Chapter 17: Master A Wants to Save the Villainous Witch No Matter What (3)

A being belonging to the founding mythology of North America.

Paul Bunyan.

A being closer to myth, spread through folklore, said to have pioneered North America and created the current United States. As American history is short, it is a being of folklore created in the late 1800s.

Of course, it is a being that never truly existed. Given the Industrial Revolution era in the Human Order, it couldn't possibly exist.

A mythical pioneer giant, judged to be a lumberjack and deity originating from the Jötunn (giants) of Norse mythology.

A phantom spirit that does not exist, its status ambiguous and insufficient to be called a divine spirit.

However, by some being's doing, Bunyan was able to manifest as a Heroic Spirit.

"Yay~ I did it, Master~"

For now, she is just a simple, cute girl. Next to her is the giant blue ox she is said to have ridden.

"Good work, Bunyan."

When she is at a normal size, she doesn't seem like a particularly strong Heroic Spirit, but her true form is her gigantic body. A body that grows to pierce the clouds, reaching a level rivaling Surtr. While she might be an inferior version of Protea, this one can freely adjust her size.

Add to that the fact that her height and weight cannot be precisely measured, resulting in a '?' value. That alone confirms she is an absurd Heroic Spirit. She overwhelms with sheer mass, of course. One must be careful of things like Excalibur, though, given its power that pierced Sefar's underbelly.

I smiled while patting Bunyan's head. Bunyan grinned and rubbed her head against my hand. Such a cute kid. I felt affection for her, liked her character, so I raised her to level 100 and maxed our Bond to 10.

Normally, I'd hesitate to summon a Bond 10 Servant, but since she's relatively childlike and among the good kids, I thought she'd listen to me well. Decently strong, and in a way, both a tank and a damage dealer.

[Bunyan...? Are you talking about Paul Bunyan? That Paul Bunyan from the founding myth of the United States?]

"Yes."

[Why is she a girl?]

"Given King Arthur is a girl, why ask that? The Doctor has one beside him too, right?"

[Leonardo is a pervert, so that's different.]

[Hey.]

Anyway, for now, we need to pick a new place to move to.

"Bunyan, did you see any cities from up there?"

"Yeah! I saw a city over the~re!"

"Then let's head there. Going in giant form would cause chaos, so we should travel normally. Shiki, about how long will it take?"

"Half a day."

"Ugh... Let's just teleport. Artoria, will you do it?"

"You're entrusting this to me? Very well. Bunyan, please call out the coordinates!"

"?"

"...I'm sorry, I'm a useless piece of toast."

"It's fine, I alone am enough for an insect repellent."

"Master is an insect repellent!? Don't say such things!"

"That's a lie, nya, Master."

A lie, hmm... I see. So I was a lying piece of trash!

Since Bunyan doesn't know the coordinates, Kebab can't teleport us. As Shiki smiled faintly and snapped her fingers, we teleported and arrived in front of a certain city.

"Wow..."

"This much is simple."

I believe you...!

Anyway, we've arrived at a city. But now what do we do? Honestly, I have nothing to do like gathering intel. Are there any Servants here or something?

For now, we head inside, deciding to split up and gather information.

"Let me talk to you alone for a moment."

"What is it?"

The Alter calls me over, and after moving away from the others into an alley, she begins talking.

"I'll be blunt... I don't like you."

"Doesn't everyone know that already?"

"That attitude is also part of it... but your very existence is hindering their growth."

"..."

Well now, she's hitting the nail on the head. As the Alter says, originally, Ritsuka and Mash were supposed to grow mentally and in ability in Fuyuki. Ritsuka is still immature, having not even properly fought yet, and Mash can't even use her Noble Phantasm, even as a disguised registration.

A lack of experience, no sense of crisis. In a word... my existence is too strong, blocking their growth. Like how a parent's overprotection stunts a child's development.

"You're right. But, does it absolutely have to be through actual combat? Growth doesn't necessarily have to come only from experiencing war. Or would it be better for Ritsuka and Mash to see people die right before their eyes, get used to it, and develop self-justifications like chivalry?"

"What did you say?"

"All that talk of the spirit of chivalry... I'm not particularly fond of it. There are admirable aspects, but... the spirit of chivalry is fundamentally also a belief to avoid and rationalize the PTSD of war. And, looking at the state of the Round Table, which supposedly represents that chivalry, I can't bring myself to like it."

"You..."

"They're still young. Those two are still children. It's no place for child soldiers... Why do only adults go to the army? Younger boys would have better physical strength. It's simple: because they're immature. In your era, fighting and killing people at that age was a given... but it's not now. It's not an era like yours, where you drew a sword at 15, underwent knightly training, and had to kill and fight. I understand why you dislike me. But, I think it's still too early to have those kids fight on the front lines of a battlefield."

"They are a Master and a Demi-Servant. They will have to fight eventually, and haven't they seen the death of Servants?"

"That's relative. Servants are fundamentally already dead beings. But they're not real, living humans. If they fight on the front lines, they will see real, present-day humans die. Not like Servants whose bodies disappear. Honestly, I don't want to have this argument with you. I hate getting this serious, and I'm just a brat without any grand convictions myself, you know? In your eyes, I probably seem like an empty-headed fool... But I am an adult. I don't want to see those kids end up like that, and an adult should be a shield for children."

"...Your words sound plausible enough, but what will you do if you're not around? An unprepared army merely dies, and those two are no different. They must grow through real combat experience to cope. Given that I was summoned with such meager magical energy, are you going to insist on such nonsense?"

"And you, with all your preparations, still lost Britain?"

"You...!"

"...Neither you nor I are unconditionally right. We're both just adults who failed at life, aren't we? Let's not fight amongst ourselves over this. Over personal feelings. Your Britain fell precisely because of such personal feelings. Tristan's conviction, Lancelot's affair, Mordred's rebellion. Right? You, as king, abandoned all personal feelings, but those around you could not. You know the result well. So... let's not fight. I want to get along with you."

"...I still cannot accept you. You are too soft. And, the me who failed and the me now are different."

"You definitely seem to have blackened and your temper's gotten worse."

"Ha, provoking me to the end. You speak well, much like Kay... but you're no match for Kay."

"You had a cool older brother, huh?"

"...I really do dislike you."

"I like you though?"

The Alter turns her back and walks out of the alley. She seems quite indignant... Really, I don't want to fight. I'm just a guy with a big mouth and no skills, what weight could my words have? Even if I've lived a failed life, I am an adult. I at least have a sense of responsibility as one.

"You..."

"Aah~ To think you were eavesdropping on this. You'll have to die!"

"Your jokes aren't funny."

"For me to fail at a joke... But why were you eavesdropping?"

Jeanne Alter walks out from the side of the alley. She was looking at me with slightly serious eyes.

"...You're completely different from my first impression. When you were getting beaten miserably, you just looked like a useless parasite, a leech only relying on your Servants. But... you're a better person than I thought."

"Oh?"

"Not wanting children to go to war... The French army I led was like that too."

"Hmm... I see."

Even if they are false memories, it seemed she too felt that sentiment. Jeanne Alter seemed to understand and sympathize with my words, but the Saber Alter didn't at all. She's the one who should understand the most... Troublesome, really.

==========================

While Humpty and Saber Alter were having their conversation, the rest were outside the city, taking a brief rest. 

"If we have no money, are we sleeping rough tonight?"

"Sleeping rough, it is. We can get camping gear supplied from Chaldea, so it's fine."

"...Hey, by any chance, with Shiki's ability, could she make money?"

Ritsuka tries talking to Shiki once, but...

There is no answer. Shiki doesn't even respond to Ritsuka. She was the only one among the members who cut off communication. From the start, she had no reason to be in the world, being solely interested in Humpty, so she remained indifferent to Ritsuka. Frankly, anyone would likely do the same.

"At least answer. It's bad to ignore people, you know?"

"Sorry, not interested."

"That's too hars, nyaa~ She's just like that, so don't mind her~"

"I see, that's a shame..."

Ritsuka, who wanted to befriend Shiki, judged the wall between them was too thick and high. So she tried talking to Jaguar Man and Artoria Caster instead...

They only responded to the conversation, but basically, both also seemed annoyed, giving the impression of listening with one ear and letting it out the other.

When in Chaldea, their conversations with Mash went smoothly... but they were uniquely annoyed with Ritsuka. The fact that she is a Master could be said to be the reason.

"...Hey, what kind of person was Bunyan?"

"?"

The American girl Bunyan, sitting still and blankly looking up at the sky. Young as she is, she too was quite a beauty with a unique aura.

"...Pancakes."

"You like pancakes? I like them too! There's mix at Chaldea, want to make some together later?"

"No, I'll do it with Master, so it's fine."

"Ah, I see... Then, is there anything else?"

"...A smiling face."

"A smiling face?"

"Yeah. But, not yours."

"Huh?"

Ritsuka, turning her head, looks at Bunyan who is listlessly waiting for Humpty, feels a sense of regret, and returns to her spot. Bunyan glances at Ritsuka...

"...Master is, only Master Big Brother."

The Master of Chaldea is one.

For them, that is the truth, and only Humpty could be the Master. It wasn't the opinion of all the Servants on that side... but an excessive Bond can be said to be like excessive obsession, akin to fanaticism.

Trudge, trudge...

And then, Saber Alter, who followed the magical energy of Master Ritsuka. Ritsuka welcomes her back... but Humpty's Servants were glaring at such an Alter from behind. If they weren't on the same side... they would have killed her already.

"Oh my~ Why is everyone here? It took a bit to find you. Want to eat something in the city? Since we're in France, shouldn't it be French cuisine?"

And when Humpty arrives, they all smile brightly and welcome him. Within the Chaldea group, there was a strange, invisible wall. And, the two Masters wanted to break down that wall.

Zmx1M3hqU1NOVUZYWWI5L0RDcUtuSXdrckRSZUdsZHZJNkhwcmpoMFprcGJKSWZrSHczc01LM1JsNWMrR2ZEdg