The melody of the Velvet Room washed over him once more as he woke up in his cot. Although it had only been a short time, it felt far too long since he last visited the Velvet Room. He never particularly questioned the timing, however, especially since he also concurrently visited the Thieves Den as well. Honestly, he had regarded the Velvet Room as something of a home beyond a home at this point – a certain sanctuary that supported him before and would continue to support him after.

There was admittedly that time he was almost executed by that imposter Igor, but those were extenuating circumstances to put it mildly.

Stepping out of his cell, he saw the smiling faces of Lavenza and Igor, and the stern face of Olga, once more. “Welcome back, my dear guest,” Igor greeted cordially. “It has been some time since your last visit. I see you have been faring well and making progress.”

Ren nodded. “Pretty much,” he agreed. “I didn’t expect another Fool arcana to pop up though – I’m guessing multiple people can be assigned to one arcana?” At the very least, the new Fool arcana seemed to be a lot more promising, considering it was Ritsu. He couldn’t help but feel a touch apprehensive, however, considering the last Fool arcana was Igor, or rather, Yaldabaoth.

That arcana was quite literal in this case, since he had been made a fool of. That was certainly annoying.

Igor nodded. “Quite so,” he confirmed. “As you form deeper connections and bonds, you will find that many of them embody a similar arcana. That is indeed the case with both the imposter and with Fujimaru. Although you may be skeptical of this bond, I do not believe I need to remind you that be it positive or negative, you can still gain power and knowledge from it.”

Ren nodded. He hadn’t forgotten. His Third Eye ability was a gift from Yaldabaoth, and one he kept even after his destruction. Not to mention, his bond with Maruki had a lot of benefits – and it was why he sympathized with the doctor despite disagreeing with his ultimate goal. To make everyone happy wasn’t a bad dream in of itself – anyone could understand that. However, depriving people of their choices, dreams, and goals just to fit his concept of happiness wasn’t something he could ever allow.

He remembered his conversation with Medusa back in the tent. When he had the time, he needed to explain everything to her so she wouldn’t have the wrong idea. Perhaps she would still disagree with him – and he wouldn’t blame her if she did. Breaking his friends out of the illusion was one thing, but Servants were a different matter entirely. Many of their legends came from countless tragedies, from their own flaws or from circumstances far beyond their control.

It was a fortunate thing that Medusa was fairly tight-lipped. He wasn’t sure how other Servants or the staff at Chaldea would take that information.

“Now then,” Igor continued, grabbing Ren’s attention once more. “I believe Olga wishes to speak with you. She had been waiting quite patiently for your next visit.”

Ren blinked in surprise, then chuckled. “Right,” he replied, remembering. “You wanted me to report to you how the personas handled, right?” He glanced over to Olga who was standing nearby, her arms crossed and maintaining a stern demeanor.

The novice Velvet Room attendant nodded. “That’s correct, Amamiya,” she replied stiffly. “We have decided to allow you to rest and recuperate. But now that you’re fully rested, I can receive a full report from you. Please follow me, Amamiya.” Before Ren could reply, Olga spun on her heel and marched off into one of the open cells before vanishing.

In mild confusion, Ren turned to look over at Igor and Lavenza. The latter smiled apologetically. “While master and I have the utmost faith in you, my Trickster,” she explained. “There is no doubt that your actions do make one nervous. All of us are glad to see you return safe and whole, but Olga has been having difficulties adjusting her feelings. Perhaps reassurance is in order.”

Frowning, he glanced over at the cell Olga had walked to. Right – what he pulled with Leonidas and his solo act had everyone concerned, and for good reason. If he was on the other side, he no doubt would be berating himself as well. He had a lot to catch up on, it seemed.

He knelt and rested a hand gently on Lavenza’s head, the girl blinking in surprise at the gesture. “Sorry for worrying you so much, Lavenza,” he said, smiling gently. “I’ll try to keep myself safer from now – though I can’t exactly promise that.”

Lavenza blinked several more times before reaching up and taking his hand off her head, grasping it in both of her own. “I knew you would succeed, my Trickster,” she replied quietly with a faint quaver in her voice. “But… I was terrified. Your abilities are second to none, but there were many enemies, led by a Servant like Leonidas. There were… moments I genuinely didn’t think you would be victorious.” She squeezed her hand even more tightly, as if to reassure herself he was solid and present.

“Forgive me, my Trickster,” she whispered. “For doubting your strength and your victory. And also, thank you.” The girl looked up and met his surprised eyes. “Thank you for coming back.”

The Phantom Thief was at a loss for words, then gently squeezed her hands with both of his own. “Nothing to forgive,” he reassured her. “I always come back. That, I will promise you, as much as I can.” He reassured her with all the confidence he could possibly muster. Lavenza was often rather calm and even-tempered, but she wasn’t immune to outbreaks of emotion. It was kind of adorable.

Lavenza smiled in turn. “Very well – I shall once more place my faith in you, my Trickster,” she agreed softly, returning the squeeze before finally letting go. “Now, it is perhaps best to see to Olga.”

Ren nodded and stood back up. He gave a nod to Igor who returned it, his grin perpetual and hard to read as always, then stepped into the cell. For a moment, darkness shrouded his vision as the Velvet Room vanished around him – then it lifted, revealing him facing the exit of another cell. Olga was directly ahead of him, operating some kind of astrolabe table. He stepped out of the cell… and his jaw dropped at what he witnessed.

Above him was the night sky, but clearer than he had ever seen before. Stars floated in the air above him as planets, suns, and comets streaked by. With a touch or stroke from Olga on the astrolabe, they all whirled in dizzying speeds to some other configuration, moving, vanishing, and appearing. The planetarium back in Tokyo was the closest comparison, yet even that felt like nothing more than a cheap knockoff compared to what he was witnessing.

As he got closer to the astrolabe, he noticed that all around it were scattered various books, ranging from more modern ones to old tomes with drying, cracked leather and yellowing pages, to even things such as scrolls, slips of bamboo, and unless Ren was mistaken, even clay tablets. All of them seemed to have astrological diagrams that Olga kept consulting as she muttered to herself and kept spinning the astrolabe, with the heavenly bodies above whizzing by.

“You made all this?” Ren asked, his voice quiet with wonder.

Olga snapped up, blinking, then scowled. “I did,” she confirmed. “I decided to use my family’s magecraft – the Animusphere magecraft – in conjunction with the Velvet Room’s capabilities to try and boost the strength of your personas and powers overall. Something like this hasn’t been done before, so I’m still working on what can and can’t be done, but there’s a lot of potential here. I’ve no doubt you’ve seen something greater than this those so you don’t have to say anything-“

“Breathtaking,” he simply murmured.

Her mouth snapped shut as she felt her face become heated. “C-come again, Amamiya?” she stammered. “I wasn’t sure I quite heard you.”

Ren looked back at Olga with a smile. “I’ve seen a lot of things,” he admitted. “A lot of it pretty fantastic. But all of this?” He opened his arms and circled around, taking in the sight of the stars. “This is all beyond breathtaking. I’m honestly at a loss for words here. And I can tell you’ve worked hard on all of this.” For emphasis, he reached forward and gently tapped one of the books nearby – one among dozens.

“I know that being stuck here in the Velvet Room wasn’t your ideal situation,” he continued. “But you’ve taken to it like no one else I could possibly think of. So once again, Olga, thank you so much for all you’re doing. It means the world to me.”

Olga could only blink multiple times as her face steadily turned redder and redder. Eventually, she cleared her throat and looked away, quickly regaining her composure. She was starting to get used to Ren’s compliments – although admittedly, it was still something she was very unused to. “Flattery is unnecessary, Amamiya,” she muttered. “But your gratitude is accepted regardless. If it aids you in your mission, then I’m glad.”

She took a deep breath to steady herself, forcing down the heat from rushing to her face before looking back at Ren. “So, what of the personas?” she asked in a calmer tone of voice. “How was their performance?”

With a mental command from Ren, the three Sisters of Fate and Cerberus appeared in flashes of blue flame within the room. The Sisters floated serenely in the air, their smiles impassive and unchanging as always, as Cerberus yawned and laid down on the ground. “Honestly? Far better than anything I expected,” Ren reported earnestly. “They almost felt as easy to use as they did in the Metaverse, especially their powers.”

He walked over and gently pet Cerberus, who let out thunderous purrs at the affection. “Especially Cerberus here,” he emphasized, running his hands through his mane. “He felt almost solid and real – enough for me to ride him as well as directly attack Leonidas. Not something I expected overall, to say nothing of his power.”

Olga nodded. As she listened, she was passing by each persona, scrutinizing them and jotting down notes in a blue clipboard she held, muttering to herself. Her fierce expression and clipboard reminded him of Justine and Caroline so much. Her analytical, intelligent demeanor and her short temper reminded him of the twins as well.

The memories brought a faint smile. Despite being his supposed wardens and their sharp tongues, they still did what they could to support him in turn. He was glad they reunited to become Lavenza, but that didn’t mean he didn’t miss the two from time to time.

He certainly didn’t miss Caroline’s police baton though.

“Find anything interesting?” Ren asked, peering curiously over at Olga who was still taking notes.

“Merely checking on the personas,” she replied without looking up, her eyebrows furrowed in concentration. “They are all stable despite a good amount of usage from the battle. No noticeable flaws or concerns that can be told, nor do I see any unstable fluctuations in cognitive power. Some allowance for more experimentation that I had in mind… I’ll have to keep it in mind.”

Ren blinked as Olga seemed to be muttering more to herself now than answering him. “So, I’m guessing we can call this a successful field test then?” he asked, glancing once more at his personas. While he wasn’t the most comfortable with Olga talking about ‘experimentation’ on his personas, he trusted her to know what she was doing – and that Igor and Lavenza wouldn’t allow her to take things too far unintentionally.

The former director paused, then nodded. “It can be considered a successful field test, yes,” she agreed. “There is a good amount of data I can work with. That being said, there’s a few things I will need to address.” She turned around to face Ren once more. “Are you aware of how your magecraft works?” she asked.

The Phantom Thief didn’t expect that question. “It’s much like using my personas as I always do, isn’t it?” he asked. “Drawing out the strength of my personas and utilizing them as necessary, switching them like I do masks.”

Olga waved the explanation off. “Not what I meant, but that answered my question anyway,” she sighed. “Right – I suppose I should start from the basics. Your magecraft is a variation of a particular branch of magecraft called Projection, where you use prana to create objects into being. And before you think it sounds amazing, it isn’t – Projection has been considered a dead-end, useless magecraft as any objects created by it tend to be either ridiculously unstable or unsound, soon dispelling back into its constituent prana. Any ‘success’ with it tends to be worthless overall.”

Ren raised an eyebrow as he glanced over at his personas. “Something tells me that, like everything else, I’ve been an exception,” he commented rhetorically.

Nodding, she replied, “You would be correct. Your Projection magecraft instead delves into your inner world – or the ‘Thieves Den’ as you colloquially call it, and the persona within would be the blueprints of the projection. They are something you know inside and out like they’re an extension of yourself. The crest you received allows you to manifest these personas in reality. It’s a workaround solution, but it’s the best that can be done for now.”

The mention of the Thieves Den caught Ren off guard, but he accepted it. The Velvet Room connected to the Thieves Den easily enough if he wished it to, and it was reasonable to assume Igor and Lavenza had told her about it as well. It was his inner world, after all – a Palace that also wasn’t a Palace.

“Now, as for the solid and ‘real’ feeling of Cerberus,” she continued. “That actually wasn’t part of anything I’ve done. Your persona projections have been solid this entire time. Granted, there has been no reason for you to check, but that has always been the case.”

That caught Ren by surprise, then he rubbed the back of his neck in embarrassment as he glanced over at the Sisters, still levitating placidly. Admittedly, they always felt ethereal so he didn’t think he could actually touch them. And like Olga said, there hadn’t been any particular reason to do so either.

“However,” Olga continued. “You are correct that there have been changes with Cerberus. Ones you may not have noticed. Whether it’s because of the hectic situation that you didn’t notice overall or some other factor of my work, I’m still unsure. I will need more data.” She narrowed her eyes as she glanced over at Cerberus. “Do you notice it now perhaps, Amamiya?” she asked.

Ren blinked, then glanced back at Cerberus, who was purring underneath his petting. Now that he thought about it… “I don’t think I’ve ever seen Cerberus this… lively,” he murmured. “Outside the Thieves’ Den, I mean.” To test his theory, he knelt and used both hands to pet Cerberus, who proceeded to purr louder and… roll on his back, showing his belly under Ren’s touch. That was certainly different.

This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

Olga nodded as she took more notes at Cerberus’s reaction. “As you can see, Cerberus has more of his original personality blended in,” she explained. “Your personas are still very much part of you so you don’t need to worry about them rebelling, but they’ll show more of their own personalities and initiative that you would normally witness in the Thieves’ Den.”

The Phantom Thief blinked as he stared down at Cerberus in wonder. “Is that so,” he murmured in wonder. He slid over and began rubbing his belly, and his purrs turned into more canine huffs. “Who’s a good boy, who’s a good boy,” he cooed as he continued petting the persona. Cerberus wriggled even and huffed even more in response.

Meanwhile, Olga stopped taking notes for a second, then sighed as she turned away. “I have someone who is treating the mythological Cerberus – or the cognitive representation of him – like a house dog,” she muttered. “And Cerberus is also a lion for some reason. Just…what is my life?”

“I’ve been hearing that a lot recently,” Ren chuckled. “Asked myself that question a thousand times before I learned it’s better to roll with it.”

Olga shot a glare at him before sighing once more. “Considering everything you went through, I suppose you’ve the most right to answer in that manner,” she grumbled. “Not that it makes it any better.”

Ren chuckled again before standing up, looking over at her. “So, I hear from Lavenza that you were worried about me?” he asked.

The former director blinked, then scowled. “Is privacy not a concept in the Velvet Room?!” she growled. “Why did she have to tell you that?! It was utterly unnecessary! It’s something that should not have to be addressed or spoken about by anyone else!”

Standing nearby, Ren waited until she was done with her tirade. “So, is that a yes?” he asked.

With a loud groan of frustration, Olga flung her hands up in the air. “Yes, okay, I was worried!” she cried in frustration. “As everyone has said at this point, it was two hundred Grail constructs and a Servant at once that you were dealing with – and not a weak Servant either, but King Leonidas I of Sparta, who had carved his legend at the Battle of Thermopylae! As amazing as you are, surviving should have been impossible, let alone anything resembling a victory!”

Then she caught onto what she was ranting about and rapidly continued. “Think of your position!” she rapidly added. “You are one of the last Masters of humanity, and perhaps the most qualified! Morgana doesn’t have the flexibility of options you would have and Fujimaru is too inexperienced! You are far too valuable to humanity as a whole to be throwing your life away!”

Olga’s ranting was stopped by another chuckle from Ren. “You definitely were worried for me,” he commented cheekily, smiling with amusement. The girl’s face flared up even further and she was about to launch into yet another tirade when Ren continued. “But honestly, it was touch and go for a while,” he murmured. “That was the first time I ever fought such a battle. It was a complete slog where I completely lost track of how many soldiers I took out, how many were left, and of course, panicking each and every time Leonidas stepped forward or did anything at all.”

Cerberus huffed and walked over, looking up at him plaintively. Ren smiled gently as he resumed petting the persona, feeling mildly soothed. “I don’t regret what I did,” he continued. “If I didn’t do anything, Leonidas would’ve easily attacked from behind, and we’d lose then and there. But even then, I wasn’t confident I’d make it out. Like you said, the chances of me surviving were basically nothing at best, let alone actually winning.”

The feeling of the rain as he fought desperately in the pass, feeling his stamina and focus leech with every time he called upon a persona, the arrows that landed their mark, halted only because of his armor… he couldn’t forget any of it.

He looked back up at Olga. “If it wasn’t for you and your work,” he said seriously. “I probably wouldn’t be here. Your work with my personas was the key part of why I came back alive. So, thank you so much, Olga. For everything.”

Olga’s jaw dropped, then worked as she tried to respond, but no words would escape her lips. Ren Amamiya had been without doubt an exceptional individual from everything she had seen – from his time in Tokyo to his current tenure in Chaldea. Even she was starting to believe he was the kind of man capable of almost anything, like what Lavenza said. But to hear him so earnestly thank her was something she hadn’t expected in the slightest.

Before she became a Velvet Room attendant, when was the last time she had been praised and thanked for her effort? When has been the last time she had been genuinely appreciated by… well, anyone? Especially her own father? When was the last time she showed results, people genuinely marveled at it and recognized precisely what went behind it, for good or ill?

To her shock and sadness, she couldn’t remember.

Her rage fizzled out, leaving a sort of hollow emptiness and a strange warmth from Ren’s genuine gratitude. “Just… try not to do it again,” she muttered in a resigned tone. “Recklessness has its place, I suppose, but not when so much is riding on you.”

Ren smiled. “I’ll try my best,” he replied earnestly. Then he looked back up and stared at the night sky. Deciding to get comfortable, to Olga’s surprise, he laid down to continue watching the stars and planets. At her questioning gaze, he grinned. “It’s a beautiful sight.”

Olga frowned, then turned her eyes upward as well. A moment’s silence passed between them, watching the celestial bodies shine softly above.

“… it is beautiful.”

----------

Ritsu yawned as she marched with the contingent. She thought marching with an army would be a more exciting prospect, but honestly, it was rather humdrum. Seeing similar scenery pass by for heaven knows how many miles (though at least it was beautiful – she would’ve taken more pictures if her phone had enough battery) gets boring after a while, and the monotonous sound of marching on gravelly paths as well as the carts slowly wheeling was enough to send her into a stupor. She already washed her face with cold water and pinched the back of her hands so much that they were still sore to keep awake.

Once more, she was reminded that military affairs weren’t glorious whatsoever. It was certainly a downgrade once she was away from both Ren and the Emperor. But on the other hand…

“Is something the matter, senpai?”

The redhead grinned over at Mash, who was looking at her with concern beside her. “Everything’s always okay with you around, Mash!” she replied cheerfully, her grin broadening as Mash turned red at the compliment. She had her ever-favorite shielder with her. She really couldn’t ask for better company than her. The only drawback was that they couldn’t fangirl together over the Phantom Thieves – considering Ren and Morgana, that’d just be awkward as heck – but this would more than suffice.

“I certainly envy your energy, Master.”

Turning, Ritsu grinned at Tamamo who was smiling on the other side, the Caster’s fox tail waving gently. “Psh, nothing to it,” she replied, waving it off. “Better to face the day with a grin than mope about! Well, for me anyway – everyone has their circumstances, after all.”

Tamamo giggled behind her sleeve. “That is certainly true,” she agreed. “But there is wisdom in such a lifestyle regardless.” She turned to look over at the scenery as they marched on and pouted. “Still, it is rather tiring how this interminable march seems to be going,” she complained. “I am a brilliant miko, not a foot soldier! Oh, how tiring this is!”

“I believe the officers say we are only a day or so away from our destination,” Mash supplied. “We only need to stop once more before arriving.”

Ritsu grinned. “Only a day, huh?” she said. “After that, it’s just a matter of crashing the party and the two of you saving the day! Nothing to it!”

“And I certainly envy your optimism, Master,” Tamamo added with a touch more exasperation, but she didn’t go any further than that. Ritsu merely chuckled in response. Technically, that’s what they would be doing. None of them had any doubts the situation was going to be far more complicated than that. They would have to confirm it for themselves once they arrived, which thankfully shouldn’t be too much longer.

Besides, in the face of everything, what else COULD she do but be optimistic? Hordes of Roman terminators, the infamous Julius Caesar in front of them, the progenitor of Rome behind the scenes, and of course, Lev Lainur pulling the strings. The two didn’t talk much back in Chaldea – he seemed like a pleasant enough man but never spared much time to talk to her beyond mere pleasantries. Frankly, she had a niggling feeling something had been off with him, but she dismissed it – mages were always weird.

An entire bombing, trapping her and the rest of Team A in a coma, was something she hadn’t predicted in the slightest.

In the end, there had been only two options for her: Start shrieking like a madwoman, which would get her a lovely, tight jacket and a very soft room as her accommodations for the foreseeable future, or buckle up, put a smile on her face, and keep going forward, just like the Phantom Thieves would do. When put in that way, the choice was obvious. She just hadn’t expected the Phantom Thieves themselves to basically make the same choice too.

“So, Mash, what do you think of this whole campaign so far?” she asked out of curiosity, glancing at the shielder.

Mash blinked in surprise before pondering the question. “It’s been quite different than I expected,” she replied earnestly. “It isn’t like Orleans, where we traveled in a small enough group while reaching our objectives. But this has been a fascinating experience. Far different than anything I’ve read.”

“Right?” Ritsu agreed, looking over. “The Roman army, Nero, an entire war campaign. If I told anyone, they’d think I’d have gone completely loony and honestly? I don’t think I can even disagree. This is crazy. I’m not looking forward to writing the report for this entire campaign once we get back to Chaldea.”

The shielder nodded, then shyly pressed her fingers together. “Um…” she murmured. “When we first came back from Chaldea, I… delayed writing my report for it. I didn’t know what to write. So much of it felt, well, unorthodox. Both the doctor and Da Vinci said it was okay, and I got it written, but, um… I didn’t wish to delay it.”

The redhead glanced over in surprise before a mischievous grin spread across her face. “My, my, our lovely, studious kouhai is procrastinating~?” she gasped in fake shock. “Oh, how terrible~! How will we ever punish such slothful behavior~?”

“S-senpai!” Mash stuttered, her face once again turning red from embarrassment. Ritsu could only laugh. Teasing her never got old.

“We’ll be making camp for the evening!” the officer in charge called out. “The hill to the northwest there! Move it!”

Ritsu blinked, then glanced over at the hill – particularly how steep it is.

Her legs were crying in agony already. And frankly, so was she.

----------

The camp was quickly set up and was done by the time the sun was setting over the horizon, the orange rays of light vanishing into the gloom of night. Torches were lit to illuminate the area as soldiers patrolled within and without, making sure there weren’t any enemy forces or saboteurs in the vicinity. It was a watchful peace overall as everyone rested and recuperated how they could.

That left Ritsu lying on the bedroll, staring up at the tent ceiling. The bedroll on the opposite end of the tent was empty; Mash had decided to patrol the area as well to ensure that they weren’t ambushed by some rogue Servant or monster. While the chances were unlikely, given everything they had been through, it wasn’t exactly a 0% chance, so it was better safe than sorry.

Once more, she was left to her own thoughts. Her legs were stiff and sore from the march, and all around her mind never stopped buzzing. She did all she could to keep a smile on her face as they kept going, but even she was burnt out now. Or had she been burnt out for a while now and was just keeping a happy face on? Even she couldn’t tell. It didn’t seem to slip quite yet, though Ren was catching on. Not surprising though – he’s the leader of the Phantom Thieves. He probably was great at reading people on top of everything else.

Her thoughts drifted back to Team A, as it had countless times before. How would they have handled all this? Wodime would’ve sweet-talked the emperor and the legates, probably come up with some sort of grand strategy with them. Ophelia would probably be following like his shadow as she always did. Ritsu knew she would have to give that girl a push to actually do something – the Animusphere heir was as dense as the celestial bodies he utilized. At least, that was the original plan before everything went wrong.

Hinako and Kadoc… yeah, she’d have to drag them out everywhere. Kadoc always seemed bad-tempered, and Hinako would rather just read. And if she didn’t do it, Pepe certainly would’ve done so. She had to chuckle to herself. According to Kadoc, she and Pepe got along like a house on fire, and she agreed. They felt like kindred spirits, always ready to take on the world with a smile.

The fact that Kadoc had the greatest look of dread on his face as he commented on their friendship only cemented things for them both.

Daybit was… well, even by her standards, he was weird. The guy rarely talked and when he did, it was curt and quick. At first, she thought he was one of those rude, arrogant types, but he was willing to entertain what few conversations they had. He even tolerated her fangirling over the Phantom Thieves at one point which was an achievement in of itself, so he couldn’t be that bad a guy. Probably.

And then there was Beryl. Ritsu, had to admit, she could get along with all sorts of people, but Beryl just gave her the creeps. Sure, he acted friendly and cheerful, but there was always some sort of… slimy feeling that she couldn’t shake off. The only other person who gave that feeling was Loki and frankly speaking, she’d rather deal with the Avenger than her fellow Master.

But still, it was a grand mission they were all gonna go on. She remembered standing in front of the coffins the first time, feeling both nervous and excited beyond measure. Team A were all happy to see her – even Hinako and Kadoc, as anti-social as they were (and she knew they’d rather die than admit it). They entered, then there was a loud explosion then… nothing.

And now, only she was left. Just her.

Ritsu sighed miserably as she rested further back into her bedroll. Great. She made herself sad yet again. She thought she already grieved plenty back in Chaldea, but it seemed things were never that easy. At least she cried all her tears out already. It wouldn’t do to just be randomly crying in the middle of a military campaign, as understandable as that’d be. She needed to do something else besides ruminate.

Getting up, she walked out of the tent – and nearly walked right into Tamamo. “Oh, Caster!” she said in surprise. “Everything alright?”

The miko blinked, then nodded. “Of course,” she replied. “I have my talismans set up in case of something approaching and so far, they aren’t picking up anything. I believe it will be a peaceful night. What of you, Master?”

The redhead grinned. “Getting by,” she replied easily enough. “But with the legendary Tamamo by my side as well as Mash, I feel like I’m on top of the world.”

Tamamo didn’t respond, instead staring closely at Ritsu with a small frown on her face. Finally, she sighed. “If there’s one thing all three of you have in common,” she murmured. “It’s that you are all good at putting up a strong front.”

That caught Ritsu off-guard. “I’m sorry?” she asked in surprise.

The Caster glanced up at Ritsu and sighed once more. “As I said before,” she explained. “Your optimism and energy are truly aspects to envy about you, Master, but without a doubt you are starting to force it. Come, back inside you go. Shoo, shoo.”

“Er, wait, what-“ Ritsu stammered as Tamamo pushed her back into the tent.

“Sit,” Tamamo commanded, gently pushing the surprised Ritsu back down onto the bedroll. “Clearly you have been stressed, and as your Servant it is my duty to serve my Master, including relieving stress. Now, I believe you have a certain proclivity for massages so I shall give you a shoulder massage. A miko’s touch works wonders in that regard.”

Ritsu blinked in surprise, then grinned. “Well, if you’re offering, I certainly won’t say no,” she accepted cheerfully, sitting up into position. She watched as Tamamo nodded in satisfaction before moving behind her, hearing her quietly sit down. Her presence felt warm and comforting overall. It was nice. She awaited the Caster’s gentle touch to start on her shoulders when-

“Master, I do not believe I can massage you properly through your armor,” Tamamo pointed out, a hint of amusement and admonishment in her voice.

The Master blinked in surprise, then chuckled ruefully. “Heh, sorry,” she apologized. “Been wearing this thing for so long I kinda forgot it was there to begin with.” Reaching over, she loosened the straps of the armor before sliding it off. Immediately, she felt a bit of relief – though the armor wasn’t exactly heavy, it had still weighed on her body nevertheless. Taking it off was refreshing in a way she hadn’t expected overall.

Once she put aside the armor, she felt Tamamo’s slender fingers snake around her shoulders and start kneading into the muscles. The pressure was gentle and comforting, yet at the same time, pain lanced through her shoulders. Not unbearable, but enough to make her wince. “There is no small amount of stress in your muscles,” Tamamo noted as she worked. “I can certainly feel the knots without even trying.”

“Can’t be helped,” Ritsu grunted as she withstood the pain. “We’ve been marching for some time, after all. Combined with the armor and it’s no wonder.” She winced again as Tamamo hit a particularly stiff area. “Careful over there,” she added. “That area’s pretty bad.”

Tamamo nodded as she lessened the pressure to try and work out the knot in Ritsu’s shoulders. “And yet is that the source of all the stress?” she prodded, working closer to her neck and causing Ritsu to wince a bit more. The Caster’s ears flicked as she turned slightly, catching notice of something, then resumed her work. “Or is there some other factor?”

Ritsu grunted again. As painful as the massage was, she could feel a lot of her muscles loosening up under the fox miko’s ministrations. “It’s… nothing to worry about,” she replied hesitantly. “At the very least, it’s not something that’s worth talking about. Hey, out of curiosity, what kind of other spells can you do? Is it just talismans or is it something else?”

Behind her, the Caster frowned. “Avoiding the topic isn’t going to help, Master,” she grumbled as once more, her eyes glanced in the same direction as before, her tail waving in irritation. “But there are a number of other spells I can use, such as…”

Meanwhile, Mash had been standing outside the tent, not even daring to breathe. She knew Tamamo had noticed she was outside and heard the conversation between the two. She gulped as her thoughts scrambled. It wasn’t just Ren or Morgana that had issues, but Ritsu too. Once more, she was at a loss. What could she do? How? Her shield was meant to protect all of them, but how could she protect them from something she didn’t know how to fight?

“Ritsu-senpai…”