She looked at me like I had three heads.
The others, well, they didn't really have any concept of the weight behind my name.
…..maybe I should give her a moment, because Olga was just gaping her mouth like a fish.
Perhaps –
"WHAT!?" She finally shrieked.
There it is.
"Wilhelm –"
"I heard you." She hissed, fuming as she properly processed what I had said previously. "Y-you –" He jabbed her finger at me, seemingly unable to find the right words. "…..you lied to me." Was added on with not but a whisper.
"Director!" Mash shuffled closer. "Roman is trying to contact us."
Olga jerked her head towards her, a scowl adoring her face. "Put him on." She huffed.
I suppose priority to the situation is given, no matter how much Olga was giving me looks. No doubt she clearly had a lot to say.
"Director are you –" Roman stopped to stare at me. "Takao!?"
"Hello Roman, fancy seeing you here." I gave him a little wave.
"How!? How are you there, what!?" Roman blurted out.
"….would you believe me if I said I Rayshifted?"
"But our sensors didn't detect any Rayshifting activity from our end?" Roman seemed confused. "Not to mention we don't have the power to Rayshift again yet. Leo barely has some sub systems back online, and –"
"Roman." Olga hissed again, interrupting him. "He didn't Rayshift."
Roman blinked, still confused. "But...how else did he get there?"
"Yes, how did you get here, Shimoda?." Olga glowered, emphasizing that name I used.
In normal situations like this, I usually make a joke due to the awkwardness, but…..seeing her genuinely look upset, I felt a pit in my stomach.
"I used the Kaleidoscope." I let out a sigh, just admitting the truth.
"The Kaleidoscope?" Roman repeated, his eyes slowly widening. "Y-you're a Magician!?"
"…yeah." I just nodded, not feeling very excited to introduce myself again when the Director was glaring my way.
"Uh, what's the big deal? I thought you all were?" Samuel awkwardly asked.
He sort of shrunk a little as everyone now turned to him as the source of the question.
"A Magician is completely different than a Magus!" Roman exclaimed. "A Magician can use True Magic."
And they continued to stare blankly.
"….we never covered that, Roman." Olga sighed, almost in resignation. "It wasn't something important enough to warrant a discussion." She shot me another look. "Atleast it wasn't until now."
"I'm completely confused."
I then faced the source of that particular voice; it was one foreign to me. "I'm sorry, who are you?"
"R-Ritsuka Fujimaru, um, sir?" He tried his best to address me sort or professionally.
"…you were with the new batch of recruits." I winced a little realizing he was the only one of the new batch that I've yet seen, even when I was running around Chaldea after the bombs. "And you managed to make a contract with….Mash?" I looked at the adorable girl in some revealing armor with the massive shield. "How did that happen?"
"You can find out later." Olga huffed. "Don't you dare try to change the subject."
"Right…"I scratched my cheek, feeling a little helpless at her attitude. How was I supposed to respond? While I didn't do anything morally wrong here, I did wrong her.
It's not like I couldn't emphasize with her perspective.
"I can explain the difference, Director." Mash cheerfully volunteered, cutting through the awkwardness. "Magecraft is the recreation of any phenomenon that can be achieved through non-magical means regardless of time or effort. While True Magic is something that is not yet achievable."
"…I think I get it?" Mash's master muttered.
"Wonderful." Olga deadpanned. "What a great use of our time. Now that the lesson is over, we can get back to the main point. How the hell are you a Magician – why are you a Magician!?" She threw her finger at me again in accusation. Though it was awkwardly phrased, and probably just blurted out, I could understand what she was trying to ask.
"Zelretch is my grandfather. He asked me to investigate what was going on with Chaldea because he anticipated something…..wrong about everything."
"Grandfather!?" Olga blurted out again. "The Wizard Marshall has a grandson?"
"I never heard about anything like that either." Roman whispered from his end.
"Lord Zelretch is the Magician known as the Kaleidoscope, the master of the second True Magic." Mash whispered to her apparent Master.
"Boss, does that mean you can take us back?" Samuel spoke up, apparently speaking what was on the minds of others.
"Sorry, Master. You're not going back other than the way you came." Caster who had been standing at the side lazily spoke up for the first time.
"What do you mean?" Samuel tilt his head.
"Figured you were new to everything. But…." Caster kind of inspected him. "Your causality is all twisted up. Can't say I know the ins and outs of how you got here – and by your admittance earlier, you're not from this time period. But, you can't go back except the way you came, otherwise your causality is too twisted and it'll tear you apart if you popped back over." Caster scratched his head, apparently trying to choose his words carefully for Samuel's sake. "True Magic, or whatever isn't something I'm familiar with either, so I might be wrong. But, he doesn't use the same method of travel, so I don't think it'd be a good idea to go back with it."
"You're right." I confirmed his suspicions.
"What a surprise, you're actually a competent Magus." Olga looked at Caster, scoffing.
"Hey, I'm a pretty good Druid." Caster chuckled.
"You decided to fight another Servant with a stick!"
"…I'm feeling pretty unappreciated here. You know, I did have to constantly keep applying Runes to myself to ward off her Mystic Eyes, right?" Caster hummed. "And If I tried to get some distance, that would just put you all in her line of sight. And not to be cocky or anything, but those were some damn strong Mystic Eyes, even with how cursed she apparently was."
Judging by the stone statues littering the area, I'm guessing the woman was Medusa.
"Thank you for your work, Caster." Samuel replied with sincerity.
"Thanks, Master!" Cu cheerfully accepted the thanks. "Atleast someone appreciates my efforts. I'd take a farm boy over a Magus any day."
"You know I grew up on a farm?" Samuel looked surprised.
"Hah, you got that look about you. Nothing wrong with farmers, honest lot they are." Cu chuckled. "And now that I have Gae Bolg, it's Lancer." He grinned, spinning the spear around.
"Wait, where did you get your spear? How did you change to a Lancer?" Roman spoke up.
"Ask the kid over there." He leveled it, pointing it at me. "And it's not my spear."
"But isn't Gae Bolg the name of your spear?"
Caster shook his head. "Shishou passed one of her spears to me after my training was done. She had several others, but she favored one in particular." He spoke giving the spear a nostalgic look. "Makes me wonder myself. How you got your hands on Shishou's favored spear?" His eyes landed on me.
"It was a memento."
"….I guess I should call you my little brother then, huh? Didn't think she would have another Student in this era." Caster easily red between the lines. "Did she finally get her wish?" He looked up at the sky, wistfully.
"She did." He knew then, I suppose. Well, there was no reason to hide it, I've already stepped into the light as it were.
"Good, that's good."
"What are you talking about!?" Olga stomped her foot.
Caster seemed to shift gears, regaining that cocky smile of his. "What? Just talking to my junior over here. Not every day I meet another student of that bitch."
It's funny, I don't particularly enjoy it when people talk about my woman that way, but it felt….sentimental when he referred to Scáthach like that.
Who am I to call him out if they had that kind of dynamic. I've called Scáthach a hag on more than one occasion.
"Another student?" Roman repeated again. "Wait, that means –"
"Yup, he also trained with Scáthach." Cu chuckled, spinning his spear a little. "Don't know how, didn't think it'd be possible to get to the Land of Shadows in this era. But I'm also not familiar with that Magic, so who knows."
"What makes you think I didn't just time travel to before you went? Maybe you're my little brother?"
"Who're you fooling, huh? I may not prefer being a Caster, but I damn well earned the right to appear as one. Time Travel isn't something even you can do quietly, present point excluded." He shook his head abruptly. "You're lucky, if things aren't as bad as I'm imagining, then you would have been in trouble."
"What do you mean by that?" Olga interjected. "Shimoda, what does he mean by that!?"
"…..True Time Travel is a Taboo. Rayshifting barely skirts around the issue, so you're fine there. But even for Magicians…..even Gramps won't use this method."
"…then why..?"
"I couldn't just let you all handle this on your own." I smiled wryly. "I'm the leader of B-Team."
There was a small crack in the mask that Olga and created after I introduced myself.
"Um, Director! We have a Servant signature heading your way, make that two!." Roman interjected.
Caster looked at me. "You're her student, I don't think I gotta ask if you can handle yourself."
"I can, but I would rather regroup somewhere for a little while."
"What, you afraid?" Cu jokingly mocked. "Don't worry, let your elder show you how it's done."
"Any other time, I'd love to but –" I gestured towards the others. "Your Master, and the others don't have the same experience, let them catch their bearings. And I also want to better understand what's going on."
"Damn it, you're probably right." His eagerness faded. "Let's get the kiddos out of here, let them catch their breath."
Well, he is sensible.
"And were do you propose we go!?" Olga crossed her arms. "In case you haven't noticed, this place is littered with skeletons of all things, and is mostly on fire! Not to mention the Servants running around."
"I know a place, a little out of the ways, and should have some decent resources we can scavenge."
"Of course you do." Olga scowled. "Lead the way, Lord Schweinorg."
[***]
"Good, this place is mostly standing still." I eyed the Tohsaka manor.
I don't think Rin would mind, given the situation. And I'll see if I can't nab some doodads that she might appreciate having duplicates of.
"What is this place, there's residual response of Bounded Fields having been present." Olga looked around, apparently casting some analysis spells.
"The home of Fuyuki's Second Owner – Rin Tohsaka." I replied.
It was far enough away from the main city that it made for a good place to bunker down for the evening.
"…..how do you know that?" Olga eyed me again. "And other things! How did you know about King Arthur!?"
"Let's get settled first, shorty. Then you two can continue your lover's spat." Cu replied with the grace of a sledgehammer.
"L-Lover's spat!?" She shrieked. "Y-you insolent –"
I put a hand atop her head, making her freeze. And If I were to be honest, it almost felt like she leaned into me only for her to quickly regained her wits. Her nostrils flared as she looked at me with a huff and stomped off. "I'm going to make sure there's no traps any of them will run into!" She declared before disappearing into the corridors.
"Damn, she's cute when she's angry." Cu tilt his head, watching her walk away. "You like the ornery ones too?"
"Really?" I gave him a deadpanned look upon noticing him staring at her butt as she disappeared.
"What? I can't admire the view?"
Admittedly, the Director is…..well-proportioned in that regard.
"….give me my spear back."
"No, it's mine now." He clutched it close to his chest, picking up the pace as he ran inside.
…..did he just pull that on me?+
It was sort of humbling in a way, being on the other end of that.
"Make yourself useful and put out a Bounded Field around the place." I shouted, knowing full well he could hear me even if he didn't respond.
Though, he was probably going to do just that anyways. Scáthach said many things about him, but never unreliable.
Though….
This feeling deep inside that pulsated when he was around.
I would be getting answer from him later.
But at the moment, I had other important matters.
The mansion itself was about 80% whole. The far wing was caved in, but I don't think it mattered much. The entrance opened up to some furniture, enough for everyone to sit down. "Alright, team, everyone take a seat. We need to have a chat."
"It's good to see you boss." Samuel said, falling into a seat with a sigh of relief. "It wasn't lookin good there for awhile."
I looked at what remained of my team, a melancholic feeling invading my chest. "…..no one else made it?"
"It's my fault…" Benjamin spoke up. "I tried to help Elaine, but – " He waived the stump that was his missing right arm.
"….there were a couple others we found, but….." Samuel added, choking the words out.
No judgment from me.
Jeez, what a stressful situation they've been shoved into.
"It's not anyone's fault." I sighed, walking towards Benjamin. "Let me see."
"Thanks, boss, I could use a hand." He joked in self-deprecation.
I lightly swat at his head. I knew it was just his way to cope. I inspected where it was wrapped up and I began undoing the cloth. "It could have been worse." I mumbled before my hand alit with a bright light.
"That feels good, don't stop."
"Don't make it weird." I snorted, swatting at him again. Though, it did ease the tension a little as I heard a few chuckles around me. "Unfortunately, I don't have a spell that can regenerate limbs."
"…..Oh."
"Don't get depressed." I quickly continued. "I know someone who can, though. So, wait until everything is resolved and we'll get it taken care of."
I could technically do something about it right now...but I was also hesitant to take something like that out in case we're being watched some how. It wasn't a mortal wound, as callous of me to say. So I could put it off until later, to be on the safe side.
"Alright, boss." He nodded, quivering his lip a little. Relief mixed with the same amount of stress everyone was dealing with.
I had to keep reminding myself that these people were not used to these kinds of situations.
"Chef." Pierra perked up as I put a hand on his shoulder, a healing light enveloping him. "What happened? Tout a explosé – Everything suddenly exploded." He corrected himself.
"I'm trying to figure that out myself." I admitted. "Everything in Chaldea is in shambles. The vast majority of staff are likely dead. That's not even mentioning the systems and resources that were no doubt loss in the attack as well."
I finished healing up them and moved on to the newest apparent member of our troupe. "Ritsuka Fujimaru, you said?" I walked up to him.
Young, probably younger than Benjamin.
Mash stood at his side, protectively. Even if she was relaxed, it seems like her natural instinct was to hover around him.
"Y-yes." He quickly nodded his head.
"It's an unfortunate first meeting." I held out my hand as he gladly took it. "However, welcome to the team, I suppose. We're going to need as many hands as possible. Could you tell me what happened? Maybe starting from when you arrived?"
"Sure." He mumbled, looking down at his hands. "Uh, I just got off the Helicopter and came inside when I saw a bunch of other people gathered. I guess they were going to be the same as me?" Fujimaru questioned as I nodded. "Right, so we came in and some other people came to introduce themselves. We were taken on a tour –" he paused, looking a little sheepish. "Erm…..It was a long flight, I had to use the restroom…."
"Let me guess, you got lost?"
He awkwardly scratched the back of his head. "I found this weird squirrel…..dog, thing?" He didn't really seem to know how to describe it, but I immediately knew what he was talking about.
I stiffened, because the door to the mansion was pushed open and I felt a very familiar presence. "Fou, fou!" The little monstrosity stood at the threshold.
I met its eyes
It looked smug.
And you knew I was coming, is that why you hid away right before I arrived?
….what the hell are you?
Nope.
I'm ignoring you. I'm ignoring the fact that you even came here, somehow.
"Fou, there you are." Mash cooed as the small animal ran over and jumped into her arms happily.
"Yeah, him." Ritsuka chuckled. "I followed, and I found Mash here. She offered to lead me back to where I needed to go and, well...when we were about to walk into the room with the – things – "
"Coffins." I added.
"Those things, yeah." He nodded. "Well, everything suddenly exploded. Next thing I know, I saw Mash and she was…..um, not very good. She asked me to grab her hand, then next thing I know, I landed on the ground here and she explained everything to me afterwards."
I looked up at Mash.
"It's all true, Senpai. Master saved me by making the contract."
"And what's the deal with that?" I questioned. "A Demi-Servant? That's the first I've heard of such a thing."
Mash visibly recoiled awkwardly and I realized I was touching something sensitive. "Let's shelf that for now. Are there any detriments to your 'abilities'?"
She shook her head. "But…..I don't know the name of my Noble Phantasm. I think the Heroic Spirit I fused with protected me and then something happened that it can't respond."
I think there's more to it considering that she was supposed to be a member of A-Team from what Wodime said. Something about some unfortunate circumstances that didn't allow her to deploy with certainty.
"Do you know the name of the Servant you're merged with?" I think that's the correct term for what happened to her?
The idea that a human could merge with a Servant in the same way she did was utterly fascinating.
"….sorry." Mash said quietly.
"It's not your fault. You being here is already a big boon." I tried to cheer her up. "And well done, Fujimaru, forging a contract with a Servant shouldn't be something you can do on instinct."
Makes me wonder what his Servant compatibility is for that to even be a thing.
"Thank you." His perked up a little bit, despite the situation. He was handling himself fairly well, all things considered. He and just stepped into the place and then a literal boom later, he's fighting for his life.
"What about you guys?" I turned towards the remainder of my time. "What happened on your end?"
They shared a look before Samuel spoke up. "Lev asked us to give the new guys a tour while everyone else was preparin to Rayshift. We wanted to make ourselves useful while everything was happenin, so we obliged. While we were showing them the Coffins and explaining what was going to happen soon, everything suddenly exploded."
"…..and was Lev inside the room with you?"
"Yes, Boss. Lev was standing nearby, but....the place he was got hit hard. I don't think he made it."
That made my thoughts come to a screeching halt.
Lev was dead?
...I didn't want to call Samuel a liar, but I don't think he could have paid enough attention to now if Lev escaped unharmed or not.
But at the same time, I can't rule out the possibility that Lev was actually uninvolved…
"What a mess." I breathed out, looking around the room again. "Alright you guys get a well-deserved break. Take a nap if it helps, I can make something for everyone to eat in a little bit once we're settled for the night."
What went unsaid was that they would be forced to jump into the fray again come morning.
I couldn't leave them by themselves and just run out to settle everything myself. There was the matter of a perpetrator on the loose who had no qualms about killing anyone. And if a stray Servant came upon them…..
No, it was better that they stick close, it would also mean I can keep some of my own cards to my chest for now by having both Mash and Cu help with Servants. Maybe I can see if the FATE system is working so they can summon more Servants tomorrow morning?
"Mash, look after everyone. I'm going to go check up on the Director."
"Good luck." She said quietly.
Oof, even Mash could see the hole I was in regarding her.
Let's see if I can mend some bridges.
[***]
"Didn't expect to find you here." I pushed open the cracked door to see Olga rummaging through some drawers.
It was Rin's bedroom.
She paused, seeing that it was me, scowled and continued. "My position as Director is clearly irrelevant, so I figured I would make myself useful. Do you have orders for me, Lord Schweinorg? Maybe something else you've lied to me about?"
I was about to respond with an apology but something else caught my eye. "….are you raiding Rin's panty drawer?" I looked over her shoulder.
…..damn Rin, some of those are spicy. You need to take Artoria shopping with you next time.
"D-don't compare me to some common deviant!" She squeaked in embarrassment as she unfolded her hand, revealing a few jewels, slamming them on the top of the dresser. "This Tohsaka heir hid some noteworthy items around her estate. I have been searching for them and found a few." She gestured towards the bed with a few more jewels and some other Mystic Codes. There was also the Dagger Mystic Code she tended to carry around.
"Clothes?" I asked, looking at some things laid out on the bed.
"…..I am assuming that my room is gone. Thus, I've been finding anything of worth to bring back. I can only imagine what resources we're lacking. I was going to gather what foodstuffs and such as well."
"How are you going to take it back with you?"
"…..I'll figure that out later." She huffed, turning around and stomping to the bed, and plopping down.
It's not that things can't Rayshift back with them, but she would have to somehow carry it all with her.
She made a good point, Chaldea was probably without any meaningful resources. Food, clothing, anything really would be much appreciated.
I walked over, sitting down next to her, but she huffed again, turning her head.
"I'm sorry." I saw her twitch a little, so I continued. "I'm sorry I mislead you."
"…..you have nothing to apologize for." She said evenly, though her tone betrayed her expression. "I'm sure you had no choice but to betray all my trust and lie to my face. This humiliation is entirely unintentional on your part. And the thought that I actually managed to do something right for once was just a misunderstanding, isn't that right?!? Of course, it couldn't be by my hand that a competent member of Chaldea emerged. No, it was the Wizard Marshall who takes all the credit. It's my fault for thinking I could fulfill my duties properly."
The look on her face as she finished, I don't think she even meant to say all that. The combination of stress and everything literally blowing up in her face...I can't fault her for just blurting that all out.
I reached out, putting a hand on her shoulder.
"What are you doing –!?"
And I pulled her into a hug.
She seemed like she really needed one right now. She didn't get upset, nor her usual shouting or belligerence. Instead, I think I heard some soft sniffles as her face was buried into my side.
She stayed like that for a minute and I didn't do anything to compromise the vulnerability she must have been feeling at this particular moment.
When she finally pulled herself away, she took a deep breath, rubbing her eyes. "You will not tell anyone this happened."
"It'll be our little secret."
"…..good." She nodded in satisfaction, a little bit of embarrassment showing through.
"Here." I said, taking out my hat.
"….what?" She stared blankly at it as I pushed it into her hands.
"It's a hat."
"I noticed!" She scoffed. "…and where did it come from!?"
I wiggled my finger to show the ring I had on. "Folded space, pocket dimension."
"Convenient."
"Yup, you know what's also convenient?" I asked.
"What?"
I tapped on the hat and Sir Wiggles Popped his little head outside.
Olga stiffened, staring at my familiar. Sir Wiggles pulled himself up out of the brim and forced himself onto her lap.
"…..why is there a rabbit in my lap?"
"He's not just a Rabbit, he is – Sir Wigglesbottom Fluffytail Octavius Benedict III, Crown Prince of the Emerald Kingdom, Duke of Carrot Island, General of the northern Armies, Lightning born, The Devil Slayer. And newly appointed head of Chaldean department of Phantasmal Beasts. Or, Sir Wiggles, for short."
She opened her mouth and closed it again. Clearly, she was in awe at the legacy that sat in her lap. "….cute."
I'll take that as an agreement on his new appointment.
"He's my familiar."
Olga ran a finger along his fluffy back. "And you didn't fill out the required paperwork to bring a familiar into Chaldea, did you?"
"…..He's my pet?" I offered instead.
Olga looked at me, her eyes twitching slightly. "I'll let it go this once." She said quietly.
Works every time.
"You do know we actually have a department for Phantasmal Beasts, right?"
"I did not." I admitted.
"Your Rabbit would probably do a better job anyways." She snorted, the slightest bit amused.
"The Hat is a pocket dimension. It's something very sentimental to me as well and is also Sir Wiggles' home. I already put a lot of different things in there that will be helpful to Chaldea. And you can add anything else you find." I picked the hat up, putting it on her head. She made a little noise consisting of grumbling cutely but didn't stop me. "So, why don't you hang onto it for awhile."
"…..thank you, Shimoda." She whispered.
And we spent a little while longer, sitting in a pleasant silence as she gently pet Sir Wiggles. A few minutes that she could destress probably helped her substantially.
[***]
"Hey."
I walked outside to the porch where Caster was laying against the steps.
"Caster." I greeted in return.
"Caster? What caster? I only see a Lancer out here."
"Mmm, it would be a shame if his spear disappeared." The corners of my lips curled up as I took a seat next to him.
"Come on, man. Don't do that to me. I hate being summoned as a caster. I mean, it's not bad, but I'm a spearman, through and through."
"I can't wait to tell Scáthach that you were summoned as a Caster." I laughed, just picturing her face.
"Wait, I thought you said she was …."
"Yeah." I sighed, getting a little more comfortable. "She asked me to kill her when my training was done."
"So you really did it, huh?"
"She let me win." I wasn't ashamed to admit that.
"Jeez, she never let me win."
"Oh, she doesn't anymore." I shook my head. "She'll kick my ass if I give her the slightest opening. Though, she does get affectionate afterwards. She enjoys cuddling."
"Wait, what? Are we talking about the same person? I'm thinking she's a little biased here, she was never that gentle with me. She would kick my ass to the point where I couldn't walk, then make me crawl all the way back to her damn castle. And you, what, get head pats afterwards? That's some bullshit right there."
"More like lap pillows."
"Fuck you. If you didn't give me this spear, I'd be fighting you right now." Caster pouted. "She was never that gentle with me. That's some favoritism right there."
"Of course it is, she's my woman." I said rather proudly. "
"….damn, you got some balls then." Caster looked at me with a hint of respect. "But you said she was killed?"
"Fought in a Grail War, used it to bring her back." I summarized the entire thing.
He blinked, looking at me. "Ah, that'd do it. Willingly fighting in a war against Servants just to resurrect her? Yeah, that's be something to win her heart even if there wasn't anything else involved." Cu chuckled. "….I'm glad she's doing well."
As fun as this conversation was, I believe it was appropriate to get to the point. "So, you ready to start talking?" I looked at him, raising an eyebrow.
"….so you noticed." The Caster servant sighed. "Was hoping you wouldn't."
"Pretty hard not to." I sat up a little straight. "So, wanna tell me why the blessing I got from the God Odin starts flaring up whenever you're around?"
[***]
Sorry for the delay, not feeling too well still.
If you want to read 7 chapters ahead or support me, visit my p.a.t.r.e.o.n.c.o.m / astoryforone
Just a heads up, this chapter was Beta'd so, probably more errors than normal. Which is also a heads up for the future, my Beta won't be available for awhile and I only have like three more chapters that he did corrections on. So, be prepared for some more errors while I try to handle things myself and get back into that groove.