The Spider's Thread. A Victorian style drinking hole located out of the way amid the twists and turns of the streets that made up the more night life side of the city. A perfect place for anyone, provided they were legal, could enjoy some hard drinks, and relax. The rules were simple. Leave your weapons at the door, and forget your troubles. What that meant to the Servants who no doubt frequented it...no Noble Phantasms. The last thing anyone wanted was for an anti-fortress Phantasm to go off during a drunken brawl and destroy the establishment. Those were the rules laid down by the propertier, a one James Moriarty, the legendary criminal kingpin of the Sherlockian novels.

It would no doubt confuse more than one, to see the infamous professor by day, criminal consultant by night to be settled in a bar of all places, running it, but it was a way to make some money "cleanly," while also acting as a cover for other more...illicit activities. After all, even in a place like Fusang, James Moriarty had to be himself. While there was no solid proof, word on the street in the right places would tell anyone that some thought the "Caster," who clearly wasn't an ordinary one, had his threads everywhere. Whether or not this was true, or just the esteemed professor using urban legends to his advantage just like a time before would remain a mystery to all but the most astute of people.

Given it was daytime, Archer found himself able to relax, and take it easy. His master, of whom only he knew the full identity of, got to enjoy themselves in their own way, while the gentlemanly professor taught makeshift classes on mathematics during the day to those interested, and more at night. After all, with that dreadful Holmes nowhere to be seen, James could actually enjoy himself. Though admittedly...sometimes he wished his arch-nemesis was present, but he wouldn't say it out loud, not if it meant giving the other servant the pleasure.

Really though, he looked the part of humble bartender, as the elder wiped a table down, cleaning up after a random drunk had puked all over the fine wood, a faint grimace hidden under his mustache. Sometimes he hated being summoned into an elder body, while that good for nothing detective got to run around in a perfect young body. The nerve! Oh well, he'd worry about that later. It was almost time for a few servants to come in and play cards. Apparently, Go Fish was the preferred betting method, rather than Poker. Oh well. Now, at least, it was quiet, no Sherlock Holmes to interrupt his plans...right?



As the last bus of field trippers pulled away from the small park that had become his grounds along with his workshop, Edison couldn't help but let out a roaring laugh, the lion headed Caster enjoying the praise and adoration showered upon him by all the children. Each time he got to recreate the discovery of his light bulb, to showing off his inventions to the gasps of stunned students, fed his happiness. And only encouraged his horrible work habits. With a turn on his heel, the unparalleled genius, that grand pioneer who took the work of others and turned them into profitable mass marketable ideas, strode back towards the front door of his grand patent factory, chuckling to himself. If only that dastardly fool Tesla could see him, Edison had done it yet again, he was the superior man! Though, for a moment, as he stood outside the doorway, he almost wished another servant had been summoned. Oh well, perhaps Ford would appear one day. After all, the even younger man had been Edison's pupil, and look at what that innovator had done! The King of Production Lines would be a suitable title for him! Ah, but only Edison was worthy of being the King of Inventors!

As soon as he got inside, Edison turned his attention to his latest project, and nearly fell over, his work habits having cost him more than a few hours of sleep recently. His poor master was terrible at stopping the genius from overworking himself. But there was so much to do! Why, he just needed a bit more, he needed to perfect this project...a massive electrical sign with his face that would go up over the park entrance, and light up at night. Without a world's fair to prepare for, Edison had all the time in the world to light his park up, and make it the greatest attraction in the entire city. Even that pompous Red Saber would be jealous of his work! He'd show them all!

What he wasn't aware of was that almost all of what he was thinking in his head, was being said outloud. Bellowing almost. To the casual listener, it would sound like the ravings of a madman, as he yelled about "TESLA SUCKS!" and the like. Some things never change, eh?

//If I hammed it too much up, whoops.

“You don’t need to worry, I don’t have the equipment to prod that deep with me at the moment. In fact, I believe I can only make a surface level analysis without using 3x3 HERMES because your data seems to be in some sort of flux. Also, now that you mentioned Code Casting,” Othis said as she raised a finger, producing a blueish holographic screen. It was displaying Meltryllis' Servant Matrix, a more organized and machine-like way of presenting the typical data most Masters would have access through their Master’s vision. However, most of the fields were showing fluctuating values, or were outright blank, though some of them were slowly getting more fixed as Othis used her parallel processing capabilities to analyze whatever data her eyes could gather about this strange Servant.

“I don’t know how you know about spiritron hacking theory since the results of that research haven’t been released to the public yet, but I suppose it has to do with the reason why you are so irregular,” Othis said after Meltryllis mentioned something that should be known only to those who dwell within the Titans’ pit at such a moment in time. “Since your ability to hide your data doesn’t seem to come from any known Noble Phantasm and your existence wasn’t predicted by TRI-HERMES when it analyzed all the possibly summonable Heroic Spirits of the past, I can at least deduce one thing for certain,” the silver-haired alchemist said, making a short pause as she dismissed the display and pointed towards Meltryllis. “You are a being from the future, right?” she said in a completely deadpan way, not minding at all how insane her deduction might sound to others.

“Once you eliminate the impossible, whatever is left, no matter how improbable it’s, must be the truth,” Othis remembered the words of a certain detective as she too tried to piece an interesting mystery just for the sake of it.

“By the way, would you matter if finish my order while we talk?” she asked in a nearly sheepish voice as she looked at the towering pancakes that were getting colder with every passing moment.


“Very well, then we shall, erm… get going with you,” Mordred said after Lancelot’s reply. The fact that she was getting more and more apprehensive with the prospect of finally meeting her father once again was painfully visible on her face as well as the way the blonde knight fidgeted with her clothes, trying to fix any perceived imperfection, whether they there or not.

“I wonder if Father will think that these clothes are alright? If I— if I knew it, I would probably have something more formal…” Mordred kept mumbling to herself as she and Seria followed Lancelot. “Perhaps, I can have my armor, but… what if I do that and Father thinks I’m trying to provoke her?” she continued, going through her thoughts like a nervous trainwreck, going as far as unconsciously reach for Seria’s hand and squeezing it with all of her normal strength. Which, just like her father’s, wasn’t that very great when she wasn’t using her Servant powers or Mana Burst.

Honestly, Seria hardly minded all of this. Not only did it let her keep her mind off of things, but it also let her meet King Arthur. The possibility of meeting King Arthur was, well... she knew that the Heroic Spirit had been summoned, she just hadn't actually seen her at all yet. When someone like that, someone who was so famous and well-known, was summoned it was hard to miss it. The news spread pretty quickly, especially given that Servants like that tended to be very powerful. Not only because of their fame, but because of their inherent nature. There was a reason they had become so famous, in other words.

So it was hard not to be a little excited, even if Seria didn't show it. She was also a little worried, too. After all, the last time King Arthur and Mordred had seen each other was hardly a positive experience for either of them. But Mordred's desire to try and reconcile seemed to be perfectly genuine, and Lancelot no longer seemed to hold a grudge... perhaps becoming a Servant let a Heroic Spirit reflect on their past better?

And then Mordred grabbed her hand. Almost immediately Seria went rigid, the redheaded girl's cheeks flushing red.

"D-d-don't just go grabbing me!" she shouted without even thinking, immediately attempting... and failing, to pull her hand away. It was only after a brief pause that she realized Mordred really was in dire need of help.

"... Ah... er... h-hmph, dummy... warn me next time before s-simply... doing whatever you please..." Seria took a deep breath as she averted her eyes. No, no, she couldn't let too much show... but given how much she disliked being touched or clung to, that was all it needed to be, right? "... We... we can go get you an outfit or something if there's time..."

@Raineh Daze@KoL

Nanako's attempt at encouraging Meltryllis in her own capabilities fell upon deaf ears as the Servant in question simply scoffed in turn. The idea of accepting raw magical resources of that quality was distasteful enough, but processing that into low-level magecraft was far less efficient than simply handing it over to her to use. A Code Cast, at least, was uniform in its abilities, and the Alter Ego was well aware of her Master's capabilities just from their connection.

"If you're going to be wasteful with your mana, just give me the resources directly. I don't need halfhearted variable changes that don't add more than a few decimal places of a point's worth of bonuses, so don't bother if you can't cast something stable."

With that said, Meltryllis turned her attention back towards Othis. Though fully understanding what the alchemist's intent was, the purple-haired Alter Ego couldn't help but scrunch her nose in response to the way she had phrased her reassurance.

"Do you mean to say that you would pry into someone's heart like that if given the chance?" she asked, a half-smirk on her face as Othis stared at her holographic interface. "You're even more of a deviant than I had expected, hm...?"

That smirk soon disappeared, however, as the girl in front of them voiced her own thoughts and conclusions about Meltryllis' origins. She had expected a quizzical expression and more inquiry about her odd parameters, not... Well, this.

"Hmph. I guess I shouldn't have been so careless, then," she remarked, crossing her arms in dissatisfaction. "So? Does me being from the future change anything? Just so you know, I can't do anything as inane as predicting lottery numbers, so don't bother with something like that. Oh, and feel free to eat that massive stack of pancakes as you wish. If you want to move it, though, have that girl help you or something."


"Your parfait, miss."

A server at the restaurant, tray balanced perfectly in hand with the fancy dessert in the center, walked over to the three young women. Without missing a beat, he slipped the glass (along with a larger spoon than was usually used for the desserts) in front of Meltryllis before easily moving the stack of pancakes from the table Othis had been seated at to the one the other two were at.

"There you are, Miss Obberhausen. Your own deductions are also quite accurate, given the single clue that you had. Well done."

With a smirk, the server changed his outfit and removed his disguise; the Servant now standing in his place, carefully-dressed hair and clean black cloak, simply stroked his chin in thought as he stared at the Alter Ego and her Master.

The costume itself, of course, was hastily caught by a nearby server, who was still in confusion as she brought it away from the dining area.

"Ruler, Sherlock Holmes. Miss Meltryllis and Miss Mihama, I hope you don't mind if my Master and I stay for a while to speak at length about your situation," the Servant said, bowing with a smile. "Though I believe that your circumstances may not be the best. That so-called AI... BB, was it? There was a great deal of information gained by simply overhearing such a conversation, and I wish to inquire further about this 'Moon Cell' and the state of the Earth in the year 2030."

"H-how long have you been listening to us?!" Meltryllis asked, slamming the table as she stood up from her seat.

"Since you left your apartment. After seeing those prosthetic weapons of yours coupled with that unusual attire, how could I not investigate further?"

@KoL@VitaVitaAR

---

---

The King of Conquerers smiled at Gilgamesh's words, nodding his head in assent before looking back at his Master.

"How long has it been, boy?"

"Roughly... Twenty-fi—" he began to say, only to be cut off a moment later.

"Perfect! You were too scared and too young to taste the joys of alcohol then, so let us make haste!" Iskandar said, picking up Lord El-Melloi II by the back of his suit and, with a minimal amount of effort, lifted the grown man off his feet and threw him onto his shoulder before following the golden Servant out the door. Left behind, of course, were Gray and Hinami. The former, of course, was left in a bit of shock after the storm that had come and gone in front of her.

"A-ah... I... Lord El-Melloi II and I came to Fusang as official professors from the Clock Tower, and to do some investigation on the circumstances behind this location. Er... Shall we explore the city, then...? With that smile on his face, I'm sure my mentor should be fine," she said uneasily, glancing out the door as the two Servants casually strolled through the hallway with Waver in tow. "...Right?"

---

"Oho? 'The Spider's Thread', is it? What an odd name for a restaurant," Iskandar said, stroking his beard as he stared at the hole-in-the-wall bar that the King of Heroes had directed them to. "But if you recommended it, then it certainly must be something worth trying. You're buying, correct?"

Without waiting for a response, the Rider threw open the door (nearly causing it to crash straight into the wall) and walked inside, Waver still draped over his shoulder as he glanced around.

"So? Who is the owner of this place? We wish to purchase your finest alcohol!"

@Raineh Daze@DocRock

Nanako's shoulders slumped, slightly. Her own abilities as a magus, well... they weren't ignorable, but she was hardly particularly impressive. Meltryllis would obviously be aware of that, given the manner in which a contract between Master and Servant was formed, so the brunette couldn't exactly be surprised about the response. That didn't mean it didn't sting a little, though. One of the things she had hoped for coming to Fusang was a way to improve upon that... but the girl pushed it to the back of her mind, for now. The Atlas operative, Obberhausen, was already performing her analysis...

"From... from the future?!" Nanako found herself blurting out. Of course that made sense, and... strictly speaking, as far as she knew, it wasn't exactly impossible. The Throne of Heroes existed outside of time, meaning that it wasn't necessarily impossible to summon someone who had become a hero in the future. But even that didn't feel like it explained everything... though it did explain all about 2030. On the other hand, BB wasn't explained at all... was she somehow responsible for Meltryllis being here?

"... I guess I was kind of expecting it, given... er..." she trailed off, uncertain if it was a good idea to mention everything involving BB here.

It was around that moment that the situation grew that much more unusual, when the waiter who brought out Meltryllis's parfait suddenly revealed himself to be, not only a Servant, but Sherlock Holmes.

"What?! You... how... you...!"

Nanako stumbled over herself. Sherlock Holmes was here, and not only that, but he had been tailing them since she left her apartment? The brunette was both in awe and a little creeped out.

@PKMNB0Y@KoL

Even before the door had been thrown open with the force of what sounded like a hurricane, Archer had heard the sounds of voices outside, and the slightest feeling on the back of his neck was sufficent forewarning. By the time the two kings had made themselves known, Moriarity had been able to move back behind the bar. Not that he didn't wince a tad at the show of force that had befallen the poor door. But just as quickly, he recomposed himself, a host's smile lighting up the mastermind's face, as his own voice called out to the fresh arrivals. "Welcome to the Spider's Thread, come in, come in, I'm the owner! We have drinks from many a time period and nations, what would you..." About to say more, James paused, trailing off as he got a better look at the sight before him. Two servants, one carrying what was presumably their master, the other the...King of Heroes. Joy, this was going to be interesting. "...Like?"

Luckily for the King of Conquerors, the King of Heroes, and the poor Waver who had been turned into a rag doll, the bar, sans the professor himself, was deserted more or less. A perfectly kept bar that didn't at all look like what one expected a hole in the wall to be. Plenty of drinks, plenty of good times, right?

@Raineh Daze@PKMNB0Y

"Hah! Treat the bartender with a bit more caution, King of Conquerors; you don't know who someone might be in this city. Even someone so obviously shady could be more than expected," the golden hero said, sliding into a seat at the bar and placing a possibly excessively large amount of bills on the counter--odd because his hand had been empty an instant before, and because even here didn't charge so much.

Likely, he simply had no interest in dealing with the irrelevance of change for the rest of their time present.

"With you, that means only Caster is missing. Assassin has lowered themselves to taking as many jobs as possible."

---

The other Saber seemed to not notice Seria's outburst, taking "politely ignoring it" perhaps a bit far, before he responded to Mordred: "All we had planned is to meet before watching Sir Gawain. Obviously, his unexpected exit from the competition needs a change in plans but I don't expect the king would take such pains as to be formal for something such as this."

He seemed to be leading them in the direction of one of Fusang's parks--ironically enough, given who was involved in this meeting, one with a quite idyllic lake as its centrepiece.

---

"So formal," the taller blonde said in a sing-song voice, ruffling her Servant's hair, "You two are supposed to be friends, it shouldn't be so serious."

It was rather clear that Laetitia underestimated the depths of how knightly King Arthur could be, no matter that she'd had time to grow used to the surprisingly-a-girl's attitude. Though she could hardly be blamed for a lack of awareness on secret events before her birth, or the attitude of this mysterious Knight of the Lake.

"Do you need me to show you how to get to the park~?"

That hand ruffling her hair... she wasn't sure how to take it. Of course, Arturia had not told her Master of the circumstances. How could she? It had hardly been necessary, anyway... perhaps, until this moment. But she would not press such matters onto her Master. The simple truth was, while she no longer wished to erase herself from the events, the blonde knight was certain that she was to blame, at least for Lancelot's fall, for what had caused him to qualify for the class of Berserker. Indeed, in this summoning he was now Saber, the class that Arturia believed was truly what he deserved, but that did not simply erase the memory of her friend, her loyal knight, stained black and stricken with madness.

"... Regardless, I... I cannot simply..." Arturia trailed off for a few moments. There were no words she could say that would be able to explain the situation to her Master easily. She was not sure if she could bring herself to say them, even if she could find them.

"... I... would appreciate that, Master," she said, finally. She was not entirely aware of the directions to this specific park, after all.

@Raineh Daze

As soon as the fridge was open, several of the cats started meowing. Lyubov shook her head as she continued sweeping up the summoning circle.

"<Hush! You're undead, you don't even need to eat.>"

Lyubov looked visibly embarrassed at the mention of ambitions that drove her to summon a servant and sighed. This... was going to be very awkward.

"Well... truth being told... I am unfamiliar with so much. I am from old country, and this is first time leaving family farm."

She nervously poked her fingers together.

"...The reason I am summoning is because I was told you would know much about world and I am knowing nothing.

“Perhaps. A maiden’s heart holds many secrets, I don’t know if even all the research in the world would be able to piece them together. But, if you allow me, I’m not against digging deeper,” Othis answered Meltryllis tease with a snarky remark, delivered in her typical deadpan tone. She wasn’t going to let a girl that was likely several years younger than her get the upper hand in this situation. If the purple-haired Servant wished to play grown-up games, Othis would reply in kind.

She didn’t look the least bit surprised by Holmes’ sudden appearance, nodding slightly as he complimented her deduction. After being in the detective’s company for long enough she felt a heightened sense of sympathy for Watson’s plight in their shared adventures. And, eventually, just like the good doctor, she grew used to the fact that Holmes could be anyone, anywhere, at any time. That said, she imagined that Nanako’s reaction would feel pretty nostalgic for the snooping Ruler for a whole other reason.

“Please, don’t mind Holmes too much. If you know Dr. Watson’s books, you must be aware that he just can’t help himself when he notices something out of the ordinary. However, he never means ill towards anyone, even his own nemeses,” the white-haired Alchemist said as she took a seat and began to eat. Othis displayed a rare talent to look educated even as she made the tower of rogue desserts disappear at a steady pace.

“That said, with Holmes here we can probably help you understand your case better, Miss Nanako. In fact, if you agree to a few terms, I could even teach you the basic theories behind spiritron hacking. This way you can support your Servant in the way she feels that would work the best. The only payment I ask for is the right to know everything about this investigation. And, while I can’t speak for him, I imagine that such compensation is enough for Holmes as well, right?” she said, alternating her gaze between Nanako and Holmes.


“I wouldn’t worry about him. I’ve seen that look in enough men before to know that he probably has never felt happiest in his whole life,” Hinami said as she observed the ‘boys’ leaving for their drinking party and leaving them behind. She could see that Lord El Melloi was bursting with joy after being reunited with Iskandar, but even so, she couldn’t help but feel a little pity for him after he got roped into whatever is it that Gilgamesh had in mind.

“That said, I hope he knows a good spell for hangovers. He’ll probably need it...”

“At any rate, what do you say of having a little time for ourselves while the boys have their fun? We can go back to business tomorrow,” Hinami asked as she gestured towards the corridor. “Of course, if you wish to stay and continue to fix the office, I could lend you a hand as well. It’s been a long while since I last did it, but I’m sure I still know how to stack books and mystic codes properly.”


“He— hey, keep it quiet, you dummy!” Mordred said. The blonde knight tried to disguise her own surprise at Seria’s surprised reaction, knocking the other girl over the head before saying, “Don’t do this kind of thing in public, wha— what if others misunderstand it?” Even though she never let go of Seria’s hand as she scolded the other girl.

“Anyway, you don’t need to go out of your way. If there’s one thing I learned ever since the last time we’ve met, it’s th— that there’s no point in talking with Father if I can’t make her accept me for who I’m,” Mordred said, coming slightly back towards her usual self. “What kind of Knight of Treachery would I be if I bow down to her opinion, after all?” The blonde added one last bit of bravado as she thumped the hand that was holding Seria’s own against her chest, unwittingly yanking the other girl against herself.

“Oops, sorry for that one, Master. I, erm… kinda forgot about this,” Mordred added. A blush took over her cheeks, as she helped her Master get back to her feet after the sudden pull while relaxing her grip on Seria’s hand, allowing her to pull it back if she wished.

Given that she had never seen someone who could so effectively conceal their presence and status as a Servant before, Meltryllis was rightfully shocked by the "arrival" of Sherlock Holmes. Of course, as an offshoot of BB she still knew who he was, but that didn't make the reveal any less shocking. It was kind of disturbing, thinking that a man like this had been tailing them since they had left and was present for them making contact with BB. It was unlikely that the AI would press the same conditions that she had put on her Master, though; as far as she knew, those from Atlas weren't the sort to have anything to blackmail them with.

Assuming, of course, that Rani was goon enough as an indicator for how they worked.

"Well, if you've heard everything from BB, then I guess I can't exactly help it. Tell your Servant to curb his tendencies, though; I don't want to feel like an Assassin is tailing me all day, regardless of whether or not that's the truth."

"Ahaha... Miss Meltryllis, you're certainly hiding some venom behind that tongue of yours," the Ruler replied, calmly taking a seat next to his Master before assuming a more comfortable posture for his next action. "That being said, I can more or less tell what's under that mask, but for the sake of both of our Masters, I shall refrain from speaking at length about that matter for the moment. You seem to be fairly neutral about revealing this information now, likely due to my own actions, so I shall let you speak at length."

Meltryllis' gaze sharpened as she stared Holmes straight in the eyes before staring at the spoon set next to her parfait. She had seen the usual spoons meant for parfaits, and this spoon was definitely meant for bigger quantities, handle and all. She realized, of course, that it had been deliberately chosen because he knew about her condition, which itself was something that the Alter Ego couldn't help but fume internally over. Even so, she turned her eyes towards the spoon and attempted to pick it up. Her fingers fumbled again and again, causing the spoon to clatter on the table repeatedly before she finally managed to lift it more than a few inches off the table and bring it over to her food.

"This is far more embarrassing than I had expected..."

While still attempting to keep her behavior in check, Meltryllis nodded for a moment as she began to recount her history (or, at the very least, a truncated version of it) to those present. She made sure to omit some of the more important details—of Hakuno's fight against her and of her true emotions, of Shinji's suicidal sacrifice, and everything else in between—but she did not lie. It was not a matter of necessity that she decided to simply conceal that information, but one of choice. The matters regarding the Moon Cell and the importance of the year 2030, how far the world had degraded, and even of her own death... That, too, was given.

Despite how her tale sounded like facets of some odd science fiction story, Holmes listened intently, nodding every so often once a piece of information caught his fancy. It was absurd to think that a massive supercomputer was hidden within the Moon, of course, but the Ruler could find no logical flaws in the argument, save those created by a gap in information. Given how he had no other sources to cross-examine and no way to actually get onto the Moon to check the veracity of those claims, though, the only real lead that he had left to pursue now was in regards to that AI named BB.

"But to think, the concept of a 'High Servant' would even exist... And to combine the essences of three goddesses... Miss Obberhausen, I recommend that we keep this information private. It would throw the city into chaos if this sort of information was made public," he remarked, head resting on one hand as he watched Meltryllis struggle to eat her parfait. "In any case, as my Master has suggested... Should you desire our assistance, you need only continue to supply us with information regarding this mystery. This is far more intriguing than I had first anticipated, and I would be happy to assist in matters regarding this 'BB'."

@VitaVitaAR@KoL

---

---

"That... Would be helpful," Gray replied, glancing over at the office that she and her mentor had been cleaning up until Gilgamesh's arrival. The summoning circle would have to be cleaned up, the furniture moved back into place, all the other papers cleaned up and re-organized...

Maybe that exploration would have to wait a bit.

"Could I ask if you could go retrieve some water to help wash this blood off? A mop or some sort of cleaning cloth would be appreciated, but paper towels will work just as well."


Gilgamesh's warning was one that made the Rider laugh. For all that had happened during the last Holy Grail War, having the one that ultimately slew him act as if he was even slightly worried about his well-being was an absurd thing to even think about, much less hear in person.

"I appreciate your words of wisdom, King of Heroes, but we came here to toast and relax, not fret about insects scuttling about!" he shouted, turning towards the bartender with a thoughtful look in his eye. He surveyed the wares arranged carefully about before walking forward and slamming the table with one arm.

"Your finest wines for the three of us, then! I trust you won't disappoint!"

Lord El-Melloi II was, of course, still draped over Iskandar's shoulder. He knew as well as anyone else how futile it was to resist at this point, so all he could do now was wait for the Rider to put him down on his own volition.

@Raineh Daze@DocRock

"Heh?!"

Seria was completely unprepared to have that fist knock her on the head, yelping at the impact. Of course, Mordred didn't particular hurt her at all, but the blow still made her flinch. How... how... she was the one who had just grabbed Seria's hand out of no-where, wasn't she!? No And... holding... holding hands like this was really embarrassing! Just because it was, there wasn't any other reason in the pigtailed girl's mind for why this was possibly the case! Of course, all of this was pushed away from her mind when she was suddenly pulled against the blonde girl's body.

Almost immediately she froze, flushed with embarrassment. It was only when Mordred realized what she'd done and helped her back to her feet that she used her free hand to push herself away from the other girl.

"Y-you should remember what's going on around you at least..." she said, finally, averting her eyes from her Servant. Jeez, that had been way too embarrassing...

And yet, Seria still had yet to let go of Mordred's hand.

@KoL@Raineh Daze

---

"H-heh?!"

Was... was an operative of Atlas offering to tutor her!? That on its own was completely stunning, a shocking turn of events that would be enough to make Nanako fall on her face if she was standing. She was hardly an impressive magus, even if she was decent at the technical side of things, so when Othis offered to teach her it was completely out of the blue, even considering her situation. What kind of day was this!? It was just completely crazy! There was no other way to describe it! Her feelings of joy over summoning a Servant, confusion over her Servant, concern over her Servant and BB, and now all of this... Her mouth opened and closed several times as she tried process what she had just been offered.

But then...

Meltryllis began her explanation. There was so much information coming at her so quickly. It wasn't as if she didn't understand it, but the sheer amount of data was ridiculous. By this point she'd freely accepted her Servant was from the future, but not only was she from the future, but she was also from the moon, also it probably wasn't their future, also all of that stuff happened... High Servants... AIs... a super computer... Meltryllis was made out of the information from three goddesses...

It was just too much all at once.

"... I feel like my head's going to explode," the brunette confessed, slumping forward slightly, "But... I guess... it... sort of explains a lot..."

Her eyes drifted back towards Meltryllis after a moment. Her Servant... she was struggling with the spoon for her parfait, trying to use it at all was difficult for her. It was because of her hands, wasn't it...?

"... Meltryllis-san, I can-"

Nanako cut herself off. She knew her Servant didn't like being pitied. It was obvious. Trying to help her use a spoon was not going to be received happily. But what could she do? It was obvious how much she was struggling with it.

... And how could she respond to that offer? Or any of this? Just what was she getting drawn into...?

@PKMNB0Y@KoL

The knight's expression seemed particularly strained as he avoided remarking on... well, to call it anything but a lover's quarrel would be inaccurate, but he was loathe to speak of any others' romantic endeavours lest they bring up his. There was only so much that could be done to assuage Mordred's doubts about the king's reactions... but it would be remiss of him to not even attempt it. "No longer does the fate of a kingdom rest on her decision, and at least once since the fall we were summoned into this world."

Not that he wanted to dwell on that any more than necessary. The things that he had done as Berserker...

---

Now with permission granted to lead the way, the Master lead her Saber through the streets, ducking through a few allies as a shortcut, and making certain to shorten her stride a little. It had taken some getting used to, but just because a Servant could keep up by running, it was best not to remind them of the difference in stature. Except when it was funny. There was a fine line between teasing and bullying, after all.

The park in question wasn't the largest nor the most impressive of those in Fusang, which was probably for the better--it was one where you were more likely to get some space, with picnic tables arranged around a small lake, the smooth surface almost like glass and reflecting the willow around it... though she wondered how someone had coaxed them to grow at this latitude. Was there some sort of magical gardener in the city?

Da Vinci, whoms mind had been lost for what seemed like countlesss moments comprehending all the new information that had been put inside of her as a result of her still slowly adjusting to the new world around her would respond to her masters call to leave quite happily. " A future ally is always a good thing to meet indeed!" The Caster would say, her cheery disposition the same as when she had been first summoned.

Still as she walked behind her master to the front door, her eyes looked around at the flavourless architecture that the structure of the building represented. Truly if given the chance Da-vinci would be glad to spruce it up some more. A dash of colour and a hint of charm did a building a world of good.

'Onwards and outwards' The words of her master would reach her ear and get a response quite quickly. "Onwards and outwards to learn more about the world, Right Master?" She retorted her voice maintaining its knowing tone, and her smile spread wide on her face as the suns rays hit her, basking in the warmth before stepping out with her master. Looking forward to what the day would bring.

"Oh... Oh! That's right!" The tiny girl with the wonderful hat was right! If only Alice had stayed in the park to begin with... But now they would definitely all find Dorothy! With her help, and the somewhat plain yet pretty girl who felt strangely familiar's help... And the kindly older gentleman too, they would definitely find her!

Taking the offered hand from the somewhat plain yet pretty girl who felt strangely familiar (really, once Alice calmed down she would need to ask her name), she led the group to the park, all the while worrying about Dorothy. What if a bigger dog had shown up? What if she'd been chased off by it? What if she'd been decapitated? Oh no, no, that wouldn't do at all, no! That would be terrible!

"Ah... Ah, there! That's where we were when we saw the puppy!" Alice frantically pointed at a flowerbed covered in red and white roses. "Yes, yes, Alice was telling Dorothy about how they should just paint the white ones to match the red ones, and then... And then the puppy! It was so cute and fluffy and friendly! And then Dorothy was gone. Where did Dorothy go? I miss her..."

@VitaVitaAR
@RolePlayerRoxas
@clanjos

"Thanks. If we're not here, we'll be at the park," Hakuno replied to the older man with a nod. It was always nice to see such friendly citizens helping out an innocent girl in her time of need. Straightening, Hakuno found herself guided by Alice to the park with Benienma in tow. She was curious as to this girl's identity, given that just 'Alice' wasn't much to work with when it came to heroic spirits. Which was weird, you'd think such a normal name would stand out, wouldn't you?

Hakuno surveyed the park and flowers, not seeing anyone that seemed to be missing a Servant. Or any dogs, for that matter. Hopefully Dorothy wasn't chased off by one...

"What do you think, Saber?" Hakuno asked the small Servant. Who knew where she could have went in the meantime.

--------------



With her Master's encouragement held at heart, the Berserker made her way to the arena.Registration was an easy enough process, and it wasn't long before her name was being called by a charismatic announcer, as the shrouded warrior made her way towards the centre of the battlefield.

Contrasting her 'casual' appearance, the figure that strode towards battle seemed eerie, almost sinister. An armoured fighter with a guandao that appeared to be coated in blood, frozen to the blade, a long beard that hung freely from the helmet - or was it even a beard? Regardless, it was perhaps evocative of a particular warrior of great renown, which only made that seemingly cold air around Guan that much stranger.

Well, she could hardly help how she appeared, and it didn't particularly matter. Guan was fighting under the name of her father, which meant she was duty-bound to win! And on top of that, her Master was watching, too.
With the weapon gripped in both hands, she held the blade parallel to the ground as her opponent was announced...

The old man was wonderfully helpful, and Benienma bowed her head in thanks before departing with her Master and Alice. Part of her couldn't help but be curious: Which Heroic Spirit was she? Certainly, she wasn't anyone familiar to the diminutive hell oni, even considering the knowledge granted to her by the process that brought her to the modern world. Regardless of her identity, it was clear to Benienma that she was a lovely, pure-hearted, and fluffy girl, one that the sparrow Saber desired to know better as a friend. But for the moment, it was crucial to find her Master. Indeed, as Dorothy was a child, she was in potential danger due to the situation. It was important to locate her quickly.

"Worry not dechi," she assured the little girl Servant, as they arrived at the spot in which she last saw her Master, "We're certain to find her, you have my word as an enma dechi!"

Her attention shifted to her own Master swiftly afterwards.

"This park isn't very far from our original location dechi," Benienma began, "Meaning that it's unlikely that Dorothy-san could have travelled much further than Alice-san. In that case, it's unlikely she's left the park, or strayed very far from it dechi."

The small redheaded girl nodded to herself, firmly. This seemed to be the most likely conclusion, and if that was the case then there was a simple way she felt she could locate Dorothy, or at least rule out where she wasn't.

"In that case, Master, I will locate her from the skies dechi."

With that, before the very eyes of her Master and Alice, Benienma rapidly reduced in size. She shrunk, but as she shrunk her feet left the ground. This was the best and quickest way for her to ascend at the appropriate speed. Thankfully, her clothing, even though it was not what she was summoned with, reduced in size with her. Soon enough, Benienma was the same size as an actual sparrow, appearing to be some sort of tiny figurine or doll of the most realistic quality.

When she spoke, her voice was not reduced, however, still remaining the same volume as it had been at her full size.

"When I return, it will be with Dorothy-san, or with news of her dechi!"

The tiny, tiny figure suddenly became a nigh-invisible blur, at least to the eyes of a human, as she rocketed skywards. The wind whipped past her minuscule body as she hurtled into the air, stopping only when she reached a height at which she could observe much of the park from her position.

From there, it was simply a matter of locating the girl that Alice had described. A blue dress and brown pigtails... Additionally, blue eyes. Benienma's dark red eyes scanned the park below for any children matching these features...

There!

Swiftly, as quickly as she had ascended, the Saber-class Servant descended through the air, landing firmly on the ground nearby. As she landed, she returned to her normal, still very small size.

Before her was Dorothy, but the little girl was not alone.

Kneeling beside her with a pleasant smile on her face was a rather beautiful buddhist nun, who appeared to be in her twenties.

"I bet Alice is off losin' her head or somethin'..." half-murmured Dorothy, who was clearly trying to hold back tears. The nun smiled at her, and simply patted her head.

"There there, you can let it all out," she said, in a soothing tone, "Don't worry. I'm certain we'll find your Alice."

"Dorothy-san?" Beni called to the both of them, approaching, giving the little girl a smile of her own as both Dorothy and the nun turned to face them, "I'm a Saber-class Servant from the Fusang Counter-Crime and Civilian Assistance Force dechi. We found your Servant dechi."

She flashed her armband.

Almost immediately, the look on the Dorothy's face brightened.

"Excellent timing," said the nun, taking the little brunette's hand with a smile, "My my, you're adorable too."

She smiled pleasantly, before her attention returned to Dorothy.

"Did you hear that, Dorothy?" she said, "Let's go reunite you with your best friend~"

With that, they began to follow, as Benienma lead the way.

@PKMNB0Y@RolePlayerRoxas@Rin@clanjos

---

While the arena wasn't as packed as it sometimes was during a tournament, it couldn't be said that today's fights hadn't drawn a crowd. Most of them had likely come for the fight between Gawain and Sigurd, but many still lingered to see the following battles. Humans and Servants alike occupied the stands, and while the stadium was visibly not full there was a decent crowd, as much as could be expected for the off-season.

"And her opponent-" the bombastic voice over the intercom began. "-said she would prefer to introduce herself!"

And moments later, a figure emerged from the opposite side of the arena.

It was unusual. She appeared to be a cute young girl clad in Japanese clothing, not even having entered her teenaged years yet. But there were a few things distinctly unusual about her appearance. while it wasn't immediately obvious, she didn't appear to have eyebrows. and those eyes... those golden eyes had slitted pupils. The more obvious inhuman traits were the set of horns protruding from her forehead and her red, clawed hands with bare feet that matched. Grinning, in a manner that displayed a pair of sharp fangs, the girl planted her strange sword that looked as if it was made of bone into the ground, raising one of her clawed red hands, palm facing her opponent.

"Your enemy," she began, her voice echoing throughout the arena, "Is Ibaraki-Douji. Leader of the Oni of Mount Ooe! Are you ready to be crushed in the palm of an oni's hand!?"

To emphasize her point, Ibaraki-Douji clutched her hand into a fist tightly.

@RolePlayerRoxas@Dblade26

Possibly was probably the key word here. King of Conquerers, hmm? There was only one servant who Archer knew of who fit that bill, the great Macedonia King Iskander. Or as most knew him, Alexander the Great. So two literal kings in name and title, with plenty of money, and given the references to a Grail War, had been enemies in one. Which meant...ah yes, that Master was probably the one known as Velvet Waver once. He'd read it somewhere when he'd first manifested, digging into the recent history, incase any mages showed up whose craft he had to be wary of. Just as when he was alive, James didn't precisely trust what he didn't fully understand.

That being said, the request for wine made sense. "Of course, I hope the various vintages I have will be up to your tastes, King of Conquerers." Without a further word, James turned around, moving to the wine rack, his fingers moving across the labels, before selecting a pair, one red, one white. A pair of wine glasses, servant sized for reasons, were set out, followed by the two bottles. "I'm glad you didn't ask for Sake, as we've been out since this morning. Oni came through, you know how much they can consume. That being said, the Red Wine is a 2013 vintage, from Italy, of the Piedmont region, apparently quite good I've been told. The white wine is from France, a rather fine nation. I do believe we also have some Uruk and Greek vines, and if my memory serves me correct, some Roman blends thanks to the Roman servants." Moriarity admittedly hoped he'd had some older blends, but given he'd gone for flavor, rather than age, it would hopefully go over well with the two much older servants. "Which would you like to try first?"

@Raineh Daze@PKMNB0Y



Excellent, now this wouldn't be too awkward for her, walking out alone. Instead Da Vinci was right behind her, as Serene stepped outside, taking in a breath of fresh air as she did so. A few moments passed, then she walked to the gate that acted as the property boundary, the rather stately looking manor seeming rather...small when you considered it gave up lawn space for overall interior space. It was still nice, in an almost Victorian esque exterior design. The wrought iron gate was quickly unlocked by the one security person, and two would be able to step outside, go down a short ramp and...right onto the side walk of the city. Serene glanced left, then right, before turning left, and beginning to walk down it, a smile on her face that somehow seemed to put the other people around, few that they were, into slight nerves, moving away from her as if she just warded them off. It was probably how the smile didn't...reach her eyes? "Caster, I must be honest, I have so many questions about your inventions when we get the chance, after all, its not every day I get to meet The Leonardo Da Vinci after all, right?" She said this only whenever Caster joined Serene's side, to better chat as they walked. She seemed to be cheerful now, but still reserved, with her public game face on. Give it time, the scary master will totally mellow out.

@1Charak2

The Kings, the 'bartender', and Iskandar's loyal follower were not the only ones at the bar, though it wasn't impossible that they may not have noticed the other guest immediately. Of course, someone such as Gilgamesh would be quite perceptive, but the situation may simply have caused them to be unaware of the other notable customer.

Or perhaps not a customer. She had never gone up to the counter, and yet somehow she certainly had a glass of red wine.

The figure observing them, a small smile on her lips, was apparently a little girl, a child no older then nine or ten. By appearances, she was quite cute, the sort of child you might expect to play a role as the 'endearing little girl' in a movie. But there were a few things somewhat unusual about her looks, as well. She was incredibly pale, not to an unnatural extent, but certainly it was notable. The fact that her eyes were remarkably crimson was notable as well, though perhaps much less unusual considering that Servants dwelt in the city of Fusang. Her hair was pale blue, and ended strangely in almost squared-off tips, as if it naturally grew that way.

She seemed content to simply observe the kings and Iskander's retainer, but if not noticed soon she would likely approach.

Gilgamesh would recognize her almost instantly, even if he had not been the perceptive king that he was, but the others perhaps not.

@DocRock@Raineh Daze@PKMNB0Y

“You don’t need to worry about that. Secrets are what we do best in the Institute,” Othis said after listening to Meltryllis’ story followed by Holmes’ recommendations all the while continuing to eat her pancakes in an almost extraordinary fashion.

“This is a very interesting case if I can say so. But, now that I think about it, there has been a request from someone named Twice H. Pieceman to use 3x3 HERMES for medical research, though it didn’t mention anything about an amnesia syndrome. If both of our futures diverge this much and yours seems to go further there’s something else that worries me, but I don’t think it’s worth mentioning it just to worry Ms. Nanako even more,” Othis said in a cryptic fashion, certain that at least Holmes would understand that she was talking about Quantum Timelocks. If Meltryllis’ account was accurate, there was a possibility that this current timeline was going to meet a Quantum Timelock at some point before the year 2030 came about.

If that possibility was correct, what could this BB entity be plotting? Even a Divine Spirit or whole combined might of Atlas would have difficulty reversing the loss of the Foundation of Humanity that resulted in a Quantum Timelock. But, maybe with the information, they have at the moment… there was a possibility?

“If only we had access to the equipment at Chaldea’s Observatory, it would be much easier to test this hypothesis,” Othis added, thinking out loud, in a tone that was almost too nonchalant for someone that was considering the possibility of the end of the world as we know it.


“Sure, don’t worry,” Hinami replied before going out of the office. It would take just a few minutes before she came back with a mop and a bucket that she borrowed from the janitor’s closet down the hallway.

“This really does bring back some memories, even if they are a bit hazy because of the time,” she said idly as she began to wipe the blood off the floor. While she did so, Hinami asked her cleaning partner, “I hope you don’t mind me asking, but why is it that you wear a hood while you are indoors? I don’t know if I can agree with what Iskandar said since I haven’t the King of Knights in person yet, but at least I know that you are pretty enough to be proud of your own face.”