"This..." Atalante didn't recognize Misaya before her. She only felt that the person lying on the ground, gasping for breath, was in a very bad state. To describe it more concretely, what this Archer thought of was a wild beast wounded by an arrow, on the verge of death.
But—the situation seemed even worse than that. Atalante, unable to make sense of the truth, looked at Ian beside her, only to find that his expression was completely different from a moment ago.
"Atalante, hold this for me." Ian placed the items in his hand with the cat-girl, then quickly rushed to Misaya's side.
"Misaya, what happened to you?" Leaning close to this graceful woman, the man had no other thoughts; he could only feel her faint breathing. That's right. She must have been severely wounded to be in this state.
"Ian..." Misaya, hearing his voice, struggled to open her eyes, her hand trembling. "I..."
"Don't say anything!" Ian stopped Misaya firmly. "I'll... I'll take you to Viviane now!" Misaya's identity had already been exposed. In the man's understanding, she was the Master of the Lancer class in this Holy Grail War. To heal her wounds, they naturally couldn't go to a hospital—such a place was utterly meaningless for a magus. In comparison, Viviane, who understood magecraft, was much more reliable.
"Don't go to her..." Misaya grabbed Ian's hand and spoke in a weak voice: "Take me back there... The place where we first drank together." After struggling to say these words, Misaya closed her eyes. It was clear that just getting back here had consumed most of her strength.
But if that was the case—why did she choose to come back here? Ian didn't think Misaya would fail to understand the cost of doing so—which meant she had a reason for it. But now wasn't the time to dwell on these things. Ian knew what he had to do. That was to follow Misaya's request and take her back to that place!
[Misaya's hint was quite easy to understand.]
[The place where you first drank together naturally referred to the private Homurahara Academy dormitory.]
[Although you were unsure why Misaya would specifically choose this place,]
[You knew that acting according to her arrangements at this moment was definitely the best option.]
"Atalante, I'm counting on you for today's classes!" Ian called out.
"Eh?" Although she didn't know what Ian was planning, the little cat-girl nodded immediately. "Okay, I understand."
After receiving Atalante's confirmation, Ian scooped up Misaya and ran out of the dojo. Along the way, many students and teachers saw the intimate scene between the two. They buzzed with discussion, all expressing surprise at Ian's actions at that moment. But the man knew clearly. This was definitely not the time to dwell on such things—whatever problems there were, they could wait until Misaya woke up. Thinking this, the man's pace quickened.
In a short while, Ian carried Misaya to the seemingly abandoned, yet in reality, still inhabited by her alone, dormitory. But the moment he stepped onto the path, the man felt his body tremble. There was magecraft. And it was specialized magecraft designed against Servants. Ian found that his limbs seemed to be invaded by some unspeakable substance. He was certain that if he hadn't gained powerful Magic Resistance due to his Saber class, he would have collapsed right there. Ian quickly determined that this was some kind of defensive measure set up by Misaya. Usually, in such a situation, one should absolutely not force their way through.
However—there was no time to consider so much now; he had to get there quickly. The man took a deep breath, then endured the pain and walked towards his destination.
One step;
Two steps;
Three steps;
Ian finally reached the front door—but at the same time, he also felt his consciousness becoming somewhat muddled. Rationally speaking, it was as if he had fallen into some indescribable territory, his thoughts constantly being destroyed in the process. Ian used all his strength to place Misaya on the sofa, while he himself lay beside her, gasping for breath. In a haze, the man's consciousness gradually drifted away.
He didn't know how much time had passed. Ian felt someone gently stroking his head. He opened his eyes and saw Misaya, who had recovered. And he was lying on her lap. Seeing Ian wake up, Misaya's eyes filled with emotion, but her expression grew more apologetic.
"Misaya, are you alright now?" Ian asked.
"Mm," Misaya nodded. "Before I left here, I specifically set up healing magecraft, and it came in handy just now. As expected. Trusting you was the right decision—even though it was so dangerous, you still brought me back here. But—those defensive magecrafts must have been very painful for you, weren't they?"
"It's nothing," Ian said with a faint smile. "As long as I'm not dead, it's fine, right?"
"..." Hearing the man's unintentional words, Scathach's eyes immediately reddened. She recalled the night she had her disciple and Servant, Lancer Cú Chulainn, ambush and kill Rider. The moment her Gáe Bolg Alternative pierced Ian's body. Scathach chose not to check his injuries, but instead chose meaningless evasion. It was a cowardly act. Whenever she thought of it, the Queen of the Land of Shadows would feel immense regret.
"I'm sorry," Scathach finally had the chance to utter an apology at this moment. "That day, I..." Before she could finish her sentence, Ian's hand gently pressed against her lips.
"It's over," he said softly. "Everything is in the past." The man looked at her, speaking in the gentlest voice: "Misaya, can we just turn the page like a book?"
Ian's words of forgiveness completely shattered the Queen of the Land of Shadows' mental defenses at that moment. She could no longer hold back the sadness within her and began to cry uncontrollably in front of him. The man didn't stop Misaya; he simply stayed with her as she cried. He knew this was the only way she could vent her emotions at that moment. Since that was the case—he would quietly wait.
Time passed slowly, and Misaya finally released all her emotions, regaining her composure. She wiped her eyes, then tried to compose herself. "I'm sorry, Ian. I lost my composure," she said softly.
"It's not losing composure," the man accepted it all. "It's just the expression of emotions that every girl has. You too, Misaya."
"..." Hearing Ian's words, Scathach's cheeks flushed slightly. Clearly, hearing Ian refer to her as a "girl" instead of an "old woman" made the Queen of the Land of Shadows genuinely happy.
However—she felt she still needed to maintain some outward composure. "Is that so? Then it seems... my performance in that regard isn't enough."
"We can discuss those things later if we have the chance," Ian temporarily paused the topic. "Misaya, although this might make you uncomfortable—I still want to know what exactly happened to make you like that. Can you tell me?"
If Ian's previous impression of Scathach was "a very impressive Kendo Club teacher," then after being pierced by her spear, that impression became "a very powerful Master." That's right. As Saber, Ian genuinely acknowledged the strength of the Lancer group. Otherwise, he wouldn't have evaluated them to Sakura Tohsaka earlier as "it's like two Lancers fighting at the same time."
However—faced with Ian's question, Misaya gave an unexpected answer. She looked at him, sighed, and announced something.
"Ian," she began, "I... have already lost the qualification to contend for the Holy Grail. My Lancer was defeated by Caster."
"What?" Ian exclaimed.
[Over the next period, Misaya recounted the events she had experienced.]
[Including facing Caster and the entire process of her ultimate defeat.]
[This was a situation you had not anticipated at all.]
"This..." Ian found it hard to believe what he had just heard. "Misaya... are you saying that you and your Lancer were completely defenseless when facing Caster?"
"Being defenseless doesn't quite express it accurately," Misaya explained. "The opponent was incredibly well-prepared."
"Incredibly well-prepared?" Ian repeated.
"Yes," Misaya nodded. "Caster's Master seems to possess a great deal of information—he must have been preparing for this Holy Grail War for a long time. It was a specialized trap designed for me and Lancer. Caster executed it flawlessly. Lancer sacrificed himself there to cover my retreat."
"..." Ian quite agreed with Misaya's statement. After all, having gone through so many things, he still didn't know Caster's true identity or weaknesses. This level of concealment probably made even Assassin feel inferior.
"Then—" Ian's tone became cautious; he was worried that his next words would touch a sore spot for Misaya. "Misaya... that still doesn't explain why you wanted to come back here, does it?"
"..." Ian's question left Scathach stumped. Yes. If Caster indeed had the power to kill her, then she should have gladly embraced death. After all—what she had always pursued was precisely a glorious death like that, wasn't it?
But Scathach also had to admit. Faced with that crisis, what she thought of, what she worried about, was another matter. That was, what if Ian, whom she had severely injured, encountered such a powerful Caster? So—at least, she had to tell him the actual situation before she died, she thought.
But, when she actually saw Ian, Scathach felt that she couldn't quietly exit the stage like that. Although there was indeed no possibility of further development with him, at least—she didn't want to die in front of him like this. The Queen of the Land of Shadows, who had always pursued death, for the first time developed a will to survive.
Returning to the question itself. Looking at Ian, Scathach's face was slightly flushed, and there was a hint of shyness in her expression. The thousands of words in her heart could not be uttered now due to her modesty. The only thing she could say was a simple sentence.
"I was worried about you, so I came back."
"..." Hearing this, Ian smiled. "Is that how it was? Then it seems my forced entry—was a fitting response to your concern, wasn't it? Thank you for noticing me, Misaya."
"..." Hearing this gratitude, Scathach felt a little better. At least everything now was consistent with what he had said before. Even if the two of them couldn't develop a deeper relationship, they could maintain a communication level beyond just friends.
Then—she would be even more honest.
"Ian... I want to tell you something."
"Hmm?" After Scathach removed the defensive magecraft from her residence, Ian, as Saber, gradually recovered. "What is it?"
"Actually—" Scathach mustered her courage. "My name isn't Misaya, it's Scathach."
"..."
"..."
"What's with that expression—aren't you surprised at all?" Scathach asked, a bit confused.
"Why should I be surprised?" Ian countered. "Does it make any difference whether your name is Misaya or Scathach? To me—you'll always be the undefeated teacher of the private Homurahara Academy Kendo Club. Do you understand?"
"..." Scathach was stunned for a moment, then she also began to smile. "You, you want me to go back to the Kendo Club?"
"You can't not go back now," Ian said, taking Scathach's hand. "I carried you all around the school today—if you don't come back, I don't know how I'll explain it to the students."
"...You're right," she conceded. "Then I'll go back tomorrow. But... you'll have to be intimate with me in front of the students. I don't want to be embarrassed."
"Alright, whatever you say," Ian agreed. "But Scathach, there's something I need to ask of you."
"Go on—while I'm very moved and willing to agree to anything... of course, confessing your feelings to me would probably have the highest success rate," she teased.
"It's just that—" Ian replied, acknowledging the latter part of Scathach's statement. "Can you join us... and go defeat that Caster together?"