Chapter 18: The Gaze of God-Slayers
"Shirou...!" Suddenly, Saber, who was behind him, reached out and tugged at Shirou's sleeve, calling out in a low voice.
Hearing the girl's voice, Shirou immediately looked toward her.
"Over there! The magical fluctuation originates from that person!" Saber pointed in a direction.
Shirou followed her finger and looked over; sure enough, it was Rin, who had arrived early at Mitsuzuri Ayako's Archery Dojo to say hello.
At that moment, she was standing in the dojo with a look of helplessness. Clearly, she had no interest in the students practicing archery, yet for some reason, she remained there watching.
"Is it because her Servant is curious?"
Shirou speculated inwardly.
As for the specifics, he would wait and ask her later.
"It's about time, so we'll be heading out first," Shirou said to Mitsuzuri Ayako.
"Mhm, bye-bye~"
Mitsuzuri Ayako, dressed in her white dojo attire, waved at Shirou.
"Next, let's take a tour of the school buildings."
With a little time left before class started, Shirou led Saber toward the back of the school grounds.
Behind the school buildings—specifically behind the Archery Dojo—was a large grove of mixed trees.
The area was roughly three hundred to six hundred square meters, potentially rivaling the main front playground. It was a typical example of bold land management permitted because the area led into the mountains.
They arrived at the back mountain.
"From three hundred to six hundred meters... that's nearly a twofold difference." Saber's expression appeared somewhat speechless.
"You seem a bit disappointed, Saber?"
"That must be your imagination, Shirou. Because I never had any expectations for the 'school tour' you mentioned. Yes, I don't mind at all being suddenly brought to a place like this; I wasn't expecting anything from the start, so there is no such thing as disappointment."
Saber turned her head away.
She had a displeased look on her face, appearing quite sulky.
It seemed she had finally realized how much the outfit Shirou made her wear last night differed from a standard school uniform.
"Furthermore, Master, while there is indeed a sparsely populated forest here, it isn't exactly a place that requires caution, is it?" She was so moody that even her form of address had changed.
"Yeah, it's not necessary. I just wanted to show you that there's a forest behind the school. Let's head to the next spot."
Shirou didn't mind. Saying this, he walked toward another direction.
"And over there is the sports field. The Track and Field Club members are running right now." These were all obvious things.
Saber stared at the group of people playing baseball in the center of the field, looking somewhat lost in thought.
"What's wrong?" Seeing her expression, Shirou asked curiously.
"Well... that, there is a sport I once saw a bit of in the past, so I was curious if it existed on this playground. Although I don't quite understand other sports, I enjoyed watching that one quite a bit, so I inadvertently..."
"Is there a sport Saber would want to try? Could it be something like tennis? There are tennis courts over there too," Sakura spoke up at this moment with a smile.
"N-No, it's not tennis. If I think about it calmly, that isn't a sport this land could accommodate. It's just that... in the past, I was scolded for using a sword to play a similar ball game, so I started feeling a bit nostalgic."
"Was it an iron ball?" Shirou quipped.
"Ugh... please forget what I just said! Alright, the investigation here is finished, let's move to the next location!" With flushed cheeks, Saber seemed a bit too embarrassed to speak further.
Shirou followed leisurely behind her.
Saber seemed quite curious about the school's internal facilities, checking out the infirmary, storage rooms, and the entrances of various clubs along the way.
"There really are a lot of clubs. I remember Rin saying they finish school at 4:00 PM."
Looking at the club nameplates at the doors of the empty classrooms, Shirou couldn't help but murmur.
Many familiar-looking clubs appeared one after another along the route.
Everything from the Light Music Club, Literature Club, to the Manga Club was there.
"Wait... what's with that 'Sleeping Club'? Can a club like that even be approved?"
As he arrived at the second-floor corridor with Saber, the bell for the end of class happened to ring.
Accompanied by students pouring out of the classrooms one by one, Shirou and Saber naturally drew a massive amount of attention.
"Whoa, is that girl a foreigner? She's so pretty!"
"It's a handsome guy! His aura is amazing too!"
"They look like celebrities!"
"Can you go to Karaoke with me after school?"
"The teacher said she's a transfer student, I wonder which class she's in. I really want her contact info."
Saber's brow furrowed as she looked at the students crowding around them, appearing somewhat displeased.
Image: "Saber", Location: "Images/1677207834-100352746-109991859.jpg"
Shirou simply snapped his fingers at that moment, and then the universe... ah, no, the students quieted down as if hypnotized, and each went back to their own business.
After staying in their seats for a while, Rin walked into the classroom.
Upon seeing the blonde girl beside Shirou, her breath hitched.
"This is..."
"It's Saber. I told you long ago that I had already made a reservation," Shirou said with a light laugh.
"Hmph! Even so, I won't lose to you!" Rin said through gritted teeth.
"My Lancer will definitely defeat your Saber!"
Rin patted her chest with full confidence.
.
.
.
After school, just as Shirou and Rin stepped out of the school, purple magical light immediately flickered beside Rin.
"Hey...!"
Startled by the sight, Rin hurriedly cast a "Bounded Field of Suggestion" spell.
Following that purple radiance, a slender figure emerged.
The materialized Scáthach revealed herself. The Queen of the Land of Shadows narrowed her eyes slightly, her wine-red pupils reflecting a hint of hostility as she sized up Shirou.
"You give me a quite unique feeling... I am curious, just who are you?"
Regarding Scáthach's question, Shirou likewise looked at her with a smile.
"Just a magus... I wonder if the Queen of the Land of Shadows, who considers herself a God-Slayer, finds her hands itching for a fight because of that."
After Shirou spoke of her "identity," the slender and sharp eyebrows of this deep-purple, haughty Queen twitched. Using a voice that was exceptionally weathered, clear as jade, yet laced with lonely coldness, she said: "To recognize an unknown person like me through just a few words, it seems you are also a person of great learning."
There was a hint of admiration mixed in her lifeless yet beautiful voice.
In Scáthach's view, few people studied Celtic mythology, and its spread wasn't particularly wide—the most famous Celtic mythological figure being King Arthur. For someone to recognize a person like her, who had sparse descriptions in the myths, based solely on appearance and a few words, that person must have conducted an in-depth study of the legends.
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