Section 4: Let It All Out

It looks like smooth sailing so far. You should arrive at the Demonic Ice Castle any minute now.

？！

Yes, Senpai. It's lucky that you haven't run into any other obstacles on your route.

Elsewhere in this Singularity, you've been attacked by ice fish and been the victim of sabotage...

...but there hasn't been anything like that this time.

If Skadi really wanted to stop us, she wouldn't have given us this ship in the first place. Though that does make me wonder why she sends the ice fish after us.

Contradictory though it may be, that sort of behavior does seem common in Heroic Spirits in possession of a Holy Grail.

You might be on to something there.

I've never had a Holy Grail myself, so I'm guessing here, but it sounds right to me.

I've even heard of people using a Grail to cook their food. There must be something truly unfathomable about them which those who do not have Grails cannot understand.

Using a Holy Grail to cook? Oh, yeah, I think I heard that one...

Oh, hey, are you guys talking about food?

Now that you mention it, I might be getting kind of hungry.

Ahaha, I see this Gareth really does have plenty of energy to spare, too.

I always do my best to ensure everyone has breakfast...you didn't have a good fill this morning?

Ehehe, it was. The toast, crispy bacon, and eggs were really yummy!

Hmm. I know Heroic Spirits don't really need to eat, but I suppose you're still growing.

Okay, I'll throw in a few more slices of toast. You can even bring some along with you if you like.

Really? Yaaay!

Certainly! It is a universal truth that young people are big eaters!

Exactly! That's why I always pile my plate as high as it can take!

Whoa. For a moment, I thought I saw Sir Percival...

？！

M-me too! He said something about piling his plate high.

Popping up the moment food comes up. I swear, sometimes I think all you young people are no more than walking bottomless stomachs!

Right. Next time you want seconds, thirds, or whatever, make sure you ask for it at mealtime! Much more efficient that way.

Whoa, whoa. Wh-what about me?

I know I gave myself the title, but I'm still everyone's little sister! Why aren't you putting me in with the young people!?

Hmm? Oh, I see. Sorry, I'm afraid I just don't know much about you yet.

Let's see... You said you're Merlin's little sister here from Avalon?

Then, as far as I'm concerned, that makes you property of England. I'll make you some toast with plenty of butter.

(I'm not actually hungry...but I can't really say that now!)

Oh. Come to think of it... Mash! I can't help but notice you're at your post awfully early this morning.

Have you made time to have a proper breakfast?

You didn't just have one of those packs of dodgy nutrition supplements and call it a day like Sion always does, did you?

N-no, sir! I had Breakfast Set A from the employee cafeteria!

Very good. All right everyone, wait right here, and I'll be back with more toast momentarily!

Yes, sir!

I've been keeping watch from the deck. We're finally nearing this Demonic Ice Castle place.

My, oh my... Do my senses deceive me, or is that freshly toasted bread I smell?

I was under the impression that breakfast was already over. Was I perhaps mistaken?

Nope, you're not too late. Want some toast, Douman?

I see. Very well then, don't mind if I do.

Oho! Coffee would be splendid. I must say, I never thought I would be so lucky as to receive a hand-prepared beverage from you, Master.

Okay, here you go.

Mmm.

Yes, thank you. That would be lovely.

？！

Now, as I was saying, we are very near the castle now. As usual, a Servant must remain to guard the ship and the director.

Allow me to be that Servant. I believe I can do an excellent job guarding the rear.

...

Then I'll stay behind too and keep an eye on him. He's very much a person of interest, yes, Doctor?

Correct.

Mmmmmm, you really mustn't be so blunt.

Hah! Don't pretend this is news to you.

Fou!

Aah! Cath Palug!

Fou fou fou. Fou.

Whaaat!? You know, you really don't have to stay behind with me.

Fou!

...Master, please let us accompany you.

The three new sistersI-I mean, the other Valkyries are almost certainly guarding the castle.

And nobody knows more about how Valkyries fight than we do.

Thank you, Master. Rest assured, you're in good hands with us.

We won't. Thank you, Master.

？！

Let's do this thing! You'll be staying with the boat again, right, Gof?

...No. I'll be coming with you this time.

Huh?

Whoa.

You're going to the castle too, Director?

I am. It was a Chaldean Servant who created this Singularity in the first place.

So, much as I hate to admit it...as Chaldea's director, this responsibility falls on my shoulders.

Combat duties will of course remain Master Fujimaru's purview...

...but I am the head honcho, and so it is my duty to contain the situation!

？！

Having said that...I'm really not in a position to play hardball with Servants, so I'll be counting on you all to keep me safe.

Yup, we know. We've got this covered.

You have nothing to worry about. Even should you be injured, I will see you restored to perfect health.

Hmm. So, what exactly is it you're going to do there, Director?

Hehe! Why, that hardly need be said!

Investigate, negotiate, and expostulate!

So this is the ice castle!

Well, more specifically...the castle gate? Or, the area in front of it anyway.

I'm glad we could at least dock the ship nearby so we didn't have to march for hours to get here.

We could've handled that, but it would've been a lot to ask of Master and the director, yeah.

Yeah? That's awesome, Master. I should've known you'd be up to it.

But, see, the big trick to enjoying life is to seize every chance you can get to just taaake it easy.

Ah, c'mon. Don't need to thank us for that. And don't worry about being considerate of us. We can handle anything. Promise.

？！

So...is someone about to come greet us?

Yes. I'm detecting magical energy signals up ahead!

I can't tell whether they're hostile, though. They probably belong to the three new Valkyries...

No, wait! There's another, even stronger magical energy signal accompanying them! Senpai!

？！

...How good of you to come.

I must admit, I'm not sure why you were in such a rush, though. You arrived far too soon.

You should have taken more time to make your way through all summer has to offer.

You could have easily spent a weekno, a month in each area, at least.

I swear.

Ah well. None of that should suggest that I did not foresee this turn of events.

In fact, I expected you might try to eradicate this Singularity with all possible haste.

That is why I created the seals, you see. They would force you to experience at least three areas to reach me.

Hehe. So, what did you think of them?

Have you been enjoying yourself, Fujimaru?

？！

？！

... ...

...It was decided that I should make an eternal summer here.

Yes. That is the decision that was made.

("It was decided"?)

(Well, that's a weird way to put it.)

I see you haven't changed your mind then, Lady Skadi.

If you insist on continuing like this...

We, um...we may have no choice but to force you to comply.

Wait, what is this? There is hardly any call for such grim theatrics.

While your response is, of course, up to you, I have no wish to fight you.

This Singularity must remain an eternal summer paradise.

Besides, you went to all the trouble of breaking those seals to visit me at my castle.

If at all possible, I would like nothing so much as to welcome you properly, even if doing so entails the use of the bulk of my magical energy. However

Why do you look so sad, then?

Should we infer from your apparent sadness that you no longer have enough magical energy to welcome us properly, as you see it?

Huh? But, you have a Holy Grail, right?

She must. She couldn't have made a Singularity without one, right?

!!!

I-I'm busy right now. Very busy.

Master, everyone, I apologize for troubling you, but I must insist you go visit the other areas for a while.

Now, leave this place.

？！

Gnn...

？！

Hnnngh, hnnnnnnnnngh.

C-come now. Don't stare at me like that.

？！

Gnn, gnnn! ...Come to me, Valkyries!

Beginning combat synchronization.

Understood. Beginning combat synchronization.

Sensory linkage... Spatial detection... prepare for high-mobility combat. Prepared to deploy.

Oh, are we doing this now?

Were you lying, then, when you told us in Erice's area that we were not enemies?

Lady Skadi is in trouble. We have no choice but to act now!

Unlike the Celtic Lady Scáthach, Lady Scáthach-Skadi's not used to exposing so much skin.

So it's actually really hard for her to stay in the First Ascension of her summer Spirit Origin.

Yeah, she really wants to wear a modern swimsuit, but she's still very embarrassed about it!

And since you're badgering her with questions while she's already super conflicted, she doesn't know what to do with herself!

And that's where we come in!

We're going to help by unleashing ALL our firepower to keep her safe!

Is that really why you're fighting?

Yes, it is!

Okay, guess we're doing this, then.

Rindr! Rún! B-b-be quiet!

(Damn, they were serious.)

？！

Wha...!?

I-I...I see. Yuh...y-you...think so...?

I'm afraid I'm n-not quite...quite sure how to respond. "You're too kind?" No...that can't be it. Um... Hm...

Uhh...

You're joking, right? Aren't you a god? Thousands of years old at the very least?

Hmph. You're acting like a child.

Wha

Rindr. Rún. Irs. Your queen has new orders for you.

Send these visitors from my castle at once! Use whatever force is necessary!

Understood!

？！

A battle between the three new Valkyries and the three old ones. This should certainly be interesting.

P-please don't call us old! Master's been careful not to!

We're all the same unit type!

Well, okay, we WERE manufactured before them...

Not helping, Hildr!

Hold iiit!

Scáthach-Skadi! I won't have you fighting serious battles for nonsensical reasons!

You haven't even answered Fujimaru's question yet!

Let's be...generous and say it's okay to create a minute Singularity. Obviously, it isn't, but just for the sake of argument, let's set that aside.

Even having done so, there can be no excusing the creation of a Singularity that won't disappear on its own!

So, why are you doing this?

Have you gone mad? You don't seem mad to me.

... ...

Oh, God... Don't tell me...

You...you weren't just sitting around, wishing to take a dip in a nice, cool pool when a Holy Grail fell right into your lap...were you!?

Is that what this? Just another "whoops, I used the Holy Grail as a rice cooker" situation?

Rice...in a Holy Grail...? Who does that?

Listen, Scáthach-Skadi. It's not too late. You can end this right now; you must!

There's no telling what might become of humanity after it's restored with a perpetual Singularity floating around!

... ...

...?

Is something wrong, Skadi?

？！

...Heh.

Hehe, hehehehehehehehe.

I-I am the Queen of the Summer Arctic; I am she who will usher in eternal summer!

It has been decided!

So I am afraid you have wasted your time, Director of Chaldea. No matter what you say, my role is fixed, immutable!

I will reign from on high forevermore!

Valkyries!

Y-yes, Your Majesty!

Er, no. Not you...

She means us.

Correct. Now...drive these invaders from my castle!

Understood.

The Queen of the Arctic, you say?

Pretty sure you were Queen of Scandinavia last time I checked. The hell happened to that?

？！

Hey there!

Caenis!

C-Caenis!? The Divine Spirit!?

'Sup, Gof? Looks like you got shafted again, eh?

No worries, though. We're just out sightseeing, but we can hit pause on that to kick some ass to bail you out? Right, Rune Guy?

Don't call me Rune Guy.

？！

...!

I-it doesn't matter who you bring! If you insist on interfering...

...then I am prepared to "welcome" you appropriately! Come!

Gh-ghh...

H-huh? What's going on?

Okay, yeah, this is weird. Why're you so weak, Scáthach-Skadi?

I mean, sure. Some days, you're just off your game. Sometimes, you get a bad matchup. It happens. I get that.

But you're not even a match for the new Valkyries. Hell, even the ice fish might be stronger right now.

You okay? What happened to you?

In fact, I'm pretty sure the fish WERE stronger!

...I can't believe it. How could I have been so careless?

I am a medical professional. I should have been the first to notice!

Scáthach-Skadi, I am unsure whether you are sick or injured, but you're in extremely poor condition right now, aren't you?

... ...

... ...

...I don't mind if you look at me. But try not to stare so intently.

It feels as though you are looking right through me. I don't like it.

？！

Oh, for... (Sigh)

Servant or no, a life is a life. If you wanna give yours up by taking on more than you can manage, that's your call.

I could tell you that, if it's what you wanna hear.

But my recommendation here is that you just come clean.

If a certain one-eyed god were here, I'm sure he'd tell you the same, Princess.

I... I...

C'mon, quit staring at your feet! That shit never solved anything!

W-wait, wait, back up. What was that about losing her life!?

You mean, as in completely disappearing!?

？！

...!

She's gone... No, wait. She went into her spirit form!

I've lost her magical energy signal, too! It looks like Skadi has fled the scene in her spirit form.

... ...

...That's right.

The Greek doctor god is right, and so is the man who kind of smells like Father.

Lady Skadi is losing more magical energy than her Spirit Origin can take...

She's dying.

Goodness. Everyone was in such high spirits when they disembarked earlier.

And now you're already back, and so very dour? This is quite the surprise.

And that's not even mentioning that they have returned with the three Valkyries who are, as I understood it, our enemies.

Hmm. Just look at their faces. Whatever happened out there must have been serious.

I wish we could join them...but it's probably better to keep our distance right now.

Very well, then. Let us merely observe quietly from the sidelines.

(Stare)

My, oh my. It would seem I am the one being observed.

Obviously. Did you not hear me say I was going to keep an eye on you?

Fou!

All right, so what's this all about?

What in the world is going on?

You told us Skadi is dying? Even though she has a Holy Grail?

？！

...Basically from the beginning.

Lady Skadi summoned us right after this Singularity was formed.

She then sent out enough magical energy for most of the Servants at Chaldea to manifest physical forms, called them here to the Arctic Circle, and

I would like you all to create the paradise of your dreams.

On my own, I can do nothing. But with all of you here, helping...

I declare here and now that I shall establish the ultimate paradise in the North Pole. I shall call it...

...Arctic Summer World!

Don't hold back! Enjoy all that summer has to offer!

For summer is here to stay! Forever!

After that, Lady Skadi did everything she could to give the area managers as free a hand as possible.

She said they could do anything they wanted with their areas, and placed no limits on their use of magical energy.

Yes, we heard as much before, but

Heroic Spirits given so much freedom are bound to use truly excessive amounts of magical energy.

Minute Singularity or no, I expected a Holy Grail would be sufficient for the attendant need of magical energy.

That seems not to be the case here, though.

Each area constantly consumes massive quantities of magical energy. The Holy Grail alone simply couldn't handle it...

Let me guess. She needed another source of magical energy, and needed it soon.

Another source?

But, there's only one Holy Grail here, right? So, the only other source of energy would be...

？！

What!? But...but that's...

She's accounted for the deficit of magical energy with her own? A-and for a Singularity THIS big!?

Even for a god, the sheer scale of such a feat is mind-boggling... But, why would she push herself that hard!?

Surely she must have foreseen that this situation wasn't sustainable.

... ...

...Every single day, she insisted that she wanted to make this the most fun place in all the world for each and every visitor.

"No matter what it takes"...

I wonder why she felt she had to go so far.

We don't know what Lady Skadi is usually like, so we can't say for sure...

...but we think there must be a reason for this.

？！

We tried to tell her that she couldn't keep this up forever, but she wouldn't listen to us.

In fact, she went even further, using runes to make her magical energy connections to each area permanent.

We thought we could at least go around observing each area ourselves so she wouldn't need to use any more magical energy than strictly necessary, but...

But she gets weaker by the day...

She didn't even have a single bite of the Golden Shaved Ice we brought her.

If something doesn't change soon, I'm afraid she'll...

You're really worried about her, aren't you?

Well of course they are. Skadi's their Master, after all.

Yeah, she is. To the three of us...

...she's our Master in these modern times...and she reminds us so much of the Skadi we knew.

She's also strange, mysterious, and even gives off the same aura as Father's runes.

Sounds complicated.

I don't know about that. No matter what else she may be, she's always been someone we can look up to.

I think "parent" is probably the closest human term for it.

So, she's like your mother?

...Yes. She is.

... ...

Isn't there anything we can do to help her, Dr. Asclepius?

Hmm. All I can say for certain right now is that she'll die if she keeps going like this.

!!!

Sounds about right.

Once she runs out of magical energy, she'll disappear down to her Spirit Core. There won't even be anything left of her on Chaldea's Spirit Origin graph.

!!!

Oh, come on. It can't be that big a shock. You know Servants bite it if they run out of magical energy.

Not how I would choose to phrase it, but accurate nonetheless.

？！

Oh, no. Treating her is most definitely possible, and the course of treatment couldn't be clearer.

Really!? There's something we can do for her!?

What a relief...

In human terms, Skadi is essentially donating blood to keep other people alive. Unfortunately, she's donating her entire supply.

So our first step must be to halt the ongoing transfusions.

Ahh, I gotcha.

Simple, yes? That is to be expected; I am explaining in terms even a moron can understand.

The hell'd you just say? You want a piece of me, you geeky little shit!?

No. I was merely stating a fact. Moving on.

More precisely, we have to sever the magical energy bypasses connecting Skadi to each area as quickly as possible.

I suppose it is actually quite simple. Perhaps I needn't have dumbed down my explanation. Apologies.

Bastard... One of these days, that mouth of yours is gonna get you into some real trouble, you know that?

You say it's simple, but...is it? You mentioned something about runes too, didn't you?

Yeah, I did. She probably used Primordial Runes to forge the connections, which means we can expect them to be well-protected.

And that means we'll need...

Can you guess?

？！

Simple, right?

There you have it. Once we nab the Holy Grail, this whole Singularity'll go away on its own.

And what's more, the princess'll be no worse for wear when it's all over. Couldn't be simpler, right?

When there's a problem, dealing with it at the source is almost always the fastest, easiest way to handle it.

Of course, the Holy Grail is the biggest pain in the ass itself.

Huh?

Wait. You don't mean

？！

？！

A-are you serious!?

Kuha...

Kuhahahahaha!

So you finally made it. It's about time you showed up.

Wah! Now what!?

Oh, that's just the Count of Monte Cristo. He likes to pop out of the shadows like this now and then.

It's too bad the younger Heroic Spirits like Nursery Rhyme weren't here to see this. They'd have gotten a real kick out of it!

？！

Heh.

I don't see everything under the sun. But what I do see, I never forget.

The queen does not have the Holy Grail in her possession. And what's more, this location we are in now is merely a strange sacred land.

You are not seeking a castle, but a tower.

I haven't yet determined who or what is pulling the strings in all this, but I know we will find them at the tower.

Kuhaha. What's more, this divine tower is impervious even to my black flames! Whatever lies there must be a formidable foe indeed!

Hm...?

(Trying and failing to understand what he's talking about.)

(No earthly idea what he's talking about.)

The first thing you must do is get the truth from the Lostbelt King.

Of course, I suspect she will have trouble breathing so much as a single word at the moment.

Hey, Count? Could you maybe just, like...tell us what you wanna say like a normal person?

Kuhahaha!

H-he's gone.

Nnn. What WAS it he wanted to say, anyway?

He said the Holy Grail isn't in that castle, and that there might be a hidden mastermind behind all this.

Wait, you understood all that garbage? Huh. This is me, impressed.

Mastermind...

Now I see. So that's what that was all about.

Huh? Now what are you talking about? What was WHAT all about?

I was wondering why Skadi used the language she did earlier.

Some of her word choices were curiously passive for a decision she'd supposedly made herself.

Remember what she said?

You forgot?

？！

She didn't say SHE decided. She said it WAS decided.

Which leads nicely into my next question. New Valkyries!

Hey! Watch the "new" and "old" talk!

Y-yes?

Did Skadi make this eternal Singularity of her own volition?

Um...

N-no, I don't think she did.

Whenever she talked about making this world into a land of eternal summer, which was often...

...Lady Skadi always looked like she was having the time of her life.

But, when she mentioned how it was...decided, like she did earlier...

... ...

She didn't seem to be having fun at all, did she?

Right.

So, what? Queenie didn't just do all this on a whim 'cause she found a Holy Grail?

You think someone else talked her into it?

It seems so. You there, Caster. You know the queen well. What do you make of all this?

...Pretty much the same as you have.

There's a powerful will behind all this, and I'm pretty sure it ain't the princess's.

N-nn. I'd rather you didn't read my mind without permission.

But...yes. That is more or less what I was thinking.

It's been some time since we first registered her Spirit Origin, and we have a decent understanding of her personality by now.

She's a goddess, yes, but she's far more compassionate than most gods mages are familiar with.

It could be because she's originally from Scandinavia, or perhaps because she's originally from a Lostbelt. That, I can't say.

Still, if we read into all the ambiguous stuff she's been saying...

...it seems very likely to me that she hasn't simply gone mad with the power of the Holy Grail.

Instead, it looks as though she's been charged with running this Singularity by the Grail's true owner.

？！

I see.

Dammit, Scáthach-Skadi, why couldn't you just tell us this yourself!? Why play the damn villain!?

I'm guessing because someone convinced her it'd be more dramatic.

She's always valued other people's opinions way too much, even when she really shouldn't.

？！

Man, for such a powerful chick, she sure sucks at dealing with the simple shit.

That's not how I'd put it, but I do agree!

Misunderstandings rooted in vague wording are a tradition dating back to Shakespeare

Well, no. Even back to the Age of Myth! But she doesn't have to keep the tradition alive even today, dammit!

(Gasp!)

For a brief moment, it felt as though someone were about to criticize my work, only to ultimately reverse course.

Hahaha! Any halfway decent writer ought to be used to criticism by now! Don't waste your time thinking about it!

A fair point!

All right, let's make sure we have everything straight.

Recovering the Holy Grail will solve all of our problems here.

Taking possession of the Holy Grail will immediately sever Skadi's magical energy connections to each area and the Singularity should fade away on its own.

However, we won't find the Holy Grail in her castle.

According to that Avenger, it's being kept in a tower

It's called the Arctic Tower. It's located deep inside Arctic Summer World, and it, uh, towers over everything else.

It's protected by seals in three areas, including the Demonic Ice Castle. We'll need to break all three if we're going to get in!

？！

Then we know what we need to do. We'll start by freeing this area.

So, uh, how do we do that? Do we need to meet another sales goal? ...How do we go about doing that?

Oh, and one more thing! This area's seal is synchronized with the castle's gate!

Then that's perfect for us, isn't it?

Yes, it is. Skadi is my patient. She needs urgent care.

So the sooner we break that seal, the sooner we can pry open the castle gate. Let's go, Master!

？！

Yeah!

All right then, how 'bout we go check out that tower? This Arctic Circle place was pretty much all ocean before, yeah?

Oh, right. You have the Authority to cross the seas, don't you?

I've got a few tricks of my own as well.

I doubt we'll be able to sneak inside the tower, but we should at least be able to scope out its surroundings.

？！

No problem. Later!

Oho, it seems their business is concluded. Then I think I shall return to keeping an eye on the ship.

And I'll return to keeping an eye on YOU.

... ...

Fooou...