001 - What Makes it Hard to Go Home ?

*Boom!* Saber was sent flying far away, crashing through countless walls until she was hurled out of the Emiya residence.

After what felt like an eternity, she finally stopped, her body battered and bruised, armor shattered, as she lay on a deserted street.

"Hahh... hahh..." Saber panted heavily, struggling to stand, using Excalibur as a support.

Despite the pain and exhaustion, her eyes remained fixed forward, unyielding.

Moments later, Rei descended slowly in front of her, but just before his feet touched the ground, he stopped, hovering just inches above.

"Is that all you've got, Artoria Pendragon? You're the one who asked me for this form, and not even ten seconds have passed, and you're already like this."

Saber remained silent, tightening her grip on her sword before raising it toward him again.

She activated Mana Burst and charged at Rei once more, but just like before, she couldn't land a single hit.

Before Saber could swing her sword, Rei had already moved, effortlessly dodging her attack.

"You're starting to bore me." A burst of energy exploded from Rei, sending Saber flying back again.

As she was thrown back, Saber twisted her body mid-air to land properly before raising Excalibur toward the sky.

"Vortigern, Hammer of the Vile King, reverse the rising sun." Her sword began to glow with a dark, purplish aura that surged into the sky.

Rei watched Saber charge her sword, unmoved and uninterested. He knew his time in this form was limited and chose not to interfere.

"Swallow the light, Excalibur MORGAN!!" Saber released the massive energy blast toward Rei.

But Rei remained indifferent. With a single gesture, the attack vanished without a trace, as if it had never existed, disappearing in an instant.

Saber's eyes widened in shock as her Noble Phantasm vanished effortlessly.

"That's really unfortunate, Artoria," Rei said calmly, his voice cutting through the tension. "It would have been much more impressive if your Excalibur wasn't sealed, and if you were truly alive, able to fully wield the power of your dragon heart."

Rei then slowly ascended into the sky, stopping at a considerable height, looking down at Saber below. "Let me show you my favorite ability," he declared with a chilling smile.

Suddenly, a massive magic circle materialized behind him, glowing with silver and purple light. More magic circles appeared, smaller ones surrounding the enormous central circle. They multiplied rapidly, filling the sky, stretching far beyond, covering the entire town below.

"Paradise..." Rei's voice echoed as the circles began to pulse with a radiant silver glow.

"...Lost!" he finished, and with that, thousands of beams of silver light erupted from the magic circles, each one surging with overwhelming force and speeding toward Saber.

"Avalon!" Saber desperately summoned her ultimate defense, the invincible sheath appearing in front of her to shield her from the onslaught. But the moment one of the beams made contact with it, Avalon was pierced—shattered in an instant by the raw power of the attack.

And then... *BOOOOOOM*

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Saber suddenly awoke in her usual room, where she slept during her time in this world. She immediately sat up, glancing around for any sign of Rei, but found nothing. Without wasting any time, she stood up and left the room, heading to the dining area where they usually ate together.

Upon opening the door, she spotted Bazett, Taiga, and Shirou in the kitchen.

"Oh, Saber, you're finally awake," Taiga called out to her cheerfully.

"Saber?" Shirou emerged from the kitchen when he heard Taiga's voice and saw Saber standing in the doorway, her expression confused and tense.

"Shirou? Where is Rei?" Saber asked immediately, her voice filled with urgency.

Shirou hesitated, unsure how to respond. After a moment, he finally told her he'd explain everything after they finished making breakfast.

Though reluctant, Saber eventually agreed, sitting down to eat with the others. Once breakfast was over and Taiga had left, it was just Shirou, Saber, and Bazett remaining in the room.

"Alright... here's what happened."

---

Meanwhile, at Tohsaka's mansion...

"You what!? You accidentally killed Saber during training??" Rin's voice was incredulous as she confronted Rei.

"Yeah, but it's fine. I already revived her and rebuilt her body, making it as close as possible to her original Servant form, including her Saint Graph," Rei explained, his tone casual.

Rin could only stare at Rei in disbelief before sinking back into her chair. "Hah... well, whatever. At least you brought her back. Emiya's going to need her help if he wants to save Shinki."

"Here you go, Rei, Nee-chan," Sakura said as she placed two plates of food in front of them.

The three of them enjoyed Sakura's cooking for breakfast before Rin and Sakura prepared to head off to school, as usual. Despite the Holy Grail War having started a few days ago, nothing significant had occurred so far. Shinki hadn't appeared since their encounter that night, and the remaining Servants were Caster, Berserker, Assassin, Saber, Rider, and Archer.

Rei had decided to deal with Caster later, fed up with her continuous draining of people's Od. He'd had enough of her nonsense. As for Illya, she had been quiet since their meeting, and with Gilgamesh gone, Rei didn't have to worry about anyone stealing her heart.

"What about the taste this time?" Sakura asked Rei, her face full of hope.

"Hmm, it's not much different from yesterday, but compared to the first time you asked me to taste your cooking, it's much better now," Rei replied.

"I see. Then I'll keep practicing," Sakura said with a determined nod.

"What do you mean? This is already really good! How much more can you improve from this?" Rin chimed in, looking at them both.

The three of them continued chatting, enjoying a peaceful morning together.

---

Due to all the chatting, Rin and Sakura ended up being late and now they were both running towards the school, while Rei stayed at Tohsaka Mansion, mentioning he had something he wanted to test.

"Ahhhh, my record of never being late is going to be broken!!!" Rin yelled, sprinting towards the school.

"Haha, it's fine! Just think of it as exercise," Sakura laughed from behind her.

They both kept running until suddenly they spotted someone across the street. "Huh, look, it's Emiya over there," Sakura pointed across the road.

"Emiya?" Rin turned her head and saw Shirou also running in a rush toward the school.

"Emiyaaa!" Sakura called out to him without slowing down.

Shirou, hearing his name, turned to see them also running late. Now, there were three of them racing to make it to school on time.

After a quick exchange of words while running, they found out that Shirou was late because Saber had kept asking for an explanation about her fight with Rei.

A few minutes later, they finally arrived at the school gate, which was almost about to close.

"Hahh...hahhh... finally made it, just 20 minutes late, but at least we're here," Rin panted, catching her breath.

"Let's get in then," Shirou said, entering the gate, followed closely by Rin and Sakura as they headed towards the school building.

"…Weird, everything is so quiet," Sakura suddenly remarked, glancing at the windows.

But then, without warning, "!?!?!?" the three of them felt something strange—like a distortion of their senses. An uncomfortable, eerie feeling washed over them, and their bodies were covered in goosebumps.

"This… this is a bounded field?!" Rin quickly realized what was happening.

"Bounded field?" Shirou looked confused, not understanding what she meant.

"It's basically a barrier to prevent anyone from entering or leaving, or even to isolate this place from the outside."

"Nee-chan, it's too quiet. I can't hear the other students like usual," Sakura said, growing more concerned.

Without hesitation, the three of them rushed into the building to see what was going on.

"Listen, Emiya, if something bad happens, don't hesitate to use your Command Spell to summon Saber," Rin reminded him.

"I understand," Shirou nodded as they hurried through the entrance, passing by the shoe lockers.

As they rushed through the entrance and into the school corridors, their footsteps echoed in the eerie silence. When they turned the corner, the sight that greeted them made their blood run cold.

The entire hallway was littered with bodies—students they recognized, now lifeless, their forms twisted and grotesque. Blood was smeared across the walls and floors, and the bodies themselves were torn apart, as if they had been violently slashed. Some were missing limbs, others had deep gashes across their chests or faces. It was an utter massacre, a scene of pure horror.

Sakura gasped, covering her mouth, her eyes wide with shock and horror. "W-What... What happened here?" she whispered, her voice trembling.

Rin's face tightened with grim resolve. She surveyed the scene, stepping carefully over the blood-soaked floor. "This isn't just a normal bounded field," she muttered, "this… this is the work of a Servant. No human could have done this."

Shirou clenched his fists, his mind racing with disbelief. The sight of his school, once a normal, everyday place, now transformed into a slaughterhouse, was hard to process. His stomach turned, but he forced himself to stay focused. "Who could've done this?" he asked, his voice shaking with barely restrained anger.

"I don't know," Rin replied, her voice tight. "But we need to be ready. Whoever did this is still here."

Suddenly, a faint sound echoed from further down the corridor, like the soft tapping of footsteps. It was quiet, but it cut through the silence like a knife.

Rin's eyes narrowed. "Get ready."

Without another word, they moved forward cautiously, their senses on high alert. As they approached the end of the hall, the carnage only grew worse—more bodies, more blood. The stench was suffocating, and the oppressive air of the bounded field weighed heavily on them.

And then they saw it. A figure, standing at the far end of the corridor. Cloaked in shadows, their face was obscured, but their posture was calm, almost casual, as if the massacre around them was of no consequence.

The figure tilted their head slightly, as if amused. Then, without a word, they began to walk away to find another victim, the sound of their footsteps echoing ominously in the deathly quiet corridor.

"That's Shinki!" Sakura whispered urgently to Rin and Shirou as she caught a glimpse of the long purple hair flowing from the figure in the distance.

Rin's eyes narrowed. "We need to call Rei!" She reached for her necklace, prepared to summon him.

"Wait, Tohsaka... Let me handle her," Shirou interrupted, his voice steady but his gaze never leaving Shinki.

"Wait, what?!" Rin looked at him in disbelief.

"I'm going to talk to her... one last time," Shirou said, clenching his fists tightly. "What's she's doing now is too much. She's killing everyone. If she keeps this up... I won't have any choice but to kill her."

But just as Shirou tried to take another glance at Shinki, his eyes went wide with horror. Shinki was now staring directly at him, her once calm eyes wide open, filled with an unsettling, creepy intensity. Her lips curled into a wide, unnatural smile.

"Run!" Shirou shouted, grabbing Sakura and Rin, pulling them away just as the spot where they stood exploded, a beam of energy shooting from Shinki's direction, obliterating the hallway behind them.

"Is that Gorgon?!" Rin yelled as they sprinted through the bloody corridor.

"We need to find an open space!" Sakura shouted, her voice strained with panic. "This hallway is a death trap!"

"I know! Let's head to the school yard!" Rin responded, leading the way as they dashed past pools of blood and the scattered remains of students.

While they ran, Shirou's eyes caught sight of something familiar, and his heart stopped. Among the carnage, he spotted a half-destroyed body—someone he knew too well. "Taiga...!?"

He nearly stopped in his tracks, but Rin grabbed him, pulling him along as another beam from Gorgon tore through the corridor behind them. "Emiya, we don't have time!" she shouted, keeping them moving as they raced toward the yard, death following close behind.

The three of them kept running until they reached the open yard, panting and turning back toward the school, ready for Shinki's arrival.

"Emiya, summon Saber!" Rin shouted urgently.

Before Shirou could act, dark tendrils suddenly burst out from the building, snaking toward them at a rapid pace.

"Excalibur!" In a flash, Excalibur materialized in Shirou's hand, and with swift, decisive movements, he slashed through the tendrils. However, the sheer number of them overwhelmed him, and several tendrils slipped past his defenses, heading straight for Rin and Sakura.

"Arcane Field!" Rin tossed a small stone onto the ground, which shattered immediately upon impact, summoning a dark-hued force field that enveloped the three of them. The tendrils slammed into the barrier but failed to penetrate it, the magic holding strong against the attack.

Meanwhile, Sakura summoned her Imaginary Number Space. From the void, a weapon emerged—a bow forged from the fiery essence of a rose. The bow radiated with an intense, burning light, its form shimmering as flames danced along its petals.

[IMAGE]

She notched an arrow, its brilliance casting a warm, golden glow. As she pulled back the string, the fire blazed brighter, filling the area with a radiance that pushed back the darkness. The arrow was imbued with the essence of a rose in full bloom, capable of banishing the shadows that clung to this world.

Sakura aimed, her focus unwavering. "Domination Shot." With a release of her grip, the fiery arrow soared into the sky, lighting up the dark tendrils and the space around them.

All the tendrils were engulfed in flames from Sakura's arrow, disintegrating into ash until none remained. The area fell into an eerie silence, as if the very air was holding its breath.

"Saber, come here!" Shirou wasted no time, using his command spell to summon her.

In an instant, Saber appeared before him, her eyes immediately scanning the area with a sharp gaze. Her stance was poised and ready, her hand already resting on the hilt of Excalibur.

"What's the situation?" she asked without turning, her focus fixed on the school building in front of her.

Shirou took a breath, steadying himself. "Shinki is here... She's been killing everyone in the school. We manage to get out."

Saber's expression hardened at the mention of Shinki's name. "Understood."

The air around them seemed to thicken with tension as they braced themselves for what was coming next.