Fuyuki City International Airport, 2:17 p.m.
A small white private jet came to a stop on the apron at the end of the runway.
A string of identification numbers on its tail gave no indication of its affiliation.
When the cabin door opened, the November sea breeze rushed straight in, sweeping away every trace of warmth inside.
The first person to emerge was Irisviel von Einzbern, her long hair silvery white.
She stood at the top of the boarding stairs, both hands on the railings, her wine-red eyes wide open.
Her gaze swept from the concrete beneath her feet to the distant terminal, then farther still, to the hazy outline of Fuyuki City.
Her lips parted.
Her white breath dispersed in the cold air.
"Saber-is this Japan?"
Half a step behind her, Artoria Pendragon also emerged from the cabin.
If a passerby had seen her from a distance, they probably would have mistaken her for a young man in a black suit.
Her blond hair was tied neatly behind her head; she wore a white shirt, a black tie, and brightly polished leather shoes, and her posture was impeccable.
Artoria.
King of Britain, the one who drew Caliburn, wielder of the holy sword Excalibur, and the Saber-class Servant in this Fourth Holy Grail War.
She was now dressed in men's clothing, serving as Irisviel's escort and bodyguard.
"Yes, madam. This is Fuyuki City."
Artoria's voice was steady.
She first surveyed her surroundings, confirming that nothing was amiss, before turning slightly aside to clear the way toward the terminal.
Irisviel carefully descended the boarding stairs.
Before each step, she glanced down at her feet.
The hem of her white coat swayed gently in the wind.
Once she reached the ground, she gave a light stamp of her foot.
"It's different from the castle's flagstone paths."
Artoria did not respond to that.
She simply stood beside her, watching the tiny smile on Irisviel's face.
This homunculus, who had never taken a single step beyond the old Einzbern Castle since her birth, had only now truly set foot in the outside world.
Artoria's gaze softened for a moment.
Then she reined it back in.
Because when the plane had descended into the skies above Fuyuki City, her Instinct had sounded once.
It was not a warning of something about to happen, but a feeling of something constantly pressing down from overhead.
There was something in the sky.
She could not see it or hear it clearly, and its magical energy fluctuations were suppressed to a very low level.
Even so, Artoria's rank A Instinct had alerted her.
Something was there.
And it would not be easy to deal with.
She did not tell Irisviel immediately.
It was not yet time.
Daytime was not a time for fighting in the first place, and she had to find out exactly what it was first.
Whether it was a Servant's Noble Phantasm, some sort of wide-area bounded field, or something else.
Get madam safely to Einzbern Castle first, then deal with it.
That was the decision she made at the terminal exit.
Thirty minutes later, however, that decision was overturned.
The reason was simple.
As the shuttle drove along Shinto's main road, Irisviel pressed herself right up against the window.
The shops lining both sides of the road, the neon signs, the light spilling out of convenience stores, the schoolgirl riding past on a bicycle, the roadside vending machines, and the rows of drink cans inside them were all new to her.
"Saber, what's that? So many lights..."
"Those are the signs along the shopping street, madam."
"What about over there? That square box with all those colorful cans inside?"
"A vending machine. You can buy drinks by putting coins in."
"Just by putting coins in-how amazing..."
Seated behind her, Artoria watched her looking around and talking, remaining silent for a few seconds.
Then she spoke.
"Madam."
"Hm?"
"Is this your first time leaving the castle in Germany?"
Irisviel turned her head, her long silvery-white hair brushing across the seat back.
"Yes. I've been in the castle ever since I was born."
She said it very calmly.
"I've only ever seen the world outside the castle in books and photographs."
Artoria looked at her for a while.
"...Let's take a look around."
"Huh?"
"Daytime is a truce. Since we're here, we should at least let you see this city with your own eyes."
Irisviel froze for a moment.
Then her whole face lit up.
Over the next three hours, Artoria accompanied Irisviel along most of the main road through Fuyuki's shopping district.
The silver-haired homunculus stopped at every shop window, staring at the goods inside for ages.
She could hold an ordinary ceramic cat ornament in her hands and examine it for two full minutes.
She also held an elegantly packaged box of wagashi for a long time before finally bringing herself to put it back.
Artoria followed behind her the whole time, shielding her from pedestrians she nearly collided with, buying her the little trinkets she spent so long hesitating over, and pulling her back when she almost reached out to touch an escalator.
Irisviel kept smiling.
As Artoria watched that smiling face, something inside her relaxed a little too.
After they finished browsing the shopping street, neither knew who suggested it first, but the two headed toward the sea.
The coastline near Fuyuki Port, after five in the evening.
The sky was changing.
The setting sun spread across the horizon, dividing the sky into several layers of color. The farthest reaches tended toward purple, a little cool blue lingered overhead, and broad swathes of orange-red and gold lay between.
Light scattered across the sea in patches, only to be shattered again by the waves.
Irisviel took off her shoes.
She stepped barefoot onto the beach, recoiling from the cold at first, then taking another two steps forward.
The leading edge of sea foam rolled up and touched the tops of her feet.
"So cold-!"
The sea breeze blew her long silvery-white hair back, and the hem of her white coat swayed with it.
She held up her coat hem with one hand and reached toward the sea with the other, touching the splashing spray.
She was laughing.
Her voice was drowned out by the sea breeze and the waves, sounding a little distant.
Artoria stood behind her, carrying Irisviel's shoes and the two paper bags from their shopping that day.
The sunset shone on her from the front, leaving a bright rim along the shoulders of her black suit.
Her emerald-green eyes remained fixed on the figure stepping through the waves by the shore.
The corners of her mouth shifted slightly.
Then she reined them back in.