Nozomi Hoshizaki disappeared.
For Fujimaru Ritsuka, it was nothing short of a disaster.
To Ritsuka, Nozomi's presence was akin to a twin soul, or perhaps even like a pair of wings. Perhaps because they had been together since birth, Ritsuka saw it as natural to be with Nozomi.
That is why, when they first arrived at Chaldea, meeting Nozomi gave Ritsuka an unmatched sense of relief. Even if something catastrophic, like a bombing, were to happen, as long as they were together, Ritsuka felt they could face it.
However, when they arrived in this hellish city, Nozomi was not by their side. No matter where Ritsuka looked, there was no sign of Nozomi. The absence of the one who had been Ritsuka's emotional support meant that the negative emotions Ritsuka had been suppressing began to overflow.
Anxiety, frustration, fear, sadness. Every emotion seemed to be stirred together in a blender, greatly disturbing Ritsuka's heart. Eventually, these turbulent emotions reached a single conclusion.
I want to see him.
Just for a brief moment, Ritsuka couldn't help but think that she would throw everything away just to see Nozomi.
"...Senpai, is something wrong?"
"Ah, no! It's nothing at all!"
However, with her strong mental fortitude, Ritsuka managed to suppress these emotions. She acted as if nothing was wrong, trying to keep it unnoticed.
"By the way, I wonder where Nozomi-san was sent. I'm really worried."
"Yeah, that's true. I'm really worried too. So let's find Nozomi as soon as possible."
The absence of Nozomi by my side made me anxious, but I was still okay. After all, I remembered the promise I made with Nozomi.
"...That's right. We have to find Nozomi quickly."
After that, I began searching for Nozomi with Mash and Director Olga Marie, while also working on resolving the singularity. Along the way, many things happened.
Assassin and Lancer attacked us like shadows, and in a maddened frenzy, they kept shouting about the Holy Grail, launching attacks on us. But thanks to Mash, who had become a Demi-Servant, repelling them, we managed to survive.
However, Nozomi was nowhere to be found.
The monster that turns people into stone, Medusa. For Mash, who had just become a Demi-Servant, it was a formidable opponent. She struggled, but with the help of Cú Chulainn, who manifested as a Caster, we were able to defeat Medusa. Afterward, Caster joined our team. I feel incredibly reassured by this.
Nozomi was not found.
The Caster had warned us about an Archer. We went to the place where they were said to be, but they weren't there. Wondering about this, I decided to search inside a temple with the name "Ryūdō-ji" written on it to see if there was anything of interest. There, I found a stone that glowed with a rainbow-like light. I decided to pick it up for now. As I was exploring the temple, a loud crashing sound echoed through the area, as if something was being shattered.
Reacting to the sound and the presence, Caster urgently told us to escape immediately and hurriedly left Ryūdō-ji. Apparently, the source of the noise was a Berserker.
...Nozomi was not found.
Then came the battle with Saber, the one who started this chaotic Holy Grail War. Before the battle began, I trained Mash, who couldn't use her Noble Phantasm, and fought Caster. As a result, Mash was finally able to use her Noble Phantasm. Seeing this, Caster said that now it would be fine and we headed together toward the vast cavern where Saber awaited.
....
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"Nozomi..."
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We arrived at the vast cavern beneath Ryūdō-ji.
"This is the Greater Holy Grail... an ultra-advanced magical furnace core, isn't it? Why would something like this be here, in such an extreme eastern location..."
Olga Marie murmured in shock as she looked at the Greater Holy Grail sitting at the center of the cavern. Because she had accumulated extensive knowledge as a mage, she was able to correctly recognize the abnormality of it.
"According to the data, it's said to have been created by Einzbern, a master of alchemy."
Romani provided additional details about the Greater Holy Grail through the communication system. He was about to continue his explanation when Caster interrupted.
"Sorry, but the chatting ends here. Looks like the enemy noticed us."
With those words, Caster glared toward the source of the ominous presence—a Saber, King Arthur, clad in armor stained with a malevolent black, holding a holy sword. She regarded us with cold, merciless eyes.
Her pale gold hair, light-colored skin, and golden eyes that coldly stared at us—all of it stood out. Even someone like Ritsuka, a complete novice in magic, could sense the overwhelming magical energy swirling around Saber.
"..."
"What a release of magical power... Is that really King Arthur?"
"She may look delicate, but don't underestimate her. She's a monster that can fly not by muscle but by releasing magical energy. Each and every blow is ridiculously heavy. If you let your guard down, she'll take out your entire upper body."
"It's like the personification of a rocket... Understood. I will fight back with everything I have."
"──Is the conversation over?"
Saber, who had remained silent up until now, suddenly spoke.
"What!? You can talk!? You've been keeping quiet this whole time!?"
"Ah, I've grown tired of hearing that line."
Saber's attitude suggested that she seemed to know exactly what was about to be said or what would happen next.
"Well, whatever. The reason I kept quiet is because everything you said was being watched. So I chose to stand still like a scarecrow."
"Then why stop being a scarecrow?"
Caster voiced the natural question. If Saber had been pretending to be a scarecrow until now, why did he stop? Saber snorted with laughter.
"Simple. The fact that you lot have come means that sooner or later, that big idiot is going to show up."
"Big idiot, huh...? Who the hell are you talking about?"
"I don't owe you the courtesy of telling you."
"Tch, I see."
With that, Saber turned away from Caster, signaling that there was nothing more to discuss with him. Instead, her gaze fixed on Ritsuka, who was standing behind them.
"I'll test you, Fujimaru Ritsuka. Whether you'll become a burden to that big idiot or not."
"Eh...? How do you know my name?"
It was a natural question. Despite not introducing herself, Saber somehow knew Ritsuka's name. However, Saber made it clear that words were no longer necessary. She surged with magical energy and, wielding her black holy sword, charged toward them.
"Whoa! Are you trying to take down the Master right off the bat?"
Saber, who had flown toward them like a bullet, was momentarily held off by Caster, who used Rune Magic to launch a burst of flames as a deterrent.
However, Saber seemed to anticipate this attack, effortlessly dodging it by tilting his body without even looking. She then accelerated, closing the gap not toward Ritsuka, but toward Caster, who had momentarily stiffened from using the Rune Magic. Saber closed the distance with the speed of a jet.
"Dammit—"
"First, you die," Saber declared, swinging his holy sword downward.
If this strike landed, it would surely slice through Caster's body. But Mash, as a Shield, would not allow that to happen.
"I won't let you!"
Mash intervened between Caster and Saber, using her shield to deflect the holy sword.
"Hoh..."
"Sorry girl, but thanks for the save! Ansaz!"
The fiery projectile launched through Rune Magic bounced the holy sword upwards and headed towards Saber's exposed torso. However—
"Excalibur..."
Caster sensed an abnormal speed in the magic power gathering toward the holy sword, swelling explosively. He realized what Saber was about to do.
"?! This is bad! girls, get out of here!"
"Morgan!!!"
The flame projectile aimed at Saber was swiftly absorbed by a power that seemed to echo a dragon's breath. Saber used the magic supplied by the Holy Grail without hesitation, swallowing the attack with her Noble Phantasm.
The deafening roar of destruction echoed through the vast cavern, as an unforgiving beam of annihilation swept across, obliterating everything in its path. Everything in the direct line of fire melted away as if it were mere sugar sculpture.
"Hmph, dodged it well."
"Impossible...?"
It was unclear who muttered those words, though perhaps it was everyone except Caster who shared that sentiment.
The strike from Saber's Noble Phantasm effortlessly pierced through the rock walls of the great cavern, carving out a new path leading deeper into the hollow.
"Hey, hey! Don't just waste all that magic! At least show some restraint!"
"That's nonsense."
With those words, an enormous amount of magical energy began to concentrate on the holy sword once again, but this time, the target was not Caster or the others—it was Ritsuka and the others, who had been separated during the previous exchange.
"Tch!"
Caster, noticing this immediately, cast a Rune Magic enhancement on herself and charged towards Saber for close-quarters combat.
He also applied the enhancement to his staff, wielding it like a spear. His relentless attack was reminiscent of a Lancer-class servant, but since he was not of that class, Saber easily deflected his strikes.
"Aren't you supposed to be a Caster-class servant?"
"There's an Archer who uses a sword, so what's so strange about a Caster using a spear?"
"Ha, that's true."
While exchanging silly jokes with each other, they repeatedly exchange sword attacks, sparks flying. However, Caster, who was not called upon as a Lancer class, gradually began to lose strength and be pushed back.
"Ugh..."
"There, it's done."
They exchanged swords for the umpteenth time. At that moment, Saber clad her holy sword in her Noble Phantasm and released magical power, slamming Caster into the rock wall with a powerful technique.
"Guh...!"
And without a moment's hesitation, the Noble Phantasm was unleashed. Caster was slammed into the rock wall, and there was no way he could have withstood the attack, as he was engulfed in a blow from the holy sword, which boasted an immense amount of heat.
"Caster!!"
Without thinking, Ritsuka raised her voice.
"Is this really the time to be worrying about others?"
"Eh...?"
Ritsuka, who had just seen the fighting between Servant a moment ago, suddenly found Saber standing before her, and she instinctively stumbled back, sitting on the ground.
The holy sword was raised. It was not hard to imagine how easily it would cleave through her, like a hot knife cutting through butter.
"Fujimaru!"
"Senpai!"
Mash and Olga Marie tried to rush to help, but at this distance, it was clear they wouldn't make it in time. Ritsuka, imagining her own future, squeezed her eyes shut tightly.
"...Hmph, this is the end."
The holy sword was mercilessly swung down, aiming to cleave Ritsuka's body in a crosscut. In that instant, Ritsuka suddenly remembered what had happened before she had come here.
'──It's okay, I will definitely protect you.'
Then, the sound of a gunshot echoed through the vast emptiness.
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Ritsuka squeezed his eyes shut in preparation for the impending pain. However, no pain came, and instead, he felt a warmth surrounding him, one that brought an odd sense of peace.
What's happening...?
Curious, she cautiously opened his eyes, and there, in front of him, was the person he had longed to see, the one he couldn't wait to meet—Nozoki Hoshizaki, holding him protectively.
"Nozomi...?"
"...Are you okay?"
Nozomi spoke with an expressionless face, but his eyes were filled with concern as they gazed at Ritsuka. Without a doubt, this was the person she had been longing to meet.
Once Nozomi confirmed that Ritsuka was unharmed, he handed her something before slowly standing up. He then turned to face Saber, who had somehow appeared in the distance.
"Finally arrived, you big idiot."
"..."
"It's been a while since we last met. How about saying something? ...Ah, I see. This is the first time you've met me, isn't it? My bad, I don't have the same memory as that charging woman. My memories tend to get a bit mixed up."
With an emotionless expression, Nozomi silently readied his gun and knife, calmly locking his gaze on Saber. On the other hand, Saber, for some reason, seemed unusually delighted and spoke to Nozomi with a lively voice. However, her expression suddenly twisted into one of discomfort.
"…Are you still wandering, then? Why do you continue to wander so desperately, even at the cost of so many things? What are you searching for with that body, which has even lost its sense of pain?"
At that moment, Ritsuka noticed something. Blood was spilling from the wound that must have been made when Nozomi protected her earlier, forming a red puddle at Nozomi's feet.
"..."
"Silent as always. You're like this every time. You're obsessed with worrying about others, yet when it comes to yourself, you're pathologically indifferent. ...Ah, it's truly disgusting. You, doing such things, and I, unable to realize it back then, both of us are to blame."
As Saber spoke, her face twisted with bitterness, as if recalling a past she would rather forget. Then, as she raised her head, she readied her holy sword.
"Hey, you big idiot. If you're going to keep wandering, then defeat me. If you can't, I'll kill you right here."
With that, Saber smiled, somewhere between sadness and resolve.
"That's the only thing I can do for you, at this moment."
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[Isn't it nice to see the twisted faces of cute girls? Well, it's not like that has anything to do with this novel, though. It doesn't.
There were many misunderstandings about the Homo-kun Body Displacement spell, so here's an additional explanation.
Homo-kun Body Displacement involves replacing the target's information with another. In other words, what this means is:
A: A bullet flying at the speed of sound
B: Homokun standing still in place
If we replace the bullet and Homo-kun, it would be:
A: Homo-kun flying at the speed of sound
B: A bullet standing still in place
Something like that. Additionally, it's possible to replace unilaterally as well. For example, just like before:
A: A bullet flying at the speed of sound
B: Homo-kun flying at the speed of sound
Then it would be:
A: A bullet
B: Homo-kun flying at the speed of sound + another bullet flying at the speed of sound
This is the method of movement used in the previous chapter. Also, it seems that without reinforcement magic, this would result in instant death.
Now that I've explained, I will disappear.]
(*It seems Japanese names can be read in different ways. I'm confused? It has both name like kanji name 星崎 望幸
Nozomi Hoshizaki and Hiragana name
ほしざき もちゆき Hoshizaki Mochiyuki? The Second name is makes sense to me because he call himself Homo it's true because RTA type Fanfic like to name their character Homo for short one way or another, Japanese culture is unhinge*)