Location: Old Town
Phase: Day 1/3
Time: 08:14
Day: January 13th
The sword that was swung with a deadly force, even when in its sheath, stopped mere inch away from the old man's face. Thanks to the amount of people on the streets, nobody seemed to pay attention to what happened between the two of them, or, at the very least, nobody made fuss about it. However, that was not important right now. What was important for Kirame was to see how this strange old man would react to such direct threat against his life.
------ And, strangely, enough, the old man did not seem surprised in the slightest. Indeed, he did not even flinch or bat an eye at the strike that was about to kill him stone dead.
With a sigh, he smiled sardonically and began talking.
"You know, young'un, if you want to off an old fool like me, there are easier ways," the old man said and chuckled, until that turned into a small fit of hacking cough. "I'm not exactly spring-chicken, if you know what I mean. This old, weary husk ain't got much life left in it, so you might just hit me with your fist, and I'd fall down dead. No need to dirty your fancy sword on someone like me."
Then, the old man scratched his chin, looking around to the mass of people that surrounded them.
"But, I understand your point," he said. "Damn pickpockets are everywhere in this neighborhood, so might as well make sure, right? You're the sharp type, ain'tcha, young'un?"
Location: Business District - Shopping Street
Phase: Morning 1/3
Time: 6:52
Day: January 13th
Kairi made a sour face at the thought."H-hey now, don't go throwing away honest advice so easily! I wasn't kidding, you know! If you're not careful, you won't catch yourself until you're just another twenty-something office worker. Or worse, a stay at home mom!"
"Oh, you don't have to worry about that. I haven't met any dude I'd want to spend so many years with," she said with honest tone. "And office life just ain't for me. I mean, just look at me. Do I look like someone who'd be hired by some big corporation?"
With a grin, Kairi spun around as if to show herself off to Saber. And in a sense, the young girl was right. With her bright red hair, her earrings and her overall lax attire, she seemed much more like delinquent-in-the-making than an upstanding citizen. If anything, she was fated to become the lead guitarist of some semi-famous punk-rock band and then fade into obscurity, only to re-emerge as a more semi-famous producer...
... Or, at least, that was how Kairi saw it herself.
This seemed to pique Kairi's interest. Her eyes began shining like those of a true mystery maniac, and she put the taiyaki she was eating back into the paper bag. After that, she opened her school bag, and fished out what seemed like a small memo. Opening the thing, it quickly became clear that it was filled with lazy handwriting and taped Polaroid photos. Kairi leaned in closer and began showing off the notebook to Saber."Forgive me, but... you were being quite loud earlier. I heard a bit of your conversation, even from the other side of the street. As it happens, my ojou-chan and I are here to investigate strange happenings on Tengetsu, in regards to one person in particular. Has anything greatly unusual happened in the past couple of months, besides the unfortunate fate of the priest the other day?"
"Oh, you're mystery hunters, too? Man, I knew that Kichiro was full of shit! No way would I be the only one noticing all the strange stuff happening in this city," Kairi excitedly said, sounding almost like she was purring out of excitement. "Anyhow, there's been quite a lot of strange stuff going on, actually. First of all, there's that supposed ghost of the Residential District. Nobody knows where it came from, but at least it's real! Here, look!"
Kairi pointed at a particularly smudgy photo that seemed to be of a street of some sort, near some kind of large, walled-off estate. In that picture, a strange white glow could be seen that was vaguely humanoid-shaped.
"Then, of course, there are the town legends of the black cat, the murdered servant of the Mayor's household and Dr. Ochemond, along with ghost submarine and all other legends stemming from the German occupation times," Kairi explained, showing a page for each name she mentioned. "But if you want something more concrete that's happened recently, well... I suppose there were the strange light shows that happened last night."
Kairi scratched her chin, looking like even she did not know much about them.
"They say they happened all over the island. Something about ball lightning and whatever," the redhead explained. "But it sounds fishy, doesn't it?"
Location: Old Town
Phase: Day 1/3
Time: 07:46
Day: January 13th
"Oh, I know, I know! People here tend to be awfully rude to new faces!""Very much, Miss Chi. I'm Art. As you supposed, I've just moved in. It's actually good to see a friendly face. This town is rather intimidating, beyond the first glance. I've seen my share of winding streets, but none have ever managed to turn me around so much. In a way, I'd call meeting you a blessing."
Lady Ch́hóng giggled after saying that, as if she had told a joke of some sort. It seemed that Art's good manners had managed to put the crimson-wearing woman to a good mood, as she was practically skipping as they walked down the street, heading to the inn.
"But, you'll get used to it eventually. I know I did, and I have a horrible sense of direction. You should have seen me during the first few months! I accidentally ended up at the lawn of the Fujimura clan, and the heiress drove me off while swinging a sword for crying out loud! That tiger is just heinous, I tell you," Lady Ch́hóng babbled on. "You know what you should do: you should get one of those tourist guides. Actually, I think I have few left at the reception desk of my inn. Let me find you one once we get there."
Then, as if that had sparked an idea in the young woman's head, she turned to look at Artificer with her eyes shining.
"Oh, actually, I'll let Aohara-chan handle that! We can enjoy some tea and cake in the meantime!" she happily suggested. "I just bought some of this amazing cheesecake at the confectionery near the station. The baumkuchen they make is just heavenly, but recently I've learned they make just as good cakes! They even have carrot cakes! Can you believe that? Carrot! Who'd have thought vegetables would make a good ingredient for cakes. But then again, I suppose cheese is quite similar in that regard---"
Suddenly, Lady Ch́hóng clamped her mouth shut, and blushed ever so slightly. She looked at the Servant again, laughing a little in embarrassment.
"Oh, sorry. I'm rambling on again. Just say when you've had enough of me talking your ear off, I know I tend to do that," she apologized.
Location: Residential District - Fujimura Estate
Phase: Day 1/3
Time: 06:42
Day: January 13th
For a moment, Tetora looked surprised. She scrunched her face, as if trying to remember something, but clearly, the details eluded her. She repeated Saver's name a couple of times under her breath, but after coming up with nothing, she simply shook her head, and smiled at the girl once again. At the same time, she rose up from the tatami, and gestured the Servant to follow her.“It’s Saver. I was not born in this country, you see. And your generosity will not be forgotten, Miss Fujimura.”
"Alright, Saver-chan. Let's see if I can find you that uniform."
Leaving Homura behind to finish his breakfast, Tetora brought Saver to one of the side-rooms of the large main building. Unlike Homura's room, this one seemed to have been in the use of a female person, but judging from the amount of dust that had gathered on the window sill, the room itself hadn't been used in a long time. Very long time. As Tetora and Saver entered the room, the black-haired woman had something of a pan of forlorn expression flash on her face, but it was gone just as quickly as it had appeared.
Instead, the tigress headed straight to the cabinet, which she opened, revealing a collection of clothing.
"Let's see now, it should be here somewhere..."
Having said that, Tetora began rummaging through the wardrobe. As she did, a gentle silence fell over the room, accompanied by the soft glow of sunlight pouring in from the outside. Unlike even further up in the north, the sun did rise relatively early in Tengetsu, and though it was just above the horizon, it still managed to warm up the island a little. This was rather good, as when the day turned to afternoon, the sun would be just as quick to descend back below the horizon.
"Ya know... I'm not a complete fool. I can tell when I'm bein' lied to. Especially by Homura-kun," Tetora suddenly began speaking, keeping her voice relatively quiet so Homura wouldn't overhear. "But on the other hand, like I said, I ain't a complete fool. I've had my fair share of times when I've had to lie, too. And judgin' from what I can see, yer not here to hurt Homura-kun. If ya were, Zenko-chan wouldn't have let ya in in the first place. So, in the end, I really don't need to know what yer hidin'. Ya have yer reason to lie, and it's probably a good reason. That's good enough for me...... Oh, here it is!"
Interrupting her speech for a moment, Tetora finally emerged from the wardrobe holding what seemed like a black sailor uniform that was used by the girls of Sayoshigure High School. Unlike the normal uniforms, however, this one seemed to have an extra long skirt, and for some reason, it had a black jacket thrown over it. On the back of the long jacket were white kanji, which seemed to read "CRUSH", "KILL" and "DESTROY" in a very nonsensical manner. Laughing rather awkwardly, Tetora quickly removed the jacket and stuffed it back into the closet, before offering the uniform to Saver.
"I know times get mighty tough for all of us every once in a while," Tetora continued speaking as she helped the Servant to dress up in the uniform. "From first hand experience, no less. So I also know that durin' those times, help of others is more important than ever. And if Homura-kun's decided to help ya out... I see no reason to doubt ya. That young punk might be foolish like a bag 'o potatoes sometimes, but even he's got heart where it counts. So... Saver-chan."
Then, just for a moment, Tetora did something strange. Her expression changed from slightly stern but well-meaning to a gentle smile, a smile that she would have never shown in front of Homura. It was almost like the black-haired woman was looking both at the Servant in front of her, as well as someone else that only she could see.
"If yer troubled, alone and have no place to call home right now... yer more than welcome to sleep here. Heaven knows this place is big and empty as it is already, so a new face or two will just liven it up," Tetora said and chuckled. "And if ya got any problems, feel free to ask for help. I know some people, so I can get stuff done. And besides... I'm supposed to be the responsible adult here, right?"
Her grin turned slightly mischievous as she tied the uniform's ribbon for Saver, finishing the ordeal of putting the attire on.
"There we go! Pretty as a picture, if I say so myself," Tetora said, stepping back and putting her hands on her hips, admiring the sight of Saver in the school uniform.
Location: Yamaichi Shrine
Phase: Morning 1/3
Time: 6:41
Day: January 13th
Sourokurou's smile turned slightly dark as she heard this question. Her glinting eyes followed Tae, but the hint of amusement stayed in her expression. Clearly she had not expected something like this to be asked, and the younger girl had managed to pleasantly surprised her. Putting her hands on her lap, Sourokurou fell into deep thought for a moment."As the one who enforces the rules of this war, Mochizuki-san, you must know of the Servants classes that were summoned, and I bet I am not the first Master who came to visit you. Since I came all the way here, mind sharing some of that information with me...?"
When she once again opened her eyes, she spoke with her booming voice so that it filled the silence.
"The first one to be summoned was Enchanter. The next one was Trickster, as for the rest..." Sourokurou's smile widened a bit. "... They mostly follow the formula familiar to the normal Holy Grail Wars. However, each was summoned during the previous night, so no deviations occurred in that regard. In that sense, this Holy Grail War has followed its patterns admirably."
Stroking her chin, the priestess then continued.
"The Masters themselves, however, are... an irregular bunch. It has caused some concern, yes," Sourokurou said, but then her sharp eyes turned towards Tae. "But I suppose you knew of this already. After all... it is not as if you are a magus yourself."
Later That Day... (10:01)
The golden eyes narrowed."If animals aren't allowed in here, why are we greeted by a barking dog? Oh, did the winter ruin your mood perhaps? You should wait diligently for the East Wind to blow, till the Plum Blossoms flourish in full bloom~"
"Silence, cur. Your dirty lips are unworthy of repeating poetry, be it good or bad," Ruler said, folding his arms across his chest. The presence of this Servant had changed from when Kiyoko had met him yesterday. Now, the mere sight of Invoker seemed to have put him in a foul mood. "You should know your place. Speak only when addressed first, remember 'please' and 'may I?' and do not raise your eyes to the level of your superiors."
The mouth that had been tightly formed in a stern expression now turned into a sneer as the blue-clothed Servant continued to rain insults upon Invoker. Arrogance seemed to pour out of him as he verbally started to set the rules of this encounter, turning the atmosphere of the entrance hall even chillier by comparison.
"You are in the presence of your betters, maggot. Act like your kind does. Grovel in the ground and be thankful you haven't been squashed yet," Ruler concluded. "Even a magpie knows to stay silent when gazed upon by an eagle."
Then, for some reason, the golden eyes left Invoker, and instead gazed at the half-open door that led outside. For some reason, the cruel grin on Ruler's face widened ever so slightly, and for a moment, he looked just like a wolf that had spotted a wounded deer. This man that stood before them had the arrogant aura of a gold-clad emperor, but within his eyes, there existed savagery and barbaric nature unlike any other.
"And speaking of thieving birds treading where they should not..."
-------------------------- It happened too suddenly.
Before Invoker could even react or realize what was going on, her link to her servants outside, watching the road, was mercilessly crushed. Something suddenly formed in the sky above the shrine, and rained death upon her familiars. They were skewered on spot by sharp weapons, even in their hiding places, and torn apart by what sounded like crashing thunder. Even if not unnecessary as an act, the method was still surprisingly violent. Just an instant of brutality, and then it was gone. By the time Invoker could register the course of events, it was already over. Her servants were no more.
Ruler smiled wickedly, his eyes back at the Servant.
"This is a holy place, maggot. Keep your flock at bay, as they are unworthy to even tread those stone steps."