Part 271: The great devil gets very angry (request)

thsgrn has donated his prize request to show off probably the funniest scene we could miss in this route. This occurs if you decide to run away from Rin at the beginning of Day 5 (this choice). Thanks, thsgrn!





The school's number one honor student exudes the aura of a cat about to pounce on her prey and tear it apart.
Discretion is the better part of valor.

"Good morning, Tohsaka. Goodbye, Tohsaka."



I sprint up the stairs.

"H-Hold on, I'm not done yet…!"
I ignore her and run into the hallway.
…I think I'm making things worse, but there's nothing more dangerous than talking to her right now.



Shinji's desk is empty.
It'd hard to face him after what happened yesterday, but I wanted to settle things.
But I can't do anything if he's not here.
Going to Shinji's house will only provoke him, so I have to come up with a way that won't involve Sakura.

"…Huh?"
There's another empty desk.
That's Issei's desk.
"That's rare. So even Issei can be absent, huh?"
I set my bag down and prepare for homeroom.



Fuji-Nee arriving before the bell rings is a rare spectacle indeed.
…I'm relieved.
I thought she slept in since she didn't come to my house this morning, but she's more energetic than usual.

Music: Gentle Everyday



"Oh, I'm eating at the cafeteria today too. I'll go with you, Saitama."
"I'll pass. I ate some meat yesterday."
"We'll pass as well… Please give it up already, guys. We're tired of the food there."

"What!? The B meal at our cafeteria is the best! The croquette tastes just like meat!"
"Well, that might be enough for you, but I don't like how the vegetables taste like meat as well."

"What about you, Emiya? The amount of people who go to the cafeteria depends on if you brought your lunch or not. Make some lunch for me sometime, will you?"
"Hey, that's no fair! Come over here, Emiya-kun. Let's trade your stuff for our sandwiches."

"Come on, you only got that at the convenience store! You're a girl and you didn't put effort into cooking!? You don't deserve our lunches! You have to make omelets if you want some of our good food!"
"Hey, that's rude! I can make an omelet. You just pour water on it and heat it up. Isn't that right, Emiya-kun?"



""""Whaaaaaaaat!!?""""
The people that didn't bring their lunch all pout in unison.
My classmates are in harmony only at times like these.



It's almost fifth period. I should sit down and get ready
"…What is this?"
I find a strange piece of paper in my desk.

Music: Stop



Music: Whirlpool of Fate 2

""
…I'm at a loss for words.
She must have disguised her handwriting, just in case.

"Tohsaka."
…It has to be her.
She's the only one that would know about "this morning".
"……"
I want to pretend I didn't see this letter, but the last line really catches my attention.

"…She must know I can see the words she scribbled out… Or maybe not."
…I really don't want to, but it's great to have a chance to talk to her.
I don't know what to do about Sakura, so I'll consult Tohsaka about it

Music: Stop





And this school is on one of them.
The back of the school isn't landscaped at all.
Instead, it is woodland that stretches across the back of the school.



Music: Premonition of a Storm



…A furious demon awaits me.

"……"
Maybe this wasn't such a good idea. I ought to go home.
But I'll be killed for sure if I turn my back to her.
I bet she'll mercilessly shower me with her magic.

"Um, I'm here, Tohsaka. What's up?"
I call out to her from the edge of the woods.
I really can't go in any further.
There would be less chance of survival if I did go into the woods.

"Hey, Tohsaka! Do you not hear me!?"
I yell out to her.
My voice echoes through the woods.

Music: Stop







Music: Gentle Everyday

Her voice comes ringing back.
She yells at me after she rushes in at me.
Her voice echoes even longer than mine.

"…Wow, that's amazing, Tohsaka. I bet they heard you in the archery range."




"Oh… Crap, you got me carried away again."
Gritting her teeth, Tohsaka backs up a step.


"Heh. It's fine, this is expected. I knew you would show up defenseless."
So…
I don't know what the deal is, but she seems to be getting angrier as we talk.

"…? What are you so mad about? Was it that embarrassing to scream out like that?"


"I-I wouldn't get mad about something as trivial as that.
What's irritating me is your harmfulness that's taken as harmless."

She glares at me.
I guess I should be nervous about being alone with her, but because of where we are, I don't panic.

"…? What do you mean by that? Are you saying I'm a wolf in sheep's clothing?"


"That's just imitation. You may be a sheep, but you are so mutated you could kill a wolf."

"…???"
I'm even more confused.
Actually… isn't a mutated sheep not a sheep anymore?


"Oh well. We don't have time to waste on chatter. Let's get to the point. I'm glad you didn't run away, Emiya-kun."
"Of course not. I can't ignore such threats. Those words themselves even felt cursed."



Then…
Tohsaka freezes once again.


"Wait, what do you mean by threats?"
"It's this."
I show her the piece of paper that was in my desk.


"Geez, don't scare me like that. I thought someone other than me lured you out here."


"You're really hasty. It's true that I was irritated, but I won't curse a memo. That's just a normal message


…Hey, why are you frowning like that?"

"……"
My expression is only natural.
Tohsaka honestly thinks that it's an ordinary memo.
Well, it doesn't really matter what she thinks of it, but the image in my head of Tohsaka Rin crumbles to dust.



"Huh? No, the letter itself was normal. But this is a threat, no matter how you look at it. Any other student would've told the teacher right away."




"I-I couldn't help it. I didn't have time, and it's not like I could write you a formal letter. So that's all I could do."

"Okay. …But you didn't have to change your handwriting. And the last line was really scary."


"That's your fault as well.
You ran away this morning, so I thought I had to write something extra to make you come here. I was being considerate when I put some emotion into it."


"Heh, fine. I don't care if you think it's a threat. You're here, and that's what matters."

She looks away angrily.
…Well, I'm glad Tohsaka knew that the memo sounded like a threat.

"Fine. So, what do you want, Tohsaka? Calling me out to a place like this… do you want to fight me?"


"If you want. But don't get me wrong. I'm not attacking you because Archer is healing his wounds. I would've taken your Command Spell this morning if he wasn't wounded.
…I really wanted to when I saw you walking around this morning, after I've told you so many times not to act carelessly."

""
I'm stunned.
So, Tohsaka is angry about…
"…? So you were worried about me, Tohsaka?"
…I don't know why, but is that the case?




"T-That's not true! I wanted to talk to you because I was concerned about what happened this morning.


You were about to say something, right? I was worried, so I decided to hear you out."

""
I'm even more surprised.
I never thought Tohsaka would insist that I consult her.


"Why are you so quiet? …It's all right, I won't force it out of you if you don't want to talk about it. I'm not angry now, so I'll go home if you have nothing to say."



"Ohhold on, Tohsaka.
I do have something I want to ask you. No, I really do need to consult you."


"Then tell me. I can keep any secret, and I'll help you if I can."

"Yeah, thanks.
…Um, this has nothing to do with you, but there's this girl called Matou Sakura.
She's a year below me, and I've known her for a long time. Her older brother is Matou Shinji, and I've known him for a long time as well.
To put it simply, I fought a Master last night, and that Master was Shinji."



"Yeah. I'm sure of it because his grandfather, Matou Zouken, told us. I heard that the Matou family is a family of magidid you know about that, Tohsaka?"


"Of course. The only magus in this town that I didn't know about is you. But I never thought it was possible. Because Shinji is…"

"He's not a magus. He doesn't have a Magic Circuit, right? That's what Matou Zouken said.
…But that's a condition to be a magus.
I think the conditions for becoming a Master are different. I'm like Shinji. You shouldn't assume that only magi can become Masters."


"……I see. So, what about Shinji? Did you defeat him?"
"Yeah. Saber defeated his Servant, Rider. His book, his Command Spell, burned up, so he isn't a Master anymore.
…But I don't think he's given up. That alone is dangerous, but on top of that, Sakura has to live with him."

"I heard from Zouken that magic only gets taught to the successor. Sakura was raised without being taught anything, so she doesn't know what Shinji is doing.
As long as she doesn't find out, she won't get involved in this war between the Masters."




"……You're right. So why do you think Sakura is in danger?"
"I told you that Shinji is dangerous right now. He might take out his anger on Sakura, and who knows what'll happen if he does something even worse.
So, um…"


"So you want to end it before Shinji involves Sakura? Your idea is good, but it's not possible. Just look at the Ryudou Temple. The other Masters are tricky. I think this Holy Grail War will last longer than expected."
""

…I see.
The best outcome would be for Shinji to give up, but that's not realistic.
The only option is to separate Sakura from Shinji


"Then there's only one possible solution. If you don't want to involve Sakura, you have to put her under your protection."
"I thought about that, but I'm a Master too.
It's too dangerous to have her at my place, and Shinji will never stand for it. Besides, I doubt she wants to stay at my house."



"Huh?"




"Never mind. Just go ahead and ask her. Protecting Sakura from Shinji and protecting her from other Masters are one and the same.
Shouldn't you choose the option that lets you do something? …Um, if this Sakura person is someone important to you."

""
Tohsaka's words hit me hard.
It feels like she smacked me upside the head.
"You're right. You're absolutely right. I should ask her before I start worrying about what I think."


"……"

"Thanks, Tohsaka. I'll try to convince Sakura once I get home… Hey, why are you quiet all of a sudden?"


"Nothing. I'm quiet because this is nothing you have to thank me for.


But I owe you one now. I didn't think you'd tell me that Shinji was a Master.
I guess I have to show you one of my cards as well."

"What? One of your cards…?"


"I have to give you information. The information that Shinji was a Master helps me out, so I'll give you some information I have as well.
You know about the people who have gone into comas around town, right?
That's a Servant's doing, and the Master is at the Ryudou Temple."

"…!? Oh, you were saying something about the Ryudou Temple earlier. …Wait, that Ryudou Temple?"

"Yes. They're cunning enemies, so watch out if you're planning on attacking them. They aren't taking lives, but they are attacking indiscriminately.
Since they're getting stronger by the day, I want to beat them as soon as possible, but the wound Archer suffered hasn't healed yet.
Well, I'm going to sit and watch for a while since they can only use a set amount of magical energy at once, no matter how much magical energy they may store."

""
…A Master is at the Ryudou Temple.
Tohsaka is doing her best as a Master, even though her Servant isn't fully healed yet.



Goodbye, Emiya-kun. You should go home quickly and comfort your precious underclassman."

"Hey, Tohsaka…!"
I stop Tohsaka, but she ignores me and walks to the archery range.

"…?"
…What was that?
Tohsaka was in a bad mood all this time, but something was different at the end there.



Music: Stop

Because I find it amusing, here's the Japanese version of the letter: