It had been 3 days since Rin's meeting with Kadoc, and right now, she and Ritsuka were on the rooftop, as Ritsuka was gleaning seeing Rin patch around, clearly worried.
Ritsuka looked at her as he spoke. "Hey, um... Are you ok?"
Rin snapped her neck at him, anger in her eyes. She was going to scream, but stopped herself and took a deep breath. "No, Emiya, I am not ok. It has been 4 days in this grail war, and other than our meeting with Illya on the first day, Nothing has happened; heck, there is not even an explosion sound being reported on the news".
Ritsuka tilted his head, blinking at her outburst. "Isn't that a good thing? No fires, no random Servants rampaging through the city? Honestly, I'd call that a win."
Rin pinched the bridge of her nose, clearly restraining herself from throwing him off the rooftop. "No, Emiya. It means something is wrong. The Grail War doesn't go quiet. Not unless someone is planning something bigger than we can see."
Ritsuka rubbed the back of his neck, half sheepish and half thoughtful. "So… like the calm before the storm?"
"That's exactly what I'm saying," Rin muttered, arms crossed tight against her chest. Her eyes were sharp but tired, her steps restless as she paced.
Ritsuka leaned back on the railing, watching her with a faint smile. "Well, if that's the case, maybe take your own advice for once. Breathe, Rin. No one fights well when they're wound up tighter than a bowstring."
Rin froze, shooting him a look as if she couldn't believe he was telling her to calm down. But then, just faintly, her shoulders loosened.
"…You're too calm about this," she said, her tone softer but edged with unease.
"And you're too stressed," Ritsuka replied, surprisingly steady. "Maybe that's why we make a good team."
Rin took a deep breath as she spoke. "Listen, Emiya, I am worried, because this quiet is not normal for a Grail War. At least from the reports Kotomine told me. It's always a bloodbath. Masters with pride clashing in the streets, Servants carving each other down, and… probably planning. Always planning."
Ritsuka's brows furrowed as he leaned against the railing. "So you think they're holding back, watching, waiting for the right moment?"
Rin nodded slowly. "Exactly. They're not idle, they're calculating. And that makes this silence more dangerous than open fighting."
Ritsuka sighed, then forced a small grin. "Guess that means we've got an advantage. If they're waiting… we use the time to get stronger, right? Train harder, sharpen everything. That way, when the bloodbath starts, we're not the ones caught unprepared."
For a second, Rin just stared at him, blinking at his simple, straightforward logic. It wasn't magecraft theory, or strategy, or wariness—it was practicality.
"…Sometimes I forget you're not just a magus," Rin muttered, rubbing her arm. "You think like a fighter."
"Because I am one," Ritsuka said plainly. Then he gave her a small, warm look. "But you don't have to carry all the worry alone, Rin. We're allies, remember?"
Ritsuka looked at him as he continued. "You know, something has been happening."
Rin narrowed her eyes. "You mean the murders? The ones where the victims are found completely drained of blood?"
Ritsuka nodded, casually poking at his lunch with his chopsticks. "Yeah. That doesn't seem normal. Do you think it's a Servant?"
Rin folded her arms, her face grave. "It's possible. A familiar at best, a rogue Servant at worst. Either way, it isn't random. Someone is hiding in the shadows and using this lull to cover their actions."
Ritsuka frowned, setting his lunch aside. "So while we're waiting for explosions and flashy duels, the real threat's been moving in the dark."
Rin glanced at her, surprised at the sharpness in his tone. "…Exactly. That's what worries me. Whoever's behind this isn't fighting for pride or spectacle. They're hunting quietly, feeding, waiting for the moment to strike."
Ritsuka leaned back, thinking. "Then maybe we should go hunting first. If they're draining people, they'll slip up eventually. We just need to be the ones ready when they do."
For a moment Rin didn't answer. She just studied him, her sharp magus caution softening slightly at his straightforward determination.
"…You sound like someone who's been through wars before," she muttered.
Ritsuka chuckled dryly. "Nah. Just someone who's been taught never to ignore what's right in front of him."
Gilgamesh manifested in front of Rin. "Mongrel, I have finished dismantling those wretched seals."
Rin pinched the bridge of her nose with a sigh. "Thanks, Caster."
Ritsuka blinked in confusion. "Uh… what exactly did Goldy do?"
Rin turned toward him, her expression grave. "Right, you weren't there. On the same day you became Saber's Master, Gil and I were investigating the school rooftop. We found something—magical circles. Dozens of them, forming a bounded field over the entire school."
Ritsuka's eyes widened. "…And that's bad why?"
Gilgamesh scoffed, folding his arms. "Pathetic fool. These were not mere trinkets of magecraft. They were designed to harvest the souls of every maggot in this cesspool of a school—fuel for some coward's Servant. A crude, inefficient attempt at power. Lucky for you insects, you have this glorious King to unmake such trash."
Ritsuka's face paled. "So basically… if you hadn't destroyed them, everyone here—students, teachers, even Taiga—would've been drained dry?"
Rin's lips pressed into a thin line. "Yes. And the scariest part? Whoever set it up was planning it carefully. The scale alone means it's been prepared for months, maybe even years. Someone wanted this entire school as their personal mana farm."
Ritsuka clenched his fist under the table, muttering. "Then whoever's behind it isn't just another Master. They're a monster."
Gilgamesh's golden eyes narrowed, voice dripping with disdain. "Hmph. Though I loathe to admit it, this King had… an assistant. Another worm had already destroyed a third of those circles before I arrived."
Ritsuka froze mid-bite, chopsticks dangling in his hand. "Wait—seriously? Who could've done that?"
A quiet voice cut through the rooftop breeze.
"Me."
Everyone turned sharply. Standing at the doorway, hands shoved awkwardly into his pockets, was a figure Ritsuka knew far too well.
"…Kadoc?" Ritsuka's eyes widened. "Wait—you're… you're a magus?"
Kadoc gave a crooked, almost self-deprecating smile. "Tch. Took you long enough to figure it out."
Gilgamesh snorted, folding his arms with disdain. "So this little snow-haired mongrel was the one fumbling about in my Kingly work. Hilarious. A gnat daring to gnaw at divine tapestry."
Ritsuka looked between them, dumbfounded. "Hold on—Rin, did you know about this?"
Rin rubbed the back of her neck, laughing nervously. "Well… yeah. We've known each other for a while. Both from magus families. I may have… also accused him of being a Master once."
Ritsuka's jaw dropped. "Wait, what?!"
Kadoc sighed, looking away. "She wasn't wrong to suspect me. I didn't summon anyone, but… I couldn't sit around while people were setting up those circles. So I destroyed the ones I could." His hand clenched tightly in his pocket. "Not that I expected him—" he jerked his head toward Gilgamesh "—to swoop in and make it all look easy."
Gilgamesh smirked cruelly. "Of course not. An ant may crawl, but it will never soar."
Ritsuka's gaze softened as he looked at Kadoc. "…So all this time, you were risking your neck to protect people here? Without telling me?"
Kadoc's shoulders hunched slightly under the weight of his stare. "…Guess I was. Not like anyone would've believed me anyway."
Ritsuka sighed, shoulders slumping as he looked at Kadoc. "And here I thought you were just the student council president who was my friend."
For a moment, silence hung heavy between them—until Ritsuka's eyes narrowed, realization dawning. He jabbed a finger at Kadoc. "Wait a second. That means you knew magecraft this whole time—you could've fixed the damn heater yourself!"
Kadoc froze, his usual composure cracking. "…I… uh…" He scratched the back of his neck, averting his eyes. "That's… not really how magecraft works, you idiot. I'm not gonna waste prana on repairing school appliances."
Rin smacked her forehead, groaning. "Unbelievable. All those complaints, all that paperwork, and this was the reason?"
Gilgamesh barked a sharp laugh, golden eyes gleaming with amusement. "Pathetic! To think magi reduced themselves to fixing mortal heaters. This is the company you keep, mongrel?"
Ritsuka huffed, crossing his arms. "Still could've tried. Some friend you are."
Kadoc grumbled, "Yeah, yeah. Next time I'll enchant the radiator to roast you alive, how's that?"
Ritsuka blinked, then let out a short laugh. "…Okay, fair."
Rin groaned, rubbing her temples. "Honestly, the two of you bicker like children."
Gilgamesh smirked, amused by the exchange. "Hmph. Entertaining in its own pathetic way."
But then Kadoc's expression shifted. The crooked smirk slipped from his face, replaced with something heavier, sharper. He turned toward the door, but paused just long enough to glance back at Ritsuka.
"Before I leave, Emiya…" His voice was low, deliberate. "You should know. There are two other Masters in this school. And they will both need saving."
He let the words hang for a beat before finishing, quieter:
"…which I'm not strong enough to do."
And with that, Kadoc stepped out, his crow fluttering after him, leaving the rooftop in tense silence.
Ritsuka leaned forward, urgency in his voice. "Wait—Kadoc! Who are the two other Masters?"
For a moment there was only the echo of footsteps on the stairwell. Then Kadoc's voice drifted back up, calm but edged with something grim.
"I'm sorry. I value my life too much. If I told you, their Servants would come after me before the day was over."
The sound of his steps faded into silence, leaving only the crow's faint caw as it followed him out of sight.
Ritsuka clenched his fists. "Dammit… Kadoc…"
Rin exhaled slowly, her brow furrowed. "Which means we'll have to figure it out ourselves. And if they're both in this school…"
Gilgamesh chuckled darkly, his golden eyes glinting. "Then the hunt begins, mongrels. Let's see if you can keep pace with the King."
A few minutes later…
Ritsuka burst into the nurse's office, his chest still tight from sprinting across campus. The antiseptic scent of the room hit him immediately, but he barely noticed.
On the cot, pale and trembling beneath the thin sheet, was Ayako.
The nurse gave him a small, reassuring smile. "Your friend is fine. I've checked everything I can — no fever, no injury. But… she's tired. Very weak. Almost as if she's been running marathons in her sleep."
Ritsuka sat heavily in the chair beside her bed, his eyes fixed on her face. He'd noticed it before — the dark circles under her eyes, the way she seemed drained during practice. He told himself it was stress, exams, the usual student stuff. But now, collapsed in the archery range, it was undeniable.
His hand tightened around the armrest. This isn't just exhaustion. This is the Grail War bleeding into their lives. Into innocent lives.
Ayako stirred weakly, her eyelids fluttering. "…Ritsuka?"
"I'm here," he said quickly, forcing a small smile. "Don't push yourself."
Her lips curved faintly before she slipped back into uneasy sleep.
Ritsuka sat in silence, jaw clenched. Kadoc's warning echoed in his head. Two Masters in this school. And one of them might already be feeding on people like her…
Ritsuka looked at the nurse, worry written all over his face. "Does she need anything? Like juice, food?"
The nurse waved a hand gently, her tone reassuring. "Close enough. A cold drink will help. The vending machines outside should have something refreshing."
She turned back to Ayako, who shifted faintly on the bed. "And as for you, young lady—stay put. No getting up until that color returns to your cheeks. Your body needs the rest."
Ritsuka stood, hesitating for a moment. His eyes lingered on Ayako's frail form, the rise and fall of her chest uneven but steady. Something in his chest twisted. She was always the strong one, always telling him to take care of himself. Seeing her like this—it felt wrong.
"…I'll be right back," he muttered, slipping out into the hall.
The nurse watched him go, then sighed softly, adjusting Ayako's blanket. "Honestly, the two of you. Always worrying about each other."
Unbeknownst to her, Ayako's fingers twitched faintly against the sheets. For a second, her face twisted in a strange grimace, as if fighting something deep in her dreams. Then the expression smoothed, leaving her as still and helpless as before.
A few minutes later, the door creaked open again. Ritsuka walked in, his arms full of drinks and snacks in an almost ridiculous pile. Behind him came Mash, equally burdened with bottles and packets.
The nurse blinked at the sight, her eyebrow twitching. 'Did they just rob the vending machine'?
Ritsuka set his load down on the nearby table, huffing. "There. Options. Lots of options."
Mash carefully placed her share next to his, then hurried to Ayako's side. She leaned in, her eyes filled with concern. "Ayako-senpai… are you okay? I heard what happened."
Ayako stirred weakly, her eyelids fluttering open. She forced a smile, though her voice was soft and thin. "Mash… Emiya… you two are… making too big a fuss. I just… got a little dizzy."
Mash shook her head, unconvinced. She gently held Ayako's hand, squeezing it reassuringly. "Even so, you scared everyone when you collapsed. Please, don't push yourself too hard."
Ritsuka, standing by the bed with a can of juice in hand, frowned. His gut twisted again. She looks… worse than she's letting on. Way worse.
The nurse let out an exaggerated sigh, crossing her arms. "Honestly, you three… it's like watching over a flock of overprotective siblings. She'll be fine with rest and hydration. No need to panic."
But Mash and Ritsuka exchanged a glance—both of them unconvinced.
Ayako lay on the bed, then she noticed something, it was Mash's shadow, it seemed to move on its own, and even had red eyes.
Ayako blinked as she spoke. "Mash... Your shadow".
Ritsuka and Mash blinked as they looked down and saw nothing. The shadow was normal and nothing wrong, but for a brief second, Mash's face had change.
Ayako lay back down, her gaze lingering on Mash's shadow as though expecting it to twitch again. For that fleeting heartbeat, those red eyes had felt too real. Her chest tightened, but she forced herself to exhale, muttering, "Great… now I'm seeing things where there aren't any."
Mash's hands tightened around the hem of her skirt. Her lips moved, soundless, before the faintest whisper escaped. "…Not now. It isn't night."
The words dissolved into silence before anyone else could catch them.
Ritsuka chuckled, scratching the back of his head as if to cut through the tension. "Well, you did pass out in the middle of archery practice. Probably just your brain pulling tricks on you from exhaustion."
Ayako gave a small, tired smile, but her eyes wandered—first to Ritsuka's easy grin, then back to Mash, who sat a little too stiffly at her side.
For a moment, Ayako thought she saw the shadow stretch unnaturally again, curling at the edges like smoke. She quickly closed her eyes, refusing to look any longer.
"I'm… just tired. That's all".
To be continued
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