Fate/Reawakened Wishes

[Edgedancer]

Spoiler: Winning Vote

[x] Let Naoki try to talk your way in. You can decide if you'll let Ida kill them once you're actually done investigating the Grail.

You do not like the idea of relying on the Tohsaka's hospitality again, not in the slightest. However, given the desperate look Naoki is giving you, you're starting to suspect that attacking them would be worse for him than having to fend off their betrayal would be for you.

"I must say, continuing to draw on my good will like this when you're already in my debt is outright audacious of you," You say. "You can count yourself lucky that my benevolence is without equal. I'll give you your chance to talk with them."

"Thank you, Kari. I really do appreciate it."

"As you should, it does redeem your brazenness somewhat. Regardless, given that the Tohsaka's trustworthiness would depend entirely on your presence, we have to make sure that they don't separate you from us. Ida, make sure to hold on to Naoki until I tell you otherwise."

At your words, Ida's mood brightens again and she jumps towards Naoki, wrapping herself around his arm. "Gladly, Elder Sister. Don't try to leave my side, understood, Naoki?"

"Of course. Why would I even want to get away from you in the first place?" Naoki says meeting Ida's eyes.

She lets out a happy yelp and hugs Naoki even tighter. "Thank you. Thank you so much. It's not as bad as with my elder sister, but I like being with you so much, that I don't want to be separated from you for a second and it's good to know you feel the same."

"I'm pretty sure that question was rheto-" Whatever snide comment Ayano was going to make is interrupted by Mara making a loud whistling noise at Naoki and Ida.

Naoki sends her a weak glare, which Mara only responds to with a smirk and a shrug. Instead it is Rider who stepped up to Ida and put a hand on her shoulder. "I realize that the boy is quite charming, but now that we've established that he won't run away I think you can leave him a bit more room to move."

"Oh yes, I'm sorry. The excitement got the better of me," Ida says and loosens her grip on Naoki. "Now let's go, we've made my elder sister wait long enough."

"Right. I apologize again, Kari," Naoki says as he's half dragged up the stairs by Ida.

"I'll forgive it. Just make sure to eventually give my sister her due."

With the matter settled you continue climbing the temple stairs. As you approach the top, the gate comes into view and within it the black clad figure of Caster, his pale skin and the white stars on his sleeves standing out in the darkness of night. Even without being able to make out his expression, the distaste he's considering your group with is palpable.

Even if this is his territory, he must be quite brazen to openly face three enemy Servants, not to mention yourself, like this.

"You're Caster, Akihiko's Servant, right?" Naoki asks as he keeps climbing the final stretch of the stairs.

"I am. As a piece of advice, you should distance yourself from the vixen clinging to you. You never know when she'll decide to bite you," Caster says, sounding as if he doesn't particularly care whether or not Naoki listens to him.

"That's not true. I wouldn't never hurt anyone without permission. I bet he's only trying to separate us," Ida says with a hint of panic in her voice.

"Don't worry, I know you mean well," Naoki says and gives Ida a reassuring pat on the head. "Although I appreciate the concern for my safety, Caster."

"Don't think anything about it. More importantly, what brings you here? My divinations have predicted a much more productive meeting than your company would imply."

"I'll have you know that he's in the best possible company," you say, even if you have to mentally exclude Ayano.

"Yes, I can see why you'd think so," Caster says. "Regardless of your quality, I'd think we've moved past the point of a friendly chat over tea by now."

"Honestly, we didn't even expect to find you here. We're here because there's something we need to investigate about the Greater Grail," Naoki says. "I'm sure Akihiko wants to know about it as well, if you could let me talk with him."

"My Master isn't present, but I can contact him for you, if you insist," Caster says.

"Are you saying you left your Master defenseless without his Servant during the middle of the night?" you ask slightly incredulous.

"He certainly is without his Servant right now, but I wonder if that makes him defenseless," Caster says. By now you're close enough to see a slight smile forming on his face. "As ideal a territory as this temple might be for me, it does not suit my Master in several ways, so we had to make some arrangements. Feel free to have one of your familiars search the premises for him, if it's really that hard to believe."

You take him up on his offer, pulling out one of your hairs to send it into the temple. It'd be a disgrace if Caster managed to hide the Tohsakas from you simply by bluffing.

Caster meanwhile informed you that he's contacting his Master. After a short amount of time, he addresses Naoki, "Excuse me, young man, but could you tell me your name?"

"Naoki Watanabe"

"A nice name," Caster says absentmindedly before falling silent again. Then he mutters something under his breath and flicks his wrist. The gesture shakes loose a black and white wave of Ofuda streaming forth from his sleeve. The mass of paper folds in on itself until all the pieces are assembled in the shape of a person. Then the ink covering the talismans dissolves and spreads over the whole paper shell, appearing to change both color and texture during the process. Within moments the paper replica of Akihiko had been completed.

Rider appreciatively whistles next to you.

Akihiko takes a moment to reorient himself, before he frantically steps up to Naoki and grabs him by the shoulders. "Nonono. Why are you here? You shouldn't even be able to get involved."

"I'm probably the last person that knows how all of this works exactly, but I just kind of ended up selected as a Master." Naoki almost sounds apologetic.

Akihiko winces, looking just shy of being in physical pain. "You know you can quit, right? You don't even have to let down you Servant, if that's what you're worried about. The overseer can just transfer them to another Master along with your command seals."

"I know. Thank you for your concern, but I think I'll keep myself involved for now."

"And I like the Master I ended up with," Lancer says. "Being handed off to a different one sounds like a pain."

"Fine, just make sure you don't die." With a tired sounding sigh, Akihiko turns from staring at Akihiko to meeting Ida's eyes. "Why are you looking at me like that?"

"The two of you are cute together," Ida says.

Akihiko recoils at the statement, letting go off Naoki and taking several steps back. Bafflingly, it seems like the simple remark is enough to embarrass him, if his rather pronounced blush was anything to go by.

At least his odd behaviour gets a giggle out of Ida. Yet, the sweet sound only seemed to make him more aggravated, instead of soothing him with the knowledge that he had been of use to her. Again the twisted mentality that has him oppose you stands in the way of his happiness.

"You're cute on your own as well, but we're not here for you. Please don't try to tempt me away from Naoki, I have to keep him safe on Elder Sister's orders."

Unable to face your sister's earnest request, Akihiko flees by turning back to Naoki. "You should also pick your company better."

"Jealous?" Ayano asks. Her smug tone seems painfully unjustified, given that she only gets to call herself his ally on account of your temporary alliance.

"You really should have come to me first, Naoki," Akihiko manages to growls out between clenched teeth.

"I would have, but you, uhm, weren't home."

"Right, at least you'll know how to find me going forward." Akihiko pinches the bridge of his nose and takes a deep breath, ridding himself of his prior embarrassment and replacing it with the grim determination of not wanting to talk about his own mistakes. "Regardless, what was your reason for coming here?"

"There's some things off about this war, most importantly, it doesn't look like there was only one Servant of each class summoned. Hopefully, we'll be able to figure out what exactly is going on by taking a closer look at the Greater Grail," Naoki explains.

"At least that explains your current company, even I have to admit they'd be useful in picking apart the grail. Very well, just for tonight I shall grant them passage through Caster's territory."

"As my Master wishes." Caster takes a step to the side and gestures towards the temple gate.

Your group follows his lead, with Lancer giving Naoki a congratulatory clap on the back. "Good job, Master. You only took a little bit more time than what forcing our way in would have."

The comment draws a vexed glance from Caster. Appearing blissfully unaware, Lancer keeps cheerfully praising the virtues of his Master's charm, which Ida happily joins in with.

You meanwhile use the chance to survey the temple grounds to complement whatever information you can gain from your familiar exploring the building. A rather enjoyable task, given that the temple's serene atmosphere manages to persist, even with Lancer's voice cutting away at it.

Caster leads you behind the temple itself and back into the forest, where the nightly silence slowly turns oppressive. It's not a malicious sensation exactly, the vast amount of magical energy the Greater Grail is saturating the area with upon having awoken from its long slumber is simply tremendous enough that one can't help but be overwhelmed by it.

At least that's how you imagine the others feel. It's not like anything could ever break your ironclad composure. Likewise, Caster and Rider seem unaffected. The others in comparison have grown visibly uneasy and stopped their conversation, returning the forest to silence. Absolute silence that's disturbed by neither animals nor the rustling of leaves.

The entry to the cave holding the Greater Grail is close to the temple and the main cavern itself is directly below it. All still within Caster's territory. A shame. Otherwise, you're sure you could reach the cave by cutting through the forest from the mansion without having to cross the temple grounds.

However, you have something more important to pay attention to than an opportunity that never existed. The Greater Grail is right in front of you, its glow acting as the only source of illumination in the cavern. Looking at it with the naked eye, there are few signs of its magnificence. It's proper form won't appear until the container you're holding is sufficiently filled with the energy gained from the slain Servants. The thought makes your stomach clench with a dreadful sense of emptiness. A feeling that'll inevitably be drowned out over once the war reaches its conclusion.

For now, however, the state of the grail suits you just fine. With its core laying bare, nothing obstructs your group from examining the magic circle governing its functions. As such you, and those with sufficient qualification to assist you, start working.

Unsurprisingly, Caster ends up being the most helpful to you. Despite the fact that the magical theories the grail is built on ought to be foreign to him, he quickly understands its programming and current state. In comparison, his Master displays some skill in determining where the original seals have been repaired with new work, but contributes little in actual analyzing your findings. Even Ayano is more useful than him in that regard, especially when it comes to the current state of the class system.

The other half of your group can do little more than watch. Mara at least does so with interest, asking plenty of questions that allow you to teach her about your family's brilliance. You'll have to make sure to raise her grades for being such an enthusiastic student once you get the chance.

Rider watches quietly from further back. He doesn't comment on your work, but occasionally you can see a spark of understanding in his eyes. Considering his earlier appreciation for Caster's double of Akihiko and ability to withstand the pressure of the grail, you're starting to suspect he has more knowledge about magecraft than one would ordinarily suspect from a Rider.

That leaves Ida, Naoki and Lancer, none of which are particularly interested in the details of the grail. Instead they settle down far away enough to not be in the way and—once they get used to the amount of magical energy in the area—resume their conversation. By now Lancer has moved on to talking about what a shame it is that his Master has to go another night without witnessing the fantastical scale on which Servants fight. Although he seems confused as to why Ida not only gets excited when talking about the possibility of killing Caster, but also starts blushing.

They only start paying attention to your work once it is finished and you present your results. The increased number of Servants and Masters is indeed connected to the partially activated procedures of the Great Holy Grail War. Specifically, there are currently thirteen Masters, twelve of which have summoned their Servants. However, judging by the amount of magical energy stockpiled by the Greater Grail, it should be capable of supporting the full set of fourteen Masters and Servants.

The class distribution of the already summoned Servants is two Sabers, one Archer, two Lancers, two Riders, two Casters, one Assassin, one Shielder taking up a Berserker spot and one Avenger instead of a second Assassin. That last one is… problematic. You can guess how it happened—given that whatever the Tohsaka's did to allow them to summon Abe no Seimei also suspended all other summoning restrictions, including the requirement for a specialized catalyst to summon Avenger—but it doesn't change that an unregulated Avenger has a chance of utterly corrupting the entire war with no hope of recovery. Although, given the irregular nature of the Avenger class, none of the others fully understand its implications.

Less concerning, but still noteworthy is the state of the remaining Berserker spot. While the grail definitely has not summoned the appropriate Servant, something seems to confuse it on whether or not an appropriate Servant should be summoned. Regrettably, you do not have enough information on exactly why that is. It does however serve as a possible explanation for why it has not yet handed out the final set of command seals.

Lastly, there currently is no Ruler active to supervise the war. None of you can reliably predict whether one will be summoned if the state of the war deteriorates enough.

Besides the findings relating to the Grail, your familiar also finished searching the temple. Akihiko and Nanahoshi are indeed nowhere to be found. Instead you're reasonably certain that you've found which room Caster is occupying as his workshop.

[X][Avenger] Explain the possible consequences of an Avenger being summoned to the others.
[X][Avenger] Don't explain the possible consequences of an Avenger being summoned to the others.

[X][Conversation] Naoki looks terribly confused about everything that has just been explained to him, make sure he actually understands all of it.
[X][Conversation] Talk with Rider in an attempt to determine how much he knows about magecraft.
[X][Conversation] Compliment Ayano for having been at least marginally useful tonight.
[X][Conversation] Confront Akihiko about how he plans to atone for the way he tried to murder you.
[X][Conversation] Don't bother with conversation.
[X][Conversation] Write in

[X][Leaving] Leave the temple peacefully and head home for the night.
[X][Leaving] Leave the temple peacefully and go to the church to inform the supervisor, now that you have a better idea of what's going on.
[X][Leaving] Don't leave peacefully and instead allow Ida to kill Caster. Even in the case that he manages to escape, you would at least gain an opportunity to follow him to his Master's location.

 

[Edgedancer]

Spoiler: Winning Vote

[X][Avenger] Explain the possible consequences of an Avenger being summoned to the others.
[X][Conversation] Naoki looks terribly confused about everything that has just been explained to him, make sure he actually understands all of it.
[X][Conversation] Confront Akihiko about how he plans to atone for the way he tried to murder you.
[X][Leaving] Leave the temple peacefully and go to the church to inform the supervisor, now that you have a better idea of what's going on.

"None of you understand just how serious this is, do you?" you ask your oblivious entourage with a heavy sigh.

"Don't worry, Elder Sister, I understand," Ida chimes in. She almost jumps to her feet in an attempt to show her support, with only her unwillingness to let go of Naoki without your permission holding her back. Instead she settles on raising her hand.

"What's there to understand? Not knowing what exactly the Extra Classes' schtick are might be a pain, but in the end it all boils down to murdering the shit out of them," Ayano says.

"No! That's exactly wrong, you brute. I don't care if you want to beat your head against Shielder until one of you breaks, but do not—do not—simply kill Avenger," you tell Ayano.

Ayano, in her highly limited wisdom, simply scoffs in response.

"I'm afraid you'll have to educate us on the matter, Miss Kari," Naoki says.

"Hm, I suppose I can indulge that request when it's coming from one of my students, instead of a Master that falsely thinks they can stand as my equal." You hold out your hand to Ida and she quickly hands you your pair of teacher glasses.

"Okay… what is this about?" Akihiko asks.

"It means you should regret playing truant, young man," you reprimand him. "But the matter of your remedial lessons can wait for now. First the matter at hand, Avenger. It's a wretched thing, born not only from hatred, but from people's desire for a vessel that can receive their hatred in its entirety. Someone that is to blame for all the evils of the world for the sake of a ridiculous charade that lets the people pretend that they themselves are innocent of any wrongdoing. It's a wish as perverted as it is pathetic, yet tenacious enough to even blacken an omnipotent wish granter such as the Grail once Avenger's spirit core is absorbed into it upon his death."

"That sounds less like the description of a Servant class and more like you're talking about one specific Servant," Ayano says.

"They're one and the same in this case, or at least they used to be. The Avenger that could have been summoned into this war should have been an ordinary Servant altered by a vestige of the original Avenger to make them more competent killers. The result should have been both more powerful than Avenger himself and cleansed enough of his influence to not risk tainting the ritual. Naturally, the process is still precarious enough that it should be kept away from the hands of incompetents, which is why it was tied to a catalyst held by the Einzbern. Then somebody came along and figured it would be a good idea to lift the various restrictions on which Servants can be summoned."

"The alterations I made to the Grail weren't that far reaching," Akihiko says, unwilling to meet your eyes.

"Is that so? Then what happened? The flaw certainly wasn't in the original set up."

"How appropriate given the topic at hand," Caster mutters. When you turn to him, he simply carries on without giving you a chance to acknowledge his statement. "Being quite honest, I confess to being curious how you've learned about this Avenger in the first place."

"Research, of course. We Einzbern didn't just sit idly by waiting until this war, we used the smaller wars to prepare."

"That doesn't tell us what actually happened though," Lancer says. "There has to be a story, if this 'blackening' is such a big deal."

"There isn't much of a story to be told," you say and wave him off.

"Oh come on teach, I'm sure your family's exploits can teach us something," Ayano says with an oddly wide grin. Maybe she has finally come around to being in your good graces? If so, her lack of practice shows.

"I suppose there's no harm in telling you. The substitute war in question took place in Kyoto. It was a relatively small event conducted between us Einzbern, a representative of the Clock Tower and the magus designated as the second owner of the area. What my family attempted to summon was Angra Mainyu, a proper god. The Avenger that appeared before them instead was merely a martyr that had been hollowed out by all the suffering inflicted upon him, utterly useless as a Servant. He was instantly defeated by the Servant of the Clock Tower Master. I don't know whether he or the second owner won, but neither of them ultimately survived the materialization of the Grail. Whatever wish was made to the Grail, Avenger's corruption had twisted it so that all it produced was misery and destruction."

"And you simply unleashed something that dangerous in Kyoto?" Caster asks. He's hiding his expression between his shaku, but he's failing to properly veil the anger in his voice.

"No need to be concerned, your shrine wasn't damaged. With only two Servants having been sacrificed, the destruction was mostly limited to the workshop of the second owner. In fact, when ruins were dissected to salvage as much of his research as possible, they found traces of him having experimented with demonic possession and similar distasteful practices. Honestly, if you care about the city, you should thank us Einzberns for ridding it of such a menace."

"I'll do no such thing," Caster says. How ungrateful.

"Wait," Naoki interjects. "Does that mean he was experimenting on, you know, people? They didn't get killed in the destruction, did they?"

"Hm? Only the bodies of the two Masters were recovered, so if he had permanent test subjects, he likely disposed of them before the war started. Anyway, what you should be worried about is how disastrous the scale of destruction will be this time, if the Grail gets corrupted. With a dozen of spirit cores as kindling, I doubt the damage will be limited to Fuyuki."

"Can we just shut the Grail down before it has any chance of absorbing Avenger?"

Everyone turns to look at Naoki. With a question that outlandish, you can't even blame them for not paying attention to you.

"It's worth considering, I suppose," Akihiko mutters.

"No! It's not! Why would you even entertain such a ridiculous notion?" you admonish Akihiko. "The second greatest wonder of modern magi just returned to us, and you want to give up on it simply because you lack the confidence in safely detaining one aberrant?"

"She's right, you know?" Lancer says. "I do admire how you're concerned about other people's safety, Master, but ultimately that's quitter talk. Once a hero sets their eyes on a goal they never back down, come what may. Everything else is just an obstacle to burst through."

"That and once people figure out you ruined their chance to obtain the Grail, there'll be more angry magi out for your head than I want to think about," Mara adds. It goes without saying that you and Ida would be amongst them.

Naoki takes a long look at his two partners, who have returned to being voices of reason, then sighs. Having given up on his foolish idea he turns towards salvation. "Alright then, what's the plan, Kari?"

"Ah, well, there's two problems. The first is locating Avenger and the second is safely removing them from the war. I could perfectly take care of both, however, given the urgency of the matter, I'm willing to hand the responsibility over to Caster."

He looks to his Master for approval. This time, Akihiko does not bother to resist you. "It's close enough to why I summoned you in the first place."

"In that case I shall prioritize Avenger over our other quarry. I expect finding them will take me a day or two."

"Good," Akihiko says, turning back to you. "Caster will divine Avenger's location and exorcise whatever corruption may be present, but I hope you will at least help when it comes to actually capturing Avenger."

"Naturally. Just because you have your uses doesn't mean I'm comfortable leaving the matter entirely in your hands."

"I would expect more thanks, even from somebody like you," Akihiko says.

"Let us be clear, both of us are acting in our own best interest. Even if I normally would be generous enough to give praise for even that bare minimum of competence, you deserve nothing but scorn until you've made amends for attempting to end my glorious life."

"You can't expect you opponents to go easy on you, after you've knowingly joined the Holy Grail War," Akihiko offers as a petulant excuse.

"All I expect is you offering me the respect I deserve. It's not my fault that my greatness leaves prostrating yourself at my feet as you only moral choice."

"I don't even… Naoki, tell her she's being ridiculous."

"Sorry man, but I can't really take your side on murder being okay, even if it's some traditional wizard deathmatch. Seriously, just apologize and stop trying to murder each other."

Akihiko appears surprised at his vehement refusal to stand against you, as if whatever friendship they may have should mean anything in the face of his adoration for you. You on the other hand are simply happy for Naoki. Being able to stand up what is right—meaning you—even against social pressure is important for attaining true happiness in the form of your approval.

"Don't worry," Ida says. "I understand why you'd want to kill the Masters. It's just, no offense, but my elder sister is too good for you. I think it would be healthier for you to settle for a slightly less gorgeous woman that'd be much more receptive to your advances." At least she would always have a use for Akihiko, even once he becomes useless to you.

"Ida, I don't think that's appropriate right now," Naoki says.

"What do you-" Ida's eyes widen and she tightens her grip on Naoki. "Are you jealous? Because you shouldn't be jealous. That only hurts a relationship."

"Don't worry, I'm not jealous." Naoki soothingly pats your sister's head. "It's only that we wouldn't want embarrassment to distract Akihiko from his conversation with Kari, would we?"

"Of course not," Ida says softly while leaning into Naoki's hand. "I'm sorry Akihiko, we can talk more later."

"I'm afraid we will, yes." Akihiko turns back to you, like one would turn to the guillotine. "Karisviel, I admit that luring you into the range of Archer's Noble Phantasm was wrong and I apologize. For the sake of smooth cooperation, I hope you can accept that."

"Obviously not. That 'apology' was blatantly for the sake of Naoki and not myself, you didn't even bother with a modicum of artistic effort like bowing before me. What do you call it here in Japan again, a dogeza? Save your apologies until they're sincere. However, as long as you're useful in some regard, you don't need to worry about losing my aid. I am nothing if not practical."

"Master, I am afraid this is the best you can hope for," Caster says. "Any further effort would simply lead to disgrace."

"Right," he agrees. "Ayano, can we count on you when it comes to Avenger?"

"I guess," she says with a shrug. "This town isn't quite bad enough that I'd want it all to burn down. Anyway, looks like you two aren't going to rip each other's throats out tonight, so I'm gonna bounce."

"Just one thing," you say, earning you a raised eyebrow from Ayano. "I think you deserve some praise for your work with the Grail, you were an adequate assistant to me. That's more than I would expect from an average magus."

"Gee, I'm honored, teach. To think you'd lavish that much praise on a delinquent like me," Ayano says. She isn't exactly putting the amount of enthusiasm that you'd expect into her voice, but at least she's showing some gratuity for receiving your praise.

"We talked about this in class, remember? As your teacher, it's only natural that I would give you positive reinforcement. It's only the likes of Akihiko that have relinquished this privilege and your behaviour has not been nearly as lacking as his."

Ayano responds with a scoff that explodes into a burst of laughter. "Screw you too." While she seems content with letting that rude outburst stand as the end of your conversation and simply leaves, Rider at least has the decency to apologize for his Master's behaviour, before following her out of the cave.

Your hope that her attitude was improving leaves along with them. With a sigh, you turn to the pair of students that's at least willing to learn. "Do you still have any questions before we leave?"

"Some, although I think I at least got the gist of it. So, why specifically does a place have a second owner?" Naoki asks.

"That's because they're ultimately only managing the land for the mage's association. I'm sure your Tohsaka friend can tell you about the tedious details of the process, as his family is in charge of the local land."

"I see, I'll be sure to ask him later," Naoki says and looks over to Akihiko.

"Honestly, I don't think that's a good idea," he says. "Having you know about magecraft at all is already against the rules. Having you dig any deeper into our world is basically asking for the association to remove you."

"So basically they're another problem to be dealt with after we've won this war?" Lancer asks jovially, almost eager to have another quest lined up for himself.

The thought of him rampaging through the moonlit world certainly seems enough to make Akihiko tense up.

"Don't you think we should focus on the Grail War right now?" Naoki asks, showing no trace of being concerned by either the possibility of the association coming after him, nor that Lancer might needlessly drag him into that fight.

"You're not wrong Master, but you shouldn't ignore risks to your safety either," Lancer says. Judging by his sound of voice, you're quite certain that he's pouting under his helmet.

"One thing after another," Naoki says. "And right now we're in class, right?"

"True, but I hope none of you are insolent enough to think that a bit of knowledge will allow you to compete with me on equal footing?" you ask.

"Well, we can't really expect Lancer to bend his knee without giving him a chance to fight first, you know?" Mara says. She brings her hands together and lowers her head slightly. "Please indulge him for now."

You sigh at what basically amounts to a request to discipline their Servant for them and wave the matter away to be dealt with later. "I will grant that request. Now ask me your remaining questions, so that I can display my brilliance in hopes that it can illuminate your Servant's current ignorance."

"Right," Naoki says. "So, how are there even extra classes in the first place?"

"Classes act as vessels to hold a certain aspects of a Heroic Spirit. As there's no real limit on what aspects Heroic Spirits can have, there's technically an unlimited potential for classes. Although we've only been able to distill thirteen of them," you explain. "The seven standard classes are used as the default, because they're both versatile enough to allow most Heroic Spirits to fit into one of them and specifically designed for combat. They are however not the only aspects there are to Heroic Spirits. Some classes are rather similar in their conditions to the standard classes, if only designed for aspects that few heroes are properly tied to, like Shielder or Gunner. Others are meant for much more specific purposes, like Ruler. Then you get abominations like Avenger, that are simply too other to be contained in any class not meant for them."

"I see. Hm, if the standard classes are already the best suited for combat, why bother trying to summon any of the other ones?" Naoki asks.

"My family intended to gather every imaginable advantage in preparation for this war, even if it's only an element of surprise in having a non standard Servant class."

"I don't see a gimmick like that mattering much when compared to the raw quality of the Heroic Spirit summoned" Lancer says.

"I'm inclined to agree," you say. "I certainly don't need tricks like that and luckily they saw reason at the end and simply left the matter in the hands of myself and Idasviel. Not that I particularly blame them for accounting for the other classes when they were already working on repairing the Grail."

"About that," Mara says, excitement bleeding into her voice. "How did that damage happen in the first place? There had to have been more than just an attempt to steal it."

That… is a rather unfortunate question.

Before you can think of an appropriate answer, Ida speaks up. "All I know is that definitely nobody tried to eat it."

"...what is that supposed to mean?" Naoki asks.

"It means nobody tried to eat the Grail, because that's what didn't happen," you say, going with Ida's earnest attempt at deflecting the topic. "Really, it was an unfortunate clash of Noble Phantasm, one of which fundamentally disrupts magic. I have absolutely nothing more to tell you on the matter."

"Eh, you at least have to be able to tell us which Heroic Spirits were involved," Mara complains.

"I could, but I don't see how that is relevant to this war specifically."

"You know, I always assumed the Einzbern were the one that were at fault, but it's good to have confirmation," Akihiko says.

"That only goes to show how ignorant you are," you say. It was everyone else's fault for forcing your family to compete in earnest. "Anyway, if none of you have anymore questions related to the current Grail War, I think it is time to end class."

Naoki starts to say something, but falls silent again when his eyes fall on Akihiko. Mara shoots him a questioning look, but he only shrugs in response.

Unwilling to wait much longer to see if they'll break their silence, you take off your glasses, hand them to Ida and tell them to follow you as you leave. Ida reliably follows you as soon as she has the glasses stored away, giving Naoki no other option but to be dragged along with her. Not that you think any of them would refuse to follow you if given the chance, but if there's only one right answer, why even bother letting them choose?

Finding the way back is easy enough, even without Caster guiding you. It's only when you reach the bottom of the stairs leading you back down the mountain and out of Caster's territory that you order Ida to let go of Naoki.

She obeys, skipping away from Naoki and back to your side. "Goodbye Naoki," she says. "I don't like having to let go of you, but my elder sister's wishes come first and there's nowhere I'd rather be than by her side. I hope we meet again soon, so that we can be with her together. Of course the same goes for you too, Mara and Lancer."

"Actually," Naoki says, sounding unsure. "I think I do have another question after all."

"Oh? Has the desperation of not wanting to let us go given you inspiration?" you ask. "By all rights, the time for you to ask questions has passed when we left the cave, but I realize that having to part ways from me, even temporarily, is cruel enough. I shall grant you the time for a final question."

"Have you ever considered that somebody else might need the Grail more than you? Not deserve it more, obviously. Just, you know, that someone could be miserable enough that you should let them have the wish anyway?"

"Rejected!" Ida yells at him. "I need my wish to bring back Elder Sister after she becomes the Grail. Nothing could be more important than that."

Naoki rapidly blinks at you a couple of times, until he finally process what Ida said enough to ask a simple question. "What?"

"It's nothing you need to concern yourself with," you say with a wave of your hand. "Me attaining victory is inevitable, so naturally I won't perish. If there's anyone's wellbeing you have to worry about, it's your own. At least, I assume you wouldn't have breached the topic, unless you have discovered a reason to beg me for salvation?"

"No… no, I'm fine. You don't have to worry about me." Naoki may say that, but judging by the way he lets his head hang like a tree whose roots have rotted away, you doubt he's telling the truth.

In contrast, Mara seems almost cheerful, as she grabs his shoulders. "Come on, no need to get depressed already. I'm sure that we'll find a way to manage, in case we actually have a moral quandary on our hands."

"Right," Naoki says with a forced chuckle. "Maybe I let all that talk about Avenger get to me too much."

"That's all the more reason to get you home," Mara says and guides Naoki away from you. "Good night, you two."

You return her farewells and notice that Lancer is still staying back and looking at you. "Hm, are you entranced by my beauty, Lancer?"

"Not quite," he says. "I simply didn't expect to find many Masters quite this willing to put their lives on the line. It does make you shine more brightly, so it's a shame I'll have to snuff you out." With those words, Lancer turns to skip after his Master and dematerializes.

"The arrogance to think he poses a risk to my life. Can you believe it, Ida?" you ask.

"Don't blame him too hard, Elder Sister. I'm sure he's just in denial after falling heads over heels for you."

"Ah, yes. I suppose it was inevitable that my endless allure would lead our competition astray, not that it makes fighting me any more acceptable. I'll leave teaching Lancer the proper way of holding affection for me to you."

"It'd be my honor, Elder Sister. I'll carve the ways of love into Lancer's flesh until the pain burns everything else out of his mind," Ida looks up at you with her fist clenched and passion and dedication burning equally in her eyes.

"I have no doubt that I can rely on you," you say and pet her head. "Now come, different from Naoki's group, we still have something to do tonight. I want you to drive me to the church."

"Of course, Elder Sister. I'm sure the overseer is excited to finally get the honor of meeting you in person. "

Agreeing with your sister, you walk back to the car and set off towards your destination. Being quite truthful, you're curious to see if somebody that dedicated their life to the act of worship can do you justice.

Spoiler: Author's Note

Splitting the update here, both because IRL stuff took up even more of my time than I thought it would and because this segment ended up pretty long on its own. That means no choice this time around, but I figured showing another sign of life for the Quest is more important.

 

[Edgedancer]

The trip to the church requires you to cross the entire city, making it as long as it is eventless. Your investigation of the Greater Grail and subsequent lecture were likely long enough that all the other Masters and Servants have already retreated for the night. A decision you can certainly empathize with. However, different from the common people, you still have an important task to complete. You'll have to deprive your bed of the honor of letting you rest on it for a little while longer.

When Ida finally parks your car next to the church, you take a quick moment to inspect it. By the standards of this town, it's a rather tall and elaborate building standing on top of the hill that overlooks the southwestern suburb of Shinto. Whoever built it must have wanted it to lord over the neighborhood in location as well as stature. Or maybe it is simply meant as a show of force for the Holy Grail War, given that it was constructed on top of one of the locations suitable to summoning the Holy Grail.

Regardless of what the intention behind the church's construction had been, it fails to elicit the desired reverence from you. Even when counting the height of its spire, it isn't even as tall as the small castle you're using as your base here in Fuyuki and comparing it to the vast expanses of the Einzbern Castle back in Germany would be utterly comical. Not that you're one to complain, it's only proper that the home that had sheltered you until now would be more impressive than the house of God.

In the time you considered the church, Ida has already moved over to the gate of the church and pushed it open for you. You follow her and make sure to praise her for her thoughtfulness. Overjoyed, she rushes over to the chapel proper and holds up its door as well. When you approach her, she offers her head to be graced by your silken touch.

It's a testament to how sublime your headpats are, that your sister takes more joy in being pampered by you, than you do in seeing her smile lit up with a brilliance that transcends the glimmer of all the world's riches. The world won't be a just place until everyone around you constantly smiles like that.

Moving into the chapel, you find it empty. It appears that the overseer, unaware that today is the day they finally get their chance to meet you in the flesh, has already retreated for the night. You signal for Ida to obliterate their ignorance, so that they might join in the light of your brilliance.

"Rejoice!" Ida screams towards the back of the church. "Karisviel von Einzbern, the personification of all that is good and beautiful in the world, has arrived. Not only will meeting her be more glorious than anything you have ever experienced before, but she also bears information relevant to your duty as the supervisor of the Holy Grail War. Truly you are blessed with great fortune. Now-"

"I shall be with you right away," someone calls out in a voice that's smooth, yet intent enough to subdue Ida's excitement. Shortly afterwards, the overseer emerges from a door behind the altar. She's a woman of great stature and presence and considers the two of you with a gentle smile that shows no sign of weariness despite the early morning hours. The brightness of her expression is framed by ink black hair that loosely falls on her shoulders, where it stands out like fine lines on the pure white collar of her otherwise dark robes. There's a grace in her step, as she approaches you, that Ida can't help but stare at mesmerized. You'd think that she's too used for your presence for anyone else to have that kind of effect on her.

"Welcome. As I'm sure you have already guessed, I am the church's overseer, Eliza Kotomine. It's a pleasure to finally meet you in person," she says. She glances between the two of you before finally settling on you. "I take it that you're the Einzbern Master?"

"Indeed. It's good to know that the overseer can discern the obvious when it's right in front of them," you say.

"And your Servant would be?"

"My class is Lancer," Ida says and holds out a hand to the nun. By now she has developed a prominent blush. "My name is Idasviel von Einzbern, but you can call me Ida, or Darling, or whatever you want."

"I see…" Kotomine hesitantly grabs Ida's hand and scrutinizes her again. "I don't mean to insult you, but you don't seem like what I'd expect from a Heroic Spirit."

"That's because I'm only hosting one, so that I can be of more use to my elder sister. If anything, Elder Sister is the one that should be enshrined as a Heroic Spirit by human worship. Oh no, Elder Sister, do you think you could have summoned yourself? I'm not holding you back, am I?" Ida finally lets go of Kotomine and returned her full attention to you.

"Don't worry," you say. "You are, without a doubt, my ideal Servant. If it was possible, summoning myself might have been the winning move, but some things are simply not meant to be. After all, once the war is over, the Throne of Heroes will not get an opportunity to claim my soul."

"What an unusual pair," Kotomine says with her head cocked. "But then that's what I've expected from this position. At least it isn't endangering the secrecy of the war and you're upfront about it."

You hum in approval. Finally somebody knowledgeable that understands they shouldn't question you or the existence of your sister. Maybe Ida was merely that taken with her, because she could identify her as a fellow admirer of your person.

"Regardless, you've come to me for official business, haven't you? A request from you is a special occasion, given that my protection would be useless for the Master that has already been designated as a sacrifice before the first Servant was even summoned, so go ahead. I can hardly take a side, but I'll do what I can to help you."

"Kufufu. Thinking of me as a sacrifice, o ye of little faith?" You strike a magnificent pose by placing one hand on your chest and spreading out the other. You're willing to forgive that blasphemous underestimation of your person, as long as she recognizes this opportunity to marvel at your greatness.

Kotomine laughs. It's a bright and gentle sound, that she barely contains by holding a hand in front of her mouth. Seeing her softly shake with amusement, you can't help but think of an angel throwing themself into hell to escape salvation.

"I'm sorry, Miss Einzbern, but I don't think you should speak like that. It makes you sound.. well I suppose you are a heretic, but that's not something to take pride in."

"Tsk, just when I was starting to believe in your potential, you prove that you've been blinded by your faith," you say. "I can only hope that you're less of a disappointment as an overseer than you're as a human being."

Eliza attempts to say something, but before she can utter any shameful excuses, Ida rushes forward and silences her by putting a finger over her mouth. With the amount of strength she puts into the gesture, the nun is forced to take a step back.

"You should already be ashamed for dedicating yourself to anyone but my sister, but disrespecting her to any degree is unacceptable. Unless you plan to rectify that right this instance, all you should concern yourself with is redeeming yourself by being as helpful to her in your role as the overseer as you can be," Ida says deadly serious. Then she skips away from Kotomine and starts smiling again. "Maybe if you're useful enough, you can get my elder sister to approve of us spending time together. There's only so much we can do, given your position, but I'm sure we could simply enjoy each other's company."

Eliza straightens herself, appearing as calm as an untouched snowfield, even after having been stared down by your sister. "I assure you that I need no external motivation to perform my duty. Please, go ahead and state your business."

You signal for Ida to explain and she eagerly recaps your relevant discoveries. Ultimately she concludes with how you being unable to simply kill Avenger as you please is proof that they're a wretched evil that needs to be cleansed, so the power of love can bring them down.

"It appears this war truly is unfortunate," Eliza absently mutters, while processing the new information.

"Indeed," you confirm. "I hope we can at least count on you to organize the other Masters assisting us in safely eliminating Avenger."

"Of course, I imagine none of them would want for the Grail to be corrupted," Eliza says. "However, that does bring us to another problem I have been suspecting. I will not be able to contact all of the other Masters. Only seven of them actually contacted me in any way and while the second Master claiming to have summoned Saber could be blamed on… their particular oddities, I also had another Master claim to have summoned Rider just earlier this night. At least now I have confirmation of what is going on, before taking action."

"Oh? Do tell what you are planning to do," you say

"It's easy, isn't it?" she answers. "Normally, I would be satisfied with the Masters establishing minimum contact until they require my services. If they cannot be trusted to do so on their own, I'll have to insist on them letting me verify their Servant in person. For those that fail to do so, a penalty is in order. Given the misdemeanor in question, it only seems fair to publicise all information about the Master and their Servants that is brought to me by another Master."

"That seems like an excellent way for somebody to spread misinformation, especially if they're allied with one of the Masters still hiding their identity."

"There is no need for you to worry about that," the nun says with a smile that is filled with confidence that you can only hope isn't born from arrogance. "I have already considered this, especially seeing how there naturally needs to be an incentive for the rules abiding Masters to cooperate and there isn't much of value I can offer in exchange for sufficient information besides Command Seals."

That does get your attention. You don't need any advantages besides your inherent perfection, but that doesn't mean they wouldn't be convenient. Even more so given that you're using your original three seals to suppress Brynhildr's mind for Ida. Having additional Command Seals means you could use them to strengthen Ida without the possibility of letting that control slip.

"You do not yet know anything about the second Lancer and their master, correct?" you ask. From the duplicate Servants she listed, you imagine that with everything going on Naoki did not find the time to contact Kotomine, or maybe Mara had simply failed to present the matter as particularly important to him.

"Correct. However, the other Masters should at least get a chance to react after the announcement has been made, so you will have to wait until tomorrow to sell them out."

That's fair enough. It's not like you're a heartless monster that would betray Naoki within a single heartbeat, even if you're confident that he would not mind having his home address openly published for your sake. And if he does, he's a thankless scoundrel and his opinion doesn't matter. Meaning you're fully in your right to sell him out either way and it's an act of mercy for you to do otherwise.

"If you are paying for information now, do you at least intend to reward me for bringing Avenger to your attention?" you ask.

"Miss Einzbern, you've been very clear that you want Avenger dealt with for your own sake. Do you expect other people to compensate you for being allowed to aid you?"

"...Yes?" a confused Ida answers in response to the Overseer's painfully obvious question. "After all, being allowed to serve my elder sister means that your life has finally been given meaning and nothing you do will ever be enough to adequately repay her."

"I assure you that I have already found meaning in my life," the nun claims, still ignorant to the truth standing in front of her. "Regardless, given that your investigation of the Grail seems to have been a collaboration between several Masters, I see no reason to reward you in particular."

"The idea that any of them contributed enough to deserve any of my credit is preposterous!" you say. You expel your frustration with a heavy sigh. "Forget it. My time is too valuable to waste it all on a doomed attempt to open a fanatic's eyes. However, you should take care not to withhold me what I'm due in the future. Let's go, Ida."

"I'm a woman of my word, should you inform me about one of the furtive Masters, you will be rewarded. Before you go, I do have one more question for you."

"What is it?"

"What is your wish?" Eliza asks.

"Yet another obvious question. I'd imagine someone in your position would know about the Einzbern's ambition to reclaim the third magic. The Cup of Heaven that can materialize souls and grant true immortality."

"That's merely you following the path set out for you, isn't it? What I want to know is, if you have a desire of your own, something that distinguishes you from a mere automaton."

"Hm, an interest in my person is more reasonable, but it still displays your lack of perspective. Once I attain the third magic, I fully intend to do the obvious and use it as I see fit."

"You… plan to have humanity transcend their mortality?" Eliza asks. You have to admit, it feels good to see her stunned by the dawning realisation of your miraculous splendor.

Still.

What a naive conclusion.

Your displeasure is mirrored by the heart wrenching screech of shock and sadness that escapes Ida. "My elder sister would never do something that… that unromantic. Never!"

"Of course not," you say and run a calming hand through her hair. "For as long as humanity has existed, there have been the few exceptional individuals that have strived for immortality. The heroes that, starting with the very first one, have to accept the inevitability of their death and the antagonists that cling to their lives in vain only for them to rot away and perish. And it's only proper that they were all fated for failure. Eternal life isn't a commodity to be peddled to any mongrel that desires it. It is meant only for individuals so virtuous and perfect that they'll never cease to improve the world with their presence, which is to say, me and the rare few I deem worthy to keep me company."

"Does that include me, Elder Sister?" Ida asks.

"Naturally, there is nobody I'd rather have by my side. Mel as well." You would not suffer through her leaving you too, even if you would not be able to bring back-

Ida throws herself at you in an excited hug, banishing the drab thoughts staining your thoughts. "Thank you, Elder Sister! I can think of no greater blessing for both the world and myself."

"Indeed. I shall become an eternal goddess for all of humanity to idolize. The ultimate ideal for everybody to aspire towards, so that one day they might earn their salvation and join me in utopia."

Again the nun laughs, this time her voice has a frantic energy to it. You'll permit it under the assumption that hysteria is overshadowing the awe that your revelation should have inspired in her.

"I see. I see," Eliza manages to say in between attempts to regain control of her laboured breathing. "I can hardly give my blessing to a wish like that, but it does more than suffice to acknowledge you as your own master. Go forth, prideful heretic, and I shall pray for your salvation."

"How pointless, I am salvation," you say. "For your own sake, I hope that you'll come to embrace that simple fact." This time she does not stop you and Ida from leaving and instead contends herself with seeing you off to your long overdue good night's sleep.

As you leave the church grounds, you consider leaving a message for Assassin.

[X] Write in a message for Assassin.

Interlude select:
[X] The True Heroine's midnight banquet of temporary alliances(Inevitable Betrayal)
[X] Naoki at Work
[X] State of the Matou household
[X] Sigmund's first night out.

 

[Edgedancer]

Spoiler: Winning Vote

[X] State of the Matou household

When Ayano finally arrived home after the meeting at the ice cream parlor, she simply tossed her bag down next to her shoes. No way was she going to bother putting it away properly after just having had to deal with the Einzbern diva and her creep of a sister. It's not like anybody's home to hold a lecture about it anyway.

Without bothering to announce her presence, she walked towards the kitchen.

"Welcome back, Master." Rider's awfully cheerful greeting came before she could make it out of the hallway. Meaning her path was blocked by Rider materializing, as he stepped through the wall hiding the staircase leading to the basement. "With how long it took you to come home, I have been worried you decided to attend your archery practice after all."

"I ran into another Master at school," she said, brushing past Rider and bumping against his shoulder. She did her best to ignore the writhing of the worms burrowed under his skin.

Rider himself on the other hand didn't seem to mind at all, keeping the same overly familiar smile plastered on his face. "Ah, so did the Tohsakas survive last night after all?"

"Nah… well, yes. The suckers just didn't show up to school. The Einzbern Master showed up and decided to pull some kind of weird power play—by dressing up as a teacher—before pulling me aside to ask for my help in the most arrogant way possible."

"I take it that you didn't decide to work with them?" The disappointment in Rider's voice made it more of a judgement than a question.

"Oh, fuck off, or I'm going to break off the alliance just to spite you," she growled at him.

"That's great news, Master," said Rider, utterly refusing to acknowledge that he pissed her off. "What convinced you to work with them after all?"

Ayano side eyed her Servant, but decided there's little point trying to keep him in the dark. "A friend of mine also got dragged into being a Master and is too nice to tell her to stuff it. I'm mostly indulging him by going along with their little alliance for now."

"I see. Having to fight one of your friends would be a shame, but at least he appears to be a good influence for now. I profess to be curious what a friend of yours is like."

"You're in luck then." She had reached the kitchen by now, so she headed over to the fridge in search of something more filling than ice cream. "We're meeting up tonight to poke around the Greater Grail. Turns out that people fucked around with it too much and we're better off knowing just how much the war's broken as a result."

"That does indeed sound like a rather intriguing evening and I'm in no hurry to rush into combat. I take it that you won't stay at home today either?"

She only acknowledge that question with a grunt. More importantly, she spotted some ground beef that ought to be eaten today. Some burgers didn't sound that bad right about now.

"Master, how about you leave the cooking to me?" Rider offers.

"I'm not letting you anyway near my food, while you still have the worms inside of you."

"Ah yes, I forgot about that." Rider tapped against his bare chest and softly murmured a command, before shaking his arm out back towards the hallway.

The crest worms obeyed, digging their way out of his body without delay. She could have done without the sight of Rider's body being ripped open by the bloody maggots. The bulging of his skin that outlined the parasites violating his body. The moment they tore his skin open. The wet sound of broken flesh and scattered blood. All of that made her grimace in distaste.

It was seeing the worms themselves that made her feel nauseous.

Their mouths—filled with razor teeth that marked them as creatures more vicious than any actual worms could be—snapped at the air in an attempt to lap up as much blood as possible on their way out. Once free, wings stretched out from under their slick skin and started vibrating rapidly to hold them in the air. The swarm—two dozen of them, each twice the size of her thumb—hang in the air for a moment, filling the room with a noxious buzz. It gave her too much time to consider how much space they would take up inside a human body. Then they left the room, flying off towards the pathway on the second floor.

That's what the legacy of the Matou family looked like, a pit full of vicious parasites that devour their host's body and sanity, so that they can take the place of the nerves they destroyed and remold their victim into whatever their true master desired.

The one that created them was Zouken Makiri, a man that, instead of teaching his descendants, would simply torture them until their bodies had been turned into obedient breeding stocks for his ambitions of immortality.

It had taken five hundred years too long, but during the Third Holy Grail War his already decaying soul had been finally obliterated. A shame that even free from Zouken's grasp, the Matous kept clinging to the knowledge that had been carved into the worms.

When the Edelfelts acquired the remains of the Matou, they too made the typical magus decision of keeping the worms, to wring as much knowledge out of their new property as possible. At least her mother had abolished the practice of using the worms to train the family heirs. Not that it stopped a fine lady like her from pushing the task of handling them unto her daughter the moment she had deemed her old enough to slit the throat of the pet rabbit they made her raise and throw it's still warm carcass to the worms.

Despite that lovely start, Ayano had only grown more disgusted by the worms over the years.

"They're quite the fascinating creatures, aren't they?" Rider said, his constant smile slipping for once, as his expression grew wistful.

"Like hell," Ayano scoffed. "If anything, they're repulsive."

"Now now, Master, there's no need to be that harsh on the little buggers," he said, while walking over to the nearby kitchen sink and washing away the blood staining his already healed chest. "They might not live up to my own work, but then you're also not applying them to their full potential, are you? It's a shame I won't get a chance to talk with this Zouken fellow. I'm sure we could have had a stimulating exchange of ideas. Oh, but don't worry, Master, I don't mean to imply that I'm dissatisfied with you."

"Right, I'm touched," Ayano said in a monotone and tossed the meat onto a nearby kitchen counter. "Let's hope you have better taste when it comes to food than conversation partners."

Ignoring her Servant's assurance, she walked over to the living room and plopped down on the antique couch. She pulled out her mobile phone and turned it on, finding a missed call from Chiyo. The archery practice should have just finished, so Ayano called her back.

"Hey, Yanyan, how's it going?" Chiyo's bright voice greets her after only a couple of seconds.

"Eh, good enough. Some stuff came up though, so sorry for ditching practice on such a short notice." Ayano had fully intended to ignore Rider's demand for her to head home immediately after class and attend practice anyway. The fact that she ended up skipping it anyway because of Naoki and the war almost looped back into the amusing. Almost.

"It's fine. I had only gotten worried that you may have gotten shy after sitting through an entire class of mandatory sweet talk."

Ayano couldn't help but laugh at her friend's teasing tone. "Yeah, no need to worry about that. Since when do I ever back down from a challenge?"

"True. I do appreciate how hard you fought back."

"See? More seriously though, I'm probably gonna have to skip practice fairly regularly over the next couple weeks," Ayano said grudgingly.

"Shame. I hope nothing serious came up?"

"Meh, my parents decided that me having to take care of a relative that's staying over was a good excuse to ditch me, while they went on their vacations." That wasn't exactly the truth, but she could hardly tell her about Rider and lying about her involvement in the moonlight world barely registered as anything more than a necessity anymore anyway.

"Did I ever tell you your parents suck?"

"Not often enough, they'd even agree with you about each other. That's why mom is visiting her family in Finland and dad took a trip to the Philippines."

"Geez. Is the relative staying with you at least not horrible?"

Ayano made her opinion clear with a derisive snort. "Let's say I'm not the biggest fan of my uncle."

"Yeah, that figures. Anything I can help with?"

"Nah. He's a patronizing prick, but nothing I can't handle. Probably best if you pass on to the club to stay away from my family's side houses for a while though. I already got enough on my hand without having to bother cleaning up after another party or something."

"Sure. It's not like anyone wants to cause you extra trouble."

"Or deal with me chewing them out afterwards," Ayano added jokingly.

"Pfft, right. Anyway, make sure to tell me, if your uncle ends up causing you too much trouble. Worst case we can drum the club into action."

"And riddle him with arrows?"

"Sounds like a plan to me," Chiyo said with a slight giggle.

Ayano figured it'd be best to omit that it might become a serious consideration for her. Of course, using Rider for target practice would be useless at best, even though he wasn't a crazy masochist like Idasviel. Still, there had to be someone in this war that's satisfying to punch.

For now however, she decided to simply unwind by chatting some more with Chiyo. Most of it revolved around what Ayano had missed at practice and the weird new teacher. Ayano couldn't tell her friend all she knew about Karisviel, but man was it good to get a chance to vent about her at all.

"She didn't strike me as that bad," Chiyo eventually said after Ayano had finished her rant.

"You're too nice," Ayano stated simply.

"Come on now, you had fun during the lesson too, right?"

"After she left the room."

"That doesn't mean it wasn't a fun idea," Chiyo said.

"Neither does that make it a good lesson."

"It was her introduction class. You should at least wait until our next lesson with her before you judge her."

"What?" Ayano asked flatly.

"I mean, they're not just going to have a foreign teacher show up for one day and then send her back to Germany, right?"

Ayano took a moment to process what her friend said. She had simply assumed that the Einzberns crashing their class was a one time thing for the sake of the war. Having to deal with them showing up over and over again was something she had pointedly ignored.

Her silence was interrupted by a cough, not from Chiyo, but from Rider standing in the doorway. Instead of his mantle, he's now wearing a plain apron that's at least fully covering up his chest. Once he had her attention, he gave her a wave towards the dining room.

"And on that cheerful note," Ayano said to Chiyo, "I have to go. Seems like dinner's ready."

"Sure, no problem. See you tomorrow in class then."

With that, Ayano ended the call, stood up and walked over to Rider.

"I'm sorry about interrupting your conversation," Rider said.

"Not much you can do about the food being ready," Ayano curtly responds as she walked past him.

Rider seemed to light up at the fact that she didn't bitch at him, which implies a rather low opinion about how reasonable he considers her usual attitude. Right, it's not like all that noise coming out of her mouth could ever mean he's doing anything wrong.

"That may be, but I wouldn't want you to get the impression I'm stealing you away from your friend."

Ayano only shrugged in response. Once in the dining room, she was relieved to see only two plates on the table. The ground beef meanwhile has been turned into some kind of meatball dish. At the very least, it smelled good. She took her plate and-

"Come now, Master, at least let us eat together," Rider called out to her the moment she moved to leave the room.

"Fine, but you're not bringing your horse to the table," she said, as she grudgingly sat down at the table.

"Naturally, I simply wanted to make sure the two of you are acquainted with each other. It'll be only us today."

"Right. Let's talk business first then. Did you finish your set up in the basement?"

"It's as complete as it can be. The crest worms are ready and all that's left is for your gems to finish charging. I'm free to move on to the next project and given the attack on the Tohsaka's mansion, it seems like a good idea to prepare the two Edelfelt mansions in town as backups."

"Yeah, probably a good idea," Ayano admitted. Playing things slow wasn't exactly her thing, but it still beat out getting splattered by an enemy Servant several times over. "Talking about contingencies, don't show your hand too much tonight, when we're investigating the Grail."

"That is reasonable enough. Securing my wish is more important than satisfying my curiosity in the Grail's craftsmanship."

"Okay, I'll bite. Why are you trying to get the Grail?"

"I'm afraid my wish is a rather boring one." Despite his words, Rider visibly cheered up upon the conversation turning to more personal topics. "All I want is the same thing everybody wants now and forever. I want to live."

"So I at least won't have to worry about you screwing over the world."

"Not in the slightest. What about you Master, what is your wish?"

Ayano shrugged. "I didn't exactly sign up. I got picked as the representative for my family and I'm not about to turn tail and run."

"Is that so? I was given to understand that the Grail primarily picks magi as Masters that have a strong wish."

"Yeah, but the Grail puts priority on the three families and It's not like I'm going to turn down an all mighty wish granter. I just don't care much for grand scale stuff like reaching the Root. I can figure out the details once I actually have the Grail."

"That does sound like you, Master," Rider says with a chuckle.

"Tsk, as if you'd know."

Their meal continued with Rider doing most of the talking, regardless of how much Ayano actually wanted to listen. She'd really have to find somebody to punch tomorrow.

 

[Edgedancer]

The first step in your morning routine—thanking yourself for being able to partake in your own glory—is unchangeable. However, this morning, the second thing you do upon waking up is reach to your side to pet Idasviel. Even without opening your eyes, you can tell from her content humming that you were right in assuming she would reliably repeat yesterday's admiration of your sleeping form. When you finally do look at her, you're greeted by a smile as bright as the rising sun.

Now that she knows that you're awake, Ida wastes no time telling you just how much your perfection is to thank for that smile. This is making for a very nice addition to your morning routine.

Once your good mornings are exchanged, Ida helps you get dressed and you make sure Mister Schnabel has been fed. Next to the bird figure connected to the enchantment of his feeder, you spot a small book with Ida's name scrawled on it.

"I have started writing a diary," Ida informs you once she notices your questioning look. "I didn't want to risk forgetting even a single moment that we've shared, so I decided to write them all down. And well, given how I haven't yet been allowed to kill anybody, which is absolutely not meant to be a complaint, I may also have written down certain… fantasies to compensate."

You hum curiously and start to page through the diary.

"I'm honored that you're interested in my thoughts, Elder Sister, but I think some of the segments not about you might be too base to expose them to you," Ida mumbles, shyly looking down at her feet.

"Nonsense, you're my beloved sister, you should stop being ashamed of yourself," you say, as you skim over the section detailing your time teaching Naoki's class. It contains several paragraphs of Ida poetically describing Ayano, especially focusing on her toned muscles and the plethora of ways she could beat somebody to death with them.

You put the book down. "I'm frankly impressed you had enough time to write all of this. Are you sure you slept enough tonight?"

"Yes. I did try extracting some knowledge out of Brynhildr, while I was asleep, but I don't think I'll manage to properly connect to her until I've had a chance to fully experience her power in a fight. Once I realized that, I decided to use my night more productively."

"I was more worried about you getting enough sleep."

"Please don't worry about me, Elder Sister. With you nourishing me, I'm always as healthy as I possibly could be. A little bit of sleep won't make a difference."

Satisfied with her answer, you decide it is time for breakfast and lead the way to the dining room, where Mel has already prepared your meal. It's as delicious as expected. What you did not expect is Mel handing you a business card, once you've finished your meal. The card only reads Amna; Grail War Participant in plain letters on a white background.

"Somebody visited the mansion last night and asked for an audience with you," Mel elaborates further. "Given that you were away at the time, she offered to come back later this morning to ask for an appointment. I can relay when you'd be willing to meet her, in case you aren't willing to wait until she arrives, Mistress."

Hm, at least this Amna seems to realize that it is her that ought to wait on you and not the other way around. "I will consider it. Has she clarified, if she is in fact a Master?" you ask, noting the rather vague description given on the card.

"No… I apologize for failing to be more inquisitive," Mel says and lowers her head in apology.

"I suppose it can't be helped that you aren't as attentive as I am," you declare.

"Thank you, Mistress. I will do my best not to disappoint your merciful self the next time a situation like this arises."

"Good. I know that I can rely on you giving it all your effort for my sake, so consider the matter settled." You place a hand on Mel's still lowered head and lift it. The sight of your own gentle smile melts away her frown into a content smile.

Taking a look to the side, you can see Ida smiling as well. However, she remains quiet, seemingly happy to let Mel have your attention for now and tell you how wonderfully you handled this situation later. You suppose you can endure a bit of waiting.

"Regardless," you continue addressing Mel, "is there anything else you want to inform me of?"

"Yes," she answers. "I kept track of the local news, since the Grail War started. While the exact events are secret from the public, there does seem to be a sudden surge in missing person cases. Specifically, over a dozen people have disappeared in just the last two days. There are no apparent similarities between them, be it their gender, age, race, or anything else."

"I see, that is rather concerning," you say. "With those numbers it does appear someone is hunting people to use their souls as sustenance for their Servant. Although I doubt even an ordinary human like Naoki would require quite that many souls simply to maintain their Servant and so far there's nothing indicating major confrontations that would leave them in dire needs to replenish their stores of magical energy."

"Then maybe they're preemptively gathering them as a reserve or in preparation to something," Mel suggests.

"What if they don't need a reason?" Ida asks, finally speaking up. "I'm sure there's plenty of Servants that would simply hunt down humans because it is in their nature. It doesn't have to be all about practical reasons."

"You both have a point. Of course, given the high number of Servants in this war, we might simply have multiple predators on our hand," you say. "Regardless, you did good to bring this to my attention, Mel. I'm proud of your thoughtfulness."

"I'm happy that you're happy. Should I continue following the news?"

"Yes, I'll leave that task to you. That way I can focus on more time sensitive matters."

Which brings you to considering your plans for today. First is the matter of Amna.

[X] Wait here until she arrives. You have no plans this morning, so you might as well resolve this immediately to avoid complications in your schedule.
[X] Tell her to return later in the afternoon. That should give you enough time to take care of another matter first.
[X] Tell her to return tonight. Given Caster's estimate, he won't have Avenger's location until tomorrow at the earliest. That leaves you free of pressing appointments this night.
[X] Frankly, you're not in the mood to meet with her today and your time is too valuable to make room for her. She can come back tomorrow.

Second is the matter of what you plan to do this morning. Of course, that is assuming you leave the house and don't stay here for the meeting with Amna, in which case the topic becomes superfluous.

[X] Return to school. Your students need your guidance and you can use the opportunity to get into contact with Ayano, Naoki and Mara.
[X] Explore the town to see if you can find out anything related to the Holy Grail War.
-[X] Concentrace your search around the high class hotels in Shinto, where you're more likely to come across the Clock Tower Master.
-[X] Wander around without a specific goal
-[X] Write In
[X] Visit the Ryuudou Temple. You trust Caster to complete his work without your help, but you might still be able to use this opportunity to gain some information about the whereabouts of his Master.
[X] Head to the church. Maybe further conversation will make Kotomine see your true greatness after all. Also, you should be able to sell Naoki's private information for Command Seals now, in case you're so inclined. Today is likely the only chance you'll have to do so.
[X] Go to the Monochrome Rainbow concert. As a teacher it is your responsibility to make sure those nefarious idols don't lure away poor innocent students, when they should be paying attention to you instead.
[X] Write In

 

[Edgedancer]

Spoiler: Winning Vote

[X] Return to school. Your students need your guidance and you can use the opportunity to get into contact with Ayano, Naoki and Mara.
[X] Tell her to return later in the afternoon. That should give you enough time to take care of another matter first.

Upon returning to the school, you find that class 3-B does not have any Chemistry lessons on wednesdays. Luckily, your expert knowledge isn't limited to mere chemistry. As such, you're free to teach whatever you want, whenever you want and your diligent students aren't at the mercy of a rigid schedule for when they're allowed to enjoy your lectures.

Today, you decide on taking over their social studies class. It does appear to be the most appropriate venue for finishing what you started last time. By the time you're done with them, these youngsters will be paragons of virtue, envied and loved by everyone that crosses their path. More importantly, they'll know that they have to thank you for bringing them just a fraction closer to your own perfection.

After again disabling their usual teacher to make sure your lesson can proceed without interruption, you and Ida head to the classroom. The reception you receive upon entering the room is… acceptable. The room is just as empty as yesterday, which is a travesty, but at least saves you another batch of students confused at your presence. However, there's no excited cheering from the students that recognize you either, nor do they prostrate themselves before you, but they do quickly return to their seats and seem willing enough to let you start the lesson that you don't feel the need to hypnotize them again.

At least Naoki and Mara seem to have the proper level of joy at seeing you. Naoki especially appears much more enthusiastic, now that he can welcome you as his teacher, without secrets standing between you. This time he joins Mara in welcoming you with a wave. Now, if only they stopped holding back and erupted into the thunderous applause your presence ought to awake in their hearts, you'd have nothing to criticize.

Judging by the fact that you can feel the presence of a Servant in the classroom, you assume the two of them are again accompanied by Lancer.

The only student that seems anything less than pleased at your presence is Ayano, who looks resigned more than anything, as she slumps down on her table with a heavy sigh. The girl she worked with yesterday—Chiyo you think—whispers something over to her. Seeing how much Ayano tenses up before responding, you choose to assume that Chiyo is the more sensible of the two and currently in the process of speaking up in your favour. You'll have to give her a gold star.

Noting the thought for later, you move behind the teacher's desk and address the class as a whole. "Greetings, my pupils. As you can see, you are fortunate enough to be taught yet another lesson by me. There is no need to be reserved, feel free to display your elation."

"Uhm, are we actually going to stay on subject today, Miss Einzbern?" asks… that blond boy that you lectured about the duties of a student yesterday. A glance at the class register reminds you that his name is Yoshino. It might be a fatuous question, but at least he's attempting to apply himself.

"I would hope so," you say with a sigh. "I am frankly disappointed how few of you seem to have taken your last assignment seriously. All your lack of effort accomplished is that I am now forced to reiterate the lesson, instead of moving on. According to the notes, we should be talking about history now, a rather valuable topic in its own right, if only so we can give proper credit to the individuals that contributed to it. I loath to see it not getting the time it deserves, but some lessons are simply more valuable than others."

Several students exchange whispers between each other. Even without being able to make out their exact words, you can pick out a general feeling of discontent from their tone. The fact that they seem unwilling to accept the consequences of their past behaviour isn't surprising, but that doesn't make it any less disappointing. You expect better from people that had the honor of being your students even once.

Ida—whose senses are sharp enough that she should be able to understand each and every word they're saying—bristles next to you. You gesture her to calm herself, before she has a chance to scold them. Guiding these children is your responsibility now, so you have to be patient with them, even if they may deserve to be burned to a crisp for their insolence.

"Of course," you continue, "I can hardly speak about giving due credit to people and then act as if all of your performances were equally disappointing. Ayano and Chiyo, come forward. You deserve to be recognized for your good work yesterday."

Chiyo is quick to jump to her feet, while Ayano stays seated with her fingers digging into her desk like it was the only thing keeping her from having to admit that you're her superior. A notion that's just as reasonable as her refusal to start worshipping you in the first place, you suppose. Despite the fact that she has shown more potential than most of her classmates to develop admirable social skills, you feel that making her embrace that potential will take considerable effort.

"Come on, Yanyan, let's play along," Chiyo says. "What's the worst that can happen?"

"Oh, you have no idea," Ayano grumbels.

"Guess we'll have to find out then," her friend says, as she grabs Ayano's hand and pulls her away from her seat.

She may only do so grudgingly, but Ayano follows her to the front. It's reassuring to see that she at least has friends that are more reasonable and can act as a good influence on her. Maybe that will be the key to getting through to her, even if working through intermediaries is frankly beneath you.

You take a closer look at Chiyo as she's approaching you. If nothing else, the enthusiasm that she's following your instructions with earns her the honor of being committed to your memory. Despite not being as muscular as Ayano, it's still easy to identify her as an athlete thanks to the deliberate poise with which she carries herself even while dragging Ayano along.

Chiyo doesn't let her friend's grumpiness drag down her mood either. The wide smile stretching across her round face works with her blue eyes and short bob of pink hair to make her appear like cheerfulness given shape.

You nod to yourself, satisfied with your impression of her. Everyone that's been allowed into your presence ought to be as happy a person as she is.

"Here we are, teach," Chiyo says as she arrives in front of you. At the same time she straightens up in an exaggerated fashion that involves standing on her tiptoes.

"Alright, fine, let's get this over with," Ayano says and steps up next to her friend. After taking a sidelong glance at her posture, Ayano decides to let her posture devolve into a slouch.

You sigh, but ultimately let her behaviour slide and focus on the one that deserves your attention at the moment. Yourself and, by extension, the importance of your teachings.

"It's delightful to see one of my students is continuously applying her potential," you say to Chiyo. "I'm sure a bright young lady like you will find success in life."

Chiyo giggles at that. "Thank you, Miss Einzbern. Do you also have any nice words for Yanyan?" She softly nudges her friend in the ribs.

"Naturally," you say. "Your Matou friend performed admirably yesterday and while she'll have to work on applying herself less selectively, she still deserves the same reward you do. Frankly, I imagine having you repeat yesterday's lesson along with the others would only be a waste of your time."

"So what, we get a free period?" Ayano asks, meeting your eyes.

"What? No, of course not," you say taken aback. "This is genuinely meant to be a reward, not some disguised punishment. To think your opinion of me is low enough to believe I would deprive you of witnessing me."

"The worst part is that you're absolutely serious," Ayano replies in a flat tone.

"Don't worry, Ayano," Ida interjects. "At first, realizing that my elder sister is truly as amazing as she appears to be might torture you with feelings of inadequacy, but soon enough that will give way to true happiness. Don't fight it; embrace it."

"On that note," Chiyo says, "I'm ready to embrace being rewarded right about now."

"Very well, I can indulge you," you declare. "In your position, I too would be curious to learn what shape my generosity takes. Like many strokes of brilliance, it is elegant in its simplicity. You deserve praise for your good work and that's exactly what your classmates need to practice giving. As such your role today shall be to let yourself be lavish with compliments to help the others catch up with you. To help others better themself simply by receiving your due. It's an experience that should bring you closer to true virtue."

Ayano groans in response.

"What a weird woman you are," you say to her.

"Well, I still love her despite her flaws," Chiyo says and pulls Ayano's head against her shoulder like one would when consoling a crying person.

In response, Ayano playfully boxes her, but doesn't resist the gesture. "At least disagree with her, you jerk."

"Now now, just grit your teeth and suck it up. I know you're a big girl. You'll be much happier once this is over, so there's no point in dragging it out." Chiyo is softly patting Ayano on the back as she speaks. Already she's looking the part of a saint that knows joy lies on the other end of your commands.

"Fine!" Ayano says, turns towards the class and cracks her knuckles. "Alright, line up and think about how much you want to keep your teeth before saying anything."

At least she is cooperating now.

"Very well," you say over the muttering of the class. "Mara, Naoki, I had to pull you out of class yesterday, so it seems fair for you to take the first turn this time."

The two of them stand up without complaints and walk towards you. Naoki is the first to take position in front of Ayano, while Mara hangs back a couple of steps behind him. "Ayano," he starts, "first I feel I should congratulate you for being selected by Miss Einzbern in the first place. Clearly that honor is more of a compliment than I could ever pay you myself, isn't it?"

While Ayano only scoffs in response, you nod in approval. You knew Naoki would know the most important thing to start with. Hopefully the others are taking notes.

Ignoring Ayano's reaction, he only blinks at her awkwardly once—it seems even he can't believe her lack of respect towards you—and then continues speaking. "As enviable as your current position is, I wouldn't dare—or even want—to take it from you. Not only do you deserve the flattery, but your mental fortitude is exactly what's needed to complete this assignment and I know that I myself would be hard pressed to keep up with her instructions. Also, I think you're really looking good today."

Ayano laughs in response. "Alright, your face is safe after all. Now move along so we can get this over with."

Naoki obliges her and steps over to Chiyo. "You on the other hand, know exactly how to keep us all entertained. Thank you, without your strong grip on Ayano, I don't think she would have listened to Miss Einzbern and that certainly would have been.... a let down for all of us."

"You know, I can still punch you for what you say to her," Ayano growls.

Before Naoki can respond, Ida shushes her. "It's Chiyo's turn. Attempting to distract Naoki by flirting with him is bad manners. I understand the urge, but please be patient." Her reprimand is effective in quieting your rebellious student—albeit leaving her muttering some unkind things—and you pet Ida's head as a reward. Her content hum serves as a pleasant background noise for your lesson, with the additional benefit of drowning out the unruly students that are gossiping amongst each other about your sister's use of the word flirt.

"Anyway." Naoki pulls attention back to himself by clearing his throat. "Chiyo, I really do appreciate the way your cheerfulness is infectious. It can be a real lifesaver, when going through a rough day."

"D'aww, happy to help, you big wuss," Chiyo says and slaps him on the shoulder. "Just come to me, if you need a shoulder to cry on."

"I mean, it's usually not that bad, but I'll keep it in mind. Thanks." Naoki rubs his shoulder, his eyes lingering a bit longer on Chiyo before he glances over at you. "I hope this was an acceptable first performance?"

"Indeed it was, congratulations on a job well done," you say. "Normally I might complain that your compliments towards Ayano were too focused on another person, but that other person was me, so you're right that they were more important than anything you could say about her on her own merits. However, going forward I would request all of you to primarily focus on Ayano herself. This is meant to be about her and Chiyo after all and there will still be enough time to sing my praise afterwards."

"How generous," Ayano scoffs.

"Exactly. You did good to realize," you say. After waiting a short moment to see if anybody else wanted to comment on your graceful decision—disappointingly, they do not—you tell Mara to take her turn now.

"Okay, switch!" she exclaims and skips toward Ayano, while raising a hand for Naoki to clap as they pass each other. "Let's see, what do I appreciate the most about you, Miss Matou?" Your bespectacled student pauses a moment to make a show out of her resting her chin between her thumb and index finger, as she looks her friend up and down.

"How about the fact that I'm patient enough to not have already decked you?" Ayano says.

"Hm… no. I think I shall go with how you're actually pretty loyal once somebody manages to get on your good side. Feels real reassuring for the coming days, you know?"

"Tsk, I wouldn't count on that in your place."

"Of course, of course. I'll try to stay within reason. We wouldn't want to hurt your image after all."

"It's like you're trying to set me up to think about how to make sure you won't look good on a picture anymore." Ayano flashes a smile that bares plenty of teeth.

"Aaaaaand that's my cue to move on. Good talk." Without missing a beat, Mara hops to the side to move in front of Chiyo. "Hey there. How's it going?"

"I'm having fun right now, so I can't complain. Although, I am hoping for you to come up with something good," Chiyo says with a smirk.

"As Optimistic as ever, I see. On that note, do you know what the best way to get good results is?" Mara says with a smirk of her own.

"Is this the point where you set me up to say something terribly cliché like friendship?"

"Not in the slightest, although that would have been a good answer. Friends make for great free labour-" Mara claps her hands over her mouth. A playful glint remaining in her eyes as she waits for a moment before continuing to speak. "Ups, I meant that would have been a great lead in for what a helpful friend you are. Anyway, the answer is not to worry needlessly and simply grab the opportunities presented to you. Just like you did today in accepting our teacher's offer instead of fretting over it. So I agree with Miss Einzbern, keep going on as you're right now and you'll earn yourself the future that you deserve."

"It has been working out so far."

"See? My job here is done." Mara does a mock salute towards you and then returns to her seat. Without waiting for your evaluation of her work. How arrogant of her.

You call for the next student to volunteer—which ends up taking much more prodding than it has any right to, so you end up calling them to the front by alphabetical order—and instruct them to be less theatrical than Mara was. This is after all a time for them to pay respect to others, not selfishly hog the attention for themselves.

You watch your students form a pattern of shrinking away from Ayano's prickly response as if they're mistaking her voice for the thunder of an approaching storm, only to seek shelter in the calm of Chiyo's sunny disposition. While you're carefully observing how well they perform, you also consider which of your three special students to pay attention to after class is over.

[X] They've already been graced with enough of your time today. Simply return home to make sure you aren't late for your meeting with Amna no matter what.
[X] Pull Ayano, Naoki and Mara aside so that you can talk with them freely.
[X] Only talk with Naoki and Mara, Ayano doesn't need to be part of all of your conversations.
[X] Set aside some more time for Chiyo and Ayano. You might not be able to talk freely in Chiyo's presence, but you can go over the results of class in detail.

You'll also need to decide which topics to talk about with them.

[X] Ask if they received a message from Kotomine about identifying the rogue Masters and if so, what method did she deliver it by?
[X] Ask if any of them know just how long those infernal idols plan to steal away students from your lessons?
[X] You assume that Lancer is also present today again. Given that he also had the privilege of watching your lesson, he should pay his due and also compliment Ayano.
[X] Tell them about your upcoming meeting with Amna and ask if any of them happen to have encountered her already.
[X] See if they have any ideas where Akihiko might be hiding.
[X] Given that Caster is unlikely to locate Avenger in time for tonight, discuss if you should head out together again tonight.
[X] Write In

 

[Edgedancer]

Spoiler: Winning Vote

[X] Pull Ayano, Naoki and Mara aside so that you can talk with them freely.

[X] Ask if any of them know just how long those infernal idols plan to steal away students from your lessons?
[X] Given that Caster is unlikely to locate Avenger in time for tonight, discuss if you should head out together again tonight.

The bell announcing the end of your class rings shortly after the last student finished paying their respect to your chosen duo. They may have completed their task today thanks to your supervision, but barely an hour is still so dreadfully little time. You briefly consider a change in plan to just take over all their classes today, but quickly cast the idea aside again. Teaching them may very well be a good cause, but your schedule is already packed today and you don't want to burden them with the sin of inconveniencing you. You'll have to settle for what you already achieved today. Which, naturally, leaves you with results that are nothing short of breathtaking for the time available to you.

Instead you proceed with your original plan and use the fact that most students are distracted—be it with chatting amongst each other, or preparing for the next class—to signal Ayano, Mara and Naoki to follow you to the roof. They don't rush after you immediately, choosing instead to excuse themselves from the room in a less conspicuous manner. Even with the war's decree of secrecy, avoiding the attention they would inevitably draw in your shining presence does not seem worth the sacrifice of having to withdraw from said presence in the first place. Still, as long as they only martyr themselves and don't let you wait for more than twenty seconds, you suppose it's their sacrifice to make.

Ayano is the first on to join you and Ida on the roof, her ponytail gently swaying in the cool breeze, as she walks over to you. She comes to a stop shortly in front of you, seeming content to say nothing and perpetually glare at you. She doesn't even break eye contact with you to acknowledge your sister making pretty eyes at her. It seems not even your generous reward could wear down her foul mood.

You quickly get tired of the silence and say, "Just speak up, it's obvious you want to talk to me."

"You're going to keep showing up at my school, aren't you?"

"Naturally. I have taken on your class as my responsibility, which means you don't have to worry about me abandoning any of you."

"That is the exact opposite of what I'm worrying about." Ayano sighs. "I'm used to people being up their own ass, but I simply can't wrap my head around how deluded you are."

"My elder sister isn't deluded," Ida says. Her lovestruck expression replaced by a more serious one. "You simply fail to see the world from the same perspective as her, because of your own shortcomings."

"And somehow you're even worse than her, you creep!" She finally acknowledges your sister, turning around to her and jabbing a finger in front of her face. "Just how messed up is your brain to come up with all that nonsense you spew?" She barely stop short of screaming at Ida, her voice and posture equally taut with anger.

The only thing stopping you from putting Ayano back into her place for lashing out against your sister is seeing the smile on her face. She actually looks happy as she grabs Ayano's hand and says, "Ayano, I realize that I can be… much more forward than is considered appropriate, but I'm a romantic first and foremost, so I appreciate that you want to understand me anyway."

"I don't give a fuck about your idea of romance," Ayano says and wrenches her hand free from Ida's grip.

"Don't be like that. Take a look at this roof, don't you agree it's the perfect place for a couple to meet and demonstrate their love by attempting to throw each other over the edge? With how high the fence is, they'd have to really struggle to succeed, or maybe drag each other to the fire ladder. Then the winner get to watch their falling lover flail in a desperate attempt to grab anything that could stop their inevitable impact, until finally… ah, I'm shivering just thinking about it." Ida trails off. Her cheeks are flushed with a prominent blush and her breathing has devolved into excited panting. Reaching Ayano may be impossible for her, but seeing your sister this euphoric in heartwarming nonetheless.

"No one but you-"

"Just be honest with yourself. You want to throw me off the roof, don't you?"

"Only because I want you gone out of my life."

"I don't believe that you're the kind of person that considers murder a one time fling you can simply forget. It's okay if you want to take things slowly, I definitely won't kill you while my elder sister still wants you alive anyway, but please at least acknowledge the purity of love instead of repressing yourself!"

"How about instead I just shut you up for good?" Ayano, her expression tipping from anger into rage, reaches inside the pocket of her uniform.

You can't think of another reason for her to do that but to grab one of the jewels she uses for her magecraft. What you aren't certain of is whether she genuinely intends to attack you right now, or if she is merely using it to reassure herself of her ability to fight back in face of your sister's… desires. The first option would certainly be a pity. Your sister might enjoy that turn of events, but you'd rather not have your hand forced. You still have some hope for your student's future.

Regardless, you reach for your hair and ready a familiar. You're not naive enough to let her attack you with your guard down.

"I hope we're not interrupting anything," Naoki says as he enters the roof, taking only a couple of hesitant steps towards you before stopping at a safe distance. Mara follows behind him, decidedly more carefree with her hands clasped behind her back and an easy smile.

"Took you long enough to get up here," Ayano says. "You can handle these nutjobs for me." Still keeping her hand in her pocket, she walks over to the roof's fence and leans against it. Her posture is still tense, but she seems content to go back to glaring at the two of you for now.

Ida whimpers softly as Ayano retreats from her, but quickly catches herself and looks apologetically at you for the way she took over your conversation with Ayano.

You simply pat her head and answer Naoki. "It's nothing you have to worry about. We were only trying to reassure Ayano that we care about her and Idasviel worked up more passion for the topic than your classmate could appreciate. Of course, our affection extends to the entirety of your class, now that you've become my students."

"I see. That is good to know. The others are very lucky to receive an honor like that based only on your generosity," Naoki says. It feels good to be talking with somebody sensible again.

The small burst of laughter coming from Ayano is a sign of her being an inferior person and therefore does nothing to worsen your mood besides causing a short burst of pity that is easily dismissed.

"Indeed they are," you say. "It is a shame how many seem to be unaware of their good fortune and instead waste their time admiring some idols that can't possibly rival my charm."

"You can blame marketing for that," Mara says. "Yumiko has already built herself a reputation as a rising star and only seems to be taking matters more seriously now that she has formed Monochrome Rainbow. Everyone even vaguely aware of the idol business knows about their current tour. You meanwhile, uh… help me out here Naoki."

"Kari seems content to let her superiority be self evident to those around her," Naoki eloquently describes your brilliant approach that Mara struggled to put into words. "A method that may be effective—in fact I don't think words could ever do justice to how unique Kari is—but requires her to meet someone in person, so we shouldn't be too hard on the poor guys that didn't have a chance to meet her yet."

"I would be more inclined to be generous towards them, if they didn't also decided to neglect their duties as a students, but you have a point. I do ought to give them a chance to experience my brilliance in person. In fact, I should extend that honor to everybody present at the concert and simply take over the stage. The resulting applause should make the entire ordeal worth my time."

"I… don't think that is necessary," Naoki says.

"It certainly isn't, but only a fool hesitates until necessity forces their hands and in this case my benevolence is all the reason I need."

"I'd love to hear you sing, Elder Sister," Ida says. The excitement of imagining your performance causes her to swoon.

"Then it's settled!"

"Shouldn't you be more worried about the war, instead of wasting your time on bullshit like that?" Ayano asks, inevitably betraying the fact that she does care about you and your victory. Notwithstanding the fact that she should have more trust in your capabilities.

"Your concern is appreciated," you tell her with a smile. "I might even decide to humor you. Naoki, do you have any idea how long these idols intent to keep leading my students astray?"

He shrugs and looks over to Mara.

"They always have a whole week of concert scheduled in each location," she says. "I think they spend a couple of days on more low key events afterwards to fully get in touch with the local fanbase or something, but I don't keep that close a tab on their schedule either. It does sounds crazy intense either way."

"I'm more baffled why anyone would want to spend a whole week listening to someone that isn't me," you say. Frankly, having to sing and being adored for it does not sound like an especially strenuous task to you in the first place. Then again, you being more diligent than everybody else is hardly remarkable.

"I mean, they're cute and Yumiko always had a reputation for being especially stunning in person compared to recordings, but I have to agree that it seems like overkill," Mara says.

At least you still have some reasonable students. Regardless, today is wednesday, leaving at least three more days for them to damage your students' future. It certainly would be just to storm their concert hall, whenever the whim strikes you.

"I'll deal with them in due time," you say ultimately. "Until then, Ayano isn't wrong in saying that we should talk about the war. Given that Caster won't have located Avenger by tonight, I and my sister will be heading out on a separate manner. You have the honor of being allowed to accompany us."

"Gladly," Naoki says. He looks over to Mara, who nods, and then to his side. "Lancer?"

"Sure, it's not like we got anything better to do tonight," Lancer says as he materializes. Today he isn't wearing his armor, revealing a handsome face with soft, youthful features, piercing green eyes and blond silken hair that falls past his hips. He's wearing an oversized hoodie with his hands snuggled into its front pocket. Whatever pants he's wearing are just barely long enough to peek out from under the hoodie, leaving most of his legs bare. You can't help but notice that despite having a good amount of muscle on him, his skin is still remarkable smooth.

"You're even more handsome than I imagined," Ida say. She's rather unabashedly ogling Lancer, traces of the heat she showed when trying to convince Ayano returning to her cheeks. You don't exactly blame her. He's easily the third most handsome person currently on the school grounds, which is the best anyone can hope with the two of you as competition.

Lancer for his part seems to enjoy the admiration he's receiving, like any sane person would. He even does a little spin to show off and follows it up with a bow. "Thank you, it's an honor to meet the standard of a beauty like yourself."

The ensuing squeals of joy occupy your sister long enough that Naoki takes the chance to speak up, "It's great that the two of you are getting along this well, but there's someone that didn't get to respond to Kari's offer for tonight yet."

"Tsk. I've told you guys when I'm willing to work together with you," Ayano says. "We can head to Shinto and search for Archer, or you can play around without me."

[X][Ayano] Agree to search for Archer, it's probably the best lead you have for finding another Servant anyway.
[X][Ayano] Refuse to agree to specifics right now. You'll decide on what to do once night arrives, even if that means Ayano might not accompany your group.

You tell Ayano your decision and shortly afterwards feel something tugging at the corner of your consciousness. Judging by the look of confusion crossing the others' faces, you imagine they—with the exception of Naoki—have noticed it too. While you keep your guard up, you're curious enough to stretch out your senses towards that tugging sensation.

Testing. Testing. 1, 2, 3.

Greetings, scion of the despicable Matou line. I challenge thee to a duel between fellow Masters, granting you the chance to admit defeat without the need to spill blood.

The voice that appears in your mind is accompanied by the faint throbbing of the Command Seals running through your body reacting to the magical energy of another Master as well as the presence of a Servant. You wonder if Ayano did anything to attract this trouble, or if it's simply a matter of like attracting like. She certainly doesn't seem to be happy about having yet another Master appear at her school.

Following the voice—which, as far as you can infer, is some form of telepathy broadcasted over an area with an added filter to make sure only other magi would perceive it—to its origin, your group steps towards the edge of the roof that faces the school's entry. There you can see a woman standing in the otherwise empty courtyard and holding up some kind of megaphone. Given that she isn't using it to enhance the volume of her physical voice, you assume it's a Mystic Code to help her with projecting telepathic messages.

Ayano raises her hand and causes a small flash of light to attract her attention. The other Master doesn't hesitate after noticing her signal and runs straight towards the school building. The way she's hurrying with her arms wildly swinging around makes her look like a child scampering off to a playdate, rather than a Master about to face one of her opponents. You can only hope that she'll show more refinement in person. A hope that shrivels into nothingness, when she trips over her own feet and can just barely regain her balance before crashing to the ground.

"I'm surprised you surrendered to your fate this quickly," Mara teases Ayano.

"I just didn't want her to make a scene where the whole school might notice… not that that's stopping me from already regretting my decision," she answers.

"No, I think you made the right choice," you say. "It would be downright shameful, if that woman of all things was what made you run away. If she wants a contest, you should feel no hesitation to demonstrate that you—as my student—are superior to her."

"I don't remember you ever bothering to actually teach anything," Ayano says to continue her mockery of defiance.

"And I don't think this is the right time to argue with each other," Naoki says. What a diplomatic way to rebuke Ayano.

"How much did you actually catch of what's going on?" Mara asks him.

"Not that much, technically, but between the magic and you guys not looking particularly happy about it I can figure it's another Master."

"As observant as I would have expected from my star student. Well done," you praise him.

"Thank you," Naoki responds.

The heavy sounds of somebody stomping up the stairs silences your further conversation. The six of you stare at the door, not exactly tense, but curious to see what kind of enemy you're about to face.

It doesn't take long until she throws the door open to reveal herself striking a pose with one palm stretched out towards you and her other hand held in front of her face, covering part of her right eye… and her chest heaving heavily in an attempt to catch her breath. It's an utter failure to look dignified even by the miniscule standard you hold other people to.

The only thing you'll concede is that her clothing shows a greater sense of elegance than her entire person does so far. She's wearing a long black dress with plenty of ruffles and elaborate gold embroidery depicting a ballroom scene along the hem of her skirt and the stars of the night sky above them. The two sections are broken up by a large ribbon across her waist, its bow resting on her hip on one side and the megaphone hanging off it on the other. Her sleeves go up until her wrists, at which point they end in several layers of ruffles that frame a delicate pair of hands with fingernails painted a dark blue matching her hair color.

Her final accessory is a black eyepatch adorned with a solid gold skull over her left eye. It's striking enough to pull the attention from her dress back to her—admittedly rather cute—face. It makes her smug expression all the more of a shame. Nothing is more insufferable than an over inflated ego.

"How fortunate to see you have already prepared a fitting location for our for our grand battle," she says and makes a sweeping gesture encompassing the whole roof. Only now does she seem aware enough of her surroundings to grasp how severely she is outnumbered, not to mention you, the strongest Master, being present.

"Ah… I see you're indeed very well prepared," she continues, notably struggling to keep her voice even. "I suppose I can't blame you for seeking support, when facing an opponent as dangerous as me. Still, I hope you aren't enough of a coward to violate the sanctity of a duel."

"I have no idea who the fuck you are, much less that you were about to show up, so get off your high horse" Ayano barks at her. "I have no problem settling this in private, if that is what you want."

"Yeah… yeah, some privacy sounds good. Your companions shall witness my might as the Grand Duchess of Slaughter, when their time has come. Until then leaving them with the fear of the unknown is a mercy compared to exposing them to my true nature,(Death Incarnate)" the self proclaimed grand duchess finishes her speech by infusing her words with a slight hypnotic suggestion to make you hear two things at once. It amounts to a fancy party trick that she seems unreasonably proud of, judging by the way she's puffing out her chest.

"Are you sure that's a good idea?" Naoki asks Ayano.

"Yes. I can handle myself, so there's no reason to drag you into this," Ayano answers and gestures towards Naoki, Mara and Lancer. Then she gestures towards you and Ida. "These two meanwhile are already too much of a pain on their own. Taking them with you, so I don't have to deal with three lunatics at once, is the biggest favour you can do me right now."

"Elder Sister isn't a lunatic. Stop saying things like that!"
"Don't be a fool and stop pretending like you're better off without me."
"I'm not crazy! I'm perfectly sane!"

Your sister, you and the grand duchess complain in unison.

Ayano shows no sign of taking back what she just said and silently waits for your reaction. Naturally, you're going to-

[X][Involvement] Stay. Amna has shown herself willing enough to follow your schedule that you're sure she won't mind even in case she has to wait a bit longer. You still decide to send a familiar with a message outlining the situation back to the mansion to avoid confusion.
-[X][Involvement] Despite how grating her attitude may be, you care enough for Ayano at this point that you refuse to leave her, even if you may end up doing nothing but encouraging her. Especially given that you still can't sense any trace of Rider.
-[X][Involvement] You're not some kind of bit character that can be dismissed at Ayano's leisure. In fact, you don't even see why the grand duchess should be focusing on her as her enemy, when you're a much more formidable Master. It's time to put the spotlight back where it belongs.

[X][Involvement] Leave. If Ayano wants to handle this situation on her own, you're willing to respect that decision.
-[X][Involvement] Return home and prepare for your meeting with Amna.
-[X][Involvement] Stop by Monochrome Rainbow's concert hall. You may not have the time to pick your students out of the crowd, or take over the show, but you should still be able to reprimand the culprits themselves. After all, it's not like a pair of idols could possibly cause an unforeseen event that would make you late for your meeting with Amna.
-[X][Involvement] Write in

Spoiler: Author's Note

First off, reposting the first choice for your convenience.
[X][Ayano] Agree to search for Archer, it's probably the best lead you have for finding another Servant anyway.
[X][Ayano] Refuse to agree to specifics right now. You'll decide on what to do once night arrives, even if that means Ayano might not accompany your group.

Second, I thought this might be a good time to put up a reminder that I'm okay with you guys voting for sub-options, without voting for the main option. Which is to say, if you want to, for example, stay with Ayano, but in case Leave wins want Kari to head straight home a vote like this would be acceptable.
[][Involvement] Stay. Amna has shown herself willing enough to follow your schedule that you're sure she won't mind even in case she has to wait a bit longer. You still decide to send a familiar with a message outlining the situation back to the mansion to avoid confusion.
-[][Involvement] You're not some kind of bit character that can be dismissed at Ayano's leisure. In fact, you don't even see why the grand duchess should be focusing on her as her enemy, when you're a much more formidable Master. It's time to put the spotlight back where it belongs.

-[][Involvement] Return home and prepare for your meeting with Amna.

 

[Edgedancer]

Spoiler: Winning Vote

[X][Ayano] Agree to search for Archer, it's probably the best lead you have for finding another Servant anyway.
[X][Involvement] Leave. If Ayano wants to handle this situation on her own, you're willing to respect that decision.
-[X][Involvement] Return home and prepare for your meeting with Amna.

You sigh in disappointment but ultimately relent. "As you wish, Ayano. Allowing you to make your own mistakes is part of letting you grow. At least you're competent enough that I don't need to worry about you making excessive blunders, even without my supervision."

"Yeah, sure, great. As long as it gets you off my back," Ayano says smiling slightly. It's nice to see that the joy of receiving your trust outweighs the grief of having to separate from you. That way you don't have to worry about her being dragged down into a morass of her own foul mood.

"Don't you think you're taking this situation a bit too lightly?" the grand duchess says. "You'll regret thinking of me as a bit character that's easily bested."

"You'll have your chance to prove your importance to Ayano in just a moment," you say. "However, you'll have to be more than simply exceptional to have me acknowledge you as a threat."

"Hohoho! That arrogance will be your downfall. None can escape the oblivion that awaits at the end of their life, nor me as its ultimate enforcer.(Grim Reaper)"

"Kufufu. Clearly it's you that isn't aware of their station." You start walking towards the stairs as you speak, only dignifying her with a sidelong glance. "I am an eternal goddess. In my world, something as insignificant as death only exists as a means to satisfy my sister."

As you open the staircase door, you can hear Ida talking to the grand duchess, "I think your title is lovely. It makes you sound like my very own cupid. I look forward to exploring the pleasures of death with you in the future."

Without waiting for a response, Ida hurries to catch back up with you on your way down the stairs. Judging by the stammering you can hear from behind you, you don't think she would have gotten much of an answer regardless. Although, the tone of her voice at least sounds reasonably awed.

Naoki and Mara fall in line behind the two of you not shortly afterwards. "So… is it safe to just return to classes, or should we start to evacuate people in case the situation on the roof escalates?" Naoki asks.

"Hm? I don't think those two are quite bad enough to go out of control during the daytime, but frankly you should be watching them anyway. You can still take action, once it seems like they're starting to escalate beyond the point of reason," you say.

A wave of confusion washes over Naoki's face, but he quickly calms himself, presumably after remembering that he shouldn't question what you're capable of. "Right, magic. In all honesty, I'm not sure Ayano will appreciate you, uh, looking out for her."

"Of course not. That's why we'll spy on them," you say. "I may be willing to let Ayano handle herself, but that doesn't mean I'll let her deprive me of information relevant to the Grail War and neither should you. Victory might not be on the line for you, but your life is still very much at risk. I can only hope that your magus partner doesn't share your negligence." You give Mara a pointed look.

"Uh, I definitely do not. I can probably prepare a familiar during class," she says with the drawn out hesitation of someone making up their answer on the spot. "Oh, also I think I know who that new Master was."

A rather obvious diversion from her oversight, but you'll allow it as long as she gives you new information. You prompt her to talk.

"So my dad was on the lookout for the various Masters before the war started and a student from the Department of Individual Fundamentals named Annabella Smith came to his attention. He didn't exactly let me get a detailed look through his notes, but I'm sure you can imagine how unique the description I did get of her was."

"I see. Any useful information?"

"Not on her. She might have the head of the Department of Botany looking out for her though."

"Hm, that is rather lacking overall, but at least we know who to investigate now," you say. "In case it needs to be said, do try to get further information out of Mister Seran."

"Mentioning the weird lady that showed up at our school should be easy enough, but I doubt he's going to tell me anything useful," Naoki says. "The best I can do is set the topic up for Mara."

"Sure, leave all the interrogating to me," Mara says.

"Good. In that case you're dismissed until tonight," you say.

You and Ida separate from your students and head back to your car. On the way, you pull out one of your hairs and turn it into a familiar, pouring just a sliver more of your magical energy into it than is necessary for observation purposes. You'd rather be prepared in case Ayano requires some of your help after all and any amount of magical energy is simply a drop compared to the reserves you've stored. However, the degree to which the two of them will be distracted by their duel is much more limited, so you refrain from imparting your familiar with more power than is strictly necessary for an emergency. That way, it should be able to blend in with the traces of your presence that are still lingering on the roof.

You let it take flight and sit down in your car, while it searches for a good vantage point. Moments later you connect your senses with your familiar. You'll have plenty of time to watch the other two Masters during your drive home.

---

While Ayano had some sympathy for being unnerved by the Einzberns, there's only so much time she's willing to give an opponent to collect themselves. "Are you just about done?" she asked.

The other Master finally stopped cradling her face and returned her focus to her. "I apologize, it appears I let the excitement of finding a worthy opponent get the better of me. You see, it has been lifetimes since I faced somebody that could meet me in the divine realm."

Ayano grimaced at the excitement in her voice. With every word she only became more certain that she didn't want to deal with both her and Karisviel at the same time. "Whatever. Just get to a point already."

"Fine. Back to the script then," she says with a pout. "I have come to offer you redemption for the crime your family(Tainted Blood) committed by creating this war. Comply with me now and you might still be able to wash away the blood(Guilt) staining your very being."

"Fuck off with that family responsibility bullshit!" Ayano growled. She already had to deal with enough shit because of her relatives without anyone trying to add to the pile.

"What kind of response is that? For all we know people are already dying! How can you not-"

Ayano's last nerve snapped. She walked over to the idiot, fully intending to punch her in the face. If nothing else, it should get them past the talking stage.

A flash of silver caught Ayano's attention just as she was about to throw her punch. That mere glint of light held enough beauty to convey the majesty of the blade aimed for her neck.

Her survival instinct pierced through her revery like an arrow through her heart. The mental trigger activated her magic circuits and she threw herself backwards full force. It was barely enough to avoid her head being cleanly cut off. She only vaguely registered the blur passing by her face, before the rush of air following in its trail forced her to take another step back and shield her eyes.

If that's the worst she got, it looks like she got lucky and the Servant half-assed their attack as a warning.

After blinking a couple tears out of her eyes, Ayano focused back on the Servant. She again couldn't help but notice how stunning their sword was. Now that she had the time to take a closer look, she could tell that it was an ornate katana. A copper engraving depicted flames dancing along the finely polished silver of the blade. Fittingly, the hilt's wrapping is a vibrant red color.

Most importantly, it's likely yet another thing she could blame the Tohsakas for.

They swung their sword again, this time aiming at the roof. It cut through it as easily as the air, drawing a clean and deep line in front of their Master's feet. Ayano got the point even without the insistent stabbing at the ground. No crossing that line until she was ready to turn this into an all out brawl.

She wouldn't have to worry about Rider making it here in time in case things got serious, but she'd rather not ask him for help unless she had to. Meanwhile, her chances of taking on a Servant on her own were… frustratingly nonexistent. Especially when their weapon…

No, that's moronic. Anything short of the most pathetic of Servants should be capable of killing her with their bare hands. Why was she focusing only on the sword? She's been staring at the damn thing so much she hadn't even taken a moment to take a good look at the Servant standing right in front of her. With that thought things finally clicked into place and she noticed the hypnotic effect the sword had managed to slip past her attention. The subtlety of the effect was as impressive as-

Focus.

She started circulating her magical energy again to forcefully flush the magecraft out of her mind. She could manage that much, now that she knew about it. Not that it mattered. By the time her head cleared, the jackass had already dematerialized again.

"Guess I can't blame you for letting someone else get involved in your duels, what with the whole Master deal," Ayano says, her voice taut with frustration that's mostly aimed at herself for not catching on to their little trick sooner.

"I do intent to treat this as a duel, but, as you may remember, I also said that I see no need to spill blood," Miss Eyepatch says and straightened herself out. Seems like there's some actual spine hidden under all the frills after all. "My magnificent Saber(Knight of Promised Victory) will not involve himself, as long as you stop acting like a brute."

"Silly me, of course the person issuing the challenge has the choice of weapons. I hope you at least have something good planned."

"Obviously. I have the perfect means to pit our fates against each other." Eyepatch reached for the big ribbon at her side, which apparently had a small pocket sewn into it, and pulled out a deck of cards.

"You're bullshitting me," Ayano asked incredulously.

"NoNoNoNoNo! These work perfectly, trust me." She held the deck out towards Ayano, as if seeing the blue spiral pattern on the back of the cards would change her mind. Her earlier confidence evaporating again, as she slowly began squirming under Ayano's blunt stare.

A short yet uncomfortable silence stretched over the roof until Ayano finally broke it to voice her suspicions, "...You're not actually looking for a fight, are you?"

"I only desire as much of a fight as is necessary to fan the flames of passion that'll let me melt the shield around your soul and reforge it into bonds of friendship instead. Indeed, part of my duty is to grant the final mercy(Remembrance in Oblivion) to the dead, it would go against my merciful nature to seek conflict merely for the sake of it."

"Tough luck then. We're stuck as enemies as long as we're both Masters in the Grail War and I'm not going to bow out over some stupid cards. Come back when you're done playing and want to duke it out properly." Not waiting for a response, she walked towards the stairs.

"Wait! Look, I'm sorry for talking bad about your family."

"Nah, you're not wrong there. My blood's all rotten. I just don't want to hear lectures about it." She let the door to the roof fall shut behind her.

She barely managed to to walk down four steps before the door was thrown open behind her again. Should have figured. The worst part was that she didn't even feel like punching her goofy face anymore.

---

You must say that you're disappointed with your student's performance. She should have been more considerate of your familiar's inability to follow them inside—at least without arousing suspicion—before leaving the roof. It's like you even have to instruct people on how to be properly spied on.

At least her handling of Annabella herself was acceptable enough by the low standards you hold other people to. Although you don't appreciate the way she almost got herself cut down by Saber. Worrying you like that had also been very inconsiderate of her. Almost as bad is how neither of them bothered to repair the damage done to the roof. Do they seriously expect you to teach in a school that's in anything less than pristine condition?

You have your familiar repair the cut in the roof in their stead—not the use of magecraft you expected when creating it, but such are the advantages of being well prepared—and then order it to continue monitoring the area, just in case it could find them again.

Meanwhile, you could turn your attention to what you did manage to learn.

Spoiler: Information Matrix

Class: Saber
True Name: Unknown
Master: Annabella Smith

Noble Phantasm:
Captivating Sword
Rank: C
Type: Anti-Unit

A katana whose true name is currently unknown. However, even without having its name revealed, the beauty and craftsmanship of the blade have transcended the mundane and stepped into the realm of magecraft. A subtle charm spell is cast on anyone seeing the sword, making it difficult to pay attention to anything but it, including the person wielding it.

It's vexing to admit that your worry about Ayano distracted you to such a degree that you failed to pay any attention to Saber himself. At least you can rest assured that you'll be able to resist the sword's charm, in case they ever try to use it to divert your attention. Not that you'd need an advance warning in any situation where your overabundance of compassion isn't sabotaging you.

However, it does make you wonder. Just how recognizable is Saber's appearance that he'd choose revealing a Noble Phantasm over simply being seen. Not that it's an especially impressive sword judging by the standards of the strongest class.

It does however tell you that Saber is likely tied to Japan itself, which is an oddity. Yes, the Tohsaka's tinkering with the Grail means that summoning such Heroic Spirits is possible, but no other Master should have been aware of that fact to take advantage of it. Did they tell her for some reason, or did she get lucky, perhaps with a compatibility based summon? Either way, having to fight a second Servant empowered by their close connection to the land would be bothersome.

As for his Master, you have trouble to imagine just how deluded she has to be to consider herself a "worthy" opponent to you. It seems you'll have to be the grim reaper of her delusions and demonstrate just how far apart the two of you truly are. Hopefully she won't attempt to sway you with the same spiel about family responsibility. The mere implication that you and Idasviel aren't enough justification for your family's actions would be despicable.

Anyway, you've more pressing matters to concern yourself with than such nonsense. That's right, given how early you departed from the school, you still have plenty of time to prepare for your meeting with Amna. She'll only have the honor of meeting you for the first time once after all. Such an important occasion ought to be treated with respect.

[X] Your guest deserves a reward for seeking you out and obediently waiting their time. Have Mel prepare a feast and give Amna a warm welcome to demonstrate your generosity.
[X] Keep the meeting formal. You'll be a gracious host of course, but Amna is still one of the fools vying for what's rightfully yours. It's important that she understands how outmatched she is.
[X] Write In

Spoiler: Author's Note

I apologize for how long this update took even compared to my usual update speed. Life has just had a lot of stuff to keep me busy recently.

Regardless, I do want to take the opportunity to thank everyone that still takes the time to read this Quest. I do very much appreciate it.

 

[Edgedancer]

Spoiler: Winning Vote

[X] Your guest deserves a reward for seeking you out and obediently waiting their time. Have Mel prepare a feast and give Amna a warm welcome to demonstrate your generosity.

After returning home and making the necessary preparations, you decide to pass the time in your library until Amna arrives. You're searching for an index of famous Japanese swords, or at least something similar that might help you identify Saber's weapon.

Ida is trailing behind you, holding a bowl of grapes—given to her by Melsritt, when you sent your sister to fetch you some food, after the savory smell coming from the kitchen whet your appetite—and watching you for any sign that you want to be fed. You only need to open your mouth and a second later your sister places a sweet treat into it.

It's the one pleasure maintaining your mood, as your search itself fails to bear any fruit. The books gathered here by your family were selected under the assumption that no local Servants would be summoned and as such have fairly little material covering them. There's a small handful of exceptions that cover swords from all over the world, but they only concern themselves with the likes of the Kusanagi. A level of fame that Saber's sword can evidently not match.

As reassuring it is that your enemy doesn't wield a truly exemplary holy blade alongside their home field advantage, you can't help but be frustrated that you ultimately ended up wasting your time. It seems you'll have to dedicate more time to this research in the future, if you want to learn anything useful.

"Don't worry, Elder Sister. It's not like a simple piece of information like this is going to stop you from claiming your victory," Ida says.

"Naturally, but that's no reason to grow lazy," you say and signal to her that you want another grape.

"You're so diligent," she says as she feeds you. "That just goes to show how much better than me you are. All I can think off, when I see how hard you work, is that you deserve to rest."

"I wouldn't say that you're wrong. In fact, the problem may very well be that not enough people think the way you do and instead force more tedious work on me." You still remember the days you have been forced to waste tracking down variations of the same legend, or obscure trivia just to satisfy your teachers.

"Regardless," you continue, "I'm sure that I'll have plenty of opportunity to enjoy myself once our guests show up. They have to be desperate to sing my praise after waiting all this time to finally meet me."

As your sister gives her agreement, the bounded field surrounding your forest informs you that two people have entered your property. Judging by the timing, you assume it's Amna with a companion; by the amount of magical energy you sense from them, you assume she's accompanied by a Servant.

"Speak of the Devil indeed. It seems Amna is about to arrive," you inform your sister. "Tell me, how do I look?" You did change from your usual clothes to a more formal white dress with gold trimming in preparations for the meeting.

"Absolutely majestic and breathtaking," she answers without hesitation. It might be an obvious answer, but hearing someone else say it is nice nonetheless. "What about me, Elder Sister?"

"Almost as beautiful as me, which is still plenty to surpass goddesses."

"Thank you, Elder Sister. I can't think of a greater honor than being compared to you like this."

"That's because there isn't one. Now let's go to welcome our guests." You ruffle your preening sister's hair and lead the way toward the castle's entrance.

Of course, while the hallways of your current abode may still be relatively spacious, crossing them doesn't nearly take as long as traveling through your forest does. The bounded field lets you track your visitors location and by extension their speed. You'd estimate them to take about twenty more minutes to arrive, several times faster than the hour long journey it would be on foot, but it still forces you to wait.

You pass the time munching on more grapes and talking with Ida. Naturally you find that she agrees with you that birds are wonderful creatures and unsurprisingly she favours birds of prey specifically, although she doesn't feel like she had the time to learn enough about birds yet to decide amongst them. It's a choice that fits your spear, even if none of them are as adorable as your Mister Schnabel.

...You can't help but worry about how he's faring without you. You can tell that he's still being fed, but he must feel terribly lonely.

Amna reaching the castle's entrance causes you to push your dreary thoughts away. With a snap of your fingers, the door opens on its own, revealing a woman with a hand raised in the air, unsure what to do now that she no longer has to knock. After a second she waves at you in greeting and enters your home.

"Greetings, Lady Einzbern," she says in a flat voice. Frankly, you'd be insulted by the lack of excitement she's showing, if not for the intensity with which she's staring at you. You suppose some people don't openly show their emotions. No matter, you'll have her gush passionately about you soon enough.

"Greetings. Amna, I presume?" you respond and take a good look at her yourself.

There is an undeniable artistry in how she looks. Her lithe figure is flawless—besides the obvious shortcoming of not being you—the very image of practicality with not an ounce more fat or muscle than is necessary. Likewise her brown skin and short black hair are smooth and without blemish. It all helps her cut a sharp figure in the black suit she's wearing.

There's something else about her too. It's the way the mana in your forest is flowing around her, there's less resistance than there ought to be with a human magus. It seems you have another homunculus at your hands. What a lucky woman she is to be similar to you on such a fundamental level!

"Yes, I am Amna," she says and gives you a slight bow. "Thank you for accepting my request to meet. I hope it wasn't too much of an inconvenience for your schedule."

Moved by her display of consideration for you, you hop down the stairs. The heavy carpet draped over them muffles the sound of your steps, until you land next to her on the blank marble floor. Without delay you begin petting her already lowered head. "Worry not," you say. "I can always make time for those that wish to admire me. I'm not cruel enough to deny anyone that luxury."

She looks up at you with wrinkled eyebrows. It seems she can't quite grasp how she has managed to already earn such an affectionate gesture from you. The answer, of course, lies in your own generosity, which you're sure she'll come to realize in due time.

"I see. I'll remember this information in case it ever becomes relevant," she says, without bothering to pull away from your headpats.

"Of course you will commit everything you learn about me to memory. There's no need to hide something that obvious behind the veneer of practicality."

"I do not understand, my stated motivation was entirely sincere."

"Denial, is it? But enough of that for now. Let's continue our conversation elsewhere." You remove your hand from her head and instead grab one of Amna's gloved hands to lead her to your dining room.

She obediently follows you.

You climb back up the stairs, where Ida's patiently waiting for you. As you walk past her, she falls in line with you and grabs your guest's other hand. "Hello, I'm Idasviel von Einzbern and I have the honor of being my elder sister's knight. Did anyone ever tell you that you look stunningly handsome wearing a suit?"

"No, you're the first one. Although, I'm afraid that I can't offer an opinion of my own on the matter. Rider thought that wearing a suit would be a good idea."

You file the comment away as a potential hint towards her Servant and let Ida keep hogging her attention for the short while it takes you to reach the dining room. Upon arriving at your destination, you find the dining table already prepared with a proverbial treasure trove of hors d'oeuvre from all over the world.

Taking the head of the table for yourself, you seat Amna to your left, while Ida claims the seat at your right. It leaves most of the table empty compared to the dozen of guests it could house, but then you're still missing someone.

"Rider, do feel free to take a seat yourself. There's plenty of food for all of us," you say and point to the additional plate prepared next to Amna.

He materializes wearing a suit matching his Master, although in contrast to her simple black one, his is colored a purple that compliments his dark brown skin. Together with his tall and muscular build he looks refined and imposing in equal measure.

Spoiler: Information Matrix

Strength B
Endurance B
Agility C
Mana A+
Luck C

Magic Resistance C
The ability to cancel magical effects targeting the servant. Cancel spells with a chant below two verses. Cannot defend against magecraft on the level of High-Thaumaturgy and Greater Rituals.
Riding C+
Most vehicles and animals can be handled with above average skill. However, cannot ride creatures that qualify Phantasmal Species. Rider might show greater skill for a specific type of vehicle.

"Gladly," he says. "I merely did not wish to distract from my Master. She's the one that wished to talk with you after all."

"There's no need for you to worry. I have more than enough attention to give and she earned herself plenty. Same goes for the food, no need to be shy," you say turning to Amna, who is only awkwardly eyeing the food.

"Thank you, but you don't have to bother with accommodating me."

"Nonsense, this paltry amount of food can hardly be called a bother. Spoil yourself, you earned it by seeking out my presence." You grab yourself a small pastry that turns out to have a creamy mushroom filling.

"She's right, Master. In situations like this, fussing over the details is more insult than consideration," Rider says and grabs one of the same pastries you're eating.

Following his lead, Amna hesitantly takes one of the pastries as well. It's frankly a bit of a shame. You went to the trouble of telling Mel to prepare a varied selection in case Rider would let another hint towards his true name slip by choosing the type of food he's familiar with. Yet here they are, mimicking your own choice. Although, you suppose it's only proper that such virtuous behaviour keeps them away from harm.

"It tastes good." Amna passively stares at the food in her hand, sounding more confused than anything.

"Naturally. It was made to match my standards after all," you say. "Now then, we were talking about what pretense you're using to allow yourself into my presence, yes?"

"Yes?" Amna says hesitantly. "Either way, I've sought you out, because I don't wish to fight against you."

"Excellent, I could tell that you're a good person. You're a shining example for all the other Masters that fail to simply place victory into my deserving hands." As you speak, your hand once again finds its way to your guest's hair.

"What a noble decision. I just fell in love with you all over again," Ida gushes and leans over the table to offer her a small skewer with feta, watermelon and ham.

"There seems to be a misunderstanding," Amna objects. You pull back your hand, letting it hang tentatively in the air to fall alongside your judgement on whether or not she deserves more of your headpats.

"It isn't that I wish to surrender," she continues. "Rather, I just wish to avoid conflict with you for as long as possible."

"Ho, so what you want is an alliance? It's hard to praise you after the disappointment of you failing to surrender outright, but that decision still shows some amount of sense on your part."

"No, that isn't quite right either. I… am not sure if my current reasons are enough to justify opposing the other Masters. That's why I want to establish a non-aggression pact, without further strings attached, with as many people as possible to give myself more time to gather my resolve."

"Really." You let your hands fall into your lap. "More and more I have to wonder if the Grail was hard pressed to find anything but stragglers and rejects for its second set of Masters."

"I don't think I am relevant to that evaluation," Amna says, appearing not to care about your judgement. "The Grail did not select me to be a Master, but my… mother. She said that she wanted to see me participate more than she wanted the wish for herself, so she handed her Command Seals over to me. I don't want to disappoint her. That's why I am unwilling to bow out of the contest unless I'm forced to do so."

"How curious, did this mother of your create you for the sake of the Holy Grail War?" you ask. Your interest in her piqued once again.

"I think it'd be more accurate to say that I'm adopted. However, we've moved away from the topic of conversation."

"That request of yours, yes? I do hope that you at least realize that you're asking me for much more of a favour than what you're offering in return."

She stares at you for a couple of seconds, evidently unable to grasp what you mean. "Please elaborate."

"The Holy Grail War has begun," you explain, fully accepting that your responsibility as a teacher follows you even here. "It's not an option for all of us involved to sit around a nice cup of tea until everybody is quite sure they're ready to start. There will be fighting. And by making a claim on my inheritance, you carry responsibility for each Master and Servant that falls in pursuit of it as well. Refusing to end any of them yourself changes nothing about that. Ultimately, expecting others to exempt you from the struggle, only to come crawling out of your hiding spot to try and claim victory is barely different from asking them to do your dirty work. It's cowardice; not mercy."

"I see." Amna looks down at her hands. "I hadn't considered that before."

Rider watches his Master's doubt with a faint smile. You get the impression that he's looking through her like a glassy shell, only seeing the conclusion she's approaching. It's not a malicious expression, but you're still irked to see your fellow homunculi not being given the amount of attention she deserves as a person.

"What is it, Rider? Do you have a problem with your Master?" you ask him.

"Not at all," he replies, meeting your glare with an upbeat smile. "I don't share my Master's concern, so either option works for me. Although, if I were to choose, I'd prefer to risk a defeat we can learn from, than to stay away from the battlefield entirely."

"I know exactly what you mean!" Ida says and gestures at him with a skewer. "The fighting is where all the passion happens. Honestly, I don't think it makes sense to claim that you're participating in the war unless you're throwing yourself into the throes of carnage."

"I…" Amna speaks up, raising her head to meet your eyes. Her expression remains perfectly neutral, but the intensity you sensed from her before has wavered. "I understand what you're talking about. I don't know about seeking out conflict with others, but I'll at least try to be more aware of the implications of my actions going forward."

"Good," you say with a giggle and pet Amna again. "It's not perfect, but anything that's a result of you listening to me is an improvement worthy of praise."

"Thank you, Lady Einzbern."

"Feel free to call me Kari, Amna," you say. "And don't feel reserved about asking me for more advice in the future. Guiding my lessers is only natural after all. Simply make sure you give me the gratitude I deserve in return."

"I will make sure to do so, Kari. In fact, there's already something I'm wondering about. The problem you've described with my approach should only apply when I agree to non-agression with a large number of of other Masters, correct? I don't think avoiding one or two other combatants will be enough to make me completely escape combat, so it should make little difference in the end."

"Still clinging to your original plan, are you?" you say with a sigh.

"Perhaps, but that is not an answer to my question."

"You shouldn't need more of an answer than the disapproval in my elder sister's voice," Ida tells her.

"True, but I shall be merciful and elaborate for her regardless," you say. "I suppose if you limit yourself to two others, it would barely matter. Of course that raises the question why you'd bother with making said pacts instead of dealing with other Masters as you encounter them."

"It's a matter of consistency," Amna says. "One other Master already accepted my offer and it seems wrong to go back on my word to them simply because I changed my mind. Likewise, you have never given me a proper answer to my offer, as such it still stands in case you want to accept it. Further, while you have pointed out a problem with my thought process, that does not change that I currently do not want to fight you." As she talks, her eyes light up with renewed confidence.

You nod. You suppose her reasoning is sound. No sane person would ever want to fight you, be it because they can't bring themselves to do something that morally abhorrent, or because they have to acknowledge that there's no practical way for them to defeat you.

Still, you can't help but feel it would be you making a concession to her.

You give yourself a moment to consider your options by calling in Mel with the soup course.

[X][Offer] You're in no hurry to attack her, but any long term commitment is more of a bother than you're willing to deal with. Disencouraging her naivete by rejecting her offer might also be in her best interest in the long run.
[X][Offer] You'll win, no matter what order you defeat the other Masters in, so you suppose there's no harm in accepting her offer.
[X][Offer] You might as well use this opportunity to teach her about equivalent exchange. She stands more to gain from not having to worry about you attacking her than is true the other way around. It's only fair that she offers you something in return to close the difference in benefit for the both of you.
-[X] Have her swear to help with eliminating Avenger. It's something she might help with regardless, but given her passive nature it'll be good to have reasurrence.
-[X] Request her to go on a date with Idasviel. You're sure your sister will enjoy it greatly and if Amna ends up being your last opponent it would be a good opportunity to sharpen your spear.
-[X] Tell her to come up with something on her own. Who knows, maybe she'll manage to surprise you with something worthwhile.

At the same time you consider what topics would make for good dinner conversation.

[X][Conversation] Ask Amna about herself.
[X][Conversation] Further press her on the matter of her family. You have to admit that you're curious.
[X][Conversation] Inquire if she at least already knows what wish she wants to make on the Grail.
[X][Conversation] Amna has yet to sing your praises. Remedy that travesty by asking her opinion about you.
[X][Conversation] Write In

 

[Edgedancer]

Spoiler: Winning Vote

-[X] Have her swear to help with eliminating Avenger. It's something she might help with regardless, but given her passive nature it'll be good to have reasurrence.
-[X] Request her to go on a date with Idasviel. You're sure your sister will enjoy it greatly and if Amna ends up being your last opponent it would be a good opportunity to sharpen your spear.

[X][Conversation] Ask Amna about herself.
[X][Conversation] Ask Amna about her creation
[X][Conversation] Ask Amna about her opinion of the Church Overseer
[X][Conversation] The second set of Masters
[x][Conversation] Further press her on the matter of her family. You have to admit that you're curious.

[X][Conversation] Ask Rider his opinion of the modern era.

By the time Mel retreats back to the kitchen to prepare the next course, you've made your decision. "I have no reason to turn your offer down," you tell Amna, who is watching you in anticipation. "However, at this point I expect you to understand that you gain more from this deal than I do. As such, it only strikes me as fair that you compensate me for the difference."

She takes a moment to consider your words before affirming your assessment with a nod. It's a faint sliver of movement, not even enough to break the eye contact between the two of you, but it's those same eyes that reflect her sincerity better than any mere gesture could. "That sounds reasonable," she says. "After all, it is foolish to assume one will receive more than has been sacrificed in return. What additional terms did you have in mind?"

You give your soup a taste before answering and the clear, rich taste of the consommé joins forces with your satisfaction at Amna's reasonable response to lure a content hum from your lips. Such willingness to go along with your wisdom truly does warm your heart.

"I don't plan on asking much from you," you say. "Even being given an advantage, I doubt you'll stand to be little more than a nuisance and I'm not a greedy woman. I take it you have already been informed about Avenger?"

"Yes."

"Good. I want you to join the group of Masters that's going to aid me with eliminating Avenger safely. Frankly speaking, as the fated winner of this war, I benefit more than anyone else from maintaining the Grail's purity. As such I'll consider your help sufficient payment."

"No, I don't think that can be considered fair," Amna says with a decisiveness that you'd praise her for, if not for how ill timed it is. You let her continue, in the hope that she'll avoid disappointing you. "No matter how self-assured you are, I don't think I can simply concede the Grail to you. So while I'm willing to help you, it would be insincere to pretend like there is no benefit to myself. Please think of another condition to bring the two of us to equal footing."

You can't help but chuckle. "So it's the decisiveness of a shooting star that you found. Measuring yourself up to me like that is rather presumptuous, but I lack the cruelty to deny anyone a chance to indulge me." You glance over at Ida, as you consider your second demand, and notice her looking at you with her cheeks hot.

You gesture for her to speak.

Instead of speaking up out loud, she leans close to you and whispers into your ear. Her voice holds no concern for being overheard, but simply carries the excitement that comes with sharing a secret. "Elder Sister, given that she's emphasizing that she'll continue fighting you, while also inquiring for more ways to please you, I believe Amna is attempting to flirt with you. I find her attempt to be both bold and charming. Even if she's reaching above her standing, there shouldn't be any harm in indulging her until the end of the war. Unless you're uncomfortable with keeping anyone around that desires to harm you. In that case, It'd be my pleasure to impale her with my spear and keep assaulting her until she's no longer a threat. All for you, of course."

You don't think your sister quite understands your guest's motivation. Still, seeing her this excited only makes you want to pamper her. You've yet to let her kill anybody as well. Presenting her with a different outlet for her desires seems only appropriate.

You tell Ida that her intervention won't be necessary for now and address Amna. "Given your insistence, I have decided to give my second demand a more personal value. I want you to go on a date with my sister."

While your Servant receives the news with a happy squeal, Amna simply blinks at you.

"What is it?" you ask her. "Can you not believe how fortunate you are?"

"No, I'm simply unsure what that request entails."

"It is quite easy. You'll spend a day with my sister and offer her your attention and affection."

"Don't worry, if you don't know what to do, I can take the lead," your sister reasurres her. "Given your agreement with my elder sister, I'll even refrain from killing you. For a first date, your company will be enough to satisfy me."

"I see… if that is what you want, I will comply," Amna says, her voice notably slowed by confusion as she addresses your sister. "For the sake of clarity, does this request imply that you have romantic interest in me?"

"Naturally!" Idasviel slams her hands on the table and surges to her feet as she makes her confession. "How could I not fall in love with someone as earnest as you, especially after you've been this thoughtful towards my elder sister? It helps that you've got the looks to go along with your personality. I'm sure we're meant to be. The feeling is mutual, right?"

"No. Frankly, developing feelings that quickly seems rather irrational to me," is Amna's blunt reply.

Your dejected sister slumps back into her seat.

You gently rub her shoulder to console her. "Don't worry, you can win her over during your date."

"Yes, you're absolutely right, Elder Sister. My passion will burn its way to her heart until there's nothing else left."

"I'll try to be… receptive towards your efforts," Amna responds.

"Wonderful," you say. "That's what I've come to expect from you. Now, if you're to date my wonderful darling little sister, you might as well go ahead and tell her about yourself."

"Myself? I suppose that does make sense, if she's interested in me." Amna falls silent and lets her gaze wander across the room. Her search for some kind of inspiration ultimately fails. "Is there perhaps something specific you want to know about me?"

"Not for the moment," you say. "There's no need to worry about the details. You're a person of value now that you have my interest, so whatever you have to tell us will be a treasure."

"In that case, I'll share what little there is about me of interest. My mother lives rather isolated from other people. As a result, I didn't have a lot of contact with strangers before this week." Amna pauses.

"Although, I've only been active for a handful of months, so I doubt I would have much experience regardless. Besides lessons with my mother and helping with chores, I mostly keep myself occupied with reading and listening to music. Mother did not like me simply doing nothing while waiting for her to give me another task. I did however insist that she let me watch the night sky without distraction. It's rather calming."

"I'd like to see you like that," your sister whispers wistfully. "Your eyes are already so intense, that I get excited imagining them settling on something you're passionate about."

"That might be difficult," Amna answers. "The light pollution from the city makes it rather difficult to see the stars."

"Oh… Well, I'd be happy to be your stars, if you ever feel like staring at me."

"I do not think you'd be a suitable replacement."

Seeing your sister pout after that straightforward rejection, you break up the scene by calling in Mel with the fish course.

"You do seem to care about your mother quite a lot," you eventually ask Amna once Mel has retreated again.

"Yes," was her simple reply.

"That's wonderful. Familial love is just as important as romance," your sister gushes. "Older sisters are naturally the best kind of relatives, but parents aren't bad either."

"I can't attest to what it's like to have siblings, but I agree with the importance of family."

"Frankly speaking, I'd like to know how the two of you met," you say.

"She took me away."

"Amna, when people ask a question like I just did, they usually want details," you explain.

"I see. I'm afraid I don't know that much myself. My first memories are of sitting in a small room containing nothing but myself and a bed for… days?" Amna recounts. "The first time I heard another person's voice was when screams managed to tear their way into the box I was kept in. My mother showed up shortly afterwards and took me home with her. Given that they never interacted with me, I don't think my creators ever cared about me as a person. Likewise, I've never bothered to ask about them." The memory doesn't cast even the slightest ripple across her expression. It's only when she finishes talking that her eyebrows scrunch up in consideration. It only takes a second until she seems to have settled on not saying any more and returns to her usual placid expression.

You can't exactly blame her. There's few things worse than depriving a person of the attention and appreciation that they need to sustain themselves. It's why you intend to keep yourself from being lonely going forward.

Extrapolating from what little she did tell you, her origins sound rather suspect. Given the screams, it sounds more like her mother looted her from the carcass of an organization she gutted herself, rather than any legitimate process. Not that you'd condemn such an action in any way. Taking care of their creations is the highest responsibility of any alchemist that aspires to create a homunculus. If they fail to do even that much, they deserve whatever punishment they face.

However, if she's a thief sending Amna to rob the world of your ascend to godhood, you have to wonder how much she cares about her self-proclaimed daughter.

"First off, I'm happy for you that you're finally able to spread your wings in freedom," you say. "Secondly, could you tell me more about your mother?"

"I could, but I'm not sure how much she'd want me to tell you. She did accompany me to Fuyuki, so maybe it would be best if I ask her if she wants to meet you as well?"

"I'd love to have you introduce me to your parent!" Ida gushes.

"A reason to meet her almost as good as satiating my curiosity," you say. "I'll consider taking you up on that offer. I'm a lot more likely to reward her with meeting me in person now that I know that she didn't simply abandon you to the risk of the Grail War."

"Of course she wouldn't do that," Amna says with a scowl. "She might not actively interfere with the war, but she's watching over me."

"I'm sure she wants to see her girl grow up," Ida says. "Romance is exactly what a person needs to bring passion into their life and with how intense it can be, there's no better chance to find love than this Holy Grail War."

Amna seems to consider your sister's words, muttering something about suspension bridges under her breath.

Personally, you're not sure if there's anyone in this war truly worth meeting besides yourself, and it doesn't appear like Amna was tasked with worshipping at your feet. Ultimately, you decide to let the matter rest for now. While Amna isn't dishonest, you don't think she's the most reliable source of information on this matter either. The thought of worship did bring something else to mind, much like a bad aftertaste spoiling the satisfaction of an otherwise delicious meal.

"On the topic of those watching from the sidelines, I take it you have already met the church's overseer? What kind of impression did she make on you?"

"You mean Miss Kotomine?" Amna says. "Yes, I did visit her at the church last night. To me she seemed… competent? At the very least I think she'll be able to manage the oddities that have surfaced in this war, which is about as much as I can demand from somebody in her position."

"But you like my elder sister better than her, right?" Ida asks to prod her towards the important part of her assessment.

"I suppose so. Miss Kotomine was nice enough, but she also felt distant in a way. I can't imagine her inviting me to dinner at the very least."

"Right. Being a wonderful host is just one of Elder Sister's countless strengths," Ida says brimming with pride.

"It's nice to hear you appreciate the effort I made in welcoming you after your initial hesitation," you tell her while absentmindedly petting your sister. "You shall receive some consideration from me in return. There's even more participants in this war than usual. Given your apparent aversion to conflict, I hope you aren't too bothered that you might have to fight against more people as a result."

"It isn't something I look forward to," she answers. "However, it doesn't change the heart of the matter. I'll just have to decide how to deal with them one at a time."

"That's not the worst stance to take, Master. We can't have you simply give up after all and while it never hurts to be careful, hardening yourself completely is only going to waste a chance for potential allies." Rider finally speaks up again. He shares a look with his Amna, who wordlessly nods back.

"It's good to hear you talk as well, Rider," you tell him. You suppose letting Amna bask in your attention is a noble sacrifice to make, but you're hard pressed to trust a person that can resist the temptation of being noticed by you.

"Of course, I'd hardly be a good Servant if I didn't at the very least show her my support," he says.

You give him a sidelong glance. That reasoning still isn't about you.

"Seeing how I've already spoken up, I might as well answer one of your questions as well," Rider says with an easy smile after meeting your eyes. It seems his conscience has finally caught up with him.

"Very well, I'll give you the honor of answering my question." You take a short moment to consider your exact question. He doesn't appear to be the kind of saint that would offer you his true name that easily. Ultimately you settle on something that'll help you get a grasp on his personality.

"Rider, what is your opinion on this modern era?"

"Not wasting your chance on a small question, are you?" Rider says. "To keep my answer simple, I'd say that I'm quite fond of the modern world's conveniences, but not of the way people live in it. Most of you are too aimless for my tastes. What you need is… Hm, no, I suppose this is as much as I should say. We Servants are served well by a bit of mystery after all."

"I don't know," your sister says doubtfully. "I think familiarity is a lot better at breeding attraction. I'd love to get to know you better too, Rider."

"Maybe another time. I have taken up enough attention for today," he says.

"I don't mind, Rider. We don't need to talk even more about me," Amna says.

"If both of you are willing to relinquish the attention gifted to you, I'll be more than happy to claim it for myself," you say. "After all, that's where it ultimately belongs and I could hardly call myself a good host, if you leave today without having your life enriched by learning more about me."

To your guests' credit, they obediently listen to your lecture until the end of the meal. Of course an hour isn't nearly enough to do you justice, even with the help of Ida demonstrating how to best heap praise on you, but it's enough to ensure that they've become better people.

As Amna prepares to leave, a thought does occur to you. Your castle is rather far out from the city proper, so Amna might appreciate you driving them back. After all, even if Rider can shorten the trip through your forest, they'll have to be more subtle once they reach the edge of Fuyuki. It does mean you would arrive in town before it's time to meet up with your students, but not terribly so and you should be able to spend the time by searching them out early.

Alternatively, you could simply spend the time you have left at home. As natural as it may be for her, Mel deserves some of your attention after the effort she put into preparing your meal. There's no harm in giving it to her sooner rather than later.

[X] Give Amna a drive back home.
[X] Stay at home with Idasviel and Melsritt.