As far as the eye could witness, no other words can dare describe this landscape as nothing more than a utopia - a paradise. A wafting summer breeze gently coax flowers of all colours basking in spring's sunshine to sway as if it were dancing to its light hum. Among the fields of countless flora surrounded by an enchanting forest laid a small, beautiful child sleeping peacefully, though a tender whisper of the wind and the flowers kindly cajoling them to awaken.

The child stirred and begrudging awoke from their peaceful slumber, yawning very tiredly and rubbing their drooping eyelids. The child has shoulder length red hair with a side ponytail hanging in a bright yellow silky satin yellow scrunchie and a prominent ahoge bouncing on top of her head. She had big unique and lovely golden amber eyes that almost appeared blue in a different light and even reveal a rainbow glimmering from within, wearing a white dress that had two black straps across the chest, long sleeves with a single grey band accenting them, black tights knee high white boots and a choker with a silver piece of two intersecting diamonds over the collar part of the dress. She sat up from her spot, somewhat sluggish and slow to react until she immediately realized where she was and stood up to have a slightly better view of the world around her.

While the scenery was the most beautiful, the young child couldn't truly appreciate it due to becoming acutely aware (or unaware) of her mysterious location. Beyond the horizon of the blooming flowers and forest and the sloping planes and slicing through the evenly divided view of the sky and earth stood a faint but prominent mysterious tower of gold and silver with floating ornaments spiraling around it in the middle.

"Mama?" she asked, trying to find any affirmation that she wasn't alone in this gorgeous wonderland. "Papa? Aunty?"

When no answer was acknowledged or returned, the young girl was growing slightly nervous. Never before was she truly alone before. Before the emotions of sadness and fear would truly get a stronghold on her, the child took a deep breath and sat back down, trying to think rationally through their situation as her mother would always put it. Unlike most children who would most likely burst into tears at the revelation of being lost or just aimlessly wander off to satisfy their uncontained curiosity happy to be free of rules or responsibility, the girl decided to remain where she was. She remembered her family strictly enforcing that she must remain where she was until either they or someone of trusted authority could be there. At least until she was old enough to take care of herself.

And yet, somehow she knew that she wasn't in danger. This place seemed so safe and practically compelling her to stay where she was. It felt almost surreal...like a dream. Her big pretty and unique eyes turned to one of the flowers beside her that were tickling her leg. She smiled down at it, her hand gently touching the petals. After a moment of silence and tranquility, the young child returned to the two questions that were in her mind: where was she and how did she get here?

"What did I do today?" the small girl asked herself. Her head which was starting to clear up from the nap did help recounting what on Earth happened to her that day. When she remembered she slightly grimaced.

Honestly, how could she ever forget?

Warm, dull sunlight filtered through the shōji, gently coaxing the young girl who was snuggling deep inside her warm soft blankets, pillow and bed to wake up. Her eyes slowly opened up to the light. She sat up tiredly, the blankets rolling off her small body, producing a big yawn and stretching her arms and back. She wore a comfortable and soft onesie with a hoodie and her bright red hair was slightly dishevelled. Her unique eyes were barely opened and her consciousness was slowly returning.

The young child turned her eyes straight to the clock in the room. According to the clock, she had about fifteen minutes before her actual alarm was supposed to go off. She allowed the sunlight to wake her up slowly since she was still a bit sleepy.

The young girl brought herself out of her bed and shuffled sluggishly towards the bathroom. After getting ready and putting on her Homurahara Academy Elementary School uniform which was a collared blouse with puffed short sleeves accented with red, a black skirt that went to her mid-thighs, black thigh-high stockings and dark brown loafers, tidying up her hair into her signature style and putting it into her favourite yellow scrunchie given to her by the family, she went straight to the empty kitchen.

The little girl went up to the fridge to open it. There were several pre-made meals that were wrapped up and reheatable in the microwave. On every meal were a yellow sticky note that had reminders and all had cute loving notes written by the family. She could tell right away which ones were made by whom. She smiled at the sight.

After having breakfast, she tidied and cleaned everything up before needing to leave for school. She double-checked for what she needed: her backpack, her school work, her lunch, her phone and most of all, the beautiful red jewel pendant that she wore hidden underneath her uniform at all times. It was an important family heirloom after all; something with great significance that only her family would ever understand.

Once everything was in order, the young girl smiled back at the empty house.

"Bye! I'm off to school!" she declared to her family home, despite knowing nobody would answer her.

The moment she stepped through the gate that would lead her to the outside of the Emiya residence exterior, the small girl immediately found herself sitting in a black, empty space where there was a special rollable chair with its back turned to her and she in a non-rollable chair sitting across a wooden table across from each other.

She looked around in awe, taking a moment to soak everything in. At that moment, she remembered the countless stories her family told her. One particular story her father told her was, his expression telling her to be extra vigilant if she ever found herself in a similar situation, of a world that was pitch black, where a meddling vampire would reside to observe and wait for his next object of entertainment to be found.

(The only advice her parents gave her if she was ever in the same situations they happen to find themselves to be in every so-often: unless you have unrivalled, omnipotent power that can help you against him, just submit and bear with it until you somehow got out.)

Unfortunately, she didn't quite develop a proper sense of danger around said meddling vampire as much as her parents and everyone else.

The chair swirled around to dramatically reveal a very familiar old gentleman who had mischievous eyes, an amused expression and a cheeky smirk on his aged face which revealed his sharp fangs.

"Grandpa Zel?" she squeaked out, surprised to see the strange but quirky man.

"Ah, my dear Ritsuka, it has been a while." he greeted the young girl.

Indeed, the man before her was the one and only Kischur Zelretch Schweinorg, her mother's Master and a really important man in the Clocktower. Whenever she saw him, she personally liked to call him 'Grandpa Zel' because he was weird and funny and only met on certain occasions like a grandpa, much to the chagrin of her mother. Honestly, the Wizard Marshall didn't seem to mind being called 'Grandpa'. At least by her.

This man, utilizing the power of Second Magic otherwise known as Kaleidoscope, was able to accomplish feats that other magi could only dream of achieving. He also knew things that other people wouldn't - couldn't - know about. Apparently, according to her mother, Zelretch actually got involved in naming her or something along those lines, giving her her middle name. She didn't know if that was a good thing or a bad thing considering who Zelretch was. It was a little weird, but then again it was the Wizard Marshall.

He can more or less do whatever he wants.

What Ritsuka did know though was that if Zelretch was around, then something super big, something far beyond her comprehension, was going to happen. That usually resulted with her parents (and occasionally others) vanishing for a while and then coming, exhausted and drained, but satisfied that they averted the crisis. She didn't mind too much since she knew her family would always come back and she understood that it was something important.

However, what was concerning Ritsuka at the moment was that Zelretch was speaking to her, not her parents or family (at least the ones who know about the whole magic stuff). What could he possibly want from her? She was only nine!

"Grandpa Zel, why did you bring me here? I have to go to school." Ritsuka asked, being polite and respectful like her papa had taught her.

"Ah, I know. However, what I am about to speak about here is a far more important school, Ritsuka," Zelretch replied, his eyes becoming serious and dark. He straightened up and squarely looked the young girl in the eyes, his hand folded together.

"Little Ritsuka, there is a great danger upon us. If left alone, it could result in the world - nay, the very Multiverse to be in jeopardy."

The little girl blinked, the words merely flew past her head. She was only nine years old. She didn't understand the weight the words her pseudo-grandfather spoke to her carried.

"Then why are you telling me? Shouldn't Mama and Papa know?" Ritsuka asked. If what was going to happen was catastrophic, why was he telling her about this? Why her? Why must she be involved? Can't her parents handle it?

The Kaleidoscope gave a small gratifying smile. "Clever girl. Indeed, while your family will eventually come and help aid in the crisis, you however are the only one who can fix this."

The nine year old could only blink in response.

She was the only one who could fix this? What? Why? How? Couldn't her parents fix it? Out of everybody who existed in this world and beyond, why her? Why would the fate of the very Multiverse rest on the shoulders of a nine year old?

The idea of saving the world was a familiar yet distant concept for her. Many times, her parents had to do very important things and was very busy, but always made time for their precious child. Ritsuka was aware that her family circumstances were more...peculiar when compared to most people, whether they be magi or regular humans. With all honesty, Ritsuka grew up shocking and ridiculously...average. There was absolutely nothing hidden beneath as she grew up just an ordinary person with no traumatic backstory, secret power or out-of-reach ideals or anything along those lines.

(At least...as far as she was concerned.)

Ritsuka was about as human as one could get. She was raised with warmth, love and care by her loved ones and she treasured the memories created with the time spent with them. They taught her everything, they gave her everything she needed, they got her what she wanted that was within reason. She experienced many things in her short time in this world, but she understood why people did what they did.

She understood that so many people, even her own family, didn't have what she had growing up. In fact, despite hailing from a prestigious and long magi lineage and her family agreed to teach Ritsuka magecraft, they didn't want her to live a life of a magus.

To be a magus would mean to sacrifice the human side of them for the sake of power and success. To have a magus life would mean devoting all their lives to research and upkeeping the family name, caring for nothing else.

What Ritsuka's family wanted for her was entirely different.

They wanted her to be someone who was loving and compassionate, never sacrificing their heart for a greater gain. To be someone who took care of those who loved them and never abandoned them. To be someone who followed their dreams for their own sake and not for the sake of others without a single shred of doubt or regret. To be someone who knew that they were loved and they would never abandon or be abandoned by the ones who they undoubtedly are her family.

They wanted her to become the person she truly ought to become.

Ritsuka's hand slid towards her chest, gripping through her uniform and her mother's pendant. It was a family heirloom both she and her father kept with them at all times. It was a legacy - a reminder that she must always do what is right; no matter what path she chose, she must see through it to the end.

Having a moment to think about it, she nodded her head in acceptance of what Zelretch said to her. "Okay. What do I have to do?" she asked, her unique eyes shimmering with determination.

Zelretch grinned brightly, chuckling inwardly how much she was like her family. "I already have everything prepared so I will be sending you off where you need to be. You will know what you will need to do when you get there," he said, activating Second Magic. "Don't worry. You'll be in good hands."

Before the girl could react or prepare herself, she was surrounded by beautiful colours before blacking out.

Ritsuka frowned to herself. After a moment, she looked around again. Was this the impending situation Zelretch talked about? This place didn't look like there was an ounce of danger here.

Oh boy. Mama was going to be furious when she found out.

A lighthearted chuckle filled the air. "My, my, I didn't expect us to meet like this. At least, not for some time," a charming voice hummed. "What an interesting outcome this is." The nine year old turned to find a mysterious figure standing in the direction of the gold and silver tower watching over her.

A hooded being who wore a pure white robe that looked like it was made with the finest of fabric, but somehow still retained a modest look to them. Their long white hair shimmered the colours of the rainbow under the beautiful spring sunlight.

Ritsuka couldn't see their face and she definitely couldn't tell if this person was a man or a woman just by appearance alone. However, the child felt as though she had known this person for a very long time. The scent this person carried smelled so gentle and sweet, like a freshly bloomed flower. In fact, their scent was hard to distinguish from themselves and the seemingly perfect untouched paradise they were in.

Almost like a nostalgic scent of a familiar but distant memory from long ago.

"Who...are you?" Ritsuka asked. It was not defensive or with caution, but with genuine curiosity and wonder.

The figure smiled. "Someone you will know eventually," they replied cryptically.

"Where am I?" the young girl asked.

"Somewhere you tread between reality and a dream. Right now, you're only half-asleep, so you will remember this encounter." the person said. "Ah. Looks like Cath Palug is here to assist you."

Ritsuka's eyes suddenly felt heavy with tiredness and was having trouble keeping her eyes open. As she succumbed to the overpowering wave of fatigue and before allowing the darkness to wash over her, she heard the person's final words to her before she fell unconscious once again.

"Till we meet again, the Hope of Human History...Ritsuka Fujimaru Emiya."

"Fou…" a small voice cooed as something warm and wet licked the child's cheek.

Ritsuka stirred, forcing her tired eyes to open. Within her field of vision, she was in a high-tech modern hallway and in front of her was a small white fluffy dog-rabbit-squirrel creature that greeted her. It tilted its head in curiosity. It had pristine show-white fur, long ears, and a bushy tail while wearing a cute little cape.

"Ah...excuse me, are you okay?" a soft but firm voice asked. The child sat up to see a very pretty teenage girl with light pink hair, violet eyes and black rimmed glasses looking down at her with a concerned expression. "Why were you sleeping on the floor? Is it comfortable?"

"Mhm...not really," Ritsuka replied, still a little groggy, getting up from the floor and onto her feet. She watched the small creature hop onto the older girl's shoulder and yipping. "Who's that?" The young child wanted to know what that tiny, fluffy animal was. It held a scent she didn't recognize, but there was a faint and familiar floral tinge.

"Oh, this is Fou. He's a Privileged Life Form, free to wander the halls of Chaldea." the teenager replied. "He seems to like you. That's quite rare."

The two girls watched Fou jump off and quickly scamper off.

"Who are you?" Ritsuka asked, turning to the older girl in front of her.

The teenager blinked, clearly caught off-guard by the question. However, before she could answer, someone else beat her to the punch.

"Ah, there you are Mash," a new voice interrupted. An older German man who looked Aryan approached the two girls. Ritsuka immediately felt a chill riding down her spine and she almost wanted to cover her nose as this man came closer. There was a horrible scent of death and suffering clinging onto this man. Just his appearance alone was saying he was bad news. "My, walking off on your own like that...at least inform the staff. It causes some problems."

"Sorry, Dr. Leff." the teenager who has been identified as Mash apologized.

"And who might this be?" the man asked politely about the young girl.

Ritsuka didn't want to say her name, at least not in front of him; but nonetheless complied. "I'm Ritsuka." she said, keeping a steady poker face.

"Ritsuka?" Leff repeated, until realization dawned on his face. "Ah, the forty-eighth Master Candidate that both the Mage's Association and the Church personally chose and recommended to come here."

"Really?" Mash responded in surprise. "Senpai seems so young…" she murmured.

"I know," Leff replied, completely sympathizing with Mash's reaction, "But, nonetheless, welcome to Chaldea. We should probably take her to the Command Room to avoid her missing the Director's Orientation."

"Okay." Mash replied.

Not wanting to be around Leff for too long, Ritsuka quickly ran to Mash's side and grabbed her hand. Mash blinked down at the little girl.

Ritsuka smiled. "Lead the way, kouhai." she said. She heard Mash call her Senpai for some reason, so she in return wanted to call her kouhai. There was something about Mash that she really liked right away so she was okay being around her.

"O-oh...okay." Mash's cheeks were slightly tinged with pink as she, Leff and Ritsuka made their way to the Command Room.

Being the last person to come into the room, the young nine year old had to sit in the last available seat which was the front row middle seat, squarely in the path of the Director's vision. It wasn't very inconspicuous of everyone already present to be giving strange looks about the obvious elephant in the room and some even tactlessly whispering about it, but the little girl didn't really care since she had to be there.

When the Director came on stage, Ritsuka immediately knew right away just by looking that the Director was really high-strung and super bossy. The Director lady swept her eyes over the crowd until she noticed Ritsuka and the two made eye contact.

"Who let a child in here?"

Director Olga Marie Animusphere was openly leering down at the child, but Ritsuka was not deterred by her pointed glare and levelly stood her ground.

"I'm the forty-eighth Master Candidate." Ritsuka replied matter-of-factually, remembering her number. It was the truth since apparently that shady Leff guy did mention that the Mage's Association and the Church specifically wanted her here. She guessed that Zelretch really wanted to make sure she stayed in Chaldea. It wasn't a total lie: her family do know lots and lots of super important people all over the world and beyond and do keep in touch, which also included people in the Clock Tower and the Church. They come over to spend time with her and sometimes, she could even stay with them for a bit when her family were way, way too busy with whatever life and death situation Zelretch or something else got them into.

The Director's eyes widened almost imperceptibly before glowering when she heard the response and merely sighed in irritation. "So you're the famous forty-eighth Master Candidate," she muttered to herself before returning to her final recruitment. "I see. Despite the Mage's Association and the Church recommending you to be here, I will not condone someone like you to participate in something as important as the First Mission. Until I have personally assessed your overall capabilities and worth, you are forbidden to perform active field work. You are to remain in your assigned room until further notice."

Ritsuka processed the information and then shrugged in acceptance. She knew that the Director lady was telling her to get out. The nine year old hopped from her seat and walked up to Mash.

She held out her hand.

They held hands again and walked out of the room.

"I'm really sorry, Senpai, if the Director seemed rather...harsh," Mash apologized to the nine year old. "I promise that the rest of the staff here aren't as difficult."

Ritsuka shrugged. "It's okay." There were probably other people far worse than the bossy Director lady (maybe that Leff guy), so she was okay.

"Fou!" a sudden blur of white tackled Mash in the face.

"The fluffy white squirrel is back." Ritsuka stated.

"Hi Fou." Mash greeted the small creature who settled onto her shoulder. "How have you been?" she asked, getting a small coo in response.

"Does he normally do that?" Ritsuka asked. She was referring to the sudden tackles to the face.

"Yes, but it's no problem." Mash explained. "He does it quite often."

Fou tilted his head before hopping into Ritsuka's arms. The young child marveled at how soft his coat was.

"Looks like Fou has embraced you as one of his own. I wonder though…" Mash began trailing off. "Oh, we're here." they stopped in front of a room that was right across the infirmary.

Mash unlocked the door only to find that the supposedly vacant bedroom was occupied. A man with fluffy peach coloured hair tied in a ponytail sat on the bed with a laptop in front of him and some cake in hand. He turned and paused to see a familiar face and a small child holding a fluffy white creature standing in the doorway of the room.

"Doctor…" Mash started.

"I wasn't slacking!" the man proclaimed, slamming his laptop closed. Ritsuka giggled. "Huh? Who is this?" he asked, looking at the small girl.

"This is Ritsuka. She's the forty-eighth Master Candidate. This is her room." Mash explained.

"R-really?" the Doctor said, a surprised look on his face. "I didn't think they could recruit anybody this young."

"Neither did the Director." Mash replied. "Could you watch over her? Senpai was told to stay here until the First Mission ended and the Orientation is about to finish."

"Sure. Hi, Ritsuka. I'm Doctor Romani. Nice to meet you." he greeted the small girl with a smile.

Ritsuka didn't know why, but there was something different about this man, though not in a bad way like Leff, so she ignored the feeling. "Hi." she replied back. Her eyes were caught on his fluffy ponytail. She wondered if it was as soft as Fou's fur.

"I'll be leaving now," Mash announced. "Fou said he'll stay with you."

"Bye-bye, kouhai," Ritsuka cheerfully replied, waving Mash goodbye. Mash blushed a little before stepping out of the room.

For a brief moment, there was an awkward silence. Ritsuka tilted her head, noticing the piece of cake on her bed.

"Can I have some?"

Ritsuka happily sat in Doctor Romani's lap after finishing some cake. He decided to tell the little girl about Chaldea in a very easy and simplified explanation due to her being a child and not even having a chance of knowing what would be happening after being ordered to leave the Orientation just before it began. Fou laid on the other side of the bed, seemingly resting.

In the middle of one of his lectures, his small wrist-mounted communicator started to ring. He answered it. "Yes?"

Ritsuka tuned out the conversation between the Doctor and whoever. Her mind was thinking about more tasty cakes with all honesty. Her family didn't often get sweets since her father's insistence that a growing girl like her should have real food and homemade was better. After a little bit, Ritsuka crawled off his lap and sat next to Fou, petting him in content.

"I see...anyway, okay, I'll be there." Doctor Romani finished. He stood up and began stretching a bit. "Well, Ritsuka, Leff wants me to go down to the Central Command Room and do some doctor stuff."

Without looking up and continuing to pet Fou, the little girl felt this was a good time to ask about a nagging thought that was floating around in her head. "Doctor Rome, is Mr. Leff evil?"

"What makes you say that?" the Doctor was pretty sure that Leff wasn't evil. He had known the guy for a long time.

"He looks and smells super evil." she replied so very innocently and seriously that it caught him off-guard.

Romani honestly had no idea how to respond to such an earnest answer. Smells evil? He thought to himself, unsure how one smells evil. Was there something he wasn't getting at? Clearly, her first impression of him was pretty bad. Was it a kid thing? But maybe if she got to know him, she wouldn't be as insistent about him being evil.

"A-anyway, thanks for chatting with me, Ritsuka. I had a great time." Romani said, smiling. "After you settle in and the mission is over, drop by the infirmary across the hall. I'll give you some more yummy cake."

The adorable child beamed.

Suddenly the lights went out and loud sirens were blazing.

"What the -?!"

Emergency. Emergency.

A fire has broken out in the Central Power Station and the Central Command Room.

The Central Area's containment wall will activate in 90 seconds. All staff must evacuate from Gate Two at once.

Repeat. The Central Power Station and the Central-

"Was that an explosion just now? What on earth is happening?" Doctor Romani felt small hands gripping his jacket, signifying that Ritsuka was holding onto him. Fou was on his feet and stayed close to the small child in a protective manner. He held one hand on Ritsuka as confirmation that she was alright.

"Fou!"

"Monitor, show us the Command Room! Is everyone alright?" the screen that was in the room lit open, showing an ominous scene of devastation in the Command Room. Tall red flames gave a terrifying glow to the room, revealing mountains of rubble covering the floor like a carpet.

In shock of the sight before them, Ritsuka's eyes widened in realization. "...Command Room? What about Mash?" she asked, fearing for her kouhai's safety.

"What-?" The Doctor started. The light in the room went back on, but now there was flashing red light inside.

"Ritsuka, you need to run." Doctor Roman replied, forcing a smile, not wanting to worry the small child. "I need to go and check something. I'll be back soon." he said before opening the room and left running.

The Doctor ran through the smoke-filled corridors to open the Central Command Room. He saw fire blazing in the room and debris scattered across the ruined area, just as it was shown in the monitor.

He surveyed the room quickly, seeing no survivors. "Only CHALDEAS is safe…" he murmured. He saw where the explosion originated from - its Ground Zero. It was clear it was sabotage.

Generator operation stopped.

Power level critical.

Romani turned to the control panel and saw everything was broken.

Switch to backup generator...Error.

Please make the switch manually.

Containment wall closing in 40 seconds.

Those remain in Central Area, evacuate immediately-

Immediately, the Doctor ran back around towards the underground power station. However, in the midst of the thick black smoke that obscured his vision and his mission to ensure that Chaldea's light cannot go out, Romani failed to notice the small little girl running into the Command Room.

"Mash!" Ritsuka cried out in the blazing and wrecked Command Room. Only the large central globe, CHALDEAS, remained unharmed. She jumped over large chunks of debris and other things that littered the floor to try and find Mash.

"Sen...pai…" a weak voice called out. Ritsuka found Mash's lower half of her body crushed by a large chunk of concrete. "Please...you need...to leave…" she pleaded. "Run…"

Ritsuka stubbornly refused to leave, trying with all of her nine year old might to push the large block of concrete off Mash. "Come...on!" the child grunted.

"It's...no use…" Mash quietly murmured. "Just go…"

Unable to detect the existence of mankind 100 years in the near future on Earth.

Update: Human Extinction confirmed.

"No...CHALDEAS is…" the globe in the very center of the room turned ominous red.

Central Area, sealed.

The metal doors slammed against the ground, sealing off any possible entry or exit out of the area.

"Oh no...you're trapped…" Mash said weakly. "You can't...get out…"

Ritsuka sat down next to the trapped girl and gave her a reassuring, hopeful smile.

"It'll be okay, Mash." the small girl said. "We'll find a way out."

Rayshift requirement not met.

"Senpai…" Mash smiled weakly.

Searching for qualifying Master...Found.

Candidate No. 48, Ritsuka Fujimaru Emiya reset as Master.

"Could you...hold my hand?" Mash whispered as she felt her consciousness slipping away.

Ritsuka smiled and firmly grasped Mash's hand tightly as the building collapsed around them among the burning flames that grew hotter.

Unsummon Program, commence.

Starting Spiriton Conversion.

Rayshift starting in 3...2...1...