(POV - 3RD)
The trio of Master, Caster and Gamer-turned Caster ran across the ruined hallways of Chaldea, making sure and taking extra caution to avoid the Oprichniks or Koyanskaya's detection and so far, they were doing well enough to reach their destination.
"This... is the hangar!?" Ritsuka exclaimed in shock, seeing the place for the first time.
"Yep! The one and only!" Da Vinci interjected as (Y/N) turned around the corner to check for any signs of enemies only to find none.
"Senpai! You're here! Are you hurt anywhere?!" Mash asked, running to them as soon as she spotted their arrivals.
"None thanks to (Y/N) and Da Vinci but that container..." Answered Ritsuka before looking at the huge object in the middle of the hangar.
"It's what Holmes, Meuniere and I were using as shelter for now, but against the horde outside, I don't know how well it will hold up for." Mash then said, worried marring her face.
"If it's about holding out against the enemies then don't worry because we won't need to do so, but still, good to see you all safe and sound." Da Vinci stated with a smile.
"Let's get back inside and get our bearings, and don't worry about attacks on the container. It's made out of materials that would not get scratched even by a tank shell." She added.
"What's more, we've had some rails installed underneath it so we could eject it out of the hangar in the worst case scenario, that scenario being now."
"Very convenient, I must say." (Y/N) remarked, sheathing HF Murasama as he took in the sheer size of the container-vehicle model.
Of course, he had seen the in-game artwork of it but turns out, this thing is far larger than he had expected which make sense considering the next set of obstacles it would go through.
"Indeed! But enough talk, we should get ready for a bumpy ride since we'll be making the trip sledding down the mountain but at the very least, we should reach the bottom." Da Vinci said.
"You got it! Now get on board! You guys are the only ones left, we need to go before they find us!" Meuniere called out.
"Right, Holmes had been tinkering with whatever's inside the container but I think he's just about done with it." Mash stated.
"We're the only ones left? I thought there'd be more though..." Ritsuka muttered, which did not go unheard from Meuniere.
"W-well... you're all that's left who escaped to the west hall..." He said nervously.
"What does that mean..?" The young Master asked, apprehension marking his tone.
"...There's... there's a wall of ice blocking the way to the east hall and everyone... who escape in that direction is frozen solid as we speak." Meuniere answered.
"Could it be... the work of a Servant?" Mash inquired.
"Most certainly since I saw it myself back in the Command Room, that one girl froze the entire east hall singlehandedly which means she definitely a Servant." Da Vinci affirmed.
"Probably a Heroic Spirit summoned outside of Chaldea, last I heard or saw in this case, she went off the Command Room so it might be frozen solid too."
"But I thought... Dr. Roman said that summoning Heroic Spirits without Mash's shield would be impossible, so how come there's a Servant here..?" Ritsuka asked.
"Fou, foou, fooou..." The little beast agreed with its own whines.
"Master's right, to summon a Servant outside of Chaldea... the idea itself is out of the question!" Mash said as well.
"I know, which is why the circumstances are so precarious. That Heroic Spirit should not be here, this whole situation itself should not be possible." Da Vinci stated.
"But it is happening as we speak so to continue acting surprised wouldn't do anything so I say we go for Plan B which is escape." (Y/N) interjected, earning a nod from them all.
"Escaping this place will be one thing, the next step we could consider is call in the Mage's Association for help, discover who we're up against and-" Da Vinci began.
However, a loud screech from the still functioning P.A system interrupted the Caster before a familiar voice is heard calling, pleading for help as panic laced the man's voice all the way.
"S-somebody! A-anyone still alive..!" If anybody's hearing this, please! Answer me! Anyone at all!"
"Someone's still alive!" Ritsuka exclaimed as the Gamer sighed at his compulsive urge to save others even if it meant putting his life on the line.
What Ritsuka didn't know is that he would be reminded of his traumatic experiences in the very first singularity in the burnt Fuyuki city... where he witnessed the late director's death himself.
"That was definitely a survivor! We need to help him but... which block could he be in..?" Mash seconded, the east hall and Command Room are frozen so that's a no go zone.
"..." (Y/N) didn't know the exact location of their soon-to-be rescued survivor since he didn't put a shadow soldier into him so he couldn't offer much.
Of course, he could technically just disappear off and go on his own but his Master hasn't given any orders yet so he's just dutifully standing by until ready.
Da Vinci however, remained silent as she seemingly had a clue on the identity of said survivor.
"C'mon, what're you waiting for!? Holmes is yelling for us to go already! We're out of time! We have to go now! Meuniere came out from the container, shouting at them.
"I feel for whoever that is, but luck just wasn't on his side! We've gotta forget about him!" He regrettably added.
"You heard the man. Holmes is right, and of course, I agree. We just don't have time. The only thing we can do for him now is pray that he makes it out alive on his own."
"That or he at least gets a quick painless death." Da Vinci said grimly.
"Unless...you two are willing to stay behind to help someone you don't even know?" She questioned, but it was more of a statement than one.
Before Ritsuka or Mash could retort, the P.A rang out again, the voice noticeably frantic and fearful as a cacophony of noises erupted through the system, almost drowning their own voices.
"Oh God, they're coming! They're coming...! Ah... Ahh... Aaaaaah!" The voice screamed out as the P.A was filled with more commotion.
"Somebody! Anybody! Argh, why does this sort of thing always happen to me!? Dammit all! Who do they think I am!?" Shouted the voice, frantic yet furious.
"I'm Goredolf goddamn Musik! The eldest son of the Musik family! I was going to lead Chaldea to glory! GLORY! That's what was supposed to happen!"
"...That voice... Goredolf?" Ritsuka exclaimed along with Mash while Da Vinci still remained silent along with (Y/N) but Meuniere was another case.
"So it's that Musik bastard, huh? All the more reason to forget about him! He's got no one to blame but himself! Why should we help a guy like that after everything he did to Chaldea!?"
"You're not... wrong... but..." The young Master tried to rebuke.
"Ah... Aah..! ...Why. Why do things always turn out like this? Why do they always turn on me in the end!?" Goredolf shouted again.
"How unfortunate for you..." Was all the Gamer could think of, no malice nor anger since he knew of Goredolf's character development albeit a slow one.
"This always happens to me! Always! Nothing's changed at all...! No matter where I go, no matter what I try, I was always an outcast! A loser! A social leper!"
(Y/N) noticed Da Vinci glancing at Ritsuka whose hands were clenched as the Master was most likely reminiscing the death of Olga, though their time spent were short, he knew that Ritsuka knew that Olga had also did her best as a director of Chaldea.
"I knew what everyone was thinking! I knew they all hated me! But what was I supposed to do about it!? I don't know WHY they hated me! I don't know HOW to get people to like me!"
"But I tried! I did the best I could! I never had my sights set on first place! I would've been happy with second or third or even near the top numbers!"
"Ah... Ow, owww! Stop it! Stop iiit! Dammit! After a life of failure, I thought this would finally, FINALLY be my shot at success...! But a loser is all I'll ever be, no matter where I go or what I do. Dammit... Dammit...!!!"
The Caster-Gamer turned to see Meuniere frowning but otherwise saying nothing as he walked back into the container before (Y/N) looked to see Da Vinci glancing at him as well.
(Y/N) sighed as he knew what would be coming next as he readied HF Murasama, his shadow soldiers almost squirming as they felt himself preparing for the oncoming fight.
"I don't wanna die! I'm not ready to die yet! No one's ever praised me before! No one's ever loved me before...!"
"Perhaps if you had taken a different approach to your life, maybe things could have been different... that also goes for me..." (Y/N) thought to himself.
After all, this whole journey started when he died all because he was too busy rambling on an animated show's cancellation instead of watching his sides before crossing the streets.
Now that he thinks about it, he couldn't help but want to going back in time to slap himself.
Unbeknownst to anyone, close to him or not, (Y/N) did in fact suffered nightmares, it's more strange to think that he would not because after all, he's still a young adult that was somehow given a literal life-changing decision.
A life-changing decision that caused him to realise the bloodshed all behind it, perhaps slaying Grimms may not be classified as killing others but he certainly had more than bloodied several people, human or Faunus alike.
He's never fought or killed anything in his whole life before reincarnating.
Furthermore, all those monsters from the dungeons, if it weren't for [Gamer's Mind], he wouldn't had been able to keep a sane or straight mind in the first place at the sight of himself spilling open their guts or hearing their death throes.
He's achieved great power, but at what cost?
"Not again..." Ritsuka's voice broke the Gamer out of his depreciating thoughts as the latter turned to his Master.
"I won't let this happen again!" Ritsuka declared.
"You are my Master, so I am entitled to follow you." (Y/N) said just as Ritsuka turned to him while Mash and Da Vinci only nodded, determined as well.
"Sorry, Mash, but we'll need you on standby again until we get back. Don't worry, I'll be sure to treat you after this whole fiasco is over! Tell Holmes to wait until then!" Da Vinci stated.
"Understood! Master, Da Vinci, (Y/N), I wish you good luck in this!" Mash replied.
"Sorry, and thank you!" Said Ritsuka.
"Well then, your orders, Master?" (Y/N) asked, fingers dancing on HF Murasama's handle.
"Looks like today is Goredolf's lucky day. 'Sides, I have to admit, you can't hear all that and then not help." Da Vinci interjected.
"...So, nothing ever went right for him, huh. Then, this time...this time for sure, we make sure we get there in time. Isn't that right, Ritsuka?" The Caster asked.
"Yes, ma'am!" Affirmed the Master.
"Mash, please look after Fou, we'll be back as soon as we complete our mission!" He then said, dropping the said beast into the Demi-Servant's arms.
"Fou! Fooou!!" The little creature cried out seemingly its own support.
"(Y/N)." Ritsuka began, turning to the said Servant.
"I'm waiting." Replied the Gamer with a small grin.
"By the orders of my Command Seals, I ask of you to rescue Goredolf Musik with all your might!" Announced the young Master, the red marks on his hand shining.
In an instant, (Y/N) felt his whole body getting boosted as the effect of the Command Seal activated his body and Saint Graph, although (Y/N) could not disobey this order, he had no thought of disobeying in the first place as he also saw something on the side.
[Under the effects of the Command Seal, all stats boosted by 25%]
"Nice." The Caster-Gamer thought before turning to Da Vinci.
"Look after our Master while I'm gone, will you?"
"Of course, who do you think I am?" Retorted his fellow Caster.
"A pervert." (Y/N) remarked with a deadpan before activating a skill.
[Skill: 'Sprint' activated]
"Hey-!" Da Vinci began but the Gamer had already vanished in a gust of wind, blowing past them as he dashed to his target's location.
"...I know (Y/N)'s a Servant but are Casters usually that fast?" Ritsuka asked curiously with no one to answer his question as they began running after him.
=============================
On the other side of Chaldea, repetitive shots were fired onto the Oprichnikis as the shooter in question desperately tried to keep the silent killers at bay but to no avail.
"O-oh God, oh God... I'm doomed... My magical pistol is out of bullets, and I've used all my talismans..." Goredolf stuttered, clenching a bleeding arm as he ran.
"Oh God, this is going to hurt, isn't it...? That one sickle hurt like hell... They're probably not going to kill me quickly, either...
"God, this is going to hurt, isn't it...? That one sickle hurt like hell... They're probably not going to kill me quickly, either..."
"I've seen these things in the old records... they're the tsar's Oprichniki." He thought, ducking under a shot bolt only to nearly fall over.
"They're soldiers expressly designed to make humans suffer. Demons in human clothing."
"I don't know how or why they've come back to life here and now, but... Oh God, this is going to hurt so much... I guess I'm going to die as unlucky as–"
Goredolf's words were soon cut off as a flash of red instantly mowed down the horde of Oprichnikis, spurring the man into stunned silence as (Y/N) reappeared in front of him.
"Mind if I cut in?" Was all the Caster said, twirling HF Murasama.
"Wha...!? Who are you?! A Servant!?" Goredolf asked in shock since Da Vinci and Mash were the only supposedly known Heroic Spirits in Chaldea... for now.
"A Caster at your service, not really." The Gamer retorted.
"...But you're holding a sword?" The to-be director questioned, looking at the blade.
"I am a Caster." Repeated (Y/N), glancing back at Goredolf who shuddered even though he couldn't see the Gamer's disturbing smile behind the visor.
"O-okay... wait! Wh-wh-what are you doing here!?" Goredolf asked dumbly.
"To rescue you, believe it or not so do give Ritsuka your thanks since this was his choice." Answered the Caster.
"Not that I can see a bratty pratty rat like you ever thanking someone sincerely." He added.
"Y-you! Ah!! T-there are more of those Oprichnikis headed this way!!!!" Goredolf exclaimed frantically, standing behind (Y/N) who sighed.
"The things I do for fun..." He murmured, unsheathing the red blade as he walked forward.
The first Oprichniki charged forward with an axe raised and aimed to cleave the Caster's head into two but the latter was already halfway in slashing HF Murasama at its target, effortlessly slicing the black-clad soldier into two.
Next came the second and third Oprichnikis with one shooting their crossbow as the other one dashed towards (Y/N), he immediately pushed Goredolf to the side, forcing him to hug the wall as the bolt shot past him harmlessly as the Gamer blocked the axe swinging at him.
(Y/N) quickly tilted HF Murasama before redirecting the axe away from him and then bashing the butt of his blade at the offending Oprichniki's face which he followed up with a downward swing that cleaved the latter into two.
The Gamer-Caster then leant to the side, avoiding more bolts shot at him, if it weren't for his Saint Graph, he would had gotten shot instead but thankfully, (Y/N) was already prepared as he sprinted towards the rest of the Oprichnikis.
"I'd like to repeat my statement that being a Servant is freaking exhilarating" (Y/N) thought as he slashed down two more Oprichnikis before deflecting the bolts shot at him.
After slicing down the offending shooter, (Y/N) turned his attention to the last Oprichniki standing near the back, continuously firing more bolts at him but to no avail as the Caster ran forward, weaving through the shots.
(Y/N) then leapt into the air, jumping with the sensation of almost flying upwards as his enhanced eyesight allowed him to pinpoint the approximate trajectory of the bolts shot at him whilst he flew in the air.
The Gamer swung down HF Murasama onto the last Oprichniki in front of him, instantaneously bisecting the target into two before (Y/N) made an overkill as he further slashed the still airborne and solid Oprichniki into pieces.
Just before the black-clad soldier disappeared into black dust, its body parts fell right next to Goredolf, prompting an almost pathetic shriek from him just as Ritsuka and Da Vinci arrived on the scene, having to run after (Y/N) after he sprinted off.
"Oh, hey there, Master. As you see, the 'battle' if you would call it, is over." (Y/N) said, flicking his katana clean from impurities before sheathing it as his visor opened up.
"That's a relief... huh?" Ritsuka sighed before noticing Goredolf's expression, akin to a boiling kettle as indignation turned frustration reached the tipping point.
"What are you doing here!? Do you actually think you've helped me just because you've saved my life!?" He almost screamed, venting his anger on the unfortunate Ritsuka.
"I'm the REAL victim here! They should have broken up Chaldea after all! The Heroic Spirit Summoning System turned out to be a broken-down piece of junk, and the supposed star of the show, Chaldeas, overloaded the moment I got here!"
Poor Ritsuka, could only stand there taking the full brunt of the verbal assault as Da Vinci only stood there with an exasperated smile albeit twitching as her fellow Caster remained silent.
"Give him time, give him time, he'll come around..." (Y/N) repeated, remembering how he initially disliked Goredolf until the later chapters and memes.
"Then I go and lose contact with the outside world, I can't find Koyanskaya anywhere, and to top things off, I run into those Oprichnikis!
"Uhh..." The young Master could only utter in a daze as Goredolf continued ranting.
"What sort of wickedness have you brought upon us now!? Don't tell me you went and destroyed the world AGAIN!?"
"Excuse me, but Chaldea wasn't responsible for the Incineration of Humanity-" Ritsuka tried to speak up but only to get cut off again.
"Don't you DARE talk back to me! Just shut the hell up and start fixing this mess you made! Goredolf barked but a resonating draw of a blade shut him up as (Y/N) spoke up.
"Musik, should I remind you that I have all the capabilities to silence you here and now? Even if you are technically the director of this ruined place."
"Y-y-you would dare?!?!" Goredolf exclaimed, taking almost several massive steps back in panic, eyeing the red blade as he saw it slice through the Oprichnikis like nothing.
"Well, yes but no, that depends solely on my Master... which you've been insulting for the past minutes so try not to test my patience, alright?" (Y/N) replied, walking off.
In seconds, Goredolf fell against the wall, breathing in deeply as his complexion paled as he tried to calm himself down from yet another near death experience.
"Oogh, just thinking about it is giving me the shakes! C-c-c-come on then, we should get to work!" He shakily stated, stumbling off.
"I knew this would be more trouble than this coglione is worth. Anyway, we may or may not have time to explain everything right later so do follow closely." Da Vinci then said.
"For the moment, let's get back to safety. I'm sure everyone else is on pins and needles waiting for us." She added as Ritsuka nodded.
"You're right. We'll also need to apologize to them, but still... I'm glad we weren't too late." Declared the young Master.
"Keep up that attitude and you'll survive longer than most, Ritsuka!" Da Vinci nodded in appreciation at the boy's optimism despite the situation.
With that, the group began running back to the hangar.
...
...
...
Despite the route taken, the group found that the hangar was seemingly further away than when they had ran from instead, but it could be mostly them slowly down to let the new director of Chaldea keep up with their paces.
"I never thought I'd be...forced to run a marathon...on top of a mountain...!" Goredolf panted as he continued sprinting behind the group.
"Blame that on your own choice of diet, fatso." (Y/N) retorted, keeping up at the front.
"Hey! If anything, you should be... praising me for... fighting valiantly all on my own!" Goredolf rebuked, sweating pouring down his face.
"Shouting out self-pitying lines and screaming for help counts as fighting?" The Gamer questioned with a raised brow.
"Not a fan of long-distance running? It's okay, if you want to sit down and take another break, we don't mind." Da Vinci snarked.
"But you should know that we're not going to wait for you another second!" She added.
"You think I don't know that!? Come on, pick up the pace! Before more of those Oprichniki catch up to–" Goredolf shouted, running just a tad bit faster than earlier.
"Okaaay, that's far enough~! Looks like you're not going to be crossing this particular finish line, are you?" Koyanskaya said out of nowhere, barring their way.
"They were waiting for us?!" Ritsuka exclaimed.
"Obviously." (Y/N) stated, hands resting on HF Murasama.
"Th-this is terrible! Those things have captured Koyanskaya! Wait, I see! After my quick thinking let me escape from the Command Room before anyone else..." Goredolf began.
(Y/N) only sighed at the sheer obliviousness in his tone.
"... then she must have found herself all alone, and was forced to give herself up. The poor thing..." Goredolf continued but Ritsuka cut him off.
"No, Mr. Musik! The Oprichniki didn't capture her. She's the one leading them! She's probably also the one who orchestrated this attack on Chaldea!"
"Y-you're joking! Then, you mean she's been deceiving me all this time!?" Exclaimed Goredolf, shock adorning his face as he paled.
"That she only travelled far and wide and worked herself to the bone so I could land Chaldea for HER sake instead of mine!?"
"A bit too late to make that accusation, no?" (Y/N) said quietly.
"Dammit! You little minx! How dare you toy with an innocent man's heart like that!?" Goredolf yelled, pointing at Koyanskaya angrily.
"Oh my, I think we have a misunderstanding, Your Excellency." The vixen began with a rather cruel smirk on her visage.
"We recommended Chaldea to you as a purchase with tremendous value, on which we were completely and sincerely honest about that."
"Since you saw its value, accepted the offered price and invested your personal fortune, we assisted you by assassinating your rival bidders to guarantee your purchase."
"As a result, you gained the sole rights over Chaldea and its property and we were able to complete our objective without the Association interfering."
"That sounds like a win-win to me, but then you go and call me a minx...? You know I'm normally very gentle, but that really ruffles my feathers." Koyanskaya sneered, snapping her fingers.
"So now we're going to kill you all. It's time for all of you to pay up for everything you're worth~" She stated with a psychotic smile.
The Oprichnikis behind Koyanskaya began moving forward as (Y/N) stepped in front of them all the while bracing a sudden thin blanket of a bloodthirsty aura that almost made him breathe just a slightly more difficultly as a notification popped up.
[Warning! You sense someone with immense bloodlust in close proximity!]
"So this is what bloodlust felt like... the Grimms, Cinder or Salem didn't really give me that sense of bloodthirst... well, two can play that game!" (Y/N) thought as he took a step forward.
[Skill: 'Bloodlust' activated]
From an outsider's point of view... (Y/N)'s figure was seemingly obscured in a haze of shadows that only revealed a pair of glowing eyes that seeks to devour their whole beings, as a result, the Oprichnikis suddenly paused in their steps as their bodies kicked into fight or flight.
Koyanskaya's own dense wave of bloodthirst vanished as the aura leaking from her was completely engulfed by (Y/N)'s own bloodlust, fuelled by his own disdain and murderous intent against the former herself.
"Ooh! Consider me impressed! I guess you're the source of that unpleasant smell coming from that boy over there." Koyanskaya remarked, not one bit affected, only intrigued.
"But still, I couldn't care less about other Servants known or unknown, so I'll make sure to kill you quickly~!" She then said with another smile.
"The only prey I really like to take my time with is of the human variety. The ones I'm really fond of, I like to stuff and mount on my walls and in fact, I've got quite a nice collection now, if I do say so myself. You know how some people like to hunt foxes? It's just like that, only with humans."
Koyanskaya said that with utter glee, as if there was nothing wrong with mounting up taxidermized human bodies or heads on her walls, but to (Y/N)?
It was just disgusting like her whole existence itself.
"Goredolf isn't worth my time, but you just barely make the grade, Ritsuka. I think you'd look wonderful on my mantle but I will have to remove those unsightly limbs first."
"As for you, my dear Servant, I'll just deal with you quickly and-" Koyanskaya began but the Gamer only narrowed his eyes.
No emotions can be discerned from (Y/N) as his own figure vanished.
[Skill: 'Sprint' activated]
[Skill: 'Mutilate' activated]
Just as (Y/N) suddenly vanished, the Oprichnikis around Koyanskaya were all abruptly sliced into pieces as their corpses fell down before disappearing into black motes of light.
"...Eh?" Her mind just registering what had happened in a literal blink of an eye, Koyanskaya looked back to see (Y/N) standing behind her instead.
HF Murasama sheathed as the Caster's finger rested on the trigger.
"Blah, blah, blah, jeez, shut the hell up already, bitch. Is it mating season now?" (Y/N) sneered with a disgusted glare at Koyanskaya as he pulled the trigger.
With a burst of fire and a drop of bullet, Murasama shot out of its sheath almost in slow motion as (Y/N) grabbed onto the handle tightly before his arm turned into a flash of red.
Much to his displeasure and annoyance, (Y/N) did not manage to cut off her arm just like wham slam bam Sam did so to Raiden but he did manage to cut deeply into Koyanskaya's chest just as she turned around to intercept his attack.
"AH! AH-! Y-you! You ruined my beautiful skin! YOU DAMN WORTHLESS TRASH OF A SPIRIT-" Koyanskaya began howling almost insanely.
"Oh, I guess it is mating season." (Y/N) remarked, unfazed by the waves of insults shot at him, raising HF Murasama again to dash forward and cut the vixen's head off completely.
However, his senses went into overdrive as (Y/N) immediately leapt over Koyanskaya, flipping around with acrobatic skills that he was more than certain he did not have in the first place but he remained jumping away from the icicles that were launched at him.
"Ah shit, here we go again." The Gamer muttered as Da Vinci stood with him in front of Ritsuka and Goredolf as a layer of frost began converging in the hallway.
"Guess I was hoping to much to be just facing those Oprichnikis." Da Vinci commented as a new female figure slowly entered their sights.
"Death to those who would disobey the glorious tsar. Eradication to those who would betray us." The chillingly cold regal voice spoke out slowly.
"Viy, I will wish this myself. I will curse them myself." The girl stated icily.
"We will reduce all good people to stone, to ice, to nothingness."
"Open your Wicked Eye, Viy!" The regal girl declared, her ice-blue eyes boring into their owns as the male Caster used [Observe].
------------------------------------
[Anastasia Nikolaevna Romanova]
[Class: Caster]
[Title: Grand Duchess of the Beast Nation]
[Level: 65]
[Health Bar-1: 80, 372]
[Health Bar-2: 78, 436]
[Health Bar-3: 76, 500]
------------------------------------
"...Guess the [System] is adjusting to FGO's own system... considering her level does not match at all with her damn health!" (Y/N) thought quickly.
"That's the witch who surrounded Chaldea...! She's a Servant! She froze the entire east hall solid!" Goredolf exclaimed, pointing at her.
"NO SHIT SHERLOCK!" The Gamer shouted over the director's own panicked sentences as Da Vinci began twitching in annoyance.
"This is it. I'm really done for this time!! You're no match for her, Da Vinci! She's got you beat in abilities and looks ali–oof!" The director said but only to receive a staff in his guts.
"Whoops! Sooorry! I really should be more careful with my staff! But if you don't have anything helpful to say, how about you be a dear and shut the hell up!?" Da Vinci barked.
"...Remind me to bonk you later." Was all (Y/N) deadpanned, staring at Goredolf.
"That said, Ritsuka, I'm afraid Goredolf isn't totally wrong since She IS a Servant and not the kind we know, either." Da Vinci informed the young Master.
"Did you not hear her mention the tsar? And with the Oprichnikis' presence here, isn't it obvious that she's from Russia?" (Y/N) questioned.
"Now that you say it, you're probably right... Ristuka! Make sure you're ready to back us up with those Command Seals. We need to settle this quickly, before she gets serious!" Da Vinci said.
"Good thing the effects of the Command Seal is still active." Thought the Caster-Gamer before he sheathed HF Murasama, much to their surprise.
"H-hey! What are you doing?! Why did you throw away that sword?!!" Goredolf demanded from the far back and behind Ritsuka.
"Hey, I'm a Caster-class Servant, swordplay isn't my forte in the first place." (Y/N) retorted.
"But you were fighting well enough to be classified as a Saber-class? What's the big idea here?" Ritsuka asked as (Y/N) raised his arms.
"Well then, Caster against Caster and Caster, three Casters, this situation has quite a unique casting." He stated as his shadow shimmered.
[Skill: 'Domain of the Monarch' activated]
(Y/N)'s own shadow began expanding across the hallway, darkening everything as everyone watched apprehensively at will happen next, slowly but gradually, shapes began to form out from the darkness before the Caster said the magic word he loved so much.
"Arise."
Armours took shape as fluorescent purple and violet light began streaming up the gradually formed beings that stood behind (Y/N), a knight, a humanoid insect, a bear, a tank, an orc and several more shadow soldiers stood in their places, outnumbering the enemies.
[Shadow soldiers fighting above the caster's shadow will have all stats increased by 50%]
"Maybe this is overkill, but I don't care much." (Y/N) remarked as Ritsuka looked at the shadows with awe as Goredolf paled even further, trying to make himself look smaller than usual.
Da Vinci, however, remained the same even in a seemingly desperate situation.
"Big deal, what could a bunch of familiars from the Proper Human History do against a Servant from a Lostbelt-" Koyanskaya began to scoff.
The Grand Duchess' eyes widened just very briefly before a shield of pure ice converged around her body just in time to narrowly block the pair of claws that cleaved the dark-clad soldiers around her into pieces, she was fine but the ice conjured up was already scarred with deep cuts.
"...huh?" The vixen turned around again to see the humanoid insect standing behind her.
"I feel way too much like an edgelord..." (Y/N) muttered to himself before snapping his fingers as Beru immediately slammed his fist into Koyanskaya's sides.
As a result of Beru's connection to current Shadow Monarch, the former could feel (Y/N)'s revulsion of Koyanskaya which borderlines on hate so the insectoid was not light in his punch which sent the vixen through Chaldea's walls.
(Y/N) wasn't expecting her to die by that alone, seeing that she's a Beast-class enemy so he simply ordered Beru to quickly return before the Grand Duchess froze him in sloid ice.
"Just for the record, I'm not paying for that." The Gamer said, pointing at the hole which Koyanskaya was smacked through.
"I don't expect you to be able to, considering the situation we're in." Da Vinci responded as they soon face off against the silent duchess.
"Uh, (Y/N)? Da Vinci? I don't want to alarm you but-" Ritsuka began but Goredolf cut him off as he let out another rather pathetic shriek.
"THERE ARE MORE OF THOSE OPRICHNIKIS COMING AT THE BACK!! KEEP THEM THE HELL AWAY FROM ME!!!" He demanded, paling even further.
"...Why do I even care..?" (Y/N) whispered as Tusk and Tank as well as the several other shadow soldiers turned around to intercept the assault.
"Well then, I suppose it's time to have a Caster showdown!" Da Vinci declared, her staff shining brightly as she gazed at the Grand Duchess alongside (Y/N).
"Rats, rats, this world is filled with nothing but rats, always gnaw and multiply endlessly..." Anastasia stated ominously as ice condensed around her.
"If that's all you denizens of the Proper Human History can do then I will give you the honours of showing what the people moulded by the Lostbelt can do." She hissed icily.
"Here we go." Was all (Y/N) said.
The male Caster immediately vanished in a burst of air as [Sprint] was utilised to close in the distance between him and the Grand Duchess, HF Murasama poised to strike her by the chest but only to clash onto a dense layer of ice once more.
Beru and Igris besides him were not so different as their claws and blade both scrapped off the impossibly hard ice, Iron by the side leap with his hammer raised before smashing it right on top of the Grand Duchess but only for his weapon to bounce off futily.
In an attempt to break through the ice, Iron regained his foothold before he resumed smashing his hammer onto Anastasia's shield again and again until the latter narrowed her eyes in annoyance as the phantom behind her flashed.
"Enough of this farce." She said, waving her arm almost lazily as several rows of icicles sprung out of thin, aimed to pierce through the shadow general.
Iron immediately held his gigantic shield in front of him as the icicles slammed into it harmlessly but the impact behind the attack caused the shadow soldier to get pushed back several steps.
However, Da Vinci quickly took over as she jumped into the air as a mechanical armament formed around her arm before the Caster shot it forward at the Grand Duchess like a rocket which she sidestepped with no effort at all, blowing up harmlessly next to her.
Da Vinci then slammed her staff down as several orbs of blue light shot towards Anastasia just as she conjured up another ice shield against Beru and Igris' attacks, as they kept the enemy Caster busy, (Y/N) was already sprinting around before dashing forward with his blade ready.
HF Murasama burst out of its sheath like a bullet before its wielder grabbed it and then slashed at the Grand Duchess' exposed back with all his might but much to his surprise, there was nary a scratch nor cut on the enemy's body... guess Lostbelt clothing are built different.
In contrast to (Y/N)'s thoughts, Anastasia still flinched forward slightly as the red blade made contact with her back, though it may had not inflicted any cut upon her skin, the force behind the slash was still significantly painful enough for her to register.
"Tsk, begone." She said as ice surrounded (Y/N) in an attempt to freeze him altogether.
The Caster in question instantly responded by leaping out of the dense approaching ice before it could swallow him as he returned to his shadows since Anastasia conjured up a wall of protective ice behind her, preventing any flanking attacks.
Da Vinci shot another armament from her arm at the Grand Duchess before dashing around her while spewing flames from the gauntlet attached to her, Iron had already charged towards Anastasia which he smashed his shield into the layers of ice.
As Iron kept the enemy Caster's attention as she tried to push the former back once again, Igris had already begun slashing all around Anastasia, determined to whittle down her defences.
Beru and (Y/N) repeatedly sliced their claws and blade around the ice, following suit in Igris' example as they tried to break through the ice before leaping back as the phantom's eyes flashed again which caused another wall of ice to erupt out of thin air.
Meanwhile, back with the young Master and the new director.
"OH GOD! OH GOD! OH GOD! I DON'T WANNA DIE!!!" Goredolf cried as he ducked down underneath another corpse of an Oprichniki hurled across the air.
Both Tank and Tusk were handling the situation exceptionally well as the former relied on his brute strength and mass to topple and crush the enemies while Tusk retaliated with his own brand of magic, strengthened by the [Orb of Avarice] in his hand.
[Tusk has used skill: 'Hymn of the Fire Dragon']
The hallway was soon engulfed in a blaze as Tusk bellowed out flames onto the Oprichnikis that charged at them which left nothing behind as clothes, weapons and body all disintegrated.
Unfortunately, the black-clad soldiers seems to have caught on with this before rows of Oprichnikis stood far from the flames and held their crossbows up as they fired onto the group.
[Tusk has used skill: 'Hymn of Protection']
Suddenly, a spectral shield was formed in front of Tusk as the bolts bounced harmlessly onto the ground without making a single scratch on the surface as the Oprichnikis reload, Tank wasted no time charging forward into the enemies, ripping them apart with his teeth and claws.
[Tusk has used skill: 'Hymn of Frenzy']
As the shadow orc casted the spell onto the Oprichnikis, the only indication of it taking affect was the dark-clad soldiers' black goggles flashing red as they began writhe around, trying to balance themselves but unfortunately for them, Tank was faster.
The black bear slammed himself into the horde of soldiers, immediately tearing them apart with his fangs, claws and mass alone as the Oprichniki numbers dwindled faster than ever.
Any bolts shot from Oprichnikis that both shadows failed to fully eliminate were shrugged off or treated as mere annoyance before the other soldiers managed to neutralise the shooters.
Overall, Ritsuka's side was more than safe especially with those two specific shadows.
With a combination of [Sprint] and [Mutilate], (Y/N) repeatedly slashed at and around Anastasia in hopes of breaking through her ice, Beru, Igris and Iron were following closely as their joint attacks also forced the enemy Servant to keep her shield up instead of attacking.
At one point, Iron tried to use his personal skill of [Taunt] on the Caster but the act failed which irked the shadow general quite a bit as indicated by his hammer smashing harder and harder on the ice shield all the while Da Vinci shot off more armaments and orbs at Anastasia.
"This is getting nowhere..." (Y/N) thought himself before slicing through another thorn of ice aimed at his head.
Honestly, he could probably stomp the enemy Caster with the Rider Belts but too bad his journey and missions are followed by the eccentric power known as plot which is available to both enemy and ally sides alike.
"This has gone on long enough." Anastasia scorned before the phantom Viy behind her flashed its eyes again and (Y/N) looked down to see a thick layer of ice.
"GET BACK!" He roared out to Da Vinci and his shadows before a massive tsunami of sub-zero degree ice condensed right in front of them.
Had this situation progressed just as the canonical story did, then both Mash and Da Vinci would have been debuffed extremely severely, but thankfully, Mash is not here and Da Vinci managed to jump back along with him and his shadow soldiers.
Although they're not at all injured or close to a desperate situation, it will not bode well for Ritsuka or Goredolf, as much as (Y/N) is reluctant to admit for the latter.
"This is taking too long." (Y/N) stated as Da Vinci nodded.
"Rightly so! With that enemy Caster tanking our shots, we won't be able to get out of Chaldea anytime soon, we need to finish this quick."
"What do you suggest when the said Caster is apparently tanking our hits like nothing with that annoying ice shield of hers?" (Y/N) responded.
"Well now that you say it, she is quite a formidable Heroic Spirit! But you know what they say: the bigger they are, the more common their weakness!" She declared.
"...Who said that?" The Gamer asked curiously.
"Here's a gift from me! A fellow Caster to another!" Da Vinci then said, ignoring (Y/N)'s question as she threw something at Anastasia.
The said thing garnered the attention of the Grand Duchess as her eyes disinterestedly gazed up at the thrown object before a bright light consumed everything in the hallway.
"...A little warning would be nice!" (Y/N) shouted as he grabbed Ritsuka and Goredolf, dismissing his shadows before running off with Da Vinci.
It wasn't long until the hallway now laid empty save for the lone Caster.
"...Just like rats, all they know is to run and multiply elsewhere..." Anastasia uttered out with sheer coldness in her tone.
With a snap of her fingers and more Oprichnikis wordlessly appear out from nowhere as they reunited their Grand Duchess before silently carrying out her will without the need for an order.
"If this is all the Proper Human History could offer then letting them live will be meaningless." Anastasia said icily, walking in the group's direction.
"They could not handle this laughable degree of temperature then to resist our strengths altogether would be futile."
=============================
"We're back!" Ritsuka yelled into the hangar as the rest of the group ran in.
"So this is the hangar! It's a lot bigger than it looked in the file!" Goredolf remarked but a hard shove from Da Vinci cut him off.
"Just shut it and get in the container, coglione! I can feel the cold breathing down our necks!" She stated urgently.
"Senpai! Da Vinci! (Y/N)! You're finally back!" Mash exclaimed with relief but it was short-lived as ice began to freeze upon the surfaces.
"FOU! FOOUU!" Cried out the little beast as if urging them to hurry as well.
"Heeey! Over here! Quicklyyy! The ice is right behind you! Look!" Meuniere shouted, waving them in with fear as more ice spread across the hangar.
"How about we just all stop talking and get in the container and open that gate?!" (Y/N) demanded, pushing everyone into the doorway harshly.
"That ice queen is getting closer and y'all just talking your heads off!"
"No need to worry! They'll never catch up to us as this rate! Just one more step and we can say it's victory for us!" Da Vinci said optimistically.
"Alright, get in then! I'll bring up the rear-" Any other words died in (Y/N)'s throat as he saw a hand piercing through his chest.
In any other timelines or universes, it would had been Da Vinci being the victim but now, it appears to be (Y/N)'s turn to take the fall in this story and time...
"Wha..." Ritsuka gasped in stunned silence.
"...Well this is unexpected..." Was all (Y/N) commented, coughing up blood as his health began dropping quickly, but not rapidly.
"So much for my enhanced senses, how did Da Vinci or me not feel this guy's presence?" The Caster berated himself silently, noting to get a hold of his stats after all this.
"Indeed, I had not anticipated the summoning of another Heroic Spirit, much less on the last day of the Proper Human History." Kotomine stated behind him.
"You just had to not go for the head, did you?" The Gamer snarked, rather uncaring of his situation with a hand through his chest.
"I'm sorry. Old habit of mine. You left your heart wide open, and that seemed the fastest way to end you." Kotomine sincerely replied back, twisting his hand.
"Krrh-!" (Y/N) couldn't help but groan in pain although it wasn't even close to when that red shadow gouged his eye out.
"Hmm. Servant or not, you can't survive once your Spirit Origin core has been shattered." The priest stated as a matter of fact.
"Although I would have preferred ending Leonardo da Vinci's Spirit Origin, I suppose losing a powerful Servant such as you would also have its merits."
"(Y/N)!!!!!" Ritsuka screamed from the container, trying to run towards but [Ruler's Authority] kept him and the others in place.
"First of all, stay back! Second of all, FUCKING GO!" (Y/N) shouted back before kicking his legs up and sending both him and the priest through a wall.
"And third of all! I'll catch up!" He stated before Ritsuka or Mash could do anything to stop him before pushing them all into the container.
With a final massive push of [Ruler's Authority], the container with Chaldea's survivors burst out through the gate and into the blizzard outside, immediately out of the invaders' grasps.
"...Impressive, you still remain standing and strong enough to utilise your abilities." Kotomine remarked before avoiding a red sword, jumping back as (Y/N) stood there.
"Well, you don't know me and besides... I wanted to try out something anyway." The Gamer retorted as the priest raised a brow in realisation.
"I see... you planned to stall for time, no?" Kotomine questioned before his expression of indifference turned into that of slight surprise as light surrounded (Y/N).
"Status Recovery." Was all he said as the hole in his chest healed up with no marks left behind.
"Hoh... how truly unexpected, I did not foresee the possible capability to completely heal a shattered Spirit Origin..." Kotomine commented.
"Assuming that I even have a Spirit Origin... Nasuverse's lore is confusing if not complicated..." The Caster-Gamer thought idly.
"An unknown Servant, skilful enough to heal from a shattered core and powerful enough to command familiars that can withstand a Lostbelt Servant's powers." Kotomine began.
"Looks like you can't trust everything in the reports, can you?" He added as Oprichnikis slowly filled in the hangar along with the vixen that was smashed earlier.
"You're the one who planned this operation, Koyanskaya. What do you think now?" The priest asked as the said vixen glared murderously at (Y/N).
"I will admit that this entire operation has gone out of my expectations, especially when they slid down the mountain in a container no less." She hissed out.
"Although I'd like to think of the force of trip would be enough to reduce them to red paste on the container walls, but if they kept this trash's existence a secret then I expect them to have more tricks up their sleeves."
"Please. This was obviously their plan from the start, and they managed to keep this extra Servant a secret." Replied Kotomine.
"The Master, Leonardo da Vinci, the Demi-Servant, Goredolf and the eight surviving staff members... twelve precious lives, we'll have to take care of that." He declared.
"Sorry, but while I'm here, if want to get to them, you're gonna have to go through me." (Y/N) stated, standing in front of the hangar gate.
"Hmph, you have no need to worry, especially when I'm going to tear you apart piece by piece-" Koyanskaya began with a snarl.
"Are you still not out of your mating period?" (Y/N) asked.
"DIE!!" Koyanskaya leapt into the air as Kotomine dashed around towards (Y/N) who was browsing his [Inventory] for some goddamn reason.
"Let's see, transforming into Zi-O would probably take some time... other Rider Belts and Ultra items are locked... a'ight, let's go with Decade." (Y/N) thought whilst dodging multiple attacks.
(Y/N) grabbed Kotomine's wrist before he could pierce through his abdomen and then swung him around with his apparently superior strength and right into a horde of approaching Oprichnikis and then jumping away just as Koyanskaya smashed the ground where he stood.
"Oof, you're quite a brute despite your appearance." (Y/N) remarked, taking out the Decadriver and then attaching it to his waist.
Koyanskaya then disappeared in a gust of wind as she reappeared behind (Y/N), her hands having transformed into a pair of beastial claws that were poised to take his head off, but a shadowy claw grabbed onto her wrist as Beru held back the Beast in disguise.
(Y/N) kicked backwards, his foot digging into Koyanskaya and pushing her back several steps before he whipped out a card from the Ride Booker on his side and then rolling away from several bolts shot at him from all around.
In a fluid motion, (Y/N) inserted the card into the Decadriver, prompting an announcement from the belt itself as twenty silhouettes appeared around him.
[KAMENRIDE - DECADE!]
"Wha-?" Koyanskaya could only exclaim, absolutely confounded by the sight in front of her... and the sudden danger that her instincts are flaring at her.
"Interesting..." Kotomine, ever the indifferent bastard remained only intrigued by the situation in front of him but nevertheless remained ready for combat.
"I feel like I'm on a massive acid trip... which I don't regret sniffing." Decade admitted sheepishly before brandishing the Ride Booker.
=============================
Somewhere... in the far outskirts, away from the plane of reality on Earth.
The Ạ̴͈͍̟̪̙̘̀͠l̵̡͇̫̫͕͂̏̋̈́̒͆̈́̕ì̷̤͚͇̟͕̲͈͌e̶͚̻̤̐͒̆͋ņ̵̧̛̗̦̻̘̜͎̒̄̀̋̚ ̸͙̮̘̼̯̭̬̰̅̈́̌̅͗͝G̵͓̖̹̗͗̂͌̓̚͠o̵̡̫̘̯̻͙̝͂̃̊͐̈́͜d̷̢͈̤́̏̄̀̇ stirred, casting its unseen gaze onto its target of interest.
Something has changed, something big but what exactly is it?
The A̴̢̝͔̲̩̗̦͑̈́̽̍̔̏̚͝ḷ̸͈̳̫̖̐ḯ̵̝̄͊̐͆e̸̡̖̹̦̜͚͚̓̀̀͂̊́̕n̶̡̠̩̣̪̳̩͔̈́͂ ̴̤̺̭͊G̶͉̾͛̽͆̋͒͘͠o̸̲͙̳̦͉̫̗͓̽̓̎̔̔͘d̵̫̭̉̿ cannot discern nor understand for now.
So it remained unmoving, only waiting and waiting.
=============================
"I've already had enough of you laying your filthy mitts on me, but for you to play around in that toy of yours in front of me... you have a nerve, boy." Koyanskaya hissed, her form seemingly distorting and convulsing until Kotomine cut in.
"Calm yourself, Koyanskaya, you know the order for that appearance of yours down."
"Tsk... fine." The said vixen clicked her tongue hatefully, vanishing-
Then appearing by Decade's side once more, her leg swing right at the former's waist who raised his weapon and blocking the attack that sent him flying into a wall before falling to the ground and then whipping out another which he inserted it.
[ATTACKRIDE - BLAST!]
The Ride Booker transformed into its gun-mode, its barrel extending as the blade disappeared before the Rider-Gamer fired upon the charging Oprichnikis and Koyanskaya, magenta holograms appearing on the Ride Booker as its bullets hit the targets.
The rapid and endless succession of bullets hitting onto the dark-clad soldiers easily whittled down their numbers before the Rider dashed through the horde and straight at Koyanskaya, immediately inserting another card into the Decadriver.
[ATTACKRIDE - SLASH!]
Decade swung down, the Ride Booker adopting a magenta hue as every swings left magenta afterimages as sparks erupted from the blade clashing against Koyanskaya's beastial arms.
The two combatants soon engaged in a rather violent and intense flurry of blades and claws as their arms turned into a blur which the Rider quickly broke by locking his arms around the vixen's own and then slamming her around and into the ground.
"YOU DAMN-!" Koyanskaya began but another slam interrupted her as Decade smashed her into the ground again and again, only letting go as Kotomine threw bayonets at him.
The Black Keys which possesses the ability to root anyone to the ground by getting stuck in their shadows, although not effective against stronger enemies, it is nonetheless annoying.
Decade batted the Black Keys out of the air before blocking an axe from an Oprichniki that had snuck behind and then quickly and effectively slicing off its arm which he then kicked back into the horde, slashing down more dark-clad soldiers.
Although Decade could not take on a literal army simultaneously, the intent was clear here as the former was simply stalling for time so that Chaldea's survivors can escape in time, but let's be honest here.
(Y/N) literally has the power of gods and manhwa on his side, how could he lose other than the fact that the author is just losing braincells in writing this chapter-
No more 4th wall breaks, Decade dodged another attempted blow from Koyanskaya as he once more took out a card which reduced the cursed nun boss; Abigial to near death.
[KAMENRIDE - KABUTO!]
"He changed forms..?" Koyanskaya hissed out irritably before seeing the Rider take out yet another card which she knew what goes next.
[ATTACKRIDE - CLOCK UP!]
Before the vixen could charge towards the Rider and grab the card, the latter disappeared into thin air as Koyanskaya felt multiple wounds marring her body instantaneously which D.Kabuto reappeared behind her, again.
The Rider turned to look at the horde of Oprichnikis before disappearing again which caused several if not, many of the dark-clad soldiers to fall into dust as D.Kabuto continuously slashed their vital spots all the while sped up in reality.
However, after ten seconds, D.Kabuto slowed down and then returned back to his original form which he then ran and grabbed several Black Keys laying around on the floor.
Decade slapped away a blow aimed at his head before returning one of his own towards Kotomine's head who leant to the side, avoiding the blow harmlessly but only for the former to quickly kick him in the guts and then grabbing his arm.
The Rider twirled around the priest before locking his arms onto Kotomine's own which he then twisted hard enough to draw blood and rip flesh-
In an instant, Kotomine was kicked away before several Black Keys were stabbed into his shadow, immobilising his armless form on the cold ground.
Decade turned around but only to receive a massive punch to the head which caused him to fall down as Koyanskaya began pummelling him in a rather unladylike fashion, having had enough of the Gamer's antics as she wanted to kill him herself.
The Rider-Gamer then kicked his leg up and into Koyanskaya's back before he dove into the latter's form which they began rolling harshly on the ground which ended as Decade slammed the vixen into the wall, piercing the Black Key in his hand through hers.
However, Decade wasn't done before he stabbed the second Black Keys into her other hand and then her chest, her abdomen, her legs and neck which he soon admired his morbid work.
"YOU... BASTARD... I WILL... KILL YOU... IF IT'S THE... LAST THING I DO!" Koyanskaya looked positively deranged as her beastial eyes bored into Decade, promising nothing but murder.
The individual in question, simply raised his hand and finger.
Noting that more Oprichnikis are approaching along with the Grand Duchess herself, Decade immediately retreated to the gate of the hangar before summoning out Tusk.
"If you please." He said, gesturing at the struggling horde of enemies.
[Tusk has used skill: 'Hymn of Giants']
[Tusk has used skill: 'Hymn of Combustion']
In an instant, the shadow general grew in size as flames began converging around him before he unleashed a torrent of pure-white hot flames onto the unfortunate targets.
Decade didn't waste time and linger before he inserted another card into his belt.
[ATTACKRIDE - INVISIBLE!]
Just like that, the Rider-Gamer vanished along with his shadow.
=============================
All the while the chaos back on Chaldea raged on, the survivors were already out of their container and driving a massive armoured vehicle known as the Shadow Border.
In any other timelines where Da Vinci had died to stall for time instead, the Caster remained alive and treating Mash's body right now all the while Goredolf drove the massive vehicle.
"What a jump! That was a slope-crossing impact, wasn't it!?" That was all he could say.
"Correct! I see you're quite the driving enthusiast, Goredolf!" Holmes praised though if he was sincere or not in his words remains to be seen.
"Wh-why yes, as a matter of fact. I don't like to brag about it, but I am something of an amateur racer. I'm the sponsor, driver and strategist, all rolled into one. Musik the Phoenix, they call me–"
"Now then, we're about to reach the ice shelf! From there, we'll head for the coast and the sea beyond!" The detective stated, much to the young Master and Demi-Servant's surprise.
"Ice-shelf..?" Ritsuka questioned, still shellshocked at the 'loss' of his newest Servant which both Mash, Da Vinci, Holmes and even Goredolf in his own ways tried to comfort.
"Hm? Oh, that's right, you don't know where we are, do you?" Holmes asked.
"Well then! Take a look out the window, Mr. Ritsuka! It's not every day one gets a chance to see scenery like this!" He added as the said Master peered out.
"Antarctica? We've been in Antarctica this whole time!?" Was all he could say before Holmes started explaining.
"Although many nations have claimed this land as their own, the fact remains that it is the last frontier yet to fall into humanity's grasp. Chaldea was built right in its centre, so that no nation could use it for their own ends."
"It was built on a mountain range hidden by an endless blizzard or rather, the lingering scent of Mystics and then further reinforced by a Bounded Field. It is the largest and only observatory of humanity on the entire planet, its location and secrets concealed from the moment of its creation." Holmes continued.
"That is Chaldea, the Security Organization for the Preservation of Humanity. I suppose I ought to say that it WAS Chaldea."
"As of now, Chaldea has fallen into the hands of an unknown adversary, one who is trying to shut it down even as we speak."
"Trying to shut it down...? Even as we speak?" Mash weakly asked in shock.
"Correct. I've confirmed that as of two minutes and forty seconds ago, all Command Room transmissions have ceased, and all power output has shut down." Holmes replied.
"Chaldeas is no longer operating, either. The air-conditioning has stopped, and the inside temperature has dropped below minus one hundred degrees."
"As loath as I am to say it, we must face the facts: Chaldea is lost. We no longer have any means of taking it back, or even returning to it." Holmes solemnly stated.
"..." Ritsuka simply closed his eyes at the revelation, too shocked to say anything but his junior was more vocal than him.
"Stop it... Please, stop it! I have to go back to Chaldea! Please, let me go back!"
"Mash! Don't move around! Your body hasn't yet stabilised with your Spirit Origin!" Da Vinci ordered from her side, pushing her down but the Demi-Servant continued struggling.
"It hasn't been taken from us yet! I know it hasn't!"
"All my memories of the time I spent with everyone else are there! Nothing can change that! And...and...Doctor Roman's room is still...!" She yelled on, desperate.
"Fou... fou..." The little beast could only whimper as a condolence.
"S-stop that! What do you hope to accomplish by going back now!? Go on, youngster, talk some sense into her! Or that new Servant of yours would be sacrificing himself for nothing!"
Despite Goredolf's demands, Ritsuka only remained in the same state as Mash, shocked.
"Da Vinci, please keep her down before she could hurt herself."
"I am afraid that is what happens when one transforms while one is unable to properly synchronize with one's Spirit Origin: all the duress you place on your body comes back to bite you." Holmes explained.
"At this point, she lacks the strength to even open the hatch so it was a rather smart move for (Y/N) to stop her from engaging in combat." He added.
"I..! I'm sorry, I'm so sorry everyone..!" Mash started, tears brimming at her eyes as Da Vinci rubbed her back in consolation.
"If I'd... If I'd only been able to fight as a real Servant...! Then Chaldea wouldn't be lost and (Y/N) wouldn't had needed to sacrifice himself..!"
"...You're wrong. Nobody's to blame for this, Mash." Ritsuka whispered back with a sad smile.
"Senpai..." Mash began.
Suddenly, a loud noise slammed on top of the Shadow Border, startling everyone as they looked up with the majority of the Chaldea staffs panicking.
"WHAT WAS THAT?!" Meuniere questioned fearfully.
"No... no! Did they catch up?!" Mash asked as Da Vinci readied herself along with Holmes.
"DAMN IT! ARE YOU KIDDING ME?! WE JUST ESCAPED THAT PLACE AND NOW ONE OF THEM'S CAUGHT UP ALREADY!?!" Goredolf shouted, almost foaming at the mouth in fear.
"Then (Y/N)... did he fail..?"
"ARE YOU GOING TO OPEN THE DAMN DOOR OR WHAT?!!?! IT'S FREEZING UP HERE!!!" A familiar voice broke them all out of their panic as they stared at the voice in shock.
"That was..! (Y/N)!!" Mash exclaimed, shock turning into joy as Holmes visibly let out a sigh of relief before Da Vinci smiled.
"Knew he was too overpowered to die, well what are you waiting for? Open the door!" She said, gesturing at the buttons.
"Huh? But we're still moving!!" Meuniere stated.
"I don't think I need to repeat myself~!" Da Vinci retorted but Ritsuka was quicker as he dashed to the door and then opening it wide.
"THAT! Was unpleasantly cold!" (Y/N) remarked, dropping in the Shadow Border and patting off the excessive snow on his body.
Only to realize that he was engulfed in a hug from both Ritsuka and Mash as Da Vinci patted him on the shoulder warmly to celebrate his return.
"You really gave us a scare back then, you know?" She asked as (Y/N) wryly smiled.
"I know, I know and I'm sorry." He responded, patting the two still hugging him on the back.
However, their celebration was short-lived as Meuniere shouted in panic once more.
"Holmes, are you seeing what's outside the window!?"
"Of course. I've seen it since I took control... nevertheless, it IS hard to believe. One could be forgiven for thinking it a bad dream." Holmes admitted as everyone looked out.
Only to see what appears to be shining bright meteoroids falling into the atmosphere in a straight line, casting the world in a dark blue hue as the lights were all that's shining.
"Are those meteoroids!? But we didn't get any reports from Panama!" Meuniere exclaimed in shock as he tried to grasp the logic of this whole situation.
"If there were meteoroids too big to burn up in the atmosphere headed this way, we would've heard! And what's with those trajectories!? How can they possibly be falling straight down like that!?" He further questioned.
"An occurrence that defies human understanding, hm? That tells us they cannot be meteoroids. I believe we can rule out debris as well." Holmes answered cryptically.
"Which means this can only be something once relegated to fiction. For example, an invasion from outer space."
"You're joking, right? Who could say something like that with a straight face!?" Goredolf began, his face paled but remained resolutely driving.
"I-I mean, that would just be absurd, right? Or what, are you really saying those people were aliens? That they only pretended to be human in order to take over Chaldea? How can–"
Any other words Goredolf wanted to voice out was cut off as Holmes interrupted him.
"My apologies, but please, do be quiet. We're picking up an external transmission. It's using the same frequency you did at Chaldea."
"We have a message for all of humanity."
"This planet will soon be reborn as an old, brand-new world."
"Human civilization was a mistake. The path of our growth was incorrect."
"And so I have made my decision. I will revolt against all of human history–Proper Human History."
"We are about to fill this world with inhuman Mystic secrets. We will restore the Age of Gods."
"To that end, the gods have descended from a far-off galaxy, and in their wisdom, they have used seven seeds to select new leaders."
"These leaders will remake this planet as they see fit. And the one who reign supreme shall be given the right to renew the world itself."
"The life-forms from Proper Human History will not be permitted to take part in this war, or even to view it from the sidelines."
"The roots of cosmic fantasy have descended upon us. Trees of creation have sprung up all across the land."
"Now, all of the old humanity's endeavours will be set aside, frozen."
"Thus shall you atone for your sins."
"2019... The year that Proper Human History came to an end."
"My name is Wodime. Kirschtaria Wodime."
"On behalf of the seven Crypters, I have a message for those of you who escaped from Chaldea."
"No, rather, I have a message for the scant few remnants of the human race: WE will be the inheritors of this world's history."
As the voice ended, all of the survivors were in a state of shock with Mash being the first one to break the silence to voice her question.
"...Kirschtaria...? That did SOUND like Kirschtaria, but..." She trailed off.
"Kirschtaria Wodime!? The leader of Team A!? Here I was going to take him under my wing, and this is the thanks I get...!?" Goredolf raged out loud.
"Crypter..? The end of human history..?" Ritsuka muttered but an alarm broke out.
"NOW WHAT IS IT?!?!" Meuniere exclaimed.
"I'm afraid it's something to do with all those Spirit Origin signals up ahead... definitely more of those Oprichnikis that attacked Chaldea." Da Vinci examined.
"In fact, there's a whole lot of them just around the coastline!" She added before a digital image was filtered into the Shadow Border.
Thousands. That was the only thing able to describe the sheer numbers of Oprichnikis that occupied the Antarctic ice as they silently marched onwards towards their direction.
"...! It IS those soldiers that attacked Chaldea...!" Mash exclaimed in horror at the masses.
"H-how can there even be that many!? Dammit! Looks like a whole damn division out there! What the hell is this!?" Goredolf spluttered, almost going catatonic.
"Fou, fooou!"
"They're covering the entire coastline... what... what can we do..?" Ritsuka muttered, the massive horde of dark-clad soldiers having completely broken his hope.
"There's no way our Border here can break through a group like that. If we try to charge them, we'll all be dead way before we hit the water!" Da Vinci noted.
"Hard right! We'll have to give up on the ship and try for another observatory!" She ordered but only to receive a shake from Holmes.
"I'm afraid that won't work, Da Vinci. We're getting no response from the American base. In fact, according to the sonar, there is nothing to be found anywhere. Surely you can see that yourself."
"As long as we remain in Antarctica, we have no chance of victory. If the enemy forces who occupied Chaldea catch up to us, we will be quite finished." He stated grimly.
"Our only hope for survival is to plow through that mass of soldiers and pray we make it out to sea." He admitted with some reluctance.
"You'd bet all our lives on THAT!? What are you, an idiot!? We can't possibly break through that army!" Goredolf yelled in fear.
"Even if we did somehow make it out to sea, the ship is bound to be hijacked by now! It would only be a matter of time before they catch up to this broken-down truck and slaughter us all!"
"Should I make way then?!" (Y/N) demanded, having stayed silent enough and heard enough of the director's rantings.
"No, no! We must have another way, you don't need to risk your life for our sake again, (Y/N)!" Mash heavily disagreed, shaking her head.
"Those are the given opinions, Mr. Ritsuka, tell me, what do you think?" Holmes inquired, gazing at the said Master quizically.
"Hey, Sherlock Holmes IS a man of adventure, right?" Ritsuka answered, shaking off the terror before looking at the detective with slight mirth.
"Quite right! This is an adventure, and one of the grandest ones imaginable at that." Holmes agreed with a grin.
"It's certainly not some boring escapade where we barrel our way through an army of horrific killers." He continued.
"No, this will be humanity's first magecraft voyage. To date, humankind has travelled to the moon, the subterranean world, and even through time." Holmes listed out.
"This voyage will be unlike any of those trips, though no less grand in ambition. The world we hope to visit is one that cannot exist without being defined, even as it lies in a domain beyond our reach."
"In other words, we will be attempting to travel to a world that exists on the negative vector." Declared the great detective.
"Wh...what did you just say? You can't mean..." Goredolf began, staring at the Servant in shock who turned to Da Vinci.
"Da Vinci, permission to use the Paper Moon." Holmes requested.
"The Atlas Institute may not have cleared me for it, but with both of us here, I'm certain the operation would go smoothly." He stated.
"Keyword being; smoothly." (Y/N) remarked from the side.
"Tri-Hermes at the Atlas Institute, hmm. You detective types are always on the job, aren't you?" The female Caster commented with a snark.
"Still, be honest with me: How good do you think our odds are of pulling that off? Better than if we tried to fight those soldiers?" She asked.
"Even with you here, I'd say thirty percent at best, I should think. For that matter, I can't even be sure where we'll end up." Holmes answered.
"If all we wish to do is make it out of this predicament alive, I have no doubt there are better options available."
"Thirty percent or twenty or ten is still better than having no odds, optimistically speaking." The Gamer interjected.
"Quite right, but, if you have your sights set further than that, this is the one I recommend. I believe it will aid us in fighting this adversary in the future." Said Holmes.
"...Understood. Expanding Void-Reality Observation Device: Paper Moon." Da Vinci announced, walking towards a terminal.
"Expanding Logic Formula on Shadow Border's external armour. Removing existence verification for Reality Space." She continued.
"Future prediction: hypothetically prove mirror world plane in twenty seconds. Relaxing space-time friction decompression for 0.6 seconds."
"...Emergency processes, all green. Looking good, Holmes! We're all set for our maiden voyage!"
"Now then, a little heads-up for those of you in the cockpit! Your souls will almost leave your body for a moment, but don't worry, you'll be fine! It's just your average out-of-body experience!" Da Vinci advised.
"That doesn't help our worries a single bit, you know?" (Y/N) scoffed, admittedly nervous at the prospect of getting separated from his body.
"But if you find yourself saying stuff like 'I-I'm floating?' or 'Is that my own body I'm looking at?' Just reach out, grab your body, and hold on for dear life! As long as you do that, you'll come out the other end alive!"
"AGAIN! IT DOESN'T HELP!!" (Y/N) yelled over the comms.
"How is any of that 'fine'!? You've just said you're literally going to kill us!" Goredolf shouted as well, being his first experience ever.
"Fou, fou. Nnn, foouu..!" The little beast cried out, alarmed as well.
"Master...! I still don't understand what's going on. Are we sure about this..!?" Mash questioned before (Y/N) turned to her.
"Trust me, I don't understand a single crap that's going on right now but it's either this or I throw myself into the horde of Oprichnikis for all your sake again!" He retorted.
"Just another day in the office!!" Ritsuka confirmed with a grin, much to (Y/N)'s worry.
"The way you say that concerns me, you know?!" He stated.
"Now that's the Ritsuka I know! Then without further ado, let's get started." Da Vinci announced with an ever-present smile.
"Although this Phenomenon Intervention Method we're about to attempt is one of the first Chaldea ever devised, we banned its use because of its extreme difficulty and danger."
"You know how Rayshifting involves breaking a Master down into Spiritrons and outputting them into space-time as numeric values?"
"Well, this way of traveling through space is the exact opposite. We'll be slipping through a crack in this world into a Sea of Time, completely erasing our existence from reality."
"English please!" (Y/N) bellowed out, grabbing hold onto a leverage.
"We're gonna do some wibbly-wobbly timey-wimey bullshit!! So brace yourselves because we have a lot on our plates right now. An adversary that attacked Chaldea. Those things that fell from space. The Crypters!" Da Vinci declared.
"Like Mash said, we don't know WHAT'S going on right now. But one thing we know for sure is that they're all enemies–threats to humanity that even destroyed Chaldea."
"If we're going to do something about all this, we'll have to start breaking even more forbidden taboos. We are NOT handing over the future we worked so hard to take back to a bunch of newcomers we don't know the first thing about."
"So first, we find a way out of this mess then, we strike back!" Da Vinci stated firmly.
"Amen to that! Ezio would be proud of you!" (Y/N) remarked.
"Well, let's get going, Master Ritsuka! Sherlock Holmes! Mash Kyrielight! (Y/N) (L/N)! Meuniere, Goredolf and everyone on board for we have a new weapon, and a new course ahead of us..!"
"Shadow Border, untether from reality. Void Space Dive, Zero Sail: unfurl!"
With Da Vinci's boisterous announcement, everyone braced themselves as the vehicle lit up and light began consuming their visions one by one until they felt their bodies shift and churn before the whole Shadow Border and Chaldea's survivors disappeared from this world and universe.
To find the other worlds and to bring back the future that they so desperately fought for.
This is the start of the Cosmos in the Lostbelt.
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I was not joking when I say this chapter will be way longer than the last, 12k words by the way so I hope you'd enjoyed it, even though the power scaling in this chapter messed up my brain so I'll be trying to get a hold of myself before the next chapter.
Anyway, hope you enjoyed, stay tuned if you want. Peace.