"And that was everything that happened."
Arthur finished his report after nearly two hours. Olga was still sitting on his lap, a position that had stopped bothering her a long time ago—or at least that was what she insisted on telling herself.
She slowly massaged her temples while crossing her legs.
"Now I understand why you classified that mission as shit."
Arthur let out a short laugh.
"And how was Ritsuka's mission in that Micro-Singularity in Romania? I bet it was less troublesome."
Olga shot him a dry look.
"You really never learn, do you?"
She let out a tired sigh before continuing.
"Her mission was to participate in an abnormal Holy Grail War taking place there."
"Unfortunately, just like your mission, things over there also spiraled out of control much faster than I'd like to admit."
That alone already said a lot.
Considering who had been sent on the mission, Arthur was beginning to suspect that disaster might have been inevitable.
"And the worst part wasn't even that."
Olga's irritated expression deepened.
"The Greater Grail ended up being used to undo some idiotic wish."
She exhaled through her nose.
"After that, it basically became a useless rock."
Arthur tilted his head slightly back.
The more he heard about that mission, the more it started to resemble Snowfield.
"Sounds like Ritsuka had quite a rough time too, huh?"
Olga made a small sound of agreement.
"She has the same talent you do, you know that?"
"That wasn't a compliment, was it?"
"Definitely not. You both came back without accomplishing the objective of your missions."
Despite the immediate response, a faint trace of amusement appeared in her voice.
Closing one of the folders on the table, she continued:
"Besides, she came back to CHALDEA bringing a few extra Servants with her. Mordred, Jack the Ripper, Jeanne d'Arc, and Atalanta."
This time, Arthur was genuinely surprised.
A low whistle escaped his lips.
"Not bad... not bad at all."
"For someone who brought a goddess to CHALDEA, you seem pretty surprised," Olga immediately mocked.
The comment made Arthur turn toward her.
"You shouldn't talk to me like that, Olga."
The Director immediately raised an eyebrow.
"Oh, shouldn't I?"
Her tone carried all the authority she usually displayed during meetings.
"Are you forgetting that I'm the one in charge here?"
Arthur merely smiled.
Then he leaned forward until his lips were close to her ear.
"I think I should remind you who completely loses all authority when we're alone..."
The words were whispered in a low, provocative tone, but the effect was immediate.
Olga's face turned completely red all the way to her ears.
For an entire second, she simply froze.
Then she turned toward him with an indignant expression.
"A-Arthur?! That has absolutely nothing to do with this conversation!"
The response came out far too quickly to sound convincing.
"Of course it doesn't."
Arthur started laughing.
"And stop laughing!"
"I'm trying, Olga."
"It doesn't look like it!"
Despite her complaint, her reaction only made him laugh harder.
After a few moments, Arthur placed a hand on her waist.
"Alright, my adorable Director. I need to get up."
Olga shot him one last irritated look before finally climbing off his lap.
"You finally decided to act like an adult."
"You were sitting here willingly."
"That's just an irrelevant detail and... You're a very comfortable seat."
Arthur simply smiled as he stood up.
"I'm going to take a walk around. I need to find someone else now."
Olga adjusted her clothes and regained part of her usual composure.
"If you're talking about your 'adoptive sisters,' they went with Artoria to a Micro-Singularity in Misaki City. Something about a Dead Apostle causing trouble there."
She paused briefly.
"By the way, Rin and Sakura still haven't returned. Where are they?"
Arthur started walking toward the door.
"At the Clock Tower. Apparently they went to report something to Lord El-Melloi. As far as I know, Sakura went with her."
Then he flashed Olga an amused smile.
"And no, I'm not looking for them."
"Oh?"
She looked at him strangely.
"Nope."
He shoved his hands into his pockets.
"I'm going to see a certain little fox."
Olga immediately understood who he was talking about.
The Servant Arthur had summoned and sent to accompany Ritsuka during the Apocrypha Micro-Singularity mission.
---
Ever since she had been summoned by Arthur, Tamamo-no-Mae still hadn't managed to decide whether everything leaned more toward the good side or the complicated side.
Arthur didn't use Command Spells to force obedience. Nor did he possess that distant coldness seen in so many magi. He was the kind of person who spoke calmly, genuinely listened, and even when situations became difficult, seemed able to keep a clear head with ease.
For her, that alone already placed him far above average.
And ever since she had arrived at CHALDEA, there had been no shortage of unexpected moments.
Strange situations and little breaks from routine constantly appeared, making everything anything but monotonous.
She certainly wasn't complaining.
If anything, she liked it.
The problem was something else.
Arthur seemed dangerously slow whenever the subject involved the feelings of women who weren't already romantically involved with him.
And for someone like her, that was practically a direct provocation from the universe itself.
Things should have progressed a little further by now, right?
It didn't have to be anything excessive.
Just... defined.
Clear.
Without room for confusing interpretations that she definitely wasn't making all the time.
But nothing changed.
Their relationship remained exactly where it had been from the beginning.
She knew it wasn't indifference.
Arthur simply didn't seem like the type to push anyone into anything.
And that was precisely why he had trusted her to accompany Ritsuka on that mission.
That alone already said quite a lot.
Even so, it didn't help with the rest of the thoughts that stubbornly kept appearing.
Tamamo let out a soft sigh, almost as if she were giving up on arguing with herself.
"Tamamo."
His voice suddenly echoed through the corridor.
She blinked in surprise and immediately turned around, only to see Arthur standing there.
"What is it?" he asked naturally. "You have a strange look on your face."
"Strange" was far too simple a description for what she was feeling, but she didn't comment on it.
"I'm fine..."
She cleared her throat.
"Master, did something happen?"
Arthur observed her for a moment.
Recently, he truly hadn't had much time for his relationships.
Ever since he had temporarily sacrificed a large portion of his power to stabilize the world and bring Olga back to life after the events of Singularity F, Arthur's situation within CHALDEA had become considerably more complicated.
Without the same amount of power he had previously possessed, he could no longer solve certain problems simply by overwhelming them with force.
As a result, he, Ritsuka and Mash, Rin and Sakura, Hisui and Kohaku, and Caren and Fujino ended up being repeatedly dispatched in pairs to various missions in the so-called Micro-Singularities.
Unlike Singularities capable of directly threatening the continuity of Human History, Micro-Singularities were smaller distortions, localized temporal anomalies that emerged at specific points in the timeline.
While incapable of causing humanity's extinction on their own, they still possessed enough potential to cause significant damage if ignored.
Many took the form of abnormal Holy Grail Wars, altered historical events, or isolated realities that had deviated from the proper course of history.
In theory, they were less dangerous missions.
In practice, things almost never worked out that way.
Maybe it was bad luck.
Or maybe the universe had simply decided that Arthur and his group weren't entitled to simple missions.
Regardless of the reason, things rarely ended as planned.
Because of all this, simple conversations often ended up being pushed aside for quite a long time.
"No, nothing urgent. Are you busy right now?" Arthur replied while gesturing for her to follow him.
---
A few minutes later, the two of them were sitting on a secluded bench near one of CHALDEA's corridors.
There was less traffic there, and the distant sound of footsteps gave the place a strangely peaceful atmosphere.
Tamamo sat very close to him, as though she had decided that personal space was more of a suggestion than a rule.
One hand partially hid her face behind her long sleeve, but her gaze remained attentive.
"Even though it seems like you're always running from one place to another..."
She spoke lightly, though there was a hint of suspicion beneath her tone.
"When you suddenly show up like this, it's usually not by accident, right?"
"That sounded almost like an accusation."
Arthur laughed and flicked her forehead.
"I didn't say that!"
She quickly replied while rubbing the spot where the flick had landed.
"I'm just saying you're not exactly the type of person who 'shows up for no reason.'"
"Not that that's a bad thing."
She added while looking away for a second.
And then, as if she had decided to end the subject herself, she leaned against him again and naturally grabbed his arm.
Arthur smiled at her actions.
His hand rose calmly and began gently patting her head in a simple, almost automatic gesture.
"Can I ask you something?"
"Hmm?"
"How are you feeling here? Is it tiring?" he asked.
Tamamo tilted her head slightly, as though choosing between several possible answers.
Then she offered a softer smile.
"No, not really. Actually... I feel good when I'm with you."
She answered with a smile.
"Then that's already enough."
Arthur smiled back.
She let out a small giggle.
"But that's not really it, you know?"
Her eyes shone with a bit more energy.
"I still haven't had a proper chance to fight alongside you. That's a little frustrating. I want to be able to do more things together with you."
She turned her face toward him, more animated now.
"Like causing a little chaos every now and then. Things like that."
"We'll have the opportunity soon," Arthur replied.
"Then I'll look forward to it, Master," she answered.
Arthur and Tamamo continued talking about various subjects when light footsteps approached through the corridor.
"Arthur? Tamamo?"
A voice naturally interrupted their conversation.
(End of Chapter)