Saberfes!

Chapter 163

Chapter 163

The curtains parted easily, the rough cloth scraping against her baseball cap as it slid over her head while she ducked underneath it. There was nothing much to see behind it, with a few dingy lights on the ceiling casting dim light over a tunnel that stretched downwards, dust coating the walls and floors, coarse sandstone steps leading down. A few faded posters clung onto the walls tenaciously, though the words were chipped and the color almost gone. All Gray could see were the faint outlines of a bowl of ramen, and some exclamation marks on most of them.

There was however, a working monitor embedded in the wall, and Assassin walked over to it, using her hand to wipe away the dust covering the screen.

The screen may have been dusty, but it was functioning just fine beneath the layer of fine sand, albeit with the occasional flickering static that occurred every few seconds.

Behind the plastic cover that protected the actual screen, with spider webbing cracks from the top left corner, a face was shown, with one large word above it.

"WANTED"

Beneath the face, a brief description was written, along with the part Assassin was most focused on, the row of numbers with a stylized 'A' symbol next to it.

" 'Bonnie' Brynhildr & 'Clyde' Sigurd, 1 million Artorium for one, 3 million for both. Preferred alive, but reward will be paid dead or alive. Proof of bounty: demonic sword 'Gram' & 'Lance of Burning Love' *not to be confused with Galactic Police officer Kiyohime's 'Draconic Flaming Passion' naginata"

Once her eyes finished scanning over the paragraph, her lips curved into a grin. This was her chance to score a big job and lift in comfort for the next four months or so.

Humming to herself, she descended the stairs into the ramen shop, her sensor stowed away as she anticipated the bowl of ramen.

Gray stared at the screen, trying to make sense of the words, but she simply couldn't understand them, though the format of the poster reminded her of those wanted posters from the Wild West movies that Flat had watched for a week. On the poster, a picture of a handsome man with spiky black and white hair, a strong jaw and green eyes framed by angular glasses that exuded an air of coolness. And wisdom, perhaps.

The other picture placed next to his was that of a woman with an apologetic expression, along with flowing white hair that extended out of the frame, and a winged crown that stretched around her head, with purple and blue feathers complementing her lush, shiny hair. Gray unconsciously gulped at the features of the two, entranced by their faces, even though they were only virtual copies that paled in comparison to the real thing.

When she realized Assassin's steps were receding down the stairs, she quickly hurried after her, tearing her gaze away from the two faces featured on the bounty notice.

Down the stairs, the smell of ramen broth, seven spice flavouring, flour and strangely, metal and smoke, started filling the air, enticing Assassin's taste buds and making her saliva start to pour into her mouth. Stars lit up in her eyes, and her pace quickened, taking the steps three at a time downward, with Gray doing her best to catch from behind to match her enthusiastic speed.

The dingy yellow lights gave way to a warm orange light, and before they knew it, they had come to the bottom of the stairs.

In front of them, the delicious scent of soy-based broth and tonkotsu beckoned, with a long wooden board stretching the length of the kitchen, simple wooden stools serving as the seats in the restaurant. Round lanterns in the style of traditional Japanese tōrō hung above, casting their glow over the counter, while on the inside of the kitchen brighter lights shone, bright enough that they had to be electric. Pots of condiments were placed at regular intervals, with garlic crushers, shakers of salt and pepper, sesame seeds, sesame oil, chili oil, vinegar, yuzukosho and more. It was fully stocked with everything a ramen connoisseur would want, and more, with several suspiciously labelled ones like 'Crushed Dragon Fang' and 'Void's Dust'.

Behind the counter, whole pots of broth steamed and bubbled, with bundles of ramen sitting neatly side-by-side in stacks, enough to feed a lunch-hour rush's worth of office workers. Chashu, the barbecued meat that was often served alongside ramen, were lying whole in metal containers, waiting to be sliced, and there were other containers filled with seaweed, soft-boiled eggs, green onions, bean sprouts and corn, to name a few.

But to Assassin and Gray, only one thing stood out.

Which was the couple sitting right in front of them, currently in the process of feeding each other, making even the act of eating ramen romantic, with their arms each other as they held the chopsticks containing pieces of chashu to each others mouths, staring deeply into each other's eyes while the man's free arm circled around the woman's waist, the woman's hand on his thigh.

Gray blinked, and immediately recognized them.

They were the faces on the poster before.

Assassin took one step towards them, then another, her eyes steeled and determined as she stared straight forward. On her head, the ahoge stood up stiffly, like an antenna reaching towards the sky.

Gray watched on nervously, her hands gripping each other tightly in place of the bird cage that she usually carried with Add.

And watched as Assassin slid right past the two into an open seat, her gaze locked onto the piles of ramen and the soup in the back of the kitchen. Right as she slid into the seat, a small girl ran into the kitchen from a door to the far left, connecting to another space behind the kitchen. Dressed in a pink yukata with varying shades to form line patterns, and a row of sakura flowers along the left side going down to her feet, her dark hair was tied in a bun, and she smiled as she leapt up onto a wooden box hidden behind the counter, asking Assassin in a cheerful voice as her cheeks dimpled. Her hands pressed against the counter, propping her a little bit higher.

"What'll you have missus?"

Her childish voice could be clearly heard over a constant clanging sounding out from the door she came through, and since the couple didn't react to her presence, she was probably the one who had served them. They didn't pay attention to Assassin either, completely ignoring her in favor of continuing their couple food play.

"I'll have tonkotsu space ramen, with extra chashu."

Gray had no idea what the inclusion of space meant, but maybe it was just the custom of Assassin's galaxy.

Without missing a beat, the girl leapt off the stool and raced towards the stacks of ramen, prepared to make the dish.

"Kay'. one serving of tonkotsu space ramen with extra chashu coming right up!"

The clanging abruptly stopped in the background, and through the door that the girl came through, another man walked out.

"Onui, how many times do I have to tell you that you can leave the cooking to me? Just deal with the customers, and I'll deal with the food. Good grief, you sure forget things fast despite being so young."

With his appearance, Onui seemed to deflate, and she scurried back into the doorway that the two had come from.

*sigh*

"Sorry bout that, she's always raring to go even though she can barely hold the knife to chop chashu. I'll be in charge of the ramen, just sit tight and wait young 'un."

"Young one?"

"Yes. Looks can be deceiving, and I can tell you're as young as you look."

"And you're not?"

"No."

With that, the man turned his back to Assassin and started working on the ramen, his toned back and muscles rippling as he moved, the product of years, decades, perhaps even centuries, spent hammering on an anvil. Strangely, though his upper body was mostly naked, he wore a red cloth wrapped around his left arm, covering his shoulder, part of his left chest, and extending all the way to the heel of his palm.

Once again, Gray blinked as the face registered in her mind, the face matching up to someone knew she actually knew in real life.

Wasn't that Shirou Emiya?