Ritsuka wasn't buying Georgios's theory. "Hold up," she said, raising a hand. "Me, my demon buddy here, and Nero have all met her, haven't we?"
Looks like Mephistopheles, who's still dodging the whole "true name" thing, got slapped with the codename "Demon." Congrats, pal, you're officially the spooky sidekick.
Nero shot back at Ritsuka, one eyebrow cocked. "When you ran into Sphinx, was your demon pal with you?"
"Uh, yeah?"
"Bingo." Nero smirked, pointing between herself and Ritsuka. "She's dodging other Servants like they're bad news. The only time she showed up in front of Demon Boy was because she had no choice."
Ritsuka blinked, gears turning. "So… she only showed herself because Demon Boy's always glued to my side?"
Georgios nodded, his tone calm but firm. "That's the gist of it."
Then Ritsuka shifted gears, her voice picking up. "She dropped a riddle, right? That means she knows more about this Singularity's mess than all of us combined. And it sounds like she's willing to nudge the Master toward fixing it."
She paused, then grinned. "So why not make finding her one of our goals?"
The next day, the crew split into two teams to chase that idea. Ritsuka and Mephistopheles headed out of town to track down Sphinx and any other Servants lurking around. Meanwhile, Nero and Georgios made a beeline for the lord's mansion to grill Beatrice for intel.
But they barely got moving before trouble reared its ugly head.
"…?!"
Not far from the inn, Georgios's hand snapped to his sword hilt, his brow furrowing. At the same moment, Nero felt a weird jolt in her chest, like a demon just whispered her name.
"You feel that too?" she asked Georgios, keeping her voice low.
He grimaced. "A massive wave of evil energy."
Before they could say more, a projection flickered to life in front of them. It was Mash, the pink-haired Chaldean techie, looking like she'd just chugged a triple espresso. "We've got a problem! Please, you two, get to the outskirts now and back up the Master!"
Nero and Georgios exchanged a glance, both thinking, Called it. No time for chit-chat—they bolted.
The town's crowded streets were a no-go. Nero vaulted onto a rooftop, parkouring her way toward the outskirts like a red-clad blur. Georgios wasn't far behind, his armor clanking as he kept pace. When they hit the edge of town, they spotted it: a churning black tide, glinting with eerie red light, swallowing the golden wheat fields. And right in the middle? Two figures, surrounded.
Panicked farmers were hightailing it out of the fields, their morning harvest plans wrecked. Half a year's work, gone, devoured by the black tide. Some stared at the ruined crops, faces blank with despair—losing the lord's property like this? Starvation was knocking.
The two in the center were, of course, Ritsuka and Mephistopheles. Mephisto was swinging a sleek, guardless rapier, barely keeping the tide at bay to shield Ritsuka.
"No good! My magic's barely making a dent!" Ritsuka shouted, lobbing fireballs and animal-repelling spells. The tide didn't care, and a surge of black nearly took a chunk out of her.
"Master, watch it!" Mephisto yanked her back, slicing a droplet of the black "water" as it lunged. He gave a wry chuckle. "Guess my frontline game's a bit rusty."
As a Caster-class Servant, Mephisto wasn't built for brawling. Even his Noble Phantasm was more about support than slugfests, and the cost of using it on Ritsuka was way too steep.
Until backup arrived, Ritsuka and Mephisto were in for a rough ride.
As Nero and Georgios closed in on the fields, the black tide's true form came into focus. Rats. A swarm of massive rats, eyes glowing with creepy red light, stretching as far as they could see.
These weren't your average kitchen pests. Each one was the size of a forearm, bloated and radiating the same evil vibe they'd sensed earlier. This endless sea of rodents? Every single one was half-demon.
"You cover Ritsuka," Nero barked at Georgios. "I'll carve a path."
No time for a reply—she drew Echidna, her whip-sword flashing with scale-like blades, and dove in. The whip cracked, unleashing a bloody storm that shredded every demon rat within five meters. Nero charged forward, a human meat grinder tearing a crimson path through the tide.
But her wild swings risked clipping Ritsuka's mortal hide, so Nero stopped ten meters short, holding the line. Georgios, hot on her heels, drew his longsword and plunged into the swarm.
Compared to Nero's flashy whip, a single sword wasn't ideal for crowd control. Georgios tanked the rats' bites with his armor, letting them gnaw as he pushed through to Ritsuka's side.
With a burst of mana, he shook off the rats clinging to his armor, slicing them mid-air as they fell. He planted himself in front of Ritsuka. "Master, I'll get you out. This way."
With Georgios handling one flank, Mephisto's pressure eased up. He glanced at the saint, whose armor was chewed to hell, and smirked. "What's this? The holy knight looking like demon chow?"
Georgios didn't bite, just kept slashing and stomping, his mana pulses scattering rats like a rock in a storm.
With the Servants holding the line, Ritsuka finally had a second to breathe. She stopped casting and shouted into the air, "Mash, what's the deal with these rats?"
Back in Chaldea, Mash was sweating bullets over her monitors. "Still analyzing! Their demonic energy is unmistakable, but I can't pin down the source!"
"Figures," Georgios muttered, glancing at Nero, who was still carving up rats like a one-woman slaughterhouse. The ground under her was soaked red with demon blood. "That's enough. Master, I request permission to unleash my Noble Phantasm."
Ritsuka's mind flashed to Georgios's legend—slaying a dragon with a holy sword. This Georgios wasn't the Rider she'd met; he was a Saber, which meant his Noble Phantasm was likely that dragon-slaying blade.
No hesitation. "If you think it's time, do it!"
"Understood." Georgios took a deep breath and shouted to Nero, still tearing through the swarm. "Nero, get clear!"
Nero, mid-whip swing, caught sight of the glowing holy sword in Georgios's hands. She knew what was coming—a full-on light show. "Hell no, I'm not eating a holy nuke!" she yelled, cutting her way out and sprinting back toward town.
But at Ritsuka's side, Mephisto's face fell.
"You damn lunatic! What, demon lives don't count?!"