The purple-haired girl referred to as Passionlip by the young Saber was a Servant.
She wore a restraining helmet that concealed her face, letting out only pained, inarticulate whimpers.
"What is that...?"
Even someone as experienced as Scáthach was momentarily stunned.
Passionlip had a petite frame, yet her chest size was enough to put even Artoria to shame.
That alone wouldn't be an issue—she'd just be another Servant with a striking figure.
The real problem lay in her unnatural golden claws.
Instead of hands, everything below Passionlip's elbows was replaced by massive, golden talons.
"Careful. Don't let that thing touch you," Shiomi warned Scáthach. "Her hands are both weapons and Noble Phantasms... she's extremely dangerous!"
Even without knowing what Passionlip really was, Shiomi's instincts screamed that she was a serious threat.
Stranger still, despite never having seen her before, he felt an odd sense of familiarity—as if he had encountered her somewhere before.
But reality gave him no time to think. Passionlip, who had suddenly appeared, began attacking everything around her indiscriminately.
Whether it was the young Saber and the two Knights of the Round Table, or Shiomi and the rest—she didn't differentiate.
Her claws moved with a deceptively light motion, yet everything around her, even the ground itself, began to shatter.
Worse yet, ever since the Rayshift into this digital world, Shiomi's body had started to break down.
"In any case, we need to retreat—get out of this area!" Morgan quickly decided, with no time to analyze the cause.
Even if they managed to win, there was no telling whether the Servants would fall first—or Shiomi would disappear.
Without hesitation, Scáthach picked up Shiomi and dashed away from Passionlip.
"Wait... Master..."
He wanted to run on his own feet, but Scáthach's judgment was spot-on.
In his current state, Shiomi couldn't keep running for long, and there was a high chance he'd be caught by the newly appeared Servant if he tried.
"That steel gorilla! Barging in at the worst possible moment! This is seriously pissing me off!"
Though she clearly recognized Passionlip, the young Saber still turned and fled.
Only Gawain and Tristan held their ground.
With Passionlip's sudden intrusion, their priorities had shifted—now it was all about self-preservation and withdrawal.
How exactly to survive and retreat was left to the judgment of the two knights.
"Gawain! Tristan!" Artoria called out in alarm.
Just then, countless threads coiled around Passionlip, temporarily restricting her movements.
"My king! Please leave this place at once!" Gawain called out without looking back. "We cannot undo the sin of raising our blades against you. This is the least we can do!"
Tristan gave a light laugh. "No need to worry, my king. This is our duty."
"What are you hesitating for, Ruler?" Morgan urged.
Artoria followed closely behind Scáthach and Morgan. While the terrifying young Servant sowed chaos, she took the chance to pull away the moment the two knights blocked her path.
"She really just left her comrades behind," Shiomi muttered, watching Saber maintain her distance but flee in the same direction.
"They're strong enough. No way Passionlip's ghostly self could kill them," Saber replied confidently.
Soon, the path ahead forked.
But Saber suddenly stopped and turned around.
"Planning to die?" Scáthach asked, coming to a halt.
It wasn't necessarily a bad thing for their group—after all, they'd been enemies until the third-party intrusion disrupted the battle.
"No point in sticking with the enemy. And after thinking about it, I should go help those two out. They're my subordinates, after all!" Saber declared with a bold laugh, pointing her katana at the three. "Besides, I'm still pissed about getting interrupted."
Morgan raised an eyebrow slightly. "Oh? Then good luck to you."
The sounds of battle were drawing closer—Gawain and Tristan were clearly fighting a retreating battle. Staying here would only delay things and risk getting caught.
Saber didn't seem concerned. With a flourish, she turned and strode off.
"Don't underestimate me! I'm the daughter of the Demon King of the Fourth Heaven, the radiant and brilliant JK Saber—Suzuka Gozen!"
With no intention of hiding her true name, Suzuka Gozen introduced herself grandly and turned back the way she came.
"JK..." Shiomi rubbed his temples, already feeling a headache.
But there was no time for banter or analysis—the path ahead had split again.
"Master, which way should we go?" Artoria asked.
Shiomi hesitated, then looked toward the fork.
"Come this way. I'm waiting for you at the church."
A voice suddenly echoed in his mind.
"This way. There's a church we can use for shelter!"
He pointed toward one of the paths.
The three women were clearly surprised, but none hesitated.
They stepped in the direction Shiomi indicated.
"How did you know there's a church?" Scáthach asked.
"…You'll understand when we get there," Shiomi replied quietly. "I once said I didn't know where I came from and had no memories of my past—that wasn't entirely true."
Morgan said, "Yet my fairy eyes tell me you've shown no signs of lying."
"Exactly. I only told you what I could." Shiomi let out a sigh. "I wasn't supposed to be part of this Rayshift. The reason I insisted on going alone, bringing only you three... is because of this."
"Master's… origins?" Artoria murmured thoughtfully.
Even she hadn't been able to uncover the truth. But now, it might be close at hand.
"I have a feeling... the other party might not be willing to tell me everything," Shiomi said, shaking his head.
After weaving through the winding roads, the silhouette of the church finally came into view.
"But more importantly, prepare yourselves—so you won't be too shocked when you see who's inside," he added.
That only deepened their curiosity.
When they reached the front of the church, Scáthach gently set Shiomi down.
As they moved farther from the battlefield, his spiritual state stabilized. The disintegration effect ceased—for now.
"Is this another old flame?" Scáthach asked while smoothing the wrinkles on his clothes.
Morgan raised a hand. "I'm nearing my limit. If any more pop up, we may need to start restraining our Master."
"Uh... It's not that kind of thing. And rather than an old flame..." Shiomi pushed open the church door. "Calling her my 'daughter' might be more accurate."
"A secret child?" Artoria asked flatly.
Shiomi nearly lost his balance, letting the open door swing back and shut with a thud.
"You'll understand when you see her..."
If his instincts were right—
This was a secret he'd long wanted to share with the three women closest to him, but had never found the words.
"You arrived faster than I expected. Perhaps I should commend your decisiveness."
In front of the church altar, a girl in a black trench coat stood with her back to the entrance, idly toying with a cane in her hand as she slowly turned around.
"Dad."
...
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