Chapter 4: Let Me Earn Your Trust, Saber?

“Sato Hino.”

I spoke my five-character name, watching as it left both Rin and Shirou momentarily speechless.

“…Huh?”

Finally, the two squeezed out a questioning response. I gave a faint smile as I replied.

“The ‘hi’ (日) from ‘sunlight,’ and the ‘no’ (野) from ‘field.’ Then it’s the ‘sato’ (悟) that means ‘to understand.’ Hino Sato (日野悟). That’s my name.”

“…What?”

Shirou turned to Rin, as if seeking her judgment. She, too, couldn’t hide her confusion.

“I’m sorry, but… I don’t really understand what you’re saying.”

Rin furrowed her brow, and I gave a short, knowing reply.

“Figured as much.”

I took a deep breath. “I’m not great at explaining, so bear with me. I’m not exactly an expert on the situation either. I’m just trying to tell you the truth as it is.”

I needed to calm myself. This wasn’t easy.

“I was unsure whether I should even talk about this. I’m not good at negotiations… but I figured trying to hide things or lie would just be a bad idea.”

“…So you’re saying this isn’t a joke or some delusion?”

“I want you to believe that. I don’t know if this will convince you, but—”

Prefacing my words, I began to explain, offering a simple profile of an ordinary young man—of myself.

“My real name is Hino Sato. I’m twenty years old. I’m a second-year university student, attending a school near the Tokyo-Kanagawa border. I was active in the cricket club and the hiking society, juggling part-time jobs and making the rounds through different labs.”

“Uh, so… Saber—no, Hino-san, you’re saying—”

“Yeah. I’m just an ordinary person.”

I answered before Shirou could finish his question, and Rin let out a long sigh. I could tell she was holding back the urge to grab and shake me. Instead, she seemed to be carefully examining the meaning behind my words.

I knew what she was thinking. First and foremost, they had to consider whether my story was even true. Reasonably speaking, it would be safer to assume I was lying through my teeth. That everything up until now was a performance, meant to lower their guard… That explanation made more sense, and was more convincing.

But if that were the case, then some things didn’t add up. Take last night, for example. I’d shielded Rin with my own body when Berserker was about to strike her down. It was hard to believe that was just acting. Berserker’s attack at that moment could’ve completely obliterated me with a single misstep. To dodge it precisely and survive with only recoverable injuries—sure, maybe someone could manage that, but the risk outweighed any possible benefit.

And if this whole backstory were fabricated, it was far too poorly constructed. A fusion of an ordinary person’s consciousness with that of a Heroic Spirit? No such precedent existed. If it were just a lie, I could’ve come up with something more plausible. Plus, I’d already revealed both my true name and Noble Phantasm. A fatal leak of information to the enemy. What would be the point of crafting such a story at that cost?

“There’s no point…”

Even if I was scheming something, it was smarter for them to hear me out a bit more.

I noticed Rin’s subtle shift in posture. She was preparing for a fight. If I made a suspicious move, they’d be ready to take me down instantly. I didn’t blame her.

“Saber, are you really just a normal person?”

Rin asked in a flat, emotionless voice.

“I am.”

“Then, do you have any idea why you ended up like this?”

When Rin asked, I stared off into the air. “Hmm…”

“If I can talk about anything, it’d be what happened right before this. But I don’t know the root cause either.”

“Right before this?”

I started speaking about my time as myself. I confessed to a girl in my club, got the “I don’t dislike you, but—” rejection with an awkward smile, got drunk out of despair, and ended up in a traffic accident. It was a pitiful story. When I finished, Shirou and Rin were both left with expressions they couldn’t even put into words.

I hoped they wouldn’t judge me too harshly. Honestly, I’d been in a bit of a panic. I’d gone to my coming-of-age ceremony and reunited with old classmates from elementary school—almost all of whom had lost their virginity already. I felt the pressure. That’s why I confessed to that slightly flirtatious girl—half-hoping I’d be able to lose my virginity too…

“And then, when I woke up, Shirou-kun was standing right in front of me. At first, I thought you were being attacked by some pervert or something…”

The more I talked, the further I could feel my stock dropping in Rin’s mind. But in exchange, I was now certain she was coming to a conclusion. This woman… or rather, this person inside Saber’s body, wasn’t a Heroic Spirit at all—just a regular human.

“…Enough. If there’s one thing your story made clear—”

“And that is?”

I swallowed hard. Shirou straightened his posture instinctively.

“That inside that body, there really is just a completely ordinary person. If you were just spouting nonsense, the story wouldn’t be so detailed. Even if Servants can adapt to any time period, there are still limits. And since the moment you were summoned, you’ve shown no signs of prepping that kind of backstory.”

Rin confirmed with her partner—there had been no signs of me researching modern knowledge at all.

“I don’t know why you’re like this, but we can look into that later. Right now, there’s something else I want to ask.”

“What is it?”

“If your mind really belongs to a normal person, then there’s something we can’t ignore.”

“And that is?”

Rin said:

“You’ve been thrown into this bizarre, absurd situation… So how can you stay so calm? That’s where all my other questions seem to converge.”

“…Um.”

Rin’s indirect phrasing made me falter for a second.

“You were flustered at first. But after I explained the Holy Grail War to Emiya-kun, it was like you suddenly turned into someone else—completely composed. You tried to send Shirou abroad, you asked me for protection, your judgment was too precise. Well, I guess you weren’t perfectly calm, but still…”

Rin began folding down her fingers as she counted examples.

“In the fight with Berserker, you had Shirou use a Command Seal to unleash your full power, and you shielded us with your body…”

She looked sharply at me.

“A regular person suddenly inhabits someone else’s body and gets caught up in the Holy Grail War. In a case like that, losing your mind wouldn’t be surprising. So how come you’re so composed?”

“…I’m not composed.”

I muttered, a faint edge to my voice.

“My head’s a complete mess. That’s why I just picked a goal to focus on.”

“A goal?”

Shirou asked.

“In emergencies, maintaining mental stability has to come first. Like you said, Rin, this situation is so absurd that anyone could snap. So I made setting a purpose—an action plan—my top priority. I also mutter to myself sometimes, to stay grounded and keep from losing my identity.”

“…So you’re saying you’re on the verge of losing it?”

Rin asked with a serious expression, and I gave her a vague nod.

“When people are thrown into crisis situations, they get stressed and their perspective narrows. They go into a kind of ‘hyper-alert’ state, and that messes with how they process information. That can easily lead to hysteria.”

I continued.

“I mean, it’s rare for anyone to end up in a situation this bizarre, but people’s responses in emergencies tend to follow patterns. Think of it like a computer script—it makes more sense that way.”

Shirou nodded vaguely. Rin, on the other hand, muttered, “What’s a computer…?”

“Uh, basically, it means actions that get ingrained into your body through repetition and learning. You could call it a reflex. Like, you see a pickled plum and your mouth waters, right?”

“…So you’re saying when people are in crisis, they instinctively fall back on those ingrained responses?”

Shirou said, brow furrowed. I gave him a bright smile and nodded.

"That’s exactly it. In emergencies, people tend to narrow their focus and fall back on familiar behaviors they normally perform without thinking. Imagine a fire, for example. There’s an emergency exit right in front of you. But the door you usually use is in another direction. If you had to run, which one would you choose?"

"Obviously, the emergency exit right in front of me."

Rin replied as if it were the most natural thing in the world.

"That’s what you’d expect. But in reality, many people instinctively head for the exit they always use. That’s called 'habitual latent behavior.' There are also cases where people turn back the way they came, or seek out familiar sights out of a subconscious desire to return to what’s known, even if it leads them to a dead end. So—how do you avoid making those kinds of mistakes?"

I continued.

"Have you two ever worked part-time at a department store or something like that?"

Shirou and Rin both shook their heads.

"Places like that give evacuation training. Basically, staff are taught to point to the exits, shout, and lead people out. The key is to establish a clear guide that directs people to the right exit."

"So… that’s why you tried to protect me?"

Shirou asked.

"It wasn’t an action driven by pure goodwill. First and foremost, I needed to keep myself under control to avoid falling into hysteria. But it wasn’t purely calculated, either. I’d like you to believe that."

I spoke calmly.

"Setting a goal and establishing a guide for your actions is important—but to maintain your sense of self, you also have to keep your emotions active. Emotions are like living creatures—if they stagnate, they’ll backlash. That’s why it’s crucial to tie strong emotions to your purpose."

"In other words, your attempt to protect Emiya-kun came from your own emotions?"

Rin asked. I nodded.

"My desire to protect Shirou-kun was sincere. Otherwise, there’d be no meaning in it."

"I see…"

Shirou muttered softly, a hint of relief in his voice.

"And now… what’s your mental state like?"

"I wouldn’t say I’m completely stable, but I’m not going to snap. A night has passed, and I’ve been able to reframe the situation."

"Reframe the situation…?"

Shirou tilted his head.

"Simply put, it means consciously recognizing the difference between an emergency and normalcy, based on the information you’ve gathered. Most people unconsciously assume that they’re in a 'normal' state of affairs—but once you clearly acknowledge that you’re in an abnormal situation, your brain adjusts. That’s called 'situation redefinition.' And it’s a vital process for breaking out of a hysterical state."

"…So you’re saying there’s no risk of something going wrong right away?"

"Exactly."

My response prompted Rin to let out a long sigh.

"You sure know a lot. And more impressively, you were able to act on it in the moment."

"I owe that to a professor at my university. There was a major earthquake not too long ago, and they taught the entire class how to avoid panic during emergencies."

Silence settled over the room for a moment.

"…Well, I guess I can accept that—more or less."

"'More or less'?"

Shirou tilted his head at Rin’s phrasing.

"Of course there are still things I can’t accept. For example, about the Noble Phantasm inside you—"

"I already explained that—"

"What I can’t accept is how you knew things from before you were summoned."

Time seemed to stop at Rin’s words.

"I can accept the many odd things you’ve done up to now. But that part—I just can’t wrap my head around."

"But you heard what Saber—no, what Hino-san said earlier, right? That last time, my father used Avalon and participated in the Holy Grail War. That means he summoned Saber as a Servant, doesn’t it?"

"Emiya-kun. This is a fundamental point, so remember it well. Servants are merely terminals of Heroic Spirits. Even if the same Heroic Spirit is summoned in consecutive wars, they’re almost completely different individuals. On top of that, Hino Sato awakened their consciousness in front of you shortly after death. So it doesn’t make sense for them to have knowledge about the previous war or what happened after."

Rin’s reasoning was perfectly sound. And that’s exactly why Shirou looked at me with unease.

"…Actually, it’s not as strange as it sounds."

I spoke. Rin’s expression grew tense.

"What do you mean?"

"The one who originally owns this body—King Arthur—has not yet fully become a Heroic Spirit."

I explained. King Arthur had been unable to accept the fall of her kingdom. In exchange for entrusting her fate to the world after death, she continues the search for the Holy Grail—to prevent the ruin of her homeland.

"In short, her time is frozen right before her death."

"…This just keeps getting more absurd."

While Shirou felt sympathy for King Arthur, Rin furrowed her brows in deep skepticism.

"Last night, thanks to Shirou-kun using a Command Seal, a bit of King Arthur’s knowledge flowed into me. That’s how I came to understand the presence of Avalon inside him—and the reason it ended up there."

I spoke in a composed tone, but Rin continued to regard me with suspicion.

If everything I said was true, then the explanation made sense. But there was no way to verify any of it. And to Rin, every part of this story sounded too suspicious, too convenient.

"…What would it take for you to believe me?"

"Well… it’s hard to say. I have no concrete reason to believe anything you’ve said so far."

Just as the atmosphere between us grew as tense as a battlefield standoff, I said:

"Then I’ll prove that this body really belongs to King Arthur."

"How?"

"I’ll show you Excalibur. That’s proof enough, right? But just to be safe, call Archer too—I don’t want any misunderstandings."

"…Fine."

My proposal was decisive. If the sword truly was Excalibur, Archer, as a Heroic Spirit, would be able to tell whether it was genuine. If it turned out to be fake, the alliance would be off. Rin didn’t know what schemes I might be hiding, so she’d be prepared to eliminate me right here. As for Shirou, she could just dump him at the church afterward.

On the other hand, if the sword was real, then at least for now, she’d pause her suspicions. She wouldn’t let her guard down, but if my body really was King Arthur’s, a good chunk of her doubts would be resolved.

"Archer."

"I’m here."

At Rin’s call, Archer appeared, holding his signature black-and-white yin-yang swords.

"Alright, let’s head out to the garden for a bit…"

I rose slowly to my feet and extended a hand toward Shirou.

"Um…"

"Stay close to me, just in case."

Once Shirou stood up, I led him outside into the garden. There, I raised my invisible sword.

"…Whew. Honestly, I was a little nervous I wouldn’t be able to summon it after all this buildup."

I let out a strained chuckle, and Shirou almost tripped.

"H-Hino-san? Are you okay?"

"Ahaha… yeah, I just realized I’m kind of fumbling around, trying to recall the feeling from yesterday. Could you step back a little?"

Shirou nodded rapidly and took a few steps back. Then, I exhaled deeply and whispered:

"Wind…"

A fierce gale roared. It was as if a whirlwind had erupted, with me at its center. Bit by bit, the invisible sword began to reveal its true form.

"…Yeah. That’s the real thing."

The moment the sword fully revealed itself, all of Rin’s doubts were blown away. She didn’t even need Archer to confirm it.

Excalibur—the divine weapon forged by the stars themselves, reigning supreme among all Holy Swords. The brilliance of its blade was unmistakable. That radiance could only belong to the genuine article.

"...Yes. I can say this with certainty. That is indeed the ultimate Holy Sword. As for the one wielding it… I can’t say."

Archer muttered, his eyes fixed sharply on me.

"Rin… There’s no doubt about it. That one is an anomaly in the Holy Grail War. Eliminating them here and now would be the wiser course."

"Hold it. Just because they're an anomaly doesn’t mean we should automatically treat them as a threat. For one, their Master clearly isn’t the scheming type, and the Servant hasn’t lied. We should observe them a little longer."

"You’re being far too lenient. If they ever turn on us, they’ll be a serious threat."

"I’m well aware. I saw their true strength in last night’s fight. They definitely have the power worthy of the Saber class."

"Then—"

"But we already made an alliance, didn’t we?"

"Then break it."

"I can’t. As the head of the Tohsaka family, I won’t go back on a pact that easily. Not unless they break it first."

"Don’t say I didn’t warn you when it comes back to bite you…"

"I’ll be fine. If it comes to that, you’ll protect me, won’t you?"

Faced with Rin’s unwavering confidence, Archer let out a deep sigh.

"Honestly… trouble doesn’t just come from the enemy side, huh?"

"I’ll take that as a compliment."

"It was sarcasm, idiot."

Before Shirou and I returned after putting away the Holy Sword, Archer vanished again—silently preparing himself for the possibility of having to eliminate me and my Master.

"So… do you trust me now?"

I asked.

"...Yes. I’ll give you my trust."

"That’s enough for now."

I smiled gently.

"Make me believe in you, Saber."