2,368Sword and Shield
A New World 1
The rustling of the wind could be heard as a solid breeze made leaves in their thousands shiver. Unfortunately, there was no one around to hear the clear, crisp noise. Neither in the forest nor in the well-hidden clearing that could be found at the very center of the forest in question.
Which is exactly why no one was there to watch the ensuing spectacle.
Suddenly, with no forewarning whatsoever, a magic circle spun into existence dead center in the clearing. One moment, there was nothing. The next, geometrical lines rapidly etched themselves into existence, errant magical energy sparking up and down the complex spell in the form of a magic circle.
A surge of blinding energy later, and two people materialized in the clearing. Two demi-humans, one clad in light armor while the other bore an elegant kimono.
A deep breath was taken, then released. "It feels good to be out in the world again, Shirou-sama," Atla said.
"You could say that again," Shirou agreed, his sharp red eyes scanning their surroundings for any would be threats. "And a whole new world at that…"
They had been in this world for an indeterminate amount of time already, as it was impossible to keep an accurate gauge of the passage time stuck underground. However, as they had been sequestered away in a Dungeon until now, they had yet to truly experience this world. Almost as if the Dungeon had been a challenge they had to overcome before getting the right to enter this reality in full.
If so, Shirou found that the 'challenge' was not equal to the 'reward.' The world that greeted them as soon as they emerged was as mundane as any other: a clearing in a forest, with only lush green grasses underneath their feet as the magic circle that had teleported them from the Dungeon into the wide open world faded away from view, having finished doing its designed purpose.
As he took in his first true view of this reality, Shirou idly glanced at Atla.
It had been a solid week since they had cleared the Dungeon. After their first night there, they continued to explore the premises in depth. Unfortunately, except for a few odd knickknacks, they had found nothing of real value. There was a wealth of books and scrolls hidden away in the temple, but as they were written in a language Shirou did not understand, and with Atla being blind, those books and scrolls might as well have been mere paperweights to them.
Kind of aggravating, actually, since he was fairly certain that the secrets of the temple and the Dungeon – their purpose and history – was probably contained within those writings. Shirou had to admit that he had come to harbor a burning curiosity for said knowledge, even if he did already have a pretty solid theory regarding that subject.
During their stay at the temple, Shirou had taken the time necessary to reforge and fix the damage done to his armor in the last stretch of their Dungeon crawl. To say that the Flame and Shadow Lord had done a number on his equipment would be an understatement. Still, with his prodigious skill, fixing his mangled armor had not taken all that long.
He had similarly tended to Atla's equipment as well. Not only to fix the damage said equipment had endured, but also to resize her clothes. After her sudden growth spurt into a young adult who was only a head and a half smaller than himself, Atla's kimono – just like all her other pieces of equipment – no longer fit. Thankfully, as intended, the mostly made out of silk and cloth 'armor' had been easy to enlarge for her new, considerably larger frame.
Except for that, he had also taken the time necessary for one final project. It had been an idea to further upgrade a tool both he and Atla had made use of vociferously down in the Dungeon, one that might be even more useful out in the wide open world than it had already been proven to be in life combat.
However, even combined, all three tasks had barely even taken him a day. The rest of their remaining time in the temple before they had emerged had mostly been spent training and sparring, which translated into getting Atla used to fighting with a young adult body that had far greater mass and reach than what she'd ever experienced before.
She had grown used to it quickly, though. And she was a more effective fighter for it.
"See or sense anything?"
"Nothing of note, Shirou-sama," was Atla's prompt response.
Translation: no enemy, monster or any sort of obstacle was anywhere near them. A stroke of good fortune, that.
"Shall we?" Atla nodded towards the forest ahead of them.
"Let's head out," Shirou agreed and moved to take the very first step into this new world-
"!"
Only to seemingly choke on air and stumble, as a faint blush worked itself onto his cheeks. With a reproachful look, Shirou looked to his side and down at Atla, who grinned cheekily back up at him. The reason for his sudden fumble? Atla's black and white striped tail had suddenly swung towards him, looping multiple times around his own bushy tail in the same movement, wrapping it up tightly.
"…Really?"
"I don't see the problem, Shirou-sama," Atla said airily. "We're a couple now, right? Intertwining our tails is not all that different from holding hands, isn't it?"
No sooner had she said that, and Atla had slipped her hand into his, lacing her fingers with his own. Blush deepening a tad, Shirou found that his frazzled mind could not come up with a rebuttal.
This manner of scene was something happening on the regular now. Ever since clearing the Dungeon, there was one thing that had thrown him for a loop: Atla's sudden forwardness. The demihuman girl in question had always been forward, but after they had gotten – ahem – intimate for the very first time, whatever little hang ups Atla might have had were gone entirely.
Holding hands, intertwining tails, kissing, cuddling, and sitting in his lap. All of that sweetness and more, Atla would regularly initiate whenever she got half the opportunity required.
It was more affection than Shirou knew what to do with. And he most definitely enjoyed it, even if it was overwhelming. Not only in the intimacy department, but also in what was expected from him now. Because, quite frankly, he wasn't quite sure what was expected from him.
Just Like Atla had said, they were a couple now, right? Atla was his girlfriend, and Shirou was her boyfriend. The only problem was that Shirou was not quite sure how to act in that capacity. After all, he was quite a bit younger than he looked, and he had little to no experience to speak off.
What did it even truly mean to be a couple? It obviously entailed more than just intimacy and trust, but he was not quite sure what.
In spite of her even younger age, Atla was much more sure of herself in that regard than he. To the point that Shirou was growing annoyed with himself whenever a token of Atla's affection left him bamboozled. Which, in turn, led to sincere and affectionate, but also quite awkward responses from him.
The question of how one was supposed to act as a boyfriend, to be someone's significant other, would have to wait for later. Now, in order to find a way back to their own reality, they were about to set out and explore this brave new world.
Not trusting himself to speak, Shirou began to walk with no further comment. Humming in satisfaction, Atla matched his pace as they set out into the woods.
However, Shirou had to admit, as the warmth of Atla's fingers and the softness of her tail remained ever present as they walked, that said question remained firmly lodged in the back of his mind.
As this world was completely unknown to them, Shirou and Atla had no solid idea of where they were going. They entirely lacked knowledge about the nations, the cultures, and the customs of this reality that were bound to exist. Some people would say that they lacked the 'common sense' required to navigate and find their way in this world.
And that's why they had no other choice but to do something that went entirely against common sense: pick a random direction and keep going until you hopefully find something that can point you to – if not to something immediately useful to your goal – at least towards anything you can use to orient yourself by for the rest of the journey.
In that, they were lucky. Barely an hour into their journey, they found a large river cutting through the forest. Deciding to follow the river, Atla and Shirou emerged from the forest over two hours later, appearing at the edge of a field of-
"…Rice paddies?"
Shirou blinked as the familiar sight of a flooded field of arable land used for growing semi aquatic crops – like rice – came into view. He and Atla were standing on a tall hill just beyond the tree line, bordering on an expansive field of rice paddies. The regularly segmented and grid-like pieces of arable land suddenly felt very nostalgic to the displaced youth from Japan.
"And more importantly, a road," Atla added.
Indeed, cutting right through the expansive field of rice paddies was a large road, made entirely from tightly packed earth. Nonetheless, the road in question was broad enough for two horse-drawn carriages to ride on it side by side. The road was also a little elevated compared to the fields of rice paddies, so you could keep your feet dry as you traveled.
It was, quite clearly, a well maintained road that was bound to lead somewhere. In other words, their first solid lead to anything ever since leaving the Dungeon.
They made their way towards the road, idly noting that only a few people were working in the fields.
Was it still early or late in the day? Neither knew for certain at this point.
Shirou idly noted that the people working in the rice paddy fields were all humans. There were no demi-humans or something more exotic to be seen. A few of the workers glanced up at Shirou and Atla as they stepped onto the road proper, but quickly returned to their work without another backward glance at the pair. Evidently, he nor Atla were interesting to them.
The demi-humans continued to travel down the road, keeping to a brisk but measured pace. Other people using the road were seen commonly, the vast majority of them decked out in stereotypical and old-fashioned farmer's clothing. An occasional horse-drawn carriage trundling past broke up this monotony.
On top of that, the both of them had noticed something rather important.
"…I guess your precautions were probably valid, Shirou-sama," Atla murmured.
"It pays to be well-prepared, especially in a completely alien environment," Shirou noted. As he said that, he idly ran a finger over the ring he had on his right ring finger.
Ruby Ring of Illusions – Enchantment: Noise Cancellation (ingrained spell) / Scent Cancellation (ingrained spell) / User Link: Jade Ring of Illusions (ingrained spell) / Illusion Magic: invisibility/disguise [self] (ingrained spell)].
Now that Shirou had finally managed to grasp the full basics of illusion magic down in the Dungeon, he thought it prudent to further upgrade both his Ruby Ring and Atla's Jade Ring. After all, now that he himself could use illusions adequately enough, adding illusion-based Enchantments was now possible through the use of Blessings.
With the added ingrained spell of Illusion Magic: invisibility/disguise [self], these accessories now also had the ability to make their users invisible and could also freely edit their user's appearance, overlaying them with an illusionary appearance that hid their true looks from view.
They would just need to activate the accessory, supply magical energy, and imagine what they wanted themselves to look like, and viola. Instant appearance change.
Shirou could have simply used his magic to achieve the same results. However, by instead using an accessory to do so, Atla could now do the same without him through the use of her Jade Ring of Illusions. On top of that, magical energy use was quite a bit lower than if he were to use a proper illusion spell, and it required no focus from him at all. Their ring accessories would maintain their invisibility or disguise so long as they had the magical energy to spare…and so long as nothing were to otherwise disrupt the illusion, of course.
Though Shirou and Atla looked the exact same as they always did to each other, anyone else that looked at them did not see them as they truly were. Their hair and eye colors had been changed, the clothes they wore appeared different and much more plain, and their accessories were rendered invisible while their tails and animal ears were similarly imperceptible to others.
And this was important because they had yet to see any demi-humans on the road or in the fields. If this was because they were in a human majority country or that demi-humans didn't exist in this reality – a possibility that Shirou had considered and exactly why he had upgraded their stealth based accessories in the first place – they didn't know, but with their 'extra' bits hidden, it was a moot point. Currently, they didn't appear out of place at all.
They maintained their brisk pace. It didn't take them long to reach a village, built around the very road that cut through it like a knife. The village itself wasn't all that big, with less than a thousand people calling it home, Shirou reckoned.
The homes of those people were made out of a framework of wood, with large pillars supporting the structures. Instead of glass windows, translucent Shoji panels made out of paper stretched on wooden frames allowed light to filter in, while roofs of interwoven rice straw blocked out the elements from above. Wooden verandas ringed every single house, from which people could enter the homes proper through sliding and opaque paper doors.
In simple terms, the homes in the village were outright Japanese in their design. This, combined with the road of packed dirt bisecting the village and the rice paddies stretching out in every direction around it, made the town a dead ringer for an old Japanese farming village.
The sight had Shirou cocking his head in surprise. What were the odds that this country, whatever it was called, had aesthetics similar to his place of origin? As a matter of fact, the people he had seen out and about – with the proper clothing, of course – would not have been out of place in
Japan…
"…"
As Atla and Shirou entered the village proper, their currently invisible animal ears twitched atop their heads as the lively sound of conversation made itself known to them. Unfortunately-
"Do you understand what they are saying?"
"Not at all."
They had already heard a few snippets of words and conversations out on the road, but what they were hearing now confirmed their fears: the people here spoke a language that neither Atla nor Shirou understood. No surprise there, though Shirou had briefly allowed himself to hope because of how Japanese these people and their village looked.
The two demi-humans continued to walk, taking in everything they could. Except for what appeared to be an Inn and a few shops, there was little else to this village other than homes and rice paddies. As such, they continued walking, passing through and leaving the village behind as quickly as they had entered it.
After all, if they could not talk with the locals, they could not gather information or make use of any service like an Inn or a shop.
They would have to camp out tonight.
Later that day, after the sun had long since fallen below the horizon, Shirou and Atla had made camp deep in a forest. A merry campfire crackled away, providing warmth and light. Besides that, a few small jewels were scattered around the perimeter, simple accessories that would act as a warning system the second someone or something other than Shirou or Atla set foot within their campsite.
It was probably an unnecessary precaution. Less than an hour before, they had scoured the surrounding forest, hunting down and slaying any monster in the vicinity. Though the monsters they had encountered so far were of species the both of them had never seen or heard of before, the monsters dwelling on the surface of this world weren't anywhere near as strong as the ones they had contended with down in the Dungeon. In other words, Shirou and Atla had massacred the local monster population rather thoroughly, which made it unlikely that any would be survivors would be keen on trying to mess with them tonight.
"…"
Both Atla and Shirou were silent, staring into the crackling flames. Well, Shirou was staring into the flames. The blind Atla was just enjoying the warmth, taking the opportunity to recuperate and rest her weary feet after a long day of traveling.
At this point, both of them were rather tired. On top of that, there was not much to discuss at the moment, as they both knew what needed to be done and what their 'plan' was.
They needed to get back to their own world. The only question was how exactly they were going to do that. Clearly, when a Wave occurs, one could cross between worlds. However, they would have to run across a Wave first before they could even attempt to do so. And now that they were no longer in a party with a Holy Hero, 'intercepting' any would be Wave was bound to be far more difficult than before.
On top of that, there was also no guarantee that any Wave they did run across would lead back to their own world. For all they know, if they jumped into any given Wave they might end up in yet another, entirely different reality. Or worse, they could get stuck in between realities all together.
No, for them to attempt any such thing, they would first have to gather information. Unfortunately, the people who they knew they could talk to in this world and who held the information they sought were rather unlikely to answer their questions: Glass, L'arc and Therese.
Still, those three enemies of theirs were their best bet. So, they had resolved to seek them out, get the information they needed – probably after a fierce battle – and then take the first opportunity to get back home and to their people.
Easier said than done, of course. With a whole boatload of unanswered questions and 'what-ifs' in between them and their goal.
Still, difficult and cumbersome as it would be, they at the very least had an idea how to get what they wanted. With a clear goal to focus on, Shirou knew that they would get it done somehow, even if he wasn't quite sure yet how they were going to accomplish it…
"…"
With a sigh, Shirou pushed those thoughts aside. Mulling over his worries right now would do him no good. More importantly, it was late, and he was tired. Getting some sleep sounded mighty fine right about now.
But, as he glanced at the silent Atla staring into the flames, his earlier worries about being a couple suddenly reared their ugly head. Fortunately, with a sudden bout of uncharacteristic inspiration, these were worries he could be actively proactive about right at that moment.
"Shirou-sama?" Atla questioned, looking up at him as he made his way over to her.
"I think we ought to get some sleep, Atla."
"I can't argue that," was the response, with Atla barely holding back an inelegant yawn.
That would be yawn turned into a surprised squawk as Shirou suddenly bodily picked Atla up. As he laid down on the ground, he held her close as they curled up close to the warmth of the campfire. With a deep blush on her cheeks, Atla found herself laying atop Shirou, her head on his chest, her legs intertwined with his, and his arms closed snugly around her. She shivered as Shirou snared her tail with his own, holding tight.
"Shirou-sama," she let slip in surprise.
"What?" Shirou murmured, holding her close as he buried his face in her silky soft hair, right in between her twitching feline ears. "You are doing things like this to me all the time. Is it a problem if I initiate for a change?"
"…Of course not," Atla said, a deep and extremely happy purr escaping her. She offered no further words, as nothing else needed to be said. Holding him close, the demi-human girl was quick to fall asleep thanks to Shirou's warmth and the steady beating of his heart she could hear as she rested her head on his chest. It didn't take long for Shirou to join her in dreamland, either.
The very next day, their journey continued. Sticking to the road, they headed towards an unknown destination. As time went on, the roads they traveled became ever more crowded with traffic. Said traffic wasn't only human anymore, either.
Very rarely, they saw people walking around who were one and all tall and wiry, fair-skinned, having bright blond hair, with clear blue or green eyes, and sharp and almost knife-like ears jutting outwards from their heads. Similarly, they also sometimes saw small, but extremely stout, humanoids walking around who were almost more broad than tall, seemingly made almost entirely of packed muscle. The skin of these beings was pale but rugged, while their hair was universally black or brown. A color shared by the extremely thick and long beards these beings also all had.
In other words, elves and dwarves. Or whatever they called themselves in this world. When Shirou first saw them, he had done a bit of a double take, blinking for a long moment to make sure he wasn't seeing things.
No demi-humans so far, though. Shirou briefly wondered how people were to react if he and Atla were to drop the illusion concealing their true appearance and their 'extra' bits.
As time went on, checkpoints and guards – decked out in stripped down and minimalistic samurai armor – were also becoming more and more common. The same held true for towns and even a few fair sized cities. Obviously, they were clearly heading towards larger population centers and probably a location of importance. With a little luck, they might even be heading straight towards this country's capital.
Using the large crowds, illusions, and invisibility to their advantage, they bypassed every guard and/or checkpoint easily enough. Barring a quick visit to the local marketplace, any large city or town on their path they left behind just as quickly as they entered, their inability to communicate with the locals meaning that they had little reason to stay long in any given location.
This pattern held true until about a week into their journey. The sun had almost completely disappeared under the horizon, painting the world orange, when Shirou and Atla slipped into a 'town' – having passed by the guards at the gates by being entirely imperceptible to their senses – that was just a tad too small to be considered a city proper, but was also a bit too big to be called a mere town.
It didn't take long for them to notice that the streets were almost deserted, with only a few people milling about.
"That's…" Atla perked up, cocking her head as her feline ears twitched.
In the distance, the sound of a large mass of people could be heard, intermixed with the clear notes and reverberations of what was clearly music.
Shirou could almost feel Atla's sudden burst of interest. "Shall we go take a look?"
"Yes!" Atla chirped. Walking hand in hand, they made their way towards the sound of people and music in the distance. As the lively sounds grew all the more clear with every step, it almost began to act as a siren's song to them, promising a reprieve from their rather boring journey so far out on the surface of this world.
And that siren's song led them straight towards an ongoing festival.
The streets in the city center were almost overflowing with people, stalls, and small podiums. Vendors tending to the stalls were all selling food or, surprisingly enough, music related paraphernalia. Things like small and cartoonish toys for young children in the shape of musical instruments, what looked suspiciously like sheet music with undecipherable/strange notes on them and even full blown, real life instruments. This included a variety of drums, acoustic guitars, flutes, and so many more kinds of instruments were out on display, ready to be sold.
By the time the two of them had reached the festival proper, the sun had disappeared entirely and night had fallen. However, flickering torches and festive lamps – probably powered by some kind of magic – lit up the streets with a warm, inviting glow.
Small podiums could be seen in every street. Musicians occupied those podiums in their lonesome, in their dozens, and all numbers in between. Music drifted out from around every street corner, all in vastly different styles and played by every single kind of instrument one could possibly think of or imagine.
It was obvious, this festival was a celebration of music. For at least this very night, music of every variety could be heard and appreciated in these streets.
This festival clearly had to have a rich history to it. However, that took a backseat to the music itself. Atla, for her part, was 'looking' around in every direction, her imperceptible feline ears twisting in each and every direction in an attempt to take in all the reverberations filling the air. Her face was the very picture of pure, almost childlike excitement.
"This way, Shirou-sama!" she cried, tugging along a clearly bemused looking Shirou by the hand.
For his part, Shirou was rather caught off-guard by Atla's sudden enthusiasm. She was even more amped up right now than she was in real-life combat, something that would have taken anyone who knew the battle junky even just a little by complete surprise.
He certainly didn't mind, though. Seeing her like this was really, really cute.
Atla pulled him towards each and every podium, joining the crowds doing a circuit of the entire festival and all the musicians plying their craft out in the streets.
A lone but riveting clarinet solo. A five-man band playing a loud, almost overpowering musical piece heavy on the drums and the guitar. A melancholy duet accompanied by a gentle yet sharp violin, being sung by a brother and sister. All of that and more they got to listen to as Atla took the lead, taking them both all over the festival grounds as she listened raptly to each and every song and musical piece she could.
Time passed quickly, entirely submerged in the swelling tide of music they had suddenly found themselves in. Much later in the night they found themselves in the city center, as did most of the festival goers apparently, if the huge crowd that had packed the remaining free space of the entire square to the bursting was anything to go by.
The only area not overflowing with people was the very center of the square, where a large, clearly professional podium had been built. Ringed by flickering torches and large magical lights, the podium in question was lit up and almost dazzling as several dozen musicians decked out in minimalistic but stylish black kimonos marched up the stage and took up positions, holding a variety of instruments.
The climax of the festival was at hand, apparently.
However, from where they were currently standing, they couldn't really see much. Especially the rather petite Atla had little else to look at but the backs of people in front of them. As such, Shirou was not at all surprised when his girlfriend tugged on his arm and led him towards a nearby alleyway.
"Getting a better vantage point? Possibly by trespassing somewhere?"
"You know me so well, Shirou-sama~" Atla giggled.
The alleyway they entered was not at all dark, still well-lit up, and filled with a surprising amount of people, having apparently chosen a place to listen to the music from a farther but far less crowded spot. The two disguised demi-humans went deeper into the alleyway, bypassing several dozen people as they made a little distance until-
"Now."
At Atla's signal, the both of them disappeared from sight, having become entirely imperceptible to mundane senses thanks to the Enchantments of the Ruby/Jade Ring of Illusions.
Only Shirou and Atla could perceive each other just fine. And that's why Shirou had a front row seat as Atla – who had just let go of his hand – ran for the nearest wall. She jumped, landing feet first on the wall. Launching herself up and towards the wall on the other side of the narrow alleyway, Atla bounced between the two surfaces and rapidly gained height, heading for the rooftops and the far better vantage point waiting for them up above.
Shaking his head ruefully, Shirou followed her example and was quick to join Atla on the rooftops.
With that done, both demi-humans doubled back. Jumping from rooftop to rooftop, it didn't take them long to arrive back at the city square. Standing at the very edge and looking down below, a lively, cheering crowd ringed the podium atop which the large band of musicians were readying themselves to play.
A woman stood at the front of the podium, holding an animated, clearly joy-filled speech as she addressed the cheering crowd, her voice clearly amplified by magic in order to be audible over the mass of hollering festival goers.
Shirou blinked as he realized that the woman in question had a rather striking resemblance to Glass: straight, raven black hair, pale skin, and crimson eyes with slit pupils. Like Glass she also wore a kimono, but hers was a stark white – not unlike Atla's, actually – though it also had the exact same silver highlights that Glass's kimono sported.
The main thing that set the woman apart from Glass was her face, which was a bit more rounded and quite a bit softer than Glass' sharp, excessively serious facial expression. Currently, that face was stretched wide by a smile of anticipation and exhilaration.
The words coming from her lips were gibberish to them, but as the Glass-lookalike spread her arms wide and the crowd roared and cheered, it didn't take a genius to figure out what she had said and what was about to happen. Turning on her heel, the woman in the white kimono marched back towards the other musicians, taking her spot at the head of the procession.
Even Atla felt a flicker of surprise when, instead of picking up an instrument, the white kimono wearing woman simply flicked her wrist. A ball of magical energy manifested, which swelled and twisted, taking on a certain shape. The shape in question solidified, becoming real and creating a small, silvery, exquisite, and intricate-looking handheld harp.
Without further ado, she strummed one of the strings-
"…"
And all the festival goers immediately fell silent, the first clear note of the harp causing all other noise to cease.
It began slowly, ever so slowly, as more and more strings were ever so gently plucked. A melody slowly took shape, beautiful in its simplicity, but as the rhythm began to pick up, the other musicians on the stage joined in. Percussion instruments provided a subtle but flowing cadence in the background of the piece that would sometimes flare to take center stage in the music. A single piano set off to the side joined in with a fast-paced string of notes, filling in the space when the drums briefly fell away. Several violins and cellos rounded out the piece, providing sharp, almost harsh tones that were so sudden and loud they should have clashed with the rest of the piece but somehow didn't.
All the while, the harp of the white kimono-wearing woman remained center stage more often than not. It's simple, but clear noise acted not unlike a conductor's baton, directing the other musicians and their instruments to follow its lead. However, the center stage was taken from the harp when the woman plucking its strings opened her mouth and joined her voice with the music.
Again, her words themselves meant nothing to either Shirou or Atla, but the tone was as clear as a midsummer day with no clouds in the sky: warm and encouraging, clearly meant to inspire those listening to it to try harder, to give it their all no matter how bleak the situation might be.
As soon as the woman began singing, the festival goers let go of their almost reverent silence they had held up till now. A loud cheer split through the air, loud and exhilarated, before the crowd's noise dropped back down to manageable levels as they began to enjoy the music in earnest.
Suddenly, Shirou's eyes widened as he felt magical energy fill the air, crawling over his skin, thick and heavy as the energy swelled and filled the entire city square and beyond. However, in spite of that, the magical energy was nonetheless warm and soothing as it infused him.
Eyes darting towards the stage, he attuned his senses and turned his full attention to what was actually happening atop that platform filled with musicians lost in the rhythm of their own music.
The magical energy lingering in the air rose and fell, swelling and ebbing, following along with the peaks and troughs of the music that was being directed by the harp playing woman and her comforting singing voice. Every note, every sound, and every sung word affected the energy filling the air, which in turn affected the people in the area of effect of the magic in question.
Yes, this was definitely magic. A type Shirou had never encountered or even heard of before, one that worked through the medium of music and song.
Usually, he would be alarmed being under the effects of a type of magic entirely unknown to him. But considering the situation and how the magic in question was affecting him – Shirou idly looked at his Stats in his Menu as he enjoyed the music – he was sure there was nothing to be worried about.
And as Atla wasn't showing any worry either, he was sure everything was fine.
"Hmm…Hmm…Hmm…"
As a matter of fact, his girlfriend had sat down, her legs dangling over the edge of the roof as she hummed along with the song. Atla's full focus was on the music, feline ears twitching atop her head and her face the picture of excitement and deep attention.
Evidently, there was no reason not to enjoy the music.
Sitting down beside Atla, Shirou slung his arm around her and drew her against his side. The fact that Atla barely responded to that display of affection except for snuggling into him should have clued him in that there was something more going on.
Though, to be fair, there wasn't anything happening with the music and the resulting magic that he had not perceived. No, the only difference was that Atla's perceptions and understanding just went so much deeper than Shirou's.
"Hmm…Hmm…Hmm…"
Atla continued humming along with the music, her full focus not only on the sound and the magic washing over her, but also on the musicians on the stage. More accurately, she was focusing on the lead woman, the one who looked like Glass, but wore a white kimono in contrast to her black and who played a harp as she sang.
She was the fulcrum of the music, the conductor leading the show, and the core of the magic spell being cast. And as Atla focused on the sound of the music in the air, and the ebb and flow of magical energy and Life Force she could see/sense from the Glass lookalike, she quickly memorized both the notes of the song and the underlying principles of this new type of magic.
As the show continued with ever more songs of a variety of genres being played – producing an equal number of Stat-related effects and emotions from those listening – Atla hummed along and observed every minute detail of the magic interwoven into the soundwaves produced by the instruments and Glass' lookalike's singing voice. All the while, festival goers were enjoying the music and partying down below: dancing, drinking, and cheering the night away.
This continued for well over an hour and a half until the end of the show was eventually reached.
"…!"
The lead harp player stepped forward again, separating from the other musicians as she addressed the crowd once more with a voice that carried far farther than it should have been able to. Though neither Shirou nor Atla understood what she was saying, the resulting loud cheer from the crowd was unmistakable. The woman in the white kimono threw her free hand into the sky in a stylized, clearly well-practiced gesture. In response, from behind the stage, several objects came floating into view.
No, not objects, Shirou's sharp eyes narrowed a tad as he focused on the several dozen pieces of carved wood and string floating in the air. Those are instruments. Harps!
Indeed, they were. In a steady stream, those floating harps flew up high over the podium, coming down on the audience in sets of twos or threes every few seconds, allowing a lucky few to pluck them out of the sky for themselves. A lucky few, because there were not anywhere near enough harps being distributed for everyone in the crowd to get one.
Even without looking at her, Shirou could feel Atla's 'gaze' zero in on the floating harps.
…It didn't take a lot of effort to figure out what a good boyfriend would do in this situation.
"Trace, on," he chanted underneath his breath.
Shirou felt Atla start against him as his Magic Circuits switched on, a single Wandering Cross Guard Gladius manifesting above their heads. Wordlessly, he took control of said gladius with Living Sword Poltergeist.
"Faust Hiding."
The gladius had barely blipped into reality before disappearing from view, becoming entirely hidden as Shirou layered an illusion of invisibility over it.
With that done, the gladius snapped forward and took off like a rocket. Whatever sound it might have made as it cut through the sky was lost in the cheering of the crowd down below. Intercepting one of the floating harps, Shirou was careful to snag the instrument in between its wooden outer column and the nearest string with the extended guard of the gladius without doing any damage to the relatively fragile object.
Anyone that might have been paying attention to the harp in question would have noticed it suddenly veering wildly off its intended course for no apparent reason. Fortunately, Shirou had chosen his target well. The harp in question had gone a bit higher than its fellows in its journey and had mostly been hidden behind all the other harps floating in the air.
As such, no one seemed to have noticed as the Wandering Cross Guard Gladius made the return trip, pulling its prize along with it. Dematerializing the moment it had done its job, the gladius disappeared like a dream, leaving behind a harp in Shirou's free hand.
In contrast to the harp being played by the Glass-lookalike on stage, the harp in question wasn't anything special. It was small and plain, a uniform and light beige in color with no decorations to speak off on it. A quick Structural Analysis confirmed that the harp wasn't anything out of the ordinary, either. However, it also showed that the instrument had been carefully made, maintained, and – most importantly – was ready to be played.
"…Thank you," Atla murmured, a childlike glee on her face as Shirou handed her his surprise gift. Closing her fingers carefully around the instrument as she cradled it to her breast, the Hakuko straightened up, pulling away from Shirou's embrace. Nevertheless, behind them both, their tails remained tightly coiled around each other.
Experimentally, placing her fingers on the harp in a picture perfect imitation of the lead musician on stage, Atla strummed the strings slowly. Shirou's eyes widened as he immediately realized it hadn't been a few random strings plucked either. Though it had been played very slowly, Atla had done a perfect imitation of a short melody that they had heard when they had still been touring the festival earlier, shortly after having arrived and before the main show had even begun.
Even as the harp bearing woman atop the podium continued to address the crowd, Atla continued to play, every note and strum of the cords coming more confidently and quickly. Before the Glass-lookalike had even stopped talking and rejoined her fellow musicians, Atla had already strung together half a dozen well-played melodies.
Beside her, Shirou shook his head with an amused smile. A natural talent, that's so you, Atla, he thought, realizing that she had learned to play music this very night with just the power of observation and mimicry. Oh, well, he mused. I certainly have no business criticizing anyone on that account. And besides, they do say that mimicry is the highest form of flattery…
Again, his observation of what Atla had done was spot on, but Shirou still hadn't managed to quite grasp what Atla had just achieved. Though, to be fair, as the Glass-lookalike atop the podium began to once again play – all the lights on her, leaving her fellow musicians in the shadows behind her as she began an apparent solo act – it didn't take him long at all to connect all the dots he had missed beforehand.
The strings harp in the hands of the Glass-lookalike were pulled slowly, deliberately, every strum releasing a crystal clear note. After having played the first melody, the next chain of notes was quick to follow. Continuing on, a beautiful but simple song was being played, something that all of the now silent festival goers could hear more clearly than any song performed earlier tonight.
Those who had gotten a harp of their own were unconsciously mimicking the movements of the woman in the white kimono without actually strumming the strings. Again, there was magic in the music, reaching out to everyone who held a harp, infusing them.
Out of curiosity, Atla didn't resist the magical energy carried on the sound waves. As soon as the spell infused her, her fingers began to move even more quickly and deftly, not quite plucking the strings of the harp. However, if she had plucked the strings, she instinctively knew that she would have played the melody perfectly.
A spell to help guide new musicians, giving them an instinct to play, Atla deduced. She doubted the spell's effect would linger long after it was finished, as it didn't actually impart any lasting knowledge on how to play music. In effect, this spell would allow the recipient to experience how it felt to play music without having the necessary practice to do so. Nonetheless, experience was its own kind of knowledge. Those who had been under the effects of this spell would learn how to play music all the more quickly for it in the long run.
However-
"…" Atla let out a deep breath.
She switched on her Magic Circuits and expelled the magical energy infusing her and influencing her actions. Though it might be out of a sense of unnecessary pride, Atla was determined to play with purely her own ability. She didn't need or want a hand guiding her every step of the way.
The rest of the festival goers who bore harps remained under the unnamed spell's influence, the instinctive knowledge of how to play infusing them. And when the first song of the Glass-lookalike's solo act came to an end.
"…! Hmm!...Hmm!...Hmm!"
The next song began immediately, with a few quick, sharp notes in contrast to the rather mild song that had been played before. Instead of singing, the woman in the white kimono hummed an unknown tune. The strings of every other harp out on the festival grounds were plucked in perfect unison with the lead musician, their wielders humming along loudly with the Glass-lookalike as the music and the spell accompanying it guided them to now play along in earnest.
With so many people playing and humming at once, everyone could feel the vibrations down into the very marrow of their bones.
"Hmm!...Hmm!"
With reflexes born from practice, talent, and experience in life combat, Atla's fingers moved in perfect sync with the lead musician and the other festival goers without the aid of magic, plucking string after string on her harp. Her hums joined the overpowering vibrations, losing herself to the rhythm as she focused with laser-like intensity on the movements of the Glass-lookalike.
However, Atla wasn't just watching and copying her movements. It went much deeper than that.
No, she was 'gazing' and 'seeing' the magical energy and Life Force suffusing every note of the performance for what it was. And just like she had copied the playing of a harp's strings, Atla yet again copied the woman in the white kimono, infusing magical energy into both her lungs and the fingers plucking the strings of her harp. She layered Life Force over it all, its almost unique ability to enhance amplifying her performance.
Every note. Every hum. Amplified and enhanced by magical energy and Life Force, a spell woven into existence with every string Atla plucked and every vibration coming from the pit of her throat. It mingled with the magic already in the air, adding Atla's weight to the conductor's baton.
"…!"
Two sets of eyes widened. Shirou, who had been listening raptly to the chorus of strings being plucked and an equal number of vibrating throats, snapped toward Atla with his mouth slightly agape. In spite of his knowledge and experience with Atla's propensity to quickly master almost everything she set her mind to, somehow learning a new type of magic on the fly was several notches more impressive than anything he had ever expected.
The fact that Atla had done that while literally having no experience with actual magic besides the basics of using Magic Circuits…it boggled his mind.
The only other person to notice what was happening was the Glass-lookalike on stage. Her slit, crimson eyes widened as she felt someone out there in the crowd add not only their voice and fingers to the performance, but also their very power and spirit. Said crimson eyes roved over the crowd, trying and failing to find the one adding their strength to her own.
However, she just as quickly had to abandon the search. Because, as Atla influenced the magic spell the Glass-lookalike had cast, the tempo and rhythm of the music had changed. In order to continue the performance, she had to adjust to the sudden duet with the other conductor she found herself in. She didn't have the luxury of splitting her focus in the midst of a performance.
The music changed, strings being plucked faster and throats humming with building passion. And as that eager energy ratcheted up every second as the performance raced to its inevitable climax, the magical energy in the air became visible, looking almost like multicolored fireflies to the starstruck eyes of the festival goers.
Those fireflies grew in number rapidly, scattering through the air as the performance grew louder still, throats humming at maximum capacity, and strings were being plucked frantically
"…!"
Until the climax of the song was suddenly right there.
The end of the song and the resulting spell caught both Atla and the Glass-lookalike – who had both admittedly been improvising near the end, trying to adjust to the other – completely off-guard. As one, every single person holding a harp strummed the strings one last time, humming at the top of their lungs, a sound loud enough to reverberate into the very bedrock of the city.
Ethereal fireflies took flight, shooting upwards like falling stars in reverse. The multitude of colors gathered together in one spot high above the city square. No sooner had said colorful sphere of energy coalesced, it exploded like an overpowered set of fireworks. Accompanied by a symphony of howling wind and bombast, long ribbons of energy stretched out in every direction as every color of the rainbow filled the sky in an awe-inspiring display.
Said display continued far longer than any ordinary fireworks could hope to. The multicolored ribbons of energy twisted, turned, and stretched almost like living things throughout the sky and around each other, forming odd but intricate patterns.
"Ha…ha…ha! Ha!"
Atla, for her part, was too busy recovering from the rather sudden experience she had just had to properly appreciate the beauty of what she had wrought. She heaved for breath, her brow matted with sweat as she panted and laughed in pure delight and excitement.
She had always enjoyed song and music. It was one of the few things she could appreciate in full when she was still sick and bedridden all the time, her mother's soothing singing voice lulling her to sleep more often than not each night.
However, not even after she had been cured and had attained the ability to walk on her own two feet had she ever contemplated trying her own hand at music of any kind.
But now that she had…
What a rush!
The tempo. The beat. The sound. The moment she began to play in earnest, plying magic all the while, it had sent her heart racing in a way that only life combat (and Shirou) could rival.
Atla tightened her hold on her harp, hugging it to her chest with one arm. By all rights, she should have been dead or dying right now. But because of fate or good fortune, she was alive and had been given a chance to enjoy said life for all it was worth. And now, she had just been exposed to yet another one of life's joys she might never have experienced if things had gone just the slightest bit differently.
That realization made Atla feel lightheaded and fed the urge to play yet more. Said urge was almost overpowering, in fact. She was about to give into that desire, but-
"Woah! Shirou-sama!?"
Only to yelp as she was suddenly picked up. Holding her princess-style, Shirou gave the Hakuko girl in his arms an apologetic look.
"Sorry, but we need to move. At this rate, we may attract a little too much attention."
Having said that, Shirou bounded away across the rooftops as he carried Atla, leaving the festival behind. Together with his swift actions and a few illusions, neither of them were ever spotted that night, with no one being any the wiser that it was Atla that had 'crashed' the final performance of the festival, in spite of quite a few people trying to find out exactly that…
Less than a day later, the pair of displaced demi-humans could be seen out on the road again. The road in question was no longer packed dirt, but paved and well maintained. It was also quite a bit broader than it had been. More importantly, however, the road was cutting through a thick forest of pine trees at the moment, blotting out the early morning sun down to a few errant rays of sunshine peeking through the canopy.
Strum.
Moreover, though the road was wide, only Shirou and Atla were currently treading it at this early hour. As such, Atla had no compunction playing a few idle melodies on her harp as they walked, strumming the strings slowly but continuously ever since setting out this morning.
Shirou gave her a fond look over his shoulder as they walked. Ever since getting that harp yesterday, Atla hadn't let go of it even once. She had gone to bed yesterday with the instrument hugged to her chest, even as she had been curled up beside him. In other words, though she now appeared to be a young adult, Atla was now acting her actual age: a young girl who had just received a precious gift she wasn't intending to let go of any time soon.
It was, in a word, absolutely adorable.
Evidently, Atla had picked up on his thoughts. She turned to look up at him, a pout on her lips, but it was just as clear that she didn't really mind where his mind had gone as her tail constricted around his own, eliciting a shiver from Shirou.
"Shirou-sama, incoming," Atla suddenly said, unwinding her tail from his just as quickly.
Shirou turned to look where his girlfriend indicated where hostiles were coming from. Just like in their previous reality, hostile monsters weren't an odd sight in the overworld.
Rustle.
Was the sound of leaves on the bushes being pushed aside as a trio of monsters stepped into view on the road.
[Red Box Lv: 16]
The three monsters appeared identical. Bright red cardboard, hopping towards them, possessing white eyes and a cartoony, jagged maw that looked like they had been cut into the cardboard by a child's first attempt at any given art project.
Obviously, these Boxes were the counterparts to the Balloons back in their own world.
Shirou stepped forward, drawing Monohoshi-Zao from its sheath. Though he was obviously alert and ready for combat, it was clear that he wasn't intent on closing the distance any further.
"Go ahead, Atla."
And that's because these weak monsters were perfect test dummies for Atla's new music related magic spells.
"Melody: disconcerting Chime."
Without using an aria inherent in most types of magic, Atla strummed the strings of her harp. The sound produced was catchy, but also sharp and odd, enhanced with magical energy and Life Force far beyond what could be considered normal. Like the name of the spell suggested, the Red Boxes shivered as the sound reached them, the enhanced soundwaves eliciting feelings of disconcert.
Grey energy surrounded the Red Boxes ever so briefly. The monsters stopped in place in befuddlement as their defence Stat was lowered by the debuff spell.
"Melody: Uplifting Voice."
Having finished her first score, Atla followed up with another piece, rapidly plucking the strings and humming along loudly as she played a happy and encouraging song. Red magical energy surrounded both herself and Shirou, their Attack Stats being raised.
"Melody: Slicing Wind Refrain."
Chaining her next song and the resulting spell without pause, the strings on Atla's harp were pulled one last time. The sound, interlaced with her humming, magical energy, and Life Force, coalesced into a deluge of cutting wind, three dozen crescents of faintly green energy slicing through the air towards the Red Boxes.
Said monsters, completely bamboozled by Atla's magic, had no hope of responding. They were sliced into itty-little bits of dead cardboard without fanfare.
Shirou took all of this in and just shook his head.
Atla had just used all three music related spells she had learned so far. Though the mechanics of how this worked had been explained to him by Atla, how she had managed to learn three separate spells in a single night after adapting a few of the songs she had heard the day before at the festival was something he just couldn't wrap his mind around.
…Still, it did make perfect sense to him why Atla was so compatible with music related magic in the first place. After all, as revealed to them by the Magic Shop Owner back in Melromarc before setting out to the Cal Mira archipelago – god, that felt like a lifetime ago – with an Element of Wind and an Origin of Rhythm, calling Atla a born musician wasn't all that farfetched.
Nonetheless, it did nothing to diminish how impressive her achievement was. Learning magic and several spells through nothing but observation…
In that context, it also made sense to him that Atla wanted to use every spell she had learned so far as frequently as possible. To familiarize herself with the magic, if nothing else.
"Shall we continue, Shirou-sama?"
Atla's voice broke him from his musings. With a nod, he acquiesced as he and his girlfriend continued on their journey. And at this point, when Atla's tail reached out to intertwine with his as they walked, he showed no other reaction than wrapping his own tail around hers in kind.
Another two days of travel later, and Shirou and Atla arrived at yet another city.
However, this city was a bit different compared to the other settlements they had run into so far. Not only in scope, being far larger than any other city they had seen so far, but also in the grandeur of its buildings and the readily apparent security.
It was fairly late in the day when they caught sight of the city in the distance. By the time they had started drawing close, the world had gained an orange hue as the sun had begun to set.
Nonetheless, late in the day though it was, there were still several hundred people out and about on the road and making their way towards the main gates to the city, joining the immense queue of individuals trying to get into the metropolis. Said queue was being vetted by what appeared to be an outsized and fully armed platoon of samurai before being allowed into the city.
"What do you think, Shirou-sama?"
"I think we might have stumbled upon this country's capital."
"Really?"
"…I'd almost be willing to bet Monohoshi-Zao on it."
At that proclamation, Atla raised her brow in surprise. She nodded. "The capital it is, then."
Disguised as they still were by the powers of the Ruby and Jade Rings of Illusions, the duo made towards the main gates to the city. However, instead of trying to enter through the heavily guarded entrance, they decided to take a different approach. They veered off and went down another road that ran the circumference of the city.
The city, like every other urban area they had encountered so far, was surrounded by expansive fields of rice paddies and grazing cattle. They settled in for a short wait in a small thicket of trees in between those fields, going entirely invisible for a protracted period of time, taking a moment to rest as the sun completed its journey below the horizon.
"Ready?"
It was only when the sky had gone dark and the stars had come out that the suggestion was raised.
"Let's go."
Under the cover of darkness and illusion, the two demi-humans made their way back to the city wall. At this late hour, very few people remained out and about beyond the city limits.
Shirou looked up at the sheer surface of the city wall climbing into the sky. He idly checked if the powers of Ruby and Jade Rings of Illusions were still rendering them imperceivable as he prepared himself.
"How about a race, Shirou-sama?"
"…Really?"
Atla pouted. "I just thought I'd make things more interesting."
Snorting in spite of himself, Shirou elected not to respond any further to Atla's suggestion. Without any fanfare, he bent his knees before jumping with all his might, enhancing his muscles with both magical energy and Life Force. Combined with Stat related physical strength, he shot upwards almost a quarter of the way up the city wall, but no further.
Shink!
The sound of Shirou's fingers, also enhanced by magical energy and Life Force, sinking into the solid stone wall was heard only by himself and Atla. As he anchored himself to the wall, his girlfriend joined him, having copied his actions. Bracing themselves against the wall with their feet and digging their fingers in for a more secure purchase, both demi-humans used all the physical strength they could muster to launch themselves upwards again.
The second the air they gained by doing this was maxed out, they would sink their fingers into the wall again, only to repeat the process again and again. Rendered imperceivable as they were, none could see or hear Shirou and Atla rapidly making their way up the city wall with record speed.
Neither of them bothered to linger as soon as they reached the top. Using Atla's unique 'sight' to their advantage, they chose the perfect spot to descend the wall in a similar manner they had scaled it, only in reverse and taking a bit more time to do so out of safety concerns.
"…Scaling the city wall was easier than I expected it would be."
"I get what you mean, Shirou-sama. Sometimes, we can forget how strong we have gotten and what we can achieve with that strength with just a little bit of creativity."
That piece of commentary was exchanged, and the demi-human duo touched down on the ground in a dark alleyway inside the city limits.
The approach they had chosen to enter the city had been the definition of the sentence: simple but effective. All told, it hadn't even taken them 15 minutes to breach the most heavily defended settlement they encountered so far.
"The usual?" Atla asked, though they both knew that the question was entirely rhetorical.
After all, they both knew what their next step was going to be.
Shirou nodded. "Let's go find the nearest market."
It remained a fact that they couldn't talk with the locals or read the local writing. However, there was one way to gain information that would work no matter in which reality they found themselves in: Shirou's sight-based psychometry with everything related to weapons.
Every time they came across a settlement, they would visit the local marketplace and any craftsmen plying their wares there. As they lacked currency, they couldn't buy anything, but what Shirou gained by merely laying his eyes on weapons and certain other objects was worth more than any good they could buy.
The fact that they were in another world with different knowledge/principles regarding crafting and materials made what he gained all the more valuable to him.
Sometimes, this even came with a few interesting tidbits of information regarding the settlement in question and the world they found themselves in. Unfortunately, nothing they had discovered this way so far would help them get back home.
Without further comment, they left the dark alleyway and emerged on a well-lit and paved road. Old fashioned street lights provided more than enough illumination, clearly being powered by magical energy instead of electricity.
Disguised as a nondescript couple, Shirou and Atla went deeper into the city, their invisible animal ears twitching atop their heads. At this late hour, there weren't a lot of people out of their homes anymore, but they could still hear a mass of people being quite noisy in the distance. Experience had taught them that if a settlement was of sufficient size and there was ample lighting to be had, that there would be an open marketplace somewhere in the city that would remain active until late into the night.
Following the noise, it didn't take them long to reach the marketplace. Compared to other markets they had visited so far, this one was absolutely huge and far more well maintained. Nonetheless, the market still felt rather claustrophobic with how every available inch had seemingly been crammed full with shops and stands. Add the mass of people plying their wares and shopping around, and the area felt a lot more cramped than it had any right to be.
Wordlessly, Shirou tugged Atla a little closer to him. It would be all too easy to lose each other in the crowd if they didn't remain close. Naturally, Atla had no problem with this, wrapping her arm around his own with no second thought.
"Charmer," she teased, tilting her head up at him and giving him a saucy smirk.
Shirou merely smiled and rolled his eyes. With that, they joined the mass of people doing the circuit of the marketplace. As they walked, Shirou's eyes darted every which way in their sockets, taking in everything as he recorded all the information and knowledge he could.
It didn't take long for him to realize that this market was an absolute goldmine for him. Not only was it far larger than any other market they had visited so far – only the market back in Zeltoble back in their own world could compare – but this place was dominated by an overabundance of weapon shops. For every other kind of store, there were at least three weapon shops/stands. All of which, oddly enough, sold a wide variety of katanas over any other kind of weapon…
Arm in arm, they continued to explore every inch of the massive marketplace. Here and there, they sometimes got odd stares when people realized that the disguised duo weren't intending on buying anything, even though they seemed to look over everything with a keen eye. Whenever this occurred, Shirou and Atla were quick to move on before anyone could address them.
It took them well over three hours to finish the entire circuit, having visited what felt like over a hundred shops and just as many stalls. If knowledge could be likened to food, then Shirou just knew he would have been visibly bloated right now. His mind was racing as it went over all the information he had gained and how he could apply that knowledge to his craft.
As Shirou was occupied with his own thoughts, Atla cocked her head and turned to 'look' into the distance, her 'gaze' going straight through several buildings towards a sight that would have made her blink if she wasn't blind.
Shirou took no note of this, still lost in thought. Though he had no pride in his skills, he did feel a swell of anticipation about how he could apply what he had gained tonight to any future project he was contemplating. Ideas were already starting to swirl in the back of his mind-
"Shirou-sama?" Atla suddenly called, tugging on his arm. "Shirou-sama? Are you alright? You have gone entirely quiet."
"Ah," he snapped out of it. "I'm fine, Atla. Just a little distracted."
Atla nodded. "…How about calling it a night?"
"I was about to suggest the same thing," Shirou sighed.
Thanks to a combination of their high Level and their more esoteric abilities, they wouldn't reach exhaustion any time soon, but being on the move nearly all day long wasn't something even they or – more importantly – their bodies could ignore. The telltale signs of a want for sleep were starting to show themselves.
Again, Atla tugged on Shirou's arm and led them out of the marketplace proper. It took a solid five minutes for him to realize that they weren't going in the direction in which he had expected. After all, in the few times they had elected to remain in urban areas instead of camping out in the wilderness, they always remained relatively close to the city limits in case they needed to leave the settlement in a hurry. This time, however, Atla was taking them deeper into the city.
"Atla?"
Atla remained silent.
"Atla?" he called again, with a little more insistence.
"…I saw something rather peculiar just now," the Hakuko girl said after a pause. "Let's go take a look. After that, we can go and find a place to sleep."
Shirou blinked at that, but he didn't voice any objections, nor did he inquire any further as to what exactly Atla wanted to go see as she led him by the arm.
The roads they took were all well-lit and well-maintained. However, as their walk continued, the roads started growing broader, with far larger buildings and homes lining them than before. Clearly, they must have entered a more upper-scale residential area. This trend continued as Atla led them to what Shirou had to guess was the very center of the city, with the surroundings showing ever more wealth and influence.
This went hand in hand with an increased use of illusions and invisibility to ensure that no one would get suspicious of the odd couple still out and about at this late hour. As a matter of fact, the further they went, the more guards Shirou was starting to see here and there.
At several moments, he was about to suggest heading back and forego whatever Atla wanted them to see. However, as he knew that she wouldn't go out of her way for something pointless, Shirou held his tongue.
An indeterminate amount of time later, though still in the depths of night, the duo arrived at their destination: a plain, but large open square ringed by tall walls on all sides except for the single entrance at the front.
Shirou, for his part, was caught off-guard by how suddenly the square appeared. The wealth readily apparent in the surroundings just disappeared from one second to the next as the unbroken chain of buildings around them was severed, giving way to the austerity of a plain square that bore no decorations and had no enmities. Not even benches, in fact.
"…"
All of a sudden, there was a completely different feeling in the air. A solemn one.
Calling the square plain was putting it lightly, actually. The ground itself was made out of large, but simple gray blocks. A quartet of clearly old, but well cared for trees were planted in all four cardinal directions, their branches reaching high and far. Here and there lights were placed to provide illumination, but it was the definition of minimal, providing just enough light to see clearly where one could walk but little else.
There were two things, however, that stood out to Shirou immediately. The first was a bright crimson torii gate – identical to the one leading into the temple grounds back in the Dungeon, actually – that they would have to pass to get into the square. The second was a small building in the center of the square, made out of entirely gray material. If he had to describe it, he would call it a small chapel, stripped bare of any religious iconography and having no doors to speak off.
At this distance, even Shirou's sharp eyes couldn't pierce the darkness inside of the chapel, bereft of any light that it was.
At Atla's insistent pull, the duo continued. At this point, they had gone entirely invisible. No one seemed any the wiser as they passed through the torii gate, walked over the square, and closed in on the chapel in the center.
Shirou's eyes narrowed as he saw…a glint coming from within the gloom inside the chapel. The glint in question was green, and reminded him of light reflecting off a jewel…
Closer still, they walked, hand in hand, entirely silent all the while. The solemn feeling in the air grew thicker with every step they took.
"…Atla, this…"
Shirou's murmur was lost in the air as his sharp eyes could finally make out what was held inside off the chapel: a katana, over half its blade buried inside of a large rock. A round, deep green jewel was set into the hilt of the katana, minimal light reflecting off from it.
Shirou saw the weapon, and the moment he did, he automatically recorded it.
A flash of green energy.
"…Eh?"
An exclamation of surprise, followed by a deep silence.
Shirou had stopped walking, freezing in place mid-step as the katana buried into the stone had all of a sudden appeared in his hands. Somehow, someway, the katana had dematerialized only to rematerialize in his hands in another flash of green energy. However, it wasn't because of this that Shirou had frozen mid-step. No, that was because he was still processing the information he had just gained on the weapon that had suddenly appeared in his hands. A weapon called-
Katana Vassal Weapon.
In that brief moment that Shirou was out of it, Atla looked up at him. Somehow, she didn't seem surprised at all at this sudden turn of events. But, as Shirou remained silent for a bit longer than normal, she once again tugged on his arm.
"Shirou-sama, are you-"
"YOU TWO! / FREEZE! / DON'T MOVE!"
Shirou and Atla started in alarm. In unison, they realized that whatever just occurred, it had caused the powers of the Ruby and Jade Rings of Illusions to short-circuit. In other words, for the first time in a long while, they were entirely exposed.
The lights in the square suddenly grew much brighter, illuminating the space entirely and allowing no shadows to remain. The two demi-humans turned around to see a mass of samurai burst into the square. All of them drew their katanas at the same time, the unified and clear noise of over a hundred blades being unsheathed ringing like a temple bell.
Silence fell again for the briefest of moments, but-
"You two," a samurai in more ostentatious armor, clearly the commander, stepped forward and positively growled at them. "I don't know who you are or where you came from, but the Katana Vassal Weapon belongs to our nation! It's a symbol of our nation's strength! You can't just march in here in the depths of night like common, petty thieves and somehow claim it for yourself when so many others have failed to do exactly that! You two are coming with me and-!"
"Hengen Musou, Hidden Technique: Large Caliber Piercing Bullet!"
Having seen where this was going in spite of being unable to understand what the Samurai Commander was saying, Atla had no hesitation in launching a preemptive strike. The large sphere of oscillating, compacted Life Force struck the ground mere inches in front of the feet of the Samurai Commander. Whatever reaction he might have had was lost in the explosion of energy that threw him off his feet and filled the air with occluding dust.
"Shirou-sama! We got to move!"
"R-Right!"
"Don't – cough – let them get – cough – away!"
The samurai, though clearly caught off-guard, nonetheless reacted with acuity at the order. Half their number spread out, covering the only way in or out of the square. The other half ran into the dust cloud, katanas raised and ready for combat.
However, battle would not be joined that night.
The samurai searched through the dust cloud, to no avail. After the dust cloud had settled, they searched the entire square for Shirou and Atla, but they still couldn't find them. It didn't take the samurai long to realize that, in the mere second that they had lost sight of the two interlopers who had stolen the Katana Vassal Weapon, they had disappeared like mere ash in the wind.
With this sudden turn of events, the country of Raybul had, without warning, lost its prized Vassal Weapon.
…Man. Am I glad I finally got to finish this chapter.
Honestly, in spite of everything going on in my life, it took me less than a month to write it once I got started properly. The only reason it took so long was because working on and moving into my very first house took quite a bit longer than I had expected.
That said, I can't say I regret putting in the time. It turned out great, and I have finished moving in. I just need to do some work as needed here or there in the coming months, and I'll be all set.
Though, I have to admit, I do regret the amount of money I have been throwing around the last couple of months. Not because it wasn't money well spent, but because I am a miser by nature. It legitimately hurts seeing all the money I saved up ever since joining the workforce vanish in about a month and a half.
Oh, well. You save up money to eventually spend it, not to hoard it indefinitely. And as I still have enough money leftover as a safety net if something were to happen, I have no right to complain.
Anyway, I hope everyone enjoyed this chapter. No real combat for once, admittedly, but I do hope that the setting-up of the new relationship dynamics between Shirou and Atla, new powers, and new conflicts were an interesting enough read on their own. After all, these sorts of things need to be set up in advance to make future fight scenes even more engaging (poorly hiding an excited grin).
I'm anticipating your reviews. I'm dying to hear what you guys think!
Have a nice day, everyone!