All around were people who had already turned to charcoal.
But she didn't want to die.
Black mud and flames—both sides were hell.
But... she didn't want to die.
The "humanoid" wrapped in black mud crawled out of the mire bit by bit with stubborn determination, then collapsed onto the open ground.
The fire spread toward her.
"I can't believe you survived something like this, my daughter..."
"Mm. It truly is—nothing short of a miracle." Another voice spoke as well.
The two voices were nearly identical, yet one was icy and the other gentle. Though their voices were the same, anyone who heard them would probably immediately be able to tell that two different people were speaking.
[What's going on?]
[Shirou died right at the start?]
[??? Wait, why do these voices sound kind of familiar?]
[Masaka?!]
[A brand-new development!]
[A path no one ever imagined!]
[Woohoo, we're taking off]
The dying child was swallowed by darkness just like that.
Yet death did not come.
"Thank goodness! There's still someone alive!"
"You won't die...!"
"...Thank goodness, you survived... Thank goodness..."
It seemed to be a man's sobbing voice.
The sound of crying echoed around her ears.
When the young child slowly opened her eyes, an unfamiliar ceiling lay before her.
Her injuries had clearly been so severe, yet she had survived in the end.
It was as though it had all been a dream.
The nurse arrived first.
Perhaps because the burns had been too severe, the child's entire body was wrapped in bandages, making it impossible to confirm her identity.
"Hello. What's your name?"
Her name...
Ah, right.
"S--Shi--ro--u"
"Shirou... white? That's strange... Is that really a name...? Could you be from out of town...?"
The nurse seemed to search through some records, but apparently found nothing. She looked