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Chapter 24: A Chat With a Tsundere “Who are you supposed to be?” Rin asked, arms crossed and attitude dialed to eleven. Still, the way her

Chapter 24: A Chat With a Tsundere

“Who are you supposed to be?” Rin asked, arms crossed and attitude dialed to eleven. Still, the way her eyes flicked between us said combat-ready mage more than annoyed teenager. One wrong word and we’d be learning what flavor of Gandr she preferred.

I stroked my chin dramatically. “Hmm… that’s a good question. You can call me Aether Cordelia.”

Rin raised an eyebrow, unimpressed. “That supposed to mean something to me?”

“Not really,” I admitted with a shrug. “But if you like flair, I’ve also been called the Nameless White Mage with absurdly rare magic.” I leaned in slightly, lowering my voice like I was revealing state secrets. “Or—if you’re into dramatic flair—Satou Pendragon.”

Her reaction was immediate.

Blink. Blink. Her mouth opened like she was about to say something, then promptly closed again like her brain had just booted into safe mode. I could almost hear a faint Windows 95 error chime in the distance.

“Pendragon?!” she finally blurted. “As in the Pendragon?!”

I nodded with mock solemnity. “The one and only. Sort of. Spiritually. Reincarnationally-adjacent. Depends on what flavor of multiverse we’re running with today.”

Rin squinted at me like she was deciding between a magical headshot and calling psychiatric services. “You’re screwing with me.”

“Only a little,” I said, flashing a grin. “Would it help if I summoned Excalibur out of thin air? Or should I wait until the dramatic background music kicks in?”

Behind me, Ilulu was giggling into her hands, and even Bella cracked a rare smile.

Rin, on the other hand, went bright red. Somewhere between “I’m going to kill you” and “How dare you make me blush.” I figured if I pushed any harder, she’d punch me, hex me, or worse—invite me in out of spite.

Time to dial it back.

I raised my hands in surrender, letting the teasing fade from my voice. “Alright, alright. Enough jokes.”

Rin blinked, some of the fire in her eyes dimming as I dropped the playful façade.

“I’m the one who accepted your request to the Company,” I said, voice even and sincere. “We’re here to help you save Sakura.”

The change in her was instant. Her arms slowly dropped to her sides, and for the first time since opening the door, the defiant mask slipped. She looked like someone who wanted to believe—but had been burned too many times to trust easily.

“Prove it,” she said, quieter now, but still tense. A challenge, not a dismissal.

Without a word, I reached into my coat and pulled out my Company Phone, flicking it to the mission screen before handing it to her. “Here. Check for yourself.”

She hesitated—just long enough to remind me that she was still Rin Tohsaka—before snatching it out of my hand. I added with a smirk, “It’s indestructible, by the way. Company-grade. So even someone who absolutely sucks at tech can’t break it.”

The blush returned full force. “Tsk… I can’t believe they told you about that.”

“Not my fault they’re thorough,” I replied innocently. Definitely didn’t mention that I knew far more embarrassing things about her than just her hatred of technology.

“Besides,” I added with a shrug, “nothing screams legit like a mission file with your name on it.”

She glanced at the screen, looking thankful that she didn’t have to mess with the phone and quickly scanned it before looking back up at me—still guarded, but that flicker of hope in her eyes was unmistakable.

Rin stared at the phone a moment longer, her thumb hovering just over the screen as she absorbed the mission details. Her brows furrowed, lips pressed together in a thin line. You could practically see the gears turning behind those sharp aqua eyes.

Finally, with a soft huff and a barely audible "Tch," she handed the phone back to me.

“…Fine,” she muttered, stepping back from the doorway. “Come in. But wipe your feet. This isn’t some cheap roadside inn.”

I arched an eyebrow, amused. “That supposed to be a warm welcome?”

She shot me a look. “Do you want me to uninvite you?”

Ilulu let out a light giggle, clearly entertained. Bella, on the other hand, glared at Rin like she was moments from throwing hands—or insults—but a quick glance from me pulled her back from the brink.

“Thanks for having us,” I said, breezing past the tension with practiced ease. “You’ve got great hospitality—for a tsundere.”

“What was that?” Rin called sharply from down the hall.

“Nothing! Just complimenting the decor!”

As I stepped into the Tohsaka residence, I felt the low hum of the bounded field again—a passive warning to any uninvited guests. Asako had probably already analyzed it twice by now, perched silently just outside the wards in her spirit form. With her on watch, I didn’t have to worry about being ambushed mid-conversation. At least not yet.

Rin led us into the sitting room, her expression a careful balance of suspicion and courtesy—if you squinted hard enough, it almost looked like politeness.

She gestured to the sofa with a flick of her hand. “Sit. Don’t touch anything expensive. Which is basically everything.”

“Noted,” I replied, flopping down with all the grace of someone who had clearly not noted that.

Ilulu took her seat beside me with the practiced elegance of someone who could clean a mansion in under three hours and still look adorable doing it. She tugged her hat down slightly, eyes drifting curiously around the room.

Bella sat down last, her demeanor calm, but her gaze sharp and analyzing. Always the bodyguard, even when she wasn’t technically assigned to be one.

Rin remained standing, arms folded tight against her chest, still sizing us up like she was calculating whether we were more trouble than we were worth.

I met her gaze with a small smile. She hadn’t relaxed yet—but she hadn’t thrown us out either.

Progress.

Rin’s eyes narrowed slightly as she leaned against the wall, still not fully comfortable with our presence in her inner sanctum. Her fingers tapped absently on her upper arm—impatient, but thoughtful.

“You said you accepted the mission,” she said slowly, gaze focused squarely on me. “But that doesn't tell me how you're planning to help. Or how much you even know.”

There it was—the edge. That flicker of steel beneath her words.

Rin Tohsaka wasn’t the type to hand out trust like candy on Halloween. Especially not when the topic was Sakura. And honestly? I didn’t blame her.

But beneath all that fire and pride, there was a girl who cared—deeply. The kind of girl who’d smile smugly while bleeding for you. Who’d snap at you for getting hurt while hiding her own bruises. Who would summon something as outrageous as the Company and basically offer up her soul—not for power, not for glory—but to save the sister she couldn’t even look in the eye without guilt.

Yeah. I saw her.

So I straightened in my seat, let the teasing fade, and met her eyes with the weight the moment deserved.

“If I’m being blunt,” I said quietly, “I probably know more about what Sakura’s going through than even you.”

The words hit her like a slap in the face. Her jaw tensed. Her shoulders stiffened.

I pressed on, gentle but unflinching. “The worms. The grail fragments forced into her body. Shinji’s abuse. Zouken’s plan to use her as his next vessel…”

Rin’s face drained of color. Her breath hitched—shaky, uneven—as her eyes widened, haunted. But she didn’t interrupt. Didn’t argue. Didn’t deny a word.

That told me everything I needed to know.

‘She didn’t know all the details.’ I realized, hiding the frown tugging at my lips.

“And as for how I’m planning to help…” I let the gravity of the moment ease just slightly, a faint smile curling at the corners of my mouth. “I wasn’t lying when I introduced myself. I’m not exactly your run-of-the-mill magus. Magical, physical—removing curses, monsters, ancient evils—I’ve got a bit of a knack for it all.”

Then, I glanced to my sides. My cute servants deserved credit too even if they would not be joining me for the rescue due to the restrictions of the mission.

I gently pulled Ilulu into a casual half-hug. “And I’m not alone. This is Ilulu—an elf, or what you’d call a Fae. A battle maid with a title that should tell you everything: Bombing Princess. Fire magic, archery, raw destruction—you name it. She could turn half this city into a crater before breakfast. And just so you know—she makes the best damn teriyaki you’ll ever eat.”

Ilulu flushed a deep crimson, shrinking into my chest with a shy, muffled, “Um… hi…”

Rin blinked, eyes narrowing on the point of Ilulu’s ears now visible beneath her shifted hat. Her suspicion had turned into curiosity, laced with a hint of disbelief.

Then I turned to Bella, who’d been watching Ilulu’s moment of affection with a pout just subtle enough to be adorable—until I pulled her in too.

“And this is Bellatrix Black. She’s a powerful witch from another world entirely. Different magic system, different rules—but no less dangerous. Cunning, fierce, and—” I glanced at her, warm amusement in my voice, “—incredibly loyal.”

Bella looked like I’d handed her a crown made of starlight. She leaned into the hug with pride glowing in her eyes, her chin tilted ever so slightly in triumph.

But I wasn’t finished.

“And finally,” I said, turning my full attention back to Rin, “there’s this.”

I raised my right hand slowly, palm down.

A low hum resonated in the air as crimson light bloomed across my skin—three radiant Command Seals, glowing like embers in the shape of a bird in flight.

Rin gasped, staggering back half a step. Her eyes locked on the seals, wide and disbelieving.

Yeah. That got her attention.

Rin stood frozen for a moment, like her brain had blue-screened from sheer overload. Then, with a slow, mechanical stiffness, she walked over to the chair across from us and dropped into it with the grace of someone whose worldview had just been punted off a cliff.

She stared blankly ahead, hands folded in her lap, and exhaled like she was trying not to scream.

“…The Company told me to brace myself. That I’d learn things—shocking things—that would shake my understanding of magecraft and the world itself.” She exhaled sharply. “But I wasn’t exactly expecting to meet a living phantasmal species that should’ve vanished with the Age of Gods. Or a magic user who’s not even tethered to the Root. And then you—someone not from this world, wielding a Divine Artifact, and bonded to a Servant, of all things.”

Her gaze drifted from Ilulu to Bella, then finally back to me, each look more drawn out than the last—like her brain was buffering, desperately trying to reject what her eyes were confirming.

Then she slumped back in the chair with all the grace of a tower collapsing.

“…This is ridiculous,” she whispered, mostly to herself. “Utterly, irreversibly ridiculous.”

A wry smile tugged at my lips as I watched her deflate like a popped balloon. Poor girl looked one revelation away from throwing a chair through a wall.

So, I decided to throw her a bone.

“To be fair,” I said casually, “my version of Excalibur isn’t the same as the one in this world. Biggest difference? Mine isn’t a Divine Weapon nor was it forged by the Fae.”

Rin blinked. Her brows furrowed as she turned that over in her mind, then—finally—a tiny sigh escaped her lips. Almost like she’d just been told her taxes filed themselves.

“Haah… okay. That’s… mildly reassuring.”

I wisely chose not to mention the rest of my armory. The fact that I also had Durandal, Galatine, Caliburn, Gjallarhorn, the Longinus Spear of all things—and a dozen more mythycal weapons, all thanks to Satou’s absurd template.

Yeah… she’d definitely flip a table if she found out about that.

Better to let her have this small moment of peace.

Rin straightened in her seat, that trademark fire returning to her eyes. This time, though, it wasn’t suspicion I saw—it was resolve. Her lips pressed into a firm line as she gave a single nod.

“All right. I’ll trust you… for now. Just make sure you don’t give me a reason to regret it.”

A small smile crept onto my face. That was probably the closest thing to wholehearted approval I’d get out of her today—and I’d take it.

“Wouldn’t dream of letting you down,” I replied smoothly, then shifted gears. “Anyway, picking up where we left off…”

I glanced between the girls at my side before locking eyes with Rin again.

“You already know the mission’s outline,” I said, voice calm but firm. “I go in, secure Sakura, and take out Zouken before he even knows I’m there. If everything goes right, I’ll be in and out within minutes—then I’ll torch the Matou residence for good measure.”

I let the weight of that settle in the air.

Then, my tone sharpened. Not cold, but resolute.

“But just because I’m handling the dirty work doesn’t mean the rest of you get to coast.”

My gaze flicked to Rin, then to Ilulu and Bella in turn.

“While I’m gone, I want you to stay close—to Ilulu, to Bella, and to my Servant. If anything goes sideways—and with someone like Zouken, that’s always a possibility—you four move as one. Watch each other’s backs. Defend yourselves.”

I leaned back slightly, letting the next words hit with quiet certainty.

“I’m not taking any chances here.”

Rin looked away for a moment, clearly reluctant to stay behind while someone else went to rescue her sister. But in the end, she gave a quiet nod. Still, she couldn’t resist throwing a half-hearted glare my way.

“I’m not some damsel in distress, you know.”

I chuckled, the idea alone enough to make me grin. “Trust me, that thought never even crossed my mind.”

Her glare faltered just slightly, and I followed up with a smile—genuine, without a trace of teasing.

“You’re strong, Rin. I see that. Honestly… I could probably learn a thing or two from you, if you'd be willing to teach me once this whole mess is behind us.”

Her eyes widened a bit in surprise, and a faint blush crept into her cheeks. “Y-you want me to teach you magecraft?”

I nodded, not looking away. That seemed to fluster her even more.

She turned her head with a flustered little huff, arms folding across her chest like she was trying to guard herself from the compliment. “W-well, don’t expect it to be cheap! And I’m not going to go easy on you, got it?”

“Wouldn’t dream of it,” I said with a grin.

With the ice finally broken, the atmosphere around us eased into something warmer—more natural. We dived deeper into the mission, mapping out potential escape routes, backup contingencies, and worst-case scenarios with a mix of pragmatism and urgency.

At my request, Asako joined us. After a quick but respectful introduction, she calmly took her place at the table. Rin, being Rin, immediately began grilling her with a barrage of questions.

Asako answered each one with the same quiet composure she always carried, her tone never rising, her expression never faltering until Rin was satisfied.

Partway through our planning, Ilulu stood and quietly excused herself. After a quick glance toward Rin—and receiving a small nod of approval—she slipped into the kitchen. The scent of something warm and sweet began to waft through the room not long after.

When she returned, she carried a floating tray brimming with steaming tea and a colorful array of freshly prepared snacks. The moment the tray hit the table, Rin’s eyes locked onto the food like a starving fox catching sight of a rabbit.

She held out for a respectable thirty seconds. Maybe thirty-five. Then, her restraint crumbled.

Her hands moved with practiced speed as she sampled everything Ilulu had made—and from the blissful look on her face, each bite was a spiritual experience.

“Th-this is… absurdly good,” she mumbled between mouthfuls, cheeks slightly puffed.

Ilulu beamed with quiet pride.

But the second Rin noticed me watching her, she practically jolted upright. A fierce blush spread across her cheeks, and she coughed into her sleeve before crossing her arms in a hasty display of composure.

“I-it’s not like I asked for snacks or anything,” she muttered, eyes averted. “But thanks…”

I chuckled, choosing mercy over commentary. Her expression—equal parts flustered and content—said enough.

The hours passed in a quiet rhythm of planning and idle conversation until Rin suddenly straightened in her seat, her expression shifting into something sharper.

“The plan looks solid for now,” she said, eyes locking onto mine. “But before we move forward, I want a spar.”

I raised an eyebrow, intrigued.

“So far, I’ve learned a fair bit about your Servant—and about Ilulu and Bella. But you? You’ve been evasive. I want to see for myself what you can do.”

There was a moment of silence after Rin’s challenge, the kind that settled heavy in the air—until a soft voice broke it.

“Um… Miss Rin,” Ilulu said, tilting her head slightly, concern lacing her tone. “Are you sure? Master doesn’t like hurting people, but… he’s really, really strong.”

Her hands fidgeted nervously at her sides. She wasn’t doubting Rin’s skill—just genuinely worried for her. “I just… I don’t want you to get hurt.”

Rin blinked, surprised by the sincerity. “I’m not trying to fight to the death or anything,” she said, her voice gentler now. “Just a spar to understand him better.”

Ilulu nodded slowly, though her worried gaze never quite left her. “Well… at least Master knows healing magic. So if it gets too rough, he can fix you up right away.” She smiled sweetly, like that made it all perfectly fine.

Then Bella spoke—and her words hit like sharp steel wrapped in velvet.

“Hmph. If you want to ‘understand’ him, you’d be better off watching from the sidelines.” She stood up, arms folded, posture regal and confident. “You wouldn’t last a second against our Master. Not even a blink.”

“Bella,” I said, voice low with warning.

“What?” she said, not even bothering to look at me. “It’s true. She may be strong, sure—but she’s not worthy to cross blades with you, Master. At least not yet.”

That earned her a sharp glare from Rin, who sat up straighter.

“I don’t need your permission,” Rin said flatly. “And I wasn’t asking for it.”

Asako, ever the quiet one, merely sipped her tea and let out a faint breath. “If you're going to spar, perhaps do it outside, far from any expensive furniture. The last time we tried sparring inside, a lot of things broke.”

“…You’re not helping,” I muttered.

“I wasn’t trying to.”

Rin stood slowly, rolling her shoulders. “Don’t worry. I won’t break.”

Ilulu gave her a hopeful smile. “Just… be careful, okay? Even if Master can heal you, it’s better if he doesn’t have to.”

Bella huffed and turned her head with a little scoff. “She’ll be lucky to still be standing.”

I rose from my seat, stretching lightly, completely at ease. “Alright then. Let’s move to the garden.”

Rin followed behind, her steps brisk and her eyes narrowed—clearly not a fan of how casually I was taking her challenge. I could practically feel her glare boring into my back.

But I didn’t turn around.

Instead, a smirk tugged at the corner of my lips, excitement building in my chest.

I was about to spar with Rin freaking Tohsaka. A living legend in the making. One of my all-time favorite characters in the Nasuverse—and now I had a front-row seat to see her magecraft in action.

No, better than a front-row seat. I was the one stepping into the ring.

‘Hahaha… I wonder what kind of face she’ll make when she sees me copying her moves after only seeing them once?’