[EMIYA SHIROU]
[THE GAMER]
[LV 25 - 1300/25000]
[HP: 2500][MP: 35][MC: 27][ST: 810 ][SP: 10]
[STR: 41][DEX: 42][INT: 22][WIS: 31][CHR: 77]
When Shirou woke up the next morning, Yoruichi was nowhere to be found.
Granted, he expected no less since she was no longer trying to tempt him to eat her while she slept, but only now he realized that he had grown accustomed to having her as a bedfellow.
Even though it was bad for Shirou's budding hormones, there was something to be said about waking up in the arms of a stunningly beautiful naked woman.
If someone had told him just a few weeks ago that he would have missed even slightly being teased into a puddle, Shirou would have been... skeptical, to say the least.
Well, there was no use mulling over it. Besides he had more important things to think about, namely what Yoruichi had told him about Kiritsugu.
Apparently, his adoptive father had been a sort of boogeyman in the Moonlit World. Not quite a hitman, but at least someone whose appearance made you wonder who would bite it next.
If you saw him coming at all.
The Magus Killer did not discriminate. He killed who he needed to kill, regardless of things such as age and gender. Or even just if said target had it coming, for one reason or another.
Shirou had a hard time reconciling that knowledge with the man who spilled tears of joy at having saved a single life.
He didn't think Yoruichi had lied to him and had he been any less smart, maybe he would have felt betrayed.
Instead, for the previous few days he was merely contemplative.
He already knew that Kiritsugu had wanted to become a hero, but ended up facing the reality that not everyone could be saved, that no matter how much power you had, you could only save the people you sided with. That even god could only save so many.
He knew that, because Kiritsugu had told him, but how had the man himself found out, if not by trying and failing?
If Shirou hadn't been told, if he hadn't known and accepted from the beginning the impossibility of it all, would disappointment and disillusionment have turned him down a similar path, given enough time?
There was no knowing it now, but he decided to believe that his father had been trying his best, even if he could never completely understand his reasoning.
[+2 WIS for accepting what you cannot understand]
"Heh," he scoffed. Trust his dumb ability to pitch in like that.
Speaking of his ability, lately he had stopped with his morning physical routine. His training regimen no longer bore any discernible fruit. He could spend entire days doing push ups or running and he would maybe get a single point in Strength and Dexterity in the span of a week.
He considered going to a gym, where he supposed he'd have double gains in physical stats just like a library did for Intelligence, but Shirou didn't think it would be a good thing benching several time his weight in public. Not for a lean-looking ten-years-old anyway.
He considered buying weights and make his own gym in one of the many unused rooms in the house but good equipment cost a lot of money and Shirou's budget was tight. Kiritsugu had left him enough money to tide over until he was old enough to get himself a job and his finances were of course being watched over by Taiga. There was no way he could justify that kind of expense when joining a gym was so much cheaper.
Maybe he needed to find himself an employment? But who would hire a kid his age? Even if could convince someone to give him a job using his Charisma, it remained the fact that hiring someone that young was flat out illegal.
Of course Shirou wouldn't want to put someone in trouble with the law for his benefit.
[Presence detected. Distance: 0.2 meters. Direction: 6 o'clock]
"Penny for your thoughts?" Yoruichi silk-like voice whispered right in his ear.
Shirou didn't jump out of his own skin only because he had received the alert from his [Detect Presence] skill. Still, Yoruichi's warm breath on his skin shivers down his spine.
"I was thinking about looking for a job."
Yoruichi sighed. "You ever consider doing something fun sometimes? All I ever see you doing outside of school is cooking, training and helping people around town. Now you want to find a job too? Your hair are going to turn white like an old man's at this rate."
"For your information, I happen to enjoy cooking and helping out. More importantly, if my hair are going to turn white anytime soon you'll be the one to blame."
"How rude. I'm doing you a favor by hanging around and keeping you on your toes."
Shirou threw her a glance that said wonders about what he thought of that. Yoruichi chuckled and ruffled his hair playfully.
It looked like that just like Shirou wasn't getting used to Yoruichi being herself, she wasn't getting tired of pulling his chain.
"Anyway, if it's a job you're looking for, I have just the thing for you."
"Huh? What is it?"
"Shirooou~!" Taiga called out as she stepped into the living room. "Is breakfast ready?"
Shirou whirled around to stop Taiga and give Yoruichi enough time to hide, only to find that his sister had already stepped into the living room and was looking straight at him, right until she looked down at his feet.
"Ah! Neko!"
Shirou looked down just to see Yoruichi's cat form sitting between his legs.
"Shirou, where did you find this cat?" she asked as she picked Yoruichi up from the ground.
"It's so cute."
The cat look at Taiga impassively.
After a moment Yoruichi jumped toward Shirou who readily caught her, if only because he had lightning fast reflexes.
"What the hell are you doing?" he hissed under his breath.
Yoruichi didn't answer, being a cat and all. Instead she curled into his arms and started purring up a storm.
Taiga's eyes turned serious as she looked from the cat up to Shirou and back.
"I don't think I like this cat, after all. Throw it out, Shirou."
"Sorry, can't do that Taiga. I'm... keeping her for a friend that had to leave the country for a while."
Taiga seemed like she wanted to ask who this friend was, but refrained at the last moment. At that point it time, being renown as someone who did favors to anyone who'd ask really came in handy to justify many odd circumstances without going in too much detail.
"It won't get any share of my food," she warned.
"Of course," Shirou promised. That went without saying. The last thing he needed was an hungry, irritated Taiga on his hands. She was already a handful when she was fed and in a good mood. "By the way, breakfast will be ready soon. Go take a seat and watch some TV until then."
Still looking impassively at Yoruichi, Taiga retreated and did as Shirou instructed.
At which point Shirou opened his arms and dropped Yoruichi on the ground.
"Seriously?" he asked, arching an eyebrow at her.
Yoruichi just turned her head as cats are wont to do when they don't want to acknowledge something or someone.
Shirou sighed and resume making breakfast, while Yoruichi softly made her way to the living room, where she curled up on Shirou's cushion.
Cat and Tiger stared at each other in utter silence.
There was no need for them to say anything, after all. The message was perfectly clear as it was.
'You're on!'
A battle of ownership had begun, while their prize was happily oblivious of the storm building up inside his own home.
"You mentioned a job earlier," Shirou said after he came back from school, climbing on the rooftop where Yoruichi was sunbathing.
"Oh, yes. You're still on the weak side, but you've got the potential."
"Can you just stop beating around the bush, please?"
Yoruichi blinked. "... You get worked up about that when I called you weak in the same sentence?"
Shirou scowled. "What are you on about? If I thought my current strength was enough I wouldn't be training so hard."
Yoruichi shook her head. "You are the weirdest kid I ever met, I swear."
"I don't want to hear that from the nudist sunbathing on my roof."
"Heh! Anyway, I thought that with a bit of training under your belt, you could easily become a sweeper."
"I suppose you are not talking about an actual street cleaner."
"You're right. I'm talking about someone like me. Our job is to hunt the malicious manifestations of the supernatural that appear here and there. If you agree, I can get you into our organization."
"I thought you had been cast out."
"From my clan, yes, not from the larger group we're part of."
Shirou rubbed his chin in thought. Fighting was what he was good at, although he didn't like hurting people. It was completely different if what had to fight were malicious supernatural entities, like the wraiths up the mountain.
"Before I agree to anything, is there some kind of dumbass rule of conduct it that I should be aware of?"
"What makes you think that?" she asked back, frowning.
Shirou rolled his shoulders. "As annoying as you can be, you aren't a bad person and I think you are smart enough to run circles around most people. If you had to break the law, your hand was either forced by the circumstances or it was something morally debatable from the start."
The Mage Association had rules like that as well, Kiritsugu had taught him. Murder was a preferable option to exposing Magecraft to the public.
Yoruichi sat up, crossing her legs, staring at Shirou with a bemused expression on her face. Faster than he could react, she wrapped her arms around his head and hugged his face into her bosom.
"HuMmM!" Shirou protested from the valley of her breasts, flailing his arms around wildly.
"I really can't let my guard down around you, can I? Just when I thought I had you pegged, you do or say something downright adorable."
Meanwhile, as he struggled with suffocation, Shirou's brain didn't know whether it had to send blood to his face or to his crotch. Unable to come up with a decision, it did the only reasonable thing it could and shut down to prevent overloading.
Shirou went limp in Yoruichi's arms and the naked woman pulled him away, only to find him passed out with his eyes swirling.
"Looks like I really overdone it this time," she chuckled.
Still, she pondered as he laid him down beside her, Shirou was really one of a kind.
At the beginning she was guarded around him. Because she thought he was Hollow at first, but also because he was abnormal.
He was way too mature for a child, even a Magus one. Perhaps being the son of the infamous Magus Killer could explain it, but the boy expressed none of the ruthless pragmatism his father was known for.
He was straightforward and honest as one would expect from a kid his age, yet he was focused and driven in a way only a few adults could be.
It was jarring how difficult it was for her to look at him and think 'this is a kid'.
He had a presence that seemed to draw her in. Few people, much less men, managed to hold her interest for an extended period of time. Most fell into easily predictable patterns, particularly where she was involved.
Not Shirou.
Although he was as transparent as a window, she just couldn't figure him out completely.
Under the right circumstances, she could understand why an older woman would want to be involved with him. Romantically, if not sexually.
Yoruichi had little difficulty believing that someone who already lived an existence removed for ordinary humans, like Saeko, could throw away her social mores and just ravish him, age be damned.
What surprised her, was that it had been Saeko of all people. The woman was wound up so tightly that it was only a matter of time before she exploded.
How in hell Shirou had managed to defuse that ticking time bomb, Yoruichi couldn't begin to fathom.
Was it a wonder then, that she would find him interesting as well?
Briefly, she wondered if that was how it had started for Saeko. A budding curiosity for a mysterious existence that eventually devolved into a sordid affair.
Maybe it was only a matter of time before she too ended up having the hots the kid.
"As if something like that would ever happen to me," she laughed to herself and resumed her sunbathing next to the unconscious Magus.
She should have known better than to needlessly tempt fate.
When Shirou woke up on the roof, Yoruichi was gone. Of course she would just disappear when he wanted something from her.
He wasted no time looking for her. She would show up when it suited her. Besides, it was time for him to head into town and do Quests.
After the commotions of the past few days, he expected the afternoon would be entirely dull and unsurprising.
That evening
[Your cooking has reached Lv. 45]
Shirou put down the knife and glanced at the message prompt.
'Again? I leveled it up just this morning...'
Sometimes, Shirou didn't understand how leveling worked. Progression was supposed to be relatively linear (when accounting for the law of diminishing returns). Yet sometimes some of his skills would level up way sooner than his most optimistic estimations.
Cooking was one such skills. Even though it was one he practiced little, just a few minutes three times a day, it leveled up fairly often.
Sure enough, with each higher level he tried his hand at increasingly complex recipes, so it was only natural but it fluctuated too much. Sometime he only gained a level per week and some other times two levels in the same day.
There had to be some other factor, he decided as he resumed chopping vegetables. If he could figure it out and replicate it elsewhere it would be great.
He inclined the chopping board and pushed the diced vegetables into a plate, then placed both the chopping board and the knife into sink.
'It can't be a random roll of some kind,' he mused, 'There was never any indication of such things as far as leveling is concerned. What kind of obscure parameter could be at play?'
He felt he was on the cusp of a realization of some kind. Something nudged at this mind, but he couldn't quite put it into focus.
At that point, he caught his reflection on the knife he had just done washing.
"..."
He looked intensely at the knife, almost as if it held the solution to the mystery.
[Presence Detected. Distance: 0,2 meters - Direction: 6 o'clock ]
"Narcissist much?" Yoruichi whispered in his ear.
"Just thinking," he replied, lowering his knife into the sink again.
"You do that an awful lot," the dark skinned woman said amusedly.
"Someone under this roof has to," he retorted, " and I don't see you volunteering."
Yoruichi smiled. "I'll make comedian out of you yet."
"I'll pass. I wouldn't want to steal your role."
"Ha! To think that you can switch from being an adorable little thing to a snarky midget in the same day. You are just full of talents, aren't you?" she ruffled his hair.
"What do you need, Yoruichi-san?" he sighed, pushing away her hand and choosing to drop the antics. It's not like he would ever win against her. Not with words, at least.
"I got in touch with my organization and I set up a meeting for you. Go to this place tomorrow for an interview."
She gave him a slip of paper with an address in the city he didn't recognize.
"What kind of interview are we talking about?"
"That would be telling, Shirou-chan" the cat-aspected woman purred while she stroked his cheek.
Blushing and slapping her hand away, Shirou narrowed his eyes. "I'm bringing a sword then."
"If it makes you feel more confident, then by all means."
He narrowed his eyes even further.
"Armor too," he decided at which Yoruichi burst out laughing wholeheartedly.
"Let's put it this way," she told him between bouts of laughter. "Either way it goes, you'll definitely need protection."
There was some kind of joke in her words, but he couldn't figure it out. Needless to say, it didn't reassure him at all.
Whatever retort he was about to come up with was interrupted by the doorbell ringing.
Taiga would just let herself in and besides she wouldn't be coming for dinner today since she had a PTA meeting.
It was almost time for dinner so who could it possibly be?
When Shirou wasn't looking, as usual, Yoruichi changed to her cat form.
She let out a meow that seemed to ask what was he waiting for.
Shaking his head at her antics, he went to answer the door. It was the last person he would have expected to see.
"Good evening, Shirou."
"Saeko? What are you doing here?"
"Oh? Can't I make house visits to my only disciple? Even if it's swordsmanship, I'm still your teacher," she smiled coyly.
"It's not that," he shook his head. "You are always welcome, I just wasn't expecting you to drop by. Please, come inside."
"Thank you," she said walking past him and into the entrance, where she exchanged her shoes for a pair of slippers he provided.
"What a delicious smell," she said, tilting her head as if trying to grasp it better. "Were you already dining? If so, I can return at another time. I wouldn't want to impose."
"No, no. I was preparing and besides I would be happy if you joined me for dinner. No imposition at all."
"Preparing?" she tilted her head. "Can you cook, Shirou?"
"I'd like to think I'm a fair hand at it, yes," he replied humbly. Technically, the description of his [Cooking] skill at the current level said that he was above the average professional chef.
"Well then. I would really like to see how good my disciple is outside of the dojo. Besides what you have already shown me, of course."
Shirou's face turned red. "Uh, about that... there isn't exactly only the two of us here today."
"Your guardian is coming over? I believed that all teacher were having PTA meetings today."
"Well yes, Fuji-nee won't be coming by today... Wait, why do you know about my guardian being a teacher? For that matter, why do you know about the PTA meeting? They aren't held on the same day for high-schools."
It was Saeko's turn to become flustered, but before she could say anything another voice answered for her.
"Because she wanted to take advantage of your guardian's absence to ravish you in your own home, Shirou-chan. That much should be obvious."
They both turned to look at Yoruichi, who was back in human form and of course in all of her naked glory.
"Yoruichi-san!" Shirou cried in dismay. Wasn't she supposed to stay hidden? Granted, she knew Saeko but Shirou would have wanted to break the news of her presence a bit more gently.
"You!" Saeko hissed, stepping protectively in front of Shirou. "What are you doing here, you... you pervert?"
Yoruichi looked around, searching for said pervert
"Oh, I'm sorry. Are you talking to me?" she asked innocently. "How strange. Last I checked I wasn't the one getting boned by a ten-years-old kid."
"I- I don't know what you -Shirou?"
"Yoruichi-san," he said firmly, stepping in front of Saeko. "Saeko is my lover and there's no point denying it. However, inside this house you are both my guests and I expect a certain level of respect and decency by everyone. Saeko, please refrain from name-calling. Yoruichi-san, if you intend to be in polite company you'll either keep to your cat form or get dressed. These are my rules. Abide by them or get out."
There was a moment of stunned silence, though the reasons differed for each woman.
Yoruichi was taken aback, because Shirou might have grumbled, but ultimately she let her get away with anything. At first, she thought he was standing up for his lover, but instead she reprimanded Saeko first and only then turned on her. He was being a fair host and she could respect that. More importantly, she never expect he had it in him to be this firm around others.
Saeko on the other hand had the ground swept from under her feet when Shirou boldly called her his lover and she didn't have the presence of mind to protest when he asked -demanded her to be polite to that woman. She then lost the will to say anything at all when he doubled down on Yoruichi's behavior and laid down his ultimatum.
She had gotten so used to be on top with him that she had almost forgotten how unrelenting he could get with the right motivation. It made her heart flutter.
As for Shirou, he didn't like laying down the law, but he knew that asking nicely wouldn't get him anywhere. They were both powerful and headstrong women, apparently with a bone to pick with each other. If he allowed them to build up momentum, forget about politeness, he'd have to pry them from one another with a crowbar. It was much better to put down his foot from the start.
He who seize the initiative wins.
"Never thought I'd see the day I'd when I'd get scolded by a kid," Yoruichi grumbled. "Fine, I'm going to get something to wear."
"Shirou, why is she here?" Saeko asked, but answered her own question before Shirou could. "No, I already know that. She was in need of help and you provided it. I should not have expected any less from you."
He nodded in gratitude for her understanding. Their relationship was odd. They had never spoken of commitment to each other, in fact he turned her down immediately when she made him the equivalent of a proposal. However, to find a naked woman in the house of your lover was bound to be ground for jealousy.
In fact he'd rather not think about a situation when the roles would be reversed. It made him quite nauseous.
'She's mine,' he thought fiercely and almost recoiled to the intensity of that feeling. He shouldn't be thinking like that. He neither could nor would stop her if she wished to be with someone else. Still, that didn't mean he'd like it.
"By the way, Shirou?" she called as they walked toward the living room.
"What is it, Saeko?
"Just now, you've made me fall for you all over again, you know?"
As his face acquired an interesting shade of red, Shirou told himself that he didn't feel supremely satisfied about it.
The first requirement to be a Magus, after all, is being able to thoroughly believe your own delusions and when it came down to that, no one would ever surpass Emiya Shirou.
Yoruichi came back a few minutes later wearing a green strap shirt over black shorts.
"What?" she asked when Shirou looked at her strangely.
"Nothing. I just thought that those clothes suits you."
"I swear, you are the first guy so adamant about getting me into clothes instead of wanting me out of them."
"Because Shirou is a respectable person," Saeko commented. "Unlike some."
"Don't be too hard on yourself, Saeko-chan," she said right back. "You aren't that bad."
The two women glared at each other. Actually, Saeko was doing all of the glaring while Yoruichi was doing all of the grinning.
"It's not really any of my business," Shirou cut in, "but why do you hate each other so much?"
"I don't hate her," Yoruichi objected. "I rather like Saeko-chan. She's easier to rile up than you are."
Shirou's eyebrow twitched. "Should have figured it was something like that."
"I don't hate her either," Saeko answered. "It's just that she has been persona non-grata for the Busujima clan for over a century."
"Excuse me?" Shirou blinked rapidly, then turned to stare at the woman that didn't look any older than twenty-five.
"Now, now, Saeko-chan. Going around revealing a woman's age is just rude."
Shirou's mind was reeling. This gorgeous woman... was over ten times his age?
"Are you some kind of vampire, Yoruichi-san?"
"Naah," she shook her head. "I just age veeeery slowly."
"Yeah, I can see that," he agreed. "It's too much hoping you would just explain your circumstances, right?"
"Not a chance in hell," she confirmed.
"Figures. Anyway, dinner's going to be ready in a minute. Take a seat with Saeko and don't kill each other."
Yoruichi did as instructed and took a seat opposite to the scowling swordswoman.
"So, Shirou eh?" she asked ironically with a voice that couldn't be heard from the kitchen over the sounds of Shirou cooking. "How did that happen?"
"It's none of your business, Yoruichi."
"I mean, he's a remarkable kid, exceptional even, but I would have thought he'd be a bit too young for your tastes."
"Does age matter when you are standing on the edge of the abyss?" she asked, scowling. "Does it matter when he keeps me from falling into it?"
"... Holy shit, he's really got you good," Yoruichi said in amazement.
"Hmph!" Saeko scoffed.
Yoruichi had expected a sordid carnal affair, a mutual scratching of itches, with the age difference partially excused by Shirou's exceptional maturity, but it wasn't the case.
Saeko was heads over heels for Shirou.
She glanced to the kid, no, the young man who was standing on a stool to better reach the stove.
What had Saeko seen in him that she had missed? What could he have done to evoke such a devotion in the most stubborn, wound up woman she had ever met?
'Color me impressed, Shirou.'
"Alright, it's ready," he announced, oblivious to the exchange that took place in the next room.
He came out of the kitchen carrying two trays covered in plates, juggling them effortlessly.
Both women's eyes widened at the variety of plates displayed. They both thought he was whipping up an ordinary dinner, something simple that even a child could make, but this looked like an high quality buffet.
"O-oi Shirou... when did you order take-outs?"
"Huh? What are you on about, Yoruichi-san?" he asked.
"You can't expect me to believe you made this stuff."
"I thought I told you I like cooking. I have been doing it three times a day for over five years now. Besides, you've been living here for weeks. Even though you never came for meals, how did you manage to never notice?"
Embarrassed, Yoruichi scratched her cheek sheepishly. "I wasn't exactly interested in your cuisine, you know?"
"Yeah, no kidding," he snorted. "Dig in before it gets cold. Itadakimasu."
"Itadakimasu!" the two women echoed before getting their own shares of food.
No words were exchange afterwards. Dinner proceeded in religious silence, although it couldn't be said there was peace either. In fact, a silent war was going on between Saeko and Yoruichi to get the most food onto their plates without looking like they were gorging themselves. That's how good Shirou's cuisine turned out to be.
Shirou took the silence as a sign of approval and enjoyed his own meal without knowing exactly how impressed his guests were.
Half a hour later, two thoroughly satisfied women sat nursing their stuffed stomachs.
"It was all exceptional, Shirou. Thank you very much," Saeko complimented.
"Yeah, I guess that all the time you spent in the kitchen wasn't wasted", Yoruichi agreed with a toothpick held between her lips.
Before he could acknowledge their gratitude, they heard the front door open and close, followed by loud steps approaching rapidly.
"Ohayo, Shirou!" Taiga greeted cheerfully. "I have finished early. Oh? Who are these people, Shirou?" she asked, tilting her head quizzically.
"Ah. This is Busujima-sensei and her friend, Shihōin-san. They were passing by and I invited them to stay for dinner since."
"Pleased to meet you both," Taiga bowed. "Thank you for taking care of Shirou, Busujima-san."
"Not at all," Saeko smiled politely. "It was my pleasure to have Shirou as my disciple."
Yoruichi chortled, and nearly burst out laughing when Saeko glared at her.
"That's a relief. Shirou is a good kid but he can be unreasonably stubborn at times."
"You are one to talk," he mumbled but only Yoruichi heard him. It did little to placate the laughter she was suppressing. "Since you are home early, Taiga, have a seat. I've saved your share."
"Oooh? I knew I could count on you," the ecstatic teacher praised, sitting next to Yoruichi. A moment later, she was happily eating through her dinner.
"Hm, Busujima-san," she said between mouthfuls, "how is Shirou doing? He's very reserved and he's always vague when I ask."
"Is he now?" Saeko asked, giving him an amused look. "There's already nothing left I can teach him. For all intents and purposes, his swordsmanship has already surpassed mine."
Taiga nearly choked on her food. "Wha-? Seriously?"
"That's not true, sensei," he objected. "You are still much stronger than me."
"That's because I have the advantage of a longer reach and greater height, but if we are talking about pure techniques I am no longer your match."
"Whoa! Shirou, that's incredible," Taiga said, completely flabbergasted.
"And how is Shirou doing in school?" Saeko asked in turn. "I hope he's not letting his grades slip because he's too focused on his training."
"Well, no," Taiga blinked, "actually he's the top student in his year."
They were all staring at him now and he couldn't help but blush under the combined attention.
"So," Yoruichi drawled, somewhere between impressed and amused, "top student, genius swordsman and professional level cook. You sure don't do things by halves, uh?"
Even Saeko who knew just how talented and drive he was looked suitably impressed.
"Can we talk about something more interesting?" he pleaded, clearly uncomfortable. His fidgeting made the gathered women grin.
His reactions were just too cute. One couldn't help but wanting to tease him even more. An impromptu alliance was made at the expense of the hapless aspirant hero, which culminated in a hour of merciless discussion about him and his quirks.
Nothing was said that couldn't be considered as praise by most people, but by the end of it Shirou felt like he had come down with a fever from how long he had been blushing.
"Well, it has been nice but I should really get going," Yoruichi decided after a while. Don't bother getting up, Shirou."
"Thanks for dropping by, Yoruichi-san." he nodded.
"Eh. Thank you for dinner. I'll see you around. You too Fujimura-san."
"I should get going as well," Saeko agreed. "It was nice meeting you, Fujimura-sensei. Thank you for the excellent meal Shirou. I will see you again soon."
"Have a safe trip you two," the teacher waved cheerfully. "Man, where did those beauties come out from, huh?"
"Did you say something?" Shirou asked as he stood up to put away the last dishes.
"... no, nothing."
Shirou shrugged and went about his business. Talking to herself was the less weird thing Taiga could do, so he didn't pay it any mind.
However, while Shirou wasn't looking, Taiga sized her own breasts and let out a disappointed sigh.
"A defeat on all fronts, huh?"
In the end, some battles weren't meant to be won, no matter how hard one struggled.
XXX
EMIYA SHIROU]
[THE GAMER]
[LV 25 - 1300/25000]
[HP: 2500][MP: 35][MC: 27][ST: 810 ][SP: 10]
[STR: 41][DEX: 42][INT: 22][WIS: 33][CHR: 77]
Shirou followed Yoruichi's indications to reach the place where her organization had a base of operations.
Because of the Japanese streets-naming conventions, going anywhere was fairly complicated, even if one had a GPS. It was why Shirou had done so many Quests related to giving people directions.
It was the reason why he had to ask directions himself this time. However, now that the positions were inverted he was having a very difficult time. For some reason, people just weren't willing to help him.
It wasn't that they didn't know the way, simply they didn't want to tell him. Because he had such a high Wisdom, he could pick the cues in body language and wording to figure out as much.
What was the meaning of this? Some kind of compulsion cast on unassuming citizens to keep the location a secret?
That's what he suspected at first, though it made little sense. What kind of arbitrary security would make ordinary people unable to speak rather than just wiping their memories?
It became even more confusing, as the afternoon turned into the evening. As the type of crowd changed, so did their reactions at his inquiry. Some looked amused and some other simply shook their head and left.
Eventually, he managed to ferret out enough information to find the block where it was situated and then he understood why he had a hard time telling him, a kid, how to get in this place.
Fuyuki's small albeit lively red light district.
To be completely honest, Shirou knew little about such areas, other than they catered to the baser desires of men and women alike. He didn't fully grasp how far that went, though.
Even with high INT and WIS, relative to his age, Shirou didn't know what he didn't know. He only had vague impressions about what certain establishments did for a living. The only thing the he knew for certain was that someone his age shouldn't be anywhere near them.
No wonder then that upstanding citizens wouldn't want to help him get there.
No wonder then that Yoruichi was so damn amused at the prospect of sending him there. He was ready to bet anything that she was following him, having a giggle at how flustered he was as he firmly stared at his feet in order not to look around too much.
It didn't help when a few gorgeous girls approached to ask him if he was lost and needed help to find his way. Even his charisma got in the way as they find him just too cute to let him go. Their words, not his.
Eventually, one of those women decided to accompany him to his destination, apparently believing that he was looking for his mother who worked in the red light district.
Since that made everything much simpler he did not bother denying her assumption.
Finally they stood before a building with bright neon lights. The name on the signboard was the same as on the card that Yoruichi had given him. It read "Velvet Room."
"Here we are," the woman told him. "Do you need me to go in and look for your mom?"
"Ah, no. That won't be necessary. You have been plenty helpful already. I'm in your debt, Mizuki-san," he said bowing deeply, which made the woman giggle pleasantly.
"You're such a dear, Shirou-chan," she replied lightheartedly. "If you ever need help again around these parts, make sure to look for this oneesan again, okay?"
"I will do that. Thank you," he said still bowing. She waved him goodbye and he waved back until she disappeared through the ever growing crowd. Then, he took a steadying breath and pushed open the doors, stepping into the Velvet Room.
"I'm sorry, we're not open yet," the male receptionist said. He blinked in surprise as he didn't see anyone standing in front of the desk, then he lowered his gaze and saw the strangest sight to date.
A kid was standing right there, carrying a backpack on his shoulders with a long stick wrapped in white cloth strapped to its side.
"Huh. You got lost or something kid?" he asked. "You shouldn't be here."
"Probably not," he agreed with aplomb, "but this is the place I'm supposed to be. I was told to ask for a Matsumoto Rangiku-san? Is she here?"
"Hm, she's here alright," the receptionist nodded, still somewhat taken aback. "She's your relative or something?"
"I don't believe we are related, no."
"Huh. Well, she's not receiving clients yet and you wouldn't qualify as one either way. I'm sorry, but I must ask you to leave."
"I'm here on behalf of Yoruichi-san."
The receptionist, who was about to come out from behind the desk stopped in his tracks.
"Yoruichi-san?" he asked warily. "About this tall? Dark skinned? A body to die for?"
"If I say yes to all three, promise you won't ever tell her that I did. She doesn't need any more ego boosts."
The receptionist smiled wryly. "Yeah, that's Yoruichi-san, alright. You're in the right place then. Wait a minute, I'll call Matsumoto right away."
He promptly picked up the phone and punched in a three digits number.
"Yo, Rangiku," he spoke casually, "I've got Yoruichi-san's latest acquisition right here. Come get him and don't be surprised by his size."
"She'll be down in a minute. Step inside and wait for her shorty," he jerked his thumb toward the door to the next room.
"Thank you, mister," the boy nodded in gratitude and moved right past him. He watched him go and shook his head in resignation. Yoruichi sure was cruel to send someone so young to die.
What a shame.
When he stepped into the main hall of the Velvet Room, a single area with several stages with poles on them (the purpose of which Shirou ignored) everything looked perfectly normal. He could see where the establishment took its name. Other than the hardwood floor and furniture, everything was covered by garish, purple velvet.
There were people moving about, setting things up for the proper opening later. Beautiful girls in succinct clothing where chatting with each other, sparing him only a curious glance when they passed him by. It was a weird experience for him, but everything was still normal.
Then she came.
[Matsumoto Rangiku]
[Lv. ??]
She wore a black dress with cuts on both sides so deep that when she took a step he could see her leg from the tip of her high-heels shoes all the way up to her wide hips. Only a thin line of cloth suggested that she wore something under it, but if the size of it was any indication, that too probably covered the bare minimum. The dress continued further up to her shoulders, but it could have not bothered from how much of her cleavage it left exposed.
And what cleavage it was.
Spoiler: Rangiku
Saeko and Yoruichi were both endowed in a way that put the average Japanese girl out of the competition altogether, but Matsumoto Rangiku put them downright to shame.
Then, as if her impossible curves weren't already enough to make the mind of most men pack up and leave for shores unknown, she had to have the most piercing blue eyes encased on a refined face, framed by long blonde hair. A white scarf around her neck gave just enough color contrast to make it impossible for anyone not to notice her.
Fortunately, Shirou had yet to hit the brunt of his hormonal stage or he would have ended up making a fool out of himself. Thankfully, being aware that this was yet again a woman whose level dwarfed his own made him divert his thoughts from the way she looked to the reason why he was there in the first place.
Her pretty face crinkled into a frown when her eyes settled on him. An expression that quickly melted into a small smile.
"And you are?" she asked.
"I'm Emiya Shirou," he replied bowing lightly. "Would you happen Matsumoto-san, perhaps?"
"The one and only," she confirmed. "So, you are Yoruichi's latest victim. I must say, I would have expected someone a bit more... fearsome from someone she recommended."
"Things are often not as they look," Shirou replied, smiling amusedly. This was a woman whose beauty belied her power. She should know all about it. "Isn't it?"
She put a hand on her hip, cocking it to the side. The gesture made the length of her leg show from the cut in her dress. Through superhuman willpower, Shirou did not look.
"That's certainly the case," she promptly agreed. "Well, no point in talking about it. She sent you here for a reason. Follow me, Shirou-kun. Can I call you that, by the way?"
"Of course, Matsumoto-san," he nodded.
"So polite. You might even become my favorite," she said. "If you survive long enough."
Well, wasn't that ominous?
She turned around and started walking. Shirou followed after her, once again looking down at his feet. Some people could feel when they were being started at and Shirou didn't want to ogle her. Not if she knew, at least.
She led him in the back of the building, where a big elevator was located. They stepped inside and Matsumoto pushed the only two buttons in a certain combination. The door shut close and the elevator started going down, even though according to the panel there was no floor beneath this.
They descended for a long time and by the feeling of acceleration he got, they were going relatively fast as well. Wherever it was that this elevator went, it was very deep down.
"So, how did you and Yoruichi met exactly?" she asked jovially. In spite of her stunning beauty, Matsumoto seemed to be fairly laid-back as a person.
"I'm not sure I'm at liberty to discuss the circumstances," he replied as politely as he could.
"You must be a very nice young man," Matsumoto said, shaking her head. "Very patient too."
"What makes you say that?"
"Anyone who has known Yoruichi for longer than a few hours and survived to tell the tale would be sufficiently annoyed with her to not bother with keeping her privacy."
Shirou made a complicated expression. It wasn't like he could refute Matsumoto's words, after all.
"She's peculiar, I can agree with that. Still, she's not a bad person."
Matsumoto snorted amusedly.
"How old are you exactly, Shirou-kun?"
"I'm going to turn eleven in a few months," he tilted his head. "Why?"
"Nothing. I can see why she thought you were interesting, though," she replied looking down at him.
"I'm not sure what you mean by that," he told her sincerely.
Matsumoto smiled warmly and leaned forward to ruffle his hair, nearly touching her forehead to his from how close their faces were. It took him a lot of effort not to look down her dress. Her mesmerizing eyes made it a little bit easier.
"Scant few people ever bother to look for what's beneath the surface, Shirou-kun. Someone so young having such a deep insight is a peculiar existence of its own. Is that how a Magus is supposed to be, I wonder."
"I wouldn't know," he forced his dry mouth to form words. "I'm the only living Magus I know."
"Oh?" Matsumoto said, straightening up. "A bit removed from your sort, I see. That would explain why Yoruichi thought you'd fit in with us instead."
"Don't you usually get along with Magi?" he asked as he fixed his hair.
"Magi don't get along even with each other from what I understand. I suppose It is only natural considering how important to them is keeping their craft into their own family, but that habit often translate in looking down on others on a principle. Regardless, there aren't that many this far East to begin with."
"I see," he replied noncommittally. He already knew that Magi were a stiff bunch from what Kiritsugu had been willing to tell him about them, but Matsumoto painted a more vivid picture. Whether it was accurate or not, it remained to be seen.
Finally, the elevator stopped and the door slid open.
Shirou felt like nauseous. Mana in this place was so thick it felt like breathing water. This place had to be very close to the leyline or even inside of it.
Matsumoto stepped out and Shirou followed after her, trying to keep the discomfort from showing on his face.
They were in a cavern, dimly lit by fluorescent lights. It was relatively small, but at the end of it there was a decorated wooden door, much like one would expect from a western-style cafe. There was even a sign next to it.
- Ahnenerbe -
She pushed it open and soft ambient music came out.
It really was a cafe.
It was softly illuminated and it had a welcoming atmosphere. A few patrons were sitting at the tables, either alone or in company, but the sound of voices was naturally low.
"Come take a seat, Shirou," Matsumoto said, gesturing him toward a table.
"What place is this?" he asked as he set down his backpack and pulled out a seat. "Why is there a cafe this far underground?"
"Beats me," she replied cheerfully. "To the best of my knowledge, the Ahnenerbe has always been here in one form or another. You should think of it as a point of juncture. A place where those who can't meet under ordinary circumstances can find each other. Also, it's a passageway between our world and the Abyss."
"Excuse me? The Abyss?"
She nodded. "I suppose someone brought up on the precepts of Magi wouldn't know about it. Think of it as the layer underneath our reality. The plane of existence where spiritual beings hail from and where the advancement of mankind has pushed them back to."
A chill went down Shirou's spine and he nearly jumped from his chair. The best he could do was keep himself from shouting.
"A place like that can be accessed at will?"
"Through specific points of contact such as this, it can," she confirmed.
"What's keeping those creatures from coming back to this side through it, then?" he pressed on.
"We are," she replied easily. "That's our job. Now, I don't want to make it sound like it's a bigger deal than what it actually is. By far and large, human denial today makes a good enough job at keeping them out as it did in giving them life in the past. Largely we deal with newborn entities and the accumulations of human emotions given shape. Weak things but closer to the surface then the rest."
"I see," he replied, clearly shocked. He knew in theory that this place existed. Things like Gods and Phantasmal Beasts hadn't just died. They had been merely pushed away from tangible reality as the world progressively decayed and human consciousness started actively denying their existence. They had left, yes, but they were not gone.
"They do get out sometimes, though," he observed.
"It's inevitable. These are naturally occurring phenomenons and there's more than one point of juncture. Some are closer to the surface than this. However, those places are usually ancestral lands guarded by people who have made it their families' purpose to put down anything that comes out."
"Like the Busujima clan," he observed.
"Ah, yes. Yoruichi told me that you were a practitioner of their style. Yes, that's exactly one of such places. However, that is but a small fissure where the spirits can emerge in great numbers only when the conditions are right, whereas this place is a huge chasm. If it wasn't guarded, anything could climb up and rampage in the real world at any time."
"And you said it wasn't a big deal," he deadpanned.
"It is an important job, but it's not complicated. Come, I'll better show you. I'm sorry George, we'll order something on our way back," she said to the man behind the counter, who just nodded in confirmation as he kept wiping wine glasses.
They went for another door, completely identical to the one they came in from. They went through it and they were back in the Red Light district. At least, it would have been it if the colors hadn't lost much of their luster and there was no crowd filling the streets. There were just a few people milling about here and there.
"What is this?" he asked, looking around.
"We call it the Mirror World," she replied. "The first layer of the Abyss. All heavily populated areas are reflected in here almost faithfully."
"Huh, it wouldn't be from the shared experience of all the people that live there, would it?" he guessed.
"That's a Magus for you," she snorted. "Yes. Cumulative human consciousness not only gives birth to spiritual entities, it has also actively shapes this place. However, once you go somewhere where people don't dwell much there's no guarantee of what you'll find. Those places are the most dangerous and it's better to stay away from them."
"I see, and who are these other people?" he asked, gesturing to the few humans around.
"We claimed the Mirror Red Light District as our base of operation and we keep it safe and fortified. Anything that wants to go up in the real world would have to go through all of us first."
"All of this is incredible. Are those shops actually open?" he asked, pointing at some buildings.
"A few people have set up shop down here," she confirmed. "Mostly they sell weapons and armors crafted from whatever our people have been able to harvest from their kills. Which incidentally brings us to the reason why you're here. Yoruichi told us you were looking for a job."
"I am... what do you propose?" he asked. He had an idea of where this conversation was going, but he'd rather she explained it herself.
"Simply enough, we need people willing and able to fight. We periodically send out groups to thin out the spirits that form continously. It's a dangerous job and people can get easily wounded and killed. Strictly speaking, there's always a shortage of manpower. Do you think you have what it takes?"
Well, he hadn't come down here to see the sights, that was for certain. Moreover, there was just no way he could turn his back when he had been told that people were risking their lives and getting hurt without him doing anything to help.
"Of course," he nodded firmly.
"Good. However, you can't join our ranks just like that. Our people constantly put their lives into each other's hands. We need to know you are capable before we can trust you with our backs."
"I see, that makes sense," he quickly agreed. Whether it was mundane or supernatural business, competence and reliability were paramount. "What do I have to do?"
As an answer, Matsumoto put her hand between her breasts and pulled out a gem-like object of a blue-silver color about the size of an egg.
"This is a Mana Core," she explained handing it over to him. "It's the heart of any creature you'll find down here, whether they have an actual heart or not. Bigger and more powerful beings will have bigger cores as well, but there aren't any of them within Mirror Fuyuki. Go out there and bring ten of these back to me. That way I'll know that you can handle yourself."
Shirou stared at the object intently with his Gamer Eyes.
[Mana Core]
[Description: A crystal made of solid Mana. Can be sold, used for Crafting or consumed]
[Restores up to 100MP]
'Holy shit!' he thought. Something like this was absolutely priceless. Mana in solid form that can be consumed to restore one's reserves? In a world where Magi down their luck sold their Mana enriched blood for money, something like this was worth more than its weight in gold.
"So? Are you going to do it or what?"
[NEW QUEST: Initiation Ritual]
[Gather 10 Mana Cores and bring them to Matsumoto]
[Reward for Failure: Get kicked out of the Mirror World - Reward for Success: 5000 EXP, Relationship with MATSUMOTO RANGIKU: +1000, ?]
[ACCEPT]
[Y/N]
"You bet!" he answered, thus accepting the Quest.
Thirty minutes later.
Shirou stood in front of the barricade that separated the Red Light district from the rest of Mirror Fuyuki. Before going out he equipped himself with the things he had brought for the occasion.
The previous day he went to a sport shop and bought a set of shin guards like those used in hockey and a set of gauntlets like those used in archery for both arms. The clerk had looked at him oddly but didn't say anything.
They offered little in the way of protection, but it was better than nothing. Besides there was nothing better a kid could buy. Even cheap armor replica didn't come in his size. He had to make do with them.
The shin guards gave him a 50 point reduction in DMG received and the gauntlets 25. At least, they didn't get in the way of his mobility.
He had half expected Matsumoto to laugh at his getup, but instead she commended his foresight, saying that a little protection was better than none at all.
With that, she escorted him to the castle-like gates and instructed the guards to let him through. Thus he stepped into Mirror Fuyuki, ready to face whatever lurked out there.
Matsumoto watched the gate as it closed behind Emiya Shirou. In truth she was quite worried. It was a dangerous world out there, full of creatures that defied human logic. She had lost plenty of friends in this line of work and she wasn't sure that a kid not yet eleven would fare much better, no matter how talented he was.
Still, there was nothing she could do. It was swim or sink in this line of job and if he couldn't accomplish a simple task as this it was only a matter of time before he lost his life.
All she could do now was wait and hope for the best.
Shirou carefully ventured forward, firmly holding his sword. He didn't particularly fancy walking around with a blade unsheathed, but not knowing what type of creatures he would find and what they were capable of, he'd rather not have to waste precious seconds.
For a while, everything was quiet, then a message prompt appeared.
[Unnatural Presence detected]
[Direction: 3 o'clock - Distance: 50 meters]
Great, there was something nearby. Not that Shirou could see it since there were buildings in the way.
He slowly made his way in that direction, trying to make as little noise as possible. As he approached, the position and distance of this presence on the message prompt changed accordingly.
Finally, he stood at a corner, with the distance measuring just in a few meters.
With his back against the wall, he glanced behind the corner.
There was purple blob of goo in the middle of the street. It wobbled quietly without making noise and Shirou wouldn't have known what it was if not for his Gamer Eyes.
[Slime]
[Lv. 15]
'Slime? Seriously?' he thought. 'What's this, a videogame?'
Even though he was a game character, that was limited to himself. Whatever this slime was, it couldn't be the same thing as those found in games. He needed to be careful.
However, he didn't know how to be careful to begin with. This thing had no eye that he could tell. How did it perceive its surroundings? Could he ambush it somehow? He had no clue whatsoever.
He observed it for a few minutes, but it did nothing except wobble in place. It would probably keep doing that until it was given a reason to do something different.
With no other available course of action, Shirou stepped out of cover with his sword at the ready.
Immediately, the wobbling intensified. The creature was undoubtedly aware of his presence. It started to inch toward him extremely slowly, just a few inches per second. At this rate, it would take a quarter of a hour before he got anywhere close to him.
Shirou tentatively took a step forward and then another. If this thing was this slow then he could easily use hit and run tactics.
Just as he thought that a tendril of goo shot out extremely fast. Shirou had barely time to move that it went through the space he just vacated with a whipping noise.
"Shit!" he exclaimed as he finished rolling on the ground and returned to his feet. He started circling the creature, dodging the tendrils that shot out every now and then.
The slime was fast, but not faster than him. Thank goodness he had developed good dexterity otherwise he would have been already hit several times.
Now more or less confident that he could outmaneuver it, Shirou leaned forward. When the next tendril shot out he crouched under it and used the motion to propel himself forward against the slime.
Shisui flashed and went through the slime's body with splat. After he made contact, Shirou immediately jumped back, avoiding the tendrils that shot at his position.
He had yet to get out of the creature's range that the cut he had made sealed itself shut.
[CRITICAL HIT!]
[NO DAMAGE]
"Are you kidding me?" he shouted. "Don't tell me it's immune from physical attacks?"
It made sense. It was a shapeless mass of goo, after all. Why would making a hole in it hurt it any? If that was the case, he needed to find a different type weapon. Failing that, he'd just have to run.
No... that wasn't acceptable. There was no guarantee that anything else out there would be easier to deal with than this. Right there and then he had to figure a way to prevail, otherwise would he just keep on running?
Shirou stood his ground, resuming his stance. He had no idea what could harm this creature. All he had available was his skills and his sword. By extension, all he could do was using them to the max.
"That immunity of yours... I'll see just how far it goes."
A tentacle shot out at him again and Shirou dodged once more. This time, however, he slashed at it while it was extended severing it abruptly.
The slime didn't make any sound but jerked violently as a part of it was severed away. The smaller part that Shirou cut away splattered on the ground, but immediately it started slithering around, heading towards the main body, where they rejoined seamlessly.
"Is that how it is?" he asked, rhetorically. "Fine. Let's see how you like this!"
He stepped forward at the top of his speed, slashing the slime as he passed it by. Then without stopping he repeated the attack. Again and again and again and again.
The paradigm of the battle had changed. Shirou was giving his all in attacking and the slime did everything it could to undo the damage Shirou inflicted. Because he was so much faster, Shirou was cut it faster than the slime could fix itself. However, there was seemingly no limit to the creature's regenerative ability. Shirou would have the upper hand only as long as he had stamina to spend.
He was about to reconsider this tactic when he caught a glimpse of something shiny inside the slime's body. Recognizing it for what it was Shirou focused his flurry around the spot and quickly snatched it before stepping away for good.
The slime started to jerk violently in all directions for several seconds, before finally losing all its consistency and melt down into a watery substance.
[Slime defeated - Exp gained: 150]
Shirou opened his hand and saw the Mana Core that he had stolen from the slime's body.
"So, that's how you do it," he exhaled in relief, a feeling of satisfaction swelled into his chest.
He looked at his status bar and noticed that he had consumed about 50 points of stamina of his 810 available. It wasn't a huge amount, but it wasn't small one either. Supposing that he'd face nine more slimes to get the rest of the Mana Cores he needed, that meant another 450 points he was going to consume.
However, now that he knew their weakness he could probably do it more efficiently, so it was probably going to be a little less than that. Still, that was just assuming that everything would go right and that he wouldn't meet anything other than slimes. He'd rather prepare for the worst. Besides, it would cost him next to nothing.
He put down his backpack and pulled a small, round package out of it. Opening it, he revealed an onigiri. One of his own making.
He quickly ate it.
[45ST restored]
Who would have thought that his cooking skill could be so useful on the battlefield? He definitely had to look into different skills later.
Putting his backpack on again, he set out to look for more monsters.
Three hours had passed since Matsumoto had seen Shirou off. She was currently sitting in the Ahnenerbe, drinking a cup of sake. It wasn't her first that evening and her cheeks were slightly red as result.
In truth, she was about to give up on ever seeing Shirou again. Three hours wasn't a long stretch of time to be out hunting, but every first timer that survived their baptism made at least a couple of trips back to recuperate their strength before going out again.
At this point, the poor kid had probably been killed and devoured. If he was lucky, it happened in that order.
She was thinking so, when the door opened and that same kid walked in.
"Ah. Matsumoto-san. There you are."
"Shirou... kun?" she asked, thinking that she was hallucinating again from drinking too much. "You made it back."
"And I've got your ten Mana Cores," he added cheerfully, dropping them on her table.
"So I see," she replied, sobering up a little. "I must say, I didn't expect you to be this fast. So, how did you like your first hunt?"
He took a seat in front of her.
"Tough. I mean, slimes are relatively simple to kill once you get the gist of it, but they still take time to track down."
"Eh," she grinned. "How long did it take you to figure they are weak to fire?"
"...wait. That's their weakness?" he asked, looking surprised.
"Of course," she nodded, looking just as surprised as him at his response. "How did you kill them if you didn't use fire? Magecraft?"
"I... just cut them," he explained sheepishly.
"They are immune to physical damage," she deadpanned.
"Yeah, I figured that much on my own. I just carved them open faster than they could repair themselves and stole their Mana Cores."
Matsumoto looked straight at him, trying to figure whether or not she was pulling her chain. Then, not seeing any trace of dishonesty on his innocent face, she felt her stomach start to shake and laughter bubble up her throat and out of her pretty mouth.
She laughed heartily for a while as he looked at her quizzically with his big golden eye. That puppy-like expression only made her laugh harder.
Finally, she dried the tears that had pooled at the corner of her eyes and recomposed herself.
"My goodness. I haven't laughed that hard in a long time. You are the first person I've ever heard of that killed a monster immune to physical attacks with physical attacks without doing them any actual damage. I suppose you are the stubborn type, aren't you?"
Shirou scratched his cheek sheepishly. "I guess I can be a bit stubborn at times."
Matsumoto shook her head in disbelief. Wasn't this kid just a bit too much? If he could pull off things like these at this age what kind of monster would he be when got older?
Regardless of that, she couldn't help but think that it would be a fun thing to witness.
"Well, then. I suppose you did prove yourself to be good enough for us. Congratulations, Shirou-kun," she said as she slid him a badge with a stylized skull on it. "I officially bid you welcome to our Soul Society."
[QUEST: Initiation Ritual COMPLETE]
[5000 EXP gained, Relationship with MATSUMOTO RANGIKU: +1000, Proof of Membership (Soul Society) acquired]
XXX
AN: Alright, here's the thing. I'm basically posting this here weeks in advance compared to the rest of the world for the sake of discussing the story development before it gets into the mainstream market, so to speak.
I took a few liberty with the Reverse Side of the World as it exist in the Nasuverse. Basically, I layered it. The deeper you go, the more powerful beings you encounter. In the equivalent of human populated areas, you usually find only low level creatures like slimes, because they are borne of human thoughts and because human Common Sense make those places area where higher being just don't want to be. This is the place where the Grail War will take place. If I haven't said here already, it's going to be very different than from Canon, with the ultimate goal of acquiring enough Mana Clusters (which equals each to hundred of thousands of Mana Cores) to fill the Grail and grant a wish.
The Ahnenerbe does what it usually does with a twist. Connecting realities that cannot usually be connected allowing meetings that couldn't otherwise happen.
Soul Society is a group of freelancers so to speak. They are part of a larger association made of clans who share the same bloodline but also composed of pseudo guilds made of skilled individuals of different origins. Soul Society doesn't bother with stuff that happens in our side of the world. They just prevent what's on the Reverse side from coming up.
So what is your opinion about it?
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