They both looked at each other for a moment, and knowing what the other meant, he nodded, she nodded back, and the two of them went to work together.
"Arigatou, Emiya-kun," said the insecure girl.
He smiled, "On the contrary, thanks to you, Sajyou-san. If it weren't for you, I'd have to do the job alone. By the way, this is Rouge, my apprentice."
She bowed slightly in greeting, to which the Princess nodded.
Since a certain event occurred in her childhood, Ayaka had had a hard time socializing with people. She had become a very insecure person, both herself and others.
She felt bad, but she felt bad because she felt good. She wasn't someone to wish harm on anyone, but deep down, even if she denied it, she was glad the boy was forced to work with her.
And deep down, she knew it.
In my own self-assessment, I really am the worst.
"Sajyou-san, are you okay?" asked the concerned boy as he saw how the girl had lost herself in her thoughts and seemed to be sinking into a small "hole" more and more.
"Huh?" she wondered, coming out of her ramblings.
The apprentice magus was concerned, "For a moment, you looked like you wanted to be swallowed up by the earth. You leaned over a lot until you almost touched the ground."
Every word the boy said made the girl blush more and more with shame, "Gomennasai!"
"N-No! I didn't say it that way. I was just worried."
"You know, if you keep up like this, you won't finish the job," the Princess told them with a smile upon seeing the two socially awkward teenagers.
Seeing that he was right, the two of them quickly got to work.
"Bright," Ayaka said.
Suddenly, a map of the world unfolded like some kind of hologram. This was an invention built by the Animusphere family, and the ones they were using were a prototype. The full version should show a more detailed map, with all the leylines specified, but the ones they were using didn't have the leylines, let alone be able to measure how strong the leylines were; doing this was their job.
"Ready, Sajyou-san?"
She nodded.
They both took turns locating and measuring the lines, and when they were both going a certain line, the boy frowned.
Does something happen?
Altrouge asked.
That leyline... the one that goes through the bay.
Is quite weak.
He nodded.
It was with it that I reached the Reverse Side of the World to obtain the fragments of Caliburn.
Wait, did you reach the Reverse Side of the World!?
He nodded slightly.
I thought it was crazy when I analyzed it, but it happened.
The fairy I met when I arrived said it could have been the will of the World.
Hmm… Interesting.
After half an hour, they both finished identifying the lines and measuring their power.
"Well, I guess that's it," said Shirou
Ayaka nodded wearily.
"By tomorrow, everyone has to come with the contagious magecraft chapter already read, read carefully the ones that can be activated remotely and the ones that have an incubation time," said Lord Trambellio.
"I guess we'll see you tomorrow, Sajyou-san."
"In fact, I'll see you later, Emiya-kun."
"Huh?" he exclaimed.
She smiled slightly, "I got Lord El-Melloi to accept me into his class."
He smiled with joy, "That's fantastic, Sajyou-san! I'm sure the teacher will be able to bring out your full potential. Although, a tip..."
"Which?" asked the interested girl.
"II, never forget to refer to him as Lord El-Melloi II. He gets angry if you don't tell it."
She nodded, "What classes do you have now, Emiya-kun?" Ayaka asked to the surprise of both herself and Shirou.
"Class on Curses. Although, I'm only going to enter as a listener."
The witchcraft apprentice nodded, "I have botany classes. So we do see later."
He nodded, and the two parted their ways.
Curses?
The Princess asked.
Grandpa was famous for creating cursed swords. I can't use any curses myself, but identifying them or learning how to place them on some object is something I want to learn.
I understand. I could create some for you if you want, I am not very well-versed in the art, but I can do it through my contracts.
He smiled.
Thank you, it would be helpful.
The apprentice magus entered the Curses Department class and sat in one of the vacant seats. Before class started, another young man came to sit next to him.
"Hmm!? Why the hell are you here!?"
Hearing the annoying voice, Shirou wished it wasn't who he thought it was, but unfortunately for him, he was: Matou Shinji.
Shirou couldn't help but act somewhat cynical with the magus, "Well, this it's a classroom, so I'll leave it to your imagination..."
"I thought you were useless with no talent for almost everything, am I supposed to think you can cast curses?"
"First, I am here as a listener, and secondly, if I am useless, then what are you that you lost against me?"
That statement annoyed Matou, but he was not that foolish to face someone he had already lost against, even more so if the rumors were true, "And who is the girl? Has she come with you?" he said, almost resigning himself to sitting in that place, not seeing any other void.
"Rouge, my apprentice..." said the apprentice magus without paying much attention to the boy, as the class had already started.
Instantly, he looked at her with contempt, "If she is the apprentice of someone without talent, I can imagine what she will be like..."
At this, Altrouge smiled happily and, with a speed that Shinji was unable to follow, she grabbed his wrist and broke it...
"AAAAAHHH!" cried the magus in pain.
"Matou! Stop making such a fuss. Even if your grandfather was one of the best students in this faculty, don't think that will give you any special treatment."
He was about to tell the teacher what the young woman had done, but as soon as he went to open his mouth, his familiars fidgeted, warning him not to do it; they were afraid of rouge.
"I suggest you don't do that again, Matou. She is much less tolerant than me."
In the end, Shinji decided to go to the medical wing and ended up missing his first class.
On the other hand, Shirou focused on listening to his teacher...
Curses have many variations, and some are related to other branches of Magecraft, such as Runic Magecraft or Witchcraft. And specifically, the curses that are placed on objects are mostly magecraft that grants certain effects or characteristics to said object, and the effects can be absurdly varied.
Who was the insect?
The Princess asked.
Matou Shinji is an heir to a magi family residing in the city where I live.
Did you fight him?
I defeated him in front of three Lords, and since then, I think he hates me twice as much. Still, I think he's gotten a little less cheeky since that day.
This surprised the Princess.
If he is like this now, I don't want to know what he was like before. I would surely rip out his vocal cords so as not to hear him speak.
This scared the redhead a bit, but after remembering the fight they had, and that it was also Shinji they were talking about, he did not object.
"Now, where do we go?" Altrouge asked as she looked at Mystile's style and decorations.
"Mineralogy."
They entered the mineralogy auditorium and there they saw Luvia and Rin, both arguing as usual. Luvia seemed to be showing off her achievements as heir to the Edelfelt family, and on the other hand, Rin seemed to be showing off her improvement in Magecraft. The boy thought this was normal; since they had not seen each other in almost three months.
When both were aware of his presence, the two reacted differently:
Rin was curious as she looked at the Princess who followed him, however, she cared little and approached them both with a smile.
Luvia, on the other hand, seemed to have mixed feelings: On the one hand, she was looking curiously at the Princess of the Dead Apostles, but, on the other hand, she seemed to want to go greet him as usual, but, she was still holding back, and, finally, she found herself annoyed by the superior smile her rival was giving her. So, in the end, she could only give a small nod in the form of a greeting.
"Good morning, Shirou."
"Good morning, Rin."
"Who is your companion?" Rin asked curiously.
"This is Rouge, I brought her to the Tower as my apprentice."
"Hmm... Delighted, Tohsaka Rin," she said, extending her hand to her.
In return, she also introduced herself, "Likewise, Rouge."
Hmm…
The Eclipse Princess exclaimed as she watched the girl.
What happened?
The apprentice magus asked.
When I told Kaleido about you, he told me that you spent a lot of time with the descendant of his mediocre apprentice. It just seemed incredible to him that, in just six generations, the family of a mediocre magus was capable of spawning a monster like her.
Then she put on a mischievous smile.
It is also curious that she was...
Altrouge!
You make it too easy for me. It's okay, you're a teenager, after all...
Please just, stop...
His pleas only made the apostle happier.
Okay, I won't bother you with either of them, but one doubt: Do you have a fetish for cemeteries? Or is it because of the style of the people who work on these?
He decided not to comment, he knew that whatever word he used, she would use it against him.
"I also wish I could bring an apprentice..." Rin exclaimed.
He looked at her curiously, "Who would you bring?"
"To my sister. Although, at present, she cannot leave our home."
"Do you have a sister? I believed that most magi tried to have only one heir."
"Yes, and for that, my father was about to sell her to another family," Rin clenched her hands tightly for a moment, then sighed, "but some things happened, and she managed to stay with us. The only bad thing was that she ended up confined to our house..."
"Sorry for asking such private things," the boy apologized.
She shook her hands, "Don't worry, it was me who decided to answer."
The teacher came to the class and ordered everyone to sit down, and unlike in his General Fundamentals classes, in this one, his teacher had changed.
"We will start with the class. Open your books in the energy storage section..."
After the theory, came the practice, and as usual Shirou and Rin were placed together to work. The activity given to them was to measure how much magical energy certain minerals and gemstones could withstand.
"Hey, Rin..."
"Hmm?"
"If the energy in a receptacle is increased until it exceeds the allowed amount, it ends up breaking, right?"
She nodded, "I don't usually do it with my jewels because of how expensive it is to have to replace them, but if I did, then the spells released with them would be more powerful."
"Could the same operation be performed with objects created purely with mana...?"
"Your projections?" she asked curiously.
"Except for what I forge, everything I project is weaker than the original objects. Seeing your jewel magecraft, I thought that if I overloaded my projections, I could increase their power."
She nodded, "The theory is correct but in practice… Do you want to destroy your hands, Shirou? After all, these will blow up when you're using them."
"Yes, you're right. I was thinking of firing the projections somehow..."
She looked at him in equal parts, surprised and confused, "Shoot swords? Is that why you had a rifle in your room?"
This question scared several students a bit, after all, it was the son of the magus killer who had firearms in his room. Even if magecraft might be more dangerous than most weapons, the way the magus killer worked was well known, as was the fact that he had used firearms to kill several powerful mages.
He shook his head, "Not exactly... I don't think he's capable of changing the shape of swords enough to turn them into bullets, but...maybe arrows."
"In that case, it would be possible, but you would have to get used to activating your Od from a distance, and this is a bit more complicated than doing it while the object is in contact with your body." After finishing measuring the energy a pyrite sample could hold, Rin commented to him, "By the way, today we will start with our little project?"
He nodded, "In your bedroom or mine?"
She thought about it for a few moments, "Since we are creating a sword, I think your room is better conditioned, and if we need some jewelry, I'll take care of it."
Immersed in their conversation, neither noticed Luvia's constant glances or Altrouge's laughter at the sight of the whole scene.
After an hour, the class ended, and Rin, Shirou, Altrouge, and Luvia headed to Lord El-Melloi II's class. Upon reaching the auditorium, the first thing they heard was...
"Formalcraft…"
"Excuse me?" Ayaka asked, confused.
"Your talent lies in the Formalcraft, although you also have a slight talent for Witchcraft. However! Formalcraft is without a doubt where your potential lies."
She nodded, stunned.
Cheerful, Shirou walked past her and placed a hand on her shoulder in greeting, "I told you I would do it."
Noticing it was her partner, she smiled slightly, "I guess so."
Seeing that the class was starting, Shirou went to sit at his post, being followed by Altrouge, although not before greeting his teacher.
"Good morning, Gray," he said, smiling.
Seeing him, she also smiled, "Good morning Shirou, and…"
"Oh, this is Rouge. She came to the Tower as my apprentice."
She nodded, "Delighted."
The Eclipse Princess waved back, "Likewise."
Do you have some kind of contract with this girl?
Huh? Not because?
He asked as Waver started class.
There is a kind of bond that binds you two.
I think I know it is, but I have yet to check. No, rather, I have to know why.
"Are you okay, Shirou? I heard about the rumors of the Aylesbury ritual," Gray said.
"Yeah, it was crazy, but I managed to get off well.
Well dead, you will mean.
Lord El-Melloi started giving his class, and Shirou didn't have time to talk to Gray anymore. Fortunately, Shirou did not have so many problems in the El-Melloi class, the class was not that big, and besides, it could be said that everyone in the class was peculiar:
He, Caules, and Ayaka were poorly talented in most areas, and on the other hand, Gray was not a magus in every sense of the word but had more potential than the previous three put together. Rin, Luvia, and Flat were monsters, but they had peculiar personalities. Svin was, in fact, the most 'ordinary' of all. Yvette was a supposed spy, and now that she looked at it, there were also two other new students in the class...
"Huh?"
"Is something wrong?" asked Gray.
"Gray, the girl over there... she is a member of the Ainsworth family, right?"
She nodded, "She, along with the boy next to her, her brother, requested to join our class. Do you know her?"
He nodded, "She was in Aylesbury..."
Be careful...
By?
You may not have noticed, but she has been giving you a look from time to time. Also, her brother has been keeping an eye on Tohsaka.
"Rin? That's weird. I can understand why he's watching me considering what happened in Aylesbury, but why Rin?"
Thus the class began, and at the end of this...
"Shirou," Lord El-Melloi called him as the redhead walked past his desk.
"Yes, teacher?"
"At the weekend, are you busy?"
He denied with his head, "Not especially."
"In that case, I want you to come with me."
Confused, he asked, "Where we go?"
"Do you know the Fargo family?"
"In name only..."
"They asked me to investigate a case, and I want you to come with me."
"Sure, but what kind of case?"
"A murder."
"Excuse me...?"
"Your father must have taught you how to track, right?"
The redhead nodded.
"Then it will be useful for us if you join us."
Of all the cases where he could need me, it had to be the one that starts with a dead.
Thought the boy, resigned, "I understand, where will we meet? Front of the Tower?"
Waver nodded, "By the way, Shirou, is that girl really your apprentice?"
The redhead nodded, "Yes, she is Rouge."
"I see, in that case, take care..."
Waver was no genius at identifying people, but having survived a war against legendary heroes, he had acquired a certain sixth sense that warned him about dangerous people, and, despite her appearance, he was sure that this girl was, and much.
"Shirou…!"
The redhead turned and saw Caules greeting him.
"Caules!" Shirou returned the greeting, "everything went well in Romania?"
The brunette nodded, "Fortunately, there were no major problems, although there was a small issue..."
This caught the redhead's curiosity, "A small issue?"
The Yggdmillennia nodded, "Could you come to my room? There is something I need to show you."
"Something you need to show us?" Shirou watched as Flat and Svin were waiting for them at the door, "I understand. Rouge..."
"Relax, I'll go wander around London. When I'm done, I'll go back to our apartment."
"Don't get into any trouble."
She smiled, "I won't promise you anything..."
"At least receive Rin when she comes..."
Caules looked at them confused, "Have you known each other for a long time?"
The redhead shook his head, "No, not at all."
"It's just that you two act like you've known each other for quite some time..."
"No, it's that she's just like that."
With that said, the three of them left for the bedroom where Caules was staying. On the way, the Yggdmillennia looked nervous, Svin looked calm, although, from time to time, he sent certain analytical glances to the redhead, although he did not notice it much, because, all the way, Flat was:
"So, is it true that he shot down a plane to take down a dead apostle?"
Shirou nodded.
"And, that time he put a bomb in the middle of a town in America to destroy another apostle, is it also true?"
Shirou nodded again.
"And the rumors that he took down a building to kill a rogue magus?"
"Yes, that one too."
Flat yelled like an excited child, "Your father is amazing!"
I believe that the old man thinks many things about the actions that he carried out, but that these were incredible it is not one of these. Shirou thought wryly.
Caules stopped in front of his room.
"Well, here we go..."
The magus opened the door to his room and said, "Look, all three of you..."
The three of them peeked through the porch, and...
"Hmm?"
"Oh!"
"What?"
All three said.
Inside the room was another boy. He had brown hair, red eyes, and extremely white skin, he also wore a brown vest and pants, as well as a white shirt.
"He is Sieg, he is a homunculus that I met in Romania, and by certain twists and turns, I ended up bringing him with me without permission… Will, you help me…?"
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AN: I finally created the p a treon. It has three tiers, but they all give the same amount of chapters (it depends on your own will how much many do you think this is worth)
The cheapest one is 3 dollars and you can read 10 chapters ahead there.
Here is the link: p-@treon.com/Rinaru1