldn't do so, but I wasn't going to breach the topic unless she was comfortable discussing it. As I stared into her green eyes, I recalled what I knew about her circumstances.
In her dying state, Artoria had made contact with a higher power; in exchange for becoming this entity's agent, she was given a chance to realize her wish by participating in the Holy Grail War. Her inability to shift into spirit form was because she was still part of the living, unlike a typical Servant.
Though clearly unhappy about leaving me unguarded, she reluctantly accepted my decision and stayed behind, waiting patiently for our return—but not before reminding me to use a Command Seal to call her in case of an emergency, as it could be utilized to teleport one's Servant to a Master's position.
"Will do. See you in a bit," I said with a reassuring smile before bidding my farewells and leaving to school with Sakura, then split off from there to our respective classrooms. I was a bit anxious that a Bounded Field would be encasing the school like the original show, but my worries were quickly proven false.
It wasn't long until school ended, freeing Shirou from his responsibilities as a teenager. Meeting up and spending time with his compatriots back home, the sun deepened into the horizon.
When night came, Shirou and Saber broke off into two and begun patrolling the city for any disturbances, while Sakura's avian familiars flew high, keeping eye of everything below. While on a stroll that felt no different from any other, Shirou felt the winds stir as a bird dropped down from the heavens and gently land on his head.
"Hey," the redhead greeted the familiar. "Found anything?"
The bird cooed in confirmation before flapping its wings, lifting itself off his head, then flew in a direction with Shirou trailing shortly behind it. The pair navigated through the streets side by side for a minute until they arrived at a peculiar park. Finding himself in an unfamiliar location, Shirou scanned his surroundings, feeling a sense of dread crawl on his skin. As if hundreds of unfortunate souls had cursed this land, an abhorrent scent lingered in the air, making him wince in disgust.
"This is…" the young man briefly paused as if reminiscing, "Fuyuki park, where the last Holy Grail War ended." Indeed it was. This park had a special place in his mind; not only did the previous War conclude here, but also where "Shirou" first woke up for reasons he'd yet to decipher, encased by a whirlwind of flames and death.
Shaking his head clear of any distractions, the redhead resumed his stride and felt a blast of mana come from within. The familiar that guided him squawked and swiftly darted into the night sky to avoid the wave of intangible energy. Unaffected by the initial burst, Shirou turned heels and rushed to the source of the occurrence without hesitation, eventually coming across a pair of Servants casually exchanging blows at speeds that surpassed the limits of the human body. The most eye-catching of the two was a robust male in deep aquamarine, holding a red spear. While the other fighter was a young maiden wearing a brown robe, her clenched fists swirling with magical energy.
Shirou's eyes widened, finding not one, but two familiar figures in the distance. The spearman, if it wasn't obvious enough, is none other than Cú Chulainn. He then turned his gaze, scrutinizing the robed individual. Much to his surprise, her looks was nearly identical to a character from Elden Ring—Melina. The redhead's lips curled into a frown, a mixture of worry and intrigue flashing through his eyes. Was it a coincidence or was something else at play here? Did other characters from other franchises get pulled into this world as well?
The young man tried to use Structural Analysis on her clothes, but found himself stumped. His attempts was blocked by something, an invisible wall that prevented him from pushing any further than he's supposed to. Shirou almost clicked his tongue, but held the urge in lest he accidentally expose himself. As he lamented in his failure to identify the foreign Servant, Lancer placed some distance between them and started a conversation.
"What kind of Archer uses their fists to fight? At least use a weapon. It'll reflect badly on me to fight an unarmed lady," he said in complaint.
"I'm adept with the ways of the blade as well if you're fine with that," Archer offered. Hearing the way she talked, Shirou relaxed ever so slightly. The Melina in his memories did not have a speech pattern as casual as this, but was rather more verbose, like any FromSoftware character.
"Aren't you supposed to use a bow and fight from a distance? You know… like an actual archer?" the spearman commented, reminding the woman of her role in the War.
"I'm a versatile Servant," she returned. Her lips twisted into a half-smile, clearly enjoying what she's doing.
"Why does every woman I meet want to beat me up," Lancer sighed. "I know we're supposed to fight and all, but it's nice to have a proper talk every once an a while."
"Mayhaps if you reined in your womanizing tendencies and remain a loyal partner, your presence would not evoke such visceral reaction from the opposite sex," Archer suggested with a shrug.
"Oh?" the spearman's posture eased, resting the spear on his shoulder. "You speak as of you know me. Do you?"
"Of course, your identity is pretty easy to determine if you know where to look. There can only be one who fits your description," she said confidently.
"Mind telling me? Cause' I think I got amnesia for some reason and forgot my own name." He placed a hand on his chin, adopting a thoughtful expression. "Pretty sure I'm of Italian descent… Mario-Mario or something along those lines."
"Setanta—Ireland's Child of Light. Also known as Cú Chulainn, Hound of Culann," Archer proclaimed without missing a beat, taking her opponent's full attention. "The weapon in your hands is none other than the cursed spear Gae Bolg, gifted to you by the Witch of Dún Scáith."
"Hoh…" Lancer hummed. His rubellite eyes sharpened, reflecting a dangerous glint. "You got me all figured out in that small amount of time, huh? Well, I guess there's no point hiding, I guess."
"Will you not even try to deny it?" Archer asked, curious.
"Nah. Hiding names didn't go too well for me last time," he mentioned, laughing to himself. Then, Lancer tapped into his link with his summoner, communicating via thoughts, 'Master, permission to use my Noble Phantasm.'
'Why? What happened?' Bazett Fraga McRemitz—who was nowhere near the site of conflict—inquired, her voice sounding a bit weak.
'A Servant found out my True Name a bit too quickly,' he revealed. 'I should get rid of her now before she escapes.'
After a moment of thinking, his Master gave him the green light, 'Alright… come back right after.'
'Will do. Can't leave a bedridden lass like you unattended, now can we?' Cú sent back through their connection before closing it. He twirled his spear, brandishing it with both hands. Gae Bolg suddenly released a torrent of bloodlust, sending a cold shiver down the spines of those present. Staring at the Archer-class Servant, he declared, "Nice talk. Unfortunately, you'll have to die here."
Without saying another word, the cloaked Servant raised her arm defensively as a wave of magical energy coarsed throughout her body, bolstering her physical strength by many times.
Meanwhile, Shirou, who was watching the entire scene unfold in silence, trained his sights on the glowing spear in Cú's grasp. He employed Structural Analysis on the polearm, expecting no resistance to come from it—but was proven wrong a moment later. As if he'd sprung a defensive mechanism, his mind turned static, ears ringing, as a vision of a woman with long purple hair adopting a menacing smile crossed his mind, cancelling his magecraft. The sheer abruptness of it all caught Shirou by surprise, causing him to stumble to the ground.
"Who's there!?" hearing the disturbance, the power Gae Bolg was spewing fizzled out. Lancer turned to the direction of the noise, only to discover nothing, as if his vision was blocked by a blurry veil. "Presence Concealment? There's another Servant nearby?" he deducted.
Presence Concealment was the signature Skill of the Assassin-class Servant, so it could only be the aforementioned Servant, completely unaware of the truth of the matter. Archer, more or less coming to the same conclusion, hastily retreated into the shadows on her Master's orders, unwilling to engage in a fight with two other Servants. Abandoned, Lancer was left with no choice but to confront the new enemy.
"There goes my plan to hide my identity. Come on, man. Why'd you have to ruin it?" Bending his legs, Lancer lunged towards the intruder's position with a burst of speed, sending the dirt beneath him flying with each step.
Recovering, Shirou swiftly summoned his bow and loosed arrow after arrow at the Hound, hoping to halt his charge. As the speeding missiles neared their target, they were deflected by an invisible force, missing Cú's frame by mere inches and striking something else entirely.
'Protection from arrows?' Shirou clicked his tongue as he sprinted away. Climbing to a better vantage point, he turned and took a firing stance. This time, however, instead of using Traced ammunition, he retrieved a pair of blades from the Gate of Babylon, each etched with a series of magical symbols, and swiftly fired them at his pursuer.
Expecting the oddly shaped projectiles to be harmless, Cú paid them little mind. But before the arrows could veer off course, they erupted in a blinding explosion that violently shook the surroundings. Lancer's eyes widened as he was engulfed in a net of flames, the shockwave propelling him several meters back. Rolling to a stop, Cú quickly dove for cover, breaking the line of sight with the archer.
Cú Chulainn's skill, "Protection from Arrows" prevented projectiles from making direct contact his body, but it didn't stop the effects of those projectiles—such as explosions or poison-tipped arrows. Different skills were needed to block those.
"Oh, great. First a pugilistic Archer, now a bow-wielding Assassin? Can this day get any weirder?" he muttered, disgruntled. His instincts abruptly screamed, making him leap to the side, just in time to evade another hail of explosives arrows.
Finding another spot to hide in, Lancer bit his lips. He was at a disadvantage here; not only was the distance between them too great, but he couldn't even pinpoint the 'Assassin's' exact location, forcing him to track them by the physical traces they left behind. Using his Noble Phantasm was out of the question; the collateral damage would be too severe. 'This is why I don't like dealing with sneaky opponents,' he complained in his head.
"Uh-oh," he uttered. Farther away, Cú's senses picked up on another Servant rapidly closing in. It couldn't be Archer, who had just retreated, nor could it be Caster, who had no reason to engage in close-quarter combat. That left Berserker, Rider, or Saber, who had been drawn to the commotion.
'Lancer, come back. Don't bother with them,' Bazett's voice echoed in his mind. Though displeased by the current turn of events, he agreed with his Master's decision. Staying here for any longer would only worsen his situation. Lancer dispelled all thoughts of fighting and vanished with a shower of particles, leaving the scene in spirit form.
Meanwhile, the 'Assassin' breathed out in relief as Lancer's mana signature went off into the distance. "He's gone, that's good."
Lowering his arms, the bow returned into a state of nothingness. Saber, clad in her Servant attire, suddenly emerged from the thicket of trees and neared him, shouting in worry, "Shirou! Are you alright?"
"Yeah." The redhead waved in reassurance, putting on a bright smile. "He chased me for a while, but went away as soon as you came."
Lancer had undoubtedly mistaken Shirou for a Servant, leading to what happened. Though confident in his abilities to face a Servant head-on, it'd be better if he didn't at all.
"That was reckless of you, Shirou. From now on, I shall accompany you every step of the way to avoid this kind of situation from happening again," she intoned.
"There's no need to, Saber. I promise it won't happen again," the redhead replied.
"We can allocate the duties of scouting to Sakura's familiars for now. Your protection takes priority," Saber insisted firmly. The plum-haired girl's familiars were remarkably effective. Had Saber not been informed beforehand, she would have dismissed them as insignificant. They were far better suited for reconnaissance than risking an ambush by going on foot.
"I can take care of—you know what, maybe we should just head back for now. We've encountered two Servants tonight, Archer and Lancer. We know the latter's identity, I'd count that as a success," Shirou suggested, not wanting to start an argument with the King of Knights.
Saber agreed with a nod. The two then made their way back to the Emiya residence, where they were greeted by an anxious Sakura. After some conversation, the young girl's worries were eased, and she welcomed them home with a warm smile, creating a peaceful atmosphere.
Seating herself at the table, legs folded underneath her, Saber's mind began to drift. Her thoughts on Shirou—the adopted son of Kiritsugu Emiya—was a complicated one. On one hand, he didn't seem to possess the same cruel mindset as his father; his actions were wholly sincere. On the other hand, he exhibited a subtle adeptness at scheming in the shadows, which made her wary.
Shirou appeared to be an accomplished magus, so him not questioning her inability to dematerialize confounded her. But she had a feeling he already knew… somehow. Having lived as a king, Artoria prided herself on her ability to read people, and her instincts were telling her to give Shirou the benefit of the doubt.
The clicking of ceramic plates broke her train of thought, pulling her back to reality. In front of her was a large feast, prepared with Shirou's and Sakura's combined efforts. Saber shook her head, clearing it of any useless babble, and focused on the meal before her. Everything else could wait for now—hunger was the enemy.
A/N: I am in absolute shambles; I haven't written in a while and had forgotten how to. This took me an entire week to write.
It was crisp weekday night, and quite an important one for Rin Tohsaka. After school, she went straight home and entered the basement, where everything had been set, then begun the final preparations to summon her Servant. The Tohsaka family's legacy rested on her shoulders alone, and she would need to secure the Holy Grail War to make her father, whom participated in the previous War, proud.
The moon was at its highest tonight and the magical symbols inscribed on the floor was complete. Without a specific catalyst, the Servant she would summon would highly differ from what she wanted. It did not matter, however, all she needed to do was pour a surplus of mana into the circle to summon the Saber-class through sheer force, completely unaware that said Servant had already been plucked by someone else.
She started the incantation, one she'd been studying for the past weeks, all for this moment. Unknown to her, the summoning circle used the red necklace on her person as a catalyst, choosing someone from the Throne of Heroes closely related to it.
With a blinding shine, the ritual concluded, performing its function without a hitch—or at least Rin thought. Opening her eyes, she found… nothing. She turned her head, searching around the room but found not a single trace of her Servant anywhere. Suddenly, a loud boom reverberated from above, shaking the entire building, as if something had crashed into her abode.
"What now!" she exclaimed, her voice one of annoyance. First her summoning supposedly ended in a failure, now her house was getting attacked? What's next? Is she gonna find Shirou cooking dinner for her? Her ascent to the ground floor paused, cheeks flushed. She shook her head, ridding it of any thoughts of the red-haired boy.
Rushing upstairs, she booted the door which lead to the living room open to find the inside of it utterly thrashed, as if a miniature tornado had swept across it. Her eyes narrowed, locked onto the lone figure that stood in the middle of it all. It was a woman of short stature with reddish—almost pink hair that reached their shoulders, garbed in a dress underneath an earthen cloak that masked the majority of her body, along with a pair of long-boots of the same hue. There was a scar on her left cheek which overlapped with her left eye, forcing it shut, leaving only one eye open. Looking closer, Rin realized it wasn't a scar but a symbol—a Magic Crest if she guessed it correctly.
"You!" Rin shouted, sending a mean glare at the person.
"Ah?" the mysterious heroine quickly turned at the magus' call. "I am terribly sorry for the mess, I did not mean to cause such ruckus upon my summoning. It's just that I awakened in the sky for some reason," she explained, her voice a soothing melody. She bowed apologetically, sincerity palpable to the naked eye.
"Well, let's just forget that for a moment. Are you my Servant?" Deciding to ignore the mess for now, Rin looked at the girl. Judging from the amount of magical energy she carried, she was undoubtedly a Servant. Which one, however, she didn't know.
"Indeed," the cloaked woman confirmed with a nod. She then stated, "Responding to your call—I, the Archer Servant, has been summoned."
Feeling a surge of heat spread through her hand, she lifted it up to see a Command Seal shaped like an arrow being etched, glowing red. Then, her mind finally processed Archer's words. "I see. Wait… Archer?"
Rin whipped her head to the side, looking at clock on the wall, then to the cloudless night outside. Everything was perfect, down to the minute details; the clocks weren't an hour in advance today, nor were the equipment she used faulty, yet she summoned a completely different class. That could only mean one thing—someone else already has Saber.
"Haah," instead of getting frustrated by it, she chose to let out a sigh. It was her fault; she was too slow, there's nothing she can do about it now. She turned to her Servant and felt her magic circuits open, pumping magical energy into her eyes, using her ability as a Master to determine their status.
—
Class: Archer.
True name: ???
Strength: C+
Endurance: D
Agility: C
Mana: A+
Luck: E+
Class skills:
Independent action (C)
Magic resistance (B)
Personal skills:
Clairvoyance (C+)
True Mind's Eye (B)
Magecraft (B+)
Veil of light (A)
Miracle (E-)
Noble Phantasm(s):
(None)
—
If she were to be honest, their parameters appeared more like a Caster's than an Archer's. And how does she know Magecraft while also having a Miracle skill? Was she similar Kirei Kotomine, whom utilized the mystic arts despite being part of the Holy Church—a group known to vehemently despise it? Either way, having multiple set of skills was a good sign.
"Uh… why can't I see your name?" the magus asked, eyes squinted.
"It is the effect of my skill 'Veil of light', it prevents others from finding out my True Name. It also blocks all kinds of scurrying methods," she calmly answered. She continued before Rin could mutter a word, "Before you ask, my name would need to remain undisclosed as revealing it would disable the skill. When the time comes, it would be revealed. You may call me Archer for now."
"Okay…" Though a bit bummed out, she grudgingly accepted it. At least other Masters wouldn't be able to snuff it out and figure out her weakness. From appearance alone, Archer seemed to have been from the fifteenth century, but looks can sometimes be deceiving. Then, the magus put attention to something else, her voice one of confusion, "What about your Noble Phantasm? Why does it say that you have none?"
"If it wasn't obvious enough, it is because I do not have one, Master," Archer replied in a dry tone, prompting Rin's eyes to slightly twitch. The Servant raised her hand, pointing at her closed eye, "You need not to worry; I do possess an ability which could be considered my Noble Phantasm. It is my family's Crest, and it is quite a powerful one."
"Oh? And what does it do?" Rin asked, intrigued. So her guess was correct, it was a Magic Crest. As to why it didn't get registered as a Noble Phantasm, it was probably because it was a craft made to be passed down to many people. It would fall under the Magecraft skill more than anything.
"Secret," the cloaked woman replied with a smirk, which irked Rin more than she'd admit.
"What—Why?" Rin sputtered out.
"Secret," she repeated, keeping the same tone as before. This Servant of hers was being quite unruly, should she use a Command Seal? She was increasingly tempted to do so, but ultimately decided not to; it'd be pretty dumb of her to use a limited vital resource for such inane reason.
"Fine, if that's how you want to play it," Rin went to the supply closet, grabbed a broom and dustpan, then threw it at the uncooperative Servant, whom caught it without a problem. "I'm going to sleep. While you clean this mess up," she commanded before walking away, retiring for the night, leaving an amused Archer behind. The pink-haired Servant gave a nonchalant shrug and did as her Master instructed.
And so, the night proceeded without further incidents and morning swiftly came. Sunlight peeked through the windows, landing straight into Rin's face as she slept. She rolled, covering her face with a pillow to block out the brilliant beams. However, her relaxation soon ended; the alarm clock by the desk went off, forcing her to stir from her slumber. Stretching, she groggily went downstairs to discover a neat and clean living room, as if last night's wreckage never happened.
Amazed, she entered the kitchen which was occupied by a tantalizing scent, making her mouth water. Inside was Archer wearing the same brown robe, her hands moving over the counter top with familiarity, preparing today's breakfast.
"Ah, Master. Sit down, I have made something to eat," Archer spoke, noticing Rin's approach. She wiped her hands with a towel and turned around, plate in hand.
"Hm…" Rin hummed, eyes fully captured by the dish. She sat down, utensils gripped, ready to consume. "You know how to cook?" She honestly did not expect a Servant to have culinary knowledge.
"Yes. My aunt had taught me the ways. Mostly because another auntie of mine is quite the glutton. Leave her unfed for a day and she'll drag my father behind the kitchen, never to emerge from it until she's satisfied," she affirmed, reminiscing of her past. The Servant of the Bow then placed the foodstuff down on the table, allowing its delicious aroma to spread across the room.
Without further ado, Rin brandished her tools and slaughtered the divine offerings in front of her. For reasons she could not comprehend, the food reminded her of one Shirou Emiya, who cooked just as good—if not better dishes. Catching herself form such thoughts, Rin's ears turned red. To set her mind straight, she stuffed her mouth with more food.
On the side, Archer watched with an affectionate smile as Rin quickly emptied the table in minutes.
[Skill 'Cooking' has leveled up to A - 3]
'Oh, that hasn't leveled up in quite a while,' I thought. Dismissing the screen, I sat down and clapped my hands together before taking a bite of my share of food. Sakura followed suit, her movements graceful and practiced. Saber, though initially a bit confounded by the custom, mimicked us after a moment's hesitation and began eating as well.
Just as the meal settled into a peaceful rhythm, Taiga Fujimura's distraught voice suddenly resounded from the foyer. "Where is Rou? What have you done to her, Shirou!" The sound of shuffling furniture and thumping wood echoed as she searched for the fluffy animal. Unfortunately for her, Rou was currently out in the city, scouting under Sakura's orders.
"I didn't do anything. She's probably out playing somewhere!" I shouted back, letting my voice bounce throughout the room.
"You shouldn't let a little dog like her wander the streets! What if she gets taken by someone—" Her wails abruptly stopped as she entered the dining room. Her gaze landed on Saber, a hint of suspicion flashing in her eyes. "Who's this?"
"This is Selene, a friend of mine. She's going to be staying here for about a week or two," I answered nonchalantly, taking another bite of my food. Taiga exploded with a loud "What!?" which made me wince from the sheer volume. "Calm down, Fuji-nee. What are you screaming about?"
"No-no. This isn't allowed!" she exclaimed. Her eyes narrowed as she leaned forward, her gaze darting between Saber and me.
"Says who? This is literally my house," I retorted.
Taiga straightened her back and crossed her arms, clearly preparing for battle. "Says me! You are not allowed to do anything indecent in this house until you're old enough, Shirou. You know that."
"I am not doing anything what you are thinking of, so stop looking at me like that," I shot back, waving my chopsticks around as if swatting an imaginary fly. Her accusatory look was seriously starting to get on my nerves.
Before we could spiral into another pointless argument, Sakura quietly intervened. With a gentle smile, she placed a whole steak in front of Taiga—a peace offering that effectively placated the rowdy Tiger. Taiga's eyes lit up at the sight, and she accepted the tribute without hesitation, promptly digging in and joining us at the table.
As Taiga gulped down a mouthful of steak, she eyed us with renewed curiosity. "So, there's really nothing going on with you three?" she asked, her tone slightly skeptical.
I shook my head. "Nope, nothing at all."
"Uh-huh. So you're just visiting, Selene?" Taiga asked, her heavy accent butchering the pronunciation of Saber's fake name. She turned her attention to the aforementioned individual, who nodded politely.
"Yes, Miss Fujimura. I was passing through town, and Shirou graciously offered me a spare room to stay in for the coming week," Saber replied, her voice calm and composed.
Her head snapped towards me. "I better not start seeing more girls randomly appearing in this house, Shirou, or I will get mad at you on Sakura's behalf," Taiga warned, her tone half-joking, half-serious.
"There's no need for that, Fujimura-sensei," Sakura interjected with a flustered face, trying to soothe Taiga's concerns.
Though still unconvinced, Taiga begrudgingly accepted the situation, allowing 'Selene' to stay until she was done with whatever business she had in Fuyuki. The conversation drifted into lighter topics after that, with Taiga peppering Saber with questions about her supposed travels and interests, while I quietly finished my meal.
When we finally finished our dishes, we began preparing to head to school. The mopey Tiger went out first, riding away on her scooter, still grumbling under her breath about Rou, demanding me to bring her back safely as she sped off.
"No, Saber. You'll stay here for now." I raised my hand, keeping Saber by the entrance. "No buts. You'd attract way too much attention if you followed us to school. And don't worry, I can protect myself just fine."
Due to her inability to dematerialize, she would have to wait at home. I already knew why she couldn't do so, but I wasn't going to breach the topic unless she was comfortable discussing it. As I stared into her green eyes, I recalled what I knew about her circumstances.
In her dying state, Artoria had made contact with a higher power; in exchange for becoming this entity's agent, she was given a chance to realize her wish by participating in the Holy Grail War. Her inability to shift into spirit form was because she was still part of the living, unlike a typical Servant.
Though clearly unhappy about leaving me unguarded, she reluctantly accepted my decision and stayed behind, waiting patiently for our return—but not before reminding me to use a Command Seal to call her in case of an emergency, as it could be utilized to teleport one's Servant to a Master's position.
"Will do. See you in a bit," I said with a reassuring smile before bidding my farewells and leaving to school with Sakura, then split off from there to our respective classrooms. I was a bit anxious that a Bounded Field would be encasing the school like the original show, but my worries were quickly proven false.
It wasn't long until school ended, freeing Shirou from his responsibilities as a teenager. Meeting up and spending time with his compatriots back home, the sun deepened into the horizon.
When night came, Shirou and Saber broke off into two and begun patrolling the city for any disturbances, while Sakura's avian familiars flew high, keeping eye of everything below. While on a stroll that felt no different from any other, Shirou felt the winds stir as a bird dropped down from the heavens and gently land on his head.
"Hey," the redhead greeted the familiar. "Found anything?"
The bird cooed in confirmation before flapping its wings, lifting itself off his head, then flew in a direction with Shirou trailing shortly behind it. The pair navigated through the streets side by side for a minute until they arrived at a peculiar park. Finding himself in an unfamiliar location, Shirou scanned his surroundings, feeling a sense of dread crawl on his skin. As if hundreds of unfortunate souls had cursed this land, an abhorrent scent lingered in the air, making him wince in disgust.
"This is…" the young man briefly paused as if reminiscing, "Fuyuki park, where the last Holy Grail War ended." Indeed it was. This park had a special place in his mind; not only did the previous War conclude here, but also where "Shirou" first woke up for reasons he'd yet to decipher, encased by a whirlwind of flames and death.
Shaking his head clear of any distractions, the redhead resumed his stride and felt a blast of mana come from within. The familiar that guided him squawked and swiftly darted into the night sky to avoid the wave of intangible energy. Unaffected by the initial burst, Shirou turned heels and rushed to the source of the occurrence without hesitation, eventually coming across a pair of Servants casually exchanging blows at speeds that surpassed the limits of the human body. The most eye-catching of the two was a robust male in deep aquamarine, holding a red spear. While the other fighter was a young maiden wearing a brown robe, her clenched fists swirling with magical energy.
Shirou's eyes widened, finding not one, but two familiar figures in the distance. The spearman, if it wasn't obvious enough, is none other than Cú Chulainn. He then turned his gaze, scrutinizing the robed individual. Much to his surprise, her looks was nearly identical to a character from Elden Ring—Melina. The redhead's lips curled into a frown, a mixture of worry and intrigue flashing through his eyes. Was it a coincidence or was something else at play here? Did other characters from other franchises get pulled into this world as well?
The young man tried to use Structural Analysis on her clothes, but found himself stumped. His attempts was blocked by something, an invisible wall that prevented him from pushing any further than he's supposed to. Shirou almost clicked his tongue, but held the urge in lest he accidentally expose himself. As he lamented in his failure to identify the foreign Servant, Lancer placed some distance between them and started a conversation.
"What kind of Archer uses their fists to fight? At least use a weapon. It'll reflect badly on me to fight an unarmed lady," he said in complaint.
"I'm adept with the ways of the blade as well if you're fine with that," Archer offered. Hearing the way she talked, Shirou relaxed ever so slightly. The Melina in his memories did not have a speech pattern as casual as this, but was rather more verbose, like any FromSoftware character.
"Aren't you supposed to use a bow and fight from a distance? You know… like an actual archer?" the spearman commented, reminding the woman of her role in the War.
"I'm a versatile Servant," she returned. Her lips twisted into a half-smile, clearly enjoying what she's doing.
"Why does every woman I meet want to beat me up," Lancer sighed. "I know we're supposed to fight and all, but it's nice to have a proper talk every once an a while."
"Mayhaps if you reined in your womanizing tendencies and remain a loyal partner, your presence would not evoke such visceral reaction from the opposite sex," Archer suggested with a shrug.
"Oh?" the spearman's posture eased, resting the spear on his shoulder. "You speak as of you know me. Do you?"
"Of course, your identity is pretty easy to determine if you know where to look. There can only be one who fits your description," she said confidently.
"Mind telling me? Cause' I think I got amnesia for some reason and forgot my own name." He placed a hand on his chin, adopting a thoughtful expression. "Pretty sure I'm of Italian descent… Mario-Mario or something along those lines."
"Setanta—Ireland's Child of Light. Also known as Cú Chulainn, Hound of Culann," Archer proclaimed without missing a beat, taking her opponent's full attention. "The weapon in your hands is none other than the cursed spear Gae Bolg, gifted to you by the Witch of Dún Scáith."
"Hoh…" Lancer hummed. His rubellite eyes sharpened, reflecting a dangerous glint. "You got me all figured out in that small amount of time, huh? Well, I guess there's no point hiding, I guess."
"Will you not even try to deny it?" Archer asked, curious.
"Nah. Hiding names didn't go too well for me last time," he mentioned, laughing to himself. Then, Lancer tapped into his link with his summoner, communicating via thoughts, 'Master, permission to use my Noble Phantasm.'
'Why? What happened?' Bazett Fraga McRemitz—who was nowhere near the site of conflict—inquired, her voice sounding a bit weak.
'A Servant found out my True Name a bit too quickly,' he revealed. 'I should get rid of her now before she escapes.'
After a moment of thinking, his Master gave him the green light, 'Alright… come back right after.'
'Will do. Can't leave a bedridden lass like you unattended, now can we?' Cú sent back through their connection before closing it. He twirled his spear, brandishing it with both hands. Gae Bolg suddenly released a torrent of bloodlust, sending a cold shiver down the spines of those present. Staring at the Archer-class Servant, he declared, "Nice talk. Unfortunately, you'll have to die here."
Without saying another word, the cloaked Servant raised her arm defensively as a wave of magical energy coarsed throughout her body, bolstering her physical strength by many times.
Meanwhile, Shirou, who was watching the entire scene unfold in silence, trained his sights on the glowing spear in Cú's grasp. He employed Structural Analysis on the polearm, expecting no resistance to come from it—but was proven wrong a moment later. As if he'd sprung a defensive mechanism, his mind turned static, ears ringing, as a vision of a woman with long purple hair adopting a menacing smile crossed his mind, cancelling his magecraft. The sheer abruptness of it all caught Shirou by surprise, causing him to stumble to the ground.
"Who's there!?" hearing the disturbance, the power Gae Bolg was spewing fizzled out. Lancer turned to the direction of the noise, only to discover nothing, as if his vision was blocked by a blurry veil. "Presence Concealment? There's another Servant nearby?" he deducted.
Presence Concealment was the signature Skill of the Assassin-class Servant, so it could only be the aforementioned Servant, completely unaware of the truth of the matter. Archer, more or less coming to the same conclusion, hastily retreated into the shadows on her Master's orders, unwilling to engage in a fight with two other Servants. Abandoned, Lancer was left with no choice but to confront the new enemy.
"There goes my plan to hide my identity. Come on, man. Why'd you have to ruin it?" Bending his legs, Lancer lunged towards the intruder's position with a burst of speed, sending the dirt beneath him flying with each step.
Recovering, Shirou swiftly summoned his bow and loosed arrow after arrow at the Hound, hoping to halt his charge. As the speeding missiles neared their target, they were deflected by an invisible force, missing Cú's frame by mere inches and striking something else entirely.
'Protection from arrows?' Shirou clicked his tongue as he sprinted away. Climbing to a better vantage point, he turned and took a firing stance. This time, however, instead of using Traced ammunition, he retrieved a pair of blades from the Gate of Babylon, each etched with a series of magical symbols, and swiftly fired them at his pursuer.
Expecting the oddly shaped projectiles to be harmless, Cú paid them little mind. But before the arrows could veer off course, they erupted in a blinding explosion that violently shook the surroundings. Lancer's eyes widened as he was engulfed in a net of flames, the shockwave propelling him several meters back. Rolling to a stop, Cú quickly dove for cover, breaking the line of sight with the archer.
Cú Chulainn's skill, "Protection from Arrows" prevented projectiles from making direct contact his body, but it didn't stop the effects of those projectiles—such as explosions or poison-tipped arrows. Different skills were needed to block those.
"Oh, great. First a pugilistic Archer, now a bow-wielding Assassin? Can this day get any weirder?" he muttered, disgruntled. His instincts abruptly screamed, making him leap to the side, just in time to evade another hail of explosives arrows.
Finding another spot to hide in, Lancer bit his lips. He was at a disadvantage here; not only was the distance between them too great, but he couldn't even pinpoint the 'Assassin's' exact location, forcing him to track them by the physical traces they left behind. Using his Noble Phantasm was out of the question; the collateral damage would be too severe. 'This is why I don't like dealing with sneaky opponents,' he complained in his head.
"Uh-oh," he uttered. Farther away, Cú's senses picked up on another Servant rapidly closing in. It couldn't be Archer, who had just retreated, nor could it be Caster, who had no reason to engage in close-quarter combat. That left Berserker, Rider, or Saber, who had been drawn to the commotion.
'Lancer, come back. Don't bother with them,' Bazett's voice echoed in his mind. Though displeased by the current turn of events, he agreed with his Master's decision. Staying here for any longer would only worsen his situation. Lancer dispelled all thoughts of fighting and vanished with a shower of particles, leaving the scene in spirit form.
Meanwhile, the 'Assassin' breathed out in relief as Lancer's mana signature went off into the distance. "He's gone, that's good."
Lowering his arms, the bow returned into a state of nothingness. Saber, clad in her Servant attire, suddenly emerged from the thicket of trees and neared him, shouting in worry, "Shirou! Are you alright?"
"Yeah." The redhead waved in reassurance, putting on a bright smile. "He chased me for a while, but went away as soon as you came."
Lancer had undoubtedly mistaken Shirou for a Servant, leading to what happened. Though confident in his abilities to face a Servant head-on, it'd be better if he didn't at all.
"That was reckless of you, Shirou. From now on, I shall accompany you every step of the way to avoid this kind of situation from happening again," she intoned.
"There's no need to, Saber. I promise it won't happen again," the redhead replied.
"We can allocate the duties of scouting to Sakura's familiars for now. Your protection takes priority," Saber insisted firmly. The plum-haired girl's familiars were remarkably effective. Had Saber not been informed beforehand, she would have dismissed them as insignificant. They were far better suited for reconnaissance than risking an ambush by going on foot.
"I can take care of—you know what, maybe we should just head back for now. We've encountered two Servants tonight, Archer and Lancer. We know the latter's identity, I'd count that as a success," Shirou suggested, not wanting to start an argument with the King of Knights.
Saber agreed with a nod. The two then made their way back to the Emiya residence, where they were greeted by an anxious Sakura. After some conversation, the young girl's worries were eased, and she welcomed them home with a warm smile, creating a peaceful atmosphere.
Seating herself at the table, legs folded underneath her, Saber's mind began to drift. Her thoughts on Shirou—the adopted son of Kiritsugu Emiya—was a complicated one. On one hand, he didn't seem to possess the same cruel mindset as his father; his actions were wholly sincere. On the other hand, he exhibited a subtle adeptness at scheming in the shadows, which made her wary.
Shirou appeared to be an accomplished magus, so him not questioning her inability to dematerialize confounded her. But she had a feeling he already knew… somehow. Having lived as a king, Artoria prided herself on her ability to read people, and her instincts were telling her to give Shirou the benefit of the doubt.
The clicking of ceramic plates broke her train of thought, pulling her back to reality. In front of her was a large feast, prepared with Shirou's and Sakura's combined efforts. Saber shook her head, clearing it of any useless babble, and focused on the meal before her. Everything else could wait for now—hunger was the enemy.
END.
A/N: I am in absolute shambles; I haven't written in a while and had forgotten how to. This took me an entire week to write.
dxdragon
Experienced.
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Thanks for the chapter!
So Archer is absolutely Shirou's daughter correct?
Now who is the mom...Sakura? Or Rin?
I ask because the glutinous Aunt has got to be either Taiga or Saber, and I'm leaning Taiga for that. Don't see Saber shutting Shirou in the kitchen.
And another Aunt taught Archer how to cook, which can only be Sakura, since she learned from Shirou.
But the kid uses Magecraft and has a secret magic crest, so it can't be Saber, and only Rin has a Crest of the group.
So I'm betting Shirou & Rin had a Kid, who learned how to cook from Sakura as my final answer!
Now, how did this end up happening, and does Shirou also have kids with Sakura/others? That is the question.
So Archer is absolutely Shirou's daughter correct?
Now who is the mom...Sakura? Or Rin?
I ask because the glutinous Aunt has got to be either Taiga or Saber, and I'm leaning Taiga for that. Don't see Saber shutting Shirou in the kitchen.
And another Aunt taught Archer how to cook, which can only be Sakura, since she learned from Shirou.
But the kid uses Magecraft and has a secret magic crest, so it can't be Saber, and only Rin has a Crest of the group.
So I'm betting Shirou & Rin had a Kid, who learned how to cook from Sakura as my final answer!
Now, how did this end up happening, and does Shirou also have kids with Sakura/others? That is the question.
OverReactionGuy
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I bet Shirou ends up with Sakura and Rin and continues the bloodline.
Cherry Lover
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Yeah, it sounds like it's probably Rin's kid, since Sakura is obviously the "aunt" who taught her to cook. The hungry aunt is probably Taiga, yeah, since Shirou sees her as a sister.
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Spelloyal
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This chapter was a Buzzkill, I was looking forward to reading EMIYA reacting to a Saint Shirou Saberface trap who really put his talent with the sword to good use.
I was really hoping for a conversation like EMIYA asking about Shirou becoming a counter guardian and Shirou responding with something like "What kind of idiot would sell his soul to serve as a mercenary for all eternity?"
I was really hoping for a conversation like EMIYA asking about Shirou becoming a counter guardian and Shirou responding with something like "What kind of idiot would sell his soul to serve as a mercenary for all eternity?"
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*Username*
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is this the standard last 1 day without a master version or Nameless' IA that boosts Strength and Luck?
canceling 3 verse spells and inducing difficulty of greater magecraft rituals working on them
fast reaction speed skill, same as no name with instantaneous application of magecraft
deducing the best course of actions after analysis
hmm, anyone think this is a high enough Rank to open a domain expansion?
it's so Gojover for Cu
well reinforcement can up strength to B+, endurance to C and Agility to B
it can also be used on the Eyes to gain/improve the clairvoyance skill so does that rank up Clairvoyance to C++ or B+? the latter has limited future sight when paired with minds eye (True) A Rank
so 1 rank below future sight, above average beat stick that will predict you moves and instant casts B+ magecraft designed to counter whatever you throw at them like a late rock paper scissors throw, but it isn't late and happens before you even make you hand sign
this is a Ju-Jumps You Kaisen build that gives you left right goodnight with a B+ rank counter to whatever you can pull off in their back pocket (read any random b+ rank curse technique) if her 40 piece combo wasn't able to stun lock you
Cu has a B in strength and A in agility, so weaker and faster, but if Emiya could keep up with C rank agility, clairvoyance and B rank minds eye, Cu here would made into chicken tendies with a side of fries
Cu has runes to also boost his parameters to B+, C+, A+, but that can get countered by clairvoyance C+(+) and Mind's Eye(True) B; Clairvoyance in particular can be chained into instantly casting B+ magecraft to deny Cu using his B rank Runes or bypassing his C rank magic resist to actually lower his parameters (C, D, B)
if it wasn't for Cu's A rank battle continuation and C rank disengage, he would be a 5 minute punching bag, now he's a 30 minute punching bag
Cursed Energy Reinforcement Magecraft
she has higher parameters and high enough magecraft to stop Cu from using runes to buff himself and even lower his parameters so to only be as fast as her while being outmatched in strength, has higher rankings in skills that allowed a certain archer keep up when you outranked him in agility 2 times (and this lady is just as fast so she effectively out-speeds you 2 ranks over), has a high enough magic resist that makes your runes not work on her while her magecraft overpowers your magic resist, can practically counter any move you make with how versatile magecraft of said rank is, and somehow has a counter to gae bolgs sure hit even if Cu disengages far enough you use his NP, and his thrown version wouldn't be fast enough before she closes the distance again and just punches him in the face and gets him into another stun-lock
the equivalent of somehow canceling your domain expansion and now leaving you without aNP Curse technique as their about to continue the mugging
the results say that Lancer Died, he decided to go up against what seems to be a hard counter in almost every way imaginable, it's an unfair coin toss if his sure-hit NP works when B+ rank magecraft starts boosting the Luck stat and the Miracle skill exists, and the thrown NP just invites her so use the smoke to do what toji did to gojo behind the cover of flyheads using her divergent fists, like the NP requires he disengage 100 meters but then run and jump 50 meters, towards the lady that knows exactly where you will jump an is already in the air to volleyball spike your head back into the ground before you can realize you haven't left the floor
Lancer with his E rank luck isn't surviving lobotomy kaisen women, the second i thought of her using the void element and imaginary numbers with her magecraft to create lapse Blue, Reversal Red and imaginary technique: Hollow Purple he's dead, she just downloaded his entire move set with her minds eye (True), he lost the slight chance of his sure hit ever working on her and his only real victory condition in a 1v1 fight
divinity is anti-purge defense pierce, not save from this ass whooping . . . i just realized that while her doesn't have the item construction skill from the caster servant container, she could still enchant some mystic codes with B+ magecraft, i thought this was a fair fight, the second i reread her parameters and skills makes me feel so bad
she knows exactly who Cu is, and his legend that involves the super death spear and goes, "MID, low effort, lightwork" that was the closest got to minor antagonist against being a jobber to his literal encounter
it can also be used on the Eyes to gain/improve the clairvoyance skill so does that rank up Clairvoyance to C++ or B+? the latter has limited future sight when paired with minds eye (True) A Rank
so 1 rank below future sight, above average beat stick that will predict you moves and instant casts B+ magecraft designed to counter whatever you throw at them like a late rock paper scissors throw, but it isn't late and happens before you even make you hand sign
this is a Ju-Jumps You Kaisen build that gives you left right goodnight with a B+ rank counter to whatever you can pull off in their back pocket (read any random b+ rank curse technique) if her 40 piece combo wasn't able to stun lock you
Cu has a B in strength and A in agility, so weaker and faster, but if Emiya could keep up with C rank agility, clairvoyance and B rank minds eye, Cu here would made into chicken tendies with a side of fries
Cu has runes to also boost his parameters to B+, C+, A+, but that can get countered by clairvoyance C+(+) and Mind's Eye(True) B; Clairvoyance in particular can be chained into instantly casting B+ magecraft to deny Cu using his B rank Runes or bypassing his C rank magic resist to actually lower his parameters (C, D, B)
if it wasn't for Cu's A rank battle continuation and C rank disengage, he would be a 5 minute punching bag, now he's a 30 minute punching bag
. . . Divergent Fist, it really is a Ju-Jumps You kaisen build
wait, does she have a simple domain to avoid sure hit effect? B+ rank magecraft can make a boundfield with effects to boost some parameters and skills, luck to avoid fate and miracle to do the impossible like dodging an undodgeable attack
she has higher parameters and high enough magecraft to stop Cu from using runes to buff himself and even lower his parameters so to only be as fast as her while being outmatched in strength, has higher rankings in skills that allowed a certain archer keep up when you outranked him in agility 2 times (and this lady is just as fast so she effectively out-speeds you 2 ranks over), has a high enough magic resist that makes your runes not work on her while her magecraft overpowers your magic resist, can practically counter any move you make with how versatile magecraft of said rank is, and somehow has a counter to gae bolgs sure hit even if Cu disengages far enough you use his NP, and his thrown version wouldn't be fast enough before she closes the distance again and just punches him in the face and gets him into another stun-lock
the equivalent of somehow canceling your domain expansion and now leaving you without a
the results say that Lancer Died, he decided to go up against what seems to be a hard counter in almost every way imaginable, it's an unfair coin toss if his sure-hit NP works when B+ rank magecraft starts boosting the Luck stat and the Miracle skill exists, and the thrown NP just invites her so use the smoke to do what toji did to gojo behind the cover of flyheads using her divergent fists, like the NP requires he disengage 100 meters but then run and jump 50 meters, towards the lady that knows exactly where you will jump an is already in the air to volleyball spike your head back into the ground before you can realize you haven't left the floor
Lancer with his E rank luck isn't surviving lobotomy kaisen women, the second i thought of her using the void element and imaginary numbers with her magecraft to create lapse Blue, Reversal Red and imaginary technique: Hollow Purple he's dead, she just downloaded his entire move set with her minds eye (True), he lost the slight chance of his sure hit ever working on her and his only real victory condition in a 1v1 fight
divinity is anti-purge defense pierce, not save from this ass whooping . . . i just realized that while her doesn't have the item construction skill from the caster servant container, she could still enchant some mystic codes with B+ magecraft, i thought this was a fair fight, the second i reread her parameters and skills makes me feel so bad
she literally went "I'm going to stand still and let you use your Noble Phantasm, I'm not boosting my endurance for survivability, or my agility to dodge, i will take your noble phantasm head on, i'll just boost my strength parameter so when your done, i'm going to start wailing on you"
she knows exactly who Cu is, and his legend that involves the super death spear and goes, "MID, low effort, lightwork" that was the closest got to minor antagonist against being a jobber to his literal encounter
LuckyShadowWolf
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I'm pretty sure that this is supposed to be "scrying" since scurrying is a method of movement!