La Pucelle (Prologue)

This world works in strange ways. No matter the course of events or failures, there are no set outcomes despite the existence of fate or prophets denoting a set path. All that remains are scenarios of 'what will' or 'what won't be' based on probability and hidden variables.

Past, present, future, time itself is simply the medium, an imaginary sea.

What if regardless of the means, only a single end will come to fruition?

'If one thinks hard on it, perhaps there's no difference between then, now, and surely. All that truly exists is a matter of happenstance.'

Laws exist, and when they're broken, they will be noticed.

A variable that shouldn't have existed now existed in a place beyond its natural course. It was foreign out of place even by Foreigner standards because it was neither spirit nor amalgamation of magical energy.

The variable was alive and not some sort of overwhelming existence. In fact, it was feeble, mortal with its own limitation.

A figure loomed in this void of white composed of spiritron particles. There was no sense of self, nor awareness, but it was known all the same.

It was the presence of a higher existence that thoroughly dwarfed the existence of humans.

In the end…it stared.

Even without words, something still seemed to be conveyed that was lost in translation, almost like a message whose implications were beyond mere understanding.

[The attention of a Greater Being is focused on you.]

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Shirou blinked in disorientation. Around him was a simple white room sparsely decorated with a shelf, closet, mirror, and bed which he found himself lying on. His body felt sore, the action of tensing his muscles sending a dull ache up his nerves.

W-What happened?

One of the largest side effects of abrupt Rayshifting was drowsiness, and this was his first experience after exhausting himself in the last debacle much like Ritsuka and Olga. Everyone had been allowed rest upon return, carried off to their respective quarters to recuperate.

Pinching the bridge of his nose, he calmed his mind and attempted to focus. He was still tucked in bed, the sheets pulled up just beneath his neck, and his head resting on a soft pillow Chaldea had no doubt provided for all Masters. Still, the methodic design of the room was something expected of a magus facility.

Like he'd stated before, the room was white; a blank sort of slate carrying the bear minimum of necessities such that a magus could focus fully on their assigned tasks rather than add character to their sleeping quarters.

Beating back his drowsiness, he blinked a few more times, finally noticing a particular shade of pale blond hair at the edge of his periphery.

Slowly, he craned his neck to the side to stare at a pair of deep golden pupils staring intently right back at him from an impassive face.

"You are awake," Saber Alter said calmly.

She was seated directly at his bedside, patiently waiting until he'd woken up. Her black armour had been discarded in favour of a Chaldea uniform which she must have borrowed from Chaldea's staff as she didn't exactly seem comfortable in it. There was a story here about image and threatening tyrants decked in ominous full-plate armour causing disturbance to Chaldea's remaining staff, but it wasn't something he was going to find out for a while.

Saber Alter tugged down on her uniform's skirt, inwardly befuddled at the lack of protection such short garments could even pose. Still, the point of the issue wasn't what Saber Alter was wearing, but rather, how close she.

At first, he described her as 'seated at his bedside,' but to be more specific, it was almost impossible to describe her as having been 'seated' in the first place. Her upper body was turned and leaning over him in a way that her arms were placed down on either side of his face. She was looming over him, eyes unblinking as if it was perfectly normal to have her face hovering above his own.

She was close enough that he could feel the warmth of her breath washing over him, and see the glistening sheen of her lips as she continued to just stare at him. Her bangs hung loosely over her face, the moderately long strands tickling his nose. For a moment, he dared not ask how long she'd been in this position watching him sleep.

"Good morning," he greeted her as calmly as he could.

"Yes," she nodded before withdrawing and placing her hands over her lap. "Good morning." This was all she said before just sitting there and waiting in place despite the persistent knocking on the door which had likely woken him in the first place.

A trace of irritation flickered across Saber Alter's features at the noise, her lips thinning into a frown, but the knocking wouldn't stop.

"Saber-"

"Arturia. You will henceforth address me as proper." Saber Alter interjected. She may not mean anything by it, but the degree of frost in her tone made it seem as if she was angry despite the spike of nervousness he could feel from their connection as Master and Servant.

"Then Arturia?" He called out to her.

She nodded, pleased.

The knocking continued at the room's door, something he keenly noticed that Saber Alter was completely ignoring whereas he couldn't while considering the urgency of the revelation revealed in Fuyuki.

Saber Alter grunted as she noticed the direction of his gaze and gently pushed him back down to lie on his bed when he sat up in the commotion.

"Rest," she said sternly. "The curiosity of a mere battery seeking to draw answers from us regarding Fuyuki matters little. I will refuse her as many times as it takes on threat of execution."

Battery? For a moment, Shirou grew confused until he heard a frustrated yell on the opposite side of the door followed by a string of muted curses before the knocking stopped entirely. That, uhm, that sounded like Olga no doubts about it, he surmised to himself briefly. Then he looked at Saber Alter slowly unsummoning her sword.

"A pity. The battery has a keen sense of danger. I'll give her that," Saber Alter huffed before crossing her arms. "Now go back and rest."

One look at Saber Alter and he could see her sincerity, but right now he was already fine. Of course, parts of him ached, but that didn't mean that they should put off something that could contribute towards the preservation of humanity.

The concern was real in Saber Alter's eyes, but it was less about necessity and more about a hidden trauma. Saber Alter may not be the Saber he knew, but fundamentally, they were still the same at their core.

"Arturia," He said firmly, sitting up and pushing against Saber Alter's hand over his chest. "I'm not so fragile." He instantly saw through his Servant's thoughts, meeting her cold visage with an unbending resolve.

When it came to Saber Alter, he could tell that any sort of soft approach would never work on her. She would completely look down on you for a lack of courage, and so, if you ever wanted to get a point across, you must face her head on. Oddly, in this clash of wills, Saber Alter was the first to turn away after staring intently at the face of his resolve.

"Very well. As a King, I know when to concede to the opinions of a vassal," she said while looking anywhere but him. Abruptly she stood up and turned her back in an aloof manner. "However, keep in mind that I will punish you if you're lying to me."

"I know. I understand," he scratched the back of his head wryly. Saber Alter really wasn't accustomed to socializing, but he could infer the actual meaning beyond the literal representation of her words. She'd already seen him 'die' once. She was allowed to be guarded against anything that could harm him.

"Thanks for worrying."

It could just be him, but he noticed that the tips of Saber Alter's ears had reddened as she scoffed at the weak gesture. Even so, he dared not call her out on it. Suddenly, the mechanical whir of the metal sliding door of his room sounded at the worst of times.

He immediately noticed the moment Saber Alter froze up while in direct view of a stiff Romani Archaman who'd forcibly opened the door on Olga's orders.

"So, she can smile," Romani said dumbly, more out of surprise than anything else, but it all but doomed him as a pair of golden eyes narrowed on him. The small smile that had been on Saber Alter's face disappeared just as quickly as it came, replaced by a menacing dark aura.

"W-Wait don't kill me! It wasn't my call!" Romani desperately waved his hands in front of him before shrinking back and pushing a flustered Olga forward.

"Y-You weren't answering!" Olga protested, hands trembling. "What did you expect would happen?"

That you shouldn't provoke a Servant's ire? Shirou knew he wasn't quite accustomed to Saber Alter yet, but if one thing was clear, compared to the Arturia he knew, her fuse was far shorter.

One look and he could tell from her body language beyond the dark aura around her that she was infuriated at the abrupt intrusion. The fact that she'd yet to act was more out of embarrassment if anything, it was hard to tell with their connection and her pale and deceptively neutral features.

"Arturia, lets hear them out." He dissuaded Saber Alter from taking action as best as he could, and for her part, she was gradually reducing the dark aura around her.

"Never. Again," she hissed at Romani and Olga before curtly shifting her gaze to the side as if the two were nothing more than the dirt beneath her soles.

Olga appeared aghast at the treatment while Romani just let out a sigh of relief. If anyone noticed a clear difference with how Saber Alter treated Shirou compared to everyone else, no one was saying it.

"T-Then if you'll follow me, Mr. Emiya," Olga stuttered before regaining her calm.

Shirou got out of bed, unwrinkled the creases over his Chaldea uniform, and followed after Olga and Romani ahead of him. Wordlessly, Saber Alter moved in step with his pace by his side all the way up to the small side room everyone entered into.

The room was sparse with only a single table, a light, and various recliners. It resembled a reception room, and Olga took a seat at the head of the table. Romani sat adjacent to Olga, and Olga gestured for Shirou to take a seat across from her.

He did so, followed by Saber Alter who took a seat beside him and crossed her arms with a low grumble.

Silence pervaded the room, but not intentionally.

Olga clearly looked like she wanted to speak, but the imposingness of Saber Alter's imperious stare was quailing Olga into silence while Romani maintained an awkward smile.

Shirou nodded towards Saber Alter in a tacit sign that he approved of the current 'interrogation.' Honestly, Olga didn't exactly give the image of a fierce questioner with the way she flinched if she thought Saber Alter so much as looked at her funny.

Saber Alter scoffed at the silent message, but didn't do much of anything else but damper the intensity of her stare, allowing Olga to retain her bearings as the heir of a prominent magus family.

"I am aware of the breach of conduct this may pose as a fellow magus, but for the sake of Human History, we must understand the capabilities of those on our own side." Olga clasped her hands in front of her and leaned forward over the table while regarding him. "Naturally, as the heir of House Animusphere, this won't be an unfair trade. I will divulge certain questions you may have of my own craft in the future, but for the sake of this meeting, let us focus on you for now."

Olga waited, giving time for him to let her words sink.

He hummed in thought. "What would you like to know?" He offered an olive branch to allow Olga to loosen her reservations as most competent magi protective of their craft would have left the room by now.

Somewhat emboldened, Olga turned her chin upward. "I have many questions, some of which frustrate me to no end, but I have no wish to make you divulge everything about your craft. What I care about are the immediate benefits they may bring to Chaldea. I've condensed my list of questions down to two, the first of which is in regards to your Noble Phantasms."

She wet her lips, thoughts running rampant for a moment before she opened her mouth and spoke. "There is no doubt that you can make them, but are their specific requirements?"

"Yes," he answered simply. "I can only create Noble Phantasms within the limits of my own understanding, and before you ask how that's possible, my specific craft allows me to understand the history and make of any weapon I see."

It took a second for his words to sink in, and rather than Olga, Romani was the first to understand the implications.

"T-Then this?" Romani pulled out a random bread knife.

Shirou stared at it.

"Standard issue cutlery forged a year prior." He raised a hand and willed his craft into activation. An instant later, and he Traced an exact replica of the bread knife in Romani's hands which he gave to Romani to inspect. "You recently used it to cut into the Director's cake that you weren't supposed to eat while she was in the briefing with A-Team prior to Fuyuki."

"…What, seriously? I'll curse you; you slouch!" Olga blinked incredulously before anger marred her features.

"No-No, wait! It's a mistake! J-Just spare me and move on, please!" Romani clapped his hands together in apology.

"Shut up and pass me that knife." Olga furrowed her brows irritably. "If you're quick about it, I may not consider stabbing you with it," she grumbled before Romani complied.

"Hmm," Olga inspected the bread knife with keen eyes. "It's perfect," she came to a single conclusion. "How long would this last?" She inquired.

"However long it takes Gaia's influence to erode the magic, and indefinitely if constantly supplied with energy," he answered thoughtfully. He'd never really tested this particular question before as he'd generally untrace his weapons after use.

Slowly, a grin spread over Olga's face. She'd likely had plenty of time to mull over everything she'd seen in Fuyuki and rather than deny everything she'd seen, she just labeled Shirou under the category of 'freak capable of becoming a Heroic Spirit in the current era.' There was also the discrepancies of timelines, but considering the state of the present continuum with seven singularities, 'time' wasn't an issue easily solved at the moment.

Olga would take what she could get, and she was liking what she'd just heard.

"Chaldea can have a store of Noble Phantasms on hand-no wait, too inefficient," Olga muttered to herself. "The right tool for the right occasion...Therefore, much more effective on the field rather than stored in Chaldea wasting energy on upkeep...thoughts for later."

Olga suddenly nodded. "Good. That's all I care about for the first main question. Now for the second."

Here Olga paused, watching Shirou somewhat disbelievingly despite already witnessing it for herself. "Reality Marble," was all she said.

"R-Reality, what?" Romani's spluttered at the sudden terminology. "One's inner world made real, right? The power to project and materialize your soul's concepts in a set bounded field?"

"That's the basics; we all know that Romani," Olga grouched annoyed. "We don't need your doubts."

Olga looked Shirou right in the eyes. "You have it. I saw it," she stated, merely waiting for verification as Romani regarded him with unconcealed curiosity.

"I do," he answered truthfully.

Reassured, Olga let out a breath and leaned her back into her seat as she relaxed. "As expected of a future Heroic Spirit. That's all that matters. You will be Chaldea's trump card in the worst-case scenario."

"Heroic Spirit?" Saber Alter spoke up for the first time in this conversation, perking up as she uncrossed her arms and leveled Olga with a wordless 'explain.'

"You don't know?" Olga asked incredulously, letting Saber Alter's impertinence to her slide as Saber Alter was a valuable ally.

Understanding what Olga was getting at when she regarded him, Shirou felt the need to clarify. "That wasn't me…at least not fully. There are differences," he insisted, indirectly verifying Olga's words to Saber Alter.

Seeing the curiosity in Saber Alter's expression, Olga dropped the matter lest Saber Alter make it the subject of discussion. Romani still appeared shell shocked with everything as is.

Everyone fell into quiet contemplation for a moment before the whirring of the door opening signalled Ritsuka and Mash's arrival.

"Sorry for being late," Mash bowed apologetically while Ritsuka scratched the back of his head wryly.

"I, ugh, I had something of a bad dream," Ritsuka said sheepishly. His bed hair made it clear that he'd just gotten up, but no one was going to comment on it as the flushes on his and Mash's face revealed their haste.

"Romani," Olga huffed after Ritsuka and Mash took their seats by the table.

"Right," Romani stood up from his seat and nodded at everyone in a fluster. "Let's get right to the actual briefing, then…hold on, let me just get my summary out for moment." Romani fumbled with a small list of paper he had in hand before apologizing for the delay.

"I still can't believe he's the one replacing Lev." Olga rubbed at her temples at the sight. No one answered her.

"For starters, let me go over our main objectives," Romani suddenly became solemn, and less silly. "First is the investigation and correction of singularities representing humanity's critical point in a given era. These critical points denote 'pivotal' events in Human History. You all will travel to these eras, investigate, and correct them of anomalies otherwise 2019 will never come. Humanity will be extinct by 2018."

Everyone understood this point as clearly as they'd seen the crimson of Sheba's Chaldeas signifying no human life in the future in the Command Room.

"Now for the second objective." Romani put away the paper he was holding and divulged his own theory which he hadn't yet discussed with Olga. "This is just my speculation, but the singularities are likely related to the Holy Grail."

Shirou's ears perked up at the mention of the familiar vessel that contains tremendous amounts of magical energy while Olga blinked, not once believing Romani had the ability to think.

"I'm sure you all know by now, but the 'Holy Grail' is a relic that can grant wishes." Romani continued despite Olga's incredulousness. "Lev, or whatever he really is, likely got his hands on the Grail and misused its powers, isn't that right, Saber?"

Saber Alter mutedly nodded. The Fuyuki singularity spoke for itself.

"It's impossible to travel through time and change the past without a Grail, therefore you as Masters should gather intel regarding new Grails during your investigation of the singularities. Even if you correct the singularities, leaving the Grail in its corresponding era will put everything back to square one. Therefore, you all must either secure or destroy the Holy Grail."

Ritsuka and Mash nodded firmly at the clear instructions before Romani sat back down at Olga's prompting.

"I'll take it from here, Archaman," Olga spoke up, fighting back the shiver that travelled down her spine when Saber Alter's indifferent gaze landed on her. Honestly, she was never going to get used to this. She shook her head to rid herself of such idle thoughts.

"Originally, with the remaining Masters of Chaldea, we would divide our labour and send individual Masters into different singularities; however, we can't do that," Olga surmised. "Other than the three Masters present here, Ophelia is still recovering and has yet to rouse from unconsciousness. It's unfortunate, but the ill-fated Master of A-Team will be presumed indisposed after the incident in the Command Room."

Olga thumped her hand firmly over the table.

"We are all that's left! For the sake of safety, I as Chaldea's chief overseer have decided that us Masters will stick together until we garner enough individual experience to tackle singularities on our own. Time is of the essence, and although there are risks, they are risks that we must take as Masters to safeguard the future of humanity."

Olga pulled back her hand and clasped her hands behind her back.

"After Rayshifting into the Frist Singularity, we will find a leyline and make a summoning circle like we did in Fuyuki," she declared. "This will not only allow Mr. Archaman to transport supplies and necessities to us, but with Chaldea's magic energy reserves recovered, we can summon our Servants. The required Saint Quartz have already been prepared, but luck will dictate which Servant decides to answer our call."

"What you will summon will probably be Servants closely tied to the time and place. Their aid will help bolster our forces," Romani spoke up for clarification, prompting Olga to grudgingly nod.

"Mash, we'll need your shield again," Olga pointed out.

Mash's eyes widened before she pumped her fists lightly. "Understood, but before anything else, we should try to establish a base camp first. S-Something with a roof…a home to come back to, right Master?" Mash faltered at the weight of everyone's stares, her gaze shifting to her feet.

"Of course," Ritsuka helped lift the pressure off of Mash, allowing her to sigh in a relief that was short lived. "You have a way with words, Mash."

Red coloured Mash's cheeks, her mouth opening and closing before she found her voice. "H-Hearing you say that really means a lot to me. I know I'm still an inexperienced Servant but you can count on me. I'll give it my all!"

"Kyuu!" Fou who was resting on top of Mash's head echoed Mash's sentiments.

Shirou took note of the surprise over Romani's face as he stared at Mash at this moment. A second later, and Romani's features warmed like a parent looking at the growth of their child. The two likely had some history with each other.

"To see Mash who's always been serious, quiet, and at times grouchy grow up to be such a fine lady…" Romani trailed off almost wistfully to himself in a murmur.

"Hey," A slender arm suddenly wrapped teasingly around Romani's shoulder. "Get over yourself," a voice said in mirth.

Right before everyone's eyes, a new Heroic Spirit materialized beside Romani.

The Servant was beautiful, the very picture of the 'Mona Lisa' in a literal sense wearing the flamboyant colours of the renaissance on her modified tunic and short blue skirt which matched her thigh-length stockings. Her large round eyes carried a distinct playfulness and charm.

Saber Alter perked up a brow. "So, you show yourself at last? Any longer and I may have considered you an honourless Assassin and subdued you."

"Now now, no need to be so confrontational." The new Servant showed no fear to the Tyrant King of Knights.

"Oi, Romani," the Servant called out instead. "How long are you going to keep me waiting? Hurry and introduce me."

"Uhm, ugh sorry. You didn't show any interest in joining the conversation so I forgot you were here," Romani said apologetically before coughing into his hand and straightening his posture. "Allow me to introduce you all, standing here is Chaldea's pride and joy of the engineering department, Leonardo Da Vinci. A Caster-Class Servant of Chaldea."

Olga didn't seem surprised, but Mash and Ritsuka seemed floored for a moment.

"Right, you are Romani~" Da Vinci stepped forward for handshakes, yet carefully avoided doing so with Saber Alter who found it adequate to simply nod in greeting. "You all can call me Da Vinci, and as you can see, I am the proud inventor of the Renaissance in the flesh!"

"Wait, D-Da Vinci?" Ritsuka seemed to just come to a realization.

Ah yes, Shirou too was used to it by now.

Da Vinci the historical 'man' was now shown to be a 'woman.'

"This is strange. It's abnormal. It's wrong!" Mash looked scandalized, pushing out of her chair, standing up on her feet, then pointing with a shaking finger. It was as if everything she'd known about the famous inventor was a lie. "I mean, weren't you supposed to be a man-"

"You should always question conventional wisdom," Da Vinci interrupted with an amused grin, easing up to Mash and gently coaxing to sit back down. "This matter really isn't that important right now anyway, but if you must know, I pursue beauty with all my inventions and art. To me, the ideal beauty is the Mona Lisa. This being the case-"

Da Vinci gestured towards herself. "See? Isn't this form simply the unavoidable result?"

Romani shook his head ruefully. "I like to think of myself as a scholar, but that explanation still goes way over my head."

"And you know what goes over my head?" Olga abruptly cut in, impatience plastered all over her features, her lips upturned. "The fact that we're falling into a tangent! Focus and get to the point."

Mash, Romani, and a playful Da Vinci dropped the subject due to Olga's glaring.

Shirou could feel from his connection with Saber Alter that her opinion on Olga had increased by a marginal increment if only because Olga had stopped useless banter in the midst of a war council.

"Alright, fine," Da Vinci straightened her back and puffed up her chest. "From now, I will be focusing on supporting you all with supplies, R&D within Chaldea, and updated Heroic Spirit contracts."

Da Vinci placed a hand over her chest as if in declaration. "I am a Servant summoned by Chaldea, you see. Therefore, unlike Mash and Saber here, I cannot jump to any era unless I form a new contract with any of you Masters. Truthfully, I do look forward to it to an extent aside from Olga, for personal reasons, and Mr. Emiya because he's taken."

"I'm not-"

"Your wisdom rivals Merlin's on a good day." Saber Alter said, pleased, almost indulgent in her praise.

Shirou quietly shut his mouth and pretended as if he hadn't tried to get a word in just now.

"The honour of your praise is mine, your Majesty." Da Vinci winked coyly, yet signalled for Romani to pick things up as Olga was growing impatient that they were once again going on a tangent.

"I'm sorry, but we don't have time to rest," Romani coughed into his hand and drew everyone's attention back to him. "We're going to prep for immediate rayshift. This first singularity will be a test run. Based on how dangerous it will be, Chaldea will consider splitting the Masters to complete their own singularities at their discretion. For the time being though, are you all ready to go?"

"Of course," Ritsuka nodded firmly. "I'm ready to go anytime."

Shirou nodded while Saber Alter hummed her approval.

Olga didn't need to be asked. "Let's go."

Tacitly, Olga stood up from her seat and began walking in the direction of the Command Room shortly before the others followed her example.

"We have Coffin's ready for each of us," Olga briefed while suiting up in an orange jumpsuit just before entering the command room. The suit was classified as a combat orientated mystic code given to everyone before they were to enter their respective chambers. "We should be able to rayshift quickly and safely now."

While Olga and the others changed into their preferred mystic codes, Romani headed up the Command Room's control panel.

"Seven Singularities have been detected, but we've selected the time period with the smallest fluctuations," Romani spoke from an overhead speaker in the Command Room. A few buttons later, and the Coffins began to thrum with a combination of magic and science as everyone took their places.

[Unsummon Program start.]

While getting into his coffin, Shirou noticed something peculiar about Olga. It was like she still couldn't believe that she was even a Master with how hesitant she was to get into her own coffin. There must have been a reason for why she'd think like that and it must have something to do with 'rayshift aptitude.'

It wasn't in his nature to pry, but at the very least, since Olga had been able to enter singularity F, then surely she must have had some talent, right? In the end though, it wasn't a question he had an answer to, only Olga.

"Once you all get there, we'll only be able to communicate with you, got it?" Romani continued to talk from the overhead speakers while the coffins began to vibrate.

"I know I'm repeating this again, but the first thing you all should do is set up a base camp then find a leyline."

[Spiritron Conversion start.]

The mechanical announcements within the coffins almost drowned the sound of Romani's voice, but everyone could hear him all the same.

[Rayshift starting in 3, 2, 1…]

"After settling into the era, do what needs to be done. Alright- Good luck, all of you."

[All procedures cleared.]

Laid flat in the confines of his coffin, Shirou shared a look with Saber Alter beside him, the glow of his Command Seals revealing the status of their bond as Master and Servant. This time was going to be different from singularity F.

This time, he wouldn't lose anything nor stand by in the face of injustice.

The sentiment was different for Saber Alter, her thoughts transmitted through their bond.

'I will protect you.'

Saber Alter's expression was resolved, unwavering.

Let it begin.

[Grand Order commencing operation.]

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First Singularity: Human Foundation Value C+

A.D.1431: Hundred Years War of the Evil Dragon: Orleans.

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The sensation of his body converting into Spiritron particles was something that Shirou felt he was never going to get used to while alive. At the very least, Olga was right in that entering this new singularity was far quicker and safer than the last one, but even still, he could immediately tell that something was distinctly wrong from the moment he materialized.

To start with…he was alone.

No one in Chaldea appeared next to him, nor did Saber Alter.

According to Romani and Olga, they should have all appeared at a set coordinate, but all that he could see around him was the layout of a medieval castle room and the face of an individual he'd almost mistaken to be Saber Alter in front of him.

She wore similar dark armour, but the steel was more accentuated and sharper. Her hair was also longer than Saber Alter's, long bangs framing her face suffused with a suppressed anger momentarily forgotten in his presence.

It would seem as if his sudden arrival was just as much of a surprise to her as it was to him because the both of them just stared at each other in morbid fascination. Him because it felt like he was looking at a mirror of his current Servant, and her, for her own reasons.

One thing was clear though as a gout of fiery red fire ignited over her right hand: She was seconds away from trying to leisurely murder him.

This wasn't how he imagined things were going to start like.

And so, begins a tale.

A tale of a Witch, a Grail, and a Sword.

Let the start of this journey begin in flames.