"Keep the line orderly. No cutting in."
"For the Heroic Spirit who dares interrupt, the tolling bell shall descend. You there, Blackbeard—show your neck."
—
"I'm not thrilled about inviting assassins to Chaldea, but oh well. No room for pickiness now. Fools and bankrupts have their uses, as they say. Use them as your hidden blade, Master."
Assassins… the class of killers who lurk in shadows, ending lives in the blink of an eye.
Though the vessel says this, preempting and thwarting enemy assassins is no small advantage. It's a class that can't be ignored. Kings often die by assassination, after all.
"Yeah! Alright, I want a cute Assassin!"
"Senpai… isn't that a contradiction?"
"My least favorite class. Hurry it up."
The vessel instantly loses enthusiasm. Such a mood-swing king.
"No such thing as an Assassin-Saber, common sense says…"
"Let's go! Summon start!"
The circle glows and spins.
"Get it over with. My real effort's for Saber."
"Now, now, think of it as a warm-up, yeah?"
"…Here it comes!"
What appears is—
"Assassin, Jack the Ripper. Nice to meet you, Mommy."
A pure girl cloaked in tattered rags.
"—A resentful spirit that never had a chance to be born."
"Wooow!! So cute—!!"
Master rushes over, hugging and nuzzling her.
…Jack the Ripper. The London murderer, right?
"…Not a loli…"
"I'll be your Mommy! Nice to meet you, Jack-chan!"
"Okay. I'll follow Mommy."
"Wooowww!!!"
"Senpai, calm down! Calm down!"
"I must protect—must protect her…"
Master kneels, cradling Jack.
"—Don't let her crawl into your womb, Master."
"Huh?"
She may look cute, but she's a resentful spirit.
I instinctively sense that trusting her blindly is dangerous.
"Next, next. Spin it. Speed's everything."
"Look, Jack-chan! Here we go!"
"Here we go."
The spinning circle summons another hero.
"What kind of ghost will stumble out next…?"
"Assassins aren't all resentful spirits, you know!?"
The light fades, revealing the second Servant.
"Servant, Assassin. I heard your call from the shadows."
A white mask, a pitch-black cloak. A true Assassin emerges from the dark.
"The Assassin! Awesome, pure Assassin vibes!"
"That mask… it's the Old Man of the Mountain."
"Indeed. For my solemn vow, I lend you my aid… Hm!?"
The Assassin locks eyes with us, radiating intense wariness.
"A golden Servant…!?"
"What, even a shadow-lurking sandworm knows me? Don't you dare glance at any other 'me' but the current one, or I'll execute you."
"What's wrong?"
"Magus! That one's bad news! A treacherous cur who'll betray you—cut the contract now!"
"You're not wrong. But don't mistake me, sandworm. I may cut down those who stray, but I've never stabbed a sworn ally in the back."
The vessel brushes off the glaring stare.
"Betrayal means striking the back of a comrade. Use words precisely, Hassan."
"…Tch. For some reason, I sense no ill intent from you now… Could it be…?"
"It's fine, Teacher Hassan! This Gil's in a great mood!"
Master hurriedly intervenes.
Exactly. This is the stronghold we've built and renovated. Betray who?
"If you're curious, wander around. Witness my majesty. There's no dingy room for you to skulk in."
"…Tch. Understood."
Grudgingly convinced, Hassan fades into the shadows.
"—Having to employ such vermin is the tough part. Your call, Master."
"Let's do our best, Mommy."
"Of course! Alright, last one!"
"Two evil alignments… Is that okay?"
"Good alone might hit a wall someday. I'll keep them as curios. Last one."
The summoning circle spins again.
"Exciting, exciting!"
"It's a thrilling moment, isn't it? I get it."
"Exciting? Your chest? Can I check?"
"Huh?"
"Now, will it be a demon or a snake…?"
The light fades…
"Pardon me. I brought snacks for a summoning break."
Emiya enters with a bento. At the same time—
"—More dirty work, huh."
Black armor. Red hood. A man gripping a knife in his right hand, his details unclear.
"…Hm?"
"Whatever. Business as usual—You the Master?"
He steps toward Master.
"Y-Y-Yes!"
"Let's be clear. I don't know or care about your situation. I'll just do my job as a Servant."
A cold, detached attitude, laced with rejection.
"—That's fine."
"Uh, okay… Nice to meet you."
"—Call me if you need me."
"Wait."
Emiya stops the red-hooded assassin.
"—You."
"…"
"—Never mind. Let's work together."
"Yeah."
With that brief exchange, they pass each other.
"What's up, Emiya-senpai?"
"…Nothing."
Emiya wears a complex expression, which the vessel mocks.
"Nostalgia for a countryman? How pitiful, being Alaya's errand boy."
—Alaya's errand boy?
"…No need for prying. He and I will do our jobs."
"As expected. No room for incompetence in my Chaldea. Go visit, let your whining bloom."
"…Mysterious."
"Rikka?"
"Mysterious Hood Man… So cool…!!"
—Luckily, Master seems to like him.
Good. If Master's first impression is positive, they'll probably warm up eventually.
"Can I go explore, Mommy?"
"Sure, sure! Off you go! Later!"
"Okay. Find me."
Jack vanishes with a flutter.
"…Making promises with a Presence Concealment holder, huh. Good luck wandering."
"…Ah!!"
"Now—done with the boring class. Next… Caster, maybe?"
Yawning, the summoning moves to the next class…
"But first, let's eat?"
"Yeah, I'm hungry! The onigiri's here… huh?"
"Itadakimasu (munch munch)."
"So cuteeee!!"
—The warm-up continues.
"Missed the draw… No helping it."
"The evening bell will one day point to that land. For now, I lurk only in the dark."
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