1. Welcome to Kumano Hot Springs (Part 1)

Yes, Senpai! The Rayshift went through without a hitch! Your success rate remains as impressive as ever!

According to Sheba, this latest Singularity is very small, and poses almost no danger.

Which is why no other Servants, or even our trusty Fou, have come along.

So like Da Vinci said, consider this a well deserved, carefree, mini hot springs vacation!

That being said, let me just make sure of something. Do you remember your briefing in the Command Room?

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So, we discovered this newest Singularity on a Japanese mountain range.

Specifically, the year is 2001, and the range is in Toyama Prefecture.

Given your age, Fujimaru, I'd guess it's just a little before your time?

Anyway, we've observed that it's definitely a Singularity, but it's very small, and it shouldn't last very long.

Given your age, Fujimaru, I'd guess it's just a little before your time?

Anyway, we've observed that it's definitely a Singularity, but it's very small, and it shouldn't last very long.

Trismegistus says it should close up on its own in about seven days, and we're not seeing any signs of Mystics or magical energy anywhere.

Basically, it's a Singularity that's practically identical to reality in terms of time and space.

Usually, we'd just let this kind of minor distortion go away on its own...

...but cases like this where we know for sure it's safe to visit are exceptionally rare.

That makes this an optimal Rayshift sample case. And it should make a great experience for our field operatives, too.

That makes this the perfect Rayshift sample case. And it should make a great experience for our field operatives, too.

That's why your mission this time will be to see if you can discover any anomalies in a completely danger-free Singularity.

We're hoping it'll help you hone your investigative skills. Think of it like trying to solve a real-world mystery novel.

We know you've been taking on a lot of tough missions lately, so while we can't give you carte blanche to stretch your wings...

We know you've been taking on a lot of tough missions lately, so while we can't give you carte blanche to stretch your wings...

...this should at least be a laid-back opportunity to learn some new things.

You seeand this is the best partthis latest Singularity is located at...

That's right! This is the little known but highly esteemed Kumano Hot Springs, said to be the home of a legendary secret spring!

She did. Apparently, there are a number of magazine articles in the database about it.

They all praised the resort's picturesque scenery and variety of baths, and said its historic wooden buildings are one of its best kept secrets.

D-do I?

I'm sorry, Senpai. I've always liked Japan, and I suppose getting to visit a historic hot spring inn there got me a little excited.

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Ahem. Testing, testing... Okay, looks like we're coming in loud and clear. This is great.

It looks like you two are at the base of the mountain right now?

The Singularity covers this entire mountain range, but the Kumano Hot Springs' inn is right in the center.

Let's start by making your way to that inn. I gave Mash some money that should cover your expenses.

Check back in with us once you get a room, okay?

There'll probably be other tourists on the trail, so we should refrain from calling too much while you're outside.

O-oh, right. It's May in this Singularity, so it's peak travel season.

We'll need to be careful not to stand out among all the people coming here to hike the mountains.

Chaldea may be an international organization, but it's still a highly clandestine research facility.

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I'm surprised we haven't actually seen anyone else so far. Not even any hikers.

I don't see any trails here, either. I wonder if we took a wrong turn somewhere...

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It must be a hiker, or a tourist! Let's ask them if they know the way! Hello! Excuse me!

Sorry to bother you, but we're trying to find the hot springs, and we seem to have lost our way.

Do you know how to get there? Even just pointing us in the right direction would be a big help.

If you're looking for the hot springs on this mountain, then you must be headed to the Kumano Inn. Guess you two are psychics looking to get rich quick too, then.

Yeah, I can see it in your eyes. I can tell you're really good, too. I've had a lot of...interesting experiences, so I've got an eye for these things.

Then again, you don't look like you're here for the money. It seems like whatever brought you here is more complicated than that. I can tell.

Um... You think we're psychics?

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Oh, did I get it wrong? Then I guess you're just ordinary tourists, same as me.

Sorry for getting carried away and jumping to conclusions. My name's Sizuki Soujyuro, by the way.

I'm staying at the same hot spring inn you two are looking for. I was just out for a walk to get some exercise.

Sounds like you two are lost if you're asking for directions.

Lucky we ran into each other then. I can show you the way to the inn, at least part of the way.

That'd be great! Thank you! I'm Mash Kyrielight, and this is

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Nice to meet you, Fujimaru and Mash. You must be from abroad, Mash.

Anyway, the inn's owner will be thrilled to get even more international guests. I guess the good word about Japanese hot springs is spreading far and wide.

International guests? You mean, there are others here besides us?

Oh yeah, lots. You'll see when you get to the inn. There's some peculiar stuff going down there now, and not all of it good.

I-I see.

Are the Kumano Hot Springs that popular? This is our first time here, so...

Popular? No, just interesting. If anything, I'd say they're pretty UN-popular...

I'm sorry, that was a poor choice of words. Let me rephrase that.

In fact, why don't I tell you more about what makes the Kumano Hot Springs so interesting on the way there?

Take this with a grain of salt, but word has it that the Kumano Hot Springs have five secret springs that'll grant wishes.

The trick is, you have to soak in them all by yourself first thing in the morning. There was even a magazine article about it a long time ago.

Thanks to that, the springs used to be hugely popular up to a year or two ago. But now, things are very different.

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Um, Soujyuro, what kind of wishes are being granted?

Do the springs really grant anything people ask for?

No, nothing like that, unfortunately.

The Kumano Hot Springs have only ever granted one kind of wish each.

So really, it's less like they make wishes come true, and more like they have very potent restorative effects.

There's the Spring of Youth, the Spring of Romance, the Spring of Male Transformation, the Spring of Happy Homelife, and the Spring of Stiff Shoulder Annihilation.

Only one of these five springs is open each day.

So the idea is that people come and stay overnight on the day when the spring they want to soak in is open.

Though I also heard that some people would stay a whole week so they could try out all the springs.

Oh yes, very greedy. But that's not always a bad thing. It's good to have lots of things you want. I could take a page from them myself.

Of course, you'd also need considerable money to begin with for a stay like that. It's not a cheap inn by any means.

Not necessarily. Stiff shoulders can become a big problem when you get older.

I don't care for the "annihilation" part, though. It sounds so effective that it's likely to draw the wrong crowd.

？！

Anyway, this should do it.

Sorry, but this is as far as I go. The inn's about a five-minute walk from here up that way.

I've got something I need to find right now, but I'm sure I'll see you two later at the hot springs.

Soujyuro just headed back down again. Now I feel a little bad.

It must have been a lot of trouble to take us this far up the mountain, and he wasn't even going this way.

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He has a very mysterious air about him, doesn't he? He seems so earnest, but there's also something very easygoing about him.

Anyway, we're almost at the inn now, but there's no need to rush. Let's take it slow and enjoy the walk!

(Huff... Huff...) I hate to...admit it, but...

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Yes... And just when we were almost at the inn, too. I'm so sorry, Senpai. I should have been more on top of things.

Let me get out my compass. No, on second thought, I'll just call Da Vinci and have her navigate us toHuh?

I can't get through... That's odd. There haven't been any magical energy disturbances.

And Sheba's observation results still say "No signs of danger in this space-time," soWait. Huh?

"No future for humankind in this space-time"?

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Enemy contact! I can't believe I didn't notice them until they were this close!

But right now, we need to fight back! There are no civilians in the vicinity! Awaiting your orders, Master!

Master, use a Command Spell on me! I can use my Noble Phantasm at maximum power to blow away all this smoke!

I'm afraid it'll damage the nearby trees too, but at least it will let us see what we're dealing with!

Hit the brakes! That's a smart call, but don't do it! The ground around here could collapse under your feet!

I'd save the ground-pounding for a last resort, if I were you!

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G-good point! I'm sorry, I should have known better! A-at any rate, may I ask who you are!?

Me? I'm, uh...

A tourist! Yeah, I'm just a passing tourist making a little trip around the world!

You look like you're in trouble! Don't worry, I've got this! We've all gotta look out for each other. Now, let's hurry up and take care of this thing!

There we go! Easy-peasy♪

You're pretty strong, shield girl. Are you one of those Servants I've heard about?

You're pretty strong too, of course. Those were summoning spells, right? I'm impressed. I know those aren't easy.

The stronger the familiar, the more physical and mental energy it takes out of the summoner. It can even wear away at your very identity.

"A light, yet heavy heart that isn't easily swayed by any kind of desire."

That's what an acquaintance of mine told me you need to be a good summoner, and it looks like that's you to a tee.

The kind of person you'd find anywhere, and yet, there's nobody else quite like you.

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Oh, right. I still haven't introduced myself, have I? I'm Aozaki Aoko.

I'm a mage, just like you. Though I'm a free agent, not affiliated with anyone.

How about you? If you're both here together, I'm guessing someone sent you.

Can you at least give me a broad idea of who? I think we'd both like to at least know if we should consider each other friend or foe.

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...

I think that's the most concise explanation we can give you about Chaldea.

Is there anything you're still not clear on?

Nope. That was a ten out of ten explanation. I wish I had someone like you as my assistant.

Though I do have to ask, are you two actually mages? 'Cause if so, I'm amazed you keep all that up on goodwill alone.

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Damn, seriously? I never know what to say to people who are actually just...nice.

Um, Ms. Aozaki.

Please, there's no need to be formal. Call me Aoko.

Okay, Aoko. I just wanted to say, thank you again for helping us.

I don't know what we would have done without your magecraft. Were those...magic bullets?

That's right. I can convert magical energy into physical mass and fire it like, well, bullets.

That's pretty much all I can do, though. I can't make anything else with magical energy, and I've never been good at complicated spells for messing with nature or whatever.

Still, when it comes to firing bullets, I'm pretty sure I'm as good as they come.

That's what it's like for you with summoning too, right, Fujimaru?

Your familiar summons and their Spirit Origins were as solid as a giant tree.

If I ever die and came back as a Heroic Spirit, I might not mind getting worked to the bone if a summoner like you were to call on me☆

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Really? You sure you weren't just seeing things? I mean, what do you think I was doing, teleporting or something? Haha.

Besides, shake my hand. See? I'm a real, live person, right?

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What, are you the naturally oblivious type who puts his foot in his mouth? If you're looking for a straight man for your comedy routine, I'm happy to play along.

How about I start by blasting you down into the bedrock?

I'm sorry. Senpai has a habit of running his mouth when he meets someone he trusts...

I see... So you're used to tanking for him in more ways than one, huh.

I understand. I have two friends that're the same way.

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I'm sightseeing, of course. Um, you two said you're headed for the Kumano Hot Springs, right?

Mind if I tag along?

I only just got here, so I'm still getting my bearings. Would it be okay if I joined you?

That sounds great to me...

...but since we can't contact Chaldea right now, I'll go along with whatever you decide, Master.

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Awesome, I owe you one. I actually lost my license and wallet, so I didn't know what I was going to do.

Thanks, Fujimaru and Mash!

When we get to the inn, I'll be counting on you to check me in as well!

Yes! And what a beautiful building! I'd heard these hot springs were popular, but this is even grander than I had imagined!

It really feels like a marriage of architecture between historical carpentry and modern steel construction!

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Yes! And what a beautiful building! I'd heard these hot springs were popular, but this is even grander than I had imagined!

It really feels like a marriage of architecture between historical carpentry and modern steel construction!

Yes, the inn where we met Beni-Enma and the sparrows! I was just thinking the same thing!

I still have many fond memories of it. I'm sure this place is going to be a great experience as well!

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Oh crap. This place is bad news. People have died here, no question.

Did you say "died"!?

We should disguise ourselves, just to be safe. Call me, uh...Suse Ritsuka from now on.

So, you want us to use disguises and fake names? But, we didn't bring anything we could use for disguises.

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There are some people hanging out here. Probably other guests.

I see Soujyuro made it back here ahead of us. Though he just went into the back of the inn.

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Hm? Who're you people? Sorry, but we're all booked.

I've got too many special guests gathered here this week to waste my time with regular ones. Go on, get out of here.

Huh? Um, what are you talking about?

Yes. What does that have to do with you and me?

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Hold it, Proprietor. Can't you tell those people are here for the same reason as us?

I mean, one of them's clearly not normal. And as far as I'm concerned, the more rivals, the better.

The more people there are around when I win, the better I'll be able to prove that I...

...Ishtarin Tohsaka, am the best psychic and curse hunter in America, if not the whole world!

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Ishtar! No wonder I thought you looked so much like yourself!

Did you come here from Chaldea, or were you summoned locally to

Huh? Do I know you? Oh, I see. You must be a fan of mine!

You must have misheard my name and it stuck with you all this time, huh? Well, lucky for you, I'm very generous to my fans, so I'm willing to overlook it♡

But from now on, honey, remember that it's Ishtarin, not Ishtar.

My father named me Ishta, and my nickname in high school was Rin the Exorcist, so put them together and you get Ishtarin. You can also call me Jolene.

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Huh? Do I LOOK like a ghost to you? Of course I'm alive.

You know, you're being weirdly forward, too. Have we met somewhere before?

(Senpai, it's hard to believe, but it looks like Ishtar...Ishtarin...really is from this time period!)

(I've heard of coincidental resemblances, but this is on a whole other level!)

Anyway, be reasonable, Proprietor. We might all be here for fame and fortune, but that's not the only reason we're here.

"Those blessed with psychic abilities have an obligation to save spirits that who still suffer in this world."

Like they say, two heads are better than one, bills beat change, and there's no such thing as having too much firepower. Don't you think?

Hehe, you make a good point, Ishtarin. How can I say "no" to that?

Very well then. This may put us over capacity, but I'll accept these newcomers joining the fray.

Welcome, you three. I'm Kumanoin Yoshisuke, the proprietor of the Kumano Inn.

Thank you so much for choosing to stay at our humble establishment.

This next part probably goes without saying, but please bear with me. It's tradition, after all.

Two years ago, our humble inn began seeing regular paranormal phenomena... "Ghosts," as laypeople would put it.

Thanks to that, our once glorious inn has fallen on tough times, and can barely attract enough guests to stay afloat.

So as a countermeasure, we reach out to people who have experience resolving paranormal problems, and promise to reward them if they should succeed with ours.

In other words, everyone who stays here must be a psychic.

It also means that if you're going to stay with us, you need to be able and willing to exorcise any kind of ghost you encounter.

If that all sounds fair, then you can sign the hotel register right here.

Heehee. Heehee. Heeheeheeheeheeheehee.

？！

Mr. Fujimaru, Ms. Mash, and Ms. Suse Ritsuka. Very good.

Then as your first test

Great, now we can introduce you to your rivals! This is everyone I could find in the lobby!

This is Bazett! She's a self-proclaimed "tough-as-nails psychic" who prides herself on keeping her cool no matter what the situation!

Though if you ask me, the steel's not in her heart, but her fists!

Well, you're wrong. My heart is as hard as they come.

Keeping your cool at all times is what lets you deal the final knockout blow to a tough ghost.

This is Caren! She calls herself the exorcist's exorcist!

I think it means if exorcists eat ghosts for breakfast, she eats those exorcists for breakfast!

I just happened to find my way here. I'm a very pious nun, but my real profession is in exorcising demons.

But, demons and evil spirits don't have any money on them, so something has to pay the bills, right?

Now, Ryougi here isn't an exorcist, but she IS paying an exorbitant amount of money to stay here!

What a delightful little diversion. I would say I'm glad I came here with my family, if I wasn't worried about it being a bad influence on my daughter.

Oh, my family and I have reserved the entire fifth floor, so please don't bother us there, okay?

And finally, we have this creepy girl giving off major stalker vibes who followed Ryougi here! I still don't know what her name is!

I'm Fujinon the Twister.

Please, let me know if you run into any jars you can't open or unsightly steel girders. I'll twist them away as if they were never there.

I think there were still a few others, but that should do it for the time being. Now, as for the haunted room

Wait. Just a moment, please. I still have more to say first.

Ahem. As you can see, I've brought in first-rate exorcists from all walks of life.

So there's really no place for any third-rate exorcists who are all bark and no bite.

So if you're going to stay with us, I'll need you to prove you have what it takes to deal with ghosts.

Good point. If they can't even defend themselves, we definitely can't let them go near the Big Five Ghost Stories.

Oh, those are the main reason why our inn has fallen on such hard times. But that can wait. For now...

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I'd like you three to resolve a haunting in the mountain behind the inn.

There's an abandoned mining site unaffiliated with our inn there, and some nasty spirits have supposedly taken up residence inside.

Anyone who walks in comes back crawling on the ground like a zombie.

It turned out they were no longer able to walk because their leg bones had rotted from the inside out.

Horrible story, isn't it? Perhaps there's still some corrosive gas lingering there or something.

Anyway, that's how this area came to be known as "Hell's Pavilion." Impressive, no?

So, you're saying we can stay here if we exorcise the evil spirits in that mine?

Oh come now, don't be silly. You're exorcists, right? Of course you can exorcise evil spirits.

That would hardly be a test of your skills. No, these sorts of things have always been all about competition.

So I'm going to have you compete with another exorcist to see which of you can purify Hell's Pavilion the quickest.

Would you do the honors, Miss?

I know I said I wouldn't exorcise any made-up ghosts, but if I'm going up against a real mage, that's a different story.

You Clock Tower mages never change. You're inhuman creatures that will cross oceans just to get their hands on Mystics.

Usurpers who would rather ruin other people's magecraft than improve their own, all in the name of maintaining their so-called dignity.

If there's any place in this world you belong, it's the deepest bowels of hell.

The rules are exactly what you'd expect. Whoever exorcises the most spirits wins.

All right then, go ahead and get started! I'll be praying that everything goes well. Heeheeheehee!

Th-that didn't take long! Multiple unidentified hostiles approaching!

I'm not seeing any signs of life or intelligence! They appear to be...some kind of clusters of magical energy!

Let's take care of them quickly. But we'll have to pull our punches so we don't cause a cave-in.

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Oh, I'm sure she's still back by the entrance.

You'd think someone so aggressive would be quicker to act, but nope, not her. She's always been a slacker.

You know her, Aoko?

I'm afraid so. I'll introduce you once this contest is over. Assuming we're still alive, that is.

In the meantime, we'll need to take down more than half these things before she gets here, or this match is as good as lost.

Huh? Then aren't we well on the way to victory already?

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Yup. Which is why we need to guarantee that, first. But we can worry about the small stuff later.

For now, let's blow these things away!

I don't like how that shady Kumanoin Yoshisuke guy has us dancing in the palm of his hand...

...but seeing as how this is obviously way worse than a simple poltergeist problem, I know we'll be doing the world a favor!

More than half, Master! We've thinned out majority of the hostiles!

I'm sorry we didn't give our opponent a chance, but this means victory is as good as ours!

I wouldn't be so sure. The proprietor laid out a bunch of complicated rules...

But victory or defeat always boil down to one thing. Points don't matter much after that.

You see, it's impossible to lose a contest...if you're the only competitor left.

She just erased all the magical energy clusters in this cave in an instant... Is this a Reality Marble? But, it doesn't feel like one...

It's her magecraft: Diddle Diddle, Banquet of the Night. It transforms the area around her into a world of nursery rhymes.

Reality Marbles work by materializing the user's mindscape and overwriting reality for a short time.

Compared to that, Diddle Diddle is like cheating. It cuts reality clean off, no ifs, ands, or buts.

It's the manifestation of a fairy tale, something even more magical than the five True Magics themselves.

It's a Ploy Kickshawan extraordinary type of familiar that happens to be Kuonji Alice's specialty.

I knew it. That WAS you, Aoko.

I had a hunch it might be you when I saw an exorcist with a paper bag over her head. So, how have you been?

I've been fine, as you can see. I'm just taking a break right now.

What about you? I'm surprised you're taking part in this kind of contest. What happened? Isn't it forbidden to use your magecraft in public?

Hell, you even went and wasted a Ploy on this. Looks like your competitive streak is worse than ever.

...Those two people with you are Clock Tower mages. They don't count as part of the public.

Besides, it doesn't matter how we got here. Now that we're fighting a magecraft battle, they're my enemy. So I'm going to send them packing before they can steal anything else.

Did you say "Clock Tower"?

I'm sorry, we're actually researchers with Chaldea. We don't have any association with an organization as storied as the Clock Tower.

You expect me to believe that? There's no organization called "Chaldea" anywhere in the Mage's Association.

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...Is that true, Aoko?

You bet it is. Chaldea's a real observatory up on top of an incredibly snowy mountain. I heard all about it through the grapevine.

But then, I wouldn't expect a witch who might as well be living under a rock to know about that.

I...

Yes?

...I've heard of it. It's a museum in Switzerland, right?

I remember Touko telling me about it once. ...Never mind that I just remembered that.

(Um, Senpai? I know there are amazing snowy mountains in Switzerland, but Chaldea isn't in)

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...Why do I feel like you just made a huge effort to spare my feelings?

Anyway, it doesn't matter. Those people might not be Clock Tower mages, but that doesn't mean this battle is over.

Meinster witches are forbidden from losing magecraft contests.

So I'm going to kill you two and keep my undefeated win streak going. In fact, this is a good opportunity to finally get rid of you too, Aoko.

Talk about two birds with one stone. This may even be the best day of my life so far.

How about we call it a draw then?

Huh?

We beat you in numbers, you beat us in magecraft, right?

So since we both won part of this contest, that makes this a draw, not a loss.

Besides, don't you think it'd make for a good story, sparing a couple of rookie mages?

I bet some people'd be thrilled to know that even you can be merciful when you feel like it.

...I suppose a draw would work, yes.

If they really aren't Clock Tower mages, then there's no need for me to kill them to keep them from talking.

All right, I'll go along with your draw. But don't get the wrong idea. I'm not doing this out of respect for you.

For calling you liars, however, I must apologize. I shouldn't have made such an assumption.

That's all right. We could definitely have explained ourselves better.

Allow us to introduce ourselves properly. My name is Mash Kyrielight.

And this is Fujimaru. He's a summoner from Chaldea, and I'm proud to call him my Master.

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Is that so? I'm Kuonji Alice. Call me whatever you like.

You two are here for your own reasons, right? If you stay out of my affairs, I will remain out of yours.

...Still, having said that...

I expect we'll cross paths while you're staying at the inn, so I will endeavor to treat you fairly.

After all, you're friends of Aoko's, right? She and I go way back. That's why I'd gladly kill her if I ever get the chance.