Chapter 25: Day 7 ③

Walking along the school route toward the school. Even though I walk the same path every morning, this morning, I felt nothing but a sense of unease.

I know the reason. There are an unusually small number of students around me and Tohsaka. By this time, students practicing for morning club activities are usually on their way, so there is a line of students near the school. Despite that, there are no people around us, as if a crater has formed.

I can feel my body stiffening up from the significant number of gazes coming from the outside. It must be because Tohsaka is walking beside me. Even Tohsaka seems out of sorts, looking somewhat uncomfortable as she walks next to me.

Besides, usually at this time, groups of friends would be chatting, but there isn’t the usual noisy hustle and bustle of students. What happened? While pondering this question, I suddenly realized that the school gate was right in front of us.

“Emiya-kun, things might be getting pretty serious.”

“Serious?”

Tohsaka said this while looking at the school wall. I didn't know what was serious. I walked through the school gate while asking her again.

“Ugh!?”

My vision was stained red and distorted. It felt like walking through a mud swamp. It wasn't that my body itself was heavy. It was a heaviness like when one is mentally exhausted and the body doesn’t move as intended.

“What is this…?”

“We destroyed one of their bases the other day, so we should have had about two more days. But it seems they are forcibly channeling magical energy from outside to create a Bounded Field.”

Tohsaka muttered quietly so only I could hear, scanning the surroundings.

Following Tohsaka's lead, I looked around and noticed the students lacked energy too. Everyone was looking down, trudging toward the school building with their eyes fixed on the ground.

“Has it already materialized as a Bounded Field?”

“It's still okay for now. But it seems to have reached the point where it's just about to activate.”

“In that case, we should call Lia and Alto…”

“You’re right. We can't have them inside the school, but it might be better to have them stand by nearby. For now, I’ll tell Alto to come to the woods behind the school.”

Right, Telepathy, wasn’t it? Since Lia and I can't do it, I don't really know what it's like, but it seems to be something that can be used normally between a Master and a Servant. Tohsaka and Alto also had some imperfections, so they couldn't materialize as spirits like Liah, but it was still a proper, procedural Summoning.

“I wouldn't do something so foolish as to make a move this early in the day, but we don't know what the enemy is thinking.”

With that, the conversation ended, and Tohsaka began to walk.

After walking a short distance, I saw a familiar face drinking water at the faucet by the school grounds. As I approached to greet her, she seemed to notice us too. She walked toward us across the schoolyard, still in her Kyudo uniform.

“Hey, isn’t it Tohsaka and Emiya?”

“Mitsuzuri-san, good morning.”

“Good morning.”

Tohsaka instantly put on her pleasant facade and returned the greeting. Having gotten used to the real Tohsaka, seeing the current Tohsaka inexplicably sends a chill down my spine.

“Ah, good morning. You two are getting along well early in the morning, though. Are you two, perhaps, dating?”

“Eh? Ah, no… ouch!”

“Yes, we’ve been dating since the other day.”

Tohsaka smiled and replied, cutting off my words. Mitsuzuri chuckled, saying "I see," and patted me on the shoulder.

Tohsaka, I think it's a bit much to step on my foot so hard just because I hesitated a little.

“So, who confessed to whom?”

“Eh?”  "Eh?"

Tohsaka and I instinctively looked at each other's faces. Mitsuzuri was looking at our reaction with great interest.

Right, this was something we should have known would be asked if we thought about it for a moment. Somehow, we hadn't discussed this part. Dealing with the Servants and the Bounded Field had preoccupied us.

I looked at Tohsaka in front of me, and she had an expression that perfectly conveyed the word 'careless,' thinking hard.

Come to think of it, I'm looking at Tohsaka this closely. Ugh, my face must be red. — No, the problem is how to respond to Mitsuzuri.

“Uh…”

I managed to make a sound, but it didn't solve the problem.

Maybe it’s better to say I confessed to her. I don't mean to imply any disgrace, but Tohsaka wouldn’t want to be stained with the fact that she confessed to a guy she doesn't like.

“I confessed to Tohsaka,” “I confessed to Emiya-kun.”

A voice overlapped mine. I inferred the source was next to me. Tohsaka next to me was looking at me with a surprised face. I'm sure I was looking back at Tohsaka with the same surprised expression.

In any case, the stories will contradict each other if we keep this up. I have to follow Tohsaka's lead and move the conversation forward.

“No, Tohsaka confessed to me,” “No, Emiya-kun confessed to me.”

“~~~!”

Tohsaka quickly brought her face close to my ear. Mitsuzuri seemed to have found our actions hilarious, literally laughing with her hands on her stomach, and didn't even have the leisure to look at us.

“Shiro, why are you changing your story so easily when I’m trying to go along with you?”

She whispered to me, blushing and looking awkward. Even in this situation, that gesture made my heart race.

“Well, I was also trying to go along with you, Tohsaka…”

“Ah, fine! I’ll say I confessed to you, then. Shiro, you stick to that, got it?”

“Ah, but is that really okay with you, Tohsaka?”

“Whether it’s okay or not…”

“Hey, what are you two talking about, leaving me out?”

Tohsaka was interrupted by Mitsuzuri just as she finished her sentence. It seemed Mitsuzuri had recovered at some point.

“Oh well, Tohsaka beat me to it, huh… So Tohsaka, what about the promise?”

“The promise?”

“Eh? No, more importantly, what about the earlier question?”

I couldn't follow the preceding conversation. We had agreed on how to deal with the question, and then the question itself suddenly disappeared. Anyone, not just me, would be confused.

“If it’s hard to say, you don’t have to. Emiya seems to know the real Tohsaka anyway. I asked because I wanted to know if you were serious, but now I know it’s for real.”

Mitsuzuri told us the reason, concluding the matter herself.

Tohsaka’s face flushed bright red. When she reacts like that, it makes me blush too, damn it.

“Ah, the promise you mean?”

“Yeah, that.”

“…No, let’s void it.”

“Huh? Are you sure? I won’t listen if you bring it up later, you know?”

Mitsuzuri asked Tohsaka. Her face looked somewhat disappointed. Tohsaka, on the other hand, also looked like she had some regrets.

“Yes. …Besides, it would be rude to Emiya-kun, wouldn't it? Something like that.”

I don’t know what the promise was or what "that" referred to, but Tohsaka and Mitsuzuri seemed satisfied and laughed together.

Wait, am I involved? I can't think of anything related to Mitsuzuri and Tohsaka that involves me.

“Tohsaka, you’ve changed. Is it because you got a boyfriend after all?”

“Yes, well. I have some circumstances.”

Tohsaka said this and quickly averted her gaze from Mitsuzuri. I could only see the back of her head, so I didn't know what kind of face she was making, but I guessed it was bright red.

As for me, I can't stay calm either, since the "boyfriend" she mentioned refers to me.

“Still, don't you have something you needed?”

“Ah, I had something I wanted to ask Emiya. Do you know where the Matou siblings are?”

“The Matou siblings, you mean Sakura too!?”

I understand Shinji. He is also a Master in this Holy Grail War, so he might be away from home for some reason or avoiding me and Tohsaka.

“Yeah, he didn't come to school yesterday, and he wasn't at morning practice today. He should at least contact us. We can’t call them because the house doesn’t answer, and neither of them has a mobile phone.”

Shinji had skipped morning practice before, but he wasn’t the type to randomly miss school. The fact that he hasn’t contacted anyone is concerning, but maybe it’s within the acceptable range since he’s a Master. However, Sakura is usually stubborn enough to try and go to school even if she’s slightly unwell, so what happened to her?

Thinking that far, a possibility occurred to me. — What if they can't contact us, instead of just not contacting us?

A Servant—Lancer, whom I’ve met—pierces and kills Shinji’s Servant, whom I haven’t seen yet, with that red spear. Shinji flees to the Matou residence in an unexpected turn of events. Lancer pursues him. He throws objects within reach at the blue man, but of course, such things have no effect on a Servant. Lancer sighs at the desperation of Shinji and launches his spear. The red spear rushes toward his chest, piercing Shinji and pinning his body to the wall. Red liquid leaks from his mouth. The flow of blood is stopped by the demonic spear, and Shinji’s heart will soon stop. Sakura, who was at home, screams when she sees Shinji pierced by the spear and rushes to shake his shoulder. Lancer pulls the spear out of Shinji, intending to leave no witnesses, and points its tip at Sakura…

I shook my head, trying to erase the images spontaneously flowing through my mind. What was I thinking? I felt angry at myself and bit my back teeth. Tohsaka seemed to have arrived at a similar thought, wearing a complex expression that was angry at herself for thinking such a thing yet also anxious.

“Emiya? And Tohsaka, too. What’s wrong?”

“Ah, no. Nothing. I’m sorry, but I don’t know. Sakura hasn’t been to my house recently.”

“I see, sorry Emiya. Considering the recent incidents, perhaps I should go check on their house if they’re still absent tomorrow.”

That would be bad. Mitsuzuri might get caught up in it.

“No, I'll go. I have some business with him anyway. Mitsuzuri, you’re busy as the club captain, aren’t you?”

“Hmm, can I ask you to do that? I’ve been feeling out of sorts these past few days, and my body feels heavy right now.”

Mitsuzuri sighed and rolled her shoulders while looking into the distance.

“Ayako, are you okay staying in that attire? Homeroom is about to start soon.”

“Ah, right. Sorry for holding you up.”

Saying that, Mitsuzuri lifted one hand, looking somewhat listless, and headed toward the Kyudo dojo.

“Tohsaka.”

“…Yes. I know what you want to say. But first, let’s deal with this Bounded Field.”

Tohsaka said, biting her lip. I opened the fist I had clenched at some point, belatedly noticing the pain in my finger joints from clenching too hard.