Chapter 1012: Just Gone to a Distant Place
"What is that?"
"The Great Calamity has already disappeared, so why has the sky suddenly darkened again?"
The ominous rain clouds had vanished from the sky.
The sky had originally returned to its initial color, but before anyone realized it, the daylight had dimmed once more.
It even became as dark as if night had fallen, the sky turning pitch black.
But it clearly wasn't nighttime yet!
Da Vinci-chan, Muramasa, Oberon, and the others were all unsettled and suspicious.
Eiji silently narrowed his eyes.
"That is..."
...
On a certain street in Norwich.
The fairies gathered here were cheering and celebrating the city's survival, their faces overflowing with smiles.
Among those fairies, one figure stood out incongruously.
"So this is the answer you've given me?"
She wore a veil, and a crown rested atop her silver-white hair.
Though her presence was strikingly noticeable, not a single person seemed to acknowledge her existence, as if they naturally overlooked her.
"Gathering the power of so many fairies, uniting the efforts of your companions, and pulling all of Norwich together into a single force—to achieve this in such a short time is truly remarkable."
She sighed softly, her tone filled with admiration.
"But it's too gentle!"
"You probably wanted to present me with a satisfactory answer, which is why you not only defeated the Great Calamity but also went out of your way to protect Norwich, right?"
"But do you think this is something I haven't accomplished countless times in the past?"
"Fairies won't remember your kindness. They can rely on you in the most disgusting ways when they need you, then kick you aside when they don't! Such repulsive creatures should only be used as tools—they have no value worth redeeming!"
"Let me show you too!"
"Let you see just how despicable fairies can be!"
"Ding—!"
The woman raised her staff and struck the ground fiercely.
A melodious, prolonged hum spread outward from her.
In that instant, as if receiving a signal, the sky gradually darkened, turning as black as a starless night in the blink of an eye.
The sky seemed to transform into an ocean, reflecting everything on the ground.
Faint droplets rippled within it, emitting a pleasant dripping sound.
Outside the city.
"What's going on?"
Fujimaru Ritsuka looked up at the sky in confusion.
"Is it already nighttime?"
This Lostbelt had no dawn or dusk; daytime would abruptly shift into night, often catching people off guard. But she distinctly remembered it had been morning just an hour ago?
"The timing doesn't match."
Mash also halted her steps back to the city, puzzled as she gazed at the night sky.
At that moment.
A massive wave of water rippled out from the night sky.
Immediately after, an endless amount of magical energy gathered overhead, and a hazy light began to shimmer brightly.
"It's bad! Senpai!"
Mash suddenly felt her scalp tingle.
She instinctively cried out and pushed Gudako away.
"Bzzz—!"
A colossal beam of light descended from the heavens.
Swift as lightning, it pierced through heaven and earth in an instant.
"Mash!!"
Before Gudako's very eyes, Mash's figure was completely engulfed!
In the blink of an eye, everything vanished from sight.
...
"What in the world just happened?"
The group in the manor wore tense expressions as they rushed toward the city outskirts at top speed.
The light that had descended from the sky moments earlier had startled everyone.
But the light came and went swiftly—before Da Vinci-chan could analyze anything, it vanished along with the starless night, leaving the sky restored to its twilight hues.
The entire event lasted less than ten seconds!
The descent of the light had been utterly unpredictable, leaving no time to react!
Remembering that Gudao and Mash were still outside the city, Da Vinci-chan didn't waste a single word, immediately leading everyone toward them.
However, when they arrived, all they found was Gudako standing alone.
"Ritsuka, where's Mash?"
"...She was pulled into that light."
Gudako stared blankly at the empty plain, as if still struggling to process what had happened.
"Into the light?!"
Da Vinci-chan's expression instantly shifted.
Could it have been an attack from some unknown distant source?
What about Mash?
Don't tell me...!
Though reluctant, Da Vinci-chan had to consider the worst-case scenario.
The magical energy of that light was incredibly powerful, nearly rivaling the Great Calamity itself. If Mash hadn't had time to deploy her Noble Phantasm, she would have stood no chance against such an assault!
Had Mash, who had journeyed this far with them, just... vanished?
"Don't worry, Mash is fine."
Just then, a calm voice soothed their rising panic.
"She's simply gone to a faraway place and can't return for now, but I promise she will reunite with you all eventually!"
The speaker was a fairy tailor.
Her petite stature and cat-eared hat unmistakably identified her.
Habetrot.
Her true name was Totrot, a companion of the Savior Castoria and one of the original four saviors!
"What do you mean by that?"
Gudako seemed to snap back to reality at these words, looking over with hopeful eyes.
"Where exactly is this 'faraway place'?"
"I know you're anxious, but for now, please stay calm."
Habetrot waved a hand dismissively with a smile.
"I'll explain everything to you all later... Hey, Grimm, say something! Your words carry more weight than mine!"
"Ah, my apologies. I was just... stunned."
Grimm had been staring intently at the sky, only sighing in response when Habetrot called his name.
"I always felt you treated Eiji and Mash differently—now I understand why... But why don't I remember any of this?"
"Look within and ask yourself?"
"...No, I see. It's because I'm a Servant, isn't it? I couldn't retain the backup."
Under Habetrot's exasperated gaze, Grimm quickly pieced it together.
He was a Servant.
Originally summoned by Castoria as a Pseudo-Servant, he was destined to eventually return to the Throne of Heroes. His current manifestation using Cú Chulainn's Spirit Origin was due to a second summoning—even memories from his time as Grimm were merely preserved records.
And records destined to be forgotten naturally couldn't be retained in his twice-summoned self.
"Eiji?"
Muramasa suddenly froze.
"Wait a minute, now that you mention it, I just realized—where did that bastard go? Why haven't we seen him since earlier?"
Oh, right!
Only then did Da Vinci-chan snap to attention as well.
Eiji hadn't come out with them!
"Don't worry about that guy."
A faintly amused expression crossed Grimm's face.
"He vanished before the light appeared. It was likely a spatial translocation magecraft. If nothing went wrong, he's now in that distant place, just like Mashu!"