Ritsuka didn't get to sleep well these days. Unlike during the Singularities, his current situation was a lot more stressful for countless of reasons. Still, at times he managed to get some shut eye and some dreamless nights. However that did not mean that he was a heavy sleeper. Far from it. Which was why his eyes snapped open when he felt the wind brush against his face.

Wind that shouldn't exist if he was indoors. His eyes snapped open, his own exhaustion forgotten. Leaning up, he looked around. Instead of the Shadow Border or a bed, he sat on fresh green grass. Mountains and hills as far as the human eye could see. The smell of the air, the familiar hint of black powder used long ago filled his nose. Ritsuka groaned as he shook his head with a sigh.

"Oh come on, not again... !"

Suddenly appearing in some other place after going to bed? Gee, didn't that sound familiar. Ritsuka took a deep breath. No use panicking. He just had to figure out where he was, if he could contact Chaldea and-

"Hm... "

He froze. Despite his relative alertness to his current situation, he somehow missed the soft yet familiar feeling that pressed up and wrapped around his arm. Slowly, he turned his head. And lo and behold, Mash giggled lightly to herself, cuddling up against him. As usual, she wore her outfit when she wasn't in combat. Ritsuka couldn't help but blush. Okay, that was a new one. Did they fall asleep together? No, that couldn't be. Though he could recall that he fell asleep before Mash and she was still in the room... He sighed before starting to shake her with his free right arm. She stirred, blinking half asleep at him. Then, as she adjusted her glasses, her eyes widened as her face slowly turned red. He couldn't help but smile a bit at that. Despite everything, she was still his cute friend she always was.

"Ah! Senpai! S-sor-"

As she shot up and stuttered, she stopped herself. It took only an instance of looking around before her red face vanished. Without hesitation, she was engulfed in light and promptly held up her shield, the Ortenaus gear equipped in a split second. As she surveyed her surroundings, Ritsuka had to whistle. No matter how many times he saw it, Mash transforming, in a sense, was always cool to look at. Ritsuka had no idea how that worked, equipping the Ortenaus gear at any moment. He chalked it up to something something Da Vinci.

"Senpai, where are we?" Mash asked, lowering her shield, but still surveying their surroundings. Ritsuka shook his head as he dusted himself off, standing on his feet.

"That's what I like to know." He crossed his arms in thought. "Can you try contacting Chaldea?"

"Of course!" Her enthusiasm died quickly however. Sadly, she lowered her head and shook her head, biting her lip in frustration. "We're cut off from everyone... !"

"Well, I guess it's been a while since this happened."

Mash blinked at him as he merely hummed in thought. She slowly tilted her head as she rested her shield on the ground.

"You... are awfully calm about this."

"Considering Shimosa and Cologne among other events, I'm getting more used to this than I should." Ritsuka looked down at his command seals with a frown. "I can still feel the connection with Chaldea, so that's at least something."

"Hopefully the summoning ritual will still work... " Mash muttered, staring at the catalyst, her shield. With a smile, Ritsuka patted her shoulder reassuringly.

"Well, in Shimosa, you managed to send Kotaro, didn't you?"

"Right! Maybe they're already on it!" Mash brightened up, smiling back at him. Before they could say anything more however, the ground began to shake. It was subtle and only lasted for less than a second. But it happened again. Periodically, the ground shook, the grass vibrated. Ritsuka shared a frown with the Shielder.

"That... doesn't feel like natural earthquakes."

"It's almost like someone walking. Someone big," Ritsuka replied, rubbing his chin in thought. Mash narrowed her eyes before letting out a sigh. With a smile, she nodded at him.

"Senpai, you want to check it out, don't you?"

"We don't have other clues and when did immense danger ever stop me?"

As they shared a small laugh, they walked towards the direction where the source of this ground shaking was coming from. It didn't take long for them to walk over a hill and finding something that at least suggested some sort of civilization being around.

A road. If one could even call it that. It certainly was a marked path, but rather as a consequences of many people stomping out the grass over time than a planned road. Which made Ritsuka wonder in what sort of time period this... Singularity or Lostbelt was stuck in. Still, a road was a road. One just needed to follow it and they were bound to find something. But just as they approached it, Mash snapped her head towards the distance. She reached out for her master and gently pushed him behind her. Before he could ask what was wrong, he heard them.

The galloping of horses. And soon enough, the natives revealed themselves to Ritsuka. His eyes were wide in shock, just as wide as the ones who belonged to the leader of their group. Their... Japanese group. As somewhat historically ignorant as Ritsuka was for his role as a master of Chaldea, even he could recognize the garments and weapons of old from his home country.

Men in samurai armor from the Sengoku period if Ritsuka had to guess. They had glowing lines across their suits, with some paper tags here and there, signifying their mystery. Wraiths floated around them, eerily like guardians or scouts. In their lead?

A young woman who didn't look older than your average college student. Red hair that shined in the sun, tied up in a pony tail. Not only that, she was clothed like a shrine maiden, white upper garment and red lower garment. With a frown, her almost colorless eyes stared at them, before extending her arm with authority filling her voice.

"Identify yourselves, in the name of the Byakko clan and the will of the Shogun!"

Ritsuka gulped, trying to remain calm. Crap, he was getting excited. When was the last time he's ever met a genuine shrine maiden?! Sure, there was Chiyome, but she wasn't pure in that sense! This was great! His smile began to waver. If it weren't a Singularity or Lostbelt. Crap. That put a downer on his mood. Well, time to put on his charm. With a smile, he stepped forward, next to Mash, his arms held up in a peaceful manner.

"My name is Ritsuka Fujimaru! This is my friend, Mash Kyrielight! We mean no harm!"

At their names, the woman narrowed her eyes. As if looking over prey, she seemed to analyze them. Then with a glance back, she nodded at her warriors. The men, who had already reached for their spears and blades, seemed to relax. Meanwhile the woman put on a polite smile, adjusting to the movements of her horse a bit.

"From outside Nippon then?" As they nodded, the woman tilted her head with curiosity. "It has been a while since we had visitors. I assume you were on your way to the capital?"

"That's right! But we got lost, so it took us a while to find this road!"

"Understandable. These lands can be disorienting." "Very well, we shall escort you."

"Thank you, milady."

"Sasaki Byakko." "You may refer to me as Master Byakko."

Head of her clan then? Ritsuka wasn't quite sure how magi hierarchy worked. It was never a topic of focus, since he rarely had to deal with them. Still, it seemed this Sasaki was rather high up, both in her clan and in the general government of this... Shogun. Anyway, as they walked alongside Sasaki, Ritsuka licked his lips. This was the perfect opportunity to find more about this place. Clearing his throat, he put on a smile as the leader turned to him.

"It has been a while since I have been in Nippon. Has something changed in this place?"

"Naturally not. As always, the lands are as peaceful as ever," Sasaki explained calmly, staring at the horizon. She chuckled before turning to them. "There may be some rebels here and there, but no government can claim to be perfect."

"Thanks to the Shogun."

She nodded at his words.

"Of course. He was the Divine Will after all."

"And the Emperor?" Ritsuka asked carefully. For a moment, she remained silent. Then, without looking at him, her smile still in place, she answered.

"The Shogun is more than enough."

Ritsuka hummed in thought. On its own, this exchange was just like their walk. Normal. The definition of peace. Still, as peaceful as the situation was, Ritsuka never left Mash's side. And Mash never let go of her shield. She sent a worried look at him. He in turn subtly nodded back in agreement, reading her message.

The peace was fake. As much as they tried, the natives were suspicious of them. The tense air couldn't be hidden. The occasional glance towards them and then to each other, the brushing of their hands over their weapons. Not to mention the soldiers' eyes. Something about them unsettled Ritsuka. All those signs together... Well, he wasn't Sherlock Holmes. But even he could that that this was an escort, not of guests, but potential criminals. An escort that didn't want to start something just yet. Not to mention the information Sasaki shared. Or rather didn't.

Ritsuka liked to think he was an optimist. But after everything he's been through, he would be a fool to think that this place was as cut and dry as Sasaki wanted them to think it was. If the Shogun wasn't in the middle of whatever made this place a problem for humanity, Ritsuka would eat his gloves.

"Now then... what brings you to the capital?"

Her voice shook him out of his musings. Laughing, he scratched the back of his head awkwardly, trying to act casual.

"Just wanted to pay respects to the Shogun."

Mash nodded in agreement. Sasaki hummed in response. It caused him to tense up. It was not a nice hum. He began to sweat as she looked at him, her eyes half lidded. Damn it.

"Do you now." She tilted her head ever so slightly, her mouth twitching. "No ill intents I assume."

"Of course not," Ritsuka replied ,trying to remain calm. But it was meaningless. The time of probing was over. Both sides were fully aware that the other was acting. And they both knew that the other knew. It was a powder keg begging to explode. The ghosts hissed, revealing their claws. The soldiers shook with excitement at the incoming bloodlust. Sasaki's hand moved a bit and Ritsuka's eyes landed on the naginata. He didn't know how he missed it before.

Appearance wise, it was unusual. A white and black striped staff, attached to a blade that was a silver fang than a sword, almost ghostlike and transparent. But it wasn't the appearance that caught his attention. It was the aura of it. It wasn't a Noble Phantasm. Ritsuka saw enough to know the difference. But it was something that could come close to it in a sense.

Mash clenched her teeth and Ritsuka clicked his tongue. How much would Mash get hurt? They had the numbers. But could they keep up with a servant like her? He wasn't too keen on testing it.

Fortunately for him, neither got the choice to escalate, for the choice was taken from them.

A thud sound. Everyone turned towards the object. An arrow, with a papertag wrapped around it, glowing ominously. Sasaki's eyes widened before reaching for her naginata with a snarl.

"AMBUSH!"

In an instance, the area was covered in a deep, thick smoke cloud. He thanked whatever god was watching that Mash grabbed Ritsuka's arm in an instance, already rushing out. Yet Ritsuka had no idea where they were or where the soldiers were. Before they could run into the enemy, Ritsuka felt a tug at his other arm. Mash was about to turn towards him, noticing the resistance, before a voice, muffled through the smoke, shouted at them.

"Good or bad?!"

It was a weird question. Yet Ritsuka didn't hesitate to reply.

"Good!"

A giggle sounded, as the smoke began to dissipate, magical energy gathering in one place as words were being muttered.

"Then we're best of pals! Cmon!" The girlish voice shouted. Ritsuka tugged at Mash's arm immediately.

"Mash!"

"Understood!"

Rushing out, the cloud behind them exploded, scattered away. But they already managed to create a distance between themselves and Sasaki with her soldiers. Now he could also see their benefactor. Their short black hair covered a bit of their red eyes as she turned at them. Her fingerless gloves, azure in color just as the scale like cloak she was wearing, let go of his arm. At the same time, Mash proceeded to de-summon her shield and carry her master in her arms. The girl, for she couldn't be older than Ritsuka at all, grinned in a way that was much more genuine than Sasaki. Her eyes even seemed to be glad to see him.

"Amako!" Sasaki screamed, a conflicted expression on her face. "Stop this right now! It's still not-"

"Sorry, sis, but the answer remains 'screw you'!" Amako shouted back, the cloak fluttering to reveal the sleeveless shirt and short shorts she was wearing. Then, as she channeled energy into herself (a magus?), she motioned with her head at the Chaldeans. "Gogogogogo!"

They didn't need to be told twice. With speed beyond human limits, they escaped towards the horizon.

/

A figure stood on a hill, having witnessed all of it. Her expression was hidden by the mask, similar to a serpent's head, hid her emotions wel. The shrine maiden, for she could not be mistaken by anything else, brushed her black hair back, long and silky. She saw as the head of the Byakko clan barked for her warriors to hunt them down, before going the other direction, clearly intending to report this matter.

A meaningless gesture, but a necessary one nonetheless. Necessary, to prove her loyalty. Meaningless, since the observer already reported as the events took place.

"I can confirm it." She clenched her hands into fists as she crossed her arms under her bosom. "They are outsiders."

A frustrated sigh. Anger radiating through the mental link she was using. She shuddered and endured. Then, after a long pause, the voice, deep and dark, growled at her.

"Get Raiden. Probe them."

"Very well."

The connection was cut and she sighed. As always, he was as difficult to handle as always. Irrational even. They could crush the outsiders now, if he was willing to leave his castle himself. Still. As she looked towards the mountains, the heavy steps shaking the earth, something she was so used to that she ignored it, she growled. The woman growled. In one aspect, she was in agreement with her contractor. As anger filled her heart, she disappeared in the wind, leaving no trace behind. If those Outsiders thought they could take everything away from her, they had another thing coming.