Two girls stood on a street covered in ashes.
Ritsuka Fujimaru looked up at the dark red sky, her orange eyes reflecting the firelight of distant buildings.
"Is this... really Fuyuki City in 2004?"
Mash stood beside her, her dark purple knight armor stained with white dust brought by the Spiritron Transfer.
A large cross-shaped shield stands in front of him, with the shield facing outwards.
"Senior, please do not leave my defensive range. The environment here is filled with abnormal magical reactions, and we may be attacked at any time."
Ritsuka Fujimaru nodded.
She turned around and looked around.
Ruins are everywhere.
The road surface cracked, the building was burned down to its frame, and the air was filled with ash and the smell of burning.
This is completely different from the Fuyuki City of 2004 shown in the Chaldea database.
The information describes Fuyuki City as an ordinary coastal city in Japan, with shopping streets, residential areas, schools, and parks.
The Fuyuki City before me is a scorched wasteland.
"Senior, it seems communication hasn't been restored yet."
Mash raised her left wrist.
The communication bracelet issued by Chaldea lit up briefly, then went out.
The signal is intermittent.
The process of Spiritron Transfer consumed a large amount of energy, Chaldea headquarters was in a semi-paralyzed state after the explosion.
The communication system needs time to restart.
The two waited in place for about two minutes.
The communication bracelet suddenly lit up.
Blue light emanated from the bracelet, condensing into a semi-transparent humanoid phantom in front of the two.
She had long, light orange hair tied in a low ponytail, emerald green eyes, and wore a white doctor's coat.
Rome Archiman.
Head of the Chaldea medical department.
He is currently the highest-ranking survivor in Chaldea.
" Fujimaru! Mash! Are you alright?!"
Dr. Roman's voice came through the communicator, carrying a clear mix of tension and relief.
"We're fine, doctor."
Ritsuka Fujimaru stared at the blue phantom.
"Is this... the target location for the Spiritron Transfer? Everything is burning."
"Yes, you are currently inside Singularity F. The coordinates correspond to Fuyuki City on January 30, 2004."
Dr. Roman's phantom image brought up a simple data panel.
"But as you can see, this place is completely different from the normal Fuyuki City of 2004."
The Human Order Foundation Value was only at level C, the lowest of all Singularity. The entire city was engulfed in Magecraft fire, and all human residents perished.
Ritsuka Fujimaru bit her lip.
"All?"
"All."
"And the situation is extremely urgent. Chaldea is also in complete disarray."
He paused for a moment.
" Fujimaru- kun, you are now the only one among the 48 prospective Master of Chaldea who is still able to move."
"What about the others?"
"In the previous explosion, most Master survived, but were left in a near-death state. Only you and Mash can handle the current emergency."
Ritsuka Fujimaru silent for a few seconds.
She glanced at Mash beside her.
Mash looked back at her with her purple eyes and nodded slightly.
"Understood."
Ritsuka Fujimaru took a deep breath.
So what should we do now?
"First, we need to explore this burning city, gather intelligence, and identify the core anomaly source of the Singularity— "
Dr. Roman stopped midway through his sentence.
A red warning box suddenly popped up on the data panel.
Roman's emerald green eyes widened.
"What?"
He quickly navigated the control panel and brought up more detailed data.
" Chaldea's magic perception system has just been partially repaired..."
His voice was trembling.
"What's wrong, doctor?"
Ritsuka Fujimaru watched his changing expression, a feeling of unease spreading through her chest.
"Nearby..."
Dr. Roman stared at the data panel.
His face looked terrible.
"There is a being nearby... whose magical power is extremely, extremely terrifying."
He scrolled through the data rapidly.
"This magical wavelength... this density... no, this is impossible..."
Roman's fingers paused for a moment.
His emerald green pupils contracted.
"Wait a minute. This wavelength pattern... if you don't look closely, you'd almost think it's a Beast-level reaction."
"Beast?"
Mash's expression changed as well.
Beast.
Evil of Humanity.
That is a calamity-level existence far surpassing that of Servant.
No, it's not the Beast.
Dr. Roman took a deep breath, forcing himself to calm down.
"Each Beast's magical wavelength has unique characteristics."
"The wavelength pattern of this reaction does not belong to any known Beast individuals."
"But... even if it's not the Beast, this level of magical reaction is definitely beyond your current capabilities."
Dr. Roman's ghostly figure stared directly at the two girls.
" Fujimaru- kun, and Mash too."
"Run!"
"There's something terrifying nearby. Get out of there immediately."
Ritsuka Fujimaru and Mash exchanged a glance.
Both of them looked a little bewildered.
They had been at this Singularity for less than five minutes.
They haven't even figured out which way is north, south, east, or west.
They were told that there was a terrifying being nearby, almost at the level of the Beast.
Dr. Roman's tone didn't sound like he was joking.
The doctor, who seemed a bit unreliable, was now genuinely trembling.
"Run east."
Roman pulled up a simplified map.
There's a fairly intact street about 300 meters to the east. Let's get there first.
"Quick!"
Ritsuka Fujimaru took off running.
Mash stood beside her, shield in hand, protecting her right side with the shield's surface.
The two girls started running on the road paved with broken bricks and ashes.
On the rooftop, 150 meters away.
Mayuri squatted on the edge of the concrete slab, watching the two people suddenly turn and run away.
Her rose-red eyes blinked twice.
"?"
Who were they talking to?
Mayuri observed the two girls from a distance after they stopped.
Mayuri could not see Roman's phantom.
The communication Projection of Chaldea is only visible to the two parties communicating; it cannot be observed by any third party.
So from Mayuri's perspective, the two girls just stood there talking to thin air for a few moments, then suddenly their expressions changed drastically, and they turned and ran away.
It was very sudden.
Mayuri tilted her head.
Why did they run away?
Have you sensed some danger?
Are there other enemies nearby?
Mayuri's senses swept around.
There was no reaction from other Servant or monsters within 300 meters.
Just her alone.
"... Never mind, let's go after them and see."
Mayuri rose from the rooftop, gently flapped her black wings, and silently followed.
She maintained Presence Reduction, keeping her flight altitude around 20 to 30 meters, and maintaining a distance of more than 100 meters from the two running girls.
Ahead.
Ritsuka Fujimaru and Mash ran about two hundred meters along the east side of the street.
The streets were lined with partially collapsed buildings, and the ground was covered with dust and broken glass.
As I ran to an intersection, a white flash suddenly appeared ahead.
The aftermath of the Spiritron Transfer.
More people have been brought in.
After the white light dissipated, a person stood in the middle of the crossroads.
Long silver hair.
Her face was delicate, but it carried a strong sense of unease and Wrath.
Olga Marie Animusphere.
Director of Chaldea.
She stood there, looking somewhat dizzy.
The dizziness from the Spiritron Transfer hadn't subsided yet.
Her long silver hair was stained grayish-white by the ashes, and she raised her hand to rub her temples.
Then she saw two people running towards her.
" Fujimaru? And Mash? What's wrong with you guys—"
Olga Marie hadn't even had a chance to ask her complete question.
Ritsuka Fujimaru ran up to her and grabbed her wrist.
"Director, run!"
"What?"
"Explain as you run, the important thing is to get out of here first!"
Mash shielded Olga Marie from the other side.
The three of them ran east together.
Olga Marie was carried by two people for more than ten steps before she realized what was happening.
"Wait, wait, wait! What are you running for! Let me go! I'm the director! You can't drag me like this!"
"The doctor said there's a terrifying entity nearby that's almost as big as the Beast!"
Ritsuka Fujimaru explained, panting as she ran.
"Beast?!"
Olga Marie's face turned pale instantly.
She stopped struggling.
She even ran faster than Ritsuka Fujimaru.
"Why is there a Beast?! Isn't this Singularity F?! Someone tell me what's going on?!"
"A lot happened at Chaldea after the explosion, Director. Let's get to a safe place first and then we can talk in detail."
The three of them rounded a bend and stumbled forward across the pile of rubble.
More than a hundred meters behind us in the air.
Mayuri followed behind.
Her presence was minimized, and she flew almost silently.
But she overheard the conversation between the three people in front of her.
The Servant's hearing far surpasses that of humans; a distance of one hundred meters is no problem at all.
"... The doctor said there's a terrifying entity nearby, almost at the level of the Beast..."
Mayuri heard those words.
Then she stopped.
The wings remained fixed in the air.
Approaching Beast level.
Terror exists.
They were nearby.
Mayuri glanced back.
There was nothing after that.
She scanned the area with her senses.
There were no other Servant, monsters, or any unusual reactions nearby.
Just her alone.
Mayuri looked down at herself.
Black wings.
Dark red Astral Dress.
A red and black halo above his head.
The magnitude of the magical reaction within the Spirit Origin.
oh.
Mayuri understood.
They were running from a "terrifying being close to the level of a Beast".
It was herself.