To Love a Sword Chapter 52: Ominous Truth (Patreon)

Partially beta read by Paragon of Awesomeness and FabledLife

Next update is Fake Familiar Reborn

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-Sainan-

With the sound of a clock ticking by and the occasional paper being flipped, Nana tried but failed to let her mind relax and just let time bleed away in peace. A pink room filled with dolls lined the shelves, their glass eyes staring blankly into the room. Blueprint posters drawn by Lala filled certain parts of the wall, while frilly cushions were scattered across a canopy bed. On top of it, she rested on her back, casually flipping through a fashion magazine until boredom finally won out. With a soft thud, the magazine dropped onto her face.

"Hah… I am bored." 

Nana pulled the glossy pages away and tossed the magazine aside before climbing out of bed and stretching both arms above her head. Her joints popped lightly as she worked the stiffness out of her body, followed by a scratch at the back of her head while she considered how slow the day had felt. 

“Mmmm, should I just give the VR another go? Though doing it alone is no fun.” Then again, after everything that had happened yesterday, perhaps calling today slow wasn't entirely accurate. The commotion had left everyone with plenty to think about, and there was still one thing she had been meaning to check on.

Pulling out her phone, she dialed Run and waited. 

“...”

The ringtone continued for several seconds, yet nobody answered. The girl stared at the screen, wondering whether the call would eventually be picked up, only for it to continue ringing without a response. "What is going on?" she muttered, lowering the phone slightly. 

Emiya had mentioned that Run had apparently separated from her brother after both siblings finally reached adulthood and gained their own bodies. Nobody had gotten the chance to properly visit them yet because the two needed time to rest, according to Mikado, but Nana couldn't help feeling curious about seeing them separately. It wasn't every day that someone could watch a Memorze who had spent their entire existence sharing one body finally become two completely different people.

"Maybe I should visit them myself? Momo and I can pass by their house." The idea seemed simple enough, but another thought immediately stopped her. "Where is Momo?" 

A glance around the room revealed an empty bed and no sign of her sister anywhere. Nana rolled her eyes and muttered under her breath, "Why am I so confused? Where else could she be at such a moment but with him?" Considering how often Momo disappeared whenever there was something more interesting downstairs, the answer didn't exactly require much thought.

Out of the room and down the stairs she went, eventually finding Emiya in the living room with the television playing in front of him. The movie displayed a group of transforming robots. Her head rested comfortably against his left thigh while the rest of her body stretched across the sofa, making herself perfectly comfortable as the bucket of popcorn sat nearby. "Wow, the robots look so fake when they transform."

"Really? To me, it looks rather well made given the time this movie was made." A few pieces of popcorn disappeared into Emiya's hand before he fed them to the girl lounging against him.

"Well, perhaps to someone who has never seen the real species, this does look pretty realistic." She accepted another piece of popcorn without even bothering to sit up.

"Hold on, what do you mean by that? Do they actually exist in this world?"

"What do you mean, 'this world'? Of course they exist! Though they aren't as powerful as depicted in this movie."

"Rito would be pretty ecstatic to see the real-life thing."

A dry chuckle escaped her throat. "Well, good luck with that. Papa destroyed their world decades ago because they weren't willing to join his side and were planning to start a war. I don't think anyone of their species is left alive."

Emiya froze with another piece of popcorn between his fingers. "How can you mention such an action so casually without realizing just how horrifying it sounds?"

"When you have a father who destroys an entire planet every few years, or even twice a year, you get used to it." Momo opened her mouth expectantly. "Hey, keep feeding me. Aaaah."

The request earned a helpless look, but another piece soon disappeared into her mouth. "Don't bite my fingers again."

"Well, it's not my fault your fingers look so delicious." A grin spread across her face as she continued enjoying her comfortable position.

A flick against her forehead. "Ow!" 

“Behave, unless you want me to bring out the water spray.” 

“Tch, buzzkill.” 

The two returned their attention to the movie afterward, with Momo continuing to use his thigh as a pillow as though she'd been doing it for years.

Nana remained near the doorway, watching the entire interaction with increasing confusion. "Since when did these two get this close?" she whispered to herself. As far as she remembered, Momo had spent plenty of time getting on Emiya's nerves with her plans of creating a harem and her habit of getting herself into trouble. She had always assumed he would keep his distance from her because of that, or at least remain somewhat wary whenever she started one of her schemes. Yet the scene in front of her looked nothing like that expectation.

Her hands slowly clenched while the banter between the two continued. Momo even began feeding Emiya popcorn in return, only to pull her hand away whenever he tried to take a bite, clearly enjoying the opportunity to mess with him. From Nana's perspective, the entire exchange looked far too comfortable, almost enough to make her uncomfortable simply from watching it. 

"Seriously, how did she get this close? Was he just tolerating her?" The question lingered in her mind, although she couldn't exactly claim Emiya disliked either Momo or herself. That only made the difference in their interactions more difficult to understand.

"I'm going outside. Do you two want anything?" Both heads turned toward the doorway.

"Oh, you're awake, Nana!"

"I was never asleep." The dry response came immediately, earning a small grin from her sister.

"Get us some juice or sodas. Oh, and more popcorn; we're almost out of it!" Momo shifted slightly, resting her head against Emiya's shoulder as she made her request. "Unless you want to join us?"

"I'm fine." Nana shook her head and quickly turned toward the door before either of them could notice the blush spreading across her face. “You two have your fun.” 

Once outside, she headed down the street toward the nearby convenience store, though her thoughts remained firmly inside the house. 

The image of Momo resting against Emiya refused to leave her mind, especially when compared to her own relationship with him. So distracted by those thoughts, she failed to notice someone calling her name from behind. 

A moment later, fingers tapped her shoulder.

"Aah!" Nana jumped and spun around so quickly that she nearly stumbled backward, only to find Shizu down on the ground, looking just as startled by the reaction. "O-Oshizu!? Why did you scare me like that!"

"I was calling you, and you weren't answering, so I thought I'd get close and tap your shoulder to get your attention." The ghost girl's meek expression immediately became apologetic. "I'm sorry if I scared you. I didn't mean to sneak up on you like this."

"It's fine, just don't sneak up on me like that again." Seeing how frightened Shizu looked afterward made Nana feel slightly guilty, and she quickly softened her expression so the girl wouldn't think she had genuinely gotten angry with her.

"Okay." Shizu pushed herself back onto her feet and brushed herself off before taking another look at her companion. "By the way, you look as if you were thinking about something bad. Is everything all right?"

“...”

That left Nana with a complicated expression as she struggled to figure out how to explain what had been bothering her. 

"Nothing, it's just... I've been thinking about some stuff."

"Is it about Emiya?"

Nana recoiled so quickly that her eyes widened. Was this ghost a detective!? "H-How did you know?"

"Oh, I didn't. I just made a random guess, and your reaction just confirmed that." 

“Ah.” Well, that was embarrassing. Getting caught that easily by Shizu of all people only made the situation worse, and she eventually let out a breath while looking away.

"It's nothing. I guess… I guess I'm just wondering if I'm doing something wrong."

"What?"

Was it a good idea to say such things to someone else? Then again, she knew Shizu for a while by now, and the girl did not have an ounce of bad in her. So any secrets would stay with her.

"Keep this a secret. But lately, my sister, who had several problems with Emiya, now seems to get along well with him for some reason. My big sister Lala is also getting along with him quite well, and in a way, I feel like I'm the only one out of everyone whose relationship with him hasn't really changed at all. From the first day I appeared to now, it feels like we've been in the same situation." Nana lowered her gaze as she tried to put the problem into words.

He clearly didn't hate her, nor did he think badly of her, but their interactions rarely went beyond greeting each other in the morning, exchanging some light conversation whenever they happened to be in the living room, and occasionally spending a little time around the others. Nothing about their relationship seemed unpleasant, yet it also never seemed to move beyond that. Compared with how naturally he now interacted with Momo and Lala, the difference had become difficult for her to ignore, and she didn't particularly like what that made her feel.

"Do you think I'm boring?"

"Of course you're not boring! Why would you think that?" Shizu immediately shook her head, clearly surprised that Nana could even reach such a conclusion.

"Well, reality says otherwise. Maybe I should change my approach again." The thought slipped out as Nana considered what she could possibly do differently.

Before either could continue, a commotion suddenly came from somewhere farther down the street. Both girls turned toward the source, their attention drawn to the alleyway nearby. Shizu pointed toward the narrow passage, where the noise seemed to be coming from. 

"Hey, look over there!

Following where she pointed, the Devilukean princess saw a group of young men with slicked-back or messy hair and loose-fitting clothes had surrounded a hooded girl with red strands peeking out of it, standing with her back to them. The latter showed no interest in their presence, her attention seemingly fully on drawing patterns on the ground with a piece of rock as one of the boys leaned closer with a smug grin.

"Hey, want to hang out with us? You look new. I don't remember seeing a beautiful face like you from around here."

“Is she a foreigner? Would explain why she isn't speaking.”

“Maybe. Hey! Look, I have a nice car over here! We can help you a bit and even hang out nearby and check out the town. Don't worry, I will keep you safe." 

“The hell do you mean keeping her safe? Don't try to hog her all to yourself!” 

“Shut up, man! You're not helping!” 

Their postures, expressions, and overall feel — street delinquents, she figured. Or at least, that was the closest thing she could think up at that moment since she never had to deal with one in the past. And from the looks of it, the stubborn type too. Though none of it seemed to matter to the redhead, who treated them like little more than background noise.

Narrowing her eyes at the group, Nana stepped forward. "Hey!" With a single word it was enough to make several of them turn around. “Get away from her, she doesn't want to hang out with you!” 

“N-Nana!” Shizuka tried to call out to her, but she ignored the girl. How could she let these people act this way and ignore someone in need of help? Besides, there was no fear for she could defend herself if needed.

"Huh? What the hell do you want? Can't you see we're busy?" One of the men scoffed, visibly annoyed by her interruption. 

"Like I said, you're clearly disturbing her. Just leave her alone. If you don't listen, then you'll have to deal with me." Just to make sure they understood her point, Nana planted herself between them and the red-haired girl. “Hm?”

Strangely enough, for a brief moment she felt some familiarity from the person behind her but quickly focused on the more important matter at the moment. 

Pft-hahaha!” 

“Hehehe!” 

“She's hilarious!” 

The group broke into laughter, harsh voices bouncing between the walls of the narrow alley. "Hahaha, that's quite the attitude you have there, girl." One of the men with bleached hair stepped forward, looking her over before adding, "Are you jealous? Do you want to join us instead?" The others snickered behind him.

Before she could even respond, one of the boys leaned toward another and whispered something into his ear. “Ah…” His friend's eyes immediately dropped downward, and the rest followed his gaze toward her chest. Whatever they had expected to find clearly disappointed them. One coughed awkwardly and scratched at his cheek before gesturing back toward the red-haired girl. "Yeah, let's just go back to convincing the other one."

“It's the jacket, man, hard to tell without getting close.” 

"Agreed. Anyways, kid, you better go back and find your parents. It's not a good place to hang out around here." He waved dismissively, the entire group losing interest in her in an instant. 

“Hah?” 

What… What the hell was that supposed to mean!? The dismissal pushed the last bit of patience out of Nana's mind. 

A vein throbbed against her forehead as she reached for her phone. “You pieces of shit! So what if I don't have a useless hunk of fat on my chest!?” 

Rage fuelled her following actions; the girl's thumb moved rapidly across the keypad, entering the command without bothering to argue with them any further. Her D-Dial suddenly flashed with a bright light; the ground momentarily shook with a giant hairy figure, and a loud cry echoed through the alley.

“Eeeeeeeerk!” 

Within a second, a massive boar as big as a car with red fur materialized in front of the group, its tusks lowered as it immediately charged at the ground without her even needing to give it a command.

"What the hell is that!?" One of the boys stumbled backward as the enormous animal rushed toward them. "Where did this pig come from!?"

"It's a boar, not a pig!" She shouted, watching with a smug grin as the summon chased the entire group down the alley. Their terrified cries quickly grew fainter as they fled, the sound of pounding footsteps eventually disappearing into the distance. “Humph, imbeciles.Thanks for the help, Gii-Chan. Sorry I've not been able to play with you lately. I promise more of your favorite jerky snack next time, okay?” 

The creature huffed through its large nostrils, leaning its head against hers as a form of affection. With the troublemakers gone, only the three girls remained.

The D-Dial was lowered, and the boar was returned to where it came from. Teleported away, leaving Nana to turn her attention toward the red-haired stranger. "Hey, everything is all right now. You really shouldn't be hanging around here all by yourself; it's dangerous." She advised, making a mental note to warn Mikan to avoid this place as well in the future. With that in mind, she moved closer, intending to make sure the girl hadn't been frightened by what happened, trying to get a better look at her face out of curiosity — only for Shizu to speak from behind her.

"Hey, isn't that Mea?"

“—!”

Like a bolt of lightning striking her mind, Nana's eyes widened instantly. The hood covering the girl's head slipped back, revealing more of her red hair tied into a ponytail, along with blue eyes and the familiar face that Emiya had warned her about. For a brief moment, Nana also caught sight of one of her hands changing. What should have been an ordinary hand was in fact a jagged looking blade that reverted back into normal fingers almost immediately. 

“You…” The sight sent a chill through her spine as the realization struck her. Had she not intervened when she did, those delinquents could have ended up facing something far worse than an angry girl with a summoned boar. In a way, she had saved them instead of it being the other way around.

Her fingers tightened around the phone. "W-What are you doing here!?" Although she had never confronted the girl directly, Emiya had informed her about Mea and Nemesis several times and warned her to be cautious should they ever cross paths. She had expected that meeting to happen eventually, but certainly not during what had started as an ordinary walk through the city.

"What should we do?" Shizu stepped closer and put herself behind the pink-haired girl. “S-Should we call for help?” 

"Careful, don't do anything. She's like Yami, but she's trying to cause trouble for her and the rest of us. Be careful; she can turn any part of her body into a weapon and attack you. Don't give her a chance or reason to attack you." She said, keeping her attention fixed on the redhead while giving the warning.

"G-Got it!" 

A curse slipped under Nana's breath. She had expected nothing more than a simple outdoor walk, something that would take a few minutes before she returned home. Instead, she had stumbled into one of the very people Emiya had warned her about, leaving her with little choice but to remain cautious.

The newcomer finally looked directly at her, tilting her head slightly. "Uh, can you remind me who you are again?"

“Seriously?” The question immediately irritated Nana. "Nana Astar Deviluke! Lala's little sister and Momo's big sister! Don't pretend as if you don't know me!" Her eyebrows drew together as she stared back, offended that the other girl had apparently forgotten her entirely.

“Nana… Nana… ah, I know!” Mea's mouth formed a small O before she snapped her fingers. "I remember you now; you're that quiet one who always gets angry for no reason.” 

Was this person trying to get a reaction out of her and lead this interaction to a fight? Because it was working very effectively! 

Just as she considered calling Gii-Chan again, Mea started laughing. “Fufufu! Why do you look so angry? I was just joking! Joking~! Of course I know you; it's just that you're very easy to tease. Speaking of which, you were also at the picnic last time, right?" 

"The picnic? Hold on, you were spying on us!" She accused immediately as the pieces began falling into place. If she had been watching them during the picnic, then this encounter couldn't be a coincidence! 

"Spying? Hm… I suppose so. I was just curious to see what you were doing with Arch—uh, what was it? Ah, Emiya, damn it, just how many more memories can there be? This is ridiculous.” For a brief moment, Mea put on a pained expression while massaging her head. “Anyways, I couldn't help but grow curious about how all of you could live so happily with him? Then I tried to get some help from that Memorze, but she and her brother got so scared when I asked a simple, curious question. I don't look that scary, in my opinion at least."

Her shrug made the admission sound almost ordinary, as though following someone's family around and watching them from a distance required no explanation. Not to mention, the topic of Run was not something Emiya had shared with her, at the very least.

Nana narrowed her eyes. "Are you trying to create more trouble for him? I don't know what your deal with him is; I don't know what you want from him, nor do I really care for that matter. But if you're going to insist on harming him or anyone in the family, don't blame me for being violent." Her grip tightened around the phone once more, ready to summon something again if necessary. “He's under the protection of the royal family, I'll have you know.”

A curious smile appeared on Mea's face rather than the mocking laugh Nana expected. "I'm pretty sure it's the other way around, and your father hasn't really been protecting him from what I remember. If that's how Devilukean people protect their allies, then no wonder you have so many enemies willing to use entire worlds as compensation for killing Gid. You think you can fight me and take me down?" 

Nana began to sweat, her palms growing damp around the phone in her hand. Deep down, she knew she wasn't nearly as confident as she wanted to appear, but that didn't mean she couldn't give the strange girl a hard time and keep her from realizing just how uncertain she felt. "See, you're scared of me," Mea stated, her voice flat. "Even though I never showed you what I'm capable of, part of you knows it's a bad idea. Oh right, you saw Golden Darkness in her true form, so are you afraid I can do the same feat of power? Maybe I can; only one way to verify. So why risk your life like this? After all, he has nothing to do with you. He is merely just a human, right?"

"So? Even if he is a human, why does that matter? And he's not just an ally. He is... He is..." Nana's words faltered as she struggled to find something that properly described her relationship with Emiya. Acquaintances? Friends? Or maybe, something a bit more? Frustration crossed her face before she shook her head and forced the thought aside. "Doesn't matter, all you need to know is that he is not someone you can mess with as long as I'm here." 

As much as she would have loved to sound confident, her voice and body betrayed her by letting a slight tremor slip by. 

"This is really confusing." Mea tilted her head, genuinely puzzled by the answer. 

“There's nothing to be confused about. You're just weird." 

Mea mumbled something under her breath, but Nana could not hear it until the former raised her voice again. "Why are you also close to him? Why does he care so much about you all? I cannot understand." The question was pretty straightforward, yet it did nothing more than just confuse the girl even further. 

"Emiya cares about us, obviously." She said quickly with no doubt in mind, but it did little to satisfy the girl standing opposite her. 

A small shake of the head followed as those violet-blue eyes remained fixed on Nana. "He cares, you say, but he could also easily kill you. All of you. Right now. And everyone in this city if he wanted to. Which makes it all the more confusing how he could genuinely care when he's also capable of doing that."

“...”

“...”

What? 

Nana and Shizu both froze. “What did you say?” Those words struck a nerve, and anger immediately began rising within the pink-haired princess as she listened. Sure, Emiya was not exactly innocent; his killing Lacospo and nearly doing so for similar enemies was not something she had missed. But he always did so to protect his siblings or them; that had been made clear so many times that she lost count. 

So for this random assassin who would do something similar and even tried to change Yami into a cold-blooded monster to say such things, enraged Nana beyond anything. “Don't you dare speak about him as if you know him!”

“Yeah, Oji—uh, I mean E-Emiya is not like that!” Shizu added.

“Hehehe, but I do know him. Better than anyone in this world and maybe himself to some degree? No, maybe not that last part; both of us are just as confused.” Mea continued before either of them could respond, the flatness in her voice gradually giving way to frustration. "I really don't understand him. He has killed so many. Countless. He is, in a way, far worse than both Yami Onee-san and my master combined. I think he has killed more people than I could in my entire life, even if I took contracts every day. But that part of him still exists, even though he says that he wants to live a peaceful life. It's still inside. And despite that, all of you are still so oblivious, and all of you talk as if you can protect him when he's the biggest threat there is." 

Her expression tightened as she tried to reconcile those two sides of him. But to Nana, all of this sounded no different from pure nonsense and bait to get her angry. 

"Enough! I don't know what nonsense you're talking about, but don't think you'll fool me!" Her shout trembled slightly, and the hand holding her phone tightened around it.

"I am not trying to fool anyone. I'm just trying to make sense of it all. I don't like the guy, but I also want to be close to him, strangely enough. He doesn't make any sense. I really want to be close to him, but I also... but he also rejects me. He also does not accept me." Mea's expression shifted as she looked directly at Nana, those cold eyes searching for some explanation. "I thought that if I could eliminate all of you, perhaps he could try being my brother? Then he wouldn't have any excuse, given he has done much worse in the past. Why would he dislike me for doing so?" 

What a horrifying person. 

A cold feeling ran down Nana's spine. Her fingers quickly moved across the phone's screen, and a flash of light erupted from the device. 

No point in talking any further; this person had many loose screws in her head! 

“Jiro Snake!” 

Hsssss! 

A giant cobra appeared before them, its enormous body covered in shimmering, iridescent purple scales. Its sheer size made it resemble a truck as it surged forward, each movement of its massive body cracking and shattering the stone beneath it. “Crush her right now!” The creature rushed straight toward its target upon hearing her orders, jaws opening as it prepared to strike.

In the next instant, however, the intended victim simply jumped over the massive creature. Red hair flickered through the air as a blade extended from it, cutting downward and piercing the snake's head as though the scales offered no resistance at all. The enormous body went limp almost immediately, collapsing heavily against the shattered ground. Nana's face drained of color as she stared at the fallen creature.

"No!" Her fingers flew across the phone, desperately trying to recall the summoned beast before anything else could happen, but there wasn't enough time. 

“Nana, watch out!” Shizu tried to warn her, but Mea was too fast and had already crossed the distance between them. Her hand closed around Nana's wrist, stopping her movement instantly and leaving the phone trapped in her other hand.

"You were strangers to him very recently and even caused him some trouble from my findings. You were just like me, but somehow you have gotten very close to him, as if you were his own family." The grip around her wrist remained firm as the redhead studied her face — having completely dismissed the earlier conflict as if it were nothing.

“Hn! L-Let go!” Trying to force open her grip proved to be fruitless. 

“I'll let go as long as you give me an answer. Don't worry, I won't kill you~! I won't make the same mistake as I did with the Memorze twins, even though it was a joke. But I can't let you go, or else you'll try to escape or send more of your pets towards me.” 

“Oh come on! You can't be serious!” 

“But I am.”

Alright, this person was definitely crazy. She glanced at Shizu, glaring at her to not do anything stupid. Though she froze upon seeing Mea’s hair pointed at the girl's neck. 

Damn it, this was getting ridiculous. 

Best not to resist too much; who knew what else this person could do if annoyed. "It's... he doesn't see me as family." 

"But he does care about you. I saw it in his memories. He sees you in such a... and I bet even Princess Momo." 

“Eh?” The words struck Nana harder than anything else had. Her eyes widened in disbelief until she quickly shook her head. “S-Stop saying false things. I-If you really want to have him change the way he looks at you, then leave that Master of yours! And stop threatening everyone around you like this! Try to act normally at the very least!” 

“Leaving master…” Mea repeated before shaking her head. “I can't do that. Just like how Emiya Shirou sees both Yuuki Mikan and Yuuki Rito as siblings, I also see her as family. She's been there for me since the beginning and has done so much for me.”

“That person is an evil monster! How could you side with someone whose goal is to turn Yami into a killing machine capable of destroying an entire planet!?” 

“We have our reason; master knows best,” Mea argued back, though not with a stern voice but a curious one as always. “She's doing this for our sake.”

At that, Nana rolled her eyes in frustration. “Listen, you are the one who approached us asking for advice on how to get close to him or at least stop having him attack you each time. What do you want me to do if you're not accepting my ideas? I can't expect everything to go away; you have to put in some effort as well! Something more normal that doesn't involve harming others or making enemies.” 

After that, a moment of silence fell between the two of them. Nana watched nervously as the redhead pondered her words until she finally sighed. “Fine, trying wouldn't hurt. But… you'll have to help me.” 

“Why would I help you?” 

A part of her screamed about why she was saying that! It was better to just agree to whatever this psychopath would say and just leave this place; who cared if she kept her promise or not, or whatever deal Mea wanted to offer? 

Hearing that, a knowing smile appeared on the redhead's face. “I can sense that you've been going through a similar issue as mine. You also want to get close to him, don't you?”

“How did you…” Seriously, was her secret that open to everyone? That was the case; then did Emiya know about it too?

“I've been observing you as well.” Mea gave her another creepy answer. “You help me get on his good side, and I'll tell you everything about him. Though the deal is very biased towards you, I don't get as much in return compared to what you will get, but I'm feeling generous~!” 

“...What do you even know about him that I don't? Humph, you can't even give me a detail that I already don't know. This is pointless.” 

She hoped this would be a big enough hint for the girl to back away and just leave. But instead, the opposite happened as Mea leaned in closer. Their bodies practically pressed against each other, and the contact made Nana unintentionally blush. A whisper came near her ear, “Did you know the one who you care so much about is nothing more than the ghost of an old ghost like your friend over here?” 

What?

“Ah!” 

For the first time, Shizu reacted, and a look of surprise crossed her face. For at that moment, she recalled the conversation she and Emiya had a while ago. Though she had only heard the ghost part of the conversation, it was enough for her to get the full picture, especially when she recalled Nemesis knew the truth as well. 

“From the looks on your face, you don't look that surprised.” Mea said.

Nana, on the other hand, was at a complete loss. 

What the hell was this about? 

A ghost?

{Break}

-Sainan High-

“Hah… Safe.”

Yui sat inside her classroom, but her attention kept drifting toward the door again and again. Each time someone passed by in the hallway, her eyes instinctively flicked toward the entrance before she forced herself to look away. 

After another moment of hesitation, she gathered her books and stuffed them into her bag, then rose from her chair and slipped out of the classroom without drawing attention. A quick glance in both directions confirmed that the hallway appeared clear, which allowed her to move forward while hoping to avoid him, or worse, bump into him and be forced into an awkward conversation. 

‘Just what am I doing with my life?’ The thought alone made her face turn ugly. She had started behaving like one of the school's more undisciplined students, sneaking around as though she had committed some terrible offense, despite the fact that practically nobody else knew what had happened.

"Phew, he's not here either." 

The girl peeked around the corner into the next hallway, and the sight of nobody familiar brought a small sense of relief. Crossing the corridor, she kept glancing around while mentally repeating the plan she had settled on. If she saw him, she would immediately turn around and run in the opposite direction. Even if he called her name, she would keep going and pretend she hadn't heard anything. It sounded ridiculous when she thought about it, but right now it seemed like the only way to survive the school day without having to confront the embarrassment that had been haunting her since Christmas.

Unfortunately, looking behind her while walking forward proved to be a terrible idea. Her shoulder collided with someone, and an "Oof!" escaped before she lost her balance and landed on her butt with a thud. 

"Oh, I'm sorry. Didn't see you there!" The familiar voice immediately drew her attention upward. After blinking a few times, Yui found herself staring at a certain dirty blonde, almost light brown-haired girl who waved a hand in front of her face, apparently checking whether she had hurt herself.

"Is that you, Risa?" Confusion replaced the embarrassment for a moment as she tried to make sense of the situation. Sneaking through the hallways had been intended to keep her away from everyone, but running into this particular person did not exactly feel like an improvement. 

Risa tilted her head, clearly puzzled by the strange behavior she had just witnessed. "What are you doing sneaking around like this? You're standing out so much that it feels like you robbed someone or something." 

“Urgh!” The accusation made Yui flinch before she glanced around the hallway again, suddenly worried that other students might have noticed her. "Do I really stand out that much?" The question escaped in a whisper, her concern making the situation even more obvious.

“Well, when the person who is so loud, bossy, outgoing, and so strict that she's known to walk through the school like the Terminator suddenly starts behaving like a mouse, it will eventually catch a few curious gazes. Basically, you stand out like a sore thumb." 

Yui's cheeks puffed as she frowned at the comparison. "Y-You didn't have to put it like that. You could have been a little nicer with your words." 

Her complaint earned an unapologetic shrug. "I'm being honest. Now come with me." Before she could figure out what she intended, Risa grabbed her arm and started pulling her away. "Wait, where are you taking me?" The protest accomplished nothing as the orange-haired girl continued dragging her toward the stairs. They went until they reached a landing with nobody else around, finally giving Yui a chance to regain her footing and pull her arm back.

"All right, this should be good enough. Now start talking." Risa crossed her arms and waited, leaving Yui staring at her in confusion. 

"Start talking about what? You just pulled me out of nowhere! There's nothing to talk about!" Her voice rose slightly before she remembered where they were and lowered it again. “T-There’s nothing to talk about.” 

"It's about what happened during the Christmas party, isn't it?" 

“Ah!” The words immediately froze Yui in place. Her eyes widened as she stared at the girl standing in front of her, unable to understand how she could possibly know what had been bothering her. "How do you know that!?" 

Risa's eyebrows lifted as though the answer should have been obvious.

"Did you forget I was there as well?" 

“Oh…” That reminder hit her immediately. Yui's hand rose and smacked against her forehead with a frustrated thump as she cursed herself for forgetting such an obvious detail. Her thoughts had been so tangled up in what happened that she had completely overlooked the fact that Risa had witnessed it too. The memory itself remained hazy in places, partly because she had been actively trying to suppress it and partly because she had been far too drunk that night to remember everything clearly.

"I'm still shocked by what happened back then. I didn't expect the president of the disciplinary committee to be so bold, let alone go as far as kissing Emiya in front of everyone." The girl nudged her elbow into Yui's side, a teasing smirk spreading across her face. "So how was it? How was the sensation of pressing your lips against your crush—mmph!” 

Before the sentence could reach its conclusion, a hand clamped over her mouth.

"That's enough! Don't talk about it!" Yui's entire face turned crimson as she desperately tried to stop the conversation from going any further. Risa stared back at her with obvious amusement, though she eventually nodded and allowed the girl to remove her hand. "Please don't bring up that moment. I was drunk and did something stupidly shameless!" 

"I think we already had this conversation before, but I can't remember when. Regardless, you know you can't just keep hiding away from him. What was your plan exactly? That you'd disappear from his vision forever and then everything would go back to normal?" 

“...”

When put like that, it did sound pretty ridiculous. But what else could she do at this moment?.

"Kind of?" Her answer came with a shy glance toward the floor. "I just couldn't bring myself to look him in the eyes right now. Every time I think about it, the scene of what I did before keeps replaying in my mind again and again, and I think I'll die of shame if I have to confront him." Her fingers tightened around the hem of her skirt as the memory returned despite her efforts to push it away.

Risa sighed, "Hey, I think you're treating this far more seriously than it actually is. It's not that big of a deal. It was just a kiss from a dare game. We were drunk and not in our right minds. You shouldn't take this so seriously, and I don't think he takes it seriously either. Heck, I think he might have forgotten about it." 

The casual explanation should have reassured her, yet Yui felt worse, with disappointment blooming inside her heart.

"He forgot about it?" She repeated absentmindedly.

Part of her genuinely wanted that to be true because it would make facing him much easier. Another part of her, however, couldn't help feeling hurt by the idea that something so important to her could have vanished from his memory. That had been her first kiss, and no matter how accidental the circumstances had been, she couldn't simply treat it like nothing had happened.

A knowing look settled across Risa's face. "See? You don't seem happy about that. So clearly you don't want this matter to be forgotten." Yui immediately looked away, but there was no point trying to deny it now.

"Of course I don't want it to be forgotten. Given how precious it was, even if it was just an accident caused by my drunk behavior, it was still my first kiss. How could you expect me to forget about it?" Frustration leaked from her voice, mixed with embarrassment as she struggled to explain something she had barely managed to admit to herself.

"You should ask that question to yourself." 

The blunt response left Yui staring at the floor again, her shoulders drooping as the realization settled in.

"I don't know what to do anymore." 

"Why don't you just talk to him? Get it done once and for all. If you keep avoiding him like this, he might start thinking that you hate him." Risa's suggestion was simple enough, yet Yui reacted as though she'd proposed something impossible.

"No! Why would I hate him!?" Her head snapped upward, the answer almost immediate. "And I can't just approach him, even if you say that! How can I face him after that kiss? I was so shameless!" She said in a rush as her face burned all over again.

“Hah, why do you have to be so complicated?” Risa made an exasperated face before grabbing Yui's hand and pulling her toward another part of the school. “Anyways, come with me. I may have an idea.”

"Hold on! Can you stop pulling me around like this every time!" Yui protested, stumbling after her.

"Don't blame me; blame yourself for being like this. Besides, I'm bringing you somewhere else." Without slowing down, she continued dragging her through the hallway until they finally reached a familiar classroom. 

Yui immediately recognized the door and stared at it in disbelief. "Isn't this the clubroom of the Anti-Emiya Alliance?"

“Yup,” she acknowledged before opening the door and stepping inside. 

This being the first time inside this place, she followed cautiously, expecting to find the usual members of the group, but the sight of the two people already inside stopped her in her tracks. One of them happened to be Mio. The other was Saki, whose presence made even less sense considering how she was pretty open about her feelings for Emiya.

"Saki?" Confusion filled her voice as she stared at the blonde heiress. Genuinely unsure as to why she was here, she would have expected her to be the last person willingly sitting inside the headquarters of an Anti-Emiya Alliance.

"Oh, Kotegawa Yui, what a pleasant surprise. It's nice to have you here as well. Welcome to the Anti-Emiya Alliance headquarters. As one of its sponsors, I welcome you here." Saki gave them an almost cheerful greeting, looking entirely comfortable with her position.

"And as the president, I also welcome you!" Mio followed up without the slightest hint of embarrassment, making Yui's expression freeze.

"What the hell is going on here!? You're the president! And you are the sponsor?!" Her mouth hung open as she looked between the two girls, apparently waiting for someone to explain how either of them could possibly hold those positions. “Th-Then you…”

Risa just coughed awkwardly. “Um, I'm not a member. I just use this place to hang out from time to time. Or when I want to skip classes.”

“You skipped classes!?” 

“Ohohoho~!” Saki laughed loudly. "You didn't expect this, Kotegawa Yui?" She said with amusement while the brunette just grabbed her own head as a headache began forming behind her eyes. Of all the things she had expected to discover at school, finding Saki serving as the prime sponsor of an organization dedicated to opposing Archer certainly wasn't one of them.

"This doesn't make sense. Why are you here? Don't you like him?" There had never been much doubt in Yui's mind about Saki's feelings. The blonde had pursued Emiya from the very beginning, and although the way she expressed those feelings could be shameless, there had always been something genuine behind them.

"Oh, don't worry. I don't hate Emiya, nor was I faking my feelings for him this entire time just to lower his guard and strike him when he is at his weakest." Saki chuckled at the thought, seemingly entertained by the possibility.

"I wasn't actually thinking that." 

She had never seriously believed that the girl's feelings were fake. The real problem remained Mio. Her being the president of the Anti-Emiya Alliance made so little sense that she felt as though the entire world had suddenly stopped following the rules.

"Can someone just please tell me what is going on?" 

She finally looked toward Risa, hoping for an explanation that didn't make the situation even more confusing.

"Well, it's a long explanation, and trying to give you all the details will take too long. But just know this: we needed some money, we saw an opportunity, and she took it." Risa pointed toward Mio, who responded with an innocent little wave.

"And even though I said I am the prime sponsor, I have actually earned more money from this than I spent. So I'm more of an investor who found success, Ohohohoho~!" 

"What Risa said is basically the whole story. The school was filled with boys who really hated or had a grudge against Emiya for some reason. They were literally willing to do anything to give that guy some trouble, and they slowly began forming several groups. So I just saw the opportunity and decided to unite those groups under the banner of an alliance. It gave them a false sense of camaraderie while bringing everyone together under one organization. And so the alliance was born. Each member, every month, of course, has to contribute a teeny tiny fee to keep the activities going. Given just how many people there are, that tiny amount accumulated into quite a bit of cash." Mio explained the arrangement with such confidence that Yui could barely believe what she was hearing.

The world no longer made sense; everyone around her was not who she thought they were! Masks all around!

She… this was unacceptable!

"As the president of the disciplinary committee, I cannot allow this! Never mind that taking money from so many club members every month is not allowed, but your club has been the bane of the school's existence! Do you have any idea of the hit our reputation took because of this!? The principal is already bad enough!" Yui's disbelief quickly turned into outrage. She had spent enough time dealing with the trouble surrounding the alliance to know exactly how much of a nuisance it had become.

A smug smile appeared on Mio's face before she reached for several photographs and placed them on the table. Yui's protest died immediately when her eyes fell upon the pictures. Every photograph showed her with Emiya, including several pictures of the two of them kissing…

"Who took these!" 

She lunged for the photographs and snatched them up before anyone could stop her. The next second brought a series of tearing sounds as she ripped the pictures into pieces, scattering the remains across the table.

"We have several copies, just so you know." Mio's smile only grew as Yui stared at the shredded photographs in horror. The realization made her tense before her attention snapped toward Risa.

"Why the hell did you bring me here!? I won't be blackmailed!" Her glare demanded an explanation, making the other girl shift awkwardly.

"I honestly just wanted to bring you here to cheer you up a bit after the shock, but I should have figured it would have gone this way. But yeah, this Anti-Emiya Alliance also has a second subsidiary club if you're interested, and I thought joining it might help you deal with your emotions." Risa gave an apologetic shrug, though her explanation only seemed to create another problem.

"What?" Yui stared at her, completely lost again.

Mio raised one hand, apparently preparing for some kind of dramatic introduction. Smoke suddenly rose into the air around her, spreading across the room for a few seconds before disappearing without revealing anything. 

“...”

Several seconds passed in silence. The expected entrance never happened. Mio stood there awkwardly, cleared her throat, and coughed into her hand.

"That's your cue to enter, you know?"

"Oh, sorry. This is my first time!" 

Another voice answered from the back of the room before a figure finally appeared. Yui's eyes shifted toward the newcomer. The first thing she saw was pink hair as Momo walked into the room with a pose, though the timing was quite off.

"All right, I'm completely lost now." By this point, she had stopped trying to figure out what was happening on her own.

The others giggled at her reaction before Momo finally offered a much simpler explanation. "To put it into simple words... We were just discussing the idea of a mutual relationship.”

Mutual relationship?

Risa leaned closer, whispering next to her ear. “She's talking about a harem, I think. We don't know the details yet; she just joined today. I had to nudge her with the idea the others are willing to hear her idea a bit to agree, but she has potential to attract more members and make us more money. Run was supposed to be present too, but she called in sick today.”

“...”

.

.

.

Bam!

Something inside snapped; the sliding door opened with a loud snap, and Yui ran out of the place as if it were hell itself. 

“All of you are crazy and shameless!” 

Forget about hiding from Emiya; she needed to stay away from them! Her face now fully red like a tomato, this entire day really started to feel more like a dream than anything else. She… she needed to go back home and just take a week-long bre— “Oof!” 

In her desperate escape, the girl turned a corner and ran into someone she could not dodge in time. The impact was no different from running straight into a brick wall and made her lose her footing. 

“Ah!” 

Before her body hit the floor, a firm hand grabbed onto her forearm, and an arm circled around the girl's waist. As her eyes opened, she found herself staring back at light golden brown that had a hint of steel gray. It felt like each day, they started to lose more and more of their warm color. 

No, hold on. Wasn't this…

“Careful there, you shouldn't be running in the hallway. I thought you would know this better than anyone, Yui.” He teased, her heartbeat rising by the second.

Why did she run into him of all people!?

“E-Emiya…” She tried her best to stay calm, but that proved to be a monumental task. 

“Oh? Is there something on my face? Unless you're planning to leave a kiss like last time.” 

“—!”

He… he remembered!

So mortified, Yui just wished she could dig a hole and bury herself. 

“Ah, there you are, Emiya. Yui is feeling embarrassed about the kiss she gave you; can you give her one so she doesn't run off like a rabbit?” 

Alright, she would kill Risa first before burying herself.

{Break}

(A few hours later)

Heavy rainfall descended upon the city, forming a dense curtain of water that blurred the edges of the surrounding buildings and turned the streets below into shimmering rivers of reflected light. 

On the rooftop of a tall apartment building, a figure sat on the wet concrete ledge with her legs dangling over the edge, watching the thick blanket of dark grey clouds churn overhead. The rain poured down without mercy, soaking through her clothes, plastering red hair against her skin, and tracing paths down her face, yet none of it seemed to bother her. Her attention remained fixed on the sky until her gaze eventually lowered toward the phone resting in her hand. The screen displayed her contacts; beneath it sat a list where only a single name appeared. 

Princess Nana. 

With a sigh quickly swallowed by the constant drumming of rainfall, the device went dark before disappearing into her pocket. Feet swung gently above the side of the building as she returned her attention to the city, watching tiny umbrellas move along the streets and headlights streak across the wet roads.

"What are you doing outside, sitting here under the rain?" A calm voice managed to cut through the downpour, drawing her attention toward the other side of the rooftop. Nemesis stood there beneath a cute pink umbrella covered in white polka dots, acquired from somewhere rather than simply using her own abilities to keep the rain away. 

"Hi, Master~!" A weak smile appeared on Mea's face as she looked toward her. “That umbrella looks cute. Did you get me one as well?”

"But of course. Anyways, is this a new hobby of yours? Sitting outside like this?" One eyebrow lifted as Nemesis regarded her unusual choice of entertainment. “It's been almost two hours, and you haven't touched your cake. I'll eat it if you won't.”

"I was watching a movie recently," she explained, also not feeling particularly hungry. "In the movie, when a character gets sad or angry, they go outside in the rain, and then they feel better. I saw this happen several times in many movies, so I thought I would give it a try." 

"Oh? Do you not feel good? Did something make you sad?" The question earned a small nod.

"Something like that." Mea looked down at herself, water dripping from her sleeves and collecting along the edge of the rooftop. 

"Then did the rain help to cool you down?" 

"I'm not sure it's working. Wet socks and a sticky, drenched shirt do not feel that good. But it's not as bad as blood, at least. It does not stink." 

“Hahaha~!” A chuckle escaped the woman beneath the umbrella before her attention settled fully on the younger girl. "Ever since you did that Psycho Dive in Emiya's mind, you've started to behave weirdly. Every passing day. I'm not sure if I should be worried, or whether by doing that, you ended up frying your own brain." 

The teasing earned an immediate pout. "Stop teasing me, Master. I am very durable, and my brain is perfectly normal." Her hands folded together near her chest as she defended herself, only for Mea’s eyes to widen the next moment and for her body to move away right as several dark constructs struck the ground where she stood. 

“Master?” She called out Nemesis with confusion, only to be greeted by several more constructs heading her way. 

Clang!

Forced to react, she deflected several of them ahead and sensed more above. Twisting her body just enough to avoid them and block the last one, as it was impossible to dodge it.

“Ah!” Landing back down with a splash, she prepared to defend herself again, only to find her standing there with a particular gaze. Having given up on the earlier strange assault. “Did I do something wrong?” 

“No, nothing wrong. I was just curious to test out a theory of mine. Look at your arms, Mea.” 

“Hm?” She followed as instructed, looking down, her pupils dilating when she saw both of her arms transformed into blades she used to defend herself. “I don't understand.” 

“Had this been in the past, you would have used your hair or wings to avoid my attack. It's the same one I've been using for years to train you.” 

“But I managed to defend myself.” 

The black-haired girl nodded, “You used your arms to defend yourself.” She pointed out, with Mea realizing what she was trying to say and even getting confused herself. Her specialization was more on her hair turning into all kinds of weapons; she rarely, if ever, used her arms like Yami as weapons. Aside from personal preference, the nano-machine was distributed a bit more towards her hair, making it easier and faster to control each transformation.

But that discrepancy was negligible at best. Her main reason was always just personal preference.

“...I was just caught by surprise.” 

She tried to explain it, but failed to convince herself.

“On top of everything, you fought exactly like he would have. Even your transformed blades are very similar, don't you think?” 

“...”

The blades she had transformed into were indeed two curved swords. They were the same color and did not possess the same symbol; the overall shape was too similar to ignore. “I… didn't notice.” She said, transforming her hand back to normal.

“Hmph, as if your brain is intact. Could have fooled me." The dry response drew no argument this time. Instead, she inhaled the cool, damp air and let her gaze wander back toward the city.

"What is it like to have a family?" She asked beneath the rainfall, yet Nemesis heard it clearly. 

"You already know the answer. We are a family, after all." That answer made Mea hesitate before her head slowly dipped in acknowledgment. 

"But why does it feel so different than… them?"

"Not all families have the same dynamic. Ours just happens to be a bit more unique than the rest. But the core aspect is still the same." Rain struck the concrete around them, filling the rooftop with its constant patter as the redhead turned those words over in her mind.

Fragmented memories surfaced one after another. For a brief moment, she remembered a moon hanging overhead while she sat outside on a porch, seemingly inside someone else's body, with a man nearby who appeared close to death. Another memory followed, showing a white-haired girl calling herself her sister while trying her best to kill her. Then came the image of an energetic brown-haired woman whose face had begun to blur whenever she tried to remember it. All of them occupied a place in her memories that felt close to family, even if she could no longer fully understand why. They were memories of lives and relationships that did not exist here, leaving her with nothing but fragments she could not properly connect.

"Is Emiya really our family?"  

"Family does not necessarily mean sharing the same blood. After all, Nii-san himself is not related to the other two siblings of his, yet he is very close to them. But we are different. We all come from the same beginning. Though the way we're made is different, in the end, we share a similar origin, enough to be considered siblings." The explanation seemed simple enough, yet it failed to settle the question troubling her.

"Then why does he hate me?" Her fingers curled into fists against her knees. Something tightened around her heart at the thought, resembling the ache of a painful memory she couldn't fully grasp. She knew her actions had not exactly given him much reason to trust her, but remembering the distrust in his eyes still hurt more than she understood. No matter how many times she tried to reason through it, she couldn't understand why his opinion of her affected her so much. 

"He does not necessarily hate you. He is merely just confused and misunderstanding our cause. But eventually, we will end up getting through to him and reaching his heart. Then he will understand us." 

The reassurance brought little comfort.

"What if that is not the case?" Tired eyes finally lifted toward Nemesis. "What if he continues hating us and gets tired enough to take us out of the picture? To forever label us as his enemy?" 

The concern came from a place deeper than simple fear of being attacked. She seemed more troubled by the possibility that the person she had begun considering family might never accept her as one of his own. 

"I admit he has strange powers, and even stranger weapon constructs that work differently than I imagined. But at the end of the day, it shouldn't be enough to kill me." Her expression sobered as the umbrella tilted slightly against the rainfall. "But still, why are you so hung up on this? What's really going on?"

"Yesterday morning, I saw him. He was with his family and his friends, having a picnic. They looked so happy. They were smiling, they were laughing. It was clear they were having a lot of fun." Mea lowered her gaze toward her hands. "It made me wonder… what we are doing. Is it really necessary? Can’t we just… go over there and join them?" She asked hesitantly, as though she already knew the answer but still wanted someone to tell her otherwise.

"Mea." 

"I am tired, Master. Can you just let me try something on my own? I want to see what I'll do… what will work?" 

"What if it won't?" Nemesis questioned without denying her wish entirely. 

"Then I'll try again." 

A moment later, the redhead rose from the ledge and stepped onto the rooftop. Wings sprouted from her back, unfurling as she prepared to launch herself into the sky. The sudden movement immediately caught Nemesis's attention, her eyes narrowing as she watched the change. "Are you choosing to betray me, Mea?" 

"I'm just having a rebellious moment, I guess? Please grant me this one wish." A genuine smile appeared across her face, almost defiant despite the vulnerability behind her request. Before another word could follow, however, the distance between them vanished. Nemesis's hand shot forward and closed around her face, stopping her in place as dark wisps of energy began swirling around her body as she began to sink within. 

"It seems that whatever he has done to you, whatever you saw inside his mind, has affected you too much. It is no different from a virus. It has begun affecting even the way you fight; that's not normal." She said, already half of her body inside. “Even though you gave me some details of what you saw, I now understand that it was merely the tip of the iceberg and something else is bothering you. Before I make any decision, let me see it for myself.” 

Mea remained unmoving in the sky for several seconds, until her eyes opened, but the look inside no longer belonged to her. The red hair moved, the point touching her own forehead as she focused on a trick she never tried before but figured it could work. 

“Psycho Dive.”