"He's changed so much — like two different people."
Aozaki Touko thought to herself, and couldn't help but frown at the changes she'd seen in Rovie.
"Really? I think so, too," Rovie replied with a faint nod, acknowledging her observation.
Chapter 8 — An Investigation Commission (1/2)
"You think I've changed a lot?"
"He's changed so much — like two different people."
After calming down for a moment, Aozaki Touko looked Rovie over again; a flash of curiosity passed through her crimson eyes.
If it had been two years ago, she never would have linked the awkward, cold research fanatic she once knew with the young man now snatching fries across from her. He was practically a different person.
Such a big change — surely something had happened to him.
She did know, at least in part, what had occurred: Rovie's parents, the previous Crowley heads, had died, and she had been in that region at the same time — tracking the same powerful Class of Fantasy being. Touko had been working alone, so no mercenary company or magus team accompanied her.
The Clock Tower magi had, by their special methods, located that legendary Fantasy and attempted to seize it. The result was obvious: using the long-weakened modern magics to try and capture a top-tier Fantasy worth thousands of mystic points was absurd. The hunt ended with hunter and prey alike wiped out — and Touko had been the one to dig out the bodies from the primeval forest and bring them back to the Clock Tower.
That was how she'd become connected to the Crowley family and Rovie.
"…Well, change isn't always a bad thing. Call it growth," Rovie said calmly. He would not dwell on what had happened; the memories were there, but he never volunteered them.
"Your growth really is extreme — it's like you swapped personalities," Touko sniped, sharp as ever. She sensed Rovie was avoiding the subject and decided not to press.
She suspected Rovie had adjusted his personality the way she herself had — after all, magi often hid things. Snooping into another magus's secrets without permission was tantamount to declaring war; even close friends knew that boundary.
She had enough trouble of her own. She didn't want to ruin a potential ally who'd helped her despite her being on the run.
Still, she was curious why a Clock Tower noble like him would come all the way to the Far East — a place poor in mystic resources.
"A Clock Tower noble shouldn't be wasting time in a barren little place like this," she said, then grinned and reached toward him playfully. "Did you come to bail out poor old Senpai because I'm short on cash?"
"If you pay off what you owe me for materials, I might help you a bit," Rovie said, slapping her hand away.
"You stingy bastard—" Touko pulled her hand back, pouting, then reached for a cigarette. Seeing the no-smoking sign, she gave up and grabbed another fry instead.
"Alright, no more joking. You didn't call me out here just to eat fries, right?"
"Of course not."
"Then spit it out — what's the important business? Need a special-purpose puppet made? Or did you run into trouble? Make this old senior happy and tell me."
This woman… even on the run her temperament hadn't changed. Aozaki Touko's bluntness made Rovie groan inwardly, but she was right — he did need her help.
Rovie slipped a hand into his pocket and took out a bank card, sliding it across the tray.
"This card has five million in it. PIN is 777777. That should be enough to hire you for one job."
Touko blinked at the card, then scoffed. "Heh. Do you think five million is going to buy me off? Do you take me for—" Her protest stopped as she stuffed the card into her pocket. Her mouth said indignation, but her actions were honest.
"Pounds," Rovie added.
"…Of course." She brightened instantly. "My dear junior would never let me work for free. That's more like it!"
With the payment taken, Touko composed herself. "Alright. Tell me what you need in exchange for the pounds and I'll do it."
Rovie glanced around, checked that no suspicious people were nearby, then quietly cast a dispelling charm to scatter casual onlookers' attention. He lowered his voice to a level only Touko could hear.
"Aozaki-senpai, have you heard of the Holy Grail War?"
"Holy Grail War…"
"I've heard a bit," Touko said, rubbing her chin. She ran through what she knew aloud. "I think it's that ritual the Tohsaka, Matou, and Einzbern families jointly developed. It involves Heroic Spirit summoning."
"Right. It's been considered a ridiculous idea by some in the Resurrection Department — magi who thought the theory was fanciful. The Clock Tower has notes on it; I believe the records are with Yulfis' people."
"Good. That's enough. You're well-informed, Aozaki-senpai — no wonder you're the only Grand-class puppetmaster left on the run."
"Cut the flattery. What do you want with info on the Holy Grail War?" Touko rolled her eyes.
"My request is simple. I want you to go to the Einzbern household and investigate what Heroic Spirit they summoned during the Third Holy Grail War. You don't need the spirit's true name — just tell me its class."
Rovie had decided to enter this year's Holy Grail War. Before it began, he needed accurate intel.
He suspected this world-line might differ from the one he remembered. The Nasuverse contained countless parallel world-lines with wildly different developments: variations could turn Merlin male or female, change Arthur's identity, remove certain Ancestors, or even eliminate the Holy Grail War altogether. The Grail itself could be intact, corrupted, or stolen in other lines.
Over the past two years he had gathered what he could, but the only reliable pieces were trivial: Emiya Kiritsugu married into the Einzbern, the Matou inheritance had declined, the Tohsakas had two daughters, and the Fourth Holy Grail War was about to begin. None of that told him what he needed.
That's why he'd come to Touko — she had the skills and audacity to pry into Einzbern history. He most wanted to know what they had actually summoned back then: a normal Heroic Spirit, or something like Amakusa Shirō Tokisada, or one of those notorious troublemakers. The answer would influence his strategy.
Touko's expression shifted when she saw the clean back of Rovie's hand. She asked softly, "Are you the Master for this Grail War?"
"Yes," Rovie replied. "Strictly speaking not officially yet, but I already know how to obtain Command Seals and how to enter."
"Is that so…"
"Well then. A change of scenery once in a while does me good. I've been eyeing Einzbern's homunculus technology for a while. This will be a good chance to see it firsthand."
She finished the last fry, stood up, and left without delay, telling him on her way out, "Be careful. My gut says this ritual isn't simple — don't trip in a gutter."
"Wait, are you… worrying about me?" Rovie asked, a little surprised.
"Call it that. If you die, I'll lose the one person willing to give me credit," she said.
"Hey now…"
Watching Touko's retreating figure, Rovie shook his head. "A woman like the wind," he muttered, then checked his pocket watch and looked out as snow began to fall again over the gray city.
Hopefully she gets something useful. I just need one more contact to finish my intel. He stood, picked up his still-warm case, and walked into the overcast town.
Chapter 9 — The Mother of Kanzaki City (2/2)
"Even if you show kindness to evildoers, their evil natures will not change."
…
After that meal Rovie and Aozaki Touko had at least eased some distance between them. He knew her willingness was motivated by money, but that was fine — as long as she completed the task.
He left a tip far beyond the bill and went out into the city to find another secret contact. By mystic etiquette he should have reported to the local leyline managers upon entering another region — like he had when he told the Tohsakas in Fuyuki — but the managers in Kanzaki were in poor condition.
The Two-Branch (Nigi) family that nominally oversaw Kanzaki's leyline had degenerated; their exorcist line lacked a successor. Their mystic heritage was fading and they were becoming an ordinary household — in short, they were no longer in a position to police an outside magus like Rovie.
Kanzaki itself was an odd city. It might not have the notoriety of neighboring, frequently-exploding Fuyuki, but it held its share of secrets and was an important stage in the Nasuverse — notably connected to Kara no Kyōkai (The Garden of Sinners).
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