The Director began by explaining the Singularity we were about to resolve, then introduced several Mystic Codes.
“The Mystic Codes Fujimaru drew are all useful ones. I picked out the best of them, including the Crank In Black Grail Mage King Mystic Code. It’s top-tier even among Mystic Codes.”
Even though Ritsuka still hadn’t managed to summon a Servant, she had at least secured some excellent Mystic Codes.
“So when do we deploy into the Singularity, Director?”
“Good question, Mash. Unfortunately, in their current state, the Heroic Spirits can’t properly investigate the Singularity.”
According to her, Heroic Spirits could normally undergo Ascension up to the fourth stage, and could be further strengthened with a Holy Grail.
Right after summoning, before any Ascension at all, they were simply too weak.
“There’s only one Holy Grail right now, so that’s not an option. But we have to push them to fourth Ascension somehow. And to Ascend them...”
“You need EXP cards and materials, right, Director?! I happened to bring a bunch of materials that would help with that from Lev’s room!”
Romani appeared with the door thrown wide open, carrying a box full of miscellaneous materials and gold star fragments.
“What kind of guy is he...”
“Ah, but there’s a problem.”
“What is it?”
“We don’t have any QP, so we can’t Ascend them.”
“So in the end, where do we get that...”
“We grind dungeons, right?”
“So it’s just labor after all...”
A little while later—
“Taigong Wang, Cú Chulainn ×2, EMIYA, Richard. Full enhancement succeeded across the board. Skill levels are a shame, but we don’t have the spare resources right now, so I’ll leave that for later... and they’ve all passed out.”
“Both the young lady and that older guy really threw themselves into it today. They’ll probably wake up tomorrow at the earliest.”
Even Cú Chulainn, who was laughing beside us, had gone numb in the legs and was sitting in a chair.
“Then I guess it’s about time we head into the Singularity...”
Normally, aside from the provisional summon, you’d only bring in about three Servants at most. Even counting Mash, five was far too many.
“Still, with Albus and the two who’ll improve mana output and supply efficiency, we need to restore the Singularity as fast as possible...”
It wasn’t just because of my own lifespan problem.
“Mash doesn’t have much time left either. If I drag my feet, her lifespan will run out before mine does...”
I wasn’t free of guilt. But I couldn’t stake Chaldea’s entire future on Mash alone.
“In the end, I am a mage too...”
And yet my hands were still shaking.
“I have to repay their trust too. I can’t betray the first real trust they ever gave me.”
It was only natural to want to repay someone who respected you and followed you.
“”””
After strengthening the Servants with EXP cards, we gathered for the Rayshift with the resolve to face the decisive battle. But...
“Th-the Richard guy?”
We were all seriously thrown off, because...
“How did you end up looking like a lion...”
He had gone to sleep after dumping EXP cards into himself half out of his mind yesterday, and now he’d somehow turned into a lion.
“There’s no need to worry. There’s no problem with fighting.”
Even his way of speaking had completely changed...
“A-and your arm... what happened to it?”
There were a lot of things I wanted to ask, but the Director didn’t allow any more conversation.
“I know you have a lot of questions, but the Rayshift is starting now. Get ready.”
“We can ask later when we have time, senpai.”
“R-right. Mash, Uncle Albus, you’re ready too?”
“I was ready ages ago. Anyway, Ritsuka...”
I had to say what needed saying.
“Your zippers are...”
[Rayshift is starting.]
And so we fell—into Orleans. But...
“Why the hell am I the only one alone?!”
I’d been dropped by myself into some unknown forest, separated from the others.
Right then, the Director contacted me.
“Hey!!! Why are you alone over there?!?!”
“No, why was I the one dropped off by myself?!”
“No time to explain, so run!!!”
I’m not stupid enough to ask about pride or the situation. If she was telling me to run, then that probably meant...
“Kroaaar!!!”
“Fuck!!!”
I sprinted like my life depended on it, dodging the wyvern coming up behind me. The fact that it was even breathing fire made it obvious without having to think about it.
If it caught me, I’d be dead without a single bone left intact.
“Where are the others?!”
“30...”
“M?!”
“Km.”
“You chicken-brained bastard!!!”
“For now, ask any wandering Servant nearby for help! They should be right in front of you...!”
At this point, I didn’t care how pathetic I looked. Survival came first.
“Anybody, please save me!!!”
Then a spear with a banner attached to it pierced straight through the wyvern’s back like a skewer.
Unlike when a skull gets smashed, this time entrails and blood sprayed everywhere. The foul, hot stench made my face twist on instinct.
“Ugh, disgusting... Whoever you are, thanks for the help. I’m...”
But even after I spoke, the woman only kept staring at me.
“Are you the culprit behind this incident?”
“No? What kind of ability would I even have to do that...”
“I see...”
She pulled the banner-spear out of the wyvern and introduced herself.
“Greetings, unknown gentleman. I am Jeanne d’Arc, the Saint of France, Jeanne d’Arc.”
“At this point in France, the only notable figure carrying that banner is Jeanne d’Arc...”
She still kept her distance, watching me warily.
“First, let me introduce myself...”
I roughly explained Chaldea’s current purpose and my situation, without a single lie.
At this point, she should’ve at least lowered her suspicion...
“I see...”
Not even a little...
“Um... did I do something wrong?”
If I kept this relationship going like this, my life would be cut short first. So I had to face her as a comrade, with as little hidden as possible.
“...What kind of life have you lived?”
“””””
I was betrayed by the France I had trusted, and burned at the stake as a witch.
And yet, for some reason, I had manifested here as a Servant to save human history, and I had rescued the young man before me...
But in my eyes—no, in my revelation—he was...
There was no lie in what he said while introducing himself. He wasn’t directing any particular malice toward me either. And yet...
“He is evil...”
My revelation clearly labeled him as evil. But he was still just an ordinary culprit who had done nothing yet, and what he intended to do was plainly good.
“If it is the Lord’s will that I guide a lamb not yet fallen into evil onto the right path...”
“I’m sorry for being so wary. The situation is what it is... So, shall we set things right as you said?”
“””””
It seemed her guard had finally lowered, but the way she still looked at me suspiciously was somehow frightening.
“You’re saying you’re a sort of other Master, supporting mana to help that girl called Ritsuka.”
“Yes. Unfortunately, I don’t have the qualifications to be a Master at all, so please make the contract through Ritsuka. Since we haven’t contracted yet, I can’t supply mana during battle either, so please keep that in mind.”
“Understood, Albus. As a small piece of information, this Singularity...”
She told us about the enemy in this Singularity, as well as her own purpose.
“So... the twisted version of you is being called the Dragon Witch, and she’s trying to burn France down, and you’re here to stop her?”
“Yes.”
“The Ritsuka team also fought that twisted version of you just now. Unfortunately, the battle didn’t reach a conclusion...”
The Director belatedly explained what had happened on Ritsuka’s side through communications.
“It’s late now, so should we camp here?”
“A fire isn’t essential. Let’s just use a lamp lightly.”
There was no crackling campfire, but the sounds of birds and crickets clung to our ears.
“...Albus, what kind of person are you?”
“...I’m ordinary. I don’t have a father, but I went to college, learned things, and then somehow got dragged into Chaldea... The ending’s a little weird, but whatever...”
“Was it hard?”
“In a lot of ways, yes. But everyone goes through things like that...”
“No, that’s not what I mean.”
For a moment, the saint’s gaze changed.
“I’m asking what kind of person you are, not what kind of life you’ve lived.”
“...Huh?”
“””””
We’d been having a pointless conversation, but before he came here, he really had just lived an ordinary life.
And yet... even so, the essence of that man was evil.
That was why I had to ask. What kind of person was he? What kind of human being was he?
And... I could see the confusion he couldn’t hide.
“””””
I knew I was a strange one.
Someone with plenty of lingering attachments and affection, but no real ability to resolve them. If I ignored them, they became a headache like shackles tormenting me.
That didn’t mean good deeds were rewarded, either. In the end, it was just self-satisfaction...
Whatever I did, all I got was pain. But compared to the suffering of law and guilt, doing good was easier.
So that was who I was now...
What was I, then? A foolish good man? No, that wasn’t it. Then I probably wouldn’t have wanted repayment in the first place...
“A hypocrite. Someone who does good for self-satisfaction.”
“...I see.”
She smiled gently, unlike before.
“You’re not very honest, are you? In a situation where a building is collapsing, saving people because of lingering attachments and guilt is no longer hypocrisy.”
“Ah... yes.”
“Still, the fact that I met you in such a crisis makes it seem like the Lord is supporting you too.”
“I have this weird jinx where if I get lucky once, bad luck comes next. I’d like it if that wasn’t the case this time...”
And so that night ended quietly.
“””””
“If we go another 5 km, we’ll be able to meet up with the Ritsuka team.”
According to the Director, judging by the explosions going off in the sky, it looked like we’d be meeting them soon.
“Are they okay? Or am I worrying for nothing?”
With Richard and Cú Chulainn (Lancer) on the front line, EMIYA handling long-range sniping, Taigong Wang and Cú Chulainn (Caster) supporting and strategizing, and Mash blocking even Excalibur Morgan in case of surprise attacks...
“Do we even need to go there ourselves?”
“It’s true that Ritsuka’s team is slaughtering the enemies right now. The mana that should’ve come from Chaldea is being supplied through you, and the mana supply that should’ve gone through Ritsuka is being provided stably through you.”
“Taigong Wang and Cú Chulainn are helping optimize the supply efficiency, so the battle is stable. Especially since Fujimaru can stay in the rear instead of taking the front line, that’s a huge advantage.”
“I did wonder why fighting like this seemed to drain less mana than in Fuyuki. Having two Casters—well, one of them is a Rider—is great...”
“Still, Jeanne d’Arc is a major asset. Hurry and join up with them.”
“I’m not used to climbing mountains, so please bear with me...”
After walking for quite a while, a lion’s head visible even from far away came into view.
“Um... Albus? Are those people really our allies?”
Jeanne’s concern was justified. A blood-covered lion, a black-haired guy with narrowed eyes, and a spear user who had turned a wyvern into a skewer... weren’t we the ones who looked like the villains here?
“They’re nicer than they look... Everyone!!! I’m back!!!”
At my voice, the whole group turned to look at me...
“Hey!! First of all, this Jeanne here is not an enemy!!!”
“Yes, I understand she’s under the Director’s orders. But...”
Taigong Wang looked at my disastrous state, like I’d rolled down a mountain, with pity.
“You’ve had a rough time...”
Then Ritsuka and Mash ran over from the base.
“Huh?! Uncle, why do you look like that?!”
“I was worried because Albus went somewhere else alone, and sure enough...”
The two girls were looking gloomy, and if they got too down it wouldn’t help with the fighting, so I had to cheer them up...
“I even got some mountain-climbing experience with the saint, so it wasn’t all bad. Don’t worry.”
“Ugh... pervert...”
Even so, a relieved smile appeared at the corners of their mouths.
“More importantly, are there any enemies left, or any newly joined allies?”
“The remaining enemies are the Caster and the Dragon Witch. As for allies...”
The Director trailed off.
“W-well... there is one Servant who can count as an ally, but...”
If even Cú Chulainn was reacting like that, it didn’t sound like a good sign.
“You’re my new manager? Huh? You look like a pig soaked in rain!”
“No one but Master will call me that, and please be careful since I’m a Berserker?”
“...Anyway, thank you for fighting with us...”
“Right... if this is all the bad luck we get, then we should count ourselves lucky...”
“””””
“You need to defeat the Dragon Witch and resolve this Singularity. And you need to do it as quickly as possible. The Dragon Witch is summoning and controlling Servants she’s driven mad, so the longer you drag this out, the worse it gets.”
“Then now is the best chance.”
“No. The enemy has Fafnir. With our current forces, we can hold that dragon down, but we can’t beat it.”
Then Jeanne raised her hand and came up with a plan.
“There is a dragon-slayer named Siegfried among the Heroic Spirits summoned before me. I believe he can defeat the evil dragon. However...”
Good news and bad news, huh...
“He was in a state where he could no longer fight because of a curse.”
“He’s hiding his body in a nearby village, but the curse is so strong that even my Baptism Rite can’t fully heal him. At this point, we can only maintain his condition...”
“That’s enough. When it comes to this kind of mystic art, there’s no man better than me.”
Cú Chulainn the Caster added his support.
“I’m not great at healing, but I’m pretty good at curse removal too. Please guide me, saint.”
“Yes!”
Meanwhile—
“Damn it!!!”
The Dragon Witch kicked the door in and threw a tantrum.
“What the hell is that Master?! He doesn’t even look like he has any mana, so how are his Servants fighting so well?!”
And behind her appeared an obviously sinister Caster.
“My, my~! Jeanne! That’s not because you’re weak!! Besides, Fafnir is still with us, so this isn’t our defeat yet!!”
“Fine... the only dragon-slayer who can kill Fafnir is already unable to function because of a curse. Prepare for a full assault.”
“Yes!!”
“””””
“We’re almost at the cave... Ah, Siegfried!”
“S-Sorry. I’m making you go through all this because of me... sorry... It looks like you brought quite a few people too... Sorry, but as you can see, I’m barely in any state to greet anyone properly...”
“You said sorry four times in one sentence... Ahem. Taigong Wang, Cú Chulainn, are you okay?”
“Of course~ Compared to the curses I got in life, this is like lying down and eating mooncakes.”
“I’ll help too, immortal gentleman.”
“Then Jeanne, please join us with your Baptism Rite. It should be over in about 20 minutes.”
“Yes. Please bear with it, Siegfried.”
“S-Sorry...”
“Don’t.”
“O-Understood...”
“As long as the enemy doesn’t suddenly invade, there shouldn’t be a problem...”
“Ritsuka, don’t say things like that. You and Mash should go somewhere safe...”
Boom!!!
“Damn it, of course things wouldn’t go smoothly...”
It looked like the enemy had attacked from below the mountain.
“Presence... Fafnir!?”
“Jeanne d’Arc, hurry up with the healing!!”
“Senpai! Albus! Hide behind my shield!!”
Mash sealed off the cave entrance with her shield.
“By the way, I don’t see EMIYA. Is he sniping?”
“How did you know? EMIYA’s handling long-range sniping... Uncle?”
Blood was flowing from my eyes, nose, and mouth.
“Ugh... fuck, I’m getting drained so hard I’m gonna die...”
Come to think of it, the two people who had been improving supply efficiency were in the middle of healing, so I was supplying mana to the five fighting outside, the three being healed here, and even Mash, who had activated her shield...
“We can’t optimize the supply efficiency while we’re healing, so please bear with it a little longer, Master!!”
“Guh!!!”
“Taigong Wang!! Hurry up!! Uncle’s coughing up blood!!”
“Yes!! It’ll be over in ten minutes!!”
Meanwhile—
“Romani! Status report on Albus right now!!”
“He’s single-handedly bearing the mana consumption of nine Servants!! It wouldn’t be strange if he died at any moment!! We need to split mana supply with Fujimaru right now...”
“If we change things suddenly, it’ll put not only Albus but Fujimaru in danger too! And Fujimaru can barely supply mana to the four people nearby as it is!”
“Besides, if Siegfried is released, he’ll need to unleash his Noble Phantasm on Fafnir...”
Olga Marie kept blaming herself without pause, but she was still searching for a solution.
“I knew it was a mistake to send so many Heroic Spirits relying on Albus’s mana... If even one of the five outside stops supplying, the defensive line will collapse... I forced too much on a beginner, and that ended up backfiring...”
“No. What matters now is solving this. We need to find a way... Yes!”
“Fujimaru!! Use a Command Spell on Albus right now!!!”
“””””
I didn’t want to die. If only out of sheer frustration, I couldn’t die like this...
“Uncle!! Don’t close your eyes!! Just a little longer!! Hold on just a little longer!!!”
“Albus! Don’t fall asleep!! You can’t fall asleep!!”
“Damn it... this is it, huh... I’m dying... like this? I never thought I’d die so pathetically... ah... this is fucking bullshit... I’m so pissed I could die twice...”
Then, in the ears of the dying man, came a desperate voice.
“Fujimaru!!! Use a Command Spell on Albus right now!!!”
“How am I supposed to do that when Uncle isn’t a Servant, Director?!?!”
“First, I’ll convert one Command Spell into mana. Then you pass that mana to him!! Just grabbing his hand won’t be enough!! At the very least... a kiss!! It has to be transferred mouth to mouth!!!”
Fuck, wait a second...
“W-wait, what did you just say...?”
“Yes!! Understood!!”
“What the hell is this—guhhh!!!”
Ritsuka immediately kissed me. The problem was...
“Fuck, I’m coughing up blood again...”
I set a record for my first kiss in life being a blood-cough kiss... what a shitty life.
“Don’t stop!! Keep transferring it or he’ll die!!”
“Taigong Wang!! How much longer?!?!”
“One minute!! Just wait one minute!!”
Meanwhile, it seemed the Servants outside had unleashed their Noble Phantasms again...
“Ughhh!!!”
My insides felt like they were being wrung out and bursting, and while I was in the middle of another blood-cough kiss, I patted Ritsuka’s shoulder to signal her—but...
Thud!
Ritsuka threw her arms around me as if she’d made up her mind to die here. To anyone watching, it would have looked like a moving scene, but the problem was...
“The blood’s coming up again...”
And so the one minute that felt like ten thousand years passed...
“Fujimaru, you can stop now.”
At the Director’s words, Ritsuka ended the kiss with me.
“Uwek...”
And then Ritsuka spat out a bright red clump of blood from her mouth...
It was hard to apologize in this situation, and I was in enough pain to die right now anyway, so I’d have to put that off for later...
“I’m going, Master!! I’ll cut down the evil dragon!!”
“Wait a moment!!”
At that moment, Taigong Wang stopped Siegfried—no, Siegfried—before he could move.
“Right now, the Master’s body has almost no mana left. Even with mine and Cú Chulainn’s optimized mana supply, if you use your Noble Phantasm now too, the Master will be in danger.”
“S-Sorry... then what do we do?”
“Wait, don’t tell me...”
That meant recharging mana right now...
“We have to do what we just did again...”
“Fujimaru!! Execute it!!”
“Hah... ha... ha... yes...!”
Ritsuka, gasping for breath, kissed me again.
“Wai—!”
Thankfully, this time I didn’t throw up, but with my body already injured, the lack of oxygen made me pass out in the end.
“””””
When I opened my eyes, I was looking up at the ceiling of the medical room...
“Still, I guess I did my best...”
But something felt off.
“My arm...”
“It’s not just your arm. The whole body will probably feel like that.”
“Doctor? Um... how long was I asleep?”
Damn it, I couldn’t get any strength below my neck...
“You slept like a corpse for about three days. Mash and Fujimaru were incredibly worried...”
Before the Doctor could even finish, Ritsuka came in.
“Speak of the devil...”
“U-uncle...”
Clang!
She dropped the fruit on the metal tray and started crying again from eyes already swollen red.
“What on earth is wrong with you...”
“...I’m sorry, Albus...”
Even Romani bowed his head to apologize, which meant something had gone seriously wrong...
“Something big must have happened...”
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